A look back, and a look Forward

This chart shows the great progress that Rhonda and Bill have made this past year. This week, with a lot of distractions from having a joyful Christmas Season and a houseful of family, Bill gained 3 pounds, up to 225 pounds and Rhonda gained one pound, up to 232 pounds. But they have avoided all the Christmas Goodies, as their children will attest. The lesson they have learned from this is not to judge others when they gain weight. You never know what they have gone through.

Looking forward, they are expecting more weight loss in the new year!

Here are their set-point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (F) 90 (S) 90 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T)100 (W) 100 (T) 100

Bill: (F) 90 (S) 90 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100

Triple Twos

Bill weighed in at 222 pounds this week, a loss of three pounds. Rhonda lost two pounds, down to 231 pounds. She's knocking on the door of the 220s. Here are BEFORE and AFTER pictures. In the past two years, Bill has lost over 90 pounds and Rhonda has lost 40 pounds. Byu the way, Bill has had to drill two more holes in his belt!

Set point scores for this week were all 100s! for both Bill and Rhonda.

Rhonda and Bill's Top Ten List of Weight-Loss Suggestions

Yes, Rhonda and Bill have lost a lot of weight over the last few years. Here are their suggestions for what a person could start doing right now to loose weight:

1)Exercise. This is listed first because it is the most important. Perhaps a person could lose weight through a starvation diet, but it will be gained right back. Lasting weight-loss requires exercise! But it can be something as simple as walking for an hour, five times a week. Remember the correct heart rate, too.

2)Cut out refined foods from what you eat. White flour and sugar are the culprits here. Avoid them like you would the plague. Bill had a room mate in college who would say to him, “What? Don't tell me you are putting 'White Death' (Granulated sugar) on you're oatmeal, again!”

3)Replace refined foods with whole wheat and other complex carbohydrates, like potatoes.

4)Avoid fats.

5)Avoid red meat. Instead, use turkey, chicken, or fish.

6)Cut out soda pop. Even diet soft drinks. They're bad news all the way around!

7)Never eat anything deep fat fried. Instead use a non-stick cooking spray to fry them. Or just bake foods.

8)Avoid foods made with high fructose corn syrup. This is really the same as item #2, because it seems that everything that is refined also has high fructose corn syrup in it.

9)Replace high fat and high sugar treats with fresh fruit or make recipes for cookies and other goodies with half the sugar and use whole wheat flour instead of white flour.

10)Don't have unhealthy foods around that might tempt you.

Disclaimer: Rhonda and Bill, particularly Bill, have dis-regarded most of these suggestions for a good portion of their lives. However, they do live by them now!

This week Rhonda lost a pound, down to 233 pounds. Bill lost three pounds, down to 225 pounds. In other words, they have fought their way back to where they were before the disaster of Thanksgiving!

Here are their set-point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T)100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 95 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 90

Measurement Time

Bill stayed the same as he was measured at the end of last month. But Rhonda lost a 1/2 inch off the waist, the sane in the waist. And 1 1/2 inches off the hips.

In the weight department Bill lost one pound, down to 229. Rhonda on the other hand lost 3 pounds. Her success is Bill's susccess and vice versa.

Here are their set-point scrores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T)100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 80 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Benefits Other Than Weight Loss

Rhonda and Bill experience many other benefits than just weight loss. Two years ago Rhonda was diagnosed with high blood pressure. Her doctor immediately put her on high blood pressure medicine. She started exercising too, and watching what she ate. A few months later, she and Bill began going to Gold's Gym five times a week for an hour. As a result of this effort, two weeks ago, the doctor told Rhonda that she only needed to take half of the pill that she has been taking. So she's making progress. On another note, Rhonda had bleeding gums at the dentist a few years ago. They were about to put little packets of medicine under the gums. But six months ago, that bleeding had stopped and the dentist's office said it was because of the reducion of high blood pressure. Bill has been on a C-PAP machine at night for the last five years. This summer, the doctor reduced the amount of air pressure that machine gives out, and then reduced it again, because Bill doesn't need as much pressure as before. Bill recently had a blood test and it is drastically improved over a test he had 5 years ago. For example, 5 years ago his triglyceride (or blood fat) level was 177 and the highest "normal" level should have been 149. Well, the recent test had the triglyceride level at 47.

Fortunately, there are these other benefits to weight loss because this week Bill and Rhonda didn't fare so well. Both Bill and Rhonda gained four pounds this week! Bill is clear up to 230 pounds and Rhonda is up to 237 pounds. Now of course, this was the day after Thanksgiving, but they had passed up a delicious-looking slush that guests had brought to the Thanksgiving meal, whole wheat rolls while everyone else ate sumptuous white rolls, their own seperate mashed potatoes without the good stuff in them, marshmellow-less yams, punpkin pie that Emily made (they settled for a no fat pumpkin pudding concoction that Bill made) -- anyway, you get the picture! And they went to the gym on Friday morning and were shocked to find they had both gained four pounds each. They even suggested that Gold's Gym recalibrate their scales!

Here are their set point scores for this week, which certainly don't reflect their weight-gains:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 90 (T) 90 (F) on track for 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 90 (F) On track for 100

The Carbon Diet

Bill loves whole wheat toast. But it can't be made in the toaster. Even on their highest settings, normal toasters cause the bread to come out too anemic. For Bill, toast isn't toast unless it is almost black. And the best way to accomplish this is with a frying pan. There was a time when Bill loaded lots of butter and jam on toast. In recent years, Bill, and Rhonda have acquired the taste for toast all by itself. It's much healthier that way anyway.

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 90 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 90 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Despite these relatively good scores, Bill gained one pound, up to 226 pounds this week, and Rhonda stayed the same at 233 pounds. However, they remain optimistic that over the long haul, things will turn out okay. And things are turning out.

The Belt

Bill has had only one belt for the last two and a half years. So for consistency's sake, it makes for a good item to study for weight-loss. Bill bought the belt in the spring of 2007. Actually it was included with the sale when he bought the suit which he eventually wore at his three oldest daughters' weddings. Over that same time, Bill has lost a lot of weight. Since then, Bill has had to drill eleven new holes in his belt to accommodate his gradually shrinking waistline. The belt has to wrap practically half way around his body to be tucked in his belt loops. This might seem like it's an inconvenience, but oh, what a wonderful inconvenience it is! And the suit? Well, despite the suit store having lifetime alterations, and Bill getting it taken in, the man who does those alterations told Bill that he couldn't take it in any more. "I'm a tailor, not a magician!" he said. During this same time period, Rhonda has also lost a lot of weight.

In fact, this week Rhonda lost a pound, down to 233 pounds. This is the lowest weight she has been at for many, many years. Bill lost three pounds, down to 225. He is just 25 pounds away from what he weighed 25 years ago when he and Rhonda were married.

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (F) 95 (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 96 (F) 100

Bill: (F) 95 (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Turkey

November is turkey month, so here is some information about turkey:

There is probably no other food that evokes images of celebration, family, friends and giving thanks than turkey. November is the month noted as the season for enjoying turkey but its wonderful taste and nutritional value should not be reserved just for the holidays as it is available to enjoy year-round. The rise in popularity of this lean meat has been spurred by the increased availability of individual turkey pieces such as breasts, tenderloins, cutlets and ground turkey. These alternatives to cooking a whole turkey have made it more convenient for people to easily incorporate turkey into their diets. Bill and Rhonda have almost entirely replaced beef in their eating with turkey. Most recipes that call for ground beef can be modified to use ground turkey.

This week, Rhonda lost three pounds, down now to 234 pounds and Bill stayed the same at 228 pounds. So Rhonda looks like she has finally gotten her big break!

Here are their Perfect set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Halloween Special: The Case Of The Incredible Shrinking Man

Watch this short video and see for yourself!

This week Rhonda lost one pound down to 237 and Bill lost two pounds, down to 228. He's finally broken into the 220s!

Since we are so close to the end of the month, they also measured themselves. This is also indicative of their weight-loss with Bill loosing one inch off his belly-button measurement and Rhonda loosing a half inch off her waist measurement. Bill also had to drill new holes in his belt.

And their set-point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 78 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

What He Ate

As was mentioned in a blog a few weeks ago, Bill eats a lot! Rhonda has been trying to eat more, too. Here is a list of what Bill ate during the week of his birthday:

Friday

8 whole wheat waffles with crushed pineapple on top

2 slices whole wheat bread, 3 oranges, 3 bananas, lots of grapes (Passed up an Italian buffet at the free lunch at work Also passed up cheesecake.)

For dinner he had baked chicken and whole grain brown rice

Saturday

Whole wheat toast, no butter or jam (passed up huge muffins at the friends of scouting breakfast)

Chicken salad, 2 pears

1 ½ pizzas, whole wheat pizza crust

Sunday

2 pieces whole wheat banana bread, 2 pieces whole wheat toast, 2 pears

1 pork chop, lots of set point mashed potatoes, corn

Air popped pop corn, 3 pieces whole wheat toast (and toast is not toast unless it is toasted in a frying pan instead of a toaster, and has a lot of burned parts

Monday

3 pieces whole wheat toast, grapes

1 orange, 2 pieces whole wheat bread, turkey lettuce salad, no dressing (passed up great big gooey and nummy sweet rolls, cheesecake.)

Spaghetti sauce with ground turkey served over 3 pieces whole wheat bread, 2 pears, 3 pieces of set point birthday cake with no frosting

Tuesday

1 pork chop, fried potatoes

3 pieces whole wheat bread, 1 orange, cut up vegetables,slightly cooked, tomatoes, 1 piece boneless, skinless chicken (passed up prime rib and carrot cake with cream cheese frosting.)

Lasagna with whole wheat noodles, grapes, acorn squash. (Had one piece of Marie Calendars blueberry pie which the stake presidency had to celebrate Bill's birthday! Hev had no choice on this one!)

Wednesday

Grapes, whole wheat pancakes, peach sauce

Apple slices, steamed vegetables and small red potatoes (passed up a whole tray of dough nuts)

Lots of grapes and apple slices, hamburger, corn, tomato sauce, served with tortilla chips

Thursday

2 bananas, 2 slices of whole wheat toast

3 pieces of whole wheat bread, apple slices, lots of grapes, strawberries, and cantaloupe. (Passed up strawberry cheesecake)

Shepherd's pie and salad with no dressing

Here are Bill and Rhonda's set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 95 (S) 98 (M) 93 (T) 90 (W) 95 (Th) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 95 (S) 98 (M) 95 (T) 98 (W) 100 (Th) 100 (F) 100

And the result?

Rhonda and Bill are both headed in the right direction. This week Bill lost one pound and is now at 230 pounds. Rhonda also lost a pound and is now down to 238 pounds.

The Grape Juice Diet

One of the things that Rhonda and Bill watch while trying to lose weight is to not drink anything but skim milk or water. Anything else counts against them. Even fruit juices that are 100% juice. Why? Because the body absorbs the drinks so quickly and there is no chewing. Lots of chewing leads to more satiety. Well with that said, Rhonda thought, How could anything in a quart jar be bad for you?" Since her neighbor offered her grapes from his back yard and another neighbor lent her a juicer, Rhonda was off to making and canning some grape juice. Yes some sugar, about 3 cups worth, was added, but that would all blend into the juice and somehow lose its sweetness in the canning process. Only, Rhonda is a beginning canner and didn’t screw the canning lids on tight enough or something because the jars didn’t seal, which left 3 quarts of grape juice needing to be drunk soon. Thinking that surely something straight out of the back yard and into a quart jar couldn’t be all that bad, Rhonda quickly lost point after point in what is called faulty drinking. Consequently, she gained a pound this week. Bill, who was much more obedient (and also gone to work most of the time, so he didn’t have to look at then all the time) and didn’t want to lose any points to faulty drinking, lost a pound.

Here are the scores for this week.

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 99 (T) 96 (W) 95 (T) 90 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 95 (W) 95 (T) 100 (F) 100

The Psychology of Winning

Rhonda and Bill have recently been listening to MP3s of the Psychology of Winning by Dr. Denis Waitley during the time of their workouts each day at the gym. These give very helpful ideas. Bill listened to the Psychology of Winning several years ago when he was unemployed. It must have worked because not only did he get a job, but he has had that same job for 16 years. Now he and Rhonda hope to turn that success into loosing weight. Weight-loss, although still very dependent on physical things like exercise and eating right, is very much a mind-over-matter proposition. And Rhonda and Bill need every bit of encouragement that they can get.

It must be working because this week, Rhonda started to progress forward and lost one pound. Bill, on the other hand, gained two pounds, despite a near-perfect performance with the set-point scores. He's still scratching his head on that.

Here are their set-point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 98 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 98 (F) 100

This was not a good week as far as weight loss. Bill stayed the same at 230 pounds. So what if he is the lightest he's been in 21 years! We want weight loss, not the status quo! Rhonda, on the other hand is trying to dis-prove set point weight-loss and she gained three pounds. Despite working out 5 times this past week for one hour, she binged out on 9 “fun size” candy bars!

But there is some what good news. This was the all-important measurement week. Bill lost a ½ inch off his belly button measurement while Rhonda gained in some places and lost in others which averages out to be about the same as last month. However, there is an even more accurate indicator and that is what other people perceive. Both Rhonda and Bill have gotten many compliments recently on their weight-loss.

Here are their set-point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 98 (S) 80 (M) 78 (T) 87 (W) 100 (T) 90 (F) 97

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Marathon Weight

On Friday, Bill weighed in at 230 pounds. This is the same weight he was when he ran the Deseret News Marathon in 1988. That was his fifth and final time to run it. (His sister, Vera, has run marathons many times more than that. And she has run ultra marathons, as well as triathalons.) Bill has now lost 89 pounds since he and Rhonda started going to Gold’s Gym, 21 months ago. It should be a few more weeks until he is down to 219 pounds, at which point, he will have lost 100 pounds.

To celebrate Bill’s getting to his marathon weight, Bill and Rhonda participated on Saturday in the StepOut for Diabetes. Unfortunately, Rhonda didn’t fare so well in the weight catagory. She gained one pound this week, again despite doing most everything right. Remember, though, weight alone can be deceiving, Next week, we will report on their all-important measurements. So we’ll see how that goes.

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 98 (S) 100 (M) 91 (T) 98 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 96

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 95 (T) 90 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 98

　

Eat and get slim

There are many things that set-point weight-loss IS. It's an eating program, it's an exercise program, and it's a way to develop a healthy life-style. But set-point weight-loss IS NOT a diet! Diets conjure up cravings, hunger, and the need for great will-power. The only will-power needed with set-point weight-loss is the will to exercise and eat right. As far as hunger, Rhonda and Bill have almost never experience such a thing in the nearly two years they have been loosing weight.. So set-point weight-loss should be called, eat, and eat, and eat and get slim.

This week, Bill slimmed down to just 233 pounds, a loss of one pound, and right behind him is Rhonda, who came in at a trim 235 pounds. Okay, she stayed the same, this week but she's getting ready to drop another three pounds like she did last week. Actually, over the long term, Bill has lost twice as much weight as Rhonda has, but he eats twice as much as she eats!

Here are their set-point scores this week:

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Rhonda has asked that her scores not be shown for this week. (We'll let you off the hook this week, Rhonda, but remember this blog is for accountability, so next week you'll need to report!) Actually, she went to the gym 5 times this week for an hour, and she generally ate healthy food.

Motivation

What are Rhonda and Bill shooting for? Well, they both have a goal to get down to 200 pounds by the first of the new year. This is about two pounds a week. To reach this will require being very consistent with the set point weight-loss principles they have been living all year. But what is really motivating them? Already, both Bill and Rhonda have felt the positive effects of loosing weight. These alone are motivational.

But if Rhonda makes her goal, she will reward herself with the DVDs of the six hour version of Pride and Prejudice as well as the BYU Pink Bible version of the same story. If Bill gets to his year-end goal, he will receive the First Season of the Original Star Trek TV Series on DVD.

This week, Bill stayed the same weight (despite perfect scores all week) at 234 pounds. Rhonda lost a whopping three pounds, and is now down to 235 pounds. Yes, they are one pound apart! Actually, a few weeks ago, Bill over-took Rhonda, but now Rhonda is threatening to over take him! This may turn into a pretty fierce rivalry!

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 95 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

The Wanning Summer:

What They Learned

The main thing Rhonda and Bill learned about taking the month of August off from reporting on this blog was how very vitally important it is to have accountability. And they learned that the encouragement they get from you is extremely important, too.

So, how did they do without that accountability nor encouragement through your comments? First the bad news. Rhonda stayed the same weight. And Bill only lost five pounds. For the most part, they actually ate pretty good throughout the month, but on the 26^th, 27^th, and 28^th they went up to a cabin where the stake presidency had a retreat. Each couple provided one meal and each meal was lavish! Ironically, Bill and Rhonda provided the most fat-laden and refined carbohydrate-rich meal of the weekend – made-to-order omelettes and huge sweet rolls from the Joseph Smith Memorial Building Bakery. And there were a lot of left-overs, and of course they had to eat those!

Now the good news! Rhonda and Bill went to the gym for an hour every day, five times a week, for each week in August, except the week they were “trapped” in that cabin in the mountains at 10,000 feet! They only went four times that week.

Bill is just within five pounds of his goal (set last April) for where he should be at this point. Actually, Bill and Rhonda's weekend binge at the cabin is really a success for set point weight loss. For all practical purposes, they should have gained a lot of weight this past week. But they didn't. That's because the body's weight regulating mechanizm in the brain kept their body weight the same, despite what they ate. Now that wouldn't happen every week if they indulged like they did this past week, but because they have been exercising and eating right all the other days, it saved them this time.

They lost on those all important body measurements, too, which is a double indicator of success. So all in all, they did okay, but keep those encouraging words coming!

Here are their set point scores for the first four days of August:

Rhonda: (T) 95 (W) 95 (T) 95 (F) 93

Bill: (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Success Factors

There are several reasons why Bill and Rhonda are successful at losing weight. We thought we'd share with you these success factors.

Consistency! This is the single most powerful success factor. Without it, a person might as well not enter in to any kind of venture.

100 points a day, every day. This is the goal that Bill and Rhonda shoot for every day.

One hour of exercise, five times a week. This is so important. It helps that Bill has a corporate discount to Gold's Gym and it is deducted from his pay check.

Positive mental attitude. This is almost as important as exercise.

Lots of whole wheat bread. Rhonda bakes a lot of whole wheat bread. Bill takes a loaf with him to work and each day at lunch time, he eats 2 or 3 pieces, before he has anything else. Rhonda and Bill are very fortunate to have a wheat grinder. (And lots of wheat!)

Satiety. Being totally satisfied after at least the main meal of the day.

Buying healthy food. A person can't be tempted to eat something they shouldn't if it's not in the house in the first place.

This Blog. This blog helps Rhonda and Bill to have encouragement from all of you, and it also makes them feel accountable.

Goals! Also, almost as important as exercise.

This week, Bill was going to be just 2 pound off his goal set several months ago. However, Bill actually gained 2 pounds. (We're all still scratching our heads on that one!) He was hoping to be at 238, but the scale at Gold's Gym read 242 pounds. It took an extra long time to give that reading. It was as if the scale itself were thinking, "If I tell this guy the truth, he's going to kill me!" However, It finally told the truth, and no, Bill didn't destroy the scale! Rhonda stayed the same weight as last week.

Today was also the last-of-the-month measurements. Rhonda decreased by an average of one inch off her measurements (including 2 inches off her hips), and Bill also decreased an inch.

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 50 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 95 (F) 90

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

As was mentioned last week, Bill and Rhonda will be taking a vacation from this blog in August. We'll see how they've done, when this blog resumes in September.

Set Point Weight Loss – A review

Exercise – 5 days a week for one hour of moderate intensity exercise.

Eat lots of complex carbohydrates – Fresh fruits, vegetables in abundance including potatoes, lots of whole wheat bread. Stay away from any refined carbohydrates, such as white flour and sugar.

Decrease consumption of fat – Especially read meat. Try to eat more boneless, skinless chicken and turkey.

Drink plenty of water – If one drinks anything but water and skim milk, it’s called faulty drinking. Avoid any soft drinks like the plague.

No hunger snacking – Eat only healthy snacks like air popped pop corn and raw vegetable, but only when you are hungry.

Satiety – (Shay-sha-tee) Eat three meals a day and after at least one of them, be fully satisfied.

Programming language – There’s a lot of mental work involved with set point weight loss. One might need to re-program. The programming language of the human body is visual imagery.

Here are the set-point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 94 (M) 95 (T) 100 (W) 100 (Th) 85 (F) On track for 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (Th) 100 (F) on track for 100

And the bottom line is this: Both Bill and Rhonda lost one pound this week. Rhonda is down to 234 pounds and Bill is down to 240 pounds. Bill is now at the same weight he was when he had brain surgery over 14 years ago.

This blog will take a break in August, but Bill and Rhonda will not take a break from their set point weight loss program. So next week will be the last post for a little while.

Dr. Fisher

I thought I’d write about the man who discovered this weight loss program. His name is Dr.Garth Fisher. He was a professor at BYU and researched why some thin people can eat anything they want and never gain weight and why some over weight people can eat very little and stay heavy. He discovered that the body has a weight regulating mechanism in the brain in the hypothalamus. It sets where the body needs to be to have the right weight. So if you are under a lot of stress, exercizing little, eating the wrong kinds of foods, it thinks that the thermostat needs to be high and will keep it there. When we make healthy eating choices, exersize, and decrease our stress we actually get that hypothalamus to put our body at a lower setting. But this is about Garth Fischer.

I heard him lecture once when I was a young adult living in Provo. He and his skinny wife had raised a family and then through a tragic accident had gained custody of a siblings children and raised them too. He was ridiculed as a professor at BYU for exersizing during lunch and then coming to a meeting. The other people would pretend he smelled bad. They were probably jealous. He wrote an article about fitness, weight loss, eating for years for the Deseret News. He was a Stake President over a BYU stake. I often thought that he stopped writing for the newspaper when he got so disgusted with us as a community. Over and over he had lectured and written about how weight is truly affected: yet we all continued to ohh and ahh over any new theory such as the Atkins Diet or stubbornly think that x amount of calories meant x amount of fat. He said in his lecture that young people are amazing because they can change so fast their habits.He also would help people eat healthy by lecturing them on a cruise. I understand he was a pain in the neck at restaurants as he would meticulously ask about each dish and request no butter, no frying etc. I am grateful to him for discovering how to lose weight and then with great patience try to teach us how to do it.

He has one book out published in the 1970's called How to Lower Your Fat Thermostat co authored with Drs Dennis Remington and Edward Parent. At least 2 cookbooks came about to support this book one Recipes to Lower Your Fat Thermostat and two Set For Life. Many in our family have used these cookbooks. I don’t even know how many professional articles he published. Once a young man came up to him and asked him if he remembered him. Dr. Fisher apologized and said, "I usually remember faces." The young man then said he had heard Dr. Fisher a year before, had gone on the weight loss program, and had lost 100 pounds.

The setpoint score for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 [Thanks Karen and Lori] (S) 100 (M) 93 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 96 (F) 97

Bill: (S) 100 [Thanks Karen and Lori] (S) 100 (M) 93 (T) 85 (Bill was on track to get 100 this day but then fell victim to peer pressure and ate apple pie and ice cream with the stake presidency!) (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

And the results: Rhonda lost one pound and is down to 235 pound. Bill lost two pounds and is down to 241 pounds.

Exercise Intensity

No pain no gain. Right? Actually it's wrong! Maybe for sports like power lifting or football practice it's the right adage , but in exercising for weight-loss all you need is moderate intensity exercise. Walking, jogging, biking, swimming, and hiking are good examples. A good rule of thumb is that if you can carry on a conversation while doing these activities, you're probably exercising at the proper intensity for weight loss. Of course you need to watch your heart-rate and make sure it is fast enough, as well And the exercise also need to be done for a long period of time and for several days a week, for example five. And your body has different pathways for metabolizing fat or sugar. Moderate level exercise uses the fat metabolism pathway, while if you exercise at too high of an intensity, you will only be burning sugar and not fat. So unfortunately the saying will have to be re-written: "Pain? Then no gain!"

This week Bill weighed 243 pounds, a loss of two pounds. Rhonda also lost two pounds, weighing 236 pounds. This is the first time they have both lost at least two pounds in two connsecutive weeks!

Here are their set point scores:

Rhonda: (S) 94 (S) 98 (M) 81 (T) 100 (W) 94 (T) 94 (F) on track for 100

Bill: (S) 94 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) on track for 100

Goals

Without goals, none of us would accomplish nearly as much as we do. Goals help motivate us to greater action. Both Bill and Rhonda have a goal to get down to 200 pounds, Rhonda by November 1, 2009 and Bill by January 1, 2010. They have broken this down to monthly goals, weekly goals, and daily goals. For example, Bill has broken his yearly goal down to needing to lose 7 pounds a month. His goal chart shows that by July 1, 2009 he should be at 243 pounds. He is off that by only 2 pounds, weighing in at 245 on July 3. Rhonda came in at 238 pounds. She is on track to reach her goal of 200 pounds by November 1. They look for a two pound weight loss each week, and that was the case this week for Rhonda sheading two pounds from last week. On a daily basis, Bill and Rhonda go to the gym 5 times a week and workout for one solid hour each time. Without such a goal, they'd probably only make it to the gym once or twice a week at best. They also try to get 100 points each day with their set-point scores. They used to be content with 90 points a day, but now their sights are set on 100 points each day. That's another amazing thing about goals. They motivate a person to even greater performance. Some weeks Bill and Rhonda have fallen short of their goals, but one statement they both like is, “It is better to shoot for the stars and land in the trees, than to aim for the mud, and get there.” And a quote from President Monson: “No plan. No objective. No goal. The road to anywhere is the road to nowhere, and the road to nowhere leads to dreams sacrificed, opportunities squandered, and a life unfulfilled." Ensign October 1976.

Another aspect of goals is accountability. This is where all of YOU come in. As Rhonda and Bill report each week on progress, or the lack thereof, they feel accountable knowing that you are going to read it. So you are very much a part of this Pound of Cure!

This week, these were their set-point scores:

Rhonda: (S) 95 (S) 100 (M) 95 (T) 98 (W) 98 (T) 100 (F) on track for 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 95 (T) 98 (W) 98 (T) 100 (F) on track for 100

With the first of the month came the measurements. Bill stayed the same, although he is about ready to drill some new holes in his belt. Rhonda actually gained an inch, this is where they don't promote measurements quite as enthusiastically as they have in the past.

Metabolism

Even while resting, a body will burn energy. What determines how much is burned, is the body's metabolism. When a person walks or runs or does anything, the metabolism increases. This is what makes exercise so effective at burning fat. Metabolism. But there is a residual benefit. This is that exercise causes the metabolism to increase for many hours after the exercise period. So, even at rest, the body will be burning fat for several hours, up to 24 hours according to some studies.

Think of metabolism as the gas pedal in a car. When you step on the gas, more gas is burned. A higher metabolism causes more fat to be burned in the body's muscles.

This week, Bill and Rhonda spent time at the homes of some of their children. Despite their childrens' conscientious use of whole wheat and being mindful of fats and refined carbohydrates, Bill only lost one pound, at 249 pounds, and Rhonda gained two pounds, coming in at 240 pounds. Actually, Rhonda binged on some banana bread two times this week.

Their set point scores this week were not that great, either.

Rhonda: (F) 75 (S) 100 (S) 30 (M) 90 (T) 100 (W) 86 (T) 50 (F) 50

Bill: (F) 75 (S) 100 (S) 30 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 75 (F) 75

[Note for Valerie, Brandon, Emily, and David: Your meals were perfect! It was the lack of exercise that pulled the scores down. And Bill and Rhonda slept in on Friday and did not go to the gym, therefore that pulled down the scores for the other “off” days (Sunday and Thursday,) as well.]

Next week will be the all-important monthly measurements, which are a more telling indicator of progress.

With Thanksgiving

By Rhonda

We had the Word of Wisdom Sunday School class last week. The thing I learned in this class is from D&C 89:11 that says " Every herb in the season thereof, and every fruit in the season thereof; all these to be used with prudence and thanksgiving." I have been thinking about being thankful for this weight loss plan. It has been hard to give up the food in the grey area. Chocolate cake is not a problem, but those salty pretzels that the book says are zero refined carbohydrates and zero fats but BIG on salt have been tough to give up. So has walnuts, almonds, unlimited raisons, corn chips, crackers, and popcorn popped in oil. Even Butter Buds has to be watched because of salt.

But on the other hand this is a great weight loss program. We can eat all the fruit we want. Bill has a co worker who won’t eat an orange because it has too many carbs. For a while the Atkins diet had everyone scared to eat bread, rolls, and waffles. I love these things and they are the core of our eating along with potatoes, rice and corn meal. These food items form the base of the pyramid, it is not upside down! All cultures use these basic items. I don’t feel jittery or faint.

And we are lucky to have so much to eat. So when I start feeling sorry for myself I can remember the Word of Wisdom and be thankful for all we do get to eat.

We are updating this blog a day early since we are going out of town this week. Here are our set-point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) on track for 100

Remember Bill’s scores reflect the fact that his doctor DIDN’T let him exercise until Wednesday:

Bill: (S) 50 (S) 48 (M) 50 (T) 50 (W) 95 (T) on track for 100

And they weighted in at 237 for Rhonda, a loss from last week of one pound and Bill gained two pounds and is back up to 250 pounds. This only proves the value of exercise, since Rhonda, despite the huge stress of taking care of Bill after his surgery, went to the gym for an hour every day she was supposed to.

Satiety

Satiety (pronounced SAY-SHA-TEE) is a very important concept in set-point weight-loss. Satiety means the ability to fill up when a person is eating their main meal of the day. Unlike diets, which usually mean hunger, starvation, using will-power, resisting cravings, and counting calories, set-point weigh-loss, is about leaving the table fully satisfied. Full, but not over-full. Of course, it also means eating the right foods. It means filling up on foods low in refined carbohydrates and low in fat.

Set-point weight-loss also requires one to eat three meals a day and to snack only when hungry. Again, healthy food and healthy snacks. (The above pictures show various ways to eat and be satisfied. The first is of what Bill and Rhonda had for lunch today, homemade whole wheat hoagie buns, turkey ham, lettus, onion, tomato, and Bill's no fat ranch dressing. The second is how Bill achieved satiety on his mission, albiet, not as healthy!.)

On Wednesday of this week, Bill had eye surgery. Just before the surgery, Bill was weighed at 248 pounds, a loss of two pounds from last week. He asked the surgeon if he could start exercising again soon. The doctor won't let him do that for a week. Wow! How many times does your doctor say NOT to exercise!

Rhonda, on the other hand has had to endure high stress taking care of Bill, as well as having the kids home for the first week of summer vacation. She didn't lose anything, (but her sanity.) The right word is Satiety not Sanity!

Here are the set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 80 (M) 80 (T) 96 (W) 98 (T) 100 (F) 100

(Bill's scores reflect the fact that exercise is 50% of the total score.)

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 90 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 50 (T) 50 (F) 50

It will be interesting to see what Bill's weight will be next week!

Enzymes

A real work horse for weight loss is the enzyme. What is an enzyme? Enzymes are biomolecules that catalyze or increase the rates of chemical reactions. Well they are chemical compounds or catalysts in the blood stream that work with other organisms to accomplish useful tasks. As far as weight-loss goes, enzymes entice (see the short video) lazy fat cells to leave the comforts of their nice, cozy, and luxurious fat stores in the body and enter the blood stream. But unbeknownst to these fat cells, they are being lulled away so they can be burned for energy in muscle tissue. We already know the sad fate of these fat cells. (See the post for February 28, 2009.) Sad any way for a fat cell, but we humans think that it's pretty neat!

This process of releasing fat cells from fat stores all sounds pretty good. And it's all thanks to those enzymes! It would seem that it would be good to get more of them? How can we get more enzymes? Well, you've got to exercise more! They took muscle biopsies of college athletes and regular college students and they found that the athletes had lots more enzymes! So the way to get more enzymes, is to exercise more.

This was the week of the end-of-the-month measuring. Bill lost one inch off his waist and Rhonda lost three inches! Both were losers in another way, (but really winners!) This week Rhonda lost two pounds and Bill lost one pound.

Next week will be interesting. Bill goes in for more eye surgery on Wednesday. Last year, when he had a similar surgery, he went in weighing 286 pounds. It took a month before he got back down to that weight again. Now 11 months later, and weighing only 250 pounds, Bill is hoping for a better result.

As always, their set points scores for this past week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 85 (T) 98 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 93 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Clothes Exchange

Inspired by Cheryl’s success at the local Deseret Industries, Rhonda decided to go there with her birthday money. She found two shirts and two pairs of pants for $18.00 total. It sure is rewarding to give them her “fat” clothes and go buy some clothes in smaller sizes. This is where following a weight loss program makes you feel so much better.

Here are there set-point scores from this past week. Even with Memorial Day company, another nail-bitting concert, and Eagle project, and other excitements, they did pretty well:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 98 (T) 100 (W) 92 (T) 92 (F) 95

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 99

Next Week: The results of the first of the month measurements.

You don't need to read this next part! Despite this good showing, Rhonda gained a little this week and Bill only lost a pound. There's always next week!

Ranch Dressing

With set point weight loss – calories DON'T count. Remember, it's eating lots of healthy food that counts. What is healthy food? Foods with no fat or very low in fat AND foods without a lot of processed ingredients or refined carbohydrates. For example, fat free salad dressing that you buy in the store. Good idea? Allows you to use a lot more salad dressing because it's fat free? Wrong! It may be fat free but it also has a lot of high fructose corn syrup, which happens to be a very highly refined carbohydrate. Another example, diet soft drinks. No fat, and no calories. Great for dieting, right? Again wrong! The artificial sweetener in diet soft drinks, or in anything for that matter, is still a refined carbohydrate. According to set point weight-loss, the person drinking a diet anything might as well have just enjoyed the real taste of a non diet drink or what ever.

Here's a recipe for a fat free (and refined carbohydrate free) ranch dressing that Bill invented last Saturday:

1 cup fat free cottage cheese.

¾ cup skim milk

1 Ranch dressing flavor packet

These items can be purchased nowadays in any grocery store. Combine cottage cheese and skim milk in blender. Blend for about a minute or until completely creamy. Then blend in the contents of the flavor packet. You now have delicious ranch dressing that is better for you and tastes better than any fat free dressing you can buy!

Rhonda stayed the same weight this week and Bill only lost one pound. They've been biting a lot of nails this week at their son's concerts. He's done very well, it was just nerve racking for the parents.

Here are their scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 97 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) on track for 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) on track for 100

Air Popcorn Popper and Ground Turkey

Rhonda's secret passion was popcorn cooked in a kettle and in oil. That was a permanent fixture every Sunday night. Well, for Mother's Day, which was also her birthday, Bill gave her an air popcorn popper. Popcorn is a very healthy snack. It is a whole grain, and if it's not cooked in oil, or with added butter, is fat free. Regular popcorn is also much more economical than microwave popcorn. Rhonda attributes the air popcorn popper as helping her to lose 4 pounds this week. She has also moved into the two-thirties by coming in at 239 pounds this week.

Bill and Rhonda also made the switch from lean ground beef to using ground turkey. This is also a more healthy alternative. They used to use ground turkey for several years until Rhonda's grandmother caught wind of it. Rhonda's grandfather had been a butcher and using ground turkey instead of ground beef was almost heretical! It's now been several years since her grandmother passed away, so they felt it was safe to return to ground turkey. Maybe this is why Bill has been averaging a two-pound-a-week weight loss. This was no different this week as he lost two pounds to be down to 253 pounds.

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 92 (S) 100 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 95 (T) 80 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 90 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 95 (F) 100

On and Off with the Pounds

The Gold's Gym location that Rhonda and Bill go to used to be the same building where Food-4-Less was located. Since it is about a mile from their house, they often went there to do the grocery shopping. When Rhonda and Bill first toured that new Gold's Gym almost a year and a half ago, they were struck with this thought: “This building helped us to put the pounds on, and now it will help us to take the pounds off!”

This week, Gold's Gym helped Bill to take two more pounds off. But for some reason, Rhonda gained two pounds this week. Maybe she temporarily slipped back into the grocery store days!

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 97 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 87 (T) 69 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 97 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 97 (T) 100 (F) 100

Same as Schultz?

In the old TV show, Hogan's Heroes, everyone made fun of the big teddy-bear-like Sergeant Schultz. (“I know noTHING!) On the show, it was well known that Schultz had a waistline that was 52 inches. A favorite line of the show was, “Put him under heavy guard, send along Sargent Schultz!” Bill has felt bad that for many years he has had a waistline that was bigger than that. But not any more! This week Bill was measured and is now at 51 inches.

Rhonda and Bill each lost a pound from last week.

Here are their set-point scores from this past week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 98 (M) 86 (T) 91 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 98 (T) 96 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 95

A Report of Where We Are Now

Okay, this blog has always been for reporting an accountability, but we thought it would be helpful to report how far Rhonda and Bill have come over the last four months. For one thing, they have been much more consistent at going to the gym than they were a year ago. They have a better outlook on life, and their health is generally better. Their clothes fit better, however, older clothes seem to be too loose. And, people are asking them if they've lost weight. And they have less craving for unhealthy food.

This week, Rhonda lost two pounds and Bill made up for his disastrous molasses diet and cracked into the 250s by weighing in at 258 pounds.

Next week, we'll report on the end-of-month measurements that Bill and Rhonda do.

Here are this week's scores:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 90 (Eating Marie Calendar's pie with the stake presidency of all things!) (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Molasses Miracle Diet?

Bill has learned a lot of things this week. For one, he learned that his MP3 player still works even after going through the wash! But he also learned something about molasses. Somehow, Bill had the mistaken idea that molasses didn't have any of those dreaded refined carbohydrates. That molasses was made up of only complex carbohydrates. Bill found a grocery store that carried molasses in a gallon jug. You can't get too much of a good thing, right? We'll he's practically been guzzling it all week. But then, late Thursday, he discovered that he had received mis-information about molasses. That it really did have refined carbohydrates. Lot's of them! So on Friday morning when he went to be weighed, despite doing everything else right, the miracle molasses diet had failed him and he gained three pounds! On a positive note, however, Bill did have to drill new holes in his belt, because it was getting too loose.

Rhonda, on the other hand, lost three pounds! Her regimen of eating right, (hating molasses,) exercise, and being a very active census enumerator have paid off!

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 95(T)100 (W) 95 (T) 90 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Here are Bill's revised scores after he learned the truth about molasses!

Bill: (S) 90 (S) 90 (M) 90 (T) 90 (W) 90 (T)90 (F) 100

The Enumerator

Rhonda started a temporary job this past week. For the next two months she will be helping to get ready for the 2010 census. Since she was 16 she has worked with census records in connection with her ancestors. Now it's her opportunity to actually help with the census herself. So this week has been kind of stressful with the training for that. So Bill only lost a pound and Rhonda actually gained from last week. Now that she is out in the field checking addresses of homes and getting a GPS reading on each front porch, (she's called an enumerator) she should head back in the right direction as far as weight-loss is concerned.

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 92 (S)92 (M) 80 (T) 92 (W) 94 (T) 98 (F) 95

Bill: (S) 80 (S) 94 (M) (T) 100 (W) 96 (T) 100 (F) 100

"

Back To The Gravity!

Rhonda and Bill exercise for an hour at Gold's Gym 5 times a week. They are very strict about that. Last year they made it to the gym three times, or maybe four times, sometimes five. This year, as an incentive, if they exercise five times a week, they can count (for their set point scores) as if they were exercising seven days a week. Usually they use the recumbent exercise bikes. They also have another incentive. If they go to the gym four times in a week, the fifth day, they can go in the hot tub when their exercise time is over! This is very relaxing. On Saturdays, for a change, Rhonda uses the treadmill. Bill goes swimming. It's a great feeling to be swimming and also to feel weightless in the water. When it's time to get out of the pool, Bill climbs the stairs to get out. He has the sensation of the weight again. Every week when he does this, he says to himself, "Back to the gravity!"

Each week the effect of that gravity is becoming less and less. This week, Rhonda lost a pound, down to 244 pounds and Bill lost two pound and he is down to 261 pounds. He is now down to the same weight he was at in 1996.

Another indicator of success with weight-loss: At the end of the month, the hip and waist measurements for Rhonda were both 1/2 inch less, and Bill's waist was also 1/2 inch less than the beginning of the month.

Here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 82 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 96 (W) 96 (T) 80 (F) 85

Bill: (S) 82 (S) 100 (M) 91 (T) 96 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 98

A Lavish Week!

Well folks, Rhonda and Bill are back from their 25^th Anniversary Celebrations. They had a lot of activities. 7 web sites worth of activities! They stayed in 3 different fancy hotels rooms, attended a 2 day seminar for Bill’s work, and Bill was a presenter for part of one of those days, and they transported and arranged 18 dozen cookies. They attended 3 lavish banquets, 2 of which were awards banquets. They traveled through 4 counties and did things in 3 counties. One wouldn’t be surprised if they returned from such a trip having gained 5 to 10 pounds each. The actual result? Rhonda maintained her same weight as last week at 245 pounds and Bill lost 2 pounds from last week, coming in at 263.

How did they do it? They baked chicken and made a huge batch of tasty low fat chicken salad and took it with them. They also made 4 dozen delicious whole wheat low fat, low refined carbohydrate muffins and ate them all during the trip. And they ate plenty of whole wheat bread, apples, oranges, and tomatoes. Above is a picture of Rhonda eating a piece of whole wheat bread in the majestic Taj Mahal room at the Anniversary Inn in Logan where they stayed one of the nights. 2 of the 3 banquets were buffets and Bill and Rhonda made healthy choices with the foods they selected. They turned down high fat breakfasts and gave away cookies and cheese cake they were given by the hotels. They maintained their schedule at the gym as much as possible and Bill’s presentations involved a lot of audience participation and he got quite a workout as he was constantly moving to get close to the people who were commenting.

And here are the set point scores for this past week:

Rhonda: (S) 95 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 78 (W) 98 (T) 48 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 98 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 80 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

We’ll be anxious to learn what their measurements are on Tuesday, the end of March as compared to the end of February.

Answer to last weeks poll: Bill weighted exactly 200 pounds on the day he was married.

Eating Is Important!

This is a picture of a meal Bill and Rhonda had on Wednesday night. Rhonda fixed boneless, skinless chicken served over brown rice and asparagus with a side of tender acorn squash stuffed with another kind of brown rice. Both Rhonda and Bill were full and satisfied after this meal. And the result? It was zero fat and zero refined carbohydrates. But it provided plenty of energy for when they went to the gym the next morning.

This week, Bill weighed 265 pounds and Rhonda weighed 244 pounds with both being right on track with loosing two pounds and one pound respectively from last week.

There has been a request to show what they have lost since the start of this blog the first week of January. Bill has lost 21 pounds since then, and Rhonda, though she was sick for a few weeks and got a slow start, has lost 5 pounds. Weight loss is not the only goal. Both Bill and Rhonda report feeling healthier, having more energy, and looking better.

Here are their set point scores for this past week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 96 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Bill: (S) 100 (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 96 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

This next week might be a bit of a challenge as Bill and Rhonda celebrate their 25^th wedding anniversary. But, throughout the festivities they still plan to exercise and eat right. Tune in next week to see how they do.

Mind Over Matter
Michaelangelo once said, “What I desire, I must first sense. What I sense, I create.” Another time, an admirer commented how beautiful and magnificent Michaelangelo's sculpture of Mary holding the body of Christ after he was taken from the cross. Michaelangelo said, “It was always there. I just chipped away at the excess.” These same ideas capture the essence of envisioning a lean and trim living body.

The saying, “mind over matter” was never more true than with set-point weight loss. Sensory detail is very important and a person needs to visualize in great detail what it will be like to be at their ideal weight. It helps when that person was at that ideal weight before, and even better when they have a picture of themselves at that weight. The programing language of this marvelous computer we call the human mind is sensory detail, or visual imaging. The person imagines, using as many senses as possible what it will be like at their ideal weight.

This is also known as the psychological set point, and is vital, along with everything else (such as exercise and eating right) to lowering the physical set point.

This week, Bill came in at 267 pounds, 2 pounds less than last week. Rhonda weighted 245 pounds, 2 pounds less than last week. Right on track!

And here are their set-point scores:
Rhonda: (S) 94 (M) 94 (T) 98 (W) 85 (T) 100 (F) 71
Bill: (S) 94 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 85 (T) 100 (F) 100

Here's an interesting monitor that helps you figure out what your life expectancy might be and also what your virtual age is: http://www.sonnyradio.com/realage3.swf

We Can't Explain It

Well this week we are a little baffled. Bill gained 4 pounds and Rhonda gained 2 pounds. The good news is that overall Bill has lost so much weight that we had to see his sleep apnea doctor yesterday to decrease the pressure of air in his sleep machine. It doesn't take as much pressure to inflate his lungs because he is less heavy. And Rhonda in the month of February lost 1 inch off her bust measurement, 1 and a half inches off her waist, and 1 and a half inches off her pants. We know that as we exersize we build muscule which weighs more than fat. But we are not new to exersizing. We exersized all last year at the gym so the muscule should have already been there, right? Any theories?

Points this week Rhonda: (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T)70 (F) 100Bill: (S) 100 (M) 100 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 70(F) 100

The Life and Times of a Fat Particle
Let's call our fat particle Tom. Tom is attached to some hamburger. Tom gets eaten and goes into the digestive system. There, everything is broken down to the molecular level and gets absorbed into the body. Since Tom is a fat particle, he is actually broken down molecule by molecule, but for our purposes here, we will says that Tom is put back together enough for our illustration. So Tom is sent to one of the fat storage areas of the body(we'll say the belly) for safe keeping. The body doesn't know when it will need Tom, but if it ever does, it wants him handy for when he is needed.

Tom could stay in that place for years, but lets say that Tom has the incredible opportunity to have been eaten by a person who has just started an exercise program. Tom enjoys his new home, but the body has just started a workout. After twenty minutes, enzymes in the bloodstream start to be invigorated and they come and release Tom from where he is being stored in the body.

Soon Tom is floating along in the bloodstream and arrives at some muscle tissue that is working hard and needs more energy to keep working. Tom was made for this, so he eagerly moves into the muscle tissue where he gives energy to the muscle.

This is where our story turns into a tragedy for Tom. He is immediately burned up as the fat is converted to energy. The only memorial to Tom is the heat that is generated and radiated away from the body. This story happens thousands and thousands of times, every moment while a person is exercising for an extended period of time. And by the way, though tragic for Tom, it's great news for the rest of us. And this is the only way that a particle of fat can be gotten rid of – by being burned in muscles!

This week, on the digital scale at Gold's Gym, Bill weighed 267 pounds, a loss of six pounds from one week ago. This week Rhonda stayed the same weight, (This week it's her turn to say, "go figure") but she lost significantly in places like hips and waist measurements from a month ago.

And here are their set point scores for this week:

Rhonda: (S) 100 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100
Bill: (S) 100 (M) 96 (T) 100 (W) 100 (T) 100 (F) 100

Here's a very short video of heat steaming (Tom) from Bill's head right after a workout.