This past weekend, my wife Sherry and I spent some time in San Francisco and the Napa Valley. I flew out on Thursday evening, and we returned home Monday evening. In the four days we were there, we had a great time. We ate a lot of delicious food, drank a lot of delicious drinks, and gained a lot of stupid weight.

I knew going into the weekend that this would happen, and I accepted the consequences. I knew, almost to the pound, exactly what the toll would be. How? Because I’ve done this before. I also know how quickly I can make that weight disappear, which is why I accepted the consequences. Within two weeks, I can erase the effects of the past four days through good eating and moderate exercise. The hitch this time is that my right knee is still giving me problems, and I’m having a very hard time getting any exercise in.

After work tonight, I will try to ride the stationary cycle we own. The treadmill is still out of the question. I woke up with pain in my knee last night (meaning that the pain in my knee was enough to wake me), so I’m still being very tender with it. However, being in the National Guard, I can’t let my physical readiness slip too much. I have to do something.

Last night, Sherry and I prepared our lunches for the week. She cooked two of my new favorites: Picadillo and Cashew Chicken. Well, I helped with peeling/slicing some ingredients and I did the dishes while she cooked. It may not seem like much, but she seems to like the help and I gladly give it. Sherry also made the chia pudding I love so much. This time, she made it with 100% coconut milk instead of the 50/50% mix of almond milk and coconut milk she made it with the first time and 100% almond milk she made it with last time. The 50/50% mix was good, while the 100% almond milk was runnier (but still delicious). I’m looking forward to trying the 100% coconut milk version. It has a much thicker consistency; more like a chocolate mousse.

What was the damage from four days of off-the-rails eating? 9 lbs. I have 9 lbs to lose on top of the weight I was already wanting to lose. That puts me back to about two years ago in terms of where I was with my weight, but I have been doing a good job of keeping the weight off, and now, I’m going to make sure I get back down to 165 lbs and stay there. Fortunately, we don’t have any holidays or trips scheduled for the next three or four months, so I should be able to reach my goal by my birthday.