Holy Holidays!

Wow. It's hard to believe Christmas has come and gone, and that I manage to live through it without any consequences.

This Super Long Holiday Weekend helped me to realize that I can go through all the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy and pumpkin pie without gaining 10 lbs! Not only did I not gain even an ounce, I managed to lose 2 lbs!

As of yesterday I've managed to lose 70 lbs! Wow, 70 lbs! Do you know what 70 pounds looks like?!

I found some pictures on line from another blogger reflecting what 70 lbs looks like. Take a look.


This Polar Bear Cub weighs approximately 70 lbs


You kids out there getting ready to go back to college . . . Ya gotta have a fridge! This one's pretty small, only 70 pounds. Should fit in your room without a problem.


How 'bout this helium tank? Yeah, that's also 70 pounds.

And well, this ain't no secret, everyone knows I'm a dog lover, let's use that as an example:


This pretty awesome Bulldog is also 70 lbs; sorry Mr. Puppy, you are adorable just the way you are.

It's hard to believe that I started at 339.4 lbs. I was trying to look for something or someone that weighed 340 lbs and I found out that Shaq weighed 340 lbs back in 2007. In that case I guess It's ok to weigh that much, but I'm not 7' 1" (I'm actually 6'0") and also not a professional basketball player (I love basketball but God knows I ain't playing it for a living).

I now know that I'm ready for New Year's - that long weekend is going to be a breeze.

Just 50 lbs shy of my goal, the ladies at Herbal Magic gave me great news yesterday: as of right now, I should be at my weight loss goal (119.4) by Mid May... So, come Stampede, I will be a whole different Cowboy. So, Saddle up, We are going for a Road Trip!

Merry Christmas, I’ll see you later...

Oh man, you’ve got to love this time of year, this is the time of year where you get to see all of your family and friends and where you even get some gifts. And who can forget about the food? I remember myself last year, I was at my grandma’s house with my family sneaking in and out of the kitchen trying to get a “pre-Christmas” sample of everything that my grandma was preparing for supper. The turkey, the ham, the mashed potatoes, the gravy, and the world famous grandma turkey stuffing (world famous might be a stretch, but trust me when I say that it’s pretty darn awesome).

I was really nervous about going home this year, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to stick to my new Herbal Magic health plan while I was there. As it stands, the wife and I had to make different plans this holiday season, and since it’s only the two of us, we are not making a whole turkey or a big piece of ham. Instead, this holiday season we’ve had to say “see you later” to all the amazing food that we normally enjoy in December. Yes, “see you later” because next year when I turn to the new ME, the Carlos sitting at 220 lbs I’ll be able to open the door and welcome back all the amazing food I’ve been missing for the last couple of months.

Today is December 22nd 2009, and I’ve lost a whopping 65 lbs in just over 3 months! I have to say that I feel great with the new me. Before I started Herbal, I used to love this time of year. Everyone would be bundled up in layers – so really, we kinda all looked the same for a few months. I wasn’t the only “big” one – never really realizing that I was only kidding myself. I was out of control and I was the only one that was able to do something about it.

This is why, turkey, stuffing, gravy, ham, pumpkin pie, spinach dip, Coca-Cola...I’ll see you later. This is not a good bye. But, when the right time comes, I’ll see you again with moderation and control.

I have a secret - Goodwill Carlos -

I don't really know how to start talking about this. I guess it all started by taking a look at Meg's Improvement. How she was excited to be on the right path to living a healthy life. You might actually say she was my inspiration.

Meg tried to convince me to join Herbal Magic shortly after she started her Journey. I went for a consult with the lovely ladies at Herbal Magic and I still was unsure if this kind of program was for me. I wasn't entirely sure I was going to be able to make it work, both financially and emotionally. Back then I was weighing a not so bad, not so good either, 310 lbs.

Meg tried again to convince me to Join Herbal Magic, and I decided to give it a 2nd chance, this time I had to get the advice from my Wife, let’s call her Mrs Goodwill, we both went back to Herbal Magic, started to look at the pro's and con's of making an effort of living a healthy life. Then we had to put the numbers together, and then we realized, living a better healthy life has no price.

I officially started my... let’s call it a Road trip, on Friday September 18, 2009. Only 5 months after my first consultation I was weighing 339.4 lbs, those are Biggest Loser Numbers!!! (Great show to watch but that is topic of another post). In 5 months I added 29.4 lbs to myself. I was on a path to self destruction.

I decided to give it a try for a while, and after the first weekend of giving it a go, I lost 10.6 lbs. Yes, I manage to lose 10.6 lbs by day 3 of Herbal Magic. That's insane!!!

So, officially, I've been doing Herbal Magic for just shy of 3 months, and today, Monday December 14, 2009 I went in for a consultation, and I had to get on the scale like any other day.

Today, I saw numbers on the scale that I haven't seen in a loooong time. 276.8... I've lost 62.6 lbs in less than 3 months! According to Wiki Answers I've lost the equivalent of an average to large size dog!


This road trip hasn't been easy, it really hasn't, like any other road trip we’ll hit bumps here and there, we might even get a flat tire, but we will eventually get there.

Together, we will get to our destination.