The Life Ledger

Fitness is a way of life.

During my active weight loss period on Optifast, one member of the medical staff told an interesting story about a species of crab called the Mexican Crab. According to the story, this species of crab has an interesting trait - if you put one two in a bucket, they are more interested in dragging each other back into the bucket than attempting to climb out themselves. Real or not, the anecdote illustrates an important lesson in making lifestyle changes - eliminate the Mexican crabs in your life.

I bring this up because I’ve had some pretty nasty bouts with emotional eating lately. Last night, I got home at 10:00pm from work and immediately started emptying our cabinets - bread, peanut butter, pretzels - the world was my oyster, and I intended to gobble it up. Talking to me didn’t work, as I was aware that I was emotionally eating; making alternative suggestions didn’t work, as I wanted everything. My wife finally had to grab my arms and physically restrain me for a moment to give me a chance to get a grip. Afterward, I put all the crap away and had some peaches. I sure love my wife.

People say a support system is necessary to successful weight loss and lifestyle change, but they don’t mention how you have to be an active participant. You have to be willing to listen to advice and share your dilemmas and struggles. You can be your own Mexican crab, dragging yourself down by giving in to the urges and emotional battles, and not seeking support when you need it.

Not being a Mexican crab also means helping others where possible, even if they don’t necessarily want it. I constantly tell people how many calories are in the foods they’re eating - it’s become a joke among my co-workers, but several now read the label of everything they eat. They may still eat the food, but I’m not trying to change their habits - just their awareness. I also talk about food with my parents - recently, I suggested a hormone-free brand of beef, which they said tasted good enough to warrant the extra price. I constantly discuss the “real cost” of food - the impact on our bodies from eating refined and processed crap, and the impact on the environment from growing and processing corn. I have to keep in mind though - being a Mexican crab can be not listening and sharing, or going overboard and prostletizing.

Thanks to my wife, I satisfied my emotional angst last night without resorting to comfort food. I thank her every day for her awesome, positive presence in my life. Thanks to Dave, who began his weight-loss and lifestyle change journey before I began mine, I saw how achievable lifestyle change is - it’s certainly not easy, but the benefits are innumerable and worth the effort. I thank both Dave and my wife for holding me accountable.

And thanks to you, Life Ledger readers, who knowingly or not also help - if you are reading this, you are a member of my support network, someone I am transparent and accountable to. I appreciate your support, and offer the same.

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No real change, in neither weight, nor eating habits nor exercise. I’ve gone biking a couple of times, but nothing real consistent. Dave has gotten me interested in running again - it’s been my dream for a while to run in a Disney marathon. Maybe I’ll make that happen in 2008.

It’s interesting, it appears my appetite is linked to the amount of sleep I get - the less I get, the more ravenous I am the next day. Dave figures it’s my body trying to overcompensate for my low energy by seeking energy elsewhere, and that makes sense. It’s tough on those days to remind myself I’m not actually hungry. I actually go against the grain a little - where most people swear by not eating anything after a certain time (usually between 6 and 8), I usually eat my last snackish meal between 8 and 10. People forget that we burn calories even while we sleep - eating something small that late at night helps me not be hungry first thing in the morning. Works for me, won’t work for everyone.

A little site news - the Traineo review is almost complete; I’m hoping to post it tomorrow. I didn’t realize how much effort goes into writing reviews. It’s fun, but it takes a lot more time than I thought. I’ll have more reviews sometime soon-ish, continue the getting started series, and we’ve been working on some actual tools and resources unique to Life Ledger that will start going live hopefully in the next couple of weeks. Stay tuned!

Still not much change. I always hear the recidivism rate after losing weight is pretty high, so even just maintaining my weight 10 pounds away from my goal with very little exercise is a great accomplishment. Had I been “dieting”, I couldn’t have done it - I would definitely have returned to my old habits. Since I’ve studied my own life, practiced awareness of my habits and made choices to change them, maintaining my weight will be easier - eventually, it will become just as automatic as gaining weight was, since health will become habitual.

My wife and I went for a bike ride after work yesterday - it was so peaceful and serene. Even the other people we passed were serene themselves. We’re lucky to have the NC Arboretum in our area - there are flower gardens and exhibits to enjoy, riding and walking trails that vary in difficulty and scenery, Lake Powhatan - lots to discover, do and enjoy. We also occasionally ride at the Biltmore Estate, which is also fun but not as “in the woods.” If I have my camera with me, I might occasionally make some trip reports of my bike rides. There’s some beautiful places out there I’d like to share.

Now that I have installed fork clamps in the bed of my truck, hauling the bikes around is much easier. I’ve never had the need to use the quick-release clamps on the front tires of our bikes before, so I’m still getting used to those. I also need to find some sort of retaining device, a box made out of netting or something, to hold the helmets, my shoes and keep our front tires from rolling around. The ease of throwing the bikes in the back and taking off will make riding much more attractive this season - what used to be a 30-minute fight putting the bikes in the back of her SUV is now a 5-minute breeze.

Riding yesterday, I had a couple of questions I thought I’d ask people:

1. I haven’t exercised or lifted weights with any regularity for years. However, grinding up a hill was MUCH easier than before I lost my weight. Is that solely due to just pushing less weight around, or does the fact that I have a better muscle-to-fat ratio have something to do with it?
2. Does carb-loading really have an appreciable impact on performance? I know what Dave will say - maybe he can do a report on exactly what it does, what impact it has, and include some studies on the effect?
3. I was looking at maybe getting a road bike for riding in the city when I can’t get out to the trails - being able to just get on the bike in my driveway and ride for an hour would be nice. However, they appear to be incredibly expensive compared to mountain bikes. Why is that?
4. My saddle used to be comfortable enough to use. Now that I’ve lost so much weight, it hurts. What should I look for in a new saddle, if I decide to get one?

If you or someone you know has any insight, I’d love to see your comments below. Thanks for your input.

Still maintaining, still no consistent exercise. I took my mountain bike by the shop for tune-up (if anyone else lives in the Asheville, NC area, Carolina Fatz is an awesome bike shop). I have a Haro v4, which I bought early last year. I did a lot of research on mountain bikes, read some reviews, talked shop to several store owners, and rode a few bikes in the same price range - I don’t think anything compares to the Haro:

• Solid, light frame
• Nice Shimano shifters - Moving from the grip-shifters my last bike (a Trek) had, these lever shifters are a dream. No more “dialing in” the gears - one click and it shifts.
• Shimano Deore derailleur - Deore isn’t the best in the Shimano line, but it’s nice and smooth. I tested bikes with Shimano components both higher (XT, LX) and lower (Alivio) in quality, and the Deore seemed to have the best quality at the best price. I could definitely tell a difference between the Alivio and Deore - less clunking, much smoother.
• Disc brakes - Moving from rim brakes to disc brakes was like upgrading from a 486 to a Core Duo: worlds apart. I tested both mechanical and hydraulic, and while I could tell a difference, I didn’t feel the cost was worth it for me.
• I love the shocks (it’s got a RockShox fork), but it wasn’t noticeably different than the others I rode, probably due mostly to the fact I tested them in parking lots. I purposely went for a hardtail - I don’t like the spongy ride a softtail gives, and they’re more money than I wanted to spend.

When I bought the bike, I immediately had them install some Shimano clipless pedals. It took about 15 minutes to get used to them, and a few rides to get comfortable with them, but well worth the price and initial discomfort. Just a tip - ride on dirt your first couple of times. And don’t skimp on the pedals - being able to clip out quickly is pretty important, as is being able to rely on the clip’s retention. I didn’t get anywhere near the most costly, but I didn’t skimp either.

This weekend, I’ll bolt on some fork clamps to the toolbox on my truck and an eyelet for running a bike chain, and I’ll be ready to hit the trails! Between mountain biking, volleyball (which should start up soon) and racquetball, there should be plenty of opportunity this summer for outdoor exercise. The first time in years I’ve actually been excited about getting outdoors - it’s a wonder what losing 70lbs will do.

I could smell Sugar.

Didn’t know the source, and I really didn’t want to care. It’s a rainy day, so maybe someone brought in fresh doughnuts. That scent of the warm glaze spread through out the office, tickled my nose, made me hungry. No, that’s wrong because I had breakfast. It made me crave them. It was through concentrated effort that prevented me from tracking them down and eating like a starving man.

What’s funny is it’s not like I have great memories of doughnuts. Every Sunday morning, between church and Sunday school, I’d be able to get one and hot cocoa. It was like clock work, without fail. Being an outdoor lover, it was the only solace in having to be inside for 2hrs. And closer to present day, it was the only perk at my last job. We had limited 401k, no bonuses, no raises for 6 years across the board. But every Friday it was doughnuts. But that job was hell, and I’m very glad to be gone from there.

So what is it? Could it be that sub-consciously my body knows what that smell means? That if I was to eat one, or more, I could “feel good” for all the wonders that occur with change of blood sugar. The same could be said about my morning of coffee. Until I finish my first cup, my brain feels like mush. But sometimes even just smelling the coffee brewing, I become more alert and wired. So what is the connection? Am I nothing more that a human version of Pavlov’s dog?

At the same time man is a different animal, in that we can prioritize. Being able to control that impulse, redirect it or halt it completely in order to reach a higher goal. For me it’s fact that the past 3 days, I’ve been 203 and change. I’ve been on a hell of a plateau, and this is the closest I’ve gotten to my goal in awhile. So I said no. Prevented myself from that seductive snack, and was able to stay focused on the long term goal.

To wax abit poetic, the mind knows but the body remembers.