Pill Popper: multivitamins and victories

Another week in the books and I am making some progress. I am making small changes that are setting me up for great success.  I am setting up myself for a lifetime of good habits and health, a sustainable future.  While I want this to go fast, I’m ok with where I’m at!   I added in a multivitamin into my daily routine this week, which has been interesting.  I am moving forward toward my goals and I am happy to say I did have some victories this past week!

I have had some history with taking multivitamins. I know that when I was losing the first time, I religiously took a multivitamin. I can’t remember what made me do it but I know I did it. Somewhere along the way I fell out of the habit. While I was working at the bank, one of my favorite customers was this elderly lady. She was spunky as all get out! In her mid 90s she was still driving herself to Florida to visit her daughter and to check on her residence that she owed down there… At least once or twice a year. She was so much fun to talk to. Every time she left the bank, she would leave us with two words of advice. Play the lottery and take your vitamins every day. Yes, she credited a lot of her health to her vitamins. Maybe I should back up and say that she was a nurse for many years… She was trained during the war. So I do have to give credence to her advice. We all know though, that I’m a little stubborn. So I did not run right out to get any multivitamins. Fast forward the clock to now. Jason and I are both very interested in living a much healthier life. We are trying to be more active. We are trying to eat healthier. We want to live to a ripe old age… Living life to our fullest the whole way to the end!  Thus began the talk of multivitamins between us.  We did a little research, we read a lot of labels. And finally we decided on A particular multivitamin. Oddly enough, we both chose the same brand. We are almost a week in to our new habit now.

So how do we feel?  Jason asked me the first day only an hour or so after taking my first dose and I put up my arms  like I was in a body builder competition and showing off my muscles,  but seriously?  It’s going well.  I’m not sure I feel different, but I’m ok with it and I know that I’m doing good for my body!  I’m taking care of my body!

Observations? I am a girl that takes very little medicine. Literally an Advil or two every once in a while.… As in I can go months without taking any. The brand that we chose comes in a box of 30 day supply. Inside the box are a little packets… 30 of them. Each packet contains a number of pills. Off the top of my head, the regular multivitamin pill (2 of them) , fish oil,  green tea, for me cranberry for him Maca and a few other things. So all of a sudden I went from taking no pills to seven pills a day. I have no problem swallowing pills… It’s just really odd for me to be downing pills like I’m an addict!

The next observation, my pee.   I started talking the pills around lunch on Sunday.  My pee was normal that day before hand ...a little darker in the morning but a nice clearer color indicating decent hydration.  That was the day we went to the zoo...and I was slamming water because it was so hot!    Before we left the zoo I ran into the bathroom....I came out and because we frequently talk about hydration I commented on the color of my pee (yeah we talk about the color and our hydration a lot!).  My pee was bright yellow...much  darker than normal!  It wasn’t until he went to the bathroom when we got home that we realized what was up?   The multivitamins!  I never had my pee turn different colors from it before (that I can remember).  But from research it happens when/if there are excess vitamins that your body doesn’t need...it is eliminated and shows up as a bright almost neon color.  Who knew!  (Yes the color fades as I drink  more throughout the day!)

And now for those minor victories… Bullet point style to make a Friday nice and easy.

*On Wednesday my team at work won a lunch. They ordered pizza. I know that I could have eaten a piece of pizza and been fine. Would I have just had one piece???  Would I have stopped at one piece? What was the healthy option for me? I actually stuck with my packed lunch which was primarily fruit and vegetables. Surprisingly, I did not miss the pizza at all!!!  By passing up on the pizza, I was able to stay within my calorie range with eating my planned dinner.  

*We have rice crispy treats at the house that I made. I have managed to keep my pieces very small on the nights that I have indulged.  But I have also actually been able to manage to say no once or twice this week.

* I am starting to get my calories down to the lower end of the caloric range that I set for myself.   Yes, I did bump up to the higher end once or twice...but consistently I was much lower!

(Yes I know I was too low on Thursday...but I was feeling queasy and just didn’t feel like eating much....eating made me feel better though...so maybe my stomach was hurting due to being hungry!)

*My team is having a potluck today (Friday) . Well actually they’re having food catered in. I am not participating.Honestly, this one was an easy decision. I think the price is outrageous!!  I participated the last time we ordered from this place  and the amount of food I ended up with on my plate was ridiculous!  A rabbit would walk away hungry. But, even beyond the price of the catered lunch is the fact that Friday night is when Jason and I usually go out. I want to be able to enjoy that with the love of my life versus eat an overpriced meal at my desk while I’m trying to work and take phone calls. It has caused some tension for me as my team (some people) did not handle it well and made comments about how I better not eat if I wasn’t paying and some really rude comments about how if I were participating I would eat all the food anyway.  As for eating without paying, would I do that?  Well of course not, I wouldn’t even dream of doing that!  But it stressed me out because I don’t like drama and that’s what it was.   But guess what I’m eating for lunch?  My normal fruit and veggie lunch!  So a victory! 

*I have walked on all my breaks!  It was hard because we had some rainy days where literally it rained before my walk...and started raining again at the end of my walk.  I also had to walk in the parking garage because of rain during some breaks.  Oh and it was stinkin’ hot on some of the days!  But I walked!

*My weight...I am down!! 2 pounds and the lowest I’ve been in a while (since March!!). And hmmm....that is when we moved...has it just taken me a few months to get into the groove and find my footing with my new housemate and living quarters?  Either way, I’m on the downward trend now!!

Bottoms up: guide for drinking more water

Bottoms up! No, not alcohol!  Water… The elixir of life.   Was that a little melodramatic? No I don’t really think so. Water is absolutely essential to our bodies. I’m not going to get into the mechanics  of why it’s essential… that’s not who I am, at least not today.  I will touch on a few things though. They say water aids in weight loss and that a good deal of the time when we think we are hungry, that we are actually thirsty. Water is  good for your complexion. Water is  good for organ function. Ok,I’m done with the mechanics of why we should drink more water.…I think it’s a given that water is healthy for us. I will however say that it is recommended that we drink a lot of water. I’ve heard that a good general amount to drink is  64 ounces a day. I’ve also heard that we should be drinking half of our weight in ounces. So if someone weighs 200 pounds they should be drinking 100 ounces of water.  But really, it doesn’t matter what method you used to come up with your daily goal of water intake, what matters is that you drink water. A lot of water.

There was a time, when I drank absolutely no water. None. Zilch. Nada.  I drank a lot of soda though. It was actually a  very difficult process to actually get myself into the habit of drinking my water in the quantity that I need. And I don’t understand it, but Pepsi and sodas seem to go down the hatch a lot quicker than water. (I believe I read somewhere about some of the chemicals in diet soda having that effect… But once again, I’m not getting into the technical side of it….it’s too mechanical for me at the moment.) So how do you do it? How do you get yourself to the point of drinking at least 64 ounces of water a day.? For me, it’s a thing of setting the goal and then simply striving for it. The biggest issue is keeping track of how much you drink. Sipping out of a glass here and there is probably not going to get you your 64 ounces of water. It’s better than nothing and you may think you are drinking a lot, but in reality you may only be drinking 8 ounces or 20 ounces. So one of the biggest things ismaking sure you’re drinking your water and building that habit is to track the water.

I’m going to give a few little tips about making water consumption easier in the beginning because it has to be palatable in order to make us drink it and I know I actually struggled with that in the beginning.  After that,  I will move into ways to track the water consumption to make sure that you really are drinking what you need to be drinking.

TIPS!

Flavor!  

Drink Flaroviring

If you are new to actually drinking water…plain old water and especially switching over from straight soda it could be difficult because you’re used to the flavor. Do not despair, there are some wonderful products out there on the market to help.The flavor really does make a difference.  I still use them to flavor one or  two bottles a day just for something different to break up the monotony.

Temperature! For me, Cold water seems to go down faster and easier than warm water. For this reason I try to keep my water as cold as possible.

The bathroom!!!   I do find that when I am dehydrated or just starting out with upping my water consumption I do run to the bathroom quite a bit. After a day or two of consistent drinking the water it levels out some back to a more normal amount. Apparently this is because when you’re dehydrated and not drinking enough your body will store every little bit of water that it can. (My weight goes up when I stop drinking and become a little dehydrated for this same reason, my body goes into panic mode and holds onto every drop it can.) Once your body starts getting the water it needs it will stop conserving and holding onto that water.   At that point it begins to eliminate some of those excess stores of water…..extra trips to the bathroom…like I said, it will even out!  Another bathroom issue that I’ve been able to navigate is  going to the bathroom six times in the middle of the night. I tend to start to taper my water off toward the evening. I still do drink at night but I don’t pound the water quite so quickly. It works for me… experiment to find out what works for you. One last bathroom tip?   Actually pay attention to the color of your urine ! Seriously keep an eye on the color of your pee, if it’s really dark drink more! If it’s light/almost clear, then kudos and keep drinking!

Water first! I typically try to drink my water goal amount first before I start drinking a diet soda, juice, whatever other drink I’m around.  I found early on that if I drank my soda first then I would never want the water the rest of the day.  It started me on a slippery slope of only soda for the rest of the day.  So I set a little rule for myself that I had to drink at least 64 ounces before I switched to anything else. Over the years I’ve been able to relax that rule a little bit simply because soda is so sweet… Even the diet so I will actually begin to crave the water after drinking the soda for a little bit. I actually only only drink soda nowwhen I’m having a day where I am really struggling with exhaustion or a headache or something that makes me feel like I need the caffeine boost.  I’ve come a long long way!

How do you track Water? I have some ideas and tricks that I have used or seen used. 

Number one. A giant mug. This is probably the first thing that I did in my quest to drink my daily goal of water.

I purchased that 64 ounce mug and the first thing I did every morning was to fill it up with water and ice.  Then I would start drinking. That first mug had  water facts on it but it  also had a line that showed how many ounces of water was left in the mug at certain points.  In this way I could quickly glance at my mug see the water inside it and look at that line and see where I was in my water consumption for the day.  I always knew how much water I had drunk and how much more I had to go! This mug was so well insulated that my water would  still be cold at the end of the day, I prefer cold water so that was a huge plus. I loved that mug! I carried it with me everywhere! Family dinner?  My mug sat beside my plate!   Out to dinner? Unless it was a really nice restaurant… I carried my mug inside with me. Many days, I would have to refill that mug. Sadly, the mug met with an unfortunate end when I set it on top of the car to grab something and I drove away without retrieving the mug… The mug did not withstand the fall from the car . I bought a replacement… It was the same size but it wasn’t the same.  I bought another replacement… The Bubba mug (amazon affiliate link) and used that one for many years (I actually bought three agreement red, green and brown).Nothing ever really truly replaced the first much loved mug, but this method worked for me for many many years.

Bubba Mug

Number two. This is a method I have not tried myself, but I have seen it many times. Simply carry a gallon jug of water.

This is obviously aiming for more than 64 ounces a day, but is the same concept as the mug. Carry the what are you going to drink that day with you at all times. I have actually seen people draw  horizontal lines in permanent marker periodically on the gallon jug and they label each line with the timeline. The top line might say 8 AM the next line might say 10 in the third line might say 12. That way they have an idea of where they are in their water consumption and where they should be by a certain time of day. It sounds good to me because that’s exactly what my favorite mug did it showed me how much water I was at and where I needed to be.

Number three. Water bottles. This is been my primary method over the last year or so. But I also did it a few years ago when I worked at the deli. I carry water bottles to work. Every day in my insulated lunchbox I pack one frozen water bottle and threecold water bottles. Yes it takes up half of my lunch box but the frozen bottle is also my ice pack. I then walk out the door with my lunchbox in one hand and my one water bottle in the other hand. The water bottle in my hand is usually flavored water. Which as I said earlier is a great way to help get into the drinking of water and break up some of the monotony. I drink the flavored water during my commute to work. And then I work on the water bottles in my lunchbox at work. I can easily keep track of where I am by how many water bottles are left in my lunchbox. I typically try to drink one water bottle before my first break, one water bottle before my lunch and then at least one water bottle before I go home. Sometimes I make it to my ice water sometimes I don’t. But that’s OK because even without the ice water bottle I am already over 64 ounces. And that does not include any water and I drink at home.  (Notice that I’m still carrying all of my water with me!  This seems to be a trend for me!)

Number four. I have also tried filtered water bottles. (amazon affiliate link). Typically they are smaller, and require me to refill out of a water cooler,sink or some other tap water means while out and about. I have one of these bottles at my desk at work because it does come in handy in a pinch. I typically do not use this method very often, mainly because of the fact that the bottles that I have purchased tend to not be insulated as well as I would like the larger bottle gets warm and I prefer my water cold.

Number 5. There are some water containers that sync up with your phone with an app that helps remind you....I have not tried them...but they look cool!

Number 6.  Myfitnesspal and other trackers allow you to track the water

So there you have it!  My collection of  tips and ideas to help boost your water consumption. Water is honestly the most overlooked aspect of weight loss.  It is  also one of the most overlook aspects of health in general. It really does make a difference in everything!  I’ve said it many many times this is an individual journey and what works for me may not work forsomeone else. Find what works for you! Just like I have tried many of these ways and have to continually strive to find what works for me in each stage of my life and each stage of my weight loss journey.  The benefits are out of this world!   So come on and tilt the bottle, the mug, the jug, a glass and have a drink with me….WATER of course!

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Kindness goes a long way: Encouragement

I had an active and fun weekend. I got a bike ride in, a lot of walking and a run too!!!   My eating while not perfect was within my range.  I am happy with how it went down.  I had a reminder about how important our words are though.

We had a really lazy day on Saturday. Neither of us had much energy, so we spent a lot of time in the couch just relaxing.  I did play around on my computer a bit and did some work.  (Mostly I worked on my recipe site which is a complete work in progress...I am slowly moving recipes from my now defunct site. I have quite a few entered and have been linking them, but it’s coming along very slowly!  I will be updating those pages and doing new pictures as time goes by...right now I’m just trying to get it all moved into one place.  My recipe page  on this site also has the link).  We also got the bulk of our errands out of the way!  (A few more popped up throughout the day as we chatted. So Sunday  we had to stop a few more places.) Around 5pm in Saturday we decided that we needed to do ‘something’ so that we wouldn’t  feel like total slugs!  We decided to hop on our bikes and ride the local trail near our house..it’s paved (boo) and right now really short (double boo...but they are working on extensions yay!)

We did make our ride a bit longer by checking out where they are working on expanding the trail (no sir, we did not go past the fenced off area and ride off road/in construction zone.  Never! Wink wink!). We also took a complete tour of our apartment complex on our bikes. When we got back to our building we rode through the breezeway and went into the grassy area behind us.  I decided to try to mount my bike like a boss!  I want to learn to stand beside my bike with a foot on the pedal...push off and on that movement motion throw my leg over the bike and ride away.  I want to look badazzzz!   Still don’t get what I’m talking about?  Standing still on the left side of the bike...place your left foot on the pedal and hands on the handle bars. With  the right foot on the ground push yourself and the bike into a forward motion and swing that right foot over the bike...land it on the right pedal and keep pedaling off into the sunset (aka down the trail).  I was able to do it a few times...but I’m really rough and choppy!  It will probably be easier on pavement but right now the perceived softness of the grass/dirt gives me comfort!   I will be practicing this more!

The cool bike mount method was awesome, but the real victory is not my badazzz way to mount a bike.  The real victory was the ride itself.  The trail has some inclines.  As we rode the trail and would hit a downhill section  I kept thinking to myself ‘well this is going to be yucky on the way back when I have to climb’. But on the return trip I kept waiting for the uphills...and while I would feel myself pushing harder on occasion, I never felt the abject misery of any of those dreaded inclines!   Did my ‘push myself’ post from last week where I rode out of the saddle and way out of my comfort zone more help?  Is it my walks at work helping?

I don’t know...but I was happy!!!  And yes....I rode out of the saddle some more on that Saturday ride!  I’m going to build these legs into legs of steel!

On Sunday morning I went out for a run when I got up.  I am slow.  Sooo slow! I’m not sure, but walking may be faster!  Hahaha. But I did it...and time and miles on my legs will bring improvement!

We were still feeling wiped out on Sunday.  So instead of going on a long bike ride we instead went to the zoo to get a bit of walking in!

While our running I had an interesting experience.  I was running and passed (in the opposite direction) this guy.   He gave me words of encouragement but reached out and patted my arm.   Yes!  He touched me!   It kinda freaked me out a bit.    But his kind words were really uplifting.    So it was a combo freaky thing /nice thing!    I told Jason...his words were ‘I don’t like that he touched you.’   That’s my protective boyfriend!   (I don’t run on the local trail...it’s too secluded for Jason’s comfort!!!!  Even though years back I ran even more secluded places!  I actually appreciate the fact that he cares enough to worry and ask me not take the risk!).  And yes...I had pepper spray with me! I read two or three blogs one day last week that talked about pepper spray while running....I figured the multiple warnings/reminders should be heeded.  So...I bought a new canister (I know mine were all bought before I met Jason...so older than 3 years) and actually used it!

So even though I was freaked out by the touch.  I was ‘touched’ by that mans encouragement.  It made me think about how often we remain in our own world and fail to say a kind and/or encouraging word to someone.  How often we fail to encourage our fellow humans.  And while I don’t want to be physically touched....the words really made me push through my run to do the best I could! It was a wonderful reminder that I was doing what is right for my body!   It reminded me of my encourager while I was doing the C25K training.   I saw this same guy almost every days. He didn’t say anything...until the day that I ran my first 20 minutes straight and that was the day he chose to tell me how good I was doing.  His words gave me the boost to do something that up until that moment had been impossible!  I needed his words!   I did thank him on a subsequent day!  I also had an ‘angel’ one day while running while I lived at my parents house....But seriously....our words have the power to encourage.  They have the power to make someone smile.  They have the power to take away pain.   Use your words to uplift!    (Just don’t touch the stranger while you are giving them your uplifting words!  Lol). And I thank my ‘angels’ that have made wonderful comments while I’ve been out there working it hard!  

Courageous Lion: fighting fear

I was recently reminded to be fearless.  It  wasn’t said to me in the realm of weight loss, but it still nailed me on the head pretty squarely.  I was reminded about how I have let my fears hold me back so many times.  I don’t lose weight because of my fears.  I lose weight because of my fears.  I allow my fears to stop me from doing things that would be healthy for me, emotionally and physically.   I can quickly drown in my fears and I don’t want to be like that!

 

Let me start by talking about what sparked my thoughts about fears this week.  At my job we have recently started a “huddle” in the mornings before it gets busy.  Each person has a few minutes to present something to the team.  We are encouraged to be creative.  I like to bake, so for my last inspirational moment, I shared a quote and provided cookies. One girl wrote a poem for the team, we’ve played games, eaten donuts, drank virgin mimosa’s and been given candy.  The other day there was an inspirational thought that we have to believe we can do it and be it ..that is the first step to success .  The presenter then handed around a basket with some candy in it.   (A  Three Musketeer if you are interested in knowing…and yes, I love Three Muskateers so yes, I ate it!)  The candy was wrapped in a slip of paper.  When we unraveled our paper to get to our candy we received a word.   That was what we were to strive to be.   My word?  

 

Fearless!

 

WOW.  The presenter couldn’t have planned that one better.  I have long struggled with fear!  It can be debilitating!   Many times I have allowed fear to keep me from doing something.  Many other times I find myself paralyzed with fear, but I force myself to do it and low and behold I survive…and find that it wasn’t bad.  And what’s even better?  When I push through my fear, I come out so much stronger!  I did this when I flew by myself for the first time many years ago.  I wasn’t afraid of flying, but going by myself scared the dickens out of me.   I wanted to see my brother and his family bad enough, I did it!  I look back now and ask, Why was I even fearful?   I was petrified of running a race with no one there.  I begged people to run with me. I begged people to go spectate.  But to no avail.  I almost didn’t go because of my fear.   I’m so glad I did it...it’s my best run to date!!

There was also a time when I realized that I was totally afraid to lose weight.  I wore my excess pounds around me like an armor.   I used my weight as an excuse for everything.  “Oh, I didn’t get that promotion because I am overweight.”  “I can’t do that because, well…because I’m overweight.”  Things that didn’t go right in my life?  It was obviously because I was overweight!  Right?  Absolutely not, but in my warped sense of thinking I certainly believed it.  “My ex-husband cheated on me, didn’t love me, etc …it was obviously because I was overweight.”  Seriously, I believed it!   Excess weight was a convenient scapegoat.  And I wore it around me like an armor.    How so?  Well, if I lost the weight…would I have to face the truth?  Would I have to face the truth about my marriage. (Well that should have been done a lot earlier!)  Would I have to face the truth about my capabilities?  Why yes, I would….and I didn’t like it.  I was so afraid of losing because then I would lose that safety net….I would lose that excuse for why my life wasn’t what I wanted it to be!

I figured out the fear. Or so I thought.  I lost the weight.  I faced my fears.  I took responsibility for my errors and stopped blaming everything on my weight, even when I regained!

So why in the world did this single word on a piece of paper throw me for a loop?  Why did I feel like I was going to cry every time I looked at the slip of paper?  Why indeed?   The fear has crept back into my life.

In my weight loss journey ....I fear I will fail.  So I sabotage myself...and thus I DO fail!   I have other fears too...some pertaining to weight loss but most not, and I let these fears rule me!

How does one stop allowing fear to rule their life?  In my experience it really is just recognizing that this fear is irrational and forcing myself to do it..even as my knees quake and nock together with fear!!!

Now is the time!  It’s time to stop dreaming, kick those fears in the arse and start living!!!!

Happy Father’s Day!!!!

I miss you daddy!

Chaos Be Gone

This is been an interesting week thus far. In some ways I feel like a complete failure. In other ways I feel totally in control and on top of the world. It’s crazy how weight loss and this journey can be so conflicted at the same time.

For the first time in a long time, I feel totally in control and on top of the world with what I’m doing in regards to my eating. I am consciously making wise choices. I am consciously making healthier choices. I am not over eating. I have even done really really good with the after work snacks and with the evening sweet treats. When I say really good, I mean that most days I have not indulged and when I have it has been managed and in moderation. That’s an awesome feeling!  I like feeling in control and so often my eating is out of control and it that gives this feeling of chaos to my life. I like this control.

I’ve been consistently walking...not quite active exercise but movement nonetheless!   I enjoy my break time walks!  Yesterday I saw babies!

In the midst of these really good strong feelings of control, pride and peace,  I find myself feeling despair. I told you these emotions were conflicting and off-the-wall!

So what am I talking about when I say despair? My weight. My calories have been in line with where I want them to be. True, they may be at the higher end of the range that I have set up for myself. (I am aiming for anywhere between 1200 and 1500 cal a day.) Even at the higher range I should be still able to lose a pound a week… Strictly by the numbers. Yeah, that’s not happening this week. My weight is actually up higher than it was last week at this time. I can rattle off the excuses… The monthly ick was here, I accidentally allowed myself to get dehydrated on Monday, I’m battling sinus issues, it’s my age or any number of excuses. But I don’t care about the excuses. I want results.

I did have one day where I was super high in my calories… But one day should not cause me to gain 5 pounds! And that one Day? I was only about 500 to 600 cal over my budget.

So I vacillate between happiness over the control and despair over the weight gain. Yes, I said 5 pounds!

So what’s the plan? Well first and foremost, I want to retain the control. That means I’ll continue tracking, I will continue being in control of my eating versus letting the eating be in control of me. As for the wait. I am going to try to work on cutting some more carbs out of my food intake. I’m going to try to have more lower budget days… Meaning I am going to try to be at the low-end of my range on more days. And maybe, just maybe I’ll get this exercise things started.

Crystal- success story

“I struggled with my weight for most of my life,”  Crystal told me in an email.    She would lose some and then gain some, but it wasn’t until she went through a really bad time in her life that sent her into a deep depression that she really lost control of her weight.  It was during that time that she hit her highest weight.  It wasn’t until she ended up in the hospital that her eyes were opened.  During the 5 days in the hospital she lost 20 pounds and that five pounds made the difference.  She noticed an increase in energy and a difference in how she felt.    It was  the wake-up call she needed.  She wanted to feel better and she knew that losing more weight would give it to her.  Her journey had started.

 

I have known Crystal since we were young.  We were in the same school/class in second grade.      We lost touch for many years but recently connected through Facebook.   A few weeks ago when I saw her post something about her weight loss success/progress, I knew that I wanted to feature her as a success story.  She graciously accepted my offer to answer some questions and her weight loss success story is one that shows true perseverance!

 

 

What sparked you to begin to lose weight??  My weight loss journey began when I ended up in the hospital for a bowel obstruction in 2005   I was in the hospital for 5 days.  When I left the hospital I was down 20 pounds.  I immediately  noticed that I had more energy and felt better with that twenty pounds gone.  That difference was enough to make me want to continue to lose weight.

 How much weight have you lost in pounds? As of yesterday, 151 lbs

What was your starting clothing size?  28 Your current size? It varies on style of clothing but average 16. 

  

What plan did you follow to lose your weight?  (ie weight watchers, slim fast, a plan of your own creation...) The first thing I did was to  cut out soda. I immediately lost an additional 40 lbs. In case you missed it, that is 40 pounds in  just a few weeks!  I rarely drink soda anymore.  The other thing I have done is to simply watch what I eat.  I don’t deny myself anything, including goodies.  I found if I tried to cut something out completely that  I would go over board when I indulged. Now, if I want a candy bar, ice cream or snack cake; I will  go ahead and have one.  I've learned everything is allowed in moderation. It's become my mantra. 

 Have you reached your weight loss goal?  If so, how long have you been maintaining your weight? No, I want to lose about 30 more. I've had some ups and downs. I was fluctuating back and forth about 30 lbs for a while but for the last year I've only been fluctuating about 10lbs. 

 Do you consistently track your food intake (via online or paper form) I found doing so stressed me out to much and I would relapse.

 

How often do you weigh yourself?  At least once a week... sometimes more.

How did you come to that choice for how often? Never really thought about it. 

 

Do your exercise regularly?  If so, what do you do?.  Other than running around like a mad woman at work, I do not exercise. 

 

  Do you have any words of advice for someone that is just starting out on this journey of weight loss and health?  You have to make a decision for yourself... no one else really matters. It sounds a little self-centered, but it is along the same lines as you have to love yourself before you can truly love someone else. You will have ups and downs just like everything else in life. It's not an easy road, but it's worth every bump to see yourself transform. Be patient, you may not see the transformation for a while, but it will happen.  Also, make sure you talk to your doctor if you are thinking of trying a diet plan. 

Crystal is a true success story!  Thank you Crystal for sharing your story with us.  You are an inspiration to everyone.  You are doing an amazing job

Smash the zone

Oh my what a weekend. I experienced quite a bit of success.  No measurable success, but definitely some events both in my eating and in my exercise that brought me peace, clarity and motivation.

First of all,  Happy Monday!   How did that sound?   Did I sound sufficiently positive?  Because when I woke up, the first thought was, why can’t it still be the weekend???    It wasn’t until my shower that I realized that it has been well over a year and a half since I’ve had a vacation.  Yeah, I’ve had a day off here and there, but a real vacation? Away from work and a sufficient time to recharge?  It’s been at least a year and half!   I didnt use my vacation at the bank last year...I knew I was switching jobs, and I chose to cash those days in for an extra paycheck. The money helped make the job switch with differing pay periods  a much easier transition.  But right now I’m second guessing that decision.   The good thing?  We are planning a vacation week!!  The bad thing?  We are talking October! 

This week my eating was pretty good. There was the night that I consciously made an effort to not eat a sweet treat. I actually didn’t missed it and did really good. That is my eating victory!  We were talking about the sweet treats, and we are in agreement that on weekdays that we will not be eating the sweet treats, that will be a weekend indulgence. So Thursday or Friday night I will be in the kitchen making and baking something fun. This will  actually work out well, because we are typically more active during the weekends so the extra calories will be burnt!  This is a good change for us. I did tell him that this was going to be a rough week going without any sweets in the evening… The sweet/sugar addiction is going to be screaming to be fed. I know we can do it and get past it though.

On Sunday it was rainy, but that was OK because we had my nephew’s birthday lunch to go to and we had to stop by Jason‘s parents for a quick visit also. We did hit up a geocache and enjoyed seeing this turtle that  We suspect was laying eggs.

We Got a nice bike ride in on Saturday. We saw some great big turtles sunning themselves.

And the deer were out drinking water and showing off their beauty for us.

During the ride, my legs felt strong.  That is how I know that the lunch and break walks  are doing me good. But, while getting out to exercise and ride my bike is a good thing, it is not the victory that I alluded to earlier. My victory came in the revelation that I had while I was riding and the fact that I enacted upon it. I have talked in the past about upgrading my bike this summer. There are certain aspects of mountain bike/trail riding that I will have to learn once I get my new bike. So I started to think about what I can do to be ready for this new bike. What skills can I learn? What aspects of riding do I need to work on to better myself. I have been thinking about this quite a bit lately. The conclusion that I came to was pretty much endurance endurance endurance. Basically get on the bike and ride. I need my legs to be strong as all get out so that when I get the bike I am ready to learn new skills. Yeah, there are a few little things that I can work on in the meantime, like handling the bike, a new cool way to mount my bike and other little things like that. But endurance is what I need. So we were out this weekend and I was riding putting miles on my legs and I started thinking about the endurance. Trail riding requires a lot of time out of the saddle. Sometimes it’s climbing and sometimes it is just easier for bike handling. (Yes I’ve been watching a lot of mountain bike videos with Jason.) Riding with endurance is important, but I need to get also get used to riding out of my saddle. I admittedly am a cruiser. I like to sit down on my bike and just cruise down the canal towpath. On the canal you don’t need to stand up, so I don’t. But on Saturday, I realized that I need to push myself and get out of the saddle.  It might be uncomfortable. It might hurt. I might not like it… At first. But I realized that if I want to improve, I need to push myself out of my comfort zone. Guess what? I didn’t stand the whole ride. But I started every half-mile or so I would stand up and do 10-15 rotations on my feet. Boy did my arthritis kicking in! Surprisingly my muscles were fine. And each time I did it I pushed myself for a couple extra rotation.  I was out of my comfort zone, but I know I was improving my body and my fitness.

And that my friend was my revelation. The greatest results come when we push ourselves out of our comfort zone. The comfort zone might be eating a dessert every night, and pushing yourself is breaking that habit. The comfort zone might be sitting in the saddle and peddling your bike and never standing up. The comfort zone might be sitting back in a state of obesity and never trying to better yourself. We all have comfort zone, but if we long for change and reformation, we have to smash those comfort zones and push ourselves further.   I took steps to smash the comfort zone..thatsounds like a pretty good victory to me… 

Tips to combat closet eating

Have you found yourself trying to hide the king size chocolate bar wrapper  from the candy bar you just ate in your car?  Do you find yourself rushing to the kitchen when you’re alone to gobble down copious amounts of chips or cookies when noone is looking?  If yes, then you may be a closet eater.  Closet eating is when someone eats normally or even scantily when in front of other people but when alone your eating is out of control.  This can happen out of embarrassment or guilt....but it doesn’t matter what the reason. It’s a negative behavior that  can derail your weight loss!

There is no magic pill or solution to avoid combat eating.  But with the following tips and techniques you can combat this unhealthy habit!

**Take care of the hunger so that You’re not even tempted to walk into the kitchen.   Identify the problem times and try to avoid being really hungry during that time period.  For me it has been the first few minutes when I get home from work.   I started packing an extra piece of fruit to eat in the car on the commute home.   

**Find an activity to do to help fill that void of time where the closet eating is likely to occur.  Pick up a hobby.   Instead of eating, if your hands and mind are both occupied with a different activity you will be less tempted to eat uncontrollably.  Hobbies?  Running, biking, fishing, crochet, scrapbooking, woodworking.   Anything that strikes your fancy!

**Don’t start!   Don’t even start with the ‘first bite’. One bite when alone usually leads to multiple bites until a full meal worth of calories of closet eaten food is eaten.  Avoid snacking  alone...period.

**Journal the closet eaten food! Tracking your food gives a level of accountability.   It somehow becomes real when you have to actually write/type it all down.

**Find an accountability partner. Find someone that you can be totally honest with and share your struggles.  Find someone that will build you up when you struggle but also give you tough love when you need it. 

** Most importantly, forgive yourself. You will struggle and have slip ups.  Don’t beat yourself up.  Instead, forgive yourself.  Stop looking back at your failures but instead look forward. To making better choices.

Closet eating can have a negative impact on your weight loss. But if you are a closet eater, with these techniques  you can still have great success with your weight loss!  

Out of the ‘closet eating’

This has been an interesting week.   No, I didn’t run a marathon…or swim the English Channel.  No, I didn’t set the world on fire with my weight loss.  No, I didn’t do anything earth shattering.  But what I DID do was make some discoveries about myself….I my friends, am a closet eater.

 

First let’s talk about my exercise.  I have managed to continue to walk on my breaks and my lunch at work.  That nets me about 6000 steps…and I can usually make it to 7000 -7500 steps with my evening movement once I get home.    That’s not enough.  I’m missing the mark on my 8000 step goal.  I can sometimes walk in the morning before work, but that depends upon the traffic and if I actually make it to work in time to make a lap.    So my steps have been lacking.  BUT…I am walking!   So while not a victory, it’s at least not a colossal failure!

 

That said, I did get some pictures taken of the lake where I walk….

And my ‘exercise trauma/drama for the week was my Thursday Lunch walk.  I was smiling at the beginning.

 But then I twisted my ankle…….and if that wasn’t enough, a bit later I choked on a grape!  But I continued to walk and even pushed my steps a bit further than normal.

So my weight???    Up from last week by about a pound or two.  I woke up thirsty today...not a good sign for the numbers on the scale!  And well...the monthly water retention is right around the corner!!  (Edit:  I posted this ‘Friday’ weekly summary and within 5 minutes realized that the dates looked wonky!  Oh no!  It’s only Thursday!   Talk about disappoint, two more days of work versus one!!  I thought about taking the post down...but decided to leave it up.  Who knows...I might post again tomorrow and make this a four post week!!) 

 

Next up my eating?  I would love to say that I abided by the ‘rules’ that I set forth a few weeks back.  (8000 steps and available calories before I would allow myself a sweet treat at night.”   I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t make this goal…..I did not make the step goal even once.  I did however manage to keep my calories under budget….BARELY!   My top end of the range of calories is 1500….and Wednesday night AFTER I ate my cookies I put in my food for the day…I came in at 1497 calories.  Talk about squeaking by!  

 

But that brings me to my subject of this post.  My eating habits.

 

On Wednesday I made a vow that I was NOT going to eat any cookies.  I made the vow to my friend Julie via an email.  We talked about our significant others and how we were going to resist, even if they sat there shoveling cookies into their mouths like they were a starving Santa Claus.  It was a vow…it was set it stone and written down…No problem.  Right?  Yeah…well…….2 small chocolate chip cookies that night.   I still at least came in under the top end of my caloric range…but seriously…where was my will power????

 

My big problem was the after work snack.  I get home at right around 6PM.  We usually don’t eat until 8 or so.  I have been finding myself gravitating to the kitchen as soon as I get home on some days.  I dig out a handful or chips or pretzels and I indulge.  If it’s only a pretzel stick or two it’s not bad.  But some days I shovel food into my mouth like there is no tomorrow.  Why are some days bad snack days and some days are not so bad?    This week I figured it out.  I am a closet eater.

 

I got home on Wednesday evening,  Jason’s work van was there but he was nowhere to be found inside the apartment.  A quick glance in the den (aka bike bedroom) revealed his bike was missing.  I had a fleeting moment of throwing on my running clothes and heading out for a run.  FLEETING!  Instead, I moseyed (it was a fast trot actually) to the kitchen where I indulged in some chips and dip...some pretzels and dip…..and then to round out the festivities the last handful of Cheetos in the bag.  I finished up just as I heard Jason’s key in the door.  Yeah, I probably would have continued to eat had he not come home.  In fact, had he BEEN at home, I KNOW that I would have only had a small handful of chips.  I indulged because there was no one there to see me.  I’m a closet eater!  

 

 Luckily Jason usually beats me home...so closet eating isn’t an issue every evening.  However, that said I know I can’t rely on ‘never being alone’ to correct my issue.  So I’m working on some plans and ideas to combat this issue of closet eating.  So stay tuned for a future post!

Success Story - Lori

Lori chose the stealth mode when she started her weight loss journey.   She made the decision and quietly started to work on her weight.  It was quite a while before she actually announced to the general public (aka Facebook) that she had not only been working on her weight, but had been having some nice success.   As scary as it is to come forward and admit to the world that she was on this journey to health, Lori has showed us that you can have a busy life and have great success!

I had the pleasure of meeting Lori in college.  During my senior year, she and I lived in the same dorm and in fact our rooms were pretty much right across the hall.  Lori was the most vivacious and fun person to be around.  Her creativity and wit were a spark that made dorm life even more fun. (Seriously, who else do you know that would create a non-working fireplace in her dorm room at Christmas to celebrate the holiday!)  As I’ve seen her Facebook posts over the years I can see that the creativity and wit are still a driving part of her personality.   I was working on an idea for a success story page in my head when I saw her most recent post about her success and when I asked her, she very willingly accepted the offer to answer some questions.  Thank you Lori!

What sparked you to begin to lose weight?? I had a picture taken of me with my dad at Thanksgiving in 2016.  Thanksgiving has been tough for me, since my mom passed away and that Thanksgiving was especially hard, because it was the first since my dad had remarried.  I remember looking at that picture and seeing how sad I looked.  I mean, once you get beyond the fact that I was in desperate need of a dye job, I was overweight, sad, uncomfortable in my own skin.  I just didn’t like what I saw.   I also realized at 41, I was only a few years away from the age my mom was when she was diagnosed with Type 2 Diabetes and High Blood Pressure, that in some ways lead to her having the first of a series of debilitating strokes at the age of 50.  I knew I needed to make some changes in my life. It wasn’t something that happened all at once, but that picture kind of solidified a lot of my thoughts up to that point and haunted me in a way that helped me make the decision to quietly sign up for Weight Watchers about 6 weeks later in January of 2017.

What was your highest weight?   Current weight? My highest weight was 185.  That might not seem like a lot to some, but I’m only 4’10”.  My current weight is fluctuating around 136-140.How much weight have your lost in pounds? 45-49 – again with the fluctuationsWhat was your starting clothing size?  Your current size?  I was busting out of my 16s and fit into a pair of 18s, and now I’m around an 8/10.  I say 8, because I currently own TWO size 8 shorts!  Whoop! 

  What plan did you follow to lose your weight?  (ie weight watchers, slim fast, a plan of your own creation...)  I chose Weight Watchers and it’s been amazing for me.  I totally look at food differently now.  My son is a Type 1 Diabetic and has been since he was 7.  So, I’ve been helping him count carbs for years.  Counting points was an easy process for me to get used to.  It also allows me to have things I like.  In the past, I would give up all the things I liked the most – sugary things, CARBS!  With Weight Watchers I could still have those things, but only enough to satisfy that need and not exceed my points goal for the day.  I like the freedom of choice I have with Weight Watchers.

Have you reached your weight loss goal?  If so, how long have you been maintaining your weight?  I set out to get down to 120, but haven’t achieved that goal yet.  So, this is a work still in process.  I will say that I’ve started to get comfortable with the fact that maybe getting into the 130s is where my realistic, I’m-in-my-40s-now, health goal should be.  Still working that out with myself.

 Do you consistently track your food intake (via online or paperform) I consistently tracked my food daily on weightwatchers.com and their phone app for a solid year.  This year I’ve been hit and miss with my tracking.  Some days I’m great at it, some days….not so much.

 How often do you weigh yourself?  How did you come to that choice for how often?  I weigh myself almost daily.  I went a whole week once without weighing myself and I found I was super stressed by the not knowing and worried that I was gaining. So, I usually weigh myself first thing in the morning as a start to my day.

 What online tools do you use?  Beyond the Weight Watchers website, I use Pinterest for recipes.

Do your exercise regularly?  If so, what do you do?  I work with preschoolers, so in the beginning I just noted my daily steps.  But, I didn’t exercise intentionally until a good 4-5 months into my diet, because I really wanted to focus my energy into changing my eating habits.  Late April of ’17 I started walking with my family.  I now do power walks almost daily and sometimes incorporate jogging with that.  I love my walks!

 Do you have any words of advice for someone that is just starting out on this journey of weight loss and health?  I’ve had a lot of people ask me this question.  I’ve been struggling with my weight since Jr. High.  I’ve done tons of diets and failed at nearly all of them.  I think you really need to WANT it.  To realize that the bite of food you’re missing isn’t worth the struggle and sadness that often accompanies eating it.  I think they need to know that the mental part of a lifestyle/weight loss journey is MUCH tougher than the physical part.  I wasn’t prepared for the mental back and forth.  But, overall, I’d say that taking control of your life and your weight is one of the most empowering things I’ve ever done.  I know that this is not over for me.   My weight and, in turn, food will always be an issue for me.  This is a lifestyle change.  I won’t allow myself to eat like I used to.  I feel too good now to want to go back to that.    

 Is there anything else you would like to share?   I guess it just comes back to finding a way to be ok with this being a long-term goal and not a short term one.  Losing weight has always been about immediate goal-reaching for me.  If I wanted to lose 20 lbs and did, well, then I was done and would go back to eating my favorites all the time (Doritos anyone?), which led to gaining everything back.  This time the difference has been about doing it the right way.  Making life changes to my diet.  So, I’m a year and a half in and haven’t met my goal.  BUT, I’m still working.  I keep working.  I keep being aware of what I eat and when I exercise and look for ways to change things up to make more progress.  And, while the challenge of the mental part of it can be tiresome and overwhelming at times, the food part hasn’t been as hard as I thought it would be.  I still worry about failing.  I think anyone that has struggled with weight in their lifetime knows that Failure is that scary guy in the corner, but I feel equipped now in ways I haven’t ever before.  I’m no one special.  Just a gal who’s been right where everyone else has. The fact that I’ve lost weight in a way that others find successful is still a surprise to me.  

 Thank you Lori for taking the time to share your thoughts and weight loss success story with us.  You truly are an inspiration!  Keep up the great work!