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Rather than follow a commercial program as I had thought of doing for 2004, I've decided to return to the strategy that worked for me in 2003. My approach is pretty simple and straightforward. Healthy eating, making better food choices, and controlling my daily calorie intake (1,500 to 1,800). For now, the breakdown I'm aiming for is a 40-30-30 ratio; 40% carbs, 30% protein and 30% fat. The keys for me are to reduce my portions, stop being greedy with food and eat only the amount my body needs. To my amazement, it has become undeniably clear that I can survive, and actually feel full and satisfied, on an astonishingly small (by comparison) amount of food. I am also drinking plenty of water (64 to 96 oz. per day), increasing my complex carbs, reducing my intake of simple carbs and those that have a high glycemic index, and exercising. That's pretty much it. Yep, the old "common sense" approach.

I anticipate it will take approximately 12 months to reach my goal. I intentionally guesstimated a conservative timeframe to allow for plateaus and occasional setbacks. My initial exercise regimen is to walk five days a week (Mon/Tue/Thu/Fri/Sat), alternating weight training (Tue/Thu/Sat) and yoga (Mon/Wed/Fri) three days each. As I progress, I will adjust my routine and activities as needed. I am using a few aids to monitor my progress, including my journal, daily/weekly calorie statistics, exercise log, and my goals/reward system. Since being aware of exactly how much I eat is key to losing the weight and keeping it off, I have made a commitment to track my daily calorie intake. I regularly post summaries of my food and exercise in my journal and food details can be found here at FitDay. Details of my workouts are in my training log.

I have also created a "Before & After" section that will include photos of me at various stages along my journey. I haven't yet mustered up the courage to post my full-body before photos, but they will come. My promise is that as I begin to make noticeable progress and move closer to my goal weight, I will reveal my before & after shots, starting weight, clothes sizes, total number of pounds lost...the whole nine.

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