Monday, May 17, 2010

Week 3 3/4 of C25k

What an emotional rollercoaster this week has been! My dad was admitted to the hospital with pneumonia, a friend of mine passed away...my emotions have been all over the place! But i can breathe easier now, my dad was released from the hospital yesterday and got to go home! Yeah! I went up and saw him in the hospital, it was scary seeing someone who seems larger than life be in a hospital bed hooked up to oxygen and tubes coming out of his body. But my dad is strong, and otherwise healthy, and even though it took the wind out of his sails, he's doing great! He lost 13 lbs in a week and a half...not the way i want to lose weight though!

The amazing thing to me is, usually when something happens that upsets me, it sends me spinning out of control. And the way i used to comfort myself was with food...but this time...i stayed on track. I made a consious decision to look after myself, to eat healthy and stick with my workouts, that was something i had control over. I couldn't change my dad being sick, or my friend passing away, but i could look after myself. I could make sure that i stayed strong and healthy. I realized that i couldn't be of help to anyone if i was sick or weak or feeling like crap. These are the times to be strong...and i am really proud of myself for being true to myself. I even went running outside for the first time! I usually run on my treadmill, and i have to say that running on the road is ALOT harder than running on my treadmill. I had to push myself more than i have before.

So, C25k...i had repeated week 3, then last week i was going to start week 4. Well, i was no where near ready for week 4. I couldn't run for the 5 minutes straight...but, instead of getting frustrated and giving up, i created my OWN week 3 1/2! I did that all last week, and this week i'm going to do my own week 3 3/4! Hey, whatever i gotta do to keep me running, i'll do. I think i should be ready for week 4 next week. And if it takes me twice as long to get through the 9 week program, i'm ok with that. It's the end result that matters, not how long it takes me to get there!

On another positive note, i've lost another 3 lbs!! Yeah!! I do my weigh-ins every 2 weeks. And after 4 weeks, i've lost a total of 6 lbs! That averages out to 1 - 1/2 lbs each week. I'm exercising, eating well, and i allow myself treats now and again so i don't snap and go on a binge. I have one FREE day a week, usually a Saturday, and i eat what i want. It seems to be working for me :-)

I've been reading alot of the posts here, and I realize that everyone has there own thing that works for them, there is no "one" thing, no wrong or right. Which kinda makes sense since none of us has the same body. Our bodies our different sizes, different shapes, we carry fat in different places, our metabolisms are different...there are soooo many factors involved. So my advice to anyone is this: use common sense. Eat well, move your body, and find what best works for you!

Cheers!

Sandy :-)

Thursday, May 13, 2010

My first bump in the road...

Been a pretty shitty week. My dad, who is 76, got a really bad flu...and then pneumonia on top of it. He's been in the hospital for the last 2 days. It really freaked me out. I was a couple of hours away from him, both my parents were telling me not to come...not to worry...um, how do you do that? I've always been a worrier, it's in my nature. Needles to say, i wasn't sleeping, my stomach was in knots. I've had to force myself to eat this last couple of days...now that's a wierd feeling. Forcing myself to eat. Then it got worse...a friend of mine was in a motorcycle accident...he died. I'm so sad for him, i'm so sad for his wife, i can't even imagine what they are going through. It actually hasn't really sunk in yet...I think i can only handle so much and my focus is on my dad right now. I'm sure once my dad is on the mend, i'll have time to digest it, and I will grieve.
I had pretty much made up my mind to come see me dad, no matter what my parents said, and my mom called me today and asked me to come. So, I took some time off work, drove up island, and saw my dad. He's doing better, but he's still in pretty rough shape. It's hard to see him that way. He is having a really hard time being there, and they want to keep him for another 5 days or so...he looked at me and asked me if he would fit into the trunk of my car! Poor guy :-( They have him hooked up to oxygen, and on antibiotics, we had to wear gloves, masks and gowns, and all i could do was touch his hand...it sucks!!
My parents live about 45 minutes away from the hospital and my mom doesn't drive, so she was staying at some relatives in the same town. At least while i'm here we can go to the hospital, spend the day, and then i can bring her home so she can sleep in her own bed at night.
With all that's been going on, it would be really easy to slip back into old patterns...but i'm not going to. I was hungry, but i didn't stop at McDonalds like i would have before...i waited til we came back to my parents house and had some fruit and yogurt. I'm going to run tomorrow, which will be interesting cuz it will be the first time i've run outside, on a road...so far i've only been running on my treadmill.
So, i've had my first "test", and i managed to get through it...maybe there is hope for me yet!

Monday, May 10, 2010

Buster





He's one of the wonderful things in my life that make me smile!
Cheers!

Somone noticed!

Someone actually noticed a change!! Wow!! It's only been 3 weeks...and i've only lost a few pounds...but someone actually noticed a change in me!! Well two someones actually! Last week, my boss told me that she noticed i was losing weight! I was shocked. I mean, how can a few pounds make a difference when you're 200 lbs! But she noticed...i can't tell you how that made me feel! Then after work i went to my chiropractor appointment. My chiropractor asked me how my workouts have been going and I told him that I was doing the C25k program and that i'd been doing it for 3 weeks now. He told me there was noticable definition in my calves, he could see and feel the change...how freaking great is that!!! It made me realize that even though i'm taking baby steps, one thing at a time, and i'm doing this slowly, and hopefully the right way, it still makes a difference. Every little thing you do makes a difference! I was so caught up in my weight, so caught up on what the scale was telling me that i was missing out on the other signs. And now that i'm noticing them, it's a great feeling! I'm seeing or hearing the results of my hard work. It just adds fuel to the fire, it keeps me motivated and heading in the right direction!


On another note, i realize that i haven't put much about ME in here. I've been posting my progresses, but nothing about the person who is doing all the hard work! So, i thought i would add random things about myself bit by bit. Today's random tidbit is:


I have a beautiful cat named Buster. He is such an amazing little guy...he's all about determination and not giving up. I adopted him almost 4 years ago from the SPCA, he was their "Cat of the Month" on their website. I fell in love with him the minute I saw him. When they found Buster on the streets, he was starved and dehydrated, and almost died. They nursed him back to health and had been at the SPCA for a few months. He's sweet and affectionate and we are very well suited to each other.

OK...i'm having trouble's posting a pic of Buster. I can't get the picture to just go under this last paragraph...i can only seem to get it to go at the top of the page. Can you tell i'm not very good with computers? Oh well, i'm going to just publish another post right after this one with a few pics of him :-)

Have a great day everyone!

Sandy

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Lost 3 lbs!!

Yeah!! I've lost 3 lbs!

It may not seem like alot over a 2 week period, but that was just from me walking every day and doing my Couch to 5k 3 times a week. That's it. No adjustment to my eating. Just goes to show what moving your body can do!

So yesterday I started tracking my food on MyFitnessPal. It's really easy and I was quite surprised to find alot of the food I ate was already on their system...and what wasn't there I could just add to My Foods.

I also decided to start trying out new recipes...at least 1 per week. I was always eating the same old thing over and over and then wonder why I fell off the wagon and went on a binge! So this week, I made an Orange Glazed Pork Tenderloin, it was really good! It was the first time I had ever cooked a pork tenderloin and I was really pleased how it turned out. I also tried a spinach and berry smoothie. Very yummy!

So, I've officially had a my first insanely crazy busy day since I've started this journey. My day started at 5:00 am and has not stopped! But on the plus side, I still made time to do my walking/running and to make myself healthy meals. I still have to get my breakfast and lunch together for tomorrow, and then I will finish watching Biggest Loser before calling it a day. I'm loving this episode! It's makeover week and they all look fabulous!

Night everyone!

Monday, May 3, 2010

Time to start tracking my food

"The good Lord gave you a body that can stand most anything. It's your mind you have to convince." - Vincent Lombardi

I'm back from a weekend away visiting with my family. Definitely didn't eat great, but i managed to get my minimum 30 minute walks in. Got back yesterday, and after sucking up to my cat for a few minutes for leaving him alone all weekend, the first thing i did was jump on my treadmill and do my walking/running. I'm repeating week 3 of Couch to 5k, and i'm okay with that. If it takes me a little longer to get there, so be it, as long as i get there :-)

So, i haven't been focusing on food so much, was more into getting my walking/running into a daily habit. And so far so good. But I now think it's time to start paying a little more attention to what i eat.

Question: Which free on-line food tracking web-site is a good one? Any suggestions would be much appreciated!

So, I was looking at some weight loss tips from various web-sites, and found one that seems perfect for us bloggers:

B is for Buddies!

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine compared solo dieters to teams of dieters. After 10 months, the latter were likelier to have maintained their loss (66% vs 24%). Find a buddy!

Well, i feel like i found a whole group of buddies! Reading your blogs inspire me, help me to stay on track, and re-focus if I jump the tracks for a short time. Whether you realaize it or not, you are a part of my support system and I thank you!

Cheers!
Sandy