In January of 2004, I weighed 198 pounds.  I was living in San Francisco, and bicycling a twenty-five mile route almost every day.  In 2005, I moved to Seattle.  Before I moved back to California again in 2007, my weight had gone up to 260 or more pounds.  I could write a lot about the weight gain, but I’ll save it for a different post.

I have been wanting to lose that weight ever since, but haven’t had much luck.  I tried eating a low carb diet.  I signed up for Jumpstart MD, which coached me to eat tiny portions of specific foods.  The most fruitful approach was an aggressive exercise routine, but it also increased my appetite and made weight loss very slow.  I would put on muscle without losing fat.  Lots of exercise is great, but I’m convinced it’s better for helping me maintain a weight than for reducing it.

Just before New Year’s 2020, I started a new program.  My starting weight was 247.

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Two months later, and I’ve lost over twenty-five pounds.  This is a little over halfway to my goal.

Success has been surprisingly simple:  counting calories and weighing myself every day.  In time, I discovered that I didn’t need to eat as much as I thought.  I can eat a light dinner — soup, for example — and not struggle with sleeping.  On most days, I have a snack for breakfast, a hearty lunch of meat and vegetables, and a light dinner.  I won’t touch sugar, and I eat carbs sparingly.  I’m still drinking coffee and my diet energy drinks.  I don’t really feel like I’ve had to give up anything.

I have another twenty plus pounds to lose (and keep off), so the journey is not over.  To be continued!