Part 2 - Day 29 - I WILL NOT GIVE UP!!

OK, so it's been a couple weeks since I've posted on here.  I really can't believe it's been that long, but here we are.

I've pretty much maintained my weight since I last wrote.  Actually I gained two pounds overall:

You might say that's not too bad considering the holidays, and I didn't totally go off of the deep end, but I certainly have not kept up with my goal of losing 50 pounds in 90 days.  I didn't record what I ate every day either.  I'd say probably half the days I've been fasting most of the day, until late afternoon/evening, and the other half I've been eating a few bites here and there throughout the day, then more at dinner/in the evening.  There have been one or two days that I have just lost control and eaten way too much.  I have continued to weigh myself most days, and that I am sure has contributed to me not gaining more than I did.

So here we are.  I can't go back and change what I've done, do I give up, start again, or still try to reach my goal?  I am certainly not going to give up.  I thought about starting again, but for me at least, I know from experience that each time I "start again", it lessens how seriously I take the goal.  If I start again today, what keeps me from just giving up again in a couple weeks and starting again, etc.  I guess in a way that would work and over time I would lose weight as long as I don't gain between efforts, but that doesn't feel satisfying for me.  I think the best course of action is to keep to my goal, and with determination and fortitude, go forward and make it happen!

So how will I accomplish this?  Well, you may know that I've done long term fasts before, and I know they work and really improve how I feel.  They also improve self control and can be spiritually very beneficial.  There's some history of using very long term fasting (months with no food) for curing morbid obesity, before the advent of bariatric surgery, with some success.  So my plan is simply to fast until I am below the red line.  I'll be taking vitamins of course, and drinking plenty of water, but other than that no calories until I am below the line.

So how long will I be fasting?  I'll fast as long as it takes, but according to the math, my daily calorie expenditure is right around 3500 Calories, so I can expect to lose about a pound a day.  I'm about 10 pounds over my goal right now, and my goal goes down about a half a pound a day.  So we're looking at about a 20 day fast to get back on track.  I actually think I'll lose a little faster than that based on past experience, and based on the fact that some amount of the weight I've gained is water weight and will come off pretty quickly when I stop eating salty foods.  I think that however long it takes, it will be worth it!

I did a 10 day fast at the end of my first 50 pounds in 90 days challenge in order to make my goal, so this will be one step up from that.  If I start to see really adverse health effects from the fast then we'll address it and go from there, which may look like a couple of 10 day fasts, or alternate day fasting, or something like that.  But unless there is a crisis, I know I can and will fast until I'm back on track.

So there you have it.  We'll see how this goes.  I've wanted to do this longer term fast for a while to get back on track, but I haven't written it down.  And we know that a goal not written down is just a wish.

Part 2 - Day 11 - To act, and not to be acted upon.

I was traveling for work today, so I don't have a weight.  It is just for one night, so I'll be back and have a weight tomorrow.

As part of my travels today, I was at an event for work and they had a social lunch.  I did eat lunch there, which was fajitas, but I had quite a small portion, and was feeling really good that I kept control, and I actually had energy for the rest of the day because I didn't overeat.  I didn't get a picture of the lunch due to the setting I was in.

On the drive home I stopped for gas and went in for a diet soda, and ended up getting a pack of crackers and a Slim Jim as well that I ate on the drive home.  So that didn't make me feel better.  I probably should have just got some water.

When  I got home we had dinner, which was also fajitas coincidentally:

I didn't actually eat all of that, I just ate the one wrapped up fajita and the salad.  I did not eat the other pile of chicken & peppers or the rice or noodles.

Later in the evening, I did also eat about 1/4 of a bag of chocolate chips,which now that I look at the bag is about 450 Calories of mindless eating.

I'm writing this the next morning, and thinking back to what happened.  I think I had a good weight loss, was feeling really good about my position, and let my guard down.  I think we all have a tendency to want to have time where we can just relax and let our guard down for a while, but I think we need to fight that tendency.  A day of good weight loss is precisely the time when we have a great opportunity to compound that success by continuing strong.  I think we'll be happier in the long run if we choose discipline, all the time, and not look for opportunities to "let go" or lose control.  I think sometimes we think if we can put ourselves in an environment that can control us then we don't need to control ourselves, but then we leave our success up to our surroundings, which can change and are never ideal.  A key principle here is that we ought to act, and not be acted upon.  That is, we ought to choose what we are going to do, in every situation, and not allow circumstances to control what we do.

That's it for today.  I'm feeling really good and much more committed now that I have a clearer understanding and determination to move forward.  Never give up!  Keep moving forward!

Part 2 - Day 10

Another good weight loss, finally back under the line.  I'm really happy about that:

Today I fasted again, and had tomato and pepper soup for dinner:

So I am feeling pretty good and have a lot of energy, at least compared to how I was feeling when I was eating a lot.  I have been a little sick the last day or so, but I think I handelled it better and recovered quicker due to my better diet and fasting.

I am surprised by the large weight loss after the gain I had over the last few days. I think the gain may have been due to the lack of sleep and large amount of stress I was under earlier in the week.  Also, the large loss may be due to a few good nights of sleep and possibly my sickness.  I may be a little dehydrated, making my weight lower.  We'll see how things go as I re-hydrate and normalize.

Part 2 - Day 9

Well, I finally saw a pretty good loss:

The fasting yesterday and the soup for dinner paid off.  I think I must have had some water weight on as well.

So tonight I had some more soup:

My tooth is still bothering me, so this was a good choice.  I also had a couple of chocolates from a box I got for the wife.  At some point I'll need to stop getting the ext

Part 2 - Day 7

Well, not a great loss for the first week:

I'll definitely need to step it up and eat cleaner if I am going to make the challenge!

I know I can do it!

I did fast today until dinner.  We had brocolli soup and rolls.  I also had a handful of peanuts:

I'm really tired today from being sleep deprived, but I'm going to go to bed early and try to get some good rest.  Fingers crossed!

Part 2 - Day 6

Well, another gain today:

I guess it's not super surprising after last night.  I did eat some salty foods, so my water weight is probably up, and I still didn't get much sleep, probably 3-4 hours last night.  I'm not sure how much that affects things, but I feel like it does for me.  Hopefully tonight I'll get a good night's rest.

Today I did OMAD (yay!), and we had fajitas for dinner:

After dinner I did also have some pudding and some peanuts.  I really need to get in gear and stop snacking after dinner.  It's hard after a long day, when I want to relax a bit and let my guard down, but I have to stay strong in order for this goal to happen!  I know I can do it!

Part 2 - Day 5 -

Quite a bit of a gain today:

I think I must have eaten more yesterday than I thought.  I guess it's true that when you just eat here and there all day, it can be easy to lose track and eat more than you imagined. 

The other thing that could be going on is that I pulled an all-nighter last night to get some work done.  Doing that is getting progressively harder as I age, although when I am eating right on OMAD it becomes easier.  In either case, I seem to remember that lack of sleep affected my weight before, so that could be contributing on the day-to-day fluctuation here.

So today I did fast, so that's good.  Tonight my tooth was still hurting quite a bit, so I made some soup for dinner:

It was canned tomato soup, then I added some peppers and onions that I roasted along with some hot sauce and left over green beans, all blended up.  It was actually really good.  I wish I could say that was all I ate, but I did have more after that.  Once gain, just eating here and there, but I know it was too much.  I need to get better at not eating after dinner when I do fast.  One step at a time.  Keep moving forward, never give up!

Part 2 - Day 4 - Long day

I had another really nice weight loss day:

I didn't fast today, but didn't eat three meals either.  Just a bit here and there during the day.  It's the weekend, so I was home.  I didn't really eat any meals.  That is probably not the best way to eat for the day, mostly because looking back it's really hard for me to tell what/how much I really ate.  I didn't go crazy for sure, I never got really full, just like I said a bite here an there.  I tried to do mostly high protein, I snacked on nuts and had some chicken.  I did have some leftover brownies from the birthday and some popcorn we had for a family movie this evening.  Like I said, hard to say if I ate too much or not.  We'll see what the scale says tomorrow.  I know I'll have to be stricter as I go on, just had a kind of lazy day today home with the family.

Tomorrow is a new day!  I'm definitely going to OMAD tomorrow.  I'm still feeling really good.  I know I can do this challenge, and I'm excited to see my continued progress.  Tomorrow I'll go ahead and make a weight chart with my new goal line, and calculate the number of calories I should be eating per day so I keep myself accountable better.

Part 2 - Day 3 - Feeling good!

Lost about another pound, so that's great!

Today was my wife's birthday, so we had steak and potatoes for dinner:

I did not totally fast all day, but I didn't eat much before dinner.  My tooth was still hurting quite a bit, so I didn't have much of an apetite, and I was only able to eat about half of that steak.  We also had brownies and ice cream for dessert.  I mostly just had ice cream 'cause my tooth was hurting after the steak.  I wouldn't be surprised if I'm up tomorrow, though, because that was a lot of food either way.

I am feeling really good, though.  It's amazing how fast I start to feel good when I start doing good on my diet.  Also, my belly gets smaller almost immediately just from not being full all of the time, so that feels good.  I have more energy from not being full all the time, too.  I had been in a cycle where I ate something early in the day and felt pretty lethargic all day because of it.  When I don't eat until dinner then I don't feel that sluggishness throughout the day.

Part 2 - Day 2

Good loss for the second day:

I did fast all day until dinner.  It actually wasn't too bad.  I had a really busy day at work, so that really helps to not feel hungry.

My tooth is still in a lot of pain from my dental work yesterday, so for dinner it was just tomato soup and pudding:

The pudding I made with a protein shake instead of milk to try to get more protein in my diet, and it was a sugar free pudding mix.  It didn't turn out so good, so I didn't eat all of it.  I also had a small milk shake later in the evening when I took the family out for ice cream after a band concert.

So things are going good.  I am surprisingly really looking forward to this journey!  I am already feeling better and more confident, and it's only the second day.  How could it get any better than this?!

Part 2 - Day 1

Well, today is the day that I start again!  You didn't think I was going to give up did you?? Never give up, keep moving forward!

I know I've said it before, but today I am committed.  I am tired of staying where I am.  I have gained back and maintained about half the weight I lost on my first 50 pound in 90 day challenge, so here is where I am today, right at 275 lbs:

I think the reason I didn't keep losing, and indeed gained some back, is a combination of things.  I think the most prevalent is that I just got comfortable.  I was really happy with my new weight, it felt great to have that success, all of my clothes were fitting, and I was feeling really good.  All of the reasons I wanted to lose weight (clothes not fitting, shortness of breath, etc.) were either eliminated or much improved.  With that came complacency.  Then, very gradually, the weight crept back on.

I'm just to the point now that, while I'm not back to my original weight, some of my clothes are starting to not fit again, and I am starting to feel less energetic again.  I never did reach my "final" goal weight, and I would very much like to accomplish that.  That eventual "final" goal weight is about 180 pounds, but for now I'm going on a journey to 225 by losing 50 pounds in the next 90 days.

I'm going to update here daily with what I eat, and what I am doing to stay motivated.  There are things I want to do that I just can't do very well at this weight like mountain hiking, skiing, sports with the kids, etc.  In the end, I just want to be here longer for my kids, to see them grow up and have their own families.  I hope these more meaningful motivators will keep me on target for the long haul.

Today I spent most of the day in the dentist office fixing a cracked filling/tooth.  So I didn't eat much, mostly soft stuff like a couple protein shakes, some pudding, and some yogurt.  My primary eating plan is going to be intermittent fasting as before, along with counting calories to match my BMR and deficit needed to lose the weight.

I am really excited for this journey.  I know I can do it.  Let's get started!

False Start

I'm back, and I'm at it again!  I've been off of it for a while and gained some of the weight back, so it's time to get back on here and get back to being healthy!

I've gained about 20 pounds of the weight back over the last couple months:

Yeah, it's shocking how fast the weight can come back on when you are not paying attention!  I'm not going to make any excuses, I just let myself go plain and simple.  I did weight myself every day for the past two months since I've been writing on here, so I will add those weights to my weight chart so you can see exactly how my weight fluctuated during that time.

I think a lot of things combined together to make this happen, but it came down to what I've been talking about over and over, and that is what is my major motivators.  My primary motivation for losing the weight was that my clothes didn't fit, I was out of breath all of the time, and I had aches and pains, etc.  Well, most of those issues had gone away, and with that I was not as motivated.  Add to that a huge increase in my workload and some other challenges, and my weight was not my primary focus.  That's not to make excuses, I own my weight gain, and I could have and should have stayed on despite those things, and I should have and now will find new motivators.

So now I'm to the point where a few of my clothes are just starting to get a bit snug, and it's a reminder/wake-up call.  I'm still working out what my new motivators will be, but they will center around being able to play with my kids and be around for them a good long while.  There are also some things I'd like to do that I can't at my size.

So it's back to One Meal A Day (OMAD).  I did OMAD today, and had spaghetti for dinner, which is what the family was having:

It wasn't too bad to OMAD.  The hardest part was just saying no to all of the snacks around the office.  Someone brought in donuts today as usual, and someone else had oreos at their desk, and a couple people had halloween candy.  I made it though!  And I know I can do it!

So I'm going to do it again.  I'm 270 right now, and my goal is to lose 50 pounds in 90 days again, so in three months I'll be 220 and feeling great!  That's lower than I've ever been in my adult life, so I can only imagine how good it will feel.

Day 97 - Back to square one

I was way up today, actually equal to my second "starting" weight of 250:

I guess that's not so surprising after eating so much chili yesterday.  Even though I did eat a lot, I was still quite surprised that I was that high.  I guess the chili must have had a decent amount of salt and I put on some water weight, at least that's what I'm telling myself.

So today I didn't eat anything.  It was really hard, but I know it will be worth it.  The family had rotisserie chicken, which is probably my all-time favorite comfort food, and has knocked me off the wagon many times.  I was cutting up the chicken for my kids, and man I almost took a bite, but I didn't!  Right now I'm not sure if I'm regretting it or happy I made the right choice, but deep down I know I did the right thing.  I can get a rotisserie chicken any time, I don't have to have one tonight just because it was there.

So we'll see where I'm at tomorrow.  I doubt I'll be back below the line since I drifted so far above it, but we'll see.  Maybe tomorrow I'll just have a big <100 Calorie salad or something so I can actually have some food and still get myself back down to my goal.

I said in the beginning that this 50 pounds was going to be way harder than the first, since I am smaller and have a lower BMR, and so far it is proving to be the case.  But I know I can do it, I will not give up, I will keep moving forward!

Day 96 - Over the line again

Well, my weight went up over the line for the first time since the first 90 days and the 10 day fast:

It's not too much over, but I do need to watch out and be vigilant.

Tonight I ate chili and some vegetables with homemade low cal Ranch for dinner:

I actually ate quite a bit more chili than than unfortunately, and I had a 90 Calorie protein bar and a handfull of nuts.  Chili is one of those things that I really like, and I tend to justify that it's pretty healthy so I can have more.  We'll see what that does on the scale tomorrow.

I will probably need to do one meal every other day eventually to make this fast work.  This week is just crazy with school starting and I'm teaching an early morning class, which has me tired in the evenings and at work.  So I'm trying to take it easy this first week and get my bearings, and not get too overwhelmed.  I got pretty close yesterday, feeling pretty down and not knowing what to do.  But today I feel more optimistic, so that's good.  I think it will get better as time goes on and I acclimate to this schedule again.

Day 95

The weight today was identical to yesterday:

I was a little surprised and disappointed that I hadn't gone down after having a near-fast day yesterday.  At least I didn't gain anything, so I can hopefully turn it back down.

I was going to fast all day again today, but the family had pork chops for dinner, and I decided to have some, so I can fast tomorrow if I need to.  I was really tired after work and decided to just relax and have some food.  I didn't get a picture this time.  I also had a 90 Calorie protein bar after dinner.

So we'll see how the scale looks tomorrow.  I can always fast another day if needed.  I know I can do this, I will not stop, I will keep moving forward.

Day 94 - Up from yesterday, (almost) all day fast.

I was up about a pound from yesterday:

Not surprising after what I ate yesterday.  Today I just had some crio bru and a few peaches for dinner:

I know it is going to be difficult to lose another 50 pounds in another 90 days.  Since I am smaller now, I need to eat even less, but I know I can do it!

Day 93 - Big dinner with family

The weight fluctuated up a bit today, likely recovering from my fasting, regaining water, etc.:

Today we met some family to pick up our dog.  They had been watching him while we were on vacation a couple weeks ago.  We met at a restaurant that serves really big portions of mostly southern comfort food.

I stayed away from the fried food, and settled on some pot roast:

It was just OK.  I remember this restaurant being really super about 10 years ago, but I don't know if they've gone downhill or if I've grown up, because it wasn't as good as I remember.  Anyway, despite that I ate a lot of food.  I didn't eat that whole plate, but I ate most of it and a couple rolls, along with a cup of hot chocolate on the drive home.

It's the first time in a long time that I've felt really sluggish and tired due to eating just way too much.  I probably should have gotten a big salad or something instead, but here's to learning and moving forward.

So I'll probably be way up tomorrow, but I also don't plan on eating anything at all tomorrow and having another full day fast.  I'm pretty sure I won't even be hungry.  We'll see how it goes.

So far we are under the red line to continue losing another 50 pounds in another 90 days.

Day 92 - Eating real food again.

Today's weight was down again from yesterday, yay!

For dinner I had a daddy-daughter date with one of my daughters.  The place we went had all kinds of food, burgers, chicken wings, boneless wings, pizza.  Of all of that, the things that looked the best to me was the hummus and pita bread appetizer, the buffalo chicken wrap, the cob salad, and the teriyaki salmon.  It's crazy that I've come this far that those things actually sound better than burgers and pizza.  Anyway, I decided on the teriyaki salmon:

It was really good.  I did have two bites of my daughter's pizza and a few of her fries.  That was good, too.  The salmon meal was only 760 Calories.  After we got home I had a mini Kind bar (80 Calories) and some Crio Bru.  It's my first cup since I started fasting, so it was really nice to have.

I am really excited about my decision to keep moving forward and continue losing.  There was really no reason to take a break, and I feel it's much better to take advantage of the momentum I have to keep it going.

Today I had a mandatory health screen for my work's health insurance.  I had to be down below 252 or they would charge me next year.  They have this thing where if your BMI is over 35 then you have to lose two points by the next year or they charge you big time.  So I was 250 flat with my work clothes on late in the day.  I'll say that's a win!  Also, my blood pressure was way down from where it was last year. 

So things are looking really good.  I'm excited about my future, and I know I can do this!

Day 91 - Moving forward, Day 10 of 10 day fast.

My weight today was down again, so that is great!:

I finished my fast today, so I made a nice Kefir smoothies with some peaches off of our peach tree and some frozen strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, and mango. 

After that I had a bit of salad and a bite of my wife's chicken fajitas:

So overall, I feel really good.  It was nice to be able to eat again today.  I never had any really negative side effects from the fast, just a little fatigue and some acid reflux as one ought to expect.

So I have decided that I am going to keep moving forward, meaning I'm not going to take a little break like I talked about before, I am going to continue my journey and lose another 50 pounds in another 90 days, so in effect this is Day 1 of a new challenge!  You can see on my weight chart that I just extended my goal line another 90 days to capture this.  So in the end it will really be 100 pounds in 180 days.  I can't wait!!

Day 90 - I did it!! and Day 9 of 10 day fast.

I did it!  I lost 52 pounds during the 90 day challenge:

I also lost 7 inches off of my waist to 48.5 inches (starting was 55.5 inches):

Here's my official last before/after photo:

I feel awesome having met my goal.  I'm still doing the 10 day fast, on day 9 of that, so I get to eat tomorrow evening.  I am still feeling really good, nothing really new there.  I haven't had any more lightheadedness, just a bit of acid reflux still.

Tomorrow evening I'm going to have some Kefir and some fruits and veggies to break my fast.  Then it will be back to regular OMAD for a few days before I start the next challenge.

Day 89 - I did it! I achieved my goal! Also, day 8 of 10 day fast.

I did it!

I have officially lost 50.2 pounds in 89 days!  I couldn't be happier!  I knew I could do it.  There were a couple days there where I wan't sure when I had 6 pounds left to lose and only 8 days left, that's when I decided to do the 10 day fast, and it paid off!

I'm still going to finish out my 10 day fast, and I haven't exactly decided yet what I'm going to do after that.  I think I'm going to just do OMAD for a few days to settle in to being 250, then I might go for another 50 pounds in 90 days to get down to 200.  My ultimate goal is 180, which is right at the top of the healthy rage.

Here's a video I made this evening where I discuss a little more:

Day 88 - Day 7 of 10 day fast - Feeling great!

The weight was down just a tiny bit today:

I think I wasn't down more because I drank more pickle juice yesterday.  I am feeling much better after getting the electrolytes in.  I haven't had any light headedness today, so that is a big improvement.

I didn't drink any pickle juice today, so I think I will lose some of the water weight and be down more tomorrow.  I have two days left to lose 1.2 pounds, it's right down to the wire!

Here's today's update video:

Day 87 - Back on track, below the line! Day 6 of 10 day fast.

I had an awesome weigh in this morning!

I'm below the red line for the first time since July 2nd.  I've been mostly tracking with the goal line, but just a bit above it.  But today, I got back below it, mostly thanks to my 10 day fast to finish things out.

As far as the fast goes, today is day 6 of the 10 day fast.  I feel pretty good.  I am pretty hungry, and food is starting to look really good.  I made pizza for my kids for dinner today, and that was a big hard, but OK.  I don't really crave that kind of food as much, mostly I crave salad and chicken/meat and rice, that kind of thing.  Though the pizza did look really good, don't get me wrong.

The biggest challenge, however, is really the indigestion/acid reflux.  It hit hard this afternoon, and I actually took some antacids for it.  In the past when I've had indigestion it's at night, and it keeps me up.  If I get up and sit for a while it goes away.  And it's usually after I've eaten way too much.  This time, however, it seems to get better if I lay down, and I haven't had any problems at night.  It's mostly in the afternoon and evening.  I'm not sure if I get to thinking about food or preparing food for the family and my stomach starts producing acid anticipating me eating or what.  Who knows.

I did drink some more pickle juice today.  It was good, and I haven't really felt lightheaded like I did before since I have been drinking it starting yesterday.  I did get just a slight bit woozy today when I ran up a flight of stairs.  I had to stop for a second at the top, but it quickly passed and wan't nearly as bad as what I was feeling yesterday.

So that's about it.  I have been thinking about what I'll eat to break my fast.  I usually crave and like to have some Kefir after a longer fast like this.  Not only do I tend to crave it for some odd reason, it is great to repopulate the gut biome and get ready for digestion again.  So I might have a day where I just drink Kefir or make a Kefir smoothie.  I think the first real food I'm going to eat is some home made Kung Pao chicken, which I have been craving.  That or some bbq, which is a staple here in KC.

Oh, and I made another YouTube video documenting my fast:

Day 86 - Feeling great! NSVs today, and Day 5 of 10 day fast.

I had a huge weight loss from yesterday, over two pounds:

So that is great.  I am now quite confident that I will make my goal of losing 50 pounds in 90 days, thanks in part to this 10 day fast.

I am feeling really good this evening.  I was feeling pretty light headed and lacking energy earlier today.  I helped a friend work on his car, and every time I squatted down and then got back up my head would swim for a while.  Then our family went swimming, and I was feeling pretty sluggish there and just wanted to really take it easy, walk slow, and just be pretty docile.  The kids did talk me into going on the high dive, which I fought at first but then gave in and went on it.  It was fine, but it got my heart rate up, and I had to swim pretty quickly to the other end of the pool so I could get out and the next person could dive.  I was feeling pretty sickly for a few minutes after that and had to get myself settled down.

I had a couple NSV's during that time.  I had to work under my friend's car, which I've done before.  Usually I have a hard time getting under there and have very little room to work, with my chest often being wedged under there.  That's not a good feeling, especially since I'm a bit claustrophobic.  Well, today I had plenty of room under there to work freely, so that felt great.  Also I was able to wear a swimsuit to the pool that my wife had gotten me at the beginning of summer.  It was to small and never really fit.  Well, today I couldn't find my regular suit, so I grabbed it and it fit great!  So that was awesome too!

Today the kids had fish fillets with salad and zoodles and that looked really tasty, especially the salad and fish.  I fed the baby again while they ate, which is fine.  So I was feeling really hungry today, and then my wife and I went on a "date" to the mall and walked through the food court.  I wanted to do that, I'm not sure why.  I just like seeing and smelling all of the food, even when I can't have it.  I also torture myself by watching food reviews and recipe videos while I'm fasting.

Anyway, so I was really hungry today and feeling kinda crappy, and when we got home tonight I was sitting in my chair thinking about how I was feeling, and it came to me that I felt like I had a salt imbalance.  That's a risk of drinking only water, your body can get out of balance because you are not taking in enough salt, like the infamous "hold your wee for a Wii" challenge.  So I was going to eat some salt, before when I've done extended fasts I just put a teaspoon or so of salt in my palm and eat it, which would have worked, but the kids had just finished up a jar of pickle spears, and I figured I could drink the juice and get my salt that way:

So I drank the juice, and let me tell you it tasted really good.  I usually don't like pickle juice, but it was just what I needed tonight.  I drank the whole thing, and now afterward I feel 1000% better.  I don't feel light headed anymore, and I really don't feel hungry either.  I think my big problem was just the salt imbalance.  I think the acid helped my stomach too, because I was having quite a bit of indigestion/heartburn, but after the pickle juice that went away as well.

So that's about it for today, I am excited to finish out this journey, and I'm excited to finish out my fast and get back to eating one meal a day!

Oh, almost forgot to mention, I also made an update video today on my YouTube channel:

Day 85 - I think I'm gonna make it! Day 4 of my 10 day fast.

Today's weight was down quite a bit from yesterday:

I believe I'm going to make my goal!

Today was day 4 of the 10 day fast, and I'm feeling pretty good.  I still have a bit of indigestion in the evenings, but still not too bad.  I have been drinking lots of water and taking a multivitamin every day.

Today the kids and wife had hamburgers and zoodles (Zuchinni noodles), and it looked really good, but I stuck to my guns and didn't eat anything!  I recorded a quick update video this evening:

Day 84 - Day 3 of 10 day fast.

My weight was down again today, so that's great:

Fasting works, that's for sure.

I am feeling pretty good on the fast so far.  I haven't been overly hungry, just when other people are eating it is tough to see the food and smell it, but I know I can pull through.  The family had tacos/taco salad for dinner and that looked really good.  I fed the baby her baby food carrots while the family ate dinner, and even that was looking not too bad, lol.

I made another youtube video on my progress so far.  It is uploading now, so I'll embed it when it's finished:

Other than that, I am just enduring to the end of the challenge.  I can't believe it's gone by so fast.  It seems like yesterday I was starting, and now here we are just 84 days later and I'm feeling so much better.  I am excited to see it through.

Day 83 - One week left! Still fasting, feeling pretty good.

Well, I finally saw a loss on the scale after the four day plateau:

I still have a long way to go in just one week to make my goal.  It will be close, we'll see.  My only chance is to continue my 10 day fast right up until the end.

I did fast again today.  It was particularly tough today and yesterday because the family had rotisserie chicken from Sam's Club, which is one of my all time favorite/trigger foods.  Last time I had a long fast that tripped me up.  This time I held strong, despite my helping out to cut up the chicken into pieces for the kids.  It smelled really good, and the temptation was there to just pop a bite, but my desire to reach my goal and not succumb to base desires won out!

So we'll continue the fast until the end of this challenge.  Today was day two,and generally day three is when things get easier.  Right now I feel like I have a lot of energy overall, though I am moving a bit slower.  By the end of the ten days I expect I'll be quite depleted of energy, at least that was my experience last time.

I'm also trying to fight irritability and impatience that tend to come.  I've found myself feeling impatient with the kids, and have really worked to suppress that.  I guess the correct term would be hangry, but I think that will start to subside too starting day 3.

On a positive note, my wife and family have started trying to eat healthier.  Today dinner was rotisserie chicken breast and a huge platter of veggies and fruit.  I should have taken a picture, but didn't since I wasn't actually eating it.  My wife is going to start a 5 and 1 plan where she eats 5 ~100 Calorie snacks throughout the day and then a "lean and green" dinner, similar to Medifast/Optavia, but much cheaper, and admittedly less protein.  She tried OMAD, but had trouble sticking with it, due in part to the fact that she is still breastfeeding our baby, though not exclusively.

So things are looking up.  I'm hoping I'll find time to make an update video tomorrow.  I'll also plan to take my measurements and get updated before/after photos. 

I almost can't believe we're this close to the end.  The time has really flown by in a blink.  90 days really is not that long, and to see what I've accomplished in such a short time, regardless if I technically meat my goal, is astounding to me.

Day 82 - First day fasting.

Well, today my weight was holding steady again:

That's a pretty long "plateau", four days in a row the same weight (minus one day where I didn't weigh). 

Today I start the 10 day fast that will finish out the program.  I do feel hungry, and it was pretty hard at dinner time, but I feel really good that I met my goal of fasting today.  I did drink a lot of water and I took a multivitamin, which I will every day.

For this fast it's water only, no diet sodas, gum, or even Crio Bru, just water and a multivitamin every day.

Day 81 - Driving back home.

No weight this morning since we were on the road.

We drove home across country starting Sunday night and arriving home Monday night, 1700+ miles in 24 hours. We are all pretty exhausted.

I did eat some snacks and Arby's for dinner, mostly to stay awake and pass the time. It was probably not a good idea.

I decided I'm just going to do a ten day fast for the remainder of my challenge. That decision was part of why I decided to go ahead and eat today. I am confident I can reach my goal and feel better about myself as I do this fast. I'll write about how it goes.

Day 80 - 10 Days Left!!!

Well, the weight stayed steady today:

I need to lose a bunch in the next 10 days.  I'm still confident I can meet my goal, considering I am planning to do a 5 or 7 day fast here at the end.  I'm still on vacation, so when I get home I'll plan that out.  I am excited for it, I always feel really good when I do a longer fast.

Today I did good fasting until dinner again.  Lunch today was particularly hard when everyone was having nachos and other good stuff, just eating whatever and big portions.  I got pretty frustrated with wanting to eat and everything looking so good.  But I pulled through.  For dinner the kids were having pizza rolls and tater tots, so I made myself a nice salad:

It's amazing how a big salad can be just 300 or so Calories as opposed to just a few tater tots and pizza rolls.  So I ate my salad, and I just couldn't resist a few tater tots and pizza rolls.  Well, I shouldn't say I couldn't resist, I could have resisted, and should have, but I didn't.  Today is the last day of vacation, so I won't have that specific temptation again.  We are diving back across the country tonight and tomorrow, so probably no weight in the morning, but I'll have one Tuesday night most probably.

Day 79 - A day at the fair.

Well, my weight fluctuated up a bit, as I expected after yesterday's eating:

Today we had a long day at the local county fair.  The kids rode the carnival rides while we walked around.  It was super hot, and three of the kids ended up with a stomach ache and feeling sick just from the heat.  We got them some ice water and they felt better.  It was good to at least get a little exercise walking around, instead of just sitting all day like I've been doing.

The food there looked really good.  The kids had cheeseburgers, soft pretzels, pizza, etc. for lunch and there were funnel cakes, shaved ice, cheese fries, all the regular fair food.  And we all did really good.  I did not have anything to eat at the fair, so that was a big win.

So I did good again up until dinner.  My wife and I didn't end up going out like I expected but the family ordered pizza for dinner.  I did eat some:

I actually ate more than I took a picture of, unfortunately.  I'm not sure what it is about being on vacation that makes it so much harder to have control.  I meant to eat a big salad before having the pizza, but I forgot when it got here and didn't.  So I probably ate 4-5 of those slices, and I had a coupe red vines and a couple pieces of salt water taffy.  I finally said enough is enough, and I made myself a cup of Crio Bru, which tasted pretty bitter after all of that rich food, but it was really good and it jolted me back into reality and I did good after that.  I'm hoping I don't take too much of a hit on the scale, since I didn't go too crazy like yesterday.