Monthly Weigh-In

I decided last month after my doctor's appointment that I wanted to only weigh-in once a month.  Why, you ask?  In a nutshell, I have a tendency to obsess.  Weekly weighing often turns into daily weighing which turns into an unhealthy balance for me.  So once a month it is. 

For October, while I was happy in losing 6 3/4 inches all over my body, I was initially a bit disappointed in my weight loss.  Only 3 pounds from last month to this month and I've made a lot of food changes for the better.  However, after cleaning out my closet this week of clothes I don't wear anymore, I found a pair of jeans from when I was at my heaviest two years ago.  Of course, I will provide you with a visual comparison:

Please ignore the lack of make-up and a decent hair style

My children had to give their own silly comparison:

Oh my word!  Both my kids could fit into those old jeans!

So while I was initially a bit bummed this morning, this visual reminder made me smile.  I have taken steps to regain control over my health and no longer wear a Women's Size 20.  These jeans are now in a hanger with my "Wear Again" item, my favorite little black dress that I have never worn out on a date with Jonathan first, as a visually tell me of how far I've come and second, to remind me to NEVER go back there again.

As I look back over the last month, I am also looking ahead.  Starting on November 1st, I am going on a 21 Day Sugar Detox with two ladies near and dear to my heart to help fight my natural draw towards all things sweet! (If you want to to join us, please do!  We are using this book as our guide:  www.amazon.com/The-21-Day-Sugar-Detox)  Also, Lord willing, by this time next month I will have run a 10K (yay!), and would like to lose another 2-4 pounds, as well as about 5 more inches, and continue becoming stronger and more disciplined.  I hope my November weigh-in post is a positive one as well!

Trusting in the good things that are happening,

Debbie

Where Did The Time Go?

Today is my 34th Birthday.

That's right.  34 years old.  12,410 days.  That is a lot of time I've spent on this blue and green cosmic ball circling around a bright yellow star.  And for the last 2,920 days (or the last eight years, give or take a few days), I have weighted over 200 pounds.

Just writing that sentence brought tears to my eyes.  *sigh*

The week we found out I had conceived with our now 7 year-old daughter, I went to the local YMCA for my morning workout and in the ladies' locker room, weighed in at 198 pounds.  That number has stayed in my head for a long time.  That is my pre-pregnancy weight and I've come within 15 pounds of it two different times over the past two years but then, life happens.  Illness.  Job change.  A move.  And I gain it back.

It's an ugly cycle.

It's been a year since I last posted.  A lot has happened in that time.  For starters, our family completely uprooted and moved halfway across the country to a rural town in Colorado, just a couple of hours from where I grew up.  We are homeschooling.  Emily is seven and Ethan is nearly five.  My husband no longer works in a formal ministry capacity, but instead enriches the lives of high-school and college-aged students from his office at our local college as the Distance Education Technology Coordinator.  I'm back in school, this time pursing a degree in nursing and working the night shift as a nurses aide in a local nursing home.  We stay incredibly busy but LOVE being right smack in the middle of family - grandparents, great-grandparents, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins... it is quite a list!  We are praying over a burden God placed on our hearts almost three years ago to work with pregnant single mothers and wonder/struggle with wanting to see that come fully to fruition.  But most of all, we are blessed.  In love, in life, in friends, and in family.

But...

This is one area of my life I am still struggling in.  The past month or so has been difficult for me as I examine my health.  I'm facing a surgery in the next few months to repair a small issue that's been progressively nagging me since my appendectomy/cholecystectomy in 2013.  I have develop some severe food allergies, including an anaphylactic reaction to soy products.  And since I work nights, my normal body rhythms are completely out of wack ALL THE TIME, but at this point I would not trade the time I get to spend with my kiddos during the day.

So now what?  I've been making strides towards better health.  I saw the doctor two weeks ago and I was down nine pounds since my last visit.  Learning to say no to foods that contain 1) soy, 2) gluten, and 3) nuts has been a trial for me and has really made me see my addiction to food.  Do you want to know what contains soy?  EVERYTHING.  If it comes in a box, can, jar, bottle or is in the deli or freezer section of the grocery store, it probably has soy.  And in a small town, it is a challenge finding simple items such as salsa or coffee creamer or a salad dressing that doesn't contain soy is hard.  Fast food is out of the question, unless it is oatmeal from McDonalds or Potato Ole's from Taco Johns.  So a LOT of freshly prepared foods is what we do now.  But this isn't a blog about my food allergies - I will post more on that on another day.  Where I meant to go with that rabbit trail was that this journey with food allergies has made me see my emotional and even spiritual connection with food and God is working on my heart.

Today I want not to say "New Year, New Me" like a broken recording January 1st recording, but a time to look forward to the next 365 days.  God is doing a new thing and I look forward to sharing that with you.  There will be ups-and-downs on this journey to better health, but I am excited to see what I will be posting on October 16, 2017.  Will you join me?  There may be days of joy and victory and days of tears and defeat, but it is my goal to regularly chronicle this year as I journey around the sun towards the age of 35.

Good things ARE happening,

Debbie

Fasting & Feasting Follow-Up - 3 Weeks Later and Goals for September

My deepest apologies that I didn't do a final "fast-breaking" post; with school back on in session, blogging while on-duty with ten kids in the house and homeschooling Emily is nearly impossible.  I feel like I ended it well, and had great results from the doctor with my lab work.  My glucose fasting level is back to normal, and my A1C came down from a 6.1 to a 5.9.  Yay!  My next set of lab work will be done in February and my goal is to try to get my A1C below a 5.7, which would put it back beneath a pre-diabetic level.

So after 3 weeks of liquid feasting, my final results were thus:

Starting Weight: 224
Week 1 Weight:  219.4
Week 2 Weight:  216.2
Ending Weight:  215.4
Total Difference:  - 8.6 pounds

Since then, I've lost a bit more and am now down to 213 pounds.  I'm looking forward to September!  We are having a short vacation back to the Savannah area at the end of the month, and while we are there, I'm running a 5K.  I hope to have an new PR for this one for under 40 minutes.  I'd also like to lose 5 more pounds before the end of the month, which I think is very doable.

This is going to be short, but hopefully I will post more again on my next off-duty shift!

Lab Work is Done - The Joys of Feasting & Fasting - Day 16

Hard to believe I'm already past two weeks into this thing - it's a bit crazy to me!  Some days it seems super long, some days it feels like it is a normal part of my regular routine.  Hard to believe it is nearing an end, though I have been considering extending it one more week to make it a 30 day fast, but I don't know yet if I will.

Lab work was done easy-peasy this morning, and I will get results next Thursday.  Praying for good news - and good blood sugar numbers!  A big answer to pray was that it only took two sticks to draw blood today (I'm a horrible stick) and no veins blew or collapsed.  Yay!

I realized that I hadn't done a weigh-in post when I hit week two, so here is where things stood after two weeks: 

Starting Weight: 224
Week 1 Weight:  219.4
Week 2 Weight:  216.2
Total Difference:  -7.8 pounds

Physically, I'm feeling good - a bit tired mid-day at times, but my energy level is actually pretty good.  I've also started exercising more strenuously again (besides just walking) and am working out about an hour every other day and have had no problems with being light-headed or dizzy.  In fact, my energy level has been pretty high.

Emotionally and spiritually, these past few days have been trying.  My female hormones are singing in high octave, so I'm dealing with that, and God is working mightily in my heart.  Also, Jonathan and I are praying over several areas specifically (some which are a bit terrifying for my security-loving heart), and I hope to see change there soon - either in our hearts or our situation that our prayers pertain to.  However, I am loving the extra time with my kids and the homeschooling lifestyle - I love it!

Speaking of homeschooling, it's time to get started!  I think we may school down in the pavilion today; got to enjoy these low-80's days while we can!  :)

Days 13 - 15: The Joys of Feasting & Fasting

Tomorrow is a big day for me!  It's my six month check-up since I was diagnosed as pre-diabetic, and so it is up early in the morning to get lab work done (I will get the results next week).  Pray they are good numbers!

The fasting and feasting continues to go well; I honestly struggled a lot these last couple of days, but I think it was more from boredom (we were off duty) and hormones.  Now back at work, I hardly think about it - we are pretty much on the go all the time, so I don't have time to think about.  My biggest thing is that I have to remember to drink, drink, drink!

This is short tonight because it's been a long day and I have to get off to bed; I will try to post more tomorrow!

Days 11 & 12 - The Joys of Feasting & Fasting

It's hard to be believe I am at the end of Day 12.  Days and meals are pretty much falling into a standard routine - I start and end each day with two cups of warm lemon and cinnamon tea, then green juice for breakfast, a veggie broth soup or smoothie for lunch, a fruit-based drink mid-afternoon, and another veggie broth soup or smoothie for supper.  I can tell my stomach has shrunk - about two cups of liquids is about all it takes to get me to full point.  Since I am off-duty this week, I did weigh myself this weekend (I keep the scale at the off-duty house, so I don't obsess over weighing myself at the main house - something I've struggled with in the past.).  I've lost a tad over three pounds over the last five days, so I'm continuing to stay on the same weight loss track of a little over half a pound a day.

At this point of the game, I'm starting to think and pray about the best way to break the fast without going off the deep-end!  This is the area I've always struggled with and truly, what I've found is that breaking the fast is the hardest part of the journey.  It will be five-to-six day journey to break the fast and hopefully, I'll be able to keep up my new and healthy eating habits.

This week, I've also adding back in more exercise besides walking.  Tonight, I walked a mile, interval jogged/walked two miles, and then walked a fourth with very little problems.  No weight-training at all (not advisable during fasting), but I want to get back in the habit of regular exercise, so walking, jogging, and yoga is what it is going to be for the next two weeks.  Truth be told?  Tonight's hour of exercise was wonderful.  Upbeat praise and worship music blasting and a great time of communion with Him while enjoying the twilight and sounds of crickets and frogs while disciplining my body.  For the first time in a long time, fellowship with God and prayer is coming and flowing all day long.  In and out, just like breathing or a heartbeat.

In that, I am content.

Days 9 & 10 - Gearing Up to Halfway!

It is hard to believe that I'm pressing up on the halfway point on this season of fasting.  Truth be told, I let pride get to my head a bit after I finished the first week; yesterday and the first part of today were very hard.  Pride and a.s I look back, I know I was drinking enough, either - neither of which made a hard, long, stressful day any better. 

Due to the fast, I am cold all the time, and have been avoiding juices (cold) and favoring hot soups, broths, and teas (hot).  However, the juices have more nutrients and so today, I've tried to me proactive in getting the juices in my system.  For supper tonight, I even got creative with fruit - sauteed peaches and raspberries in cinnamon and coconut oil, then threw them in the blender with some vanilla and a bit of almond butter.  My word, it was delicious!  I ate every single bite with a spoon and savored it.  After supper I got the best rest (I'm not calling it a nap, because I didn't sleep); just stretch out on the bed on top of the overs, pulled my throw over me, and just "was" with God for a bit - a time of mental praise and prayer.  Warm covers on a soft bed with a full and warm belly - I was very content.  But it made me sad - how many people tonight went to bed with empty stomachs?  No roof over their heads, let along warm blankets and beds?  Children?  Mothers?  Families?  Today was a huge reminder of how blessed I really am.

A nice touch this weekend is that Jonathan is juicing with me this weekend - yay!  Makes this four-day off shift more pleasurable.  Pray for the both of us tomorrow, as Jonathan leads our church's Awana training, and I am prepping lunch for everyone.  I will have juices with me, but I still anticipate it to be a bit difficult.  In light of that, I'm off to bed; busy day tomorrow!