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Weight-loss journeys By Randy A. Salas
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | (MCT) For many, the year begins with a new resolve to lose weight, as we discussed last week in an overview of calorie counting online. For some, sharing their dieting struggles and triumphs is the motivation behind their websites. Join them on their weight-loss journeys.www.fatguyblog.comGreg Todd's new No More Mr. Fat Guy blog is a must read even if you're not trying to lose weight. His self-deprecating words are so humorous and good-natured that you'll be repeating them aloud to anyone close by after they ask, "What's so funny?" Take a recent entry in which he referred to a pizza-oriented blog as "porn for fat guys": "Instead of blocking visitors under the age of 18, you should have to click a button stating you're under 200 pounds before you're allowed into their site."Start: 303.5 pounds ("to be exact").Now: 296 pounds.Goal: Lose 100 pounds.Struggle: "People tell me that I don't look like I weigh 300 pounds. I guess it's that my overpowering animal magnetism distracts and confuses them. ... Frankly, I'm sick of it."Triumph: "The more people viewing the site, the more pressure I feel to not let them down." www.dietgirl.orgThe Amazing Adventures of Dietgirl! follows the escapades of one Shauna — "a twentysomething Scotland-dwelling Aussie trying to lighten the load." She's not afraid to call it as she sees it, which might include frank language, but she's obviously onto something: She has lost more than 175 pounds since she started her blog in 2001 and is a mere 10 pounds from her target weight.Start: 351 pounds.Now: 175.5 pounds.Goal: 165.5 pounds.Struggle: "At the checkouts I glared at our bag of frozen veggies and the brown rice and the oranges and the bananas and the tuna. When you still have recent memories of Christmas puddings and roast potatoes, you don't see a cornucopia of health — you just see boredom and misery."Triumph: "Eating healthy food and moving my lardy arse is not just for vanity and smaller jeans. It's about my HEALTH."www.scalewhore.comCanadian Trish might not have the best domain name for a family newspaper, but she has a great attitude that includes not just shedding pounds but working on her mental outlook, too. Start: 209 pounds.Now: 171 pounds.Goal: 140 pounds.Struggle: "I am 35, young and single. I should be out and enjoying myself. Instead I spent the better half of 2006 down on myself, gaining 30 lbs and covering up."Triumph: "This journey is taking longer than I thought it would. However, I'm still on it."www.thefatmanwalking.comSteve Vaught has fallen on hard times since his much-publicized 13-month trek across the country to lose weight ended in May, capturing a global audience via his Fat Man Walking website. A book deal fell through after he spent the advance, he's working a night shift as a tow-truck driver, he's gotten divorced and he lives in a seedy hotel. (See www.startribune.com/a2150 for the San Diego Union-Tribune story.) His website has been updated infrequently because of computer problems, but he maintains a good outlook and his still-available online chronicle of his cross-country journey remains an inspiration. Start: 410 pounds.Now: 365 pounds.Goal: To be happy.Struggle: "I battle temptations everyday, sometimes winning sometimes losing. I am still struggling with weight not having found the magic cure yet."Triumph: "In time things will develop into something as they naturally do and, as always, I will make the best of the situation." Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Randy A. Salas is a columnist for the Minneapolis Star Tribune. Do you have a favorite Web site or a question about how to find something on the Internet? Send a note by clicking here.
Daily routines © 2006, Star Tribune Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. |
Mitch Albom | |||||||||||
