Flying

I’ve never been a fan of flying alone. Well that’s not quite true. There were a few years when I had lost weight (and before I gained it all back) when I flew quite a lot and didn’t mind at all, but other than then, I’ve always preferred flying with someone so I wouldn’t have to worry about overflowing into a total stranger’s space. It hasn’t stopped me from flying (my bank account has done a pretty good job of limiting that lately!), but it’s much nicer not having to worry about it. So why is flying coming up now? Well, I found out a couple of days ago that my boss wants me to go to a meeting in Chicago in 3 weeks. 

The last time I flew was about 40lbs ago, and it wasn’t pleasant. I imagine I’ll lose more weight in the next 3 weeks, but will it be enough to be somewhat comfortable on a plane? I guess only time will tell!

And in totally unrelated (well maybe a little bit related) news, I was at a soccer game on Wednesday night and when I sat down, the seat didn’t cut into my hips/thighs. I call that a NSV… and maybe it means that flying won’t be so bad!

I saw my regular doctor for the first time since surgery the other day. I was down 22lbs since the last time I saw her, so that was nice. We talked about my surgery and she was really excited about my progress. I’m just so glad she referred me to my therapist a year and a half ago, because even though I may have still been able to have surgery without her, I know that I’ll be more successful long term because of all of the work I’ve done with her!

On the exercise front, I don’t have anything exciting to report. My big plan to go to the gym before work on Wednesday turned into going to see my doctor instead. I did to a fair bit of walking that day, but that’s about it. But now it’s the weekend and there’s no reason I can’t get there at least once… so that’s what I’m going to do… for real this time!!

And I think that’s about it for now!

Week 5

Hard to believe that it’s been 5 weeks already! Here are the numbers to date:

HW 1/3/15 – 292

SW 9/15/15 – 268 (-24)

MONTH 1 10/15/15 – 252.6 (-39.4 HW/-15.4 SW/-15.4 M1)

Wk 5 10/20/16 – 251.6 (-40.4 HW/-16.4 SW/-2.4 wk)

I decided to post the abbreviated list, but if you want to see the full week by week, it’s here (and one of these days I’ll add pictures).

I have to say that I’m pretty pleased with my loss this week, given the 2 lb gain I had a few days ago! I’ve been focusing on getting my water in, which I think has helped. Prior to the gain, I had been using all of my fluid in my 64oz goal (shakes & herbal tea), and hitting my goal every day, but I decided to just count water starting Sunday & was still able to get that in. My new goal is 96oz, so I’m working up to that. It’s definitely going to take some effort, since I tend to have chunks of time where I forget to drink for an hour or so, but I’m working on that. It’s all about developing new habits. 

I haven’t made any progress with my exercise, which is frustrating me. I was planning to go to the gym after work yesterday, but ended up working until 8:30 last night and just came home after that. Tonight is yoga, which is great, but not really a workout. Tomorrow I’ll be going to a soccer game (USWNT v Brasil), so I’ll be getting more steps than usual, but it’s not the same as HIIT. Then Thursday I’ll be meeting friends to watch a football game after work, so no gym then either. 

I know what I need to do. I need to start going to the gym before work in the morning, but that’s a really hard change for me. I’m not a morning person! Seriously! It’s usually 2 1/2 or 3 hours from the time I wake up to the time I get to work because it takes me that long to feel like I’m ready to face humanity! There was a time when I would just wake up, shower & head to the gym, so I know it’s possible. I just need to start doing it again. Fake it till you make it, that’s what I need to do. I need to stop telling myself that I have a choice about it or that I’ll do it later, because clearly that hasn’t worked out so far. Time to just do it! As much as I love not having to wake up to an alarm and having my lazy leisurely morning time, the reality is that if I want to really make changes and be fit and healthy, I need to START making those changes!

So I guess it’s decided. Tomorrow I set the alarm, get my ass out of bed and go down to the gym! I can roll out of bed, get dressed, go do my 30-45 minutes of HIIT, and still be home by the time I usually eat breakfast, and I can do that without waking up much earlier than I do now. And I know that once I get in the habit, it’ll just get easier to do every day. And I’ll sleep better at night. And I’ll feel better during the day. And I’ll be proud of myself for doing it!

So expect to see my post tomorrow morning about how much I hate waking up to an alarm… and know that I’ll be writing it with a huge smile on my face because I took another big step in making changes to get to a healthy and fit me!

Weekends

I’m realizing that I need a new approach to weekends. During the week I’ve got a nice routine with food, vitamins and meds… but on the weekend, I’m totally off schedule!

I haven’t been sleeping well this week, so I slept in until 9 this morning. I’m usually up around 7 to take my first dose of ursodiol, so I was 2 hours late for that, which then throws off the next 2 doses for the day. And I didn’t eat breakfast until almost 11, so now my food schedule is off for the day, too! And don’t get me started on my water… it’s 2pm, and I’ve had a grand total of about 8 ounces for the day!

There’s a part of me that really HATES being on a schedule and always has. But there’s another part of me that LOVES being on a schedule! Today is obviously a no schedule day, which isn’t working out so well. Being on a schedule takes the guesswork out of things. I don’t have to make decisions about what to do… I just follow the schedule! I’m feeling like the part of me that LOVES being on a schedule is starting to make some headway in the battle, because when I’m on track with food, water, vitamins, meds and exercise, i FEEL BETTER! Being on a schedule always made me feel like I couldn’t do what I want… but I’m starting to think that being on  a schedule really IS what I want!

So now I’m going to go drink some water and make a plan for my food and exercise for the week so I can make sure I have everything I need.

Turns out being on a schedule really isn’t such a bad thing!

Oh, and those 2 lbs from yesterday… .8 gone today, 1.2 to go!

Sometimes that happens

Up 2 lbs today. 

In other news, the hummingbirds seem to like the new lavender I planted on my deck!

Month 1

It’s really hard to believe that it’s already/only been a month since my sleeve surgery. As of this morning, I’m down 39.4lbs from my high weight in January when I officially started this process and 15.4lbs from my surgery weight. 

I feel like I’m pretty close to whatever my new normal is going to be as far as how I’m able to drink water. After my trip to the gym yesterday, I realized that I missed being able to just guzzle water, but I’ll adjust! But I’m able to get my liquids in without any trouble, though when I do fall behind it’s definitely an effort to get myself caught up. 

Eating is good, too. I’m taking smaller bites and chewing well, but my bites are getting bigger & I’m able to eat a bit faster now… it doesn’t always take 30 minutes to eat my meals now. I actually figured out a sign that I’m full, since I’m still not feeling it… my nose starts to run… how weird is that?! And I actually felt a little hungry today between my lunch and late afternoon meal. It seems that 8oz of soup with a scoop of protein powder just isn’t quite enough! Lesson learned. My tummy would prefer solid food for lunch!

I’m definitely getting smaller in my hips, because I’m noticing that it’s more comfortable to sit in the chairs in the conference rooms at work. I took measurements today, and it looks like I’ve lost about 5 inches (give or take… I’m never really sure I’m measuring at exactly the same place!), so that’s nice. 

I’m making progress and I’m feeling good. One month in and still not a single moment that I’ve regretted my decision! Can’t wait to see what month 2 has in store for me!!

Back to the gym

I still haven’t figured out what my schedule is going to be, but I decided that I needed to just go… because I refuse to fall into my classic pattern of not starting until I have EVERYTHING figured out and then never figuring ANYTHING out! So I took my gym clothes with me to work and committed to going right after work, regardless of how late that was! 

I got to the gym a bit after 7, which turns out to be a pretty good time as most of the after work crowd is gone. I paid my annual dues (I got a super deal on my membership 12 years ago, so I only pay $99 a year… which is why I kept my membership even when I wasn’t going for the last few years!), went and found an elliptical and hopped right on. Dameon, my fitness guru, wrote his Masters thesis on HIIT and told me that 30 second high intensity intervals were most effective & suggested 30 sec with 4 1/2 minute recovery (or however long I needed). I started with a 5 minute warmup, then went all out for 30 seconds. I felt good, my heart rate was up, and was ready to go again after my recovery. Did another 30 seconds, but this time recovery was much longer, so took another 5 minutes for recovery. I did a total of 4 of the 30 second intervals in 30 minutes. 

It didn’t go quite as planned, but I did it! And more importantly, my first thought after I was done was that I was excited to see my recovery time improve and NOT beating myself up about how out of shape I’ve let myself get!!! That’s HUGE for me!! I can’t change where I am now… but I CAN change where I’m going to be!

I think my first day back lifting weights is going to be Saturday… 

Progress, not perfection… that’s my goal!

Week 4

I feel like I’m not really losing, but the numbers tell a different story…

HW 1/3/15 – 292

SW 9/15/15 – 268 (-24)

Wk 1 9/22/15 – 261.8 (-30.2 HW/-6.2 SW/-6.2 wk)

Wk 2 9/29/15 – 258.6 (-33.4 HW/-9.4 SW/-3.2)

Wk 3 10/6/15 – 256.8 (-35.2 HW/-11.2 SW/-1.8 wk)

Wk 4 10/13/15 – 254 (-38 HW/-14 SW/-2.8 wk)

Now I just need to focus on figuring out my new schedule for the gym & eating & getting my steps! I’ve got this!

Not quite 1 month follow up

Today was my 1 month follow up with the nutritionist & fitness folks, so I figure that warrants a post! First was my appointment with Mr. Fitness, which is what I was most looking forward to. I’ve been officially cleared to all activities! We talked a lot about finding a routine that works for me and is sustainable. He gave me a good full body circuit with weights, and I’m super excited to start lifting again. He didn’t set any real goals or expectations, but I’ve set the following goals for myself between now and my next follow up with him on November 9th:

Consistently get 10,000 steps in daily

Continue weekly yoga

Get to the gym to lift weights twice a week

Get to the gym for HIIT cardio twice a week

Now I just need to sit down and figure out what my schedule is going to look like… and stick to it!

Next up was the nutritionist, which I was not so excited about. She’s happy with what I’ve been doing so far and with my loss to date. I was 266 on their scale at my 1 week follow up & 258.6 today. We talked about my current eating patterns (3 meals & a shake) and she wants me to add 1 more meal. I’m ok with that, but again, I need to figure out where it fits in my schedule… especially when I’m still not feeling hungry at all. I told her that I’m eating ~4 ounces per meal, and she said my stomach could probably hold 6 now. So I’m going to try eating a bit more & hopefully that will help me to figure out what full/satisfied really feels like now. She also said that over the next couple of months that I should try to get up to 1200 calories a day. We also talked about my goal of eating a low carb high fat diet, and she seemed ok with that, but wanted me to really ease into it. Right now, I’m just high protein, but with the extra meal & higher calories, fat seems like it just gives me more options with flavors. Guess it’s time to really start cooking again & trying some of the recipes I’ve been collecting!

So that’s my update for today. Tomorrow is week 4, then officially 1 month on Thursday! Time really does fly!

Didn’t see that coming!

First… 2 posts in 1 day, thank you very much!

The most amazing thing happened at work today… something I didn’t think would happen until months from now. One of my co-workers stopped by my desk and asked me if I was shrinking! What makes this really amazing is that she didn’t even know about my surgery! She’s the first person to notice who didn’t know, which somehow made it more real. We talked for a bit and she said she’s been noticing for a while but didn’t want to say anything because sometimes it gets weird, which I totally understand. I told her that I’ve been working my butt off since the beginning of the year and that 3 weeks ago I had surgery to help me. She was supper supportive and thought it was great… and I was just stoked that someone noticed! 

Hints for pre-op

When I was pre-op, I ordered tons of samples of protein powder, because everything that I had been reading was about how your tastes change after surgery and how hard it is to get fluids in. Many people were trying all of their samples pre-op, which seemed silly if the issue was that tastes change, so I decided to save my samples for post-op. I also bought Premier Protein shakes from Costco because I had them before & had tolerated them well after my 2012 thing, so figured they were a safe bet. 

I’m now 3 weeks post-op and as of today, I haven’t touched a single one of those protein powder samples! Maybe I will at some point, but I’ve been totally happy with my Premier shakes, so the samples continue to just sit here. 

The other thing I did was way over shop for soups for the liquid & purée phases of my post-op diet. I went shopping pre-op with my pre-op eyes and my pre-op stomach and bought what seemed like a reasonable amount for two weeks. Life post-op, however, is very different! Let’s just say that I WAY overestimated how much I would need! I think in the end I used 1 32oz box of broth & exactly 1 of the 10 cans of Campbell’s soup that I bought!

Everyone’s experience is different, but when it comes to shopping, it’s one more thing that’s totally different post-op! So my advice is to buy about 1/4 of what you think you’ll need… you can always go back for more!!