One thing I think was a major culprit is coffee. I began to increase my intake of coffee, black, and the week I made a point to drink 20oz-30oz. I noticed a 5lb drop at least. I hate to do it every week though just because I do not want to get really dependent on it.

What do you think, any ideas?

This last week has been my least amount of weight lost, and I fully anticipated this. Therefore I hope this next week I can add the working out part and go from there. But for the the most part, diet alone has done well and is progressing quite well. I know once I add exercise, the next phase of my goal will be initiated and soon to be complete.

351 down to 325 in under four weeks. Pants and shirts are beginning to fit better.

1. The day after my binge day made sure to eat every two hours small 4 hour body meals. I knew I would be hungry after the big day therefore to alleviate symptoms of relapse, I went this route. Likewise with my binge day being Saturday, I have no excuse to continue with the 4HB since it is Sunday and I have more free time.

2. I supplemented this week with fish oil, multivitamin, BCAA and a probiotic.

3. I took a couple cold showers and wore an ice pack on my neck before going to bed. Cold showers pretty much suck by the way.

4. I prepared thoroughly. My wife, who joined me last week, and I laid put dinner for the week. We also cooked lunches a couple day ahead to make for a fail proof week. (my wife lost 4 pounds)

5. I experimented with a lot of diferremt concoctions. This can be fun and also patience trying. *Here is a cool Guamanian recipe for a tasty sauce. In a bowl I put about a 1/4 cup soy sauce, little under 1/4 vinegar, chopped jalapeño, chopped onion, crushed red pepper to taste. Little lemon juice. I like a finer chop of both onion and jalapeño. Keep it in the fridge. Works well with some of those bland beans and meat.

6. Drank over a gallon of water each day. Only other liquid was coffee, black. I made a point to drink lots of water every chance I got. My bathroom visits have also faded from week one even with additional fluids.

This week I will add exercise. I will start with push-ups, squats, and bicycle crunches this week and add more next week. I wanted to do the diet by itself first to see the results and now that I know it will work I will move forward. My goal is to be 300 lbs by the end of February and from there I will look to lose more.

That for the most part has been my week. If you have any other recipes, recommendations to try please let me know. Good luck friends.

1. The day after my binge day made sure to eat every two hours small 4 hour body meals. I knew I would be hungry after the big day therefore to alleviate symptoms of relapse, I went this route. Likewise with my binge day being Saturday, I have no excuse to continue with the 4HB since it is Sunday and I have more free time.

2. I supplemented this week with fish oil, multivitamin, BCAA and a probiotic.

3. I took a couple cold showers and wore an ice pack on my neck before going to bed. Cold showers pretty much suck by the way.

4. I prepared thoroughly. My wife, who joined me last week, and I laid put dinner for the week. We also cooked lunches a couple day ahead to make for a fail proof week. (my wife lost 4 pounds)

5. I experimented with a lot of diferremt concoctions. This can be fun and also patience trying. *Here is a cool Guamanian recipe for a tasty sauce. In a bowl I put about a 1/4 cup soy sauce, little under 1/4 vinegar, chopped jalapeño, chopped onion, crushed red pepper to taste. Little lemon juice. I like a finer chop of both onion and jalapeño. Keep it in the fridge. Works well with some of those bland beans and meat.

6. Drank over a gallon of water each day. Only other liquid was coffee, black. I made a point to drink lots of water every chance I got. My bathroom visits have also faded from week one even with additional fluids.

This week I will add exercise. I will start with push-ups, squats, and bicycle crunches this week and add more next week. I wanted to do the diet by itself first to see the results and now that I know it will work I will move forward. My goal is to be 300 lbs by the end of February and from there I will look to lose more.

That for the most part has been my week. If you have any other recipes, recommendations to try please let me know. Good luck friends.

1. Prepare. I need to prepare for the week. The fact is, we know what we are going to eat, I plan to prepare for the week ahead on Sunday. We know what we are to eat prepare and eliminate excuses to be weak.

2. Don’t get hungry. I found my protein, legume and lentil intake not high enough. I need to up those and if necessary supplement with a whey shake but not rely on it. I ate more than enough veggies (spinach, mixed veggies, broccoli).

3. Communicate. I think it is important to let others around you know what you are doing and that will help prevent their temptation and hopefully call me out during my weak time. I sometimes get a macho attitude during diets but set that aside and proceed.

4. Water. I got within 20oz. Of water each day of my goal of a gallon. 132oz. I may have consumed the rest in coffee but that is not the goal. Pound out the water.

All in all an okay week. This week I will be sure and be prepared for round two.

351lbs. Down to 345. May be water but seemed to be a consistent drop everyday.

For the past few months my lifting has steadily gone downhill, my diet is beginning to deteriorate more and more and most of all I am losing control. I look forward to two things active, racquetball which I play 2-4 times a week, and then I get to take batting practice with my team I coach.  Very inconsistent when it comes to the batting practice portion.

I need some advice. What do you have for me, I am up for and willing to try anything at this point.

As we work hard and push ourselves to reach the goals we have laid out, there is one common motivator that really keeps us going, the need to look better. I have tried to make other motivators my #1 but it still always comes back to several different questions and statements I tell myself;

• Do you want to look like this your whole life?
• Can I fit into that old shirt that makes me look good?
• I wonder if they notice me?
• I can get any girl if I looked like that.
• I can look like that dude.
• I want that guy to envy me.
• I want my significant other to look at me a little different.

On and on I can go and if at least one of these does not ring true, consider me crazy. Even a forty year old man still wants to be envied for the way he looks by women and men. We all want to be looked at a little longer by opposite sex, we all want someone to be like “damn he’s a big dude” or “wow she has some great arms”. It is flattering and we all could use a little more of that in our lives.

All that said, being selfish is a big motivator. Embrace it, use it as a backup to whatever else motivates you. Sometimes I have to remind myself by asking myself this question;

How bad would it suck to die today?

Take a minute and think about what you would leave behind. Think about everything, it may be morbid but for me dying would SUCK bad.

Here are some things I am going to put on the;

• I am strong
• I will be here for my family
• I will be 275 lbs by November
• I love cardio
• I will eat well
• What is all this worth?

Here are just a few thoughts, they may seem cheesy but who cares?  I have a great feeling this will help support the lifestyle I am trying to adopt.

From the Top Down

My goals are in a pyramid type form. My overall goal sits at the top and  is my biggest goal. I set this goal as my one year goal. So at the top of the pyramid is my goal I want achieved for that year.  Under that goal I have my two six month goals. The first six months and the second six months. Under those are broken into three month sectors and under those are the one month goals. With those come the week by week break down and lastly the daily breakdown.

Some might say that is a lot of work and I don’t want to write those down. I agree, I don’t write them down either. I know what and where I want to be in a year, that is my ultimate goal. Not to mention, I the mirror is the constant reminder of all my goals.

Furthermore, my one year goal is attainable in 6 months, if I worked hard day in and day out it can achieved. The fact is however, I know attaining my one year goal in 6 months will be a highly difficult feat.  Likewise I do not want to set myself up to fail. Therefore, I look at a good six month goal and make it my one year goal.

Set Yourself Up to Succeed

Goal are limits upon what you can achieve. However having these goals can be a great motivation to move forward with the next accomplishment.  On the other hand, settling for those successes on an initial goal can be detrimental and can lead to letting down or easing up on further goals. Make long term goals big and wishful. These goals should be tough but if you are able to break those goals down, things become a little easier and therefore can generate a plane to achieve them.

Day to Day Struggles

I battle with myself daily on what goals I want to achieve for that day. The night before I set my alarm for 5:15am, I snooze until 5:30am and then true to zombie form I find myself at the gym for cardio. What’s more is that while I make it to the gym, I struggle the whole time getting to the gym. 24 Hour Fitness is 1.5 miles from my house, I make two turns to get to there and for some reason I battle myself daily.

Furthermore, when I get back I am energized, ready for the day. I eat a great breakfast, take the supplements I need to take, prepare my meals and I am off.

Goal #1 achieved- get my ass up and to the gym.
Goal #2 achieved- prepare my meals.
Goal #3 achieved- eat a good first meal.

All that said, my next battle comes into play. Eating all those meals I made for myself. I cannot tell you the amount of food I have made that has been wasted because I forget to eat or just do not want to eat. My goal is to eat 5 small meals during the work day. 50% of the time I make this happen.

Goal #4 failed- eat all 5 meals.

Although I failed my 4th goal I will make a side goal and that is to eat at least three good meals while I am at work. This is where the whole setting myself up to succeed comes into play.

Goal #4 (modified) achieved- eat 3 good meals.

Day to day goals are difficult, keep your overall goal in mind and do not get over consumed with daily goals, keep the long term goals blatant.

Weeks at a Time

With the long term goals always on the mind and the day to day struggles plugging along, then come the weeks. The weeks are tough and can really be a stalling point for some. A lot of times I make my goals for the weeks and some weeks I attain them and other weeks I fall well short. It is important to be deliberate with your weekly goals however be flexible.

A lot of time I make uneducated goals for weeks. For example, “Lose 5 pounds”, “Bent over row 275 lbs. 12 times”, etc. These goals are all great but more fit for a two week or three week goal. I say that because some days at the gym I do not feel tip top and some days I feel like the Hulk. When it comes to my weight, water weight is killer to some. Although I have learned when to weigh myself and what to think about that afterward there are still times where seeing that number on the scale can really hit me hard.

My advice for weekly breakdown goals;

• Be flexible, meaning sometimes our weekly goals turn to bi-weekly, however do not let yourself down on the second week.
• Make more mental goals-i.e. I am going to be hyped to go to the gym, I am strong etc. Reaffirmations
• Line up your week i.e. Monday I will eat so many carbs and protein, workout at this time and so forth.

Take a Break

With all these goals comes a let down period. At one point everything will seem as if it cannot go according to the plan. Whether your just lacking some motivation or just tired of the track. Take a couple days, think about nothing relax. I guarantee that after a couple days of nothing you will be yearning for the other lifestyle.

A quick warning if you are first starting out, check out this blog post.

That said keep your goals at different levels all making sure they lead to your ultimate goal. When breaking things down make them clear. This can be a great for making your goal happen. Last but not least be flexible.