Saturday, February 23, 2013
Day 5: 2/22/13
Today I cleaned almost the whole apartment. That doesn't sound like a ton considering it's pretty small, but after a week of being sick and it being a mess before that, it was a ton of work. I also watched Food Inc. I'm not exaggerating when I say that film was life changing. I will never look at food, particularly factory farmed meats, the same way. I'd encourage absolutely everyone to watch it. I was soooo wound up by the end! Food stuff continues to go well. I think a key for me is forward motion. I do best when I have a full but structured schedule. I do need to be drinking more water though.
Thursday, February 21, 2013
Day 4: 2/21/13
So today I'm almost better! YAAY! I'm not feeling any withdrawal symptoms, and I think that's a combination of 3 things: I ate pretty clean in the first place (no, really, I have been overall since this time 2012), I started practicing at this paleo thing a few weeks ago, so maybe my body had already started healing(?), and, well, I'm sick, so I haven't really been asking much of my body this week. That last thing is gonna change, though, starting tomorrow, and ramping up from there! Lexi's sleep training was short and sweet, (3 nights with a little fussing at bedtime, then smooth sailing since!) so I'll be sleeping better and have some ME time in the evenings, and hopefully a schedule will begin to form FINALLY!! I've been really following Lexi's lead, and enjoying her baby days, and I have no regrets, but I'm excited for my days to have a bit more to them!
Three things about today:
-- Scott wasn't a huge fan of the flavor combo in the sautéed veggies tonight, and our theory is that it was the zucchini/tomato combo (there were also leeks and mushrooms). So, no tomatoes next time in that mixture.
--I'm in LOVE with my Practical Paleo book and the online resources available at balancedbites.com! I'm so excited to use the recipes and meal plans!
--I have decided this is going to be, at least for me, a Whole45. I found out there's a little added sugar in my bacon, I had a couple (sugar free) cough drops this week, and I just really want to make sure I give this the best shot at real Healing as I can. Not that I plan on venturing too much off the paleo road in the future, but I want to stay strict a bit longer. I decided, rather than starting over-and asking Scott to- I'd just add time to mine and let him decide when to reintroduce for himself. So, April 3 will be the "official" end date for this experiment, and the next time I'll weigh and measure myself!
Three things about today:
-- Scott wasn't a huge fan of the flavor combo in the sautéed veggies tonight, and our theory is that it was the zucchini/tomato combo (there were also leeks and mushrooms). So, no tomatoes next time in that mixture.
--I'm in LOVE with my Practical Paleo book and the online resources available at balancedbites.com! I'm so excited to use the recipes and meal plans!
--I have decided this is going to be, at least for me, a Whole45. I found out there's a little added sugar in my bacon, I had a couple (sugar free) cough drops this week, and I just really want to make sure I give this the best shot at real Healing as I can. Not that I plan on venturing too much off the paleo road in the future, but I want to stay strict a bit longer. I decided, rather than starting over-and asking Scott to- I'd just add time to mine and let him decide when to reintroduce for himself. So, April 3 will be the "official" end date for this experiment, and the next time I'll weigh and measure myself!
Wednesday, February 20, 2013
Day 3: 2/20/13
Today was another sick day, but I think I'm getting better, which is good because I'm restless, Lexi deserves more interactive time, and my living room has very little floor. All I've really been able to do the past 3 days is care for Lexi and cook. The food aspect of things is going great! No real cravings, we are both enjoying everything I'm cooking, and staying full. Scott did mention that he may tire of sweet potatoes long term, but I assured him they will become less ubiquitous when I get a chance to look at my cookbooks. :-)
Day 2: 2/19/13
Being sick is no fun! I'm kinda thankful though, that if I have to be, it's now. I'm less likely to notice carb withdrawals if I'm already weak, right? Anyway, not much to report, other than I'm finding success in feeding Scott to his satisfaction so far, which is a win! Black coffee isn't bad, but I'm going to try almond or coconut milk in it next time.
Tuesday, February 19, 2013
Day 1: 2/18/13
Starting this while sick with some sort of ick wasn't the plan, but I didn't want to put it off any further, so we started first thing this morning before heading home from Virginia Beach, and today went well for us both! I think as long as Scott gets enough to eat (which isn't an issue on this plan because there's no portion obsessiveness) he won't struggle too much. We had our new Paleo friendly Chipotle order for lunch, and after dinner I cooked up breakfast "cupcakes" for the week! Can't wait to try them!
My (our) first Whole30
Yesterday Scott and I started Whole30, a nutritional jumpstart that you can read about at whole9life.com, and can be summed up as a strict Paleo approach. It sounds extreme, and in some ways it is-no dairy, grains, legumes, added sugar? No peanut butter??? But as I've been gearing up and practicing recipes the past 2 weeks, I've found that really, it's opens up a whole world of new food possibilities and creativity. I love cooking and creating in the kitchen, so this is right up my alley in that area. Scott also got me 3 paleo cookbooks for Valentine's day, so I've got plenty to draw from. If this goes well, which I have a feeling it will from the experimenting I've done so far, I am going to stay Paleo, which means a few rules are relaxed, and I can get even more creative. One thing I love about Whole30 is that they make it clear that the aim isn't to lose weight- it's to be healthier and stronger by eating whole, nutrient dense food sources. Weight loss usually happens, but it's not the focus. That's something I can get behind. I just wanna feel good! So, feel free to ask questions as we go, and I'll be excited to share!
Thursday, January 31, 2013
The Story So Far...
Lexi is sleeping, my oatmeal is cooking, coffee is brewing, and my mind is racing. I'm having to do something I haven't had to in a long time. Give myself a pep talk on realistic expectations. These first 2 weeks (of exercise) will be the hardest, both physically and emotionally. I probably won't see results for at least that long, I'm gonna be sore, tired, discouraged, and wanna give up-maybe doubly so on all these things because I have a baby to care for now too-but I can't. For myself, for Lexi, for Scott, I cannot. I am strong enough mentally and physically, to get back on track and get stronger than i've ever been. All this has made me reflect on the past 2 years and what my body has accomplished in that time.
2 years ago, on 1/31, I weighed 210 lbs. I was in terrible shape and my PCOS was out of control. I wanted a baby so badly my heart was breaking, but I knew there was at least 30-60 lbs in my way. So I got started. In early march, I did a 2 week cleanse and lost 17 lbs. that gave me the boost I needed mentally to keep going. Slowly, I started, along with eating clean, to develop an exercise routine that would deliver results. There were some bumps in the road with joint pain and injuries, but in late April, I started swimming. 6 days a week, lap after lap. Then I read Master Your Metabolism and EVERYTHING changed. I don't diet. It's temporary and pointless and not real life. This book is really about lifestyle change, and it made so much sense, especially for someone with an endocrine disorder. We needed to start eating cleaner as far as the quality of what we were putting in our bodies-quantity has never been a problem for me except at my Grandma's house ;-)- so we've gone about 80% organic and 100% hormone/antibiotic free, and started eating sooo many more fresh fruits and veggies. Scott dropped 20lbs immediately. I dropped about 10 over a month, but I was working out a ton and getting leaner and stronger. I'd added some DVDs to the swimming, and I was seeing results. Then I decided I was ready to start going to the gym. Initially I was just using the weights and elliptical, then I tried a BodyCombat class. I loved it, but it was killing my knees. I needed something that would torch that number of calories but not blow out my weak joints. So I took a deep breath and tried a Cycle class. I cried through my first 45 min ride, but I completed it! I was hooked! Then I tried Yoga and fell in love with that too. Around this time, we also decided to start fertility drugs. It was a challenge to get to the gym during that process, but I did my best, and I was transformed, not only physically, but emotionally. I was feeling so good, I wasn't sure if it really was the right time to have a baby, so on the second cycle of the drugs, I didn't have the test to see if I'd ovulated, I just decided to live my life and if God gave us a pregnancy, we'd find out when it was time. That was late October. November was my best month of exercise and health ever. I felt amazing. I didn't even really think about the baby thing that much because I was just so content. Then, on thanksgiving, my Mother in Law told me that my sister in law was pregnant with her third child. I was devastated and discouraged. I cried out to God, not understanding why I didn't get to be a mama. I was extra discouraged because my period was almost 3 weeks late-par for the course with my disease, I'd had to induce my last 2 with medicine. A few days after that, I stayed home from the gym because I just felt wiped out. I thought for sure my period was coming. I'd been experiencing cramping and tender breasts for a week or so and so I thought, ok, let's get through this so we can try the fertility meds again. I knew that if I hadn't ovulated this month, I only had one more dose increase before we topped out, and Scott and I had agreed that this was as far as we would go to have a child naturally. So basically in my mind, we were one month from adoption being the way we'd become parents. The next day, I woke up still feeling a little tired, and as I looked in the medicine cabinet for Tylenol, I saw the box of pregnancy tests. You can guess how that turned out! :-D God is so amazing! My pregnancy was smooth and without any complications besides the severe crippling fear and anxiety that I suffered from pretty much the entire time. I worked out at the same level through my first trimester, then the anxiety just got the better of me and I quit. At my lowest (8weeks pregnant) I weighed 168-I'd lost 42 lbs! Pregnancy taught me so much about my body. Its beauty, its strength, and it made me a different woman. My weight gain was slow and steady, and I truly believe I didn't gain more than I needed to-this was helped by the fact that I just wasn't hungry. I ate when I needed to, but was spared the insane need to stuff my face. Thank GOD! After Lexi was born and all the IV fluids were gone, I was amazed at how my body was bouncing back! Then...the milk came in, and I started nursing. I was RAVENOUS all the time! I made good choices about what to eat, but I could never get full. It was then I knew I wasn't going to be a woman whose pregnancy weight just melts off from breastfeeding. The fact that I weighed 11lbs more 3 days ago than when I came home from the hospital proves that. So what's a girl to do? I can't do a cleanse or drastically slash my calories, because I'm still EBF Lexi, and while I don't diet, I was eating about 1300 cal a day until I got pregnant. I have been advised not to go under 1800, so I'm staying close to that. (I'm not meticulously tracking my calories, because, well, I'll get obsessed, and that's not healthy.) it seems my only option is to exercise. A LOT. Obviously I can't go back to all out 4h a day overnight, so hence the above pep talk. I'm gonna do this, though. My current goal date to finally hit 150 is 6/26. That's a rate of 2lbs a week on average, and I think it's doable. However, I'm not stuck to that goal weight. If I'm lean and mean at 160, that's cool. And it doesn't end there. I am determined to always work to be stronger and healthier for myself and my family. :-)
2 years ago, on 1/31, I weighed 210 lbs. I was in terrible shape and my PCOS was out of control. I wanted a baby so badly my heart was breaking, but I knew there was at least 30-60 lbs in my way. So I got started. In early march, I did a 2 week cleanse and lost 17 lbs. that gave me the boost I needed mentally to keep going. Slowly, I started, along with eating clean, to develop an exercise routine that would deliver results. There were some bumps in the road with joint pain and injuries, but in late April, I started swimming. 6 days a week, lap after lap. Then I read Master Your Metabolism and EVERYTHING changed. I don't diet. It's temporary and pointless and not real life. This book is really about lifestyle change, and it made so much sense, especially for someone with an endocrine disorder. We needed to start eating cleaner as far as the quality of what we were putting in our bodies-quantity has never been a problem for me except at my Grandma's house ;-)- so we've gone about 80% organic and 100% hormone/antibiotic free, and started eating sooo many more fresh fruits and veggies. Scott dropped 20lbs immediately. I dropped about 10 over a month, but I was working out a ton and getting leaner and stronger. I'd added some DVDs to the swimming, and I was seeing results. Then I decided I was ready to start going to the gym. Initially I was just using the weights and elliptical, then I tried a BodyCombat class. I loved it, but it was killing my knees. I needed something that would torch that number of calories but not blow out my weak joints. So I took a deep breath and tried a Cycle class. I cried through my first 45 min ride, but I completed it! I was hooked! Then I tried Yoga and fell in love with that too. Around this time, we also decided to start fertility drugs. It was a challenge to get to the gym during that process, but I did my best, and I was transformed, not only physically, but emotionally. I was feeling so good, I wasn't sure if it really was the right time to have a baby, so on the second cycle of the drugs, I didn't have the test to see if I'd ovulated, I just decided to live my life and if God gave us a pregnancy, we'd find out when it was time. That was late October. November was my best month of exercise and health ever. I felt amazing. I didn't even really think about the baby thing that much because I was just so content. Then, on thanksgiving, my Mother in Law told me that my sister in law was pregnant with her third child. I was devastated and discouraged. I cried out to God, not understanding why I didn't get to be a mama. I was extra discouraged because my period was almost 3 weeks late-par for the course with my disease, I'd had to induce my last 2 with medicine. A few days after that, I stayed home from the gym because I just felt wiped out. I thought for sure my period was coming. I'd been experiencing cramping and tender breasts for a week or so and so I thought, ok, let's get through this so we can try the fertility meds again. I knew that if I hadn't ovulated this month, I only had one more dose increase before we topped out, and Scott and I had agreed that this was as far as we would go to have a child naturally. So basically in my mind, we were one month from adoption being the way we'd become parents. The next day, I woke up still feeling a little tired, and as I looked in the medicine cabinet for Tylenol, I saw the box of pregnancy tests. You can guess how that turned out! :-D God is so amazing! My pregnancy was smooth and without any complications besides the severe crippling fear and anxiety that I suffered from pretty much the entire time. I worked out at the same level through my first trimester, then the anxiety just got the better of me and I quit. At my lowest (8weeks pregnant) I weighed 168-I'd lost 42 lbs! Pregnancy taught me so much about my body. Its beauty, its strength, and it made me a different woman. My weight gain was slow and steady, and I truly believe I didn't gain more than I needed to-this was helped by the fact that I just wasn't hungry. I ate when I needed to, but was spared the insane need to stuff my face. Thank GOD! After Lexi was born and all the IV fluids were gone, I was amazed at how my body was bouncing back! Then...the milk came in, and I started nursing. I was RAVENOUS all the time! I made good choices about what to eat, but I could never get full. It was then I knew I wasn't going to be a woman whose pregnancy weight just melts off from breastfeeding. The fact that I weighed 11lbs more 3 days ago than when I came home from the hospital proves that. So what's a girl to do? I can't do a cleanse or drastically slash my calories, because I'm still EBF Lexi, and while I don't diet, I was eating about 1300 cal a day until I got pregnant. I have been advised not to go under 1800, so I'm staying close to that. (I'm not meticulously tracking my calories, because, well, I'll get obsessed, and that's not healthy.) it seems my only option is to exercise. A LOT. Obviously I can't go back to all out 4h a day overnight, so hence the above pep talk. I'm gonna do this, though. My current goal date to finally hit 150 is 6/26. That's a rate of 2lbs a week on average, and I think it's doable. However, I'm not stuck to that goal weight. If I'm lean and mean at 160, that's cool. And it doesn't end there. I am determined to always work to be stronger and healthier for myself and my family. :-)
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