I am very excited to announce to all of you readers the very exciting news...my husband and I are expecting our first child! I am almost 12 weeks along and have been fully experiencing the pregnancy symptoms of the first trimester.
This is REALLY exciting for us, but it has also made things really tough trying to figure out my health issues. I did go wheat free for a week, and I did start to feel better but I was still really sick and tired, which is most likely from the pregnancy...but I slowly started eating foods again that I shouldn't. I took some time this summer to focus on me and my health and I really have gotten NO WHERE. I am no further ahead than I was two months ago.
The problem with eating only whole foods over the past few weeks is that I really don't like food right now. I have been eating very little and I can't really stomach the thought of many foods - including meat, fruits, and most veggies - which is essentially the basis of whole foods!
So here is where I am at - right now I have the perfect appetite, I only eat when I am hungry, and when I do it, I eat MUCH smaller portions, which is more in line with what I should be eating normally. BUT I am not eating the right foods - so I need to make a really conscious effort to take it one day at a time and really try to get past the nausea and suck it up. I have finally been able to get back to the gym so I have been trying to go three times a week, but my workouts have been lighter (which is okay).
Hopefully it won't be much longer before I will feel like eating more foods again and can focus on my health again.
Let's see what the next few months brings us...
until next time.
About Me
- Kelly
- I started my weight loss journey at 19 years old weighing 274 pounds, wearing a Size 22-24. I lost 115 pounds over two years, and was wearing a size 8! I got married, let my determination fall and I slowly gained 50 pounds of that back. Then I got pregnant and added another 55 pounds onto what I had lost. I am down 35 pounds so far and 70 pounds away from my goal. Join me on this life long journey!
Monday, August 20, 2012
Thursday, July 26, 2012
Remeber me?
It seems to have been quite a while since I have last written and for that I apologize. It was not that I forgot you, it was in fact that I have just been too stinkin tired to write!
Okay so here is the latest news: I am about to embark on an exciting and terrifying journey, that many before me have already done. I am going to be going wheat free.
Let me back up a bit here. As you might be able to tell from previous posts, I have been having health problems for quite some time now, and they are getting progressively worse. The largest symptom being that I am extremely fatigued ALL THE TIME. For those of you who know me, know some of what I have bee going through.
I have had many blood tests done among other tests, seen a few specialists, with the answers continually coming up blank. When I was in BC last week I went to see a natropath who told me within in 30 seconds of me being there a few things that were wrong that were causing these health issues I've been dealing with.
One of the main things he pointed out (just from feeling my pulse) was that I have a wheat intolerance. I had heard a bit about this before but did not know too much, so once I got back to my cousin's place I looked into this further on my good friend GOOGLE. I found LOTS of information and in fact every since one of the health issues I've been having are symptoms of a wheat intolerance. I was shocked that within 30 seconds this guy could figure out what we had not been able to figure out for a few years now. Not once had it crossed my mind that it could be something I was eating since my symptoms are not typical food allergy symptoms.
Being that I was on vacation I was not willing to just give up wheat on the spot, plus I wanted to do some more research on it. Now I got home late Sunday night and have been looking into it everyday since. I really really believe that this is the answer - so now I just have to test out the theory.
Starting tomorrow I am going to be going 100% wheat free. Now in previous years I gave up sugar, and did feel better from it, so I figure since I am giving up wheat I might as well give up sugar at the same time and focus on eating only natural, whole foods. I am going to give this a go for a few weeks and see how much it helps. I am hoping that I don't have to go dairy free too, although I would obviously give it a try if I was feeling much better.
Given that this works (which again after my research I really think it will) it is so nice to have an answer!
I have still not been sleeping great but starting Sunday I am going to get back into my daily sleeping pattern. I know it didn't really work well before, but I am hoping that paired with the new eating plan, and the daily exercise I will be able to get back on track and start feeling better.
This really has been affecting my entire life for the past few years and I am really looking forward to seeing the results. It is nice to have the time to focus on my health and try to dig deeper into what is really going on with my body. I am going to start out easy and just eat meat, fruit, veggies, and nuts for a few days and then maybe I'll get a little more creative from there...
and I promise not to be gone for so long next time!
Okay so here is the latest news: I am about to embark on an exciting and terrifying journey, that many before me have already done. I am going to be going wheat free.
Let me back up a bit here. As you might be able to tell from previous posts, I have been having health problems for quite some time now, and they are getting progressively worse. The largest symptom being that I am extremely fatigued ALL THE TIME. For those of you who know me, know some of what I have bee going through.
I have had many blood tests done among other tests, seen a few specialists, with the answers continually coming up blank. When I was in BC last week I went to see a natropath who told me within in 30 seconds of me being there a few things that were wrong that were causing these health issues I've been dealing with.
One of the main things he pointed out (just from feeling my pulse) was that I have a wheat intolerance. I had heard a bit about this before but did not know too much, so once I got back to my cousin's place I looked into this further on my good friend GOOGLE. I found LOTS of information and in fact every since one of the health issues I've been having are symptoms of a wheat intolerance. I was shocked that within 30 seconds this guy could figure out what we had not been able to figure out for a few years now. Not once had it crossed my mind that it could be something I was eating since my symptoms are not typical food allergy symptoms.
Being that I was on vacation I was not willing to just give up wheat on the spot, plus I wanted to do some more research on it. Now I got home late Sunday night and have been looking into it everyday since. I really really believe that this is the answer - so now I just have to test out the theory.
Starting tomorrow I am going to be going 100% wheat free. Now in previous years I gave up sugar, and did feel better from it, so I figure since I am giving up wheat I might as well give up sugar at the same time and focus on eating only natural, whole foods. I am going to give this a go for a few weeks and see how much it helps. I am hoping that I don't have to go dairy free too, although I would obviously give it a try if I was feeling much better.
Given that this works (which again after my research I really think it will) it is so nice to have an answer!
I have still not been sleeping great but starting Sunday I am going to get back into my daily sleeping pattern. I know it didn't really work well before, but I am hoping that paired with the new eating plan, and the daily exercise I will be able to get back on track and start feeling better.
This really has been affecting my entire life for the past few years and I am really looking forward to seeing the results. It is nice to have the time to focus on my health and try to dig deeper into what is really going on with my body. I am going to start out easy and just eat meat, fruit, veggies, and nuts for a few days and then maybe I'll get a little more creative from there...
and I promise not to be gone for so long next time!
Sunday, June 10, 2012
a bit of this and a bit of that
Remember my blog post about music and how much it means to me? Normally when something is wrong I can usually find a song to relate to it. Today this one line from a PINK song is resonating in my head:
"Every day I fight a war against the mirror
I can't take the person starin' back at me"
Now that is not to say that I can't stand myself, I am working hard to get back to where I was and accept myself for who I am.
One of the best feelings is driving in the summer with the really bright, warm sun shining down and the music just cranked. Not a care in the world!
I had an anxiety attack the other day - and I didn't know what happened until afterwards. I didn't think I ever got anxiety attacks but I can think of at least one other time this happened to me.
So remember on Monday when I was feeling down after my workout at the gym? Well I went into Angelo's to get some pizza sauce for dinner and saw someone that I had not seen in a long time. I had gone to highschool with him when I was large, then ran into him at work right before my wedding and he has said how good I was looking (I was at my most fit then) and we had chatted for a bit and I haven't seen him since. He was in there and I did everything possible to keep from running into him. After I managed to leave the store with my sauce and not running into him I let out the breath I didn't realize I was holding and felt normal again. Very weird occurrence but I am chalking it up to the fact that I had just been upset with myself at the gym.
On a more positive note I have had a bit more energy yesterday and today. Yesterday I lasted longer than today but today I lasted longer than I have in a while. I am hoping that this sleeping pattern will pay off and that I stop waking up with such bad headaches soon. \
This was a pretty good weekend - we went to Tara's game yesterday then over to the states to get a few things, then today after church I had a meeting then came home and cleaned the apartment before heading to Sean's parents place to hang out for a bit while Sean and his Dad worked on something.
We all went out to dinner at Palasad (Sean and I are trying to chose new places to eat). We ordered a salad and a pizza to share. As soon as the salad came and I took one look at it, I decided that I was not sharing because it looked SO GOOD. I took one bite and was just in heaven. I did share some with him, but not half like I had planned, since I ended up having less pizza (which was also REALLY good). I had the Apple and Goat Cheese salad - and I would strongly recommend it to anyone!
My night time routine is going okay, it's a nuisance on the weekend let me tell you, and I have felt a bit better from doing it, but not much. I am going to keep on with it, as well as my Herbalife vitamins.
"Every day I fight a war against the mirror
I can't take the person starin' back at me"
Now that is not to say that I can't stand myself, I am working hard to get back to where I was and accept myself for who I am.
One of the best feelings is driving in the summer with the really bright, warm sun shining down and the music just cranked. Not a care in the world!
I had an anxiety attack the other day - and I didn't know what happened until afterwards. I didn't think I ever got anxiety attacks but I can think of at least one other time this happened to me.
So remember on Monday when I was feeling down after my workout at the gym? Well I went into Angelo's to get some pizza sauce for dinner and saw someone that I had not seen in a long time. I had gone to highschool with him when I was large, then ran into him at work right before my wedding and he has said how good I was looking (I was at my most fit then) and we had chatted for a bit and I haven't seen him since. He was in there and I did everything possible to keep from running into him. After I managed to leave the store with my sauce and not running into him I let out the breath I didn't realize I was holding and felt normal again. Very weird occurrence but I am chalking it up to the fact that I had just been upset with myself at the gym.
On a more positive note I have had a bit more energy yesterday and today. Yesterday I lasted longer than today but today I lasted longer than I have in a while. I am hoping that this sleeping pattern will pay off and that I stop waking up with such bad headaches soon. \
This was a pretty good weekend - we went to Tara's game yesterday then over to the states to get a few things, then today after church I had a meeting then came home and cleaned the apartment before heading to Sean's parents place to hang out for a bit while Sean and his Dad worked on something.
We all went out to dinner at Palasad (Sean and I are trying to chose new places to eat). We ordered a salad and a pizza to share. As soon as the salad came and I took one look at it, I decided that I was not sharing because it looked SO GOOD. I took one bite and was just in heaven. I did share some with him, but not half like I had planned, since I ended up having less pizza (which was also REALLY good). I had the Apple and Goat Cheese salad - and I would strongly recommend it to anyone!
My night time routine is going okay, it's a nuisance on the weekend let me tell you, and I have felt a bit better from doing it, but not much. I am going to keep on with it, as well as my Herbalife vitamins.
Tuesday, June 5, 2012
Pity party for 1
I was going to write a post last night but I was too busy holding a pity party for 1.
I have been working on my sleep hygiene and it is actually really tough to get into a sleep pattern. I am still really really tired and hoping that I start to feel the benefits soon (Google says it's about two weeks before you notice a difference). I've been having a very hard time saying awake during the day, and especially in the evening. My sleep time is 10 pm so it is very tough to stay away that long especially when I am SO tired. I have been waking up with headaches everyday too, that go away shortly after having a shower and eating.
So after work yesterday I met Sean at the gym and we got changed to do our workout. Then we sat there for 5 minutes and complained that we were both so tired and just wanted to go home. We contemplated leaving before working out but I was like that would be SO lazy and lame to get dressed then just change again and go home when we were already there. So we pursued our workout. I started my warm up walking on the treadmill and then went to the mats to do a good stretch. When I was stretching there were three females that were working out in the area that were super fit and it made me feel really crummy. I know you shouldn't compare yourself to others but I was down on the fact that I had let myself get like this (put some weight back on). I ended up doing a half an hour cardio workout then we went home.
I am feeling a bit better today, although still down, but I am trying to focus on the positive. The good thing is that I did NOT go home and eat my feelings! I made dinner, ate good portions, then had a portioned snack. Previously I would have just said "forget this" and eaten what ever I wanted. I am still determined to lose 8 pounds this month - and I am going to do it!
Today I am going to try a new idea - right as I am leaving work I am going to have a lift off to help power me through my workout. I have a really good workout plan for this week so I just have to stay focused on it.
Monday - gym
Tuesday - Lee
Wednesday - soccer
Thursday - gym
Friday - Lee
Saturday - gym
Sunday - hiking with Sean and Levi
I am going to finish this Debbie Downer post with three things that I am grateful for right now:
1. My back is no longer hurting me (for the most part)
2. I have a lot of exciting trips to looks forward to
3. I am starting to feel like my old self, little bit by little bit - but I notice them more obviously when they happen little bits at a time.
I have been working on my sleep hygiene and it is actually really tough to get into a sleep pattern. I am still really really tired and hoping that I start to feel the benefits soon (Google says it's about two weeks before you notice a difference). I've been having a very hard time saying awake during the day, and especially in the evening. My sleep time is 10 pm so it is very tough to stay away that long especially when I am SO tired. I have been waking up with headaches everyday too, that go away shortly after having a shower and eating.
So after work yesterday I met Sean at the gym and we got changed to do our workout. Then we sat there for 5 minutes and complained that we were both so tired and just wanted to go home. We contemplated leaving before working out but I was like that would be SO lazy and lame to get dressed then just change again and go home when we were already there. So we pursued our workout. I started my warm up walking on the treadmill and then went to the mats to do a good stretch. When I was stretching there were three females that were working out in the area that were super fit and it made me feel really crummy. I know you shouldn't compare yourself to others but I was down on the fact that I had let myself get like this (put some weight back on). I ended up doing a half an hour cardio workout then we went home.
I am feeling a bit better today, although still down, but I am trying to focus on the positive. The good thing is that I did NOT go home and eat my feelings! I made dinner, ate good portions, then had a portioned snack. Previously I would have just said "forget this" and eaten what ever I wanted. I am still determined to lose 8 pounds this month - and I am going to do it!
Today I am going to try a new idea - right as I am leaving work I am going to have a lift off to help power me through my workout. I have a really good workout plan for this week so I just have to stay focused on it.
Monday - gym
Tuesday - Lee
Wednesday - soccer
Thursday - gym
Friday - Lee
Saturday - gym
Sunday - hiking with Sean and Levi
I am going to finish this Debbie Downer post with three things that I am grateful for right now:
1. My back is no longer hurting me (for the most part)
2. I have a lot of exciting trips to looks forward to
3. I am starting to feel like my old self, little bit by little bit - but I notice them more obviously when they happen little bits at a time.
Friday, June 1, 2012
Rain...the perfect weather!
Yes indeed you did read that right. Rain is the PERFECT weather for this weekend. I have a lot to get done around the apartment and I started a growing list of things to accomplish this weekend that will take me quite some time and having weather like this is perfect to complete it in. I can see it now, staying in comfy clothes all weekend while ticking off things from my to do list, it brings a smile to my face.
Which brings me to today's rainy day blog topic: things that make us happy. I thought it would be best for me to start a list, since I have been talking about this with a few people lately.
Things that make me smile:
- drinking a tall glass of very cold water
- a clean work space (this actually makes me very giddy)
- crossing off items from a to do list
- curled up with my blanket, Levi, and a good book
- talking to friends
- a really good stretch
- getting new "supplies" for our apartment
- seeing my bed made
- a tidy apartment
- a blanket right out of the dryer on a chilly day
- a clean car
- the sun warming my skin
- my freckles
- snuggles with Levi
- Teeth that were just brushed
My favourite smells:
- fresh laundry
- freshly cut grass
- mulch
- lilac
- campfire
- Subway
- being outside, in the country
- freshly washed and dried hair
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Okay, so for those of you who don't know me, might not get why this is SUCH a big deal for me, but maybe you can relate.
Last night I was not feeling the greatest and was laying on the couch with my blanket and Levi watching a movie. I was so comfortable and started wishing I had some Kettle Corn popcorn to munch on. I was hum'ing and ha'ing as to go to the store to get some. I looked up the points on my phone and knew that I had enough to get some - so I paused the movie, got up and got dressed and went to the store.
On the way to the store I was thinking "OH! They have a bulk section there, and a few little chocolate treats would go PERFECT with my popcorn." Then I thought "OOHHHH what I really want is a brownie from Remark, so I will go there instead of getting popcorn and chocolate." So I decided I would go get the brownie. Since my goal was to lose 8 pounds in June, and it was still May I was totally "safe".
This is when the light bulb went on and I actually talked out loud to myself "WHAT ARE YOU DOING? That is exactly why you are struggling so much right now, because you keep saying I'll do better TOMORROW. Why not RIGHT NOW? You got off the couch, got dressed and left the apartment to get popcorn. You are going to go into that store, get popcorn ONLY and leave. Otherwise if you don't think you can do that you will turn around and go home with nothing".
Okay so weird to talk to myself in the car...maybe (but at least I have tinted windows!) and it totally worked! I was thinking look at this food frenzy from 1 minute to the next you had totally changed what you were going for and would have eaten way more calories than planned - and still have been craving popcorn at the end!
I got the kettle corn, went home and measured out my serving and munched on it quite happily. It feels really great that I was able to stop myself and realize what I was doing and actually care enough to change my thoughts (I often know what I am buying I shouldn't but I tell myself I just don't care, I'll do better tomorrow).
Anyways, if that has ever happened to you then you will understand how proud I am of that moment and TOOT TOOT my own horn. And if you don't understand then I just wasted a few minutes of your time while you read that!
______________________________________________________________________________________
Tonight I have a workout session after work then I am grabbing Subway before heading to a movie night at the church, with a bunch of other women, in our comfy clothes!
Enjoy your weekend, what ever the weather is where you live and do something positive!
Which brings me to today's rainy day blog topic: things that make us happy. I thought it would be best for me to start a list, since I have been talking about this with a few people lately.
Things that make me smile:
- drinking a tall glass of very cold water
- a clean work space (this actually makes me very giddy)
- crossing off items from a to do list
- curled up with my blanket, Levi, and a good book
- talking to friends
- a really good stretch
- getting new "supplies" for our apartment
- seeing my bed made
- a tidy apartment
- a blanket right out of the dryer on a chilly day
- a clean car
- the sun warming my skin
- my freckles
- snuggles with Levi
- Teeth that were just brushed
My favourite smells:
- fresh laundry
- freshly cut grass
- mulch
- lilac
- campfire
- Subway
- being outside, in the country
- freshly washed and dried hair
_____________________________________________________________________________________
Okay, so for those of you who don't know me, might not get why this is SUCH a big deal for me, but maybe you can relate.
Last night I was not feeling the greatest and was laying on the couch with my blanket and Levi watching a movie. I was so comfortable and started wishing I had some Kettle Corn popcorn to munch on. I was hum'ing and ha'ing as to go to the store to get some. I looked up the points on my phone and knew that I had enough to get some - so I paused the movie, got up and got dressed and went to the store.
On the way to the store I was thinking "OH! They have a bulk section there, and a few little chocolate treats would go PERFECT with my popcorn." Then I thought "OOHHHH what I really want is a brownie from Remark, so I will go there instead of getting popcorn and chocolate." So I decided I would go get the brownie. Since my goal was to lose 8 pounds in June, and it was still May I was totally "safe".
This is when the light bulb went on and I actually talked out loud to myself "WHAT ARE YOU DOING? That is exactly why you are struggling so much right now, because you keep saying I'll do better TOMORROW. Why not RIGHT NOW? You got off the couch, got dressed and left the apartment to get popcorn. You are going to go into that store, get popcorn ONLY and leave. Otherwise if you don't think you can do that you will turn around and go home with nothing".
Okay so weird to talk to myself in the car...maybe (but at least I have tinted windows!) and it totally worked! I was thinking look at this food frenzy from 1 minute to the next you had totally changed what you were going for and would have eaten way more calories than planned - and still have been craving popcorn at the end!
I got the kettle corn, went home and measured out my serving and munched on it quite happily. It feels really great that I was able to stop myself and realize what I was doing and actually care enough to change my thoughts (I often know what I am buying I shouldn't but I tell myself I just don't care, I'll do better tomorrow).
Anyways, if that has ever happened to you then you will understand how proud I am of that moment and TOOT TOOT my own horn. And if you don't understand then I just wasted a few minutes of your time while you read that!
______________________________________________________________________________________
Tonight I have a workout session after work then I am grabbing Subway before heading to a movie night at the church, with a bunch of other women, in our comfy clothes!
Enjoy your weekend, what ever the weather is where you live and do something positive!
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Top of the morning to ya...
This weather has been so nice this past few weeks. They are calling for rain all weekend but we will see what we get! This is my first weekend in a bit that I do not have anything planned - well a few things, but for the most part it is just taking it easy.
I started my new sleep routine on Monday of this week and so far it's actually been really challenging. Like anything it will take a while until I notice a difference but for now I will keep sticking to it. I have been spending 9-10pm doing relaxing things, like reading, visualization, etc. then being in bed by 10 with lights out. I have been having a hard time staying awake until 10. I am waking up at 6:30, but also having trouble with that too, I have been rolling out of bed at 6:50am and leaving myself very little time to get ready for work. It will be interesting on the weekend to see what happens with waking up at 6:30. Hopefully it will give me a chance to get more stuff done.
Tomorrow is June 1st which means that my May HBL challenge will be "officially" over, although I still plan on continuing to follow it. I have not been able to drink the tea because it has been so hot but I have been drinking a lot more water than normal it try to keep cool.
That brings us to June's challenge. My goal is to lose 8 pounds this month. I have been doing really well with my eating and I have been slowly increasing my exercise to help me get back to where I was and then hopefully better than that. I have been doing activity every day. I am looking forward to next week because it is very open so I plan on getting lots of activity in. Sean is back on days next week so I am going to try to find some activities for us to do together. We both like playing tennis (and we both equally suck) so hopefully we will be able to get some of that in as well as some hiking and who knows what else. I switched gyms so now I can workout with my sister, and some other friends so hopefully that will give me some more company to keep things interesting at the gym. If not, I will always rely on my trusty ipod to keep me company!
Tara and I are going to start really planning our NYC trip this weekend. We know the dates we want to go, and we know we want to do one day shopping, two days site seeing, but that is about it. My reward for losing the 8 pounds will be extra shopping money to spend on me. If I don't lose the 8 pounds then I will just be window shopping, which will not be near as fun. We plan on getting a lot of exercise while we are there by doing lots of walking and possibly even renting bikes! It is bound to be a great time!
Overall my summer is shaping up quite nicely since I have a lot of things to look forward to between, NYC, camping, BC, and more! My calendar is filling up with lots of fun and healthy activities! The thought of summer gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. Fresh fruit and veggies, the smell of BBQ's, crispy salad, warm skin and a slight breeze, chasing after the soccer ball, swimming, driving with the windows down and music up, and so much more. Other than the humidity, what is not to love about summer?
I started my new sleep routine on Monday of this week and so far it's actually been really challenging. Like anything it will take a while until I notice a difference but for now I will keep sticking to it. I have been spending 9-10pm doing relaxing things, like reading, visualization, etc. then being in bed by 10 with lights out. I have been having a hard time staying awake until 10. I am waking up at 6:30, but also having trouble with that too, I have been rolling out of bed at 6:50am and leaving myself very little time to get ready for work. It will be interesting on the weekend to see what happens with waking up at 6:30. Hopefully it will give me a chance to get more stuff done.
Tomorrow is June 1st which means that my May HBL challenge will be "officially" over, although I still plan on continuing to follow it. I have not been able to drink the tea because it has been so hot but I have been drinking a lot more water than normal it try to keep cool.
That brings us to June's challenge. My goal is to lose 8 pounds this month. I have been doing really well with my eating and I have been slowly increasing my exercise to help me get back to where I was and then hopefully better than that. I have been doing activity every day. I am looking forward to next week because it is very open so I plan on getting lots of activity in. Sean is back on days next week so I am going to try to find some activities for us to do together. We both like playing tennis (and we both equally suck) so hopefully we will be able to get some of that in as well as some hiking and who knows what else. I switched gyms so now I can workout with my sister, and some other friends so hopefully that will give me some more company to keep things interesting at the gym. If not, I will always rely on my trusty ipod to keep me company!
Tara and I are going to start really planning our NYC trip this weekend. We know the dates we want to go, and we know we want to do one day shopping, two days site seeing, but that is about it. My reward for losing the 8 pounds will be extra shopping money to spend on me. If I don't lose the 8 pounds then I will just be window shopping, which will not be near as fun. We plan on getting a lot of exercise while we are there by doing lots of walking and possibly even renting bikes! It is bound to be a great time!
Overall my summer is shaping up quite nicely since I have a lot of things to look forward to between, NYC, camping, BC, and more! My calendar is filling up with lots of fun and healthy activities! The thought of summer gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. Fresh fruit and veggies, the smell of BBQ's, crispy salad, warm skin and a slight breeze, chasing after the soccer ball, swimming, driving with the windows down and music up, and so much more. Other than the humidity, what is not to love about summer?
Monday, May 28, 2012
Give it time...
This weekend was very busy but overall pretty good. On Friday my physiotherapist recommend that I start back doing more exercise than walking again. On Friday night I had a session with Lee at the track and we did a fairly easy session compared to normal, but I woke up Saturday very sore.
I went to weight watchers on Saturday morning and then to our walk in the park with our women's ministry. After that I was so tired I took a nap. When I got up, Sean and I went on our date night to celebrate our two year anniversary, and we had a really great time!
Sunday I was up early and went to Church - I was on nursery and the kiddies were so well behaved and cute. Afterwards we went out for lunch, then I did some errands with Tara. I ended up switching my gym membership to Goodlife from The Athletic Club, just because they have so many more locations and I know a number of people that go there. After running around I had a short rest before my soccer game. It was a good game, I feel I played pretty well, and I got a goal! I was very close to a second goal but had my ankles taken out by the other teams goalie.
I have started to notice a difference from keeping on the HBL vitamins. Although my energy has not increased I am starting to feel better health over all, especially in my nails, they are so strong and nice looking! I am also noticing a difference in my joints! I have some extreme exhaustion, which I have had for a while. My doctor is sending me to a sleep doctor to see if they can help me figure out why I am SO tired all of the time. I have also been making better food choices, and tracking everything honestly. Every day that I track honestly I give myself a sticker - a princess sticker non-the-less.
I have been doing some research on the internet about sleeping and I am going to try to set a sleep schedule this week. I am going to spend from 9-10 winding down and getting into a bedtime routine, and be in bed by 10. I am going to wake up at 6:30 every day (which allows for a 30 minutes of falling asleep time, and still gives me a full 8 hours.) I am going to make my bedroom into a place that is just for sleeping, and tidy it up (I know that always makes me feel so much better when it is tidy). I have a relaxation CD that I will play to set the tone of relaxing, make sure the room is completely dark and most importantly - NOT USE MY PHONE! I am going to set a nightly timer for 9pm and I will have to turn everything off at that point (even if I am in the middle of a show).
I will keep you updated on how things workout! I have a feeling that just like my HBL vitamins, I will have to give it time and not give up!
I went to weight watchers on Saturday morning and then to our walk in the park with our women's ministry. After that I was so tired I took a nap. When I got up, Sean and I went on our date night to celebrate our two year anniversary, and we had a really great time!
Sunday I was up early and went to Church - I was on nursery and the kiddies were so well behaved and cute. Afterwards we went out for lunch, then I did some errands with Tara. I ended up switching my gym membership to Goodlife from The Athletic Club, just because they have so many more locations and I know a number of people that go there. After running around I had a short rest before my soccer game. It was a good game, I feel I played pretty well, and I got a goal! I was very close to a second goal but had my ankles taken out by the other teams goalie.
I have started to notice a difference from keeping on the HBL vitamins. Although my energy has not increased I am starting to feel better health over all, especially in my nails, they are so strong and nice looking! I am also noticing a difference in my joints! I have some extreme exhaustion, which I have had for a while. My doctor is sending me to a sleep doctor to see if they can help me figure out why I am SO tired all of the time. I have also been making better food choices, and tracking everything honestly. Every day that I track honestly I give myself a sticker - a princess sticker non-the-less.
I have been doing some research on the internet about sleeping and I am going to try to set a sleep schedule this week. I am going to spend from 9-10 winding down and getting into a bedtime routine, and be in bed by 10. I am going to wake up at 6:30 every day (which allows for a 30 minutes of falling asleep time, and still gives me a full 8 hours.) I am going to make my bedroom into a place that is just for sleeping, and tidy it up (I know that always makes me feel so much better when it is tidy). I have a relaxation CD that I will play to set the tone of relaxing, make sure the room is completely dark and most importantly - NOT USE MY PHONE! I am going to set a nightly timer for 9pm and I will have to turn everything off at that point (even if I am in the middle of a show).
I will keep you updated on how things workout! I have a feeling that just like my HBL vitamins, I will have to give it time and not give up!
Tuesday, May 22, 2012
A great week to workout...
I went to bed at a decent time last night but I still had a hard time waking up and am really dragging my butt to focus.
I am looking at my calendar for this week and I am really excited about it. I will be able to get a lot of fitness in this week, which I really need to work my way back to. I have not done anything more than walk for about 6 weeks now because of my back (which is still not 100% but it is coming along at a good rate).
Here is my workout plan for this week:
Tonight - after work I am going to do a yoga class, then take Levi for a walk for at least an hour (hopefully 90 minutes).
Wednesday - soccer game
Thursday - walk at lunch, soccer practice at night
Friday - Gym
Saturday - walk at the park with some friends, possibly the gym, depends on how tired I am
Sunday - soccer game
I know it looks like a lot but I can take it easier at the gym sessions to give myself a bit of a break. Tonight's dinner is one of my favourites - warmed greek pitas with lots of veggies, feta cheese, and Tataziki sauce. I am salivating just thinking about it!
I read this really good booked called Winning the Weight game - which is a book by Weight Watchers and the Weight Watchers representative. I plan on doing a chapter by chapter summary of things that I got from it - but if you haven't yet I would strongly recommend that you give it a read.
Okay well today is the day. Sean and I got married two years ago today. I hate the cliche sayings "it goes by so fast" and "Two years ago today I married my best friend". But I hate to admit it that both of those are the way I feel. I can not believe that two years ago today I was standing at the alter this very minute that I am typing this. What an unreal day - and to be honest I don't remember that much of it because I blinked and it was over. I have yet to start editing my wedding video, the time just flew by - but as per my 25-before-25 list, it will get done before March 1, 2013.
Since Sean is working nights tonight he came to meet me for lunch. We are going to celebrate our anniversary on Saturday night when he is not working. We are going to do a dollar store date/dinner with gift cards/movie with gift cards. I'm really looking forward to it!
I could go on and on about the things that I love about Sean but I will save you the mushy gushy of everything and just leave you with this: I love Sean McNamara more than anything in this world and I am so blessed to be able to spend the rest of my life with him.
I am looking at my calendar for this week and I am really excited about it. I will be able to get a lot of fitness in this week, which I really need to work my way back to. I have not done anything more than walk for about 6 weeks now because of my back (which is still not 100% but it is coming along at a good rate).
Here is my workout plan for this week:
Tonight - after work I am going to do a yoga class, then take Levi for a walk for at least an hour (hopefully 90 minutes).
Wednesday - soccer game
Thursday - walk at lunch, soccer practice at night
Friday - Gym
Saturday - walk at the park with some friends, possibly the gym, depends on how tired I am
Sunday - soccer game
I know it looks like a lot but I can take it easier at the gym sessions to give myself a bit of a break. Tonight's dinner is one of my favourites - warmed greek pitas with lots of veggies, feta cheese, and Tataziki sauce. I am salivating just thinking about it!
I read this really good booked called Winning the Weight game - which is a book by Weight Watchers and the Weight Watchers representative. I plan on doing a chapter by chapter summary of things that I got from it - but if you haven't yet I would strongly recommend that you give it a read.
Okay well today is the day. Sean and I got married two years ago today. I hate the cliche sayings "it goes by so fast" and "Two years ago today I married my best friend". But I hate to admit it that both of those are the way I feel. I can not believe that two years ago today I was standing at the alter this very minute that I am typing this. What an unreal day - and to be honest I don't remember that much of it because I blinked and it was over. I have yet to start editing my wedding video, the time just flew by - but as per my 25-before-25 list, it will get done before March 1, 2013.
Since Sean is working nights tonight he came to meet me for lunch. We are going to celebrate our anniversary on Saturday night when he is not working. We are going to do a dollar store date/dinner with gift cards/movie with gift cards. I'm really looking forward to it!
I could go on and on about the things that I love about Sean but I will save you the mushy gushy of everything and just leave you with this: I love Sean McNamara more than anything in this world and I am so blessed to be able to spend the rest of my life with him.
Monday, May 21, 2012
Chicago
On Friday night after work Sean and I headed to Detroit Chicago
The line up to get into the states was a bit long, an hour
and 20 minute wait, but we had a good time joking and laughing so it went by
quickly. We went to the Golden Corral in Port Huron Detroit Detroit
Sean was getting really annoyed but it didn’t really bug me
so I thought it was funny how upset he was getting. After we were bumper to
bumper for almost an hour and got almost no where the traffic started getting a
bit light (keep in mind this was about 10pm
at night, not rush hour traffic!) Once we were out of the bumper to bumper we
were annoyed because two of the three lanes on the interstate were closed for
NO REASON! There was no construction going on, no holes in the road, NOTHING.
So they wasted our time for nothing. But in the end we arrived safely and went
to bed.
Saturday morning we woke up early and ate breakfast before
catching our flight to Chicago
Let me tell you this – I did NOT want to be there. I was
miserable. I didn’t want to hear what they had to say, because to be honest I
didn’t want anything to do with the business at all. There was a product
training with one of the Presidents team member that taught me a lot more about
Herbalife products and started to plant a little seed of excitement. It is
reassuring to know what high quality materials they are made from. I know I
have been taking them regularly for about 3 weeks now and haven’t noticed a big
difference, but they do take time to work, especially when I had some of my
symptoms to the extreme. It will still
take a bit of time, but I am going to stick it out and I am going to get
rocking results!
I was still very uncomfortable sitting so long and so I kept
getting up and walking around at the back of the room while they were talking.
Slowly, little bit by little bit I started to think more and more about keeping
doing my business. Our chairman gave a really good message about stretching
yourself and not giving up. The people in our lives who think we are going to
fail are what drive us to keep going.
The Sunday morning training started at 9am but I was just SO exhausted and tired and miserable I
decided to sleep for a while and then go to the training for the 1pm break out sessions. At this point I was
still wishy washy about starting again because of everything I have been
through the past year. Then listening to Tanya I started to get really
motivated and excited and I knew at that point that this business will be a big
part of my life for ever. I was understanding concepts that hadn’t clicked
before and things started making sense and I wanted to jump in with two feet
and just go for it!
There was a voice in my head though that was telling me just
to wait a bit though. I ned to still give myself some time to get better and
focus on me before I jump back in and go for it. I have given myself the
deadline of the August training which is in Georgia
After we left the training yesterday we went to dinner and
of course we got deep dish pizza. I knew that we were going to be having this
and was so looking forward to it. I ordered a salad because I knew that I only
wanted one piece of pizza. It took about 40 minutes to cook, which was fine,
and when it got there I was salivating.
We just got a regular and this was ONE PIECE! I ate it very
slowly and savoured every single bite. I stopped and ate my salad in between
bites and of course I was talking a lot too. I can honestly say that when I was
done my 1 piece, and ½ of my salad I was stuffed. It was SO good and worth every
single calorie. I tracked honestly and tried to over estimate a bit so
hopefully I was able to get it right. I had planned for this for a long time
and felt very good about my choice to have 1 piece, my salad, and water.
We also knew that we were going to a donut shop too that had
a very large selection of fresh donuts. When we got there we decided to order ½
dozen and I got a knife so I could take a small bite of each one. I LOVED all
of them but 1 (I tried 5). The one I didn’t care for I only took a small bite
then left the rest, and the others I took pieces of and really really enjoyed
them. Again, this was something we planned for and I tracked them as accurately
as possible.
This morning we went to breakfast at Cracker Barrel and I
had a really healthy selection that has left me quite satisfied.
I know that most of this post is about the food I ate this
weekend, but I am really really proud of myself for planning and tracking, and
sticking to it. Given that we were sitting so much and in the car a lot, I
didn’t have a chance to get my exercise but I am going to kick that up this
week for sure.
Since our hotel was 30 minutes away from downtown Chicago
Now we are on our way home and I have made myself some new
goals, that I will share with you over the next few posts.
Tomorrow is Sean and my two year anniversary so be ready for
a bit of a sappy post J
Talk to you all soon!
Friday, May 18, 2012
A long weekend
It’s my favourite weekend of the year. Why is it my favourite weekend you ask? Because it is the weekend I was lucky enough to marry Sean. May 22, 2012 marks our two year anniversary! Since we are going to be gone this weekend we are going to celebrate next weekend.
Today right after work we are leaving for Detroit. We are going to stay there overnight and catch an early flight to Chicago. There is an Online Business Systems training that I had already signed up for and bought my tickets before I took a small step back in the business. We are going to fly in tomorrow and my parents (who are already there) are going to pick us up from the airport. Sean is going to hang out at the hotel and I will go to the training with my parents. In the evening Sean and I will get to site see, but not for very long.
Sunday, same thing. We will be in training until about 3pm and then we are leaving to start driving home. I was hoping for more time in Chicago since everyone raves about that city but I’ll take what I can get.
My back has been feeling better as I mentioned, however, I went back to soccer last night and afterwards it was really hurting. Today so far I am feeling okay, but the thought of sitting the 8 hours in the car on the way home is making me cringe. I am going to make sure I keep doing my stretches and hopefully all will be well.
On Wednesday I bought a new Weight Watcher 3 month tracking journal and was planning on using it once I came back from Chicago. However, I got a huge rush of motivation yesterday and decided to start right away. I think it will be good to keep me on track this weekend. I am going to prove that you can go away on vacation, have fun, and still make healthy choices. Tonight we are going to Ruby Tuesdays for dinner and I printed off the menu so I can pick what I want, although I am really craving a salad (with Blue Cheese dressing, on the side). If we get there and nothing looks appealing we will go to our trusty back up choice of the Golden Corral, in which I will also get a salad, with Blue Cheese dressing, on the side.
Tomorrow I plan on having a shake for breakfast, some type of deli sandwich or something like that for lunch and dinner is still unknown.
My only issue is going to be trying to figure out how I can get in some exercise since most of the day Saturday and Sunday will be spent sitting, and most of Monday will be spent in the car.
My sister is watching Levi for us, and yes I admit this is lame, but I already miss him terribly. I always miss him though, even from the time I leave for work until the time I get home, I miss him lots.
Hopefully I will be able to post over the weekend but if not I will give a full update when I get back. I am hoping to use my time in the car to sort some pictures and hopefully then I will get my Elton John post up (it’s only a month late haha!)
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
HBL challenge update...
I am half way done my HBL challenge today. I have been taking my vitamins every day 3 times a day, having my shakes and my tea as promised - but I have not been doing so well in the evening regarding my food intake.
That being said I am still not noticing any difference in my energy or body. My back is feeling much better but that is because of my physio exercises. I am still feeling extremely lethargic and tired all of the time. I still feel really sluggish too. My joints aren't feeling any better and my over all health is not feeling much better too. The only thing that gives me an energy boost is the LiftOff - which is still my favourite product.
When I started taking HBL the first time I did notice a difference but not one that was massively impressive. I did try the La Bamba diet but did not succeed at that (see post about my attempts).
My doctor has made a referral for me to go see a sleep doctor but I am going to see what I can try to figure out what I can do for myself first (the first apppointment isn't until the end of Aug and that is a LONG time away when I am practically falling asleep at my desk).
I'm not going to lie I was really hoping for better results in my energy with my HBL product challenge, but I will continue as planned and stick it out to see the end results.
I am trying to summon up the energy to go back to the gym too - right now it takes all my energy to finish the stuff around the house and then haul myself to bed. Right now I am so tired that my eyes are watering heavily and it looks as if I am crying.
Tonight Sean and I are going to go to the movies, which we haven't done in a really long time, so hopefully that will be relaxing (even though I am kind wishing we could just stay home and sleep, I know that won't help me). Wednesday night I am babysitting, so weather permitting I will go for a walk with Sammy, Thursday night is soccer practice, and I am planning on the gym for Friday. Working back into it slowly of course.
I think when I get home I will take a shower, shave my legs, and get into comfy clothes for the movie.
That being said I am still not noticing any difference in my energy or body. My back is feeling much better but that is because of my physio exercises. I am still feeling extremely lethargic and tired all of the time. I still feel really sluggish too. My joints aren't feeling any better and my over all health is not feeling much better too. The only thing that gives me an energy boost is the LiftOff - which is still my favourite product.
When I started taking HBL the first time I did notice a difference but not one that was massively impressive. I did try the La Bamba diet but did not succeed at that (see post about my attempts).
My doctor has made a referral for me to go see a sleep doctor but I am going to see what I can try to figure out what I can do for myself first (the first apppointment isn't until the end of Aug and that is a LONG time away when I am practically falling asleep at my desk).
I'm not going to lie I was really hoping for better results in my energy with my HBL product challenge, but I will continue as planned and stick it out to see the end results.
I am trying to summon up the energy to go back to the gym too - right now it takes all my energy to finish the stuff around the house and then haul myself to bed. Right now I am so tired that my eyes are watering heavily and it looks as if I am crying.
Tonight Sean and I are going to go to the movies, which we haven't done in a really long time, so hopefully that will be relaxing (even though I am kind wishing we could just stay home and sleep, I know that won't help me). Wednesday night I am babysitting, so weather permitting I will go for a walk with Sammy, Thursday night is soccer practice, and I am planning on the gym for Friday. Working back into it slowly of course.
I think when I get home I will take a shower, shave my legs, and get into comfy clothes for the movie.
Monday, May 14, 2012
A little bit of everything...
Life has been busy the past week and I forget what I have already blogged about, so if I repeat myself I apologize!
I have been trying to work on taking care of myself but it is much harder than one would think. It's not something you can just pick up all of the sudden and do by breaking all of your bad habits at once. I've been trying to tackle little pieces of it one at a time.
So far I have managed to fix my back! I went to physio last Thursday and got some really good news!
The pain I am having is caused by poor posture, which I already knew I had. Over time slouching causes your back to build up pressure then one day out of no where your back starts to really hurt. Correcting your posture is what helps to release the pressure.
I was given two exercises to do and I was feeling 90% better by Friday. I have still been doing the stretches and only feel the pain during the stretch and if I forget to do them every hour. Needless to say I am feeling MUCH better and ready to start back to my regular workout session soon! I will need to get back into it slowly - but I'm okay with that :D I guess the moral of the story is to always listen to your Nanny because you don't want to end up like her!!!
This weekend was a busy one that did not leave me much time for me - so I am taking some personal time right now.
Saturday morning I was up bring and early to go shopping in the states with some friends. We had a great time and I was able to get some good new runners. When I got home we had some friends over and we had make your own pizzas and played board games. We learned a new game that was quite fun once I got the hang of it.
Mother's day we had over my parents and we made a full brunch (blueberry pancakes, an array of cut up fruit, orange juice mixed with sprite, and my mom brought bacon). It was a feast fit for kings. Not going to lie I drew my inspiration from GG because their breakfasts always look so good!
We gave Levi a hair cut and did some other things around the apartment like laundry before heading to my first soccer game of the season. I did not play since my back was just starting to feel better and I have not touched a soccer ball since last Aug.
Tonight after work I came home and started putting back together the apartment - somewhere between brunch yesterday and bed time last night it became a war zone. Most of the stuff is put away now, I'm taking a quick minute to write before I sync my ipod with some new music, and head in to read a book.
Right now I am perched on my balcony over looking the sun setting over downtown. Quite picturesque if I do say so myself, not to mention the extreme comfort of my muskoka chair!
All that is missing is a cold glass of iced tea...or a bottle of beer!
I have been trying to work on taking care of myself but it is much harder than one would think. It's not something you can just pick up all of the sudden and do by breaking all of your bad habits at once. I've been trying to tackle little pieces of it one at a time.
So far I have managed to fix my back! I went to physio last Thursday and got some really good news!
The pain I am having is caused by poor posture, which I already knew I had. Over time slouching causes your back to build up pressure then one day out of no where your back starts to really hurt. Correcting your posture is what helps to release the pressure.
I was given two exercises to do and I was feeling 90% better by Friday. I have still been doing the stretches and only feel the pain during the stretch and if I forget to do them every hour. Needless to say I am feeling MUCH better and ready to start back to my regular workout session soon! I will need to get back into it slowly - but I'm okay with that :D I guess the moral of the story is to always listen to your Nanny because you don't want to end up like her!!!
This weekend was a busy one that did not leave me much time for me - so I am taking some personal time right now.
Saturday morning I was up bring and early to go shopping in the states with some friends. We had a great time and I was able to get some good new runners. When I got home we had some friends over and we had make your own pizzas and played board games. We learned a new game that was quite fun once I got the hang of it.
Mother's day we had over my parents and we made a full brunch (blueberry pancakes, an array of cut up fruit, orange juice mixed with sprite, and my mom brought bacon). It was a feast fit for kings. Not going to lie I drew my inspiration from GG because their breakfasts always look so good!
We gave Levi a hair cut and did some other things around the apartment like laundry before heading to my first soccer game of the season. I did not play since my back was just starting to feel better and I have not touched a soccer ball since last Aug.
Tonight after work I came home and started putting back together the apartment - somewhere between brunch yesterday and bed time last night it became a war zone. Most of the stuff is put away now, I'm taking a quick minute to write before I sync my ipod with some new music, and head in to read a book.
Right now I am perched on my balcony over looking the sun setting over downtown. Quite picturesque if I do say so myself, not to mention the extreme comfort of my muskoka chair!
All that is missing is a cold glass of iced tea...or a bottle of beer!
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
This would be the life...
It is day 3 of working on taking care of myself and it’s going pretty well so far – although tough when I am at work. My job is busy and has a very large learning curve; in fact I have been here for 10 months and am still not fully comfortable. I often think I am not doing a good job because there are so many little steps for everything and missing a little step is easy but creates problems. I know that I will get it, and my co-workers are very patient, but it does create some extra stress in my life. So the ideal situation to be able to FULLY take care of myself would be if I did not have to work…of course, this would only happen if I won the lottery!
But hypothetically if I was able to be home from work to take care of myself this is what my day would look like:
8:00 am - Get out of bed and walk the dog for 1 hour
9:00 am - Have a healthy, homemade breakfast, cup of tea, read a book or the paper
10:00 am - go to the gym, do one hour cardio, one hour personal trainer
12:00 pm - Have a healthy, homemade lunch
12:30 pm - Spend time grooming ie shave legs, pluck eye brows, moisturize, paint nails ect
1:00 pm - Hot bath or shower
1:30 pm - Walk the dog for 30 minutes
2:00 pm - have a nap
3:00 pm - play with Levi
3:30 pm - go to the market and get fresh food for dinner
4:00 pm - sit on the balcony and relax with a glass of wine and a book
5:00 pm - prepare a fresh homemade dinner
6:00 pm - enjoy that dinner with husband
7:00 pm - catch a 1 hour evening yoga class
8:30 pm - snuggle with husband and dog
9:00 pm - lights off
Sounds pretty great eh? It gives me lots of exercise but also lots of rest too! I would clean the house on the weekends and switch some things up a bit – but if my life were like this, I feel like I could fully take care of myself.
Now that being said, things have been going well so far by taking baby steps. We are well on our way to paying off our debt (all things going well our goal of March 1, 2013 will be moved sooner), I have been getting up a bit earlier to put on some make up and do my hair, I’ve been putting effort into my clothing choices, and have been focusing on healthy eating.
I hurt my back 4 weeks ago today and it has made it very tough to do much physical activity. I am able to walk but that’s about it. I have been trying to rest the injury and use the ice/heat method but it’s not helping very much. Tonight I am going to sit in the sauna at the gym and hopefully once my muscles relax and loosen I can try to stretch them out a bit.
As for the HBL challenge, I have still been taking my vitamins and having my shake(s)/tea everyday but I am still not noticing a huge difference in energy, and no difference in my pain yet, but these things take time sometimes – I’m not ready to write it off yet!
Sunday, May 6, 2012
If you don't take care of yourself...
...no one else will.
I have a lot to share with you tonight so hopefully you're up for a long read.
Over the past two years I have been all over the place with my weight loss. I have tried many different things only to get discouraged over and over again. I would eat really well and write everything down for a few days and then fall off the wagon and binge. My blogging has been all over the place too - making it hard to follow me and know when I have posted new posts, and for that I am sorry.
So here goes, I will try to get out what I have been thinking in my head.
Weight loss is a journey, and I get so frustrated at myself for putting back on weight after I worked so hard to lose it. I want to try to lose it overnight and get back to the closet full of great clothes that I have, but that is not going to happen. I am not going to wake up tomorrow and be the size 8 that I was two years ago this very day. And you know what? That is okay.
Weight loss is a journey, a life long battle that I am going to fight. The past few weeks I have been having a lot of joint pain and feel like I am 70 years old. I'm actually very thankful that I have the pain because it has taught me a VERY important lesson. This is NOT what I want to feel like at 70 years old. I want to be one of those seniors that you see out riding bikes and speed walking to keep healthy and keep their joints from stiffening up.
Again, I am not going to achieve this over night. I am going to have to work hard to break down the real reasons behind my weight problem. It is not going to be easy, in fact it will be the hardest thing I have ever done - but I know at the end of it, it will be worth it. I hope you will join me on my journey and I hope that I will inspire you to find your own health. Leave all excuses at the door because there is no habit that you can not break, nothing you can't accomplish if you are willing to put in the time.
I have been doing my HBL challenge for the month of May and I will give you a bit of an update. My body still really hurts, but I have been taking small steps to feeling better (stretching more, walking, hot baths ect.) I am still not noticing a huge different though with one exception. My knees are not hurting any more because I am not crossing my legs at all or pulling my legs up under me - which is VERY hard on your knees. My back is still bad but I did go to my doctors this week and I am going to do physio to strengthen the muscles. He also gave me a prescription for a med that helps with inflammation. This should also help my joints too.
This weekend I decided was the best weekend to do the La Bamba diet. It's a 3 day cleanse that helps to kick start your weight loss. A lot of people get great results by doing this but I am going to give you my honest feedback about it.
The first day you are to drink two 1 gallon jugs of the mixture of protein juice, tea, and herbal aloe powder. I had one jug of peach juice and one jug of wild berry. You have to consume 1 16oz glass every 30 minutes for 8 hours.
The mixture was not TERRIBLE - however it wasn't exactly "good". It tasted like very watered down camp juice. I drank every half hour and I was told to and was quite satisfied. I did not feel hungry once while I was drinking the juice mixture. Near the end I did start to feel like I was going to float away. I felt like my stomach was a balloon of liquid and I did not feel good - but I was still not hungry. I finished my last glass around 5:45pm. On the first day you are allowed NO food - just liquid.
I went to bed around 9:30 and was VERY hungry. I thought maybe if I go to bed I won't think about it and then tomorrow will be good because I can have a shake. Well a few things happen when I am hungry. First of all I get MISERABLE. I whine and cry and pout - I pretty much act like a child. Second I start to get really bad headaches that often end in vomiting. So I tried everything I could think of to get to sleep but I was just SO hungry. I tried drinking a few glasses of water, but since I already felt really sick that didn't do much of anything. I was laying in bed dreaming of salad so at 11:30 I finally got up and went to the kitchen to have some salad. That worked well until about 12:15 am. As I was still laying in bed miserable - my headache was getting much worse to the point where my whole head was just throbbing. I said enough already and went and had a peanut butter sandwich.
So I did not even last one day of the La Bamba diet, which is only a 3 day weight loss jump start and I will never do one again. However, it did make me realize a few things. That is not the way that I want to live - doing fad diets. I want to eat right, exercise and just be healthy - and still have treats sometimes. I want to be able to have a treat and be in control and not have that lead to a binge, which is what happens when you deprive yourself. I also go myself a nice new hair cut to be a symbol of my starting fresh. It's not too short, but to my shoulders. I can still get it up in a pony tail but it gives me lots of new things I can do with it!
Today I woke up and still did not feel good, my back was sore and I still had a bad headache. I had a good breakfast and took today one step at a time. Sean and I wrote a list of things we wanted to get done and tackled it one thing at a time. We ended up going on a hike today which was more than my back could handle so now I am paying the price for that. However, I was happy to get the exercise in and time with my hubby and my pup pup.
Sean and I rented a movie tonight and I plan on snuggling up with him on the couch and just relaxing. The weather today was so beautiful and I feel so blessed to have been able to live this day.
I will be posting my Elton John blog soon - I was just waiting to get all of the pictures. I can't believe that happened two weeks ago. I wish it had lasted forever :)
I have a lot to share with you tonight so hopefully you're up for a long read.
Over the past two years I have been all over the place with my weight loss. I have tried many different things only to get discouraged over and over again. I would eat really well and write everything down for a few days and then fall off the wagon and binge. My blogging has been all over the place too - making it hard to follow me and know when I have posted new posts, and for that I am sorry.
So here goes, I will try to get out what I have been thinking in my head.
Weight loss is a journey, and I get so frustrated at myself for putting back on weight after I worked so hard to lose it. I want to try to lose it overnight and get back to the closet full of great clothes that I have, but that is not going to happen. I am not going to wake up tomorrow and be the size 8 that I was two years ago this very day. And you know what? That is okay.
Weight loss is a journey, a life long battle that I am going to fight. The past few weeks I have been having a lot of joint pain and feel like I am 70 years old. I'm actually very thankful that I have the pain because it has taught me a VERY important lesson. This is NOT what I want to feel like at 70 years old. I want to be one of those seniors that you see out riding bikes and speed walking to keep healthy and keep their joints from stiffening up.
Again, I am not going to achieve this over night. I am going to have to work hard to break down the real reasons behind my weight problem. It is not going to be easy, in fact it will be the hardest thing I have ever done - but I know at the end of it, it will be worth it. I hope you will join me on my journey and I hope that I will inspire you to find your own health. Leave all excuses at the door because there is no habit that you can not break, nothing you can't accomplish if you are willing to put in the time.
I have been doing my HBL challenge for the month of May and I will give you a bit of an update. My body still really hurts, but I have been taking small steps to feeling better (stretching more, walking, hot baths ect.) I am still not noticing a huge different though with one exception. My knees are not hurting any more because I am not crossing my legs at all or pulling my legs up under me - which is VERY hard on your knees. My back is still bad but I did go to my doctors this week and I am going to do physio to strengthen the muscles. He also gave me a prescription for a med that helps with inflammation. This should also help my joints too.
This weekend I decided was the best weekend to do the La Bamba diet. It's a 3 day cleanse that helps to kick start your weight loss. A lot of people get great results by doing this but I am going to give you my honest feedback about it.
The first day you are to drink two 1 gallon jugs of the mixture of protein juice, tea, and herbal aloe powder. I had one jug of peach juice and one jug of wild berry. You have to consume 1 16oz glass every 30 minutes for 8 hours.
The mixture was not TERRIBLE - however it wasn't exactly "good". It tasted like very watered down camp juice. I drank every half hour and I was told to and was quite satisfied. I did not feel hungry once while I was drinking the juice mixture. Near the end I did start to feel like I was going to float away. I felt like my stomach was a balloon of liquid and I did not feel good - but I was still not hungry. I finished my last glass around 5:45pm. On the first day you are allowed NO food - just liquid.
I went to bed around 9:30 and was VERY hungry. I thought maybe if I go to bed I won't think about it and then tomorrow will be good because I can have a shake. Well a few things happen when I am hungry. First of all I get MISERABLE. I whine and cry and pout - I pretty much act like a child. Second I start to get really bad headaches that often end in vomiting. So I tried everything I could think of to get to sleep but I was just SO hungry. I tried drinking a few glasses of water, but since I already felt really sick that didn't do much of anything. I was laying in bed dreaming of salad so at 11:30 I finally got up and went to the kitchen to have some salad. That worked well until about 12:15 am. As I was still laying in bed miserable - my headache was getting much worse to the point where my whole head was just throbbing. I said enough already and went and had a peanut butter sandwich.
So I did not even last one day of the La Bamba diet, which is only a 3 day weight loss jump start and I will never do one again. However, it did make me realize a few things. That is not the way that I want to live - doing fad diets. I want to eat right, exercise and just be healthy - and still have treats sometimes. I want to be able to have a treat and be in control and not have that lead to a binge, which is what happens when you deprive yourself. I also go myself a nice new hair cut to be a symbol of my starting fresh. It's not too short, but to my shoulders. I can still get it up in a pony tail but it gives me lots of new things I can do with it!
Today I woke up and still did not feel good, my back was sore and I still had a bad headache. I had a good breakfast and took today one step at a time. Sean and I wrote a list of things we wanted to get done and tackled it one thing at a time. We ended up going on a hike today which was more than my back could handle so now I am paying the price for that. However, I was happy to get the exercise in and time with my hubby and my pup pup.
Sean and I rented a movie tonight and I plan on snuggling up with him on the couch and just relaxing. The weather today was so beautiful and I feel so blessed to have been able to live this day.
I will be posting my Elton John blog soon - I was just waiting to get all of the pictures. I can't believe that happened two weeks ago. I wish it had lasted forever :)
Thursday, May 3, 2012
HBL challenge
Here is what I have noticed so far…
1. I don’t see a boost in my energy yet, unless of course I have a lift off.
2. My back is still really hurting and it changes from staying in the same spot or radiating up my neck. I went to get some xrays this week to make sure everything was okay with my spine and it is – I am just having muscle trouble, so with rest and meds I should be feeling better soon.
3. I have been drinking tea at my snack time and I realized that at snack time I was more thirsty then actually hungry. The past few days I have cut out my morning snack and have been having my tea.
That is about all for now – I’ll keep you posted.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Month of May challenge:
I have decided to do a Herbalife (HBL) Month of May challenge (can you believe it is ALREADY May?!?!). I am making up this challenge completely on my own; this is not something set up by HBL.
So here is what I propose: for the month of May I am going to stick VERY CLOSELY to my daily Herbalife regimen.
Here is what I promise:
1. To take all of my daily vitamins and supplements
2. To drink at least two HBL teas a day
3. To have a least 1 shake a day Monday-Friday, most days I will try to have 2
4. I will complete the HBL 3 day La Bamba diet once
5. To add my Herbal aloe powder to one drink a day
I am going to report on a few different categories and my overall opinion of the products. Right now my energy is very low and my body is having far too many aches. I have a lot of hurting joints (knees, inner hips, outer hips, and shoulders) not to mention my back/spine. I already know that the product is great, but I haven’t stuck on it long enough to actually see results. So here goes!
I have also been having some headaches and would like to see if I can improve my digestive system. Of course I am going to pair this challenge with regular exercise. I have also been trying to sit up straighter (which hurts from years of slumping) but it’s better late than never. I even made a note for my computer screen to remind me to sit up straight! My Nanny would be proud.
Day 1: My back is really hurting today and I am very tired
I am excited to see how my experiment works!
Friday, April 20, 2012
Feeling itchy?
I woke up Wednesday morning, like any other morning. Got ready for work and had a few spare minutes before I left so I decided to make the bed. Sean and I use separate blankets at night because I am a blanket hog, so I went to put his in the closet (where we keep it when we make the bed) and saw something that freaked me out! In our empty laundry basket there were about a hundred small little bugs. I have seen them randomly around the bed room but didn’t really think much of it until that point.
I took the basket outside and put it on my balcony and left for work feel very nauseous and itchy. When I got to work I looked up bed bugs, and found out a lot of scary information. I was positive that’s what they were and by the looks of it had many many long months ahead of me. I was so grossed out and itchy I just wanted to go home and clean everything. My boss was really understanding and let me take a vacation day.
I first went to Wal-Mart to buy a big thing of laundry soap and garbage bags then headed home to start the wash. It took me all day but I did 16 loads of laundry. I did everything that could possibly be washed. Then I cleaned out the whole closet and threw away 7 bags worth of stuff that had been infested by these little buggers – the whole time wanting to throw up.
Around 2pm the exterminator came (I live in an apartment building so I had to wait for their guy to come) and he told me the best news ever! He said that they were NOT bed bugs but in fact they were beetles. I forget the exact name, but he said that they would be much easier to get rid of. I still had to do all of the laundry and treat our mattress. I emptied the closet and vacuumed. I moved all of the furniture in the bedroom and vacuumed. Cleaned everything I possibly could. When Sean got home we went to Rona and got some Raid to treat our mattress and then came home and sprayed it everywhere. Sean did another 5 loads of laundry and all of our clothes are now in sealed garbage bags. We had to send Levi to my parents so that he didn’t inhale the treatment we did on the mattress.
So now we have to wait until Tuesday morning when the exterminator can come back to spray. In the mean time we have to empty all of the closets, cupboards, everything – and move all of the furniture in every room into the middle of the room so they can spray the base boards. We can’t be in the apartment for at least 6 hours after. So that will be a nice headache. BUT AT LEAST THEY ARE NOT BED BUGS!!!!
On a less itchy note I am so very excited because tonight I am hosting my dad’s birthday party and I have gone with an Elton John theme – since after all he is our favourite singer ever. I got a suit jacket and decorated it with sparkly glitter glue, hung records on the wall, made it into a restaurant called “The club at the end of the street” (and Elton John song), we are going to play Elton John charades and so much more. I am really looking forward to it. We even have the most PERFECT way to top off the evening which I will write more about soon!
This has been a really stressful, exhausting week for me. I have not been able to workout because I hurt my back last week and this weeks activities only made it worse. Every inch of my body hurts like none other and I can’t get comfortable standing, sitting, or laying down. I have also been really stressed and wanting to eat SO much junk, but I have been staying strong and realizing that it’s really not going to help so what is the point. I have not binged at all, which is what I really really wanted to do so many times this week. E-mailing my mom my food logs has been really helpful, but I can’t tell her about my cravings because then that makes her want them too – and she is trying to watch what she eats. Even as I am typing this I am thinking “oh maybe I’ll go downstairs and get a doughnut” but NO I will not! I will stay strong and wait this out!
Saturday, April 14, 2012
Short and sweet
Well today was a rainy day. I decided on one thing to accomplish as I was lounging in bed this morning. I made blueberry pancakes for breakfast and then accomplished my task. We had a lounging around kind of morning and then made lunch and went to the gym.
Tonight I got to see two girl friends that I haven't seen in a long time! We went to Kitchener to have the best chinese food ever. The portions are huge, and I did not eat it all, but most definitely got my fill of chinese food for a while!
We had a great time laughing and joking and realized that we really needed to make an effort to get together more often (we say this every time). We have known each other so long, and it's always the same when we get together, we pick right up where we left off. It's a great relationship that I really appreciate!
Tonight I got to see two girl friends that I haven't seen in a long time! We went to Kitchener to have the best chinese food ever. The portions are huge, and I did not eat it all, but most definitely got my fill of chinese food for a while!
We had a great time laughing and joking and realized that we really needed to make an effort to get together more often (we say this every time). We have known each other so long, and it's always the same when we get together, we pick right up where we left off. It's a great relationship that I really appreciate!
Friday, April 13, 2012
Let's drop the T's
I’m back! I’m sorry for the temporary LOA but I have returned!
I’ve been spending a lot of me time lately and doing lots of thinking, and reflecting. I’ve been working on making small but positive changes in my life, both at home and at work, you and happen to have caught me on a good day!
I want to share with you something that I’ve been working on lately, and that is dropping the T’s. Okay, so what does that mean? Let’s turn can’t into can, won’t into will, shouldn’t into should and so forth. So much of our lives are spent thinking about the things we “can’t, won’t shouldn’t” do. For example, I can’t accomplish this goal, I won’t make it, I shouldn’t try. So, let’s drop the T’s and move forward.
Now you’re asking…what does that look like? Well, I’m not an expert by any means, but here is what I have come up with (I will do 1 example of the few plans that I have come up with for myself and then you can fill your own goals and make your own plan!)
My plan
What do I want to accomplish? Getting back to my goal weight
Why this is important to me? So that I can live a healthy life, fit back into my clothing, so getting older isn’t as hard on my body, to be able to be an example and to show to everyone that it can be done a healthy way!
How am I going to do this? I am going to make a commitment to myself to loose 1 pound, one day at a time and not look at how much I have to loose total.
I will make my weekly meal plan, and stick to it.
I will get to the gym at least twice a week to start, and build up again from there.
I will see my trainer at least once a week, preferably twice.
I will treat myself once a day, or a minimum of every other day.
I will track everything I eat.
Now it might look like I have put a lot down for how am I going to do this, and yes I started it all at once, but for me these are small changes that I can make to sustain my weight loss/maintenance long term – which is very important to me.
I have made some other goals in terms of finances, my emotional/mental health, and house work. I used a plan for each one and made sure that I started out SMALL. I did not throw out everything in my kitchen and promise never to eat junk food again, because let’s be honest, I’d fail after a few days. I did however look at the small steps that I could take that would get me there. It might take longer than I want, but I will get there. I have also been sending a list of everything I eat to my mom, it will help to keep me accountable.
On a different topic, I have some very exciting things coming up in my near future!
Next weekend: something huge is happening (I can’t post more details right now since it is a surprise for someone, but the wait will be worth it).
May: Going to Chicago with my parents and husband for the long weekend. We are going to a business conference, but it will still be exciting. Plus it’s the same weekend as our two year anniversary!
July: I am going to BC again to see my family <3. This time my parents will be there at the same time as me so it will be extra exciting.
August: Camping!
September: Women’s retreat
Food for thought: When you put your mind to it, you can achieve anything you want
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Monday – not such a funday
I have such mixed feelings about weekends. I mean Fridays bring this great anticipation of two days without going to work but then they go by SO FAST and then it’s over for 5 more days. Monday morning is just awful; it’s like a tease that the last two days you got to enjoy your bed in the morning with out the annoying beep of the alarm clock going off. Don’t pretend like you don’t agree with me.
Anyways, after work yesterday I went home and watched a CSI episode and then had my weight loss challenge meeting (a meeting that I hold at my apartment for people who want to lose weight). Afterwards I went to dinner with Sean’s parents and his cousins.
We went to East Side Mario’s which I love! I ordered the Chicken Linguine Tetrazini – with no mushrooms. I get them to cut the portion in half before they even bring it to me. I had two bowls of Italian Wedding soup, some salad, and some bread. Buy the time my dinner came I barely touched it. I ended up giving half to Sean and the other half is my lunch today.
After that we went to see Sean at work while he was on his lunch break. We left around 8:50 and I went right home and crashed face first into my bed.
Food log:
Breakfast – pancakes with lite syrup
Snack – apple
Lunch – shake
Snack – I forgot to eat it L
Dinner – 2 bowls Italian Wedding Soup, small loaf of bread from East Sides, 1 sm plate ceaser salad
Treat – the other half of my mint smoothie
Sunday, March 25, 2012
Some weeks just drag on and on. This was one of those weeks. The days went by so slow, even though I got a fair amount accomplished. I’ve also got a lot going on in my head too, a lot of thoughts bouncing around that I’m trying to sort out.
Snack -Plum
Lunch – Shake
Snack – Apple, 10 triscits and dill pickle dip
Dinner – Messy chicken sandwich and baked fries with mayo
Treat – Laura Secord chocolate bar
Exercise: walk at lunch, 1 hour session with Lee
Snack – 2 cups of grapes
Lunch – messy chicken (no bun), plum
Snack – 8 melba toasts, 2 tbsp bruchetta, 2 sm cranberry oat muffins (homemade)
Dinner – 6 in cold cut trio sub
Treat -
Exercise: 45 minute walk with Sammy
Thursday
Breakfast – 2 servings oatmeal, brown sugar and milk
Snack –peanuts, apple
Lunch – wrap, peaches
Snack – triscits and dip, plum
Dinner - bacon cheese burger (at home)
Treat – 3 fat free pudding cups
Snack - apple
Lunch – bacon cheese burger, peaches
Snack – orange
Dinner – 4 chicken fingers, baked fries and mayo
Treat - nothing
Snack - nothing
Lunch – 6 inch cold cut trio sub
Snack – kiddie size frozen yogurt
Dinner - Quesedilla
Treat - popcorn
Exercise: 1 hr Zumba class
Snack - nothing
Lunch – shake
Snack – nothing
Dinner – 6 inch cold cut trio sub, salad, very tiny sliver of cake, diet pepsi
Treat - mint smoothie
Exercise: 45 minute walk, 45 minutes in pool (I was doing stuff to actually work out in the pool)
Since the weather was SO nice this week I took advantage of it as much as possible. I haven’t written much this week so I’ll give you the full play by play…because I know you are dying to know!
Tuesday – I went for a good paced walk with a co-worker at lunch. It was great because we were going the same pace without trying to keep up with each other. Tuesday night after work I had a session with my trainer. During the warm up I really hurt my groin and could barely walk. It wasn’t just a “stretch it out” type hurt, it was deep and very painful. So instead of doing the runs with the parachutes I spent the whole session on the ground doing core work with a mixture of push ups as well. I did not have a treat on Monday night so I decided I was going to get something really good…a Laura Secord chocolate bar.
So I went home, made dinner, and had a hot shower. I put on Tiger Balm on my painful muscle and went to bed to watch a movie. I had my chocolate bar at that time and let me tell you, I have not had one for YEARS and it really was not near as good as what I thought it was. There is no comparison to the mint smoothies that’s for sure.
Wednesday after work I was exhausted and came home to have a nap. I got up just in time to go babysit Sammy and we spent the evening walking around outside since again the weather was SO nice. He was so snugly it really made my day J.
Thursday I stopped at the store and got some burgers for the BBQ and beer for the balcony. I ran into a former teacher there and spent some time chatting with him. He was actually the teacher that played a big part in who I am today. He told it like it was, and because of him I did much better in school and went on to college to get a degree which led me to my job today. When I got home we had dinner then just sat on the balcony and drank a beer before going to bed early and watching a movie. went home and just hung out with Sean. We watched a movie, and some tv and went to bed a bit early.
Friday night I cancelled my session with Lee because I was just SO exhausted from this week. I know it doesn’t sound like much but work was very busy and I had a lot going on. I just spent time with Sean and went to bed very very early. We put in a movie and I turned it off at 8 because I could barely keep my eyes open.
Saturday morning, 5 am rolls around and I wake up and can not get back to sleep. I am laying there wide awake (probably because I went to bed so early). I got up and cleaned the apartment, finished the movie from the night before, put away my laundry, and showered. Then I went to the 9am weight watchers meeting. I lost 2.6lbs this week which made me very happy because I really worked on lifestyle changes. Afterwards I came home and vacuumed (I don’t think my neighbours would have liked to hear that at 5 am when I wanted to do it!). I hit up a zumba class which I haven’t done in a long time and then went to IKEA with my sister. We had a good time and when I got home I made dinner then we had friends over for a movie and popcorn evening.
Today I was up around 7:30 and took Levi for a good walk. I came home made pancakes, showered, and went to Wal-Mart to get a few new clothes for summer. Sean’s cousins are here from Florida Kitchener
So there is a recap of my entire week. I have a few small goals for this week:
- Get more exercise this week.
- Post more often in my blog so that I don’t have to recap a whole week in one post!
- Start counting my points again. For the past week and a bit I have been really paying attention to portion sizes and written down what I eat. Now I am going to start putting the points in too (I didn’t want to overwhelm myself and do it all at once).
Tuesday
Breakfast – 3 pancakes with peanut butter and jamSnack -
Lunch – Shake
Snack – Apple, 10 triscits and dill pickle dip
Dinner – Messy chicken sandwich and baked fries with mayo
Treat – Laura Secord chocolate bar
Exercise: walk at lunch, 1 hour session with Lee
Wednesday
Breakfast – ShakeSnack – 2 cups of grapes
Lunch – messy chicken (no bun), plum
Snack – 8 melba toasts, 2 tbsp bruchetta, 2 sm cranberry oat muffins (homemade)
Dinner – 6 in cold cut trio sub
Treat -
Exercise: 45 minute walk with Sammy
Thursday
Breakfast – 2 servings oatmeal, brown sugar and milk
Snack –peanuts, apple
Lunch – wrap, peaches
Snack – triscits and dip, plum
Dinner - bacon cheese burger (at home)
Treat – 3 fat free pudding cups
Friday
Breakfast – shakeSnack - apple
Lunch – bacon cheese burger, peaches
Snack – orange
Dinner – 4 chicken fingers, baked fries and mayo
Treat - nothing
Saturday
Breakfast – Apple and peanut butter, shakeSnack - nothing
Lunch – 6 inch cold cut trio sub
Snack – kiddie size frozen yogurt
Dinner - Quesedilla
Treat - popcorn
Exercise: 1 hr Zumba class
Sunday
Breakfast – 4 small pancakes with peanut butter and jam, 1 c. skim milkSnack - nothing
Lunch – shake
Snack – nothing
Dinner – 6 inch cold cut trio sub, salad, very tiny sliver of cake, diet pepsi
Treat - mint smoothie
Exercise: 45 minute walk, 45 minutes in pool (I was doing stuff to actually work out in the pool)
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