The crazy bloating I had on Monday that gave me a 1/2 pound gain for the week is gone, so YAY! I have two more weeks before my next fill, and I would really like to lose 5 pounds by then. That should be doable.
I've been in a scheduling frenzy lately. I have two musicals, Nascar race weekend at TMS, a friend's wedding in South Texas, a support group meeting, a few dinners with friends, & my fill all scheduled in the next three weeks. May has two more musicals, a trip to Six Flags, a support group meeting, more dinners with friends, & a trip to Florida to see my parents. I love doing stuff!!
I used to hate staying in at lunch, but now I'm learning to enjoy the post-workout feeling. I have a two workout day today, so wish me luck on accomplishing that! My trainer kicked my butt yesterday, but I know that I can still get the 2nd workout in today if I really push myself. Then tomorrow is my full day off from exercise! Plus, my office closes early tomorrow. What a way to start the weekend!
I felt so down on Monday, so I'm glad to be back in fighting form! I hope all my fellow bandsters are having a great week!
November is off with a bang! Last night was my standard Jazzercise and it felt good. We did a lot of jumping which my feet grumbled about, but I was able to do most all of it! We did a move called a reverse plank where you are sitting with your feet straight out and you lift your body off the floor using your arms. That wasn't so bad. But then we had to take turns raising each leg in the air...that was hard! And I'm quite sure I wouldn't have been able to do it 50 pounds ago, much less 75!
Last night I sadly watched the Texas Rangers finish their spectalcular season. They were SO fun to watch and they truly made a fan of me. Once the game was over, I switched to MNF to watch my beloved Colts. It was nice to have a win to offset some of the World Series sadness. :-) Thank goodness I'm not a Cowboys fan!!! HAHA!
This morning I got up extra early and went for a 1.75 mile run. It is still really hard, but I feel better when it is done. I got ready and went to vote.
Cori & I usually ride together on election days, but we have different schedules today so I headed to the polling place alone this morning. Once I got there to check in, my name wasn't on the list. As they were calling it in, Cori walked in and she wasn't on the list either. Luckily, Cori had her voting card and it turns out that our precinct moved. Excellent! So off to the next polling place. I did my civic duty and STILL made it to work early.
Happy Election Day! If nothing else, all the negative ads will be behind us for a few months.
Monday was my second fill. My first fill provided for some restriction, but more maintenance restriction. I could tell immediately that the 2nd fill was different. I drank my water after the fill and I had to do it very slowly and almost concentrate on it.
After my first fill, by my evening meal, I would be able to eat salads. And after 2 1/2 weeks, I could eat anything. I was doing a pretty good job of not gaining anything, but I wasn't losing.
With this fill, I spent Monday and Tuesday on liquids. Yesterday, I had a smoothie in the morning which after a cup of warm coffee. For lunch I had about 1/4-1/2 cup of baked potato. For dinner, I had fish. I went to Razzoo's and ordered something that I thought was grilled but it turned out to be fried. The breading didn't go down smoothe, but I was able to scrape most of it off and eat the fish inside. That was it for the day.
Today, I had my coffee and smoothie. For lunch I again had about 1/2 cup of baked potato. Potatoes aren't my favorite lunch since they aren't high in protein, but it just happened that way. I just had a snack of 1 Wheat Thin flatbread cracker with Laughing Cow cheese. Around 5:00, if I need it, I will have another cracker with peanut butter. Tonight I have a crab cake to try. Hopefully I will be able to eat it!
I feel like I'm taking small bites and going slowly, but I still feel like there is a knot in my chest (stuck) most of the time. I don't think I could handle it any worse, but I'm okay as is. Last time, I lost enough in a couple of weeks that it loosened up, so maybe that will happen again. One way or the other, I will learn to live and be successful with this band!
The exercise plan is still going strong. I have decided that as my reward for sticking to my 8 week Jumpstart plan, I will buy myself a Tiffany key. I have really wanted one for a while and quite honestly would have bought one for myself eventually. This way, I will feel like I earned it. :blushing:
Have a great day!!
In order to focus more on work, well at work and to have time to some other things, I'm going to attempt blogging in the evenings. It's usually the first thing I do in the morning so we will see how it goes.
I ended up leaving work on Friday because I felt so bad. That tetanus shot really kicked my butt. I got the shot on Wednesday and today, Sunday, my arm still hurts. How crazy is that?
I have a busy week coming up. Work will be busy because I have taken on some new responsibilities and I will have to spend some time learning new things. Should be interesting though! Tomorrow I'm meeting a Lap Band Support Group friend for lunch and am Jazzercising in the evening. It is the Jazzercise One Day Sale, so it should be busy.
It is 8:00pm on a Sunday and I'm considering going to bed. Ha! I think maybe I will try and convince myself to do some yoga...just 20 minutes. :biggrin: I will let you know tomorrow night if I was successful.
Have a good evening!
I have been talking this week about my 8 week, 3 point plan (which I have nicknamed JUMPSTART) to get myself moving in the right direction. The right direction being DOWN the scale!
1. Logging food. I started using Sparkpeople.com from a referral because they have a Blackberry app. It is easy to use and it seems to have a large database of food which makes things easier. I have been logging everything I eat since Saturday.
2. Exercise twice a week during lunch. I already do Jazzercise 2-4 times a week, but I wanted to add something a little different that wouldn't make my feet or knees hurt worse. We have a gym in my building at work and a couple of coworkers have committed to going with me 2 times each week for 8 weeks. I went yesterday and today and I have to admit that it gives me a lot of energy for the afternoon.
3. Get a personal trainer. I want to increase muscle strength and flexibility in order to maximize the time I do spend on cardio. I signed up with 24 Hour Fitness last night and meet with my new trainer Bruce tonight. I throrougly explained my position and my goals and we seemed to get along very well. I ordered 23 sessions with is 7 more than my plan (2x per week for 8 weeks = 16), but I got three of those free and I thought I could go once a week for several weeks after my Jumpstart program.
I plan to go to Jazzercise tomorrow evening and my 2nd training session is Friday. With my Saturday morning Jazzercise class, that will make 6 hours of dedicated exercise this week.
I'm about 1/2 done with Week #1! I can do it!!
Today I'm laughing at myself a little. As many of you know I tend to have surges and slumps. I get into a zone and I do SO WELL, then one little thing happens and I'm in a slump. I tend to use my blog to psych myself up. Honestly, it works quite well most of the time. Getting feedback from you all out there usually gives me the edge I need to meet whatever goal I'm working on at the time.
Yesterday, was no different. Feeling slumpy, I blogged and set a goal for myself. It wasn't ridiculous, just working out really well the next three days. Last night I went to Jazzercise and 5 songs in, hurt the everloving crap out of my foot. I often get plantar faciitis and it has been flaring up a little over the last few weeks. I had been doing so well with my exercise that I just wanted to ignore it. I guess I can't ignore it anymore.
So, the new and improved, flexible me is setting a NEW goal for the week. (Look at me being all "adjusty" and "easy-going".)
One thing that I have realized is that I tend to rely on exercise to help me lose weight. Don't get me wrong, the Band is helping me eat LESS, but I don't often make the best choices in what I DO eat. I have chosen to look at it as eating like a normal person (whatever the heck that is.) But, now that I can't rely on exercise (at least for a week), I need to focus on my food.
My mom sounded a little skeptical when I was running this by her this morning during our daily talk. She has been by my side my entire life dieting and not dieting. She knows how much I HATE to diet. Well, I'm not going to DIET. I'm going to make better choices. Instead of eating chicken fingers for lunch, I will have a grilled chicken salad. Instead of eating calorie loaded ice cream and candy after dinner, I will allow myself one square of dark chocolate IF I NEED IT. I will cut the mid afternoon snack(s) I usually have after or before working out since I won't need them for the extra energy.
Since I started my EXERCISE JUMPSTART a few months ago, I have spent most of my energy focusing on exercise. Now for my foot's sake, I need to rest it. (Sidenote: it couldn't come at a better time. I'm giving up working out today and tomorrow, but Thursday I'm leaving for vacation and mostly likely wouldn't have worked out through Tuesday anyway. So, by giving up these two days, I get a week of rest for my foot.) By taking this time to focus on my food, I'm hoping to get myself into as much of a routine with my "diet" (meaning food intake, not DIET diet) as I am with my exercise. So, my goal is to lose a pound in one week with no exercise. Seeing as people lose WAY more than that with no exercise all the time, that should be a very reasonable expectation.
Wish me luck, y'all! I feel strongly that I can do this. BUT I feel much more out of control not being able to rely/depend on exercise to erase my bad food choices. [Deep breath.] Here I go!!
I had my pre-op and nutritionist appointments this morning. I think I'm a little overwhelmed. I definitely started to panic on my way from the doctor to work, but I was able to get past it. I think I'm good to go now!
I'm starting my pre-op diet tomorrow. It is mostly a liquid diet. Two protein shakes and one serving of either broth based soup or cottage cheese. You can even have "chunks" in the soup. So that will be good. It is going to be super hard. I don't know why I thought it would only be one week of liquid diet. Oh well, maybe I will lose my holiday weight before I actually have the surgery. That would be excellent!!
I keep thinking about how ridiculously hungry I'm going to be. But then I think I can do most anything for two weeks.
I actually told several of my employees today. I wasn't planning to tell most of work, but we were discussing me been out and I was asked specifically what surgery I was having. I started talking about how it was stomach surgery, no big deal. But then I realized that I love these people so I just said, "well, I'm having LAP-BAND®®® procedure." They were all so happy for me (of course, I guess they work for me so it would be weird to trash me.) One of them has a daughter who had a band, but she had a lot of complications. She still said she thought it was a good idea and thought I would be good with it. That was a great feeling!!
So, now it is definitely not a secret. I'm okay with that. I just don't do secrets well.
I took my before pictures last night and they are beauties! Ha! I will post them soon.
That said...tomorrow is officially Day #1. Here I go!
After I managed to extricate myself from my wallowing yesterday, I started thinking about how blessed I am to have the support system I have. I am one to push myself, but for me, support is critical.
First and foremost, my mom is my rock. She has been supportive (almost PUSHING me! ha!) from the very first moment. No hesitation whatsoever. We talk during my commute each morning and I'm estimating that on average 60% of our daily conversations are about my "journey". Today for instance, it was 95%. She and my dad are hands down my biggest fan/supporters and I love them dearly.
My best friend is not a nurturing type person (by her own admission) and listening to me talk about the surgery or my weightloss endeavors in general isn't her favorite thing. But she is always a trooper and I KNOW that she supports me in a happy life 100%. She is like a sister that doesn't fully understand my issues, but just wants whatever is best for me.
I have two exercise accountability partners. One is my godmother who works out with me on Tuesdays. We chat while we work out and use it as time to catch up. She was the first person other than my parents that I told of my LB plans. She has also been supportive from the first moment and likes to hear about the ins and outs that I learn along the way. I have another friend that I work out with on Wednesdays. She is a RUNNER...as in she ran the Boston marathon. With her, we put on our iPods and get to working out. Since we are at such different paces, it works out well. She is interested in all things healthy, so we often swap ideas about foods.
All three of these friends work with me. In addition to them, I have several other people that ask me about how things are going and never cease to give me compliments. In fact, one of our partners (who I barely know) gave me a gift card yesterday because he knew I hit the 50 pound mark. He had LB several years ago and although we have never discussed it directly, I can tell he is paying attention. He compliments me a lot and the support is just incredible.
Then I have LBT & my support group. I blog here several times a week and the feedback I get from you guys is so powerful! I can't believe how eager I am to check if anyone has responded to my blog, or a picture, or if they have posted a visitor message. I have befriended two ladies in my support group and we clicked right away. One carries on an email conversation with me everyday. We compare food choices and other things. The other texts me sporadically to ask me what's going on or to update me on something with her. It is amazing how close we have gotten in a short amount of time.
All of this and I didn't even get into my extended family (who I saw recently at my grandmother's funeral) or my close group of friends. ALL of them support me. i had one slight hiccup at the very beginning with one friend but we straightened it out quickly.
I write all of this to remind myself how lucky and blessed I am. I read stories on here how people are treated badly or have saboteurs in their lives. I know folks who have told nobody or only one person and don't have anyone to share their experiences with. I honestly can't imagine that. I competely respect everyone's choices on whether they tell, don't tell, or tell sparingly. Everyone is different and has different circumstances and needs. So, in my opinion, no one is WRONG in how they choose to handle it.
Today is a day that I see how wonderful life is! For those of you that are contemplating LB...I can't tell you what to do, but I can tell you that my life is SO different from six months ago in the best possible way!
It has been a very roller coaster day! I was still a little bummed this morning because of my quitting staffer. Then I had some more fun news that another coworker (whom I adore working with) might be leaving. Too much change! Bad!
I guess that stressed me out a bit because my Band was tight as all get out at lunch. It immediately got stuck and had some yogurt instead. Bad.
Right after lunch I was gifted with a brand new iPad. Our bosses gave them to all of us and some of us will even get a monthly 3G bill paid. How cool is that? Good!
As I was wrapping up my workday (I left at 2:30 for my ENT appointment), I received a phone call. I didn't recognize the number so I let it go to voicemail. When I checked it, it was Sister Barbara Lynn from Sister of St. Benedict telling my that I had won their raffle and wanted to confirm my address. It sounds like a scam except for the fact that I totally entered a raffle and vaguely remembered that they were doing the drawing at the end of August. I was unable to get back to her, so I'm not 100% sure yet, but I think it is possible that I won 6 Suite tickets to an Indianapolis Colts game in October. Holy sh*t!! I never win things like that!! Hopefully I will figure it all out soon. :wub: Super good!
My ENT appointment was a bummer. I have chronic tonsilitis and the only cure is a tonsillectomy. I know I didn't spell this all right, but you know what I mean. :thumbup: Both a friend and my mom have had their tonsils out as adults and assure me that it is the worst thing ever. Sigh. Two weeks of hell. I don't think there is going to be any way around it though. Super bad.
All in all, I know I'm blessed and I have a wonderful life. Some bad news this week, but it will all work out. It always does!
I talk to my mom during my daily commute to work. This morning she told me I was perky. Ha! I guess after two weeks, I'm finally getting back to myself.
I guess I was feeling a little psyched up today. Once I started eating solid food, I gained a couple of pounds. Today I had lost those plus another tenth. I feel like I'm getting started again!
Also, today is the first day I'm wearing jeans. I sit a lot and the waistband hits right at my incision. I have put off wearing them because I didn't want to irritate it. Today I put on a tank top to tuck in under my sweater and it seems to have made a nice protective barrier. Plus, the jeans fit well...almost loose! Since they were getting very snug before surgery, I'm feeling pretty good.
Today is also the first day I can have real (non-canned) chicken, fish, & vegetables. I'm going to Rockfish for lunch so YUM!
I don't eat my breakfast until 9:00 AM and we leave for lunch around 11:30 AM. So, lately I have been drinking half of my protein shake for breakfast and then drinking the rest around 3:30 when I'm starting to get a little hungry. It really seems to be working well and it is the same amount of calories, etc., they are just spread out!
My perky self better get back to work. Have a bandtastic day!
Prior to my surgery, my friends and I wondered how life would change. My best friend, at almost the same time I made my decision to have the surgery, started her own journey to become a Jazzercise instructor. This girl is my best friend and the best friend I have ever had. In my heart, she is my sister. We are routine girls and planners. Our weekday schedule was almost always the same and weekends were left to plan fun things. When she told me she was going to become a Jazzercise instructor, instead of feeling excited for her as I should have, I was selfish and full of dread that our lives would change. I knew that this committment of hers would many times come before me and that made me sad.
A few weeks later, I told her about my decision to have LB. I think she went through many of the same emotions that I had with the additional ones of not knowing anything about LB and with that comes fear. Luckily, we had this conversation in November and my surgery wasn't until January. By the time I had my surgery, she was well on her way with her plans to become an instructor with my full support and I was full of knowledge of band life which I shared with her.
Here we are in April, I'm banded and living life and she is a real-life certified Jazzercise instructor. There have been a couple of times that she has been unable to do things because she has to teach, like last night for our monthly girls dinner. But that's okay. I know that she would have loved to have been there, but she couldn't. And she knows that next month, we will all be right here when she comes back.
One of the big worries that my friends had was that so much of my world revolved around food. How was I going to be happy with this new life? I completely understood their fears, but I knew I could only address them through time and experience. For instance, six of us have a monthly dinner group that I started in October 2004. Out of the 67 months since then, I think we have only missed about 5 or 6 months. Last night was one of those dinners. I definitely didn't eat what I would have normally eaten, either in the selection or in the quantity, but I had a wonderful time! Plus, I'm learning to try new things! Last night, I had some sort of cheese concoction with tortilla chips as an appetizer. It certainly wasn't lo-cal, but it was delicious! And I only ate about 1/2 what I normally would have. I had tamales for my main course and (of course) only ate about three bites before I was full. Now I have a yummy dinner to go home to tonight!
Today, my friends are going to lunch and my boss is picking up the tab. I am not going because I committed to work out today. A friend of mine that works in the building has expressed interest in working out and I'm trying to help her. I know that I could have told her that I have plans today and she would have been thrilled! Ha! But I also know that sometimes you need (and crave) a little accountability. So, even though I've done my two work out lunches this week, I will do another one today. I'm said that I'm missing lunch with my friends. BUT, we have an outing tomorrow and will be able to hang out together all day. AND, we have lunch with a former co-worker on Friday. Skipping one lunch in the grand scheme of things is not that big of a deal, but I can't tell you what a big accomplishment it is for me to do.
So in the end, my friend and I were worried about our lives changing. We were right that they would change, but we shouldn't have worried. We care about each other and will always make time for each other. It was just time to fit in some time for ourselves too.
P.S. She is an AWESOME Jazzercise instructor.
Hi everyone! What a wonderful Wednesday.
I told you about the roller coaster that was yesterday. Whew! Glad that was over. Today was much more calm.
Today at lunch, I actually ran outside...where people can see me! I made it about 2.2 miles which is good. I hope I can make it the full 5k Labor Day weekend! I'm sure I can.
I was down 2 pounds this morning. That was AWESOME! I'm starting to be more "regular" so I think that is a big part of it. The Miralax/Activia combo seems to be working.
Tonight I had dinner with an old friend that I used to work with. It was quite delightful and I realize that I miss her. We are going to have to do it more often!
I'm resigned to the fact that I'm going to need a tonsillectomy. It sucks, but that is just part of life. I'm looking at having it in December so that is something to look forward to. :wub: Silver lining is that my parents are going to come take care of me. I'm so blessed!
Hope your Wednesday was wonderful too!
I'm totally in love with Jax and we can't be apart!! As you all know, my new Body Bugg (aka Jax) was delivered yesterday. I got home last night and started setting it up. It said that it takes approximately 3 hours to charge fully and I first plugged it in at 7:30 PM. At 10:15 I was ready for bed, but Jax was still working So, I went and took a shower to busy myself. After that he was all pumped up and ready to go!
Apparently I burn 711 calories while I'm asleep. Go me! I slept for around 8 hours, so I burn around 2100 calories a day doing nothing. Just goes to show how many calories I was consuming!!
So far today (since midnight) I have burned 1,026 calories and I have taken 1,456 steps. It also says that my body has had 13 minutes of "activity" today. Considering I'm just walking around my office, that's interesting.
Oh...I'm at 1,028 calories burned now. Ha! I see that this is going to be quite an obsession. The question will be whether it is fleeting or if it will be a long term committment!
There is a "trip" button that I can reset at any time. So at Jazzercise tonight, I plan to set it to see how many steps I take and how many calories I burn during the class. That should be fun! I can't wait to see how much difference there is between workouts (not just between Jazzercise and jogging, but just between Jazzercise classes themselves.) I know that sometimes I'm giving a lot more than others.
The other big news of the day is that we bought tour tickets for So You Think You Can Dance. That will be here on 9/22. I remember how uncomfortable I was at the last tour, so it will be so nice to be more relaxed this time!! I love that show and the tour is always fun. It is still 8 weeks away, so I could be another 10-15 pounds down by then.
Postscript: I took a potty break just now and caught myself checking myself out in front of the full length mirror. We usually wear jeans to work, but today I'm in black dress pants and top which are quite slimming. YAY!! Feels so good.
Thank you all very, very much for your sweet comments about my hair. I'm officially on board with it (well, at least 80% and that's more than passing). I'm loving the fact that it only takes about 3 minutes to dry! The next test will be how it works out after my lunch runs. I'm not too worried about it though because my work folks have seen me about ever which way. :-)
So, I'm completely obsessed with the Rangers. I will admit that I'm a Bandwagon fan. I never got into baseball. But I LOVE watching the Rangers in the playoffs. First, the boys are super cute, so that never hurts. But I also love sports and competition and watching the Rangers and Yankees is just fun. Claw! (For those not in the know, the Rangers have the symbols of antlers and claw. Antlers represent speed and the claw is kind of a "high five".) So if you see a random CLAW in my posts over the coming days, that what it means. :-) Go Rangers!
Today is a bit of a tough day. One of my coworkers (from our East Coast office) is leaving my company. I have worked closely with him for over 10 years and he has played a big hand in shaping my career. We are friends as well as coworkers so I think we will keep in some kind of touch, but it won't be the same. Life moves on and everyone needs to do what is right for them, so I hold him no ill feelings and wish him the best. But I will miss him very much! At least he is going to be in town today (with another coworker from the East that I'm friends with as well), so I will get to say goodbye.
On another note, I measured the block around my apartment complex and it is 1.7 miles long. I want to start doing some running in the mornings, but I probably won't start until at least next week. Maybe 2 days a week?
Again, thank you all so much for your support and kind words. I love feedback! It makes such a difference knowing you are out there pulling for me. Know that I am here for you too!!
Beth
Hi everybody! Thanksgiving vacation was SO much fun and in even better news, my weight held steady. My goal was to lose 5 pounds this month and I lost 4. I will take that. Especially since I'm "taking a break". I have one more week like this, then I have my partial deflation on Monday. I will have a couple days with the ability to eat anything which I'm not too concerned about. I'm going to try and be good, but I guarantee you I will be having some pizza in there somewhere!! Tonsilectomy is on Thursday, 12/09 and after that, I'm guessing eating will not be an issue for quite a while...
North Carolina was BEAUTIFUL!! I flew into Atlanta on Wednesday evening and drove up to Murphy, NC with my dad. The drive up the mountain was a little scary. It felt like the car was going to flip over backwards!! It was so good to see the family! Thanksgiving day started with a trek down the mountain which was steep so it was tough but highly doable. The walk up was MUCH harder, but I made it! I tried not to be annoyed with my nephews and SIL who RAN up. HA! Just kidding...they are some of my biggest cheerleaders.
We had a bit of fun with dinner because the oven didn't work correctly. It was bad news for the turkey but everything else made it with success. I only cared about the mashed potatoes and noodles because that was all I needed for a yummy Thanksgiving!! Other than a short trip to explore the town, the rest of the day was spent watching the football games.
Friday was quite chilly. We drove to Anna Ruby Falls and hiked up to see the waterfall. It was extremely beautiful. Then we went to Helen, GA for lunch. Helen is modeled after a German town and the downtown buildings all have a distinctly German fascade. We had to sit outside for lunch. Since it was cold, I think it made some people cranky. We walked around for a bit, but decided to leave soon. We headed Babyland General Hospital, home of the Cabbage Patch Kids. I love dolls, so I thought it was a neat little stop. It was a packed day, but we all slept well!!
Saturday, we went hiking around Fires Creek. We had an absolute ball with the kids as they climbed around like mountain goats. In the afternoon we went to the movies. The group split up and I saw Tangled with my brother, nephew and niece. It was cute. Afterward, we went home and played games I had prepared. They were Minute to Win It style games and we had such a blast! My nephew Sam was crowned Family Showdown Champion!
Sunday it was time to leave and I was ready for my own bed. It was a wonderful vacation!! Now I'm back to work to get everything I can possibly accomplish into the next 7 working days!
I will check in before the surgery, but until then...Make every day a great day!!
Beth
I have finished 3 weeks of my 8 week exercise committment. I lost 5.2 lbs last week and 6.6 lbs since I started 3 weeks ago. In addition to losing the pounds, I also feel better! This weekend, I had little desire to sit around and do nothing which was my favorite pasttime before. :thumbup:
Monday - went to personal trainer.
Tuesday - 1/2 hour on the elliptical.
Wednesday - no work out.
Thursday - 1/2 hour on the elliptical.
Friday - went to personal trainer.
Saturday - 1 hour of Jazzercise.
5 workouts for a total of 4 hours of dedicated exercise. Not bad. I had wanted to do more, but with the fill on Monday, I wasn't able to eat much at all and had little energy. This works.
Speaking of my fill, I was super tight...too tight, until Saturday evening. By then I could start getting down water and other liquids without much difficulty. I didn't log anything foodwise last week because I wasn't eating anything. I did well with choices until Friday night. By then, I was so tired of not being able to eat solids that I started in with bad choices. Now that I can eat again, I have started logging again today. I think that I was starting to get dehydrated a bit, but I drank a lot over the weekend so I feel that I'm back to normal.
For some reason, my smoothie tasted horrible to me this morning so I could only eat about half. I might have to take a week or so hiatus from the protein shakes. I was thinking I could do a couple of eggs with some cheese in the mornings. At least for a little while.
All in all, a very good week! This week, my goal is to work out at least 6 times for a total of 5 hours.
Have a great week everyone!!
Jax is providing me with TONS of information. First and foremost, I burned 3060 calories yesterday. Wow! I cringe to think about how many calories I was consuming per day to gain the 20-30 pounds in the last 6 months of 2009. Yikes!
But the good news is that now I know. I have set up my online program to shoot for a goal of a 900 calorie deficit each day. I'm actually trying to reach closer to 1200 per day to allow for the apparent 20-40% (!) error rate that people have when counting calories consumed. I try to be conservative when counting what I eat, but I want to make sure that I'm allowing some cushion.
So, yesterday I burned 3060 calories and consumed 1625 for a calorie deficit of 1435. Technically, that should lose me .4 pounds. Actually, I weighed exactly the same this morning that I did yesterday morning. That's okay though. I feel quite sure that it will all catch up.
Tomorrow is my best friend's birthday. Today for lunch we are going to Babe's Chicken and tomorrow night we are going to Campania's Pizza. I have to say that knowing Jax is paying a whole lot of attention will help me make good choices.
Have a great weekend!!
Today is 11 weeks post op and 13 weeks from the start of my pre op diet. At times, I can't believe how much my life has changed in that short time. I almost don't believe it is me making these good choices and sticking to my committments. Throughout my life, when it has come to diet and exercise, that hasn't traditionally been the case. :thumbup: So when I get home at 8:30 on a weeknight and I choose to walk a mile before plopping down in front of the TV, I am still surprised.
I do wish I could have the same focus/committment/success with food that I have with exercise. Now that I am into my 6th week of my Jumpstart exercise program, it is becoming more of a habit and a craving. I feel that now is the time to move my focus to food. ::gulp:: Up to this point, I eat what I want trying to keep in mind band rules. As long as I am losing, regardless of how little or how much, I don't do anything different. If I gain, I make myself log my nutrition until I start losing again. I think that is a good plan for me for the most part. However, I find that I make silly choices sometimes. Like last night, instead of having the 1-2 chocolate squares I would like to allow myself when I'm having a craving (it is that time of the month)...I had 4. Yikes! I also had fried popcorn shrimp for dinner. I didn't eat all of it, of course, but there was obviously an alternative I didn't choose. It is time to focus on making those better choices. I have one week before my next fill. I would so love to lose another 2-3 pound before then. I think by putting this in writing, it might help me commit!
I read someone's blog entry yesterday and she was talking about a book by Dr. Oz (I think) comparing life and the LB journey to a GPS system. If you take a wrong turn when you are following a GPS, it corrects you. It may take you a little longer to get where you are going, but really is no big deal. The LAP-BAND® is my (our) GPS. Before when I would make a bad decision (like eating a bunch of chocolate), I would spiral out of control for days or weeks eating whatever I wanted. Now, I just get back on track. I loved reading that analogy and have adopted it as my new attitude!
Have a great day!!
Between the pictures yesterday, the compliment from a stranger and Support Group last night...I was almost giddy yesterday!! :thumbup: I think I forgot to say in my blog yesterday that I had platform shoes on in the new picture. I received a comment that I looked taller, but in all fairness I WAS taller!! But I still felt awesome!
I think I have talked about this a bit before, but over the last few days I have really seen myself in a different light. Almost all of my adult life, I have been a size 18W. I remember discovering "women's" sizes my senior year in college. There have been a few (maybe 3?) short spans where I have worn smaller/bigger sizes, but the majority of the time, it was 18W. I think that in my mind 18W is my size. Period. When I was brushing up against 300 lbs. and squeezing myself into 22/24s, I would still pick up items in the 18W range and think they would fit. I would be so surprised when they didn't.
Now, my 18W sizes are too big. But it seems to surprise me when I fit into something smaller. For example, I bought a Junior size XXL Halloween shirt from Target. You know those ones they have every year? I have never been able to fit in them so I had to buy the womens ones that were so ill fitting on me. Since my next 5K (!) is on October 30th, I thought it could be an "incentive" shirt. I would strive to wear it by that time. When I got home, the darn thing fit. What?? Don't get me wrong, it was awesome! But I obviously never thought I would fit my body into that.
Then, last night at group, my friend Debi gave me some regular size 16 khaki pants. First of all, they were size 16, not 16W. Second, they are light khaki and that shows EVERYTHING! I'm much more comfortable in black pants. Anyway, I told her I would take them for incentive. Again, I went home, tried them on and they fit great! I wasn't even concerned with the light color.
So, is it official? Am I now in the range of "normal" size? Can I actually go to "normal" stores when I go shopping? My mom is coming this weekend to help me bargain shop for fall clothes. Can we skip Lane Bryant and Avenue? There have only been two times in my adult life that I have been able to do that. In 1999, I'm not sure what initiated it, but I got down to 197# and fit into a regular size 14. That lasted about 6 months. In 2006, I had just started on my CPAP machine and was sleeping great and Jazzercising and I got down to 203# and got into regular size 16s. That lasted about 9 months.
Although I KNOW I look smaller, it is hard for me to imagine that my butt will fit into something smaller. I'm quickly approaching those 203# & 197# numbers that are my all time adult lows. What then? I can barely register myself now. I can't even imagine what 185# or 175# might be. I almost hate to dream about it lest I jinx it!! I have difficulty thinking about years to come and daring to hope that (with continued dedication on my part) I will never have to wear an 18W again. I will revisit this issue again at a later date.
Now...pictures. Yesterday I had my casuals. Today it is the stripped down spandex version. I really do feel like I'm tightening up nicely. I think the running is helping my legs a lot! Plus the use of hand weights at Jazzercise (and the fact that I'm up to 10# weights) is really helping the arms. I have included Front-beginning and today and Side-beginning, last month, and today.
Hugs to you all!!!
Week #1 was tough, but I feel it was a success. First, I feel better which is most important. Second, I lost 1.6 pounds this week which is the first time in 3 weeks that the scale went DOWN!!
Step #1 - Logging food. I logged everything I ate, every day except for Saturday. I met my 1500 calorie goal for 4 days, only slightly exceeded it for 1 day. Sunday I did get closer to 2000 calories because I had a rum drink that pushed the limit, but as long as I don't do that every day, I should be okay. On Friday, I took one of the metabolism tests where you breathe into a machine for 10 minutes and it tells you how many calories you burn in a day. I burn over 2000 without exercise, so that is good. I just can't let myself use that as an excuse to cheat!!
Step #2 - Stay in for lunch two days a week and exercise. I stayed in on Tuesday & Wednesday and used the elliptical machine. This week, I have scheduled Tuesday & Thursday. This step is very cut & dried, but probably the toughest one for me. I was proud of myself for doing it and I am 1/8 done. :thumbup:
Step #3 - Get a personal trainer & meet twice per week. I met with my new trainer twice last week, Wednesday and Friday. Unfortunately, Wednesday was more of an introduction, so we didn't work out much that time. Still, I'm on track!
So, I went to Jazzercise Tuesday & Saturday, I trained with my trainer on Saturday, and I used the elliptical on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Total exercise for the week: 4 hours. Good, for sure, but this week my goal is 6 hours. My 2nd fill is schedule for Monday and I'm starting to get hungrier, so if I could lose a couple of pounds this week...that would be super!!
A friend of mine from LBSG (LAP-BAND® Support Group) gave me a recipe for enchilada chili that is super awesome! I made it last night and my (skinny) friend and I both gobbled it up.
Enchilada Chili
1 lb lean ground beef (however, I use Turkey ground white, and when I fry it up I put in about a cup of Beef Broth. The meat will absorb the broth)
1 medium chopped onion ( I also put in a 1/2 of a green or red pepper)
1 can rotel diced tomatoes (mild or hot) undrained
1 can enchilada sauce (red)
1 1/2 cups of green gaint corn ( I use the Mexicali corn)
1 can chili beans in sauce undrained ( I use Bushs chili beans, I also add a can of black beans)
cook beef or turkey with the onions over med heat for 5 to 7 mins till brown. Stir in tomatoes, enchilada sauce and corn into the beef or turkey boil, reduce heat and simmer for 10 mins. Then stir in beans and cook for 5 to 8 mins. stirring occasionaly. When I serve I put some low fat cheese on the top and add some salsa.
This makes about 4 servings 1 1/2 cups. Since I measure out a cup I get more.
Nutrition per serving
Calories 380, total fat 15g, sodium 1440mg. Total carbs 38g, Fiber is 8g and Protein 29g.
Here's to a great week!!
Since the surgery and losing so much weight (and being more active), I have had so much more energy. I think that is why when I'm feeling drained these days, I really notice it more.
I think I just packed October with a little too much. I have enjoyed my trips and such, but I like my down time. I'm so looking forward to seeing my friend Ann and my godson, but the thought of getting on another airplane tomorrow is exhausting. Oh well, once I get there I will have a ton of fun!
Besides, Jazzercise tonight should pick me up a bit. I think I have been so busy I haven't been focusing on my work outs which is adding to the lethargy. I guess I just need to get used to it. Things won't get "back to normal" until 2011!
Hair update: I think I'm finally used to it. I still don't LOVE it, but I am starting to dig it just a little bit. That's progress!
It's been quite a week! I'm glad it is the last day of my self-imposed exercise hiatus. I do think it has been productive though. I learned (as I suspected) that I was using exercise as an excuse to make bad food choices. I think that now I have my head wrapped around the idea that I can make good choices without feeling like I'm sacrificing greatly.
A couple of my thin friends say that is why you exercise...so you can eat what you want. I tried to explain to them that is a faulty argument for me two reasons. First, they are thin and just working to maintain. I am trying to lose over 100 pounds. In a year, when I plan to be at or very near my goal weight, I can live on a very small calorie deficit or even breakeven. But if I do that now, I will never get to where I want to be.
Secondly, and probably most importantly, I am a food addict or at the very least, I have an unhealthy relationship to food. Eating "whatever you want" most likely means a very different thing to me than it does to my thin friends. I can never have the attitude that I can eat "whatever I want". Even at goal, I will have to modify that.
I would like to think that I will lose this weight and gradually learn better food habits. I would like to think that when this weight is gone, I can eat like a "normal" person without the assistance of the band. While I don't think that is 100% out of the question someday, I do think that I will probably need the help for at least a long while. And I'm really starting to be okay with that.
Right now, I AM dieting, whether I want to admit to it or not. Now, it is also life changing and I'm not dieting in an unhealthy way. However, I'm eating in a way that I do not plan to continue forever. I don't think you should have a 1,000 calorie deficit forever because at some point you need to even out. But that IS normal.
This week while not exercising, but focusing on food, I have lost 1.6 pounds in 5 days. I hope to increase that over the weekend. My plan next week is to keep the same plan with my food, but add a 150-200 calorie snack on days that I work out. That should increase my calorie deficit on those days by 350-450 calories.
Starting tomorrow, the schedule is to work out 5 1/2 hours in the next 8 days. After 0 hours in 6 days, that should be interesting!
I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!!
Exercise. Such a dirty word. There are those who hate it and refuse to do it at all. There are those that don't like it, but use it as a means to an end. And there are those that LOVE it...although I'm guessing there aren't too many of us in that category. Although, I have heard of Bandsters that get very gungho on exercise post surgery and I have no doubt that there are some people that feel that way pre-surgery and their weight issues reside elsewhere.
I fall into the middle category. I don't like to exercise and if I didn't need it to lose weight, I wouldn't do it. Period. That is the honest to God truth. It is time consuming, it gets you all sweaty, it makes my feet, back, knees, etc. hurt. But..
Eight weeks ago, I had been banded for a few weeks and I was entering Bandster Hell and starting to gain weight. That was just not acceptable to me. After the hell of the preop liquid diet, the pain of surgery, and the cash that I laid out...I was NOT going to allow myself to gain weight, temporarily or not. I made an eight week exercise plan. I committed to workout with a trainer twice a week and work out on the elliptical machine twice a week. I also committed to being more active in general. The trainer was an expensive option but I knew that it was the only was to push myself without getting hurt.
I remember that four weeks into my committment, I wished it was over. I had the thought that it was too bad that I didn't only commit to four weeks! In retrospect, I know that if I would have only committed to four weeks, that is all I would have done.
I'm now officially done with my committment and my reward to myself as I mentioned before was a beautiful Tiffany necklace and key. So shiny!!
Today, I do not HAVE to work out. Today, I can go home and sit on my butt. However, after 8 weeks of working out, I don't want to. I lost 14 inches in April. 14 inches, people! I almost cannot believe it. Since mid-January, I have lost 33 inches. I measure my upper arms, wrists, neck, bust, waist, belly, hips, thighs & calfs. I have lost 6.5 inches around my waist! 5 inches in my upper arms! And almost 6 inches in my thighs!! I believe that so much of this is from exercise.
That kind of success breeds more success. So, I'm ready to go match that for May. I don't know if it is possible, but I'm going to try!!
Plus, I found out this morning that my grandmother passed away. I guess that is a whole different type of loss. She lived a long, good life and has been struggling with dementia in the last few years. I know she is now at peace and home with my grandfather.
Instead of wanting to go home and disappear into my sofa, I want to go work out. That is the difference 8 weeks makes.
I hope you all have a wondeful week!
Y'all know how much I HATE to feel feel down. This week, I have not been losing and this morning on my official weigh in day, I was up .6. (At first I thought I was up a whole pound, so I'm not going to get too upset about just over a half!) Anyway, when I think back to why...
Exercise: I exercised for a total of 3 hours last week. One hour of Jazzercise, 2 - 30 minute treadmill sessions (couch to 5k), & 60 minutes with my trainer. Not bad, but far from my best.
Food: If I am honest with myself, I know that I did not make good food choices this week. I don't think it is about stress or comfort. I think that I'm hungry and I have no will power. The doctor had said that he thought I was close to my sweet spot and might not need another fill for a while, but I think that might not be the case. Typically, I'm not hungry in the mornings. I will usually drink a protein shake in the morning (around 9:30-10:00), not because I'm hungry, but to make sure I'm getting good protein. Today, my stomach was growling (with hunger) by 7:30 AM. I don't want to be so tight that I can't eat, but I do need to be tight enough to curb my hunger more.
Punishment: because I have gained weight this week, my punishment is to log my caloric intake. I HATE DOING THIS! I know some people are completely focused on this and I know that it is probably extremely helpful. But I HATE IT. So, it is an effective punishment and motivator to not have to do it again. Interestingly, I seem to do better when I'm away from home. Pre-band, vacations were weight gain guarantees! However, now, it seems to have the opposite effect. I don't snack much and I find time to work out. So...I will track my calories Mon-Wed. If I'm on the right track by end of Wednesday, I won't track my vacation (Thurs-Tues). When I get back, I will have one week until my fill. Now that week includes my birthday...so wish me luck!! Ha!
Random question: do you all update your avatar pictures? I know that picture is how people here know me, but it isn't me anymore. Do you all leave them or update them??
I have been so excited over the last few days with my renewed committment. That is great! However, with my new excitement, I have been talking about it A LOT and I noticed that a friend of mine's eyes started to glaze over a bit. HA!! I'm not at all upset because she is SUPER supportive, but it does tell me that I need to close my mouth and show...not tell. :thumbup: That is what my blog is for!!
My fill went well yesterday. I typically go to the fill doctor, but yesterday my surgeon was the fill doctor. He did a great job! He told me that I looked very close to my sweet spot and he only added 1/10 cc. I told him that is what the other doc added last time and it really made a difference for about 7 weeks, then it just seemed to drop off. He is quite concerned about over-filling and I appreciate that. I told him I have been having acid reflux at night due to my allergies and I think that added to his concern. Hopefully this darn ragweed will go away soon and I can get back to normal. He also told me that I will not need to get a COMPLETE UNFILL for my tonsillectomy. His first reaction was that I wouldn't need to get any taken out, but then he thought about it a few seconds and said that I probably should, but half would be appropriate. That sounds good to me!
It is always interesting to me to listen to the other people getting adjusted. Fills at my doc are cattle calls. We are given time frames and then first come, first served. We are checked in and moved to a holding area where we wait for the procedure then return to that area post-procedure to drink water. I like the system and it gives people a chance to discuss the band with otheres. Kind of a mini support group...
I really do try not to judge, but it amazes me how differently people approach this process. There was a very sweet girl talking about eating dinner rolls at a restaurant and knowing it will make her sick and she says that she still does it. Over and over. She said that she has a love affair with food. She also says that she doesn't exercise, but I can't remember if she said why. It made me a little sad because if getting sick or having physical pain isn't a deterrant to bad choices, then I think she is going to have a really tough time. She is a super pretty girl that has about 150 pounds to lose. I truly hope she finds a good support group and something that can help her move forward.
My scale was down 2.2 pounds this morning. I know that isn't REAL weight loss for one day, but I don't care. Today, I'm going to strut around like I'm 2 pounds lighter!! HA! I have on a sassy White House/Black Market shirt that I bought several years ago when I was last small. I think it looks really nice!
Yesterday, I had two NSV moments. (They sure do seem to be flying at me from everywhere at the moment!!) First, I was talking to a friend (who also struggles with weight, but not nearly to the extent that I have) here just about everything. I told her that I'm just giddy from feeling so good the last few days. I feel like I have gotten a TON of compliments and things just feel so awesome. She said that she thinks that I crossed the threshhold from being fat to being "normal". I think she might be right. For a long while there, I was losing weight and it was noticable (and great!) But going from a size 24 to a size 18, while absolutely EXCELLENT is not something that is really understood by "skinny" minded people. Now that I have moved into "normal" range clothing (even though I'm still a fat person in my head), people see me as "normal" and that they recognize. Does that make sense? I think it will take a long time for me to adjust my thinking as I discussed in my entry yesterday. But I get that other people may not need that time to adjust.
The second NSV...I was walking out of work yesterday afternoon. As you go out to the parking garage from my building, there is a wall of mirrors that you face as you turn a corner. For so long, I would cringe or avoid looking at that wall of mirrors. Yesterday, I looked right at myself and I didn't cringe. I have a long way to go before I think I'm hot (ha!), but it is so lovely to be able to not hate my reflection.
