Mancave is my favorite time of the year.

Oh Mancave, you crafty bitch.

So Mancave commences eight days from today. I’m under no illusion that I’m going to somehow lose weight on this trip. I think of it as a trip to the casino (which I’ll likely be making while on the trip): you know it’s not going to go your way, so take steps to mitigate the damage, and if you win, consider it a rare and welcome surprise.

So first, I’m taking my scale. Weighing in every day will keep me accountable for my actions. I know that it will be easy to go away for four days and come home seven pounds heavier. If I can turn that seven pounds into three? I would consider it a success.

I also need to bring along some healthier options. This doesn’t mean I’m going to be turning down a burger at dinner and eating a dry salad. It just means that instead of eating from a family size bag of chips, maybe I’ll eat from a family size bag of beef jerky or make a big ol’ hummus plate. And when we do make burgers I’ll have, you know, one.

Even so, I’m going to overeat and overdrink. This is a once-a-year event with my boys and I’m going to have fun with my boys, even if that fun means that my weight loss goals are set back by a week. Obviously, I’d prefer that they be set back by more like two or three days, but Mancave only comes once a year.

What else can I do to keep my Mancave gluttony in check? Exercise! Since we Mancave attendees are all pushing 30 or have hurtled past it, I think we’re reaching that age where the idea of working out on a man-weekend is actually something we want to do. That doesn’t mean we’re going to run on the beach, Chariots of Firestyle. But my buddy Kelly O and I are planning a workout one morning, beach football was a big hit last year and will be on the agenda again, and we’re throwing in a basketball game to boot. So I figure if I keep my calorie load at around 4000 calories a day and can find a way to burn 800-1000, I should be in pretty good shape. Wish me luck!

Breakfast:
Eggs/Eggos/Tapatio

Lunch:
More leftover wedding food! Stuffed pork loin, rice pilaf, braised kale

Dinner:
Skippers for Lyle’s Myles planning meeting: Three-piece halibut meal with cole slaw (passed on the fries)

Snack:
½ cantaloupe