Category: lifestyle

Starting Again…

So now that I’ve started again, I need to set the stage for the starting line. So here we go; moment of truth. Weighing myself and taking measurements was an even bigger eye opener than the pictures but since picture are worth a thousand words you can see below how bad it’s been.

So now that I’ve started again, I need to set the stage for the starting line. Back in 2017 when I first made the decision to start this blog and keep a record of my journey to a healthier life, I was just over 320 lbs. I had just come out of trying the Keto Diet and phentermine pills but the side effects of the Keto Diet (the “Keto Flu”) were horrible which made it clear that that path was not for me and was feeling very defeated because I was at my all time highest weight. I made a choice to hire a personal trainer and start working out regularly, but didn’t really change much of my eating habits. Yeah I did eat better but nothing too different from what I was used to. Working out worked, the weight was coming off, the fat was melting away and I could see my body changing. It was great, exhilarating. But too much of a good thing is not really that good. It took over my life; my day revolved around my “workout” time and everything else was not as important. It was too much, I was burnt out and hence I could not keep up that lifestyle. I stopped to take a “break” and that break became permanent.

Now I’ve reached the same weight I was back in 2017 (320+) but this time around, the weight distributed differently in my body. I don’t know if it’s that I’m just getting older or what, but I’ve never had this big of a belly. The breaking point came earlier this year when I went to a convention in Las Vegas and saw pictures of myself afterwards. OMG! I was so embarrassed and couldn’t believe I had gotten to this point AGAIN!

Below are said pics – Can’t believe I’m sharing these publicly.

I couldn’t believe my eyes. I had an excellent time at the convention and I thought I looked cute and stylish and came back home with lots of new ideas for our business but after seeing these, it was like a bubble bursting. I thought to myself that people wouldn’t take me seriously looking the way that I do. People tend to judge fat people, I’ve fought against that my entire adult life and I know that it’s not always true but still can’t help thinking about it. Now that I am a business owner, of a design business of all things, having a good appearance is an asset that I unfortunately can’t take advantage of. Thankfully my partner makes up for any deficits on my part.

So here we go; moment of truth. Weighing myself and taking measurements was an even bigger eye opener than the pictures but since picture are worth a thousand words you can see below how bad it’s been.

Starting Weight: 10/28/2019324 lbs
Chest50.5 in
Waist (@ bellybutton)53 in
Hips53 in
R. Thigh31 in
L. Thigh31 in
R. Bicep17.5 in
L. Bicep17 in
Neck18 in
R. Calf19 in
L. Calf19.5 in

Below are pics showing the changes from Nov 2017 to April 2019 and then to now.

Crazy how months of hard work can just go down the drain so easily. This time around I don’t plan to make the same mistakes. I’m optimistic that in a year from now I’ll still be on this journey and writing about the ups and downs but living healthier and happier.

I’ll be updating my progress on a weekly basis here and adding pictures as we move forward here. Any comments are welcomed!

Hope you stick around.

Until next time! – Luis

Progress?

So after almost two weeks of traveling I’m back home. I’m still pretty busy so I had not been able to sit down and write and post something as I would’ve wanted but hopefully I can get back to my semi-normal routine soon. Lots of things going on at work, getting some more responsibilities, which is good but at the same time makes me worry. I can deal with stress, but usually that meant eating and eating and eating some more. I am an emotional eater and find comfort in food, which has been a lifelong struggle that’s hard to let go.

On one hand I managed to visit the hotel fitness center a few times during my travels, so at least I can say I tried to keep up some sort of exercise routine. On the other hand, I do not think I did as good with the food and drinks. First week I did OK, only having a cocktail (I’m a Vodka kind of guy) with dinner and keeping the snacking to a minimum  throughout the day; but during the second half of the trip I attended a conference which meant lots of business dinners and lots of free drinks. In past years I’ve been guilty of overindulging, this year I did not take it too far but still managed to drink a good amount of alcohol during the networking events. I had been tired from so much travel the week before so I was glad to end the trip on a happy and festive note so I may have slipped a bit. Compared to other years I did excellent so I’m not feeling guilty and I’m proud of myself for showing some sort of restraint but I know I still have a long way to go before I can get through one of these events without falling back into old habits. At the end of the day it was a successful business trip and I had fun, so that is really all that matters. Continue reading “Progress?”

Another week gone

I’ve been extremely busy at work this week so my days have been long and a stressful, which is something that usually triggers my over-eating. I’ve been able to remain somewhat good with my food intake this week, not great but not horrible. I did have some sweets this week and a couple of glasses of wine last night but that’s part of life. I am not going to feel guilty about having a few “treats” from time to time.

Continue reading “Another week gone”

Diet history and what I’m doing now.

Ever since people started to notice that I’ve lost some weight, the first thing I get asked is what diet am I following. Everyone wants to know if I’m doing the Atkins, or Paleo, or Keto diet; or if I’ve gone on a low fat diet, or tried a vegan diet, or even if I’m taking any medications or supplements to help with my diet. When I say I’m just eating better,  working out and not following any strict “diet”, everyone is always so surprised and almost incredulous to a point.  Continue reading “Diet history and what I’m doing now.”

Losing steam and getting back on track

I’m a bit ashamed to admit that I’ve fallen into a bit of a slump. At the end of January I got sick and in my attempt to let my body heal I might have fallen back into old habits. It’s been 12 days since my last post and since then I’ve only exercised four times, and while that is still good I haven’t really been making much of an effort with my meals. I’ve stopped planning my meals as I was doing and I haven’t been keeping track of my caloric intake (MyFitnessPal) which for me is a great tool. I’ve been busy at work so I’ve let that also affect my routine, which means I’m cooking less and ordering take out more or getting some fast food on the way home which would not be bad if I made better choices on the food ordered. As a results I’ve gone up a couple of pounds, which is not necessarily the end of the world, but it’s had a big impact on me mentally. I’ve worked so hard to get to where I am and I feel like I’ve undone all of my progress in these past few weeks. Of course that’s nonsense, but it’s easy to feel like a complete and utter failure, even if you’ve already accomplished a lot.

Continue reading “Losing steam and getting back on track”

Can it please be spring already?

I am so over this crazy weather. If it’s not freezing outside, it’s pouring rain (on top of the cold). I am so ready for the warmth and humidity to come back to Texas. In the six years that I’ve lived here, I think this has been the coldest and longest winter I’ve ever experienced. It’s making me really miss Puerto Rico and St. Croix and all the beautiful beaches and warm weather I gave up. But I do love it here and I will just have to put up with this a few more weeks, hopefully less.

4mAIh91
Weather can’t make up its damn mind

This weather is conducive to only two things: eating and sleeping. In the past I would’ve relish that, bundled up in bed with the dogs while eating snacks and binge watching a series or two on Netflix. Ahhhhh the good times, but that’s now all in the past. I’ve been working hard these past couple of months and I’m not going to give it all up just because of cold rainy weather. However, with shorter days and colder weather, finding the motivation to stay healthy and fit can be difficult.

Why does this happen? Does this happen to anyone else or is it just me? I wonder if it is an instinctual act that compels us to stack up on food and fatten up during the cold months where there use to be a lack of food. At least that’s one way of explaining my constant craves these past few weeks that doesn’t make me feel like a fat ass.  I’m eating right, drinking lots of water and maintaining a semi regular workout schedule, yet I feel like I’m in a bit of a rut. Thankfully we don’t keep a lot of junk food around the house anymore so it’s made it easier to abstain from eating since there’s not much around.

My workload at the office has picked up and I’ve been a bit more stressed out and irritable than usual but I can’t let that get to me. Part of the reason why previous attempts to better my health and loose weight ended up failing was because I would always come up with an excuse not to do something and when the weather is all funky like it is now it’s really easy to come up with an excuse to not workout or to eat all that comfort food and just be lazy. The problem is, once you make up one excuse, chances are you’ll make more until you fall back to your old habits. So I have to keep up with what I’m doing and find the motivation where I can, regardless of the weather and whatever might be happening at work.

I really hope that this weather starts improving soon. I want to start a vegetable garden in our back yard and I’m really looking forward to doing that as well as doing some outdoor activities. Slowly but surely getting ready for the summer.

I’ve you’ve stuck around until now, thank you for keeping up with my ramblings.

 

 

 

 

Getting back on track after the Holidays

Today’s Friday and that marks a full week since we returned from our vacations. It’s been a tough week, lots of catching up to do at work with dozens if not hundreds of emails to go through and reply to and following up on pending jobs from last month so I haven’t had as much time to write as I would’ve liked. The house is a mess, luggage is still unpacked which would normally drive my partner crazy, however given the fact that he’s been super busy at work too so I haven’t gotten “the look” yet. I still may get it this weekend if I keep procrastinating.

Even though I’ve been busy at work and as part of my 2018 New Year’s resolutions I did manage to cook pretty much every night this week, except on Tuesday when we went over to my in-laws house to celebrate my father in law’s birthday. I did have a couple of pieces of fried chicken (yum) and a slice of homemade carrot cake and I regret NOTHING.  It was all delicious and we had a fun evening so to me that’s a win. The rest of the week I tried different healthy recipes that were all excellent, my favorite being these baked shrimp taquitos from the skinnytaste website. I love shrimp and this recipe is really easy to make and most importantly they taste delicious. I wish I had taken some pictures of it.  Continue reading “Getting back on track after the Holidays”

Holiday Recap (Did I fall off the bandwagon?)

The 2017 Holiday season has now come to an end, or at least they have for me. In Puerto Rico the Christmas celebrations will continue for a few more weeks until the end of “Las Octavitas”. For us is now time to get back to work and our dogs and normal routine. Coming back after spending time with my parents and the rest of my family and friends is never easy (not even after 10 years of living away from them) but I am so thankful that we are able to visit and spent these precious time together.

Continue reading “Holiday Recap (Did I fall off the bandwagon?)”

Healthy eating while on Puerto Rico (can I make it?)

Christmas in Puerto Rico is a big deal, much bigger than people who were not born here imagine. Navidad (Christmas) is when we experience the best of Puerto Rican culture. Nowhere else is Christmas celebrated like in my little island. Navidad is the time of tradition, family, aguinaldos and villancicos (Christmas songs) and parrandas (louder and funer version of Chirstmas caroling), when  friends gather late in the evening (after 10pm) and visit different houses to “surprise” and wake them up with the loud music and singing of the ‘parranderos’ (those taking part in the ‘parranda’). Traditionally these are supposed to be a surprise but most people have ‘arranged’ that they will be visited; because the custom is that when you’ve been ‘woken up’ you have to join in the parranda so it grows during the evening as more people join in! The fun can last all night, finishing at dawn!

Christmas celebrations in Puerto Rico begin very early in December and do not stop on December 25th. The celebrations can continue into the middle of January if you consider the ”octavitas”. The big Christmas celebrations are; December 24 – Nochebuena; December 25 – Navidad; December 31 – Despedida de Año; and the biggest and most important of all for the children, of course, el Día de Reyes (Three Kings Day) on January 6th.

Throughout all of these celebrations there is one thing in common besides the spirit of celebration and that is FOOD.  Continue reading “Healthy eating while on Puerto Rico (can I make it?)”

Awkward progress pictures (1st Month)

So I finally took some progress pictures. I know it’s only been a little over a month and that it may not look like a lot but I really do feel like my body has changed a bit. Definitely feel like my belly has gone down and it makes me feel a little bit more confident, even though it’s still embarrassing to show these.

I put together two slide shows below with some front, side and back pictures side by side for comparison.  Hopefully I’ll get better at these as I move forward.

Let me know what you think afterwards.

Continue reading “Awkward progress pictures (1st Month)”