Weight Watch

It began with a shot...of Jello...

Okay, before I get to far into this, if any of you have been keeping track with my weight loss or health discussions, you'll remember that I gave up drinking Coca Cola the date I started keeping track of my weight and posting it for all to see.

If you're wondering why I would take something so personal and publicize, there's a simple answer - motivation and accountability.

By seeing my weight numbers there, in print, every time I look at the blog to update, check in with comments and such, I see a big bold reminder that I must remain vigilant in my weight loss journey.

You'll also notice that it's been awhile since my last entry. Well, that's because, after all the eating and drinking on Super Bowl Sunday, I shot back up to 220lbs. I'm not kidding you when I say that I put on all that weight in one day of eating and drinking.

I found myself surprised by this because I've been able to drink my lovely tasting craft beers and find not too much would change on the scale, and what I ate never seemed to matter either.

So, what did I do differently on Super Bowl Sunday?

Well - and this is the interesting part - I had some...okay a few...okay, maybe about 6 or 7...or more...shots of Apple Pie. Not to mention all the beer I drank during the game (I know I had a couple of Sandcreek Hard Lemonades, an Oso Night Train Porter, and I believe I split a Consecrator Dopplebock and had a pint of Night Tripper - I think). Oh, and I forgot about the Jello shot. Yeah, I could have been even more soused, but I was saying no to all the other Jello shots and Apple Pie shots offered throughout the game because I do not drink hard alcohol, and have not knowingly drank any hard alcohol drinks since I accidentally drank from my grandmother's glass of seven-up when I was 8 years old. I didn't know it was spiked with vodka until after I'd already drunk it. I was too fast for her and she couldn't stop me, lol!

In fact,I hadn't planned on any shots of alcohol that day, Jello or otherwise, and had started to sober up, and I planned on being sober by the time we got home, but the Green Bay Packer Super Bowl win was such a great high that I thought, "What the heck, I might as well try it!", and that's how it began. Yep, it all began with a Jello shot spiked with Vodka! After having that, I saw that neat green liquid in a shot glass and asked what that was. It was called Apple Pie (a mix of apple sour and golden schlager or something to that effect). I tried one and it was too damn tasty, and too damned easy to continue drinking. Good thing I wasn't driving.

Considering as to how I didn't even start drinking craft beer until I was 35, I still haven't really drunk enough to know what my limits are, especially with hard alcohol. Plus, it wouldn't have mattered how much water I drank, I still would have had that nasty headache the next day. See, I don't get that after a night of drinking craft beer, as long as I have at least 1 pint of water. I usually drink a pint of water for every pint of beer I drink, so I haven't really had a hangover until that Monday after the Super Bowl.

If I have my say, it will never happen again either. As good as that Apple Pie stuff is, I honestly don't feel the after effects are remotely worth the taste. I'll stick to craft beer, because at least I know my limits there, and I don't feel the need or desire to drink all that frequently. I limit it to once or twice a week.

All I can say is, there must have been a lot of sugar in those shots because I can't see where the weight would have come from otherwise because I honestly didn't eat that much because my food allergies kept me from eating more that two sandwiches (just a slice of meat and a slice of cheese), a couple of pretzels and some mini eclairs. I limited myself on those too. I didn't even eat the fast food I brought home that night. I stuck it in the fridge, drank a glass of water, refilled it, went to the bathroom and climbed into bed. So, while I was pretty soused that night, I can still remember that, so that's a good thing. I ate the food the next day.

Seriously, I can eat food - including junk food - and drink craft beer, and the weight gain never happened that quickly, ever! I've been making up for it ever since.

On a side note though, I managed to add one more positive thing to my diet - fiber. Yeah, I haven't been eating enough fiber. I decided that since I've been able to mostly avoid soda (I've had an average of one soda a month to cut the cravings, but I'm working really hard to avoid having any this month.), that it was time to work on the next step in improving my eating habits - adding a bowl of Mini-Wheats. I figured even on an every other day basis right now would be acceptable. After all, I'm trying to get my body to accept the regimen, not reject it.

So far, it's worked. This has also seemed to change what I choose to eat after dinner. For example, I was up a bit late last night watching some programs I DVRd, and I got hungry. Part of me wanted to have a fried egg with bacon, but I opted for a bowl of mini-wheats (frosted and cinnamon swirl mix) instead.

I ended up eating a lot less that I would have otherwise, and I woke up even lighter than I expected I would. A win-win.

Out of this I came up with 3 positives:
1. I learned not to drink tasty hard alcohol, especially because it's fattening!
2. I have finally added fiber into my diet, when previous attempts failed
3. I got back down to 210, and then managed to lose even more weight, proving that my weight loss is not hampered by my supposed under-active thyroid.

Oh, yeah, and as of this week, I finally managed to wake up with only a minor headache that's barely a blip on the radar! So, make that 4 positives!

If I can do it, so can you! Remember, you are not alone because every normal person deals with weight issues! Don't diet, change the way you eat and you'll see some slow weight loss progress. Add a decent, maintainable exercise regimen, and you'll see even more weight loss.

Until next time, have a great one!