So. Getting back into the work swing of things. By and large it’s a good thing. Hell, after almost 7 months of being laid off, it is DEFINITELY a good thing. For the most part, it has helped with the weight loss, too. I’m not at home all day, within arm’s reach of the kitchen, so I have cut down the grazing. Likewise, I bring my lunch so I’ve got a finite amount of food to eat, further limiting the possibility of stuffing some chili-coated, deep-fried fat down my throat. Finally, being on a regular schedule has allowed me a little more consistency in getting to the gym. I haven’t been perfect, and trying to accommodate the needs of Dear and Patient GF does not allow me to go to the gym every single evening (which I would do if I could). Still, these changes, plus the more consistent times at the gym, plus the regular dog walks have helped kickstart the weight loss again. Three things that kind of hurt me from last week leading into this week:

1. Dinner at a Chinese Buffet. DAPGF and I are both suckers for Asian food, and given that we’re still on a pretty tight budget, the buffet is a decent alternative. Downside, unlimited baaaaad food. Sigh.

2. Dinner at Souplantation. Of course it’s healthy…it’s salad!!!! Buffet bad, moderation difficult.

3. Lunch out with new coworkers. There’s not a lot of food options near my new office, but there is a little surfer-Mexi joint about a mile away from the office (and about a mile from the beach…ya gotta love San Diego). Carne Asada quesadilla. Yummy. Evil. Sigh.

The latter part of the week was difficult to track, consumption-wise, and the weekend in particular was not conducive to logging the specifications(eating out and then going shopping...not a chance to log stuff in whilst fresh in the mind and gut). Given that, here's a summary of what happened to me (hey, clever tie in!) from my last post until now. When last we left our hero, he had survived a weigh in that rang the scales at 278.4, but we were anticipating ugliness at the next weigh in. Sure enough it happened.

12/14/06 - 280.0 lbs and 35.4% body fat. Meh.

12/15/06 - 280.6 lbs and 35.1% body fat. Considering what could have been, I'll take it.

12/16/06 - 278.4 lbs and 35.7% body fat. I ate very sparingly during the previous day (no cheating at all) and we had the Christmas party at my boss's house (holy carp what a house - 5000 SF, on a golf course with ocean views, and looking like one of those luxo homes you see being redone on HGTV and such), but the food was super healthy. A mix of cheeses was probably the most evil stuff (but OMG was it good), sushi, seared ahi tuna, lean carne asada, veggies, and so on. I also made it to the gym before weigh in, so I'm sure that had a little to do with it.

12/17/06 - 279.4 lbs and 35.8% body fat. Chinese buffet for dinner and no gym before weigh in. 'Nuff said.

12/18/06 - I weighed myself unofficially (I didn't write it down out of shame), but it was something on the order of 281.2 lbs. Gotta get my shame in somewhere. I didn't have time to weigh myself on 12/19, due to running late in the morning. Meh.

12/20/06 - 279.4 lbs and 36.5% body fat. Well, I erased those gains, thank God. Combination of being good during the day and not having much for dinner. I had plans to crank out some serious poker before finishing my Christmas shopping, so eating was a secondary consideration. I'll take it. Besides, I won all three poker tournaments that I entered! Woo hoo!!
Let's see if I can keep the downward momentum going! I'm sure it will be difficult, but I'm gonna try. Good luck to all of you, too, and have a happy holiday season!