Walking Away

In a few short weeks, my employer begins the Global Corporate Challenge. This is companies all over the world divided into teams of 7 and wearing pedometers. I am on a team of my co-workers and have begun the pre-GCC prep, which is taking walks twice a day. Last night was the most I think I've ever walked in a day. After a long walk @ work, I got home and was watching our neighbor's son, Riley. Riley and I went for a walk, me pushing him in his stroller. We were gone for 1 hour. Then, as it was getting dark, the decision was made to mow our yard. Megan mowed the back and I did the front. The grass has really thickened up this year - we are using a different lawn care dude - and we are going to have to find time to mow more than once a week. The point of all this is that I walked 12515 steps yesterday. The prescribed amount of steps to take a day is 10000. If I had not mowed, I would have barely been over 10000. Today, remarkably, I feel good. I feel like I am taking steps (no pun intended) in the right direction. I have not been able to say this before but I consider myself overweight. Look at this. I weigh 240 and I'm 6'4" so look @ this:

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My challenge, then, is to get down to within my "normal weight range for the height" range. Obviously, that means losing at least 34 lbs.

I already haven't drank alcohol for 1 year, 4 months, 4 days so that is at least one thing that I could put in my body that I will not have to worry about. The next target is smaller portions. Not eating more calories than I can burn off through my walking. I know the easiest target would be ... drinking Pepsi. I have kept track of my consumption at work. I track what I drink, how many calories, the total ounces, and the $ I spent. The numbers are enough to want to change this habit. I should prepare a chart that shows what I do. Roughly, and without the stats in front of me, I average 4 12 ounce pops at work with at least 150 calories per pop. Mountain Dew is more; Coke is less. What I really need to do is, simply, drink water.

And I was doing well for awhile. A few years ago, a different employer had a Wellness Coach come in and we talked a lot about my weight. I talked about how I wanted to be able to go shirtless during the camping season and not be self-conscious. Roughly 4 years later, I have the same goal. I also remember talking about how I rarely want to put in the effort to do what I want. I want easy.

That attitude has been changing over the years and, maybe, with this upcoming GCC season, I will finally get into the habits I want to be in and end the habits I do not want as part of who and what I am.

In other unrelated news, I bought tickets to see a Mike Mangini drum clinic in Davenport. I am taking Alex and Adam. It will rock!