Tag Archives: diet and exercise

September 28, 2019 · 10:28 am

Thoughts on a Saturday 9-28-2019

Amazing Things – Linda Orrell

Progress Report – Lardage

  • Weight Loss – 43 pounds to date. 
  • Measurement Reduction – 45 inches to date.

I lost a pound yesterday, but it was a RE-loss of a pound that was gone and regained. I’m working with my MACRO daily to try to get the right percentages of carbs, protein, and fat. This morning I ate an avocado and put heavy whipping cream in my coffee, resulting in over 1/3 of the fat I should have for the day. I don’t really like avocados, but I’m impressed with how good they are for you. They are high fat, which kept me away from them before. Now I’m looking at them as a relatively painless way to get a lot of the fat I need (other than my own, homegrown). I like the fact that on CarbManager.com I can ‘test’ what I plan to eat for each meal and see what happens to my numbers BEFORE I make a mistake. I can then modify my plans. Wonderful!  Ultimate goal is to lose another 30 pounds or so.

Flipkart

I have a good start on my efforts to move more. I have been doing yoga stretches daily now for 26 days, and I just started my elliptical trainer 3 times a week. Since Gold stars on my desk calendar are a really good motivator for me (one for each yoga practice and one for the elliptical) I’ll be adding stars # 8 and 9 for the week today. I’m doing 35 minutes on the elliptical at a regular pace, listening to my MP3 player, basically just trying to zone out and do the time right now. Later I’ll think about doing a couple of intensive (for me) times in there. I try to make changes slowly – trying not to make this body rebel and go on strike for a couple of days in protest – hopefully culminating in more and more of my week spent in moving myself around in ways that will help my strength, balance, and flexibility.

The Guardian

It looks like fall will officially begin here in Arkansas on Thursday of next week, with highs in the 70’s, according to the weather people here. I HOPE they are right, because my energy levels rise when the temperature and humidity decrease.  I’m more than ready for fall.

Daily Dose of Flowers

Today is a quiet one for us. I’ll do my elliptical, my yoga, and plan to spend time in my art room again. Yesterday I tried my new crayon melting tool. I had fun, but am only making glorious messes at this point. I’ll enjoy playing with it again today.

Fill your day with things that bring you joy.

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September 27, 2019 · 12:48 pm

Thoughts on a Friday 9-27-2019

Alma Maghakyan – Imgend.com – LinkedIn

We are enjoying a beautiful day.  The sun is shining and the temperature is in the low 80’s. How CIVILIZED after Mother Nature’s snit where she was routinely boiling us in oil!

We just returned from enjoying our long-time good friends for Lunch Bunch – a thing we’ve done every Friday for over 17 years now. We as a group have had more of our share of challenges lately. We’re helping each other get through them. A happy thing – Kay’s daughter from Albuquerque is here and we always enjoy her wit and humor. Another happy thing – Linda’s daughter dropped by with Linda’s great-granddaughters! They were sweet and shy. My husband’s reaction when we got in the car was, “How come come I can’t have some of those?” He would be a WONDERFUL grandfather.

We’ve grocery shopped and just finished putting everything away, so we’re well stocked for the moment. Our son is trying to get into the habit of rising really early, fixing breakfast, then going to meditate, so he didn’t go to Lunch Bunch with us today. He asked me NOT to get the things we’ve been routinely adding to the grocery list since he’s been here. He’s trying to ‘wean himself off of’ some things he considers bad habits… He came home to help us when my husband had his stroke. I’m trying to prepare myself that he will need to go home soon. I wish he would stay with us forever. He’s such a fine man.

I’m happy to tell you that one of the two crayon melting tools came in the mail today!  I’m going to try to get up to my art room this afternoon and start playing! :0)

I’m on DAY 25 on my effort to do a session of yoga daily, and DAY 10 of getting-serious-about-Keto eating. I have six gold stars on my desk calendar so far this week (4 for yoga and 2 for the elliptical trainer.) I’m hoping to have 10 stars by the end of the day Sunday.

I hope your weather is beautiful and your outlook hopeful.

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September 25, 2019 · 10:57 am

Thoughts on a Wednesday 9-25-2019

We Love Earth – Blue Footed Boobies Bird

 

 

We are trying to change out two ballast transformers on fluorescent light fixtures in the garage. We had quite a fight with the first one, but FINALLY got it finished. We decided to ‘declare victory’ and rest for a bit before tackling the other. These have last 31 years, so you could say we have gotten our money’s worth. Still, it’s really stressful with my husband on the ladder, hands above his head, trying to get the job done with his inept go-fer trying to help as best she can…

I am on DAY 8 on getting-serious-about-keto. I lost 2 pounds yesterday!  Last night my son and I talked about how I could add more fat into my diet, since my macro showed I should be eating 5% carbs, 25% protein, and 75% fat. I had been eating way too much protein and not enough fat. I can add whipping cream to a cup of coffee. I can eat some macadamia nuts. I can – and did – add a tablespoon of olive oil to my salad last night.  I’m already eating eggs and cheese, but will try to find a ripe avocado. The last time I tried one, I didn’t care for it, but now is now and I’ll try again.  I will ‘test’ each addition on my CarbManger.com tracker, so I can be confident all is good on the macro and the total number of calories. I’m encouraged that the weight scale is finally starting to smirk at me, rather than showing a sad face.

DAY 23 on daily yoga today.  I’m happy that I can FEEL a difference in my body giving into the stretches as I breathe. The biggest problem is real stiffness when I’m in a sitting position and trying to stretch in any direction, but I’m making gradual progress. I’m also happy that I didn’t have any muscles yelling this morning about yesterday’s combo of the elliptical trainer and my yoga. I do that again tomorrow.

Funotic.com-WhereFunNeverEnds

I finished painting the last stained tee in my art room yesterday.

 

Here’s hoping we can get the second ballast transformer installed and still be in one piece and speaking to each other.

I wish YOU a calm, satisfying day.

 

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September 24, 2019 · 1:00 pm

Thoughts on a Tuesday 9-24-2019

Awesome Earth via Mara Spirig – LinkedIn

It’s really overcast today with heavy rain and flash flooding predicted.

When my husband and I went to take our trash bags down to the bottom of the driveway, there was lots of heavy equipment there – big trucks, backhoes, etc. We asked them what was happened and were delighted to hear they are running fiber optic lines!  That means that the news we heard awhile back that we might be getting an offer for a bundle of phone and much faster Internet services within a year and a half might be coming true!!!  I was so happy to hear it, I was clapping my hands and grinning like a loon. The man who told me flashed a big grin at me. :0)

Amazon.com

I decided to add my elliptical trainer to my exercise ‘regimen’ since our weather is finally cooling off some. My elliptical is in the garage, and with heat indices in the 100’s, I just let it gather dust out there. I did 35 minutes on it this morning – old lady speed, but worked off 260 calories and worked the muscles in a way that won’t hurt my joints. I’m planning to do this 3 times a week – Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. So this is Day 1 on the elliptical.

Penn Fitness Warehouse

Day 22 on yoga and Day 7 on Keto.  I MAY be getting into Ketosis. From what I’m reading it can take up to 10 days. I also learned from reading that I may be eating too much protein, and that might be delaying things. I’ll read more today and try to adjust my food. Meanwhile, I’m eating a piece of cheese. :0)

 

The Animal Zone

I’m still working on the long-sleeved tee I’m painting in my art room. I’m really having fun experimenting. (There is a freedom in painting a tee you would have had to throw away or use as a rag due to stains that won’t come out!) :0)  I’m trying to paint a snow scene. Yesterday I used SnowTex – a product that adds a bunch of texture and a 3-D look. I have no clue whether it will work or not, but I’m having a blast trying this.

Oakridge Elem Sch – Arlington Publ Schools

 

I hope that YOUR day has good news, hope for the future, a nice rain if you need it, and FUN.

 

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September 6, 2019 · 12:46 pm

Therapy

Bruderhof Communities

Playing in my art room is therapy for me. An escape from anything that is bothering me. A way to work out feelings. A joy in experimentation.

We converted a third bedroom into my art room several years ago. I helped my husband put up extra shelves all the way across one wall. We got extra stand-alone shelves and a drafting table advertised in the newspaper. We put up a few more shelves on another wall. I converted the closet into a supplies area. We put up another large table that is as long as one wall.  There is a ceiling fan from which I hung a cute mobile of merry-go-round horses.

Years ago my husband and son got together to give me a present of a lot of my favorite songs on CDs. I have a player up there, so I can fill the room with glorious music – some of which I danced to as a teenager a hundred years or so ago – and lose myself in the world of music and paint.

The only limitations is my imagination and my ability to make my visions come out on whatever I’m trying to paint. Lately I’ve been having ideas for tees on which I have spots that won’t come out in the wash. Since I’m a slob, I seem to have a never-ending supply of tees that can use a face lift.

Yesterday I finished another.

 

Lately I am trying to do things each day that make me stronger.  I’m getting back into exercising, monitoring what I eat more carefully, working in my flowers when the weather isn’t lethal, playing in my art room, spending time with our son, walking outside several times a day, and reading.

The result of all this is hopefully a stronger, happier, calmer me. I don’t have to be able to leap over tall buildings in a single bound, but being able to handle whatever comes as well as possible would be good.  I am in DAY 4 today. So far, so good!

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June 10, 2019 · 1:14 pm

Getting the Lard Off – Hopefully

World Of Female

Yesterday I officially started the Keto eating plan, hoping to continue to lose the lard, but also figuring that this plan will be much more flexible with our foreign exchange student, Alessandro, a 16-year-old soccer playing student from Italy. He joins us for 10 months starting in August, and I want to be well into our new good habits by then.

I’m using a wonderful book called, “Keto After 50” by James Wilson. Since “50” sounds young to ME, I like this approach which is modified for older people. I’ve been reading a ton on the net, too, since one of my concerns will be high fat – to be processed by this older body with no gallbladder. Happily, I found that I can take a couple of supplements that will help with this.

My husband is a Type II diabetic (although he only admits to having a ‘sugar problem’) It’s super important to me that I keep him on an even keel. He is almost to his weight goal now (within 10 pounds – HOOORAAAAY!) while his WIFE continues to battle the lard. :0)

At this point I’ve lost 43 pounds and almost 48 inches.  I want to lose another 30 to 35 pounds and then stay there, with good eating and exercise habits.

We started on Nutrisystem, but then decided that we have learned 1) what we were doing wrong, and 2) how we’re supposed to be cooking and eating. We are almost doing the Keto program already, having stopped (mostly) eating bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, sugar, and salt. We splurge every once in a while, but that’s a quality of life thing for us.

I’m ordering supplements and gathering good recipes. I’m trying to reorganize our pantry – AGAIN – both to plan for the new eating system AND to make room for a lot more cooking than I’ve done in awhile. (It’ll be a real culture shock for us to feed a 16-year-old athlete – and from ITALY!)

Since I’m working in the yard and/or the garden almost daily, I’m going to TRY for more formal exercise three times a week. I’ll stick with my elliptical trainer, my yoga for ‘older’ women, and either the walking video or the dance video each week.

I told you I started this yesterday. The scale showed me down 1.2 pounds this morning, so I’m encouraged at this point – knowing that my weight loss will slow with time. I’m concentrating on doing the first two weeks – eating 20 grams of carbohydrates or less per day.

Wish me luck?

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May 31, 2019 · 4:45 pm

Getting the Lard Off Report – May 2019 – The Long and Short of It

Gifer – Gifek.net

THE SHORT OF IT – I’ve lost 43 pounds and 47.7 inches.

THE LONG OF IT – We have held our own – more or less – with making our own food. We have splurged more than we probably ‘should,’ but we’re learning to eat much smaller portions and be satisfied, and we’re still managing to avoid the worst of the things that USED to be our staples – rice, potatoes, and pasta – plus sugar and salt.

It’s easy to fool yourself, that this splurge isn’t ‘that bad’ – but we have systems in place that give us honest information: our scales, our tape measure, our blood sugar monitoring system and our blood pressure kit. Heedless of advice to the contrary, we weigh every morning. We don’t expect huge results, but it serves to remind us in a tangible way that we are trying to make some changes. I measure now at the end of each month. Again, to hold myself accountable and to celebrate any progress. We test for blood sugar and take our blood pressure twice a week, as our doctor advises. My husband is a Type II diabetic, and I seem to be borderline – so we’re really serious about avoiding sugar and things that spike our results. If we have a good number, that’s good. If we don’t, we think about what we ate that could have caused the spike. Again, monitoring is the key.

I would love to say we have continued to lose weight this month; but, so far, not gaining is the best we’ve been able to do. We have played the “too-tired-to-cook” game, where we call in and order fried rice to be picked up, or a pizza. But apparently, not enough of that to cause us to derail completely – so that’s a really good thing.

We are being really active for us – working in the yard, gardening, hauling and laying bricks (plus the shoveling and hard clean-up afterwards) – so that is good, too, as far as our effort to keep moving.

Now we’re going to concentrate on tweaking what we’ve started so that we DON’T just stay the same. Our goal is to lose more weight. My husband thinks he wants to lose another 10 pounds. I would like to lose another 30. This month has just been a place holder. We haven’t LOST ground, but we haven’t lost any more weight, either.

Our goal for June will be to splurge less, plan for cooking more – in batches so I don’t have to start from scratch every night – and actually lose some more lard by the end of the month.

Fingers crossed!

 

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May 2, 2019 · 10:24 am

Encouragement

Depositphotos

For a long time I’ve been at an ‘awkward stage’ when it comes to finding jeans that fit reasonably.

One of my good friends gave me some jeans to tide me over several months ago. It was funny because women’s sizes are so wonky that some of the smaller ones fit while the larger size was too small!

Anyway, the last couple of times we went bowling, she said my jeans were baggy. My problem was that yes, these were baggy, but the next size down was too small!

My husband and I went to the exclusive department at Walmart yesterday with the goal of either finding a ‘skinny’ cut in my current size or ‘fat’ cut in the next size down.

We ended up with a ‘W’ stretch version of the next size down in petite. (In real English this means I’m short and wide.) I actually did a happy dance (woo-HOOOOO!) in the fitting room when I actually was able to pull them up and zip them with no problem! I came out to where my husband was waiting and he gave them a thumbs up. :0)

We went back and found a second pair, so now I can wear one pair while the other is in the laundry.

Since I’m planning to lose another 30 lbs, these two pairs of jeans will hold me over until I reach another landmark.

Business Victories

 

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April 20, 2019 · 5:03 pm

Day Four of Being Back on the Horse!

The Funny Beaver

I’m working on Day Four of doing what I’m supposed to do on my eating and exercise plan. I just put the fourth gold star on my calendar for the week, starting with Wednesday.

I’ve lost 3 pounds this week and have exercised every day since the magical Wednesday.

  • Wednesday I did 35 minutes on my elliptical trainer in the garage, albeit slowly. (I had a hitch in my get-a-long with my right hip protesting until I had done about 10 minutes. Then it eased up.)
  • Thursday I did yoga stretches for the first time in too long, and again moved very slowly and carefully. (I got an indication of how messed up I was when I laid down on my back and it took a good minute or so of trying to relax before it didn’t hurt.)
  • Friday I did my “Walking with Annoying Leslie”  video. I was only able to do one mile, rather than two.
  • Today – Saturday – I did the Wii Fit Plus Balance ‘games.’ (I think I’m making progress in my attitude, though, because I actually LAUGHED when they insulted me.) It started with when they weigh you, then announce, “OH! You’ve gained weight since last time! (Imagine what they would have said if I had tried it BEFORE I lost 3 lbs. this week.) Balance is one of my biggest challenges which is why I put up with the insults. I DO get better with practice, and I don’t want to fall on my head or break my bones.
  • Tomorrow – Sunday – I’ll do my dance video.

One thing I did that is helping me stay on track is re-sign-up with MyFitnessPal.com. There are fancier food and exercise tracking sites, but these people have the easiest food tracking system I’ve found. I don’t have to put in EACH ingredient in a recipe, for example. I can check-mark a repeated food each day without having to enter it again. I’m trying to stay under 1200 calories per day, but I’m combining that with recipes from my Keto book and other low-carb books, so I’m not as worried about it – just trying to keep myself honest about what I’m stuffing into my face.

I’m also trying to do

  • something outside each day that the weather is cooperative – such as weed-whacking or gardening.
  • also something cleaning related in the house. Today it was cleaning the screened back porch of a super-thick layer of yellow pollen, dog and cat hair, dirt, and other yuck, so that we can enjoy some meals out there before it gets too hot.

Both of these things make me feel I’m accomplishing something, plus keep me moving.

So far, it’s working.

I’ve lost 40.6 pounds and 43 inches so far. My goal, at this point, is to lose another 30 lbs. I want to be in the average range for my height (and I’m getting SHORTER, rather than taller) on BMI charts, and fit into some reasonable size at a regular department store for clothes, rather than having to hit the fat section of Walmart forever. I want to be as healthy as I can for my age (72) and not be restricted so much on what I can do without my body complaining.

One day at a time – today I’ve done my exercising, cleaned the back porch, and now I’ll head out to do some weed whacking.

I hope you’re having a happy day.

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April 17, 2019 · 12:56 pm

Trying to Get Back Up on the Horse

Kveller.com

In the interest of full disclosure, I’m up 5 pounds lately, so have lost 38 pounds and 43 inches  from my lardiest.  I want to lose 32 pounds more and whatever inches go with that. I’ll try for 2 lbs. per week.

My husband and I have made several decisions as to how we want to eat now. We are STILL trying to eat all the remaining Nutrisystem food we have on hand, even though we stopped deliveries a couple of months or so ago.  We were thinking of changing to A La Carte and then decided we have learned all we’re going to from the program and it’s time we did our own thing.

We’ve learned a lot about portion sizes (we were each eating for about 6). We are eating a lot more veggies, mainly poultry or fish as entrees, lots of salad, fruit and nuts. We are eating as little sugar as possible and have also mostly given up salt, except for a little bit in recipes. I’m drinking a lot more water and my husband likes Arizona Zero Peach Iced Tea for cold drinks. I still have my coffee (black) and my husband enjoys Sugar Free Alpine Spiced Apple Cider mix for a hot drink. (He is a Type II diabetic, but is doing super-well with his blood sugar now.) We have mostly given up rice, pasta, and potatoes. My husband is gravitating toward eating lunch and dinner with some snacks in-between. He is almost to his weight goal.

I’m continuing to TRY to exercise daily, but I am the best excuse-maker who ever lived.  Today, though, I finally got back on my elliptical trainer in our garage and did 35 minutes. I had to go more slowly, since my right hip was ‘catching’ a bit until I finally loosened up, but I feel fine now, and I put a gold star on my calendar for the day. :0)

My goal is to exercise daily, but I tend to beg off if I’m working in the yard much of the day. I’m going to TRY to do the exercise in the morning, rather than waiting until the day is in full swing.

Wish me luck?

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March 10, 2019 · 11:38 am

Happy Pat on the Head

I’m a sucker for all kinds of ‘feel-able’ pats on the head: gold stars on my desk calendar when I’ve done whatever exercise is scheduled for the day; and these cute little bears that NutriSystem sends out for each 10 pounds one loses.

As you can see from the picture above, I’ve gotten my 4th bear – the one for 40 lbs off. (Actually, right now I’m at 43 pounds off  :0) )  There is also 44.2 inches less of me than there used to be.

I have a good start now. I will try to get another 30 pounds off, and whatever number of inches that goes with that any my exercises.

The really big thing is that I FEEL BETTER.  I’m 72 as of yesterday, and I can honestly say I feel better than I did a year ago. On March 9th of 2020, I hope to be able to say the same thing, whether or not I’ve reached my weight loss goal.

Smaller, but again – a VISIBLE thing  – is that I’m able to fit in favorite clothes I’ve kept in closets for years, hoping that ‘one day’ I would be able to wear them again. There are still several things in the ‘hope’ area of my guest room closet. :0)  I’m between sizes on jeans right now, for example. The size I’m wearing is a bit baggy, but I’m still too lardy for the next size down. I’m also able to order some smaller sizes online, too.

I’m sleeping better with the loss of the lard and my efforts to move more. I get up from the computer after I post something here, do some chore inside or outside before posting again, for example. I’m also trying to do my exercises like a good old girl daily. I’m more successful some weeks than others. I’m doing something different each day – yoga and abdominal exercises one day, a dance video another, the Wii Fit Plus ‘games’ for balance and reaction time (I’m still awful and the program is still insulting me), the walking with Annoying Leslie one day, and the elliptical trainer in the garage one day. Now that spring is near (thank GOODNESS!) I’m working in the yard when the weather permits.

Though I’m getting old-in-the-tooth, I can usually gather enough energy to continue going through the house, concentrating on purging, then cleaning and reorganizing one area at a time. Today it’s the supplies shelves in our office after we go grocery shopping.

Motivation is high though results are slow. I think the older you get the harder it is to get any lard off or make appreciable difference in fitness or stamina, but I’m game as long as I’m breathing!

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January 31, 2019 · 12:02 pm

The Long View on Our Diet and Exercise Efforts

gif-finder.com – Use Your Blinker

Over a year ago I was at my heaviest. My joints hurt. I didn’t exercise, and didn’t even want to THINK about it. I was depressed. My clothes kept becoming too small. I couldn’t shop at regular stores for clothes anymore. My digestion was poor. I was on a lot of medications. I dreaded going for doctor appointments, and especially having to get on the scales.

My husband and I tried low carb, and we did some good, and then we started Nutrisystem in April of last year. It was May before we could get our act together on eating, and even longer for me to start trying to move more.

I measured and weighed this morning. We’re still trying to lose what we gained during the holidays and our son’s visit, but we’re getting there. I looked at where I was at my heaviest for inspiration and motivation today.

Since my heaviest, I’ve lost 39.2 pounds and 47.7 inches. I’m trying to exercise daily and consciously get up and move more during the day. I love being at my computer, but between sessions I get up and DO something – like my exercise for the day, or another session on the great purge of my house I started last year. I’m now on Phase II and am working in the pantry today.

I want to lose another 30 pounds so I’ll be in the ‘healthy’ range on BMI and insurance charts. I’ve improved my numbers on blood tests a lot since I’ve gotten serious about trying to get healthier, and so has my husband, who has Type 2 Diabetes. (His blood sugar was 84 this morning!) We have gotten better numbers on our cholesterol, lipids, etc., and our doctor is nodding happily. (We hope she’ll do so again at our 6 month check-up on Monday)

I want to have GOOD numbers on blood pressure, blood tests, etc. And I would LIKE to improve my strength, balance, stability, flexibility and more so I can do what I’d like to do for as long as humanly possible. It would be great if I could lessen joint pain, too.

So – even though we’re not back to where we were before the holidays yet, the long-term difference is good.  We both weigh significantly less than we did at one point. We’re healthier than we were over a year ago, and we’re taking better care of ourselves.

My husband is reading something on his Kindle that is catching his attention about health – something that used to be quite unusual for him. He said that people whose waistlines were 80% of their height lived, on average, 20 years less than folks who had more moderate waistlines. He also read that salmon is good for us, and asked if I would fix some.

It’s now on tonight’s menu!

 

 

 

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January 28, 2019 · 4:54 pm

Turning Over Several New Leaves

5 Ingredient Banana Nut Muffins – The Leaf Recipes – Nutrisystem

LEAF ONE:  My husband and I decided that we would stop the regular Nutrisystem program for a while. Due to our doing our own thing and our son coming home for a three-week visit, we had an over-abundance of NS meals we needed to eat. The Nutrisystem people were kind enough to honor our request for a hiatus in shipments until the first of March. We since have made another big decision: we’re going to stop the regular programs we were on in favor of ordering A LA CARTE for each of us. This way we can get what we want and not have things we’re not crazy about, but have paid for to eat. I also priced what we plan to order in March, and we’ll save significant money. Win/win.

LEAF TWO:  I’ve decided to try more of the flex meals and snacks, cooking more than I have been – (other than comfort food things, such as beef stew.) Some snacks I’ve been eating are bothering me and I want to have healthy snacks on hand. I already eat a lot of raw veggies at lunch, so I’ve been scrambling a bit. Today I fixed “5-Ingredient Banana Nut Muffins” from the Flex Snack Group of Recipes on The Leaf, a part of the Nutrisystem website. The muffins are cooling on the counter as we speak. I’m hoping they’ll be yummy.

My husband was asking that I fix chicken tonight, so we bought some boneless, skinless chicken breasts while we were out. Tonight I’m going to try another new recipe, “Baked Chicken Tenders.” 

“Baked Chicken Tenders” – The Leaf – Nurtrisystem

LEAF THREE:  You’ve probably heard me say this before, but I’m saying it AGAIN – I’m going to try to get into my new routine of daily exercise.

This morning I did 35 minutes on my elliptical trainer in the garage. I’m trying to do something different each day to make my body sit up and take notice. Tomorrow I’ll do half an hour or so of yoga and abdominal exercises. Wednesday I’ll do a walking video. Thursday I’ll do Wii Fit Plus, particularly for the balance and reaction time games. Friday I’ll do my new dance/exercise video. Exercise on the weekends will be optional – or will be make up days for anything I missed.

I’ve been stuck at 30 pounds and 30 inches off for quite a while, mostly due to my own failings. I would like to continue on from here, making some good progress again.

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December 20, 2018 · 11:19 am

Progress Report – Trying to Get the Lard Off

I’m still at 31 pounds off and 31 inches off.

Really slow progress, but during the holidays, I think holding our own is pretty good, considering all the social eating we’re doing.

The thing that is different is my exercising.

I’m trying to change my activity each day, hoping to get my body’s attention. I’m doing –

  • Yoga and abdominal exercises one day
  • 35 minutes on the elliptical trainer another
  • Wii Fit Plus exercises one day each week
  • My walking video one day
  • then start again from the top

I’ve said some disparaging things about my walking video, but I have to tell you that, though I find her annoying, I DO feel I’ve had a workout at the end of the 2-mile marker. My goal is to do that, plus the exercises she has AFTER the two miles one day soon.

We’ve been having a lot of friends over lately, for the holidays – but also the fact our son is home from Thailand for the first time in 3 years and we want them to reconnect. We’re having a blast doing that, but it all involves eating something. At this time of the year, serving Nutrisystem diet food or even snacks is definitely a no-no, so we’ve been eating outside our normal parameters many days during the week and will continue this until after our son leaves. If we can just MAINTAIN, rather than GAIN during this time, I’ll be really happy.

I hope that you are having great times with friends and family, too. This is usually a bittersweet time of the year for us, having very few family members left and the ones we have far away. Our son has brought us joy this year and we’re enjoying every minute.

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November 29, 2018 · 2:34 pm

Getting the Lard Off Progress Report -11/29/2018

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Short answer –

I’ve lost 30.6 pounds and 29.55 inches on Nutrisystem. When you add what I lost on a low-carb emphasis before that, the totals are 43 pounds off and 45.95 inches off.

Longer answer –

We are still on the plateau from Hell, but we’ve been eating homemade beef stew and bread for dinners three nights in a row, so I guess it’s amazing we didn’t GAIN weight this week.

The larger point is that we are AWARE of what we’re eating now. We’re incorporating flex meals (where you eat something other than Nutrisystem meals) into our lifestyle. We’re SUPPOSED to eat ONE flex breakfast, ONE flex lunch, ONE flex dinner, and ONE flex snack per week. We’re going to have to continue doing some changing to be able to eat only ONE meal of beef stew and then freeze the rest for other weeks, rather than simply having a bowl each night until it’s gone.

Other changes noted –

  • I’m ALMOST down another size in jeans. I say, ‘almost,’ because I have four pair of the next size down and I’m only able to get into one of them. (I’ll claim victory when I can get into all of them.)
  • I can again wear a fuzzy brown vest we bought in the Grand Canyon Gift Shop umpteen years ago. I wore it for that winter, but then it has been WAAAAY too small to even get on, much less zip it up, ever since.
  • I am incorporating a bunch of abdominal exercises into my yoga practice every other day. My husband started trying to do sit-ups when I was on vacation. He’s a former Marine, and was able to ‘give me 50″ at the drop of his superior’s hat easily. That was some 55 years ago now, and he was appalled that he couldn’t do ANY. He is now up to about 10. I discovered I was equally challenged, but I’ve been working at it about 6 months longer than he. I’m up to 30 now, plus am doing leg lifts, and whatever you call the exercise where you’re lying on your back and you have your arms folded behind your neck and try to touch opposite elbows and knees while in a sit-up pose. We’re trying to cheer each other on in our efforts.

Most of our progress lately has been in attitude and confidence that we CAN lose the lard and get stronger with persistent effort. We have made a lifestyle change, trying to be aware of what we’re eating, the portion we’re eating, and modifying the rest of the day if we overdo at one meal. We’re consciously trying to move more and gain strength and flexibility. I’m also working on balance stuff, but have a long way to go on that, too. I’ll feel as if I’ve REALLY made progress when the hardest thing is NOT getting up off the floor from my exercising! :0)

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November 27, 2018 · 12:43 pm

A Partial Win

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We went bowling with our long-time friends last night. After we had started bowling, my friend said, “Your jeans are loose!” I, of course, grinned at her, since I’ve been trying to get the lard off seriously since April.  (So far, I’ve come down three sizes.)

When we got home, I found 4 pairs of the next-size-down jeans (don’t even THINK of asking me WHAT size). I tried them all on. ONE pair was easy to get on! The other three were still too tight.

I showed my husband the one pair and then put them on my bureau to encourage me in my continuing efforts to lose the lard.

I think this says more about women’s wonky sizing than it does about my weight loss efforts, but I’ll take a ‘win’ any time I can get one!

Here’s to being able to wear the OTHER three pairs sometime in the near future!!!!

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November 15, 2018 · 4:18 pm

Progress Report – Getting the Lard Off 11-15-2018

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Before I started NutriSystem, I lost 12.4 pounds trying to follow a low carb diet plan. Since I’ve been on NutriSystem, I’ve lost another 30.6 pounds. Total = 43 pounds.

 

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I’ve lost a total of 45.45 inches so far.

There are two big differences –

THING ONE –

At my last doctor appointment, my blood test showed significant improvement in my lipid profile. I was down in ALL the sections, where I had been way higher than desirable before.  I have had to go for blood tests and monitoring quarterly for as long as I can remember. She said to return in 6 MONTHS.

THING TWO –

My exercising is finally yielding ‘feel good’ results. I’ve finally settled on yoga and exercises one day and elliptical trainer the next. I’m giving myself a gold star on my desk calendar as I finish each day’s exercise. :0)   I was doing yoga yesterday. My husband apparently came in and sat down in his chair, watching me. When I finished, he told me how impressed he was with my efforts, particularly in increased flexibility and in my exercises for the abdominal area. To say that a compliment is rare is a vast understatement. It just doesn’t occur to him to say anything. I was grinning from ear to ear!

PLUS – Since I outdid him on sit-ups, and also did a bicycle type thing and some leg lifts, I think I may have spurred HIM on in HIS efforts!!!!

 

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November 10, 2018 · 10:39 am

10-20-30!

Yesterday I received my new month’s worth of Nutrisystem AND my 30-pounds-off-bear-reward!

I’ve already admitted to you that I’m immature and respond really well to childish forms of pats-on-the-head, and it’s really the truth. I give myself a gold star on my desk calendar each day when I do either my yoga and exercises or my elliptical trainer. I look at my sweet lineup of bears and smile, feeling a definite pat on the head for my lardage loss thus far. It also motivates me to go for the next one!

My husband and I decided that we would split the cash-back reward on our credit card. He immediately ordered a pistol he’s been drooling over for a LONG time. I told him that I would spend my share slowly, indulging in some new clothes – one size down from what I’m currently wearing – as further motivation to continue losing the lard.

Since one of the parts of me that won’t change is my FEET, I ordered some really colorful “happy” shoes from China from a place called, “Yes, We Vibe.”

 

 

 

 

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November 8, 2018 · 11:28 am

Getting the Lard Off Progress Report – 11/8/2018

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The short answer is 30.6 pounds down, and 28.3 inches off.

The longer answer is that we are feeling more ‘at home’ with our new eating style. My husband and I are both on Nutrisystem, but they encourage flex meals – meals where you cook, or eat out, or branch out in some way from the Nutrisystem meals – one breakfast, one lunch, one dinner, and one snack per week.

We are actually doing more flex meals than that -opting for a heartier dinner salad some nights, or similar things. An example, even though we’re only supposed to eat one flex dinner per week, we had a cold snap and the idea of homemade beef stew with some bread sounded really good. We ended up eating this combo for three nights straight, and then my husband was sad we didn’t have more :0)  The best news was that we not only kept our weight, but actually lost some.  So, we’re feeling more in control of our eating, our program, our goals.

We’re both exercising now. My husband spent four years in the Marine Corps, doing 50 sit-ups at the drop of a hat, or at a superior’s whim, with ease. Then, 55 years past. He tried to do a sit up about 6 weeks ago, while I was visiting a much beloved relative in Thibodaux, and was shocked that he couldn’t do ANY. (I was also amazed that he actually told me about his trial and shock, but told him that I was proud of him for trying, and that I knew if he kept at it, he would get stronger.)  He now is doing 5 strongly, and 2 or 3 more with great effort. I can’t tell you how pleased I am that he’s giving it his best shot every day. The doc told him to do cardio, but I’m not pushing it yet.

I have a stupid motivator in my own efforts to exercise daily – gold stars – like we used to get a million years ago for good work in school. My attitude is, “It it works, RUN IT!” I feel a bit silly, but it really works for me. I’m trying to do 35 minutes on my elliptical trainer one day, and about half an hour of yoga stretches and regular exercises the next. Yesterday was really busy, and it was late afternoon before I knew it. I thought, “oh, well, I’ll just do the elliptical tomorrow. One day won’t hurt.”  Then, as I sat there, I thought about not getting my gold star for the day. At 6:00 in the evening, I got up, went out to the garage, and put in my time. :0)

My husband often ‘isn’t hungry.” I NEVER have that problem. I have an appetite that would kill a horse. I get HUNGRY and if I don’t eat something, I get SNIPPY, CRANKY, and “MEAN AS A SNAKE,” according to my husband. The other silly motivator is the Nutrisystem bears you can get for each 10 pounds you lose. (My 30 pound bear is on its way!) I line them up on a shelf beside my computer chair in the office. When I’m tempted to go in and stuff my face at the wrong time, I think about getting the next bear…

Halfway to my goal now on lardage!

 

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November 1, 2018 · 11:47 am

I DID It!

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I FINALLY  reached 30 pounds off in my efforts to get the lard off!  I went on chat on the Nutrisystem website, since I hadn’t received any notification or ‘reward’ redemption thingie in my email, and the kind lady said she would make sure my 30# off bear was included in my next order. :0)

To date:  30.6 lbs off. 28.5 inches off.  I think I’m about half way to my goal now, but I’ll see how I feel when I get there. My progress has been slow, but steady, so I’m happy that I can definitely see progress since April.

I still have to talk to myself about exercising, having a LOT of interests that involve sitting – computer stuff, like my blog, reading, working in my art room, etc. When the weather is good, though, I’m outside at least once a day, working in the greenhouse, weeding, or hacking something down, killing ants, and more.

I’m doing better since I decided to do my yoga stretches and exercises one day and my elliptical trainer the next, rather than trying to get both into one day. I’m a bit embarrassed to tell you that I bought sheets of gold stars – putting one on the calendar each day I do one or the other. Stupid – but it works for me. I say, “If it works, run it.” :0)

I’m especially happy that I lost weight this week. We splurged a lot this week, eating fried fish dinners at the grocery deli once, and eating breakfast out twice this week due to a botched attempt to get a blood test yesterday and a successful attempt today. Tomorrow is Lunch Bunch, and we’ll get chicken ‘thingies.’

The thing we’re learning is how to modify our eating the rest of the day when we eat out one meal in the real world. We’re still following the eating plan, but modifying our choices so that we stay on track better as far as calories for the day.  I have also found that, since we’re eating out more often, I don’t tend to get into the “YIPPEE!” mentality, where I eat completely bad choices like ‘this-is-the-last-time-I’ll-get-to-splurge,’ eating for 6 and feeling remorse later.  If it’s reasonable, I eat half and bring the other half home to eat some other time. I’m making better choices, such as a veggie omelette today, with no sides.

Slowly, we’re making this eating plan more ours. A life plan, rather than a way of eating for some specified period of time. I’m not feeling as tied to the program, panicking when we get off for any reason. I’m starting to cook more, bit by bit, though we ARE enjoying lots of raw veggies and salads now than ever, and my husband lives for his ‘grapes-and-nuts’ snacks.

 

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October 21, 2018 · 10:27 am

Pigged Out

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We had a really nice day yesterday, full of good weather, projects for the day being accomplished, enjoying our animals, and – to end it on the perfect note – we grilled steaks on the deck and had them with baked potatoes.

I told you we’re TRYING to learn portions. Oh, well. Last night we pigged out and ate the whole thing.

We KNOW that if this were a Nutrisystem meal, they would have included 1/3 or less of the steak – sliced thinly and with a gravy, 1/3 or less of the potato (and probably cheesed it up a bit). We would have eaten a salad with it.

Instead, we each ate our whole steak and the whole baked potato with butter while enjoying a Jackie Chan movie in the living room.  The package of steak included three steaks, so I’m going to cut THAT up and we’ll have dinner salads in the evenings as our meal until that is gone.

So, now we’re up a pound since the meal and vowing we’ll do better the NEXT time we eat a flex meal…

On a wonderful note, my husband got his new jeans yesterday and they fit perfectly and he looks wonderful. His waist is now a good 4 inches smaller now. I just bagged up three larger sizes of jeans we’ll take – along with the leaf bag of tops that are too large for me now :0)  – to the Veterans Thrift Store tomorrow to donate. He still has some tummy he wants to get rid of, but he’s really close to a good weight now. I’m trying to encourage him to do some sit ups. :0)

I got a really good session of yoga in yesterday, doing a combination of stretches, regular exercises, and really relaxing at the end. Today I’ll concentrate on the elliptical trainer. I’ve decided to try doing these on alternate days, since I can’t seem to do both on one day very often.

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October 18, 2018 · 11:38 am

The Big Picture

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I guess we started really trying to lose the lard about a year and a half ago. We were doing low carb. I was cooking a lot, we were losing some weight, but not steadily enough. My husband’s blood sugar was better, but not good enough to qualify for insurance that required a health exam. The policy we had was going to skyrocket in premium on his birthday in November (Happy birthday to you…). He was still having bad symptoms from his diabetes.

I have been overweight for quite a while. I don’t like it. I got better with the low carb diet, but I need to lose a significant amount of weight to be healthy. We were kidding ourselves, SAYING we were on a low carb diet, and then ‘splurging’ on a regular basis, eating our favorite fast foods out once or twice a week. We finally got serious last April and signed up for NutriSystem. My husband is almost at his weight goal now. He just tried on some new, smaller jeans this morning. Better, but still too large. He has now ordered the next size smaller. :0)

Best of all, our doctor is patting us on the head. We’ve been going to quarterly doctor appointments, with blood tests for our various problems, for a long time. Last time we went, my numbers were so significantly better that she put me on 6 month appointments. My husband has one more quarterly appointment next month, and we’re hoping he’ll come back every six months, too! He qualified for a 10-year level term life insurance policy for twice as much insurance as we had. They jacked the premium up because of his age, but no one can control that, so we’re grateful to be covered now.

I’ve been keeping a spreadsheet on my lardage loss, to help me see the big picture, particularly when I don’t see much change for a week or two. The big picture shows –

Weight loss with NS is 28 pounds. Total loss since my highest lardage is 40 pounds.

Inches loss with NS is a bit over 23 inches. Total loss since my highest lardage is 39-1/2 inches.

Results at doc’s office –

  • Weight is down
  • Blood pressure is under good control with medication
  • My cholesterol is in the normal range now
  • Lipid profile is all showing in the normal range now

It feels good to be actively doing things that will increase our overall health.  We’re eating right and learning to eat outside the program without throwing things out of whack. We are not feeling deprived, with fast food items floating in front of our faces, as they used to. We are more active. I’m trying to get on the elliptical trainer at least every other day. I’m doing yoga stretching almost every day. I’m actively trying to ‘move more’ with specific chores I would like to do each day, such as housework and working in the yard. I write a post or two for my blog :0)  and then I get up and either do a chore, or exercise, over and over, throughout the day. I’m encouraging my husband, who is trying to do sit ups, to do more than ‘intend to,’ though I’m certainly no role model.

We ARE making progress – particularly when we look at the big picture. Seeing this is motivation to keep on keepin’ on.

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October 17, 2018 · 10:12 am

Still Riding on a High

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My husband and I are just starting to be able to acknowledge and enjoy the fact that there is less of us than there used to be. I’ve lost almost 30 pounds and almost 28 inches now. It’s only about half way to my goal, and to be honest, other than going down a size or two in jeans, I haven’t seen much difference in clothes.

This changed, finally, with my cleaning-out-the-closet project, switching warm weather stuff for cool the past several days. I forced myself to try on everything I had moved to my closet, finding a really full leaf bag full of tops that were too large. Not just really roomy, but falling-off-the-shoulders and exposing-my-whole-front type too large. :0)   I showed you some pics recently of the sweater/jacket I am finally able to wear after several years of moving it back and forth, always way too small, and now it FITS.

I’ve seen a change in my husband, too. Not only can I see a difference looking at him, I’ve noticed that he’s taking more interest in his clothes now. He just ordered some new jeans, asking me to measure him to be surer of the size. (We’re in a mystery area right now. We KNOW we’re smaller, but tend to still order as we did when we were larger. Even though I tried to use the charts provided at an online store, I found the clothes were too large when they arrived.)

Anyway, he’s wearing some new shirts, some brighter colors, and tries to think about which of his flannel shirts he’s wearing over the tee underneath, where it was haphazard, at best, before. I’ve been complimenting him, and it’s delightful to watch him try not to show how pleased he is. Now I’m working on encouraging his efforts to do some exercise…

We’re both trying to change our eating habits. When my husband finally got serious about giving up sugar to try to get a handle on his Type II diabetes, I gave up salt. I didn’t just add salt to almost everything, I even added salt to salty things. We figure that losing the weight and getting healthier is a good trade for our former addictions.

One new addition – we’ve been having a salad nightly, along with our Nutrisystem entree. My husband has been enjoying this, and was even pleased that I’m adding cherry tomatoes to it. When I added a touch of chopped walnuts to the mix (thanks, Mary Lou) he liked THAT, too. I’m adding a few garbanzo beans to my salad, and my husband still nixes that, but he says he looks forward to our salads in the evening.

We’re still working on portion control. This is a really alien concept, since the two of us apparently have routinely been eating for ourselves and several other folks at each meal. Now we’re learning to have ONE portion of something with a side of veggies or salad. I told you yesterday that I was learning to divide my meal from a restaurant in half, bringing half home to eat some other time. It’s a process, but one we’ll build with exercise.

By the way, I FINISHED the closet-clean-out project yesterday, organizing the warm weather stuff in the guest room closet so it’s ready to move easily next time. Hopefully, by the time we’re ready for warm/hot weather stuff NEXT time, I’ll be able to fill another leaf bag!!!

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October 16, 2018 · 10:22 am

The Sweater-Jacket

I found this sweater/jacket 5 years ago or so and simply loved it. Sadly, it was too small, but I TOLD myself that I would lose some weight and finally be able to wear it. I’ve moved it back and forth from the guest closet to my closet, trying it on once a year since then, with the same result. Even with my determination to get rid of things all over the house, including clothes that don’t fit, I just COULDN’T part with it.

Deep purple is my color. Whenever I see a group of things, all the same except for color, I’m drawn to the dark purple one. The fact that this sweater-jacket had leather on the front, with cut out flowers, made me drool (though I was careful NOT to on the sweater!)

 

This is the back. It can be worn as a top or added as a jacket.

 

Here’s a close up of the flowers.

 

I haven’t lost poundage or lardage this week. The scales are still flirting with 30 pounds off, but I’m not there yet. My measuring tape is unimpressed, showing the same as last week, even though I’ve been working, cleaning, and exercising. The one thing that stands out is from my switching from summer to winter clothes and trying things on.

I have a full leaf bag now of tops that are too large AND my sweater/jacket finally FITS.  YES!!!!!!

I’m about half way to my goal in weight loss and inches now. It may take the rest of my natural life to get there, but I’m on my way!

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October 2, 2018 · 1:13 pm

Efforts to Get the Lard Off

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I’ve told you I spent 5 days in Thibodaux, Louisiana, recently, visiting my husband’s cousin’s wife, Murray, one of the sweetest people on Earth. I had a great time, getting lots of good hugs,meeting a lot of fine people, and eating lots of good food. I threw caution to the winds, eating whatever seemed reasonable at the time, enjoying every bite.

If you’ve been reading my blog, you also know about my continuing effort to get the lard off – a daunting goal when you’re weight, age, and exercise challenged by nature.

I gained almost 4 pounds in the 5 days I was gone, but I got right back on the Nutrisystem horse when I returned. My husband and I even had a flex meal of steak and baked potatoes the other night, but we’re learning to compensate for flex meals better now.

This morning I was pleased to note that, not only had I lost the 4 pounds I had gained, but also hit a new low on the scales! I’m happy to report that as of this morning I’ve lost 26 pounds and 22.55 inches since we started on Nutrisystem this time. (I say, “this time,” because we were on it in the past, several years ago, and quit, due to NS dropping all the meals my husband liked.)

I’m also REALLY happy to tell you that my husband is trying to do some sit ups!  This is a former Marine, used to doing a LOT of exercise to stay in shape while in the Corps. This is also the man who told me, “No way!” when I suggested that HE try to exercise, too. He has been encouraging ME, but steadfastly refuse to do any type of exercise himself.

(He caught a cold from my bringing home germs from my trip, and so has taken a few days off, but is really trying to do these each day. I have learned that, even if you can’t do the exercises or stretches as you would like, ATTEMPTING to do them on a regular basis strengthens and/or lengthens muscles, too, and so the effort is fruitful.

 

 

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September 19, 2018 · 11:05 am

Icing on the Cake

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I’ve told you that my husband and I decided that we needed to do everything we could to get and stay healthier. We know we can’t control everything – by far – but there are things that we can do that will improve our quality of life and hopefully allow us to spend many more years together.

My husband was diagnosed with Type II diabetes a couple of years ago. We adopted a low carb diet and each of us lost some weight, but we needed more help. We decided to try Nutrisystem in April, since they had a program that was geared for diabetics (although my husband denies he has diabetes. He calls it a ‘sugar problem.’) Whatever you CALL it, it had already resulted in pain in his legs and feet and double vision, among other symptoms.  He was turned down for term life insurance. We had to go for the no exam type for low coverage and high premiums.

We had our quarterly doctor’s appointment in August. My husband’s A1C was almost NORMAL. (Isn’t that a lovely word?)  The doctor says if he keeps improving the way he’s been going, he might be able to stop taking the blood sugar medicine altogether in the future! Besides losing weight – since he has tried to cut out as much sugar as possible – the double vision is gone. The pain in his feet and legs is gone.

My blood test numbers were up to 65 points improved in all areas. I had been high in everything, even on the low carb diet, so this was a huge improvement. The doctor was really pleased and said I didn’t need to come back for 6 MONTHS!  My husband has one more 3 month appt in November, and if he has continued to do well, he’ll move to 6 MONTH appts, too!

The icing on the cake – and peace of mind – is that yesterday we found out he had been ACCEPTED by the insurance company for a 10-year level term life insurance policy!!! WOO HOO!  The policy we had was due to skyrocket in premiums in November on his birthday….

So losing weight, watching what we’re eating, and trying to get used to what a normal portion is, plus trying to move more (and in MY case, do some real exercise) is improving our quality of life and our chances for living to enjoy it for several years to come.

My husband is almost to his weight goal. He’ll decide what he wants to do when he gets there, but I’m hoping he’ll stick to the Nutrisystem while I’m on it, at least. I still have a long way to go on weight loss – between the low carb and now Nutrisystem programs, I’ve now lost a total of 35 lbs or so and 24 inches – I have a good start.

Lifestyle changing is no picnic. You have to fight the fight in your head and really want to get healthier. We think it’s worth it.

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September 7, 2018 · 1:11 pm

Getting the Lard Off – Report 9/7/2018

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As of today, September 7, 2018, I’ve lost 23 pounds and 23-1/2 inches. I’m really trying to get to 25 pounds of – as my next interim goal – since the round number sounds so much better than just 23.

The 23-1/2 inches off has resulted in much more comfortable clothes, and – in some cases – giving REALLY too-large clothes to the Veterans Thrift Store in Fort Smith.  This is mostly jeans and slacks, since I really like loose tops, and a LOT of the ones in my closet were too tight for my comfort level. Now most of them are feeling roomy, and that’s a good feeling. Most of the time I can simply pick a top I’d like, not having to worry about whether I can get it on at all or feel comfortable in it. :0)

 

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My exercise is going better now, too. If I can get out to the garage early enough, I am doing 20-30 minutes on my elliptical trainer. I’m looking forward to the change of seasons, breaking the back of our still-too-hot-and-muggy weather so I can try to do the elliptical every other day.

I’m doing yoga every day because I’m beginning to feel a difference in my flexibility. I am now finally able to touch my fingertips to the floor when bending over – after breathing into it and giving my body a chance to ‘give.’ In a seated position, leaning forward and the soles of my feet touching each other, I can ALMOST touch my head to my feet. One day it will come. Best of all, when I finish all my stretching, I FEEL BETTER. My muscles aren’t cramping and there is much less pain in my joints.

When I can stand it, I either walk one mile or two, and do some firming exercises with my “Annoying Leslie” DVD. This is Leslie Sansone, who looks really good and know of what she speaks, but is annoyinlyg bubbly, too enthusiastic, doesn’t stop talking for 2 seconds in a row and has a terrible laugh. Working with her is doing me good and I’m grateful I have the video.

I find I stiffen up if I don’t do some exercise each day, so that encourages me to keep on keepin’ on. There is no way in the WORLD I can keep up with my sister-in-law in Charlotte, who routinely walks and dances her way past 10,000 steps a day, but she is kind, as well, encouraging me to move my lard each and every day.

Hopefully, I can report a nice, round number of loss next week!

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August 6, 2018 · 6:12 pm

Quarterly Progress Report

My husband and I went for our quarterly checkup by our primary doctor this afternoon. We got blood tests last week and were hopeful that we would see some changes for the better.

I’ve told you my husband is a Type II Diabetic. His A1C last quarter was 7.6. (This was down a bunch from his original count of 16+, but still wasn’t normal.)  Today it was 6.2 (the goal for diabetics is <7). HOOORAAAAAAY!  We had essentially given up ever getting a normal reading again, and were just concentrating on eating right and getting the numbers as low as we could. We practically danced around the room!

The big difference in my numbers was in Lipid Profile (Fats in the blood, I think)

  • Cholesterol was down 107 points
  • LDL down 57 points
  • Non-HDL down 70 points
  • Triglycerides down 61 points

She said that since my husband and I are essentially eating the same foods, my exercise was the cause of my improved numbers!

She was so pleased she said I could wait to come back for SIX months. I’ve been going quarterly for YEARS, so this was super good news. If my husband keeps his good numbers in November, HE can go to every six months, too!

Tonight we’re going bowling with our good friends and having our FLEX snack for the week, a scoop of  ice cream from Braum’s. We celebrated by having a FLEX lunch, as well, enjoying a couple of pieces of fried fish from our local grocery deli. We haven’t had that for almost five months now, so it was a joyous celebration, even though we’re supposed to spread the flex meals out – one per day.

We knew we had lost weight.  We knew we had lost inches (though my husband won’t measure, he’s losing his tummy)

It was wonderful to have the doctor confirm with objective numbers that we’re improving our health. She said, as we were leaving, “I wish all my patients took an active interest in their health and worked as hard as you two have.”

A wonderful pat on the head! :0)

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Filed under Cause for Celebration, Challenges, Changes, DIET!, exercise, getting the lard off, Healthy Eating, quality of life, taking care of yourself

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August 4, 2018 · 1:06 pm

OK, My Day is Made

This is my husband. He would HATE it that his picture is on my blog or that I’m talking about him (though he’s very supportive of my blogging efforts – treating me to lobster tail dinners when I hit landmarks on numbers of subscribers.)

I told you earlier that I was able to shed a size in my jeans, and that it felt good that it was something TANGIBLE in my efforts to get the lard off. I told my husband, of course, feeling really encouraged.

When we were going through the day’s mail later, standing by the dining area table, all of a sudden he looked over at me and said, “You ARE looking slimmer.”

If you knew my husband, you would know that this is rare, indeed. I could shave my head, or change the color to blue and orange stripes and he wouldn’t notice. He’s a wonderful guy, but he’s not very observant. Plus, living together and seeing each other every day makes it less noticeable when there are changes.  And, to be fair, he says “he loves me no matter what size I am,” – but NOT something I want to hear NOW…

To have him say this quiet statement this morning made my day.

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August 4, 2018 · 10:24 am

Something Tangible!

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I’ve lost almost 20 pounds now (not officially yet) and almost 18 inches down so far with the help of Nutrisystem and exercise.

I’m a ‘pear-shaped,’ ‘no-spring chicken’ (a kind description) and have been way too sedentary in the past several years. I have a long way to go in my efforts to lose the lard in order to be as healthy as I can be, but today I enjoyed another TANGIBLE sign of progress.

I like my clothes loose. This has always been my choice, even when I wasn’t trying to cover my lard. For the past several years, my sizes of jeans have increased as my “pear-shape” increased. I would have to unbutton or unzip my jeans in the evenings to be comfortable watching TV or a movie. My husband did, too.  I also wear pretty large, loose tops. This has always been comfortable to me, and the same clothes I’ve had in my closet are the ones I’m wearing now, so no changes there. In fact, some of the ones I have  are STILL too tight.

Today I put on a clean pair of jeans and noticed that they were definitely baggy. I rooted through my stack of  jeans and finally found a size smaller. I grit my teeth, thinking this was an exercise in futility, but not only could I pull them up, I could fasten them – EASILY!  I’m sitting here typing and am completely comfortable. No wanting to give myself ‘breathing room’ by unfastening them!

So, today I’ll gather up the size I had been wearing (please don’t ask WHAT size) and will take them into the guest room closet. I’m not confident enough yet to actually put them in the donation bag for the Disabled Vets yet, but if I continue to get positive signs, they’ll go there soon!

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July 23, 2018 · 10:10 am

Getting the Lard Off – A Bit Afraid to Hope

The Little Engine That Could said something like, “I THINK I can, I THINK I can,” enabling him to get to the top of the mountain. I’m feeling cautiously confident that MAYBE I’ve broken through the plateau from Hell I’ve been on for a couple of months now.

The chat counselor was helpful, looking at my NuMi log. She said, (I’m paraphrasing and putting a bit of my own spin on what she actually said) –

  • It didn’t look like I was eating enough (I had skipped the Powerfuel serving at breakfasts, for example)
  • My snacks didn’t have enough calories many times, giving my body the message that it “needed to store fat for the winter”
  • It might be a good idea to switch lunches and dinners – giving me ‘heavier meals with slightly more calories earlier in the day

I did these, and they helped a bit, but didn’t actually impress the scales or the tape measure much.

The message I’ve gotten is that I need to shake things up some, since doing the same thing each day expecting different results is stupid.

I’m changing WHAT I’m eating for snacks, thinking that the variety will cause my body to take notice, rather than acting like a slug. I’m doing my yoga each day, but I’m also changing some of what I’m doing for exercise, thinking that will also get my body’s attention for the better.

I started these changes 3 days ago and I’ve lost weight the past two days. It’s early to think I’ve found the answer, but at least it seems to be PART of the answer for me. I’ve been old and sedentary for a long time. I’m still old (and hopefully getting older!) but I CAN do something about shaking things up and moving more effectively.

“I THINK I Can….”

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Filed under Attitude, DIET!, exercise, getting the lard off, quality of life, taking care of yourself

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