It’s easy to get overwhelmed the first week you decide to really start examining the harm you’ve done to your body over 30 years.  The lack of exercise part really jumps out at you when you start a boot camp program and labor to get out of a chair due to soreness.  I’m amazed at how it has gotten better just in the four short days I’ve been going, but I live in fear for how I will feel next Monday after three days of rest.  Eventually, I’ll work out some during these other three days as well, but after multiple days of having to hope I dropped my body properly aligned on the toilet, I have earned a small break.

Monday morning I also started an attempt to count calories, which was horrific.  I’ve lived my life with an attitude that I can just eat whatever I want.  After my early findings, I’m amazed I’m not dead.  There’s a Panda Express near our office that we visit with some frequency.  I have no delusion that this food is good for me in any way, but I felt good that most of the stuff I get is on their “Wok Smart” menu…except for Beijing Beef.  Looking at their nutritional info, a 5oz serving…one spoon…of Beijing Beef is 850 calories.  That is like eating a Chipotle burrito with a side of noodles and another entree.  It’s over twice the caloric value of most every other item on their menu, and I could have been avoiding it had I just took a moment to pull my head out of my ass.

Now, I have no dreams of being a skinny man.  I still want to go to Chipotle.  I am still going to drink beer.  But there is easily a better life I could be living in between skinny and 300lbs.  Let’s be honest here, I’m not trying to impress anyone.  I just want my moobs to look smaller in a polo shirt and to be able to run around with my kids.

So here we are, week one in the books.  On Sunday, August 8, I weighed in at a bubbly 329.5 lbs.  This morning, I hit the scale and came out at 324.25.  That’s a 5lb drop.  I’m not sure how a feel about it, but it’s nice.  Most of yesterday was filled with thoughts of, “I’ll probably only be down 1lb and feel like a dip shit.”  In reality, any loss is a gain towards my goals.