My weight loss in the past few weeks has transformed into a much more slow and steady pace. Gone are 3/4/5 pound losses in a week, having been replaced by slower, steadier 1-2 pound losses. I’m totally fine with this actually. This is a much more reasonable rate of loss, and I pretty much expected this to happen anyways once I got down closer to my goal weight.
I was very excited to see my official Physics Diet weight drop down below 220 this week, meaning that I’ve now lost more than 60 pounds! I’ve lost 60 pounds in the first 5 months of my journey, and it very well may take me another 5 months to lose the remaining 25 pounds, but you know what? I’m totally fine with that. I’m extremely happy with the progress I’ve made so far. I weigh less than I have in years. I’m healthier and in better shape than I probably ever have been.
Here’s my official numbers for the week:
- Weight: 218.9 lbs
- Pounds lost this week: 2.1
- Pounds lost so far: 61.1
- BMI: 28.11
Pounds to goal #1 of “overweight” BMI: 0.0Goal met 4/9/10!- Pounds to goal #2 of “normal” BMI: 24.9
Links of the Week
- Full-fat Dairy for Cardiovascular Health
- Standing Desk Experiment and Experiences
- Phys Ed: Does Exercise Help You Sleep Better?
- Eat less, live longer?
- Coffee Consumption Unrelated to Alertness: Stimulating Effects May Be Illusion
New Orleans or Bust!
As I’ve mentioned a few times, I’m heading to New Orleans tomorrow night for the next week for a conference for work. While I’m definitely looking forward to the trip, I’ll be faced with a number of challenges when it comes to making healthy eating choices, including junk food as far as the eye can see.
As I talked about in that last post, I’ve got a good plan for continuing to eat healthy, and I plan on either using the hotel’s gym, or even getting outside and doing a little exploratory running around New Orleans (or both!).
I won’t have any new posts of my own next week, but I do have some great guest posts lined up while I’m gone, so keep an eye out for those. I’ll do my best to keep up with everyone on Twitter while I’m away. I don’t get back until next Saturday, so I won’t have my usual weigh-in post on Friday, though I may try to get one up Saturday or Sunday, to either assess the damage, or claim victory over my week away.
Weekend Warriors Challenge
Since I’m going to be gone most of this weekend, Jeremy from Stellar Path has graciously agreed to host this month’s Weekend Warriors Challenge. So head on over there and signup if you haven’t already.
Even though I won’t be around to host the challenge this month, I’m still going to be participating on the road, so here are my goals for the weekend:
- Get in an extra workout/run/bike on Saturday. Not sure yet which I’ll do, but I want to get an extra something in on Saturday before I leave, since the following week is going to be a struggle.
- NO crappy airline or airport food. When I used to go on trips, I pretty much used it as an excuse to eat whatever crappy food they gave you on the airplane, and whatever I ended up eating in airports. Not this time. I’m going to bring some of my own healthy snacks, and I’ll search far and wide in the airports to find something healthy to eat for meals.
1/2 Marathon in 10 Weeks?
The last week or 2, I’ve felt like my running has really started to “click”. Last week I made the decision to stop doing the C25K program, and start doing my own thing, which at this point I think was a really good decision on my part. Even though I don’t have my first official 5k race until July 11, I’ve recently been putting some serious thought into signing up for a 1/2 marathon this fall.
There aren’t a huge number of races up here, but as luck would have it, there’s the Skinny Raven 1/2 Marathon here in Anchorage on August 15. That basically gives me 10 weeks to train. Currently, my longest run has been just under 4 miles, so I’ve definitely got some work to do before then. Maybe it’s a little crazy, but I figure the worst that could happen is that I end up having to take a few walking breaks here and there. I floated the idea on Twitter yesterday, and got some great feedback – mostly saying GO FOR IT! I’m not 100% decided yet, but at this point, I’m definitely leaning towards doing it.
Everyone have a great weekend. For those participating in the Weekend Warriors Challenge, good luck! Have a great week, I’ll be thinking of you all while I’m gallavanting around New Orleans 
{ 14 comments }
Hey Brandon: Nice job on the continued weight loss! I’ve been kind of awol from the blogging world lately but I felt the need to let you know I’m still reading and wanted to weigh (Ha!) in on a couple of things from this post.
1) It’s nice to see that you’re realistic about your weight loss progress. I think everyone slows down at some point and a lot of us get discouraged. I lost my first 30 pounds in about 4 months and the next 30 over the next 18 months. Sometimes I got discouraged, but I never gave up. You shouldn’t either!
2) half marathon 10 weeks? I have no question that you can do this. But I would be cautious and slowly work up to that distance. There’s nothing worse than an injury to slow you down and take away your weight loss mojo. My advice would be to go to the smart coach page at runners world and answer the questions (honestly) and then go for it. It will give you a day by day running plan to get you to the race. Then, during the actual race, my goal would simply be completion and enjoyment, not a specific time. That way you can walk if you need to and not feel bad about it. I definitely think you can handle it if you’re a little bit sensible about the whole thing. Hope this helps.
Thanks for the advice Mac! I hadn’t seen the smart coach tool on Runner’s World before, that’s pretty slick, and gave me a running plan that seems very reasonable. I’m feeling much better about being able to run a 1/2 marathon in 10 weeks!
Woah, mega housekeeping post! I <3 it! My post today is going to be just like that. Congrats on the loss. Can't wait to see everyone's guest posts!
Most importantly, have FUN while you can in New Orleans! It's a city I've never been to and I find that sad, so I always live vicariously through people when they go there!
Thanks Erin, I’m sure it’s going to be a great time in New Orleans (how could it not be?). I’ll be sure to tweet enough for you to live vicariously through
Great job on the weight loss, and muy excellente job on realizing that you were going to slow down on the weight loss and still sticking with it. That means you’re going to hit your goal!! So awesome.
If I can ever help, let me know!
http://www.FitnessAchievement.com
.-= Will´s last blog… How to Stay Motivated for Working Out or Anything Else =-.
Forgive my for not knowing but if you’ve been running for at least a month and close to 4 miles each time then 10 weeks shouldn’t be a problem. I just ran a HM last Sunday on 13 weeks training. I ran 4 miles both Tuesday and Thursdays and then ran my long run on Sundays. For the long run distances I used Jeff Galloway’s HM training plan. There’s a link to his site on my blog. Good luck with whatever you decide!
Yeah I’ve been running for about 7 weeks now. The more I’ve been reading up on training plans, the more confident I feel about the whole idea.
Great job! I’m losing weight at a slower pace too, I think 20 or 30 more pounds and I’ll be set. I’m trying ti bulk up as well which is hard to do while losing weight, most likely impossible. :p
Cheers!
.-= Jay´s last blog… BBQ Time! =-.
It makes me all tingly inside to hear you talk about a 1/2 marathon. You could add 1/2-1 mile per week and work up to 10-11. No problem at all. Mac’s right – don’t hurt yourself. I will email you my little e-guide on 1/2 marathon training. I have run all around N.O. and it makes for a nice little jog. Can smell like urine in the quarter early in the a.m though.
.-= Joe´s last blog… Teaching your kids about exercise – Creating a legacy of healthy living. =-.
Thanks for sending your guide Joe, looks like some good stuff!
Congrats on the lose, that’s awesome to see it moving on down.
Isn’t smart coach awesome? Love it too, I know you can do it and as Mac said if you do a “finish” goal and need to walk a touch so be it. Long term injury freedom is far better. And you can so do it, I have absolutely no doubt about it.
.-= Rita´s last blog… On the Road Again =-.
Thanks Rita, I’m definitely feeling better about the whole thing the more I’ve read up on training plans. Happy to see you around again after your trip
Hi Brandon,
As I mentioned on Twitter, I am sure you are going to do okay in New Orleans. You are planning ahead to stay on track, so that’s good.
Good job on the loss this week. You are my inspiration, with your continuous progress and weight loss!
.-= Carla´s last blog… A beautiful walk =-.
Oh, just thinking…
DID YOU SIGN UP?! Because I just signed up for my Full
Hope your NOLA trip went well. Any visits to the shore to see the biggest natural disaster of the freaking CENTURY? Ugh.
Can’t wait to hear about your Weekend Warriors recap and I’m excited for you to start training! I’m glad you got rid of your C25K training wheels. It’s a good start point but if it was holding you back, no point in sticking to the regimens. I’m researching into getting in some solid running too (different types of runs to improve my speed/endurance). I didn’t realize there were a lot of specialized training that goes into running, but now that I love running and am a runner, there’s a lot of research to be done!
Keep at it buddy.
.-= Jess´s last blog… I Went, I Ran, I Conquered =-.