2.20.2012

I shall taunt you a SECOND TIME! BAM!!

Long, long after King Leonidas' fateful battle at the Hot Gates, King Arthur began his quest for the Holy Grail.  Long, long, LONG after that, Monty Python spoofed that famous quest, and even longer after that, someone thought it would be a good idea to make a Broadway Musical out of that spoof.  Sometime after that, the spoofed musical toured the country to rave reviews, and that is how it figures prominently in my post this week; thanks to my mother-in-law, we scored tickets to the show in Charlotte, NC last Saturday night, after feasting Emeril Legasse's new restaurant E2.

Wha-tha-wha?! How does that fit into the iTransformation?  The short answer is that it MUST.  If I can't go to a restaurant like this without obliterating the week's hard-won gains (losses?), then this whole thing is doomed to fail.  I might as well pack it in, and continue packing on the weight, because I am NOT giving up the Glory of High End Foodie Craving!  Period. <--there it is. 

I am happy to report that I did not blow the whole week of workouts in one meal.  I didn't exactly deprive myself of anything (although I did skip dessert, because nothing on the dessert menu was really "speaking" to me), but I did make a concerted effort to eat "better" than I would have a couple of months ago.  That meant having the sea scallops instead of the aged New York strip.  It meant having the tuna crudo instead of half a dozen fried starters.  I even tried the gumbo (loooove Emeril's gumbo of any kind). 

I got close to going off the deep end with the rolls, however.  From prior posts, you already know that I love rolls (twice-slathered in butter, the only way to "roll"), but E2 had these potato rolls with a salty glaze that were the equivalent of eating soft pretzels dipped in butter, and covered in Crack.  Literally, crack.  There were tiny pieces of "rock" (salt) on the skin of the rolls.  Mmmmmmmmmm...BAM!!  I had two before I realized what was happening.  Once I caught myself, I stopped.  Barely.  I think I was drooling as the bread basket made a third trip around the table and I didn't partake.  I was definitely moaning, "brrrrreaaaaaaaaaad." Or maybe it was just a dull roar in my head, I can't be sure.  It must be what Zombies hear after they turn.  I'm really just happy I staved off disaster. 

So the meal was Glorious.  There is no other way to describe it.  From the wine, to the starters, to the main course, it was fantastic.  I asked our server at least three times if we could please, please, just have a spork and stand at the pass in the kitchen and taste everything going out.  Everything was amazing.  A quick word on the yellowfin crudo:  raw yellowfin tuna, pounded flat, and seasoned so well, it was like eating bat tongue.  But it was a huge bat tongue the size of a small serving plate.  I almost ordered a second dish.  Raw tuna not your thing?  Emeril has put together a menu that will appease any palette.  Like I said, 'twas GLORIOUS.  I shall return.

After that event, you can imagine that I was sweating my weigh-in on Sunday.  Just a little.  Fortunately, I knocked out another good week- 3 pounds down, to a total of 305.  Also lost another inch off my waist measurement (now at 53.25), which is always good to see on the graph from the Gadget.  I was sort of "expecting" a plateau this week, but after continuing to lose weight while eating at E2, I'm not "expecting" another one.  This is way too much fun. 

It was especially fun, because I hadn't seen my Outlaws since Christmas, when I weighed in at 342.  They were sort of surprised at how successful I've been so far.  Especially when I didn't deprive myself of anything the entire time we were there.  Now, I'll admit, I was not as Spartan with my eating as I have been over the last three weekends, but I didn't go crazy either.  I also "previewed" the next level of the Power90 program (Level 3-4), and I jumped into the 3-4 Circuit today (ouch), so my workouts didn't suffer.  I DID take a day off- it ended up being Friday, but hey, I was driving for 7 hours! 

Quick recap: great weekend, great experience at E2, thanks to the Outlaws, love the road I'm on!!

Weight: 305 (-37.6 lbs), Waist: 53.25 (-6.55"), BMI: 43.8 (-5.4); Days on Track: all of them.

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