04/08/2011 02:58
Land of maintenance and recovery
I haven't posted for awhile, since Sept 2010. Oct 17 I was on my way home and someone ahead of me on the freeway drifted into a median causing them to spin sideways in front of me. I ended up with a lot of soft tissue damage including ligament tears in my neck and back. I also developed trauma related blood clots that traveled to my lungs. I have been told that my fitness level and weight loss getting me to 158 lbs before the accident probably saved my life. I want to thank everyone that encouraged me along the way.
I am still recovering. On the 17th I will have been healing for 6 months and that puts me about halfway to whatever my full recovery will be. Amazingly, I had no broken bones. I am doing all I can to focus on getting back to my active self which involves only physical therapy exercises right now.
I don't mean this note to be discourageing, I want it to be an encouragement. I made it to my weight loss goal with a lot of prayer, hard work, determination, and an amazing support group. My recovery has been much the same. I want to encourage you that if you are struggling and feel like you can't make it, think of each healthy choice as possible saving your life. A temporary deprivation of some food may gain you extra life lived vibrantly because you'll feel better and have more energy in the skin you are in.
While I'm not running any marathons, I am doing the exercises I've been given even when they hurt because they will be beneficial in the long run. I am also still making healthy choices to help this body heal and function at its best. Amazingly after struggling with weight so long, maintenance has been surprisingly easy through this process and I currently weight 156lbs.
I hope you are all well and encourage you to make a healthy choice today. If some food is calling your name that you know will not help your journey, stop and think about why you really want it, choose whether or not its really worth it, and then act accordingly. You are worth a healthy heart, mind, and body.
09/25/2010 02:32
Survived the week
It has been a very busy week at work and my body has been against me all week. On Wednesday I had an allergic reaction to somthing and my eye swelled up. I looked a little like Will Smith in "Hitch". Ok not quite that bad, but bad enough I spend the afternoon in the office with sunglasses on. I have been on benadryl since. The eyes are still puffy, but alot better. Anyone who has had a bad allergy attack knows how much energy it can take out of you. I have felt like I'm moving through molasses but have to keep up a sprint pace to get all my work done. Whew. Surely next week will be better.
I'm having trouble weening off medifast food. I'm doing 2-3 regular meals a day and 3-4 medifast meals a day. So far I'm still hovering around 160. I was 159.4 this morning. I'm starting to run again (thank you knee for cooperating). It feels good to be more active. I need to gradually add more back into my diet, but I'm afraid of rebound gain. So far I'm into my 4th week of maintenance and need to trust the process a little more. If the weight loss part worked, why shouldn't maintenance?
On an upside, I work for VW in finance. We had a learn and drive for the new 2011 Jetta launch. We had the chance to drive pre-production jetta's. We ran them through an obstacle course along with a direct competitor Toyota and Mazda 3. For all being at the same price point, our overall quality and handling was a night and day difference. I loved the Jetta. I'm still a bigger Golf fan though. Anyway, the new Jetta is roomier than past Jetta's and has some wonderful handling and comfort built in. The safety with our laser welding instead of spot welding (imagine a button up short vs a zipper for seams in the car) and solid single piece doors, the car is pretty awesome. Also it now has a crash safety feature that if a crash occurs that deploys the airbags, it automatically unlocks the doors, turns on the interior lights, turns on the hazard lights, and turns off the fuel pump. This is on all models, not an extra feature you have to pay for. How cool is that? It's nice to know my company backs something i can be proud of.
I saw a great quote that I won't get 100% right, but it says something like, "when things get too hard, I look at the stone cutter. He hits the stone 100 times with seemingly no result. On the 101'st hit the stone cracks not from the single blow, but from all the blows before." - unknown-
Anyway, it dawned on me that my weight loss journey has been much like the stone cutter. There were so many incremental changes that seemed to have no immediate impact on my weigh over night. However baby stepping and keeping on taking that walk at lunch until I was able to run, keeping on making healthier food choices, and keeping on choosing a positive outlook has gotten me to that unattainable goal weight. I'm still afraid of the maintenance, but I need to approach it with the same persistence instead of an all or nothing attitude.
Happy losing!
09/16/2010 02:22
Nearly the end of another day
The rain is here. It is a light sprinkle that means no more painting outside for awhile. Got the news my Grandma is in the hospital. She was found unconcious in her room this morning. She has a kidney infection, terribly low blood pressure, and one side of her mouth is sagging which may mean a stroke. She has been suffering from dementia for quite some time, so the Grandma I knew has been long gone. This poor body she is trapped in is deteriorating. I don't even know what to pray for.
I walked on my lunch. A liesurely 25 minute mile. A friend is meeting me at work to walk while she is out of work and lives nearby. She has a very slow pace which is a change from my 2.5 miles in 25 minutes. However the moral support and prayer together over life issues was more refreshing than breaking a sweat. However, I don't feel like I've worked out. Maybe I'll put in a video tonight since I won't be painting. Or, maybe I'll be lazy. G'night.
09/15/2010 20:39
Rain coming?
We went from a sunny all week report to rain tonight. I'm bummed since I am working on painting the shed in my back yard. DH asked me to make it my personal project. My good friend Kimbery came over and we managed to paint the eaves, the door and the front up to the top of the door. There is a big white triagle over the door still waiting for the green paint. It was dark before we could get any further. I was hoping to put some time in every night this week, but the weather has a different idea.
I have to say that going up and down a ladder at 160 lbs was a lot easier and less scary than climbing that same ladder at 200 lbs.
I managed to get up and do 20 minutes of yoga. That is my new school year resolution, to get up and do 20 minutes every morning as I'm not a morning person and cannot get up for a longer session. I have been successful 5 days out of 8. Not too bad for a new routine. I find the mornings I manage to get up and do it go much smoother than the days I hit snooze.
I'm in a pair of my wonderful $6.50 GAP jeans today. We are having a special jeans day for those that donated $5 to the Susan Komen Foundation today and tomorrow. Whoo hoo.
I went only TDP to log calories for the first time in a while. I have been doing some math trying to figure out what kind of maintenance calories I should be able to eat as I transition off of TSFL. It looks like around 2000 calories for me to maintain 160 at 5'11". That seems a bit much after my diet of 1000-1200 calories for successful weight loss. I'll get there gradually through the transition to see what my body really does process. So far I am holding between 158 and 160.5 on the scale and I have been slowly increasing my physical activity.
It's nice to see some old faces on EP.
09/14/2010 01:37
Where did Monday come from???
It seems like it was just Friday and I was looking forward to the weekend. I'm not sure where it went. I had some fun girls time with my friend Kimberly. Sat we went to her uncles Jewelry store to have my ring sized now that I have reached my goal weight. Then we hit a goodwill in Portland that is rumored to have nicer things than our local Beaverton ones.
A week prior I had found some fabulous work slacks at GAP, which I never shop at. With a 5 member household and low to mid-income family, I am a thrifty shopper. I can justify expensive slacks as they need to be professional and wear well. However I was tempted and tried on THE perfect pair of jeans. They hugged all the right places, were long enough, were comfortable, and I could bend over without feeling like they would fall down my backside. With horror at myself, I shelled out $60 and took them home.
Immediately riddled with guilt, I tried to justify spending so much money on a pair of jeans. You know, that pants I wear around the house, work in the yard, and play with my kids in. I took them back the next day for a relieved conscience, but have still been wanting them. As a reward for my "sacrifice", I found 2 such perfect pairs of GAP size 6L jeans for a whopping $13 combined at Goodwill. Thank you God for the gift! What are the odds???
I have discovered Chobani greek yogurt now that I have added milk products back into my daily diet. I can't say I was too fond of the vanilla, but I love the blueberry. Does any one have a lower sugar content yogurt that they love? I am finding my old standby has sugar as the 2nd ingredient on the label and am looking for a healthier version.
I hiked to the top of Multnomah Falls yesterday with two friends. The weather in the Gorge was perfect. For only a mile and a quarter, it kicked my backside as it is soooo steep. My knees complained the whole way down as I fought to keep gravity from pulling me to the bottom too quickly. I am mostly recovered today, but definitley feel my backside muscles in a way that I haven't for quite a while.
Transitioning off TSFL is still tough emotionally, but following the guidelines I am maintaining my weight so far. Its amazing how much of this is really a headgame and learning to trust my body.
I hope all are well.
09/10/2010 19:42
Maintenance and back to work
Well I had a good two weeks. I dug out of piles of laundry and mess in my upstairs. Many trips to goodwill later and bags donated to friends/family, I can see my closet and bedroom floors and my 4 year old daughters floor for the first time in way too long. While I was in school, I had an excuse to not get to it. I've been graduated for a year and just have felt overwhelmed any time I looked at the scope of the project. Since DH is in school and doing a lot of homework on vacation, I took a bite at a time and got through it. Let me tell you, it has taken a lot of stress off my mental health!
I took a couple of days where I just went and hung out with my sister and new nephew. Our girls played together while we oohed and ahh'd over baby Christopher.
The end of the vacation was a trip to Long Beach, WA with family. It was a great weekend. I couldn't wait to get out of dodge and at the end I was rested and ready to come home. I feel recharged to make it to the end of the year.
I am in week 3 of maintenance weaning myself off TSFL food. So far i have maintained well around 158 which seems to be my magic number. I did yoga daily on vacation without knee pain and I am able to jog again, granted only about 1.5 miles and slowly. It still feels good. I am looking forward to reading blogs today and getting caught up now that I am caught up with my work. It took 3 days after 2 weeks out of the office!
08/21/2010 01:36
And the winner is.........!
So I came in and weighed in with fear and trepidation with a total loss of 16.4326%. My fiercest competition came in and weighed at 16.433%. Crap! When the awards ceremony came along, they anounced 3rd place first. Then leadership said due to the close run for first being separated by only a 100th of a percent, they would award 2 grand prizes. I almost cried. Yeah, yippee.
Now I am off for a 2 week vacation, so I don't expect to post while I'm out. It's the last hurrah of the summer and now I have some spending money for vacation!
08/19/2010 20:47
TBL at work ends tomorrow!
I have been participating in a Biggest Loser Challenge at work over the last 3 months. I have been in the lead all but one week. The winner will get a $200 gift card and $440 from the pool of money people put in to participate. I really need the $ for new clothes and possibly a new sofa.
I was ahead by only 1.1% last week and discovered several of my competition are doing the "master clease" where you don't eat anything for a week. I want to win, but not to the point of doing that to my body. I have stuck to my TSF program and am probably the only one still eating today. We'll see how it goes tomorrow. I'm nervous. Even if I don't win, I will win in the long run in that whatever I've lost will still be off 6 months from now and those that have "cheated" will more than likely bounce right back to where they were before.
I got to go bra shopping this week. After 3 lunch shopping trips (I hate bra shopping!) I finally found 3. I am finally out of the body armor and was able to get at least one lacey pretty one instead of just sensible ones. Yeah! DH will like that. However, he does not like being able to feel my ribs. As I transition off TSFL I will be working on toning and strengthening so I shouldn't feel "squishy" any more. I've always been pretty solid muscle wise, so this long period with little activity has been strange.
I hope you are all having a good week.
08/13/2010 20:19
Whoo hoo! At goal!
I went dress shopping last night just for fun. Not something I could have done over the last 9 years as I felt frumply, lumpy, and overall unattractive in just about anything. I got to twirl in front of the mirror and zip up size 10's that seemed a world away. No purchases, but walked away feeling great.
I have hit my goal this week on TSFL which means only 1 more week fully on the 5 and 1 plan, then I will begin my transition starting Aug 23rd. It will be time to get back to more regular exercise too. I'm excited and nervous about moving into maintenance. But hey, If I could maintain 200+ lbs for years, why can't I maintain 160?
08/07/2010 00:01
So close
I weighed in today at 161.4, 1.4 lbs away from my goal weight. However, I dont' really trust it. I had some kind of stomach bug, that turned out to be me accidentally taking two birth control pills. Left me really green all day and did not eat my normal allotment of food. I also didn't drink as much, so we'll see how next week goes. Definitely feeling better today.
Napped at lunch on the sofa in the quiet area instead of walking. Too many late nights have caught up with me.
I hope everyone has a great weekend.
