Still working my plan....

Only 2 weeks left until I am done my midnights for the summer.  I will work an additional 2 weeks of day shifts, on my feet for the entire day going room to room doing move out inspections after the students have left.  Between the heat, the 8 hours of walking and being back to daytime hours, I lose weight each year.  So *fingers crossed* this year will be the same.

I am hoping that once I get off the midnights, my body will normalize and stop being so stubborn and let go of some of this weight and regain some of its energy.

I am continuing to listen to the tracks and getting to the gym 2x a week and doing other exercise at home on the off days.  My water intake is still high and my portions and food choices are still good.

I see lots of new members on the support page and see that so many are actively using the tracks and finding some success.  Congratulations to all that have begun this journey!

Looking forward to the webinar on the 24th!  

Not fast enough - but it will have to do

I withstood the pressures of the Easter long weekend pretty well.  We had the usual family get together with lots of food, treats and desserts.  But, I was sensible and kept my portions small but varied - getting lots of tastes and flavours without over indulging.  I even did pretty good with the chocolate - I had an occasional mini chocolate pilfered from one of the kids baskets, but not the choco-fest I would have had in the past.

Kids are sick AGAIN!  So again, my trips to the gym are limited, but I have been increasing my walk during my lunch hour to compensate.

My Doctor's advice all these years was just to watch my portion size - if I did that the weight would just melt away.  Other's told me to simply add more water to my diet and I would notice "immediate results".  And of course everyone has said to just get moving - not necessarily exercise but just get moving more - walk more.

So I have done all those things PLUS listening to the tracks and while the weight is coming off VERY slowly, I had hoped for something a little more dramatic.

I guess I had expected that by doing everything "right", I would see immediate results - just like everyone said I would.  Now I don't know if another person would see dramatic results and it is just my body being stubborn or what, but I would certainly enjoy seeing the numbers on the scale going down at a much quicker rate.

299 and loving it!

So I caved!  Last night I grabbed some creamy chocolate marshmallow with crunchy things inside of it ice cream.  Then because I was SO good, I had more, and more.  Thankfully I was a rather smallish container of ice cream because I don't think I would have stopped myself.  Either way, I ate the whole container and immediately felt ill.  I felt wretched the entire night and even this morning can feel the effects.  My sleep was horrible and full of strange dreams and even now the idea of any sort of food or drink is repugnant.

On the bright side, and yes, there is a bright side, I weighed myself this morning and I have officially dropped out of the 300s!  I am 299!  I would be doing a little happy dance right now if I didn't think my stomach would revolt!

Not sure what cause the scale to move, maybe it was just the water weight due to my period.  Either way, I am happy it is gone and very, very happy to learn from my binge.  It is JUST NOT WORTH IT!

Giving Up

This is usually the point at which I give up.

This morning I weighed myself and the damn scale didn't move!  Honestly I don't know how that could happen.  I have been drinking my water, exercising - which I never used to do, and eating really really well.  I have been mindful of my portion size, not indulging in mindless snacking like I would before.  Increased my veggies and decreased my carbs.  I have been listening to the tracks at least 4x a week.  I really feel like I have been doing everything right!

My jeans feel tight in the thighs and even the calves which I don't understand either!  I know I have been doing mostly the treadmill and adding in upper body weights, but I didn't think that my legs would increase in size - dear Lord!  They really don't need to be any bigger!

And to make matters worse, even though my treadmill work outs are going really well and I am able to go longer and have added lots of hills, I had a difficult time making it up three flights of stairs yesterday!  Stairs have never been my friend, but yesterday I sounded like a winded horse after I made it to the top!  I felt worse than I did before I started working out.  AND on a daily basis instead of feeling more energized by this new cleaner eating plan, exercise and water drinking, I am feeling MORE worn out, tired and exhausted!

So my temptation is to fling up my arms in defeat and find a container of the creamiest, chocolate-iest ice cream and just have at it.

I feel so defeated!  All this hard work - and it has been hard work!  Fitting in 3-4 trips to the gym a week, planning out my meals, keeping a food diary, finding alternatives to my food vices, forcing myself to down copious quantities of water.  It is impossible to imagine that with all the weight I have to lose that I would have hit a plateau already.

The real sucky part of it is, no one has noticed any difference yet.  I know that the actual amount of weight I have lost is just a drop in the bucket, but it would be far easier to stay motivated if my progress was noticeable.

OK so my whining is over for now.  Now I have to give myself a swift kick in the butt and get on with it.  What are the possible reasons for stalling?

• time of the month (TMI sorry :) )
• stress
• straight midnights make it harder on the body to lose weight
• did I cut my calories too much?
• I know my sleep patterns are not optimal for weight loss

 

If I can continue on with my plans for another month and a half regardless of results, than I will be off work for the summer and my body will get back into a natural rhythm.  Hopefully then, all this hard work will begin to show results!

Need a Boost

This week has really been a killer for me.  With everyone still sick, my days at home are extra long, my stress level is high, there is a lot going on that affects me emotionally, I am not getting the sleep I need to function fully at my midnight job and I find I am reaching for food as an instant pick me up.  And of course it is the quick, easy, high calorie, high sugar content things that I want to reach for to give me that instant boost.

As part of my overall plan to get healthy, I have begun to limit myself to one coffee a day.  Relying on coffee or in my case mocha (coffee and hot chocolate mix) to get me through the day/night was very detrimental.  It is high calories, eases my thirst which keeps me from drinking nutritive/beneficial alternatives and just leaves me needing another one in an hour or so.  The roller coaster of the sugar and caffeine highs leaves my body constantly craving more.

Yesterday morning, after leaving work, I went home with the best of intentions, I was going to have just a little snack before sleeping to keep my blood sugar even, but once I started it was like I couldn't stop.  My mind, my body, my entire being was crying out for sleep but I just NEEDED to have more.  Since this was technically my "supper" for the day, I had a limited number of calories I could use - about 1000 - which I blew through pretty quickly with some Eggo Cinnamon Waffles.  If I had just eaten a regular portion and then some protein I would have been fine.  If I had just chosen something completely different - something healthier I would at least have had the satisfaction that is was good for me.  If I had just walked away and gone to bed after the first portion I would have been fine. But I didn't, I went back for more, and then more.

Later, when the guilt wouldn't let me sleep(starting the cycle all over again), I tried working through the Ws in my head.

• Why did I do it?
• What did I think it was going to accomplish?
• Which need was I really fulfilling?
• When did I stop eating to assuage my hunger/energy and begin to eat for comfort?
• Why didn't I stop myself?
• When was I going to get control over this?

I never did get answers to all of the questions, but I haven't stopped trying.  In order to bust out of this pattern, I need to come to grips with why I do it.  This morning after work, my plan is a small bowl of cereal, some yoghurt and fruit.  The I am going to settle in and start listening to the food and inner change tracks.  I haven't gotten to them yet - avoidance is another issue I deal with! 

 I am hesitant to deal with the bigger issues that hide behind the weight, to take it all out of hiding, brush it off and take a good hard look at it all.  When I am honest with myself, that is why the use of the hypnosis tracks has stalled.  

Pre-Diabetes and the RDI

While I do not yet have "frank" diabetes, I am what is classified as Pre-Diabetic.


Pre-Diabetes from diabeteswellbeing.com- "The condition occurs when a person's blood glucose readings are elevated above normal, but lower than is considered a diagnosis of diabetes. This condition almost always exists in people prior to developing type 2 diabetes."

This quote from the endocrinologist.com quite matter of factly explains what my RDI portions should be.  I was having trouble figuring it out. 
"Overall, a nutrition plan for a person with diabetes includes 10 to 20 percent of calories from protein, no more than 30 percent of calories from fats (with no more than 10 percent from saturated fats), and the remaining 50 to 60 percent from carbohydrates. Carbohydrate foods that contain dietary fiber are encouraged, . Sodium intake of no more than 3000 mg per day is suggested."

What is the proper diet for Pre-Diabetes? from diabeteswellbeing.com
"The proper diet for pre diabetes really isn't that much different than if you have diabetes. Certainly, the stakes may be a bit higher with diabetes, and glucose control may be a bit more important. Nonetheless, you need to work on the following (to begin with):

• Portion Control - Stop eating so much!
• Avoid refined or processed carbohydrates (e.g., white sugar, white flower, high fructose corn syrup, etc.).
• Eat well balanced meals (less carbohydrates, more vegetables, fruit and lean protein)."

My RDI pie chart

  protein - 9%

fats - 20%

 carbs - 71%

Keeping all this in mind, I have been monitoring and tracking my food for the last couple of days, with regard to my RDI - my pie chart is a little heavy on the carbs and pretty light on the protein, therefore I will have to really work on that.  Of course, my comfort foods, my craving foods are all carb based.  REALLY gotta work on those cravings!

Magic Pill?

I am very proud of my fellow Canadian Dr. Mike Evans from University of Toronto and St. Michael's Hospital for the amazing  work he did on this video.  It is simply fantastic!

Everyone would like to find that Magic Pill or Magic Bullet that will make everything better with little or no effort.  Of course that would be AWESOME!  But it is totally unrealistic.

A couple of comments I have run across regarding the Christopher Adams Gastric Band Hypnosis Kit - lead me to believe that it was purchased with the idea that it was a Magic Pill.  I don't view it like that.  I read the promotional info, I read the same hype that everyone else did.  But I think that being a rational and logical person, I realized that simply listening to some MP3s was not going to make the fat melt off my body.  It was not going to suddenly turn me into a tight toned little hottie.  My metabolism was not going to suddenly accelerate and  burn off everything I eat regardless of what I ingested.

As I have said before, the home hypnosis set is just one tool in my toolkit.  My kit consists of

• healthy eating plan
• moderate exercise - increasing as I feel better and more able
• Gastric Bypass hypnosis system
• support system
• getting better sleep
• journal
• blogging
• making myself a priority

All of those things will work together to assist me to reach my goals.  And on the days when it all seems to be to much, I will remember.....

BMI and Goal Setting

Your BMI is 55.1 - severely obese

Your weight is substantially above the healthy range for your height, which means you have a higher than average risk of developing diseases associated with obesity.

Losing enough weight to bring your BMI to below 25 will benefit your health, and the way you look and feel.

You can lose weight by making sure the number of calories you eat each day is less than the number of calories you need to maintain your weight at its current level. This is best achieved by making changes to your eating habits so your diet is healthier, and starting to get some exercise which you can build up and maintain regularly.

It may sound crazy, but that was insanely hard to read.  I mean, it isn't a surprise to anyone that I am overweight.  Overweight and obese in my case are one and the same.  I can wear all the baggy clothes that I want to and it is never going to hide the fact that I am fat.  Uggggh, the dreaded F word.  I hate to say it, hear it or type it.  So reminiscent of my childhood "Fatty Fatty 2x4". "Tub of Lard", "Porker", "Pig", "Miss Piggy".  Is it any wonder I shudder when I hear the word?

I have never had a problem admitting to myself that my weight was an issue, but it certainly is hard to hear it from someone else, whether it be my husband (who is VERY careful to never say it), family, medical staff, clothing store clerks or even my 3 year old who yesterday told me I have a very, Very, VERY large bum!

With an eye toward staying in reality, I don't expect to ever get down to the ideal weight for my height which is 104-127lbs.  I mean, that is just a ridiculous number!  First of all it would require me to lose 200lbs, secondly, that is not a realistic weight for me.  I think that would be setting myself up for failure.  No one in my family is that thin, for a couple of generations back even.  We are bigger boned and at nearly 40, I don't even think I would look good at that weight.


My goal at this point is 175lbs which at a BMI of 31 is still considered obese, I would be much healthier, have much more energy and feel a whole lot better about myself.  It would mean a total weight loss goal of 136lbs (a whole person!).  Still, that feel like an insurmountable number.  Lets say I lost 3lbs week, which I don't think I would be able to do it would take me over 45 weeks!  A more reasonable number of 2lbs a week would take me 68 weeks which is well over a year!


I can hear Christopher Adams in my head already, it isn't a race, its a journey, its a process, don't put such pressure on yourself, it happened over time, it will take time to get it off, etc etc etc.  :)


I am more a reward based kind of girl, so I am going to break it up into more realistic chunks with non-edible rewards!  Things that will make me feel good about myself and be a treat.  The kind of thing a really busy mom of 5 just never manages to find the time for!

• manicure
• new hair style
• highlights
• massage
• pedicure

The chunks will be 25lbs.  Everytime I hit a milestone of 25lbs lost I will pick a treat and go do it.  I will probably purchase gift certificates on a mass purchase site like Groupon or Wagjag etc, to keep the prices down.  When I hit my big goal, I doing a whole spa day baby!  Gimme the works!  :)

Stress

Like many of the essential things in life: we need a certain amount of stress to survive, yet too much can kill us. Clifford Kuhn, M.D. The Laugh Doctor


We may need stress in our lives to alert our body and mind to certain aspects - hunger, thirst, flight or fight modes; but nobody needs the amount of stress 5 sick children and a sick husband can give a person!


Some sort of plague has settled in at our house.  I feel like there should be a gigantic X across our front door warning any and all visitors to stay away.

My oldest has been sick for over a month, he just can't shake it.  He was at the hospital this evening getting chest and sinus xrays and 3 yes 3! new prescriptions!  The youngest has been sick on and off for about 3 weeks, he is on antibiotics and the nebulizer to kick the rattle in his little chest.  The girls have just this past weekend fallen prey to these nasty, nasty germs.  There have been fevers, coughing, whining, crying, puking, sniffling, sneezing, more crying, lots more whining.  Add to that, someone needing  medication every couple of hours throughout the night and I am sure you get the picture.

We have been routinely disinfecting railings, doors, doorknobs, high frequency touch points, toilets, faucets etc with the hopes we would finally beat this thing but to no avail.  Whatever this bug is, it is a tough one.  When I called into the school today to advise them of the absences, I was told there were over 100 students out sick!  The Doctor's offices are full to overflowing, the emergency rooms have waits of over 10 hours!  The "Urgent Care" that my son went to tonight which usually boasts of getting patients through in under an hour - took 4 hours.


Somehow I have remained relatively unscathed.  A few sniffles, an occasional sore throat and a short temper have been the worst for me.  I shudder to think what will happen if I finally succumb to this thing.


So now that you have a mental image of what my days have been like, is it any wonder I went a little crazy on the Easter candy I bought?  I have been doing so well!  Snacking on oranges instead of treats, drinking water when I have a craving instead of caving.  Stopping and thinking through why I want to eat, instead of just grabbing the nearest sugary treat.  But today, after another dose of steroids in the nebulizer for the toddler which results in him bouncing off the walls, being defiant and mouthy - I raided the secret Easter stash and gobbled up some caramel eggs - OK not some, 5 caramel eggs.  Enough to make me feel sick, ashamed and embarrassed!  But that is not all, I then went on to have a much larger than normal supper, a couple large glasses of juice (which I had been replacing with water), sat in front of the computer and then went to bed.

It is as if, in one day, I have completely undone all my hard work of the last month!  I am racked with guilt and feel so stupid.  


Normally, at this point I would say chuck it all and completely go off my diet, weight loss plan, exercise plan, whatever you want to call it.  I would be so hard on myself, full of negative thoughts, criticisms, etc.

But this time is going to be different.  Did I screw up?  Yes of course!  Did the world end?  Of course not.  I stumbled, I will stumble again I am sure.  But I can't allow the stumble to be more important that the successes I have accomplished this month.  I can't allow one mistake to overshadow all the good I have done!


So as of right now, I am back on the proverbial wagon.  Already had my oranges as a snack, about to get my trusty water container filled up, and will be heading out for a walk on my work break!

Criticism

My husband says I look for criticism where none is intended.  That I search for a hidden negative in the things that are said to me.  This would be some of the "stuff" that Christopher Adams says I would need to work on.  In his response to me via our Facebook Support Group he says

"...... it all highlights areas of internal challenges for you (if you didnt have them then whatever anyone around you said or did wouldnt bother you in the slightest). In fact it can often be a great barometer of your internal progress is how you react internally to them. It important to distinguish between what's your 'stuff' and what's their 'stuff'...."

He wrote that in response to my post about not telling friends and family about this program.  And he is absolutely correct; this particular pile of "stuff" IS something I need to work on.  I need to stop looking to others to validate me, my ideas and myself worth.  It shouldn't matter so much what others think of me or don't think of me - but it does.  I love these posts I found on Pinterest.

I have undergone a metamorphosis this past year.  

Almost exactly 1 year ago today, emotionally I hit rock bottom, my marriage was shaky, I had to take a LOA from work, and my depression had hit an all time low.  I had come to the point where I could not take one more ounce of stress, one more complaint, one more criticism, one more of anything.  I had a meltdown in my kitchen that scared my husband so badly he took me to the hospital to be assessed.  It is still very hard to share; I have kept it a secret from almost everyone.  I felt a lot of shame about the whole ordeal and embarrassment at having been admitted to the psych ward for a couple of days until they could get my medication at its proper levels and I had a couple of sessions with a therapist and more sessions set up.  Was I suicidal?  No I wasn't, but they were concerned.

For most of my life I had been using food and spending as a way to self soothe all my emotions.  Well the spending had caused major debt trouble for my household and my marriage to almost end and as such the eating issues were at an all time high.  In my post-admission therapy sessions we talked a lot about self worth, dignity, inner strength and pride of self.  I have spent this year working on those areas, I have my spending addiction under control, have become adept at standing up for myself and no longer allowing people to use me as a doormat.  I have begun to understand that allowing people to make me feel bad about myself and then resenting them for that is useless. 

 I have kept close to me these two quotes from Eleanor Roosevelt -

In the long run, we shape our lives, and we shape ourselves. The process never ends until we die. And the choices we make are ultimately our own responsibility.

No one can make you feel inferior without your consent.

The choices I had made, the inferiority I felt, the resentfulness I had allowed to fester over each little hurt (whether intentional or not) had gotten me to that point.  I was never going to allow myself to be that person again.  

Last year was the year to change the inner me - to work on battling the self defeating demons that kept me from a successful marriage, success at work and feeling good about myself.  

This is the year I work to change the outer me.  Losing weight and getting healthy.  I still have some work to do on the inner dialogue I have running in my head and that is what I hope the hypnosis kit will help me with.  But with my new found strength and pride in self, I feel more ready and confident than I ever have before that this time; I can be successful in getting healthy!

Criticism is still hard to hear when I know it is coming, and still far too easy to think I hear in the words of others.  But I am getting better and better at coping with both forms.  I will no longer allow other people's "stuff" to become my "stuff".  I have enough "stuff" of my own to deal with!

Improving the Entire Package

From the Christopher Adams Training website


"Food isn't just a hunger thing, it's also an emotional thing. Food comforts and fills a void that is ongoing. The surgery might stop the food going in but cannot address the real reasons for over-eating, binge eating and excess. That's what makes us very, very different and hugely successful. Our program goes deep into the issues that cause your problems in the first place. It answers questions like why does this really happen? When did it begin? How can I stop it happening again. These are core, deep issues that are rarely if ever covered by conventional treatments. We go to the core. This helps you to lose weight and keep off your weight."

According to the website using this program should prepare me for life long changes.  Changes that occur not just in my body, but in my mind, my emotions and my heart.  

Emotionally, instead of focusing on not eating, it should help me focus in on WHY I want to eat and address those issues.

Psychologically, I hope it will help me re-direct those feelings into positive actions - better food choices, exercise, relaxation, ways to deal with stress.

For my heart, <fingers crossed> the program will help me to love myself, be gentle with myself and to forgive myself.

Those three aspects I think are the most important part of the entire thing.  Would convincing my body that my stomach was significantly smaller be great??  DUH!  Of course it would.  But that wouldn't stop me from treating every emotion from elation, to stress, from heartache to boredom with food.  It wouldn't allow me to forgive myself and not beat myself up if I happen to slip up.

That physical side of it is awesome and I sincerely hope it works.  But at the end of this journey, I really am looking forward to the entire package being improved, not just the part I can see in the mirror.

And it begins....

OK, where to start?  Gosh, so much to say, so much to do, so much pressure to really succeed this time.  I guess, I am going to start with the biggest reasons I want to make these changes.  In no particular order except the first one which is the most important to me.

• The need to be healthy enough and energetic enough to play with my children.
• I want to look in the mirror without cringing
• I want to feel better
• I don't want my pre-diabetes to turn into full blown diabetes
• I want my husband to be proud of me
• I would really love a whole new wardrobe!  :)
• I want to improve my quality of life
• My knees are KILLING me
• The people I love are worried about my health
• Losing weight, getting healthy and feeling better about myself will help me get a handle on my recurring bouts of depression that require medication.
• Setting a better example for my children.
• To prove that all those times I told myself I couldn't do it - I was wrong.

Over the years, I have halfheartedly tried the usual fad diets, Weight Watchers, South Beach, Atkins...you know the usual route people take.  The biggest problem I had with them was I never believed I could spend the rest of my life adhering to such a restrictive lifestyle.  My life is not orderly, it is not well structured, it is not text book.  We fly by the seat of our pants a lot of time, rushing here, there and everywhere.  We enjoy being spontaneous, we live on a rather firm budget and the kids (beg to) do a whole lot of the cooking.  The midnight shift means my body clock is completely out of whack and I consume far too much caffeine to try and make it all work.

Food has always been my comfort, my anxiety killer, a solution to boredom, my companion while watching TV or driving long distances.  Chocolate and buttery popcorn are my favourite drugs of choice.

I have long known and understood that my relationship with food was dysfunctional, my body image was abysmal and my inner voice was downright abusive.  What I didn't know or understand was how to change it.  Just thinking about going to therapy to discuss the causes for it all drove me to the fridge or candy aisle.  My few attempts ended with me bingeing after hitting up the nearest drive thru.  It was easier just to quit - but it wasn't right, it wasn't smart and it wasn't healthy - mentally, physically or emotionally.

Admittedly, what first drew me to the Gastric Bypass Hypnosis program was the fact that it was only $69 through Groupon.  The second appealing thing was the idea that I would have results without work - I regret to say that was just wishful thinking.  There is always work to do for anything that is important.  And this IS important to me.  

If this program works out the way I believe it should - the preparatory tracks will  

• help me get my head on straight
• encourage me to believe in my ability to make this happen
• strengthen my resolve to exercise
• help me to relax so I can sleep better and feel more energetic

I have at this point only listened to the Introduction, Relaxation, Sleep and Exercise tracks.  I am going to spend at least a week, working on those and adding in the HypnoPlay track.

The relaxation and sleep tracks have been greatly appreciated.  I have been able to calm my mind, settle my thoughts and slip into a deep, refreshing, dreamless sleep.  This is a godsend and already is worth the money I spent.

The exercise track I listened to while walking on my break at work - not ideal but I figured I wouldn't fall asleep that way.  I need to dedicate time for myself each day to listen to the tracks.  I owe it to myself to do it.