I have to admit I haven’t done that well: only seven and a half pounds thus far. I believe the snow events of February had a lot to do with my lack of progress as it is extremely difficult being locked up in a cabin with stores of food all around and no place to go, nothing to do but sit while you watched the white stuff come pounding down. But the snow has been done with for almost a month now and there is no excuse for not being more along the way.

I think that I’m trying harder. I walk for about an hour each day, watch what I consume and count the calories. Being in the religious period of Lent helps too as I gave up ‘‘adult ‘empty calorie’ beverages” along with the lottery. Perhaps I should have given up sweets with them, though, because the little chocolate goodies that my co-worker keeps on her desk scream at me to ‘‘pick me” each time I pass her office and, I confess, I’m a sympathetic weakling to their pleas.

Still, if I only lose another seven and a half pounds by final weigh in on April 16th, it will have been worth this struggle. I’ll at least be under the 190 mark on my scales; not quite to the 160 goal I set for myself but getting there in the philosophy of Confucius’s reminder that every long journey begins with the first steps.

Those first steps began when I learned a lot about nutrition from my class from a professional trainer and nutritionist like MWR’s Jennifer Lundin. She pointed out a plethora of tips—such as how to properly read food labels (which most people don’t know how to do) and which kinds of foods helped you the most in trying to lose and maintain proper body weight.

Some of the best information I gained came from her ‘‘Bull’s-Eye Food Guide” chart which breaks down grains, dairy products, fats, proteins, fruits and vegetables and shows the value of each food group. It points out that the best kinds of food are whole grain breads and cereals, brown rice, and legumes in the cereal group and the worst are what a lot of us love to snack on during snow events when good things such as the Super Bowl pops up on television: Snack items such as potato chips, sugary drinks, cookies, cake...even pretzels and rice cakes are not as good as the brown rice products and whole grain breads.

Fresh and frozen vegetables top all those that are canned. And deep fried veggies are an absolute ‘‘no-no” in good dietary habits. It’s the same when it comes with fruits. Fresh is good, canned is okay but not as good and stay away from fruits in syrups and sweetened dried fruits.

In the protein section, go with beans, egg whites, and fish. Chicken, turkey, lean beef, low-fat cheese, lean pork and veal are okay but process meats such as hot dogs, sausage, luncheon and fatty meats should be eaten only in strict moderation.

The best oil, I discovered, is olive oil. Canola oil is also good and most nuts are okay too. But dairy products such as butter and imitation dairy (margarine) or mayonnaise should be considered last.

Plain non-fat yogurt, skim milk and soy milk is really good; whole milk, sweetened yogurt and even two percent milk isn’t.

And, at the center of the Bull’s-Eye Food Guide is water—eight cups of it or more a day to keep your diet goals on the right aim.

Anyway, that’s the advice from the Bull’s-Eye and I’m trying to follow it. I’ll tell you how I did when I get to April. Hopefully, it will be a nice retirement report.