It’s a banner week in my journey to better health as I reached two milestones two weeks earlier than planned. Here’s a look at how I did it in my Week 28 update:

The Successes

The unseasonably warm, dry weather last week was ideal. I made four lunchtime walks in five days before recording four hours of exercise on Saturday.

That included three hours of housework: cleaning the living room and kitchen, and organizing and decorating the new nursery. The most time-consuming and tiring part was actually hanging vinyl decals on the wall behind Baby B.’s crib.

It’s a much more arduous task than it sounds like:

1. Measure and cut out the pieces
2. Tape pieces to wall
3. Peel backing off top half
4. Adhere top half to wall
5. Squeegee out air bubbles
6. Peel backing off bottom half
7. Adhere bottom half to wall
8. Squeegee out air bubbles
9. SLOWLY peel adhesive off while ensuring vinyl decals stick

That last part was a killer. It was so tedious and annoying that I stretched that over the whole weekend.

Needing a break Saturday night, I also made time for a three-mile walk to West Reading.

The Challenges

As good as Saturday was, Sunday was the opposite. I recorded no exercise and hit my calorie limit almost exact. I had done the same thing on Tuesday.

Wednesday, despite my afternoon walk, I came in over my limit thanks to a take-out dinner from Red Robin.

It’s been years since I had Red Robin, but Julie had a craving, and I couldn’t say no. My Whiskey River burger and fries were 1,100 calories, easily the highest total of my week.

But it was probably slightly higher because in addition to the fries that came with the meal, the hostess gave me a free cup of fries for the road.

What? It would have been rude to say no.

The Results

We did it! After 28 weeks of hard work and discipline, I not only cleared the 160-pound mark for the first time since high school, but I achieved my goal of 30 pounds in 30 weeks.

Standing on the scale on Monday morning looking down at that number was very satisfying. Looking in the mirror, I couldn’t be happier with the results. I look good. I feel good. And I’m proud of how far I’ve come in a short time.

The Week Ahead

My goal has been achieved, but I still have two weeks left in my 30-week journey. Am I going to slow down? Yes. (My Lose It! App immediately switched my calorie budget from weight loss to maintenance). But if I lose another pound or two in advance of the holidays, I wouldn’t be upset.