Merry Christmas

Just a quick pop in to wish everyone the happiest of holidays!

Wednesday Weigh-in and Waist Measures

Apparently, I am rehydrated because as it stands now,  I have lost one pound since last week.  Quite frankly, I am thrilled.  I'd love it if I could consistently lose a pound a week.  I hope this is real.  I hope this is my actual weight, and I don't have more rehydration coming.

My waist measures are down two inches from last week, but I was bloated then.  That is when the whole stomach drama started in my family.

Since December 3, when I started the whole waist measuring in tandem with the scales.  I have lost 1.2 pounds and 0.75 inches.  I'm glad that things are moving in the right direction.  I'll take slow and steady any day if it means the weight will stay off.

I'm hoping next week will give me a clearer picture of how I am really doing.

Guaranteed Rapid Weight Loss!

I bet that title will get me a lot of hits today!!  I have found the way to lose a lot of weight very quickly.  Get a stomach bug that lasts for 4 days.  Yes that is 4 (four) days!  It might also help if the bug is given to individuals in the family as well, I'm not sure about that part.  LOL!  I was sick for four days and lost three pounds.  Pretty good results.  My appetite has not fully returned, so I've actually kept it off.

I was sick from Wednesday through Saturday.  65MD and my pregnant niece came down with it on Saturday.  He recovered in about 24 hours.  She wound up in the hospital with dehydration.  She was better in about 48 hours.We had some fears that this would be the Family Christmas Epidemic of 2014, but so far no one else has succumbed.

I'll record my weight and waist measures tomorrow as planned, although there will be another great big asterisk beside this week as well.  Of course, the next week is Christmas Eve, but I am determined not to use that as an excuse to allow a weight gain.  I am not going to throw in the towel and eat up until January 1.  That will only make things worse on January 1.

Wednesday Weigh-in & Waist Measures

I woke up with a major stomach issue this morning.  I'm not sure what it is all about.  I'm not sick as though I have the stomach flu.  I am able to be up and about, but I can't be too far from the bathroom.

I'm bloated and I feel it.

My weight is the same from last week and my measures are up a bit.  I'm putting a big asterisk by these measure because I don't think they are real.

This is getting frustrating for me.  It seems that a lot of the bloggers that I follow are having a hard time seeing results.  It seems that we are all struggling to stay on plan. Even with extreme determination and the memories of feeling good at a healthier weight, none of us can actually get any momentum.

I am strongly considering going back to the hcg.  I had just started it again this summer when I stopped because of the impending surgery.  I've still got it, and had planned to use it to get those last 10 or so pounds off at the end my my journey.  Now, I'm thinking use it now to get the ball rolling again.

It shouldn't be this hard!

It's Working!

I can't quite believe it but this relaxed CAN do thing seems to be working.  I don't want to get too excited and get disappointed, yet my weight has actually ticked down.

It had been steadily going up, so while I'm glad the momentum seems to be shifting, I won't call it a complete success until I get below my pre-surgery weight.

I'll give a full report on weight and waist measures on Wednesday.  Hopefully, it will still be good news.

Quick Update

Both of my sisters have Fitbit devices that are worn.  Only we can't be 'friends' with my older sister because she has an android and my sister and I have apple products.  Those of us with apples can't truly sync because I have an iPod, my sister has an iPad and my niece has and iPhone.  This is crazy.

For me at least, it seems to be working.  Time will tell.

Wednesday Weigh In & Waist Measurements on Thursday

My day got away from me yesterday and it is likely to happen more and more as the holidays and year end approach.  That's OK with me.  I have a good life and if the worst that happens is I post results a day late, I am fine with it.

I am so glad I ran across the article because my weight has gone up yet again.  However, my clothes are feeling looser and the measurements confirmed my suspicion.  I have lost 3 1/4 inches total from all three measures.  That is the best news for me since that is the 'combat zone' for my body.

I have been faithful with my therapy exercises.  While they are not designed for weight loss, they are designed for muscle strength.  That is my only explanation for yet another uptick on the scale.  The article bears this out.  The day I ate the most was Thanksgiving, of course, but it wasn't that much.  It has been a whole week since, so the damage should have been negated by now.  Muscle strengthening must be the cause of the uptick.

Still, as I mentioned in my last post, this soft pedal approach needs some tweaking.  (If I hadn't read and believed the article, I would have chucked the whole thing by now.)  I decided to enter my food intake in Fitbit.  (I have the free app but not the wrist device.)  It requires me to include portion size which I estimate.  I'm still not going to get in to a bunch of tedious weighing & measuring my food.  I know I'll drive myself insane wanting to be exact with the measurement.  Depending on what I eat, I know.  I can enter two crackers or one apple.  So, I think I am getting a fair assessment of my eating.

It appears that I am not taking in enough calories.  I knew that I was not getting enough vegetables, but those have so few calories increasing them won't help much.  Increasing protein will and I am glad to do that.

Another happy for me, is that my niece stopped by while I was entering my food and decided to download the app as well.  My sister already has the device and everything so my niece and I 'friended' her on the Fitbit and we're all working together.  Right now it is fun.  I'll enjoy it while it is, and stick it out when it isn't.

Here's to all of us getting the results we want. while enjoying the ride.

More Observations from My CAN Do Plan

I managed to keep up with my CAN Do goals during the long, festive, Thanksgiving weekend.  But when the goals are so loosey-goosey it isn't hard.

I've made two observations.

1.  I am triggered to overeat visually

2.  I tend to graze

There has been a lot of dessert around me lately and that is my nemesis.  I love sweets in just about any form:  cake, pie, cookies, brownies, candy, ice cream.  Love them all.  Within each category there are some I like more and some I don't like at all.  Pumpkin pie is one of the rare don't like items.  But that isn't what this post is about!!!

As much as I enjoy sweets, I hardly eat them.  I just don't buy them or bake them unless it is a special occasion, like Thanksgiving or a birthday.  I try to control things in those situations by only having one small serving of exactly what I want and then giving the rest away.  I did that again this time with the exception of some candy.

65MD had bought some high end dark chocolate for us to enjoy while we were at the cabin.  We did not eat it all while we were there.  When we unpacked, it was left out on the kitchen counter.  Every time I walked in to the kitchen it was there.  Every time I saw it I wanted some.  Several times, I actually ate some.  Finally, I realized that I couldn't continue to will myself not to eat it.  So, I put it in a drawer.

I explained to 65MD what I was doing and why.  He was fine with it, even though he doesn't have the same trigger.  The funny thing about it is, I put it in the drawer.  I know right where it is and can go get some any time I want.  Since it isn't in my face, I don't often think of it.  When I do, I tell myself I'll get it later and by then I've usually forgotten.  Whatever works, right??

Being visually triggered to overeat visually, leads to the tendency to graze.  Working from home, alone also adds to the issue.  I'll get busy on  a project and want to finish before I eat.  Then when I do decide to eat, I am famished and eat what is handy while I am preparing my meal.  That leads to eating too much as well.

I know that having quick and easy to prepare items will help, but what will help the most for me is setting a schedule.  As silly as it sounds, I have scheduled lunch on my calendar.  I really don't have deadlines that are so harsh that I can't take the time to eat.  It is simply a preference I have to finish something without interruption.

I'm hoping the continued fine tuning will help.  So far, it isn't working, not as far as weight loss is concerned.  I don't expect whopping losses with minimal effort, but I did hope to halt the giant leaps on the scales.  I would really like to find a way of eating that fits in to my lifestyle.  That way I'll keep on doing it, like my therapy.

I have finally managed to incorporate therapy in to my daily routine virtually every day.  I have three laying down exercises that I do before I get out of the bed.  Two standing up ones that I do while brushing my teeth.  The final one is steps and I manage to get it done by making an appointment on my calendar.  So, I think the lunch appointment will help too.

From reviewing my food logs, if I can stop the grazing I should see some loss on the scales.  My meals are good although more veggies wouldn't hurt!  I've been keeping the list on paper but I'm going to start entering them on my fitbit app to get a better idea of calorie count & nutrients.

I'll know more on Wednesday!