Big Boy Riding and Weekly Weigh In

174.5 - I went up, but I'm not worried about it. Only 2 more weigh-ins!

A big thank you to Meredith Isaacs for setting me up at Red Barn Stables in Smith Creek, WV.

And as always, I'd like to thank my sponsors.

Weekly Weigh In

174*

I've been in Colorado since last Thursday. I've been visiting my brother in Boulder and now I'm at the Young Life Camp, Trail West, in Buena Vista. I was able to weigh my self on Saturday, but I don't have a scale here at camp. I put an asterisk on it, because this is not today's weight, just the last known weight. Without a scale, I'm going blind this week. Hope it's a good week!

Here are some pics of Colorado!

At the foothills of the Flatirons...

Bike Tour with my brother..

The Chalet - my home for the next at Trail West...

Weekly Weigh-In

175.5 - I lost 4 pounds in my "OFF" week! I splurged on food and ran only once. Pretty pleased that rest is a good thing.

One of my favorite Seinfeld episodes is The Summer of George. George is given a severance package and he decides to spend the entire summer doing what he's always wanted to do - like read a book and playing frolf, golf with a frisbee.

Starting this month, I'm declaring this summer, The Summer of Ward. I've reached my second goal (176) and I've been given a nice little severance package - a 4% lead over second place. I also don't have an assignment of working at YL camp for a month. I don't need to lose any more weight and I'm very comfortable with my size right now.

Your opinions have been heard - "JB needs to stop losing weight. He's getting TOO skinny." While some of you have said this to encourage/flatter me, I know others have said it in actual concern. As I have alluded in almost everyone one of my earlier posts - my goal is not skinny; my goal is healthy.

So, too ease myself into the Summer of Ward, I'm going to finish this competition strong and on my terms! I will not let myself go. I want to WIN and do it convincingly.


My consistent goal has been to lose 2 lbs a week. I'm going to cut that in half. Lose just a pound a week which will put me just over 170 by the end of the competition - nearly 60 lbs lost! Woah.

All of that being said, I'm going to eat what I want and drink what I want. My biggest fear has been the maintenance phase. Sure, I've been successful getting healthy over 4 months. Let's see if I can do it the rest of my life. The most noticeable thing about this past life-changing season is that my "wants" have totally altered. I know longer want to eat as much as I can as often as I can. I use to be a "quantity over quality" eater. I have now flipped that and look forward to a lifestyle of quality.

If all else fails, there is one thing I know for sure. The Summer of Ward will definitely contain Frolf!

Dance Walking II

Enjoy and Share!

A special shout out to our Dance Walkers from Morgantown, WV:

Ted and Sophie!

Weekly Weigh-In

This is by far the most shocking number so far.

179.5

I had to step on the scale multiple times to be sure. I lost weight? Really!? 

Aside from officially being down 50 pounds, I'm shocked because I know what I ate this weekend. I saw what went into my body. After a day in Nashville and then a weekend in Memphis, you wouldn't believe the food I had. 

Here's what I ate. Here's why 179.5 is a miracle:

Puckett's Grocery and Restaurant (Nashville)

Shared Appetizers

Fried Green Beans - Wings

Fried Pickles and Jalapenos

Chicken and Pork BBQ Combo

Pulled Pork - Pulled Chicken

Potato Salad - Baked Beans - Coleslaw

Jim Neely's Interstate BBQ (Memphis)

Shared Appetizer

BBQ Nachos

Shared Sampler Platter

Sausage - Brisket - Pulled Pork

Pork Ribs - Beef Ribs - BBQ Spaghetti

Baked Beans - Coleslaw

Shared Full Rack Pork Ribs

Rum Boogie Cafe (Beale St. in Memphis)

Cup of Gumbo

Shared BLT Po boy

Shared French Fries

Charles Vergos' Rendezvous (Memphis)

Complimentary Red Beans and Rice

Rib and Brisket Combo

Half Rack of Ribs - Brisket BBQ Sandwich

Coleslaw - Baked Bans

Central BBQ (Memphis)

Shared Full Rack of Ribs

Shared Pound of Pulled Pork

Shared Side of Greens

Lace in a bevy of IPAs, PBRs, Ghost Rivers, and $2 bags of Munchos and this tops off the reason why it is nothing short of miraculous that I went left on the scale.

Now I did do some good things while on vacation. Everyday started with a bowl of oatmeal, including the best bowl of oatmeal I've ever had at 417 Union in Nashville. My travel buddies were a 2 lb bag of baby carrots and a bunch of apples.

I also did a lot to burn off some calories. I ran everyday, laughed extremely hard and danced every chance I got.

Weekly Weigh In

181

This is a great number - I am almost at a total 50 pounds lost! I lost another 2 pounds this week and am well on my way to my new goal of 176. Despite these impressive numbers, I'm slightly discouraged.

This will sound weird, but I think I'm finally plateauing. I'm finding I need to work much harder to see similar results. Knowing that I'm traveling this week, I was especially good this past week in anticipation of going backwards this weekend. Usually when I have weeks as good as this last one, I've lost 4+ pounds.

I was really hoping to be under 180 going into my Memphis trip. This upcoming weekend will be filled with late nights and a lot of dry rub ribs. I'm afraid I'll be up a solid 5 pounds come next Monday.

Fortunately, I'm totally comfortable with my current size and my closest competitor is on a similar trip right now. I really hope he goes up like I will. If I can come home from Memphis at 185, I'll still be on track to reach my 176 goal by May 24th.

I guess we'll see how it goes! Here's nutritional informational information for your average meal of ribs (this one's from Chili's). It's scary. This is not including fries, drinks or anything else you eat that day. I guess the amount of protein is a good thing...

Join Me For Dance Walking

If you haven't seen it, yet, a few weeks ago I showed you my favorite fitness craze: Dance Walking.

A bunch of you have said you would be so excited about joining me in a dance walk. Soon we are going to be filming the second installment of Dance Walking and I want as many people as possible to be a part of it. 

Let me know if you'd like to dance walk with me! 

This dance walking is going to be in Charleston, WV. If you're not local, send a clip of your best dance walking from where you are!

The History of Dance Walking

Dance walking is probably one of the oldest arts. As soon as man was man he without doubt began to gesticulate with face, body, and limbs. How long it took to develop bodily gesticulation from art to fitness no one can guess—perhaps a millennium.

Ancient Egypt - 3300 B.C.

Generally the antique dance walks were connected with a religious ritual conceived to be acceptable to the gods. This connection between dance walking and religious rites was common up to the 16th century. It still continues in some countries. 

Anglo Saxon - 14th Century

Dance Walking became commonly associated with the elite classes in the 1300s. The art transferred from the militaristic use of the Roman empire to settle more personal matters in Dance Walking Duels (as pictured above). Dance Walking Duels are still practiced today in large urban areas, where Dance Walking gangs have been formed. Dozens of lives are lost each year in breakdance fights over "turf disputes". Pop Culture has even captured this in such films as West Side Story, Zoolander and American History X.

 England - late 19th century

After the Enlightenment, the elite of England put down their swords and embraced Dance Walking as merely a practical discipline of getting from point A to point B. Dance Walking was still reserved to royals and others of significant influence.

Prohibition - 1980s

Reverend Shaw Moore of Bomont bans Dance Walking. An uprising of teens occurred and Moore was forced to overturn this prohibition. To this day, Moore does not Dance Walk regularly, but appreciates healthy living.

Personal Dance Walkng - 2012

With the help of social media and a national platform, Ben Aaron has helped popularize Dance Walking. Personal music devices, also known as ipods, have brought Dance Walking to a personal level, accessible anywhere and to everyone.

Now that you have an appreciation for this history of Dance Walking, aren't you inspired to start? Join me!