Kirk's Challenge to Change

A new day has Dawned

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sat, 17 Jul 2010 14:54:00 +0000

I decided to give myself another shot at eating better. I have put back on most of my weight. I am currently sitting at 231lbs. It is 1 day after my 39th birthday and I have come to realize that if I keep treating my body like a dump, my body will dump on me. I am not going to do any pictures at this time, but I will try to get some done over the next several days.
For now I have got to get back to having meals and not having alcohol...wish me luck.

Day 30 - 1 Month Down!

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 02:15:00 +0000

So its been a month already. I have to say it was filled with ups and downs for sure. I had to set my goals and figure out how this was all going to work. I had to try new foods and acquire brand new tastes. I had to learn to shop for things that were going to make the difference in my life. I had to get back into the habit of doing regular exercise.

Verdict??? It all worked. In fact, things went way better than I had anticipated. I have grown to enjoy the foods that I eat. I am feeling the excitement that follows a great day at the gym. I have only strayed on my dietary choices once and that was just a soda and unbuttered popcorn at the movies. Sadly I am still struggling with smoking. I guess we can't win them all. But, it's not over.

Closing out this past month was vital to me. I needed to see that I was able to do what had to be done. But with the close of the old month and the start of the new, I need to set more goals. I need to keep reaching for information and resolve so that I can maintain a healthier me.

Progress to date is exciting. I know everyone who is on my facebook knows my progress, but I want to spell it out here for all to see. My start weight 30 days ago was 240lbs. I was wearing size 40 pants. My shorts and shirts were starting to get snug. As of today, I am down to 214 lbs. A total loss of 26 lbs. I am wearing size 34 pants...thats six sizes smaller. I even had to punch new holes in my belt. All my shirts are baggy on me now. People at work have been commenting how amazing it is that I appeared to have slimmed down so quick. Nice. Everyone and everything has been so nice.

So this months goals...Meals, meals, meals. I have been slipping a bit on my calories. I guess in the long run, I do have a bit to burn off, but at the same time, I don't want to be unsafe about these things. I do not want my body to go critical on me or anything crazy like that. I want to exercise more frequently..maybe even if its just to do Wii fit in the morning for 30 mins to get my metabolism kicked into gear for the day. Lastly, smoking. I really want to get that last vise kicked off my list of daily needs. If I can do these things this month, I will be set to maintain myself.

So...Time for the new pictures. I want to throw up a day 1 vs day 30, side by side, so I can see what the damage is. I have to be honest and say that I dont care to look at myself still, but photos are a solid reference to my efforts. Having said this all, I want to remind everyone that as much as I play on my weight, as much as I desire to be XXX lbs, weight is not the real issue, it's my health. Without good health, there is no point in even trying.

Day 1 & Day 30

Day 30 Side view

Day 25 - A New Hope

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:36:00 +0000

Since my last post, I have maintained my eating habits no problem. I have started to exercise more on the Wii Fit...which I LOVE. Today I decided to go for a run on the Wii Fit and wound up running 10.6 miles (17km). I totally loved it. It inspired me to do a day 25 picture. I am going to post all the pictures I have in the hopes that it will draw a clearer picture as to my progress.
Day 1
Day 9

Day 15 - Front and Side

Day 25 - Front and Side

The things I notice most are 1. My stomach has pulled in and I can start to see my ribs now. 2 My face has thinned out visibly. 3. My love handles are starting to dissapear.

All in all, I am quite happy with what a moderate amount of exercise and good nutrition can do.
Yay to me. 200 lbs is just around the bend. i probably wont update again until I hit 210 or if I get some new great information to share.

Take care everyone.

Day 22 - An end?

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 16:21:00 +0000

Hey hey. I have some good news and bad news. Bad news is that I am going to give up worrying about my blog. It was fun, but finding new things to say every day has been a bit of a chore. Good news is that I will be working on my web page instead. I am currently looking for someone to host the site where I can actually upload the entire site instead of having to use an automated template.

I am very happy to say that I don;t think I will be returning to my old eating habits...mostly because I now have a much greater awareness of what i am putting into my mouth. I doubt that i will ever drink alcohol again...well, maybe with the exception of Christmas or some such holiday.

I will continue to poke in here to give updates as events happen, but other than that, there really is no point. As I look at transferring my info from my blog to the site, I find that in order to do it, I have to rip each post apart for its content, so why keep writing what I know I will have to destroy in the near future. :)

Cheers to everyone. If you have been following, I will still update on MSN and Facebook as I progress.

Day 19 - Hit another 10 mark

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 23:57:00 +0000

I had a fantastic workout at they gym today. I decided to skip the elliptical and hit the treadmill. I started off with a very brisk 10 min walk. After that I did a moderate 10 min jog. (As well as my normal weight lifting exercises of course). All in all it was a great day and I sweat off a serious amount of body fluid.

My Wii decided to be a bit of a boner and started dying on us last night. I took the time to open it up and fix it. Afterward I put it in my room to test it out and decided that Wii Fit would be ideal for this purpose. I did a Wii fit workout for about 30 mins (my first time using Wii fit). I was seriously enjoying myself and I totally soaked my cloths. If anyone wants to get their heart pumping, I easily say that it does work.

Today's weigh in was pretty late in the day...after supper in fact. I was surprised at how much I had actually sweat today. My weigh in was 220 lbs. The grand total to date is 20 lbs lost. I am sure someone will contend that the loss is temporary because it is just liquid weight from sweating and that I will just gain it back as I drink...but i don't care. :) I will just have to push myself harder to make up for it. I am thrilled at the thought of being at or under the 200 mark. I am 1/3 of the way to having my weigh match my calorie intake.

As promised I found some recipes. YAY. I only found 2 that I really liked so far, so I will share them right now. Let me know if you like them.

Low Fat Chicken Burrito Filling

4 servings

2 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
1 (4 ounce) can tomato sauce

1/4 cup salsa
1 (1.25 ounce) package taco seasoning mix
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chili powder
Hot sauce to taste

Place chicken breasts and tomato sauce in a medium saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to a boil, then add the salsa, seasoning, cumin, garlic and chili powder. Let simmer for 15 minutes.

With a fork, start pulling the chicken meat apart into thin strings. Keep cooking pulled chicken meat and sauce, covered, for another 5 to 10 minutes. Add hot sauce to taste and stir together.

Low Fat Veggie Dip

1 cup plain low-fat yogurt
3 green onions, chopped
1/4 teaspoon dill weed
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
Dash of freshly ground pepper

Here is a little vid for you guys and gals to watch. It is somewhat inspirational, but it does use course language, so if you are offended easily, don't watch it.

Days 17 & 18 - Slowin down

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 02:31:00 +0000

Things are really slowing down with the weight loss. I know I was expecting it, but still I had hoped it would continue down until I was closer to 200 lbs. I have been hovering around the 223 - 225 mark for a couple days. I have maintained my eating habits well as far as i can tell.

At this point it is getting a bit harder to eat for a couple reasons...1. My variety is starting to suffer. Seems like all I really do for a meal any more is slap together a pile of veggies and chow down. I eat small amounts of meat proteins and supplement with whey protein. 2. When I cruise through the supermarket, I cant find anything I really want to eat. I look at labels and all I see are the numbers. I don't want to take in all the crap that's wrapped up in all the foods I used to like.

I think my day off mission will have to be to find dishes that meet my personal requirements for heal and flavour. I will do my very best to get at least 1/2 dozen new recipes for everyone to try out. I would imagine that others following will not be in the exact mindset that I am with regards to the health level of the recipes, so I will try hard to be more relaxed in my choices of recipes to post.

When it is all said and done, I am thankful that I have the friends that I have, following my blog. I draw a great amount of strength and will power to continue to find my way through the knowledge that I may be inspiring people just by making my way from unhealthy to healthy living. The great comments I receive at work really boost my confidence and make me want to do better.

I have set up a group on Facebook to help us all find partners to go to the gym with. I encourage you all to plan days ahead of time. If you plan ahead and have a partner, you (and I) will be less inclined to fluff off the exercise that is so vital to our health.

I have not done a thing with my web site. Working night followed by day really limits the time I have to work on the site. I will try to find more time to get the site under way so we have a better method to keep in touch and share information.

That's all I have for now. I am off to find some recipes...and or sleep.

Day 16 - Not just another day

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 02:38:00 +0000

Hey there. Today was in fact just another day in the world of food. What was not just another day was my daughters first birthday! So we had a great bbq with cake and goodies. I managed to stay away from it all. The burgers looked pretty great, but I am determined to eat healthy.

I did a weigh in just for kicks tonight and I hit 226.2. Not too bad considering I had 2 huge waters, and a real large meal. I made up a type of chicken salad using salsa instead of mayo. I can easily account for the weight in the food I ate alone. I have been trying to pick my calories up just a smidge. As much as I try to stay on target, I think I let myself slide down in calories a bit. This morning I started to feel dizzy and weak every time I got up. Since I should not be deficient on vitamins, I am assuming I went low on calories.

I strived to eat a larger breakfast, lunch, supper and snacks today. I feel really full right now. I think I will feel a lot better tomorrow. It is a great lesson that sometimes it is easy to under eat. Under eating is every bit as bad as over eating. If I under eat too much, my metabolism will fall and my body will start storing energy instead of burning it.

Here is my chicken salad sandwich in case anyone wants to give it a go.

Chicken Salad sans Mayo

2 slices Whole Grain Bread
1 Chicken breast
1 Stalk Celery
1/4 cup Salsa
Diced Onions
1 tsp Mustard

I would give great directions...but lets face it....this is a sandwich. If you can't make a sandwich yet then my directions surely won't help. My advise would be to SEEK MEDICAL HELP IMMEDIATELY!

So give it a try. i found it very tasty. I am really trying to find recipes that use other ingredients than the basic stuff that I use, but the simple fact is that I enjoy having all the veggies that I get every day. I enjoy eating salsa with everything. I wind up making at least 2 meals that have nothing but 100% vegetables and maybe 1 meal that contains real meat protein.

That's about it for tonight. I have an early work day tomorrow. Once again, if you have any recipe ideas, please send them in a comment so I can try them out and post them.

Cheers.

Day 15 - Got a host for my new domain

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:37:00 +0000

I found a suitable host for my domain. I have started to work on the structure of the site. So far I have added sections for Nutrition, Fitness, Recipes, My Blog and forums. Everyone should be able to get updates via RSS for both the blog and the forums.

I thought I would post a quick weigh in as well as well a picture. My current weight is 223 lbs. I am pretty happy with that. In total I have dropped ~17 lbs. It does not feel like much weight to me, looking at myself, but it is very substantial when you consider the time frame. 17lbs in 15 days...that's about 7% of my original body weight. I am not worried at the thought of such rapid weight loss yet because I know I am taking in enough calories and my diet is very very balanced. I think my body is just bouncing back very well from years of self abuse. I am taking in enough calories to sustain me at 180 lbs calculated against a moderate schedule of 3 days per week. My weight loss will slow down more and more as I get closer to that calorie weight range.

Seems like my handles are hanging on for dear life. That's ok. My cloths are no longer fitting snug. I am feeling better about myself and my new lifestyle choices. I think I might have dropped down in bra size as well. I wish bras got cheaper with lower cup sizes. LOL

Day 13 & 14 - Time is slippin

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 03:48:00 +0000

So much going on these last 2 days that I have had no time to blog. I bought a domain name and am currently looking for a host. My blog will move to www.ownyourbody.ca sometime in the days or weeks to come.

I have had no real weigh in per say. Last time I hit the scale I was sitting at 227 lbs. I am very pleased with my progress so far. I feel bad for neglecting my blog. i promise to get myself sorted out and hopefully get this site move done.

I have seriously messed up with my no smoking. I am working on it. :) Wish me luck on that one.

Only real food discovery that I have had in the last 2 days was that whole wheat flower does actually make awesome gravy and stew thickener. It does not sound like much, but to me it is. Gravy and stew are 2 of my favorite things to eat...now I can have them both and still keep to my dietary targets. I know I 'could' use white flower, its not a sin, but why should I? It is just as easy to discover new ways to eat healthy than to eat things that I know will complicate my diet.

Oh and I want to clarify once again...when I say diet, I am referring to intake of food, not to the fact that I am 'on a diet'. To repeat something I said in an earlier blog post, A diet is temporary. This eating habit is a change in my diet and not a change in a diet.

That's all for now.
Cheers

Day 12 - Barbie Dolls?

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 00:11:00 +0000

Alright. Without trying to say the words, I am thinking that the hits off of yesterdays blog were a bit askew to the intention of this WEIGHT FITNESS & LIFESTYLE blog. :P Grats to Google for placing ads that pertained to DIETS, SUPPLEMENTS and NARCOTIC DRUGS instead of Barbie cloths. I know I plan to be thinner, but not that damn thin. Wake up Google and smell the protein shakes.

Ok. With that out of the way. Today's weigh in was a bit sad for me. I was at 229 even. I am trying to blame a bag of popcorn and a soda for this, but I think the reality of the situation is that I have dropped my calories a bit too far and my body is probably starting to store energy. Or I have to go #2...either one is the most likely culprit.

I was reading an interesting article (as it seems like I am doing every day now). This article was about the effects of alcohol and how alcohol calories are treated by the body.
First off, alcohol is considered an empty calorie. What that means is that there is no nutritive value to the calories. We know right away that if your intent is to balance your diet, then alcohol is out. There is no point in consuming anything that does not have a nutritional value. (With water being the one and only exception that I am aware of at this time)

A balanced diet means controlling your intake of fibers, fats, proteins, carbs, sugars, vitamins and minerals. Your body depends on all elements of a balanced diet to run smoothly. It is no shocker that alcohol and alcohol byproducts is not listed as a food group in the Canada Food Guide. (Despite pleas from pub goers world wide). So taking alcohol calories vs dietary calories is a bad idea. One could contend that the average drink of alcohol contains around 100 calories...no big deal...but there is more to this picture than meets the eye.

Have you ever noticed that people who drink a lot tend to have that bulging belly? Well the reason is not just the masses of calories they are consuming in a day. The reason is 2 fold. 1. Alcohol causes your appetite to increase. Imagine taking 5 shots of pure alcohol and mixing it with 8 oz of cola. You would take in about 1300 calories. While you are drinking you may get the munchies and eat 1/2 a large bag of nacho chips...that's another (115 grams of chips) 1000 calories. Before the festivities started, you have a normal meal of say 500 calories. In total you have consumed 2800 calories. 2800 calories alone is not too horrible. 2800 calories per day normally would keep a person at 220 lbs (give or take).

The bad news...As your body digests the booze, it can store up to 5% of those calories directly as fat. The other 95% is processed by your liver and turns into a chemical called acetate. Your body will burn acetate as a fuel source before it will burn fat. What this all means is that instead of your body burning good calories from your diet, it stores them as fat and burns the acetate from your alcohol. Not only does it use acetate first, it will suppress the body from burning fat for many hours after you drink. So for hours during and after drinking, your body will go into a frenzy of storing excess energy as fat.

A note to the men....This is not part of what I had learned today, but rather some tidbits I have picked up through previous readings. Drinking creates a hormone called cortisol. Cortisol effectively breaks down the testosterone hormone. Without an adequate supply of testosterone, your body is unable to either build or maintain muscles. (not to mention the other things we all love our testosterone for). As well, alcohol breaks down a vitamin in your body called B-1 (thiamine). Thiamine is required by your body to move short term memories to long term memories. So when you don't remember what happened last night...that's why. When you start to forget where your house keys are, or if you paid a bill...that's why. What little thiamine you take in in your diet is broken down by the alcohol and you start to forget...or not remember..I forget. :P

The moral for today is a simple one...Going by calories alone is BAD! Look at the total nutritive value of the foods that you intake. Make sure you balance your diet with many different types of calories. Let your body do its job. You do not own your body, you are just renting it.

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 14:39:00 +0000

I'm going to start today's blog a lil bit early. I am just about to head off to the gym so I only have a few moments. As seems to be customary these days, I woke up this morning and hopped on my trusty bed side scale. Today's weigh in was 226.0 lbs! So to make it up, I am down a grand total of 14 lbs!!!! I am stoked and ready to shed some more. I have dropped from size 40 pants to size 36. Tabbi (my wife) had already bought be size 36 & 34 pants for work in anticipation of me needing them. Thanks Darlin.

I know its jumping the gun to have 34 pants, but I figure I should be able to fit into them by next week. I am excited. When I put them side by side with my 40s, they look like kids cloths. I'll take a picture of them side by side...maybe it will put some perspective on the actual size difference.

I have to take off. Thanks for reading!

I broke my diet today...sorta. I went to the movies for Fathers Day with my wife. There was no way I was going to the Cineplex without my popcorn and drink. So as little a break as it was, I wanted to pop it in here. Making a change is not always the easiest thing to do and sometimes going back to a comfort zone is just too hard to resist.

Day 10 - Makin moves

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sun, 21 Jun 2009 03:01:00 +0000

Before I start. If you have a google account, you can now add my Blog to you news feeds using this R SS link! Try it out!

So I woke up this morning and did my weigh in. I was in utter shock. I weighed in at 228.6 lbs. I almost started dancing right then and there. So excuse the optimism, but I have went from the 240 lb range to the 220 lb range. :)

So here is my Day 10 photo. (Actually it is day 9, late late at night.)(And don't mind the towel...Tabbi said no to the money shot...sorry)

It took a lot of staring for me to notice differences, but they are there. My handles are starting to get smaller...I think. :)

Other than that, everything is on par for me. Diet is going great. I found a nifty butter substitute spray. Its primarily water with Soya Lecithin. It has a strong butter smell, but little to no calories, fat or sodium. The amount that sprays out is so insignificant that even if it had bad stuffs in it, you would not get enough to hamper your diet. As well, as part of my change to being natural, I will not use this product long, it was just something that I could spray on my popcorn to make garlic powder stick to it.

A good friend of mine Chris has taken the time to give me a great site that has many recipes that are very healthy for you and your body. the site is called FigureAthelete. Take a few mins and check it out. I am too curious about the mashed potatoe substitute...

Im calling it a night for now. I hope you enjoy the link.
Take care. Oh..And I will leave you with some inspirational music that should help kick you into high gear with whatever endevour you are working on.

Day 8 & 9 - Boy am I lazy

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 23:35:00 +0000

I missed my day 8 blog so I had to combine 8 & 9 together. I did start a day 8 blog, but it was getting pretty late and I wanted to head off to bed. So here we go...

Day 8 and 9 were pretty similar. I have had zero problems sticking to my eating habits. For the most part, unhealthy foods are not even a craving. The only place I really miss the bad stuff is on popcorn. No offense to popcorn, but it really does suck without toppings. I know I can put salt and whatnot on it, but IT JUST DOESN'T STICK. lol. I will have to endeavor to find a solution to this problem.

I did break my no smoking a few times over the past 2 days. I am not 100% sure why, but for now, I will just have to deal with it and movie on. One day at a time right? No one is perfect. As long as I maintain my focus to make myself better and am conscious that I have crossed a line, then things are still pretty much under my control.

I managed to make it to the gym today. As it turns out, working on my feet for 8.5 hours then going for a run is not such a hot idea. My feet hurt like they were on fire. I did manage to crack off 15 mins of cardio, so I am still happy. Being a 10 year smoker, 15 mins of solid heart workout is probably enough.

So I have been reading on oil and fat. I came across a great, short, easy to understand breakdown of what to use for oils if really need them. Before I post up this quote, I want to clarify a few things first.

You don't need oils to fry. You can use unsweetened juices or salsa
You should try ensure that you take in less than 10% of the calories you take in are from fat sources
You can also bake or broil with water instead of frying
Microwaves only make you mutant if you are in a movie

So here is the quote. Give it and what I said above some consideration. If you must have that extra oil in your meals, then make it good oils and try to balance out the rest of your meals with less fats to accommodate the necessity to cook with these oils.

The Best Kind of Fat

Saturated fats, which are derived mostly from animal sources, could be described as the villains of the fat family. Any oil that is solid at room temperature, whether it is lard, shortening, or coconut oil, falls into this category. The reason that saturated fat is so dangerous has to do with its link to health problems. People who consume high levels of these fats have higher cholesterol levels, a precursor to myriad heart problems. In the same way, hydrogenated oils have a bad reputation. Their high levels of trans fatty acids have been proven to result in heart disease. These oils, which are naturally liquid but have been chemically altered to be solid at room temperature, are most commonly found in the margarine section. Luckily, there are other oils to choose from that do not produce such ominous results.
Monounsaturated fats have been identified as highly beneficial, boasting the ability to raise the levels of good (HDL) cholesterol without affecting bad (LDL) cholesterol levels. Included in this family are olive oil, canola oil, and peanut oil. Almost as highly reputed are the polyunsaturated oils (corn, soybean, grape seed, and safflower, to name a few), which have high amounts of beneficial fatty acids. For the low-fat dieter, these are the oils to use. Keep in mind that any fat, including these healthy oils, must be used in strict moderation. However, incorporating these oils is the healthiest means of meeting your dietary fat requirements.

There you have it. Consider yourself slightly educated...I did.

So my weigh in for today felt pretty nice. I weighed in at 230.2lbs. That was a loss of about .6 lbs from my day 7 weigh in. What makes this feel to good to me is the fact that I weighed myself after work. That means I had a full days meals under my belt at the time. So when everything has made its way to its final resting spot, I will weigh in again. Consider that my starting weight was about 240 lbs, just 9 days ago. Wow! By the end of tonight, I will be hitting the top end of the 220s. I know its just a psychological perception, but to me it is a marker that indicated a positive change in my life.

Still no comments up yet. That's OK. I was kinda hoping that others might join in. If you are actually reading this then please just drop a comment and say hey. I am very curious who (if anyone) is actually following my story.

That's days 8 and 9 in a nutshell. I will try to dig up some more info to put in my blog so that we can all get slowly educated together.
Cheers

Day 8 - Finding a groove

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 00:57:00 +0000

So today I was thinking that I am really starting to fit into this new lifestyle. No, I don't know 1000 recipes. No I cant just devise a clever meal plan. But that is not the root of the issue. The root, by my consideration, is having accepted that i need to eat healthy. The answer is a wholeheartedly YES I HAVE!. When I open the fridge I can look past the brick of cheese, around the jar of mayo and beside the leftover pizza to find the rest of the huge salad I made at lunch earlier in the day.

So once again I am reminded why I am doing this blog. A person from work told me that I had inspired them. Now I know they know who they are, and had I thought to ask permission, I would have said who they were. At that point I felt a bit in awe of the fact that just being a normal Joe would be enough to inspire. I know it was one of my initial goals, but to be honest, I figured no one would ever read this blog.

So I would like to take a moment to say that I felt so very happy that my blog actually inspired someone to change their lifestyle for the better.

So, on with today!

Nutrition went alright. I am still very much suffering from preparedness. I will really need to ask my family to help me prepare for my day in advance. Having those meals/snacks during working hours is critical to keeping my metabolism kicked up in full gear. Its very important to keep up the 5 or 6 meals per day. I will dig up a chart from Scoobys site so everyone knows what they should target for, calorie wise. Bear in mind that when you lose weight, you really want to target to lose ONLY 1 pound per week. If you stick to this goal, you are less likely to put the weight back on.

Current Weight	#cals/meal to lose 1lb/wk
280lbs (127kg)	610cals x 6 meals = 3700 cals
260 lbs (118kg)	560 cals x 6 meals = 3400 cals
240 lbs (109kg)	510 cals x 6 meals = 3100 cals
220 lbs (100kg)	460 cals x 6 meals = 2800 cals
200 lbs (91kg)	410 cals x 6 meals = 2500 cals
180 lbs (81kg)	360 cals x 6 meals = 2200 cals
160 lbs (72kg)	310 cals x 6 meals = 1900 cals
140 lbs (63kg)	265 cals x 6 meals = 1600 cals

eat 5-6 small, well balanced meals a day each with 15-25g protein
eat lots of veggies
eat less than 10% of your calories from fat
eat only whole grain carbs - no sweeteners or white flour products
if you need to lose fat, do it gradually - about one pound per week

So, if you look at the chart, you have an idea of what you might want to target for yourself. Please please take the time to read the Canada food guide from my Day 1 post! It is vital that you balance your meals out and get the correct servings from each food groups.

I want to say a quick word on No Fat / Low fat foods. These tags you will see on many products. They are meant to entice you to buy products because you think they are healthier choices. But take the time to read and understand the labels. In Canada, if a products serving has less than .2 grams of Trans Fats per serving, then they can place a 'Zero Trans-Fat' label on their packaging. What this means is that companies can lower their serving sizes to the point that they can claim their product has zero fat.

The best advise I can give is eat natural. Eat fruits and veggies. Frozen is just as good as fresh, as long as it is not processed with extra sugars or salts.

I want to share a very very short recipe of mine. Its nothing fancy, but I like it. It is one of those things that I used to make myself and my family before I felt compelled to eat healthier. Having said that, it is extremely healthy.

Cabbage Soup

1/4 Head Cabbage
1 Can Diced Tomatoes (non seasoned)
1 Large Onion
1/2 lb Ground Turkey
1 Large Green Pepper
6-8 Cups water
Spices to taste

Brown your ground turkey in a pan and drain very well. Cut cabbage into 1/2 inch thin strips. (Any size that you can manage with a spoon is fine). Cut onion and green pepper in any manner you like. (I prefer small thin strips). Combine water, cabbage, onions, green pepper, turkey, tomatoes and your favorite non sodium spices in a large pot. Simmer until cabbage is tender. Serve.

Like I said, its not some super fantastic recipe. It just happens to be one I love. Its simplicity is also a plus since I am not so fantastic in the kitchen.

Today was a recoup day from the gym. I was so sore from my last visit. Tomorrow I plan on getting my workout from Wii Fit. I have never tried it before, so it should be exciting.

Once again I have not taken any time to make a photo. Don't worry, I have not given up on the progress shots, I just don't see enough change to warrant the effort. :P I am thinking I may need to bump up the picture posts to 1 every 2 weeks. I think its more realistic. I did take a moment to weight myself. Today I am sitting at 230.8 lbs which is down 1.2 lbs from yesterday. Yay!

If you are just joining, feel free to comment or ask questions. When you can't find the will power to do what you want to do, sometimes it is easier to put yourself out there and not feel alone.

Day 7 - One week down. One lifetime to go.

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 01:49:00 +0000

Today is the marker for the last day of my first week. I am feeling pretty damn good, yet still it is only a week.

I kinda binged out today, but thankfully only on healthy food. As well I am pretty confident that I did not exceed my normal number of calories. I hate to think of things in terms of calories, but I want to make sure to keep myself on track.

I was planning a picture, but honestly I am too sore from the gym today. I just want to lay down and make the bad man stop. :p

This will probably be about the shortest blog to date when it really should be longer, but it is just not happening. I promise I will post a new pic tomorrow.

My weigh in at the gym was 232lbs so I did manage to drop a bit more. As the days pass and my body acclimatizes to the new eating routine, my weight loss will slow drastically.

Day 6 - OMG!!!!

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 04:30:00 +0000

So I am at work today and I mentioned my blog...At that point I found out that several people have been talking about it and I think that's SOOOO GREAT! I actually felt like I have been doing something here. I only know of one person who has subscribed, but I certainly feel awesome that I have a space on the internet, AND that it has drawn some sort of attention. To be honest, it makes me feel a bit more driven to finish what I have started.

This question was posed to me today so I want to take a moment to clarify my intentions. The question was...'What is your goal? I mean, how much weight do you want to lose?'

So to answer this I will just refer to my title...'Kirk's Challenge to Change'. I dont want to lose X lbs or get six pack abs or be able to lift 3x my body weight. I simply want to change. I want to learn to eat right. I want to learn to enjoy better foods. I want feel energized by a great workout. I want to see all the negatives in my life turn around and become positives. Lastly, I want to prove that ANYONE can do it. (If I can, then anyone can)

Change is within every one of us. Most everyone has been on a diet or tried to go to the gym. But the problem is that a diet will always be temporary. Going to the gym is normally temporary. These 2 vital pieces of healthly living are typically driven by poor self esteem, which is to say that it is very easy to think that if you drop 10 lbs, somehow, magically, people will think different of you. They will find you more attractive. They will find you more 'thin'. This in my opinion is the failure.

NO ONE SHOULD EVER DIET. Diets will hurt you. Rapid weight loss will hurt you. And if that special person in your life really found you sexier at 170 lbs then they did when you were 200, then maybe they are not the special person who you thought they were.

My advise is simple. Read. Educate yourself. Set your goals realistic. And most importantly....take things one day at a time!

Day six for me was pretty cool. I am really looking forward to my meals at this point. I think as the days go on, I am putting more distance between myself and those Big Macs. I am starting to crave healthy food. I actually want to make a protein shake for a snack...although this is not the best snack in the world, it is my little vice. I still try to balance those quick snacks in my meal plans.

I did a quick weigh in when I got home from work, after my supper meal. It seems as if I have dropped a little (232.6), but considering that was right after a meal and 1/2 litre of water, it's a very huge drop for one day. To put things into perspective, I have 2 sizes of pants, tight and not so tight. Right now, my tight pants are no longer tight.

Looks like I might have someone joining into my blog via comments. She is a neighbour who wants to get fit herself. Hopefully she will make her way on here soon enough. I also want to remind everyone that if you leave comments, I can answer question, or do my best to find answers to questions. I would especially like to hear from anyone who is trying to be healthier. Maybe to share soem recipes or ideas.

Tomorrow is my second picture. I cant imagine there will be a visible difference from my day 1 photo, but over time, with weekly pictures, I think the story will tell itself much better than I ever could. No time to re read or edit tonight. I am bushed. Its gym tomorrow morning and I want to up and ready to go fairly early.

Day 5 - Really already?

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 13:47:00 +0000

Alrighty lady and gentleman. (I assume my crowd is about that small) I am getting myself set up to go to the gym for the first time in years. I feel like I am getting ready for a camping trip. I am confident I will get to the gym and realize I have missed some vital component. That's OK. Its my first day and I am sure no one but me will complain if I do in fact forget something.

I have started my day with a good breakfast of puffed wheat and skimmed milk. yummy. :P I have my protein powder all ready so i can pop a quick jolt after my workout. I am not ashamed to say that I am just a bit nervous.

This is a very very early entry into day 5 so I will of course come back later today with an update or 2. (I hope).

I will leave for now with a Scooby's Part 2 video on how to get 6 pack abs. In this video Scooby shows how to make a basic meal plan that will get you started on your path to changing the way you eat. It is a simple approach, but it is a start for losing weight naturally while still giving your body everything it needs to get fit.

As always, Thanks to Scooby!

So I FINALLY got off to the gym and I FEEL GREAT! I cant say much else at this time. I feel energetic. I feel HUNGRY. I just want to go and go. Lance and I managed to make it out together. At the start we were mildly disorganized. I am sure that is to be expected. After not too long we got into a groove and hit the machines.

For the first day I made a personal decision to start my cardio off very light. I have been a smoker for 10 years and I have been a non smoker for just under a week. I did not want to stress my body out too badly. I wound up doing about 15 mins total, while keeping my heart rate at about 160.

I put considerably more effort into my workout. It was more relaxed than it needed to be at the start, but by the end I really wanted to push myself. I wanted to know that I had been to the gym. During my last exercise (ab press), I swear I felt tingling in my nethers I push it so hard. In fact I pushed so hard to make the last reps that when i hoped up on the elliptical to close out the day, I was already at 159bpm heart rate. Also I could feel my arms and abs tightened right up.

OK. So all I really want to say to summarize my day is that even a non dedicated quitter like myself can eat healthy and effort some gym time. Its only been 5 days so we will have to see if this can be a long term trend or not. If I can do it, trust me, ANYONE can do it.

I am heading out for now to buy a scale so I can start keeping my weight posted. My start weight was about 240 by my consideration. I predict that I have lost maybe 3-5 lbs so far. Not so much due to diet and exercise, but rather from cutting out 4000 calories a day in cola and booze.

And I'm back. I bet it seemed like 10 seconds didn't it. OK. I have my weight now. 233.8 lbs. Turns out I was a little smaller than I thought.
Next I need to share a recipe. I was trying to make up a supper for myself and wound up with a fantastic soup. I mean seriously fantastic.

Kirks Ooops Soup
1 Red Pepper (Diced)
1 Medium Onion (Diced)
1 cup salsa
1 Celery Stalk (Sliced)
1 cup Bean Sprouts
3 cups water
1/2 cup diced chicken breast
spices to taste

Mix all ingredients except water into a small pot or saucepan. Cook on medium high heat. Stir regularly. When onions become slightly tender, add water and stir. I used garlic pimento Caribbean spice and no fat Parmesan & herb spice. The chicken can be precooked or raw as long as you mind how long you cook the meat for...don't need to get any nasty bugs.

I hope someone takes a stab at this soup. I think it will be my new favorite.

SO. Stay tuned. Now that I have an official weight, I can see real progress or lack of progress very often.

Day 4 - Yummy yummy

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 23:45:00 +0000

Alright. Right down to business today. Today went like poop. I had some life issues as I keep saying and as much as I wanted to be at work, i could not wrap my head around my job today. Ah well...what can a guy do.

Today was an awesome day for me otherwise. My wife was so kind as to whip me up a very nice supper. It tasted so good, I felt like I was eating wrong. What she made for me was a Sheppard's pie, except with a reduced amount of beef and sweet potato instead of potato. Ill have to drop in the recipe just because it was so good.

Sweet Potato Sheppard's Pie

1 Cup extra lean ground beef
1.5 Cups frozen corn
1.5 Cups sweet potatoes
1 Cup Salsa

Cook and drain ground beef. Cook and drain corn. Cook and whip sweet potatoes. Mix 1/2 cup salsa with the ground beef. Layer in a small pan your beef, then corn and last sweet potatoes. Bake in oven until the potato starts to brown. Remove from heat. Use the last of the salsa on top of your serving. Makes 2 servings.

So if you take the time to try it out, it is amazing. i have never tried sweet potato before and so far I can say that I like it. The color was a bit hard for me to swallow, but the flavor was outstanding!

I was wanting to go to the gym tonight, but My gym buddy had some pressing isses to tend to. So I will be going tomorrow instead. i will attempt to do my day 5 before my muscles start to ache. :) As well, after my escapade with my son yesterday, my heels are all blistered...So here is a reminder folks. ALWAYS wear socks when breaking in new running shoes!

So it seems as if some ppl from work are reading this blog. Welcome! If anyone else at all wants to join in and give this funky eating and exercise thing a try...just lemme know.

Cheers.

Day 3 - Challenges

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 02:11:00 +0000

This is going to be a fairly short post today. I really wanted to focus on the blog a bit more, but with my pressing life issues, Ill be forced to minimize my blogs for the next few days. Good thing is that it gives me more time to make more structure.

So today seemed quite a bit better nutrition wise. I was able to balance out my meals a bit better. I am seriously starting to get used to having no fat in my diet. I am looking forward to my protein drinks. I actually think my mouth watered at the thought of having the rest of my salad from yesterday. Weird...apparently the body will adapt to just about anything.

I have not really noticed much of a change in weight..but I guess there is no reason I should on day 3. I will be returning to work tomorrow, so in the absence of a scale, my belt should be a great indicator.

I managed to get some shoes today for the gym. I thought I would break them in by going for a walk. I took my 3 year old son with me. After about 1 km, he wanted to sit on my shoulders. About 1/2 a km later he was asleep. So I headed for home with my poor little guy sound asleep with his head on my head. By the time I got home I was so sore from holding him up there with 2 arms for such a long distance.

And so I am off for tonight.

Day 2 - An early blog due to circumstances

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 21:45:00 +0000

A lot has happened today so I thought I better post up my day 2 a bit early. I hope no one minds. Sadly I found out my 5 year old daughter needs more surgery and my Gramma passed away. I have to leave for Toronto to pick up my Mom. Its just a sad sad day.

Today went great as far as my nutrition goes. I decided to try out cream of wheat...problem was, I did not know how to cook it. I gave it a good shot and outside of the earthy taste of it, it turned out not too bad. Here is the recipe I used:

1/4 cup cream of wheat
1/4 cup water
3/4 cup skim milk
1 scoop Vanilla flavored whey protein

Put all ingredients into a saucepan. Heat until it just starts to boil. You really really have to stir constantly. This stuff is like glue. I am confident that I sealed many small holes throughout my body just by eating it.

I have been trying to respect a pseudo meal plan, but getting into the habit of structured meals is proving to be a minor challenge. With all that's going on around me, I will need to work on preparing my meals ahead of time so that I will always be ready to chow down.

I am going to skip talking about the gym because it just cant happen for the next few days. What I would like to focus on right now is the food and how I feel about how I am eating now.

As of right now, I am starting to dig the food. I am not quite used to skipping the urge to put butter and mayo on everything I put into my mouth, but that's OK. So far i have not felt the desire to break with what I am eating. I do however realize I have the ability to be more creative with what I eat. So the big task for day 3 to about day 7 should be finding recipes that I am happy with and that I can look forward to. I need to put my mind into a good place. I need to make this alot less of a diet and a lot more about changing what i like to eat.

OK. I don't have time to reread this posting. I will try to spend a bit of time figuring out a solid structure for the blog. I would love to have a few sections, maybe Nutrition, Fitness, a recipe to try, Personal feelings, and possibly a link of the day...I dunno. If anyone has a mind for such things, just leave me a comment.

This may not be religious, but its how I am feeling right now. I love you Gramma!

Day 1 - I'm ready to go. So lets go!

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:18:00 +0000

Before I start documenting all of my trials and tribulations, I want to make a very big call out to my friend from work, Lance. I want to say that part of my inspiration to do this came from Lance and his willingness to go to the gym with me. We see each other pretty much every day, so we can be a sort of coaching buddies. Thanks Lance.

Today is the big day! I have reviewed many sites over the last week, struggling to find the vital information that will allow me to make this journey without hurting myself. I would like to share one of my favorites with you. This chaps name is Scooby and he is all about getting the information out to everyone. His site is free and very informative. If you have a moment, cruise over to his site and check it out.

Last night I sat up until all hours of the night trying to generate a list of what I could eat based on what i had in my cupboards. I needed to generate some sort of a meal plan, but I have zero experience doing this sort of thing. I went back to some familiar places to gather the resources I felt I needed to get this done. If you are wanting to try this yourself, I will list several sites that may assist you in finding how to manage you meals, exercise, dietary requirements and such.

Here are the main sites that i used:

Scoobys Home Body building Workouts - To learn how to do it at home and on a budget.
Canada Food Guide Website or the (PDF Guide) - To be 100% sure I was making balanced meals.
CookingNook.com - This site has an amazing weight loss calculator.
CalorieKing.com - To find out what characteristics different raw foods had.
SparkRecipes - To find some great meal ideas. This link is actually a search on their site for Low Calorie, High protein meal ideas.

Before you go off and blindly build up a plan of your own, it is important to note that I am not a doctor or dietitian. You need to read anything and everything that you can before you dive into what may or may not be a safe program. These sites are simply a handful that i used myself.

On with Day One

Today I quit!
I will not be sedentary.
I will not smoke.
I will not drink alcohol.
I will not eat things that my body does not need.
(I may play a bit of warcraft. :P)

As mentioned earlier, I generated a list of what I had that I could eat. I was shocked to find that even with an extensive list of items, if I were to eat everything on my list, I would still come up short on calories. Here is the list, to give you an idea of what i mean.

Brown Rice	0.5	216	108	cup
Can Tuna (water packed)	0.5	131	65.5	can
Sweet Potato	0.5	206	103	medium
Cream of Wheat or Oatmeal	1	140	140	cup
Milk (0 fat skimmed)	2	91	182	cup
Pita or 2 Slices Bread (whole grain)	1	170	170
Yogurt (fat free / sugar free)	1	63	63	container
Orange	1	62	62	medium
Apple	1	72	72	medium
Pork , Steak or Chicken (average calories)	1	200	200	piece
Corn	1	132	132	cup
Mixed Veggies	1	150	150	cup
Carrot	1	25	25	medium
Balsamic Vinegar (Thanks to Scooby)	1	19	19	oz
Salsa	1	70	70	cup
Whey Protein	3	104	312
Banana	1	105	105	medium
Orange/apple juice	1	40	40	cup

As you can see, this is a pretty huge list for one day. At least its big compared to what I normally eat. I wanted to hit near 2200 calories per day for now. I will need to pick the numbers up when I start exercising. (I just got my gym membership). On this list I had to add Whey Protein powder in order to bring up my calories as well I would need the proteins for when I started to exercise.
The meal change was much different than I had expected. What surprised me the most is that starting the day off with oatmeal, milk and a fruit, my tummy was rumbling well before lunch. After lunch was the worst, I felt like I had swallowed a brick. I am sure this was due to the fact that I never eat breakfast and it was my first day using protein supplements. Needless to say, at the end of the day I very much enjoyed a vanilla bananna smoothie. (Yummy...real flavor after a day of blah)

I was able to take my Day 1 photo which I will post below. I am not proud of this picture, but I am proud that I was able to take it and that I was able to find the courage to post it. I am starting to take things one day at a time.

Important Note about the Author

noreply@blogger.com (KirkWilson) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 14:59:00 +0000

Name: Kirk Wilson
D.O.B: July 16, 1971
Gender: Male

I decided to document my progress towards losing weight and getting fit. I know there are 10000 other such sites and blogs (As I have read many myself). For me this blog will represent my willingness to accept who I am and what type of a shell i want to live in. I would hope that over time, I might even gain some support from the blogging community in order to keep my confidence rolling.

Over the last year or so, I have let myself slide into a horrible state. So here I will sum it all up:

Drinking about 26oz of liquor a day.
Smoking a pack of cigarettes a day.
Eating about 1000 calories of actual food
Play Warcraft through my non working hours.
Driving to the store that's right across the street.
Sex life in the toilet due to all of the above.

Having said all of the above, I must also admit that I can't write worth beans, so if you are grammatically inclined, you may not enjoy my writings.

On With The Show!