Cautiously Happy

So after over a week of being able to work out for a max of 7 minutes I may have made a break through. Two days ago I was able to work out for 50 minutes and yesterday I was able to do 50 minutes as well. Now I’m not talking intense exercise, just being able to exercise and move that long. I was so excited when I was able to work out for 50 minutes. It was so exciting!!!

This morning when I went, I used the recline bike for 20 minutes before I had to stop. I couldn’t feel my feet anymore. To try to get back to normal I stretched and walked around until some feeling came back. I’m going to go tonight in hopes of being able to work out a little longer. We’ll see how it goes but I’m happy to be able to report some progress!! Whoo hoo!!!

Fun Date Night

Friday night is date night and this Friday my wonderful husband really out did himself!!! He picked me up from work and we went to our favorite park to pick up pine cones. It was nice to be out in the fresh air. Then we came home to decorate the pine cones and make new displays in out vases. We painted the pine cones with watered down glue and then covered them in glitter!! I had the best time doing it and they came out wonderfully!! I was so giddy happy, there was just something simply wonderful about making them. We also got to talk a lot and just relax while making them. Seeing them now makes me happy.

We had tons of pinecones left over and my husband made an incredible wreath from just the pinecones!!! It’s a lovely oval shape which he then wrapped red ribbon around and attached some inexpensive ornaments.

Yay for fun date nights!

Wishing and Hoping and Complaining

So this blog is supposed to be about me working out and my success in losing weight. Sadly the opposite has happened. I have been so sick for weeks now and not able to work out. I have tried and go to the gym when I am feeling well. It’s just frustrating because if I try to work out when I am not feeling well it makes things worse instead of better.

This past week I left work early because I was soo sick!!! Today we woke up and were getting ready for church when I became so dizzy and sick to my stomach, that I couldn’t handle it and my husband held me while I fell asleep. I am beyond frustrated. As of right now I can’t seek medical treatment because of having no insurance. Because I am getting new insurance and disabled the new insurance is reviewing my medical records to make sure I am disabled and it is taking a very long time. As soon as I get insurance I can do something about my stomach issues but for now I am taking Dramamine and doing what I can. (It will also be nice to have insurance because medicine costs will be lower! As it is right now meds cost more than we will make this month.)

Though I can say I have had success in the dieting department. Usually I’m doing good eating 1000 calories a day. Yes, yes I know that is not a good thing, it’s not on purpose and I’m trying to see some bright spot in all of this.

White Bean Waffles

I know what you are thinking, but they are REALLY good! A little while ago a great friend referred me to Sparkpeople.com and the site can be a very useful tool. Lately, I have found some wonderful recipes on sparkrecipes.com. Seriously check it out!! They have great recipes that are healthy and tasty.

Anyway, we tried the white bean waffle recipe I found on spark people, and were pleasantly surprised. They were sweet and tasted like waffles. Not even a hint of bean. They are a little high in calories but they are also high in protein and fiber. I’ve posted the link to the recipe below.

Just wanted to share this amazing find! I hope try it, you'll enjoy it!

http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipes.asp?food=White+bean+waffles&a=

(I added more vanilla then the recipe called for)

Job

Yay, I got a job! I'll be working as a cashier in a craft store. I'm excited to be working! I start tomorrow morning.

Update on not working out

Unfortunately I am still not feeling well. It’s the same old thing, and it’s knocked me out of the race, for now. My husband did a lot of researching and we think we may know why I keep getting so nauseated, dizzy, etc. Did you know that your stomach has a pace maker? I didn’t know that. Also it turns out when you damage the Vagus nerve in your back it can disrupt that pace make in your stomach. Luckily it’s treatable, by doctors placing a pacemaker in the stomach. Before the insertion of the pacemaker they do test it with this external pacemaker first, just to make sure that’s what wrong. Now at this stage it’s just a theory, we still have to see what a doctor thinks.

I am frustrated by not being able to work out especially because after switching to Lyrica, I put on a bunch of weight (which is normal). Not good!! I have tried to work out but it makes me feel worse… Though I can tell you that by my calorie intake I should be losing weight. It’s hard to eat enough when I feel like this. We did find some suggestions that we hope will help me feel better. I’ll keep you updated on how things go.

Enjoying Nature

Sunday and Monday afternoon we took a little time to enjoy nature. Sunday we went to the marshes to collect leaves for decoration and take pictures. It is so beautiful with the trees full of color and the water. The marshes are a preserved wet land and park. There are lots of trails winding around the marshes. We got to take some pictures but our batteries died. We did enjoy walking around and the fresh air though.

Monday we were left the house to get out and explore a bit. We found a gem!!! It’s called Breakhart Reservation. It’s a large, lush park with nice trails. We grabbed a map and took a trail. It was so nice to be out in the fresh air and around so much beauty! The hike wasn’t bad at all. There were a couple of rocky parts where my husband became worried and protective. We are excited to have found this place and look forward to going back.

Life Stuff

Applying for jobs:

I’ve been applying for tons of jobs this past week. Everything from retail jobs, secretarial work, to non for profit jobs to research jobs and then some!! I’m hoping that SOMETHING comes through. Some places are hiring seasonal help and I’m applying. At this point work is work and it would be good.

I'm trying to stay positive. It's just hard when I get rejection letters from low end retail stores telling me I'm not qualified enough...

Oh well pazienza.

Living in a CAVE:

Have I mentioned that our apartment feels like a CAVE?!! It’s dark almost all day long. We have a large window in both the living and bedroom. They don’t help though. This is because we face another building and are at the top of the U shape. The result is that we get very, very little natural light. Blocking what little light can get in is a big ugly pillar.

Don’t get me wrong I don’t hate our apartment and there are plenty of good things – like the deep soaking tub! Living in the dark is just messing with my sleep schedule.

We are trying to find ways to cope and make the most of it. We’ve taken some of the Christmas lights from our reception and strung them around the front room and our bedroom. It helps make it feel a little happier. We plan to get some sun strength lights and lamps.

Note to self: Next apartment must have lots of natural light.

Making veggie burgers!

I found a recipe for veggies burgers using black beans. It sounded really good, so we gave it a try. Success! I’m really happy because I learned something to cook something new and it’s pretty healthy.

Recipe is:

2 Cups Black Beans, red beans, or chick peas

1 medium onion quartered

½ Cup rolled oats

1 Tbs Chili Powder

1 egg

1 Tbs Olive Oil

*I also added some soaked cracked wheat to give more body.

- Put it into a food processor and puree

- Refrigerate for a few minutes

- Use wet hands to form the patties

- Refrigerate patties for 15 to 20 minutes

- Cook on stove top on medium, I used a deep skillet with a little olive oil to prevent sticking.

- Let the patty cook for a few minutes and then turn, it’s not good to flip them a lot because they can fall apart much easier than beef burgers

- Fix with normal fixings

Trunk or treat

Today was my first ever Trunk or Treat activity!! It was fun and the kids were so cute!! Some of my favorite costumes were a family of vikings, and the bakers. The vikings were decked out complete with fake fur, horned hats, braids, and weapons. The bakers cracked me up. The mom was wearing black and a red apron patterned to look like a brick oven. The oven door/window over her adorable pregnant belly. (bun in the oven) Their young child was a cookie and the dad was dressed in white as a chef. His apron read, "Bun Donor". It was fun to see how some people had decorated their trunks and cars. Flashing lights, spooky pumpkins, and spooky noises.

For candy we handed out the kiddie goodie bags we made for the reception (but that didn't get there.) A couple people commented on how fun we had gone all out, Trev and I looked at each other and just laughed after they had gone. They did have doughnut, hot chocolate, and cider. I had some soda and doughnuts. Yes I know I should not eat doughnuts. I was feeling really weak and hoped it would bring me back up. After standing for soo long I was glad to come home and relax!!!

Doing Well

I have worked out for at least 30 minutes each day (except Sunday) since last Thursday. Yay for me!!

I attempted doing my weight routine earlier this week but my back wasn’t having it. Today I was able to do my arms and shoulders! It felt really good.

Weight training has never been my easy for me to be consistent with but I know it’s really important. I’ve committed to doing it, now it seems that my body doesn’t want to let me…. I just hope it continues to cooperate.

What’s been happening with my workout?

No I promise I didn’t drop off the face of the earth. I know it’s been a while since I updated and that’s because I’ve been applying for LOTS of jobs. (My goals is at least 5 a day, usually around 8 a day.) I’ve gotten much better at writing cover letters, so let’s hope it pays off. We are seeing some increase in response and trying to keep our hopes up. We know that something will come up, God led us out here for a purpose and we’re trying to find it.

Also I’ve avoided posting because I’m not working out regularly. I had a bad case of nausea that lasted for a few days, and still comes back frequently. I was so sick and couldn’t do much at all. Then came the dizziness. When one of these happens moving aggravates the conditions. This happens sometimes because of the medicine, so don’t worry. I’m okay. It’s just difficult to work out at these times.

Another difficulty has been pain which has slowed down my pace and it is very frustrating. I try to go but with these deterrents I just haven’t been making it. I’m not sure what I should do!! I have to listen to my body whilst still pushing it. Then, I have to be careful to not push too much!! It’s so frustrating and I don’t know what to do!! Any suggestions, do you think I’m just wussing out?

High (Heel) Hopes

I had an interview and we went shopping for appropriate shoes. As we entered Payless I saw this pair of amazing heels that I just wanted to be mine! Then I tried some on… They were work appropriate, black and had a low kitten heel. My hopes of being in heels again soared I thought maybe, just maybe. When I put them on they were so cute! I walked up and down the aisle and it wasn’t bad. Standing still it wasn’t bad but was getting worse. I had to be honest with myself and I didn’t want to. I wanted those heels with everything. But I listened to my body and got the flats. The flats are cute and I do like them. They have 3 cute buckles on the toe which add a little bit of fun and style. For now I’ll stick with flats but I’m hoping that when I lose weight more weight I’ll be able to wear some cute heels.

Success Story

Hey everyone!

I recently found out that I lost about 14 pounds and I'm really proud of myself. Good results from good efforts. There's still a long way to go to develop a healthier lifestyle, and I've got to celebrate victories.

Though right now I want to hear your success stories. Make a comment and tell me what you're doing to live healthier or your successes.

Here are the play by plays of the last three days.

Thursday: Walked on the treadmill, couldn't go very long because I hurt too much.

Friday: I again tried walking on the treadmill and went longer than Thursday. Sadly couldn't do too much because of pain. Did A LOT of walking Friday night.

Saturday: Husband and I took it easy resting today. Before dinner I went to the gym and went for a while on the elliptical machine. It was easy to occupy my attention because I was flipping back and forth between the movie Never Been Kissed and the Verdi's rendition of Macbeth.

Other updates:

Friday night was a fun date night. We went with another couple to museum of science. They had some ok exhibits and the lightning show was good. The whale exhibit was interesting, we crawled into a life size replica of a whales heart.

Overall the museum left me wanting. It didn't look very put together, some of the exhibits looked old and worn and the staff was not courteous. One exhibit was how our eyes can deceive and they had many double image kind of things. Among those double images there was a picture of lovers or dolphins; depending on how one looked at it... Not something that young children need to be viewing!

Saturday day was good. My better half and I slept in, played Yahtzee and watched the movie Tootsie. That movie is funny!! It was my first time watching it and I loved it. I wasn't bored, liked the character progression and enjoyed the resolution.

Motivation

I have seen some results that I'm happy to report.

Sunday I was able to fit into a red skirt I haven't been able to wear in a while!!

Also I was looking in the mirror and noticing that my pooch was smaller! I think women every where battle the pooch. I know I've battled it since I was 11 or 12. There is still lots of room for improvement and I'll get there!

Also while I was looking in the mirror I was thinking in my head, is my but getting smaller. Then a couple minutes later my husband said, "It looks like your butt's getting smaller too." He wasn't just trying to be nice either. I went over to him, and gave him a kiss. He gave me a look like what, I'm confused. Then I and said, "You just said the sexiest words known to womankind!"

I just wanted to share a celebrate my motivation.

Make a comment and share what motivates you or helps you keep working out.

Sick Days

Monday's workout was great. I did cardio and upper body weights. My challenge this week was reverse crunches. These are great for my lower back and lower abs, which need to be stronger.

Then Monday night I started to feel sick. I spent the next two days sick and in a lot of pain. Tuesday I was so sick I couldn't eat. Wednesday I was able to eat a little. I walked on the treadmill each day for as much as I could. With me when I'm sick I usually just feel worse just lying in bed. So that's why I headed to the gym. Walking helped a little and I glad I did it. Today I'm feeling pretty okay. I'm going to try to work out tonight and see how it goes. One thing I've been learning over the past two years is that I have to listen to my body. It has been a very hard lesson to learn and I'm still learning. Tonight I will listen to m body but I'm not going to let it wuss out.

Last Week

Last week was a success!

I worked out 4 days last week. Doing weights three days. My body wasn't cooperating on the fourth day.

To change things up and develop a better routine I've decided to assign a challenge each week. Last week it was 10 lunges (each side) every time I worked out. I knew I had to start with lunges because they are my least favorite thing to do. Also because in the past I had saw results from doing lots of lunges. I refreshed my memory of proper lunge form and started it out. I am proud to say that each time I worked out I did my lunges.

I ate pretty well last week, I am still trying to find ways to improve my eating habits. I heard a phrase that made me stop and think. It goes, "do you eat to live or do you live to eat." This will be on my mind and I will share more thoughts on this.

Coming Back With Some Help

Friday was a good day for exercise! I did 51 minutes of cardio and all my upper body workouts, including the up right row. I also ate sensibly and did not snack.

Today's workout was also successful. My shinning accomplishment was doing two miles in 32 minutes and 10 seconds! I then did a third of a mile cool down. Following this, I did my lower body weight lifting, bumping up weight on all exercises by 5 to 15 lbs. I snacked a little bit today by having a piece of toast with breakfast. Lunch was my favorite soup. It's Progresso (c) Vegetables Macaroni and Bean Soup. The broth in it is soo good!! It has a few more calories than some of their other soups, but only by 30 or 40.

There is a great sense of accomplishment seeing this my workouts in writing. Though credit has to go to my amazing husband. These past two days working out has been the last thing on my list and I have tried to avoid it. He has lovingly encouraged me to go, reminding me how good it will feel to have worked out. He really is soo good to me.

Thursday update

So my second week hasn't been the best... Monday I did cardio and crunches, with a few arm weights. Tuesday, was a rough day and I didn't work out. Wednesday I didn't go to the gym either because things got really busy and I was feeling ill. This morning I woke up and went to the gym did 40 minutes of cardio, the leg machines, squats and even lunges.

As I was working out, I was thinking about the lousy week, in regards to working out. I need to be serious about what I'm doing and get back on the horse!! I've got a long way to go and I'm not going to get there if I keep this up. Writing about what I'm doing is really helping me focus and stay on track. Seeing it written down makes me think ok, I can do better.

Weights, weights, weights. I have go to do more weight training!!! Cardio is so much easier, and so much more in my comfort zone. In my head I realize all the wonderful and amazing benefits of strength and resistance training! I've researched different workouts along with the correct way to lift the wights. Now it's time to get out of my comfort zone and put it into action.

I'll keep you updated!

The Weekend

Saturday my supportive husband helped me get up and I had a great workout. I was able to complete my cardio, weights and even some core. I tried to stay active throughout the day, but I have sat while I was working. We found a great table on Craigslist that was only 30 dollars. So went went to pick it up then went suit shopping. We walked around a huge mall. Luckily we found two great suits, shoes, ties, shirts, etc.

After all that we went to the Cheesecake Factory and though I wanted to get something not as good for me, I chose one of their Weight control salads. It was soo HUGE I was really surprised. They are supposed to 590 calories, which is a sensible dinner. It was quit tasty and I could only eat about a third, so I took home the rest.

Sunday is my rest day so I took it easy! Some new friends invited us over for dinner and we got to play with their kids! We are liking our new town and getting to know more people out here.

Hunger sets in

This is usually wrecks my weight loss. I get hungry through the day and munch or graze, which adds extra calories and ends up weighing me down.

Current strategies include:

Loading up on water

Chewing gum

Hungry girl yogurt

Moving - doing something to distract myself.

Being hungry is just one of those things I have to realize is part of loosing/maintaining weight. I just can't act on that, just like I can't act on other feelings all the time. ahhh okay enough complaining I'm heading to the gym after a day of statistics.

Days 2 through 4

Days 2 through four went by well.

Breakfasts have been 1/2 cup Post Grapenuts cereal, sometimes with a banana, and 1/2 cup milk.

Lunches have been Progresso soups, sometimes with a grilled cheese. A great option I've found it to eat the soup first then the grilled cheese as a small meal a couple of hours later.

A good snack I've discovered is the FiberOne Yogurt. It has a good amount of protein and fiber which gives me a couple of hours of not being hungry.

Dinners have been a lot of different things but mostly sensible.

Workout's have been going well. I need to incorporate more core exercises because I haven't been doing them. I'm thinking use those Pilates videos i have... Cardio is going well I did a mile in 13:32 on the eliptical machine last night then another one in about 18 minutes. Yipee

Weight training is in the beginning phase but I need to get better about it. So leave comments and tell me to get my rear in gear.

First day

So the first day went well.

I ate sensibly.

Exercise went well. I did a little cardio and weights in the morning and a lot of cardio in the evening. The morning workout I did one mile in 25 minutes, yes I know whimpy, but I'm taking it slow. Did lots of weights working my upper body. I'm trying the light/normal/Hard sets.

In the later workout I did 2.75 miles in 60 minutes. The first mile was an 18 minute mile. I probably did so much because I was watching Frasier reruns and getting into that. Those little personal TVs on each machine are wonderful!

All in all off to a good start. Still have a long way to go but it'll be good.

Weight Training

Time and time again people say that women don't incorporate enough weight training. So I've found some helpful sites on how to do it properly. Form is extremely crucial, as is the weight that one does. I will start with low weight to obtain better form, and then move to a heavier weight.

What is the proper form to maintain?

A wonderfully helpful sit is: http://www.exrx.net It is a great resource to explore and has animations for many exercises.

This site http://www.strength-training-woman.com/strength-training-exercises.html helps with that question. On the bottom of the page you'll find two lists, the first links to area specific exercises with specific details on form, and the second list is mini articles of the importance of proper weight training by area.

So how many reps in a set and how many do I do?

"For each exercise you do, try to perform three sets of 10 to 12 reps with a weight heavy enough that by your last rep you can't eke out another one without compromising your form. To spark further muscle building, William Kraemer, Ph.D., a professor of kinesiology at the University of Connecticut, suggests alternating moderate-intensity workouts of 8 to 10 reps with lighter-weight 12- to 15-rep sets and super-hard 3- to 5-rep sets."

http://www.womenshealthmag.com/weight-loss/weight-training-tips

I also read in Fitness Magazine that potassium helps to reduce muscle cramps, as does stretching and drinking lots of water. So bananas and sweet potatoes here I come.

Beginning

This is the beginning. My current weight is above 240. My goal weight is 135. So just over a hundred pounds to go.

I'm making a plan that incorporates core strengthening, weight training and cardio. And these will be done every day!!

Updates will come on how I'm doing with exercise and dieting.