Derrick's ongoing journey

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Thank you all so much. I am happy with how much I have changed my body in only six weeks but I still have 17 more pounds to go. This morning I was 202 and I want to get to 185.

Unfortunately I am not doing so well mentally. On Friday, just after taking my progress photo, my psychiatrist told me to quit losing weight so fast. She thinks that is the reason I am having so many bad symptoms. She thinks it is messing up the hormonal and chemical equilibrium in my brain. Unfortunately my wife went with me and she agrees with my doctor that I should just try to maintain my weight at this point and focus on my mental health now.

I'm here to say I don't fully agree. I have listened to my doctors for years and I have received more heartaches than stability. I have a very thorough plan this time, including backup plans. Quiting isn't one of them. Everytime I have stopped in the past, I blink and I'm 30+ pounds heavier! I'm not going to let that happen this time. I will reach my goal of 185 pounds and then, and only then, will I focus on maintaining.

Mentally, I'll just have to hold on tight because it might be a bumpy ride.

Derrick
 
Derrick, ...that's a tough one. The reality is that it could be attributed to a wide variety of issues within our body & our life combined. The truth though, you know what is best for you. No one knows how you feel exactly, other than you. You are dropping weight fast, but the truth is that you are also kicking ass!! So. Either way, I back you! ;) :grouphug:! I think physical health is a huge key to resolving mental health. Balance for sure.

You have to read this Lance Armstrong book, Derrick! I just know that you will love it! Sometimes, when doctors or medical professionals say things to us, it's up to us to choose if we want to buy what they are saying. This goes for everyone. We have that choice. Lance Armstrong, chose to act upon his choice. I know I've challenged those, and made my own choices too. And now you are making yours too. :) We all have that power though, and that is essential. You'll love the book! Especially since you are a triathlete!
 
Thank you Alta! It is nice to know someone is going to back me, even if it is simply a message board friend. I feel like I have been repeating the same cycle over and over. I keep giving in to my doctors, my wife and other family members. I think it's time to tell them to listen to me now. And I'm done with my psychiatrist. She has her own problems now, somewhat mental it sounds like, and it always seems like she is frustrated with me. I've been her patient off and on for about 8 years now. They've been the worse 8 years of my life, mentally. I'm going to join a bipolar support group. Hopefully I can benefit from their experiences and knowledge, and them from mine. I'll see if my general doctor can prescribe my medication for me until I find a new psychiatrist.

My son has a bad virus they don't recognize so we have to give him breathing treatments three times a day until he gets better. Poor little guy. He's miserable and he cries in pain everytime he coughs. :( It's a nasty sounding cough too. He's wheezing real bad at times. :(

Everyone else is good. My wife and I have been on a 4 week relationship mending. I worry a lot that my current mental struggles are going to ruin our progress. This "mental flare up" sure hit at a bad time. Seems like they always do.

One piece of good news about me, other than the fact I keep losing weight, is I am about to begin my 5 hour refeed!!!
Cookie love refeed! Yum yum yum! :D
 
This morning Tanita said:
201.0 pounds
24% body fat

That's 20 pounds in 7 weeks! Only 16 more to go! Actually, only 10 more in order to reach my goal for this contest.

I lifted by myself today and tweaked my mid back on lat pulldowns. I loaded up on Advil just a little while ago. I also did 20 minutes of moderate cardio. Plus plenty of stretching.

I expect to be 199 by Monday! I can't believe I am at this point already.
 
Derrick said:
This morning Tanita said:
201.0 pounds
24% body fat

That's 20 pounds in 7 weeks! Only 16 more to go! Actually, only 10 more in order to reach my goal for this contest.

I lifted by myself today and tweaked my mid back on lat pulldowns. I loaded up on Advil just a little while ago. I also did 20 minutes of moderate cardio. Plus plenty of stretching.

I expect to be 199 by Monday! I can't believe I am at this point already.
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Awesome job, Derrick. Told you that you would be 1_ _ before you knew it-lol. You will do this- I know you will!!
 
Thanks cowboy! :)
Of course, the last 10 are always the hardest. I have not been below 192 since I was 19 years old, over 14 years ago! :eek:
 
Derrick said:
Thanks cowboy! :)
Of course, the last 10 are always the hardest. I have not been below 192 since I was 19 years old, over 14 years ago! :eek:
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I know what you mean. I have 9 pounds to go before I get to my goal of 175.
I haven't been this weight since I was about 14 and that was a lot longer than 14 years ago-LOL. The worst part about the last 10 pounds is it seems to come off slower than the other 70 pounds did. But I am in this for the long haul and I WILL get to it. And I know you will hit your goal soon too!! Keep fighting the fight.
 
Holy Cow Derrick - your hard work is totally paying off - those pictures are awesome!!!
I bet by the time I return you will be in onederland!! Take care of yourself and keep up the hard work!! Looking forward to seeing the progress when I return!!:grouphug:
 
Round 2, Day 20

Thanks Lisa! It means a lot to me. That's why I am fighting so hard to get back to where I was two years ago (193) and even lower. Is your honeymoon here already?!? I pray that you and your husband have an unforgettable time together. My wife and I are planning a trip to the caribbean in May. We are both at our wits end with life right now. We have nearly no time for each other. Haven't been on vacation for just the two of us since 2005! Enjoy it! You never know how many you will get to take with just you and your husband. You have done very well, getting back to the mid 140s!

Today I got back home from my dad's northern Missouri farm. I was there since Thursday. It's about a 5 1/2 hour drive. I haven't weighed myself since Thursday morning. I am hoping to be below 201 tomorrow morning. I doubt I will break into the 190's though. I didn't plan on taking a free meal this week but I had no choice on Thursday. I was running really late in getting up there and it had been almost 7 hours since I had lunch. I was another 2 hours away from eating dinner unless I took a free meal and ate at a restaurant in Kirksville, MO. So I went ahead and had a free meal. It wasn't horrible as I made sure I got plenty of protein. Still, I'm sure the calories were around 1500. Nonetheless, it may have done me so much good mentally that it will offset the slight negative effect physically.

The only other stupid thing I did was possibly injure my hand/wrist because I lost control of my temper. The stupid trailer I stay in has a overhead door decoration that always hits the top of my head. This morning I walked into it again and it hurt my neck so I gave it a good hammer fist. Didn't even break the damn thing but sent pain from my the outside of my hand through my wrist. I can't even shake a woman's hand now without wincing. I was supposed to start kickboxing on Tuesday. How stupid will I feel if I can't?!?

So I am down to 2 days left of round 2!!! Once Tuesday gets here, I will eat for maintenance but turn the workouts up to full throttle! I hope to be 199 on Monday morning and then lose 2 pounds per week for the next 3 weeks and then go back to one last round of RFL as a category 1 dieter, which means 11 or 12 days straight, no refeeds, no free meals, finishing up with a 2 day refeed! And then? DONE!!! I am hoping my final weight will be somewhere between 185 and 191. After that I will try to eat for maintenance while doing swimming, biking, running, kickboxing and weightlifting. Whichever one I want to focus on most, I will. I want to be in shape to do any of those whenever I choose. I'll keep a close eye on my weight and my diet. In time I hope to achieve the body fat percentage I have always wanted to, ten to twelve range. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if the increase in activity drops my weight into the low to mid 180's.

Can't get ahead of myself though. First things first. Two more days of round 2 to go!

Derrick
 
Round 2, Day 21

This morning Tanita said:
202.0 pounds
24% body fat

The dreaded free meal spike strikes again! :banghead: It's hard to believe one lousy free meal three nights ago could still be sitting on my body but this is not the first time this has happened while on this diet. Some weeks it will take me three or four days just to return to my weight prior to my refeed or free meal. While it certainly sucks that I am not going to be 199 tomorrow morning, I need to stay focused and stick to the plan. 199 can wait. When it comes I will run right past it and straight towards the low 190's. Getting to the high 180's with just one month left is really going to be hard though. I'm going to have fun trying!
 
Derrick said:
This morning Tanita said:
202.0 pounds
24% body fat

The dreaded free meal spike strikes again! :banghead: It's hard to believe one lousy free meal three nights ago could still be sitting on my body but this is not the first time this has happened while on this diet. Some weeks it will take me three or four days just to return to my weight prior to my refeed or free meal. While it certainly sucks that I am not going to be 199 tomorrow morning, I need to stay focused and stick to the plan. 199 can wait. When it comes I will run right past it and straight towards the low 190's. Getting to the high 180's with just one month left is really going to be hard though. I'm going to have fun trying!
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I hate that also man,one free meal, or one more meal that usual that day and the scales weigh you in a pound heavier,really gets me frustrated but you are very concentrated on the goal ahead and i hope you get there with ease! Good luck man!
 
Thanks Dylan! Man I'm feeling it today. :( After two or three days your body goes into ketosis and you really feel zapped of energy. Of course, I'm very familiar with this as I've been on this diet every day since January 17th, save for the two week diet break I took at the half way mark.

It would be so awesome to see a big drop tomorrow morning but I think 2 pounds is going to be too much to expect.

Derrick
 
Derrick said:
Thanks Dylan! Man I'm feeling it today. :( After two or three days your body goes into ketosis and you really feel zapped of energy. Of course, I'm very familiar with this as I've been on this diet every day since January 17th, save for the two week diet break I took at the half way mark.

It would be so awesome to see a big drop tomorrow morning but I think 2 pounds is going to be too much to expect.

Derrick
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Aw shit man,bad to hear but all i can really say is get your rest and give it your all tomorrow and the next day and you will definatly get it by wednesday and just keep thinking of that scale weighing you in, in the 190's, it will be such a cool achievement ,i almost feel excited on behalf of you on how close it is so grasp that shit and feel proud man, your extremely dedicated!
 
Round 2, Day 22 (FINAL DAY OF ROUND 2)

This morning Tanita said:
199.0 pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :party:
25% body fat (pay no attention, she will drop after a good refeed)

Can I get a WHOOSH?!?!?

I'm not making this up. I dropped 3 pounds since yesterday morning somehow. Nothing to explain it either. Ate my meals and drank my water like usual yesterday. One normal trip to the bathroom plus my usual 15 trips to urinate. LOL This seems to happen on this diet. Lots of stalls and whooshes like Lyle talked about in one of his articles.

So this is obviously an incredible achievement for me. Not just to reach 199 but to come all the way here from 221 in less than two months.

RFL Round 1: 10.5 pounds lost
2 week break: 0.5 pound gain
RFL Round 2: 12.0 pounds lost
2 week break: ???
RFL Round 3: ???

I can't wait for the final one month push!

Derrick
 
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Derrick said:
This morning Tanita said:
199.0 pounds!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :party:
25% body fat (pay no attention, she will drop after a good refeed)

Can I get a WHOOSH?!?!?

I'm not making this up. I dropped 3 pounds since yesterday morning somehow. Nothing to explain it either. Ate my meals and drank my water like usual yesterday. One normal trip to the bathroom plus my usual 15 trips to urinate. LOL This seems to happen on this diet. Lots of stalls and whooshes like Lyle talked about in one of his articles.

So this is obviously an incredible achievement for me. Not just to reach 199 but to come all the way here from 221 in less than two months.

RFL Round 1: 10.5 pounds lost
2 week break: 0.5 pound gain
RFL Round 2: 12.0 pounds lost
2 week break: ???
RFL Round 3: ???

I can't wait for the final one month push!

Derrick
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WHOOSH-LOL. Nice job Derrick. All that hard work is paying off. CONGRATULATIONS!!! Welcome to the 1_ _ Club!!
 
Thanks Cowboy! And I sincerely mean that. You've calmed me down quite a few times the past couple months and made me rethink everything one more time. You've also given me genuine encouragement. Thank you.

I had my refeed last night. Today I felt much calmer, no paranoia or obsessive thoughts. Unfortunately I had uncontrollable shakes and tremors in my legs and arms for about 10 minutes in the early afternoon and then again around dinner time. I need to read my medication labels in a few minutes. My doctor increased my Lithium a little over a week ago and I have since developed a rash on parts of my arms. It almost looks like poison ivy but without the tiny white bumps. It's not widespread but enough to cause a little bit of concern. Now the tremors is something I've never had. So, time to read the labels again.

I went ahead and started muay thai lessons anyway today. I felt fine and did just fine. I feel fine now too.

Tomorrow I will swim for my cardio workout.

Derrick
 
Congrats on 199 Derrick. I haven't been around for a few weeks and I'm glad to see you made it.

By the end of my time on lithium (7 years) I had real tremor in my hands, voice stomach. In spite of being maxed out on doses of four mood stabilizers for bp I was taken off all of them and given antipsychotics and that made me better. Of course schizoaffective was added to my diagnosis in order to make the drug change but it made me much much better. Good luck with that.
 
I must say, though, Derrick. Your eating has been spot on lately, so it's doesn't shock me! You are THE MAN!!! :cheers2:! Again, CONGRATS! You deserve this buddy!
 
Derrick said:
Thanks Cowboy! And I sincerely mean that. You've calmed me down quite a few times the past couple months and made me rethink everything one more time. You've also given me genuine encouragement. Thank you.

Derrick
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Hi Derrick

That is what we are all here for - encouragement-lol. You should be so proud of yourself- you are doing an awesome job. I can't imagine the things you have to deal with everyday not including the weight loss. You are pushing through all of it and heading to your goals. I really am genuinely happy for you!! Keep up the good work!
 
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