Determined To Succeed

I’ve loved (LOVED) the movies ever since I was a kid. But this is old news to you guys. Regular readers to my blog KNOW how much I love, quote and sometimes breathe movies. And with it being summertime I am in my element – lots of shoot-em-up, blow-em-up and fight-em-up action in theaters to keep me (hopefully) entertained for the two-hour stretches I invest (as well as the $10-plus dollars I spend).

In 1984 the original “The Karate Kid” came out and every kid on my block was hooked, including yours truly. That, plus reruns of movies like “Enter The Dragon” and other then-current movies like “The Last Dragon,” “Bloodsport” and “Cyborg” had us all doing the “hey-ya” sound followed by some awkward-as-hell kick/punch move that was supposed to be lightning but instead looked like, well, a kid TRYING to do a very-uncoordinated martial arts move. The heroes of the day were Jean-Claude Van Damme (before he started taking lots of drugs), Steven Segal (before we knew how weird that guy turned out to be) and the immortal Bruce Lee. Oh yeah, and Ralph Macchio.  Yes, Ralph Macchio, who will forever be doing that goofy crane move to win the tournament, the adoration of his mentor, Mr. Miyagi (the awesome Pat Morita), the girl and the respect of his enemies at the end of “The Karate Kid.”

Why am I waxing nostalgic on “The Karate Kid?” Today, I am taking a step into a larger world and am beginning martial arts training as part of a newer overall fitness regimen. That’s right, me, Bill Ivory Larson, is heading out to Lansdale, PA to begin martial arts training under the teachings of martial arts and self-defense expert Doug Shaffer. I met Doug (excuse me, Sensei) at a Tweet-up (a social media gathering of people who frequently use Twitter) and told him about my 175-pound weight loss and my journey so far. He asked me what kind of gym training I had had and I said “none really,” and he invited me to join him at his studio to begin working out using martial arts.

Whenever you lose a ton of weight, unless you are working out like a fiend every single day, you are going to have flab and skin issues. I am no exception. I have what I call “chicken arms,” flabby thighs and my tummy longs for the day it can have abs as ripped as Ryan Reynolds or Jason Statham. So part of why I am taking martial arts training is to do what I’ve always learned – change up my workouts to trick my body into burning more fat. I am also doing it to tone up those saggy bits and hopefully improve my overall fitness and health. My training will be two times a week (Wednesdays and Fridays) and will supplement the things I already do (cardio and weight training in my gym).

You know I have to say I am truly looking forward to this. I’ve never been afraid of a challenge – hell, I took scuba diving training and I was afraid of drowning – and this will certainly be one. One of the things I promised myself I’d do when I lost all that weight is do things I wasn’t ever able to do before. Being physical is one of them, whether it’s sports or activities. It doesn’t matter that I have less than half-a-year until I turn 40. Because I lost weight I feel like a new person who, knock on wood, has a new lease on life and will (hopefully) live a much longer and healthier one. And don’t worry, I will keep you all posted on how things go during my martial arts training. It will be interesting, to say the least, to see a guy whose greatest activity used to be sitting in a darkened movie theater watching movies like “The Karate Kid” actually learn to do this stuff.

It’s funny how life sometimes comes back around. We can see it every day with styles the kids are wearing (I can’t believe the long-haired look is back for boys), by the fact that 80s music is back and being embraced (only this time it’s retro) and by seeing old TV shows or movies like “The A-Team” or “The Karate Kid” remade into this summer’s blockbuster movies.  Well, while Jaden Smith learns Kung-Fu from Jackie Chan in this year’s remake (yes, it’s Kung-Fu not Karate but you don’t mess with cool movie name and franchise recognition) I will finally be living out a childhood movie fantasy of mine, too, while getting healthier and hopefully leaner in the process.

I just hope I don’t look as silly doing the crane move thing or learning “wax on, wax off.”

I have talked many times about prepping yourself for the delicious foods offered at social functions so you don’t overeat. How you do this is by eating before you go and making sure you eat a better, healthier meal at least twenty minutes before so your brain registers that you’ve eaten and that you’re full.

Last night, that was not the case for me.

I attended a social function called a “tweet up,” a gathering of those connected and involved in the Twitter community. Not only was it attended by the coolest people (huge shout out to the Philadelphia/Jersey “Tweeps”) it was also a pretty good party. Alas there was one problem. The function had “that” table – the table of food. The table with chaffing dishes, salad bowls, condiments and such. The table perfectly situated in the middle of the room. The elephant…

…the table I needed to avoid.

I fully admit to two things. One, I am weak and a sucker for the buffets at social functions. Hell, why not be? Some of these swanky to-dos are paid for swanky to-dos and you have to feel you got your money’s worth somehow, right? Two, the more I drink the more my stomach goes “hey, drunkie drunkie! Where’s the food down here? You don’t want a hangover do ya?”

As soon as I walked into the joint I could smell it…wonderful hot foods like slices of beef for roast beef sandwiches (which is what I should have had), gigantic meatballs in gravy (no, not brown gravy – spicy marinara sauce). Plus the usual assortment of bar-type appetizers like buffalo wings, etc. Damn it all looked good. But as the night wore on I just felt my food self-control slipping and slipping as I walked closer and closer to “that” table.

Now, you guys know I will tell you anything when it comes to my weight so I am completely honest when I tell you I was successful in avoiding the table (did I mention it was in the center of the room so you had to walk around it all night and not get away from it?). But as this morning’s headache proves I should have had SOMETHING in my belly to absorb the one martini, glass of wine and gin (ugh, cheap gin) I consumed.

Sigh. I so need to be stronger at things like this and be smarter. I could have and should have had something healthier to eat before. I shouldn’t have been afraid to have something at the event. I shouldn’t have been afraid I’d lose control at the grand center table of food. It would have been fine.

Coulda, shoulda, woulda.

In the end, my friends, this is where discipline comes into play. Having one or two things at the event would have been OK, just as having the occasional egg roll won’t kill me. But in my quest to try to be good and avoid “that” table, I ended up not eating at all and having a nice bit of hangover to show for it. Sorry tummy. I should have listened to you.

And yes, I will get you some Tylenol or Advil asap.

Cravings. What is it about them? They happen all the time, everywhere. Being an emotional eater I’ve had my share of them lately (especially when I had to drop a very unexpected $2K on my car for maintenance) and I wish I could stop. Milky Way bars, egg rolls, cheese fries, Cinnabon, Auntie Anne’s pretzels and more. As I’m writing this, I have a craving for my usual cup of extra cream, extra crunchy (sugary) coffee.

You know how it is when you get a craving for something. Don’t ya? You’re deep in thought about how to save the planet, the report you have to do the next day at work, errands you have to run – it doesn’t matter. Once that craving hits you it’s like all the other thoughts in your head all somehow lead back to that craving and you try to justify it in any way possible…

“It would certainly help me think better about saving the planet/these errands/this report if I had (insert the name/type of craving you have here) in my tummy.”

I even heard from one of my friends on Twitter today who had a taste for birthday cake this morning – even though it’s eight months until her birthday.

Lately, I’ve had one helluva craving for strawberry ice-cream. I don’t know what it is or why but there are times when I’m just sitting on the couch and all I can think about is having a pint of good ol’ bad-for-you strawberry ice-cream. The last time it hit me was just the other night. I was watching the Chicago Bulls get beaten by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA Playoffs (I was also craving a little bit of home). I was sitting on the couch wondering how much effort it would take to actually get dressed, drive to the store and purchase a pint. Is that bad? OK, I know the answer to that. “Yes, it is.” But if we had beaming technology I would have been so there at the Wawa (the best convenience stores on the planet) looking over the freezer to find a pint of Haagen-Dazs Strawberry Ice-Cream.

Yum.

I think ultimately I replaced one sweet craving for another. I have done a really good job as of late weaning myself off of Coca-Cola (at least as much of it as I’d been having) so I think at night, when cravings really get bad and my cravings are strongest, instead of reaching for a Coke I want to reach for ice-cream. It just so happens that I’m too damn lazy to get dressed to go get a pint which is a really, really good thing. I have also been doing my best to be Zen about my cravings. I allow myself to have my cravings every now and then so I don’t turn into a miserable, grumpy bastard but I also control them and don’t make them a part of my every day. However, it all means one thing – I soooooo need to go shopping and get some good healthier food in the house. I need to at least follow the advice of the personal trainer, Jorge, I saw recently…

1. Apples and peanut butter is a great mid-day snack.
2. Cheat with a liquid – sugar free Jello, frozen yogurt, water ice or low-cal pudding
3. Cheat with a fat – like eating a cheese steak without the bread, wings, ribs, cheeseburger without the bun

These suggestions may not help me stem my cravings for delicious strawberry ice-cream entirely but seeing my numbers go down gradually on my electronic scale sure as hell does.

Remember the movie “Tron?” In it Oscar-winner Jeff Bridges plays a computer programmer who literally gets sucked into the virtual world of games and computers. The filmmakers back then knew, or at least had a sense of, how much technology was sucking us into our computers, and that was back in 1982.

It is so easy working from home to get sucked into the virtual world vortex. It really is. I can see how kids these days don’t go outside and play as much as we did. At your fingertips you not only have access to the news and happenings of the world but you also have media networks like Twitter and Facebook handy – enabling you to visit and “communicate” with literally hundreds of friends, all at the same time.  Nowadays, I work from home and, during the course of my day, I not only answer e-mails but I network using these wonderful media tools with friends and business associates all over the country. However, the end result is that it easily becomes 5 or 6 o’clock and I haven’t gone outside to enjoy the smattering of nice weather we’ve been having in southern New Jersey or gotten up to workout.

It wasn’t all that different when I didn’t work from home.  I’d get up, get ready, get in my car and sit in traffic with idiot drivers just to sit at work for 8 or 10 hours. Hell, in the winter I would get to work sometimes when it was dark outside and leave when it was dark outside, not once leaving my desk unless I had to use the restroom or grab a quick Coke out of the vending machine.

The past few weeks I’ve been feeling nostalgic and I now know why. I am rapidly approaching the one year anniversary of my mom, JoAnn’s, death from pancreatic cancer. I have had a hankering to reconnect with so many things, especially from my youth – music, photos, foods, friends and, most of all, my Sweet Home Chicago. I remember so many wonderful things it’s hard to tell you guys about them because they all want to come out at the same time and they get bottlenecked in my throat. But I will share one thing with you this morning – “Piggy” in the park after school.

At about 4 o’clock or so my friends, Pierre, Rachette, Richard, Liz and I (plus some other peripheral friends) would gather in the park directly behind my building in Hyde Park. We’d play a game called “Piggy,” a variation of softball that included no running of the bases but a batter who was at bat until the rest of the players made an “out” by catching the ball using a very uncomplicated set of rules. It was fun and we did this most days after school. We’d be out there so long our moms, God love ‘em, would come out and tell us it was time for dinner. I have so been thinking about those times, and I’ve so been thinking about my mom, whom I miss very, very much.

But why do I bring all of this up this morning? I do it to illustrate a point, at least a perceived one, about activity (or lack thereof) and weight loss. It used to be in the late-70s/early-80s we’d actually go out and play. We’d actually get out and interact with our friends face-to-face. If we wanted to talk to them we’d actually ring them up or knock on their doors. We didn’t have the technology that allows us to text someone, or tweet, when they’re standing right next to us at the mall, in a restaurant or yes, at the park.

Hell. Do kids even go to the park anymore?

I became and obese child, in part, due to a lack of physical activity. I may have played “Piggy” outside but it wasn’t enough, especially when you think about the quality and quantities of food I was consuming. And that was in a pre-PDA, pre X-Box, pre-social media age. The problem lies in that technology isn’t just for kids anymore and we adults can easily get sucked into the vortex of inactivity because we’re spending too much time in the virtual world and not enough time in the real one.

Yesterday I told you guys about how I’d re-gained a hard-fought-for pound. Well, that pound is gone and it took a few of his ouncie friends with him. I am down to 237.8 today thanks not only to lots of physical activity helping a friend move but also just taking the time to run to Chick-fil-A and grabbing a grilled chicken sandwich instead of having crap as that wonderful little voice inside my head keeps saying. But what about today when I don’t have to help a friend move?

So many of my friends on Twitter actually tweet that they “unplug” for a while to go and do something real – feed the kids and wash some clothes, or wash some kids and feed some clothes – and I have to do the same. We all should. I will unplug, at least for a bit, and get out and enjoy the sun, get some vitamin D – maybe even go and see a nesting pair of ducks at Cooper River and wish them well. I made a promise to myself to workout, not gain my weight back and achieve my goal. That will not happen if I’m sitting here at this wonderful box of light waiting on an e-mail that might or might not come in the next few microseconds.

No matter whether we are adults or kids, outside time is important. Time for us is important. It helps us reconnect with what matters most – our families, our real friends (not virtual ones) and most of all, ourselves especially if we are to achieve our weight loss goals. Not to mention the really cool added benefit – it’s damn fun, too.

Oh, to have the metabolism of my younger self again.

If I did it would mean two things. One, that I would have again the cast iron stomach I used to have which would take everything from apples to zucchini and not blink an eye (or flap, or valve or whatever a stomach blinks). Two, it would mean the calories I consumed would be burned very quickly and weight loss would be that/much easier.

I’ve always said that if a scientist wanted to make a gagillion dollars (that’s lots and lots of billions) they would find a way to harness that energy, that metabolism, in kids and inject it into us overweight adults with the results being we become thinner and far more energetic in the process. Sigh. If only wishes were fishes…

The fact of the matter is I ate like crap last night. I ate like crap for two reasons. One, I had done some lifting and running around yesterday, was hungry and thought I might have burned off lots of calories doing what I was doing. Two, because I had been good, for the most part, all weekend I thought dinner last night (don’t even ask me about the delicious brownies) would be OK. When will I ever learn?

Sigh again. If only I had my youthful metabolism.

It’s not that I ate until I puked or anything. It’s just that since losing weight my stomach acts and reacts differently these days to certain foods, meaning it may or may not like them, churn for a bit and remind me ever so Pepto Bismol gently that I should not have a food or combination of foods. One of these days I will finally wise up, act my age and remember these instances when again faced with eating choices that aren’t so, shall we say, adult friendly.

Can you imagine what a world would be like if adults had youthful metabolisms, though? We would be running around constantly like water molecules  suddenly heated up to a boil. We would finally have flying cars because our minds would be running at that speed and ground cars like a Ferrari just aren’t fast enough. We’d invent something faster than the internet, 4G phone networks and Fios. E-mail would seem like snail mail and Twitter would be like rolled-paper faxes (sheesh, remember those). The slowest plane on earth would be the now-retired Concord. All this and more. That’s what adults would be like. We would get so much done and we wouldn’t gain weight in the process, like Michael Phelps training for the Olympics – burning calories faster than the speed of light.

Well, an overweight adult can dream, right?

Truth is as we age our bodies slow down, whether we like it or not. And while this is a fact we can still choose to stay as active as we want while eating foods that will go along with this ever-changing state of affairs in our bodies. And the truth is I can’t eat like my youthful self anymore. As much as I’d like to and as much as I sometimes can, I simply cannot.

So there is one good thing about slowing down and getting older…we do get wiser. And it’s that wisdom that helps bring about true change, in the world and with our own bodies.

Sorry this was so late today but I was in a quandry.

I’m going to sound like an old fogie (is that even how it’s spelled?) but I don’t know how to relate to kids these days. Well, I do and I don’t. Last week you heard me talking about a website and technology conference I attended in New York and, while there, I got a wonderful idea to try to help kids who might have weight loss issues through information and resources on my website.

However, the more I delved into the “what” of it all (like what kind of content to have, etc.) I realized I don’t exactly know how to reach kids these days. When I was a fat kid it was the late 70s/early 80s. There were no such things as the following:

• Cell Phones (which kids seem to have younger and younger these days so no texting, mobile internet, etc.)
• iPods (hell, I thought I was king of the world with my first Sony Walkman personal radio)
• Personal Computers (I had a small electronic typewriter that got me through school – a typewriter!)
• Internet (and with it the extension of ways to get and absorb news and information)
• E-Mail (back then we actually wrote letters to each other and sent them in the mail, or snail mail as it’s called today, or passed notes)
• Cable TV (there wasn’t even a fourth Fox network back then. Just independent TV stations and the big three – CBS, NBC and ABC)
• Facebook and Twitter (progress back then was called a “party line,” expensive phone calls people could make to join 20 others to chat on the phone hosted by someone whose only job it was to keep you talking to get you to pay more per minute)

Amazing, isn’t it? Over the last 25-30 years technology has really improved. However, it has made the job of reaching people, especially kids, such a hard thing to do. The only way I can describe it is as practicing “lucky science.” Science because you have to do it so surgically since you can’t reach really large numbers of people using very few media anymore, and lucky because you never know what will resonate with people and take off like wild fire (as Twitter has the power to put information all over the world in a matter of minutes).

So how do I reach kids these days and let them know my simple story? That I was once a chubby kid, who was made fun of in school, and who had the same social problems they do these days because I was obese? How do I let them know I know how they feel when you can’t find age-appropriate clothes that fit, or have to find clothes less attractive or popular because they just aren’t in your size? How do I let kids know it’s normal to feel sad and depressed because you’re made fun of and are different, but also let them know it’s OK to talk about it and try to do something about it?

Jeez! I do sound like an old fogie FER SURE! LIKE TOTALLY! I sound like I’m waving my cane at some hot-rodders burning rubber down the street yelling at them as I wave my cane calling them “young whippersnappers.” But I’m not old (at least not yet) and I do very much remember what it’s like to be the fat kid. Plain and simple – it hurts. It hurts and at a time that is really solidifying who you’re going to become as an adult there are these pressures from family (in some cases), society-at-large, media (particularly fashion magazines geared towards teens) and friends to be this perfect being. And sometimes we are just not and we do not need anyone pointing out our flaws!

I guess it would be simple enough to tell kids this. In fact, it might make it easier for them to believe me when I tell them my personal fat kid story. I just know that America does have a childhood obesity epidemic on its hands, driven by lack of food education, support and economics. Well, I am going to do my best to help in any way I can. Not because I am saying all kids need to be thin or anything. But because it is all about health. Things like asthma and breathing problems (which I’ve had). High blood pressure (which I’ve had). And you could go on with juvenile diabetes, joint pain, etc. That is why I want to reach out. Because if I could go back in time and talk to me I would tell me it’s OK and to not eat so much McDonalds or ribs or fried foods. I’d also tell me the dangers of eating that much and how much I weighed at my heaviest and what problems it caused me. I’d tell me I understand what it’s like not having money to buy better foods and not have the proper resources to prepare them. I’d offer to help.

This is a crazy, mixed up and fast-paced world in which we live these days. But no matter what, kids need our help. And no matter how we reach them and tackle this problem of childhood obesity, we are helping them to become the same old fogies we are today. And I’d rather be an old fogie waving my cane around at young hot-rodders than dead in my 40s from a heart attack brought on by obesity.

So last night I attended what’s known as a “tweetup,” a gathering of people from a particular region who use the social media network known as Twitter. This event was held at a delicious restaurant known as Tortilla Press which is an awesome fresh Mexican influenced food (and which also offers wonderful vegetarian options, as well). However, As I am on my “being good” kick I was worried about eating well.

Here’s how the evening went…

…I walked in and there were just a few people there. I introduce myself and order my first (and only) margarita. At this point I am thinking I’m O.K. food-wise because I’m thinking no food will be served and I can save my calories.

…No later than half-an-hour later the group is served a wonderful and tasty selection of appetizers – chips and salsas, Mexican-inspired buffalo wings (including a vegetarian meatless buffalo wing), delicious fried empanadas, a selection of chicken and cheese quesadillas and more. I was heading for trouble.

…At about an hour in I was successful at staying away from the buffalo wings (although I did try one of the meatless ones just to see what it was like. It was oddly textured but tasty), but I did sample the fried empanada, chicken and cheese quesadillas and chips and salsa. Man, that salsa was good.

…After an hour-and-a-half I started remembering why I can’t eat like that anymore. Not that there was anything wrong with the food (it was all very delicious) but I simply do not eat like that anymore – and my tummy reminded me of that. My body has just adjusted to a new way of eating and thinking. That’s all. Thankfully I had had only really went to town on the chips and salsa (the salsa was awesome) but mixed in with the rest I knew I was done.

…After two hours I left, as the event was winding down anyway, and headed out. I pulled into the local convenience store and bought myself a Coke. Not because I really wanted one but it helped calm things down a bit in my tummy. And that capped off my dinner.

Sigh. As I got on the scale today I, thankfully, only gained a few ounces. But I should absolutely know better. I had in my mind this noble thought, especially getting over a cold, that’s I’d go home after and make something healthy (like that lemon chicken recipe again) but alas, I did not. My dinner consisted of appetizers, a margarita and a Coke.

In the grand scheme of things was I completely bad? Absolutely not. I soooooo was not, and I know I have been waaaaaaaaay worse in my life going out and eating at social events. But I know my dinner should not have been what I ate. Bad Bill. Bad Bill. Especially since my tummy voiced its opposition, too. Next time I just need to eat BEFORE I go. This way I’ll be very good and can stick to what’s important…

…a second margarita.

I am sitting at my computer so happy I could shout. My best friend, Mike, and his wife had a bouncing baby boy last night and I’m beside myself with joy for them! So a huge shout out to them today.

And while it may not be a Chicago-like blizzard we’re getting socked with snow here in southern New Jersey pretty hard. It’s pretty cool, though, actually. At least I think so. I was getting reports yesterday on Twitter and Facebook of “runs” at the stores for the usual stuff – milk, bread, survival supplies. Bah. Like this stuff won’t melt…

…oh well. People, it ain’t “THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW” so chill.

Heh, chill. I kill me sometimes.

It’s funny, though. When I got the news about Mike I was so happy I just wanted to eat something. Is that weird? Maybe it was my adrenaline going full-tilt as I got the news from our friend, Sue, but my first instinct was to grab a bite. Hmmmm…..I totally admit to having a couple of spoonfuls of peanut butter and jelly, too after hearing the news about Mike’s baby.

Also last night I was watching a movie I had never seen before, “Unforgiven.” It’s a pretty great flick. I know, I know. I’m a little behind the times but I was never big into westerns as a film genre. As I watched this great flick (as I try to see all Best Picture Oscar winners when I can) I found myself munchy again. This time I ate on the last of the Clementine oranges I had in my fridge.

Man, I am so glad I didn’t have really bad snacks in the house. Watching the snow fall outside all hunkered down on the couch watching movies, as well as hearing great news about friends, made for some pretty strong snack cravings.

But I am at 232.3 today which is awesome. I am continuing to trend downward in my weight and it seems that “Bill Power” is working (ok, I know it was cheesy but I use the name when I can). Like I’ve always said seeing that lower number on my scale is better than gorging myself on Milky Ways, ice-cream (although I get a taste for that, too, when it snows for some reason), chocolate cake and more. And I am more than happy I cleaned out my supply of cold and tasty oranges as I watched my western “shoot-’em-up” thinking of being a new “uncle” and of wintry songs…

…let it snow. Let it snow. Let it snow.

However, I find it interesting to think about what seems to trigger “snack attacks.” Just something I am thinking about on this Saturday. So whether you’re getting ready for a weekend out and about or, if you live in the east like I do, staying inside because of the snow storm, be mindful of snacking. Even grabbing a soda is a snack (although that would be great too right about now. See, I am not immune to it, either).

But I am just trying to be good, watch what I eat, exercise and get back down to the sweetest snack of all…

…my goal weight realized.

So last night I went to a “tweet-up,” a meeting of people involved in the Twitter community. These meetings are very cool for a few reasons. You get to visit new places/restaurants (this time it was the awesome Victory Brewing Company in Downingtown PA), you get to meet great people face-to-face (many of whom follow you on Twitter and vice versa) and you find out tons about the social media community.

What makes meetings like this hard, though, is the food aspect of things. Not that the food at Victory was bad (quite the contrary – it was amazing and their homemade warm soft pretzels with cheese and mustard are to die for, really) it’s just that I have my extra poundage to lose and I knew going into last night I’d have to be careful with what I ate (and drank).

I wrote a column a couple of months back on how social situations can derail your weight loss journey and believe me when I tell you – I had to remember every word of it last night. There were a ton of people there, too, ordering everything from buffalo wings to salads, burgers to loaded nachos and all of it seemed to pass right by me. So I got a good whiff of some amazing looking food. But I had to keep in mind my inner voice (that darned little angel that sits on your shoulder) telling me “you know you have to be good. So just be good.”

It took a lot but I listened. It’s hard when we’re out and about and wanting to sample the great smelling foods of where you are. But I knew I couldn’t do that last night because 1) I need to re-lose the weight I’ve gained back recently and 2) just because we can eat doesn’t mean we should eat. So I compromised with myself. I ordered one of those wonderful, delicious and warm soft pretzels and shared it with a few folks around me. This way I could have my pretzel and eat it, too.

And you wanna know something? That was alright.

I didn’t totally give in to having wings, or a burger or what sounded like amazing chili. Nope. I was good, especially knowing I couldn’t work out first thing this morning as I had to get right to work today due to an appointment I have at Noon. But as I lose more weight I will treat myself to more of their food and the foods of other places I want to visit. I am just proud that I resisted my urges to splurge calories.

I CAN resist bar food!

Sure, I will always eat what I want on my weight loss journey but last night would have been bad when I’m just now getting back on track after the holidays. And when I have been good for a while I will go back and have another one of those pretzels (they really are their own food group) and one or two other things from their menu.

After all, good things come to those who wait.