Reality check: Original plan not working

The idea came from a positive, well-intentioned place. I’ve always been the type of person who acts on impulse, who really hates to have to monitor anything too closely — my checkbook, the calories I’m consuming, whether I’m due for an oil change ... you know, all the important things that require monitoring?
So, after a year last year of writing down everything I ate and analyzing it, I was looking for a simpler way to live that would promote a healthy heart, a healthy weight and support my running habit.
I had been running since the beginning of February, and really just concentrating on that and not worrying about how I ate. I started to think the way I have advised NUMEROUS readers not to: “Well, if I’m exercising this rigorously, then I needn’t worry about having two hamburgers instead of just one.”
I re-learned a couple of months in that is just foolish. I had to remind myself that a half-hour run burns a little more than 400 calories. A second burger? Wipes out the deficit. So as I’m snacking away in addition, even on healthy foods likes nuts and fruits, the weight started to come back on.
That’s when “My Just Do It Summer” was born. I still didn’t want to have to go back to writing down every calorie. I mean, it sucks to live that way! It really does! Right? So I decided to give the all-natural food eating a try.
Pretty much everyone I know who invests in the organic, all-natural lifestyle looks healthy and amazing. So I figured that the food would be better fuel for my running and make me feel better. And when you’re eating whole grains, doesn’t every commercial also let you know that you’ll lose weight?
Didn’t work. And so like almost every good theory that has been tested, adjustments have had to be made.
I’ve laid out some of my results so far, and at the end, I’ve included a few changes that I’ve already incorporated and results I’ve seen from that. Hopefully, the new path — albeit an annoying one — will have better end results.

WEIGHT
Many people think of a natural food diet as consisting of whole grains, proteins, fruits and veggies and other healthy stuff. And it does! It also allows for full-fat cheeses, butter, olive oil and fatty meats, among other things, and it doesn’t account at all for portion sizes.
What I was eating always looked so healthy. Before I didn’t usually eat breakfast, but I was frequently having a couple of slices of whole grain toast with strawberry jam and maybe some butter. Right there, that was 360 calories. You have a couple of eggs with that? It’s 480.
An 80/20 burger on a whole grain bun with cheddar cheese and sweet potato fries? 650 calories.
Nuts for a snack in the afternoon? 250 calories.
That’s up to 1,380 calories all before dinner.
Long story short, I wasn’t losing weight. I wasn’t gaining much, but even a little bit is a concern when you’ve worked so hard to lose it.

RUNNING
A number of variables contributed to the fact that running while eating “natural” hasn’t been any easier than when I didn’t worry as much about sugar, white flour and preservatives (etc.).
For one, as I mentioned above, I was putting on weight rather than taking it off. I have mentioned numerous times that running isn’t about fatness, it’s about conditioning. And that’s very much true. Unless you are significantly overweight or have injuries, pretty much anyone can run. You just have to build stamina.
But running is so much easier when you’re slimmer. There’s less impact on the knees and hips and your legs don’t fatigue so easily. So the added energy I may have had from my healthier diet was offset by the weight.
Plus (and I hadn’t considered this variable), the weather has been problematic. I’m heat-sensitive, anyway, so with an early humid summer setting in, I’m finding it increasingly difficult and rare to have “a good run,” meaning one where you feel like you could keep going and going. In fact, I’ve decreased mileage, and I haven’t been going more than three times a week.
It’s also possible that the kinds of calories you consume — whether quality or empty — don’t have an impact on energy when it comes to running. Natural foods may well be making my body happier — meaning organ function, cholesterol, etc. — but it’s possible a person doesn’t consciously feel the affects of that in regard to exercise and everyday activity.
Like I said, this diet was an experiment to see if those side effects would occur. I didn’t say I believed they would or would not. And all I’m saying now is that I haven’t noticed a change.

FOOD CHOICES
What I was most surprised by was the array of food choices. I worried there wouldn’t be enough to choose from and that label-reading would be a huge drag.
But natural foods are everywhere. There are plenty of bread choices in every story — even whole grain hot-dog buns! Easy to prepare canned veggies often work. You can find soups, salads, sandwiches, meats, cheeses, pastas, grains — pretty much anything you’re craving, except for many snacky items, can be found in a natural, non-preservative form.
So I have no complaints about variety.

WHERE CHANGES NEEDED AND HAVE BEEN MADE
Given the weight increase, I needed to incorporate calorie-restriction back into the program. I had to start monitoring portions and choosing not only natural foods, but lean ones.
So even though an 80-20 burger is allowed, I go for the 93/7. Even though French toast can be on the menu, I use berries instead of syrup and only take one piece.
I’ve signed back onto myfitnesspal.com, and since June 1st I’ve been keeping track of everything once again. I’m still opting for natural foods whenever possible, because I do think that less processed foods are better for the body, even if I can’t feel the effects.
I’ve also cut out beverages that are highly caloric, such as fruit juices. They’re obviously very good for a person, but it’s excess calories I don’t need.
I’ve also brought back diet pop. I know that’s a no-no with a natural diet, but when counting calories, it feels like a “treat” (which is so sad.) My whole family actually loves to go get “fountain pops” from Kwik Trip. That’s our idea of a fun morning errand. Haha.

RESULTS FROM THE CHANGES SO FAR
Weight loss. In 20 days, I’ve already dropped a few pounds. I’ve noticed that it already feels better on the legs when running.
But I also noticed, due to the smaller number of calories being consumed, that I’m really lacking energy some days. It’s hard to run without those energy stores. So I’ve been trying hard to strike a balance, but it seems like one helpful diet element provides a negative in some other way. I’m struggling, to be honest, to decide what’s more important and what adjustments to make.

WHAT NOW?
So I’m continuing with the new plan to make good food choices but also to keep track of the calories. It’s just how it has to be, even though I wish it wasn’t.
I’m reminded of what my personal trainer told me the first couple of weeks we worked together in January 2011. I was shocked when she said that even she will always have to write down what she eats because being thin and healthy doesn’t come easily or naturally to her either.
I need to remember that.
I’m also going to keep opting for good, quality foods whenever possible. And I’m going to keep posting recipes for those foods at justdoitsummer.blogspot.com.
Hopefully I’ll have better results with this new approach. I’ll be sure and tell you all about it.

Mea culpa to my runner friends

I should start this post with an apology to my runner pals who, throughout 2011, offered to train with me for a race. Any race. Even just a 5K or something. And I wrote a blog entry that was all, "I don't want to run, so back off."

Part of it was laziness. It's hard to run. I've never enjoyed it. And part of it was that people who run tend to get fairly obsessed with it. Every status update on Facebook is "Ran seven miles today (insert pat on the back here)." And I'm thinking, "Is there nothing else you have to update us on? I swear, I will hide you in my news feed!" (And wouldn't that just be tragic for them.)

But then I got to thinking, these people are obsessed for a reason. Clearly, there's something more enjoyable about this form of exercise than many other forms. Because I tell ya, nothing makes me want to update my status with the number of strides I did on the elliptical that morning. Mostly I just want to forget it ever happened and move on with my day.

So, with an apology to those who I brutally rebuffed in the past, I think I'm going to give it a whirl. I'd like to push it the next couple of months to take off the last chunk of poundage I need to lose so that by spring/early summer I'll be ready to do some sort of couch to 5K program.

No marathons, folks. No half marathons. I'm not in this to go crazy and push my body to its physical limits. There's absolutely nothing in that that sounds even mildly appealing. I just want to see what being a runner is all about and see if it would make working out every day more fun.

I'm not starting now. As much as I love the Y, and I certainly do, I can't imagine running laps around the track. It's way too reminiscent of sixth grade gym class, except without the cute boy butts to watch as I'm circling the track for the umpteenth time. (Relax. I was in sixth grade at the time, so it was OK back then to enjoy looking at sixth-grade booties.)

Anyway, it's something to work toward. We'll see how it goes. If I start updating my status every day with how many miles ... ok, yards ... I ran that day, though, feel free to hide me. That's just the worst.

The "Fight to be Fit" results are in!

The verdict is in, folks! I'm declaring this fight a victory, despite the old Iron Man scale delivering one last kidney punch with a metabolic age reading that made me want to throw it through the window. (But then, it wouldn't be the Iron Man if it didn't elicit cuss words and seething rage.)

Without further ado (you have waited a whole year for this, after all), here are my year-end physique numbers ...

Total pounds lost: 74

Total inches lost (this was my favorite!): 48.25 inches!!!

Visceral Fat Reading: 8 (1-14 is the healthy range, so this was excellent news in terms of cardiovascular health, diabetes and the risk of certain cancers)

Metabolic age: 50 ...

As you may recall, one year ago my metabolic age was 50. Five months after that, it had gone down to 42. And now, 74 pounds lighter, it says I'm 50 again. Gah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I hate you, Iron Man!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyway, there are my stats, folks.

I'm pretty darn pleased, going into the New Year, with this new lease on life. And I fully plan to keep it going and lose even more. The post below outlines my gratitude for those folks who played a huge part in my success this year, and it also lays out my somewhat humorous plans for the future. : ) Happy New Year!

Yesterday, TODAY! and the next chapter

New Year's is a time of reflection. Despite all the goal-setting going on for the future, it's only natural to look back at the previous year and assess.

I lived out 2011 quite publicly, and as many of you will recall, it had its share of ups and downs as I battled weight loss in my "fight to be fit" for Free Press readers.

Just to recap: The first half of the year, I lost 50 pounds with the help of a personal trainer. Then I took the entire summer off, which basically meant I hit the junk food, stayed away from the gym and kept myself out of the public eye for a while. With my retreat into Sugar Town came a gain of 12 pounds back. (Can you imagine realizing eight months into your public weight-loss battle that you are only down 38 pounds? Devastating.)

At the end of September, I came to my senses. I remembered all of the things my trainer Jackie Vroman taught me, and I got to work, vowing that this time the words "lifestyle change" would stick.

Well, it's the last week of December now, three months after my reawakening, and I'm happy to report that this time I feel like I've won the fight.

In 2011, I lost 74 pounds and 48.25 total inches from my body. And, folks, they're staying off.

The journey

As I look back on this year, two major players stand out in my fitness journey: the Y, the facility where I lost the weight, and Jackie, whom I think of every single time I put on a cute outfit that I could never fit into before now.

I first asked John Kind, the CEO of the Y, to lunch in early December. I told him how grateful I was to the Y and his staff for helping me whenever I needed it this year and for answering all of my questions. I told him how much Jackie (a former trainer for the Y) had been a part of my success.

And I asked him what he thought it was about the Y that seemed to result in so many success stories. As you walk the halls, the stories of members are even framed on the walls.

"It's not uncommon to get an email every couple of weeks (that says) the Y changed my life," he said. "I think it's because you're not doing it alone."

The Y fosters a sense of community, he said. Families come together. Sitting areas are often full of people pre- and post-workout hanging out to socialize. Classes, many of them free, encourage a group fitness mentality, which makes people feel accountable.

All of this hit home for me, but he could have been speaking about me directly when he said this: Most people who come to the Y are "Health Seekers." They're not athletes. They're regular people who want to try and live a healthier life. At first, they're intimidated to work out in the Life Center, thinking only people in shape will be there, judging those who aren't. But then they become acquainted with the Y and realize that people of all fitness levels fit in.

I couldn't have summed up any better the reasons I found my success at the Y this year. For numerous reasons, memberships to gyms in the past didn't work out. The difference now is that I WANT to go to the Y, and I will continue wanting to go there because the experience is about much more than exercise.

"You've got to be inspired," John said.

Most cathartic of all was sitting down for coffee with Jackie before she left for a volunteer trip to an orphanage in Romania over Christmas. I was able to give her a big hug and remind her again how much she changed my life. And I was able to hear the words that mean more coming from her -- the person who stood next to me when I stepped on that scale a year ago, when we learned my starting weight -- than anyone else: "You look amazing."

The next chapter

So what's next? Staying the course is No. 1 on the agenda. I'm in a place now where I'm happy with how I feel, how I look, how my clothes fit, and my physical capabilities at the gym. So No. 1 with a bullet is keeping it that way.

Do I have more to lose? Yep. There are always those last begrudging pounds. But I'm not too worried about that. The last ones take the longest, so I'm not setting goals with deadlines. I'll just keep on keeping on with my new lifestyle, and eventually it'll come off.

But I don't feel like this is enough. Last year at exactly this time, this is what I wrote to all of you:

I turned 30 three weeks ago. Dear God, did I ever turn 30. ... Didn't take it well. I remember a time not so long ago when the idea of growing old was so far into the future that it wasn't even worth thinking about. I don't feel that way anymore, and it's making me seriously examine where I'm at in life, sort of letting it sink in that every day is precious and I'd better start making good use of my remaining youth.

Well folks, two weeks ago, I turned 31. Feels a lot like 30, so I'm not taking it too badly this year. But the rest of that statement is still true. Still feeling like my youth is precious, and that it's time to grasp it and keep tackling new challenges.

I can honestly say now that my first challenge is successfully tackled: I battled my weight, and I won.
So this got me thinking about what other challenges I could take on. When I return from vacation Tuesday I'll be the reporter in charge of education, which is new for me. And I started thinking, "In honor of my new beat, and in honor of having learned something new last year -- how to live healthy -- how about I make it my life's plan to learn something new every year?"

Sounds good to me, and it sounds like something that could equate to pretty funny blog entries, just like my "fight to be fit" last year.

So here it is, folks: In 2012 ... I'm going to learn ... to dance. A girl with no rhythm will soon be queen of da clubs.
At 31, I'm about a decade too old for Red Rocks at 1 a.m. (which also happens to be three hours past my bed time). But perhaps there are dance classes I can take at civilized hours in Mankato and then take my new moves to the Twin Cities club scene. Ow!

Ballroom sounds most appealing. A nice classy waltz, and when I'm feeling feisty, salsa, baby. But the tiger in me wants to go a little crazier. ... So I'm considering hip-hop, which is the absolute furthest from my comfort zone.
Do you have any idea how my attempt at the moonwalk would end? I do: a broken leg and a really funny column. (Are people still moonwalking?) I'll keep you posted.

Amanda's Health Tips
People on their own quests for fitness always ask me the same things: What are your secrets? How did you do it? Do you have any tips?

While I still very much maintain that weight-loss is a total mental game -- that we all have the information; it's just a matter of applying it -- I do have several tips that I employ almost every day that have been life changing for me.
Here they are:

1. Start an account at myfitnesspal.com. It's a free website where you log your fitness goals, as well as daily exercise and calories. The site keeps track of how much you should be eating and helps you realize how much you actually are eating. I log in several times per day, and I even have the app on my Smart phone.

2. Log in to Myfitnesspal BEFORE you go to the gym with the number of minutes you plan to exercise. You'd be amazed the effect of knowing you pledged to do 60 minutes on the elliptical. When you want to quit at the 45-minute mark, your recorded goal will be enough of a push to keep you on 15 minutes longer.

3. Whatever time of day you feel the most "snacky," distract yourself with something else. I'm a night eater, so every night that I'm home and watching TV, I put my pajamas on and watch the TV in my bedroom. Putting myself into the jammies is a mind trick that gets me thinking about bed time instead of snack time. By going upstairs, it takes me away from the kitchen.

4. Count calories or points. There are a million diets out there from low-carb to low-fat. But in the end, it's about calories in and calories out. If you do not have a calorie deficit, you will not lose weight. Find out how many calories you need to be eating to maintain your current weight -- based on your height, weight and activity level -- and then make sure, at the end of each day, you have consumed less than that amount. (Google BMR calculator.)

5. This tip isn't for everyone, but for me personally, I do not enter exercise into the equation of how many calories I can consume each day. I often hear people say, "I exercised today, so I can eat more than I normally would," or, "I exercised, so my metabolism is faster, and I can eat more." The average person burns 300 calories at the gym, and that amount can be made up in one bag of chips.

6. Leave it all at the gym. If you're leisurely strolling on the treadmill and reading the paper, you're not getting a good burn. Your heart rate needs to be elevated, you should be sweating and you should feel at least a little uncomfortable. I like to push myself the hardest toward the end of my workout when my muscles are warmed up. It helps me to have a song that I play at the end of every workout: No Doubt's "Sunday Morning." It's sort of become a little personal mantra.

Happy New Year, everyone! Thanks so much for reading this year!

The "Fight to be Fit" countdown is on

The countdown is on, folks. Today, the morning of Dec. 16, I have lost 68 pounds. But I have 11 days left before I have to report my final number to the copy desk here at The Free Press, so that my year-end story for my "Fight to be Fit" can run in the Jan. 2 paper. (You'll have to look for it. The Health & Fitness page runs inside one of the two sections; not on the cover.) The C section works in advance, which is why I can't wait until New Year's Day to report my final weight-loss number.

However! You, folks -- my most dedicated and vocal supporters of my "Fight," my BLOG READERS!!! -- you will get the most up-to-date numbers. You'll get the actual Jan. 1 report, including the weight-loss total, total percentage of fat loss, loss of inches, metabolic age and more. It will all be so very exciting, I'm sure, and you can read all about it right here on New Year's Day.

I'll also post the pictures that will run in the newspaper, including before and after shots, and a funny picture of me in my old "fat pants."

So, for the newspaper, I have 11 days left to kick some butt at the gym and hopefully lose another four or five pounds, which would bring me to a respectable 72 or 73-pound loss to report. Here on the blog, I've still got a whopping 16 days to get 'er done. So who knows, maybe I'll be able to claim a 75-pound loss to you by New Year's Day.

I better get busy! Thanks for reading!

Killer Beth: the perfect after-Thanksgiving Step instructor

It was fight or flight time at approximately 8:35 a.m. today when I walked into the aerobics studio at the Y. I had seen her in the life center during the past year, killing it on the elliptical like someone cross-country skiing away from a polar bear. But I hadn't seen her in this setting for five years.

Killer Beth.

Years ago, the first Step aerobics class I ever took at the Y was at 5:30 p.m., and it was so hard, I had to leave halfway through. I asked someone the next day if Step classes are always so vigorous, and the woman asked me which class I had attended. When I told her the time, she said, "Oh no, honey. That's Killer Beth. You have to work up to her."

Never were truer words spoken. During the past week, I have been incorporating Step classes back into my routine, proud of myself for jumping right in with the risers and being able to finish the morning classes without water breaks. But I was not ready for Beth. Many of us weren't. A few people left. We were all taking water breaks. It's amazing how different that class can be with each instructor, considering it's the same equipment and the same basic movements. But Beth uses a faster tempo CD, so every movement is a half step faster. She's a fan of double and triple movements, which ups the ante again. And when class begins, it's work time. No messing around getting warmed up with easy movements at first. She's all in. All bidness. And yet, from start to finish, she has the sunniest demeanor, kindest voice, never out of breath.

The woman is like a beautiful machine.

And I was like a dumptruck stuck in neutral, grinding gears to try and lunge forward ... then backward ... then forward.

It's as if she knew what we all had eaten yesterday. She saw the words "pumpkin cheesecake" written on my forehead, and she responded accordingly with lunges. So many lunges.

It was agony, and it was exactly what I needed. So at the end of class, I asked Beth if she still teaches regularly. She does, at 5:40 p.m. on Thursdays. So I told her, "Well, I better start coming because that about killed me."

And fittingly, as I gingerly lowered myself into my car, glasses fogging up from my hot, red face, the song "You Must Be Out of Your Mind" was playing on the radio as I turned on the car.

Yep.

My two-part Thanksgiving plan: the Y and FOOD

Last week I went to South Central College to talk to a weight-loss support group, which was really fun. It's always cathartic to commiserate with folks going through the same junk you are. (And incidentally, I've lost 61 pounds at this point, and they gave me a round of applause, which absolutely warmed my heart.) But at the end of the session, a woman asked me how I planned to handle Thanksgiving. Until that moment, I hadn't given it much thought, and so like I do with everything else in life, I just said what came to mind: "I plan to eat a lot," I think I said.

Of course, I qualified the statement by saying, "There are times when it's OK to indulge. The trick for me is just to make sure that I get right back on track the next day."

From her expression, I don't think it was what she wanted to hear. And I can understand why. For many of us -- including me in the past -- a bad day tends to lead to several more, and before you know it, you're back to your old bargaining practices: I'll do better starting Sunday ... I'll just eat what I want the rest of this month, since there's only a few days left, and I'll start fresh on the 1st ... etc. So a day like Thanksgiving can trigger those behaviors, especially when you tend to have copious leftovers for days.

So all of this led to me carving out a plan for this week. The two-fold plan involves the Reebok Step classes at the Y, and food consumption on Thanksgiving. Part one was Step, which began today ...

I've been doing an hour on the elliptical in the life center with relative ease lately. It sucks that your body gets used to certain kinds of exercise, especially exercise that you actually enjoy (somewhat). And I knew that was what was happening, because I'd find myself looking down at the clock on the elliptical and seeing that 30 minutes had gone by without me wanting to kill myself. It's important that you experience a certain level of discomfort while working out, otherwise you're not getting a very good burn.

That led me back to Step class this morning to up the ante on my workouts, give my metabolism a boost, and burn more and lose a bit more before Thanksgiving -- sort of a preemptive calorie deficit before Turkey Day. ... I walked in, and I was so excited to see Lynette leading the class. Years ago, and several pants sizes ago, she was the one who whipped my butt into shape. She has a way of making me love her for the first 20 minutes and not-love-her-so-much during the last 20, which to me, is exactly what a good workout experience should be like.

By the end of the 40 minutes today, I was red in the face, sweating profusely, and rubbing my quads for comfort. I did that drunken sort of walk to the car, sort of meandering and disoriented. "Do I drive a blue car? I think it's blue. Maybe I'll just wander this way and I'll run into it." Now THAT'S a good workout.

I plan to get three good workouts like that in before Turkey Day on Thursday, when the second part of my plan will come into play. And here it is, folks: I plan to eat a lot. ... I know, I know. It doesn't sound healthy. But folks, sometimes food DOES equal enjoyment. Some events ARE planned around food. We associate certain memories from our past with grandma's Christmas Eve casserole and mom's famous pumpkin cheesecake. I would hate to look back on Thanksgiving with my family and remember that I weighed the ounces of turkey before I put it on my plate, and I passed on the gravy, and I asked mom to go easy on the butter in the mashed potatoes, and I skipped dessert. For some of you, that might be what you need to make your fitness goals work, and that's totally fine. But for me, I plan to enjoy myself with food on Thanksgiving.

And then the very next morning, I'll be in the upstairs studio in the Y getting my butt kicked.

Back in the game

I kept a folded-up piece of paper in a hidden compartment of my makeup bag while I was working with my trainer this year. She thought it would be a good incentive for me to write down my weight-loss goals, tied to completion dates, with rewards for reaching each milestone.

So I had outlined exactly where I wanted to be by the first of each month, and my prizes were things like a new mp3 player for the gym and a new pair of jeans because, as I wrote, “my old ones won’t fit anymore by the time July 1 rolls around!”

I found that list the other day. (I had forgotten all about it because I had pretty much taken the entire summer off from dieting and exercise.) I looked all the way to the bottom, at where I was supposed to be by now, the end of October.

“Goal weight! Now, the hard part: Maintenance,” I had written in mid-January, all bright-eyed and determined.

I couldn’t help but have a brief self-pity moment when I read that. Because, as many of you know, I am not at my goal weight.

But, as I said, the moment was brief. At the start of October, I had one of those bright-eyed and determined moments again. At the time, I had gained back 12 pounds of the 50 I had lost, and I decided it was time to do something about it.

So all this month, that’s what I did. I got my food in order. I got my exercise in order. I got my attitude in order. And I took off the 12 I had gained plus five more.

In total, I’m down 55 with two months to go before the end of the year.

On the Health & Fitness page on Jan. 2, 2012, I plan to run an update on my progress, as well as my “before and after” pictures. I plan to include Monty Meyer in that story as well. The story we ran on his incredible weight loss on the cover of the January 2011 Mankato Magazine was the inspiration for my “fight to be fit,” so it seems fitting to update his story right along with mine.

With that deadline looming, I truly feel like I have something to prove to all of you, which has been the real blessing about being so public about such a private issue: accountability. Another huge blessing has been the reader response. Thank you all for your supportive letters and emails, especially those who have told me that my column inspired you to lose weight. I LOVE that.

Thanks also to those who haven’t been so nice. A woman named “Ang,” short for Angela, wrote to the editor about how she’s had enough of “the fat lady with the big head to match.” I laughed when I told my coworkers about this, and several of them said something like, “Oh, I’m sorry, that’s really mean.” But it doesn’t embarrass me to get the occasional email like that. Seems to me the people who are capable of being so unkind are the ones who have something to be ashamed of. (I hate to call her out publicly, folks, but surely when someone sends an email to a newspaper they don’t expect it to be private.)

And, anyway, when Ang writes that reading my column makes her “lose her appetite,” it just makes me want to keep doing it. The best way to get me to excel at something is to tell me I can’t or shouldn’t do it.

So thanks, Ang. I hope you’re reading this after breakfast. I’d hate to spoil the most important meal of the day for you.

And just so you know, my head is a perfectly average size. It’s my tush that needs the work.

This 'big loser' has backslid

Wednesday's breakfast: skipped. Lunch: turkey and bacon club (with mayo) and steak fries (with lots of ketchup). Dinner: Kwik Trip corndog and a bag of candy orange slices. Dessert: Fruit and yogurt and granola thing, with two glasses of red wine.

Yeah, folks, I've backslid. Many of you know exactly what I'm talking about. It's when the "keeping it off is the hardest part" statement starts ringing in your ears. It's when you look back at a couple of months before, when you SWORE there was no possible way that junk food for dinner and zero exercise for days could possibly be your lifestyle anymore. I mean, how in the world could you ruin all of your hard work?! There's just no way.

Oh, there's a way. You know it, and I know it. There's always a way that the old lifestyle can come creeping back in, with a tiny whisper of a promise in your brain that it's only temporary. It's just a break. Tomorrow you'll do better. But for today, live it up. Embrace what tastes good and don't worry about having to zip up those jeans tomorrow, which, for some reason, just keep getting tighter and tighter.

Well, today is "tomorrow," I guess. I haven't gained back a ton of the 50 pounds I lost this year. But it's a bit. Enough to make me worry. Enough to make me come clean to all of you, and to declare that my summer of carefree fun with candy and cookies and avoidance of the gym is OVER.

I won't be bombarding you with numerous columns about said subject, as I did for a solid seven months. But once in a while, I'd like to check in to gain back some of that accountability that helped so much a while back. Maybe that will help ensure Wednesday's 2,500-calorie day of sugar, fat and alcohol won't happen again anytime soon.

Thursday's breakfast: honeycrisp apple. Hurray! Off to a good start.

50 pounds will be my public legacy

Besides the word "bravery" -- which women throw at me a lot, shocked I would be so bold as to write about weight loss publicly -- there's one word that meant the most to me during the past seven months: honesty.

I truly believe that the reason so many people have followed my public weight-loss campaign since New Year's Day is because I didn't hide my struggle -- I showcased it. I don't want to read articles written by women who have it all figured out, who say how easy it is to lose weight on such-and-such a program, or who say, "If I can do it, you can do it." That only makes people believe there's some kind of secret to learn, and when they do, they'll be thin in no time.

And so the last thing I wanted to do was pretend that losing weight is something I somehow 'figured out' in a few months time. The truth is, I still struggle with it every day.

This is my final column for a while. (Seven months seemed like long enough to talk about the same thing over and over again.) So, it's natural to want to look back and share what I have learned. That's actually something I get from a lot of women: "Tell me what you're doing." "What am I doing wrong?" I even got, "Let me follow you in the buffet so I know what to eat."

People, you might not like this, but here goes ... I've learned that losing weight is a difficult balancing act. There is no one right way. And the only "secret" I've learned is the same statement nutritionists, dietitians, doctors and skinny trainers everywhere have been shouting to whoever will listen for decades: eat healthy and exercise to lose weight.

I know, I know. It's an awful thing to say to people who have struggled with every yo-yo diet imaginable. But it's the honest-to-God truth. The only way to lose weight is to decrease your calorie consumption, and it also helps create a calorie-deficit to exercise.

Trust me, I know that even though the statement is simple, the practice is not. I set a goal of 77 pounds lost in seven months, and I did not achieve it. I'm leaving you with a 50-pound loss, which is the same as two months ago. I'm not confused by this. I know why I haven't lost anymore. I eat too many calories.

But people don't realize how delicate the calorie balance can be. If my body needs 1,800 calories to break even for the day -- meaning that's the amount I need to maintain my weight, given my activity level -- then it's very easy to go over that amount, especially if you're trying to eat enough to lose weight at a healthy speed.

Let's say I make it to 6 p.m. with a 1,500-calorie total for the day. One big bowl of cereal, one beer, one bad snack can push me over the edge of my "break-even" calorie total, resulting in a small gain. I think there's a stereotype out there that people who are overweight are constantly snacking, when, in reality, they may just be consuming slightly more than what is needed to break even.

Regardless, I didn't make 77. And I'm extremely proud of the fact that I am OK with that. Before this journey, and even in the middle of it, I would have felt terrible, like I'd let myself and all of you down. But now, in a way, I think it's one of the best ways I could have ended my public journey.

This should very much still come across as a struggle, because it always will be. As my former trainer once told me, she's in incredible shape, and she still writes down her calories every single day. She always will have to. And so will I.

In a strange way, I'm glad this journey didn't end with me reaching my goal weight quickly and saying the dreaded words, "If I can do it, so can you." Because, you know what? I would have gained it back and alienated my readers who are struggling with weight loss in the process.

I couldn't think of more wise words to end on than those recently written to me by a reader. I hope those of you who have lost weight and struggled right along with me can take these words in, too.

"You can't force it, or it won't last. The fact that you've maintained a 50-pound loss for months now means that you've learned to balance, and that is a big deal. Keep learning, enjoy your body the way it is now, and when you are ready, push forward. Until then, focus on maintaining what you've accomplished and celebrating that."

Good plan.

Good (and bad) nutrition begins in youth

I was at the bar for a ladies gathering several months ago. And as women tend to do, the conversation got deep rather quickly. Before I knew it, my childhood was being examined.

My three lovely barmates simply had to get to the bottom of why I have yo-yo and crash dieted since adolescence. It always goes back to youth, these things, or at least that’s what Psych 101 has taught me.

As cynical as I am about blaming one’s childhood on problems in adulthood -- problems that an adult mind should have the capability to recognize, understand and work to remedy -- I found myself surprised by the insight these women gained so quickly. They traced the problem back to sixth grade, and I was pretty shocked that I hadn’t looked back to examine that year before.

I knew that age 11 is when I first became conscious of my weight. That’s the first time I beat myself about it. But I hadn’t realized my familial circumstances had a lot to do with the problem, as well as the reason it got worse.

My parents divorced the summer before my sixth-grade year, when we lived on an Air Force base in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. We were poor. In fact, my uncle had to come up and help pay for a U-Haul to get my mom, my sister and me back to Fairmont, where my mom grew up.

When we got settled into income-based housing in Fairmont, my mom started working two jobs. Through my high school years, she worked 60-80 hours a week. So, at 11, it was just me and my sister at home. We had to get our homework done without prodding. We had to keep the house clean. And we had to prepare meals for ourselves.

When you are 11, you don’t think about nutrition when you’re cooking. So that’s when Kraft Macaroni & Cheese, peanut butter sandwiches, chips, sugary granola bars, Little Debbies, ice cream and Fruit Loops became staple meals. When we wanted to snack, whether it was right after dinner or before bed or constantly throughout the night, then we did.

What I was careful to point out to my bar companions was that I in no way blame my mom for not being around. In fact, I feel the opposite way about it. I can’t imagine a more giving woman, to work from sun up to sun down so that my sister and I had what we needed. If that were me, I don’t know if I could do it. And she never complained. Not once did I ever hear her say that her feet hurt from waitressing or that she was tired.

I think about a time once when we went on a spur-of-the-moment trip to Owatonna to outlet shop on her day off. She brought all of her tips with her, and when I found a pair of Nikes I couldn’t live without, she counted out one-dollar bills and quarters to pay for them. I remember how embarrassed I was. I walked outside as she lined the stacks of quarters on the counter, with annoyed customers behind her.

I wish I could go back to that moment sometimes and wrap my arms around her and tell her how grateful I was to have those shoes.

But, I digress. My point is that, while it wasn’t my mom’s fault (if she had her way, she would have been home every night making me eat my peas), I had no one to teach me about nutrition. No one to make me eat my vegetables and limit my snacks. I ate what I wanted when I wanted, and that mentality has stuck with me well into adulthood. Since 11, if I wanted to have ice cream for dinner, I did.

As I said, an adult mind has the capability to recognize and begin remedying these self-destructive patterns. But it’s certainly important to look back and examine their roots.

I can’t promise that I’ll never eat ice cream for dinner again. But I will more frequently force myself to eat my vegetables. Tonight, in fact, in honor of my mom, I’ll eat my peas.

Two major Katotainment announcements

I couldn't have timed this any better: As my public weight-loss battle comes to a close ... A NEW SEASON OF 'PROJECT RUNWAY' BEGINS!

I'm realizing a couple of things right now ... 1. I may just be the last person on Earth who gives a damn about "Project Runway." 2. My readership during my "Project Runway" blogging days was MUCH smaller than my readership of my public weight-loss battle.

However! ... of all the things I've written about, I still get people asking if I'll continue blogging about "Runway." The readership was smaller, but it was mighty. A small few, I'm proud to say, would log onto my blog the first thing on the morning following each episode to see if my thoughts corresponded with theirs. That's what blogging is all about!

Writing about my fight to be fit has been so fun and extremely cathartic. But it could only last so long. It could only be interesting to you for so long, as well. I think we've reached that point. I will, however, continue to check in from time to time with my progress. Maybe every month or so I'll update on how I'm doing. That keeps me accountable, and it will appease any lingering curiosity, hopefully. So it's a win-win!

In the meantime, though, the "Project Runway" blog will make its triumphant return!

So the two official announcements are thus:

1. The final regular "fight to be fit" blog post will take place Monday, Aug. 8, when I return from a week's vacation. My final (public) weight-loss total will be given. I'll lay out my plan for the future and perhaps set a final goal. And I'm sure I'll get all gushy and thank a million people for their support.

2. The "Project Runway" blogging, right here at Katotainment, kicks off July 29, the morning after the premiere of Season 9 of the show.

Be sure to check out this season's contestants and make your predictions before the premeire!

Socially mandated eating is tough to swallow

I remember one day in sixth-grade health class with Mrs. Meschke, circa 1992, we were listing forms of recreation on the chalkboard.

After the typical walking and skateboarding and playing sports answers were taken, somebody raised his hand and said, "Eating." We all laughed. But Mrs. Meschke said, "No, that's very true. In America, eating is very much recreational."

I flashed to the TV dinners my sister and I had the night before in our living rooms, and I didn't quite get it.
Homogenized chicken nuggets in front of the tube didn't seem like a swingin' Thursday night to me.

Of course, years later, license in hand, I understood what she meant. A night's entertainment in Fairmont meant two things: driving around in cars with friends and boys, and, of course, consumption. Consumption of what, I'll leave
mostly to your imagination, but I will tell you that ice cream at the Dairy Freeze and fried foods at various area establishments were included.

As an early teen, it was fun to exist solely on French fries and gummy bears. But when my butt ballooned and it was time to deal with it, I really started to take notice of how important consumption is to social situations. It was almost mandatory, and it still is to this very day.

When a movie let out, for example, and a friend said, "Hey, let's go to Perkins and get something to eat." It
was not an acceptable answer to say, "I'll go with you and have a Diet Coke or something. I'm not hungry." She would get a pained expression on her face and say, "Oh ... well, I'm sure you can find SOMETHING you'll want to eat."

Then at the restaurant, when I ordered my Diet Coke and shut the menu, she said, "Really? Is that all you're
going to have? Well now I feel like a pig. Do you just want to go?"

I was puzzled. Why would what I put in my mouth or not put in my mouth have any bearing on her? What difference did it make if I joined her in a plate of fries and a chocolate malt at 11 at night?

It just mattered. It did. And many similar situations have come up in the 15 years that have followed, proving that if someone asks you to get something to eat with them, it is not an acceptable answer to say, "I'll go with you. But I'm not hungry." Because said person will then look crestfallen and say we can just skip it.

It's so odd that eating has to be a shared experience in a social situation. I feel like a toddler squirming in my chair trying to avoid getting nasty peas shoved in my mouth.

Parties, barbecues, picnics -- any event with a host, really -- it's the same story. If your gracious host sees that you have not partaken in the buffet they have so generously laid out for you, they almost look hurt. "Is there something wrong with the foods that I have so painstakingly prepared for you?" they ask without words. "Are you anorexic? Just rude? Do you think I can't cook? Because I can!"

I'm exaggerating. But there's a grain of truth there. And it will befuddle me for as long as I live, or at least as
long as I diet. So, friends, hit me up in 50 years or so for that 11 p.m. trip to Perkins. Maybe by then I won't care about calories.

Impulsiveness and dieting don't mix

According to the deadline I've set for the end of my public weight-loss battle -- which is the first week of August, as you may recall -- the clock is practically ticking in the back of my brain at all times.

As I sit down to write this column, it's exactly one month until the finish line (publicly, anyway). Exactly 31 days to go. This is one of five columns left to be written in this space about my journey.

In reality, these numbers are arbitrary. Just a measurement of the passage of time. But it's funny how much pressure one puts on herself to achieve something within a given parameter. I guess it's that basic human need for order.
Regardless, the ticking clock has brought with it reflection, of course. I was thinking about why this whole process is such a battle for me to stay on task. Why it’s often such a battle for all of us.

It's not that we don't have the information. We certainly do. Eat X amount of calories. Do X amount of exercise. Do eat this. Don't eat that. Voila! You'll be fit as a fiddle in no time.

Psha right.

Here's why it's so hard for me:
One afternoon four years ago, I thought, "I wonder if I should be spending rent money on a mortgage?" The next day I had left a bank with a preapproval for an obscene amount of money to buy a house. A month later, I moved into one.
Four weeks after that, I thought, "It would be so fun to have a puppy!" The next morning I was driving to the humane society in Fairmont to pick up my Lab-husky mix, Squishy.

Just a couple of weeks ago, I thought, "I wish I had a new couch." An hour later, I had a leather couch and two La-Z-Boy recliners ordered from Slumberland.

Catch my drift? One of the qualities I enjoy about my personality is also one that gets me into pickles. I'm quite impulsive.

It makes me buy a 12-foot backyard pool that I swim in twice, get tired of maintaining and then sell for half of what I paid for it. It makes me paint my kitchen yellow and then blue and then wonder if I should have stuck with yellow.

And it makes me think, "Oooooh, cotton candy ice cream. I'll cut calories tomorrow." Or, "Who can watch a movie without popcorn? No one would begrudge me that."

It's fun to live my life with instant gratification as the daily goal. It's a blast to have fun ideas pop into my mind and then act on them without much concern about recourse.

But that kind of mentality is just absolutely brutal to combat when trying to lose weight. Absolutely everything about dieting goes against my nature. The whole process is about delayed gratification. What I do for months and months will reward me later on. Laaaame.

So, given all of this, I think I'm doing pretty OK. Every day I'm winning these little battles in my mind, fighting against the urge to drink a Summer Shandy on a sunny patio somewhere, or sit on the front porch with a pint of Ben & Jerry's and watch the sun go down.

I will say, though, that sounds like a lot more fun than I've been having.

But, the healthier I am, the longer I'll live, and the more time I'll have to sneak in the occasional splurge on popcorn and cotton candy ice cream. And painting my kitchen yellow. And then blue again.

Pickle on a stick, anyone?

Entertaining is no easy feat when you¹re watching what you eat, and I¹ve failed miserably at doing it the healthy way at previous gatherings.

I¹ve wondered the past few months why cubes of cheese and bowls of chips are the go-to party items. With all the foods on the planet to choose from, that¹s the best we can do for our guests?

The ease of snacking is the main quality party food items must possess. You have to be able to move through the food line quickly, easily and efficiently, and you have to be able to eat said items in various uncomfortable states: leaning against a wall, sitting on the edge of a couch arm, and sitting cross-legged on a patch of carpet. This Fourth of July, on one of the funnest party days of the year, I¹m declaring that it is entirely possible to offer your guests finger foods that are delicious AND nutritious! Believe it.

Here are a few of my favorite ideas.

1. The Toothpick Tray. All foods on toothpicks are hits. Cut lean deli meats in slits, spread on gourmet mustard or fat-free Miracle Whip, roll them up, and stick them with toothpicks. Or how about olives on toothpicks? Or baby dills? Or little shrimps? Go crazy. But think healthy. No cheese!

2. The Veggie Tray. Yeah, I know, every party has a vegetable tray with dip. That¹s because it¹s super easy to pick up those little carrots and dunk them in blue cheese at parties. But get creative with it. Think outside the veggie box. Try adding more exotic vegetables, such as roasted spears of red and yellow peppers, pea pods, fresh mushrooms and asparagus. And ditch the fatty sauces. Put out fat-free Ranch and your guests won¹t know the difference.

3. To appease the sweeter side of your guests¹ palate, cut strawberries in half, put a dollop of fat-free Cool Whip on each half, and top with a single pecan. It¹s a finger food that¹s cute, sweet, has a bit of crunch and only contains about 10 calories.

4. If you¹re going to do chips and dip, make it whole grain chips and salsa. And I love the idea of portioning out one serving size of chips into individual bags so your guests can pick up a bag easily and not overdo it on calories.

For the salsa, instead of store-bought, which can be loaded with sodium, here is one of my favorite recipes for plum salsa. You can also make peach salsa by substituting peaches for the plums and lemon juice for the lime juice.

Plum Salsa
6 medium plums, pitted and diced
1/2 small red onion, finely chopped
1/3 cup finely chopped cilantro
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh mint
1/2 jalapeño pepper, minced Juice of
1/2 lime Salt to taste Sugar (or Splenda) to taste
Basically, you just mix up all the ingredients except the salt and sugar. Add those a bit at a time to taste.

Remember, foods can be fun without the fat. Have a great Fourth of July!

I wish I could spend the next 40 days in a bubble

I'm kind of a mess emotionally right now, and I admit to wanting the whole world to forget about my fit-fight.

Bubble boy had it better than he thought. I was thinking this morning how awesome it would be to be protected from prying eyes (and commentary) for the last leg of my journey. Kind of like on "The Biggest Loser" when they go home for a long chunk and get to finish it out sans public scrutiny. If only, if only ...

I don't regret my decision to lose weight publicly. Without my trainer and this blog, I doubt I would have lost 50 ell-bees. There just have been way too many excuses in the past to not get started. I didn't trust myself.

But I do admit that it's been wearing me down lately, especially since I've pretty much sucked the better part of two months now. It's a constant game of stop and go, and it's done quite a number on my self-esteem.

This morning I laid in bed trying to muster the drive to make it to my 7:50 a.m. appointment (non-work related). Instead, I thought, "With 40 days left of your public weight-loss campaign, you'd better get your priorities in order." So, without any drive or inspiration or motivation whatsoever, I skipped my appointment and went to the gym.

Honestly, I have no idea what fueled my hour-long workout this morning. Maybe just the realization that this journey isn't just my own. So very many people are watching. So it's time to just shut up, and to borrow a very successful marketing campaign slogan, just do it.

So there it is. Feeling blue. Feeling uninspired. But every damn day for the next 40 days until the month 7 mark, I will go to the gym. No excuses.

And because enclosing myself in a plastic bubble isn't an option, take it easy on me, if you would. Let's talk about something else when I see you.

I'm the reason Taylor Call thinks she's fat

Taylor Call is an adorable 6-year-old from Houston. I saw her on “Good Morning America” this morning saying on camera that she thinks her tummy is too big. She hadn’t realized that until one of her pre-kindergarten classmates told her she was fat.

I thought 11 years old was young to have body issues. That’s when I first decided I wasn’t as pretty or as thin as my fellow fifth-grade girls, who were all being asked to dance by boys at Chrissie Hauser’s birthday party and I wasn’t.

Six years old. ... A panel of 6-year-olds were asked by “GMA” if Taylor needed to lose weight. They said she didn’t, albeit prompted in a sympathetic tone by the reporter. But when shown a photo of four other very young girls, they immediately pointed out the one who was slightly larger than the others, and one said: “Yeah, she needs to lose weight.” Another girl described her as being “really chubby wubby.”

I was horrified as I realized my eyes had been drawn to the larger girl, too, and whether I wanted to or not, I was judging her. A 7- or 8-year-old girl.

Weight obsession is an American tail as old as the state of Minnesota, with some historians saying fad diets began about 150 years ago. So none of this is news. But the level to which we’re focusing on it -- myself included -- makes me so sad when I think of girls like Taylor, whose self-image shouldn’t go beyond pretty ribbons around her pigtails.

It made me take a hard look at myself. How I’m perpetuating this.

In this whole weight-loss campaign, the word “health” has been much less of a concern than the word “thin.” Even my blog says at the top: For now this blog has been taken over by Amanda’s fight to be fit. She will be back with entertainment commentary when her tush is smaller.

My supporters are just as guilty. “How many sizes have you gone down?” “You look great; how much more weight do you want to lose?” “Your face looks so much thinner.”

At 45 pounds lost, my visceral fat level was in the healthy range. My risk for cardiovascular problems has practically diminished. I’m exercising almost every day, resulting in greatly increased strength and cardio stamina.

These aren’t things I get excited about. I’m concerned about getting back into my skinny jeans. I fixate on organizing my closet into sections: clothes I can wear, and clothes I still have to lose more weight to get into.

I write about these things. I publish them. People read them. And in a way, I reinforce the bars of the mental prison most women (and men, too) have been in since their teens.

The trouble is, I don’t know how to stop thinking this way. Tens of thousands of public images and messages per week reinforce the idea that I should be a size 4, and it makes me less attractive and less important that I am not. I don’t know how to convince myself this isn’t true.

These thoughts are with me in one form or another dozens of times per day, when I scoop out some of the cereal I pour into my bowl to save calories, when I look at my outfit from the side to see if any unflattering puffy areas emerge, when I keep my eyes on the sidewalk while passing a guy to avoid seeing disapproval on his face.

It’s too late for me. Sounds dramatic, but it’s true. I will never get out of this mental prison of body issues. I will always want to be thinner, rather than healthier.

But I wish the same wasn’t true for Taylor. For feeding into all of the demons above, I feel responsible that at 6 years old, she doesn’t like herself. It’s my fault she thinks she’s fat, just as much as it is yours.

Taylor, you are healthy and beautiful. And I’m sorry we made you think otherwise.

The 77 in 7 Calendar ... 50 days left

50 days left ...
I made a calendar for exactly the next 50 days, which takes me to the first day of August, where I will track my progress until I hit my goal. I put it on the blackboard right by the fridge. Tactical move.

77 in 7 ... let's do this!

Back in the saddle again

Hi, folks! It's been a while. I hope you are all well!

I'm back at it. I had a nice, long break from work and it's good to be back, for more reasons than one. The reason that pertains to this blog in its current state? STRUCTURE. Routine and structure are a dieter's best friend.

I did OK. I'd give myself a B-/C+ for my efforts while on vacation. Wisconsin was tough. There were cupcakes and blueberry coffee cakes and chocolate-strawberry desserts. There was pizza. There was wine. There was cheese (Wisconsin cheese!). There was barbecue. Something about being away from home makes a couple of girls on the road go buck wild.

When I got home last week, I did much better for a couple of days. But then I had a party Saturday celebrating my house's 130th birthday. (More of an excuse to gather and drink, really.) So then, again, there was wine, there was cheese, there were cookies.

The bad things have left the house, except for huge amounts of leftover wine and Summer Shandy. But I usually don't have any trouble staying away from those unless there's a social/group atmosphere.

So, like I said, I'm back at it. 77 pounds, here I come. I'm really, really going to start pushing hard to get there. The goal is the end of July to hit it. Maybe even sooner? We shall see ...

Fitty is back! In full effect! Raise the roof!

Yessssssssssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I was watching “Regis & Kelly” one morning, and Kelly was pointing out how women, when they see they’ve gained weight on the scale, their reaction is exactly the opposite of what one might expect. Logically, you see you’ve gained 2 to 5 pounds, what would you do? Work your butt off to lose the weight, right? Yeah, no.

A woman sees she’s gained 2-5 pounds and it’s an emotional punch to the gut, and her reaction is to say, “Well, I might as well just eat the rest of that fudgey cake in the fridge ... with some ice cream ... and Reese’s Pieces later on ... and then something salty to cut the sweetness.” It’s crazy! But I, like many women, am an emotional eater. So I get trapped in that vicious circle of getting sad or mad and eating.

What does any of this have to do with the “Yessssssssssssssssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!” from above?

Wellll ... as you may recall, I essentially, inadvertently took the entire month of May off by eating bad stuff and then recovering for a couple of days. It resulted in a net gain of 5 pounds for the first big part of the month. But, the past week or more, I’ve really been working hard to get back on track.

And ... THIS MORNING AT THE GYM THE RESULTS WERE: A TOTAL LOSS OF 51 POUNDS!

I lost the 5 I had gained plus one more. I really can’t feel bad about that. Sure, I mean, month 5 was essentially a wasted effort. But it could have been worse. And being still three days from the official month 5 mark, I could be down another 2 or 3 pounds, AND ending a month with ANY loss is good news.

So! Here’s the cliffhanger. I’m outta here until the 13th. I’m on vacation with my sister. Instead of New York, we’re going to visit our old man in Wisconsin. So, I probably will not blog until then, which is in two weeks. Two weeks that can either go fabulously, where I report to you I have lost and additional 10 pounds on my way to my overall goal of 77. ...

Or, I could report to you I have spent a week camped out here, a delectable Madison, Wis., discovery my sister made that has me mentally testing my own will power already. We shall see ...

(By the way, the first photo up there is my shoe, which has a broken sole, after 5 months of working my tush off, quite literally. Strangely, I was kind of proud to see that this morning. I felt accomplished.)

Talk to you mid-June, folks!