Redemption

With the sting of last week's eggroll-fueled weight gain fresh in my mind, I had a really good week of healthy living. I'm still working on finding a way of making this a realistic lifestyle, rather than just a crash diet, but over the last seven days I found a pretty good balance. We had two not-entirely-healthy meals: one delivery pizza, and one night out. The pizza happened on a night when the family was flustered and pressured for time, so we ordered Papa John's. They were running a special with every large pizza on sale for ten bucks, with as many toppings as you like. I remember reading in one of the "Eat This, Not That" articles that the thin crust with veggie toppings was a solid option at Papa John's, so that is basically what I opted for. I got their thin crust for the first time ever, and I was happy with it--crunchy and tasty. We had tried their whole wheat crust once before and it was pretty dreadful, so I was cautious but ended up very happy. I got a bunch of vegetables and grilled chicken. Yes, it pained me to stray from my customary sausage or meat bonanza, but I knew it was the right way to go. Apparently Papa has decided to cut back on the quantity of the meat toppings along with the new sale--either that, or there is some statewide poultry shortage I'm unaware of, because our chicken consisted of what looked like a tiny strip or two diced and scattered around the pie. But that was fine.

Beth got a great bonus at work so one night we wanted to go out for a mild celebratory dinner. We went to Corky's, one of our favorite local BBQ joints. I got a pulled pork sandwich. I skipped their rolls, which are great. I passed on their french fries, which are also fantastic. And I didn't even consider their pecan pie, which is delicious. I had a sandwich with a side of beans, and I didn't even finish those. I have discovered that I will not, in fact, get struck by a lightning bolt if I finish a meal and leave some food on my plate.

My final culinary success choice of the week came on Tuesday evening, when I had to head to Oaklawn in Hot Springs for a poker tournament. I had the, umm, experience of eating there once before, at their sumptuous buffet, where even attempting to be a healthy person is a notion you should check at the door. Even their vegetable side items were all soaked in oil, drenched in butter, or, quite possibly, both. So what did I do this time, you might ask? Did I just deal with the buffet and make do with something? Did I go somewhere else from some quick fast food?

Nope. I brought a turkey sandwich on whole wheat. That's right. I am now a guy that goes to a CASINO and brings a healthy sandwich to eat in the car. What am I, 80? No, no I'm not. I'm someone trying to make the right choices. I went there for the poker, not for the food. I couldn't have been more proud of doing that. It was a small moment...and yet, kind of a big one.

Wednesday morning was weigh-in day. I got a few workouts in last week, including one really good weight lifting session where I doubled my usual upper body work. Would it show up on the scale? Or would I get a discouraging one or two pound loss, representing only what I gained last week?

Seven and a half pounds shed. Boom. It felt like I had a decent loss this week--I can actually feel it in my gut sometimes. And I'm talking about literally, as in, "Hey, my big, fat gut feels a little smaller this week," and not the kind of gut feeling people usually talk about. I thought there was potential for a four or five pound drop. But seven and a half is a great reward for doing things the right way. With another good week I can cross one of those lovely ten-pound thresholds next week, which would set me up for the chance to possibly cross another one before I head out to Arizona to see the boys in March. But until then, I'll just keep trying to do the right thing, because so far, that is working.

One week down

Beth went back to work full-time this week, which meant that I got to care for the two little ones all by myself. B had worked from home for the last couple of weeks, so that was a nice way to ease into it. But having her go back on a holiday was definitely me jumping into the daddy deep end. But the week is over, and everyone survived. Here are some highlights and lowlights:

* Not once, but twice, A.J. needed to poop at home right when I was giving Courtney a bottle. The first time, he was all business. His little seat was already on the toilet and he was stripped down to his underpants, since he had given me signals that he would need to go. Then, without any fanfare or whining, he simply announced, "Daddy, I need to poopy," and went in by himself as if he was headed out for a casual meeting or a cup of coffee. That was great! Courtney and I went in to help him wrap up, but he had taken care of most of the business all on his own. The next day? Same drill, him needing to do the deed while I was feeding her. But this time, it was sudden, defined by the urgent tone in his voice. I executed the one-handed code brown fire drill fast enough to get him situated on the pot while still holding the baby and the bottle. Mission accomplished again. I'd be fine if poopy training became much less exciting in the weeks ahead.

* More bathroom adventures: A.J.'s teacher at school informed me that he now has a "bathroom buddy." Apparently the two of them love to go take leaks as a pair. First off: whatever works. But secondly, it's cool, because this is another boy that A.J. has talked about by name, which is something he rarely does. When I arrived for pick up one day this week, they were having a blast out back, with my little man pushing his buddy around in a car. Good times.

* My weigh in this week reminded me of an important little fact: when I eat crappy food and don't work out as much, I tend to gain weight...SHOCKING! I didn't go overboard or fall off the wagon, but my minor step back can be attributed to three things: 1) Family pizza night out on a Friday, a time when I clearly should have stopped a slice or two before I did. 2) Chinese delivery on Valentine's Day, as I mentioned before. And 3) I only made it to the gym twice last week. The schedule was just slammed with Beth going back full time, and that's how it is going to be from now on, so I just need to make a concerted effort to get there at least three times a week. Anyway, my net gain for the week was less than two pounds, and I bet a big chunk of that might just be water retention from the crazy sodium levels in the take out or something. But anyway, I should not be gaining at all right now, holidays or not.

As for how things are going with my little lady...well, she probably requires a post of her own sometime soon.

Food hangover

I've done really well sticking to the healthy eating pretty much all the time lately. I was reminded of that this morning when I woke up with a severe Chinese food hangover.

We had no big Valentine's Day plans and ended up getting Chinese delivery. It was convenient, and it worked well with the kids, and at the time it tasted great. But this morning I woke up feeling worse than I often do (or, really, used to) after a big night out on the town. A lot of the symptoms were even the same: dehydration, dry mouth, slight headache, less-than-stellar stomach. Really, this is where I am now? After a month of healthy eating some crispy shrimp and egg rolls can do me in like a night of pounding shots? Okay, good to know.

I'm now down 25 pounds since the start of the year, which is great. I have not been able to get to the gym as often the last couple of weeks, so I'm very satisfied with losing four pounds and change each of the last two weeks. I'm still working to get back down to where I was recently, and at my current pace I should be back to that by next month sometime. Beth is back to the office full time today, so it's going to be interesting trying to slot in a couple of good gym sessions during the week now, but we will find a way to make it work.

The kids are great. AJ has had a plethora of snow days recently, so we've had extra time for fun and bonding at home. I've started his education on some Disney animated classics. It helps that he has a couple of big story books with the same characters. So far I think Dumbo might be his favorite old-timer, but he enjoyed Peter Pan as well. After that one he decided he was a crocodile and he started chomping everything around him. At least I have an actual excuse in case he bites anyone at school.