ChefChiTown's Rebirth: I'm Back, BABY!!! (In More Ways Than One)...

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Day 24 of 30

Weight - 239.8 lbs

I can't believe we only have one week left in our challenge. At first, 30 days seemed like forever, but now it doesn't seem like it's been all that long. And, I noticed something - most every aspect of this challenge got easier as time went on (not drinking pop, eating healthy, etc), except for one...getting on the damned treadmill. My legs started off just fine, but now they're tiiiiired. Every single day it gets harder and harder to finish. But, I know that's only because I haven't had a physical break from activity in nearly a month now. Once I get a few days rest, I'm sure my legs will be fine.
 
230's!! Awesome! I hope your legs don't fall off before day 30.
 
Day 25 of 30

Weight - 238.4 lbs

FIVE DAYS LEFT

So, our 30-day challenge is almost over and now I find myself asking...my...self...'what happens the day this is over?' Our challenge ends next Thursday and, on Friday, we had originally planned on having a nice, big cheat day. Well, things change. I think Jen and I are both in the same boat on this one - we think we're going to feel guilty having a cheat day so soon. I mean, we've done great so far and have both made tremendous progress in the right direction, and we both definitely deserve to reward ourselves with some 'bad' food, BUUUUUT...I think our heads are in such a good place right now, we're hesitant to indulge in some of the foods we love - the foods that got us in trouble in the first place. But, I suppose that's a good thing though. I'm taking it to mean that we're finally making the change we've been needing to make for a long time.

Don't get me wrong though. In two weeks, I am making a peanut butter cheesecake pie and we are eating the SHIT out of it.
 
Day 26 of 30

Weight - 237.8 lbs

Jen and I realized something last night - we're boring. Or, as she calls us, 'fuddy duddies.' It's the weekend and we were in bed before or right at midnight the past two nights. Before we started this challenge, we'd often be up (on the weekends) until 2AM or so because we'd be awake and having fun. Now, we're both yawning and fighting sleep by 11PM. It's sad, really. It's one of the signs that means you're officially getting old. Boo to that.

Anyway, I was thinking about this and I realized something - one of the reasons we were awake and stayed up so long before was the food and the bad stuff. We sit here now on most nights saying to each other, "I want something to eat" or "I could use something to snack on" - but we don't ever pig out. We talk about it, but we don't ever DO it. If we do grab a snack, it's something sensible like a sugar free Jello, some ring bologna and cheese, a handful of nuts (HA) or some apple slices. However, that's not how we were eating before. We would eat whatever the hell we wanted for as long as we wanted. When we would sit here on the weekends before, we would snack on something bad throughout the night.

"Hey, it's 9PM. Time for a bowl of ice cream."
"Oh look, 11 o'clock. I best be gettin' myself a big ass bowl of tortilla chips with some con queso."
"Well, would you look at that? It's midnight already. Time for a second bowl of ice creeeeeam!!!"
"I'm getting tired. I mean, it's already two in the morning. But, while I'm uuuuuup....I might as well have that Snickers bar sitting over there."

The longer we were up, the more we ate. And, it's almost like the later we would stay awake, the harder we would fight wanting to go to bed because we were subconsciously reeeeeally looking forward to the next late night snack. But, now...that doesn't happen. I KNOW none of that bad stuff is going to happen so I don't have a reason to stay up so late. I think we're both subconsciously thinking to ourselves now, "We should go to bed earlier than normal tonight before our urge to eat/drink becomes too much to handle." So, when we start getting tired, we don't really fight it. We just own up to it and go lay in bed.

We have become fuddy duddies. Healthy fuddy duddies, but fuddy duddies none-the-less.

Oh well. As long as it's working. And, it is.

Ok, well...the Bears are actually being shown on TV today (here anyway), so I need to get the treadmill done before 1PM when the game starts. See ya later.
 
Don't I know it, I'm a fuddy too. And I try to stay in bed in the morning too, to postpone my first meal so I won't go hungry so soon again. Weight loss ownes me! My health thanks it.
 
ChefChiTown said:
"Hey, it's 9PM. Time for a bowl of ice cream."
"Oh look, 11 o'clock. I best be gettin' myself a big ass bowl of tortilla chips with some con queso."
"Well, would you look at that? It's midnight already. Time for a second bowl of ice creeeeeam!!!"
"I'm getting tired. I mean, it's already two in the morning. But, while I'm uuuuuup....I might as well have that Snickers bar sitting over there."
Click to expand...

haha.. this is so incredibly accurate it's scary.

Sigh... we're fuddy duddies now.
 
You two are so cute. Its nice to see a couple working together with same goal. :) i wish my husband do the same err but he doesnt need it. He is very supportive to me though. :) ChefChiTown, great job for reaching <240 lbs! You are amazing!

I can relate to both of you. My husband and eat more at night. :lurk5:

i have lots of reading to do. Hoping to get to know more friends here.


ChefChiTown said:
Day 26 of 30

Weight - 237.8 lbs

Jen and I realized something last night - we're boring. Or, as she calls us, 'fuddy duddies.' It's the weekend and we were in bed before or right at midnight the past two nights. Before we started this challenge, we'd often be up (on the weekends) until 2AM or so because we'd be awake and having fun. Now, we're both yawning and fighting sleep by 11PM. It's sad, really. It's one of the signs that means you're officially getting old. Boo to that.

Anyway, I was thinking about this and I realized something - one of the reasons we were awake and stayed up so long before was the food and the bad stuff. We sit here now on most nights saying to each other, "I want something to eat" or "I could use something to snack on" - but we don't ever pig out. We talk about it, but we don't ever DO it. If we do grab a snack, it's something sensible like a sugar free Jello, some ring bologna and cheese, a handful of nuts (HA) or some apple slices. However, that's not how we were eating before. We would eat whatever the hell we wanted for as long as we wanted. When we would sit here on the weekends before, we would snack on something bad throughout the night.

"Hey, it's 9PM. Time for a bowl of ice cream."
"Oh look, 11 o'clock. I best be gettin' myself a big ass bowl of tortilla chips with some con queso."
"Well, would you look at that? It's midnight already. Time for a second bowl of ice creeeeeam!!!"
"I'm getting tired. I mean, it's already two in the morning. But, while I'm uuuuuup....I might as well have that Snickers bar sitting over there."

The longer we were up, the more we ate. And, it's almost like the later we would stay awake, the harder we would fight wanting to go to bed because we were subconsciously reeeeeally looking forward to the next late night snack. But, now...that doesn't happen. I KNOW none of that bad stuff is going to happen so I don't have a reason to stay up so late. I think we're both subconsciously thinking to ourselves now, "We should go to bed earlier than normal tonight before our urge to eat/drink becomes too much to handle." So, when we start getting tired, we don't really fight it. We just own up to it and go lay in bed.

We have become fuddy duddies. Healthy fuddy duddies, but fuddy duddies none-the-less.

Oh well. As long as it's working. And, it is.

Ok, well...the Bears are actually being shown on TV today (here anyway), so I need to get the treadmill done before 1PM when the game starts. See ya later.
Click to expand...
 
Day 27 of 30

Weight - 237.8 lbs

No change in weight today. But, on the bright side, I did something today I DEFINITELY couldn't do before. There is a road - a huge straightaway - right next to our apartment that stretches down a good mile toward the main road. I don't know the exact distance between home and the end of the road (well, where the intersection is anyway), but it is definitely around a mile. Maaaaaybe a little less - 3/4 of a mile at the least. Anyway, I could NEVER run to the end of the road without stopping a few times. But, today...for the first time...I ran all the way to the intersection without stopping. I was smiling soooo hard when I realized how close I was getting. I had to have looked like a huge idiot. But, oh well. I couldn't help myself.

And, on the way back, I only stopped twice. I would usually stop three or four times. So, I feel REALLY good right now. This month of hard work is definitely paying off.

***EDIT***

I forgot to mention (not that I'm bragging :rolleyes: )...

I timed myself when I went running. I'm not 100% positive, but I swear that the fastest time I had before (getting to the intersection and back) was a little over 18 minutes. Well, my unofficial time tonight (I forgot to hit "stop" on my stopwatch app - on my phone - when I got back and I didn't realize it for a good 20 or 30 seconds) was 17 minutes 13 seconds. Just another reason I'm pumped.
 
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Day 28 of 30

Weight - 236.2 lbs

I'm up 'early' again to take the kids to school so, while they're eating they're waffles, I figured I would get my 'post for the day' done and over with. I feel really good after last night's run so I'm hoping to go for another one after work today. I saw a nice drop on the scale this morning and that is making these final three days a little easier - seeing another pound shed its way off my body is definitely motivation enough to not give into the 'I'm almost there, so I can just quit now, right? I mean, I'm CLOSE ENOUGH...' feelings that I'm having. This 30-day challenge has been very hard on me, mostly in the physical sense, but mentally I'm drained. It is an absolutely draining feeling to get up in the morning, go to work all day and be on my feet until 6:30PM, and have the feeling of "I STILL have to get on the treadmill when I get home" EVERY SINGLE DAY. I don't even get to relax until about 8:00PM on most every day which is an awful feeling - an awful feeling that will be over with in just three days. That's all I have to do - make it three more days.
 
Awesome job on the running!

Just don't quit the running all together after your challenge. Plan a nice break and get some much needed and desrved rest and then get on a sane schedule that includes the breaks from running that you need. I bet you'll see a real jum in performance after a rest. You should post in the running thread.

You're blazing through the 230s too!
 
I ran tonight again and I did it in just over 16 minutes, ZERO stops. I ran the entire time without stopping. Yes, I felt like throwing up everywhere when I was done (although I never did), but I DID IT!!! I'm starting to get back to my old self again - the old "baseball" me.

Quercus said:
Awesome job on the running!

Just don't quit the running all together after your challenge. Plan a nice break and get some much needed and desrved rest and then get on a sane schedule that includes the breaks from running that you need. I bet you'll see a real jum in performance after a rest. You should post in the running thread.

You're blazing through the 230s too!
Click to expand...

Thanks, man!!!

We've already talked about what we're going to do when our 30-day challenge is finished. We're going to do more 30-day challenges and part of my challenges is going to be getting on the treadmill/running. I HATE the act of running itself - while I'm running, I constantly have suicidal thoughts running through my head, like, "I'd rather slit my throat than run another 10 feet" and "I would trade a gunshot in the testicles for the ability to stop running right now" - but, I LOVE the feeling I get once the running is done and over with.
 
Keep pushing and the during part will improve to a "this still sucks but I guess I still want to live".
 
Day 29 of 30

Weight - 237.6 lbs

Slight gain, probably due to sodium. I ate a healthy amount of calories and consumed barely any carbs yesterday, so I don't know. Whatever. I'm not letting it bother me.

I can't wait until I can rest my legs. I'm absolutely exhausted and my legs need a few days of not doing the treadmill so they can recover. So, I'm looking forward to tomorrow being the last day of our 30-day challenge.
 
I have less of it these days (I think they're just trained), but for a while I was looking for cardio solutions that kept my legs more or less lightly worked whenever they were particularly sore. Lucy likes to box, but I never got into it.

Anyway, you and Jen have done fantastic on your challenges. You;ve more than earned the rest.
 
I meant "keep pushing" in general. You are way overdue on a rest for your legs. I had a slight gain this morning. Funny that it even happens when you're losing rapidly.
 
Day 30 of 30

Weight - 235.8 lbs

Holy crap, it's almost over!!! Today is the last day for our 30-day challenge and I couldn't be happier. Well, I mean, I COULD be happier...but I don't think Jen would ever let...ANYWAY...

I will have my final weigh-in tomorrow morning to see what my total weight lost during this 30-day challenge will end up being, but I'm fairly confident that my weight will skyrocket overnight a good 7 or 8 lbs. Why? Because, I have terrible luck, that's why. Whatever, though. I'm happy with my results from this month and I'm looking forward to continuing our weight loss journey through the end of the year. I even bought myself some large t-shirts today in anticipation of being able to fit into them soon (I'm still in an XL - but, I'm 'this close' to being in a L).

Tomorrow night, I'm rewarding myself with a small bowl of chocolate ice cream. And, Jen is rewarding herself with a 20 oz Mountain Dew. HAHAHA, we're so lame.
 
30-DAY CHALLENGE STATS

Start Date: 9/24/14
Starting Weight: 255.8 lbs

End Date: 10/23/14
Ending Weight: 235.6 lbs

TOTAL WEIGHT LOST: 20.2 lbs

Daily Goals

NO Pop
NO Alcohol
Low Carb/No Unnecessary Carbohydrates (eating carbohydrates was allowed; I just avoided over-doing it)
50 Sit-ups and 50 Push-ups
30 Minutes on the Treadmill
30 Minutes of Reading (for mental relaxation)

Days of Success (ALL Goals Accomplished): 30*
Days of Failure (At Least One Goal NOT Accomplished): 0

* There were days I went for a run outside rather than walk on the treadmill
* There was a day or two I physically couldn't complete 50 sit-ups and 50-push ups, but I did as many as I could on those days and do not consider that a failure

Physical Changes

- I lost a little over 20 lbs
- I have lost a significant amount of fat in my face
- My stomach and waist have gotten smaller, rendering me to the point of having to buy new clothes (my current ones are too baggy)
- My legs are way more toned than they were one month ago
- My legs are tired from running/walking every day but their physical stamina has increased
- Many of my aches and pains have gone away
- I don't get out of breath as easily
- My heart doesn't have to work so hard anymore to keep up with my physical activity; it no longer feels as if it is going to beat out of my chest
- My lung capacity has increased

Mental Changes

- I am more confident in being able to eat healthy without falling back into old, bad habits
- I am more aware of the damage my old eating habits bestowed upon me and now know how to prevent myself from going back to the way I used to be
- I am proud of myself for what I have accomplished which is driving me to want to do more
- I am not totally happy with my body, but I am much happier than I was a month ago
- My stress level has decreased and I don't find myself getting aggravated as much as I used to
- I am genuinely excited at the prospect of needing to buy myself new clothes which is something I haven't done in years
 
Great job, honey!!!!! So proud of you! :)
 
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