Feb 28, 2011

What sparked the Journey?

As I explained in the previous post, about a year ago I came to realize something had to change. I had gone past the point of being charmingly plump. I was now more in the range of a disgusting pile of lard. And more than that, I was a disgusting pile of lard who consumed at least 1,500 calories a day in soda.

Yeah, you read that right. At least 1,500 calories a day in soda, and often times it would be more. An average adult should consume about 2000 calories a day total. I was getting almost all of that just in soda. I love me some soda. Coke, Mountain Dew, Dr. Pepper, Pepsi, A&W Root Beer, Sprite, Sunkist.... Love it. LOVE it. Loooooovvvveee it.

I could down a 2-liter with a meal, plus almost a six pack and several 20 ounce bottles a day. One of the local convenience store/gas stations has 44 ounce fountain sodas for 99 cents. One or two of those were also in the mix each day. I was an expert at watching the sales and getting my best deal so I could buy as much soda as possible with what I had budgeted for my habit.

Other than the occasional candy binge, I wasn't eating a lot of sweets. I didn't eat bigger meals than anyone else. In fact I've got several friends that would easily consume more than me when eating. Granted, I wasn't a poster-boy for healthy eating, but it didn't seem that bad.

Obviously a big step in the right direction would be to cut out the soda. Not cut back, cut out. Completely. I knew I couldn't cut back. I couldn't just have some. At various times I had halfheartedly tried to cut back. If anything I wound up drinking more.

It was time for a drastic change. And I wasn't looking forward to that.

4 comments:

ORStafford said...

We were so happy you dropped the soda. Not just the calorie issue, but also the unheathly contents. When we were up there, we could tell you guys were eating healthier. Keep up the good work. Think sunny beaches!

ORStafford said...

Tried to post before. From one time to the next, my password doesn't work. Anyway, we are proud you dropped the soda from you life. Not just for the calorie issue, but the unhealthly contents. At our last visit we could see your healthier eating habits. Keep up the good work. Think sunny beaches!

ORStafford said...

Well.now I think both comments posted. Oh well, you know your mom is technologically challenged.

ORStafford said...

oh, just so you know, you were not always overweight. you was not over weight as a young boy. But you had a mom who made sure you ate healthy("you can have a banana, apple or orange if you want a snack")and as you remember soda was a 1-can-a-week treat for many years.