LoseIt!

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?

Gosh, girl, reading your blog is like reading my own. Ha! Way to go on the 1000 situps!! That is awesome. I have the most horrible time with my arms too. I know they are getting smaller, but they aren't going at the same rate. Argh! I also have the exact same issue with my bras. No boobies at all these days. Ha! Keep up the awesome work!!

Sandradee (among others) has asked me a couple of times whether I think Jax (my Body Bugg) has been worth it. The cost of the device plus the display device was around $300. I will say up front that I am extremely blessed. I have a wonderful job and since I'm single with no kids and relatively no responsibilities, I'm able to spend my money however I see fit without worrying about anyone else. So spending $300 for me is not the same as say my friend who is a married stay at home mother of three or another friend who is a single working mother of two. That being said, I'm very glad that I got it. I have NEVER been one to log my food. I would try to commit myself to it, but I would lose interest in a day or two. Something about having your calories burned to offset calories consumed has helped to motivate me. I have been going strong for 3 weeks and I don't have the mindset that it is a chore. I actually enjoy logging in each night after dinner to make my updates. One thing that I have noticed is that I think more before I just eat something. For instance, on Monday after lunch, my work group stopped and got a cookie from the Nestle Toll House Cookie Store. I LOVE Nestle Toll House cookies. I bought one and brought it back to the office with me. I looked up the nutritional information and I plugged it in my online food journal. Since I was working out that day, I determined that I could eat the cookie if I had a lighter dinner than I originally planned. I enjoyed the heck out of that cookie and savored EVERY bite. Later that night, I chose the lower calorie dinner and all was well. I will say that I think that most of the benefit comes from logging my food. So, if you are already very good at that, I don't know if it would be worth it or not. To me, it has changed how I operate entirely! Also, I am very conservative with my food counts. Meaning, I always try to pad my estimates. For instance, if I have a couple bites of mashed potatoes, I would probably log 1/4 cup as opposed to 2 T. I have read that we tend to underestimate what we eat by 20-40(!)% Wow! I figure that no matter how hard I try, I will not remember (or know) everything that is in what I'm eating (especially when I eat out) so if I pad a little, hopefully I will have enough counted to cover anything I miss. Interestingly, even with that padding, Jax tells me that I only lose 1/2 of what I calculate that I should lose. And I definitely don't lose it when I'm "supposed" to. But that's okay, as I collect data about myself, I learn more and more and it helps me to be less frustrated. So for me, for my needs, for my circumstances, Jax is worth it! I committed to logging food for 4 weeks and wearing Jax for 8 weeks. I realize now that I need to do both and will now commit to doing both. I feel sure though that I will continue long past 8 weeks. I feel that way now...I will get back to you in about 5 weeks! :thumbup: Just wanted to give you a couple of quick updates: Eating steak: I did okay with the steak. I had to cut it into the smallest of pieces and I was only able to eat about an ounce. Last night at home, I had the leftovers and ate bigger bites, but would spit out the fat (tendons that wouldn't chew down) instead of swallowing it. Sounds kind of gross, but it worked. I don't think I like steak enough to work that hard. HA! Jazzercise: our friends came to class with us last night. They had a lot of fun supporting my BFF by it really isn't their cup of tea. One is a runner, but the other doesn't work out much and I hope that she finds some sort of activity that she enjoys. My arm ached a little from the tetanus shot (it still does!) but I'm glad I got in the extra work out. Something funny...as I was cleaning up after class, I picked up some 5 pound weights that someone had forgotten to put away. They felt so light to me that I almost threw them in the air. It made me feel like The Hulk!! :wink2: Have a super day everyone! Tomorrow is Friday!

I went to my PCP today for a routine check up. I have not seen him since my surgery and realized that he didn't even know about it. Oops! He was happy for me though and enthusiastic with my success. Turns out that it was time for a tetanus booster. That should feel good tomorrow! Also, we discussed an issue I have been having with my throat. **gross alert** I get things stuck in the recesses of my throat and I have to dig them out with a Qtip. This is something that started about 2 years ago and it is getting worse. It feels like my throat is irritated all the time even though I'm not sick at all. He is sending me to an ENT doc and thinks they should be able to fix it easily. YAY! He is also referring me to another sleep doctor so I can update my sleep study. It is probably time to make a change to my CPAP. Maybe by next year, I won't need it!! My blood pressure is super! He also took my labs so I will be eager to see how my cholesterol and other numbers look. Hopefully they are look great and I can continue to be medication free! He even made a joke about how he wasn't giving me any medication and didn't know what to do. I love it! Tonight I'm going to Jazzercise. Big shock, huh?! :thumbup: But it is extra fun tonight because a few friends are coming to class to support my BFF Cori who is a new instructor. Well, she has been instructing for about 3 months or so, I think. And she is already one of the best. She really was made for this and it makes for an excellent class! It will be a lot of fun! Plus, I don't usually go on Wednesdays so it is getting me an extra work out for the week. Jax will LOVE that!! Thanks for all the super sweet comments on the pictures I included in my blog post yesterday. Sometimes I get discouraged that I'm still way into the 200s, but when I concentrate on how I look, it makes me feel better. I'm really hoping to break into the teens this week though which would be a BIG STINKING DEAL!! Just another few tenths to go... Happy Hump Day, y'all!

Aw...have a fun time at the beach!!

Oh my gosh, sweetkc, those things are just horrible. I will absolutely keep you in my prayers.

Good luck!! This time you have the band on your side!

I got mine at the end of January. I was ready to go in November 2009, but I had to wait for the new year for my flex med insurance to kick in. If I could have done it in November I would have! I gained 10 pounds over the holidays and if I would have had my band, I probably would've lost 10. I'm 7 months in and I've lost about 64 pounds. Go for it, girl!!

You know it is going to be good day when someone tells you that you look good. It's even better really because my BFF Cori (who is not one to sugar coat or to give false praise) told me that my outfit makes me look skinny and another friend (who is a little quicker to compliment) told me that I look great. Woohoo! I am a big fan of long shirts/short dresses with leggings. Today, I'm wearing a navy blue Simply Vera dress with a black ribbon belt. It's very simple, but I think it is pretty. I've paired it with black leggings and silver encrusted black sandals. I went ahead and took pics. I also added a pic from 7.12.10 in a similar outfit. I think it is fair to say that today's outfit is a little more body skimming than the last one, but I also think there is a difference in the body it is skimming. Ha! (FYI, we took several pictures today but the lighting kept making my boobs look deformed. This one kind of looks like I'm about to fall down, but my boobs looked normal so I went with it. :mad:) It's funny how eager I am to take pictures these days... Jazzercise was great last night. I can really feel my body doing things I was just not able to do before. My lunges are lower for sure and using the 10 pound weights is getting a little easier. NOT EASY, mind you, but easier. I feel strong! Today is a lunch work out. I'm going to try and run two miles. I'm slow...I will stick to 4mph which will take 30 minutes, but hopefully I can do that! Tonight is my monthly girls' night Interesting Dinner. It is restaurant week, so we are going fancy! We are headed to a chop house, so I'm going to try steak for the first time post op. I like my steak medium rare, so if I take very small bites and chew, chew, chew, I should be okay. Wish me luck!

Congratulations on meeting your goal! And good luck working the next one!

Happy happy birthday to you, to you, to you!!

What super news! Congrats and thank you for the inspiration!

It's Monday! Jax and I are starting to live in harmony again. Last week was a real eye opener as I discussed in my Friday post. I typically gain weight over the weekend, so I'm proud that I was able to lose a little bit this weekend. Maybe I'm actually learning! I have a lot of fun things coming up! I'm visiting my brother and his family Labor Day weekend, my parents are coming to visit in mid-September, I'm going to New Orleans the first weekend in October, I'm going to visit a friend in NC mid-October, I'm going to the NASCAR race the first weekend in November, then next thing I know the holidays will be here!! That doesn't take into account all the local things I have going on. Speaking of visiting my brother...my SIL emailed me yesterday and asked if I wanted to enter a 5k that weekend with her and my nephew. I had mentioned when I visited them in May that I wanted to do it and made it my goal. I have been slacking off on the running though because of my aching feet. I said yes, so I better get on the stick! I've never gone more than 1.85 miles at once. I still think I will be able to do it though. Maybe I'm just a glutton for punishment!! :mad: In preperation, I'm not going to do a ton of running because I don't want to mess up my feet. So, I'm going to do A LOT of cardio. I plan to do Jazzercise 4 times this week. I also plan to run twice. We will see how that goes then make a plan for next week. I feel detoxed and ready to go!! Happy Monday, my friends!

I can honestly say that no one says those kinds of things to me, at least not to my face. In fact, I have the opposite problem where I show hesitation in eating a cookie or something and I'm chided that I should. I guess it is the same thing, just different direction. I would be absolutely mortified though if someone would say I shouldn't eat something. If you have that, I sure hope it stops!!

You go girl! Cellulite or not, love the success!

Don't avoid...embrace!! You are doing a fabulous job at changing your lifestyle. Focus on making and reaching small helpful goals. For instance, make a goal of drinking 64 ounces of water per day for two weeks and then track it. As you meet your goal you should feel satisfaction from that! Plus, since you are doing something good for yourself, it should start to show (especially since you are getting some restriction.) We are here for support, so come visit as take away motivation, not judgment or sad thoughts!!

It's hard to not get greedy! But if you put it into pre-band perspective, 40 pounds in 3 months is just fabulous. I would try and try pre-band and I would lost 3 pounds in 3 months! Way to go!!

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!!

You said it, sister!!

I always have a problem with my first bite. My friends have gotten used to me now, taking my first bite then sitting and listening (or having) coversation for the next five minutes or so. Once I feel it go through, I start my meal and rarely have any issues. I definitely wouldn't be thinking about a fill if you are having these kinds of issues. Good luck girlie!

You are making a choice to do something hard and good for yourself! Don't beat yourself up. Look forward with your eye on the prize!!

Holy moly! 110 pushups AND 110 situps? You are my hero!!

I'm not sure why I haven't blogged much this week. I don't feel bad or down, just not motivated to put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard.) Jax & I have reconciled, so that's good. I have taken a one week hiatus from exercise (which might be a very good reason I'm so blah right now.) I've decided to completely focus on food intake this week. I have done great! My goal is to keep it up next week when I layer in exercise, but to add a 150-200 calorie snack on big work out days (like Jazzercise.) I don't think I need additional calories for my small 20-30 minute lunch work outs. Next week I will hit it hard, I actually start on Saturday with an hour of Jazzercise. I have more Jazz on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday & the following Saturday. That alone would be great! But I will also layer in at least one lunch work out on Tuesday and go from there. Saturday I'm also getting my hair cut. I think I'm going to continue with the length. However, I'm thinking I might go shorter and sassier next time. But for right now, I like how my long hair is framing my thinning face. Plus, I wear it up most days because it is SO DARN HOT!! I can't believe that tomorrow is Friday. This week has flown by! I hope you are all having a fabulous one!

I completely feel you. I felt the same way! Then I got LB and I'm on my way down (very happily I might add!) It is different for everyone, but I couldn't do it as I was. Now I can! Good luck to you!