FatBloggers.net A little push to lose the tush.

I have two recommendations from this weekend.

Recomendation #1:
See the movie I Want Someone To Eat Cheese With

It’s written by, directed by and starring Jeff Garlin, who is probably most famous for his role on Curb Your Enthusiasm… or his co-starring role in Daddy Daycare for those of you without HBO.

It is very rare to see a love story with an overweight guy as the lead love interest. It’s even rarer for that overweight guys struggle with weight to be a central part of the story. Most rare of all is this movie which handles it all with great care and affection.

Instead of turning the movie into a bunch of fat guy jokes and put down humor, Jeff Garlin shows us a real guy, having a real struggle with where his life is headed… and being overweight is a part of that struggle.

You can tell that Jeff Garlin has been there. In the opening scene we see him sitting on the hood of his car in the parking lot of a convenience store eating Ding Dongs and chocolate pudding. He’s eating in the parking lot to hide his eating from his mom. It’s a moment that was very poignant to me. It’s a moment I have lived hundreds of times.

The movie is well written. It’s endearing, it’s funny, it’s a real joy and it is full of actors you know you know even if you can’t remember their names. Sadly these are the actors who should be household names.

I Want Someone To Eat Cheese With, is in limited release in art house theaters, but it is also available on demand from Comcast and some other cable providers. Do yourself a favor and check it out.

Recommendation #2:

Steve and Barry’s!

Steve and Barry’s is best described as Old Navy meets Wal-Mart, but with a lot more style .

One of the great things about our weight loss journey is going through the closet and getting rid of all those “fat clothes”. Unfortunately it starts adding up when you have to replace all those “fat clothes”. It adds up even more when you have to do it again 5 months later because the new clothes you bought have become “fat clothes” as well.

After my closet purge last month I was left with 1 pair of jeans. I hit the local outlet mall two weekends ago and spent nearly a hundred bucks on three pair of jeans that hopefully will not fit me come Christmas time. A lot of money for some pants that may only last 4 months.

Then, I rediscovered Steve and Barry’s. They have some great, stylish clothes for dirt cheap prices. Jeans were on sale for $7.99!!!!

The clothes might not be the best quality, but for those of us who are truly dedicated to shedding the pounds, they only need to last a few months. So wait until you meet your final goal weight to hit the expensive department stores and head over to Steve and Barry’s for some closet restocking.

Tony
9/25: 234.2 lbs.
Goal: 220 lbs.
14.2 lbs. to go

p.s. I swear I am not a paid shill for either of these things. Just a fan!

Hi gang, long time no post.  I’m still out here, and definitely follow the blog quite a bit, but it’s been tough to find time to post anything these days.  Here are some random thoughts about my current maintenance state:

• I have no idea how much I weigh.  It’s probably only up a little since I went on maintenance, but my pants mostly fit the same.  That’s how I’m going to gauge things for the time being.
• I haven’t been to Weight Watchers since July. 
• I wish I could need to find more time to ride my bike.   Winter’s a comin’.
• My standard breakfast:  Grape-nuts with honey and 1% milk. 
• I haven’t been to fast food in months.  Since like last March, before I started all of this.
• I occasionally have a Snickers.  Or a small vanilla cone.  I don’t obsess over it, nor do I overdo it.
• In the past, I’ve had some bouts of anxiety that would trigger over-eating.  I’ve got the source of those taken care of, for the most part.  The rest of them just kind of took care of themselves.  I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:  Guys, don’t be afraid to confront some mental health issues that you might be facing.  Address them, take care of them however you need to, and losing weight will be that much easier for you.  Which will, in turn, help you with the mental health issues. 
• I feel better now than I have in the last 8-9 years.  I believe I’m getting a handle on this as a lifestyle.  Moderation is a good word to use here. 

Hope this post finds all of you well. 

The Australian Government is floating an idea to pay people $170 to enter an accredited weight loss program.

What do you think?

When you have time, take a look at the list of blogs that have joined the FatBloggers network by linking here. There are some beneficial blogs in the list on the right.

I swear I am not on a crusade. I was ready to leave the whole Britney thing alone after yesterdays post. I had said my piece and made my point. And then I opened up Yahoo News and was hit with this headline:

Harshest Words Saved For Britney’s Body

In general it is a poorly written article wrapping up the “she’s fat” / “no she’s not” reactions to Sunday nights performance. Again I was ready to leave it alone until I saw this quote from Glamour Magazine executive editor-at-large, Suze Yalof Scwhartz.

“Girls aren’t looking as skinny this season as they did,” said Suze Yalof Scwhartz, executive editor-at-large for Glamour Magazine. “There’s food backstage. They’re looking sexier.” At Glamour, she noted, a model won’t be featured “if she shows too much clavicle.”

A lovely, yet all together hypocritical sentiment apparently. Recently a few keen observers spread around the blogesphere have noted that Glamour Magazine did an impressive Photoshop job on America Ferrera for their latest cover. Take a look at the pictures and you’ll notice her face and arms have been considerably thinned out.

While it does sound like America has lost some weight since the first photo was taken, there is no way those arms are her real arms.

I know Photoshopping covers is a common practice. In fact the company I work for has been asked more than once to Photoshop 10 or 15 lbs. off of a celebrity. It is something we do with no small amount of ridicule for said celebrity.

My ridicule turns to anger however, when a magazine like Glamour feels the need to “tighten up” and digital tone a women like America Farrar, a woman whose career has been built on the idea that every body is beautiful just the way it is.

This is a serious problem. Especially when the editor at large turns around and claims her magazine is part of the solution. Sorry Miss Scwhartz, if you continue practices like this you are just as big a part of the problem… maybe even a bigger part of the problem…than the hundreds of snippy reporters blasting away at Brittney for her paunch.

I now officially retire my soap box. I promise the rest of my post this week will be all about me!

Tony
9/11: 236.4 lbs.
Goal: 220 lbs.
16.4 lbs. to go

Cross published at Guess How Much I Weigh

I could care less about Britney Spears! I need you to understand just how much I don’t care about Britney Spears because it is the only way I can bring myself to talk about her. So now that we all know that I am not some closeted teeny bop idol lover I can get on to talking about Britney Spears.

Once again this morning, Britney is all of the news due to her “disastrous” performance at last nights MTV Video Music Awards. I happened to see part of the performance on the Today Show this morning while waiting for the weather report. I will agree, it did look bad and was probably an ill advised comeback attempt for someone not ready to be back in the spotlight. There is however one thing that is bugging me about all the media coverage.

Here is a quote from an AP article on Yahoo news this morning:

“As in most train wrecks, it was hard to focus on just one thing as the Britney Spears disaster unfolded. There was just so much that went wrong.

Out-of-synch lip-synching. Lethargic movements that seemed choreographed by a dance instructor for a nursing home. The paunch in place of Spears’ once-taut belly.”

Can you guess which part of that quote I have a problem with? Nearly every news report I have seen on last nights VMA’s mentioned Britney Spears’ weight as one of the things she “did wrong” last night.

Ok, now take a good look at these pictures. Do you see the paunch? Sure it’s not a set of six-pack abs, but I think Britney has a lot more to worry about then being ten pounds overweight and a little soft in middle. To me, she looks incredibly healthy. The only hint of a “paunch” is in this final photo and that may just be because of her pose and the angle of the photo.

But, here is the message I hear going out to young girls. “Be skinny or else people will make fun of you.” Sure I am super sensitive to this issue due to my current obsession with my own body. But as a father of two little girls it worries me to see how nonchalantly we can call a 130 lb. woman paunchy merely because she is a celebrity who once had a rock hard body. She has had two kids for cripes sake.

So here is my point, if you have young daughters who read the newspaper or watch the news or listen to the radio or watch MTV, do me a favor. Let them know that while Britney Spears may be a little off her rocker, she is a healthy looking young woman who doesn’t need to lose any weight.

Encourage your kids to live healthy lifestyles but at the same time be sure they understand what it means to have a healthy body image. And for the betterment of us all buy them some Ani Difranco or Tori Amos or Cat Power CDs. Please!!!!

Tony
9/7: 236.4 lbs.
Goal: 220 lbs.
16.4 lbs. to go
Cross published at Guess How Much I Weigh.

p.s. Check out Tori Amos’ take on todays young female roll models.

Don’t worry, this purge is not proceeded by the word binge. I am talking about my closet.

Last night my lovely wife and I dove into the scary project of emptying all the over sized clothes out of my closet . Technically it’s the guest room, but we call it my walk-in closet.

I have to admit I am a bit of a clothes horse. It’s not so much that I buy a lot of clothes, I just never throw them out. And, over the last few years I have collected a lot of clothes. When you’re going up a size every 6 to 8 months it’s hard not to accumulate.

Needless to say this purge was long overdue.

The main criteria for getting rid of clothes was size. Everything with a XXXL went without even trying it on. A lot of the XXL stuff went as well. I was really surprised at how much stuff ended up in the to go pile. There are clothes that that I haven’t worn in years because they were too tight that are now to big to wear. I missed them going up and coming down.

Last night was the first time in this whole healthy living process that I have felt like a person who has lost nearly 50 lbs. Seeing my old clothes looking like a Mama Cass mumu on me, clothes that used to be tight just 9 months ago, made me really see my body in a new way.

While this was mostly a joyous occasion, there are some things that I will be really sad to see go. I had just received a lot of really nice clothes for Christmas this past year, which I hardly had the chance to wear and now they are 3 sizes to big for me. It made the whole experience a little bitter sweet.

Tonight I tackle pants and sweaters. I have a feeling the purge has only just begun.

The most triumphant moment of the evening:

- One of my favorite shirts is a western / rock star shirt my lovely wife gave me for Christmas 3 years ago. I have never been able to wear it properly, even when she gave it to me. Last night I buttoned it up for the first time.

Here’s me in the shirt this past Christmas weighing 288. I’ll take a new picture tonight to compare and contrast.

Tony
8/28: 239.8 lbs.
Goal: 220 lbs.
19.8 lbs. to go

Cross published at Guess How Much I Weigh.

HT to Lou at Male Pattern Fitness

According to this article in the Washington Post, women usually lose 10-12 lbs. before the onset of dementia.   But the same study shows that there isn’t a similar correlation for men.

Apparently men lose their marbles for unknown reasons.

Up until now this whole weight loss thing has been pretty smooth sailing for me. I’ve worked really hard and been fortunate to have 11 straight weeks of losses. This weekend turned out to be my first major gale. I know it’s something you have all gone through.

This weekend I made the decision to stop worrying about my calories and enjoy myself for the weekend. A rational decision after 11 weeks of counting every little calorie. I was on vacation after all. Unfortunately, giving myself permission to stop counting calories some how translated into giving myself permission to stop working out and to stop watching what I eat.

I ended up gaining back the three pounds that I lost last week. And it is looking very likely that I am going to have my first gain in 11 weeks.

I am not so worried about how much I ate this weekend. In the grand scheme of things it wasn’t horrible. I didn’t sneak snacks or eat any more than everyone else. I even made a few smart decisions (Turkey brats instead of regular, etc.)

I’m not even that worried about the possibility of a gain.. beyond being disappointed at breaking my 11 week streak.

I had a great weekend with my family and I didn’t let the weight gain ruin it!

Here are the two things that really worry me.

1. After feeding my body at something approaching my old rate of calorie consumption, my body is seriously joensing for more, more, more. I am having cravings like I haven’t had for nearly two months now. I hope that getting back on routine this week will help settle things down, but it was a challenge not to break down and sneak a snack or two on my solo trip to the grocery store on Sunday.

2. It was way to easy to not go out for my run on Saturday and Sunday. Sure the weather was lousy, but I had plenty of opportunities to get out and walk and I didn’t take them. Instead I sat around watching TV all day.

I thought I was beyond this point. I thought it would be harder to back slide than it turned out to be. And that is what really scares me.

If I am someone who is truly addicted to food, then my vigilance will need to be a life time thing. It is not something I will be cured of after I get to my goal weight. I had started to think that I was invincible to food. I got cocky and now food has put me back in my place.

So we start over, get back on routine and hopefully take heart in the lesson learned: I have a long way to go!

Tony
8/21: 242.4 lbs.
Goal: 220 lbs.
22.4 lbs. to go

I’m having a pretty good day (more on that in the next post), so I thought I would start putting a bit of my own  fingerprint on FatBloggers.

I just moderated a comment on a post Lady Rose wrote back on July 18th entitled ‘Rethinking healthy eating plan’. The commenter made the point that where you eat is almost as important as what you eat, he then linked to an online polling site. Rather than sending our readers away, I have posted a NEW POLL on the right to make the sample group more focused to our purposes (college statistics paying off).
So, vote away and leave your thoughts!

Well, my excuse for not posting and not keeping a close eye on my Weight Watchers is just about up.  I’ve moved to a different town, I’m just about settled in, and I now have the Internet in my home again. 

It’s not that I have abandoned my weight loss; it’s quite the opposite, in fact.  For the past week and a half or so I’ve been working without a net, just choosing what foods I should have and what I shouldn’t, but not really keeping track of it officially on the Weight Watchers site.  I also made a couple of trips to Seattle in the time, a distance of about 300 miles one way for me.  Eating on the road is tough–John, I don’t know how you managed your trip to Montana. 

So, starting today, I’m getting my food recorded again.  I’m under my points so far for today.  And at some point in the next week or so, I’m going to be paying a visit to a local WW meeting and posting my results on here.  I may be up a little, I may be down.  The main thing is that I’m staying accountable for all of it, and that’s the reason I started this blog in the first place.  Technically, I’m on maintenance, and I have six weeks from my last weigh-in (July 3) to be at 247 or less.  Hmmm…that was a month ago, so I’ve just got a couple of weeks to go.  Looks like I need to get on the stick. 

One thing about my new hometown:  It’s relatively flat, and there are bike paths all over the place.  I’ve been utilizing them quite a bit the last few days.  Plus, there is a biking club that meets Tuesdays and Thursdays for road trips. 

Glad to be back, folks.  It doesn’t get much better than this.