After two weeks of being on active duty orders in the State of Texas supporting the relief operations for Hurricane Harvey, I am back in my civilian clothes. It was an honor, as it always is, to be in uniform for an extended period of time, but as the relief efforts wind down, so does the need for soldiers, so I was taken off orders and I’m now back to my civilian job.

What that means for me, primarily when it comes to Paleo, is that I’m back to eating the good food my wife makes for us. What I mean by good food is not only delicious, but more importantly, healthy. You see, I gained 4 lbs over the past two weeks. That weight was put on not through the eating of non-Paleo foods, but because I ate too much and did too little activity. While I’ve never been a person to be successful at a CICO diet (Calories in/Calories out), I now have some first-hand knowledge and experience with how much it matters to eat the right amount of food and get exercise, even if the food you’re eating is good.

I will be working hard to get back to my normal schedule of running and my normal eating habits. I got used to eating more than normal as well as eating more Paleo cookies than normal and also eating snacks (either almonds or cashews) which are all things I need to get away from. I know I can lose the 4 lbs fairly easily; it just takes discipline.

The hard part for me will be the running as I hurt a tendon in my right knee during yesterday’s run. It didn’t hurt until this morning, and it’s been aching all day. I’m hoping it heals quickly; I need my running to feel normal.

Sometimes, we fall off the wagon and even if we’re hanging onto the wagon and being dragged behind it, there will be negative effects. I’m dealing with that now: extra weight and a distinct loss of muscle definition in my torso. But, I will get past this. I will regain my abs and lose the weight. I’ve done it before, I know what it takes, and I’m going to make it happen.