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05 April 2014

OK, just this quick early weigh-in before I leave on my anniversary beach getaway. My ice chest is packed with yogurt, cottage cheese, string cheese,hummus, and green machine juice. I have a bag of healthy snacks. Not only will I save myself a bunch of money, I will save the regret of eating crappy fast food, only to feel terrible physically and emotionally afterwards. Yay for me! Yay for my husband being on board. Have a great weekend everyone. I'm crossing fingers and toes that this yucky weather clears up BEFORE we head back Monday afternoon.

Weigh-in: 179.5 lb

lost so far: 10.5 lb

still to go: 19.5 lb

Diet followed reasonably well

(15 comments) losing 1.2 lb a week

04 April 2014

I'm trying not to get too demoralized. Yesterday I was feeling so up, with my anniversary trip coming up and getting the phone call about a job I applied for 2 months ago.

Despite the three messages I left yesterday, I still haven't heard from the Director of Nursing that left me a message on Wednesday afternoon. I rushed around after I got home from work today, packing up for my trip this weekend. I always seem to wipe myself out getting ready to have fun.

Normally, today would have been a walking day. I usually look forward to it. Today, however, I was hurting more than I have in two months. It is either because of how brisk my walk on Wednesday was, or it was trying out a new exercise, Sumo Wrestler Squats, on Tuesday and Thursday night. I guess I better not do those any more. My history of back problems has led me to be very cautious of activities that lead to numbness and pain in my leg. That's what I'm feeling today.

If I want this weight loss journey to lead to a successful, permanent lifestyle change, I need to balance exercising neither too little nor too much. I was getting cocky and thinking I could up my game. I really was hopeful this time that things would be different and I could "cure" my back issues with a gradual work-up to a higher activity level. Please don't let this be the beginning of the end for my exercise regime. It has happened before and I don't want to see it happen again...

(4 comments)

03 April 2014

This has been a great week. There was my anniversary and then a shopping trip to buy a few things in a smaller size. Yesterday was the best yet, though. I have patiently left my hair alone, not getting it cut every 6-7 weeks like I usually do. My daughter told me that if I wanted to try a new style (like Robin Wright is sporting in Season 1 of "House of Cards" or Kristin Chenowith in her recent guest spot on "Glee"), I needed to grow out my bangs and the hair around my ears. I have had essentially the same hair style since right before I started nursing school. It has been about 1-3/4" on top and tight around the ears. I am cheap so I have resorted to frosting it myself to give it better manageability. My daughter gets a two color weave (low lights and high lights) and it makes all the difference in her styling routine.

So, I made an appointment with a good friend of hers that is a stylist. It was more money than I'm used to spending, but she agreed to a fair price. I worked my usual shift and rushed home to pack a sensible snack, grab my walking duds, and change out of my uniform. We spent 10 minutes talking about what my goal was, color-wise and style-wise. I was so relieved that she really "got" me. My hair turned out AWESOME and I was energized for my walk. I walked for 1 hour 10 minutes with most of it at a 3.5 mph rate. The weather was beautiful. I got back to my car and noted both a missed call and a voicemail. I didn't recognize the number, but when I listened to the message I almost screamed with excitement.

It is in my profile that I had a back injury and had to semi-retire from nursing. For the past two or so years I have been actively looking for part-time work as a nurse. After no luck, I took a job as a caregiver. I have been doing that for the last 15 months while still applying for nursing jobs. So far, I have yet to receive a single email or phone call. That is, until yesterday! That's right, they want to interview me! I applied for this position over two months ago. It is the perfect situation for me: 1) close to home 2) two, 8-hour shifts a week 3) Sunday and Monday evenings, 3 pm - 12 am. I can still take trips, do stuff with my daughter and grandkids, go away with my husband, you name it! Plus, I'll make almost twice as much per hour versus what I've been making as a caregiver. Right now I work 5 days a week for 4 hours each day. That's a lot of driving and laundering of uniforms, plus no three-day weekends EVER and I've worked every holiday for the last 15 months.

The only bummer in this is that I was unable to reach the Director of Nursing either last night or the three times I tried today. That's alright. It took her two months to call me, so they are obviously not in a hurry.

Wish me luck!

Only two more days until I leave for the beach for 3 days. The weather forecast is not promising, but I plan to have a great time anyway.

(6 comments)

01 April 2014

Today is my and my husband's 25th wedding anniversary. He was already at work when I got up, but I found a love note from him that had me smiling all day.

After my shift, I headed to our local outlet mall to buy a few things. My favorite pair of jeans are falling off of me. Since I don't have the greatest luck finding jeans that fit me, I went to the same store I bought my previous pair from. Unfortunately, even though they called them by the same name, they were not the same. Still, I found some other jeans that I was happy with. I bought a few more items for working out, as well as some necessary undergarments (again, because the old ones were loose on me).

I passed a Rocky Mountain Candy Company while at the mall. I picked the simplest caramel apple I could find (called a "Cheesecake" caramel apple, but really just had caramel and a dusting of finely-ground graham cracker crumbs on the bottom half). Both my husband and I love them, so even though we won't be having a meal out until this weekend, I liked the idea of us sharing a special dessert.

I ate half of the apple, but FS showed only one basic listing for their caramel apples and it was a whopping 334 calories! Since I know full well that many of the other apples had an additional 100 calories on them due to white/milk chocolate and crushed candy bars and/or M&Ms, I'm guessing they went with an average. So, I am claiming 1/3 of a Rocky Mountain apple (especially since there were other brands of caramel apples that were in the high 100s or low to mid 200s calorie-wise).

I told my husband that I hadn't decided yet whether to journal during our getaway. I told him that even if I decided not to document everything I ate, I still didn't plan to go crazy. Our room has a refrigerator, so I plan to bring some healthy snacks and breakfast items. He agreed that I shouldn't just go off the rails, as he would enjoy only eating places that had some fresher ingredients (as opposed to high-fat fast food, etc.)

I'm so relieved that he is on the same page as me. I was afraid he would tease me for being calorie-conscious and tell me to "loosen up, we're on vacation!" I might just come back from our anniversary trip basically even. That sounds good to me!

(6 comments)

30 March 2014

Well, when you don't have a digital scale, these things are bound to happen. It probably would have been more accurate to have put down 181.5 last week, but it was hard to read. I'm not going to get all upset that I only lost half a pound this week. My goal has always been 1 lb. a week and I've had a few nice weeks with slightly higher.

Besides, if I'm really going to hold myself accountable, this wasn't my best week. The cake I indulged in Thursday afternoon, the egg mcmuffin, the Lucky Charms cereal. Yes, I still stayed well within my RDI, but when you eat up calories on nutrient and fiber-poor foods, it does affect the overall process.

I can't promise I'll do a lot better this week. During the week, yeah, no problem, but next weekend I'll be away at the beach with my husband to celebrate our 25th anniversary. I don't plan to go crazy, but I also don't plan to restrict myself so much that I resent the lack of freedom while on "vacation."

On the exercise front, however, I have been doing well. Regardless of whether I have slowed my weight loss, I know I'm getting stronger and fitter and that is JUST as important to me!

Have a great week, folks. I'm going to relax today and do some more sewing. I have a Christmas craft fair to make items for.

Weigh-in: 180.5 lb

lost so far: 9.5 lb

still to go: 20.5 lb

Diet followed reasonably well

(3 comments) losing 0.5 lb a week

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