scubasteve85

So life got busy and I didn't get to this for almost a month. Oops. So, I did get to 320 on Labor Day. I've kind of hovered right around there the past few weeks. New weight goal is 310 by Halloween, which I feel is attainable with some hard work. As far as the walking, I've not been good at staying up with that goal. However, I've gone on 2 6-mile bike rides so far this week. For me, that is a good substitute but I'm not calling it complete until it's a habit. As for the goal of eating out less, I've failed big there this month. I have been making healthy options when eating out but I need to cut down on how often I do go out. The final goal of cleaning up has had a huge dent made in it. The living room has been completed and the kitchen/dining room. The front porch and one of the bathrooms have also been made clutter free in that time too. So, the next goal is to straighten up the laundry room by Oct 1. Overall, I feel good about my progress. I may have stalled on some but I've made good gains in others and will correct those I struggled on.

Thank you for the encouragement. It does mean a lot to know I've got people rooting for me. An update, I'm down to 321, so I've got 1 pound to go with a week left for my first short-term weight goal. This should be easy. This week, I worked on cleaning the living room in my house. I've made a significant impact and feel I can make my updated goal of having it clean. It's amazing how much this has helped the depression. That's really all for now. Food plan has been going well. and getting some good walking in.

So, I've gone a huge amount of time without updating and I'm a little mad at myself for not staying on this. Truth be told, my depression has gotten a bit worse. Mostly due to some unfortunate news. I've got a friend who's 27 who was diagnosed with testicular cancer about a year and a half ago. He's been battling through it but recently received news from his doctor that there's not any more that can be done. It kills me to know he's so young and has a daughter that's just over 1 year old that adores him. He's in good spirits and said he's not giving up. I think he's going to get a 2nd opinion from IU Cancer center. So, knowing where I failed previously due to depression, I've given myself some slack in a few goals so I can focus what I can on the others. So, my eating has been good. Pretty basic, but healthy. It's consisted of 8 oz of chicken breast with 1/2 cup of steamed broccolli for lunch and dinner with a half avocado either for breakfast or later in the day, depending on how hungry I feel in the morning. Surprisingly, I don't get tired of the same thing. It ptobably helps that I switch up the sauces and spices to keep it from getting old. Though I did find 80/20 ground beef for a good price, so I'll have that when my current supply of cooked chicken runs out. I've also been walking a mile 2-3x a week. Part of that due to Pkemon GO and part because my younger sister has been inviting me over a bit because her husband has been out of town for work the last few weeks. She needs some adult company to keep herself sane with 2 little ones. Her house is a half mile from mine so the walk there and back covers that easily. I've also been doing good on eating out less. Having food cooked ahead of time really helps out with that. The area where I've been lax has been cleaning up the house. I've been working on it, but depression can suck the energy out of you and I'd rather put what I have into eating better and getting out and moving As I get bursts of energy, I focus on cleaning, but some days it's hard to find any after walking and taking care of my animals' daily needs. That's why I edited the goal above to Labor Day even though July 4 was my initial goal. I know things will get better, but the last 2 months have been a kick in the teeth. But I realize it's okay to back off on making steps in one area to keep moving in another and not giving up altogether because it becomes too hard to keep pushing forward everywhere.

So, confession time, I didn't do any tracking these last 2 weeks. However, while I wasn't doing any trackable activity, I was still doing activity that was good exercise. The story behind it is that, on the 18th, my sister accepted a job to teach in Saipan and needed to fly out this past weekend. She obviously had a lot to do in 2 weeks so I offered to help her as much as possible. So, while I wasn't walking or doing anything that's easy to quantify, I was still lifting and walking with heavy things while I helped her pack. So, I don't really have much to update on other than that I've not quit, I just became real busy and wasn't doing anything easily quantifiable. Here's to getting in more of a rhythm in August.

I wanted to do a quick check in. Things are going a little better. My hand is mostly healed up, no swelling, redness, or warmth. Still a little sore with certain movements and I did lost some grip strength from the 2-3 days I couldn't move it but it's getting there. I'm on the last day of antibiotics and I'm thankful for that. While I'm glad they're strong to fight the infection, they've done terrible things to my digestive system, even with taking probiotics with them per doctor's orders. I have been out walking more this week, thank you Pokemon GO. I've met a good amount of people and ran into an old friend from high school that I haven't seen in almost a decade. My cat is still having seizures, which is frustrating, however the frequency is going down as well as the intensity of the seizures. For example, this morning he had one where he basically tensed up and rolled on his side for about 10-20 seconds and then was back to normal. It's very frustrating but the vet said he's in good health otherwise and they have to balance the frequency of seizures that could be dangerous to his health with the anti-seizure meds which can be hard on his liver. So, we deal with what we've got, I just wish he didn't have to through it. Also due to all this, I'm behind on goals 3 and 4. Dropping the money on vet and dr bills killed my savings a bit, but that's the reason I need an emergency fund.

That looks similar to mine, with adjustments made specifically for fishing. My mother has the same model as mine, that's a pretty basic model and fishes out of it. Ours have a strap on the side for holding your paddle that she uses for her fishing pole when paddling out and then swaps them while fishing. She also keeps her net in the back compartment while paddling and then attaches it to some bungies on the kayak and drops it in the water while fishing, then pulls it back into the storage when paddling in. We paid around $200 for ours, but I think we got them on sale, if I'm remembering correctly. Also, yes we have tons of lakes and rivers to enjoy in Northern Indiana. As far as the life jacket question, I just went to Dunham's and tried on some until I found one that felt comfortable to move my arms around in. I think the brand is mti but I'm not at the lake to check at the moment.

Yeah, last week was nothing short of a nightmare. I think one thing that has helped is Pokemon Go coming out and getting me outside and taking my mind off things.

So, this last week was pure hell. One of my cats has started having seizures. Blood work has come back completely fine, so the vet says there's no underlying illness causing them. There's also nothing he could have gotten into that would have caused them. Also, when I found him in the middle of the first one, I thought he was choking and reached in his mouth to try and clear out whatever it was and got bit a few times. That then got infected and swollen for a few days. Don't worry, I went to the doc and have that under control. My Uncle Charlie's funeral went as well as a funeral can go. And to top it off, Saturday was the 1 year anniversary of my Gram's passing. For that, we all went to Pap's (my grandpa) and ordered Marco's pizza as it was one of Gram's favorite things to eat every so often. So, I'm gonna keep pushing ahead once the swelling in my hand goes down to where I have a reliable grip again. I'm proud that I stayed the course in eating healthy this week when my stress was so high that I really had to fight the urge to eat a ton of garbage.

I'm checking back in today to report my great uncle passed away from lung cancer last night. Instead of caving in on myself, I'm trying to be open to be more accountable with continuing what I recently started. My uncle Charlie was the youngest brother of my Gram who passed away from lung cancer almost a year ago. He'd been battling for 3 years now and had his ups and downs but overall he was usually looking good and always able to get to family events and other things he always did. Everything went really fast yesterday. I know it will be hard but I know uncle Charlie would be pissed off at me if he knew I started coasting through life again. So, to honor him and the way he always lived life to the fullest, I'm gonna keep pushing myself and live like there's no tomorrow. I just may need some more encouragement from others.

So, my weight has stayed at 325 over this week. I'm not terribly concerned given I lost 5 lbs last week and am well ahead of my goal. If it continues into next week, then I may be more concerned. I've not eaten a meal out once this week. I attribute that to the casserole I made Sunday so I'd have food for the whole week. I also have noticed a massive increase in energy this week after eating healthier food. And I've also been less hungry throughout the day. I did have pizza and a pop Wednesday night. I was at my parent's lake place helping them with a few things and they had ordered pizza for dinner. It was a thin crust which helped it fit in my macros better, but the pop was just a bad choice. I felt it the next morning as I was way more tired than I'd been all week when I woke up. As far as activity level, I didn't walk as much the last half of the week but that was due to some heavy soreness in my legs from some yard work I did Tuesday. That yard work being pulling saplings out of the ground without a shovel. I couldn't find what I did with it, may have left it at my parents when I helped them with something earlier, so I just grabbed and yanked at the ones that would move. Surprised myself when I yanked one out that had roots over a foot deep. With the higher energy I've had, I have been getting things cleaned up inside the house. I should be able to rally and get the living room finished by Monday. So, plans for this weekend are to make smart choices at the cookouts I'll be at, do some more walking, and finish cleaning up the living room. I'm confident I can do well at those.

Updated Measurements: Weight: 325 lbs (Still need to take other measurements) I honestly have no idea how I lost 5 lbs in one week. Especially this week. The fair was in town and I definitely ate some fair food. Though, I was smart about it and worked it into my meal plan instead of in addition to my normal meals. As far as goals, I'm already halfway to to my first weight goal. Now that I'm focusing on healthier food, the 2nd half may be easier. Due to the fair, I did walk 1 mile 2 days this week. I came close other days, but not quite. Because of the fair, I didn't do so well on the eating out part, but it was only 3x this week, which is good for me. I also wasn't home much to make a dent in tidying up. So, this week, my plan is to continue my momentum on goals 1 and 2 and work harder on 3 and 4. I did spend last night making a Chicken Bacon Ranch Casserole recipe I found on r/ketorecipes for my lunch and dinner this week. I'll share the link when I find it.

My Re-Introduction to the Community TL;DR - I've been a member for a few years, just not always active. Did fine until I lost my Gram a year ago and suffered some severe depression over the last year. Had an incident recently that snapped me out of the depression and now I'm trying to be more active in the community to have accountability, which I've recognized I need for when times get hard. MEASUREMENTS: I only have height and weight. If I get others I'll add them. Starting: Weight: 330 lbs Height: 5'10" Current: 8/26/16 Weight: 320 lbs GOALS: I have long term goals but I understand the importance of short term goals in reaching the larger goals. So for each long term goal, I'll include a short term goal with goal date. Reach 170 lbs Reach 320 lbs by Labor Day Reach 310 lbs by Halloween Get healthier Walk 1 mile 3x a week by Aug 1 Build an emergency fund Cut out extra spending by only eating out 1x per week (exception for special occasions, ie. birthdays, still try to plan this around those) Clean the house Clean the clutter in the living room and give it a deep clean by July 4 Labor Day Bonus Goal: Deep clean the kitchen/dining room by July 4 Labor Day Clean up the Laundry Room by Oct 1 PLAN: Because a goal without a plain is just a wish. Meal planning is something I need to do, as the lack thereof is the reason I eat out more than I should and don't make good food choices. I'm going to work on eating a ketogenic diet as I've done that in the past and felt great and lost weight. In the midst of researching some keto recipes, I found some casseroles meant to last a week. This would hlep with all 3 goals. I'll be eating better, I'll be saving money by not eating out, and it will cut down on the dirty dishes in the kitchen. I have a great walking trail that isn't far from my house that I need to take advantage of. My dog loves when we walk it and it's a nice walk. I plan on eventually starting a running program with Zombies, Run! (I had previously but lost all my progress this last year). At the moment, just walking more often will be a step in the right direction. I plan on checking in at least 2x a week, so please help me stay accountable by bugging me if I don't.

I would recommend renting or finding someone you know who you can borrow from to get a feel for the different types of kayaks there are. The main differences that I found when researching are flat bottom vs round-ish bottom and sit-in vs sit-on. Sit-on kayaks actually offer more stability because they are wider, however it seemed to me they also have more drag due to the design. I could be wrong, but that's what I noticed upon trying. I have a friend who has one and she can stand up on hers without worrying about tipping it. I have a sit-in and like it more for the fact it keeps me out of the wind on cooler days and I enjoy sitting lower in the water. A flat bottom also offers more stability at the cost of some speed. I like a flat bottom as I found the round-bottom to be really finicky to the slightest shift in weight and could sometimes take in some water if I moved wrong. I also like floating rivers and since those can be long days, I pack some snacks and water in my back storage compartment and need to be able to turn enough to get in there. Also, if trees are low across the river, I need to be able to duck without worrying about dumping myself. Also, like IslandGirl_Becks said, your core is going to get more of a workout than your shoulders.

Thanks for the encouragement. I've been taking the small steps and trying to walk everyday. It helps that I have a part husky that behaves better when he gets regular long walks so that's extra encouragement.

So, I've been a member of the community since spring 2013. You likely don't recognize the name because I don't often jump in conversation, that's just my personality, and because life got busy in 2014 and I was doing pretty good on my own without accountability. Then in spring 2015, my life got thrown for a loop. My Gram, who means the world to me, was diagnosed with lung cancer. After a few rounds of chemo, the doctors saw that it was making no difference due to the aggressive form of lung cancer she had. At that point, she made the decision to stop the chemo and make memories with what time she had left. And we made many memories as a family. It became harder recognizing how tired she would start to get and knowing that each time I told her goodbye could be the last. Then on a July morning last year, I got a call from mom that Gram had passed in her sleep that morning. Even with months to prepare for that, I was not prepared. I began to coast through life, doing the bare minimum to survive. Instead of eating healthy, I ate whatever was easiest to throw together, most of which was not healthy at all. I started to pull out of the funk but then the holidays hit, which always revolved around Gram. She always cooked Thanksgiving dinner, Christmas Eve dinner, and New Year's Eve dinner. The depression hit a new low and there I was, coasting again. I ended up gaining 20 pounds. Then this past April, I was in a car accident. The other driver blew a stop sign and t-boned me in the driver side. I miraculously walked away with only deep bone bruises in my left forearm and left knee. Seeing the damage and realizing how lucky I was to barely be hurt, snapped me out of the funk I was in. I don't know everyone's religious beliefs, but I do believe in a higher power, and it felt like me walking away from the accident was a sign that my time isn't up and I still have a purpose to serve. I couldn't do much exercising because of the bone bruises and overall soreness from the accident, but I started cleaning up my diet. This past week my cousin and I took a vacation to Milwaukee, which was a good overall experience. I let my diet go a bit because we were going to visit a lot of hole in the wall type places and I wanted to eat whatever. Like the BBQ brisket and tater tot pizza I had. Though I did find many of the places use fresh ingredients and a lot are organic as well. I actually ended up losing 5 pounds over the course of vacation. I think a good amount had to do with the fact that we walked no less than 5 miles everyday. So, I feel I'm in a good place to start over and get moving. I realize, though, I need to get more involved with a community that can help keep me accountable through the rough times. That's what I was missing last year, so I'm going to try and get more involved here as I begin my journey again. Also, sorry for the novel, but I feel the details are pertinent.