July 28, 2007

Yes, I'm back!!! I've finally gotten back on the wagon. So here we go!

I weighed in this morning on my scale: 173.4 pounds. We're going to forget about all the old weigh-ins, because I really am not sure where I stand against those scales. I know I said at one time that my scale matched the Pound Plunge scales, but that was before I found out that scales don't work in my old apartment. So 173.4 will be my starting off point!

Tyler and I have gone for walks the past three days, and we went a couple of other times last week. It was supposed to be nasty nasty hot out today, but it didn't happen. The temps never made it out of the mid-80's, and the wind was blowing. Thank you to the thunderstorms that loomed all day!

So my shoulder is really hurting. I got a cortisone shot a couple of weeks ago, but it did nothing. I had an MRI before that, and it showed tendonitis and extreme inflammation, and an "impingement" of my muscle in there. That means the blood flow was restricted or something like that. So now I go to Physical Therapy next week. I'm looking forward to it. Today it hurt to even walk. Makes it hard to be active.

I have a random goal. It's a way long range goal. Like, I may achieve it when I'm old. Well, I won't be in good enough shape when I'm old, but when I'm in my 40's maybe. Every summer there's an annual bike ride across Iowa (to find out more about it, I'll be writing about it in my other blog sometime this week. I've gotta find an article or something to add with it). I want to participate in it. I don't own a bike. I haven't been on a real bike since Jr. High. But that's OK. Eventually, when I'm in fairly good shape, I'll get myself a bike and start training. Not now though. I'll stick with stationary bikes in the Fitness Center :)

That's all for now. I'll be updating this every week!

May 25, 2008

I can feel the dust from the wagon wheels! 

I moved to a new apartment and I have a nice, level, solid floor for my "broken" scales that Target wouldn't take back. And they totally work now! So we are starting the Plunge all over again. Forget where I started before and where I ended up. 

175.0 lbs. The real problem is going to be stress. I kind of have a lot of it right now. Which makes me want to eat bad things and not move much. Besides the fact that the cortisol factor turns my calories into belly fat.

Which I also have found out is also an effect of Fibromyalgia. What a crappy thing. 

It was nasty hot and humid today, and Tyler and I went for a walk!!! Yay us!

May 5, 2008

I finally stopped by the Health Center today and got on the scales. 176 on the nose. Looking back on the blogs, it seems like the last time I weighed in the Health Center I was at 174.5, so I've only gained 1.5 pounds. That's pretty exciting, actually. You have no idea how far off the wagon I have fallen. Like, I fell off, and the wagon is now about a mile ahead of me. But I've gotten up and have started walking toward the wagon again. I'm not sure how long it'll take me to actually catch up to the wagon and hop on, but I'd venture to guess it'll be at least three weeks. We're closing the halls this week, and over the next two and a half weeks I have four campus interviews scheduled. Stress and more stress, and travel never equals good eating.

I didn't tell you either that I couldn't take my stupid scales back. I lost the receipt and I paid cash for it, and Target won't take stuff back without a receipt if it's over $20. I think I paid $29. Grr. But maybe once I get someplace with a hard level floor it'll work. If not, it'll be a good yard sale item for Dad.

April 30, 2008

I suppose you've noticed that I haven't written much in this blog lately. I haven't been the best with the lifestyle over the last few weeks, and my body is yelling at me for it. I haven't weighed myself in a while, I imagine it won't be pretty the next time I do. But I haven't given up, I'm just doing as best I can with the nutty life I have right now. I'm travelling a lot and on duty a lot, so food and exercise just come when they can. It'll be OK though. I noticed today that the little pads of fat that have been living on my hips for the last few years are not there anymore! That's pretty fun. 09999999999999999998 That's Midnight saying hi. He likes to walk on the keyboard while I'm typing. So as I notice things I'll write, and I'll keep you posted when I start weighing in again!

:)

April 13, 2008, part 2

So according to my new scales, I lost 5 pounds this evening. I'm taking it back.

I'm back to using my old faithful dial scale, which says I'm at 173. I'm going to the Health Center tomorrow morning to weigh. Once I get a good reading on how much I weigh now, I think I'm going to start the plunge again, from point 0.

I took my measurements again, and since Feb. 23, I've lost 1.5 inches from my waist, 2 from my chest, 3 from my stomach, and .5 from my hips. Yay!

April 13, 2008

Well, I'm questioning the reliability of my new scales. In a matter of three hours last night, I lost 2.5 pounds. But I think it's set now, after moving it and resetting it. So the number is 173.6, which is much better than last week. I'm not sure how much better, but it's over a pound. Maybe 2. So that;s good, because I wasn't good at all this week. I think the scale wasn't weighing right last week. And I still feel like crap. I need to get a job and get settled down again. Garh. But I'll keep trying to be good anyway!!

:)

April 8, 2008

Oy. I've been bad. I bought a scales on Sunday (my happy birthday to me present) and found that it weighs the same as the one that I weighed in on for the Pound Plunge does, so we'll go back to that calibration. According to that scale, last week I weighed 172.4, so the 2.5 pound gain stayed.

Today I weighed myself in, and I weigh 175.8. That is a 3.4 pound gain. Yikes! So now I'm not past the 10 pound mark, which makes me mad. Which is good, because in past diet phases, it would have made me depressed and I'd just give up. But not now! I'm pissed at myself (besides the fact I feel like shit physically) and am determined to lose the weight I gained in the next three weeks. So I need to make sure I"m being good for the next three weeks, and then stay on the damn wagon! A few stumbles are OK, but this is an all out face fall, and that can't keep happening.

So on Saturday I ventured into the world of rice. I've not ever really had rice, because it feels like maggots in my mouth. I can do rice krispy treats, but rice krispies themselves even freak me out. But it's good for you, so I got this Lean Gourmet that was three cheese chicken on rice with broccoli bits. I hate broccoli, but I figured that since it was smothered in cheese and paired with chicken that it would be OK. I found that the rice didn't bother me too much. But I could definitely taste the broccoli. But then I started gagging as I ate. I don't know if it was the broccoli or the rice that did it. It could go either way, because I really hate broccoli, and other foods that are texturally weird for me make me gag, even though I like the taste (applesauce comes to mind). I've never figured that one out, but after I gagged at the dinner table at Grandma D's after taking a second tin of applesauce I decided I should probably not eat that anymore. At least not in public.

April 3, 2008

174.5, so yeah, I did gain, but I didn't gain all the weight I lost! I was really really not good during the conference. I wasn't good today either. And I feel like crap, and I'm depressed. Not depressed because I gained weight or have any other reason to be depressed. It's the chemical imbalance depression. Yeah, I can believe the drugs have stopped working, but it happened pretty darn quickly. I'm more inclined to believe it's the nonstop sugar, carbs and bad foods.

I'm discovering a lot about the power of food with this whole lifestyle movement. It makes me want to do more research and stuff on it. I'm probably not going to. But I sure am going to start eating better again. I don't really have much else to talk about in this blog...It's getting kind of boring here, huh?

March 30, 2008

It's convenient that the Pound Plunge ended just in time for the ACPA conference and subsequent on campus interviews (much traveling in my future). I'm trying real hard not to gain back the 13 pounds I lost (I have to keep reminding myself how far I've come or I'll just say, eh, I haven't lost that much...But my bag that I carry the essentials I need for job searching--including this laptop I'm currently writing on--has to weigh at least that much, and let me tell you, it's a bitch to carry all day long!) However, I'm finding it difficult to make the best choices.

Yesterday was the first day of Placement, and I discovered two major things. There is no food nearby and there is no drinks nearby, except for the Starbucks attached to the building. So yeah. I could have walked across the street and down the escalator to the mall food court, except I had exactly one hour, it was raining, and my feet were KILLING me from wandering around all morning searching for food and water. I didn't bring any snacks because I wasn't sure what the place would look like, and I had a ton of crap in my bag as it was. So I had a Venti Hot Chocolate from Starbucks for lunch. I did remember that they gave us a travel mug for the conference, so I only drank water after that.

I won't tell you what I had for dinner, although if you read my other blog you'll find out. Let's just say my blood is running a bit thicker today...

Breakfast was a carb fest, but I'm not planning much for lunch. I did bring snacks. I'm not sure what's going on tonight. But I'll try to keep it light. Promise.

March 25, 2008

171.0, so I only gained .4 lbs. I was expecting more, so I'm OK with this. I've been having tummy issues, and the last time I had tummy issues I gained 2.5 pounds, but then the next week i lost over 3 pounds, so this is good.

So next week is the last week for the Pound Plunge, and I will be out of town for the last weigh in next week. So I weighed myself in the campus Health Center and that scale weighed me at 172. So from now on I'll be weighing in there, and next week we will go off of this weight. I don't really care what the end number is, as long as I keep losing!

March 21, 2008

Well, I've not been very good this week, so when Tuesday comes, don't expect greatness. My biggest problem is that I've been exhausted most of the week and have been fighting migraines the entire week. But that's OK. I'll keep watching what I eat and drink and will try to do better. Next week I head to Atlanta for a conference, so things could get a little ugly. I'm bringing some of my own provisions so that should help some. It will be especially better if I can make myself go swimming while I'm there. But I'm also job interviewing there, so I don't know how tired and icky I'll be. But I am going to plan out everything. It'll be A-OK!

March 18, 2008

170.6! I lost 1.5 pounds, despite some ice cream and french fries (both in moderation, of course). I went home on Thursday and got back Sunday, so losing is a big accomplishment! Yay me!

Today I'm starving and I don 't know why. I ate a slice of nasty greasy pizza for dinner because it was quick and I needed food now. I'm finding that I do not want sugar or chocolate much, and when I eat it I feel icky. I got sick on Saturday night and my Mom and I agree that it was probably the massive amounts of pop I drank. This is very good, actually. That means it's really taking hold as a life change instead of just a temporary diet.

Here is another cool revelation: on Friday I was walking through the food court in the mall and smelled the Maid-Rite and couldn't resist the fried food yumminess. I actually haven't had much fried food for a long time because it never fills me up--i'm always starving an hour later, and it makes me thirsty, and it gives me gas. But I went up to the counter and did good. Small fries and one chicken strip. And it filled me up! It did make me thirsty, but I didn't get the gassies. So the trick is to only get a little bit and only every couple of months or so.

OK, I gotta get on the other blog, I missed American Idol last week so I have to make sure I do my commentary this week. I can't disappoint my fans!

March 11, 2008

172.1!!!!!!!!!! 2.3 pounds lost this week, and I've passed the 10 pound mark!!!!!! How excited am I?

Amy and I walked around the campus tonight before we weighed in. I was fun to have someone besides Tyler to talk to!

It's been fun too because I've become the motivator of the group. Kelly is so proud of me because I was always the one who was like "well, i have some pain in my sinuses, so I better have a pepsi and chocolate ice cream". Now I'm the one talking her off the ledge and making reasonable diet decisions. Although Kelly is still the diet queen. She knows all sorts of cool stuff about food.

And I'm not celebrating with ice cream tonight!

:)

March 8, 2008

I realized yesterday that I am a mere .7 lbs away from the 10 1b. mark!! That is a huge motivation for me. It has made me forgo a whole lot of bad food and drink choices because I want to make it! I'm also finding that I am now able to pass up bad things because I've come so far and I don't want to go back. It's really getting easier, it's all habit now. Hooray!

So looking toward the future, I think once I hit 160 I will reach my first plateau. I was at 160 for a long time. So I'm already figuring out what I will need to do in order to break through the plateau. I think increasing the exercise will be a must. Thankfully it's going to be warm someday and it'll be easier to walk Tyler. I tried to do a crunch on my giant ball, and fell over and almost cracked my head on my TV tray. I need to clear the room out before I do that again :) Every weekend when I'm watching the VH1 video countdown they show the commercial for the Bender Ball, and I think I'm going to get it. I think that will be a much safer way to do crunches!

After 160, the next plateau will be 142. I was 142 forever. That'll be a tough one to bust through, but I'm not going to worry about it until I make it through the first one.

Something else I've noticed is how much better I feel already. Except for today (which doesn't count because we closed for Spring Break today, and that takes a toll on me), I haven't had a bad Fibromyalgia day in a while. I almost don't even hurt. It's great! And it's easier for me to get up out of bed in the morning. I think cutting out a lot of corn syrup-y things has done amazing stuff for me. Makes sense, since I'm allergic to it. I'm getting to the point now that I like diet pop, so it won't be too long before I can make the total switch. This is getting to be kinda fun :)

March 4, 2008

174.4! 3.3 pounds lost!! Yay me!

On Sunday after I took a walk with Tyler my hips started hurting and I was scared that I was headed back down that road again, because they hurt pretty bad yesterday too. But today they're OK. We went for a walk again today, so we'll see how I feel tomorrow. It might have just been the dramatic weather change. We went from 70 degrees to 35 degrees in a matter of about 6 hours on Sunday. It was terrible.

My shoulder is better too, so that is good. It was hurting on Sunday too, but yesterday it was fine. I still don't think I'll be playing with my weights anytime soon :)

March 2, 2008

I don't really have much to talk about. I'm just feeling thinner this week, so I'm enjoying the new light eating lifestyle. Tyler and I went for a walk yesterday and it was awful because all the snow and ice melted and there were muddy rivers everywhere. He was a mess. And then today we went, but it was awful because the wind was blowing at least 30 mph. But the rivers had dried up most places, and there wasn't quite as much mud. But I did step on Tyler a couple of times because he would cross in front of me as I was making him slow down and not go in the mud. I need to use a non-retractable leash on him when we walk.

February 26, 2008

Well, it wasn't a good weigh in today. 177.7 lbs, a gain of 2.2 pounds. But let's face it, I was expecting that. I was hoping by some miracle I would lose a little something, but no such luck. This past week I ate a bag of Cadbury Eggs, had toast every night for dinner because I was sick, drank regular pop all over the place, and had a jillion cookies, a few brownies, and a brownie with chocolate chips and vanilla ice cream. The baked chocolatey goods happened during and after my Oscars party. Didn't take long for them to find my belly fat!

But it's not an entirely ugly situation. I measured myself on Saturday and discovered I have lost 3 inches in my waistline since I last measured it the first of the year. Very cool. I need to look at the measurements I had when I started this blog to see how I'm doing with those areas.

The weather is supposed to get a little better this week, so I should be able to walk Tyler again. If my shoulder stops hurting. It hurts to walk, so I haven't been. It wouldnt be a big deal if I were better with the diet. This week I need to make a concious effort to drink diet pop, more water, and stay away from those snacks that I don't need. I can do it!

:)

feb. 23, 2008

i can't do capital letters because i'm icing down my shoulder and cant use my right arm. sorry. but i thought i'd give a small update. i ate an entire bag of cadbury mini eggs this week. i decided it was useless to try to deny the craving. but i'm not allowed to have any more this year. i love those things. but ive been pretty good the rest of the week. i've been battling the stomach bug this week so i ate a lot of toast. i finally felt better yesterday and the weather was decent for once. OK, ice time is over, I can type again. So Tyler and I went for a walk, and it was good. But my shoulder is getting worse, and it's even starting to hurt to walk--the movement of my arm when I step hurts. I may have to go to the doctor for this. garh. But that's OK, I think I'm sticking to my diet well enough. All things in moderation.

Feb. 19, 2008

175.5 lbs!!!!! I lost 2.4 pounds this week! Yay me!

I went home this weekend, so I thought I'd be doomed, but I did really well with my portions and not grazing on my Dad's stock of snacks. I kept the regular pop levels down, too. But the weather was plain nasty--either raining, snowing, or bone chilling every day, except Friday. Friday was OK enough that I was able to take the dogs around the block. But because it was all icy everywhere, we didn't go any further. So my exercise levels were nil. 

I also enjoyed a bit of a thin moment when I found some clothes in the regular size section that fit. Granted, they were very large regular clothes, but they still fit.

I had Dr. Bob give me his weight loss treatment on Friday, so that may have played a role in the droppage. I'll take it, as long as it sticks and keeps going down :)

I'm treating myself to Cadbury Mini-Eggs tonight. I already had a Creme Egg this year. I am allowed one Creme Egg and one serving of Mini-Eggs per year. Yummy!!

February 12, 2008

177.9 pounds! Since it's been two weeks since my last weigh in, that's .9 pounds each week. Which is pretty darn good since I didn't do very well food wise and did terrible with exercise. My willpower has been rejuvinated! 

My yogurt is all expiring in the next three days. Some of it is already expired. But I'm eating it anyway. So I'll be turning into a probiotic organism soon.

February 10, 2008

I got Tyler back last night! It was a happy day in our house. Until the Jacksons left, then Tyler got all depressed, and Midnight is mopey because he isn't the center of attention anymore. So I thought I'd at least cheer Tyler up by going for a walk this morning. Bad mistake. I didn't think anything of the cold, because the sun was out and yesterday was warm. We made it about a third of the way around campus before I couldn't take the cold anymore. It was about 10 degrees out, and the wind was blowing at a pretty good clip. My legs are still cold. And Tyler didn't enjoy it too much either, because the snow is all frozen so it's no fun to walk on and he can't eat it. 

I did get up yesterday and went to the gym. I got there about a half hour after it opened, so I thought there wouldn't be many people there. I was wrong. There was only one treadmill left, and it was a cheapy ancient one that didn't have cup holders on it and squeaked. But I walked on it! Yay me!

I didn't go to the activity today for three reasons: It was kickboxing, and after being assaulted by extreme cold, my knees wouldn't like me much afterward; My shoulder is hurting worse today than it ever has; and I'll be damned if I didn't start getting a migraine. It's stepped down, but still is threatening to explode. I haven't been doing well on the exercise front, and I've seen better times as far as food goes, so we'll see where I'm at when I weigh in on Tuesday!

February 7, 2008

No, I'm still not doing too well. But I did discover that the low cal smoothies at the C-Store are actually pretty good. And it's only 89 calories, as opposed to the 398 calories that the smoothie I usually get has. I think I'm quickly discovering how I've gained so much weight over the years.

February 5, 2008

Wasn't able to weigh in today, and with the promise of practically the end of the world outside I may not be able to go tomorrow either. And really, that's probably OK, because I'm quite confident that I have gained weight this week. I've been very, very bad. Very bad. But I can be bad no more, tomorrow I return to my new healthier lifestyle! I really mean it!

February 2, 2008

I haven't been very good this week. But yesterday I went to McDonald's and didn't do too bad, I think. But I haven't done much in the way of exercise. I lifted my baby dumbbells last night while I watched a movie, and hurt my shoulder somehow. It still hurts like heck too. It's strange. And that's really all I have to report today. :)

January 29, 2008

179.7 pounds.

No exclamation point, but I did lose weight. .9 pounds. It would have been a full pound if I had taken off my sweatshirt. Not bad. I didn't exercise enough for sure. My eating could definitely be improved, but I didn't do too bad. I think I sufficiently made up for the ice cream.

I've recovered from my soy bar debacle. I was pretty nauseous yesterday too, but today wasn't bad. Since Tyler's not here, I kind of didn't go home yesterday until midnight. I hadn't eaten much for dinner because it made me ill. But by midnight I was dizzy, so I grabbed the first thing I saw at the c-store--a chocolate chip brownie. And it was darn good too. I chased it with a yogurt because my stomach wasn't too happy having a brownie that late at night. That probably didn't contribute well to the weight loss :)

I discovered that Cherry Coke Zero is quite good. And I can't taste much of a difference between diets and regulars when I'm drinking it with food. I'll stick with diet as much as I can. It would be nice if the weight came off as fast drinking diet pop as it does with eliminating pop altogether. 

January 27, 2008--Attack of the Soybeans

I have many allergies, including food allergies. The two food allergies that I get a noticeable reaction to are whole wheat (mostly because I eat a bowl of whole wheat each morning, so any more wheat in addition to that is just too much for my poor body to take) and soy.

I went shopping on Friday and got some more snacks, including some high protein cereal bars, because Kelly keeps saying that we'll feel more satisfied if we have protein with our food. I thought that was a great idea to try. 

The Jacksons came to get Tyler today at 3. They left around 3:45. So at about 4 I thought I should have a snack before I went to the Pound Plunge exercise class tonight. So I thought, hey why don't I try one of those protein bars! That will definitely tide me over until 7 or 7:30. It was pretty yummy. Then, about a minute after I finished the thing, my mouth started burning. So I checked the ingredients list. Now, in my mind, I was thinking the cereal bar would have more protein by adding protein chemicals or something to it. It didn't even cross my mind that an alternative protein source is soy. So guess what the protein cereal bar is made of? Soy nuggets, soy lechtin, soy powder, soy oil and another shot of soy for good measure. Oh dear, thinks I.

At 4:30 I began to put new sheets on my bed. Midnight decided to crawl under the top sheet and not ever come out, so I had to take a break from it. It was during that little break that I realized that I felt like I could throw up at any minute. I haven't thrown up since I was 8, so that wasnt really a danger, but I was nauseous like none other. But I said, no, I'm going to aerobics tonight! I want to go! So I changed into my workout clothes. Then Midnight came out from under the covers and I could finish the bed. After that I had a new round of nausea while I gathered my gear to go to aerobics. I really was determined to go. 

I walked out the door and got in my car. I almost ran over Sean in the parking lot, and then headed to Alice's. By the time I got out of campus, I knew there was no way I could do aerobics. The jiggling of the car was making me extremely sick. There's no way I could jump around, bend, flex or do anything. So I turned around and came home. I'm currently writing this because I know Amy and Jen are going to demand an explanation as to why I skipped out.

I'm very sad, because I was actually looking forward to exercising tonight. I'm hoping this will pass quickly and I can maybe do a Richard Simmons tape or something. But for now I'm going to lay on the couch and pout.

January 26, 2008

So today Tyler and I went for a good walk. He still hasn't "mastered the walk" as my boy Cesar Milan would say, but keeping him on a short leash allows me to walk at a good clip. So we walked around campus once (1 mile) at that pace, and then did about a quarter of the circle at a leisurely pace with Tyler on a long leash. I was going to do the whole circle at a leisurely rate, but my trochanters started screaming at me. I guess they're still a bit inflamed. But I really shouldn't push myself too hard.

I've done pretty well making up for that ice cream. I have only had diet pop, and for the most part I've cut down the milk in the mornings. However, I have been starving all week, so a couple of mornings I cheated a little and had a bit more cereal and a bit more milk. My Mom says I'm hungry because of the ice cream. I think my body is just now starting to realize I'm not pulling in as many calories as I'm used to. Yesterday I pigged for lunch and had cheese bread and marinara sauce from the food court. And I was full until about 7, which was perfect, because it was right when I got home from grocery shopping. It's always good to not shop for food on an empty stomach. 

I got these new flavors of yogurt from Weight Watchers: White Chocolate Raspberry, Boston Creme Pie, and White Chocolate Cheesecake. Tonight I tried the Boston Creme Pie, and it was terrible. Then I tried the White Chocolate Cheesecake, That was a bit better, but I still only had about two spoonfuls. I'm not too excited about the raspberry one now. I'm kinda bummed, but at the same time, I really want to get away from the candy/chocolate type stuff. I do have a bunch of 100 calorie packs that will hit the spot when I need a chocolate fix.

Today Amy, Jen and I went to the movies. When I go to the dollar theater I'll buy at least a pop from the concession stand, because that's really where the theater's money comes from, and I want the dollar theater to stick around. But today we went to the full price theater, so I had to bring my own provisions. And be proud: I took a bottle of water and a 100 calorie pack of Oreo Candy Bites. No giant bags of chocolate covered raisins! Then we went to Cheddar's, where I was faced with a bunch of options, none of which sounded nearly as good as chicken tenders. But I got the grilled chicken sandwich and a baked potato. The chicken was marinated in something, and I didn't really care for it too much, but I ate it anyway. But I didn't eat the bun. and I did eat a bit of the tomato that came on it. Of course the potato was almost gone :) But since I wasn't really thrilled with the food, I didn't get full. If I don't like it, my body doesn't seem to recognize it. I tried a new cereal last night, and I did eat the whole bowl, but I didn't much like it, so I had to have another bowl of my fave, Grape Nuts Flakes. But both of them are healthy cereals so they don't count for too much. two bowls won't bring me down much.

Our team has lost about 1% of our weight. Not great, but pretty darn good. Kelly rocked it, she lost 4 pounds! She's been overhauling her diet over the last 9 months, though, because her son was diagnosed with Type I diabetes in June. It's odd, because he's 24. Usually Type I hits in childhood or adolescence. But my Aunt Dianne was diagnosed when she was in college too, so obviously "Juvenile Diabetes" isn't always so juvenile. But Kelly is big into carbs and fiber because of that, and really is eating the same way someone with diabetes should. It's really impressive. But it makes me really want to get more healthy myself, because I don't want to develop diabetes and have to watch my carbs. I live on carbs! I just noticed I used the word "really" three times in that paragraph. Not good writing. But I'm not going back and changing it, this is a blog, not a thesis. 

Tomorrow the Jacksons come to take Tyler for a bit (I never know for how long, it could be a couple days, it could be a couple weeks. I used to be worried that they stole him and were never bringing him back, but now I know he's in good hands and they will always bring him back eventually), so I'm worried about my exercise level. Not that we've walked too much over the last couple of weeks, because it's been stupid cold (Thursday morning I woke up and it was -8 outside. Not wind chill, the actual temperature was -8.) But it's warming up, so I need to get out and walk. And my excuse and motivation is Tyler, so I'll need to force myself outside. Or I'll need to plug in Richard Simmons and go. But either way, I need to do it!!!

January 23, 2008

I was bad yesterday. After my joyous revelation that I had lost weight, I had to come home and work all night. I had a stressful day at work yesterday and all I wanted was ice cream. So when I went to the C-store, I went straight for the ice cream. But I got a salad and a slice of cheese. And a pint of ice cream. The ice cream was just going to be a small treat. So after I'm done with my salad and started working away on my computer here, I decided to have my small treat. And instead of taking a little and putting it away, I ate the whole damn thing before I realized it. All of it. I was pretty sick, actually. 

So as soon as I realized I was done with the ice cream I calculated how many calories it was. About 1,100. I don't even want to go into how much fat is in it. So I figure if I cut down the milk every morning this week and do not have any regular pop (only diet), that will make up for the calories I ate last night. I hope.

Today I was starving. I ate a quizno's sub for lunch, which should have been more than enough. Before this most recent journey into lifestyle change I would have added a bag of dorito's or cheetos with the sandwich and chased it down with 32 oz of pepsi and a giant cookie. And I always felt ridiculously full and nasty afterward. 

I have found that since I've been eating less, I feel lighter. Not like I've lost weight, but like I don't have as much weighing me down. It's hard to describe. It's a nice feeling though. I just have to stay away from ice cream.

January 22, 2008

180.7!!

I lost 2.6 pounds!!!

And it was a crappy day at work, so I'm trying real hard not to eat ice cream. I was going to just have ice cream for dinner. But I got a salad instead. I'm going to dive into work now so I will ignore the ice cream that I bought with the salad. 

January 21, 2008

Yes, my legs hurt like heck, but I am able to walk. It was relatively warm today, so Tyler and I went for a walk. The temps are plummeting even as we speak, so it'll be a while before we venture out again. 

I didn't do any other sort of exercise today because I was real tired and sore. But I didn't do too bad with food. I had the usual breakfast, and then a bowl of cereal again for lunch. When I tried eliminating stuff i'm allergic to from my diet I bought a few different types of cereal. I finally tried a new one today--some sort of  oat flake almond nutty thing. For a "healthy" cereal, it was damn sweet. It was like eating a bowl of sugar. So I didn't finish it, and opted for my good ole grape nuts flakes again. I still have two more types to try. I made a pizza for dinner and stuck with 3 small slices. It wasn't too good, so I threw the rest away. I didn't let it cook long enough, and I bought the wrong brand of sauce. The cheese was also expired, but it wasn't moldy and hadn't been opened yet, so that could be why it tasted funny, but i doubt it. But the upside is I didn't pig out on the thing like I usually do. I did have a bottle of Pepsi, but that's still cutting back for me. And I haven't had any snacks today.

Last night I tried a Smart Ones frozen dinner--pot roast. It was good for the first few bites, then I didn't like it anymore. That happens to me a lot. I also tried some instant oatmeal that i got back when I was doing the allergy thing, so it was expired. But it wasn't good, it was sweetened with Splenda, so it left a funny aftertaste. I don't mind the Splenda in yogurt and drinks, but not food food. So I'm not ruling out oatmeal in general, just that type. I have a bunch of other frozen things to try. I don't know why I insist on trying all these new ones, I never like them. But they're fairly cheap and really easy. I'm not a big cooker--it's hard to cook for one, i hate doing dishes, and really, I'm not all that great at it. I can bake with the best of them, but forget about cooking.

I'm finding already that i'm getting fuller faster. My big thing now is to resist the urge to stress eat and mood eat. It's that time of year when my antidepressants don't work as well, and I get blue for no reason. Yesterday was one of those days. And all I wanted to do was pig out on junk. Good thing I don't have much junk left, and I didn't feel like going out anywhere to get any. So I watched a movie, and that seemed to help get over the munchies. 

I'm anxious to weigh in. I can't really tell my weight at home because I don't have a flat hard surface to put my scales on. The only place in my apartment that isn't carpeted with plush carpet is the bathroom. And the bathroom floor slopes to a little drain thing in the center. Only it's not a drain, so I'm not sure why it's there. But because of the sloping, there's no good place to put the scales. I doubt that I've lost much, which is bad for the competition thing, but I have to take this slow or it won't stick. I have finally learned that!

January 20, 2008

I have made a revelation about me and exercise. I don't know if it's just because I'm out of shape or if it's the Fibromyalgia, but my thigh muscles can't do a whole lot of strenuous stuff. We had a Pound Plunge fitness class today, and I had to stop a couple of times because my legs gave out. That's never happened before. I'm not going to be able to walk tomorrow.

There are certain things I can't do while exercising, and I need to remember that. I have to be careful with anything pertaining to feet or knees. I have hyper extension in my joints and in my feet and hand bones, so my feet splay out too much and my knees move around more than they should. And now I know that my leg muscles don't like to stretch too much or too far. Could be part of the fact that my hamstrings are too short. I'm a mess.

I hate exercising. It hurts. And then my muscles start to get all weak and shaky. And now I'll hurt even more tomorrow. I don't think I'll throw away the fitness classes, but I'll take it more slow. I'm OK with doing things differently from the rest of the class. According to all the research and stuff, exercise will hurt me, but in time it will make me hurt less in general. I just need to stay away from high impact stuff. We have aerobics next week, so I'll have to make sure I don't overdo it.

January 19, 2008

I just realized that it's my parents' wedding anniversary. I even talked to my Mom tonight too and forgot all about it.  Remind me to call again tomorrow.

Anyway, I was just catching up on all of my fatchick posts here, and thought I could at least give a bit of an update. First, the Lyrica stopped working. It actually made me gain weight. I gained 10 pounds for no good reason in the month between my big move and Thanksgiving. And thankfully my Mom saw a commercial for Lyrica and saw that one of the side effects is weight gain. So I stopped taking it. Sadly, the Christmas gorge cancelled out any potential weight loss I might have had by stopping the meds.

So I'm still battling Fibromyalgia, and with the insane weather this winter it hasn't been good. I'm glad that it's getting a bit more attention, because now when I tell people I have Fibro, they may have heard of it. On Christmas I got to talk to Aunt Beth and Aunt Dianne about it. They had no idea what I've been going through all these years. So I'm glad it's becoming more mainstream, it will definitely help with people understanding a little bit. 

I'm fighting myself when it comes to sleep. I can't seem to make myself go to bed at night, and then I can't get up in the morning. Or, like this morning, I wake up early, but don't feel like getting out of bed, so I lay there, and end up falling back asleep and waking up groggy and in pain. Sleep is a psychological game. But now that I'm going to be more active, it'll be easier to get my sleep regulated more.

I ate Cheerios tonight for the first time that I can remember. They aren't bad, but I still prefer my Grape Nuts Flakes. The Cheerios are too puffy for me. I like the substance of flakes. I did measure out 5 days of cereal in Tupperware bowls. That way I won't eat too much cereal in the mornings. Because my bowls are big, my breakfast is big. So I measured out 1 1/2 cups in each bowl and put one tsp of sugar in each one. But I found that my normal sugar dose is less than a tsp, so that was good to know.

If you get attacked by Girl Scouts and their cookies this winter and spring, I highly recommend their new cookie, Cinna-Spins. They are packaged in 100 calorie packs. You don't get as much for your money that way, but it keeps you from eating the whole box in two days, like I did the Shortbread cookies I also bought. But the Cinna-Spins are really good. Very cinnamon-y and crunchy delicious. I also just tried a Weight Watchers cookies and cream bar. It was good, but I think I'd rather stick to my yogurt. Who Knew I would ever say that? 

I am finding that I already feel better just by eating less. I never thought I ate much, but I do think I ate more than I thought. I feel lighter. It's weird. I'm not necessarily making healthier choices, I'm just having smaller portions of everything. I have a small bag of Doritos that I got with a sandwich a few days ago in my office. I haven't had half of the bag yet, and I've eaten them with two lunches already. 

I did a Richard Simmons tape today. Well, I played the tape and created my own workout to it, since it was so difficult to figure out what they were doing. He changes moves constantly, and doesn't tell you what you're doing. Or when he does, it's some obscure name that he's come up with for the move. It wouldn't be so bad, but the camera cuts to closeups of faces and feet and stupid things, so you can't really tell what they are doing. Not all of his videos are like that, thank goodness. I'll be taking this one out of my collection. I also inflated my fitness ball the other night. I don't think there's enough air in it. I need to read the manual that came with it too so I know how to use the stupid thing. I did some crunches with it today though, and it was easier than doing it from the floor and it was a better workout at the same time. I have problems doing crunches and situps on the floor because it puts a lot of pressure on my most sensitive Fibro pain points, so it kind of hurts like hell. But the ball is better for that. Plus, since you're trying to stay balanced, your muscles get an extra bonus workout.

OK, I've talked enough for tonight. I need to go to bed. :)

January 16, 2008

Well, as you know, I've not done well with my lifestyle change. I am rather disappointed with myself. But I shall not dwell on what I cannot change. I will move forward with a new plan and attitude!

Jen, Kelly, Amy and I signed up for the KJO Pound Plunge this year. Our team name is "3 Iowans and a Minnesotan". Amy's the Minnesotan. Last night was the first weigh in and sign in. We got to Sam's Club at 5:20. We left Sam's Club at 7:30. It was ridiculous. Nuts. But we made it through, although Kelly couldn't feel her toes, I was pissed off at the world, and Jen and Amy were in a daze. I weighed in at 183.3 pounds. It was actually better than I thought it would be. They took "before" pictures. I have better "before" pictures from Christmas. Ugh, I'm kinda gross. 

My Aunt Kim introduced me to ranch dressing that doesn't have soy in it. Not only does it taste fairly good, it doesn't make me sick!! I am quite excited about it and am going to start taking it with me to the cafeteria so I can eat salads. I took a 2 hour lunch this morning to go to Walmart and stocked up on 100 calorie packs, yogurt, and Lean Gourmets/Smart Ones. I also needed socks, but that doesn't go in this blog. I got a bottle of "Diet Pepsi Max", thinking it might be like "Coke Zero" (tastes almost just like the regular stuff), but it wasn't. It is Diet Pepsi with an extra shot of caffeine. Nice, but not what I'm after. So I'm still up in the air about pop. Right now I'm just cutting back. I think it will work out better if I go slow rather than cold turkey.

My plan is to eat my cereal/OJ/Milk breakfast every morning (skip the OJ if I'm on the go). Then mid morning I have a small something--a box of raisins, a crystal light, a few tootsie rolls maybe in a pinch. I don't really get so much hungry in the morning, but my mouth needs something to refresh itself after breakfast. I can't explain it, so I won't try. Then a light lunch, preferably in the cafeteria or food court because I want to maximize my money (I have a free meal plan, so I really should use it). Then mid afternoon have a 100 calorie pack. Then a light dinner. Then between dinner and bedtime I'll have a yogurt. Somewhere in there I can have a pop and a glass of V-Fusion for nutrition. My problem has never been that I consume a lot of food at one time. My problem is that I choose bad foods, and I graze all day on junk. My goal will be to get to a point where I cut out the pop altogether, and that I move more and more to eating a minimal amount of food I'm allergic to.

The exercise plan is still in the works. Each morning I will stretch for at least 15 minutes. Each evening I would like to walk Tyler once all the way around campus (one mile). I have rubber boots now, so bad weather is rarely an excuse. However, ice, extreme heat, dangerous wind chills, and lightning will be acceptable reasons to cut the walk. The other factor is darkness. I don't want to be out walking at night too much. So the walk is a variable. I'm going to go to at least one of the Pound Plunge activities each week. I would like to go swimming a couple times a week. I think the team is going to go to the fitness center together once a week. So as you can see, this area still needs some finalization, but we'll get there!

For now I must go, my laundry is done and I need to get it out of the dryer before it wrinkles. I hate when that happens!!