It's that time again. Fall is officially here and winter is definitely right
around the corner. Mowed my lawn for the last time
yesterday, a sad day indeed. I am looking forward to winter, ready to get
the workouts from snow shoveling.

We went out and purchased a digital scale for our home, the doctor's office
that I usually weigh in at still has not gotten theirs fixed
(going on 2 months now). I believe it to be fairly accurate and will be
using this month's weigh-in figure as the baseline for
subsequent weigh-ins. I topped the scale today at 251lbs, which is
definitely the wrong direction. A 3lb gain over the past 2
months, which isn't too bad but still is not acceptable.

I have increased my jogging to 5 days a week and increased the distance by a
1/4 of a mile to 2.75mi. I am thinking on adding a
walk in the evenings to the schedule, my puppy (BIG puppy) Celine probably
could use a workout and since I will get the major
exercise out of the way during the day I can slow my pace for her in the
evenings.

A few other plusses to add to my monthly report:

- I received a letter from the Surgeon General of Michigan commending me on
my weightloss and an offer to be an article in a
"Michigan Steps Up" newsletter. I forwarded my contact information, so we
will see how that pans out.
(see http://photos.yahoo.com/mvanderplow for scans of the letter and other
awards)

- I was recently honored by the West Michigan Character First! Council for
my weightloss efforts. I received a recognition award for
self-control. I ended up in the paper:

http://hollandsentinel.com/stories/101306/local_20061013008.shtml

(username: hatereg password: 123456)

- Nancy was gracious enough to pass my name and information on to a contact
at the Grand Rapids Press. I have an interview set
for next week, it will be a part of the health and fitness column with a
chance for the article to be a front page story on the
Lakeshore edition!

- A few weekends ago I had the chance to be a part of the Toastmasters area
humorous speech contest. It was an exciting and
interesting opportunity and I won 2nd place with a chance to compete in the
southwest division contest in Portage, MI.
Unfortunately I cannot attend, but just having the opportunity to go is
enough for me.

- My YouTube video project is in full swing, I've been posting episodes of
my web show "The Fattening of America" and they have
created quite a stir, garnering between 50 and 70 viewings so far. I have
also posted my latest speech on accountability, feel free to
check them out:

http://www.youtube.com/user/phatteningphilms

- I have 6 speeches under my belt at Toastmasters with 4 more to go before I
receive my CTM designation (hopefully I will receive
that before the end of the year!). Toastmasters has been invaluable towards
my path of becoming an inspirational speaker. Check
them out:

http://www.toastmasters.org

- The date is set for my first paying gig as a motivational speaker. I have
been added to the winter catalog of events for Holland
Hospital, which should be printing shortly. Of course the pay is in the form
of a gift certificate, but hey not too bad for my first gig!
Keep me and my family in your thoughts and prayers, I have a few health
items to deal with and have been overwhelmed by the
attention I have gotten for my efforts. Pray for direction and also for more
speaking engagements to come through, if you know of
any organization looking for a motivational or inspirational speaker, my
email is mattyspeaks@yahoo.com.

Thank you again for your commitment in being a part of my accountability
group. I have been able keep on task because of all the
support I have, you guys need to share in these accomplishments as well. I
could not have come this far without you!

Matty (I weighed more than Jared from Subway)
481/251/225
(starting weight/current weight/goal weight)

First mini goal achieved - 104lbs lost 10/26/04
Second mini goal achieved - 137lbs lost 01/28/05
Third mini goal achieved - 183lbs lost 09/30/05
Fourth mini goal achieved - 204lbs total lost 01/30/06
Fifth mini goal achieved - 233lbs total lost by 08/31/06
Sixth mini goal - 256lbs total lost by 02/24/2007