Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Finally have a chance to post...ON VACATION!!!

OK, here's the down and dirty on what's going on with me. I left last Friday for my annual trip out west. I ate breakfast and lunch on the DTG plan before leaving but had to snack and eat on the road. I was smart enough to boil some eggs before leaving so I had that available along with some almonds, beef jerky, protein bars and even some pork rinds. Our first stop was for dinner just outside of Shreveport. It was a diner with a buffet. I normally avoid a buffet but it had fresh vegetables and some fish, chicken and fruit...so that's what I had.

We spent the night in Longview, TX and awoke to a free breakfast. They actually had something other than dry cereal and honey buns so I had 3 little egg patties along with some sausage. For lunch we stopped at Cracker Barrel so I ordered the BBQ pork with cole slaw. Dinner was a Rib eye with roasted vegetables and a salad. I really trying to avoid all carbs so no dinner rolls, crackers, potatoes, etc.

Sunday morning we were in Albuquerque, NM and I'd saved a piece of steak from the nite before to have with my morning eggs...which I did, 3 hard boiled. Lunch was quick in Farmington, NM as we had many more miles to go so we stopped into the KFC for their new grilled chicken plates. No dinner roll or potatoes, just chicken ad cole slaw. Keep in mind that as I grew hungry along the way I had the snacks mentioned above to munch on and I was drinking plenty of water. We pulled into Mexican Hat, Utah around 3pm and got our gear ready for our first ride. A quick run down Comb Ridge and Butler wash and we were both exhausted and ready for dinner. There is a really cool place called the  Swingin Steak and yes, they actually swing your steak over an open flame. The meal comes with a salad and pinto beans with a huge piece of Texas style toast...I just had the steak and salad along with an ice cold beer!

Memorial Monday we woke to beautiful blue skies along the San Juan River so we took a walk  to start the morning. A short hike along the ridge of the San Juan River was exhilarating to say the least. We also took the opportunity to fire off a few rounds from our weapons as no one was around in this desolate area. Scrambled eggs and bacon topped off the morning. We are on the bikes for most of the day so we lunched on protein bars, hard boiled eggs and cheese sticks. It filled the belly as we traveled to Hanksville, UT. It's a pretty small town so food choices are limited but we actually found a place where we hadn't eaten before. I enjoyed a nicely grilled chicken breast with delicious green beans and a salad vowing to come back Tuesday night for a steak.

The short walk to "Blondie's" for breakfast got our blood moving. I ordered 3 scrambled eggs with cheese and 2 sausage patties along with a fruit cup...it look refreshing and it was. We rode hard all day in the Temple Mountain region north of Hanksville and just outside Goblins State Park. We lived off of beef jerky and protein bars so by the time we made it back for dinner we were ravenous for a well prepared steak. Our little restaurant didn't disappoint! The rib eye was cooked to perfection with a side of green beans and a salad. Delicious!

My goal here is to enjoy my vacation and not come back from this trip, like so many others, at east 5 pounds heavier.  (I want to just maintain what I've lost; which by the way is 28 pounds. I was 230 the Thursday before we left.)I think that because I haven't been eating anything fried, I feel so much better out here. I haven't suffered with the altitude sickness as in past years nor have I felt zapped of my energy. I truly believe that what I'm eating is having a profound effect on the way I feel and the way I'm performing on my rides. It's amazing. I may not get a chance to blog again but I'm thinking about you guys. More later and lots of good pics!

Thursday, May 14, 2009

I've got good news and GREAT news!!

Let's start with the good news. I lost a pound this week bringing my total to 26 pounds! It was a rough week because I was a bit depressed that the scale didn't move last week but I'll take the pound and see if I can post a big loss for next week getting closer to my goal of 30 pounds before vacation. I find with the low carb plan the weight loss comes in spurts. Unfortunately, a lot of times the weight lost is dependant upon how well your bowels moved that week. I've mentioned before that for some reason all that protein tends to bind.

Now the great news; I went to the doctor for a checkup on Tuesday and of course she noticed I have lost weight but more importantly my blood work was remarkable. I won't go into too much detail but I can tell you my triglyceride levels have plummeted considerably. I'm still outside of the normal range but being in the 300's is leaps and bounds better than when the number was so high they could calculate some of my cholesterol numbers. I was once at 1059!!! My A1C level has dropped down into range and my glucose levels have dropped from 138 into the 120's. This morning my own stick came up 99! It's the first time I've been out of the triple digits since I don't know when.

My doc was so impressed with the results that DTG has given me she asked for some information from them that she can give to interested patients. I'm walking talking living proof that this program can and has lowered my blood sugars while losing weight. It's another shining endorsement for the DTG program, I feel. I've noticed some new followers of this blog that are new to the DTG program. I hope you are encouraged by these results because chances are you too are dealing with the same issues I am. Diabetes is rough and I want to avoid becoming an inject able diabetic like the plague!

I'm hoping to pick my exercise up a bit more. The elevator is a ghost to me...I haven't taken an elevator ride in over two months now as the dozen or so trips up and down three flights of stairs has gotten easier. It's not an organized program but it's all I have right now until I can find a way to shake my schedule loose and exercise. I feel so much better these days and look forward to losing even more. I'm wearing clothes that still have the dry cleaners tags on them from the last time I fit into them...it's like a new wardrobe! The comments from people that know me all say they notice a difference and to keep it up. We have free concerts every Wednesday in Lafayette square. I ran into several people that knew me and they all commented on the weight I've lost...some were encouraged by it too. Stick with the plan; the plan will work for you.

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Happy Mothers Day!

First, let me catch you up on where I stand. Last Thursday I did weigh in but couldn't post a loss...no gain but no loss so I didn't Bog that day. I have been extremely busy trying to prepare for my trip on the 22nd. It has taken most of my weekends and several days during the week to get ready but I've been able to stick to my meal plan pretty well. I've decided I'm not going to try and travel with my food and luckily, DTG doesn't seem to mind if you stop and restart so I plan of putting my order on "pause" for the week I'll be gone and resume it when I get back. It should be easily accomplished through the Internet or with a simple phone call. DTG's customer service is very good unlike some of the other diet plans out there.

Now, to mothers day. I'm fortunate that I still have my mom. As mentioned, I lost my dad better than a dozen years ago. We all miss him and I'm sure we will talk about him often today. I am cooking a late lunch for my mom, her friend, my sister and of course my wife and son. The menu is certainly something I could eat with a few exceptions but I plan on heating my DTG meal and eating with them. Grilled chicken, cheesy vegetables (broccoli, carrots, cauliflower) with a garden salad and some garlic bread is the fare for them. It just so happens that I too will be having chicken.

My initial fascination with green beans for breakfast is waning as it's just not that appetizing that early in the morning but for the most part I am really enjoying the low carb meals. I still get surprised by the variety and flavors put in that little tub. Last night's salmon and vegetables was delicious. The pot roast was fantastic as was the prime rib. I also want to say hi to some of my new followers who have decided to blog along with starting their DTG plan. I think it's a great way to chronicle your experience and will help keep you honest in the long run. Please remember to turn your comments on so we can respond to your postings and good luck. It's an amazing journey and it's well worth it.

Happy Moms Day.

Monday, May 4, 2009

Made it through the weekend pretty well.

Friday after work I went to my buddy's house to work on our motorcycles as we get ready for our trip. I brought my DTG food with me and ate with his family...flatiron steak with asparagus was pretty darn good!

We had an early rise Saturday morning to get to Mississippi and meet with the Realtor. We saw almost 20 houses in about 6 hours. We stopped for lunch at (almost) world famous BBQ joint "The Shed." I would have loved to have had a big sloppy pulled pork BBQ sandwich but opted for just the brisket meat and some coleslaw. It was terrific, too. We were home in enough time for me to have DTG but I couldn't have been more proud that I made some good decisions at lunch that afternoon.

Sunday was another early day for me as it was back to the grind...literally. We were working on the trailer getting it ready to roll so we were welding and grinding and cutting and bolting and painting. It was hard work in the warm sun but I kept hydrated and believe I only ate 2 meals on Sunday.

I had a talk with my rather large co-worker today about the low carb plan. I believe it would benefit him as well because it CAN be easy to lose weight IF you follow the rules. He's on insulin among other things to control his sugars. I hope I can convince him that losing some weight and controlling his sugars could add years to his life. If you too are dealing with poor health because your weight I can't recommend Diet To Go enough. The food is great tasting and they send you everything you need to assure success. I get new lab work tomorrow and I'll have the results when I see my doctor next Monday. I really hoping to see some positive results this go around.