My wife recorded a whole series of the "Inside Brookhaven Obesity Clinic" show from TLC for me.  I watched 3 episodes straight.  Good thing that I can skip all the commercials :)

"Inside Brookhaven Obesity Clinic" is a TV show about people struggling to solve their morbidly obese problems at the clinic.  Most of them are inches away from death, and yet many of them still don't understand the situation.

Many of them cheat the dieting program designed by the clinic by sneaking in fast foods and not following the exercise programs.  I just couldn't understand why they aren't even trying to lose weight knowing that their weight will kill them in any time.

While filming the show, a lady who also cheat the program passed away from heart failure.  The incident shocked many of the cheaters and changed their behaviors.  But I have feeling that the impact will last for a few weeks.  And they will go back to their regular habits.

Well, the lesson I learned from the show is that no matter how ready you are outside to lose weight, it's not going to happen unless your mind is ready.  At the Brookhaven Clinic, they provide the best support anyone can get and the best tools to help them lose weight.  And yet, not everyone's taking an advantage of that.  Given the equal resources, the ones with strong will finishes the program and get their life back.

It is same for me.  I have a membership to one of the best gyms and have access the best organic market in the U.S.  I have all the resources I need to start dieting.  But if I don't have the right mindset, I will fail no matter what.  And that's where I lack the most.

That's the area where I need to improve the most if I want to stay fit even after I lose my weight.  Just a thought for the day.

Since I'm doing this all by myself, I need to figure out how much weight to lose and how to do it the healthy way. Today, I'm going to find out how much weight loss is best for an average person. Then I'm going to compare that data to come up with the right numbers.

I used iVillage's health calculator to determine my numbers. I don't think it's very accurate, but good enough to start with.

According to result..
* Body Mass Index : 28.47
* Healthy Weight : 151-163 Lbs

I just remembered that I had a physical evaluation done by a trainer at Life Time Fitness in my area. There are lots of good information on the profile page that they gave me after the evaluation. My body weight was 200 pounds at that time. I guess I can still use that data for my new diet plan.

According to the evaluation profile...
Date : 5/31/2006
Body fat : 26.2%
Lean mass : 148 pounds
Fat mass : 52 pounds
Body weight : 200 pounds

And at complete rest, my body burns 2099 calories each day. So my (BMR - basal metabolic rate) is 2099. In addition to my BMR, I will burn approximately 630 calories by processing food and through normal daily activities.

So basically, it's saying that I'm burning about 2729 calories each day. I think.. correct me if I'm wrong lol. The trainer who did the evaluation gave me a plan to lose 22 pounds in 17 weeks. The plan was to take only 2100 calories each day. Well, if I took the advice, I'd be at least 10 pounds lesser by now.

There are so much information in this report. I can't believe I almost forgot about it!

With digging deeper... I found the following recommendations for me.

Optimal % fat : 13.1 - 18.0
BMI : 28.7 kg/m2 - Overweight
Max VO2 : 44.6 ml/kg min - Moderate - I have no idea what this is. I need to check.
Bicep Strength : 78 pounds - Average
Sit and Reach : 11.0 inches - Poor
Body Age : 32 - Ouch!
Optainable Body Age : 19

It's just embarrassing. I didn't take good care of my God-given body, and I almost feel like I ruined it. I really need to make my diet work this time, otherwise, I might lose so many valuable things in my life.

I've decided that my target weight is 160 pounds, which is 40 pounds lesser than now. I will try to lose 1 pound each week. No more than that. That will be about 4-5 pounds off each month. If I stick to my plan, I will achieve my goal in 40 weeks.

My diet plan will start on June 4th, 2007. I read many books about dieting and found that they all have their own opinions about it. My plan is to combine multiple diet plans into a customized plan for myself. But before I begin, I need to come up with my goals and access where I stand.

I need an accurate weight scale plus some measurement tools for calculating my body fat. I will visit Target tomorrow to see if they have any good scales.

Currently, I don't have diet plans or exercise plans yet. But I don't want to waste a day. Until I come up with the right plan for me, I will use John Stone's food log as my diet plan. I will be using his diet plans as the main frame, and I will be adding a few stuff in there to make it better for my body.

I just reached my record-breaking 200 pounds for the first time in my life. It's scary. My unhealthy lifestyle finally struck me hard and fast. 200 pounds might not sounds much to you, but to me, it is like walking with a couple of 20 pounds sandbags on my shoulder. I feel heavy.

I've tried and failed so many times that losing weight and getting back to the optimal weight range seemed impossible to me. I lost a few pounds here and there, but nothing really lasted more than a month. I have to admit that it was me that ruined previous diets. I couldn't resist food. I love food, no doubt on that.

I've been yo-yo dieting for so many years, and I need to put an end to it. My body is well-trained for yo-yo dieting that it stores fat like crazy. My body knows me well.

It is time to end this ugly dieting cycle and get back into shape. I need different approaches this time. I truely intend to work with it no matter what. This is the reason for starting this diet journal. I'm going to share what I do to achieve my weight loss goal in details.

If you want to join the journey with me, feel free to start your own diet journal on this site. It is extremely easy and simple. Just register and start writing!

It will be a fun journey if we do it together. Join me!