I have been working out a lot here lately. I am resting about one day a week. I am trying to incorporate as much cardio, weightlifting and healthy eating into this journey as possible. I really excited to by home much this journey has improved my quality of life.

After coming home from Iraq and getting out of the Army I have been working through PTSD and depression. I have been on multiple different prescriptions that have not really improved my quality of life much. I am so much more energized ever since I have been going to the gym and getting active. My self confidence has been increased. I think more positively about myself and where I am going with my journey. I am much more happier with who I am. I still have a long way to go, but I have seen some major improvements in the past two and a half months.

I started out at 258 in January, today I weighed in at 232. I am not very concerned with the amount of weight I lose, but the amount of fat that I lose. I will be more than happy with being 200 lbs but having less body fat.

My workout today was insane. Earlier in the week I did 5.5 miles on the elliptical machine in 45 minutes. I wanted to increase my mileage and stay within the same amount of time. I pushed myself hard today and did 6 miles in 45:25. I was drenched in sweat by the time I was done. I went down to the weight piles and worked my arms for about 45 minutes. After pounding away with the dumbbells I wanted to make sure my free throws were on because Sunday we have the first round of the playoffs. I grabbed a basketball and headed to the basketball court. I was shooting around when I noticed a group of guys looking for a 10th guy to run a game. I jogged over and said I would jump in. An hour and a half later I finally called it a day. I was the oldest player by at least 10 years but I kept up like a champ. However, I will probably be the first to be sound asleep tonight.

I cannot wait for the day that I can walk around in public without a shirt on. Slowly but surely I will attain my goal.

SHEP

It is good to be alive and well. I have been feeling great since exercising and changing my eating habits. I am very pleased with how things are going with my weight loss journey.

I am not seeing the results on the scales that I am wanting to see. My theory is that I am gaining muscle, therefore not seeing the weight coming off, but the fat coming off.

I have gone to the gym everyday this week and gotten some kind of exercise. I have been using myfitnesspal.com to keep track of my caloric intake since Tuesday of this week. Each day that I have logged my food intake and exercise I have had a surplus of calories that I could have used. It is pretty rewarding to see how I am making progress and increasing my fitness level.

Sticking with a diet and workout plan has always been difficult for me, but this time there is something really different going on. I am becoming obsessed with working out and lifting weights. It is awesome to see the strength that I am gaining. I cannot wait to be able to walk around every where with no shirt on. I want to be able to walk the beach and have kids run away screaming. I want to walk into work with no shirt on and all of my co-workers wonder who the new guy is.

I am looking forward to the upcoming Walhalla Elementary School 5K and fun run. I believe it is on March 24th. You can more than likely find more information at http://www.oconee.k12.sc.us/WalhallaES.cfm
This 5K is great. I would love to see you there.

SHEP

I have had several good days in a row at the gym. I have been excited and motivated about going to work out.

Today I swam 21 laps or just over 1/2 mile. I did some weight training as well. I did some squats with 145 pounds and one squat at 225 pounds. I know the amount of weight I am using isn't proportional to my size, but I have never really lifted weights before now. I need to get onto a consistent lifting schedule. Instead of being consistent with what I do and how much I lift I wander around the gym doing what I like and what makes me sweat the most. I would think that this isn't going to produce the most results for me.

It is all a learning experience,

SHEP

I am down to 231. I only weigh myself every couple of days. To make sure I am not gaining on my days off I am following a strict no empty calorie rule. I only drink water and the very occasional diet soda (Diet Dr. Pepper). I am eating lots of protein and veggies. I am typically eating grilled chicken and salad for lunch and dinner and some eggs for breakfast. I will have some deli sliced chicken breast as a snack with a slice of Gouda cheese. I will get me an individual size veggie tray for a snack too.

I am pretty excited to see results so quickly. I just have to keep up the work and realize it isn't something I can do on and off but I have to be intentionally active for the rest of my life.

After a long bout with severe de-motivation I am back to working out and eating in a more responsible manner. I was in a funk for a while and just could not seem to shake out of it. I am motivated and ready to make some changes to my lifestyle and habits so I can get fit and healthy. I have switched to strictly water and have gone low carb. I have been going fairly strong for about 2 weeks and have dropped a decent amount of weight. I started out at 258 and I am down to 241. I am working out at the gym 3 to 4 days per week. I do atleast 30 minutes of cardio 3 days per week and lift weights atleast 4 days per week. I hope to get a little more motivated and increase the amount I work out so I can drop even more weight and get fit. This is the first time I have ever lifted weights. I have heard from several reliable sources that weightlifting is a good tool to help increase metabolism and burn fat. I really want to be able to have the self confidence to walk around with no shirt on in the near future.

a small step forward

I cranked out a mile on the treadmill in just over 9 minutes. I haven't had a mile time that low in a long time. I am going to slowly build from there. Been stupid busy and haven't been making time to keep my blog current. Thank your lucky stars this publication is free. LOL

Counting Calories

I started counting calories some time last week. I dropped 2 pounds by staying under my calorie allotment. This weekend, however I did not do a good job with keeping up with my calories. Or try to stay under my allotted 2161 calories. I am going to do a better job of keeping up with my calories.