Month 1 is down. It is the start of the second month and time to take body measurements as a baseline for where I am. Did I lose inches as well as weight?
“Any progress is good progress, no matter how little or how big”
TODAY’S AFFIRMATION
My second month body measurements are in – success?
One way to judge my health is my Body Mass Index (BMI). That tells me how much of my frame is weighted down with body fat. If I was at a normal, healthy weight, then my BMI should be between 20.0 and 26.0. But I have been in the 31.0 – 33.5 range for several years as my weight increased.
Where I carry my weight contributes to my health concerns. Men who carry excess fat around their belly, waist, and hips find themselves at an increased risk for heart disease, strokes, high blood pressure, and diabetes. Back problems, joint pain, and abdominal hernias are also problems I can face from hauling my fat around.
So I need to pull out a measuring tape and check just how much of the weight I’m losing is the health-endangering fat around my waist and belly. Success in this area is success in the overall goal of getting fit and returning to health.
The numbers for my second month body measurements
I’m mainly intersted in 4 measurements which indicate my BMI:
- Chest
- Belly – across the navel
- Waist – around my typical belt line
- Hips – around my hip bones
With these, I can get a fair barometer of how effective my weight loss efforts are. I carry a lot of fat here, not muscle. So a loss equals a loss of fat.
Last month I measured the Friday after I started my 16 Week Diet and Exercise Program. So I measured again on the Friday starting my fifth week.
These are the numbers so far:
| Body Part | June 7 | July 5 | +/- |
| Chest | 46.5 inches | 46 inches | -0.5 |
| Belly | 52.5 inches | 50 inches | -2.5 |
| Waist | 49.5 | 48 inches | -1 |
| Hips | 50 inches | 49 inches | -1 |
So, that is the weight loss I want to see! I am down in pounds and down in inches. Which means I may be “losing weight around my face” or fat off my thighs, and some muscle mass. But there is no doubt that the 2 1/2 inches off my gut is sub-abdominal fat!
Where I am today
This morning I weighed in at 239.2 pounds. I have, after 5 weeks, succeeded in losing 15 pounds. That is a minimum of 25% of the way to my goal.
While that should be exciting, I still feel I am behind. I wanted to be down 20 pounds at the end of June. Having cut sugar, carbs, most meat, dairy, and processed foods, I thought the weight would be melting off me in my sleep. It has been receding, but not fast enough! Where I should feel triumph I instead feel disappointment. And for the first time I cannot blame the bad foods I used to eat. I need to blame water, turmeric tea, raw cabbage, kimchi, and a 350 calories-a-day tuna plate. And that blame doesn’t sit right.
Damn, am I actually so old that I’m the guy they talk about when they describe older people whose metabolisms make weight loss and exercise recover hard? I look around and I know that what I want to do can be done. And it can be done by people my age. It is being done by people my age, some in worse physical condition than me.
Well, I can’t argue with success, even if it is by degrees. Maybe a 20 pound-a-month loss was shooting for the moon and I’m landing in the stars. I’ve got 12 more weeks to hit my goals, and thus reach the goal weight I’ve strived for and dreamed of for years.
Or I could get bitter and frustrated and just quit. Then it would take me another 16 weeks to start again. I don’t want to start again. I want to stick to it and finish.
