I just finished Week 24 of this whole process. This last four week cycle has been full of ups and downs. I felt some of the worst temptation I have since the outset. And I've had some of the most disheartening things happen - like losing peanut butter. But, it also has been one of the best cycles. I actually lost more in this cycle than in the last cycle - and almost as much as two cycles ago. (I lost five and nine pounds in those.) And I finally broke through the 280 level - which means I am now smaller than I have been since before I was married.
I have looked at some old pictures lately. Our tenth anniversary is in August, and I have been bringing out some old shots from the wedding. When I see them, I think several things. One, man I looked stupid in round glasses. Two, that close hair cut was pretty stupid for a person with a balloon head. And three, I'm not that big. We were in Tampa this past weekend. That allows me to see pictures from the way back time machine - to get an accurate view of how big I actually was. I still have a while to go to get to my college weight. But I am already back to my circa 1998 levels (guessing about that year).
The peanut butter loss was a big problem. Trying to find other options has been difficult - especially regulating the amount of those options. I have pretty much landed on cashews. I prefer the fancy jumbo whole cashews. Why? Because I'm a fancy jumbo kind of guy, I guess. I have NOT gotten into the almond and cashew butters. There are several reasons for this. One, the money. It is expensive to switch to those. I had someone wanting to buy me a jar of cashew butter, just so I could have it and try it. I turned them down. That may seem silly, but it leads into my second reason. I am doing fine without it. I was able to get rid of the peanut butter (on threat of illness). Why would I add back in something almost identical, but three times more expensive? I'll stick with cashews and non-peanut trail mix.
I have found myself really enjoying dried fruit. At first I avoided that, due to the sugar content. But now I realize that eating it in moderation is fine. I always have liked raisins and dried pineapple, but I got away from a lot of that over the years. It didn't compare to donuts and ice cream. Now, though, it is really nice. Dried pineapple, raisins, blueberries, cranberries, bananas, coconut, papaya - all of that is good stuff. I even tried a prune the other day and realized those are really tasty. So, between the dried fruit and cashews, I have replaced the peanuts pretty well.
The other thing I finally buckled on is the frozen yogurt. At first, I avoided it like the plague. Too much like ice cream. But now, it is just a good option. The calorie count is not any worse than eating a container of yogurt. And it is a great dessert. Plus, have you tried these frozen yogurts lately? Good grief. I started with hitting the shops, just to get my bearings. But I have bought some at the store lately. I just am careful about how much I put in my bowl - and the bowl size. If I want to get crazy, I'll cut up a banana with the yogurt and add cashews. I bought Publix brand at first - their peach is awesome. I got some chocolate for the kids and Heather, but I wouldn't eat it. I was trying to avoid chocolate. But I had some the other day. It was really good and I did well with it. This past weekend, Edy's was on sale at Publix BOGO (buy one, get one). That took it to another level. I got a chocolate vanilla swirl. The other one I got was cookies and cream, but I won't eat that one. My flavor was super. They taste just like ice cream, but they have like 40% of the calories. My personal rule is avoid the flavors with stuff in them - like chocolate chunks, cookie pieces, stuff like that. But plain flavors or fruit ones are fine.
It has been a successful cycle, over all. I have found some great food options (frozen yogurt, cashews, fajitas) to mix things up. And I reached a major milestone. I'm excited to see what the next cycle holds. Thanks, as always, for being a part of this with me.
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