All aboard!

We are in a rebuilding phase. The sickness threw me, I'll admit it. But I'm preparing to get back on the train and start chugging along. I was playing around with the video camera earlier this week, and I realized, much to my chagrin, that I am putting the pounds back on. The scale says I'm around 188, and the double chin is just a little more pronounced now. It's obvious. I think that's the magic number: At 188 lbs, I start to look "beefy." (That's the word I'm using. Not husky. Never husky!)

Upon realizing that truth, I ran to the store (well, okay, drove) and bought a bunch of healthy food. My diet was perfect BFL for about the next DAY, and then I started slacking AGAIN. What is it with me? Why was I able to succeed so well the first time I tried the challenge, but now I keep getting knocked off course within just a few days? The answer, I believe, is work. Or, more generally, time. I lack time now. I lack the unending hours of summer, when I was taking only 6 credits and therefore able to devote hours a day to getting in shape. I mean, what else had I to do? Homework took an hour a day, maybe. I was in class for two hours a day, on average. That leaves 13 more waking hours, in which using 1-2 for getting in shape and making healthy meals is a snap!

Now, I don't have 13 free hours a day. I sleep for 8 hours. Am at work for 9 hours. That leaves 7 hours. Take away driving time and I'm down to 6.5 hours. Now, time for getting up in the morning and I'm down to 5.5 hours.

The question now becomes, how do I want to USE those hours? By far the biggest unintentional drain on my time comes from AIM. I sit down to chat and the next thing you know 2 hours have passed. It's just the nature of the medium -- what would be a 20 minute phone call takes 2 hours online. So what happens is I get home from work, lay down on the couch for a bit and watch the news, have some dinner, go online... and the next thing I know it's 10 p.m. and I have squandered most of the evening.

But is rest and relaxation tantamount to squandering? I enjoy my evenings. *Sigh*... but I knew I would enjoy them more if I had more energy. The efficient thing to do would be to wake up around 7, go right to the gym, get ready there, be at work by 9 and then BE ABLE to use my time after work for whatever I please. I could still bum around from 6-11 if I like.

Okay, I have to do this. I know I have to. I want to be in shape by the time I go to law school, but moreso than that, I want to surprise Katherine when she returns from London. :-) So here's the slightly updated plan:

Day 0: Feb 9 - 188 lbs, 16% body fat
Day 7: Feb 16 - 186
Day 14: Feb 23 - 184
Day 21: Mar 2 - 182
Day 28: Mar 9 - 180
Day 35: Mar 16 - 178
Day 42: Mar 23 - 176 lbs, 10% body fat
Day 49: Mar 30 - 175
Day 56: April 6 - 174
Day 62: April 13 - 173
Day 69: April 20 - 173
Day 77: April 27 - 172
Day 84: May 4 - 172 lbs, 8% body fat

So, that's the plan. Again, looking at the raw numbers, it pleasantly surprises me that within two months -- just 8 weeks from now -- I can be a very trim 175. I haven't been that low since freshman year in college. :-) Then the third month will be a breeze. The first month is always the hardest. I just have to remind myself that it's worth it. Eat healthy. You have your one free day a week where you can eat ANYTHING you want! But it's just for that day. The whole rest of the week, you *must* eat healthy -- which, remember, isn't that bad and can actually be quite tasty. Grilled chicken with barbecue sauce cut up and mixed with pasta! Tasty tuna sandwiches! Chicken and salsa! George Foreman grilled burgers! The key is to make sure I have all the ingredients available, and have the meals ready to go.

Oh, and one more thing: I'm going to post a lot more pictures up here. And no more faking it. No more headshots taken from above, with an angle that conveniently negates my double chin. No more pictures taken in obscuring shadows. It's got to be the real deal. So here's a headshot from tonight, taken from straight on, full flash. My face will get slimmer and slimmer over the weeks. It will be a fun little project. :-)

Today, I buy food for the week. And tomorrow I begin. Onward!