4XLT

Today’s Weigh-In: 309.6 pounds
Change: -4.4 pounds
Next Goal: 299.8 pounds
Pounds to Go: 8.8 pounds

If I was a member of the X-Men, I think my mutant power would have to be the ability to gain or lose an incredible amount of weight in very short spans of time. I’m talking about using the power of the sun or lava or a blizzard type stuff here.

Need that garage door plugged up? Let me absorb solar rays to expand my body mass 1000 pounds in 15 minutes.

Do I have to squeeze through a small crack in a wall? I’ll disperse my body mass via thermal energy into the surrounding air and deflate like a balloon.

So, I ate right yesterday (and evidently more than a bit under my caloric limit), and now I drop 4 pounds in one day. I have no freaking clue how that happened. None whatsoever.

However, on the small victory front, I was at Red Robin last night after church with a whole heard of folks. I ordered a chicken wrap and took half of it home. And how many of their “Bottomless Fries” did I gorge on? Six. I only ate six freaking French fries, and half of them were runts.

That’s not to say I wasn’t tempted to rock and roll throw a basket of two of fries. But instead of just staring at the fries and salivating, I took the urge and turned it on its ugly head. I got pissed. Man, I started to get so mad in my mind at those damn fries. They totally became an object of all my hate. Ha! But hey, it worked!

Finding Decent Big & Tall Clothing Sucks

I was at the mall this past weekend and found a very cool Nautica Jacket at Macys. But it wasn’t a Tall, and apparently Nautica only makes a handful of items in Tall sizes, which sucks. Because let me tell you, it’s really hard to find cool clothes in Tall sizes. Occasionally, I’ll go with a normal size and roll the sleeves up, but the torso is always way too short and I run a major risk of major plumber’s crack, which is bad news for everyone.

That’s why I was pretty stoked to stumble across Colossal Clothing – makers of some pretty dagum interest big & tall shirts and jackets. I’ll let them explain themselves:

Big and Tall clothing has always been an afterthought in the eyes of the apparel industry. For too long, the only stuff available to big guys has been Hawaiian shirts and tent-cut clothing that leaves you looking even bigger than you really are.

We started Colossal Clothing because we’re both fashion industry veterans and large guys (one big, one tall) ourselves. No one was making the kind of subtly cool, urban, hip clothes we wanted to wear, so we made our own. After getting compliments everywhere we went, we realized we were onto something.

Every big guy knows the drill: the only big-size garments available are Hawaiian shirts, bowling shirts, or poor quality polo shirts. When you can find something that fits, it’s tailored like a tent. And to add insult to injury, the prices charged by most chain stores or websites are utterly outrageous. That’s because to the apparel industry, big guys are an afterthought, since they have no choice but to buy whatever’s out there, regardless of how much it sucks.

Pretty freaking awesome, right? They are right on the money about the ridiculous selection in big & tall clothing – most of it is pretty ridiculous for a younger guy like myself. In the recent year or two, Casual male XL has started to churn out some pretty sweet shirts in their Synrgy line, no doubt about it, but their cost is pretty ridiculous. I’m just not at a place where I can drop $70 on a shirt all the time (especially in the course of this weight loss life transformation thing and having to effectively replace my entire wardrobe every couple of months, but not that I’m complaining!).

Their tank top is just $12.50! I might have to order me two come pay day (e.g. I will). The company doesn’t have a very wide selection just yet, but I imagine it will come in time. And I’ll be first in line with money in my hands if they ever start to crank out more than basic shirts and hoodies.

Until then, I’ll stick to my plan – which as of today includes trying to find a custom hat maker / tailor to sew me a driving cap that will fit my massive, 27.5 inch around head. Off to Craigslist I go!