Step 6,197,536

This year has not been a success. I have let myself, as well as my friends and family, down this year. I have gained weight since moving back to Morehead. I don't know if the environment is to blame or just a lack of will power on my part. What I do know is that I haven't made good choices lately. So now, I am back to square one. Tomorrow brings a new year and an easy excuse to clean the slate and try to make a change.

I didn't reach either of my goals for 2009. I ended up about 700,000 steps short of five million for the year. I also wanted to lose 100 pounds. I got no where close to that. I am going to reset those goals and add to them for 2010. I will unveil the New Year's resolutions tomorrow. Until then, take time to reflect on this past year.

Yesterday's Steps: 9,340

Step 6,188,196 (359.8 LBS)

Christmas was very kind to me when it came to spending time with family and gifts received. Christmas was not very kind to me when it came to the scale. I was up nearly twelve pounds this week. That doesn't even seem possible, but the scale doesn't lie. I am looking forward to ending this year and starting fresh next year. I will unveil my New Year's Resolutions tomorrow.

Until then, stay tuned.

Friday's Steps: 6,317
Saturday's Steps: 8,393
Sunday's Steps: 8,703
Monday's Steps: 8,751
Yesterday's Steps: 10,141

Step 6,145,891

Merry Christmas!

I woke up this morning and realized that with work, family time, and getting ready for Christmas that I have woefully ignored my blogging. I've been getting good steps in. A lot of trips to Walmart for various stocking stuffers and party supplies will get you where you need to be on your steps. That has been the positive thing over the last few days.

Here come the negatives.

I haven't been eating well at all. I've thrown in the towel with all of the family dinners, parties, and food gifts from the past few days. I also haven't been to the gym. I want to get through this weekend and try to start over with a clean slate. It sounds like an excuse, but that is about the best I can offer up at this point.

Sunday's Steps: 9,121
Monday's Steps: 8,377
Tuesday's Steps: 11,161
Wednesday's Steps: 11,961
Yesterday's Steps: 12,007

Step 6,093,264

It's Sunday morning and snow has fallen everywhere around us. Our town must have been on the trailing edge of the storm as we only received an inch or two of accumulation that was quickly cleared from the roads. Friends and family were not as fortunate. Back home, the power has been out for nearly two days. Our electricity here was never in danger of going out. The snow was just a mild inconvenience to my walking the dogs.

Chass and August are back home now after their week away. Christmas preparation is full steam ahead now. We are going to a party this afternoon. We have a dinner tomorrow, one on Christmas Eve, another on Christmas Day, then yet another on the day after Christmas. I may get through it. I hope so. I am keeping the steps up as well as going to the gym. Time will tell.

Tuesday's Steps: 12,783
Wednesday's Steps: 12,016
Thursday's Steps: 12,508
Friday's Steps: 10,740
Yesterday's Steps: 12,107

Step 6,033,110 (347.2 LBS)

I went to my Weight Watchers meeting yesterday with a feeling like I was turning myself into the authorities after a multi-state crime spree. I told the leader not to even let me see what the number was. I knew I was guilty of the crimes, but I just couldn't hear the sentence at that time. To my amazement though, my attention was called to the scale to find that I had lost 5.2 pounds since my last weigh in two weeks ago. The feeling of euphoria was only eclipsed by a feeling of amazement. I don't know of many feelings I enjoy better than seeing a loss at the scale.

I went back to the gym yesterday. I'm sore today, but that will fade soon. It was a relief to get back into working out. I was surprised at how empty the gym was. I guess most people are taking a break until January. It was nice to have the place to myself.

Sunday's Steps: 9,438
Yesterday's Steps: 13,753

Step 6,009,919

As far as the steps go, ,I'm half way there. As far as the weight goes, I'm moving the wrong way. I need a win right now and can't seem to find one. I haven't been to the gym in a couple of weeks due to my work schedule, but this week is back to normal. I'm home by myself all week as well. Chass is out of town, and August is with his father. I'm holding down the homestead and hanging out with the dogs.

I want to sit down and recap the last six million steps, but I'm just not in the mood right now. The Bengals lost, and we had a huge problem at work a couple of hours ago. Right now, I just feel like watching some TV and decompressing a bit. I promise to revisit those topics as well as setup my plan for the final six million steps.

Thursday's Steps: 9,547
Friday's Steps: 11,743
Yesterday's Steps: 8,485

Step 5,980,144

I really want to get back to the gym. I'm looking forward to next week when our rush slows down. I'll be able to get back into my regular workout. This week and last, I've been going in a over an hour early and staying over an hour later than my usual work week. I've also been working on the weekends. I'm getting some good steps in due to all of the activity, but I really want to get to the gym. I like weight-lifting for the exercise and the time to myself. I haven't had too much of that lately.

Monday's Steps: 13,544

Tuesday's Steps: 14,000

Yesterday's Steps: 15,376

Step 5,937,224

I had a busy weekend that went pretty well with both exercise and eating. I worked most of the day on Saturday so the store could be open for a special event in town. I got a few steps in, but most of my time was spent behind a counter. Sunday was a little different. I got up early to head to Cincinnati for the Bengals' game against the Lions. My friend and I had to skip lunch because we were running late on time. We parked in the Levee in Newport and walked across the Taylor Southgate Bridge to Cincinnati then down to Paul Brown Stadium.

My one hiccup of the day on Sunday was at the game. I got really thirsty since we passed on lunch so I headed to the concession stand for a beverage. My friend was wanting a hot chocolate which sounded good to me as the temperature was just above freezing. The hot chocolate, however, was $6.50. I was really thirsty and thought I should just get a bigger beer for $7.00. I ended up settling for a 32oz Diet Pepsi for $5.50 to satisfy my thirst and cut the calories. It had been about two months since I had a soda. I can't lie, it was great. I really enjoyed every drop of it.

After the game, we went to eat sushi. I had a water with my meal instead of another soda. I didn't even think about ordering one. On the way home, I stopped to get a tea. Once again, I didn't consider a soda. I think that I have got to a place where I can do without Diet Pepsi. I drank one when it was the best option (less water was the same price). Now I'm back to tea, water, and coffee.

Saturday's Steps: 9,271

Yesterday's Steps: 12,045

Step 5,915,908

Well, I crossed over the four million step mark for the calendar year. I doubt I'll be able to get nearly one million more steps in the next twenty-six days so that I can make my goal of five million steps in 2009. I will reset that challenge for myself for next year as well as my goal of losing 100 pounds in a calendar year.

I had been looking at getting a treadmill to help with walking in the Winter. It is really cold this time of year. The elements keep me from enjoying my walks. I was thinking a treadmill would do the trick. I had found one on Craig's List that I thought would work. It turns out that it was too big for my office, and I was over the weight limit for it. I could have put it in the garage, but I felt like that wouldn't be much better than walking outside. Who wants to stare at shelf full of tools for an hour in the cold? I am going to pass for now and reconsider it in the near future.

For now I will continue to put one foot in front of the other and gear up for the last half of this 12,000,000 step journey.

Thursday's Steps: 12,271
Yesterday's Steps: 12,455

Step 5,880,830

I'm still tracking my meals each day, and it is becoming evident that I am just overeating. I am halfway through my flex points. I usually try to save those for the weekend, but I need to start making some better choices with each meal. At least I am tracking my meals and getting an idea of what I am putting in my body. That is the first step back to being on track.

Yesterday's Steps: 11,663

Step 5,869,167 (355.4 LBS)

I had a big gain in the last two weeks. I'm not happy about it. I feel like a failure, and it sucks. I have wasted half this year. I have one month to finish strong and build some momentum going into next year. This was supposed to be the year that really changed my life, but it was the year that I learned that this isn't easy or automatic. You have to work on losing weight everyday at every meal and every activity. Only then will success come.

On a side note, I am looking at buying a treadmill. I am seeking advice on what to look for and what to avoid. My price range is modest. It may top out at $500 which doesn't seem like it will get me much based on what I am reading online. Any help will be appreciated.

Yesterday's Steps: 10,329

The picture is to remind me what not to go back to.