Conquer the Overlook 2016 (Race Recap)

I ran a race over the weekend and it kicked my ass. I’ve done some tough races in my day, and even though this was only a 5K, it ranks up there among the most difficult. Why? HILLS. More specifically, HILLS and STAIRS. These are the stairs at the Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook. They’re colloquially known as the Culver City Stairs.

There’s 282 stairs carved straight up the side of this hill. They’re made from recycled concrete, and each one is different:

READER MAILBAG! How I Weened Myself Off Soda

I got a question from a new reader named Allison, who learned about me from the Half Size Me podcast. Let’s see what Allison wants to know!

Did you have any food addictions that you had to get past on your journey?  Caffeinated drinks are my kryptonite. They include Starbucks peppermint white mocha, Dr Pepper, and caffeinated Crystal Light. How did you reduce your caffeine intake?

Great question, Allison! When I started my efforts to lose weight, one of the

Memories, Memories: The Tale of a Suit

Facebook reminded me the other day that it’s been six years since I first cleaned out my closet of clothes I could no longer wear. Clothes are a wonderful signifier of weight loss success: it’s an awesome feeling when clothes start feeling looser, or you can start using a new hole in your belt, or fit into something you couldn’t before. Six years ago, I was well into my weight loss, having shed a little over 100 pounds, and you can imagine how good it felt to set aside all the clothes that I had shrunk out of. They covered my entire bed!

I went through other photos I took that summer, and remembered a great story that I haven’t thought about it a while.. a story about a suit.

My Workout at the Worst Pool in Los Angeles

I’ve swum laps at a number of city pools around town over the years. I can count five off the top of my head, with my favorite being the pool built for the 1932 Olympics. Most of the pools are pretty easy to get to, but there’s always been a closer one, in my own neighborhood, that has eluded me. It’s called the

The Most Important Thing You Will Ever Read on This Blog: Why You Should NEVER EVER Give Up on Your Weight Loss Goals

At the beginning of May, The New York Times published a lengthy article about long-term weight loss that was an absolute bummer. Scientists followed contestants from “The Biggest Loser” and concluded that their own bodies fought their efforts to keep the weight off, making long-term weight loss success nearly impossible. The article was a trending topic on social media, and so many people struggling with their weight read the article and felt defeated, overwhelmed, and hopeless.

I haven’t been on “The Biggest Loser,” but I have lost 160 pounds and kept it off for over five years. I’ve accomplished something that very few people have, and that article was terribly depressing for me, too.

I said, in a previous post, that the article

My Favorite Olympic Quote From Rio

I love watching the Olympics. I especially get all swept up in the swimming, and the events in Rio did not disappoint. It’s exciting to watch people, at the top of their game, push themselves even harder, further, faster. I’m inspired by these athletes.

Look Out Behind You… It’s a WATERMELON SHARK!

The most dangerous, conniving, ruthless shark of them all isn’t a great white or a hammerhead… it’s a watermelon shark!

They’re rarely seen most of the year, but during the summer, they might show up at your picnic or pool party and devour all the fruit in sight.

I made this watermelon shark on

An Impressive Return to the Stairwell AND My All-Time Highest National Ranking!

It’s been nearly two months since I’ve raced or trained in a stairwell. After the TOWERthon in June, I was ready for a break. That was my 9th stair race in six months! Now, though, I have to start getting ready for my fall stair races. And that meant… time to get back in the stairwell!

I didn’t waste any time. I returned to Los Angeles on Saturday, and my stair training began

For the First Time in 9 Weeks: Weigh-In Results and Workout Progress Report!

I don’t do official weigh-ins while traveling, since I’m away from my weight loss chart, so I missed my July weigh-in entirely, and I’m a week late for my August weigh-in. Better late than never! I stepped on the scale, nine weeks after my June 1st weigh-in, and here’s what it said:

Down two pounds! I’ll take it. A weight of 251 means I’ve lost and kept off 151 pounds for 6.5 years. That’s

A Full Final 24 Hours in Michigan

I’m back home in Los Angeles. I had a wonderful trip, but it feels so good to be sleeping in my own bed again, for the first time in six weeks. Kinda hard to believe it’s been so long, but as the cliched saying goes, time flew by. Good thing I