Tuesday, June 12, 2007, I woke up and stepped on a scale. I knew the number would be high, since I had weighed myself a few days before, but seeing it on the scale and realizing I would have to record it and display it for the world to see helped to strengthen my resolve. It was two pounds higher than Saturday. Having posted my initial weight of 250 pounds — one-eighth of a ton! — I would have to work hard to get that number as small as possible before a planned trip overseas. I eventually settled on a target scheduled of exactly 20 weeks, to give myself a few days of "recovery" before my scheduled departure. How much weight could I safely lose in 140 days?

I started with a goal of 185 and a dream of 165, but quickly jettisoned the higher number for the more aggressive target. I assumed at the time that I wouldn't be able to hit either goal in 20 weeks, but would have to resume my diet when I returned from overseas. I had reports that weight loss on my chosen diet plan, an aggressive low-carb diet, could be rapid and substantial, but losing 85 pounds in 20 weeks would require losing 4.25 pound each week, and no approach to eating can make that kind of difference. Even the first goal, of losing 65 pounds in 20 weeks, seemed silly.

Tuesday, October 30, 2007, I woke up and stepped on a scale. 20 weeks have passed, and I knew what I expected to see, but it was still hard to believe.

Over the previous 20 weeks, much had changed. My long-planned trip overseas was canceled, which was unpleasant, but it freed me up to attend the BlogWorld Expo in Las Vegas one week later, so I still had a goal to aim for. My wife refused to try the same diet, then tried it and it worked very well for her, then quit it again for reasons still unclear to me. I made such rapid progress in the beginning that I began to think that at least one of my goals might actually be achievable within 20 weeks! As I bought one new belt, and then another, I realized that I should have measured more than just my total weight. And through it all, I lost weight. I felt better, I was able to join a gym, and I found myself answering questions about my weight loss daily as people asked what I was doing. I was even accused of abusing illegal drugs (mostly in jest, I think)!