WEEK 12 RESULTS!!!

Not much weight loss to report this week.

While I've been losing an average of around 4-lbs per week, this week I'm still hovering around 42 total pounds lost.

That's ok with me...especially when I got my measurment numbers today.

I've lost about 59 inches in total since I started on January 7th.

It's been amazing.

I can't believe the change that's hitting my closet. I'm going to need a ton of new clothes by the summer.

It's a nice feeling to no longer have to be a customer of the "Big & Tall" section.

Talking to Jan from Herbal One today, she mentioned they'll be offering new customers 50% off the program for the first two weeks of April. You can get ready for summer and swimwear season if you start now.

Something tells me I'm gonna look awesome in that bikini!

Call Herbal One at 748-9999 to get more details.

An open letter to Mother Nature

Dear Mother Nature,

%$^* YOU!



I didn't want to start this off with such profanity, but you've earned it.

Clearly, you are off your meds and drunk on your own power.

One day we get sunshine and warm temperatures. The next it's -30 and there's 20cm of snow that wasn't there 5 minutes earlier!

You resemble less a powerful being in charge of supplying weather and more a kid with ADD who's gone off on a bender in a toy store.

You NEED to be stopped.

I've always supported you in the past and stood up for you.

I even paid $10 to listen to Al Gore go on for what seemed like hours described how fragile you were. I'm this close to writing him a letter asking for my money back. Fragile my ass. My grandmother is fragile...you're more like the Incredible Hulk. Trust us, we DON'T like you when you're angry...so why are you so pissed these days?

I've done everything I can to be nicer to you. I stopped littering, I quit using CFC's, I recycled. I did everything I could to help save you. How do you repay me? By continuously pounding me with snow and coldness.

Perhaps there is an explanation. Perhaps you didn't get a calender for Christmas and don't know that it's SUPPOSED to be spring-time. I would hope that there is some reason to justify all this crappy treatment we've received from you in recent months.

I must tell you that my patience is starting to run thin.

If I don't see a change soon, then I will be out for vengeance. I will be pointing an aerosol can into the air and firing wildly. I will be using as many Styrofoam products as possible and chucking them out my window. I will personally work to promote nuclear power and beat up anyone that says solar power is better. I will buy a Hummer and use as much gas as possible. I'll vote conservative!!!

Yes, these are all ugly things to do and will give you a black eye but I just can't take the cold and snow anymore. Please don't push me to the edge.

I know we can be friends again, just give me some freakin' sunshine and let me see my front lawn for a few months.

WEEK 11 RESULTS!!!

Well I made it through the Easter weekend without seeing a single chocolate bunny.

Once again my will-power and sticking to the program has paid off.

Last week I was down 37 pounds at 233.

This week I'm down just over 41 total pounds at 228.5

Hopefully tomorrow I'll have numbers on how many total inches I've lost in 11 weeks.

The Great White North

This weekend I`m blogging on the road, in Timmins, Ontario.

I'll be honest when I say there were better places I'd rather go to on my Easter weekend. It's not the place itself that bothers me. It's the drive. We're talking 8 hours of solid driving through mostly forest with very little in between. It's incredibly dull and long.
I lived in Timmins for over three years so I kind of have a soft spot for it in my heart. It didn`t take long for me to be greeted by two things I really dislike about Timmins - Gas and Temperature. Gas prices were about $1.20/litre...insanity! Temperature's dipped to about -35 last night! People in the North are pretty tough to put up with that stuff!

I`ll be honest when I say I love Peterborough and I`m proud to call it my home now. There was a time however when I was very proud to call Timmins my home and the reason was the people. Timmins is full of the nicest people I`ve ever met in my life. I made many good friendships in my time there and I still try to keep in touch with them on a regular basis. Had it not been for the people in Timmins, I never would have made it up there for as long as I did. I arrived there having just turned 21 and not knowing anyone back in 2004. In a city that`s so isolated and so far from home it could have been a very difficult experience but it was made so much easier by the people there.

I don`t miss my old job and I don`t miss all the pot holes, high gas prices, frigid temperatures, bear and moose sightings and endless trees. I do miss all the great people that really made Timmins a great city.

If only it were closer I could visit more often.

Is the streak over?

Last week I wrote a posting describing how I believed I could be a bad luck charm for the Peterborough Petes.

Well tonight the Petes came out on top in a thrilling 5-4 overtime win against the Belleville Bulls to tie their playoff series at a game a piece.

I feel a bit better about this whole "bad luck" theory, although it wasn't looking too good for a while tonight.

During the first intermission we were doing an event on the ice and I accidentaly dropped my cordless microphone. Everything worked fine, however the on/off button broke off later in the game. Luckily the Memorial Centre had a spare so fate was unable to silence me. I was a little worried that Petes marketing director Aaron Garfat would be upset about me breaking the mic. Instead, he was still laughing at how funny it was when I went to apologize. I guess I'm off the hook for that blooper.

Another incident tonight also took place during the first intermission. I was stuck on the ice a little longer than normal picking up pucks when the Zamboni came on. I rushed off the ice by kicking open the door near the Petes bench, narrowly escaping being the victim of a Zamboni hit & run. However in my hurry I didn't notice an OHL official standing in front of the door and I hit him in the back. He wasn't too pleased with me. I believe his exact words were "$%&# YOU!". Oh well, with the choice between being sworn at or being run-over by a 2-ton ice resurfacing machine; I'll take the potty mouth treatment any day.

Combine all that with the fact the Petes blew a 4-2 lead in the third period and you can understand why I felt like I was the plague to this team.

The good news is the good guys won and the series is tied at 1. As far as I know I'll be back at my post for Game 4 on Monday night. It's a 7pm start and I'm hoping all those who read my blog can attend the game. The Petes need your support. Like I said before, you can't beat playoff hockey in Peterborough. It's an awesome experience.

See you at the rink!

GO PETES GO!!!

I love South Park...

I was reading a great article in McLean's today about how the animated show "South Park" has really grown up over the years.

While it's true the show is still very juvenile to an extent...if you watch closely it really does make some good points and really is a great reflection of our society today. It touches all topics from religion to politics to Hollywood and it takes no prisoners.

It makes you think and laugh at the same time. I believe it's one of the smartest shows on TV. It's even Emmy-award winning.

Last night the show took aim at Britney Spears. They didn't make fun of Britney but rather the paparazzi and even us, a society that's become obsessed with her every move.

Here's a clip from the show last night. I will warn you ahead of time, it's graphic and shocking...it's also pretty funny!

Another notch on the belt...

Ric from Country 105 wrote in his "Herbal One Experience Blog" that he was stuck between two notches on his belt, thanks to all the weight-loss.

I've been having a similar problem.

The belt I bought back in the fall - long before I started on Herbal One - is WAAAAYYYY too big for me now. It's main purpose in life - to hold up pants - has expired. It's become more or less a fashion accessory. The only thing I can really do with it is put my cell-phone belt clip on it. That's it!

Something you need to know about me is that I am ridiculously cheap when it comes to clothing. This is true as long as you don't count that $200 Ottawa Senators sweater I own, but it's not part of my regular wardrobe so it doesn't count in my book.

Now because I'm so cheap, I refuse to buy a new belt. Plus, I kinda like the one I have now. It's got a big buckle on it and it reeks of coolness...among other smells. I'm not willing to part with it simply because it no longer fits; so I've come up with a new solution: I'll just make my own notches.

A few weeks ago I added my own notch using a very delicate method of poking a hole at random in the belt using the sharpest knife I could find in my kitchen. It was at the point I realized I probably should have taken the belt off before making the hole. Once the bleeding stopped I was in business with my "new" belt.

Anyway, it was kind of cool this morning when after only a few weeks not only had the scar healed but I also needed to make yet another new notch in my belt.

Remember my blog from a few weeks ago about buying new jeans? Well it looks like it's almost time to retire the "new pair" since I'm still getting smaller and smaller by the day...unless I can figure some way to make them smaller myself....I'll be sure to have the ambulance on stand-by.

WEEK 10 - BACK ON TRACK

Last week was a tough one.

Filling in on the Energy morning show was a fun experience, don't get me wrong. Waking up at 4am everyday - not so fun.

It was a major hit to my system to go from getting 7-8 hours of sleep per night to getting only 3-4 hours.

I was a mess. I even started to feel sick towards the end of the week. I'm just so glad to be back to my regular routine.

The added stress and lack of sleep last week also made me take a hit on the scale. I started to see my weight go up due to the fact I was retaining a lot of water and due to the fact I was eating at different times than normal. Luckily I was able to maintain myself and I ended up losing again over the weekend once I got back into a regular sleeping pattern.

I'm down to 233 now, which is 37 pounds in 10 weeks.

I'm hoping to get down to 230 by this time next week. Obviously it will be a bit of a challenge with Easter coming this weekend. I'm a sucker for those Cadbury Creame Eggs so I'll be avoiding them like the plague!

Jan at Herbal One has got some products I can use that will help this weekend since I'll be out of town. The best one is the Carb Block supplement that blocks 20% of carbohydrates from getting into your system. This means beer and potatoes arn't so bad anymore - and I'm a guy who loves his beer and potatoes!

There are some other great products on sale now too that can help you, in addition to signing up for the program. Just contact Herbal One at 748-9999 to get the details.

Am I a Bad Luck Charm?

Last night I was at the Petes game working as the "promotions announcer". That's a fancy way of saying I was the guy with the wireless mic running around giving out prizes during the game.

I love working at the games and getting to pump up the crowd. There's nothing quite as fun as yelling "MAKE SOME NOISE" and having nearly 4000 fans go nuts.

It's a real honour to be asked by the Petes to work with them and I'm really excited to have been asked to work during the playoffs. I'm told the Memorial Centre is crazy when it comes to playoff time and I can't wait to get a chance to work the crowd.

There is only one problem - the Petes have won only once when I've worked a game.

I've done about 10 games now and ironically their only win came on "Energy 99.3 Night" back in January.

I don't know if it's due to the fact they've had some tough opponents when I've been there or if I'm just plain bad luck.

So far, no one with the Petes has noticed the team's record when I'm in the building. No one said anything either when my career got off to a rather bad start. In my first two games, the visiting team scored immediately after I spoke on the mic.

Hopefully, the Petes fortunes will change during the playoffs. They have the potential to upset whoever they play and could be a real dark horse in the playoffs.

And it's a good thing management isn't superstitious...otherwise I wouldn't be allowed within 500 feet of the arena on a game night!

Go Petes Go!

WEEK 9 RESULTS!!!

I'd love to tell you that I lost weight this week.

However there really wasn't much of a change on the scale this morning.

Jan at Herbal One seems to think this is due to stress. Last week was an overly hectic one for me and I saw my weight fluctuating greatly. Jan says that when you're under more stress than normal your body retains more water.

Also a contributing factor is the fact I'm doing the morning show this week in place of Bill, which is a change to my routine.

So even though I didn't get good news from the scale today, I did get some good news from the measuring tape. I lost almost another 5 inches, which brings the 9-week total to nearly 50-inches lost. I continue to shrink and that's all that matters.

Hopefully we'll see more of a change by Wednesday when I'm back in for my next visit!

Canadian Music Week / Fan Fest

The last 48-hours has been a heck of a fun ride.

On Thursday night I was at the Royal York in Toronto with Bill Porter and Brian Young from Energy. We were joined by our Sales Manager, Wanda and our G.M., Steve.

Even though we didn't win any of the awards we were nominated for, we still had a great time. We were lucky to meet some very cool people, including the head of radio for our company. You know the head of your company is a good guy when you get an e-mail from him, personally thanking you for coming and hoping you made it home safe.

We also got to meet comedian Carla Collins.

Bill Porter and I were clearly the best dressed. As you can see, no one rocks a $60 suit from Wal-Mart quite like me.

 

On Friday night the Energy crew headed back to Toronto, this time with a Coach Canada bus full of winners for Energy Fan Fest at the Masonic Temple.

Fan Fest was simply amazing.

The entertainment was top notch. CTV and CHUM spared no expense in making sure everyone had a great time.

Here's some pictures.....

Bill and J.C. hosting on the bus.

Our bus-load of winners!

Energy Promotions Person Lisa with Elise Estrada

J.C. with friend Amalia and K-OS

Alanis performing.

Brian Melo performs.

Elise Estrada on stage.

Finger 11 rockin' the house.

Jully Black performing.

The surprisingly elegant Kreesha Turner.

State Of Shock nearly brought the house down.

 

Go ahead, ask Brian Young if he had a good time.

WEEK 8 RESULTS!!!

It's hard to believe it's been 8 weeks since I began the Herbal One program.

8 weeks ago I set a goal for myself to lose 70 lbs and now I've squeaked past the halfway mark.

Today the scale at Herbal One read 234.5

I've lost 35.5 lbs in only 8 weeks.

I'll be honest when I say it's a GREAT feeling.

I know it's going to take a lot more than 8 weeks to lose the rest but I'm ready for the challenge.

Maybe I can have it gone by June...who knows. As long as I stay on the program and don't cheat I'll make it.

Herbal One is continuing to offer new specials for the spring in case you're hoping to be ready for summer too. Give them a call at 748-9999 for all the details.

How far we've come...

Tomorrow I'll find out officially where I am on the program. I'm hoping I'll be at the halfway mark - 35lbs down, 35 lbs to go - my eventual goal being an even 200lbs.

Last spring I was in pretty decent shape, well on my way to that goal. I think I recall being around 230lbs and that was the lowest I'd ever been. That would be as far as I got though. I ended up packing on a ton of weight over the summer.

What stopped me? I guess I plateaued and didn't know how to deal with it. I didn't have any advice or support like I do now from the staff at Herbal One. Also I had been on kind of my own little brand of diet which wasn't very healthy and didn't help me at all when I went back to my old habits.

My biggest fear, and I'm sure it's the same for anyone that has ever lost weight or is trying to lose weight, is that I'll gain it all back. Thanks to the way the program is designed, I don't have to worry about gaining the weight back. I'm going to have their support long after I'm done losing the weight I want to lose.

The photo above show you the progress I've been making. August of 2005 I was at my worst...I'm pretty sure I was around 335 lbs. I was huge. I was buying shirts in size XXXL! I knew I needed to make a change. I sure as heck didn't want to die of a heart-attack before age 30 but I feared that was the direction I could be headed in.

I did make some great progress but like most people who simply diet I began to return to my old habits. I started to gain it back. When I got scared of once again looking like the guy from August of 2005 I called Herbal One.

I was 270 lbs and going up on January 7th when I started the program. At last check I was at 237 lbs and going down.

Tomorrow we'll see if I'm back to being the guy I was a year ago...and now that I've got the right kind of support I'll be even healthier and won't make the same mistakes.

Wish us luck!

This week is Canadian Music Week in Toronto. It's a very prestigious event, not just for Canadian artists but also for members of the music industry.

Radio is a major key to the success of Canadian artists and every year during CMW the best in the industry are recognized for their work.

This Thursday evening, the staff from Energy 99.3 will be heading to Toronto for the industry awards ceremony. Normally, we wouldn't be attending.

However, this year Energy 99.3 is nominated for small-market Station of the Year. This is a huge surprise since we've only been on the air for a few months. Brian Young, our midday announcer is being recognized as Program Director of the Year and I've been nominated as Music Director of the Year.

I sincerely hope Energy wins station of the year. The success we've enjoyed at the radio station is a direct reflection of the way Peterborough has accepted us and supported us since we launched in the late summer. We owe all of our success to you, our loyal listeners. Win or lose Thursday night, you can still expect the same quality from us in the future.

On behalf of everyone at Energy, thank you so much for helping make us the success we are today.