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yesterday amy and i completed week 3. i was down another 3 pounds and was quite happy with the results. that brings my total to 19 pounds in a little over 5 weeks of working out.


the last week was good, but not perfect. we didn’t work out on sunday and didn’t eat right either. i was getting home from my star party and we were also invited to a bears game party which we went to and had a great time. we ate good every day this week though we did miss our cardio workout on wednesday due to conflicts and me having to work late. i was quite happy with the meals this week but was less than happy with the workouts. with that though i still managed to see some losses and we started this week very solidly.


we nailed this mornings lower body workout and ate perfect all day. we also planned all of our meals for the week and bought all of the groceries. for this week our goal is 100% compliance and focus. no excuses, we want a solid week with lots of drive and killer workouts. it’s going to be hard for amy as she’s starting a new rotation this week so we’re not sure what her schedule will be like. at the least though we’re going to do everything in our power to keep her on track and focused.


have a great week all and live smart!!!

i made it out this weekend to the illinois dark skies star party in southern illinois. while the weather didn’t cooperate 100% it did allow for some better than average observing. the weekend started out with the 3.5 hours drive to the site which was really nice. the grounds were clean, buildings were all new, and the shower area was clean. we couldn’t have asked for a nicer location in terms of amenities.


the seeing the first night greeted us with some clouds early on and the seeing was only decent. since i was overly tired i only got a few hours of observing in before i decided to cut my losses and hit the hay. i restricted most of my observing that first night to objects near the zenith because of the clouds on the horizon.


the seeing on the second night was more of the same clouds but the seeing was improved and we were able to get more observing in. i managed about 4 hours of observing before i tossed the towel in. i spent a lot of time in sagittarius and lyra. it cleared up later that night but i forgot to put in a standing wake-up request in to be woken on clear skies, another lesson learned. a bunch of people were up till the wee hours of the morning observing and star hopping though.


the observing on the third and final night was hit and miss at first. we were bouncing around in between the pockets of clouds. finally around midnight the clouds receded from everywhere but the horizons. there were a few occasional wisps but they weren’t too obstructive. i watched a lot of the moon as it set, jumped around in sagittarius and lyra some more and took in a ton of messier objects. i was galaxy and glob hopping in camelopardalis and most of the constellations near cassiopeia. i stayed awake until saturn popped out of the horizon haze and and orion was just about 40° above the horizon. the seeing that low on the horizon was too unsteady to put any power into saturn but it was still pleasant to see it again.


except for the first night the dew was great the whole time and i wasn’t plagued with the dew problems from my last excursion out. the temperatures also didn’t get as low though either so i have yet to see if the antidew really remains a problem.


overall i liked the observing site and the star party. i honestly thought that the turnout was going to be bigger than it was. i guess the turnout was larger than years past but it wasn’t what i expected. i was also a bit surprised that they were advertising this location as one of the darkest locations in illinois as well. there was some serious sky glow from nearby springfield and other near towns, obviously more prominent with the clouds. we were still able to see the milky way and most of stuff everyone planned on seeing so it wasn’t that bad, and it definitely wasn’t as bad as the seeing at the astrofest location. it definitely wasn’t one of the best in the state however.


i saw a ton of objects this time out and since we were bouncing around a lot i’m not sure that i’ll make a posting about everything i saw but i’ll try to cover the highlights in a future post. i’m still up in the air about returning to the star party next year but we’ll cross that bridge later. in summary though the site was nice and clean with good facilities, the food was very good and much better than years past (from what others said), and the seeing was average though maybe a little above average.

well, so far so good. amy and i have navigated the first 2 weeks of eating right and working out. the first week was really a test and last week was a hardcore week. we missed one workout and our cardio workouts weren’t as long as we would have liked (20 minutes vs. 40 minutes). we typically do the 20 mas (minute aerobic solution) followed by 20 minutes of low intensity workout but were taxed for time so we only did the 20 mas. at the end of the week we noticed the difference in the numbers but we both still did great. i dropped 4 more pounds and amy dropped 2, not bad for a semi solid week. we’re used to seeing more the first few weeks but we realize where we can improve and have already made adjustments to compensate. i updated my timeline with my progress so far and have also plotted a few short and long term goals.


this week is great so far, i had a killer lower body workout yesterday and today we got our entire 40 minutes of cardio in. needless to say i was completely starved all day today. following the meals this time around is actually pretty easy this time around. we have quite a few menus to work through both from the eating for life book and some recipes we found. plus, it helps that we’re trying to save money for a house as well so saving money eating at home obviously helps a ton.


i know i’ve said this before, and i really do hope i’m right this time, but it feels different. we’re both getting up in the morning and when one person isn’t into it the other person is there to support them and get them fired up. we always feel great after each workout, even if it is early in the morning. we’re also usually thankful we got up in the morning and worked out after a long day at work. a workout is the last thing we want to do when we get home.


anyhow, as usual i’ll keep updating the website as we progress. wish us luck, we have a few challenges coming up this week and the following weeks. now lets hit the hay so we can knock out a killer upper body workout in the morning. nite all …

well, i know i didn’t tell anyone this, but amy and i started back on the pathway to better nutrition this week. we’ve been battling for a while now trying to get back on the horse but it kept bucking us off over and over. finally after my birthday we had enough and really are making a concerted effort to tackle this once and for all. i’m happy to say that we’ve made it through the first week unscathed. we worked out and ate great all week and i feel great. we didn’t get our workout in today but other than that we hit the rest of the goals for our starter week.


time and time again i post on my blog about how i’m starting over and am going to lose weight this time. i’m tired of posting about it … i’m tired of starting over and losing all of the traction i made last time … i’m tired of feeling big … i’m tired of not feeling healthy … i’m tired of eating bad and feeling bad … i’m tired of being tired. enough was enough!


we’re following the standard body for life eating and workout regiment as we’ve been met with success in the past using it. our only problems in the past have been either restarting after a vacation or not letting a bad meal or day pull us down. it’s hard to get up and start again after being met with feelings of short term failure. whether it’s eating a bad meal or taking a few days off the program for a vacation we have to keep motivated and keep the goals in mind. we have to make these changes for the long term, for life, for our future.


we’re going to spend the day today enjoying our free day and planning out meals for next week. with the holiday this weekend we’re going to have to plan and find some fun things to do and eat in order to succeed. we’re both looking forward to the challenge that our life change will give us, wish us luck … i’ll keep everyone posted.