I just read Devin’s posting about his scare last Thursday.
I also have a history of heart issues in my family, both my parents died from it, even if I suspect my mom got a blood clot after she had leg surgery… But the official papers say heart attack.
I was always a big guy, and about 8-10 years ago it was pretty bad. I never checked my weight back then, except for at some rare visit at the doctor. I remember once the scale ringing up at 275 lbs and 6’0". I had just moved to the US at that time, and still had some problems grasping lbs vs kg. So I guess it did not really register with me how big I actually was.
In late 2002, around Christmas, I stopped drinking regular sodas and switched to diet sodas. Some time in February or March I had dropped to 260 lbs, and over the next few months I lost another 15-20 lbs. All without much exercise, just some small changes in my eating habits. Well, in addition I also was going through some marital problems and in the summer of the same year a divorce. Broken heart can be a good (if not fun!) way to lose weight…
I been steadily working on small changes in my life. Adding more exercise, tweaking what I eat, finding good but healthy as well as filling food both at the grocery store and fast food places and restaurants.
I am right now at 215 lbs, for the last 8-9 months I been up and down between 212 and 225, but mostly in the lower range of that. I am not going to stress about it, the weight took years to pack on, and it will take a while to get off.
I just turned 40 in March, and I am right now at the same weight as when I left the Swedish Air Force at age 22. I am actually probably in slightly better shape now than back then (I was mainly driving trucks and heavy equipment in the Air Force). My goal is to get below 200 lbs, which is about what I was when I graduated High School. My dream is to hit 190, though.
It is hard to stay in shape when you have a job sitting on front of a computer all day, and sometimes night. On top of that, I am lazy.
I now try to go to the gym several times each week, and working out with a trainer at least once a week.
But the biggest effect om my weight is how and what I eat. I foound so many good to eat that I can’t really come up with any excuses not to eat healthy most of the time. I am not a picky eater, so that makes things easier, of course. The other day I had a sliced avocado, a can of drained tuna in water and two hard-boiled eggs for lunch. Excellent, very tasty. Sdding some black pepper on the tuna and avocado, and a dash of salt on the eggs made it even better. I boil half a dozen eggs every few days and put them in the fridge. A sliced egg or two on a piece of bread (especially Wasa crispbread) with some caviar on top) is a great and filling breakfast. Works for lunch too.
What I am trying to say is to make small changes you can live with. One step at a time.