Losing a part of me

I was shocked to get on the scale this morning to discover I am three pounds down from what I weighed the first morning Leslie arrived. The surprise is from the fact that I have not been on my program. I have not been going overboard, but I have not been sticking to it. There were only three days when I did not have a meal replacement shake for breakfast, including today; this morning was the only time we went out for breakfast, but we have eaten out several meals over these ten days. While we did not eat out last night, I prepared a spaghetti and meat sauce for us, which is absolutely not on the program… but it was good. Three pounds down… truly the best I could have hoped for, especially since I was expecting to be five pounds up.

Today is a very sad say, knowing that after lunch I will be driving Leslie to the airport. We are starting the countdown to her next visit, another thirty days. It breaks my heart knowing that we will be apart for that long, and I know it pains her as bad if not worse.

Over those thirty days, it is my intention to stick to my weight loss routine. I will be doing much less (and hopefully no) cheating than I have been doing. Additionally, I will be hitting the gym several times per week. I will make sure I am doing a mixture of cardio (mostly on the treadmill) and muscle building (mostly with the machines). I know that these are a good combination to help me to lose weight. I will make sure to eat healthy proteins after, as well as a small amount of carbohydrates before each workout. I will be mindful of my knee, but the knowledge that my problems there were caused by gout and not by an injury means that I will be able to ramp up to a good level quicker than if I had to baby that leg.

While I am not counting my weight as a victory (nor as a loss), I do have one non-scale victory to report. This morning I was able to squeeze into my Levi’s 501 Size 40 jeans. You may remember that a few weeks ago – a couple of days after slicing open my finger – I tried to wear them by accident and thought I might have been able to close the top button if I had use of my finger. Today they are tight, and it did take me a couple of tries to secure that top button, but they fit, and I am wearing them comfortably. Owing to the smaller waist of the pants, I am also wearing my Size 40 belt that I was not able to wear before. Woohoo!

After dropping Leslie at the dreaded airport, I will meet Eduardo to watch Uruguay in the World Cup. He is a huge fan, and knowing that Canada has no chance to advance, I will support his team to defeat Portugal. Yes, I am officially supporting Argentina, but I can also get behind my buddy’s squad. After the match, we will likely go to his house for a cigar. I wish I could spend the afternoon and evening with my wife. The countdown’s on.

Have a great day folks!