A normal day

I woke up at 4am to feed the baby

At 5am I started doing things around the house. I took out the trash and did some dishes

At 6am, the dog started barking, so I took care of her

At 7am, I realized I needed to get to work. I already did things around the house for three hours!I did not work out like I wanted to. I was going to go after work

At 8am I arrived at work. We were busy at the restaurant yesterday so there was a lot of work to do!

At 10am was my first conference call of the day.

At 11am I started cooking a little, to get ready for the evening.

At 1pm I got two emails on my iPhone about weight loss. I answered them the best I could on the phone.

At 2pm I had my second conference call of the day.

At 4pm we were ready for our dinner shift.

At 6pm I realized we were a little busier than expected.

At 8pm I was supposed to leave work, but yet we were busier than expected.

At 9pm I left work. My wife needed some things at the store, so I decided to go.

At 10pm I was contemplating going to the gym. I just left the grocery story, and it was getting late

At 11:30pm I just finished burning 1300 calories

At 12am I got home and fed the baby. I also did a few more dishes and a load of laundry

At 1am I realized I have not blogged in a couple of days, so I thought I would do so

At 2am I went to bed.

I have no more tears

I might look at things a little differently than most. I wrote a lot of this before, but since people ask me how and why I stay focused, I thought it would be good to show you how I think.

I will admit, I am a little extreme, but I need to be.

Maybe you will not follow my eating or workout habits, but willpower, consistency and courage will get you to your weight loss and fitness goals.

Why I am the way I am!

Scenario:

A guy is in a committed relationship. On Thanksgiving, he goes out of town and cheats on his wife. He loves his wife, but Thanksgiving is a holiday. Who cares if he cheats?

That is why I eat the same way 365 days a year. I made a commitment to my family and myself, for life! There are no special occasions for my health. If I "cheat" I am letting my family down along with myself.

Scenario:

A guy really wants a Mercedes Benz! He can only afford a Chevrolet. Instead of saving money, he gets Mercedes Benz decals and puts them all over his Chevrolet. He tells everyone he has a Mercedes.

This is what I think about low fat foods. I had to change the way I look at food. I have portion issues, which are better, but will never be cured. There is a difference between eating a head of cauliflower and a gallon of "low-fat" ice cream. If you have this issue, do not try to fool yourself.

Scenario:

A gambler quits gambling. All of the sudden, he gets a hot tip on the Super Bowl. He bets his house on it and loses.

I do think that one mistake might ruin me. I hear about people having 8000 calorie nights with ice cream, cake and pizza. I also see how hard it is for them to get back on track. I can not do that. Not now, not ever. I have had those days before and I know how hard it is to get back on track.

Scenario:

A motivational speaker goes to jail for embezzling money.

I need to "walk the walk". It makes no sense to me how people try to motivate when they can not do it for themselves. I need to be credible. I can talk about working out because I do it consistently. I do talk about cauliflower because I eat it A LOT!

I WILL NOT BE A STATISTIC!!!!

I will not be one who lost a lot of weight to gain it back.

I can't!

Scenario:

A guy runs a marathon backwards

I know what works for me. I know that drinking H20 means nothing if I eat like crap. I know that running a mile means nothing if I eat 10,000 calories. I have to stay on point. If not, I will be fooling myself like I have for thirty years.

Scenario:

A kid does not get the bicycle he asked Santa Claus for even though he was good.

I can not pray for this to happen. I need to do this every single day. I am not single anymore. I have a family. I have too many people who want me to succeed.

I will not fail!

Scenario:

A 420 pound chef cries when he is told that he is too overweight to adopt a child
A 420 pound chef cries when his wife can not hug him all the way
A 420 pound chef is upset when he does not get a promotion.
A 420 pound chef can not go on a plane to visit his family

I will not cry or get upset for what I can not do. Because I "can do"!

I am in this snowball fight for life!!!

The $7.50 per hour caring guy!

Today after working out I went to Wal-Mart, I mean SUUUUPPPER WAL-MART!!!!!! (Groceries make it Super!)

There is nothing better than being full of sweat and going to a busy Wal-Mart with two cashiers on duty!

After 20 minutes it was my turn to check out.

A 300 pound cashier with a beaming smile greets me, and then goes into an amazing monologue!

Here is exactly what the cashier told me:

"Hey, sir! Thanks for coming in! How are you today!
Great!!!!
Hey I see you are getting some apples and salad. Are you on a diet or something?
I just lost 15 pounds, but I am power lifting!
I lifted 350 pounds on the bench press the other day! Some people do not believe me, but I did it.
I also squatted 700 pounds. Now listen, do me a favor, if you bench press or squat, please have a spotter.
Everyone is born with two knees and arms and we need to take care of them, okay!
Hey! You are smiling, I am glad I made you smile!
Anyway, as I was saying, I lost 15 pounds, but I suggest you start off slow. 1-2 pounds is all you should be losing a week. I AM SERIOUS!!!
If you lose more, you will lose muscle and then not be able to bench press. I did tell you that I bench press 350 pounds, right.
Hmmm, peaches, you ARE on a diet!
I love Oreos! Double Stuff are my favorite. So good! I used to have a girlfriend who loved them as well, but I am single now.
Ahhh yeah, single and ready to mingle!!!! I would love to go on a date now because I want to see the Harry Potter movie! I really do not want to go by myself.
Maybe someone here will want to go? I love working here, people are so nice to me.
Anyway, did I tell you I can bench 350 pounds!


I did not interrupt this employee one time. I did not tell him that I lost over 200 pounds, or how much I work out, or that I just had a baby.

I just listened to him and smiled.

On my way out, I saw some sort of manager/supervisor and went up to her:

"Hey, I was just in the checkout line for 20 minutes."

"Oh, I do apologize."

"You see that guy working the cash register"

"Oh, Bob? He can be annoying"

"Yeah, Bob! Take care of him! I did not find him annoying. He loves his job and cares about the people who go through the line. He is a keeper!"

I truly LOVE people who care!

Laughter

While at work yesterday, I was walking when I heard someone say in the background

"Hey Chubs!!"

I did not turn around.

It was a guest hugging his friend, who I guess he has not seen in a while.

For the first time, I knew the guest was not talking to me. I was not the "Chubs" he was referring to.

One of the hardest parts of this journey is realizing I am not overweight anymore. It sounds stupid, but so true.

Growing up, I was the "Jolly-Funny" one. Not "Jerry Seinfeld" funny or "Eddie Murphy" funny, but "Chris Farley" funny.

I was the guy that used to do the "Fat Guy in a Little Coat" routine to make the cute girls laugh. I used to do the "Truffle Shuffle" so I would not get beat up. In fact, I would do anything not to be made fun of first.
I can do a "dead on" impression of Cartman from Southpark, and I dressed like "Uncle Buck" for Halloween.

I hated every single minute of it.

I hated the fact that I humiliated myself just to be accepted. I insulted myself so that people would like me.

I stood against the wall at parties. I was there to do the "You been here for four hours Chinese Buffet" routine.

Yet, through so many years of humiliation, I knew one day something would click. I always knew that I was a strong willed person. I was dedicated, but in so many wrong ways.

I always thought it was weird that I ate $40 worth of Taco bell at 2am. Why couldn't I just take that energy and do something positive for myself.

As you know, I did!

I changed the way I look at food and exercise. It was three months, then six. Now I am going on a year and a half strong.

I put my pictures up everywhere. At first people were like "Wow, that is cool". Now people are like "Those pictures are not real."

I love that!

A couple of weeks back, I got a message on FaceBook from a girl I went to high school with. She was a pretty Lettergirl (Our version of a dance squad) who is struggling with weight. In high school, she would never have given me the time of day. She might have even made a joke or two about me.

I wrote her back and told her that I will do anything to help her. I can inspire, try to help with food or even try to write up a beginner work out plan.

I meant it sincerely.

The truth is I hurt for so many years. I did not do this "journey" to prove people wrong.

I did this to prove myself right. Now people are laughing with me, not at me.

Chuck Norris...Surgeon General

So I have been reading about the Surgeon General nominee
Dr.Regina Benjamin.

One one side her credentials are awesome! She was the first African American woman on the AMA (American Medical Association) board of trustees. She runs a non-profit medical clinic in Alabama. People who know about her rave about her. Her knowledge will change American health.

On the other side, she is overweight ( FYI- the last Surgeon General was not in great shape!). Every time I turn on the TV I see how America is "obese" or I live in the "fattest" city, or someone trying to sell me "diet" pills. Her weight really should not have anything to do with it. But, I mean....it is the position of America's health.

You know, the one where people around the world laugh at us because of our enormous portions at McDonald's.

So I have a solution! Dr. Regina Benjamin will be America's surgeon general!

Then, she needs to get Chuck Norris to be her sidekick!

Every time I am on Facebook, three things happen. I get hit with a virtual water balloon, someone gives me a virtual plant, or I get asked how long I would last in a fight with Chuck Norris!

After taking the quiz, I realized I would last 2 seconds with Chuck Norris.

I lost 200 pounds and am in pretty good shape, yet I would only last 2 seconds.

Now, we need Chuck Norris. Could you imagine?

He could break down the doors at public schools and pin the principal up against the wall. While the principal is shaking, Chuck would say:

" You need to bring back GOD-DAMN PE!!!!!!"

Or he can break down the doors at Burger King's headquarters, pin the CEO up against the wall and say:

"Angry Whopper!!!! Get that GOD-DAMN burger off the menu, or I will show you ANGRY!!"

He could fight the ninjas that make Pepsi, or infiltrate the secret recipe for Twinkies.

Chuck Norris could go to FOX and tell them to stop making reality shows that "focus" on overweight people. he could go in, karate chop the producer, and then say:

"I got "More to Love" right here. Now get the GOD-DAMN show off the air and show reruns of "Walker, Texas Ranger"!

By the way, for some reason, I always think Chuck Norris says God Damn!

I think Dr. Regina Benjamin's weight really does not matter. The surgeon general does so much with disease control and overall health of America.

Now... if Jillian Michaels was 40 pounds overweight you would love her, right? If I weighed 350 pounds, you would still love the fact that I eat cauliflower, right?

Maybe

Being overweight sucks

I am in a real irritable mood today!

I wrote three blog posts that will offend if I post them, and although I am feeling "zesty" I do not want to offend.

So I am going to leave you with this, and I can say it because I was a 420 pound, 58 pant size 5xl shirt wearing 12 extra wide shoe wearing sweat box that knows just as much about weight loss in the 400 pound days as in the 198 days.


Being overweight sucks!

Day 22- Lesson Learned

I was asked if I learned anything while on this "life change". Well, I did learn a lot!

Here is one of the things I learned.

This is a picture of me when I first met my beautiful wife.

I just came off a diet where I lost 80 pounds. In this picture I am around 230.
I remember the shirt because it was an XL. I also remember the pants I wore were size 38.

As you know I gained all of the weight back and then some, until I was over 400 pounds!

When I was over 400 pounds, I used to look at this picture and get miserable!

I could never understand why I gained all of the weight back. It was so easy for me to lose it.

I used to hate myself for it!
People look at their old pictures and get sad. They think that they can never be "that great" or look "that young".

I was no different.

Today at 33, I realized that there is no better time than now. It sounds silly, but I learned not to live in the past. What you might have thought was "your best" really was not.

At 25 I lost weight by eating 1000 calories a day
At 25, I was using Stacker 2's. Not the Stacker 2's you can get at GNC now, but the "Real Deal Holyfield" ones with Ephedrine.
At 25 I did not work out. I should have, but really had no desire to.

At 33, I learned how to eat where it works for me
At 33 I have a great workout ethic
At 33 I have a wonderful wife and child

I learned never to live in the past! I am better today than I was yesterday!

I hate.....

I hate people who complain about grocery lines being so long
I hate when my wife corrects me gramer on me blog
I hate excuses
I hate tying my shoes
I hate when people tell me they are going to do something
I hate not working
I hate "Dance Your Ass Off"
I hate the fact that it took me so long to change my life
I hate smooth talkers
I hate Value Menu's at fast food restaurants
I hate when people tell me 1-2 pounds is the maximum weight people should lose, then when they lose more they "worked harder".
I hate hypocrites

I think people DO NOT beat themselves up enough. Maybe it sounds conceited, but I think people should take actions in changing their lives rather than talk about it.

I love......

I love to prove people wrong.
I love my job.
I love the fact that I do not believe in luck, coincidence, or chance.
I love my wife.
I love working out.
I love my son.
I love that I have a son.
I love vegetables.
I love water.
I love helping people who really want help.
I love to write.
I love my pictures.
I love myself.
I love my story.

I think people beat themselves up to much. Maybe it sounds conceited, but I think people should talk about what they love rather than why they do not like themselves.

Confessions of a dieter's wife

Hi, I'm Rebecca, and I'm married to Tony, "The Anti-Jared". Sometimes I feel like that's how I should introduce myself in social settings; that people know me, or think they know me for my husband's accomplishments. And those of you who follow Tony regularly know all about those accomplishments... What you don't know are the things that I get asked all the time:

Does Tony really eat like that all the time? Was he really 420 pounds? Do you eat the way Tony does? Do you really have things like chocolate and diet soda in the house all of the time? Did he really cook bacon and potatoes and pancakes for you while you were pregnant? Does he ever cheat? What is life like in our kitchen?

Well, here is my attempt to answer some of those questions and more, dispel any rumors, and yes, let you meet "The Anti-Jared's" wife...

When Tony and I met and started dating nearly nine years ago, we spent the majority of our evenings and dates trying different restaurants all over Charlotte. We tried new ones as they opened, visited favorites where the servers knew us and what we ordered; we never ate at home even though Tony is a great cook, and yes, I can cook too. Well, once we did (for New Year's Eve - but that's another story). We LOVED eating out. You could say we were passionate about it. Not only did I eat out nearly every evening with Tony, I also ate breakfast and lunch out every day because of my job at the time. Let's just say the 15 lbs that I didn't gain as a freshman in college, landed on my hips and then some! So yes, eventually Tony did weigh 420 lbs, and I managed to be buying size 18 pants. Now, I've never been a tiny girl - I've always had curves, and I've always embraced them. I don't ever remember being smaller than a size 8 or 10.

About a year before Tony decided that enough was enough and he was going to change his life, I was diagnosed with hypoglycemia (essentially, low blood sugar). I had to completely change everything about the way I ate; no more white flour or white sugar, I had to read labels. It was a huge shock to my system, but I went from feeling horrible to feeling like myself again. Was it hard, yes. Did I cheat - absolutely. Now, did I change again a year later when Tony changed his diet. Nope. I still ate processed food, bread, rice, pasta; all the things I loved. Tony gave all that up. He amazed me and continues to amaze me. Yes, we have all of those things in our house at all times - because that's what I like. Just because Tony and I are married, we haven't needed to be married to each other's eating habits and diets. Does Tony ever touch those things - never. I have never, ever seen him touch any of those things since he changed the way he eats. Never. So no, he never cheats. And he's never tempted... heck, we had a ton of leftover, buttercream cake in the house for 2 weeks after my baby shower that I ate entirely on my own (kindly my hypoglycemia took a temporary hiatus while I was pregnant).

Does Tony ever judge me for what I eat - no. Does he cook for me - all the time.

Now post-baby, I've started using a little bit of what I've gleaned from Tony over the last year and a half... I want to lose the rest of my baby weight, in a healthy way. Will I ever eat the way my husband does? Absolutely not because that won't work for me. Have I modified how I eat taking lessons from Tony? Absolutely because they work. Will I ever work out as hard as my husband? Not even if I for some crazy reason wanted to wear a bikini next month... Again, because that won't work for me. I will get the baby weight off and then some, in my own way and own time.

Tony does what works for him and I support him with all my heart. I do what works best for me and he in turn supports me whole-heartedly. I love my husband and am amazed by him every day... So that's a little about Tony and I. And yes, I love being "The Anti-Jared's" wife!

Q and A

Answer:

December 14, 2007 7:36am 420 pounds

"Man, I did not get any sleep last night. Stupid arm kept on going numb. Which arm is it for the heart attack, left or right. I think left. Well, both arms were numb. That really sucks, I could have used the sleep. Thank god I am off work today!
I do not want to get up. I am wet all over. How hot is it in this house! I do not have any clothes to change into. I really need to wash my shirt and pants. Well, I am upstairs, the machine is downstairs. Maybe I will wash my clothes later.
Wait, it is not hot in this house. I needed to go to the bathroom three hours ago but did not get up. I really hope I did not wet the bed. That would suck!!!! Especially since I do not have another pair of underwear to put on. Oh well!
It is amazing how I take up most of a queen size bed. But I fit on it, so that is good!
I really need to start eating better. I think I will start today! Wait, I have pizza in the fridge. Good thing I bought three yesterday!!! Well, maybe I will start eating well later on tonight. Yeah!
I need to go to the bathroom again, but I really do not have the energy. Let me go back to bed. I am not doing anything today. I will just tell the wife I did not feel well. And when I do get up, I will clean the mess the dog left!"

Question:

June 3, 2009 198 pounds

"What keeps you motivated?"

Pop Tarts with Fiber

Today I went shopping for food when I saw the huge display for.......

"Pop Tarts With Fiber"

Yep, those delicious Pop Tarts now have fiber in them. If I am not mistaken, 20% more!!!

You know, I want to apologize to every single one of my readers. Every one!

I want to apologize to the 98% that support me no matter what.
I want to apologize to the 2% that do not support me yet read every post and know an incredible amount about me:

"I hate you. In post 132 you wrote that you ate a apple chip. I thought you only ate fresh apples. You disgust me!! By the way, how is the wife and baby?"

I want to apologize to my wife and my baby and my dog.

Even my cats!

Why am I apologizing you might ask?

Because I need to be more honest.

I have lost 200 pounds.
I did not go on binges on weekends.
I did not fool myself with "healthy processed foods",
I never made excuses for not working out. I could have!

So I am going to give a tough love list. One that more bloggers should write about.

Losing weight is not about eating more protein or watching late night snacks.

It is about not fooling yourself. So I wrote a list of things that you night or might not know. It helped me!

TOUGH LOVE LIST!

1. Your scale works!- In this tough economy, the scale is really the best worker out there. The scale will tell you if you really ate a handful of M&M's or not. The scale will tell you if your portions were in line. If the scale can not tell you, your pants will!
In one week, how much water can you retain?
If you are gaining weight and your pants do not fit, you need to adjust your program!
Also, if you weigh yourself more than once a week, it is not accurate. It is not impressive that you lost a pound naked at 5am when you have not eaten for twelve hours on Tuesday, and gain three pounds on Wednesday!

2. Restaurants did not make you overweight, you did!- Subway is notorious for being one of the healthiest restaurants. They have so many healthy options, and great portion sizes as well.

By the way, their number one seller is the Meatball Sub. It always has been and always will be.

All restaurants have a healthy option. Okay, maybe not your Mom and Pop on third street, but the majority of restaurants do.
You need to make better choices if you want to slim down. Either eat cleaner or smaller portions. Either way, do not blame Chili's for putting Liquid Butter in their fajitas. Blame yourself for not ordering off the Guiltless menu!

3.Who are you "Cheating"?- The word cheat, in my opinion, does not apply to weight loss. Either you are eating well, or you are not. Both have their place, but who are you cheating?

4. Frozen Dinners- Just to add, I hope you know that there are no healthy chefs making those delicious Lean Cuisines. Those are just smaller versions of your "favorite" restaurant food, with salt. Nothing wrong with them, but if you take an empty container to a restaurant and fill it up, you just made a 300 calorie meal.

5. Who loses weight faster, guys or gals?- Listen, I have not read the latest edition of Prevention, but it seems like whoever is the most dedicated to eating well does the best, guy or girl. Whoever doesn't get frustrated with a plateau or does not have "blown weekends" does the best.

6. Experts- Just because you lost 60 pounds does not make you an expert. In fact, I lost 220 pounds, and I am no expert. I know what works for me. I can give a little advice. But because you can say "Organic" does not make you a guru! Because you hit a $5000 jackpot on a slot machine does not mean you can do it all of the time!

7. Weight Watchers?- You do not have to buy the 2 point "Nut Extreme" and have a tattoo of the WW emblem to be on Weight Watchers. In fact, you can eat pencils, gravel, and printers and still be on Weight Watchers. The program helps with eating healthier and portion control, which are the only ways I know to lose weight. I really am sick of the Weight Watchers perfectionist who know every rule yet can not keep the weight off.

8. Fiber- I will never talk about it again, which is a shame. The media has destroyed it. Fiber in cottage cheese, yogurt, and now Pop Tarts. By switching to fruits and vegetables is one of the main reasons I lost weight. Now it is a big joke. Fiber in Splenda, come on!!

9. My husband/wife does not support me!- Make Him/Her support you!! It is not an option. My wife used to tell me all the time:
"You can eat these chips, they are low fat!"
"I made these potatoes, there is only a little cheese in them!"
"Why can't you have bread"
I told her no every time. At first she did not understand, but eventually she did.

10. I love Ruby!- You do not know Ruby, nor Jon and Kate, or the Bachelorette! You know an edited version of a show!

Love yourself!

Now it is time for me to find my big boy panties and head out into the sunset!

No more sugar-coating! I gave up sugar eighteen months ago!

By the way, this is my favorite post!

Sixteen months!

Not bad after sixteen months!!

Anonymous

DISCLAIMER!!!

The point of this post is to detail my immaturity as a blogger earlier this year. It is not to rehash anything from the past.
This was inspired by the "anonymous" comments I have seen on people's blogs lately. When you get five comments, and one of them is nasty, it stinks!!
The person depicted in the situation below is, well, honestly a great person. He/She has a great blog, and well, probably lost more weight than you have.
Now, enjoy the post!

Believe it or not, I have written over 200 posts now!
People have asked me which post is my favorite. There is no question about it!

This one right here!!!!

I was reminded of it when I got home yesterday and saw a crappy "anonymous" post on my friend's blog (Carlos). Here is someone who is sharing his life with people and writing something fun every day. Then someone, who is hiding behind a rock, writes a nasty comment!

Whatever!

Well, I never talked about how my favorite post came about. If you have not read it, you should at least read the comments. Most blasted me, and some do not leave me comments anymore! I am not proud of why I wrote it, but I am glad I did.

Okay, that makes no sense, but neither does fiber!

So, six months ago I had a long day at work. I remember because I was switching bosses and corporate people were in town.

It was incredibly stressful!

I also answered twenty questions on my Blackberry about weight loss. I still try to answer as many questions as possible. I remember one of the questions that day was:

"I saw you are close to losing 200 pounds. Do you eat cheeseburgers? I love cheeseburgers!"

My wife was pregnant, and I was running around after work to find her "the perfect meal".

That is always fun! Especially since it does not exist!

Anyway, I finally got home! I sat by the computer and tried to relax.

I was reading some blogs when I saw a post that alluded to me. I do not remember what it said, but it was something like:

" I am irritated by people who say they are "inspirations".

My name was not on there at all, which made me mad. I also knew exactly who this blogger was talking about.

I showed my wife and she giggled, which made me even madder!

I told her I was going to write a negative post, to defend myself. She told me not to!

"Just let it go, who cares! You lost the weight. People will be jealous, let them be. You do not know what is going on in this blogger's mind!"

Well, that is my problem. Stupid stuff bothers me! I usually listen to my wife, I did not do so this time!

So I wrote the this piece. It was different than anything else I had written in the past. It was mean spirited, and very "to the point". I was mad!

I was mad that I have helped this blogger in the past.
I was mad that this blogger was someone who called me an "inspiration" (which if you know me I am not fond of that term.)
I got mad when I read the first comment on her post that said:

"I think I know who you are talking about and he annoys me as well."

That was it. I wrote a post that blasted the blogger and defended me.

It was a stupid thing to do. Why, it only made me look bad.

There will always be people who are jealous of you, no matter what. Maybe you lost 200 pounds, or have 100 comments on a post, or drive a nice car etc.

Sometimes ignoring things is the best.

I showed a vulnerable side. I showed a side that, honestly, no one knew I had.

Anyway, I am getting off subject. Here is the reason why I wrote the post in the first place:

This blogger never put my name in the post.

Six months later, I have no animosity against the blogger or any blogger. I support all blogs on the side even though I might not love them all personally!

I was the "anonymous guy" the blogger alluded to. It was obvious.

I do not mind being insulted, just have the courage to do so.

That is why I so hate the nasty anonymous comments people leave. Weak!

Have a touch of courage!

The Salesman

A long long time ago in a galaxy far far away.......

I was a mortgage broker!!

Before my restaurant management days, I worked as a mortgage broker for a small firm in Charlotte, NC.

I was really good at it. It was easy to sell people on refinancing their homes. I had a lot of clients.

While I was doing it, I was approached by a woman. Her son was in jail and she needed to get money to bail him out.

She was desperate to get money. She wanted to refinance her home so she could get money to bail out her son (The bail was like $10,000 so he did something pretty rough!).

She was a single 66 year old woman living on Social Security.

Desperation is delicious for a salesman. I worked out the numbers and the deal I had at first had me making $9500. My bosses were pleased!

For a 23 year old kid living at home, that is huge!
For a 33 year old father, that is huge!

I ended up making $50 on the deal.

It was the last mortgage deal I ever did.

Sometimes when you have a gift, you have to be very careful.

I have a gift. I am an incredible salesman. I could sell you anything.

I was approached by a company a couple months back about my weight loss. Losing 220 pounds in a year is crazy, yet amazing!

They wanted me to promote their product. It was good money. I am not sure if it was life altering money, but decent. Then they sent me a email that had this included:

"You might want to change your story a little. The way you eat and work out will intimidate people. Throw in you eat a piece of pizza once in a while. Tony...that is Italian! You need to relate to people better."

I declined their offer.

I am not a liar.

I watch so many success stories on the Today Show, and Oprah, and Tyra. They have people who make weight loss look so easy!

Why was it never like that for me.

After twenty years, I finally had the courage to change my life. I did not do it overnight. I have wanted to do it for a long time!

I have been successful of 18 months now! I have kept the promise I made to myself that i will keep the weight off.

Is it easy?

What do you think?

Is it easy for you day in and day out to keep your weight off.
Is it easy to make food decisions every day.
Is it easy to wake up and work out.

No, it is not easy. And anyone who tells you otherwise is a God-Damn liar!

I am not ever going to alter my story. I love my story!

I hope one day my story goes national.

"Did you hear about this restaurant manager/chef who lost over 200 pounds. He lost the first 100 pounds while working at Chili's. CHILI'S! Yeah, the same one that has the 2700 calorie "Onion Appetizer". Then he got promoted at work, and he changed the way he eats. He works out a lot as well. He went like 99 minutes on a StairMaster or something! He says he did it for the love of his wife. I heard he took time off of work to take care of her while she was recovering from surgery. He still works in a restaurant after losing 220 pounds, and, well, I do not know how he does it!"

I do not want to inspire people to eat like me, or work out like me.

I do want people to know that as hard as it is, as much as you feel like their is not hope, it is possible.

Okay, maybe you will not lose 200 pounds in a year. Actually, you won't!

I also hope you do not need to!

But if you can make good decisions 80% of the time, you can change your life!
If you are active two..even three days a week, you will feel better!
If you add fruits and vegetables to your food arsenal, you will feel fuller!

So I will not be selling you a diet system or pills. I will not sell you a sweet workout video or containers to put your food in.

The only thing I can push is my story. The more I maintain this loss, the more credible it will become!

99 Red StairMaster Minutes Go By!

So as you might are might not know, I had a StairMaster challenge.

On my blog I had 49 comments. Which is not bad!
Every comment went like this :
"I LOVE Jen's blog!!!!! She is awesome. I am going to vote for both of you!!!"

On Jen's blog, she had 148 comments. Okay, so I commented 12 times, but still 148 comments!
Here is how most of her comments went:
"Kill Tony, you can do it!! Make him sweat!!!"

Well, at the end of the day, Jen will go on the StairMaster for 42:30 minutes

And I will go on for 67 minutes.

Well, how about this! I already went on the StairMaster today for 99 minutes.

The first 60 minutes was easy.
Between 60-90 minutes I was getting very tired
Between 90-95 minutes I saw Michael Jackson
Between 95-99 minutes I saw Andrew Jackson

Here is a pic at 95 minutes, and a pic at 97 minutes. The machine reset after 97 minutes, which I was upset about because i thought it reset after 99!

You can see the floors and calories burned. 7 miles of Stair Heaven!!

I also added a pic of me after. Yes, I sweated a lot through the sweatshirt!








After the workout, I rushed home. Remember, I am still taking care of my family after surgery. When i got home, I changed a diaper and made my wife some food

What, you thought she ate cauliflower!

I got rocked in comments, so I do not think I won the challenge. In fact, i do not think there are any losers, only winners!!!

Here is what I learned!

January 2008, I could not put on socks by myself.
I could not go up three flights of stairs.
I got written up twice at work for sitting down a lot.
I would let my dog poop and pee on the floor because I was too tired to let her out.
I could not take care of my family.

It is real nice to be known as someone in shape now! It is also nice to be considered a challenge.

Thank you JEN!!!!

The Word Fat

First off, I want to thank everyone for commenting on Jen's blog.

At this rate I will be on the StairMaster for 12 hours!!!

Well, maybe not, I think the last time I checked she was at 117 comments. I will have to think of something creative after 140 comments because my gym has strict rules about being on a piece of cardio for 65 minutes.

Trust me though, I will try to go longer, I will have to "sneak the sweat"!

I have been overweight my whole life. When you are an overweight kid, there are a few things that come with the territory:

1. Your pants will have to be shortened. You can not wear size 38 pants when you are 5 foot 1 and 220 and not have them adjusted.
2. You always think people are making fun of you. One of my defense mechanisms was to beat people to the punch and make fun of myself first.

3. Have nicknames

I have had more nicknames about my weight than I can count. I have heard it all!

Piggy, Chubs, Fat-Ass, Butterball, Jackie Gleason, Orson Wells (The smart drama kids called me that!), Hungry Hippo, etc.....

Trust me, if you want me to go on, I will!

The one thing that has always bothered me, and I might be the only on that is bothered by this, is when people refer to themselves as fat.

It does not make sense to me.

Here is why.

At what weight are you "fat".

Example one- In high school I thought I was fat. I looked in the mirror with my shirt off in disgust. I would do everything to lose weight. In 1990, I really did not have many options except not eat very much.
I lost weight and still thought I was fat.
By the way, in high school, I was 5 foot 6 and weighed 164 pounds.

Example two- Last August, I lost an incredible 140 pounds. I was going to the gym 6 days a week. I was "eating clean" for a couple of months. I was able to take walks with my wife, and I ran around at work. There was no way I was fat!
By the way, last August I was 5 foot 6 and weighed 280 pounds.

I think that people throw the word fat on themselves so much, and it is so subjective. They say they are fat and weigh 180 pounds. Then someone else says they are fat and weighs 240 pounds.

There is a girl I know that "needs to lose five pounds" because she has "never been this fat!!"

She weighs 110 pounds.

Here is maybe the main reason I do not like the word:

Once you "think" you are fat, you will always be fat in your mind!

You will lose the five pounds, then realize you need to lose five more. It is hard to get out of that "fat" mentality!

You will always beat yourself up.

You will look at yourself and think you are fat. People around you will say "Oh my God, you are not fat!" but we will think that.

I told this to someone who thought it was a dumb concept. In fact, so many people will!

She looked at me and said "Well, what should we call ourselves?"

Overweight maybe. At least there is a point where you are not overweight.

Phat maybe?

How about "determined to get healthy".

The Stairmaster Invitational and I love changing diapers

As you might know, I love going to the gym!

I love lifting weights and I love the elliptical machine!

At my gym there are plenty of bench press machines and barbells. There are over 40 elliptical machines and 50 treadmills!

There are only 2 StairMaster machines. No one is ever on them either!

Well, except for this really thin girl with a "Bebe Sport" top, but that does not count!

Stairs are a scary thing for an overweight person. I always hated going up stairs. I would get out of breath. I would feel numbness in my arms.

I could not do it!

After working out for over a year, I finally decided to tackle the StairMaster.

If you have never done the machine, here is a brief synopsis of it.

First 5 minutes- You wonder why so many people complain about doing this. I mean, it is just stairs?
After 5 minutes- Death!

I worked my way up to 39 minutes on the machine after a couple of months. I would do it, then jump on the elliptical for another 30 minutes.

Anyway, so the other day, I saw this girl Jen on twitter.

She was texting while on the machine for support to go 45 minutes on the machine.

Sidenote- If you have not gone to Jen's blog, you should do so. She has lost 100 pounds, and her before and current pictures are amazing.
She is also the kind of blogger I like. She is one of those "I lost weight and want to help others" type of people. No fakeness with her!

Here is where I got irritated with myself. Here I am struggling with 39 minutes while Jen is going 45 minutes while texting on the machine.

Texting! Full 140 characters while on the machine while I am struggling with 39 minutes!

I realized I was better than the 39 minutes I have done, so I decided to challenge her to "The StairMaster Invitational"!

Here are the rules:

We each get 30 minutes on the machine:
For every comment you leave on Jen's post- 15 seconds are added to my time
For every comment you leave on my blog post- 15 seconds are added to her time

Either way, for every comment you leave on either post, I will donate $.10 per comment to the St. Jude's Children's Hospital.

I would love to get over 120 comments on here because I think she can do an hour!

I would love for her to get 140 comments!

Pretty simple. This is going on from now until Friday 5pm CST.

Now, if you know me, I usually do not wait. I was pretty pumped. So instead of doing back and biceps yesterday, I went on the SCARY StairMaster.

I went for 65 minutes.

Here is a picture of the machine at 61 minutes. Oooohhhh, over 200 floors!

Now, I am still off from work taking care of my wife and baby. Working out time is very precious to me. After going on the machine, I rushed home. I needed to cook dinner. Although I rarely talk about it, I am a chef.

Here is what I cooked for her- Tilapia with artichokes, olives, spinach, mushrooms, and brown rice

What, you thought she ate raw cauliflower as well!!!

Then it was time to feed baby and change the diapers. I love changing diapers by the way.
Here is a picture of me with a diaper. If you look, I am still sweating under my sweatshirt after two hours!So the challenge is on. I would love for you to go to Jen's website and leave a comment.

I would love to see her get over 140 comments, which would make me break my 65 minute record.

I would love for her to go a hour on the Stairmaster as well. I know she can do it!

I did!

BlogHim Convention

With all the discussion about BlogHer no one has mentioned anything about BlogHim.

I am so excited about going to BlogHim!

BlogHim is going to be in August of 2011 for two luxurious days in Vegas. Not really sure where in Vegas, but I am thinking right in the middle of a casino.

It will be two days of guy male weight loss bloggers.

Yeah....all 16 of us!

We will have fantastic seminars such as:

Who is your favorite 80's wrestler (Dusty Rhodes!)
Husbands on CBS sit-coms and their hot wives: fact or fiction!
Black socks with sandals, at what age?
Is there really a 100 calorie snack?
If you do not get a comment on a post, did you really write it?
Blackberry or iPhone?
How many times can TheAntiJared write about the same subject?
Best NFL football team to not go to the SuperBowl (1986 Cleveland Browns).
How many months do you wait to kick a blog off your blogroll if they do not update. Do you think they will come back?
Crystal Light? Is it the Zima of diet drinks.
How much fiber is in cardboard.
Worst video game system that you wasted a lot of money on (Can you say Sega Saturn!)
Do guys lose weight or get fit? Discuss.
Who would you rather be, Check Norris or Bruce Lee?
Who would you rather be, Sly Stallone or Ahhhhhrnold?
Who would you rather be, Garfield or Snoopy?


This is going to be two days of fantastic awesome blog heaven!


Actually, I just want to go to Vegas!


Who's in?

Day 5- Forgive

I never signed up for a C-2-3.76k

I never signed up for the "68 push-up challenge"

I also never settled to lose 100 pounds

Those are the whole reasons I lost 200 pounds.

When I lost my first 100 pounds, everyone was so excited! My Weight Watchers gave me a certificate, and my wife kept on gushing.

She was thrilled.

Losing 100 pounds did not matter to me at all.

It was not my goal.

At 320 pounds, I felt great. I was able to shop at "normal" clothing stores, although at the largest sizes. I was not out of breath, and I could put my seat belt on in the car.

Honestly though, I was scared.

Scared because losing 100 pounds was incredibly easy for me. I lowered my calorie intake and worked out.

Each week I would lose 6-12 pounds like nothing. I lost 100 pounds in some sort of crazy amount of time, about 13 weeks.

Losing 200 pounds changed my life!

I have talked about the foods I eat, but losing 200 pounds takes much more than that.

It takes being humble and love for yourself.

I realized I would never be stronger than food! I would never be able to "just" eat one cupcake, or have "a" cheat day, or "for one day" eat what I wanted to on vacation.

I was different.

I wanted to think I was stronger than the processed food I ate. I could beat it!

I saw so many others just eat one piece of pizza. My wife could have one sandwich.

Why couldn't I?

Why?

Because I am different.

I changed the way I looked at food. This is a 365 day journey. I can not slip up.....no, I do not want to slip up.

I have always had self confidence, but more than ever, I truly love myself.

I love the fact that I am able to deal with my food issues and work through them. I am proud that I can have "unhealthy" foods in the house and stay away from them. I am proud that I can find time to work out, and realize that is not an option.

It does not make me better than you, or stronger than you. I just realize I will not be around long if I think I can control it!

A couple of days ago I finally did something I have wanted to do for a very long time. Although my wife has never been upset with me for being over 400 pounds, and my family always loved me for me, I have always been upset with myself.

I finally forgave myself.

I forgave myself for getting over 400 pounds!

I forgave myself for being selfish. I know that I will never be able to enjoy one burger, or eat birthday cake. It is a sacrifice I am willing to take.

I will never forget the past. I have been overweight my whole life. I will always be that 420 pound guy in a 200 pound shell.

So after sixteen months of my new lifestyle I forgave myself for the past.

Now I can look to the future!

Day 2- Luck!

Today I woke up at 4:13am

I hate waking up when the ending numbers are 13. Yuck!!

I fed the baby and then walked the dog. It was raining outside, so I opened the umbrella for us to walk under. Unfortunately, I opened the umbrella inside the house!

Just my luck!

Then I did some things around the house for my wife. I wanted to wear my lucky shorts, but could not find them.

After that, I had to move a dresser and I broke the mirror that was attached to it.

There we go! Seven years of bad luck!!!!!

I went in the kitchen and a stupid light bulb was out! I got the ladder out of the garage, but ended up walking right under it.

Why didn't I walk around it!

The day was coming to an end, and I was tired! I saw a penny on the floor, but decided not to pick it up. I did not want to bend.

Overall, I guess you can say I had a very unlucky day!

Oh, by the way, I worked out, spent time with my family and ate well.

I mean, luck has nothing to do with good decisions, right?

You got questions.....

So here are a few questions I have been asked over the last few days:

Q: Did you eat "healthy" while you were at the hospital

A: I was at the hospital for five days. I did not go home to sleep, I stayed on one of those deluxe super duper fantastic foam bed. By the way, nothing with the word foam in it is super duper.
They had a cafeteria downstairs with different pre-made foods. They also had a huge buffet/salad bar. I think the food was $.54 an ounce.
With over 100 different selections, I always had spinach, broccoli, eggs, red kidney beans, mushrooms, cottage cheese, and a slice of deli chicken.
I would also buy an apple at a buck a pop! That is one expensive fruit!
So I did eat the way I have been for over a year. It was not super delicious, but then again I do not think and hospital food is supposed to be.

Q: Now with the baby, are you still working out?

A: It is funny how my weight loss was all about me when I started, and now so many people support me. I have an incredible family, on both sides. My mom's third question after asking about the baby and wife is if I am working out.
Now, I have taken time off from work to take care of my baby and wife, but I do have family come over for a couple of hours so I can go to the gym. I do a lot of work, so now more than ever it is important for me to be in shape.
I still wake up at 4:45am, but for a better cause. I also wake up at 3am, 1am, and any other "am" you can put in!
But yes, I am still going strong!

Q: Has your life changed?

A: Hmmmmmm......

Q: Oh my, it is July 1st, and I saw you had a contest, and I want to enter but I will not be able to get a picture to July 4th and where do I send it and.....

A: I am pretty excited about the "Missouri 60" because I have written down a lot of goals for myself. I will share them as I go along.
You can enter this contest any time in the 60 days! I will not tell someone they missed out on the deadline. It is to better yourself, not to win exercise cards!

Entering the contest takes courage. I have seen so many pictures, but the best part is the reaction. First I love the courage of people taking the pictures of themselves, then they beat themselves up, and then they get motivated!

Remember, this contest is for 60 days for a reason. That is where the difficult part comes in.

It is easy to enter a contest, but hard to finish one. I see so many people who love challenges, yet never finish one!

Enter this anytime.

Q: Prizes?

A:I have sent out some letters to companies to review products for this contest. I am not a fan of reviewing, but I am a fan of this challenge, so I will make the sacrifice. If you know of something to promote on here, let me know in exchange for a sweet prize!

If I can not find anything, I will get my own prizes. Also, give me ideas. I am a restaurant manager, not a party planner.

Q: In the contest, is it who loses the most weight?

A: Not at all! This contest is about who changes their life in 60 days. Maybe they asked and got a promotion at work, or maybe they changed the way they eat, or maybe they had the courage to go to Oregon.
Maybe you did lose that last "20 pounds" or join a gym. Maybe you passed on your mom's meatloaf.
To me, weight loss is about courage. 60 days is a lot longer than you think! It is about turning "Maybe" into "Definitely"!

Q: Are you going to put up pictures of people in the contest?

A: No, you should proudly display them on your blog. If you like, I can put a link on my blog for you blog, or something like that?

Q: I am so confused? How are you going to decide a winner?

A: Let's see how many people stick with this for 60 days. I have time for more details....

Q:I have a few more questions for you!

A: As always, email me questions anytime. My email is on my profile on the right. I will answer as much as possible.