Insert generic blog entry title here. :)

Friday, March 13, 2009

Current mood: relaxed, self confident
Time: 2:30 AM
Location: Worky-work, naturally. What else would I be doing at 2:30 AM?

I had a good day yesterday, in it's own funny little way. I finished a paper that I had due for school in the AM, and then had a meeting with my field work supervisor as well. We reviewed my goals for the semester, and I have been keeping up - thankfully! I don't know where I would find the time if I had to fit something else in.

Then I went home, and had a great lunch. A mini pizza and a salad with walnuts and nonfat raspberry vinaigrette. I actually enjoyed the salad more than the pizza! And look at me, incorporating walnuts into my diet - following doctor's orders!

Then I went to sleep (read: passed out) from Noon until 8PM. I woke up briefly at 6PM when a neighbor was on the phone outside having a really loud and nasty break up conversation. It actually spilled over into my dreams before I had woken up.

Usually my sleep is more restful, but it did the job. I got up at 8:30, watched NBC (Kath & Kim, The Office, and 30 Rock - thank you television) and then I did my workout at 10PM. I was proud of myself for doing it, because I have rarely been able to commit to exercising at night before heading in to work.

So what is a girl to do today? I have two interviews for my second year field placement, one which I will head to right after I leave work at 8:30AM and one at 2:30PM. I might sleep in between, I might not - depending on how I feel. I hope to get in an hour of exercise tomorrow - my 30 Day Shred, plus that Indian dance workout DVD because it is so fun! So I might stay up and exercise and run the few other pressing errands that I have. I also need to pay the bills. Yikes, I really put it off this month.

Keep up the good work self!

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

GAILYMVT 3/15/2009 10:30AM

Good luck on all your goals for the coming days and especially the interviews. Happy thoughts. Look forward to seeing you out there exercising. Report Inappropriate Comment

FAT2FIT2011 3/13/2009 5:40AM

YOU ARE REALLY GETTING DOWN TO THE HARD SLOG. you rock girlie x Report Inappropriate Comment

Thankful for a great workout yesterday, SP, and my SP teams :)

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Current mood: procrastinating, silly, cuddly, happy.

So it is 3AM, and I am at work until 8:30AM. I am hanging in there, my body is pretty used to this, though I look forward to sleeping tomorrow! I do have confirmation that I will be off night shifts by the beginning of April - yes!!! We interviewed a bunch of great people today, and I am super confident in the choices that we made. We have a really strong team here, and I think our new additions will fit right in and also add some new strengths to our team. Yaayyy!!

To continue on the topic of teams, today I am also feeling really excited about several of the groups that I have joined here at SP.

I just joined the Quick Fire Challenge team, and I think that is going to be fun - having a little something extra to try to accomplish each day is a challenge that I am ready for now that I have almost 3 weeks on SP (or 2+ months working on my health in general) under my belt. I have already finished the challenge for today!

I am also loving the 30 Day Shred group, because it reminds me every day when I log on that I have this great tool at my disposal, and that I can do it! I love having this arbitrary "30 day" timeline for some reason, even though I am not doing it in 30 days. It is a great medium-term goal for me. I am almost exactly half way through!

I am also really enjoying No Topic Off Limits (NTOL) and the Positive Mental Attitude (PMA) groups. These groups just feel so welcoming, I love stopping by the general team discussion message boards just to see what is going on.

It is great to feel connected to people who are going through the same process, trying to lose weight. In my real life I feel like I am surrounded by people who don't struggle with weight (um, hello, I think Burlington was just rated the healthiest/fittest city in the country! I chose the wrong place to live if I wanted to fit in physically!), so for the longest time I had been keeping my efforts and my struggles to myself (other than sharing with my twin sister, who is a wonderful support and will hopefully become active on SP soon!). I appreciate all the support, and I also really enjoy being able to offer support to others. That is the social worker in me I guess!

Lastly, I had a great day yesterday. I rested, spent time with BTC*, and did 1.5 hours worth of fun exercise (walking and then a bollywood Indian dance workout that kicked my butt). I hope to make today feel just as good - I will exercise either before I hit the hay for the day or when I get up in the PM before I go back to work (doing my 30 Day Shred, naturally! and maybe the Indian dance DVD again).

*boyfriend-type-character

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

FAT2FIT2011 3/12/2009 4:28AM

you have such a great attitude to life honey. you will reach those goals before you know it because you deserve it. Report Inappropriate Comment

My liver is trying to communicate something to me...What's that, liver, is Timmy stuck in the well?

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

I heard back from the doctor today - that was fast! Some good news, some bad (or at the very least temporarily weird) news.

No signs of diabetes, and my cholesterol is just a tad bit higher than desirable - 204 - the doctor says that if I continue to exercise that should come down a bit naturally, with my hdl (good cholesterol) coming up with some diet changes (I am going to start eating more fish and walnuts! I need to remember that when I go grocery shopping this week).

But my liver screen came back all sorts of strange. Both of the liver enzymes that they look at - AST and the other one - were really high. Like more than 200 when they should be less than 50. So I freaked out a little bit, because the liver is a vital organ, you know? The doctor was reassuring though, she said it might be because of the Dayquil I took last week to work on my cold. So I am getting more bloodwork done in a month to see if my levels return to normal. I am hopeful that they do come down, because my tiny, tiny veins like to hide when they see someone coming at me with a needle, plus I am not necessarily ready to jump in line for an ultrasound of my liver if it is avoidable.

Well, I tell myself that knowledge is power. If something is wrong, at least I will know. And if nothing is wrong (I am very hopeful that this is the case!), I am no worse off than when I started!

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

JUSTMYSELF2009 3/11/2009 10:07PM

You make a very good point. Good luck with your liver test. Your title post is pretty funny! Report Inappropriate Comment

JULIEN* 3/10/2009 11:09PM

I HAD to read your blog because the title was so funny! I really hope everything comes back ok. I'll keep my fingers (and kidneys) crossed for you! : ) Report Inappropriate Comment

"I strive to understand, not to be understood." - (or something like that!) - Mike Doughty

Monday, March 09, 2009

The title of this entry has nothing to do with anything, just a self-indulgent philosophical musing!

Anyway, yesterday and today have been good days. I did my workouts, and I am eating reasonably well. I had to fast this AM for a doctor's visit at 1pm - the doctor gave me a lot of good info about what foods to incorporate/remove from your diet to lower cholesterol, and on top of that she was really kind. The reason that I fasted (and that I set up the appointment to begin with) was to get some blood work done to check my cholesterol and to get a diabetes screening. I had a cholesterol check two years ago, and as I recall it was pretty high. So I want to know, I need to know if that is still the case - I want to take consistent steps to get it in control if it is high!

I am hoping beyond hope that I don't have any signs of diabetes. Its runs in my family, and I saw my grandmother (rest in peace, love you), and now my 60 year old mother, dealing with the consequences of not monitoring their blood sugar levels really well. Thankfully my mom is now getting on track. I just want to never be there. I don't want my twin sister to ever be there either. But anyway, I will report back when I know. The doctor was great, she said she would email me as soon as the results came back.

So, as far as my weigh in yesterday went, I was up about a pound and a half. I am taking it in stride, because I know I have been working hard, and that with consistency I will meet my goals.



I am also doing great on all of the little goals that I have set for myself! The only thing that I haven't fit in yet is meditation (10 minutes 2x per week to start!). I looked up a guided meditation practice in a book that I have, and I have the time... I just keep putting it off. I think today will be the day to jump in.

In other news, I think I have reconciled, at least for the time being, with my boyfriend-type-character. My goodness, relationships are so complicated. I feel a bit too hopeful for my own good! But I am an optimist at heart, what can I say...

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

JUSTMYSELF2009 3/10/2009 6:52PM

Good luck with all your test. I have diabetes can be a nightmare if not treated properly so it's a good thing your getting test done now to see if you have it. I worry about my sister too, and I can't even imagine what it would be like to worry about a twin. However, feel blessed you guys are still together. Some of us don't have the privilege. If your really concerned, talk to her about it. Please don't have the mind frame that nothing will happen to your sister because of her age. Sorry to be such a prude, or whatever, I just wish I could go back in time sometimes. But this is about you and your sis. Good luck with everything. Report Inappropriate Comment

2 months and 20+ pounds down, time to recommit myself after a slow week

Saturday, March 07, 2009

Well, I didn't do my 30 Day Shred as I planned yesterday. I started...but then I got a phone call just as I was starting the first circuit and it derailed me completely. I felt like a failure, I asked my boyfriend-type-character to cuddle with me, and then I fell asleep.

But the thing is, I am not a failure. I have lost more than 20 pounds, and even though I haven't exercised as much as I wanted to this week, I still did exercise and I ate relatively well (especially considering how my diet now would compare to my diet before I started working on my health in January).

In this spirit, I am taking a moment to recommit myself to this process. I am doing well, and I need to keep doing well if I want to live my life in the best way possible! So here's a short term goal to get me back on track:

I am on Spring Break this week, and I have recovered from my cold, so there are no excuses. I am going to CONTINUE to eat well (let's acknowledge my success there) with an emphasis on eating more veggies, and I am going to exercise 6 out of the next 7 days (doing my 30DS for five of those days). I want to be in the 230's!! I haven't been there for a while. That is a 2 pound loss, totally reasonable. I just need to put in the consistent work to get there.

I can do this.

P.S. - I will be off the night shift as early as the first week of April!! It will be crazy trying to fit everything in my schedule, but I think this change is going to be a really good one for my health.

  

  Member Comments About This Blog Post:

JUSTMYSELF2009 3/8/2009 8:47PM

Hey girl, I am you realize you are not a failure. You sure have come a long way! (-20 lbs.) I know you said you might have trouble fitting stuff into your sechedule after going to the day shift but keep it up! In the summer time I lost 26+ lbs. I gained it ALL + some back because I didn't keep it up. But you can do it! Love your kittens! And I can't stand green beans as well.....yuck! Report Inappropriate Comment

GAMBLINGQUEEN 3/7/2009 3:25AM

No you are not a failure, you are a success. It's funny how many of us kind of slack off or get a little complacent after losing XX amount of pounds. However, it sounds to me that you were doing great, got sick, and are a little slow to getting back to your routine. Hey it's happening to many of us including myself. Sometimes we get sick and it takes us a little time to recover. The best that we can do is go back to it once we're feeling 100% again. And my last 2 cents of information ----- I learned this a long time ago, if you have started working out and the phone rings LET IT RING. Even if someone died, they will still be dead when you are done working out. That my sound a little harsh but it is true. Report Inappropriate Comment