Did you know that if you go on the wagon for three weeks your body wants to eat everything in site. No fooling… I have eaten more in the last week alone than the first 2 weeks of this year combined. I am a puffy and swollen mess. The only thing keeping from eating more are the painful stomach aches that accompany gluttony. It is clear that I must invest more time working off the calories then putting on the pounds. I will begin my new regiment tomorrow morning.

222.4 lbs.
7 weeks

218.6 lbs.
8 weeks

For those that don’t know, The Bet is a no-drinking challenge between my friends and I with a minor monetary wager. And here we are at the end of Week 1 with signs of improvements already making themselves visible. On the obvious side of the spectrum is increased energy and strength. The subtle benefits you have to look for a little more… cleaner skin, brighter eyes, not-so-puffy face, and the ability to sleep my side without getting heartburn are just a few.

Week 1 is all about beginning the flush of all the toxins out of the body and replenishing them with hydration and nutrient supplements. It is not about exercise at this point, that is to come later. For now, the key is to re-train your mind and body for a new itinerary, a new schedule, a new way of life.

Week 1 is fairly easy as it is right at the beginning of the journey and your discipline doesn’t get tested much as everybody else around you is also on the straight and narrow for the most part at the beginning of the year. The ride is fairly smooth until week 3 when the Super Bowl comes around. Double the pressure if your team is actually in the Super Bowl. But being from San Diego, I wouldn’t know what that feels like…

222.8 lbs.
9 weeks

This year I am revisiting an old favorite past-time of betting my friends (one in particular) who can go longer without drinking any Liqueur, not one drop. I won a similar wager back in 2010 called “The Bet” that lasted a year and a day. This one is only 10 weeks and doesn’t have a set wager amount (yet).

Outside of saving money, being more productive, having more energy, feeling more healthy, smiling more often, eliminating heart-burn, and an increased sex drive… the only real benefit of these types of escapades is weight loss. So, as in the past, I will be blogging to keep you up to date with my health, in addition to what is on my mind.

222.2 lbs.
10 weeks

Happy Thanksgiving to all the people that have bless me throughout the year. May your plate be full and your cup runneth over with peace, love, and joy. Although Snoop could not make it to the blog signing, I am sure that he misses you all from the bottom of his heart.

There once was a parrot with a bad attitude and an even worse vocabulary. Every word out of the bird’s’ mouth was rude, obnoxious and laced with profanity. The bird’s owner tried and tried to change the bird’s attitude by saying polite words and playing soft music to ‘clean up’ the bird’s vocabulary.

Finally, the owner had enough and yelled at the parrot. The parrot yelled back and grew even more rude. In desperation, the owner grabbed the bird and put him in the freezer. The parrot squawked and kicked and screamed. Then suddenly there was total quiet. Not a peep was heard for over a minute.

Fearing that he’d hurt the parrot, the owner quickly opened the door to the freezer. The parrot calmly stepped out onto his outstretched arms and said “I believe I may have offended you with my rude language and actions. I’m sincerely remorseful for my inappropriate transgressions and I fully intend to do everything I can to correct my rude and unforgivable behavior.”

The owner was stunned at the change in the bird’s attitude. As he was about to ask the parrot what had made such a dramatic change in his behavior, the bird spoke-up, very softly, “May I ask what the turkey did?”

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!!

Truth is the foundation for the fight against temptation. Integrity is knowing the truth, and acting on the truth as well. If we know the truth but don’t act on it, then we don’t have integrity. In fact, that’s hypocrisy. If we don’t have integrity, then we fall apart when temptations and turmoil attack our lives.

The opposite of integrity is compartmentalizing your life. The word “integrity” comes from the word “integer,” which means a unit of one. Integrity means all parts of our lives are integrated together. We act the same no matter where we go. We don’t act one way at work, another way at church and another way with friends. Integrity is being truthful in every area of your life.

In order to defend against temptation, we must posses and maintain our integrity. This doesn’t mean we are perfect, but it does mean we are honest and authentic. It means we don’t wear masks with different groups of people.

Have you compartmentalized your life? Are there some areas where you lack integrity? God wants you restore your integrity because if you are a hypocrite, you have no defense against Satan. To start, simply pray and ask God to strengthen your ability to live with integrity before others.

If you are battling fear in your life today, you do not have to live with fear any longer. Do not fear! God is in control and will get you through whatever you’re facing. He will get you out of your pit in His perfect timing. All you need to do is ask and fill your life with the three antidotes to fear:

• Fill your life with TRUTH
• Fill your life with FAITH
• Fill your life with LOVE

If you are afraid that your life is lost and your best days are behind you, you are so wrong. God sent his son specifically to seek out and to save what is lost. No matter what you’re going through, no matter how bad your circumstances appear, turn from your fear and ask Jesus to restore your life. If you don’t know how to ask, simply pray this prayer… “Restore me, O Lord, and bring me back to you again! Give me back the joy I once had!” (Lamentations 5:21 NLT).