Has to be Wilson, Fields or Lance

 The San Francisco 49ers made one of its biggest trades in the past 20 years when they moved up from No. 12 to No. 3 in the NFL Draft. 

Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch hitched their wagon to the quarterback of the future and if it fails, they may not get to pick another one. 

They get could have gotten Mac Jones at 12 in some folk's opinions. So I can't imagine them making this move to guarantee they get him. 

I have heard several with that opinion though. Including 49ers Insider Matt Maiocco, who is more plugged in than anyone. 

There are a lot of smokescreens. I have no idea what to believe. But I think the guy they would take if there is Zach Wilson. But he's expected to go 2nd overall to the Jets. 

That leaves Trey Lance and Justin Fields. As a fan, I would take either of them. I think they both would add a dynamic to Shanahan's offense that he hasn't had since RG3. 

Fields was incredible accurate in college. Shanahan puts a lot of value on that. Jones was accurate, too. But if he can get the accuracy with the tools of Fields, I think that's what he does. 

The pick is huge for 2021 and the future. They cannot miss on this pick, whoever it is. I will trust the brass to make the right choice. Adam Peters seems to hit on a lot of first-round picks so just do what he wants to do. 

My only wish is to find a quarterback who can make plays and stay on the field. Injuries at the QB position have really hurt the 49ers in two of the past three seasons. The one year it didn't hurt, SF was in the Super Bowl. 

My gut says Kyle wants Fields or Wilson over all. And I feel like he knows what the Jets are going to do. Maybe Robert Saleh did his old boss a favor and told them their plan so they make up their own plan in response to it. 

Just take guy who can lead us to 3 or 4 more championships. No pressure. 

Weight loss not enough anymore

The scale read a number that was 2.8 pounds less than the week before. But it wasn't good enough this time. 

I had a goal to get under 250 pounds for the first time in what felt like a few years. It read 250.4. So even a 2.8 pound weight loss was a failure to me. 

Not really. But I wasn't happy with just that. I had a great week of nutrition. I am running and exercising more than normal. I thought it was coming. 

Guess I will have to wait until next week. 

Today's 3-mile run was time in 27:23. On Friday, I ran the same distance in 27:49. Every time I get on the treadmill to do that 3-mile run, the time is faster than the previous one. Not sure how much faster I can go but I will continue to give my best effort. 

And the music is helping me out every step of the way. 

Here's 249.9 this week. It has to happen.  

Pushing Through Adversity

Weight loss is a challenge. If it wasn't, we would all be skinny, healthy and in control of our physical activity. 

As I started on another weight-loss journey on January 10, it had gone very well. It was feeling like it was easy. 

But if last week was any indication, things won't always be easy. I have lost more than 40 pounds since that date in January but last week was my first "gaining" week. I only gained .2 pounds but it wasn't the consistent 2-5 pound loss week that I had been seeing since I started.

I had one gigantic 11-pound weight loss week at the very beginning but it's been around 2-6 pounds consistently since I started. 

I could blame Spring Break. I could give other excuses. But sometimes things don't go your way. I maintained my hours at the gym. That hasn't been the issue. And I don't feel like I did that much different. My nutrition isn't perfect it wasn't that bad last week. Sometimes, it's just not your week. 

My official weigh-in days are Sundays. But I stepped on the scale today and already had a few pounds lost. We'll see what the scale says on Sunday because I have seen it the other way too on this journey. 

I really will celebrate getting under 250 pounds. When I started, I was 294 pounds. That's probably the most I have weighed in my life. Not a good feeling. But as I continue to shred the weight, I continue to see what it was like about 5 years ago when I was training for half marathons and 10K races. 

I am running consistently now and last week started a streak of running for 30 minutes straight and seeing how far I can get. The goal is to improve my three-mile time every time I run. So far, that has worked as I completed three miles today in 28 minutes. 

I have been charted my miles in 2021. I went 37.64 in January. The number increased to 42.21 last month and so far in March I have gone 51.14 mies. 

The lighter I get, the easier it is to run and even walk further. And it's getting nicer outside so walks and runs to the gym as warm-ups will be happening consistently soon. 

The food intake is still challenging. I do really well with breakfast and lunch and save all of my points for dinner. But I still like to snack late at night. Those snacks have just gone from chips and cookies to apples, pretzels and things like hard-boiled eggs, cottage cheese and protein bars. 

Recently, I tried some Greek Yogurt. It's a low-point item and I loved it. So that might be something I hit up pretty hard in the coming weeks. 

Things are still going well. My jeans continue to be harder to wear (because they are too big) but I also know that it won't always be easy or perfect. 

Dominating the week

 When I stepped on the scale on Sunday morning, it said I was down almost three more pounds. That's nearly 40 pounds since Jan. 10. 

I feel good. The pants needed a new belt. And I am running better and longer than I have since my half-marathon days. 

I use an Apple Watch to keep track of my steps, move calories, exercise minutes and stand hours. 

Unofficially I set new personal records in exercise minutes on Tuesday and then had my second best day on Wednesday. 

On Tuesday, I went walked to the gym and then back home, which is one mile each. I walked on the treadmill for 20 minutes at the gym, then walked our dog with my daughter later in the day. That was a half-mile walk. After that, my daughter wanted to go further on our own. 

In total, I put in 91 exercise minutes, went eight miles and took 16,909 steps. 

Wednesday's workout included a 3.19 mile run around my neighborhood after my mile walk to the gym. That day included 75 exercise minutes, 15,812 steps and 8.3 total miles. 

This was all after going 58 exercise minutes, 13,269 steps and 6.4 miles on Monday. 

Things couldn't have started any better this week as far as exercise goes. I have done OK with the diet too. The breakfast, lunch and snacks side of things continue to go well. We cooked at home for supper on Monday, Aubrey and I got her traditional "Subway on Dance night" dinner on Tuesday and we ordered Montana Mikes on Wednesday. 

Just when I think I will have my first positive gain week of this process, it always ends well on that Sunday weigh in, 

This is conferences week for the wife so Aubrey and I will be together all day Thursday after she gets out of school at 1:30. I should be able to eat well all day and not over-eat.

I am glad things have started well on the exercise front this week after taking a day trip to my in-laws on Saturday. We had a little too much fun with the diet as we celebrated a birthday with ice cream. And I ate Chick Fil A on the drive home. 

So I needed to get off to a good start to hopefully shed those extra pounds. It was a fun day but eating out of my current comfort zone makes me a little nervous. I think I made up for it though. 

Unfortunately, the weather is supposed to turn back to chilly temperatures for about a week or so. That likely means less walks but the gym is always there when I need it in this situations. And my pre-cooked food should get me through the rest of the week. 

Wish me luck. And thanks for reading. 

A new path

 I know. I know. Another change to this blog. Well, I can't help it. I need to find a niche that's for me and it hasn't been as easy as I thought. 

So here's a new one. This blog is just going to be about me. My life. You may not want to read about that. That's fine. To some, that's not exciting. I get it. 

For this first blog, I want to focus on my current weight loss journey. I say current because I don't know what will happen six months from now. The plan is to make a life change with this latest journey. I think I can do it, but I also don't know what hurdles will get in my way. 

I stepped on the scale in January and saw a number that I didn't think I would ever see. A guy who loves to workout. Who has always had a gym membership. Who enjoys running or walking outside when it's nice out. 

294 pounds. That's what I weight on January 10. That was eye opening and really disappointing.

I knew I wasn't the 185 pound guy that roamed the East side in college. That guy is long gone. But there is no reason for me to ever be nearly 300 pounds. It's unacceptable. And a wake up call to make changes. 

I joined Weight Watchers. And I am not ashamed to admit that. I usually don't bring it up to someone unless they ask. I use the word program a lot. 

Weight Watchers has helped me get my life back. I am down 34 pounds since January 10. I lost 11.2 pounds in the second week of the "program." And the best news is that I have lost at least some weight in each of the seven weigh ins. 

My biggest vices were gas station foods, energy drinks and snacking late at night because I work late at night. 

I don't live a typical life that others live. I wake up between 10-11 each day unless I have to get up for something else. 

As a sports writer, I am basically always on the clock. I spend a lot of time in my car and working at the office until 2 a.m. is common place. 

Since January 10, I have eaten way more fruits and vegetables, I track all of my food and drinks and I have extended what I do at the gym.  

Let me tell you. I feel fantastic. And I don't miss the gas station food and I don't crave energy drinks anymore. I do drink Diet pop still but those are "zero point" items in Weight Watchers and it hasn't seemed to affect the weight loss. But I also drink around 100 ounces of water each day. 

I will use this blog to update those who want to know how I am doing on this journey. I might even share some tips that have worked for me and include some workouts that I do or have done to help me lose weight. 

If you think it is too late to get control of your weight - and your life - please don't. I turned 40 in October. It's never too late.  

I hope you like my story. And my journey. If you don't, well, I understand that, too.