A health, fitness, and weight-loss story.

4.04.2009

Catching Up!

I feel like I haven't blogged in a year.

We drove to our obedience class last week and discussed the fact we needed a new vehicle. Our old van just had $400 worth of repairs and they didn't work. The van is so old, has driven us all around the country, the AC doesn't work....yada, yada, yada. We need a car that would fit all our kids, human and canine. So Friday I spent the entire day on the internet searching which vehicles had three rows of seats, fuel economy, safety record, blah blah blah.

My hubby took Friday afternoon off work so we could go look. Never thought we'd find one and buy it, but we did. We now own one of the worst gas guzzling vehicles out there: a Suburban. It's six years old, fully loaded, and we just hope it won't need many repairs. It will suit our needs. We thought about buying a new car, but didn't want to spend that much.

I must say it is always stressful to me when we buy a big ticket item. Nonetheless I stayed on plan, even when my hubby and son were eating gas station candy bars while we were looking for cars.

I laugh at the term "big ticket." I watch Bravo sometimes at night while I'm working and the Housewives shows...they spend more on a dress than we did on a car. I live in such a different reality!

I kind of think that I was supposed to be here on Friday to find that great car instead of traveling to the health fair. I look at these things in terms of "it was meant to be."

The really good thing about us having a gas guzzling vehicle is that we usually put about 5-7,000 miles on our cars a year. We're not big drivers, so I feel less guilty that way. =)

I'm behind on blogs, behind on housework, behind on a lot of things, so this weekend I hope to catch up. We're expecting 7-11 inches of snow! We're in a blizzard warning. In April. UGH At least it's not so nasty cold. Next week we're expecting 50-degree days again, so one last hurrah of snow and we'll be done. Whew.

I haven't been weighing daily....too busy and forgetful. I did pop on the scale this morning after I was fully dressed and accounting for clothing, I am about the same as I was Monday. That's fine. I have noticed my jeans are a bit looser which is lovely. The new shirts I bought myself that were tight in the belly but fit everywhere else are now not tight in the belly. I'm wearing one now, loving it.

So that's just all good.

Waiting patiently for Monday, when we will pick up the new car.

4.01.2009

Disappointment

We've canceled our little get away. I checked the weather, and Saturday afternoon, when we'd be driving home, there is wind, snow, and rain predicted...bad weather. Enough to stop me from going. Dag nab it, it's April for Pete's sake, I want to quit worrying about SNOW.

Now wait and see, the whole thing will blow over.

I really am disappointed. Enough so that I almost binged tonight. I had some stinking thinking going on in my brain. Fortunately I was able to remember why I'm doing this, and I didn't want to screw up my 14 pound loss. I sure felt it, though. I ended up taking a nap instead of eating. Not much better, and I'll probably be up late tonight, but at least I didn't eat.

Shoot.

My son is really disappointed. That's the worst part for me. He wanted to go swimming and to a book store. We don't have a book store in our little berg.

And So it Goes..

I'm behind on points for the day. Weird, about 12 my tummy settled and I haven't been hungry. I had a small lunch. I wish this would happen every day. Tomorrow I'll probably be willing to eat the wall paper off the walls again.

My son and I are going to go out of state this weekend to the health fair. (It's only a 2-hour drive from us.) They will do an Omega-3 panel for $25, and a standard blood test for $25. They also have booths and different things to visit. I'll have my blood glucose tested for free. That one scares me the most. Really.

I am sitting here looking at my blood test results from one year ago. I was hospitalized due to a massive panic attack where I thought I was dying, having a heart attack. It was very scary. The nice nurse printed out all the blood tests for me, which my doctor never does--he just writes me a letter mentioning the not normal numbers. So I want this blood work done for a baseline. I wish I could have done it at the start of my journey.

I notice that I gained 18 pounds from one year ago until my starting weight of 282.5. I'm 3 1/2 pounds from last year's weight! I'm thankful for that, and anxious to see it continue to fall. It was the hardest year of my life. Without a doubt, the stress nearly did me in. Thankfully I have Xanax now, which helps tremendously. I gained 50 pounds in about six months when my mom died, so at least it was only 18 this time.

Hubby offered to stay home and babysit all the doggies instead of going with us. He wanted to go, but we both decided that taking three dogs to a motel, one adult having to wait in the van with the dogs (even though they're crated) while the other runs in to do the blood test, was all too big of a PITA. So he said...this is funny...he said, "I'll let you go." Oh, evil me, I said, "WHAT?" He thought that was so darned funny, he said it on purpose. We live in a very small town and honestly, it's like going back in time 50 years. I'd say 3/4 of the people we know actually think like that. Thank God my husband does not. Without my even telling him why I wanted to go, he told me he thought it would be a great idea to get a baseline of my blood work. Ah, great guy.

So DS and I will get a room, swim Friday night, I'll have to fast, ugh! We'll get up and go straight to the fair and hope and pray I don't have to wait long because going 12 hours without food isn't pleasant, and I'm not fun to be around. Then I'll eat a breakfast cookie which will be in my purse, we'll check the rest of the fair out and then we'll go to the Olive Garden for lunch. Then we'll come home.

As my husband joked, it would be easier for me to just go to the doctor. And cheaper. Shoot, this is more fun. Besides, I don't think my doctor would order a blood test in May if he had just given me one in April. In fact, depending on the results of the test, I may just make my appointment in June instead.

Every time I've come to the computer, I've checked out motel rooms. This town we're going to is more expensive, and an indoor pool is a must. I can get a room right across from the fair for $80. I just keep freezing, not making the reservation. A weird little quirk of mine.

Tomorrow we start basic obedience with all three of our dogs. My husband was quite shocked when I reminded him of that. He was looking forward to a quiet evening at home where he could eat whatever. Now he'll be subject to Taco Bell, which he doesn't like.

I have screwed up supper again. Hubby and DS went to the store to buy the poor dogs a bone, and they decided to get a deli chicken while there. I didn't get the cheeseburger crockpot stuff going. So Ill have to make something for me. Something tells me my dinner will include pasta.


I have to do laundry, get my taxes ready and make an appointment--last year we were the last appointment on the 15th. Hopefully I'll get an appointment next week. I'm so stupid to do that. I also have to get my car license plates renewed...they expired today. Gee, hubby took my car, I hope he doesn't get pulled over!

I did not exercise today. I did vacuum the entire house and mop and mop and mop the floors. It's spring, the back yard is mud, and I have three dogs. What a mess.

Yada, yada, yada. I am a bit loquacious, aren't I?

Spaghetti Soup

This came through on one of my recipe groups this morning. I haven't re-checked ponits, but I thought it sounded very yummy. This would please my son for sure.

Spaghetti Soup

Points Value: 4
Servings: 4
Preparation time: 10 minutes
Cooking time: 15 minutes
Level of Difficulty: Easy

2 tsp olive oil
2 medium garlic cloves, crushed
14 1/2 oz canned tomato sauce
1 T canned tomato paste
1/2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp dried oregano
4 cups water
1 average Herb-Ox Vegetable Bouillon Cube
5 1/2 oz uncooked spaghetti, thin (I use Smart Taste)

Heat oil in a large saucepan and saute garlic for 1 minute. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, basil and oregano and bring to a boil (bubble).

Add water and bouillon cube, and bring to a boil.

Break spaghetti into short pieces, add to soup and simmer until pasta is tender, about 15 minutes.

Serve.

Middle of the Night

I woke up about 1:30, got up for a bit and then tried to go back to sleep. No go. I got up again, had a breakfast cookie and glass of soy chocolate milk, hoping it would induce sleep. Nothing yet.

My tummy was really bad today. By dinner time it was all better, though. I just don't understand it. So when I got up the second time, I figured maybe it would feel better if I had something in it. It bums me, eating in the middle of the night. I decided to take the points from the flex pool instead of Wednesday's allotment. I'm still afraid of eating those flexies because it just seems like too many points -- more than when I did Winning Points.

I've been catching up on blogs. I read through Bloglines and it doesn't always update instantly. So I was thrilled to read all the great losses everyone is having.

I Googled health fairs in my area. There is one this weekend in a town about 100 miles from here. I would really like to go. I wrote my hubby a note and taped it to the cupboard that houses the coffee so I know he'll see it. I'd like to get a CBC done. I don't go for my physical until the end of May, and I want to see my numbers. I'd like to see if they've improved over last year, and if I can get them even better by May. The blood work is just as important to me, if not more so, than the weight.

I have decided that even if he doesn't want to go, I may go anyway. My son and I could make a day of it, hit the zoo or go shopping or do something fun. I'm suspecting hubby will say no due to the fact we have three dogs now. It's hard to travel with that many critters, and we don't have a good kennel in our town. Shoot, they've never even been boarded overnight.

Well, I'm going to try to get some sleep. My tummy is feeling better. I need to remember many small meals when it's upset like this. For some reason that helps.

3.31.2009

Supper Tonight


Kelly had an interesting post today about photographing food. Pop on over for a quick read.


I decided to photograph my dinner again tonight because of the article. Once again, it's not very colorful. I'm going to have to have a salad as a snack later tonight.


Eggs: "Fried" in Butter-flavored Pam

Bacon: Microwaved, blotted with paper towels

Toast: Light Bread, sprayed with Pam

Hash Browns: Fried in Pam

One cup tomato juice


9 point meal. Comfort food for me.


For the record, I looked up vegetable juices, and 1/2 cup counts as a serving. The brand I bought shows 1 cup has the same points as 1/2, so I had a cup. It's high in sugar and sodium, though.


So much for my menu planning. We were supposed to have a roast tonight, but I didn't get it thawed. I then thought of making the crockpot breakfast, but it was too late to get that going.


This worked, and everyone was happy.

From My Son

My son made this coffee cup for me a long time ago. It's my favorite. When I found this blog skin, it reminded me of the mug. It was a must-have. Plus, I love barns. Now I need to find or make a nice header to go with it.

Coffee and Motrin, Please

I woke up very early for me. I couldn't get back to sleep, so I poured a cup of coffee and decided to watch the sun rise. A beautiful misty/rainy morning with no direct sun, but I enjoyed watching it get a touch brighter. The wet weather has the birds really singing, which I've been loving.

When I woke up, I was ravenous. I was ready to eat now. So I had a bowl of cereal. I never eat this early. I usually eat an hour after waking up. Not today! My weight was the same as yesterday.

I am really feeling the effects of Jane Fonda's workout yesterday. My butt is sore. My back--there are muscles in there, who knew! My legs, thighs...wow. The worst? Oh my, I have muscles in that big tummy, and they're feeling it today! So today I'll take a short walk and call 'er good.

BTW, the Jane Fonda tape I did yesterday is not an aerobic workout. There is a very short aerobic section, very short, but that tape works individual muscles groups. That's why I'm so sore this morning. I think what makes it bad compared to what we know about exercise today is she bounces while she stretches. We now know to just stretch and not bounce.


Yesterday my pain hit me hard. My pain is a pain I get out of the blue and/or related to my cycle. I have discussed it with my doctor many times. It's always in the exact same spot, and sometimes it is so bad it bends me over. Yesterday I had to lie down as it was so bad. This morning I awoke to it. Motrin does nothing for the pain. Neither did the anti-spasmodic meds I once took for it. It sucks. What it's telling me today is that my cycle is about to start.

When I first showed the doctor where the pain was, he said, "Why, that's your bowel." The way he said it...it was is if he was Goofy. I've been experiencing this for quite a few years now, and it's no fun. I have hopes it will go away as I lose weight and get healthier.

It's time to wake my son and start our day. I know one thing for certain: today I will need a nap. I was up way too early and it will catch up with me. That's okay, as I got to enjoy a beautiful morning!

3.30.2009

Does Anyone Do This?

Make a menu plan for the week, then make the dinners out of order? lol

I do. I'm very anal and it drives me crazy. Yet sometimes I crave certain things, like tonight I really wanted cola chicken. So I drive myself crazy and satisfy my cravings at the same time.

I guess it works. =)

My Cola Chicken

We had Cola Chicken tonight. I know some thought it was a weird combo, so I took pictures of it cooking and the final product.
This recipe has been around for years as a WW favorite. I just love it. I love the sauce on rice as well. This is a very filling dinner. We're kind of weird, we have our salad after our main dish. My hubby prefers it that way and I'm kind of used to it now.

No grease added, that's from the chicken itself.


That's one cup of rice. I like to spread it all over my plate so it looks like a lot! It actually is a lot, and very filling.

Stuck in the '80s

Anyone remember this?


I own it. I bought it in the '80s. My copy is about worn out. This morning I got it out of my exercise box, put it in the VCR and worked out.

Kinda. I did my best. I did great with the arm part, most the leg part. For me, I even did okay with the ab part--if okay means I did about 1/4 of it. No way could I do the bicycle.

I learned that my right hip is extremely weak. I was very easy on it as I don't want any injuries.

I learned that I need to clean my carpet.

I learned that I am really fat and that gets in the way of doing these exercises.

I learned that a fat leg is very heavy to lift.

I learned that my head feels like it weighs 50 pounds when doing ab work.

I learned that my body is not very strong.

On the positive:

I learned that I really like to exercise like this. I like this tape.

I learned that I wasn't as bad as I feared. Not great, but not as bad.

I learned that this really feels good overall on my body when I'm done.

I learned that I can indeed feel the burn...sometimes after just one rep. In which case, I slowed way down and only did a few out of the entire set.

I learned that I long for the 80s and '90s Spandex workout pants, the ones that went to the knee. They were so comfortable to work out in.

I also learned that I would die of embarrassment if anyone saw me doing this workout! My son was working on his writing assignment and so I had a half hour to kill. I forbade him from coming into the living room. It's a good thing, I wouldn't want to scar him for life.

I think I'm going to do this every other day. It's good stretching, good section work, and it feels good. I don't bounce much like she does--I think that we know now that bouncing isn't that good. It's just a nice routine. I never once looked at the clock to see if how much longer. I actually enjoyed it.

Next time I see this at a garage sale or thrift shop, I'm going to buy it. My copy blipped in about four spots. I wish she'd release an anniversary copy. This was made in 1982. I was a junior in high school. I could do everything on it then, but I never did the advanced. Maybe someday I'll get back to that state!

I do know this: If I do this every other day, my body will get stronger and I'll be able to do more and more.


Monday Weigh-In Day

268.5

Three pounds gone this week! I'm down a total of 14. Woo-hoo.

3.29.2009

Crockpot Cheeseburgers

TJ found this recipe for me when I mentioned I'd seen it and couldn't find it.



Crockpot Cheeseburgers

1 1/2 Pounds Lean (96/4) Ground Beef

1/4 teaspoon Garlic Salt

1/2 teaspoon Black Pepper

2 Tablespoons Skim Milk

1 Cup Chopped Onion

2 Cloves Garlic

1 Tablespoon Prepared Mustard

1 Tablespoon Pickle Relish

8 oz. Velveeta Light Cheese



Brown the ground beef in a large skillet until no longer pink. Spray crockpot with non-stick cooking spray. Place the cooked ground beef into the prepared crockpot followed by the garlic salt, pepper, milk, onion, garlic, mustard, relish and cheese. Stir to combine. Cover and cook on low for 2-3 hours. Stir and serve on hamburger buns for additional points. Serves: 10 (1/3 cup each)



I haven't pointed this yet, but I will edit when I do.

I thought I had posted this the other day, but I just found it in my drafts.

Crockpot Breakfast

Crockpot Breakfast

POINTS® Value: 5
Servings: 8


Ingredients
28 oz frozen potatoes o'brien
2 cup(s) Kraft 2% Milk Reduced Fat Natural Shredded Cheese
1 cup(s) 1% low-fat milk
3 cup(s) Egg Beaters
1/2 tsp table salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
8 oz Hormel Pillow Pack Diced ham

I don't have a cook time on this, but I'll just throw it into the crockpot mid-morning to serve at suppertime.

Off to Walgreens

I'm going to buy:

chromium picolinate
Vitamin B5
a blood pressure monitor

Those supplements are new additions to what I already take. I will start one for a week and then start the other next week. Just in case I have a reaction, which I doubt I will, but better to be safe than sorry.

I take fish oil already. I use RxOmega-3 Factors Dr. Michael Murray recommended. The lovely people at The Vitamin Cottage in Denver recommended this. I take 1 gram a day. I'm going to up that to 2. I can't buy this locally, so I have to order. This alone brought my triglycerides from 600 to 300.

I also take a multi-vitamin daily and two baby aspirin. I will continue with that.

I have a terrible HDH/LDL ratio, although my cholesterol is below 200. This You on a Diet book has given me more info than my researching online or from my health care provider. The book recommends taking Niacin. I'm holding off on that until I speak to my doctor as it can have some harsh flushing reactions.

After taking the Real Age test, the recommendations were to eat more fish, soy, etc. Last night I bought myself some soy milk. I got light chocolate. It's watery, doesn't taste that good, but I can drink a glass a day.

I am also going to start having cinnamon daily. That's easy to incorporate.

I'm making this pretty easy on myself. Do the small things that are easy. Taking a walk with the dog, taking some supplements, incorporating a few things in my diet: soy, fish, potassium- rich foods...that's pretty easy.

This journey of mine is not just about losing weight. My overall health is more important to me that what I look like. The inside, the part you can't see, is pretty sick and I'm taking care of it now. Finally.

My mom had a heart attack at the age of 44. I will be 44 this summer. I think my insides are healthier than hers ever were. She had weird little medical problems before her heart attack. She also had breast cancer at the age of 42. She was a heck of a lot thinner than I am. She was a type-A personality, she had issues--anger, stress, depression, etc. Me? I have anxiety. I also get SAD, but the light box I bought this year helped that tremendously.

My mom, dad and two sisters all have/had diabetes. The last time I was at the doctor, I was told that I was a pre-diabetic. That's scary.

I'm not taking on too much. I'm getting my act together. Gently. If I don't, the results could be fatal. If not fatal, they could drastically change the quality of my life. And physically, the quality isn't all that great right now, I don't want it getting worse. It's a bit better now, and will improve greatly with time.

Off to Walgreen's and then take the Pipster for a walk.

Week 7 Menu

Sunday: Chicken and Stuffing, salad
Monday: Roast beef, mashed potatoes, salad
Tuesday: Steamed chicken, rice, veggie
Wednesday: Crockpot Cheeseburgers (Didn't get them made last week), baked fries
Thursday: Out of town, out to eat!
Friday: Cola Chicken, rice
Saturday: Crockpot Breakfast
Sunday: Italian Chicken, noodles, veggie

Lunches: This week, tuna. I don't like fish, but I need to incorporate more fish. So tuna it is.

Snacks: I bought lots of fruit at the store. I need to up my fruit a bit. (And veggies, but I'll work on that next week.)