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Lets try this again.

  • Posted on September 23, 2011 at 6:44 pm

Hello!  I know it has been a long time since I wrote last.  I have no excuse for it.  But I need to get back at it and I need the support from all my family and friends.  I have been feeling a little down in the dumps again and it is affecting me in more than one way.  I have been putting weight on instead of taking it off, just can not find the get up and go to start walking on the treadmill again and just feeling like I am going around in circles and not getting anywhere.  Has anyone been in this trap?  If you have, what finally snapped in your head to changed it?  I would love to hear your story.

I have gone and cleaned up the playroom/workout room/basement so that I can be on the treadmill while the kids play and I can still keep a close eye on them.  I guess that would be considered Step 1.  Step 2 would be using it, but it is way easier to say I can start tomorrow.  I have been trying to change my life in very small stages to make it more focused on my family.  I love my friends dearly (and a few are more like family than friends.  I don’t know if these folks know that they mean so much to me.  I think I need to make a point to let them know it!)  As I said I love my friends but my I need to refocus my energy on my husband and kids.  They are my life and the sole reason to live, love and do it healthy and right!

I am so blessed that my husband is much healthier and in better shape because he has showed our oldest daughter the right path to take.  They are bicycle riding buddies and they well put easily 40 to 50 miles in a good days ride.  She is 6 yrs old and loves every turn of the pedals!  Steve thank you!

I do hope to get back into writing more again.  I did enjoy that and it seemed to help me a lot to hear from everyone.

Sometimes I wish I could just get control of my mind. My mind is my worst enemy. I think way too much, and I allow my thoughts to defeat me even before I have a chance to succeed.  I am praying for guidance and peace in my life. I want to be healthy in mind, body and spirit.

I have taken my measurements again as well as my starting weight (again) and tomorrow morning I will start this journey all over again.  I know I can do it I just need to find that path through the deep dark woods that will take me to the sun filled fields.  Like a guy that Steve loves to listen to on his Ipod (Dave Ramsey) says… Baby steps.  Everything in baby steps!

 

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Weight Loss Success Can Be Had!

  • Posted on March 30, 2011 at 7:54 pm

Today I got on the scales and I am another 3 pounds down! I started my weight loss journey in early March and I am 9 pounds lighter!! I am seeing or rather feeling a BIG change in how my clothes are fitting. I have been keeping track of how many miles I walk on the treadmill and I am up to 34 miles. That would put me just outside of Millersburg, Ohio if I walked from my house.

So what have I done differently? Well, I would have to say the biggest thing has been my choices. I have increased my activities (mostly walking). I have also changed my eating habits (this is the hardest thing for me). I don’t know about you but I get tired of “thin” folks or those that have never had any problems with their weight telling me or you what you need to do to lose weight. This drives me nuts!!  I want to here from those that fought their weight issues and WON!  Well I can at least tell you what I am doing and what is working for me. My hope is that I can be in some small way a help or inspiration to you.

If you can get yourself into the habit of choosing the right foods the easier it is in the long run. It even becomes easy when eating out. You don’t have to eat anything strange, you just eat normal everyday foods. I found that when you eat what is on your meal plan for the day you will find that you will start feeling full by the end of the day. Here is a sample of what I would have as a daily meal plan.

Breakfast:                    Snack:                      Lunch:                       Snack:                         Dinner

1- Fruit                                                           1- Fruit                                                             1- Fruit
1- Starch                                                         1- Protein                                                        1- starch
1- Dairy                                                          2- Veggies                                                       1- Protein
2- Veggies

This is what I put in those categories.

Breakfast:

1- small apple

1- 3/4cup Cheerios

1- 8oz glass of milk

Lunch:

1- small banana

1- 8oz Chicken Breast

1- 6 baby carrots

1- 1/2 cup raw Cauliflower

Dinner:

1- 3/4cup pineapple

1- small Potato

1- 1tsp of butter

1- 1/2 cup raw mushroom

1- 1/2 cup broccoli

1- Fish in Foil

For my snacks I have been eating Special K Bars (Chocolate Drizzle) or I get Nature Trails Fruit & Grain Bar (Apple/Cinnamon)

Here is the recipe for the Fish in Foil if you are interested.

1- fish (i use tilapia or salmon)(about 7oz)
1- Can’t believe it’s not butter Spray
dash of salt and pepper

Oven to 450
Wrap fish securely in a piece of heavy duty aluminum foil. Bake on ungreased cookie sheet for 20 minutes.

Open foil and spray with butter spray and add salt and pepper.

Bake uncovered until fish flakes very easily with a fork and is opaque in center.

While you may say there is no way that it is enough food but it really is. As you train yourself to not eat the junk but focus on the right food your body will adjust and soon you will find that you are eating the right amount. Trust me it worked for me before (till I blew it) and it is working again for me.

How else do I know it is working… I went clothes shopping the other day (gosh I hate that) and I came home with some REALLY REALLY cute tops and they were a size smaller! Proof to me that it is working!!

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Motivation to Lose Weight- Pictures are Worth Their Weight.

  • Posted on March 25, 2011 at 1:56 pm

So I found while looking for other pictures 3 pictures that are probably the biggest motivational pictures that should really keep me on track.  If I can remember to take my motrin an hour before I get on the treadmill I can keep getting my walks in.  My ankle is starting to feel a little better until I step wrong or step on a big rock in the driveway.

I had said before that when I got pregnant with my first daughter I was around 240 pounds, well in this picture I was about 4-5 months pregnant and about 255 pounds.  This picture was taken in 2004 at a friends wedding.

 

I said that I just did not care about my weight at that time, I just said “I am pregnant and I can eat what I want, when I want.”  At least my makeup looked good in this picture.

My daughter was born in early 2005 and I was pushing 300 pounds.  (sigh).  I knew I was very heavy but I just turned a blind eye to it.  When I went back to my first dr’s visit after her birth, I heard them say the 284 number but I did a great job of not letting it sink in or bug me.  However when my daughter was only 3 months old my family went to Cedar Point and this picture was taken of me.

 

That is when my world came crashing down around me.  It was then that I realized that if I did not do something soon I was going to not be around for my daughter.  I was 280 in that picture.  The awful thing is that I got into one of them kiddie trains so I could ride something with my baby.  I am surprised that I was able to get in or out of it.

I was very depressed when I saw this picture and that started me off on my 1.5 year of LA Weight Loss.  I was 276 pounds when I started there.

When I completed that journey I had lost 77 pounds!  Here was my beautiful self after that weight loss.  While I thought I look great the world still looked at me as being massively overweight.

 

Unfortunately I let things stop me from keeping that weight off or even loosing more and I have now put 61 of that weight back on, well I have lost 6 of that 61!  I thought if I share this that will even be a stronger motivation than just talking about it.  Let me see what I was at one time and what I could look like again.  My goal is to have a new motorcycle and some drop dead gorgeous mesh riding gear!  But I will only do that when I hit my goal weight of 199 again.  This time I will keep losing weight even after hitting that goal!  Bring it on Amy wants a new bike!!!

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A Big Thank You to All Those Who Read and Comment on My Blog

  • Posted on March 18, 2011 at 5:44 pm


This is for all of you who read this and have left comments or whom have talked to me in person, this is a BIG THANK YOU! You are the ones that are keeping me accountable and going. However a few days ago I had lost my motivation to keep going. It is not on the food end that I am struggling with, I am doing pretty good with that. I just can not get myself on the treadmill. I missed one day because between running to doctors appt and working I ran out of time. But that one day I just could not get down there and get walking. HELP! This is not good. I know I am griping about my ankle that is hurting from a race I had with my 6 yr old. I lost that race. She is just way to fast for an old out of shape mom. So I pouted and missed that day HOWEVER the next day i said no more I want to drop the weight more than I want to be over weight. So I gimped down to the basement and got on the treadmill. I walked 3 miles yesterday at a nice easy 2mph. My ankle was sore but I had it wrapped. It felt so good to be back on the treadmill. Ahhhh. But the thing that topped it all off was that I climbed on the scales and it said I lost another 2 pounds!!!
It was my birthday and I did have a piece of birthday cake but it is ok because I can stay away from what is left! Today I was getting ready for work and when I put my belt on I was able to move it up 2 whole belt holes!!!! Oh I was doing the happy dance and was ready to cry! God is blessing me! I have a long way to go but I am on the right track and it will take me to the right place!

So far with my treadmill walking I have walked the same distance as from my house to the outskirts of Mt. Eaton, Oh!! 19.5 miles!

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I Never Knew Working Out Could Be So Fun

  • Posted on March 12, 2011 at 9:59 am

I have had my Wii for a few years now, the oldest child has taken it over with her Scooby Doo game but tonight I decided to use it for why it was bought in the first place.  I broke out the Wii board and the Wii Fit Plus.  Now I have played this before but never and I stress the word NEVER used it for the FIT part of its name.  Well I think I may have changed all that tonight.  I have always liked aerobics but I truly have 2 left feet and I just know that I will trip and fall when I have to do the sideways steps but hey no one was home to watch so I gave it a try.  I ended up doing the basic beginner 3 times and laughed the whole time and only tripped a few times.  I kept thinking it maybe a good thing that I have those padded baby bumper things around the edge of the fireplace hearth.  I so have no rhythm.  Hummm, that was so much fun maybe I might just see what this fitness thing does.  Before I knew it I was into a 25 minute workout.

I started out with a fun Yoga pose then moved on to the snowball fight and ended up on a jog that I thought I was either going to trip over my big feet or the Wii board that I forgot to move or I was going to pass out from jogging longer than I have jogged ever at one time.  Now at this point because of the jogging I realize that I really need to go buy a better bra!  My boobs were not happy with me!  I’ve  got my feet squared away with better shoes and they are happy, now I guess I better take care of the twins.  For those that know me best that are reading this, I know you are laughing, it’s time for a new over-the-shoulder-boulder-holder.  After the jog the workout wanted me to go skate boarding, I decided that I was not going to kill myself on the first try and that I would just stop there and do it all again tomorrow and slowly add a new thing or two each time I do the workout.

One thing is that I am not hung up on the calories that it say I burnt because as long as I am up and moving.  I know that I am burning calories that would not have been burnt 3 weeks ago by sitting on my butt feeling sorry for myself.  I did a little research and found a site that gave me what my “ideal” weight should be and this is what I came up with.  With my height the lovely Medical Community says that I should weigh between 118 – 155 pounds.  While those numbers sound wonderful I can not even begin to remember the last time I weighed 155.  To me that seems a little too thin, I guess because I have always been heavy and have gotten used to seeing that.  Now I had also found on that website a Peoples Choice ideal weight (this is average weight that other people of the same age, height, weight and gender would describe as their ideal weight) and that weight is 177lbs.  This to me sounds like a blessed number but right now I am not focused on that finish line number I am focused on the small numbers that will get me to that final number!  The small numbers are a better goal and are more realistic to achieve.

I am starting to look forward to my new life.  In my opinion I am smiling and talking more.    I look forward to my workouts and while I still struggle with keeping myself from “grazing” all day I feel like I am getting a handle on it.  I find myself going into the kitchen and looking and trying to find something to snack on, but i would have to cook something to snack on and I hate to cook when I am not making a meal so I think that is helping as well with keeping me out of the grazing pasture.  While on the treadmill I have time to look around the basement and find “projects” that I can do that will keep my mind and hands busy and away from the kitchen as well!  Woo Hoo!  Here’s to week 2 of the New Me!

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4 pounds lighter!!!

  • Posted on March 10, 2011 at 8:57 pm

I am a full week into the “New Me” and I am down a full 4 pounds. Now that is numbers going in the right direction. I was a very scared to get on the scales today as I was stress eating yesterday. Just being very worried about something and I ate chicken nuggets from McD’s and after I did I thought I was going to throw up. I thought there is no way that I am going to be 4 pounds lighter. I am now kicking myself because what would the number have been IF I had not stress ate. So what have I been doing different this past week.

I started cooking my own meals. I make breakfast for my girls and actually sit down with them and eat. If I need a snack I have been snacking on Wheat crackers. Lunch has been a salad or a PBnJ sandwich. Supper is a nice meal that I make for the family. I have started teaching myself self control again. I gotta remind myself that I have kids that I want to be able to chase around this summer and I can not do it at this current weight. I read a letter yesterday that was on another blog that made me cry. I thought if I keep on this current routine this could easily be one of my kids writing this. I don’t want to ever have my girls go through this. Here is that letter.

A Letter from Kirstin:

I was in fifth grade when I finally realized my mom wasn’t like all the other mommies. Even though in so many ways she was the best mother in the world due to her strong involvement in our lives through school, sports, talent shows, and the like, it was in fifth grade when I noticed my mother wasn’t normal; she was obese.
Once I noticed my mother was this overweight, it wasn’t long before I understood the disadvantages that came with that fact. I soon appreciated every day with her more and more because I had no idea how many days she might have left. It wasn’t like it was just her problem anymore, it was mine too. I would worry that her obesity would catch up with her. I couldn’t just put it in the back of my mind either because as a child, your mother is everything.
As a child of an obese mother, I just want you to know that if you’re overweight and you have children… they worry about it, and they worry about you.
They may not say they worry about it or even act like they notice, but I can promise you that they do. When you decided to have children, you made a commitment to do everything in your power to be there for them.
Also, know that if you’re overweight, you can’t compensate for it by helping at their school or buying them things. Nothing can compensate for the fact that your choices can leave them without a mother. What you may not understand is the reality that you can die from being overweight.
Is any food really worth not seeing your child walk on their graduation day or seeing them get married or holding their first child? If you had cancer, wouldn’t you fight for your life? You would seek help and do whatever necessary to stay alive. Obesity is no different. It’s hurting you and you really do have the choice… obesity is one hundred percent curable. My mom did it and you can too.

I will be the mom that overcame her obesity and became involved in the lives of her family. So I have started putting the treadmill to work. I try to walk at least 2 miles everyday. Just for now as I keep walking I am just working on getting my shins and everything back into shape to handle upping the mileage. When I am at work I have no choice but to climb the 27 steps we have here at the station to get up to the living area, so I run them. Which is fun in steel toed work boots AND yes I have tripped and fell flat on my face.. many many times! LOL!!! Shhhh don’t tell anyone.

I am started to feeling a lot better about what I am doing with my life. I hope that after I get into a better routine I can help others that are struggling with their eating issues and weight. There comes a time in life, When you surround yourself with people who make you laugh, forget the bad, and focus on the good. So love the people who treat you right, pray for the ones who don’t. Life is too short to be anything but happy. Falling down is a part of life, getting back up is living!! This is so true!!!

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Working out and Bike riding

  • Posted on February 25, 2011 at 4:53 pm

Working out: Those are two words that strike fear in me. I am the number one person for finding the excuses for NOT working out. Why is it so hard to get motivated to work out. I have a great treadmill in the basement just waiting to be used for more than a clothes rack. Heck I even have free weights that still look brand new, that could be because they have only been used a handful of times. I am looking for a weight bench that I can use with them. I have several dvd’s that are supposed to make you have fun while working out LOLOLOLOLOLOLOL! Maybe to someone that is more into a daily workout routine finds them fun but I am not there yet.

I would love to get to a point where I can get up and get my oldest off on the bus and put the baby back down for a nap and walk on the treadmill but again the queen of excuses can come up with a million of them. I know that they say the first 2 weeks of anything are the hardest but if you can get past that it gets easier. That maybe true but I get a few days into it and I think that i am going to make it and then I skip a day and it all falls apart again. It may take me several weeks to get back up the gumption to tackle the treadmill again. I am hoping and praying that someday I will be able to get up and start working out everyday and be happy with myself again.

Bike riding: Oh when I hear these 2 words I start to laugh. Steve loves to get his bike out and hit the tow path. He can ride forever and has rode forever as he did a 100 mile ride last year in a ride for MS. The ride started out in Cleveland and ended in Sandusky. It was called Pedal to the Point. His love for biking as landed in our oldest daughters heart. She at the ripe old age of 4 started out on one of of those tiny little bikes with training wheels and was right out of the gate riding 3-5 miles. Her buddy Max the bear would always be riding shotgun in the basket. She has now moved on up to a 20inch bike and her last ride last year at the age of 5 was 42 miles. The girl is amazing. She wants to do a 50 miler this year! SHE IS 6!!! Even our youngest loves to be pulled around in the bike trailer. Steve puts the trailer on the back of his bike and away they go! She loves it and starts laughing and giggling as they go bouncing down the trails.

So by now you will have noticed that I have not talked about me in any of this. That is because until they figure out how to put a full sized, honest to goodness tractor seat on my bike I will not be riding any time soon. I can only handle having a bike seat stuck in a place that it should not be for a very very short time. When I ride the seat becomes lost in a sea of butt blobs. I really find no fun in riding and because of that I do not go out and enjoy the nice days with my family. Which once again I find myself keeping the couch company and keeping my fingers in shape using the remote. I have heard my oldest daughter say things like I wish mommy would come ride with us, that hurts. I always say maybe next time but that next time never comes. Last year I did go on (and I still can’t believe that I did) a 20 mile ride. We went with friends of ours and their son. It was an absolute beautiful day! I went because I did not want to be left our of every single thing that comes along but I was miserable almost from the minute we started and tried very hard not to let everyone know that I was in pain and not having a good time. I have not been back on my bike since.

While on the topic of riding bikes lets switch it to the motorized bikes.. Motorcycles as a matter of fact. Steve and I share a love of riding motorcycles. I have a 20+yr old bike that is a nice commuter bike but is awful for spending the day on or even taking a trip on. My back and tail bone just started hurting thinking about taking a trip. Steve has an 05’ BMW motorcycle that rides like a caddie! Love that bike. We have taken a few long distance trips on it and I know he is not comfy because I have to push on him which throws his riding style all out of whack. He is always sweet and tells me is fine but I know better. I know that my weight is preventing him from having a fun ride. This is just another big reason that I need to ditch the weight again. Sounds so easy doesn’t it. Wish it was.

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