Alligatorob's Diary

[Petal001]

Rob the calender flip worked well there. I agree that submarine would have been terrifying .

you and I started around the same time I was mid May I believe . How fantastic if you achieve your target by then . You are doing phenomenal well . Well done on avoiding the pizza .

 

[aiminglow]

It's fascinating to shift into thinking about a long-term or even maintenance focus, isn't it? I'm very vaguely doing the same thing, thinking around the idea, while staying steady weight-wise, hovering between my last actual goal (which was to get down to "overweight") and the interim mini-goal of a two-three pounds under that, as a "safety net".

I know we've all said losing weight isn't a straight line, etc, but in fact your loss has been pretty steady, with 86 or so pounds over more or less eight months, so extrapolating, mid-May would bring you down another forty or so pounds, leaving you just around thirty or so to lose as you "coast down" (I love that! It sounds so like someone coming down the last gentle bit of a toboggan run. ) to maintenance. (If you're still thinking of 160 as an end-goal. Did your doctor endorse that?)
As for "luck" - I don't think luck has had much to do with your absolutely triumphant eight months!

 

[overlandflyer]

... they believe in maintaining a 2 year supply of emergency food in case of Armageddon or the second coming ....

living in an earthquake zone, i'm aware of the need for an emergency supply of food, water & power and have taken care of 30-45 days or at least i will be better off when i get a sorta new (been procrastinating about the install) 55 gal water tank hooked up in my garage when i get my water heater replaced in the next few months. i already have a box of freeze dried food that will get me by for a month or so and i have some solar panels that will at least get me some minimal power on a daily basis. of all disaster situations, earthquakes are probably the most insidious in that there is zero time to prepare. even a disaster like the possible La Palma landslide or an asteroid strike would give SOME time to get ready (...or at least pray).

i think i could deal with a minor armageddon at this point, but a "2nd coming" (the possible outcome of the Nov, 2020 election), albeit becoming less probable with recent events, has me worried the most.

 

[Emilyrose]

I love how the pizza got added as a 0. I might start adding all the foods I didn’t give in to also, lol.

 

[alligatorob]

Did my 40 laps on the bike. It was sunny, not too cold, and only a little ice to ride on so I did it. I could feel towards the end that I have not been on the bike in a while, but all in all it felt pretty good. I have run out of excuses, chaffing and mole removal surgery is all healed up, I need to get back to this. It is supposed to snow tomorrow, if it does I'll try the stationary bike, with the new pads. If not I'll be back outside on the bike.

you and I started around the same time I was mid May I believe . How fantastic if you achieve your target by then

Yes we did, I remember you from back then, we were both newbies. I don't think I will make my ultimate goal by then, but rather I think I will be getting close and can start to head towards maintenance. When I first started I estimated it would take 2 years for me to make goal, I may be a little ahead of that, but not a year ahead. Petal, in terms of reaching goals you are well ahead of me.

It sounds so like someone coming down the last gentle bit of a toboggan run

Yes, funny I had envisioned the toboggan run analogy also. But I know it can be a bit of a rough ride.

a minor armageddon

Now that is an interesting concept!

I might start adding all the foods I didn’t give in to also

You should, I do it from time to time, particularly when not giving in was a memorable accomplishment. Here's to more zeros in Emily's column in 2020.

 

[Llama]

If you do go back on the stationary bike maybe start with half the time you think you want to do, then do the other half a couple of hours later when you're sure your skinn can handle it.

 

[Cate]

That 0 for pizza was a good pickup Em
Rob, I often break up the bike riding, but for different reasons. Well done on getting those 40 laps done outside!

 

[alligatorob]

It was a good day, ate well, got to ride my bike, and I feel good.

Rob, I often break up the bike riding, but for different reasons

Maybe I can vary between outdoor and the stationary bike, they exercise somewhat different muscles.

If you do go back on the stationary bike maybe start with half the time you think you want to do, then do the other half a couple of hours later when you're sure your skinn can handle it.

That's a good idea, I will give it a try, thanks!

Monday

breakfast
yogurt 80
cereal - grapenuts 110

snack
orange 64

lunch sardines 220

dinner
turducken 250
mixed steamed vegetables 100

snack banana 100
apple 94

total calories 1,018

1018 in the Islamic calendar was approximately 1441 in the Gregorian calendar. 1441 was the year the Portuguese explorer Prince Henry the Navigator first sailed to subsaharan Africa, unfortunately to help pay for his travels he brought the first black slaves back to Europe. This was the beginning of what was to become a great evil thought out Europe and the Americas. Slavery was nothing new, it dates back to the beginning of civilization, but black slavery was different, the slaves were seen as a subhuman race and bondage was passed on for many generations. The consequences of this still impact the US, and probably other countries.

 

[liza]

I have been thinking about my longer term plans, no decisions just thoughts. I do better day by day than with long term planning.

That's good to have the thoughts there. i like to have an idea with where I am aiming to go for the long-term even if it alters along the way. And then to have the short-term goals in there to keep me on the path.

 

[Llama]

Slavery was nothing new, it dates back to the beginning of civilization, but black slavery was different, the slaves were seen as a subhuman race and bondage was passed on for many generations.

The ultimate othering. Often religiously excused.

 

[Petal001]

Rob I may be a bit ahead nearer maintenance but hopefully you not far behind and we both get to our goal ( whatever that is ) in time without too many bumps along the way

 

[overlandflyer]

... Now that is an interesting concept! ...

the colloquial definition... a dramatic and catastrophic conflict, typically seen as likely to destroy the world.

 

[alligatorob]

Often religiously excused

Yes, as a kid I can remember my grandmother pointing out to me the biblical rationale for keeping black people in their place.

Genesis 9:20-27 "And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren."

And through some convoluted logic black people descended from Canaan, and carried the curse for all time. Apparently because Canaan's father had "looked upon" his father Noah when Noah was passed out drunk and naked.

Unfortunately there are still people who believe this, as I said it remains a problem in parts of the US today. I was taught it, and I am not that old. Fortunately I (and most people) figured out early on what crap it was, but not everyone has. A curse for sure, but not one I'd blame on Noah or Canaan.

 

[Llama]

If any curse caused chattel slavery (or any kind, really) it was lack of compassion - incidentally the sin Sodom got destroyed for if the prophet Ezekiel was any judge.

 

[alligatorob]

Just did my exercise kind of. I did 20 laps on the bike and then got a call I had to take, after the call I got on the exercise bike and after about 12 min I started to feel the chaffing so I stopped. Maybe I will get back on the bike later, snow and ice are not bad today.

This is a bit frustrating, the exercise bike is now quite well padded, I think a part of the problem is that I have lost a lot of the padding I used to carry around, I know sitting is not so comfortable as it once was. Tomorrow its really supposed to snow, we will see what that brings.

I did have some good news, yesterday I put on the 40 waste Levis that didn't fit just a few weeks ago. They are still tight, but I was able to get them on and take a picture, it felt good. These are Levis 401s, the old original button up kind, I have not had a pair on in over 30 years, they were once my favorites. Back in high school when I was close to my 160 goal weight I wore a 34 waste, so these were bigger, but not hugely bigger. If I can keep this up, and I'll do my damnedest, maybe I will be in the 34s one day.

i like to have an idea with where I am aiming to go for the long-term even if it alters along the way. And then to have the short-term goals in there to keep me on the path

That makes sense, for me I need to be careful, when I focus on the long term I can too easily convince myself that today doesn't matter much. But in the end of course what I do today is all that really matters.

Rob I may be a bit ahead nearer maintenance but hopefully you not far behind and we both get to our goal

Thanks Petal, and that bearded guy you see over your shoulder now and then trying to catch up, that's me!

If any curse caused chattel slavery

It's slavery itself that's the curse, caused by human (or inhuman) beings. Thomas Jefferson, one of our founding fathers, who penned the famous words "all men are created equal" in our Declaration of Independence was a slave holder, the ultimate irony. He also wrote in reference to slavery: “as it is, we have the wolf by the ear, and we can neither hold him nor safely let him go. Justice is in one scale, and self-preservation in the other.” Jefferson was a rich man with many slaves, he inherited the slaves but they were mortgaged, for him to have decided to release them would have meant bankruptcy, and becoming a pariah to his friends and neighbors. He saw the evil, but in the end, for him, it was easier to not see his slaves as people than to give up everything. I don't know how many people today would do differently, I would like to think I would but who knows. For me to support civil rights and try to treat all people equally today is not a decision with the kinds of consequences people like Jefferson had to face.

 

[Emilyrose]

That makes sense, for me I need to be careful, when I focus on the long term I can too easily convince myself that today doesn't matter much. But in the end of course what I do today is all that really matters.

Same. One day at a time seems to be working for me right now also.

 

[liza]

I did have some good news, yesterday I put on the 40 waste Levis that didn't fit just a few weeks ago. They are still tight, but I was able to get them on and take a picture, it felt good.

That's great!

That makes sense, for me I need to be careful, when I focus on the long term I can too easily convince myself that today doesn't matter much. But in the end of course what I do today is all that really matters.

Yeah for sure--good to find what works best for you!

 

[alligatorob]

It was a good day, ate well, got some exercise and feel pretty good. The picture is me in my 40 inch 401 Levis, first time I've been able to get into a pair in over 30 years. I can however tell my body isn't quite the same shape today as it was back then.


Tuesday

breakfast
yogurt 80
cereal - grapenuts 110

snack
banana 100

lunch
sardines 220

snack 1/2 banana 50

dinner
yogurt 80
mixed steamed vegetables, more than yesterday, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, and green beans 150

snack
cheese and crackers 127
apple 94

total calories 1,011

1011 on the Islamic calendar is approximate 1602 on our Gregorian. Shakespeare's the Twelfth Night was first produced on February 2, 1602, Candlemas Night. Until I saw it on LaMa's diary I have never heard of Candlemas.

 

[liza]

great picture!

 

[Llama]

Yay for the jeans! About the chafing: if you build your time up slowly (not quite to the point where you start to feel it) your skin may well get used to it. Or it may not, if you´re related to me, but it´s worth a try if only to show your wife you´re really wanting to use the bike regularly now
Candlemas is a Catholic thing, I think, as it´s called "Maria Lichtmess" here in Austria. Traditionally it was the day Christmas decorations were taken down (having been put up on the 24th).