The Journey Begins Here

Okay, here's the deal. I've decided to start blogging again. Not about a TV show this time but about something I'm more passionate about...FOOD! I LOVE food! I could eat non-stop from the moment I wake up until the moment I go to bed. Pizza! Chicken! Steak! Ribs! I'm not picky. Well, I can be a little picky, like I hate red, yellow and green peppers and I'm just now starting to come around to onions but for the most part, I'll try anything. Here's proof: one of my favorite things to eat is peanut butter and salami. (HEY! Don't knock it 'til you've tried it!)

This love of food is a BIG problem for me. At my heaviest, in March of 2010, I weighed over 313 pounds! That's right! 313! That's me below at my heaviest.

October 2009

I started running. I know right! At 313 pounds and 40 years old, I started running. My goal was to run the Apple Blossom 10K in 2011 (that's 6.2 miles for those of you that didn't know). When I started, I could barely run for 45 seconds much less even THINK about doing 6.2 miles! I had a long road ahead of me. I had a few set backs but I never gave up and in April of 2011, I ran that 10K and I was 55 pounds lighter! Since then, I've lost an additional 25 pounds for a total of 80 pounds. 

Here I am now (tried to find a full body shot but I seem to be behind the camera/phone most of the time).

August 2011

I still have at least 60 more pounds to go but I'm feeling (and looking) much better. 

Here's the problem, I've been stuck at 80 pounds down since August. It seems that the old way isn't working anymore. It isn't enough just to exercise and watch what I eat. I'm going to have to force myself to stick to some kind of diet. So, among other things, I started eating frozen "diet" meals in hopes of controlling my calories.

I've tried many of these frozen meals before and I remember that it was always hit and miss as far as flavor goes. Also, when I'm at the store, I forget which ones I liked and which ones I hated. So I started keep a list on my phone with ratings next to them so I'd get the right ones. A couples of days ago I was adding a new one to my phone and I thought, "I bet other people would like this information." And that was that, "As the Microwave Beeps" was born!

In this blog I will be rating all the frozen "diet" meals I eat. I will include before and after pictures, cost, calorie count, any thoughts I have about the meal and my rating. (The rating system is listed above.) I'll be posting whenever I eat a new meal. I'll also rate other products from time to time but that will be mostly if I REALLY love something or REALLY hate something.

I hope you find this blog helpful and enjoyable. OH! Let me know if there's a meal you want me to try and I'll do my best to try it...but there better not be any peppers in it!