Zahn: I weigh less than I have in 20 years

In baseball slang the phrase “hitting below the Mendoza line” refers to a player having a batting average below .200. If you want to continue to play Major League Baseball you better not hit below the Mendoza Line.

I am happy to say that I am below my Mendoza Line for the first time in over 20 years.

The line I am referring to is the 200 pound line. When I started this adventure back in November my weight was 261 pounds and the thought of being under 200 was inconceivable.

Over the past several years strict dieting with a little exercise had gotten me down to 217. That is the lowest that I can remember. I was hoping that I could get back to that level, but never considered that I could actually get under 200 pounds.

As I got closer and closer I knew that the day that I would be under 200 was coming. Workouts continued, healthier eating and then one morning I stepped on the scale and it said 198.6!

What was the first thing I did when I saw that number? It was 5:30 a.m. so there was no yelling and jumping for joy.  But I did take a picture and tweeted. I had to let someone know, so why not the whole twitter world?

The amazing thing is that I did this without the super strict dieting that I had tried in the past. I have made changes in my diet – more fruits and veggies, less cheese and junk foods and more water.  But, on the other hand, I still eat pizza and hamburgers and drink beer-  just smaller portions and less often.

It doesn’t feel like the diets that I had tried in the past. Obviously, I wasn’t training for a triathlon with previous diets, but this hasn't been nearly as challenging and restrictive as I thought it would be.

Now the biggest challenge is finding clothes to wear that actually fit! I think I am up for that challenge.