Saturday, March 24, 2018

253 - Another small step closer to my target

253.4 lbs (114.9 kg)
It's taken several days to get there, and there was a blip in the numbers along the way (although there weren't any significant deviations from the low carb plan) but I finally broke past the 254-pound barrier. I had climbed to the 'M' on Mount Sentinel too during the week, but that didn't seem to register on the scales much.

One important bit of news: I did go to pick up my motorcycle from Belgrade on Thursday (a long three-hour ride in the cold). Now, I'm able to travel more independently and explore places further from my home. With the rapid approach of better weather, there will be many more opportunities to get outdoors and do fun, dynamic things.

Saturday, March 17, 2018

254 - The job continues

Bouncing from 405 to 243 to 288 and to 254 lbs
Sometimes, a picture really is worth 1,000 words. Here, we can see when I started this adventure - way back in June 2015 - at 405 lbs. Throughout 2016 I lost an average of ten pounds a month. I moved house at the beginning of 2017 and regained about 45 lbs. Since moving again, I've managed to lose 34 of those pounds again. This morning I was at 254.4 lbs (115.4 kg)

Even without constantly checking on the weighing scales, I can tell I'm losing weight and inches because the new pants (trousers) that I had to buy before Christmas (because my old one no longer fitted) are now almost comically too big for me. The new belt I had to buy, which had 5 holes, is also being secured ... not in the fifth hole, or the fourth, or the third, but now comfortably in the second.

I'm once again able to wear clothing that I haven't worn in many months (in some cases, many years!) When I do go clothes shopping again someday, I'll be shopping in the "normal" fashionable stores, not in the "big and tall" fat people's stores.

Even my co-workers at my new workplace - where I've only been working for seven weeks - have noticed that I look slimmer.

I still have some objectives to work on and some intermediate goals to reach:

  • reaching 243 lbs [where I was when I last left Missoula, 15 months ago], 
  • being under 100 kilograms (220.4 lbs), 
  • under 200 pounds, 
  • then my big goal - reaching 178 pounds)

Friday, March 16, 2018

258 - A little bounce and a few winter hikes

After briefly bouncing up to 261 lbs, I managed to get myself back down to 258.0 lbs (117 kg) this morning. I'd had a bad day emotionally (unusual for me) on Tuesday and had resorted to some unwelcome comfort eating. By Wednesday, I was feeling better again and back on the wagon.

On Mount Sentinal in Missoula, at the foot of the 'M'
Spurred on by one of my customers at work who had asked me if I had climbed to the 'M' on Mount Sentinel in the previous week (because I'd told him I would - but I hadn't), I had to climb it on Wednesday morning. The conditions were perfect. It was cool enough that I didn't overheat and yet warm enough for the few patches of remaining ice to be relatively small. If it had been any warmer, the mud would have made for slow going. There were few other people out on the trail.

The journey up and back down again was a great time to clear my head and think about some of the things that have been bothering me lately. One conclusion I came to: it's time to "let go" of certain things, whether they are old possessions that I no longer need or previous relationships that I am clinging on to. I had a vision, this evening, of having my hands full, and someone giving me more to hold on to. I couldn't take the new things without first putting down some of the old ones because my hands could only carry a finite amount.

At frozen Lake Como, about 10 miles south of Hamilton, MT
Today, I went down to Hamilton to visit a very talented and creative friend there and see her tiny house and studio. While there, I also visited Lake Como and walked around the shores of the reservoir and on the "beach". It really was quite spectacular and will be well worth another visit when the water isn't frozen.

Saturday, March 10, 2018

255 - Leading a full and busy life

255.4 lbs (115.9 kg)
After a few more days of careful eating and a pleasant (if very muddy) hike in the Blue Mountain Recreation Area, I was thrilled to discover that I am down to 255.4 lbs as of yesterday morning. When I'm not working, I try to fill my day with fulfilling activities and I try to plan some fun physical activities for my two days off each week. After snowshoeing in Lost Creek state park and the Garnet ghost town recently, it will so be warm enough to get my bike out and start cycling again. Various mountains in Missoula's five valleys are calling out to be climbed, and the outdoor camping season will be here very soon. On top of that, I do need to get going on my quest to find a T'ai Chi instructor. It's all "go"!

Wednesday, March 07, 2018

257 - Fantastic weekend at Garnet ghost town

257.0 lbs (116.6 kg)
One of the things I like about my current job is that I get two consecutive days off that are not at (but close to) the traditional "weekend". Mine are Thursdays and Fridays, which means that for two and a half days (I usually start work at 16:00 [4.00 pm] on the days that I do work) to go and do something fun. Last weekend I went with my roommate to the abandoned gold mining ghost town of Garnet, about 20 miles NW of Drummond, Montana. We had three options for getting there: a long but level 10-mile hike, a scenic and winding but slightly uphill 5-mile hike, or a steep 3-mile trek. In the summer you can drive right up to the old town but in winter the roads are not snowplowed, although they are groomed for snowmobiles. So we had the choice to rent snowmobiles (too expensive and not physically challenging) or cross-country skiing (didn't have the skis) or snowshoeing. Since we had equipment for the latter but not the former, we snowshoed in on the 3 miles long road.

Perfect conditions for snowshoeing
Holy cow! That was a steep road. It took us five hours to get there! When we finally arrived there was such a tremendous sense of achievement. We had rented one of two rustic cabins there from the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for $30 a night (with a nearby outhouse, fresh water spigot in town, propane stove and cut firewood in the cabin - http://www.garnetghosttown.net/cabin-rentals.php). True to the spirit of the ghost town, there were no other humans there on either night.

It snowed steadily or heavily part of the time and was crisp and cold and cloudless the rest of the time. Snowshoeing around the old town at midnight with only the light from the stars and from headlamps was FANTASTIC. At the end of the adventure, we snowshoed out, downhill back to the car, and it took only two hours!