Summer15 Update

I am sooooo close to being the lightest I have been in a long time. I am .2 pounds off my previous lightest weight of 158.5. I know I can do this!

So this puts me 9.3 pounds since January 1st, 3.9 pounds down since the start of Summer15 and 0.9 pounds down form last week. Rocking!

Some of the food choice changes I have been making are obviously working very well, as much as I grumble about them. I haven't done much exercise, and I have made some poor food choices this week, but overall I think I did really really good, and I guess it shows!

I have really started enjoying preparing some healthier meals ahead of time for work. My favourites are the breakfast grains from The Biggest Loser Simple Swaps: 100 Easy Changes to Start Living a Healthier Lifestyle and the Tabbouleh from The Low GI Handbook: The New Glucose Revolution Guide to the Long-Term Health Benefits of Low GI Eating (New Glucose Revolutions).

After having a week off from exercise due to illness I went super hardcore when I went back to the gym Tuesday (after having a long holiday weekend). I went a little too hard...not only did I raise my heart rate over the point where the treadmill could read it (it screamed at me 199%+) but I also damaged my knee. I should have known better. I really wrecked it back when I was 16 and doing parades with my Drum Corps. I was told since I refused surgery that it would always be sensitive and I would have to take care of it. And here I go jogging out super hard on a treadmill with about 50-60 extra pounds on me from when I originally hurt it (I was maybe a good 90 pounds soaking wet back when I was that age).

So yeah...duh...and hence the no further workouts for that week. I was in agony just walking up some stairs to get to work. Ugh.

I also sucked out at my goals. I had only 3 goals this weekend, and I didn't complete even one. But on the other side I did spend quite a few hours shopping with the other half to help him put together some nice new ensembles for work (more updates on that soon, just waiting for the official news). I'm telling you, men complain about shopping with women...but shopping with a picky man is no picnic either!

I also had a nice conversation with the other half about my education and am pleased he agreed to let me go back to taking two courses at once since I really only raid once a night now. There were of course some specifications:

1) No more costly extensions.

2) Course must be staggered so as not to have their finals close to one another.

3) Only one of the course may have both a final and a midtem, the complimentary course must be all assignments or assignments with a final only (so as to avoid overlapping of exams).

I am quite happy with this. I will be signing up for my next course (Computers and Management Information Systems) on Wednesday. It is an assignment only course. I can't wait! This will give me some brain breaks from the hideous Taxation course (which has to be completed my November - ugh).

Summer15 Week Two

So I am slightly heartbroken. I have gained 2.1 pounds from last week's 2.7 pound loss. On a positive note that means I am still 0.6 pounds into my 15 pound goal, but it still stinks.

I'm not exactly sure what happened. I have been doing great with my working out. I have gone to the gym every workday since receiving the free membership. I have done both the upper and lower training sessions and now know how to mix my weight training with cardio. I mean I know I ate badly here and there...but I always do...and I don't usually exercise...so I should have lost! The only thing I can hope for is that it's fat turning into muscle. Nothing else really makes sense to me.

This week I managed to do the following:

Thursday - Treadmill for a total of 32 minutes (5 min warm-up followed by 25 mins of 60 sec run and 90 sec walk ending with a 2 min cool-down)

Friday, Saturday, Sunday - Long weekend. Since the gym is located near my work (which is very far from my home) I do not have access to it on non-work days. Did some housework.

Monday - Elliptical Beginner Level 2 workout session for 30 mins, 2 min cool-down

Tuesday - Upper and abs followed by 15 mins on the treadmill

Wednesday - Lower and abs with trainer followed by 5 mins on the treadmill (before almost passing out)

Today the gym is closed for Canada day (/pouts) and tomorrow I am off so I won't see the gym until Monday again. Hopefully I can fit something in at home. It's one of my goals since I failed so miserably at doing so last weekend...

Goals for Week #3

- eat no more than ONE fast food take out dinner

- eat no more than ONE eat in restaurant dinner (NOT FAST FOOD)

- work out at least 4 days at the gym

- fit in at least one fitness program or 30 minute elliptical circuit at home over the weekend

- finish assignment #1 for Taxation course (not everything has to be about weight loss!)

- make at least one new meal from The Biggest Loser Simple Swaps: 100 Easy Changes to Start Living a Healthier Lifestyle (I'm eying trying out the spaghetti squash)

- cut down (or cut out) the coffee (no more than large on weekends and no more than medium on weekdays)

- drink more water or herbal tea (this should be easier with my newfound obsession with David's Tea

There...that should be a good start!  Here's to a new week!

Summer15 Week One

There we go, right out in the open to start with. That was my weight this morning before I got dressed to go to the  gym. That's a loss of 2.7 pounds from last week. Colour me impressed!

It's been a great week. My doctor recommended reading The G.I. Diet to help with controlling my nutrition and eating habits to match my diagnosis of PCOS. I am really enjoying it. It's really not that complicated. I have been pretty good with it (minus the McDonald's melt down last night). I have pre-packed my lunch every night, usually with chicken leftovers and carefully counted out servings of things like carrots and nuts that are good for snacks, but only in smaller amounts.

My boyfriend decided it would be great fun to wake us up early Saturday and Sunday to take the dogs for a nice walk around the block and a run in the park. I thought weekends were for sleeping in? I guess he missed the memo...

I also got extremely lucky when a local women's club (like four doors away from my office) came around and offered free, no strings attached, 3 month memberships to try their club. It was like a glowing sign from weight-loss Heaven and I off course jumped on that offer quick.

Friday was my fit test, and the results were...well...not too fit at all...lol...but that was expected.

Yesterday I spent some time doing cardio, 22 minutes on the elliptical followed by 10 minutes on the treadmill (doing 2 walk / 1 run - hoping for another crack at a 5K one day soon).

Today I met with a trainer for one of two sessions to set me up with a program. Today was upper. Can I just say I hurt now? Oh...and I could use a nap please...

The good thing is at least I now know WHAT to do when I go to the gym. That's the one thing I have always hated about gyms...sure you can ride the cardio machines until you are red in the face (literally) but that's not enough to lose all the weight. There has to be at least SOME weight training....and until now I had no clue where to begin.

Tomorrow I will do cardio again. I was supposed to go for lower training Friday, but thanks to the G20 circus we have been given the day off so we won't have to tackle protesters and tear gas. I hope to be able to keep up this momentum at home...and get back on the ball (or treadmill) Monday.

M.I.A.

First of all, I want to thank all of you wonderful readers who have emailed me over the past week or so wondering if everything is OK with me. It means a lot to me that people are reading enough to realize when you have been gone to long and are genuinely curious as to why.

Since my last post I have gained exactly 5 pounds back. The very same 5 pounds I was so proud to have lost as it put me at the 10 pounds lost marker.

But I'm OK with it.  Why?

1) I have been eating like crap! (When I felt like eating at all that is.)

2) I have not been exercising AT ALL!

Why you ask again?

Because I have been sick.

I have been VERY sick.

I have been going through medical tests and doctor's appointments like crazy to find out why I am sick (and am in constant agony).

I was so stressed out, not just with the pain, but also because I was having trouble working, walking up and down stairs, sleeping, and doing just about anything really. I was so freaked out trying to figure out what it could be.

Luckily we pretty much have the answer now, also luckily it seems like something that should be easy to take care of without extensive surgeries and medications.

I have a few more tests that need to be run before the doctor can refer me to the specialist, and then they will be the ones to decide how to proceed.

Here is what we do know so far: (WARNING - This is very personal and involves women's cycles, etc and might be too much information for some people. Continue reading at your own risk!)

PCOS has pretty much been confirmed via ultrasounds, but we are still waiting on the final blood work to come back on that.

Two uterine fibroids have been discovered. One is about 2 cm and the other is around 5cm. The larger one is in the lower back area and the reason for most of the pain and the inability to sleep.

I have an excess of ovarian follicles which is also a symptom of PCOS and may be rupturing which can also be causing the pain in the abdominal areas.

Until we can get more test results back and speak to a specialist I have been placed on prescription painkillers to manage the pain so I can at least return to a somewhat normal lifestyle. I have also been placed on birth control pills for three months (starting with my next cycle) to manage the hormone levels and make the menstrual cycles more bearable as that is what is aggravating the fibroids.

Fun stuff right! At least I got in lots of reading and video game time! I even made a Shelfari account! Feel free to add me.

At least it's not cancerous...that's what I keep repeating to myself over and over again...

Next week I hope to get back to healthier eating and some exercise (pending how the painkillers work of course).  I have already been told I had to drop out of my dancing with ROTC for the season as well as drop out of my first 5K race I had planned.  I'm pretty bummed but I am hoping once my health gets back on track I can return to those things I enjoyed!

Wednesday Weigh-in

I'm down! Not a lot, but I am down. So that's a step in the right direction at least.

I had a better week overall, but Friday night and Saturday did me in. Friday night my loving boyfriend of almost 4 years surprised me by taking me to our favourite restaurant, The Keg, for an early Valentine's Dinner. Diet or no diet, I'm not saying no to that one!

I ate way too much, but this doesn't happen often so I am not beating myself up over it. The menu was as follows:

1. Grilled flatbread topped with tomato sauce, sliced bocconcini cheese, fresh basil and a balsamic glaze. (We shared this.)

2. Escargot stuffed mushroom caps with garlic and herbs. (I ate four of the 6 and gave the other 2 to my escargot loving boyfriend.)

3. Roasted Red Pepper Sirloin - A grilled top sirloin with a roasted red pepper sauce and finished with goat cheese crumble. (I only ate half and saved the other half to take home and enjoy a second time.)

4. Billy Miner Pie - Mocha ice cream on a chocolate crust with hot fudge, caramel and almonds. (We split this between us.)

I also had 2 Keg sized glasses of Zinfandel.

I don't even want to know how many calories were involved there...

Saturday we had a late Christmas dinner with my brother, sister, mother, and company in St. Catharines. It was great to see everyone, and the food my brother and the couple he is staying with cooked for us was so good I just had to try everything! I have to remember to ask Missy for her turnip recipe.

Monday was a holiday, Family Day here in Canada, and I made the homemade turkey chili my family loves. I rarely have the time to make it as I leave it to simmer all day and it does not fit in our Crockpot, so my family gets super excited when I get a day off to make it. I hope to make a Weekend Warrior post about it once I find the time to upload the pictures from the camera.

On Monday I also restarted my EA 6 week challenge. I had missed a few workouts due to poor scheduling choices, and I wasn't finding it much of a challenge. This time I bumped it up to the medium intensity and picked better days for the workouts (I suck at working out on Fridays).

The first workout kicked my butt! I was breathing so hard I just kind of lied on the floor after the cool down. I even skipped my 5K elliptical run I usually do afterwards.

The second workout went much more smoothly as I expected the increase in intensity level. The reps required are much longer than on easy. I had to do two sets of push-ups! Man my arms chest and abs are killing me now! But I still managed to do a 20 minute weight loss #1 run on my elliptical (programs are built into the machine).

I am thinking about getting a treadmill, or maybe purchasing a new program more geared to strength training and increasing muscle, kind of like Chalean Extreme. Has anyone else tried this?

Overall I am still plugging along and trying to be upbeat. I have to keep reminding myself Rome wasn't built in a day, and I didn't get this overweight in one day either. It's going to take great inner strength and determination, but I know I can pull if off. I keep picturing myself in a nice bikini, something I really haven't worn since I was 16. This excites me and makes me push myself through those extra push-ups.


One day right?

What pushes you?

Blogging Breakdown

So...I haven't posted in a while...but it's not from a lack of trying!

I have installed the Window's Live Writer on each of my three most used computers (work desktop, home desktop, and netbook). I love Live Writer...usually...

For some reason, when I try to use it from work, it crashes out every time I try to publish the post or even publish a draft. I have now lost no less than three posts to this occurrence.

Unfortunately, when I am at home, I rarely have time to post from my desktop computer. The only time I really turn it on is to raid. Other than that I am usually cooking, cleaning, working out, doing homework, or something with my family. Oh yeah...and I get to sleep too...sometimes...

So I guess I will either have to give up on Live Writer, or start dragging my netbook with me wherever I go (which is what I am supposed to do with it anyhow).

Anyhow, a brief listing of things I was TRYING to post about:

* Last week's weigh-in put me at 161.5 lbs, earning me a "lost 5 pounds" badge


* I completed week 3 of the EA Active More Workouts challenge - half way there!

* I had a crazy busy weekend with family stuff and was unable to complete a "weekend warrior" project to share


* Tonight is my weigh-in and I'm nervous because I had a really bad eating and exercise week.


* I have a new trainer and program to help me get ready for the 5K!


Hopefully I will have more to post real soon!

Thanks for your continued reading and support!

Goals and the 5K

I realized I still needed something more to push me to get back into shape.  I couldn’t figure out what it was until a read a fellow Blogger’s post.

Rosa, over at Stuffing My Feelings wrote a wonderful post about her goal to run one 5K race per month in 2010 here.

I thought to myself, wow, she’s crazy, that’s an amazing goal.  Then I shook my head and thought to myself, I’ve never even done one, and think it would kill me to do one.

Then it hit me.  That’s what I wanted.  I wanted to run a 5K, finish it, and not die doing it.  This was a new goal to add to my 2010 Goal List.

I immediately Googled 5K runs in my area and found a women’s only race at the end of May.  Perfect!  This should be enough time to get myself ready!  I whipped out my wallet and registered before I could talk myself out of it (or let anyone else talk me out of it).  So if all goes well, I will be running the Toronto Women’s Half Marathon and 5k – Sunday May 30, 2010.

I spent some time looking into what I needed to know for running the 5K and the first things I learned was that a very good pair of shoes, fitted by a professional when possible, was pretty much a necessity.

I convinced begged the boyfriend to take me to The Running Room this morning so I could talk to someone about shoes.  A very lovely woman spent quite a bit of time with me, analyzing my feet, how I walk, how I run, etc.  We discover I needed some light stability for my arch and she showed me the shoes I could choose from.  She urged me to try on multiple pairs to ensure I found one with a good fit.  After four pairs I found my babies.

I also invested in two pair of double layer running socks for moisture and blister control (because I am uber prone to blisters).

I also learned about some good clinics they offer I might be interested in taking, as well as free practice running twice a week.  She even threw in some free running magazines.

My last stop in the 5K start-up journey was a trip to Chapters to get some books on running in general and training for the 5K.  Can you tell I’m excited?

When I got home I was so eager to get moving that I ran right to my workout room to complete my normal workout (workout #6 of the EA Active More Workouts 6 week challenge).  I followed that up with a custom workout created for the original EA Active on their 5K Challenge site.  Holy squats and lunges Batman!  My legs were on fire!

All this and I still managed to make this week’s batch of homemade honey peanut granola.  But you’ll have to wait for this week’s Weekend Warrior post for more on that!