The whole sad tooth lol

Well..

So, here's the deal... the tooth that was pulled was fine, needed to be pulled and I'm glad its gone. The problem however is this, the tooth that was pulled was NOT the whole issue. There was, or is, an infection in another tooth. It drove me mad with pain and of course there was no prescription for antibiotics when I had the original extraction. So I had to get a new scrip and wait for it to work.

Bottom line? 3 more sleepless nights....

There's no end I swear.

However, today I feel great, no pain at all and just waiting to finish out this course of Antibiotics and it off for a root canal... FUN I tell you.... FUN!!

Scale still dropping though...

Here we go, awful truth time...

I had snuck back up over 300 lbs.

Crazy.... like an addict I kept putting it back on and denying it.... but there you go.

Anyhooooo..... I was at 314 lbs this time around.... 314lbs... crazy number huh?

I got the fright and jumped back on the program again. My wife is my whip in this, my kids are the carrot.

That 314 was on July 1st, now, July 20th, not three weeks later, I am at 290. That's 24lbs in three weeks for the weak in math among us. Not bad, about what I would expect to be honest. It'll slow down some now.

Looking at setting a gym up in my shed. I just have this romantic image in my mind of going out there in Mid-Jan, getting the wood stove lit and stoked and working out while it's -15 outside and the snow is howling. Kinda like Rocky in Russia lol...

Also thinking about a bike... Gabe is learning now, it would be nice to be able to bike ride with him.

Thats about it for now...

Down but not out

So, I went to bed last Thursday with a slight discomfort in my jaw, nothing serious, almost as if I had bitten something hard and caused the tooth to throb a little. A couple of Advil and bam, pain gone, problem solved.

Not so much.

Friday was ok, had a wedding Friday and on the way back from it I started to get that throbbing again. Oh oh... got home took some pills and it went away. That night the real fun started. A throbbing nearly constant pain, alleviated somewhat by meds, but not totally. Water swishing in the mouth seemed to help best, but try doing that in bed. I almost drowned several times falling asleep with water in my mouth. Sleep was sporadic at best, a half hour here and there with no prolonged periods. I was convinced that I was dealing with an infection. Tried to treat it myself as best I could, since I couldn't see a dentist till Monday, using anti-biotics on hand etc. Nothing really helped for any amount of time. I was miserable, like gun to the head miserable.

Needless to say I didn't get any walking in. Nor did I get much eating in either.

Finally got to the dentist on Monday, figured an exam with some prescription for antibiotics and perhaps ( YAY ) painkillers. Nope....

Dentist entered the room, pulled up my x-rays on the puter screen pointed at the offending tooth and said " See that shadowy mass on the root? That's the bane of your existence and the tooth has to come out now."

Shiver.... an abscessed tooth.... HEAVILY abscessed tooth.... and he was going to pull it then and there...

YIKES!!!!

He did promise me a couple of things before he started though...

1- It would be a difficult extraction.... joy...
2- It would likely take a while
3- It wouldn't hurt, he was going to make sure it was well deadened
4- I would sleep that night

He delivered on all!

1- Difficult yes, the tooth exploded when he put the clamp on there. You have to know, this tooth, it looked flawless from the outside, there was NO indication visually that there was anything wrong with it, but there it was, dead on the inside, abscessed at the root. So, crown gone, nothing to hold on to to extract. Drilling holes into the exposed area to get a grip to loosen, tooth kept breaking. Finally had to cut the gum, drill into root and rock back and forth until loosened , then he cranked the chair up, stood up, braced feet and pulled and pulled and pulled until finally pop, the remains were extracted. He laughed, I love my dentist by the way, and said, " Man, there's NO way anyone would knock your teeth out that's for sure!!" Three stitches and done

2- See above

3- He was bang on, with the exception of the pressure exerted and having all those instruments etc. crammed into my jaws, there was no pain at all, I was thrilled.

4- I slept for almost 12 hours straight.... sigh.... it was SOOOOOOOOOOOOO nice.

As I was leaving he made me another promise. I wouldn't have a lot of pain from the procedure and shouldn't require any prescription pain killers, BUT, I would know he had gone to work on my jaw.

Again, he kept that promise.

Woke up this morning feeling as though I was kicked in the side of my jaw, but NO pain at all from the socket.

Now that's behind me, I can't wait to get out for my first walk in a while tonight.

Scale shows MAJOR downward trends.... that's always nice!

More to come on that front!

Keeping the belly full and the mind occupied

Well, it never ceases to surprise me. How easy it is to eat WAY too many calories eating the wrong foods, how hard it is to get enough calories when eating the right. Amazing. Fill your gut with greens, veggies, fruits and unprocessed meats and it takes alot to get the calories in that your body burns. Right now, not including walking, my frame should be burning around 3500 calories to just get from point a to point b in the run of 24 hours. A larger frame, or a fatter butt, pick one may it suit yea, needs extra just to go about its business. Right now I am struggling to get 2k of quality calories into me. Now you may say, that's the point ain't it? Well no, the point is to lose weight slowly, to maintain an energy level, to not become sluggish, lethargic or disillusioned, that's the point.

So, what to do? Well, the simple solution is a protein powder supplement to get those extra calories. That's the easy way, but not the way I would prefer. The other option is an extra meal, which would likely be the route I take. It makes more sense to me. You keep the body digesting throughout the day and you get that metabolic burn increase that is what we want.

I have a little junk yesterday, not enough to screw my calories or suddenly make me blow up like Mrs. Puff, but not the kind of healthy, close to vine, just out of the ground, not far removed from grazing kind of food intake I want. That being said, those three Canada Day BBQed hot dogs were AWESOME...lol, there's something about singed and charred processed meat on a fluffy processed bun that is just sooooooo good ;)

Well off to work with me. Thanks for listening!

The Zone

Cruise control is great ain't it... just a few weeks in and the old habits, by old I mean pre-inflation old, are just kicking in big time. Water, what was the hardest for me to get going last time, is not a problem this time, drinking TONS of it. Meals are falling into place, cravings are under control, appetite is strong but subdued, exercise is getting done. All is going amazingly well and I couldn't be happier.

Well... yes I could be happier...

I COULD be in the friggin' gym. I am chomping at the bit here to get back in there. I find myself curling my grocery bags, or doing lifts with Damian...lol... I really want to get back in there. The clank of steel, the smell or old iron and sweat, the feeling of exhaustion and euphoria at the same time. I miss it, I want it and I think, no, I know, I need it!

I am skirting around the zone now, I can see it, I drift into it, but I can't get fully in there until I get into the gym. Then I will feel like this journey is really and truly underway once again.

Hopefully Monday the Doc will give me the ok to get back in there. If he does I can promise you that I will be in there Tuesday morning and the real work will begin in earnest. I for one, can't wait!

Rewards

Lets face facts for a second shale we? Human beings, as a rule, are selfish creatures who generally want to know whats in it for them. I am no different. One would think that the reward of my improving health, smaller waist, broadening clothing options etc. etc. would be enough. Alas, I am a greedy SOB and dammit I want all that and more!!

I have stated to Dee that as a reward for losing 100 lbs I would get the sleeve tattoo that I have wanted for a long time now. Problem with that is that those things cost big money, and folks, with an oil tank that needs filling, car payments, mortgage, 2 kids yada yada, big money is not something I have.

So, the solution? Well, damned if I know...lol...

I had thought that perhaps I would pay myself 3-4 bucks a pound, but that won't garner much really, also, money pooled seems to become money needed after too long. I could insert google adsense on here and try to make a few extra bucks, but I gotta tell you, the kind of traffic I would need to generate any sort of significant revenue, well, I just ain't gonna get it you know? I hate ads on personal sites anyway, just seems intrusive and really not needed.

I guess I could contact like Miami Ink and ask them if they would foot the bill for an impressive 100 lbs weight loss...lol... but I don't think that would work either.

So, any ideas? Anything, no matter how wacky might actually be the idea that works for me!

That being said and my personal needs being addressed, ;) , a little something on rewards. They work. We all know that its a great feeling to see progress, and it's a wonderful thing to witness, BUT, it can be slow week to week, and the process can become repetitive and tedious after some time. I always like to set some reward at certain targets. It could be as simple as allowing myself a full day of doing nothing but escaping into Warcraft, it could be as extravegant as a tattoo as I mentioned above. Bottom line, it gives me something to look forward to BEYOND the weight loss rewards. It broadens the focus and expands the process so that your whole life dosn't become just another detail in the weight loss program. It's very very easy to become obsessed and lose sight of the fact that your life is still progressing, that other people in your life, while applauding your journey, aren't a passenger on the same train as you.

Focus is important, but so is perspective... and I find little rewards to be a great aid to that end.

Monday Mass Day 2 ( the lite version )

So I have made a decision of sorts, I will be weighing every Monday, BUT, I will be doing pics and measurements every SECOND Monday. The reason behind this thinking is pretty straight forward, I want to see more change between pics. The weight tracking in fine, and it's a good tool to show progress, but I want the pics to mean major steps, or major shifts. It might not be a good idea, I don't know, perhaps weekly will be better, but for now we'll leave it as every two. As with all things, this policy is subject to change and the absolute whim of me...lol...

Now, weight, as indicated earlier in the week I cheated and weighed in. My weight then, on Friday I think it was, was 297, this morning it was also right around 297. Might have been a smidge over or under, but we'll call it 297 to be a nice round easy to work with number.

So, as an added feature of Monday Mass day, I will be charting the progress here...

August 25th Start weight ??? - we figure anywhere from 310-320
Sept 8th - 301 lbs
Sept 15th - 297 lbs - change of -4lbs, 96 to goal

Baby steps baby, it's all about the baby steps.

A quick word about my goal. Yes, I know I want to lose at least 100 lbs. However, that goal weight can and will change as I start in the gym and start adding the muscle mass. When I was at my best prior to the crime against myself and the subsequent 100lb plus weight gain, I was most comfortable at about 195. We'll see what transpires...

Anyhoo... off to get ready for work and a pre-work walk around the pond....

Thanks for your support folks!

Sunday Suuuuuuuuuunday.........

What a BEAUTIFUL Sunday here in Newfoundland!

Just getting ready for another day out with the family. The best part about what I am doing this time around as opposed to the first time is the fact that I get to share it day by day with my family, and folks, that's a very special thing.

Dee has been nothing short of wonderful through this, she still has her treats, as she should but she considerately asks me if its ok to have say, a chocolate bar, with me in the van with her. lol... She's amazing, always checking the labels with me, eating the meals I need to make this work, walking with me, encouraging, complimenting, why, one would almost think she loves me or something..lol...

Gabe still has his moments of almost forcing food on me. I had a chat with him last night about why Daddy can't eat some of the stuff he is offering me, about how Daddy wants to loss weight so he can play better with him and his brother and ride bike with him next summer. I think he is understanding it, though I don't think he really cares about the belly...lol... it's his snuggle pillow after all. He's been great on the walks though, a real trooper!

We are about to leave the house and go for another walk, and it makes me feel very happy. The one unexpected side effect of this whole thing is the way it has brought our little family closer together and the great activities we are now doing as a group. Fantastic...

Switching gears... I am nervous about next Monday, I have to head to the Docs and get my BP taken again. If it remains high it's medication time for me. I am dreading that really. I have been reading a little about BP meds and the tendency they have to make you feel a little dragged out and such. Nervous... lol... gonna drive my BP up stressing about it... sigh...

Odds and Ends

A couple of quick points before I go to bed.

My calories need to increase. Yes yes, i sound like a broken record, but its 100% true, they do need to get bumped. I also need to increase my protein intake. So, the solution to both problems? Returning to my nightly protein shake. I love those things and I am actually looking very forward to having them again. There was a time I would come home from work and be craving that smoothie, that time has come again. Yay for protein!!

Also, its become clear that I have to start taking a multi-vitamin. I knew that anyway but it was affirmed by what I have been seeing on my Fitday journal. I was looking at some tonight and I think I am just going to go with a typical Mans Multi. Once I start in the gym I will also be back to taking the creatine and glutamine and very likely glucosamine. My shoulder has really been bugging my lately, calcification of the joint was suspected but seems its just age and wear and tear. I have to be careful about that. I also expect to be in the gym sooner than I had originally speculated. I am really feeling that good about where I am now and where I feel I can be in a short time. Amazing...

I wanted to also say how much easier this has been with the support of my wife. When I last did this I had a lot of support from friends and family, but this time it feels different. To have someone to talk to this stuff about every day, to help remind me to make my entries and the encourage me... it makes it so much easier to stay focused and on target.

Well, I think thats about it for now. Thanks for dropping by!