Jul 10

Jul 10 Shipping up to Boston...Weekly Weight Update

From a weight loss perspective this week couldn't have been worse (except, of course, for the upcoming week). There were two major events that occurred this week that would cause anyone to fall off the wagon, so to speak, when they are in mid-weight loss: (1) the United States of America celebrated its 240th + two days birthday on Monday, July 4th, and (2) it was the week before a vacation. How could I have been expected to stick to a diet plan with those temptations?

The week started off with a few rewards being redeemed for various wins. I never had a chance for winning the May edition of the Bring It On! challenge which was intended to be a 90s action movie at a local cinema. Life got in the way with that plan so I called an audible and instead had a “spa” day. What that means is that I needed a haircut and instead of going to my typical barber shop (read all about it at the Barbershop Quartet) and went to a fancy dancy place, The Grooming Lounge.

The Grooming Lounge is essentially a salon and spa that is supposed to be designed for men. When you arrive they take you to a lounge to wait and enjoy a refreshing beverage while ESPN is running Sportscenter for the 17th or 18th time that day. You are ushered to your chair where you get your hair washed, cut, shaped, styled, and filled with product followed by a hot towel to the face and a massage performed by a power tool (that isn’t a joke) that looks like a modified belt sander and feels like an unmodified belt sander. There are other add-ons you can purchase as well especially if you, like me, have a beard that needs a trim.

Don’t get me wrong, the Grooming Lounge does a capital job with the hair and the beard. I trusted them with my hair for my wedding and I trusted them again this week before going on vacation. Sometimes you may have a stylist that spells her name with two Xs and smells like she was out at the club 15 minutes before arriving at work but that is something that can be tolerated. The most outlandish part of the Grooming Lounge is paying $90 for a haircut and beard trim. Were the results better than my local barber at $25 a pop? Yes, without question. Were the results 360% better? Not even close. I’d say the results are about 100% better, so we should be looking at a $50 haircut but what’s done is done.

Monday was the 4th of July, the day we celebrate the birth of our nation and the signing of the Declaration of Independence (neither of which actually happened on July 4th but that will be addressed in another blog and, actually, isn’t really important) which means time with the family and overeating. I mean come on! There is nothing more American than celebrating a holiday by consuming 50 – 100 times more food than is actually necessary or recommended. That’s okay as long as you do it with family around which we did.

My parents came over and we were all able to enjoy the day even between the rain drops. Hamburgers and hotdogs were grilled. Beer was consumed in reasonable measure (delicious brown ale from Lickinghole Creek, a farm that brews beer that I need to visit soon). In general a good time was had by all and I’m glad I got to share it with my family.

Mid-week was filled with normal, boring life (you know, eating left overs, running, going to the gym, trying to stave off insanity during that last few days of work before heading out on vacation). Then Friday arrived. The greatest Friday in all the land! Why? It was time to pack up, get on a plane, and ship up to Boston for the Avon Walk followed by a week of blissful vacation. What better way to start a vacation then by eating a fried chicken sandwich and french fries in an airport restaurant before heading up for a wonderful, fun filled week of adventure and relaxation? There is no better way to start off the week and the American Tap Room chicken sandwich was exquisite.

I’ll be providing more details on the weekend festivities in Boston in the next installment of the series These Boots Were made for Walking series which documents all the Avon Walks that have come before and that blog should be out soon. If you want to catch up on previous adventures make sure to go back and read These Boots Were Made for Walking for the summary of the first five walks I went to and then the Santa Barbara edition for last year’s event. Here are some highlights you will see in the blog:

Eating too much food
Rizzo walking, this year joined by our friend Chrissy
Driving in Boston sucks
Rizzo walking
Cece and I cheer and explore
Rizzo walking

Non-scale Victory

Needless to say, there will be no weight to report this week since we are away from home and there is no way for me to weigh in. That’s okay because I’ll be reporting next week’s massive weight gain (it will be immediately after a vacation) so I can use a week’s respite from reporting the bad news. Instead I have a non-scale victory which is built out of fear. On Saturday afternoon, while Rizzo was relaxing after her 13.1 mile stroll, I went out for a run through some of the streets of Boston. I didn’t have to work out at all because, you know, vacation, but I have this fear that if I miss skip a workout for no good reason then I’ll fall deep down the hole and gain back everything I’ve lost. Skipping a workout for a legitimate reason (illness or injury) is fine but skipping just because I think “eh, I’m on vacation” is the first step towards giving up exercise. So I hit the streets and got to enjoy some live music at a street festival, the beautiful sights of Boston Harbor, and the lovely architecture of the city’s buildings. I’m glad I went out and it felt good to get moving.

This week’s Bring It On! challenge is brought to you by Avon 39: The Walk to End Breast Cancer. You know what Avon 39? You can bite me. I was on pace to win this week but you had to stick your meddling nose into my business and Rizzo had to be all “I’m going to help people in this world” and “blah, blah, blah I want to raise awareness for breast cancer and raise money for research to end this terrible disease” and “oh, I’m going to walk all over Boston for a noble and worthy cause”. Whatever, Avon 39. Thanks to you Rizzo had 40.0 miles this week compared to my 35.7 miles and that is with Rizzo having 14.1 miles in one day! If it wasn’t for you I would have won by a ton! That gives Rizzo a slim lead during the month of July of 51.4 miles to 50.0 miles. Of course, she is walking another 13.1 miles today like she is some sort of saint or something. Why don’t you just have a seat for a second, #TeamRizzo?

P.S. Here are some bonus pictures from the week.