Reappearing

Hello again.

Sorry for the gap in posts, but after watching people around me drop like flies with cold and/or flu, it finally got me last week.

I'm in the press box at the University of Georgia's Foley Field waiting for the Clemson-Georgia game to get underway, and I'll be trying to call the game tonight with less than full voice. Should be fun.

The diet has been just okay over the past week. But last night my wife and I spent nearly three hours cooking Ultra Fit meals and storing them for the week ahead. So my plan is to bounce back strong now that I'm feeling better.

One thing that troubles me, though, is the continued malfunctioning of the scales at Clemson.

While some people are better off not checking their weight often, I have discovered over the last year plus that I feed off those numbers. When I don't have the access to get them, I tend to wander a bit.

So I'm hoping that tomorrow the scales are fixed and I can get a solid look at where I am. Probably a step or two backward, if I had to guess. But still looking for a strong push toward my birthday.

John DeFendis was in rare form during his appearance on my radio show today. His message was aimed at trying to convince people to take the first step toward better health, but it seemed to strike a chord with me, too.

He also sends these little motivational videos (he's big on Rocky movies), and Vernon keeps pounding us with tips and new ways to prepare food.

All the tools are there. Just have to get that consistency back.

Long, Long Night

Catching up on things this morning after a long night at Doug Kingsmore Stadium.

Ended up playing a doubleheader because of rain forecast today (and it is raining), so I didn't get home until after 1 a.m.

Finished up the chicken nuggets last night (and no, they're not McDonald's. They're an Ultra Fit recipe).

Did have one quick detour off the straight and narrow, but it was out of necessity. As you know, my wife and I are opening a restaurant and we are toying with the menu possibilities. She brought me a BBQ sandwich we're contemplating serving for me to try, so I did eat that last night as well.

Not on the diet, but chalk it up to research. Flimsy excuse, I know.

Anyway, the scales at Clemson are still on the blink. Hoping I can weigh in tomorrow morning. I feel like I've had two good weeks, but haven't been able to get tangible proof of the results.

But the workouts continue on a regular basis, and I continue to strive for the perfect week on the diet.

To that end, today began with two Ultra Fit style chicken fajitas for breakfast.

Will update the menu as we go forward throughout the afternoon and evening.

Tuesday Menu Continues

Two more meals in the books today.

1 p.m. - Chicken and broccoli pasta and a salad

4 p.m. - Two more fajitas and a few chicken nuggets.

Rest of the evening will be hit and miss. In the press box for Clemson baseball, and because of rain expected tomorrow they've decided to play a doubleheader today. So, it's 18 innings (at least) on the radio.

Will be munching on chicken nuggets when the opportunity arises.

Tuesday Menu

Began the day with a 7:30 a.m. workout with Vernon, then headed to the office. My meals today are/have been:

8:30 a.m. - Two Ultra Fit chicken salad sandwiches.

Monday Monday

Popped over to Clemson to grab a look at the scales this morning, and they're on the fritz.

They are doing the same thing as last Monday - the digital numbers running up and down at a frantic pace and never settling on a final score. So I can't tell you what I've accomplished, if anything, over the last week.

But, in the interest of trying to make the best of it, I've decided on a new twist in the ol' blog:

Beginning today, and for the next few days, I'm going to log everything I eat. Good and bad.

My goal? To have as near a perfect week as I can.

Remember, on the Ultra Fit plan I'm supposed to eat five meals a day - four of them a balance of protien and carbs, and the final meal in the evening without the carbs.

So, the log begins here. I'll actually enter breakfast and lunch, because I know where I'm going today when the show is over and what I'm going to have when I get there:

TUESDAY

Meal #1 (8:30 p.m.) - Two Ultra Fit chicken salad sandwiches on low sodium Ezekiel Bread.

Meal #2 (1 p.m.) - Lunch at Ruby Tuesdays. Plain grilled chicken breast, plain baked potato, unseasoned steamed broccoli and the salad bar.

Meal #3 (4:30 p.m.) - Ultra Fit home-made popcorn chicken.

Meal #4 (8:30 p.m.) - Two Ultra-Fit chicken fajitas and a few leftover chicken nuggets.

Weigh-In Delay

Couldn't weigh-in today. The training room at Clemson was locked up. The students are on spring break, which probably explains it. But it was open on Monday. So I don't know.

I do know that I had a good week. I'm going to pop over there tomorrow and see if maybe it's open. Regardless, I feel like I've got some good momentum going. My attitude is better than it's been in a long time.

Oh, by the way...Called a no-hitter on Clemson radio tonight. It came two weeks after they missed getting one by one strike vs. Furman.

Got my voice attached to a piece of school history. Pretty cool, if you ask me.

Catching Up

Talked to Vernon about the last week, and told him that despite the trouble last Saturday I still was showing almost a two-pound loss Tuesday morning.

Did fine with the diet during the day Tuesday. But did drink quite a bit of water late (had a ballgame on the radio...gotta keep the pipes lubricated).

He figured it was probably temporary water retention, something that seemed to make sense once I hopped on the scales Thursday morning for a quick look. So no real frustration here. Just trying to keep everything between the white lines.

Another big challenge coming up next weekend, though. Clemson baseball travels to Tallahassee for a series with Florida State, so I'll be eating on the road for three days.

Preparation is the key. I'll be doing a lot of pre-cooking before we leave next Friday morning.

Anyway, the belated update is below. Thanks for continuing to check in. The support means more than any of you know.

The Scoreboard:

Week 1 - Lost 5
Week 2 - Lost 4
Week 3 - Lost 0

Weigh-In Day

Checked in with the scales today. I'm exactly where I was last week. The weekend killed me. Will update with more details later.

Issues

Not sure Wednesday is going to be a very good day. I've had some issues this week.

Most notably on Saturday.

We took off for Lexington, Ga. to visit a BBQ restaurant we read about in a book called Southern Belly. It's a guide to out of the way places around the South, and since Angie and I are opening a BBQ restaurant of our own we've been trying to visit other places when the opportunity arises.

I had anticipated being able to eat chicken while there, and took the necessary sides/condiments to make it happen. Only the place doesn't have chicken. Only BBQ and ribs. So I'm stuck.

Then, as if that wasn't bad enough, we were out so long that we ended up eating again. And I was thoroughly unprepared.

All of which brings up two very strong reminders"

- I still can't be trusted
- I can't allow myself to be put in those positions.

Anyway, had a good day yesterday and plan to close strong today and Tuesday. And if it turns out I get knocked down, I'll get right back up and start again.

No six-week funk this time.

Another Good Week

Sorry for the week between posts.

As some of you know, my wife and I are in the process of opening a restaurant - a little BBQ place not too far from here. And it's taking up an incredible amount of time.

But my focus remains good. Today was weigh-in day, and the scales show I've lost four more pounds.

That's nine in the last two weeks, continuing toward my short-term goal of losing 32 pounds by my birthday on April 14. And it's back up to 107 total pounds lost.

Nice to have back-to-back weeks in the black again. Gotta keep pushing forward...

The Scoreboard:

Week 1 - Lost 5
Week 2 - Lost 4