It sure is nice to get rested

At 225 pounds, a couple of years ago, I was diagnosed with sleep apnea.  Not obstructive, but a problem nonetheless.  I ended up having to go on a breathing machine.  A month ago, I was able to finally rid myself of this contraption once and for all.  What made me think of this was waking up this morning and actually feeling like getting out of bed.  I hit 184 this morning, so I would guess that 41 pounds would clog up some breathing, huh?

It is cool when the youngsters feel good about what you are doing

With the success Kelly and I have had, our kids have been really supportive of the TSFL program, and are more willing to select places to eat where we can get our lean and green.  In fact, they have been eating more  healthy in general as the sugary snacks are disappearing from the pantry.  What was really cool, though, is that our older son has wanted to deal with the Freshman 15, and has decided that the best way to do this is by joining in with us on the program.  He sees how quickly we have experienced results, so his thinking is that he can make a drop, then move to maintenance mode quickly.  Now, he is still tempted by the Cookout milkshake, just like me, so we will have to work together with him.  However, we are in the position of not just saying you do it, but lets do it together.

How are Kelly and I affording the program?

You know that we are both self employed right now, and it is a challenge to make sure our budget works.  We are both big fans of eating out, and that has been our biggest budget buster.  I have looked at what we spend daily on drinks, lunches, breakfast and snacks and it runs $6-10 a day for each of us.  This does not include our regular dinners out.

We are spending right now, $8 or so per day on our plans.  Yes, the monthly total looks like a lot, but with the discounts and free foods, it really stretches the program out, so we are always less than $10 per day.  The sacrifice we added, was to eat out less for dinner, and when we do, to either share or buy less.  We also eliminated all non-water beverages from our orders.  For my at home family of five, that can be $10 by itself in a restaurant.

We are also buying and using  the coupons from restaurant.com and those mailed to our house to eat out for less as a family, and are taking advantage of the low prices at Cookout to eat for less.  The grilled Cajun chicken sandwich is Kelly's favorite.

So the trick is to put away this saved eating money each day, so at the end of the first month, if you continue with the program, you have the money to pay, and if you don't you have saved up all you spent on the program to pay back yourself.  Regardless, at the end of your months in the program, if you diligently save the money you would have spend, there will be a payback of your initial investment at the end.  You will need it for the new clothes.

Oh, and when you are transitioning back to regular meals, Kelly and I are still there for you!!!!

Why am I a Take Shape for Life Coach?

Good question.  Kelly began her TSFL weight loss, with a friend of hers, Jill, as her coach.  Jill stayed on top of Kelly's progress, a lot of calls at first, then just to check in.  I could tell that Kelly was struggling to tell her everything, but that she really appreciated the follow up.  I also saw that it was working.  Kelly has lost over 45 pounds so far, and BELIEVES she can lose 25 more.  Kelly brought me into the program as my health coach, but she is too nice, and I struggled a bit more.  I have lost the weight, but did not have the level of accountability that she has had.  Now Kelly is coaching, and as she works with couples, the men and the women have such different follow up needs, that I felt I could do well with the men, and even some of the women who just need to feel like their progress matters to someone.  So, I took the leap.

I went to a training this week, and the sales approach is this.  Use the products, tell others, have fun.  It is not a pyramid, and I am paid by the company, not the person.  I found out that a client can pay the same buying from Medifast as from TSFL, they just don't get the free coaching.  I guess the cost of getting new customers equals the cost of paying me, so it is a win either way for Medifast.  TSFL is the coaching arm of Medifast, a $300MM company that has been around 30 years.

Also, I have some dreams about working in jobs where the pay is not what I have received in the past, and this program offers me some supplemental income that I could really benefit from.

Kelly's discovery at Zaxby's

We went in to have lunch there the other day, and she was complaining that she wanted a salad, but that they were all too large, and had too much calorie laden toppings.  I told her to ask about their side salad.  Even though she did not believe me, she asked, and sure enough, they gave her exactly what she was looking for, at less than $3.  She then asked for a couple of chicken strips, and they even cut them up and put them on top of the side salad for her.  I told her I knew a lot of stuff, she just has seen me be wrong so much that she is a true skeptic.  But today, score one for me!

Cool, huh?

My weight loss report

Right now, today, I weigh 185 pounds.  Two years ago, I weighed 225, and when I began this program, I was around 205, so I am at the 20 pound level right now!  I plan to get to 175, then transition to a way of life that will maintain it.  I am truly buying into this multiple small meals approach for me.  My waist at the bellybutton, has dropped from 39 to 37 inches, and my pants are all too big.  I just got a new pair of shorts, size 34.  Now I have read all the articles about clothing manufacturers increasing the waist without increasing the size on the label, but I don't really care - it is still a 34.

Tricks for the pancake

With the Medifast breakfast, you can make one nice sized pancake.  I am of course used to a stack about six high, so this has been a major shift in thinking for me.  It took several tries for me to accept the one pancake mentality, but once my body began to trust that I was going to eat again in a couple of hours, it got easier.

However, I really missed the syrup.  So I tried a way to substitute for the syrup, and I am proud to say it was a great success.  I think this would work for regular pancakes as well, if you were trying to cut back on the calories.

Take two packets of splenda, and pour them into the batter right before you cook it.  It gives the sensation on eating, that there is syrup on the inside of the pancake!!!!  No, it is not sticky, and no, it is not maple, but it is still very sweet, and I enjoyed it very much.

My friend Kevin humbled me the other day

So Kelly and I are invited to a baby reveal.  You know, where the cake is cut and the color of the cake tells the sex of the baby.  I have decided that this is a cheat day, since I know I will want a piece of cake.  However, there is a buffet of beef, potatoes and even fried green beans to deal with beforehand.  You should have seen my plate!   Just like the old days, edge to edge.

We sit down with Kevin and his wife, and begin discussing my weight, since you can tell I have lost.  He is telling me about his decision to live by portion control.  I look at his plate, and while he has some of each food offered, you can definitely see plate.  I look down and mine is completely hidden.  Wow, some lifestyle change.  I was very strongly impacted by his ability to only eat what was needed, not all that he might want.  I tell you, it was embarrassing to be talking about my weight loss success in those circumstances.

Why am I doing this?

Well, if you have read my story, you may realize that I waited a very long time to start my weight loss journey.  In fact, I probably would still be struggling except for two things - my health care coverage required addressing it (low motivation, but some) and my wife began her Take Shape for Life odyssey.  After Kelly lost her first 40 pounds, I began to take this program a little more seriously.  Finally, after just trying the foods she didn't like, I placed my own order.  I have to tell you, the feeling of the quick drop of 10 pounds in the first week (results not typical), I was hooked.  Now, I feel less of an obligation to accomplish a weight and health change, but also the need to stay there once I get there.  I am getting used to the six small meals per day, versus the 14 slices of pizza at Pizza Inn.  I don't seem to miss it.