Keeping Emotional Eating in Check This Week

Thursday, May 20, 2010

It's definitely been a crazy week. They're definitely calling my father-in-law's tumor pancreatic cancer -- and it's the size of a cantaloupe. The original thought was that he'd have surgery to remove it. Long story short, they didn't (but they did do a gastric bypass today) and they've officially given him 6 months. We've been down that road before and don't want to get hung up in that part. He's had a great life and at this point we just want him to be able to enjoy whatever time he has left.

I'm working hard to control the emotional eating right now. I did well most of today, but confess that I fell short when I got home. Hubby had ordered pizza (trying to make things easier for me) before he headed back over to the hospital. I definitely did the mindless eating thing there. Not happy about it, but not going to beat myself up for it (which would just add to it). I've been going back into all the various SP articles and reading them, which has helped quite a bit.

I made sure I got in some extra exercise today, mainly to appease my guilt. Tonight's training walk was perfect in that I felt like my mind went blank. Usually i'm thinking about this, that or the other. Today, my mind was quiet. LOVED it!

Thanks to those who commented on my blog or reached out in support regarding his cancer. Your words are encouraging and very much appreciated.

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

LLTS01 5/22/2010 1:16AM

My thoughts are with you. Focus on your mental well being. Report Inappropriate Comment

TBRANCH2 5/20/2010 9:44PM

That's what spark friends are for!! Report Inappropriate Comment

waiting to hear if FIL has pancreatic cancer :-(

Sunday, May 16, 2010

I don't have a lot to say today other than I'm sick of learning a loved one has this kind of cancer or that kind of cancer. Seriously, enough is enough. At this point, I think I have a better chance of counting those that haven't been touched by it than those that have -- or at least the list might be shorter.

Latest is the suspicion that my Father-in-law might have pancreatic cancer. At this point, no one has officially said it, but 2 of this other doctors have both said all indications point to it.

He had back surgery a little over a week ago. He had some complications and seemed to be doing fine when he went home Tues. He ended up in the ER today -- which originally all thoughts were on an abscess for his wound. They ended up doing a CAT scan, but turns out they got a larger picture area. Apparently he has a mass on his pancreas. At this point, all we know is it's solid and it's obstructing his breathing and causing some other issues. I'll spare the gory details.

Long story short, there's talk of possibly removing the mass in a day or two (depends on some other factors), but were also told that because of the location they may not be able to.

Hasn't been 2 years yet since we lost my Mother-in-law to Leukemia. She was diagnosed and gone in less than 6 wks. Because of his age, there's already been some expressions of concern by the various doctors. It's hard on my hubby.

Anyway, it's nerve wracking. I'll own up to emotional eating today -- more like emotional grazing. For what it's worth, I did choose to throw out the brownies I made today -- kids each had one, but I preferred the remnants of the batter in the bowl, decided to remove the temptation just to be safe. I definitely need to make sure I stay connected with the whole community aspect for support -- in more than one area.

Appreciate any thoughts and prayers...thanks for letting me semi vent

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

SUGARBABY60 5/17/2010 3:00AM

Stay positive, don;t think the worse because if it isn't as bad as it seems at first then you will have worried for nothing.....and if it is bad news you have worried longer than you needed to . some things are just out of our hands, we can not make them better and we can not make them worse. Focus on healthy living (eatng) for yourself. Good nutrition will lower your stress and make you more able to handle bad news should you get that. I will say some prayers for you , DH and the entire family as I know what is it to be in the grips of stress (My D H got colon cancer 2 yrs ago but thankfully today he is cancer free but I did gain 45 pounds during that stressful time while he lost 100 lbs, yes I KNOW stress and it is no fun!!!) stay connected to your Spark Friends it is helpful , wish I had known about Spark 2 yrs ago. big hug to you , Report Inappropriate Comment

SUNNY2010 5/16/2010 10:46PM

I am so sorry to hear about your father-in-law!!! Stay strong! Your family is in my prayers! Report Inappropriate Comment

PURPLECHAR 5/16/2010 10:25PM

I'm sorry to hear about the health challenges facing your father in law. I'll keep him and your family in my thoughts and prayers. Report Inappropriate Comment

Observations for where I need to improve the routine

Monday, May 03, 2010

I'm still balancing out the new routine, but I'm getting there. I've been getting up at the crack of dawn and getting in some fitness. I've been packing my lunch, planning meals ahead, etc. I'm making some observations along the way. Let's call them areas for improvement:

Observation #1: it's a fine line between leaving super early, beating the traffic and exercising at the gym and getting up early, exercising in the burbs and then the miserable commute in. Weird thing is I actually feel like my workouts are shorter with the early morning drive then workout. I'm not liking this, and trying not to beat myself up over it -- at least I'm getting it in! I can't get up and out any earlier -- not sure that would be safe either. Tomorrow I'm going to work out at home and see how that goes. Sounds weird, but it's something to do with having to sit in the car for 40 min that keeps me exhausted.

Observation #2: I'm doing a way better job of planning my meals ahead for the week. I know the meals I'm making are all healthy and keep me within my range. However, I"m struggling more with actively entering my info into the food tracker -- i think mainly because I haven't entered every detail as a custom food. I should plan ahead for that too, but am just feeling like my weekend gets too compressed.

Observation #3: I need more water -- I think I'm drinking less than before.

Observation #4: need more sleep! (like I should be doing now!!!)

We'll see how I continue to progress. These are all things I want to keep watching to try to stay on track. I kinda feel like maybe going back to an earlier stag may help me, not sure.

Anyway...brain is not fully functioning and needs sleep, so I'll noodle on that more tomorrow.

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

LLTS01 5/3/2010 10:20PM

I'm struggling with the exercise in the morning too. I can;t get up any earlier and avoid traffic. Let me know if you find a solution. On the logging front- once you get some of your custom foods entered it's smooth sailing. So bite the bullet and just do it. Report Inappropriate Comment

April Measurements

Sunday, April 18, 2010

It's measurement time again...last measurements were 3/10. To be consistent, I'll show change from last month and change since beginning of the year (well 1/4, but close enough. With that...here we go (helps keep me accountable)

Waist: same as 3/10, down 1.5" since 1/4

Abdomen: down .25" since 3/10, down 1.5" since 1/4

Hips: down .75" since 3/10, down 2.75" since 1/4 (woohoo! go me! I measured this 3 times -- even at different points today to be sure)

Upper Arm: no change since 3/10, no change since 1/4

Upper Thigh: this was up .25" since 3/10, down .5 inch total since 1/4 (must admit, that one surprised me. To be honest, I wonder if my measurement was correct last month. Oh well, just have to watch it to see.

Calf: no change since 3/10, down 1" since 1/4

Neck: no change since 3/10, down .5" since 1/24 (first time I measured)

Bust: no change since 3/10, down .5" since 1/4

My weight is up 1 lb since then, but still down 3 lbs since beginning of year. Weight wise, I've plateaued for a while, but have been tracking my other things. I've got to get my routine down with the new job too.


Wasn't sure initially how I'd feel about sharing my progress with people, but I feel somewhat safe because it's just showing my progress and not the actual number. I like the feeling of accountability of updating my progress chart and including info in my blog. Keeps me honest. :-)

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

LLTS01 4/18/2010 10:13PM

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Keeping Focused Through the Changes

Saturday, April 17, 2010

What a whirlwind week. I started my new job this week. I really like it so far. It looks like i'm going to be jumping right in. I'll have ownership, learn new things and things seem to move quickly. All just the way I like it.

The one thing I don't like is my commute. When it's good, it's about an hour. When it's bad, it's well over an hour and a half. Reality is I need to leave no later than 6:40am so I get there sometime between 7:30 and 8. I do that so I can leave by 5pm to get home by 6 so I can spend time with the kids. I'm not really complaining about the drive -- I'm using the time to listen to audiobooks and CNN Headline News, so it's good. i"m really still trying to figure out how to keep my balance. The times I'm using definitely are the best option because I leave while the kids are still asleep and am there for everything in the evening.

My 2 biggest challenges are my workout and my food. For my workout, I'm up by 5am so I can be done by 5:45 to make sure I leave on time. Biggest complaint there is I don't feel like I'm getting my full workout in. And to be honest, I'm not going to sacrifice the time with my kids in the evening to add more time there. I have done a couple of walks at lunch which are about a mile -- not super long, but beautiful weather and it makes me feel better. There's a gym just down the street from my office. I'm going to try getting up, making the commute (which should be even less time at that hour) then working out down there and getting ready there before I head to the office. Also, planning to add some after dinner walks in with the family so that will make it even better. We'll just have to see how that goes and do the best that I can with the time that I have.

This week was just rough with the my food. My biggest challenge there is that I'm grabbing my breakfast on my way out the door. Before I switched I was always very good with either my Kashi cereal or my eggs. I'll just have to keep working on that one. Also, this week, I had lunch out 3 times as a result of my being new. I made pretty good choices, but not quite the same as when I prepare my own food.

Speaking of food, one of the things that amazed me is how much junk I've seen my new coworkers eat. One of the girls I work with is super thin, but eats nothing but junk. I've seen ice cream, those massive Otis Spunkmeyer double chocolate muffins, candy bars, etc . Not judging her, but not fair. :-) At the same time, I was very pleased to say that I made sure I had healthy snacks. Got all my fruit/veggie servings in because I brought a cooler with those. Ha! Funny thing is I had one girl day me I was a good example with my carrots or grapes or apples that she'd seen me eat.

Anyway, getting acclimated and doing the best that I can to stay focused. All I can say is thank God for the SparkPeople iPhone app!

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

SUNNY2010 4/18/2010 2:12PM

Congrats on your new job and I hope for you that the new daily routine will not be a challenge soon when you ger acclimated. If you like your job as you do it all will all work out. It seems you have a good plan with your morning exercises, walks during lunch and after dinner. You sound like a great mom too! Good luck! Report Inappropriate Comment

WILDRICE99 4/18/2010 12:01AM

Hang in there. Hopefully, this routine will work for you. Great job on bringing your healthy snacks. I too worked with a skinny gal, she weighed 90 pounds soaking wet. All she ate was chips and drank Mello Yellow. It really wasn't fair; however, she didn't eat a whole lot. Have a great day! Report Inappropriate Comment

BUCKINGS5 4/17/2010 11:50PM

Yep those long days can be a challenge. my commute is any where from an hour and a half to as much as 3 hours each way depending on the traffic too. It sounds like you're off to a great start though, fitting in a walk at lunch is a good way to help offset what you might be missing in your regular workout not to mention the nice stress break it offers. Keep being a great example with your healthy snacks! Good job and Grats on the new job too!! Report Inappropriate Comment

KAREN633 4/17/2010 10:06PM

I have a hard time fitting in exercise too. I try very hard to get up and do it first thing in the morning. Not always easy to do but it feels great to have it done. Congrats on the new job. Report Inappropriate Comment

LOSETONEED 4/17/2010 9:41PM

Congratulations on your new job. Hope it won't take you too long to get in routine. Report Inappropriate Comment