Halfway there....

It's been 30 days......1 whole MONTH on the juice fast. Coming into this, I didn't know if I could really go the distance. I've found that it's much more of a mind game than anything else. I'm not physically hungry, I just want to eat something because I enjoy eating different foods. I've been put in some tough positions (parties, tailgates, etc.) and haven't cracked. It definitely helped having some detractors that pretty much pinned me to fail from the beginning, appreciate that!

I'll be the first to admit, I've never considered myself to have a great amount of willpower in following through in regards to diet and fitness. I've always put it off, saying that I'll do it at a later time. I have literally been WANTING to get fit since the 11th grade - but always had an excuse. It would have been a lot easier then, but at least I'm doing it now. I have learned a lot about myself the last month and what can be done if you stick to a plan. Overall, it's been a great experience, I'm down to 181 lbs as of today - a whopping 33lbs less than one month ago. That's the equivalent of one of those huge ass Costco dog food bags that I was carrying around on myself.

I feel better in just about every way. My confidence has definitely taken a positive boost. Obviously, my clothes feel better, albeit loose. I'm thinking clearer and am more focused. I feel better running (much less bouncing LOL). Lastly.... I feel better sitting...this might sound trivial, but I sit all day and having extra pounds on you is pretty uncomfortable. I was always figgiting around in my chair and re-adjusting....no longer.

The first official 'Biggest Loser' weigh in at my workplace was today. I didn't see everyone's stats, but I'm fairly confident I have a pretty large lead. Some others have definitely lost weight, just not as drastic amounts as myself. I'm looking forward to winning this, so I get some extra cash to purchase some new work clothes. All of my work clothes are now baggy. They don't look terrible, but they are noticeably baggy. When I first started at my current position I came from a company where beachwear was acceptable attire. So I invested about $600 on dress clothes 4 months ago before starting this position. If my projections are correct I'll be netting about $660+ if I hit my target weight. That should be plenty enough to buy new clothes...

Over the next few weeks, I'll be planning my exit strategy. I'm starting to do research on the P90 program (starter version of P90x) to get toned up. I'm thinking of hopping straight into that when the juice fast ends, while I'm still in the disciplined mind-frame. Reintroducing solids into my diet needs to happen gradually, so I've got to start planning for that. I know I've got to change my diet going forward and keep the work-outs going. I'm cool with that though, I most definitely needed a lifestyle change.

Later

Day 28

It's pretty crazy to think it's been almost a month without consuming anything but juice. I think it's gotten way easier over the past week. I've adjusted my intake (yet again) to bring down the total number of ounces drank per day. I found that I wasn't finishing all the juice I made in a day. The more reading I do, the more I think I overshot my initial intake of 100oz. I'm consuming about 60-70oz a day in addition to 1 protein drink.


I didn't think it would progress this quickly...big strides have been made in these 28 days. This weekend I went through my closet and filled 2 large garbage bags full of clothes that are now too big. The more rewarding part was trying on clothes that were too small...but now fit. In the past, whenever I would buy something without trying it on, and it was  too small - I would save it thinking "maybe it will fit one day". I had several bags like this in my closet, it was great being able to finally take the tags off and rotate them into the lineup.

"The Biggest Loser" - Week 4 Results

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I weighed in at 184.4lbs this morning for a weekly loss of 4.4lbs which brings my total loss down to 29.8lbs or 14.92%. We have our first 'official' weigh in on Thursday of this week. This will give me an idea of what others in the office have lost. I've already started calculating my winnings, there are some worthy competitors - but I don't think they can catch me now. I'm within roughly 14lbs of my re-adjusted goal weight of 170lbs. 

This is definitely do-able in one months time!

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Day 22

So I'm officially 1/3 of the way done with the fast. I've been on it for 3 weeks now and feel great. I feel like I've been saying that a lot, but it's the truth. Between the juice and the gym my fitness levels have definitely been improving. I worked running back in yesterday after taking a 2 week hiatus in favor of the elliptical. My foot feels better, but it's not 100%. I'll probably have to go see a doctor about it.

'The Biggest Loser' - Week 3 Results

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I'm a day late on writing this - should have updated it yesterday, but didn't get around to it. I weighed in yesterday morning at 188.8 lbs. The weekly loss from 9/19 - 9/25 was 3.4 lbs bringing my total loss to 25.4lbs. If I continue to average 3 lbs a week, i'll easily hit the inital goal of 175, but will be a little shy of the re-adjusted goal of 170. In any case, I'll just keep on it until I hit that mark. I started working in crunches, push-ups, and pull-ups on a daily basis to get some resistance training in in lieu of lifting weights. Everything is going pretty good....



Progress graph 9/4 - Present
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I need to go get my new watch this weekend.....with the Gator bye week it should give me some time Saturday. I'm going to the Jags game on Sunday - hopefully they don't suck.

Godspeed.

Day 19

Hope everyone had a good weekend. Mine was pretty swell, went to Gainesville for the UF vs KY game on Saturday. This was the first time I've had to be in a tailgate environment with food and beer being consumed all around me. It actually wasn't as difficult as I imagined it'd be.

I hit the Farmer's Market yesterday late afternoon after getting back from Gainesville. I think I'll be going at the end of the day from now on. I got the best deals so far, not sure if it's because they were about to close for the day or what. The kale vendor I bought from last weekend wasn't there - so I found another lady who I bought an entire case off of for $6! The case had 12 bunches of kale - so it was a pretty good deal. I had to take one of the produce drawers out of my refrigerator just to store it. I literally have a trash bag full of kale in the bottom of my fridge.

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Other than the steal I got on the kale, I bought 20 cucumbers, 4 bags of celery, and some ginger root. I spent $20 for all the items pictured here. Unfortunately, the guy I bought the celery and ginger root from offered to sell me a case of cucumbers for $6 AFTER I had already bought them from a different vendor...I don't know where I would have stored 80+ cucumbers- but it would have been pretty awesome.

I've had several people at my workplace express interest in juicing and 2 have actually committed to doing a juice fast, like myself. Another couple people are interested in working juice into their diet or maybe using it as a single meal replacement. It should be neat to see how this works out for others - I know it's working out great for me.

It looks like I get to buy a new watch because I hit my first goal this weekend! 20 more pounds to go for the Mac Book.

Peace

Day 14

I've been on the juice for 2 straight weeks now and feel pretty damn good. As I've mentioned in prior posts, I've changed my intake a few times but have finally settled on a formula that works for me. Last week's extreme loss of 15.4 lbs largly consisted of BS weight I put on for the competition. This week looks more regular in terms of expected loss going forward.

'The Biggest Loser' - Week 2 Results



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I weighed in this morning at 192.2lbs. The weekly loss from 9/12-9/18 was 6.6 lbs bringing my total loss to 22lbs. I wore a shirt on Sunday that wasn't comfortable since I bought it, was too tight. Stuff is starting to fit better...That's all the motivation I need to continue.



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Day 13

Bale o' kale

As you may of noticed, I broke the daily postings...but the fast goes on. It was a busy weekend....going forward I'm only going to be posting a few times a week. I did pretty well at the Farmer's Market on Saturday, spent a bit more cash to stock up this time (see bale o' kale).

I've officially got a "go-to" vendor for kale going forward. She sells mostly collard greens, but had a single box of kale. Her prices were $1/bundle, I negotiated 10 bundles for $8. In addition I purchased 8 lemons, a large ginger root, 20 cucumbers, and 4 bags of celery. I've decided to continue purchasing granny smith apples at Publix since they are a good size and fit right in the juicer without cutting in half.

I have also tweaked my intake again, I think I've finally found a plan on what works for me. It also means I only need to juice twice a day. I make portions in the evening for that night and the next morning, and portions in the afternoon for the afternoon juices. The last few days I've been substituting protein in place of the mid-afternoon juice. It's more satisfying and easier to take down.

Morning

20oz juice

Mid-Morning

16oz protein/water drink

Afternoon

20oz juice

Mid-Afternoon

16oz protein/water drink OR 20oz juice

Evening

20oz juice

Tomorrow marks my second week on the fast, I'll be doing another weigh in and posting my results. It has definitely slowed, but progress is being made. I still have a long way to go, but I'm encouraged by what I'm seeing so far!

Adios

Day 10

I was pretty beat last night so didn't bother to write a post. So....10 days in...progress is definitely being made, though it has slowed like I assumed it would. The last 2 days I cut out the post-lunch juice and have substituted protein in it's place. Drinking nearly a gallon of the same juice everyday gets a little boring - so this helps a bit. It's almost like dessert...one of the powdered variety.

To keep myself going here, I've established some goal weights and the subsequent rewards I'll be gifting myself when I hit these goals.

• 190lbs - TBD watch
• 180lbs - iPhone 5
• 170lbs - MacBook Pro 

I really want the MacBook Pro. Not just for a toy...but for SCIENCE! Being in IT, I feel that I've never had enough exposure to Macs and the MAC OS. So I'm looking at it both as a learning tool and a toy. I honestly don't think that 170 goal is out of reach either. Now, it may not take place in two months, but it'll happen.

I'm about to go hit the Farmer's Market and stock up. Have a nice weekend!