What I Ate Today
Meal 1
1 bowl of cheerios with skim milk
Calories: 300
Fat: 2 grams

Meal 2
1 fat free yogurt
Calories: 100
Fat: 0 grams

Meal 3
2 slices of wheat bread
2 slices of turkey
10 slices of lowfat salami (they are small slices)
Calories: 310
Fat: 8 grams

Meal 4
2 Weight watchers frozen dinners
Calories: 580
Fat: 14 grams

Meal 5
10 slices of lowfat salami
1 slice of fat free cheese
10 fat free croutons
Calories: 220
Fat: 3 grams

Total Calories: 1,510
Total Fat: 27 grams

Exercise: 30 minutes on the elliptical machine. Lots of sweating.

The Real Reason I Brought You Here Today
Motivation, as I said yesterday, is hard to find midway through the diet, so you take it where you can get it - more on that at the end.

First, I should admit that on Monday, I weighed in at 270.4 pounds, which means I will soon be celebrating my third 100-pounds lost day pretty soon. Kind of depressing, eh?

That’s where you find your motivation in the rough times. You look at what you’ve done wrong, and you take charge to try and fix them. So I turned in a solid day on Tuesday, making sure I went to the gym (after some deliberation), and ensuring my caloric intake was well within the desired range. I tapped back into what I was doing during the Assault on 270. During that glorious week, I always ate 1,500 calories or less. I went to the gym with regularity, and I didn’t eat after 9 p.m.

I’ve got to turn in the same type of effort from here on out. I’ve got to stop banging my head into brick walls, just idling by and hanging out at 270. Again, it’s time to take charge of this thing, which is easier said than done. For the sake of my pride and the goal of not dragging this into next winter, I’ve got to start understanding the sacrifices I must make.

I received a few invitations to go drinking for St. Patrick’s Day, but turned them down. Instead, I stayed in, watched a movie, and saved money. Do I wish I was really, really drunk right now instead of writing about wishing I was really, really drunk? Yes I do; but it’s Monday night right now, and I’ve exhausted my off days for the next couple of weeks.

The sad truth is, I need to become a recluse for a while. I need to stay in and focus on what’s going on with my life. When this began in late December, I actually was a recluse. My plan was to cocoon myself, save money, and lose weight - and then emerge anew in early summer.