It’s been awhile since I have written. Two weeks ago my husband came home with what he thought were painful kidney stones, by Saturday afternoon he was in the hospital to remove his appendix! That was a very long day and old habits starting popping up! Food for comfort! :-) Jay came on home on Sunday but feeling pretty lousy and then went back to the hospital five days later for a scheduled parathyroid surgery. He had elevated calcium levels and the ENT wanted to hopefully remove his parathyroids……7 hours later and two cancerous tumors, he had his parathyroids removed and most importantly his entire thyroid gland where the cancer was found. He spent two nights in the hospital It’s been a wild two weeks. He went back to work today and I am hoping to get back to normal also. I learned a few things about myself. I always thought I ate a lot food because food tasted good and I wanted more. I found out I also eat under stress, like lots of food! I also had lots more energy and endurance during these past two weeks. I am sure some of it is due to my improved diet and exercise. Though I really fell off the wagon I could see the small differences in my life.
“Before” the 100 day heart challenge not only did I indulge a lot in fast food but I also took my children several times. I know we are all guilty of being a drive-thru Mom and I knew how bad it was for my children. Since January I have made a REALLY big effort not to give my money to the fast food industry. Today we did a little shopping, me & my 4 children and for a “treat” we went to Carls Jr. Three out of the 4 did not want pop with their happy meals, but water and they couldn’t get over how different the food tasted, it was actually at ”treat” to be there and not the once a week meal Mom use to serve them. I CAN NOT believe what a difference it makes with changing my habits. I remember as a child is was something REALLY special to go out to eat or even better to visit the McDonalds. I know times have changed since the 1970’s. I’m hoping my children will have better heart health, also.
I have been doing well. I have lost close to 20lbs. I am also excited to see some of the end testing and to see our results. Another positive note, I got my husband to go on a walk with me this week and he has promised more walks on his days off (he works 12 hour shifts). It was so nice to be alone and talk without interruptions (unlike this moment while I am trying to type this blog!) Keep hanging in there…..it’s worth the effort. 
After work each day I come home to eat about 1:30pm. I usually am so hungry and in the past have stopped for fast food or a snack. Since the 100 day challenge I have tried to take sensible snacks to work and them come home right away and not be tempted by fast food……my worst enemy :-( Today I had the best lunch. I found a package of frozen veggies at Macey’s a few weeks ago. It had tomatoes, peppers, onion, corn, blackbeans and southwestern spices. So I cooked that up and made a veggie burrito. I warmed up a whole wheat tortilla, put lots of lettuce on (I love the stuff), next came the warm veggies and on top I put some cottage cheese (flavored with a ranch dressing packet). Yummo! It really feels good to make some new positive habits. The fast food is so addicting, so available, and so BAD for me. I feel pleased every time I resist the urge and drive by….which is everyday since the stuff is on every corner!
To my surpise, another positive habit I really enjoy is my exercising. I’ve read the health articles, I’ve listened to the exercise nuts, I’ve heard testimonies from former fat friends, and what do you know….they were right. When I miss a day of doing something I’m a little upset about it, disappointed. After a few weeks I noticed I was not huffing and puffing as much. I have a really LONG way to go in weight loss and building my muscles and I am looking forward to the journey.
What I am really looking forward to is the day when I weigh less than my husband. All you “normal” gals can’t relate. It stinks weighing more than him. Of course I am 2 pounds heavier than my husband, but he is 6′2 and not at all the smallest guy on the block. Yikes! I am only 5′5! I need to be WAY less than him. One day…..SOON!
After I decided to give up sweets for the rest of the competition I went to work (an elementary school). There was a candy bar, my favorite (SKOR) in my mailbox. It was April Fools and someone was playing a joke on a really HEART HEALTHY teacher. You either had a candy bar or a sugary sweet pop in your mailbox. I’ve given up pop, but I was only a few hours into living without a candy bar. The old me would have eaten it without a thought. I decided I didn’t need it and put it in the PTA box. That was Tuesday and I must confess I did look at the yummy bar sitting in the mailbox on Wed. & Thurs. I wonder if it will be there this morning?? You know I will check. :-) Last night a neighbor brought over cupcakes leftover from their sons b-day party. On Sunday he brought us leftover sweet rolls. What’s tomorrow?
After exercising last night at the wellness center I felt so wiped out. I sat in my car for awhile and felt pretty mad at myself. When did all this weight get packed on and what was I thinking? It is easier for someone my size to sit and not be active. It’s enjoyable to eat and forget the ”bigger” issue. For the first time I realized I don’t want to go back. I can’t. I can’t go through this again. As I get stronger (thanks to Traci & Josh at the center) I want to stay that way. I don’t want to back to my sedentary lifestyle. So I dried my tears, drove home & went to the elementary school to count money after the book-fair was over and wasn’t even tempted to eat a cookie that sat in platefuls next to me.
I finally figured out how to view comments on this blog and thank you to those who left a little message. At times I thought no one was really reading the blog. I try to check all the blogs everyday. THANK YOU CLASS MEMBERS FOR WRITING GREAT, INSPIRING BLOGS. I look up to all of you!!!
Last Friday I went to SLC with two friends. These ladies have been part of my life for 10+ years. They have seen me through it all, good times, bad moods, childbirth, taco dinners, weight loss & weight gain, service, unemployment, gardening ideas, scrapbooking & standing out front of our homes & visiting all day while the kids played! We went to see the show Good Things Utah which comes on every morning at 10am and then we attended a session at the SLC temple followed by lunch. It felt good to take a day and spend it with dear friends. I do get caught up in family, work & church, but taking time to be with them and renew my spirits was wonderful. I challenge everyone to take a day and get to know those sweet friends again.
At the beginning of the challenge I gave up the addiction to diet coke and french fries. I have to say I have tried a few mouthfuls of diet coke and it did not taste good at all and fries taste like …….. well hard to describe, but mainly greasy! I don’t want to go cold turkey on every thing in my life, because I do believe in moderation. However, I am ready to challenge myself a bit more, I’m ready to give up sugar for awhile. I know many on this 100 day challenge have already done so, I haven’t been strong enough. But I find I’m slowly starting to eat more & more sweets and wasteful calories. So today is the day & it’s not an April Fools joke, I’m going to try and finish out the challenge with out all the extra sugar.
On a good side note, I was down 4 lbs yesterday morning. To be honest, I was up two last week, so it’s only two more pounds off the total weight loss but it felt good to see the scale move down.
Hey Everyone,
We had another nutrition class this morning. We missed our regular teacher. I’m getting use to her smile each week. I was looking around the room this morning and I must say for 7:30 am everyone was looking GREAT. I think it’s our new lifestyle. Everyone’s skin & hair looked good, jaw lines nice and defined and I even noticed lots of baggy pants and clothes. I haven’t lost much weight these past several week and am even up 2 pounds, but GOOD GOLLY my fat clothes are starting to feel better on me and dare I say lose??? I know I am losing some inches.
The day our challenge started I purchased two books that were recommended. The first is called In Defensed of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto and the other is called Intuitive Eating. I read the first chapter in each book. Two days later I purchased the first book in the twilight series. My friend Loni had been telling me for years to read the books. Needless to say I have read all three books in the series (TWICE!!) and now I have started on the other more educational/enlightening books. (that darn vampire sure took up a lot of my time, but it was worth it!!) Back to the books, so far they’ve been a great read. Have a good week everyone.
Several years ago I was helping an older lady in my neighborhood with a meal I had brought to her home. I set the table and helped her get settled and stayed while she ate some food. I had made some homemade rolls and she only wanted to eat one. She then proceeded to tell me about a very nice wool skirt she had and really wanted to lose a few extra pounds to be able to wear that skirt again. She was older at this point and pretty much blind, but still wanting to lose a few pounds to wear a pretty skirt!! She taught me two lessons that day….#1 We women are all alike, doesn’t matter what age we are or what we look like, what profession we have, how much we weigh, the color of our skin, we all want to LOSE SOME WEIGHT to get into a nice piece of clothing and #2……..DOES IT EVER END???????? Am I going to be 88 years old and still thinking about my carbs??? Can’t I just throw in the towel at some point in my life?? Do I really have to endure to the end?? Yikes!! At least we all have each other as a support system and when we’re all in the care center together we will be talking about the latest “good-tasting” reduced calorie salad dressing and some granola bars with lots of fiber and getting a bit of exercise with our walkers.
This contest has been fun to get to know the other ladies. I enjoy our Wed. morning classes and running into someone at the wellness institute. I do worry about what I’m going to do at the end of the 100 days…..I need many more “100 days” of effort. Some positive things I have noticed lately; my skin is looking better…..it likes all the water and not the junky food, I’m not sore and tired when I get out of bed in the morning, and I do believe I have a bit more energy coming my way each day.
It’s almost 7pm and you know what that means…..American Idol tonight. I sure enjoy that show. I try to sit on my yoga ball while watching TV. During commercials I do a few sit ups, but mainly I try & move around instead of just sitting and doing nothing.
I had another great workout at the Ferguson Wellness Institute today. I actually read the name on the sign this week. It’s not called the wellness center like I was referring to it in earlier posts. It’s one of the best kept secrets in Utah County.
It’s been a month since the challenge has started and I have felt a little discouraged at how slowly the pounds are coming off but then I remind myself it’s not just about the weight, it’s improving my heart health. Every time I have tried to lose some weight I usually focus on weight and looking forward to looser pants and the compliments (which are the perks) but this time I keep thinking about my heart and the blood moving through this powerful organ. Right now that’s what is keeping me from finishing the ice cream left over from the 4 different family birthdays we have in MARCH!!
I hear Ryan Seacrest talking so I better run. Good luck everyone!
It’s been a few days since I have written. I was sore all weekend from working a little too enthusiastically with the weights at the Wellness Institute last Thursday. I will take it down a notch when I go tomorrow. My family has started our own ” 100 day challenge”. I have four brothers & 1 sister. Several of us are competing with each other to see who can lose the most weight in 100 days. We have been reporting to each other each Monday the actual pounds loss. However, one brother likes to do the color coded charts & graphs and wants to post our percentage of weight loss each week which meant telling my younger brother how much I actually weighed. I fought the idea for several weeks but I finally gave in and told him. I’m excited that everyone is trying to eat a bit better and get some exercise. That’s what it’s all about!!
I am feeling much better after a little battle with whatever junk is going around. I went to the Wellness Center last night to do some interval training. Let me just say a few words about the Wellness Center. It’s located in the old Granite Building next to UVRMC in Provo, UT. I have lived in Utah County for 17 years and I have slowly watched UVRMC take over the entire block. They do so much to provide good health care for Utah county. Anyway, the Wellness Center is upstairs in this building. I am not sure all of the services they offer but one thing they have is a great little workout area. This is where lots of us are spending our time. Their pricing is great, like $150 for the whole year. The contestants are not paying but I’m planning on joining after 100 days is up. You get really great help and it’s a good atmosphere to exercise in. It’s nice to run into some of the other ladies. Shelley always has such a big smile for you and she can remember everyone’s name. What a good talent. I am really starting to feel better about exercising. I was so clumsy & uncoordinated at first. It’s just amazing after a few weeks how my body had responded. The human body is so interesting.
This morning (7:30-8:30am) we had our weekly nutrition class. As always I enjoyed the class and all the comments. My husband has been home the last few Wednesdays in the morning to help get kids ready and off to school. This morning he had to leave early so the kids were on their own. I did get several calls during the class (Mom, Hayden is not getting ready, he’s playing nintendo…) but the good news is everyone made it to school on time. I thought about not going this morning and giving up my class to stay and help them like a “good” Mom would. Then I thought I need to do this for me and one morning they can do this on their own and support me. My husband had a good long talk with them last night about supporting Mom. I can be a GOOD Mom and take care of myself. Don’t worry my kids are little older, I didn’t leave a 3 year old home alone. I think we just get caught up in trying to be a good parent and not take care of ourselves. I remember our first morning together another woman, Tracy, telling me she tried to drop off her children at a sitter very early who ended up not being there (or still asleep) and she was there in the car with her little ones, needing some help. Luckily she has a good husband who watched them at work while she came to our first conference. All of want to be good Moms but we need some help. We have to take care ourselves and our loved ones….we have to find that balance.