The Co-Worker Dinner.

So this week (and for the foreseeable future) I’m out for work. Also this week, I started my iron pills. One in the morning, one in the evening.

Everything has been going peachy taking the pills, no big issues to note until the other day. I worked like a crazy mofo this particular day. For breakfast I think I grabbed a banana and a yogurt. I skipped lunch (I know, shame on me.) I took my second iron pill before going to dinner with the co-workers just so I wouldn’t forget it.

We go to this nice little Italian place and I order the small whole wheat spaghetti with tomato sauce. They order appetizers and booze along with their food. While sitting and socializing, I begin to feel really faint and sick at my stomach. Naturally, I think it’s because I hadn’t eaten since the morning, and resolved that my food would make me feel much better.

Dinner conversation moved on to asking about my weight loss. I proudly announced that as of that day I had lost 160 pounds. Congrats and cheers all around. Food comes – and all I can do is glare at my food. It looks repulsive. (It actually looked fabulous, but I was feeling so bad at this point.) I manage to talk myself into eating maybe ¼ of it. I then realize that it’s because I took my pill on an empty stomach, stupid me.

Girl beside me looks at my plate and looks at me, then exclaims, “You amaze me, you have so much self-control!” I just look at her and smile. What I wanted to say was, “It isn’t so much self control as I am trying to avoid blowing chunks all over you.”

Now keep in mind I announced earlier I lost 160 pounds as of that day. My birthday had also been on the 16^th. My co-workers order me a birthday sundae and they all gather around to sing to me.

Really. You order the prior-fat-chick who is proud of losing 160 POUNDS a chocolate sundae? ARGH. Smile and be thankful. Smile and be thankful.

Miss you guys!

Weigh-In 9/24/2012

Previous: 181.0
Today:      180.0
Loss:           -1.0

Yeah, a loss finally! My body hates moving into new decades, though. I don't know why it is so adverse to change!

I am heading into this week with a firm belief that next weigh in will be in the 170's. It's about time.

Busy work times ahead (and behind me.) This too shall pass.If you don't see me commenting as much, it's not because I don't care, it's because I'm busier than a one-legged man in a butt-kicking contest.

Life & *Sigh*

I am quickly getting things together for a business trip, my test results came back negative (no blood in my poop! yeah!), and the scale is FINALLY moving in a downward trend. Beyond that, the following is my soap box for the day. :)
****
http://shine.yahoo.com/healthy-living/starbucks-diet-one-woman-dropped-80-pounds-coffee-211600454.html

For real, folks. What is wrong with our society today? Why do we work so hard to find diets and miracle cures when all we have to do is eat less and move more? Limit our calories, make those calories nutritiously count, and get off our fat butt’s for at least 30 minutes a day, every day. Instead we require AND PAY FOR:

Weight Watchers

Nutrasystem

Medifast

Slim Fast

The Subway Diet

The Starbucks Diet

The Cabbage Diet

Atkins Diet

90 Days to OMG! Diet

The Skinny Jeans Diet

LA Weight Loss

…and the list goes on and on. It’s called common sense, and everyone seems to be losing it these days. Big business, little business, hell even the shady at-home entrepreneurs are LAUGHING AT US. We spend our money to find that miracle cure, when we have it at our disposals for free all along.

*Sigh* /off soap box for the day

Hey you exercise junkies.

This whole week I've been diligently putting in my exercise time at night (running at least 3 miles), and I always see an elevated weight the next morning with the weight returning back down later in the day. Yesterday I exercised in the morning and I saw what I normally see - lowest weight this morning.

Is there something about exercising at night that makes you retain water or something? Or is my body just going through a dyslexic phase? I really hate mornings, I hate the thought I'll have to drag my dead weight out of bed an hour earlier.

Weigh-In 9/16/12 (Challenge)

Previous: 181.0
Today: 181.0
Loss: -0.0

No change this week, a little frustrating because I ran 22 miles this week but...

I did cheat last night, cause its my birthday today. :) I had a piece of cake!

I'm leaving mid-week for a work trip. Strangely enough work trips usually mean a weight loss for me, which is nice.

True Story.

FFS (...continued...)

I met with my doctor yesterday afternoon, after receiving the lovely phone call yesterday. Basically, they are testing for blood in the stool. I get it – and it actually makes me a bit nervous because my heredity with colon cancer, and that is why she is testing for blood in the stool. But I feel rather confident in the fact that it is my female issues, and I hope it isn’t anything to worry about.

It is going to be a horrendous test, 3 separate stool samples; it will probably take me a week and a half to do. Since losing weight, I’ve not been all that regular. *sigh* Anyway, after the test is completed I start on an iron pill twice daily; which seems to cause constipation issues, so I get to also take a stool softener. Oh my god. I feel old. I probably failed when I didn’t take a multi-vitamin to start with when I decided to lose weight.

The rest of the blood results came in, and they were actually pretty good. Here’s the run down (because by god I want to have a benchmark somewhere, even if it is after losing 150 pounds.)

Waist: 33 inches

Blood pressure: 110/70

Glucose: 98 (I realize this is on the cusp of insulin resistance, but I *was* insulin resistant when I started this way back when. I also had gestational diabetes. Although I'm not super happy with the high range of normal, I am happy that I am no longer insulin resistant. Now to just get it even lower for next year.)

Total Cholesterol: 122

HDL: 35

Triglycerides: 75

Iron Saturation: 3% (lolz – major fail. Most likely the cause of my dizziness when I stand up.)

Other than the iron issue and lowering the blood sugar, I need to raise my HDL somehow. The problem is the only way I’ve read to raise them I’m already doing: diet, exercise, not smoking. Any ideas?

FFS. (For F*ck's Sake.)

I deserve the genius of the year award.  (Said VERY sarcastically.)

So a couple weeks ago I get my physical, right? I made the incredibly stupid move of getting a physical DURING my period. Even though I told them about this problem at the exam, fast forward a few weeks and...

They are FREAKING out about my low iron levels. (You do remember I was menstrating, right?) Oh yes ma'am, but this is REALLY low. (Okay, what do I have to do? Pills?) No, this is so low we need to investigate. (Okay, more blood?) Oh no ma'am, we need 3 samples of stool....

W.T.F. I hate my life.

Weigh-In (Challenge) 9/9/12

Previous: 184.7

Today:     181.0                 
Loss:          -3.7

Yeah, I seriously can't make this shit up, folks.

Many thanks to all the great comments yesterday. We all kick around until we find what works for us, I'm just trying to not go overboard and eat less than I should. I like high running metabolisms. They make me happy!
If my results don't make you believe that eat less, move more, drink water, control your head is the secret to losing weight and getting your food addiction under control then.. well, I don't know. It works.

Never thought I'd have this problem.

So, I have a question that after a while of debating, I can't seem to answer myself. Lately I've been throwing around whether it is better to just eat when you are hungry vs. eating at the scheduled time. Let me explain.

My current calories in per day is 1200. I break this up into 6 meals: breakfast, lunch, dinner, & 3 snacks. The challenge has altered that just a bit, but not by much. I have been finding that at "snack times" I'm not all that hungry. In fact, I could go with skipping it entirely (some days. Now just for total honesty purposes there are some days I'm still famished after all 6 meals.)

The question is: Is it better to eat when you are hungry or should you stick to your schedule regardless of hunger? Much thanks for your opinions.

Do Not Do This.

"It’s ok to go off track here and there as long as we are conscientious of our choices at the time.."

If any of my dear friends ever leave me this comment, you should be drawn and quartered. I just thought I'd throw that out there to warn you.

But I know my buddies, they'll draw and quarter me if I consciously go off track. Now that's love. Love you guys!

Rather Boring, Somewhat Stressed.

Suprisingly, or maybe unsurprisingly, I don't have much to talk about. Al's challenge has made eating so simple that I haven't had to think much about food. I plan, I buy, I prep, I eat, I drink.

Luckily, or maybe unlucky for me, stress at work has been high for a little bit. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed and underappreciated. It happens, it passes, and the good thing is I'm going home every night and running it off. My second 5k is coming up at the end of October (assuming work doesn't interfere) and I should see a 100% improvement from my 1st 5k, no doubt.

It cracks me up how we perceive food these days. We had a potluck at work today, in which I provided the dessert and meat, however I brought my own lunch. I still got comments about how I was a food snob and they couldn't believe that I wasn't eating the food. Meh, you can't please everyone. I refuse to give up the 182 I'm consistently seeing on the scale this week for cake.

Weigh-In 9/3/12

Previous: 187.0

Today:     184.7                 
Loss:           -2.3

 

Great weigh in for the first week of the challenge, if I do say so myself. This morning, the weight was way down from that (182.8?!) but I consider that a fluke, and I am also using my challenge weigh-ins for my Monday weigh-ins so... We shall see next week. :)

 

Happy Labor Day! I am doing absolutely no labor, and it is fantastic. In fact, I'm about to run for fun. Crazy stuff going on.