KeithBartlett.com

I didn't blog an update last week after my August 16 weigh-in so I'm going to catch up both weeks today.  Regardless of my weight the best part of the last two weeks is that I already feel better physically.  I'm not exercising aggressively or even moderately at this point.  I'm walking more, lifting light weights at home, and most importantly eating better.  I'm keeping my calories low and my food quality high.  I am (mostly) avoiding junk, eating lower carbs, and having at least one salad per day.  My splurge is on Starbucks chocolate chip cookies.  I know I had at least 5 this week.  Free and discounted stuff plus triple stars as a partner; that's challenging.  I'm going to a cycle bar on Wednesday and see how that works.  With the added weight in the past year I notice more joint aches in my knees and ankles. I do want to get back into running at some point, but that's about 20 pounds from here. Here's my numbers for the past two weeks:

     A few months ago I decided that in my quest to get back to a healthy weight I would start a blog to chronicle my progress. In those months I have opened Blogger and stared at the "New Post" link with all the enthusiasm one might feel if clicking that link would remove their own spleen. After all of the procrastination and anxiety about starting a weight loss plan and a public blog, it is the silly insignificant measure of .4 pounds that has motivated me to get on with it. Yes, four tenths of one pound is all it took.       In pre-pandemic January 2020, I, like many of us, was significantly smaller in the midsection.      I was a 34 waist, now 38. I wore medium shirts, now awkwardly draped in larges. My average daily step count is 50% below my pre-pandemic average. My pandemic diet was all the wrong foods for a quarantine lifestyle as Uber Eats dropped off more meals than I cooked. The biggest difference, however, is how I feel. 30 pounds ago I had so much more energy