Beautiful Sunday

What a gorgeous day!  The morning was nice and cool and so I decided to go out for a morning run.  My times have improved tremendously!  I couldn't be happier.  My body is finally responding!!!! 

This past week has been an emotional one.  We had to euthanize on of our kitties.  Andy was a kitty we had for 9 years.  He began to loose weight to the point that we became very conerned.  An ultrasound revealed a mass in his abdomen.  Surgery was performed a few days later and the mass, which the doctors feel was a cancerous tumor, was located in a very bad area.  An area that was impossible to remove .  It was decided that while the kitty was under anesthesia, he would be layed to rest. 

Needless to say the week was long and heart wrenching.  My husband especially took Andy's death really hard.  He was a special little guy that will always be remembered with great fondness.

Hope everyone else is doing well and experiencing sweet success!

Smokey Sunday.....

Smoke, Smoke, Smoke.  The air up here in Northern Florida is awful!  So many forest fires in the area and in Georgia.  I would hate to be an individual suffering with asthma. 

Went out yesterday to a local state park (which is now burning in flames) to workout on one of the trails.  Decided to test my endurance the first mile to see how fast I could complete it.  Finished in 11:45.  I was hurting.  My heart rate at one point was up to 170.  YIKES!!!  Decided to take it easy on the second mile.  Just walked, jogged, and completed some walking lunges.  The walking lunges have really helped to shape my butt and hips.  My shorts are starting to fit so much better .

Today, unfortunately, has been a rather lazy and emotional day.  I didn't even get out of bed until 9AM.  I procrasted enough about working out, that I ended up not working out at all .  Then the vicious guilt cycle started and I ended up bingeing.  I don't want to make an issue about it because it will only make things worse.  Tomorrow is a new day.  Time to get back on track.  I've been doing pretty well and do not want to gain the pounds back. 

Not so bad

Well to my surprise, I actually lost 2 lbs. this week!  That really boosted my day.  I also had to move my belt down another notch.  The scale may not be moving as much as I would like, but the inches sure are. 

The weather here in Northern Florida has been awful.  The humidity and smoke have made it so hard to go outside and workout.  I'm going to try and get up early and jog while the day is at it's coolest. 

Hope everyone else is having a successful week. 

Struggling........

Been awhile since I have posted anything.  My program is at a stand still.  My problem is I am constantly going out to dinner with friends or the husband.  I am surprised I am still holding at my current weight.  Guess I should be thankful.

Nothing else really going on.  I am getting ready to go through a shift change at work.  I will be back on days (7am - 7pm) starting Monday.  I am looking forward to the change because evening shift takes such a toll on my body.  I only average around 4 hours of sleep. 

Hopefully everyone else is doing better then I am. 

Not Much to Report.........

Not much to report.  I seem to be staying at the same weight.  This week I have hit a plateau.  I've only lost 1/2 lb, but I guess that's better then gaining one. 

I realized why I had such an awful taste in mouth.  It's because my body is in the stages of ketosis (fat burning stage).  It's basically when your body uses fat for energy.  This happens with low carb diets.  One of the symptoms is  a bitter taste in ones mouth.  If I'm burning fat, I'll take the bitterness any day.

The scale may not be moving downward, but I can definitely tell I have lost inches.  My husband and I attended a friends graduation this past Wednesday and the pants I wore literally had to be taken in (with safety pins!!!) at the waist.  They were approximately an inch to big!  That made me feel so good (especially since I was disappointed with the scale).

Hopefully this next week will be a better one.  Hope everyone else is doing well.

Bad Day

Today hasn't been the best of days.  I cheated on my program and feel like crap for doing so.  I have been doing well, but for some reason the last couple of days I have been feeling so hungry and weak.  Sunday, I went on a 2 1/2 mile walk/jog and after the first mile I felt jittery and  had the worse taste in my mouth. I did actually have a pretty decent workout, but just didn't feel very strong completing it. 

I am not going to stay upset about my slip up.  We all have them and when we do, we just need to pick ourselves up and get back on track. 

Hope everyone is doing great!

Dedicated to Ally

Today's entry is dedicated to Ally.  The cutest and sweetest little bull dog mix that I rescued 6 weeks ago.  Ok, I know someone reading this is wondering why I am writing about a dog on a diet website.  Because this entry is about human compassion and the desire to help those who cannot speak for themselves.

Ally was left on the side of the road to die.  I am sure many cars drove by her and as we humans tend to be, rushed, no one wanted to be bothered with a stray puppy.  But yours truly is not in that category. 

As I pulled over to the side of the road, she was occupied trying to eat "something" because she was so hungry.  Her little body was weak, her little mind scared.  As I tried to approach her, she got up to run away. But she couldn't,  She couldn't move her back legs, so she did the next best thing.  She pulled with her upper body and dragged her rear legs to try and get away.

It was at this moment I felt the dog had been hit by a car and was going to need to be put down.  Once I was able to catch her, I transported her directly to our vets office.  They could not find anything broken or fractured and thought that maybe she was just dehydrated and sick with an infection.  She had a fever of 104, so we knew she was trying to fight something in her system.

She stayed at the vets for several days on IV fluids and antibiotics.  At one point they felt she was well enough to go home with me and my husband.  We took her home and several days later she fell extremely ill again.  This time she couldn't even control her muscles in her front legs.  I thought for sure we would be presented with the decision to put her down....again. 

We decided to run a complete blood profile and found her protein levels to be extremely low.  I forgot to mention that she had a serious case of diarrehea and every worm possible.  She was placed back on IV fluids and given some medication to help her body produce protein, so she could regain her strength.  If this did not work then the only thing left was a plasma transfusion, which was out of our price bracket.  We had already spent  $1000 and money was quickly becoming an issue.

Fortuantely all worked out.  To see her today....running, jumping, so full of life, is so rewarding.  There are so many unwanted pets out there that just the touch of compassion from a human, could do wonders. 

I am proud to say that Ally will remain part of our family.  My sister in West Palm Beach, Fl has adopted her.  Unfortunate for my sister, her chocolate Lab just passed away.......Fortunate for Ally, my sister has opened her heart and home to this special little pup. 

And to the individual(s) who ditched this special little girl when she was at her weakest moment.....I believe what goes around, comes around.  I just hope when it hits them, it hits them FULL FORCE!

On our journey to finding ourselves, lets also remember those creatures, great and small, that also need a helping hand in finding love and happiness.  They deserve it to!

Check out Ally's picture below mine.

"All things Bright and Beautiful, All Creatures Great and Small, All things Wise and Wonderful, The Lord God made them all."

Week One

First week done with 5 1/2 lbs. gone.  YEAH!  It felt so good to see the scale finally dip into the 170's.  I haven't seen that in so long!  I was so worried that when I stepped on the thing this morning it was going to show a gain.  But I got the happiest surprise when it dipped just 1/2 a notch. 

I am off work the next 3 days and are really going to try and kick up the cardio workout .  I'm dying today because I am running on 2 hours of sleep and desperately need to catch up on my rest.  Just have to much to do during the day.

To anyone reading this....hope you are accomplishing your goals.  Have a great weekend!

Down 5 in 5 days!!!!!!!!!!

I think I must be dreaming.  As of today, I have officially lost 5 lbs. in 5 days.  Can this truly FINALLY be happening?  I tell myself it must be water weight (even though I am drinking a ton of water).  Personally, I don't care what it is just as long as it keep working!!

Last night at work I was so proud of myself.  First thing I see when I walk in the door is a bag of cookies left for anyone to eat.  I thought, o.k., we are going to start with temptation right off the bat.  But I didn't get weak and grab a cookie.  And to me right now, that's all that matters.  I actually made it through the 12 hour shift without cheating once on the plan.

I know this large amount of weight loss is most likely not going to carry over into next week.  So for now I will enjoy the moment. 

Hope everyone else is doing well.   Remember.....Stay Focused and Train Hard!

"The great Western disease is, 'I'll be happy when... When I get the money.  When I get a BMW.  When I get this job.  Well, the reality is, you never get to when.  The only way to find happiness is to understand that happiness is not out there.  It's in here.  And happiness is not next week.  It's now."                                   Marshall Goldsmith

Down 3 in 4 days

After unblocking myself, I stepped on the scale and to my amazement the digital readout moved down 1 1/2 notches.  YEAH!  That' 3 pounds in 4 days.  I think the walking really helped.

I am getting ready to take a nap before work.  I work a 12 hour shift, so I hope my food carries me through the evening.  I know the guys will probably make a trip to McDonalds or Taco Bell late in the evening.  This is where the will power gets tested. 

Since I am also on light duty, boredom is going to be a big problem.  I can't do much but sit there so the temptation to munch will be so easy.  But NO........ I am not going that route.  I am here to take control of my body.  I drove by TCBY (My favorite place for frozen yogurt) today and wanted so badly to pull in through the drive thru and order a small shiver.  But no....I didn't do it and instead came home and had my nutrisystem lunch (I'm patting myself on the back now.).  If I could resist then, I can resist boredom eating tonight.

Stay Focused and Train Hard

"WITHIN YOU NOW IS THE POWER TO DO THINGS YOU NEVER DREAMED POSSIBLE.  THIS POWER BECOMES AVAILABLE TO YOU JUST AS SOON AS YOU CHANGE YOUR BELIEFS."      DR. MAXWELL MALTZ