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Posts Tagged ‘Fitbit’

Day 20 – Week 3 Day 6: Up 11lbs, Up .5in (Down 8lbs & 1.0in To Date) – Big Gain

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, OMAD, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 20 (364), 2023 Week 3-Day 6 (364), 40Hr Water Fast, Arm Rash, Beats Per Minute, Benadryl, Bloat, BPM, Dental Cleaning, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HFCS, HR, Images, ITF, Juicing, OMAD, One-Meal-A-Day Fasting, Shiva, Sunburn, Swamp Juice on September 8, 2023| Leave a Comment »

I apologize in advance for the length of this post… If you’re not particularly interested in my thoughts on my current diet, please feel free to skip this post…

It’s the evening of Day 20 of my current diet. Big shock – I was up 11lbs! Just to be sure, I stepped off the scale and then back on. Same result. Obviously, this has to be water gain / retention. The gain was probably slightly more as I’m not accounting for the weight of the shoes I was wearing yesterday. Anyway, again, this morning there is no gout pain in my left foot and swelling is gone from right foot and almost completely gone from my left foot.

So, yesterday I had a drop of 5lbs from the previous day, and today it’s swung the other way – 11lbs increase. After these big drops and gains it is typical to gain / lose over half back the next day. So, we’ll see what happens tomorrow…

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling normal. …Not good, but not fat. I skipped the water pill again today. (20 Days on the run.) I will be taking a water pill tomorrow if a big chunk of this increase hasn’t gone. Fluid retention can be a serious issue for people with heart issues.

The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is going away again. The rash on both my arms about four inches on either side of my elbows on the outside is still there. I’m not sure what it is but I wore a long sleeve shirt for my walk. Afterwards, I put on some Benadryl which made the itching go away within minutes. The bumps are still there, though. I sent an image to my GP, but it’ll probably be Monday before she gets back to me.

I had a bowl of corn flakes for my one meal today (dinner) about 4:30pm. Not exactly healthy, but it was the only thing on hand.

Shiva’s walk: pulse avg 86bpm, max 111bpm for the dog walk; 18:39min walk. Slightly longer dog walk; around the corner to the intersection; turn right and down five houses and then home.

Personal laps. Six laps: pulse avg 80bpm, max 114bpm for the laps; 53.21min walk. No sections; just two random spikes. Day 20 of diet. No light-headedness or dizziness.

Health: No morning phlegm. Eleven pounds weight gain today, but .5in increase to my waist size.

As I said before (above), the weight gain is almost certainly fluid retention and not actual weight. If I’m still up tomorrow, it’s back on the water pills…

Day 20: Day 6 of Week 3 – weight 364lbs (up 11lbs, down 8lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 58 inches (increase .5in, down 1.0in total).

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Click here (8 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 19 – Week 3 Day 5: Down 5lbs, N/C .in (Down 19lbs & 1.5in To Date) – Big Drop

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, ITF, Juice/Blend Fasting, OMAD, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 19 (353), 2023 Week 3-Day 5 (353), 40Hr Water Fast, Arm Rash, Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Dental Cleaning, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HFCS, HR, Images, ITF, Juicing, OMAD, One-Meal-A-Day Fasting, Shiva, Sunburn, Swamp Juice on September 7, 2023| Leave a Comment »

I apologize in advance for the length of this post… If you’re not particularly interested in my thoughts on my current diet, please feel free to skip this post…

It’s the evening of Day 19 of my current diet. I had a dental cleaning this morning. I got up and put on my shoes and decided to weigh myself. (I normally weigh myself barefoot.) Big shock – I was down 5lbs! Just to be sure, I stepped off the scale and then back on. Same result. Obviously, this has to be continued water loss after passing the kidney grains the night before last. The loss was probably slightly more as I’m not accounting for the weight of the shoes. Anyway, again, this morning there is no gout pain in my left foot and swelling is gone from right foot and almost completely gone from my left foot.

After these big drops it is typical to gain over half back the next day. So, we’ll see what happens tomorrow.

On walking my laps, both hands began to slightly swell and get red / blue from the tips to the first knuckle. This typically means poor blood circulation or water retention (or both). As it did yesterday, the hand bloat went away shortly after completing the laps. (Indicative of poor circulation.)

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling good but fat. I’m not sure what the reason is, but sometimes I wake up feeling thin, sometimes just normal and sometimes fat. Today was fat. I skipped the water pill again today. (19 Days on the run.) I was late taking my other regular pills because of the dental appointment. I ended up taking them about 11:30am. I normally take them between 8-9am

The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is back again. I’ve also developed a rash on both my arms about four inches on either side of my elbows on the outside. I’m not sure what it is. I first thought it was just some skin itch from mild sunburn caused by my hour long daily walks. I thought I’d ignore it, but the itch became progressively worse and when I touched it, it was a rash with bumps like an allergic reaction to poison ivy / oak. I bathed it with “after-burn” lotion and it felt a lot better, but the bumps have not gone yet. The rash got worse after today’s walk. So, maybe it is related to sunburn. I’ll avoid the sun tomorrow and see if the condition improves.

I had a bowl of clam chowder soup today at 5pm. The rest of the day it was Swamp Juice.

Shiva’s walk: pulse avg 81bpm, max 110bpm for the dog walk; 13:02min walk. Short dog walk; around the corner to the intersection and home.

Personal laps. Six laps: pulse avg 87bpm, max 97bpm for the laps; 52:56min walk. Two main sections: 1) 0 to 23 mins: 23min <87; and, 2) 23 to 53mins: 30min > 87. No light-headedness or dizziness. The average and the max were both lows since beginning this fast. Yesterday, they were both highs and today they are both lows. Go figure…

Health: No morning phlegm. Five pounds weight loss today, but no change to my waist size. Still waiting until my heart rate shows some stability…

As I said before (above), the weight loss is almost certainly fluid loss and not actual weight. If I’m down again for the next few days, then I’ll have to think about it.

Day 19: Day 5 of Week 3 – weight 353lbs (down 5lbs, down 19lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 57.5 inches (same .0in, down 1.5in total).

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Click here (7 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 18 – Week 3 Day 4: Down 1lbs, N/C .in (Down 14lbs & 1.5in To Date) – Stone Again

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, ITF, Juice/Blend Fasting, OMAD, Walking, Water Fast, tagged 2023 Day 18 (358), 2023 Week 3-Day 4 (358), 40Hr Water Fast, Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HFCS, HR, Images, ITF, Juicing, OMAD, One-Meal-A-Day Fasting, Shiva, Swamp Juice on September 6, 2023| Leave a Comment »

I apologize in advance for the length of this post… If you’re not particularly interested in my thoughts on my current fast, please feel free to skip this post… (At least it’s slightly shorter than yesterday’s update! LoL)

It’s the evening of Day 18 of my current “Juice / Blend” fast / diet / lifestyle. Last night, (after posting,) I passed four kidney stone “grains” (to medium sized and two small). Shortly after that I started passing fluids between ever 30 to 40 minutes (including three times after going to bed). This morning no gout pain in my left foot and swelling gone from right foot and mostly gone from my left foot. I guess the meal didn’t cause the water retention…

Still, I’m only down 1lb from yesterday.

On walking my laps, both hands began to swell and get red / blue from the tips to the first knuckle. This typically means poor blood circulation or water retention (or both). As it did yesterday, the hand bloat went away shortly after completing the laps. (Indicative of poor circulation.)

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling mostly good, except for my bloated left foot. I skipped the water pill again today. (18 Days on the run.)

No problem with energy reserves today. The problem is I am “mad-crazy” thinking about food. This is typical for a fast restart (after a meal day). The next couple of days are always hard. The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is going again, a lot less than yesterday and about where it was two days ago. It’s almost gone from my forehead and temples.

I had a bowl of soup today, so I guess the “juice fast” is over since I’ve had something to eat three of the last four days (two soups and one meal – soup, meal, fast, soup). At this point, it’s time to admit the “blend fast” is over and go on to the combined / modified “One-Meal-A-Day” (OMAD), Intermittent Timed Fast (ITF) with mixed 40 hour water fasts. I’ve got several days worth of Swamp Juice left so I’ll use that up and mix in soup or salad until it’s gone. After that, I’ll start the first 40hr water fast. I usually begin those at 6pm and finish at 10am after the 40hrs. My window for the “timed” portion will be between 10am and 6pm. Eight hours on any eating day.

FYI: The soup was 8oz of vegetable soup mixed with 8oz of Swamp Juice. So, I wasn’t totally “bad”. LoL To tell the truth, it just made me more hungry… I’m drinking water with a squirt of lemon concentrate to forget about food for the rest of the night.

Shiva’s walk: pulse avg 103bpm, max 124bpm for the dog walk; 13:02min walk; around the corner to the intersection and home. Shiva is limping badly today, so Hil says we’ll skip tomorrow’s dog walk (and I have an early morning dentist appointment anyway).

Personal laps. Six laps: pulse avg 119bpm, max 169bpm for the laps; 54:47min walk. No sections today; just up and down like a mountain range for the entire walk. No light-headedness or dizziness. There were no “ranges” today. It was just up and down, up and down. The average and the max were both highs since beginning this fast.

Health: No morning phlegm. One pound weight loss today and no change to my waist size. Still not sure when I’ll be able to start the “Niko niko” jogging. Probably not for a least another few days just to be on the safe side. At least until my heart rate shows some stability…

Day 18: Day 4 of Week 3 – weight 358lbs (down 1lbs, down 14lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 57.5 inches (same .0in, down 1.5in total).

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Click here (6 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 17 – Week 3 Day 3: Up 4lbs, N/C .in (Down 13lbs & 1.5in To Date) – Bloat & Gout

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 17 (359), 2023 Week 3-Day 3 (359), Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HFCS, HR, Images, Juicing, OMAD, One-Meal-A-Day Fasting, Shiva, Swamp Juice on September 5, 2023| Leave a Comment »

I apologize in advance for the length of this post… If you’re not particularly interested in my thoughts on my current fast, please feel free to skip this post…

It’s the evening of Day 17 of my current “Juice / Blend” fast. My hyper-extended my right knee, which I injured three days ago, is normal. I’m relieved about that. The bad news is that I have pretty bad pain in my left foot. My weight has gone up 4lbs, (which is about a half-gallon of water,) but my waist did not change. This “probably” means most of the fluid is from the knees down. A combination of poor circulation and gout flare-up…

I don’t know if the pain / gout is from the meal I had or if it’s from the juice blend. The pain started the day I made this current batch and I used a basket of tomatoes and some tomato juice, too. The flare-up began before yesterday’s “cheat” meal, but I think the meal made it much worse.

A quick search of fruits and vegetables which effect gout flare-ups (“in some”) turns up: tomatoes and bananas – among many other fruits and veggies. The web sites also state reduce meat intake and don’t eat organs. I don’t know what the goat part was, but it reminded me of beef tongue I used to eat as a child. Tongue is considered an “organ” meat. It doesn’t help that the West African food I tasted yesterday – the rice is made with tomatoes and tomato paste and I believe the meat was made with some type of peanut based powder – peanuts are also bad for gout. (But it sure was delicious!!)

Anyway, both ankles and feet swole up badly – the left more than the right. The left was painful to walk on and ached when just sitting. Both seemed fine (didn’t feel swollen) while I was in bed, but as soon as I got up I could tell they were still swollen. Again, the left more than the right.

On walking my laps, my feet stopped hurting, but both hands began to swell. This typically means poor blood circulation or water retention. The hand bloat went away shortly after completing the laps. (Indicative of poor circulation.)

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling mostly good, except for my bloated feet. I skipped the water pill again today. (17 Days on the run.)

No problem with energy reserve today. My energy level really seems to be leveling off. Of course, it may also be I had food yesterday. The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is still with me, again, a lot more than yesterday or two days ago. It’s also come back to my forehead and temples.

Shiva’s walk was another short walk. Around the corner, to the intersection and then home. Dog walk: pulse avg 114bpm, max 130bpm for the dog walk; 14:10min walk.

Personal laps. Six laps: pulse avg 92bpm, max 157bpm for the laps; 55:29min walk. Three sections to the walk today: 1) main high zone; >100bpm 21min; 2) >125bpm 5 of that 21min; 3) <85bpm 34min. No light-headedness or dizziness. The laps were a bit faster today.

Health: No morning phlegm. Four pounds weight gain today but no change to my waist size. Still not sure when I’ll be able to start the “Niko niko” jogging. Probably not for a least another few days just to be on the safe side.

I’m going to try to make it through this week and then go to either “One-Meal-A-Day” (OMAD) or alternating “40-hour” water fasts. Which ever I choose, I’ll try it for a week or so and then come back to juice-blend fasting. It takes the body about 2-3 weeks for your metabolism to start slowing on reduced caloric diets. I’m not really on that type of diet. Juicing (as I do it) is more of a energy balancing / micro-nutrient rich diet. I don’t drink all day (continuously), but I drink whenever I feel my energy falling. I believe I’m still consuming well over 2,000 calories a day. 1,700 is considered border line starving and 2,000 to 2,200 is considered “normal” for my height. My normal caloric consumption is over 3,000 calories per day. The goal is to lose weight without lowering my metabolic rate. Otherwise, as soon as I go back to food, my weight will just come back – even if I switch to a more vegetarian based diet / lifestyle. The “trick” is to lower caloric consumption without triggering the change to metabolic rate. I’m hoping to do this via “confusion”: alternating between very healthy, but fewer calories and more normal meals (with time limited intake). And, so, the experiment continues…

A final thought on bloating: before January of this year, I used to “control” my bloating and water retention by drinking more water. I found this tended to flush out the blood-stream salts which are a big part of water retention. Uric acid is water soluble and is flushed out of your body by your kidneys. As I also suffer with kidney stones, this is another plus of drinking (passing) water.

After my trip to the ER in January, my cardiologist said not to drink water and just take the prescribed diuretic (“water pills”). I’ve been taking them since then. The problem is drinking less water means I also retain more uric acid (which crystalizes into gout). So, less water increases the chances of gout flare-ups and kidney stones. This is why I’m a bit hesitant to go back to the water pills. Still, if the weight gain and foot bloating continues, I may have to resume taking the water pills…

Day 17: Day 3 of Week 3 – weight 359lbs (up 4lbs, down 13lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 57.5 inches (same .0in, down 1.5in total).

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Click here (5 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 16 – Week 3 Day 2: Down 1lbs, Down .5in (Down 17lbs & 1.5in To Date) – Lunch Cheat

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Pictures, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 16 (355), 2023 Week 3-Day 2 (355), Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Cheat Day, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HR, Images, Juicing, Picture of Me, Shiva on September 4, 2023| Leave a Comment »

It’s the early evening of Day 16 of my current “Juice / Blend” fast. My hyper-extended my right knee, which I injured two days ago feels almost normal. I’m not sure how it happened or how it “fixed” itself. Just one of those things, I guess. Today was a “real” cheat day…

A few weeks ago, I watched the series “Ted Lasso” and in several of the episodes there was mention of how good (and distinct) West African food is. Well, I’ve never had any so I did a google search for a restaurant in the area. It turns out there are none in our town or in the towns around us. I have to take a 30+ minute drive to get to one…

It just so happens that since viewing the program, we have a new next door neighbor (a family) who is from Nigeria. The family is from Nigeria, but they have been in the U.S. and our town for several years. I asked the mother if she was aware of any West African restaurants in the immediate area as I wanted to try “authentic” food. She replied she wasn’t aware of any restaurants, but she is an excellent cook and would be happy to send me over a sample the next time she makes a native dish.

Well, today (about 1PM) she brought over some meat and rice for me to taste… It was fantastic!! Particularly the rice which looked a lot like Mexican rice, but had a completely different flavor. The two meats were a small piece of goat and a chicken thigh. They were also very tasty, but not quite up to the rice. The surprising thing is I was expecting the food to be extremely “hot” spicy. This wasn’t at all. I don’t know if she toned it down for us or if was just a meal which is not served “hot” spicy.

I had about two cups of rice and the two pieces of meat (maybe, 2-3 ounces). So, this goes down as a “cheat” day. I did have juice / blend for breakfast and dinner.

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling mostly good, again. Still not feeling bloat anywhere. I skipped the water pill again today. (16 Days on the run.) Terrible gout pain in my left foot last night, in the morning, and all day (so far). It turns out that many of the fruits (bananas, raisins) and vegetables (tomatoes, squash) I used in this batch of “Swamp juice” can cause Gout flair-ups in “some” people. I guess I’m one of those “some” people. High fructose corn syrup is another trigger, but I don’t use and HFCS juices in my blends.

Again, better energy reserve today. My energy level seems to be leveling off. I do have to drink at least five(5) ounces of juice before going for my two mile walk around the block. The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is still with me, but a lot more than yesterday. I don’t remember it going and then coming back on my other prior fasts. Bottom line: no idea what’s up with that…

Shiva’s walk was another short walk. She wanted some variety, so she insisted on going across the road and up and down the length of the school parking lot. (We have grammar school across the street from us.) Dog walk: pulse avg 124bpm, max 106bpm for the dog walk; 14:10min walk.

Personal laps. Six laps: pulse avg 109bpm, max 163bpm for the laps; 1:04:57hr walk. No light-headedness or dizziness. The laps were a lot slower, but this time due my gout and not to my troubled knee. The max of 163bpm is also the highest for a max HR, so far.

Health: No morning phlegm. One pound weight loss today and down .5in for my waist size. Still not sure when I’ll be able to start the “Niko niko” jogging. Probably not for a least another few days just to be on the safe side.

Day 2

Day 9

Day 16

Day 16: Day 2 of Week 3 – weight 355lbs (down 1lbs, down 17lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 57.5 inches (down .5in, down 1.5in total).

Click here (4 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 15 – Week 3 Day 1: Down 1lbs, Down .0in (Down 16lbs & 1.0in To Date)

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 15 (356), 2023 Week 3-Day 1 (356), Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HR, Juicing, Shiva on September 3, 2023| Leave a Comment »

It’s the evening of Day 15 of my current “Juice / Blend” fast. I hyper-extended my right knee somehow yesterday. I don’t know how it happened. I just became aware of it as I was walking home from visiting a neighbor about five houses down the block. It was painful and sore last night. This morning was difficult, but I made it through the walks. It just feels mildly sore now.

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling good, again. Still not feeling bloat anywhere. I skipped the water pill again today. (15 Days on the run.) No gout pain in my left foot last night, but (again) it has a very slight lump today. It’s barely visible today, but it’s there. I can feel it by pressure, but there’s (still) no pain with the pressure.

Again, better energy reserve today. The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is still with me, but almost gone. I made up the second batch of blend today.

Shiva’s walk was another short walk. She made it around the corner and to the intersection and back home. She seemed mostly okay today. Dog walk: pulse avg 93bpm, max 121bpm for the dog walk; 15:17min walk.

Personal laps. Six laps: pulse avg 79bpm, max 90bpm for the laps; 1:00:37hr walk. No light-headedness or dizziness. The laps were a lot slower due to my troubled knee. The avg (79bpm) is the lowest I’ve had. The max of 90bpm is also the lowest for a max HR.

Health: No morning phlegm. One pound weight loss today and up .5in for my waist size. So far, it’s just over 1lb per day for the two weeks and .75in per week. Obviously, I won’t be able to start the “Niko niko” for a least another few days.

Day 15: Day 1 of Week 3 – weight 356lbs (down 1lbs, down 16lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 58 inches (up .5in, down 1.0in total).

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Click here (3 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 14 – End Of Week 2: Down 2lbs, Down .0in (Down 15lbs & 1.5in To Date)

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 14 (357), 2023 Week 2-Day 7 (357), Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HR, Juicing, Shiva on September 2, 2023| Leave a Comment »

It’s the end of Day 14 of my current “Juice / Blend” fast. …Night (8:30pm). Today was an easier day. I got mostly a full night’s sleep, so I felt much more rested all day. Hil said I am starting to look a little thinner. I replied: hold up two gallons of milk; that’s about how much volume I’ve lost. Or, one professional size bowling ball. (A gallon of water / milk is about 8lbs. Professional bowling balls tend to be 14lbs-16lbs, with most pro’s using 15lbs.)

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling good, again. Still not feeling bloat anywhere. I skipped the water pill again today. (14 Days on the run.) No gout pain in my left foot last night, but it has a very slight lump today. It’s barely visible today, but it’s there. I can feel it by pressure, but there’s no pain with the pressure.

Better energy reserve today. The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is still with me. Finished up the first batch of blend yesterday, so I mostly had fruit juice today. Today was actually a “cheat” day as I had a 8oz mug of green tea and 8oz of low sodium vegetable soup. I will make a new batch of blend tomorrow.

Shiva’s walk was another short walk. She made it around the corner and to the intersection and back home. She’s having a rough time now – having to pause frequently now. Not to smell. Just to pause and breathe. Even these short walks are taking it out of her. Hil said we probably should shorten the walks even more. Dog walk: pulse avg 117bpm, max 145bpm for the dog walk. Pulse >100bpm after 2min of 16:52min walk.

Still separating Shiva’s walk from my laps. Six laps: pulse avg 92bpm, max 153bpm for the laps; pulse above 90bpm for 15min and then <90bpm for remainder of 54:21min walk.

Health: No morning phlegm. Two pounds weight loss today and down .5in for my waist size. So far, it’s just over 1lb per day for the two weeks and .75in per week.

Day 14: Day 7 of Week 2 – weight 357lbs (down 2lbs, down 15lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 57.5 inches (no change .0in, down 1.5in total).

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Click here (2 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 13 – Mixed: No Change 0lbs, Down .5in (Down 13lbs & 1.5in To Date)

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 13 (359), 2023 Week 2-Day 6 (359), Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HR, Juicing, Shiva on September 1, 2023| Leave a Comment »

It’s the middle of Day 13 of my current “Juice / Blend” fast. …Mid-afternoon (3:30pm). Today was another hard day. I woke up after 3hrs of sleep and couldn’t get back to sleep, so after an hour or so I ended up getting up (just after 4am).

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling fine, but knowing I’ll be feeling tired / sleepy all day. Still not feeling bloat anywhere. I skipped the water pill again today. (13 Days on the run.) No pain in my left foot last night, but it has a very slight lump today. It’s barely visible this morning, but I can feel it by pressure.

No energy reserve today. The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is still with me.

Because I was already up, I did six laps (walking) around the block before we walked Shiva. Again, I separated Shiva’s walk from my laps. When I started my six laps, my HR was under 80bpm but up over 100bpm practically as soon as I began and stayed there averaging 102bpm for all six laps with a max of 128bpm. My HR was very spiky with no high or low plateau. Again, no feeling any sense of dizziness or chest issues. The walk was 2.06miles in 49:45min. Nearly 4min less than yesterday’s time.

Shiva’s walk was another short walk. She only made it to the corner and back home. She’s having a rough time now. Even these short walks are taking it out of her. Walking Shiva, my HR was 115bpm avg and I had a max HR of 138bpm.

Health: No morning phlegm. No weight gain today but I did show a .5in loss at the waist. Discouraging, but nothing to do but trust the process… If the weight doesn’t start dropping again, I’ll have to think about adjusting my blend. This remains the slowest weight loss of any of my fasts. I’m usually dropping 2 to 3lbs per day. So far, it’s right at 1lb per day.

Day 13: Day 6 of Week 2 – weight 359lbs (up 0lbs, down 13lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 57.5 inches (down .5in, down 1.5in total).

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Click here (1 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 12 – Bounce: Up 1lbs, Up .5in (Down 13lbs & 1in To Date)

Posted in Diets, General Comments, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Walking, tagged 2023 Day 12 (359), 2023 Week 2-Day 5 (359), Beats Per Minute, Bloat, BPM, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Fluid Retention, General Comments, Gout, Health, Heart Rate, HR, Juicing, Shiva on August 31, 2023| Leave a Comment »

It’s the middle of Day 12 of my current “Juice / Blend” fast. …Early evening. Today was a hard day. I took my mom (and Hil) to her dentist in the mid-afternoon(2:45pm). This meant I had to severely limit my fluid intake. Being on water-pills for so long, my body has adjusted to “going” frequently. The dentist is in the next town over, so the drive is 20min, plus parking, plus helping my mom get from the car to the office. Then there’s the appointment and the drive back home. Anyway, quite a bit of the day I was feeling light-headed and dehydrated. All I allowed myself was two 8oz glasses of straight OJ. One for breakfast and one for lunch.

Diet: I woke up this morning feeling good – which is starting to feel like my new normal. (LoL) Still not feeling bloat anywhere. I skipped the water pill again today. (12 Days on the run.) No pain in my left foot last night, but it has a slight lump today. It’s visible this morning, and I can even feel it by pressure.

More energy (again) today. The “oily” / wax candle skin feeling is still with me.

Shiva’s walk was another short walk. She only made it to the corner and back home. She didn’t “really” trip during her walk, but she was scratching her right foot / claws funny when she stepped. Almost like she wasn’t able to lift it all the way clear for her next steps.

I did six laps (walking) around the block after we walked Shiva. First time. Again, I separated Shiva’s walk from my laps. Walking Shiva, my HR was 115bpm avg and I had a max HR of 138bpm. When I started my six laps, my HR was over 100bpm but at the 21min mark dropped below 95 and stayed there averaging 94bpm for all six laps with a max of 155bpm. Again, no feeling any sense of dizziness or chest issues. That’s four days of 1 lap increases in a row with no obvious ill effects during the walk. If I wasn’t tracking my HR with a FitBit, I wouldn’t know there was any problem (issue) with my heart rate. The walk was 2.06miles in 53min.

Health: One medium-large filmy morning phlegm. One(1) pound weight gain today and .5in gain at the waist. Discouraging, but nothing to do but trust the process… If the weight doesn’t start dropping again, I’ll have to think about adjusting my blend. This remains the slowest weight loss of any of my fasts. I’m usually dropping 2 to 3lbs per day. So far, it’s only a little over 1lb per day.

Day 12: Day 5 of Week 2 – weight 359lbs (up 1lbs, down 13lbs total); today’s (muffin) waist 58 inches (up .5in, down 1in total).

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Click here (31 August) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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210 Day Health / Weight Update (Apr 2020)

Posted in ADF, Diets, Health, ITF, Juice/Blend Fasting, MITF, OMAD, tagged 210 Day Health / Weight Update (Apr 2020), 358lbs, Fitbit, Health, ITF, MITF on April 16, 2020| Leave a Comment »

The following is the 7th monthly (210 days “-ish”) update on my attempt to lose weight and get healthier. As always, it’s a longer post than my “normal” daily post, so if your (still) not “into” reading about “another person’s” diet (again and again!), I’ll understand if you stop here and come back another day. You’ve been warned!! Here goes…

(As in previous posts:) On September 16, 2019, I switched from my 18 days of “juice / blend” fasting / diet to an Intermittent Time Fasting (ITF) “Diet / Lifestyle”. My starting weight on 29 August, for the juice / blending fast was: 373lbs. My starting weight for the ITF was: 356lbs. My current weight (this morning) was: 358lbs. Based on these “initial” numbers, I’ve lost 15lbs from the end of August 2019, gained 2lbs from the start of the ITF and lost 2lbs in the last 30 days. This feels like a drop in the ocean.

If you’ve viewed any of my prior month’s postings on this string / topic, you’ll see I’m “missing” my charts. As it turns out, I am subject to the limits of my technology. Fitbit isn’t reporting my calories for any days prior to the end of March. And, no, I don’t know why… This means I can’t report the data in a chart format. Oh, well…

My long-term goal is weight loss and remains to drop 1.5 to 2 pounds per week (not per month). In theory, this will prevent the two worst parts of extreme weight loss: a permanent (and excessive) drop in BMR (which makes it easier to regain lost weight) and a large amount of floppy / saggy skin (pure vanity). As of the holiday season (Nov. 2019), I’ve not been very successful. I yo-yo’d down / up / down and up again.

Two final observations:
First, in the last week I’ve gained and lost 20lbs. A five pound overnight increase; a twenty (!!) pound overnight increase (a loss of ten pounds during the same day); and then a second five pound overnight increase. Tied to this, I’ve had painful kidney stones (grains) passing. Today’s was the largest in quite a while and was the size of an ant. I also passed over a half dozen “grain of sand” size stones. There “seems” to be a rough correspondence between the bloating and the grain passing, but it’s not exactly the same, so it’s a problem saying THAT’s what’s causing the rapid weight gain and loss. Since I am not stuffing myself and then tossing / passing the food, it seems to be pure water weight (gains and losses). At least that’s my opinion…

The second point is that, in all honesty, I’m only VERY loosely following the modified intermittent time fasting regimen. I am still eating later in the morning, but I am rarely (otherwise) following the schedule or stopping at the designated evening hour. Realistically, I’m off the program. Even more than working out, I need to get back on the program as I still feel it made a significant difference when I was actually adhering to it. Slowly, slowly…

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Click here (16 April) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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65K

Posted in Health, Walking, tagged 65K in one day, 65th Birthday, AFib, Fitbit, Health, March-In-Place, Steps on March 31, 2020| 6 Comments »

Last Saturday, was my 65th birthday. Ten years ago, I took the week to jog 55 miles. Because I’ve been having issues with my AFib, I haven’t been in a position to even consider trying to do the same thing for this birthday…

65K on 65Yrs

Instead, I decided to try to march-in-place for 65,000 steps. As a subset, I did do my 30 minute dog walk and of course there is the regular amount of steps one would take in a day. (I try to do a minimum of 7,500 steps.) My prior FitBit maximum for a day was 50,000 steps which included the dog walk and a 5K jog. Anyway, it was a long haul, but I made it. I got my first 55K, my first 60K and then my 65K! Sore back and sore knees at the end of the day, but otherwise no significant issues the following day. And, yes, 544 minutes is over 9 hours to get it done. LoL!!

Life can be full of small, daily achievements…

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Click here (31 March) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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30 Day Health / Weight Update (Oct 2019)

Posted in Diets, Health, ITF, OMAD, Pictures, tagged 30-Day Progress Report, BMR, Diet, Fitbit, Health, Intermittent Time Fasting, ITF, Oct 2019 BMR Chart, Oct 2019 Calorie Chart, Toyota Corolla on October 16, 2019| 4 Comments »

On September 16, 2019, I switched from my 18 days of “juice / blend” fasting / diet to an Intermittent Time Fasting (ITF) “Diet / Lifestyle”. My starting weight on 29 August, for the juice / blending fast was: 373lbs. My starting weight for the ITF was: 356lbs. My current weight (this morning) was: 347lbs. Basically, I’ve lost 26lbs from the end of August and 9lbs from the start of the ITF. There is need to mention two minor qualifications. 1) My initial weigh-ins for both starts (juice and ITF) were barefoot and with shorts on. My weight this morning was with sweatpants and cross-training / “fake” leather shoes. I would estimate the “extra” weight to be between 3-5lbs. Having said this, I did not subtract this from the morning’s weight. And, 2) after the end of the juice / blend fast, I regained 11lbs the first week – which I’ve had to re-lose under ITF.

Calories Chart from start of ITF

The observant among you may notice in the above chart, I had four(4) days where my calories-in exceeded my calories-out…

When I switched to the ITF, I also began using my FitBit (FB) to begin tracking my food and gauging my calories-in versus my calories-out. I’m not sure why, but the FB has set my calories-out “objective” at 3,800. The on-line BMR calculator I use says my BMR is roughly 2,400 calories. This means I have to burn an additional measure of 1,400 calories during my waking hours to reach the FB objective.

BMR on 16 Oct 2019 at 347lbs

Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) is defined as 220 beats per minute (BPM) – your age (64). This makes my MHR equal to 156bpm. “Elevated” heart rate is defined as 70% of MHR. In my case, that would be 109bpm. According to my FB, my active time (i.e. “elevated heart rate”) per day is 71 minutes (on average). I’m not sure how this level is met as I only walk my dog for 30 minutes per day and 45 minutes (maybe) 2 or 3 times per week. My FB “step target” is 7,500 steps versus the 10,000 “normally” recommended. I miss my step target about once every couple of weeks. I can only imagine my AFib is raising my heart rate at various points during the day and this is being read as active time by the FitBit.

Anyway, the top chart shows I have a calorie deficit of about 1,300 calories per day. That times seven(7) days is 9,100 calories. Divided by 3,500 calories (1 pound of human body fat) equals to 2.6 pounds of loss per week. My actual weight loss over the last four weeks is 9lbs. Divided by four(4) is 2.25lbs per week. (If we subtract the 3lbs for the shoes worn in this morning’s weigh-in, the result is 2.75lbs per week. Just saying…)

The goal of my long-term weight loss is to drop 1.5 to 2 pounds per week. In theory, this will prevent the two worst part of extreme weight loss: a permanent drop in BMR (which makes it easier to regain lost weight) and a large amount of floppy / saggy skin (pure vanity, it just looks terrible). It looks like I’m off to a promising start. IF I can keep this up, I should be under 300lbs for my 65th birthday at the end of March 2020.

Equally important: how does it feel? Today I was able to get into my wife’s Toyota Corolla without having to put the seat back-rest almost flat and contort my body to get into her car! So, yeah. It feels pretty good. 🙂

My secondary goals going forward are to work towards smoothing out the “calories-in” numbers and to eat more healthy on my one-meal-a-day / all-you-can-eat day. I won’t say I’m “abusing” the OMAD opportunity, but… Okay. Yeah, I am ABUSING it!! And, I know better. At least two of the days, I ate beyond feeling stuffed to the point of feeling sick. So, yeah, I can do better there, too. Slowly, slowly…

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Click here (16 October) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 2: All Things Considered

Posted in ADF, Diets, Faith Family and Friends, Family and Friends, Health, Juice/Blend Fasting, Swimming, Walking, tagged 6/8, AFib, Atrial Fibrillation, Blaze, Day 2 - Blending Fast, Diet, Family, Fitbit, Health, Morning weight: 365lbs., Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, OCD on August 31, 2019| 1 Comment »

The end of day two and the middle of day three… End of week 1 already looks to be in sight!

Morning weight: 365lbs. (on Day 3)
I am down “6 / 8”. As in, 6lbs down from yesterday and 8lbs down from my fasting start weight: 373lbs (morning of Day 1). Obviously, a 6lbs weight loss in a single day and 8lbs over two days is not sustainable. It was mostly stomach content (digesting solid foods) and some water weight. Most adults hold between 7lbs and 15lbs of stomach content, so the first few days of any “cleansing” diet will be mostly the elimination of that content. Most fruit juice and veggie juice diets tend to be “cleansing” diets by default. So, the loss was expected and no big deal. Losses of 1/2lb to 1-1/2 lbs per day tend to be more realistic (from my experience). Managing the fasting to stay near the bottom end of that range (.5lb / day) is where the “art” of fasting comes into play. Most of that “art” is listening to your body tell you what it wants / needs.

Yesterday I walked the dog (30 minutes) and went for a swim (60 minutes, Breast Stroke. 44 lengths X 25 yards == 1,100 yards. 18 laps == 1/2 mile. 1 lap == 2 lengths.) The swim felt much more difficult than normal because I felt like I ran out of energy about 45 minutes through. After that it (swimming) was just a gut check to finish the time. Anyway, I got it done.

I was very tired for most of yesterday, but the flip side of that was I felt I got a good night’s sleep. My FitBit (FB) doesn’t really agree with that assessment, but whatever.

I have a FitBit Blaze. It’s my second FitBit. The first was a hand-me-down belt attachment, which I only used for a couple of months. I didn’t feel it was accurate and it was difficult to remember to keep moving it between clothes. My latest (the Blaze) is a wrist-watch style and was a present from my daughter (Rebecca) for Christmas 2017. So, I’m about halfway through my second year of wearing it. I got it more as a Heart Rate (HR) tracker, but it is only of limited use in that regard.

My Blaze is VERY accurate on providing my current heart rate. Since I suffer from Atrial Fibrillation (AFib), this is important for me to marry up with my sensations of palpitations. This allows me to exercise cautiously. The problem I have with the Blaze is it actually doesn’t record your heart rate by the minute. I downloaded and reviewed my HR for the first couple of months and found the information was recorded at set intervals which have nothing to do with AFib or exercise. I don’t remember (this was Jan / Feb of 2018) anymore what the interval (5m, 10m or 15m) was, but I remember being dissatisfied enough to stop downloading the tracking. I don’t expect 60 second per minute tracking, but this seems to me to be periodic “snapshotting”, not tracking. As a person who also suffers (a bit) from Obsessive / Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and from years of practicing “you can’t manage what you don’t measure”, you can kind of guess at my initial level of frustration. LoL.

My second “issue” with the Blaze is that it doesn’t “stay” on what it’s set to do. I swim. The Blaze doesn’t “track” swimming. This means I have to tell it I’m “working out” to get it to track my HR an calorie effort while swimming. Fair enough. The Blaze doesn’t support swimming and it says so in the documentation and on the company web site. The site says the Blaze is “water resistant”, which means okay for heavy sweat and a quick shower, but not bathing or swimming. In fact, over this last 20 months I’ve used it while swimming for over 150 hours and never had a single problem. Well, almost none. Remember the “staying” mentioned above? Randomly, when water brushes against the Blaze it turns off or pauses the tracking. The result is I am forced to pause between pool lengths to check if it is still tracking. Yeah, that’s annoying. I guess that’s what you have to live with to enjoy touchscreen activation.

This is my first wrist-based HR monitor and other than the two bits mentioned above I REALLY like my Blaze and I would definitely recommend anyone looking into buying a HR monitor consider FitBit’s line of products. Having said that, I don’t think I will replace it when it finally dies. One, the Blaze is no longer offered by FitBit. Two, I feel their products are inordinately expensive. The regular cost was $150. My daughter got it as at a closeout price of $99. Maybe it’s just the dinosaur in me, but I can’t see paying $100-$150 for a watch with a pedometer and a HR tracker – particularly if the tracker doesn’t really “track”. In fairness to FitBit, their newer models DO “track” swimming as an exercise, but since I don’t own one of the newer models, I can’t speak to how they do it or how functional it is when doing the tracking. But, if you are in the market for a good Heart Rate monitor, I guess you’ll get what you pay for.

Well, those are my thoughts about Day 2… I hope I haven’t bored you all too much and you’ll come back for (and enjoy) some of these longer posts.

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Click here (31 August) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 1.5: Done (For Now)

Posted in Diets, Faith Family and Friends, Family and Friends, Health, tagged 319lbs, 54/61, COSTCO, Day 1.5: Juice Fasting, Diet, Dr. Joel Fuhrman, Eat To Live, Family, Fat Sick And Nearly Dead, Fitbit, Health, Joe Cross, Safeway, Salt, Sugar on September 8, 2018| Leave a Comment »

The start of day forty-three… And I only made it to noon.

Morning weight: 319lbs. No change…
I am still down “54 / 61”. As in, 54lbs down from my fasting start weight: 373lbs, and 61lbs down from my highest weight ever (two days before I started Juice Fast I): 380lbs. Today’s weight is no change from yesterday when I gained 4lbs from my cheat evening (the night before).

Considering yesterday was the first day I EVER registered over 20 miles in steps (over 45K steps) on my FitBit, I was hoping for some kind of decrease. But, it was not to be. In all honesty, while not bloated, I do feel like I’m still retaining fluids from the cheat. Which is what should happen when you suddenly re-introduce salt and / or sugar into your system. I did both on Thursday evening. I guess I just wasn’t able to clear them out enough to register a loss by this morning.

Bottom line: I’ve decided to end this fast for now. I’ve fasted for a total of 42 out of the last 43 days on a fast which was meant to be a 7 day fast. Six weeks! That’s a continuous fast of 41 days plus one more after my “slip / cheat”. Eleven days longer than the four other “longest” juice fasts I’ve ever done (all those were “only” 30 days). So, as Joe Cross would say: “Good on ya, mate!”

Reaction: I have two main reactions, 1) I feel 10 years younger, and, 2) this evening, after my dinner, as I am writing this, I feel slightly bloated. I did NOT end according to plan. The plan was to spend six(6) days easing back into food. I definitely have NOT done that! I’ve jumped back in with a big salad for lunch and another big salad for dinner. For dinner, I also had a sausage, a half cup of rice and a cup of pinto beans. And I washed it down with 24 ounces of water with lemon slices which had been sitting for 24 hours. When I say “slightly bloated”, it’s my tummy which is just full enough that I am not hungry, but I’m not stuffed either.

Other notes: I’ve gone from a 54 inch waist to a 48 inch waist. I’ve gone from barely being able to touch my two middle fingers behind my back to being able to grab either opposite wrist with the other hand (again, behind the back). I am comfortable doing 5 to 7 laps (5×25 yards) in the local swimming pool in a nice slow breast stroke with minimal stopping time between turn-arounds. At the start, I could barely do one lap.

So, what’s next? Well, this week we are planning to join Costco. While it is a little farther away and less convenient than Safeway, we believe we’ll be able to get a healthier selection of fruits and veggies at a more reasonable cost (even though we will have to buy substantially more at one time).

That’s takes care of the “sourcing”. But, what’s the plan, you say?

We are currently planning on a modified Dr. Fuhrman, “Eat To Live” two-week plan. Week One is hard diet (no meat) and week two is the softer (slower weight-loss) diet (meat is included). We are flipping the weeks to start: soft and then hard; and then we plan to re-cycle through. My wife will have whatever she wants since she is not strictly joining me on the diet. She says she will try to stay with me, but no promises. I said that’s fine. Every dinner will be a large fresh salad, a half cup of rice and a cup of beans. We may also have an optional cooked vegetable depending on her mood. We may also have optional flesh: meat, poultry or fish. I can only have 4oz of flesh at any meal. In lieu of “flesh”, if she is making something else for her meal (usually a pasta and chicken dish), I can have a half cup of that.

Lunch will be a medium salad, a half cup of rice, and a cup of beans. There may also be “something” for a change. We are not sure what those somethings will be, but we are leaning towards veggie-patties or maybe a bean / beef / oats burger. Again, the bulk of any meal should come from the salad and the beans. I like pinto beans (because that’s what I was raised on), but we will alternate / rotate with black-eyed beans and kidney beans. We will try to keep the salad different by using the various dressing recipes Dr. Fuhrman provides in his book.

Breakfast will primarily be oatmeal made with water or almond milk. I will add fruit (dates, blueberries, black berries, strawberries and raisins) and nuts (walnuts and / or almonds) instead of sugar. I will alternate that with the occasional fruit bowl (melon / mango / strawberries / other berries).

Snacks: My go to snacks will be fresh fruits (apples and bananas or whatever is seasonal), nuts (walnuts, almonds or cashews), or raw veggies (mainly celery and carrots).

Fluids: I will also use fruit and veggie juices for snacks. I will try to drink at least 32oz of water (with a little lemon concentrate) – for my kidney stones, cranberry and pomegranate (again for my kidneys), and black cherry juice (for my arthritis). I will occasionally also make veggie juices for between meals and for evenings.

Finally, cheats: I am not “planning” a cheat schedule (yet), but I understand human frailty – particularly my own – so I fully expect a “small” cheat once a week or so and a “large” cheat once a month or so. I expect this will work out over time and will depend on how much I’m losing and how eliminating salt and sugar from my diet progresses. I do not feel I can / should completely eliminate salt, because I will still need iodine and electrolytes, but I am going to try really hard to minimize the sugars. We’ll see… Day by day.

Keep me in your thoughts and prayers. Namaste!

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Click here (8 September) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.

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Day 23: Fasting Visualized

Posted in Diets, Health, tagged 336lbs, Day 23: Juice Fasting, Diet, Fasting, Fitbit, Health, Juicing on August 19, 2018| Leave a Comment »

The end of day twenty-three and the start of day twenty-four…

Morning weight: 336lbs.
I am now down “37 / 44”. As in, 37lbs down from my fasting start weight: 373lbs, and 44lbs down from my highest weight ever (two days before I started the fast): 380lbs. Today’s loss is a 3lbs loss, down from 339lbs yesterday. One more pound of loss and I will have lost +10% of my body weight from the starting date of the fast. I’m still .3lb shy of 10%.

FitBit Weight Loss as of Day 23.

Please recall as soon as I come off of the juice fast I will (should) gain between 7lbs and 10lbs as this is the “normal” amount of weight contained in a person’s stomach plus a couple of pounds for water retention due to salts and sugars in most foods. This means my “real” weight loss for the 23 days is probably closer to 30 to 35lbs than it is the 37 to 44lbs indicated by the chart.

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Click here (19 August) to see the posts of prior years. I started this blog in late 2009. Daily posting began in late January 2011. Not all of the days in the early years (2009-2010) will have posts.