I'm starting over: One change at a time

Hello, I'm back.

A lot has changed in the past 2 years. I went from a life with just my wife and I, to now recently, welcoming a newborn into our life. So my health has become something I'm concerned about--cause I'm envisioning that day when my son wants to play catch, or run around, etc...and I don't want to weigh what I currently do. Since my last post, I've lost 25 lbs, then gained it all back and then some. The yo-yo. And I'm sick of it.

I talked to a good friend of mine yesterday, who has an almost identical body style to mine. His top weight a few years back was 260, which is what mine is now. He has lost 80 lbs, which is what I'd be THRILLED to lose. The way he did it? No pregnant-lady hormone injections, no elimination of carbs, no mail-order food plan. All he did was focus on ONE THING that he could change. His first change, he eliminated his cheese and crackers snack--replaced it with cheereos. Once he had successfully mastered that, he'd replace another bad habit with a good one--like replacing fast food lunches for sack lunches.

My brother did something similar a few years ago. He called it "start with what you can do". He'd make one minor change each week... and each week he'd lose a pound or two. Nothing significant. None of that "pound a day BS" you read about the pregnant-lady injections (HCG), but he lost 50 lbs in a year, and kept it off.

Anyway, here I go. My motivation is that in one year, when my boy is a lot heavier to hold, and a lot more active to keep up with...I don't want to be completely winded with a heart pounding like crazy when I run up the stairs. So here I go... I'm committed. One minor change at a time.

First Change: I'm eliminating soda. That's it. I'm also packing a lunch every day, but that's more to save money. I'll still eat out occasionally, but my first major change in life, I'm replacing my roughly 32 oz a day of soda, with water or crystal light.

I imagine my head will hurt like hell at first, which is why I'm going to start off by taking excedrine a few times a day to curb the caffeine cravings.

So here it goes... Thanks for reading.

Craig