Arcade Fire No Cars Go

5-4-07 Arcade Fire Show....am I in Love?

You know, the more and more I look back on last Friday the more I think....Damn...what an awesome show! I saw the Arcade Fire show from the front row.... literally right in front of the lead singers mic. But there was one girl who kept making eye contact with me....and yes, she was in the band. Was I lost? Am I that guy who was stage/star struck? The answer....yes. And to be honest...she's not even that hot!! AHHHH!!!!!

Time to catch up....

I know many of you are furious that I haven't updated this blog. I get all the bad looks, the sighs, the occasional roll of the eyes. Well, I'm here to say that no longer will you have to wait. It's time to talk, time to blog, time to express myself!!

It's been about 5 weeks now and I'm down 25lbs. Can you believe it? I never in my wildest dreams thought I could actually do this. The best part is that I've figured out a way to include some non-nutrisystems meals in my diet. The difference.... just healthier. I eat lean meat, more chicken and more veggies. I try to have a salad with every meal and I eat the good carbs. I hope that by the time July 1 rolls around (30th b-day) I'll be down 50lbs. That will put me 10 lbs away from my goal weight which is 210. I'm making it happen!! Watch me......

Week 3 Weigh-In....

I haven't updated in awhile but I wanted to keep everyone up to date on my progress. So far after about 3 weeks I have lost 15 lbs. I'm pretty sure the weight loss is going to slow down as the weeks grow older, but I'm pretty amazed in my ability to stay the course. I usually frail and give in to the pressure but I'm not this time. In fact, I just reordered my 2nd month of food from Nutrisystem. This time I took entrees I didn't enjoy, removed them and added more entrees I did enjoy. I'm pretty much used to everything I need to eat and the portions I have to eat.

There has only been a few days where it was hard to not think about food. For instance, last Thursday my co-workers and I had a meeting with our GM in the conference room and everyone was given their own personal pizza from California Pizza Kitchen. Talk about pressure....pizza was everywhere and people were like "sorry Trav, I know this has to hurt." But I just watched....drank my water and went on my way. I didn't give in! Then there was last night, I was STARVING! In fact, all day I was unusually hungry. I ate some bigger portions of my food but didn't go overboard. I haven't been that hungry in awhile and I knew it was just temporary. The end result will mean so much more if I just ignore those cravings. I was practically begging Rose to go somewhere with me and eat. I just wanted to eat out somewhere. However she was over it, so I made my meal.

Now if I can only convince her to go to the game tonight.....

Alright, enjoy!

2 week weigh in....

Forgot to mention.... Started at 267, now I'm down to 258. Hells yea!!

Update Day 15

I haven't posted on here in awhile and I'm sorry for that. Nevertheless, I have some updates I would like to share. First off, over the Easter Holiday I went down to Richmond mainly to see my family but also to bring back a treadmill that's been sitting in my mom's garage for 2 years. I brought it back and used it last night. While it needed some minor maintenance, it worked out well. I ran/walked 2.5 miles and plan on using it about 3-5 times per week. Since I haven't been on a run in quite some time, I need to start slow. Therefore I plan on using it 3 times this week, 4 times next week and 5 from there on out. I will run about 30 min/day which will give my body a nice workout. I must admit my body is a little soar, but it's a good pain you know.

As far as the NuTrav diet is going; I can't complain. I am more and more used to the portions and the food. Like I've been saying for a while now....I'm going to make this work. I will lose 50 lbs one way or another.

Hope everyone had a nice holiday and keep reading...more to come....

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

And the winner is....

I feel we have a winner.... it goes to......

Noah who said,

Israelis and Germans (judging by the flags) uniting to protest Scientology . . . the world truly is upside down.

More to come....

Back to the point...

I started this blog to detail my weight loss but unfortunately have fallen off the point. I need to get back to what this blog is all about... There were many distractions (Jenny, Kate, colleagues who hate MY caption contest results, etc...) but I need to stay the course. With that being said....let's roll....

Yesterday I had a very good breakfast and lunch, despite the fact I had "bars" as my entree. I matched it with a good sandwich, fruit and salad. Dinner was delicious as always. The food is really not that bad. I will say this however, my meals are very filling. I feel I'm actually eating more. I can already tell that my body is much healthier. I feel less fatigued and more energized. The test will be this weekend. I'm going down to Richmond to see ma dukes so I'm sure she's going to want to cook me something delicious or go out and eat. I just need to continue the discipline I've shown and eat healthy no matter where we go, if we go. I'm very confident in my ability to make this work. I'll also be picking up a treadmill that my parents are not using so I can start some exercise. There are many factors that NuTrav has faced and has YET to face. But I must stay true, eat well and now....run like Forest.....

Stay tuned for more.....

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

And the winner is....

Given there were only 3 contestants, I didn't have many to choose from. However one stood out and without further adieu.....

The winner for April 4th is... LIAM!!

Following the grisly sleigh crash, Santa was left with moderate damage to his left frontal lobe and an irrational fear of flying. A crack team of elves began testing other potential methods for Christmas Eve transportation.

Stay tuned for more....

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

And the winner is....

I have reviewed the comments and have 1 clear cut winner for the April 3rd 2007 post....

Erik with....

You might be a redneck if...

Stay tuned for another caption contest....

Day 8:

Today has been fine....breakfast and lunch were good. I had a nice snack this afternoon and that was good as well. I ate some yogurt (never been a big fan) and I didn't think I'd like it....but again. I was surprised to find out that I did indeed enjoy it. I wonder if it's because I'm just so hungry that I'll eat anything? Whatever the case may be.... I'm getting used to this diet. I'm on my 2nd week and hopefully soon I won't even think about my diet and just eat right and follow the plan.

From time to time I find myself looking into my trusty daily program journal to make sure I'm eating everything it tells me too. Sooner or later I'm going to just have it etched in my brain and I won't have to use the book.

I went grocery shopping yesterday and restocked the necessary items by diet calls for on a daily basis. Stuff like spinach salad (any salad will do, but I wanted spinach leaves), yogurt, milk, fruit, vegetables, etc... If I continue this pace I should lose it all quite quickly.

developing.....

Question of the Day....

More likely to be converted into Scientologists - The Beckhams(David + Posh) or The Lo's (Jennifer Lopez + Marc "Skeletor" Anthony)?

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

And the winner is....

After careful deliberation, I have come to a conclusion...

The winner for the April 2nd 2007 post is.....

Kevin (again) with....

Faced with the realization that he would have to show up to work in the same clothes as he wore the day before, and knowing that no one would believe he was able to get lucky, Kevin took this photo as proof of his conquest. He thought, "she may have been a porker, but look at that set of tits."

Honorable mention goes to Liam with...

For his next movie-- set in a post-nuclear-apocalyptic dystopia-- Jim Carrey gains 23 pounds, shrinks 23 inches, and dons a sweater with 23 red lines. During the 23 months of filming, Jim's girlfriend, Jenny McCarthy, grew 23 nipples.

Day 7:

Today has been busy...I mean, it is opening day in baseball. But I have not gone away from my dietary plans. I had a typical breakfast and lunch along with a decent snack. I plan on going to the grocery store later on this afternoon after work to buy more vegetables, fruit and protein. I can still say that this diet isn't all that hard to keep up with. Once I kick in the exercise I should be well on my way.

Stay tuned....

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

Question of the Day....

Better TV dad...

Jason Seaver or Steven Keaton?

Submit your answers by posting a comment.

And the winner is....

Daily Caption Contest From Friday March 30th is.....

Lafley:

It has been said that you never forget how to ride a bike. That's bullshit!!

Sunday Morning Weigh-In...

I started the diet weighing approx. 267 and I knew that to get down to 210 was going to be very tough. I haven't hit the scale since I started so I knew I was either going to be please, or pissed. After 5 days of dieting I did it.

262 is what it said.... I lost 5lbs in 5 days!!! Unbelievable!! I doubt I'll be able to stay on this pace but I'm going to try. If I can get down to 250 by the end of next week I'll be stoked!!

Day 5 and 6 (weekend)

Well, the weekend came and went without any serious hunger pains. Friday night I thought was going to be tough, but I ended up feeling really good about my order. Let me explain.... Friday night was Dave's 30th b-day and a bunch of us were going to eat at a Japanese Steakhouse. I knew the food was going to be delicious and who in the world doesn't order a surf and turf combo. What was I to do?? Once the menu came I saw all the goodies... lobster, shrimp, chicken, fillet, etc... Was I going to have enough discipline? Here's what I did, I ordered Tuna Sashimi appetizer and ordered Vegetable Delight for my entree. I was pleased with my order but was it going to fill me up? In fact, it did...and it was great! I passed the test...went to a big time restaurant and didn't get sucked in to order something unhealthy. NuTrav is on his way......

The rest of the weekend was standard order. A lot of water and all Nutrisystem style meals.

Day 4 Snack

Snack today was nothing special...but nevertheless needed! I had a couple paper thin slices of fat-free turkey (didn't know there was fat in turkey) and an orange. TASTY? You betcha!

Nothing else as of now....

Day 4 Lunch

I had the worst meal so far by Nutrisystem; their ham and beans soup. It was runny and very unpleasant but the big guy ate it. I also had the usual lunch staple of a salad and slice of turkey w/ a piece of bread. That part was fine, but the ham and beans soup was gross.

I've finished 4 glasses of water and I need 4 more. I'm going to eat a very light snack so dinner tonight will be better for me since I'm eating out. I plan on skipping the dessert so I can flush down a few Stoli Vodka's. Big man's drinking tonight....

Question of the Day....

A lawyer can solve 32 math riddle per hour, and his friend Sam takes three hours to solve the same number. If they both work on them, how long will it take for them to solve 32 math riddles?

Submit your answers by "posting a comment" below. The first person to correctly solve the riddle is the winner. Good luck!

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

And the winner is....

We have a winner for the caption contest from Thursday, March 29th. It goes to....

Kevin (again...2 in a row).

After waking up next to a fat chick for the last time, Timmy thought, "What the hell Why don't I save myself $100 buying drinks and make my own fat chick."

Kevin crushed this one... Another great caption.

Stay tuned for the next one.

Day 4 Breakfast

I'm passing all kinds of tests with flying colors. Came into work today and went to McDonald's with some friends. I was very tempted to order something like I normally do, but instead....did not! I just ordered a diet coke. I was pleased with myself....it wasn't that hard. I really think I'm turning a corner. The old Trav would have ordered 2 bacon, egg and cheese biscuits...but not the NuTrav! No SIR!!!

This morning I had a breakfast bar (granola) an orange and a slice of bread. Now it's time for the water and then lunch.

Developing....

Day 3 Dinner

Dinner was good.... I had an entree (beef with pasta and mushroom sauce) some celery, some strawberry's and i added 1/2 cup of my own pasta. It was pretty filling.....

I then ate a dessert which was a chocolate chip granola bar and went to bed. No hunger pains.

Tomorrow night will be the test. I have a birthday party for a good friend and we're going to a Japanese steak house.

Stay tuned....

Day 3 Snack

So I just had my tasty mid-afternoon snack... Was it delicious? You bet-cha! A slice of Roast Beef and an Orange... HA! I know....nubbinsville...

What am I doing?

Day 3 Lunch

Another lunch goes by without any complaints. I had chicken stew, a half a sandwich (roast beef) and a salad. All of which was quite delicious. I'm on my 3rd glass of water and I haven't seen yellow piss in 2 days. Must be working...

stay tuned.....

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

And the winner is....

The winner of the daily picture contest for Wednesday, March 28th is.....

Kevin with:

After scowering the earth, Kakayi finally thought he had found it - the place where his fantasy would come true! But even they wouldn't put the banana in his butt. He walks away dejected.

Nice job Kevin, even though your grammar wasn't correct.... I still think you had the best.

Day 3 Breakfast

Again, a filling breakfast but it's very hard to train my body to eat more in the morning. I ate everything but it was very slow. I had a nutrisystem granola bar, an orange and a slice of toast with a glass of 1/2% Milk. So far...so good....

Only 1 glass of water so far...but I've been getting down around 10 glasses per day and let me tell you, the midnight pees are not fun... I hate waking up, but I have to go...

Developing..

Question of the Day....

Better pilot....

Maverick or Iceman?

Please submit your answer by commenting on this post.

Once the votes are read the decision is final....the person voted out will be asked to leave the blog immediately.

Day 2 Dinner

Dinner last night was quite tasty. I had some kind of beef stew entree and I added my own carb to the dish which was a 1/2 cup of mini penne noodles...mmmm... I also had a salad with fat-free italian dressing and some celery with 2 tbls of ranch dressing. All according to the plan... so far it's not too bad. I think I can do this. Question is will the lbs start to drop off?

Remains to be seen....

Daily Caption Contest...

Below, I will post a picture and you must create a caption by posting a comment that you think goes along with the picture. On the next day, I will name a winner.

GOOD LUCK!!

It's Almost Snack Time....

Well, it's almost snack time and I'm just gearing up for my afternoon orange and slice of roast beef. HAHA!

Also, I'm up to 4 glasses of water....I really need to step it up.

Day 2 Lunch

Not too bad so far today, I had a very filling meal and I feel great! I had Cheese Tortellini, a slice of bread w/2 thin slices of roast beef and a salad with fat-free balsamic vinaigrette.

The only thing I need to improve on is my water intake. I need to drink more faster, I've only had 2 glasses so far and I'm on my 3rd. I need to pick it up...

Day 2 Breakfast....

The morning has come and I wasn't too hungry. I wanted to make sure I followed the plan to force my body to become used to this constant eating (be it small portions, but still) . Therefore, I had an orange, a nutrisystem blueberry muffin (not too tasty), a slice of multi-grain bread and a glass of my 1/2% Milk.

Now comes the constant water consumption....

Many of you have noticed that I posted a redskins article that had nothing to do with my diet.... Well, this is MY BLOG.... get over it... HA!

Day 2:

Let me tell you something.... yesterday I was fine after lunch.... I was even fine come 6pm. But when I went to the Caps game last night at around game time, I became hungry as hell. I actually got a headache I was so hungry. I was however able to tough it out, but it was HARD. I came home around 10pm and just followed the dinner directions of my plan. I made meatloaf and mashed potato's, a salad with fat-free honey dijon dressing, and I needed some kind of carb so I took a slice of bread and added the required 2 tsp of fat (which was peanut butter) and made a peanut butter sandwich. Here's the kicker.... I needed a vegetable to go along with my feast so I took 2 celery sticks and chopped em up and threw them in my sandwich and made a peanut butter, celery sandwich. CRAZY??!?!?! Yes, I think so....but I was so hungry I didn't care and to be honest, it was quite amazing!

I survived day 1. Can this continue.... we'll see.......

From ProFootballTalk.com

Here's an article that I read today which makes so much sense. I don't want the skins to trade for Briggs. Granted he may be a back to back pro-bowler, he doesn't play in the 4-3 scheme that Greg Williams employs. Personally, I would like the skins to trade down in the first round and acquire an additional pick in the 2nd, then...trade down again in the 1st round and acquire a 3rd round pick. That way, they'll have a 1st, 2nd and 3rd round pick in the draft.

Wishful thinking I'm sure....

BRIGGS-TO-'SKINS MAKES NO SENSE

Apart from the fact that Bears linebacker Lance Briggs became a star in a pure Tampa 2 scheme that the Redskins don't run, there's another reason why it makes no sense, in our view, for the 'Skins to add Briggs to the team.

With two big-money free agent linebackers -- Marcus Washington and London Fletcher-Baker -- already in the starting lineup, the 'Skins wouldn't be getting the best return on their investment in Washington, Fletcher-Baker, and Briggs.

Why? Because a defense has three linebackers on the field roughly half of the time.

In the nickel and dime defenses, linebackers are replaced by defensive backs. Teams use the nickel whenever the opponent brings in a third receiver. Typically, that happens in second and long or third and more than three or four yards.

At a time when the 'Skins are still thought to be interested in adding Dre' Bly to a corps of cornerbacks that includes Carlos Rogers and Fred Smoot, it's simply not a good investment of cap dollars to write a big bonus check to Briggs, unless the team is thinking about parting ways with Washington and his base salary of $4 million in 2007.

Snack Time!!

Okay, so yea....I got a little hungry as the day grew longer. But I controlled myself, told myself to just wait for your snack.

I ate 2 slices of Lean Roast Beef and an Orange. I washed it down with my 5th glass of water.

Oh, and yes...I have pissed and it was somewhat clear...I'd like it clearer though....

Developing....

Water...water....water...

Three glasses down and I have yet to pee.... What's wrong with me? I can't wait to see if it's going to be clear or yellow... Whenever it's clear I usually can't walk because I'm hammered drunk, now it's going to be clear because I'm filled with water. FUN!!

PS-Now I'm getting hungry....this isn't good. I'll snack at 3pm.

Story developing....

Day 1: Lunch

Lunch came and I must admit, I wasn't very hungry. I believe I'm going through the trials and tribulations of changing my body's habits. For instance, I usually eat a fairly substantial lunch and dinner, but don't eat a breakfast. Today I had the Nutrisystem Cereal so I wasn't all that hungry come lunch time.

My first lunch experience was with a nutrisystem entree called Pasta with Beef....it's very much like a Chef Boyardee dish except half the size. It was actually very tasty! I then followed it up with some salad and fat-free Balsamic Vinaigrette which amazingly only has 5 calories per serving. It was also tasty... I was supposed to eat a carb (slice of bread) and some protein (slice of roast beef) but I elected not too since I wasn't hungry.

To be honest, it was fine and not hard to follow... Let's just see if it carries on...

PS-I'm on my third glass of water....I need to drink more... It's 1:30 and I've only had 2 1/2 glasses....I need to speed it up!

Before I forget...

Here is a "before" picture that I'm showing you to see how much of a fat-ass I am. Hopefully as the weeks go by, you will see a reduced belly. Stay posted for updated side profile pics.....

Day 1

Well, it's Day 1 in the NuTrav diet plan. Let me first explain what each day will consist of so you know exactly what I'm putting in my body on a daily basis. The Nutrisystem people want you to use this checklist or diary of your progress. Here's an example:

Breakfast

• A Nutrisystem Entree
• Fruit
• Dairy or Protein
• Low Glycemic Carb

Lunch

• Nutrisystem Lunch Entree
• Dairy or Protein
• Salad
• Low Glycemic Carb
• 2 tbsp fat-free dressing (if desired)

Snack

• Fruit
• Dairy or Protein

Dinner

• Nutirsystem Dinner Entree
• Vegetables
• Salad or Fruit
• Fat
• Low Glycemic Carb
• 2 tbsp fat-free dressing (if desired)

Dessert

• Nutrisystem Dessert

Must drink 8 glasses (8 oz.) of water per day

So, as you can see the diet is somewhat strict, but it's very easy to follow. As long as you complete your steps, you should be fine.

So far, as of 9:00 am I have had:
Nutrisystem Cereal, an Orange, a glass of 1/2% Milk, and a piece of bread. That has covered all of the 4 steps for the breakfast portion of the plan. I'll be back to blog about the rest.

Enjoy and please feel free to comment as we go along....