BLT4ever

I am 38 years old today and in better health then I have been since I was kid!  It is so darn good to be alive, happy, and living the life I’ve always wanted to live!  This morning my two oldest kids who are still on summer break, and I, are going to see “Step Brothers” and then going out to El Torito’s for lunch.  I am going to be on my best behavior.  I am going to take my own advice and be committed to my weight loss program NO MATTER WHAT!  Will probably cave in and allow myself to have a diet soda as a birthday treat.  It’s good to let ourselves have treats from time to time, especially when it’s for a good reason like a birthday.

Tomorrow evening I am testing for my yellow belt at karate!!!  I am super excited about it.  My two youngest boys who are also in karate and I are going to go out for lunch Saturday to celebrate my birthday and my yellow belt.  That way I get to celebrate with all of my kids.  Plus, we always go out to celebrate when the boys get a new colored belt in karate and they’re so excited about me getting mine that we’ve got to do the same.

So, I’ve got to be extra careful because I am going to be eating out two days this week.  But, that is nothing to be afraid of because I know that there are healthy choices and I’m going to make them.

Still going to get all of my workouts in for today.  Just because it’s my birthday is no reason to slack off.  It’s actually even more reason to get out there and do it.  So, I’ve gotta go now cuz’ it’s time to get in my strength training before we head to the movies.

I believe so much in not only eating right but in exercising to loose weight.  For me, I think that exercising twice a day helps tremendously.  Seems to me that people who are fit and wanting to stay fit workout once a day, so why not workout twice a day or more to actually loose weight?  When I am actively losing weight, the weight usually comes off fairly quick.  Quicker then the 1-2 lbs. a week anyway.  I’ve not had a problem with saggy skin either, it all is getting tighter as I go along.  I believe that this is due to my strength training.  Strength training for women is a must!  I know alot of women worry about bulking up, but your general strength training is not going to do that.  It’s hard enough for the people who do put on bulk to actually bulk up.  There is so much that needs to be done to bulk up.  You’ve got to have a diet so high in protein it’s through the roof.  That’s why they all drink protein supplements and whatnot.  But not only that, these people lift weights for hours each and every day!  The kind of strength training that the rest of us women should be doing will never, ever bulk us up like that.  It consists of light weights for only about 30-40 minutes at a time.

There also is controversy over how often a person should incorporate strength training into their routine.  I am in the category of daily basis, only because it is what keeps me consistant.  I am the type of person that if I only did it every few days I wouldn’t be as committed to do it.  Having my routine schedule of getting in strength training each morning before breakfast is what keeps me committed to it.  I am reaping the results and loving it, too!

My workout schedule:

• Mondays - 30-40 minutes all over body strength training on my Hoist machine every morning, to include doing 50  crunches and side crunches (50 on each side) on my Pilates ball.  Afternoons I like to get in at least an hour of swimming.  Evenings I attend a 60 minute kickboxing class at the dojo (this class is brutal!!!).
• Tuesdays - 30-40 minutes all over body strength training on my Hoist machine every morning, to include doing 50  crunches and side crunches (50 on each side) on my Pilates ball.  Afternoons I like to get in at least an hour of swimming.  Evenings I attend 30 minutes of body conditioning class (this consists of cardio and strength training) at the dojo, followed by my 60 minute karate class.
• Wednesdays - Same as Mondays.
• Thursdays -Same as Tuesdays.
• Fridays- 30-40 minutes all over body strength training on my Hoist machine every morning, to include doing 50  crunches and side crunches (50 on each side) on my Pilates ball.  Afternoons I like to get in at least an hour of swimming.  Evenings I get in a vigorous walk/run for 60 minutes while my boys are in weapons class.
• Saturdays - Vigorous 1.5 mile walk to the dojo.  Attend my 60 minute karate class.  Vigorous 1.5 mile walk back home.  Afternoons I like to get in at least an hour of swimming.  30-40 minutes all over body strength training on my Hoist machine in the evening, to include doing 50  crunches and side crunches (50 on each side) on my Pilates ball.
• Sundays -Not a darn thing!  After all, God did designate this day as a day of rest.

I have had people tell me that this is such a brutal routine, but I really do like it.  After all, when it comes to losing weight and getting in shape, how bad do you want it?  I want it real bad and I am willing to pay the price.  Believe it or not, I am not tired all the time and I don’t ache all the time either.  Granted, for the first few days I was sore but not any longer, and I’ve more energy while on this workout routine then off.

This is pretty much the same routine I was on back when I lost the original 120 lbs.  I found out when they ran all of my blood work before my surgery, that I am a very healthy person now.  You know, when I was morbidly obese I was borderline diabetic (diabetes runs in both sides of my family) with high cholesterol, high blood pressure and a very high resting heart rate (averaged 80-100, and when I was pregnant it was between 100-120!!!).  Now, after a 12 hour fast, my blood sugar is 74, cholesterol was 160, blood pressure 117/70 and my resting heart rate averages right around 60-70 now.  My health is better than it ever has been before and I owe it ALL to not only eating right, but exercising too.

I cannot urge people enough, get out there and get active!!!  When I first started getting active I could barely do anything at all.  I did NOT start out at the level I am at.  I started out small and worked my way up.  It took all I could give just to walk .4 of a mile within 15 minutes and not feel as if I was going to keel over dead.  I did start strength training right away, but it was on the lowest level of resistance my machine can be set on.  Whatever it is you CAN do right now, get out there and do it.  Please.  It’s really for your own good.

Again…..how bad do you want it?

No matter how difficult the goal, triumph of will power over weakness will gain success. - Ernie Barnes

I have gone back to my “old school” way of losing weight…doing the same things I did in the first half of 07′ when I lost my first 100 lbs.  I exercise ALOT (at least two hours a day total) and eat between 1200-15oo calories daily.  I don’t drink soda at all…even diet soda is no good for a body.  Seriously….if you drink it, stop!  I drink lots of water, 80-120 oz. of water a day.  I also drink two servings of either Arizona diet green tea, Lipton diet green tea with mixed berry or Lipton diet white tea with raspberry each day.  I cannot put enough emphasis on drinking no soda and only water and these teas.  When you’re limited to only 1200-15oo calories a day like I am, you do NOT want to be wasting those calories on drinks!  While it’s true that diet sodas don’t have any calories, they’re so full of chemicals  that they’re just no good.  From what I’ve read about it, artificial sweeteners can cause you to crave more foods…and we all know how harmful that can be!  Also, sodas are so acidic that they are horrible for your teeth; they literally erode your teeth enamel.  I believe that in order to lose weight and lose it for good, we need to focus on our overall health and make it a priority to do what we can to take care of our entire well being.  There are so many things that are important for me to do in order to lose weight; so many things that I try and focus on…

1. Make the decision to be committed and don’t back down…no matter what.  This is #1 in my book for a reason.  Have discipline, get set in your mind that you are going to follow your plan, you aren’t going to allow yourself to sabotage your weight loss strategy!  Otherwise, none of the other things you try and do are going to matter!
2. Set realistic goals.  A good one that I go by is to set mini goals of 10% loss at a time.  For instance, my starting weight this time around was 248 lbs.  So, I’ve set my mini goals at 25 lb. increments.
3. Remember that the weight often comes off fast in the beginning and can slow down drastically after a week or two.  Don’t let this deter you from your commitment to yourself.  Don’t let the scale rule you, it is merely a tool.  The most important thing is how you’re feeling and how your clothes fit.  Sometimes scale isn’t kind to us but are clothes are looser and fitting better.
4. Eat 1200-1500 good calories a day.  I eat foods high in protein and low in fat, if I need a sweet snack I’ll eat something from the pre-packaged 100 calorie goodies out there.
5. Portion control!  Can’t emphasize this enough.  Take the time to measure; at least until you get the hang of being able to eyeball it accurately.
6. Eat on a regular schedule, go no longer than 3 hours between eating, allowing for three meals and three snacks a day.  I like to keep my breakfast and lunch at around 200 calories each, dinner at around 300-400 each and snacks between 100-150 each.
7. Stay away from all fried foods.  No matter what!  They are never okay for our bodies.  Never.  Keep these in the super rare treat category.
8. Exercise at least twice a day for at least 30 minutes a go.  My exercise routine - each morning I get in 30-40 minutes of all over body strength training to include sit-ups.  Each afternoon I get in at least 30 minutes of cardio, which is often just having fun swimming in our pool but can also be a bike ride or a walk.  Each evening I get in one hour of either kickboxing or karate, depending on the day of the week.  Obviously if you don’t do these activities, you can get in some other form of cardio that you find fun, even if it’s just going for a walk.  I just urge you to do it twice a day.
9. Drink LOTS of water.  At least 80-120 oz. each day.  I carry a 64 oz. giant insulated cup with me everywhere I go so that I am always drinking nice, cold water.  I very often will drink three of these a day; that is equal to 192 oz. and is a bit extreme, but when you’re sweating as much as I do, it is necessary.  Water not only helps to flush out the fat, it replenishes our cells and keeps us clean.
10. Stay away from sodas and juices…just say NO to all drinks that have calories.  I am an avid lover of milk…love, love, love the stuff.  But I won’t even drink that when actively trying to lose weight, except for on Sundays, which is my “day off”.  The rest of the days I take calcium supplements.
11. Take vitamins daily.  I take one multivitamin each morning, along with my calcium supplement and some fiber pills to help me stay regular.
12. Eat consciously, every time you eat be completely aware of the entire experience.  Eat slowly and enjoy the meal.  Make every time you eat something you enjoy doing, that will help keep you from feeling deprived.
13. Plan ahead, bring healthy snacks with you if you’re going somewhere you know that you will be tempted to have a bad snack.
14. Take one day off a week.  No exercise and no calorie counting.  This of course doesn’t mean to go wild though.  Eat whatever it is you want to eat (except for fried foods!!!) but stick to portion control.  Craved Chips Ahoy cookies all week long?  Allow yourself to have a serving on your day off.  When we allow ourselves to have a day off, it helps us fight off those maddening cravings throughout the rest of the week.
15. Keep track of your food intake and exercise daily in a log.  You can keep a written journal in a notebook; I use a program called Fitday.  I sincerely love that program cuz’ it keeps track of everything for me.  Shows me how I’m doing over time in graph form even.
16. Every now and again you’ve just got to go wild and refuse to feel guilt about it!  About once a month I will indulge myself and have pizza with the kids, or order that appetizer of fried mozarella sticks, or go to Coldstone and get a love it size of my favorite treat there.  The key is to making this a rare treat, a one meal or snack kind of thing…not a whole day kind of thing.
17. NEVER, EVER, NEVER give up!  ALWAYS persevere!  Prepare yourself, it IS going to get tough from time to time.  Expect that and you will never be surprised when it does.

No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us. - Philipians 3:13-14

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. - Philipians 4:13

Weighed in this morning, and boy was that nice!  I lost 12 pounds since my last weigh in last Monday morning, and have once again gotten my star for reaching the 100 lb loss!  From here on out I will be weighing myself every Sunday morning again, just like before.  I also will be doing the Wednesday evening weigh ins at the dojo for the Biggest Loser contest we’ve got going on.

Sure wish I could keep the weight loss at this great a pace, but I know that any day now it’s going to slow down.  It’s just how it goes.  When I lost the first 100 lbs, I lost 14 lbs in the first week.  Think around 10 the second week and then every week after that for a few months I lost 4 lbs a week…slowed down even more from there.  I could only hope to do that well this time around.  This time around I am going to do more calorie fluctuations then before, that should help.

Anyway, gotta go get ready for church now.  Just had to check in!

Walked the mile and a half to the dojo this morning before my class, and then of course walked the mile and a half home after class.  It felt great to be doing it, too.  It is so kewl to find one’s weightloss mojo again.  Got up at 7:00 am, put my gi pants and tank top on, ate a protein bar and drank a bottle of white tea with raspberry for breakfast.  Put on my running shoes and packed up my gi top along with my obi and three bottles of water and away I went.  Took class for the usual hour and then walked home.  Got home, took a shower and ate a serving of lowfat cottage cheese for a snack.

Class was awesome; I just love the days where I’m really feeling it and am spot on.  I’m testing for my yellow belt this next Friday, August 1st, and I am feeling a little nervous but am ready for it too.  I’ve got two peers who are also going to be testing with me on Friday and we’ve been working our butts off.  Our efforts are most definitely paying off.

So my morning has barely begun really and I’ve already got a three mile walk and a one hour karate class under my belt for the day.  WOOHOO!  It feels great being here in the groove again. Still going to do my weight training, it’s just going to have to be in the late afternoon instead (obviously lol).  I enjoyed walking to class so much that I am going to do it every Saturday.  It just isn’t feasible for me to walk there Monday-Friday because of the times the classes go.  Plus on Tuesdays and Thursdays I’ll have my 7 year old with me and who knows how long it’d take for us to get there then.

Anyway, I hope that all who happen by here have a SUPERFANTABULOUS day full of lots of happiness and joy!

Today was a good day.  I took in 1220 calories and got in two workouts.  First workout was my usual 30 minutes of strength training in the morning and my second workout was going 3 miles on my elliptical bike in the afternoon.  I was going to go to the dojo and get in a walk/run around the outside there but my big toe has a really bad crack in it and I wanted to give it a full day of rest.  Gotta get up bright and early to head to the dojo in the morning.  I am going to walk the 1.5 miles to get there and back for my 8:15 class.  I figure that extra little bit of a walk is going to help…heck, every little bit counts.

Missing my husband severely, as he is missing me.  We both sort of feel like we’re just existing without the other.  I try to not think of it much because when I think of living the next 7 months (he’s already been gone 6 now) without him it gets a little hard to breathe and I actually get nauseous.  We had such a nice visit from the 1st thru the 16th (he left in the wee hours on the 17th), and I am so very thankful for them.  I just wish he didn’t have to go back again.  Anyway…that is one thing that gives me huge motivation.   When I am focused on my program, I am not focused on thinking of him being gone.

Thought this was cute:

mmm….cookies hehe

We started a 30 day “Biggest Loser” competition at the dojo last night.  We’re going for an individual winner but it’s also the guys vs. the girls kinda thing.  Most of the people involved don’t need to lose a single pound, as they’re quite fit already.  But it’s all in good fun, and there is no monetary prize, just the satisfaction of losing some pounds and getting healthier.  Although, I hear there may be a side bet on the ladies side starting up.  I don’t want a part of the money betting myself because of how badly that turned out for me with the last one I was involved in last year.  I was in one last year with four other people and we each were supposed to put in a mere $2 a week.  As it turned out, I was the only one that put money in faithfully.   In the end, I won because I had lost just under 100 lbs.  It took two months for me to get the money from winning and one of the ladies never did put in a penny…so I essentially got jacked as far as the competition itself went.  I am forever grateful for the experience though because I lost so much weight and found that I really do have the determination, discipline and drive it takes to beat this thing.

Anyway, I KNOW without a shadow of doubt that my friends at the dojo are going to be in on this thing 100% with me, and that if we did do a side bet, everyone would be honest about it and whatnot.  I love them all, I’m telling ya…these are AWESOME people.  All of them.  I just don’t want a part of money betting and want to do this thing just for the fun of it, you know?  I do fully intend on winning though.  :oP

I couldn’t be more jazzed and am so raring to go!  I have been spot on OP every day since starting my new weight loss program this last Monday, and I WILL continue to be spot on OP every day from here on out.  I am so darn excited about the next seven months of weight loss!  Go me!!!!

I’ve got to mention here, that it isn’t all about me.  I couldn’t be doing all of this on my own.  The Lord is still guiding me in all of this and I am so incredibly thankful to Him for all that He has given me.  He has shown me who I really am and what I am capable of doing with His hand uplifting me!

Phil 3:13-14: Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.

And of course, let us never forget:

Phil 4:13:  I can do everything through Christ who gives me strength.

Take care and have a SUPER FANTABULOUS day!

I have started over from the very beginning with my workout routines and food consumptions.  I am feeling great, and setting new goals.  When I started this thing on January 7, 2007, I weiged 338 lbs.  I am pretty proud of myself for the 120 lbs. I lost and even though I did gain 30 of those pounds back over the past 8 weeks, I am proud for maintaining for so long.  July 31st will be my one year anniversary of having lost the first 100 lbs. and I am going to be able to say I kept it off.  Because by the time the 31st rolls around again I will be back at the 100 lb. mark and hopefully a few extra to boot.Time for new goals now though.  I strive to lose 10% of my starting weight for each mini goal.  So I’ve set each mini goal at 24 lb. intervals, with my ultimate goal being 150-160 lbs.  Perfect weight for my body frame.  I’m going to reach 174 lbs. by February 1, 2009; which is round about the time my husband is due home from Iraq.  I know without a doubt that I can do this, it is not an un-attainable goal, it is not out of reach.  It is just going to take a lot of hard work and it won’t be easy.  That’s okay by me, I’ve never been one to shy away from something just because it scares me or because it’ll be hard to do.

Got my hair cut short yesterday then dyed it black with red tips, it’s all spiked out and sticking out all over.  My daughter actually convinced me to wear it in the shape of a fax hawk to karate last night.  that was fun!  I really like it.  Will have to take a pic to upload here.

Speaking of karate, I really owned it last night.  I found my “inner focus” and it was great!  Being a white belt I often forget certain moves or forget to kia! while punching & kicking.  But last night, I was spot on with it most of the night.  Came away feeling great for how it went.  I am testing for my yellow belt on August 1st!  Woohoo!!!  It’s kind of scary, but it’s really exciting too.  I sincerely am loving my lessons.  I do still take kickboxing at the dojo Mondays and Wednesdays.  Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays are karate days.  I think tomorrow I’ll go into more detail about everything I do for all of my workouts.  I do want to try and keep things fairly short here, and come lots more often, just like I did when I first started on this journey.

I’d been getting this pain off and on for about eight months or so…round about the time of my 100 lb. weight loss.  The pain would always come at night, often waking me up in horrendous agony.  It always would go away after about 3-5 hours, but I’d never go see a doctor because that’s just how I am.  Silly, I know…the pain would go away and I’d have so many other things I had going on that I just would let it go.  Anyway, the pain at first only happened every great now and again but seemed to be coming more and more often round about April.

Mother’s day….my mom calls me about noon and tells me that she is going to the emergency room because she is having severe stomach pains.  I too was having early symptoms of my version of stomach pains.  I knew it was going to be a doozy when it finally hit that night.  I didn’t tell her about it cuz’ she always worries and the last thing she needed as she went to emergency was to worry about me.  Her and her husband live about three hours away and her husband promised to give me a call as soon as they knew anything.  In the mean time the kids and I got some clothes packed up and were getting ready to head up there if he called saying it was serious.  She turned out to have something called Diverticulitis and it was cleared up over a couple of day hospital stay with antibiotics through an IV, and after that gave her some pain pills she was feeling good enough that I didn’t feel it necessary to go up there.  Besides, I was already starting to be in pain and I knew the real agony was yet to come when I was asleep that night.

Went to bed at about 11pm scared, knowing that I was soon to awaken in agony and praying the whole time that it’d just go away.  With my husband in Iraq for the year and it just being me and the kids, I couldn’t afford to go to the hospital.  I rationalized things telling myself that I would go to see my regular doctor the next morning for sure, that I would no longer put it off.  Well, apparently God had other plans because round about 1:30 am I woke up in the most agonizing pain I’d ever had to deal with.  It was so bad that nothing I did made it any better.  I’d try getting up and walking around to ease the pain, tried laying with a heating pad, took pain pills and antacids.  From what I’d read on the internet, the symptoms were similar to an ulcer so I was trying to treat it as if that was what it was.

At about 2 am I clearly heard God say to me, “Would you please stop being so stubborn and get to the hospital now?”  So, I woke up my nearly 18 year old daughter and told her that I was going to the emergency room so that she would be aware of where I was going and could be responsible for her brothers for me.  Don’t ask me how I managed to drive myself to the hospital in that horrendous pain, but I managed.  I guess you do what you gotta do…surely God had his angels surrounding me for that trip.

At the emergency room they hooked me up with some Demerol, which didn’t take the pain away really.  It just took the edge off of it and made me not care that I was feeling pain.  They ran a blood test, took x-rays and an ultrasound.  I was there for about 4-5 hours total.  Come to find out I had gallbladder disease and there were so many gallstones in there it was shocking.  Doctor said that I was very lucky to not have died.  Apparently rapid weight loss can cause gallstones to build up in there and over time the gallbladder gets diseased and no longer functions the way it’s supposed to, but the liver continues to make bile to secrete into the gallbladder and then the gallbladder tries to squeeze it into the intestines but when there’s that many gallstones in there blocking the bile from coming out it creates excruciating pain.

The next morning I saw my regular doctor for an insurance referral to a surgeon.  My doctor gave me a prescription for Vicodin and told me to relax and do whatever it took for me to be pain free until my surgery.  All my life I have been terrified of having to have surgery.  BIG CHICKEN!  As it turned out, I had nothing to fear.  I had surgery on Wednesday May 21st and my surgeon said that he could tell I’d had many painful attacks because there was so much scar tissue in there that it was difficult to get it out without cutting me open.  But he was able to do it via laparoscopy even though he had to do much finagling to get it out.   For me, the surgery was a great experience and I am very thankful for it.  I remember being so nervous while being wheeled into the OR.  We got in there and there was music playing, the song was “Goodbye to you” by Patty Savage…cracked me up!  I looked over at the digital clock on the wall and it said 9:11.  These two things combined made me laugh and that loosened me up.  My nurse and my anesthesiologist both knew I was nervous (I made sure all involved were aware lol), and were talking to me and then the next thing I knew, I was waking up and it was all over.  I said, “Hey!  You guys didn’t make me count back from 100!”  :oP  They knew just talking to me was all I needed…that the actual counting backwards would probably make me more nervous.

Three little holes up under my right breast down to my side, and one bigger one at my belly button and that’s it.  I was pretty sore right out of surgery of course, but not all that bad.  After about 45 minutes they brought me out of the recovery room, gave me some juice and my mom and daughter came into the room and we chatted for a bit.  My mom checked out my bandaids (I was too afraid to look lol), and a short time later I asked my nurse if I could go take myself to the bathroom.  Apparently that was all I needed to do to get released cuz’ after I came out she said I was doing so good and whenever I felt ready to go I would be released.  Woohoo!  So got dressed and away we went.  I had had friends tell me to stay as long as they’d let me.  My surgery nurse even told me to stay over one night and take advantage of the care.  But, I so much would rather be recouping at home that I just left.  They were all great there at the hospital and I very much enjoyed my experience there though.  I didn’t want to leave cuz’ they’d done anything wrong.  I just wanted to get into my own bed.

I was a bit sad at first that my husband wasn’t able to be there to take care of me.  I was missing him so much.  But, that’s okay.  God, my mom, and my kids all took care of me.

The bad thing about all of this is that I wasn’t allowed to do my kickboxing, karate, or strength training for six long weeks!!!  I got a bit depressed about that and ended up not getting in any exercise at all!  Bad me!  Bad!  I think I went for two walks in all of that time.  When my six weeks was up, it was time for my husband to come home for his two weeks of leave for the year.  I didn’t do any exercising then either.  Bad me!  Bad!  So, with no exercising and eating like a pig again, I gained back 30 of those 120 lbs. total I’d lost!  I feel like crap about it because I was doing so good and then here I am, having to lose that 30 lbs. again before I can continue where I was at!

But, oh well.  Nothing I can about it now except for lose it all again; which is what I intend to do.  This time around I am going to lose at least 5o lbs. by the time January 7th (my two year anniversary from when I started losing weight) gets here.  That will put me at a total of 148 lbs. of weight loss.  Good enough for me for now.  I want to get to 190 and then maintain that for about six months before I take off the last 30-40 lbs.

So, that’s where I’ve been all this time.  I am sorry I left you all.  I was just not in a good place and would’ve done no one here any good either.

It IS good to be back!