First June check in - Week 5

We have had a busy week.  Many doctors appointments, Memorial Day, a mini-birthday party, plus my day job.

BUT

Weigh-In:

Starting weight:  249
May 27, 2013:  242

Week 5 weight change:  -2 lbs
Total loss to date:  7 lbs

I lost 2 lbs even with the family party over Memorial Day weekend, the small birthday party for oldest son, never ending doctor appointments and too many sweets available for me to consume!  I think I may have figured out what to do to keep on track in the face of traveling here and there and everywhere with the elders.

Goals and Plans:

• The swimming pool is open and the water is finally balanced.  I'll be researching some water exercises during the week and will begin using the pool to help me add exercise to my routine.

• Farmer's Markets are open in the County and should soon have a lovely variety of fresh fruits and vegetables to tempt my palate with their wonderful vitamins, minerals and weight reduction properties! 

 Have a great week.  Hope to return with a great report next weekend!

Happy Memorial Day! and late check in...

Weigh-In:

Starting weight:  249
May 27, 2013:  244

Week 4 weight change:  0 lbs
Total loss to date:  5 lbs

I neither lost nor gained weight this week.  I'm calling it a win!  This week has been a series of doctors appointments and surgeries for my mother.  It was exhausting for both of us and I opted for eating out rather than cooking healthy meals at home frequently.

Plus, we had a family gathering on Saturday.  I am sure the prep for the party helped me to maintain my current weight.  There was a lot of bending, lifting, stair-stepping and scrubbing done over two days!   The party food was delicious -- cheese and crackers, chips and dip, crock pot barbecue w/ homemade cole slaw, hot dogs, fruit and vegetable platters, deviled eggs, two kinds of macaroni salad, potato salad and desserts of cake, brownies and cookies.   So, calories burned by the party prep were regained by the party itself - break even!

Back to plan on Tuesday.  Gearing up today.  I need to go to the store for salad fixings and fresh vegetables to augment the food already in my house to get totally back on track.  However, normal, or what passes for that these days, begins again tomorrow.  Normalcy will help me to stay on track.  Goals will be set again next Saturday.  The only goal this week is to get back into the groove of juicing and eating right.

This coming week features two days of doctor appointments.  A real break from last week which had us running every day but Thursday.  And a real plus: This week's appointments will be fairly short!  Tuesday afternoon, Mom will have her stitches removed.  She has facial reconstruction(?) surgery last Tuesday.  Basal cell carcinoma was removed and the cancer had spread so far that Mom needed to see the plastic surgeon for outpatient surgery rather than having the dermatologist close the removal site.  
 

Wear Sunscreen!!!!!!!!!

Second trip is a regular doctor's appointment for all three of us, Me, Mom and Aunt.  Hoping to lose another few pounds before weighing in at his office on Friday.

I leave you with pictures of Mom and her first great grandchild:

Weekly Report: May 18, 2013

Weigh-In:

Starting weight:  249
May 18, 2013:  244

Week 3 weight gain:  1 lbs
Total loss to date:  5 lbs

This was a not so good week.  A lot of activity, exhaustion and stress meant poor choices in food and beverages - too much caffeine free diet coke, too little water; too many pre-made meals, too few healthy homemade meals.  Bad for my eating plan.  Bad for my budget.

This was the week to start walking and I did not.

Time to reboot the goals and restart the plan.

I'm not sure how to stem the tiredness.  Sleep is elusive and early to bed is an impossibility.  Activity this week will be mostly deep cleaning the house.  I am hoping a thoroughly cleaned home will help reduce my stress level and increase my motivation.

There will be a bit more stress this week.  Mom will undergo surgery early in the week to repair the gaping wound caused by the Moh's surgery.  We spent most of the day Friday at the dermatologist's office having basal cell carcinoma removed from her face.  The doctor thought the cancer was a small spot.  It turned out to be more widespread than anticipated.  The first eraser tip-sized hole turned into a quarter sized hole.  Friday was a very bad day!  I will know later today when surgery is scheduled.  I think that will be a crockpot day!  The wound has been bleeding quite a bit.  This weekend will be spent making sure Mom keeps the bandage on, especially since she doesn't remember what happened, why it's there, even what it is sometimes.

I really need to pre-plan, pre-make and execute the menu for healthy eating with more consistency this week to counter-act the stress that is sure to come.

Goals:

1.  Pre-Assemble daily juice.  Baggies with all the ingredients in one spot will help get the juicing done with minimal prep each day.
1. Clean, peel, cut and bag the daily ingredients two days at a time
2. Set up the juicer before bed
3. Get up and JUICE!
2. Plan the weekly menu with most ingredients on hand by mid-day Sunday.  Prep as much as possible to make dinner easy to prepare when I walk in the door after work.  This will go a long way toward preventing the "I'm too tired.  Let's hit the drive through" phenomenon that took over this past week.
1. Inventory Pantry/Fridge/freezer
2. Create the menu
3. Make a shopping list of missing ingredients
4. Shop for the missing ingredients
5. Prep two or more days at a time
3. Institute the Post-It board to plan the deep clean.  Post the board somewhere that others might see and step up to help out.  If they don't, at least that will keep me on track to get it all done by the end of the week.
1. Pick a spot for the post-it disply
2. Divide the display room-by-room
3. Write each task on its own post-it
4. pick a post-it and DO IT!

Weekly Report: May 11, 2013

Weigh-In:

Starting weight:  249
May 11, 2013:  243

Week 2 weight loss:  3 lbs
Total to date:  6 lbs


Plan Results:

Food:  Green Juicing 5 of 7 days.  Ate well for the week.  Working on prepping the night before for work lunches and morning juices.  I enjoyed the big salads I brought on two days - need to mix up the proteins.  Last week it was Tuna.  Need to prepare some chicken and eggs this weekend so I have alternatives to tuna, as that will get old really fast!

Exercise:  Not much by way of exercise this week, other than the normal up and down the stairs multiple times a day and night to tend to Mom.  This week I'm preparing the pool to be opened on Friday - so there will be plenty of exercise time.  Not sure the walking regimen will start.  If it does, it will be limited because I really need better shoes.  My current athletic type shoes rub due to bunions and cause painful calluses near on my feet.    Not an excuse - I just know that if it hurts my feet, I won't do it.

Goals progress: 

• I prepare a green juice 5 out of 7 mornings this week!  Goal achieved.
• This is my weekly post.  Goal achieved. 
• Created my own recipe for fresh mushrooms to add to my spaghetti.  I'm putting this in the new recipe category!  Goal achieved.
• I am removing the goal of new vegetable/spice each week.   I'll add this in as Farmer's Market season heats up in Calvert County.
• For Diet Coke v. water/vitamin water, I'm about half and half, which I declare a win!

As summer arrives, more fresh foods will be available bringing better eating.  The pool will be open, which will give me options on the exercise portion of my plan.

Summer goals - get into the pool 4 times a week; go to Farmer's market for fresh produce at least every other Friday

Now to continue the journey and go make my green juice for today!

Slow and steady wins the race. I am determined to keep this going this time. 

Week 1 wrap-up

Progress will be slow and steady.

Week 1 results:

May 4, 2013  weigh in


Height: 5'8"
Weight:  246 lbs

Loss of 3 lbs

Plan Results:

Food:  Green Juicing 4 of 7 days, No protein smoothies this week, though I did buy the supplies.  I successfully limited wheat by reducing sandwiches and will continue in that vein.  Reduced sugar by avoiding the sweet treats I keep in hand for the other residents of the house.  Definitely ate more vegetables, but had a little too much ground beef.  Need to up the fish and chicken meal plan!

Exercise:  Walking is to start in Week 3, but this week I started more exercising by spending 3 hours  in the yard.  Activities included weed whacking, cutting down small trees and fallen branches, raking, picking up and disposing of debris.  There was a lot of bending and lifting and perspiring, even though it was a coolish day.  This week includes more of that, plus leaf scooping from the pool cover and pool to get ready for water delivery and pool opening.  Also on the agenda will be some intensive house cleaning.  Company is coming at the end of May and the house needs a bit of work.

Goals progress:
Goals throughout the journey:

1.  Report weekly progress  Check!
2.  Find some great recipes to tease my palate - found a few, but haven't made them yet.
3.  Try one new vegetable or spice each week - Not sure about this one, but definitely was hitting 'normal' this week.  Oh, except for the mint in the vitamin water!

Weekly goals:

Weeks 1-2: Juice 5 of 7 days each week, gradually reduce Caffeine Free Diet Coke intake while adding water as a replacement until reaching 1 per day.  Eliminate sandwiches to reduce carbs and sugars. 

Progress was made on the weekly goal.  As I said above, juicing 4 out of 7 days.  I have reduced the CF Diet Coke a bit and have added up to 1/2 gallon of vitamin water a day.  Current recipe:  Lemon, cucumber and mint.  I have ingredients on hand  to try strawberry, blueberry and lemon.

I cut back on lunch sandwiches, opting for salads with protein (tuna or chicken) on 6 of 7 days.  Turkey sandwich, with one slice of wheat bread on the 7th.

On my way and feeling successful!  Craving a sweet cake and ignoring that craving!  ;)

The start of something big...

or someone smaller!

My sister and I recently returned from a lovely vacation in Cancun, Mexico -- a time to relax and recharge.  We spent most of our days in leisure -- lounging poolside, warming in the sun, floating in pool, strolling along the white sands of the Caribbean.

One day we went snorkeling, which while a great deal of fun, could not be called leisurely!  The tour was on a schedule:  x amount of time for snorkeling, x amount of time for lunch, x amount of time in the tourist town on Isla de Mujeres.  It all flew by much too fast as we were moved here and there through the schedule!

As is often the case on vacation tours go, a professional photographer was on hand to capture the moment for us and, of course, sell his finished product.  We bought two of three photos, deciding we didn't want to pay $15 for a photo of the whales in the water - we looked HUGE!  I wish now we would have purchased that photo.  It would be the BEST before shot of me ever.  If the TV camera adds 10 lbs to a person, a "from the boat while you are in the water" shot seems to add 25 lbs.  The reality?  It didn't ADD those 25 lbs.  They are there, taunting me.

Well it's time to say a final Adios! to that extra baggage once and for all. 

I'm approaching 54 years old and have carried this extra baggage for way, way too long. I've decided by 55, I want to be healthier!

Today I START!

Before photo - taken at the Holiday Inn Arenas, poolside, Cancun, Mexico.  That's me on the right.

Starting Stats:

April 27, 2013


Height: 5'8"
Weight:  249 lbs

Plan:

Food:  Green Juicing, protein smoothies, limit wheat and sugar, eat more lean proteins and vegetables

Exercise:  Start with stretching and walking, utilize the pool when it opens for the season.

Goals:
Goals throughout the journey:

1.  Report weekly progress
2.  Find some great recipes to tease my palate
3.  Try one new vegetable or spice each week

Weekly goals:

Weeks 1-2: Juice 5 of 7 days each week, gradually reduce Caffeine Free Diet Coke intake while adding water as a replacement until reaching 1 per day.  Eliminate sandwiches to reduce carbs and sugars.

Week 3 - continue with the juicing/eating/drinking plan above, add walking around the neighborhood working up to two complete circuits of the wishbone streets.

(More weekly goals to come.)

ULTIMATE GOAL:  170 lbs

The plan is achieve the ultimate goal by my 55th Birthday on May 13, 2014.  That means average weight loss of approximately 6 lbs per month.  A totally achievable goal!   I will be working with my doctor, getting regular check-ups, while I move to a healthier me!


I MUST REMEMBER:
 
It took almost 54 years to get where I am, I won't change over night. 

Forgive myself my errors, learn from my missteps and keep moving forward, even if I wobble off the path!

Aaaaaaaand sheeeeeee's off! 

First step taken - green juice for breakfast today, glass of water at my side...

Starting the New Year in Style

New Year 2013 crept in silently.  We did watch the New Year's Rockin' Eve Dick Clark tribute and countdown and we almost got to the ball dropping, but Mom pooped out.  I watched it online.

While I was watching ABC that night I realized I have been forever old.  Odd at 53 to believe that, but really - rockin' eve?  I'd rather have Guy Lombardo-like entertainment.  Actually, when I was 20 I preferred the Guy Lombardo New Year's Eve.  I often flipped over to whichever channel had the big band countdown so I could hear Auld Lang Syne big band style.  I was singular in my preference.  My companions on any given New Year's Eve preferred the Rockin' version.

Watching this year's show, I was semi-tallying the "I've seen them", "I've heard of them," and "Who the heck is that?" observations.  I think there was an even split - but the overarching category?  "I could do without seeing this act/singer/spokesperson ever again!"  I believe that applied to every single act/person!

Old, I am you.

The fact that my yearly upper respiratory infection was beginning may have put an extra layer of "I don't give a darn, it's just another day" on the festivities.  The infection took hold of my son first.  We visited the Doctor on Jan 2.  Diagnosis: a flu and infection.  It took him three full days of antibiotics, rest and alternating ibuprofen and acetaminophen every four hours to even hit his fever.   He seems to be on the mend, no elevated temperature by Friday evening.

Jan 3 about 1 PM, I could feel the aches building and a slight temperature and that punched in the face/chest feeling I get with upper respiratory infections and sinusitis.  Temperature was hovering around 100F, when I finally got home from work and took it.  Friday, I called the doctor's office when the opened, explained my symptoms (identical to my son's) to see if they could call in meds for me, or if I'd have to come in.  Receptionist said doctor "would surely want to see you, but he is fully booked today".  She asked for my call back number to let me know either way.  Luckily, my doctor knows me, knows this is an annual event, and trusts that I know my body.  He had them call in the z-Pack prescription.

Two doses of the Zpack and the alternating Ibuprofen/Acetaminophen every four hours seems to have knocked the temperature down.  I still have some body, joint, muscle achiness, though not as bad as it was.  Cough is now more productive, which is a good thing, though it adds to the body aches at my lower rib cage.  I believe I am also on the mend.

I bought masks to wear around Mom and Aunt, so I wouldn't breathe my germs all over them.  I have been washing my hands like crazy.  Unfortunately, Mom got at least a head cold out of it... either from me or from getting out of the house last Friday and this Friday for her basal cell carcinoma surgery and follow-up.  I was so hoping she wouldn't get sick.   She is sneezing and has a runny nose and a slight cough.  We'll keep our fingers crossed that it is just a head cold.

I promise not to be a whiny blogger all the time, but felt the urge to share my new year fun.

See you next time.