May 23 - 337.1

Phew!! I'm whooped!!! The last people just left.

We hosted a get-together at our house. Lizzie was confirmed this morning at church, so my sister flew in from Chicago for the day. Since she was coming, we invited Scott's parents and his brothers and their families. I also invited two other families whose daughters were confirmed this morning, and four neighbor families.

Made enough food for an army. Cleaned all week. Deep cleaning - as in going through boxes of papers that had been there for quite a while. 

So, this morning, we are still sweeping and cleaning. Not sure what Scott did while I was gone all day yesterday but it wasn't cleaning the main portion of the house!!! Ended up tossing more stuff in my scrapbook space. Which is really bad since it was the area I never touched all week. But, the rest of the house looks far better than it has in probably two years.

I started going into my frantic bitch overdrive this morning and really bit my tongue so that I didn't yell at Scott. I'm the one who is home all week. Why didn't I get more cleaning done?

Scott said he actually liked the fact that I had gone into overdrive because for too long I've been far more of the attitude: Oh, well. It seems I'm definitely getting a little more spunk back. Finally.

But, we had 12 adults and 10 children here. All at the same time. They didn't eat nearly enough food!!! But, we had a good time. It was lots of fun and everyone enjoyed getting to visit. My kids got to see four of their cousins whom they don't get to see often. And a couple of the neighbor kids were here. 

And, now, I'm in the afterglow. Everything is cleaned up. Dishes are in the dishwasher. Food is put away. It's time to run the washer and go to bed! Yes, it is only 6pm. But, it's bed time!!!

And, I had absolutely no problems eating only what I should and could. Since I made most of the food, I pre-planned what I would eat and I stuck to it. Wasn't even tempted by the cut cookies my sister made and brought from Chicago, nor the brownies my mother-in-law made, nor the ice cream sundaes that we provided. I had a small bowl of Fat Free Cool Whip and was happy. 

May 19

Finally made it to McConnell Health Center to start my exercise program!! As part of Fresh Start, we get a 12 week membership to the Health Center. It is an amazing facility! I met with Monica and she walked me around and started me on a few pieces. I tried a recumbent step machine which wasn't too bad. The recumbent elliptical was bad. Got on the treadmill and the recumbent bike for a bit. About 20 minutes total exercise. My goal is to get over there 3x per week. Which can include classes. There are tons of classes I want to take!!! Yoga, water aerobics, etc. Can't wait! Need to get the schedule in here with my calendar and decide what I'm doing.

And, it'll be nice to be able to exercise in the air conditioning this summer. I'm still having issues with my humidity intolerance, so I'm not sure how I'll do outside. But, if I can do the Health Center 3-4 times per week and walk around the neighborhood with Scott in the evenings...

On Sundays, they have a family day. Usually a guest is $10. On Sundays, a guest is $5 and your kids are free. I can at least drag Scott there once a week. Doubt if I would actually take the kids.

I also have to start thinking forward to what I'm going to do as far as exercise after this program is finished. Will I join the Y again? Or another place? Or... Cost is an issue, of course. Convenience. Willingness to go. Location. Lots to think about!

May 16

349.3 Only 9 pounds away from being able to get on the Wii Fit!! Woohoo!!!

My manicure is awesome. It is a frequent reminder of how well I'm doing. I'll have to remember that for my 100 pound reward. Hmmm...

I'm definitely getting more energy. I've been cleaning. Focusing on self-contained places so there is a definite stopping point. But, I cleaned the refrigerator. Took each of the shelves out and scrubbed them down. This is not a common occurrence, so it took a while. But, it felt really good to finish it. Of course, Lizzie looked in and said: "Gee. Now it's obvious we have nothing to eat." Which it kind of was. I guess I need to work on some meals with leftovers that the kids will eat and enjoy.

I have been revising my eating. I stop to get something when I'm out. Then I can only eat a few bites. So I take a box to go. It's getting kind of frustrating. I really need to quit going places or only ordering a side dish. For example, Old Bag. I get the cup of clam chowder and I am nicely filled. So, this week, I tried the fish tacos. Well, I didn't realize she gave me the meal size rather than the appetizer size, which meant I got a side. I finished my cup of clam chowder and should have stopped. I took a couple of bites of the fish tacos and fought with keeping that down for the next several hours. I still somehow think I can eat more than I can. Went to Frisch's planning to get a side of something. Got an omelet. It was good. But, I couldn't eat much. So, that will be my lunch today. It would be better if I didn't stop at all, of course. But, I can't relax and read at home the way I can at a restaurant. Still need to work on that. Oh, Marcy!

Went through my pajamas and my underwear. Had a big stack of pjs to pass on. Only kept 3X and smaller.  And not even winter of 3X. Same with underwear. Boxed up my larger size and moving on to the next smaller size. And threw away any that were ripped. Not dealing with that!

I need to do different cleaning. My sister is coming in next Sunday for Lizzie's Confirmation. We're going to have a little party here to celebrate. I'm also going to celebrate Scott's graduation as part of it. So, I need to be focusing on the family room. My desk. The kitchen. My scrapbooking area. Basically the entire first floor. Instead I'm working on small areas of my bedroom. Each of the downstairs spaces feels too major to get into. I don't feel like I have enough energy to do the whole thing, so I don't even focus on a little part. Not good. Need to start working on that tonight. Maybe I will watch my Sunday night shows down here and work on some of these boxes of paperwork that are scattered around. That's the biggest problem in the family room. The boxes that all the stuff gets shoved to get it out of the way and then never get gone through. Imagine that!! If I just look at each box as self-contained, maybe I can make some progress.

We had to have a burial for one of the hamsters. The Teddy Bear hamster that we got from a teacher at Avery died. We figure he was between 4 and 5. Which is old for a hamster. And, he had a huge mass on his throat. But, he had a good life. He came to us with the name Carl Winslow and kept the name but was also called Fuzzy or Big Fuzzy. When he got out of his cage, he would end up behind the refrigerator with a stash of dog food. He was a great hamster. In the hamster races, he not only didn't place in the race, he rolled backwards a little bit. The World's Laziest Hamster. We miss you, Fuzzy!

I also need to get a new bra. As my body is shrinking, I've been tightening up my bra. Well, I realized that as you tighten your bra, it tightens the back, but it results in the front getting kind of spread apart. I feel like my boobs are heading for my underarms. Talk about lack of cleavage!! And, I'm sure I'm down in cup size. I used to be a D. I've been a C for a while. I may be down to a B at this point. Or at least on the small size of C. I'll never be flat, but I am definitely not as well endowed as I used to be!! And it isn't all just gravity! I probably need to go to a real lingerie store and get measured. I always hated that, but I need to be fitted properly.

Friday I had my 3 month appt with my general practitioner. The last time I was at this weight was in 2002. Wow. And, those were about the earliest records she has from me. The sad thing is that I still have clothes that are smaller than this. Which means I have clothes that I haven't been able to wear in 10 years. Huh. I guess that is a good thing. It's not like I've ever been so stylish that anything would be out of style. And, fewer clothes that I have to purchase! I'm wearing an outfit this morning for church that is a 3X. Can't remember when I last wore it. And it's very cute. Felt like new clothes!!

Well, I need to take my measurements and update that file. I haven't been doing a very good job of keeping track of those. And, I need to get exercising. I haven't really done anything other than a little bit of walking. Bad Wendie! Part of my new Life is to exercise on a regular basis. There is no way I can get down to my goal of 150 (180) without exercise. Oh, Marcy!!! :)

50 pounds GONE!!!

On Mother's Day, appropriately, I weighed 345 pounds. Which means I have lost 50 pounds!! Woohoo!!! I rewarded myself today. I got a manicure! I love having someone else massage my hands! It was wonderful. And it was only $22. Not bad!

May 2 - I need to lose an overweight person!

348.6
I just upated my ticker and saw that I "only" need to lose 198.6 pounds!! So, I went to look at a BMI Index chart. The amount of weight I need to lose now qualifies as an overweight person, not an obese person!! WOOHOO!!!

April 30 - Under 350!!!

I weighed in at 349.8 this morning. Woohoo!!! This was my first mini-goal I had set for myself. When I started at 395, it seemed like it would take forever. It has only taken 3.5 months or so. Not bad!!

I also no longer hurt!!! A friend who is a nurse thinks I may have had adhesions. (Abdominal adhesions are bands of tissue that form between abdominal tissues and organs. Normally, internal tissues and organs have slippery surfaces, which allow them to shift easily as the body moves. Adhesions cause tissues and organs to stick together.) Well, apparently, when I was so sick, I may have ripped them. Which is a good thing!! It hurt at the time, but I was already hurting, so no biggie! 


I woke up yesterday morning not hurting! I'm so excited. I feel so much better. I've lost just over 45 pounds. And I feel great! My normal clothes are pretty baggie. But I don't really want to do much about new clothes until I've gotten into an exercise routine. I'd love to wait until I lose another 50, but I think I would have to start tying a rope around my waist. The other thing is that I need to go through my closet and group my clothes by size so that I can transition into the next smaller size more easily. And I am pitching my 4X and 5X clothes!! Well, donating. I know that I have friends and my mother who will happily adjust any clothes I would like. But, I don't want to keep anything that is above a 3X. 


I guess, to me, normal stores carry 3X. 4X or 5X is really fat. Probably totally weird mental thing. But, I don't care!!! When I decide that a 4X or 5X is too big for me, it gets washed and put in the box. I have a feeling that, for a while, I will be taking those boxes to donate pretty frequently!!! Those will be happy days!!!


And, when my black knit pants are too loose, they are gone!!! That is all I wear!! I have like 7 pairs of them. I am sick of them. I want to wear real pants, again. It has been way too long!!!


And, tomorrow is NATIONAL SCRAPBOOKING DAY!!! Woohoo!!! I am scrapbooking 10am to midnight!! Woohoo!! And then watching the Kentucky Derby at 6pm. Yay!!! I love the first Saturday in May! Scott is taking the kids to the OSU Renaissance Festival. Fun for all!

April 28 - Bread = Bad

Bread is not a good thing. For some reason, I decided last night that a piece of toast sounded really good. Keep in mind that I'm supposed to only be eating pureed food, right now. So, I made two slices of bread. Not even good bread. My children won't eat high fiber bread so we only have cheap-o white in the house. Alex was happy because he walked in just as I finished it so I gave him one slice. I munched on the other slice while I prepared a smoothie. The toast was good. Not wow amazing, good, but good. I made a chocolate/banana/strawberry smoothie. Packet of high protein chocolate shake mix, packet of high protein banana shake mix, 1/3 cup dried non-fat milk for added protein, one banana, 4 strawberries. Yum!!! Took a couple of sips of the smoothie. Then poured half in a glass and put the rest in the frig for later or the next day. Went upstairs to relax for a while.

Started feeling a very tight sensation in my chest. Very tight. Had to go throw up. Well, apparently, the bread got stuck. Everything I took in after the bread came up. On the plus side, puking now is nothing like puking before. You just don't have enough stomach to do it. It is more a matter of helping it back up. So I got to do that for about 45 minutes. The only issue was that it hurt my side even more. So, I'm back to taking it very easy for a few days. I have to keep reminding myself I'm only 4 weeks out of major surgery. If I worked outside the home, I wouldn't be back at work, yet.

Otherwise, I'm doing very well. Having no problems staying away from sweets. I know they will make me sick. So, not even tempted. What I'm having cravings for is Diet Coke. But, knowing what the carbonation would do to my tiny tummy, I won't chance it. And, as my therapist says, when I actually can have it, a long time down the road, it will probably taste nasty!!!

April 21

I have not felt like blogging. I haven't felt like doing much of anything. I'm so tired. I'm sure it is because of my limited diet. It is hard to make sure I get everything in within a day when I'm only awake for a few hours!!!

But, the good news is that I'm doing great! I wasn't feeling like I was doing all that great. I've been grumpy and kind of depressed, honestly.

But, I had my three week appt with Dr. Myer on Monday. I am down to 355. Which is 22 since my pre-op appt and 40 since I made up my mind in January. Which is awesome!! They like to see 20 pounds at the three week appt. I'm at 22. Woohoo!!!!

But, I still was feeling kind of down because I feel like they play with the numbers a little since they say you've lost 22 pounds in three weeks! But, in actuality, I've lost 22 pounds in five weeks because they go by my pre-op appt which was 2 weeks before surgery. But, no matter how you look at it, I've still lost the weight and it's a good thing.

Last night I went to the monthly Bariatric Support Group. They asked for people to share their ah-ha moments since surgery. As I was listening and thinking I realized:

• I was on 8 medications before surgery. I'm on 2. One of those is thyroid and the other is my happy pill. I may never be off either of those. I have left behind 6 medications. In three weeks. WOW!!!
• My blood pressure at the doctor's on Monday was 109/68. That is off of all medications for blood pressure. Wow. 
• I seem to be losing shoe size. My shoes are loose. Well, I've had chronic swelling issues in my feet and ankles. Not anymore!!! I have ankles, again!!!
• I was at a meeting Monday night where we had a dessert buffet as an end of the year celebration. Not even tempted. To the point that I prepared a small plate for the kids and Scott. Didn't even lick my fingers. It rode home on the seat next to me. I was really proud of myself.
• I went to lunch yesterday at Old Bag of Nails with a friend. I had water and a cup of Clam Chowder. The server questioned my choice because she served me before and knew my regular order. I stood strong. I enjoyed it. I savored it. It filled me. My bill was $2.12. Wow!!! And it was a very enjoyable time!!

I need to focus on the positives. The leader of the group suggested that every night you think back on the day and see if there is anything to say congrats to yourself about. No matter how small. I am going to try do that. I also had not refilled my pills for the week yet. Just did an hour ago.

I am changing my life. In small ways and in big ways. I am refocusing my priorities. I have stepped up to a more involved position with Girl Scouts. I am in charge of registration for the Hilliard Service Unit. In addition to co-leading my troop. I am going to step down from PTO positions. I will be active in the schools, but there are so many parents out there who don't do anything and they need to get involved. I also am active with Cub Scouts. It's been hard saying no to things, but I have done it. I have to stay focused so I don't go back to how things were.

April 17

Going to Archiver's today!! Yay!! Get to work on Swap stuff with friends. And, I'm trying something new and kind of scary. Lizzie and her friend are going with me. They are going to roam around at the mall while I am cropping. The friend has a cell phone and the girls are being given specific guidelines on what they are and are not allowed to do. Should be fun for them.

I'm down to 365.7. At least I'm losing. And, I guess, since I've moved very little this week, that isn't bad. My side hurts every time I bend. It feels like it is ripping. No fun. But, I have a feeling that the only way I'm going to get past this is to start walking and working out and just work through the pain. I don't do well with pain. Oh, well. I need to move on so that I can work on this change.

I have been very good about saying no to things. I'm not going to be more involved with Swim Team than just at the meets and practices. However, I will be taking on a larger role with Girl Scouts. It will be a good thing, I think. I will the be Service Unit Registrar. So, I will take in the registrations for all of the troops in Hilliard. Only about 95 troops!! It'll be good. I know. I'm trying to convince myself, too. :)

April 13

Happy Birthday to my Mom. Not that she has the address to this blog. :)

Had an interesting discussion with my therapist this morning about my life and my inimitable ability to over commit myself. We discussed the fact that not only am I changing my life by this surgery, but I need to be changing my life in other ways, too. My daughter seems to feel that I never do anything with or for her. While we all know that isn't true, it is her perception. Maybe I need to be here a little more. To that end, I have decided I will not take a board position with the Swim Team. I will be an active mom. I will not commit to anything that requires time outside of practice or meets. Especially since they are wanting me to commit for next year! I don't even know if Alex will like being on Swim Team!!

I am also going to work on limiting my involvement in other things. I want to be an active and involved mom, but I need to limit my involvement to the actual activity rather than all the behind the scenes stuff. I will continue being the editor for my son's Cub Scout Pack's newsletter and I will continue to be my daughter's Girl Scout Leader. And, I have said that I will take on a larger role in our Girl Scout Service Unit. However, I am going to step back from PTO. I'll go to meetings. I'll help with events. I'm done, for now anyway, with being on the board. I have developed a reputation for always being involved. That's fine. But, I'm tired of being one of the few. I need to take time for myself and my family. And my friends. I am actually going scrapbooking for the day on Saturday. I haven't done that in ages!!! Of course, I will be working on swap items rather than actually scrapbooking, but that's okay. It'll be fun to hang out with some awesome people.

I'm having some definite pain where the drain was. Called the doctor's office and they said that it is normal. There is a large stitch in there and it is not unusual to feel as if it is ripping. It is actually healing. Okay! If you say so!!! In the meantime, I'm happy I didn't use up all my pain pills right after I got home. I'm using them now. Speaking of which, it's time to take another one and go to bed.

April 10

Down to 358. For some reason I thought it would come off a little quicker. But, I guess when I think about the fact that I've lost almost 40 pounds in 3 months, I have been doing pretty well. And I'm only at the beginning. At the three week mark, I'm supposed to start exercising. So, I will call to set that up next week.

I made some Cauliflower and Ham soup the other day. Very yummy!!! The only problem I have is that I can only eat about 4-8 ounces at a time. And, it is supposed to take me about an hour to eat that much. Yeah. I'm having problems going that slowly. If I eat too quickly, I get a way too full feeling. Haven't puked, yet.

Pushed way too hard yesterday. Slept in today until about 1:30. And was back in bed about 3. Very tired. And weak feeling. A double-edged sword. I was in bed so much that I didn't eat/drink much. Which means I've only taken in about 40 grams of protein so far. The soup ended up having about 27 grams per 8 ounce portion. So, I need to get in at least one more ProtiDiet before bed. Shouldn't be too hard. I was actually feeling hungry. First time in two weeks.

Had a meeting for Alex to join the Hilliard Swim Team. That'll be fun. It's only 5 weeks. He has his swim suit. Thankfully it is a thigh length one. I so did not want him to wear a speedo style!!! And a "friend" of mine volunteered me for the Treasurer position. Actually, I would work with the current one this year to step in next year. I wasn't really planning to take on anything too involved. Oh, well. Why not?

One week post-op

I have my one week post-op appt this afternoon. Hopefully they will pull the drain. It seems to be the only thing that really hurts at this point. Also, I haven't lost any weight, yet. Very frustrating!!! Need to ask what the deal is!!

On the plus side, I feel pretty good! In fact, I've been having bites of food. But, as my therapist talked to me about this morning. I need to be following the process. According the the plan, no solid food, yet. So, I need to be on no solid food. I'm on liquids right now which is basically my ProtiDiet drinks or some soup. At least with the ProtiDiet, I know I am getting my full grams of protein. I can totally see continuing to use those as a supplement for a very long time. When 8 ounces includes 15 grams of protein, it makes a big difference!!

I'm still struggling with getting enough water. When you can only take a sip at a time, it is hard. It's supposed to take me an hour to drink my 8oz ProtiDiet. An hour??? Wow. But, that is probably why I'm getting nausea still. sigh.

It's a long slow process. But, if I'm going to be successful, I need to take it long and slow.

Post Surgery!

Tuesday, March 30.
Scott dropped me off at the hospital about 8:30am. He needed to get over to school for his field trip. I checked in and sat down to relax for a bit. About 8:50, they called me back to start pre-op prep. I got into my lovely hospital gown and put on some beautiful white thigh highs. Then sat and waited. My friend who was to sit with me showed up which was awesome! I had someone to chat with! I had all the pre-op stuff like vitals taken and an IV started. The anesthesiologist stopped by to check my airway and if I had any removable dentures or anything. My surgeon, Dr. Myers, and his side-kick, Mike, stopped by to see how I was doing and to make sure I had followed my plan.

I was so thankful that D. was there. I had to wait with very few interruptions until about 11:30. That would have been so hard by myself!!!

They took me back into the surgery room. Put the mask on me and I was out. Don't remember much of that area!

Scott swapped with D. about 1:30 when he got there. He was there when I woke up. Although that is a general term. Not sure I actually woke up much on Tuesday. They didn't have a room ready for me until 7:30. Didn't bother me. :)

Wednesday (3/31) wasn't too bad. I was woken up for vitals and to walk. I was to make a lap of the corridor every two hours during the day and every four hours at night. Didn't make for very good sleeping! The hardest part was having to drink 1 ounce of water every 15 minutes. It doesn't sound like all that much, but it is when your stomach is only about an ounce or two big!!

Dr. Myers and Mike stopped in to check on me. The nausea was to be expected. It will pass. sigh.

I had a terrible time with nausea. Dry heaves mainly. When all you're taking in is water, you don't have much to get rid of. But it hurts!!! And, of course, the pain medication increases the nausea feeling.

A couple of my friends came to visit on Wednesday evening. Fabulous! I love having visitors! Sadly, the first set came while I was dry heaving. Then I got another round of anti-nausea and pain medication. That was the first time I really felt nausea free. I don't know if it was the energy of having friends around or what. But I turned a corner at that point. Scott brought the kids over to see me for a few minutes, too. Didn't stay long but it was good to see them.

Thursday was more of the same. Less nausea. More walking. Was tired of sitting in bed. Reinforced my knowledge that there really is nothing decent on cable.

Scott came about 5pm to pick me up. Wow. What an incredible day!!! It was gorgeous out!! I had been able to see the sunshine, but I didn't realize how nice it was.

So happy to sleep in my own bed. The kids and the dog were ecstatic to see me. Got through the emails and went to bed.

Friday, 4/1. Slept in a bit. I had prepared my ProtiDiet drinks for the day the night before. They each have 15 grams of protein. You mix with water for about 6 ounces. Drink 5 a day. I can actually start adding in puree level foods. Anything that rolls off a spoon like milk. I think I will stick with the ProtiDiet for now. It's hard enough to get 5 of those in per day. Plus extra liquid. Not being able to drink more than a swallow at a time makes it very difficult to drink 64 oz in a day.

Saturday, 4/2. Finally up to sitting long enough to update my blog!! My lower back hurts. I think from laying on it so much. I can't lay on my side. My stomach slides and that hurts.

I had an anesthetic pump in me that I removed this morning. It was a ball about the size of a tennis ball that was full of liquid and it was connected with tubing into a hole in my abdomen. It constantly pushed anesthetic in to decrease the pain at my incisions. Then I had a fanny pack that carried the ball. Kind of weird, but worked well. Pulled it out this morning. Weird. There was about a foot of tubing inside.

I still have the drain in my side. That will be removed at my one week post-op appt. I wish I had taken the office number with me to the hospital so that I could have called from there to make the appt. By the time I got home on Thursday and called, they were closed. And they were closed on Friday, too. Oh, well. It'll work out.

My back and tummy tell me it's time for a nap!!! I sat out on the deck for a bit earlier. Nice sunshine!!!

Vena Cava Filter Placed

Was at the hospital at 6am for my Vena Cava Filter Placement. It is placed.

The procedure went well. Everyone was very helpful and friendly in every location. Very careful to tell me what was going on before they did it. Was finished and out the door by 10:30. Awesome! Like the McConnell Heart wing. Very nice.

They didn't put me out. They gave me a relaxer, which was very nice. :) They go in through the right groin, so they got that area all prepped. Then the doctor came in. He numbed the immediate area and did all the poking and prodding that was necessary. They took a picture of my new passenger and we were done. It took about 45 minutes.

So, I have a picture to scrapbook! Woohoo!!

I just have to be careful on steps for the rest of today. No biggie!

Tomorrow is the big one!

Sunday night

Almost there! I slipped again yesterday. Scott had taken the kids to Troy while I was at an Archery Recertification class. I then met him to pick up the kids so he could go game with the boys. Well, he had purchased a bucket of KFC in Troy and brought most of it home for leftovers for the kids. Oh, man. Lizzie was laughing at me because I was moaning as I ate a piece. It was amazing!!! I had two pieces. Including skin and coating. But, what do you do? I stepped up the fluid intake after that. I had 96 ounces by the end of the day.

Today I had to start taking acetylcysteine every 12 hours. It is to protect my kidneys during the vena cava filter placement tomorrow. They use a dye that can hurt the kidneys. The stuff is nasty!!! Smells VERY STRONGLY of rotten eggs. Worse than rotten eggs!!! Taste isn't horrible, if you can get over the smell. So, I take it really fast and chase it with a cold drink. Of Crystal Light. Then it makes me feel funny.

I am just looking forward to the next step in the process. I am pretty sure I have all my ducks in a row. Kids are taken care of when needed. Scott has the schedule. We're all good!  I almost wish I could just stay at the hospital tomorrow so I wouldn't have to deal with everything else in between!! It's a lot easier when they control everything. Oh, well. I guess that's the issue. I have to be in control.

Day 11

Amazing what happens when I follow the plan 100%. Wednesday I was 370.2. Thursday I was 368.4. Today I am 364.1. Wow.

I'm getting really nervous about it. I'm starting to have weird dreams related to being in the hospital. I guess it's only natural!!!

Day 10

I have been doing great on this. Yes, I've slipped up a little. I'm not going to beat myself up about it. 

Yesterday I had a lunch meeting. I had thought about trying to not order anything at the restaurant. And, yes, I'm sure I could have. But, I really didn't want to!!! So, I checked out their menu online. They had a couple of options I thought might work. I opted for the Tilapia. Of course, it comes with a lovely cream sauce and a couple of high carb sides. So, I got just the Tilapia. Waitress didn't even bat an eye. 

It was so yummy!!! I figured it was about 2 servings, so I let it replace two of my shakes for the day. Drank lots of water. And, lost weight!! Woohoo!!! It was a good example of what I will be doing later. And, we didn't get our usual basket of sweet potato fries which helped all of us!!

I'm so excited about getting this done. Looking forward to it!!!

Day 8 - Half way!

This is hard. Food is the hardest addiction because you can't quit cold turkey. I've been doing really well. I had a slip up at the movie theater on Sunday. I should have known better. I had Scott get popcorn so that I could have just a little bit. Next thing I know I'm mindlessly munching on popcorn. I should have known I couldn't have just a handful.

I'm going out for a work lunch on Wednesday. I keep trying to walk through what I'm going to do. I think I can have like a breadless sandwich. Just do the meat and cheese. But, on the other hand, I'm getting so close, do I want to risk messing things up? But how am I going to sit in the restaurant and not eat something? I haven't lost anything since I ate the popcorn. But, I also started my period. Could just be that. I need to up my water intake. Already drinking at least 64 ounces a day. Added 16 more yesterday. Need to do that every day. Need to not eat. So hard. But I know it will be worth it after.

If it was easy, everyone would be thin!

That frustrating stall...

Found this on another site. Thought it was very interesting. Haven't checked into it any further, but I thought I would share, anyway!!

"A "stall" a few weeks out is inevitable, and here's why.

Our bodies use glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, but it is stored in our muscles for quick energy -- one pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of water to keep it soluble, and the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, your body turns first to stored glycogen, which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, you also lose 8 lbs of water that was used to store it -- voila -- the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of a diet.

As you stay in caloric deficit, however, your body starts to realize that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue and burning fat for energy. But your body also realizes that fat can't be used for short bursts of energy -- like, to outrun a saber tooth tiger. So, it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, and rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while as you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored."

Day 4

No slip-ups!! Woohoo!! Have started Day 4 and am going well on it. It's been rough. Yesterday I was offered lunch while working Kindergarten Screening. Nice, but wouldn't take no. Finally did, but almost had to get rude. Then I got to school for the Book Fair and they had fresh Papa John's pizza in the office. And it was in the middle of lunch time so the smells were wafting out. FOOD!!

The only problem is that my blood sugars are up. Not supposed to be above 150. Was at 185 this morning. So, I will have to add a small dose of diabetic medication. I'm checking my sugars twice a day, so hopefully it will balance out quickly. One friend had the idea that since I am shrinking my liver, it is squeezing extra sugars out. Could very well be! Hope it stabilizes quickly!

Otherwise just very tired. My parents are worried because I'm so tired. Well, the schedule I'm keeping and only eating 500 calories a day, what do you expect???

At least next week is Spring Break. We get to sleep in!! Planning to do the zoo, a movie or two, something else. Not sure exactly what. Not eat!!

Added later:

Got back from working the book fair and checked my blood sugar: 124. Now I just have to be careful that it doesn't go too low. :)