Category Archives: Health

Healthy Steps – Week 10

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Drum roll please! This week I  lost 4.6 pounds, bringing my total to 23.4 pounds removed!!!

Second drum roll… I’ve also been off Frappachinos for 3 days. Feeling shaky, but I’m trying.

I wish all this meant I was thriving, but honestly, both of my feet hurt now (I’m concerned I’m developing plantar fascitiis in the other foot) and I’ve been struggling with just feeling generally sore.  I recently went to the doctor who told me (as usual) I was slightly anemic. That can cause general soreness, so I’m going to take her recommendation and get some special vitamins and eat a steak. Also, Vitamin D deficiency is on the list of possible culprits, and it is winter in Oregon.

All this is to explain that while I’m  having a small cheat evening, I’m going to keep going tomorrow.

Weekly goals

  • Tracking (6 of 7 days)
  • No Frappachinos
  • Eating my prepared food
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk
  • Work on my self talk

As I am sure you can see, I am changing my goals slightly. I am doing well on the exercise (so much so that my feet are bothering me). So, I’m going to keep doing that, but take it off my focus list.

Instead, I’m going to work on an area that I realized today is holding me back.

I have a tendency to get frustrated, particularly if I don’t feel I’m being listened to. But, rationally, I do think I’m being listened to. I think that I think I’m not heard. So I’m going to work on slowing down and hearing myself.

Example:

Tara (in my head): “Person A never does things right. It’s so frustrating. They just don’t care about doing it right and don’t hear me when I tell them the correct way.”

New talk: “Person A does things the best they can and is very nice when you tell them what they need to fix. They probably do care about doing things right, but their job is not to care to the extent that you care. The fact they don’t change is not a reflection on you or your lack of power. It’s not a reflection on your ability to explain things. It’s not a reflection on anything. It’s just a mistake. You have a choice about whether to fix it or let them know. You’ll be believed either way.”

Honestly, neither is the best speech, but I  hope you can see where I am going. I think I need to work on talking to myself and hearing myself instead of looking to others to hear me.

If this is a little out there, forgive me. It’s a new thought.

Healthy Steps – Week 9

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I’m a day late in posting this. I sat down at my computer last night and did lots of stuff, but not this.

It could be I was procrastinating. I gained 2.2 pounds last week. It wasn’t a shocker. I tracked 2 of 7 days and went to see my mom (I think we bring out the worst in each other, eating-wise).

But, it was a good reminder that I can’t work this 2 days out of 7 and get results. So today, I finally took the plunge and didn’t buy that Frappuchino. I was able to eat my dinner without going over points. It’s a feeling.

Goals this week:

  • Tracking (6 of 7 days)
  • No Frappachinos
  • Eating my prepared food
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk

And so I dance on…

 

Healthy Steps – Week 8

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This was a challenging week for me; a three-day weekend, a trip, several stressful meetings, and a slow period at work. Any one of these can and did trigger my desire to eat EVERYTHING.

I didn’t eat EVERYTHING, but I certainly did eat plenty. Thus, is was a pleasant surprise when I was down .4 pounds for a total of a nice, even 21 pounds.

It’s not about being perfect, it’s about little steps.

The next big milestone is 10% lost: 17.1 pounds to go.

So, it’s with renewed focus this week that I’m going to work on my goals.

  • Tracking
  • No Frappachinos (didn’t buy them this week, so if I can just avoid the store…)
  • Eating my prepared food
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk

I’m also continuing to thing about tackling the weekends. The WW topic this week is scheduling your  meals, something that struck me as a novel idea as regards to weekends. I tend to treat weekends as a free form meal experience. Adding some discipline to the days might be just the first step I need.

As a last note, speaking of small steps, today I came home and walked the dog 1.5 miles. When I started this my dog walks were averaging about .8 miles. My knee is getting better (I’m occasionally forgetting to wear my brace) and while my feet still hurt, I’m hopeful that with enough small steps that will improve.

Healthy Steps – Week 7

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This week I was down 3.8 pounds. This makes a total of 20.6 pounds (12.2 of those in this year) removed and… drum roll please… 5% of my starting weight. Weight Watchers doesn’t celebrate this milestone anymore, but I’m going to because I need the validation!

So I was thinking this evening about all this and if I feel any different.

The answer: not really.

I started this by saying I was tired of being in pain. I will say my knee is on the mend, but it’s far from healed. My feet still hurt, but not as much. I’ve gone to physical therapy and got some stretches which have helped. I’ve started seeing a chiropractor, another positive step. But there is still a lot of discomfort.

Do I feel fitter? Maybe a little. I’ve been noticing that my short walks around the building have merged into two trips around the building to use up break time. My breathing is better. And when the dog asks to go the extra block on our evening walks, I say yes more often than no. But I don’t feel a lot better.

Do I notice a difference in how I look? Or how my clothes fit? Not really. When you are as fat as I am, all clothes have so much give that it takes a while before there is any appreciable difference. The last few days some pants have been feeling consistently loose, but I’m not even thinking about going down a size in my closet yet.

So what’s the upside here? The little things I mentioned above are starting to sink in. My digestive track is certainly responding well to my new regime (ah, fiber…) But by and large, I am relying on numbers to tell the tale.

I wait for the scale to tell me how I did this week.

I let the Weight Watchers points tell me what to eat or how bad I’ve been.

I let the FitBit tell me if I need to get in a few more blocks at night.

I’m very much in the white-knuckle phase of this journey still. I don’t know what I’m doing, so I’m holding onto what I have to get me by.

So for the next week, am I going to change my goals? Nope.

  • Tracking
  • No Frappachinos (didn’t buy them this week, so it’s ON!)
  • Eating my prepared food
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk

And I didn’t figure out a weekend plan, but it’s still on the burner. I had a good weekend, and I think it showed, but a plan has not emerged yet.

Healthy Steps – Week 6

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In spite of a week that in some ways got the best of me, I am down another 1.6 pounds this week!

Frankly, it seems like a miracle because there was A LOT of emotional eating in there. But my goals, small though they were, were there and at the end of the week progress was made.

  • Tracking – 5 days, 3 in blue dog zone
  • Have 1 Frapachino in the morning – did well on weekdays
  • Eating my prepared food – GOOD JOB HERE!
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk – Nailed it!

I’m sure you are tried of my little goal list, but I still feel like I have a long ways to go on this, so it’s gonna stay pretty much the same.

  • Tracking
  • No Frappachinos (didn’t buy them this week, so it’s ON!)
  • Eating my prepared food
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk

I am going to add a little to this. I’d like to think about a plan for the weekends. I am starting to see myself sort of careening around for this 48 hours, so in the next week I’d like to work on a strategy.

Healthy Steps – Week 5

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Another 1.2 lost!

I’m very pleased with myself!

I am also trying to get another project done tonight, so I’m just going to reiterate my goals (still, no change….) with last week’s status in paraenthesis:

  • Tracking – 7 days, 3 in “blue dot” zone (none last week)
  • Have 1 Frapachino in the morning (4 of 7 days)
  • Eating my prepared food – 5 days (check)
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk (6 of 7 days)

Healthy Steps – Week 4

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On Tuesday, I posted this picture on Weight Watcher’s social media app “Connect.”

I want chocolate. I’m eating this.

I also contacted the WW help app to grumble and be reminded about “long term goals.”

This was after a week of tracking, three days in the “blue dot zone”, and seven days of hitting my FitBit 10,000 steps a day.

Did I give into chocolate? Yes, I had a small chocolate bar.

But… I also removed three pounds (3.8 to be exact) for a total loss of 14 pounds since my highest weight (which sadly wasn’t four years ago, but was this last summer.)

I may not be rocking this, but my little steps are starting to gain some momentum.

My knee is also less painful, though it still feels weak and occasionally shoots pain. I start physical therapy on Friday.

My feet are also a little better, though I attribute that to using my arch supports every day, instead of just when I wear a certain pair of shoes.

For the next week, I’m going to stick to my tried and true goals, though bump them up a little.

  • Tracking – 7 days, 3 in “blue dot” zone
  • Have 1 Frapachino in the morning
  • Eating my prepared food – 5 days
  • Hit 10,000 all seven days, taking at least one break/lunch walk

I will also note that I will be out of town for three days, so my goal there will be to show a small amount of restraint when eating out.

On a last note, I bought a tiny little calendar to hang in my bathroom. I’ve decided to take this small step thing to other areas, such as flossing my teeth, doing my inhaler, and putting on my face cream (MetroGel.)

I’m calling it my Care Calendar.

I’m pretty pleased with myself.

Healthy Steps – Week 2

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This week I gained 2.6 pounds. Honestly, while I’m disappointed, I feel like it’s more the category of “staying the same” because I’ve been gaining and loosing that same 2 pounds for about a year.  But, I did make some healthy (small) steps. So, all is not lost.

Last week I said I was going to focus on:

  • Tracking – 4 of 7 days (lost my ability to log in for 1 of them) – 57% success
  • Not having Frapachinos in the morning (caffeine withdrawal as well as sugar) – 2 of 7 days – 28% success
  • Eating my prepared food – 5 of 7 days – 71% success
  • Walking at lunch – 7 of 7 days – 100% success

Frankly, I’m not ready to take on more, so I’m going to stick with those this next week.

  • Tracking – I’d like to go to 6 days
  • Not having Frapachinos in the morning – going to be hard this week…
  • Eating my prepared food – 5 days
  • Walking at lunch – 7  days

So, looking at this, here’s what I see. I need a plan for the weekend.

Weekends have always been a problem for me. Issue one is that I tend to not eat until I am STARVING, then eat lots of bad stuff. Issue two is that I hate to “waste” my prepared food (cut up vegetables, etc.) Issue three is that frankly I get distracted by my mobility and the huge variety of sugar things out there.

This is going to be a four-day weekend, so it could be extra challenging. Here is what I’d like to work on for it.

  • Track all four of those days
  • Prepare some food for breakfast and lunch and EAT IT

Okay. Orders received.

One last thing. I started Weight Watchers 193 weeks ago (3.7 years). There is a fact for you. I am now at the same weight as when I started (essentially). If I stay on WW another 193 weeks and do small steps to loose .5 pounds a week, in 2021 I will have lost 96 pounds.

I’d feel so good…

Healthy Steps – Week 1

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So, it’s a new year. And like millions of other people, I have resolved to go on a diet… lose weight… get in shape….  I’m going to stop myself there. Here’s my real goal: I want the pain to stop.

Weight Watchers, which is a great program that focuses on healthy eating and wholesome habits, talks about “finding your why”. I have dozens of reasons that I want to do this. That I need to do this. But tonight, honestly, it’s just about making the pain stop.

I am morbidly obese. This last year has shown me that this burden is going to get harder as I age.

  • My feet hurt; I’m still struggling with plantar fasciitis.
  • My knee hurts: I have a torn meniscus.
  • My breathing is not great: I’m recovering from the flu, but also just fat.
  • My back hurts.
  • My hips ache.

So, I’m starting the new year with the first post of what I hope to be at least 52 weeks of changes. They won’t be big or exciting. But they’ll be important.

A friend posted this on her Facebook wall tonight, and I liked it enough to steal it.

I think this is a good focus for the week.

This week I am going to focus on:

  • Tracking
  • Not having Frapachinos in the morning (caffeine withdrawal as well as sugar)
  • Eating my prepared food
  • Walking at lunch

Gaaaa! Anyone of those could be a weekly focus. I think this is one of my problems for sustaining… it feels like I have to do everything, when the truth is that it’s all about the little steps.

None the less, I am going to work on these and next week I’ll report back.