Our battle with the bulge
If you have already read “The Hubby” post, then you are familiar with the weight loss challenge he made at the beginning of the year. December 29, 2018 to be exact. He dropped the ball that he was going to lose weight and he was starting NOW! I remember turning around and looking at him with a dropped mouth. “But what about New Years?” I asked with a tiny bit of protest in my voice. “We have friends coming over, they are bringing food, what am I supposed to make now?” He put his foot down and replied, “I don’t know, we’re gonna have to figure something out, ‘cuz I’m starting this diet today.” Okay then. Operation “come up with a new menu for New Years” was underway.
Let’s go back in time to September of 2000, when we first met. The hubby, unbeknownst to me at the time, weighed 180 pounds, give or take. I was in the 150 range. Not weighing in anywhere close to that today, research indicates that for our height and age and body type and blah blah blah, he should be in the 165 weight range and I should be closer to the 145 range. Ha Ha…NOT GONNA HAPPEN!
Although, for years now we have both struggled with the enthusiasm to be in shape. In our small town, there aren’t a lot of choices for health and fitness, and walking the streets is limited due to the seasons. (yea I know, excuses, excuses) But it would seem the Lord our God has reminded us that our bodies are a temple, and that He lives in us. So we figured it was about time we clean house for Him.
The Man Made Diet Plan
So the Hubby, being the research guru that he is, had done a lot of research on the matter of losing weight, and what the best program would be. He found an app, gotta love it, we are in the era of the app. This app, he decided to use, calculated for him the number of carbohydrates and calories he is allowed each day. He answered some basic questions about his goals, how much he wanted/expected to lose a week, among some other pertinent info, and he was on his way.
“You should do this with me”, he would say once in a while. I wasn’t ready yet. There was still too much left overs from New Years that shouldn’t go to waste.
As the weeks went by, he started to see his efforts were paying off. Within the second week, the weight started to come off, two pounds a week was what he plugged in as his goal, and he was achieving it! It has taken great determination and discipline to stay within 20 carbs a day, but he has and still is sticking to it. He will tell you that he couldn’t have gotten this far on his own. It has taken a great deal of effort on my part, for him to have come so far. And my part is in the kitchen. Reformatting our previous meal plans to a more carb friendly version so he can stay on track. I will be honest and tell you, at the beginning I would eat the low carb dinners with him, but breakfast and lunch were still mine to eat as I saw fit.
As the weeks went on, the meal planning and variety became easier, and his progress became more and more noticeable. So for the last month and a half, I have started to wean myself off of carbs as well. I have not gone so far as to count my carbs and document each meal like the hubby has been doing since December, but I have been secretly keeping tack of my weight loss by hitting the scale on Monday mornings. Shhhhh!
God's Diet Plan
Genesis 1:29-30 tell us this; “Then God said, “Behold I have given you every plant yielding seed that is on the surface of all the earth, and every tree which has fruit yielding seed; it shall be food for you; and to every beast of the earth and to every bird of the sky and to every thing that moves on the earth which has life, I have given every green plant for food;” and it was so.
God created our bodies, Genesis 1:26-27, 2:7, 21-22 give account to that. So it stands to reason that God knows what is good and not good for our bodies. He gave seed yielding fruits and plants as the first food for man, and animals, bugs and birds.
The consumption of bread is first mentioned, after the fall, it is part of the curse God handed down to Adam, “By the sweat of your face you shall eat bread,…”(Genesis 3:19a). And meat was not given as a source of food until after the Flood, some 1,056 years later. (you can calculate this time frame in Genesis chapter 5, descendants of Adam to Noah). But back to the new meat diet, “And the fear of you and the terror of you shall be in every beast of the earth and on every bird of the sky; with everything that creeps on the ground, and all the fish of the sea, into your hand they are given. Every moving thing that is alive shall be food for you; I give all to you, as I gave the green plant.” Genesis 9:2-3.
I love me a good, big, crisp apple. My favorites so far are the Kiku, Ambrosia, and the Fuji. Although the Bible is not specific as to the fruit that Eve took and ate from the tree that was forbidden, we do know it yielded seeds. It could have been an orange, an avocado, a fig (all seed bearing fruits that grow on trees), but I know we all believe it to be an apple. You know the old wives tale, “an apple a day keeps the doctor away”. Well I think there is some truth to that. For three years, I ate an apple every day, and I tell you no lie, I did not get sick for those three years. I just recently came down with a pretty good cold and as I think back, I had been slacking off on my apple intake. Is the apple God’s chosen fruit? That is a question that will have to wait until I get to heaven to be answered. But for now, while here on earth, I will eat those delicious apples given to us by God. 🙂
It is also a known fact that fruits contain carbs, good carbs mind you. Carbs that God gave as the first food, so carbs that your body needs. So for me, this is where man made diets become a struggle. I will participate in this low carb diet my hubby is on, which has strictly red flagged most fruits. But I will not neglect what God has given. I have cut out processed foods (man made foods) and that has made a significant improvement in how I look and feel.
The Goals, The Progress and The Apps
The hubby’s goals: when he started this diet , the number one goal, of course, was to lose weight. He also wanted to get a “good” nights sleep and possibly stop using the sleep machine, as we refer to it. (sleep apnea was a big issue for him being over weight) and finally try to get off his blood pressure medications.
My goals: honestly I did not and still don’t have any specific ones. If you recall, I did not hop on the diet bandwagon when this all started.
The hubby’s progress: he started this journey on December 29, 2018 and to date he has lost 42 pounds. He has also gone from a size 36 to a 34, and in about a week will need to get new jeans, again. He has been able to cut back on his blood pressure med’s (he was taking a pill and a half, he has cut out the half). He has also, more frequently, had a good, solid nights sleep. The sleep machine is still in use at this time, though.
My progress: I started being more conscience of my food intake and secretly weighing myself since the beginning of March of this year, 2019, and I have lost roughly 15 pounds so far. No medications for me, so that was not a goal, and I have generally always gotten a good, solid nights sleep, although the hubby will try to tell you I snore. He has yet to produce some proof of that. Ha Ha!
The Apps: The App he chose to use is called Carb Manager. It has both free and paid versions. He uses the carb counter to help keep track of his intake and stay under the daily allowance that was calculated when he signed up.
After a couple of months getting used to the low carb intake, he decided it was time to add an exercise program to his diet plan. So he added a workout routine using the Six Pack in 30 Days app. You can start out with a seven minute workout and progress from there. The workout consists of lunges, jumping jacks, sit ups, push ups, use of weights and many other exercise components. Thankfully we have a set of dumbbells for him to use.
He has been really faithful in his carb watch and seven minutes of exercise each day. We highly recommend it. And I say we, because of the noticeable difference in his appearance, his energy and overall demeanor.
“So what about your exercise program, Jamie?” I can hear you asking. Well, I prefer the great outdoors and a more simple way of keeping in shape. I do two things, 1) I walk the dog. We have a cemetery in town that allows us to walk our dogs as long as we pick up after them. If I time it just right, Tonka and I are the only ones over there so I can let him off the leash and let him run free giving him the energy consuming exercise he needs. And 2) I attend a Tae Kwondo class once a week with our daughter, the brown belt.
We have different methods of weight loss and exercise, but in the end, isn’t it the losing of weight and the keeping in shape that matters? Because in our golden ages, we want to stick together as long as we can.
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Love the age of the app. There are so many apps out there to help us track progress and stay on track.
Sometimes it can get overwhelming the number of apps out there. We survived this long without them, but yes, they are helpful. 🙂
Good for you guys! Keep up the good work!!
Good for you guys! I’m also trying to get my health under control. At first I was doing it to lose weight, but I’m learning working out isn’t just meant for that. It’s making me stronger and has a great, positive impact on my mental health. The hardest part is definitely just getting started!
That is true, the first and hardest step IS that first step. He was determined to start the day he did. Did not care that New Years was only 2 days away, he was starting and that was that. 🙂
Kudos to him for sticking to his goals and seeing the weight drop off. It’s not an easy task, but he set his mind to it and you’re being a tremendous support. Good luck on this journey together!
Thank you. It does help having some one to hold you accountable.
Great job taking control of your health! There is nothing that feels better 🙂
Thank you and AMEN!
Too funny. My husband recently got into shape and lost weight and here I am, dragging my feet to lose that 30 pounds from having kids.
Well you are welcome to hop on my leisurely weight loss train. I am not as full blown into it as the hubby is. But gotta give them kudos for determination. 🙂
Good for both of you! Changing diet is a day by day choice. I switched to a plant based lifestyle almost three years ago. That decision has totally transformed my health and therefore my life.
I hope the improvements you are seeing in your health will fuel your desire to continue.
So far so good on the desire to keep on track. Thanks
Thank you for sharing!
🙂 Thank you for reading.
That is wonderful! My daughter is working on cutting out carbs to cut back and change her diet. I am hoping to benefit from helping her out as well!
Well good luck to your daughter. Using the carb manager has really helped keep my husband on track. Maybe it will help you guys as well.
Thanks for sharing your journey! Keep it up!
🙂 Thank you for reading. Hubby is determined to never go back.
Good on you for documenting your progress.. I dont know if I actually forget or If I am not courageous enough to!
My hubby says if he can do it, any one can. 🙂
That’s wonderful that you both are supporting each other! It takes a lot of commitment and encouragement to stay on a healthier path! Great job to both of you!
Thank you for the support. I am not as strict as he is, so I am losing at a slower pace, but I am losing. 🙂
Having people over or going to parties is always hard! We used to take a day off from eating healthy if people were coming over. But then we realized that everyone was trying to eat healthy, so now we just make healthy food, lol!
Lol. That’s funny. The hubby won’t even take a day off. He is a afraid he will lose all his progress. (go figure)
You guys are such an inspiration! Congrats on such impressive dedication!
Thank you for your encouragement. 🙂
my downfall is carbs! I may need to try this Carb Manager app! ☆congrats☆
Thank you. My husband swears by the app. He has been using the free version and it has been enough info for him to this point. So try the free version and see how it goes for you.
Wow, you guys are doing great! I love your take on God’s diet plan and I totally agree with it. Congratulations!!!
Thank you. I just cannot and will not give up my apples. 🙂
It is not really my place since I don’t even know you, but I feel so proud of you and your husband! And you don’t know what ripples you are sending out as role models. Thank you for sharing!
Lol. It can totally be your place to be proud of us. I thank you for that support. 🙂
It’s so great that you found some tools that work for your weight loss journey. I know it’s not easy at all. I still struggle with where I want to be. My motivation is starting to return as the weather warms up, though!
Yes. Weather plays a role in how productive a diet can be. Living in the mountains, winter is not a motivational time of year. We will just have to double up during summer and fall to make up for the lack of enthusiasm during winter. Lol.
You are having great results! You have to mentally be ready to start a diet, or it will never work! You and your husband sound like you are doing awesome!
Thanks. It took me a month or so to hop on the band wagon, but it has been good.
What a great motivational piece! I am looking at my phone today to check that out. I am a carb junkie and it is taking a toll on my belly. It doesn’t help either that the change of life is occurring. lol! Congrads to the hubby on his success!
Thank you. I suggest taking cutting out carbs slower. Hubby just went cold turkey, and my, I took it slower. We are not all the same so what worked for him, doesn’t work for me. I need carbs, to a small degree, so I will still have a sandwich once a week, and I will not give up my apples. So maybe a slower pace will be productive for you.
I really need to get on the weight loss train. I’m so happy you and your husband are doing this together.
You can do. If you need/want a buddy system, I’d be happy to be there for you. 🙂
Good for you! I like your healthy mindset, not going too overboard and starting a system that wouldn’t be sustainable in the long run. Walking the dogs and doing martial arts sounds like a great balance for now! Keep up the great work!
Thank you. 🙂 I think that’s why a lot of people fail at dieting, it starts out so extreme, although my hubby went cold turkey, I did try that and I got jittery, so I am not at the carb count he is, I went a bit higher.
Great job to both of you, keep up the good work and you’ll both continue to see results! I just re-started working out and am trying to be consistent even though food calls to me at all times, lol, so I appreciate this encouragement!
Lol. The hubby has been telling me cravings have started to creep back in, but he is staying strong and not giving in. We use Atkins bars to supplement those cravings and they are working pretty well.
Great job to both of you. It is always easier to stay on course if you have a buddy to work with you. Changing our eating habits can be strong. Every once in a while I feel like I’m adding to much weight and start to watch my food intake and can take the extra pounds off pretty quick.
Well keep up your good work. Thanks for reading our journey. 🙂
I love the contrast between God’s diet and our idea of a diet. Thank you for sharing!
You are welcome. Thank you for reading.
I love that your husband chose a day to start immediately! There really is no time like right now when you’re ready to achieve your goals. Good for you both!
That is true. It has been an ongoing laugh in our house that he didn’t choose to use this as a New Year’s resolution, he just started two days before and that was that. 🙂
Congratulations to you both on your progress! I also find using an app really works well for me, and limiting carbs has been an effective strategy as well. Great tips!
Thank you, and good luck with your journey. 🙂
Co gratulations to you and your hubby on your achievement! Keep up the good work.
Thank you. 🙂
This is great! I admire your support and his dedication! My husband is debating starting a diet/workout routine here soon too
Well, if my hubby can do it, yours can too. 🙂
Thanks for your post. I’m going to share this with my hubby. I think he can benefit from using the app. He is trying to cut his carbs and sugar intake.
Well, my hubby swears by it. All your hubby can do is try it, maybe adjust it to his needs and give it a try. Hope it works for you guys too. 🙂
Thank you for sharing your journey. It’s tough, but with dedication and a support system it will work.
That is true. We seem to be keeping each other on track.
Thanks for sharing that weight loss journey!
🙂 Thanks for reading.
Great job! I love his determination and dedication. I also love how you support him.
Thank you. He has relied on my cooking skills quite a bit, and he has been helpful in finding adjustments to our former favorites.
It is pretty cool that he was disciplined enough to try 20 carbs a day!
Totally! He gets all worried when he has gone over. But it has worked pretty well for him. Me on the other hand, I go over everyday. lol.
I know I too need to lose weight and become healthier, so I identify with you in that I am not always motivated to do the “right” thing. Continue on your journey with your husband and feel good!
Thank you. Going cold turkey is always hard. Maybe a slower pace like what I am doing will work for you. 🙂
Very interesting post! I appreciate your honesty about this journey! I neeeeeeeeeeeeed to find a way to adapt the same resolve y’all have found. {By the way, don’t ask your husband to get proof of you snoring…that’s probably not a video you want to see/hear, ha ha!}
LOL. I totally agree on not letting a video get produced. Luckily he has not mentioned it lately, maybe losing the weight has helped me stop snoring. (not that I ever snored) 🙂