Hi there... I haven't posted in a while but I decided to get back on here
and give you all an update on my status. As always, I'm open to any
suggestions or comments that you might have. I've definitely garnered a lot
of useful advice to this point and I've been getting results, so I must be
doing something right. And more than anything, typing out a quick summary
helps me understand how my plan is moving along. That being said, here
goes...

I have lost a pound and a half in the last week. While I haven't done nearly
as much cardio as I had originally planned, I have been keeping up with the
dumbbells and the pushups and the crunches. I have been eating between
1500-1800 calories lately, and I've been trying to get as much protein as
possible given my budget. Thanks to tuna and low fat beef jerky and my whey
protein shakes, I've been able to stay within the 30%-40% protein calories
that so many swear by. I still have no been eating enough fresh foods, but
things are gradually improving and I feel very good about the way things are
going. I realize that it's going to take a long time and a big commitment to
cardio if I really want to burn the fat around my tummy, but as it stands
things are moving along at an easy pace. I don't feel like I'm losing any
lean mass, but I still haven't gotten to have my body fat measured. My blood
pressure has been giving me fits - always at least around 140/90, and I'll
be getting that checked out very soon as I'm only 24. Would a general
practitioner have fat calipers available? I've very curious as to my actual
percentage. I believe it's somewhere in the low 20s these days.

Are there any good sites that give information on the proper way to take
tape measurements that give repeated accurate results? I swear, my tummy has
not gone down a centimeter since I started dieting - 25 pounds ago. That was
my first clue that I had burned mostly lean mass, but I don't think I was
starving myself enough for that occur. Especially not now, with my increased
protein intake.

That's all for now.

Mike

196/171/165, but body fat percentages would be more representative of my
goals...