Chasin' Mason

As my title suggests, it's been little more than a month since my last post.  My apologies.  Originally, I planned to return to blogging after the Easter holiday.  The next week came and I failed to post.  Then two weeks and so on.  Here I am, however, with a brand new post. This week's entry will feature three different subjects:  my first doctor's visit since starting this adventure, exercise and current weight.  Let's get to it shall we? Doctor's visit I've been to the doctor three times since my family returned to our hometown.  Once, because I was sick.  The second time, for blood tests.  The third, for the results. The most recent visit started off, as most do, with the scale.  I was expecting to see a number on the doctor's scale similar to the one on my scale at home.  No such luck.  The doctor's scale was ten pounds off and not in my favor.  I was perplexed and felt like the little boy who just watche...

I am a Hilltopper.  That's right.  I'm a proud Western Kentucky University alumni. Needless to say, I followed Friday night's game against Kansas with real excitement.  At times, I found myself getting "crappy" with the game and cursing from time to time.  In the end, Kansas topped the Toppers. On my way home from work, I thought a lot about the game.  Normally, I am not a "sports" person, but I noticed some parallels between the game and my weight loss adventure this week. Scales and Baskets Stepping on the scale this week was like trying to sink that three-pointer but it just wouldn't go in.  I have a bad habit of weighing myself every day.  I've tried to break it but I just can't seem to stop.  I have to see the number, good or bad. The number hasn't changed much this week.  I'm down three pounds which makes my current weight 359. Believe it or not, that's a bit closer to Weight Watchers' grand schem...

As this week's title suggests, I have lost enough weight that my clothes are starting to sag. It's a rather new feeling for me.  Only once in my life have I decreased my clothing sizes.  That happened in the summer of 2007. Earlier that year, a doctor diagnosed me with severe sleep apnea.  Shortly afterwards, he ordered me to use a CPAP machine, a mechanical terror hell-bent on robbing me of precious sleep.  Ironic, right? After struggling with the machine, my doctor suggested I have surgery to try to correct the condition. Five surgeries later (all happened at the same time), I began to drop the pounds.  At one point, I dropped 60 pounds.  My mom, along with my girlfriend (who is now my wife), decided it was time to buy some new clothes.  As much as I hated to go through with it, I did. One year later, I could no longer fit into those clothes.  I folded them and tucked them away. Fast-forward to the present... I normally wear 50/30 ...

So, I've been on the diet for more than two weeks now. I have to admit, going into the second week, I felt pretty good. And for good reason. I had dropped my first 20 pounds or so.  Then reality started to kick in. Suddenly the weight loss slowed. It was very, very discouraging. In fact, I had a minor meltdown. In my head, I knew it was merely the water weight but that didn't stop me from going nuts. And it's not like I was unaware it was going to happen. I wasn't making it any easier on myself either. I was weighing every single day. Whether you can tell it yet or not, I am very impatient. I want this massive amount of "baggage" gone now and I don't want to wait. However, you and I know that will not be the case. I've had close friends tell me the same thing but I try to be the superhero. I am always pushing myself in everything . That includes my diet and physical activities. Not a good idea, at least in the case of exercising. I decided...

You don't hear the phrase "in the can" very often these days. I love it. Not because it only denotes "trash," but also a completed project or part of a project. * I can happily say my first week of dieting is in the can. So what am I doing to lose weight and how do I feel so far? I realized last week, to lose this massive bulk, I was going to have to WANT it. And I want it plenty. That's not the problem. The problem is I'm weak. I've attempted this a couple of times in the past complete with dieting and exercise. None of them lasted very long. I would start eating again and put-off a workout until I spiraled back into my old ways. Quite simply, I was not invested in the "adventure." The funny thing is, up until last week, I thought I had plenty of reasons to drop the "extra cargo." I have a B-E-A-Utiful wife and daughter. I am also well aware of the health issues related to obesity and my family's medical ...

Eye-catching title, huh?  I'm quite proud of it. *  Blog entries should always have a strong title.  That being said, there is more to my selection than a jovial attempt to lure you to my "online, digital stage."  It's a statement about me and what this entry and future entries will be about. So, let's get to it shall we? I'm heavy... and not in a "Back to the Future" kind of way.  No, I'm heavy... as in obese.   It's actually an embarrassing admission.  I've never really stated it so bluntly... and meant it.  Oh, I've made plenty of "fat" jokes about myself, but I've never focused on the fact that I am indeed "massive." My healthy dose of reality came, oddly enough, while I was sick. My daughter and I caught an awful bug recently and both ended up at the doctor's office.  We had to go through the usual pre-screening.  That meant a check of the pulse, blood pressure, temperature, height a...

I do believe this country has forgotten the strategic use of suspenders.  I have to admit, I have been lacking in my application of the time-honored tradition.  Instead, we have employed the belt.  A device that shows no mercy to the giant belly of a big man.  In fact, most of us with a large middle section often (myself included) keep the belt above our umbilical detachment area for fear of belt buckle torture.  It's the only safe way to use the device. Some of you may be asking yourselves (and I'm sure you are) where exactly did the idea of suspending one's pants while wearing them come from?  I'll tell you. According to a Time article I read recently, suspenders first made their appearance in 18th Century France. Back then they were little more than ribbon strips tied to a person's trousers.  Of course, most people wouldn't have known if you were wearing them because they were considered undergarments and to see them in public was risqué.  ...