Women 200lb+, Let's Be Extra Awesome This August!!!
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Forgot to include a photo of the gnocci!
Feast your eyes upon this deliciousness...
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Weigh-in Wednesday:
49 years old; 5'6"
SW: 236.4 (9/8/19)
7/31: 191.6
8/7: 189.5
8/12: 188.3
8/19: 189.5
My focus this month has been on stress management rather than a weight goal:- Mediation - I took my TM meditation class three weeks ago. They recommend 20 minutes, twice a day. Right now I am mediating about once every other day. I need to schedule this.
- Walking - First I planned to start walking in the morning; then in 10 minute walks through the day. I also need to schedule this.
- Bedtime - I will be in bed by 10 pm. I am in bed by 11 pm but the good news is I am actually sleeping now and haven't been waking up at 5 am and not being able to go back to sleep. I am also trying to start using my CPAP again.
- Journal - I will journal in some form to let go of the day and identify what I can and cannot control. This has been good; I am doing better about writing out my to do list, worries, and areas for follow up. We also started working on a COVID plan if my son, my husband or myself are exposed or test positive. Given my risk factors and that has been helpful. Happy to share it if anyone is interested or wants to see what it looks like.
- Intermittent fasting - I have nailed the morning routine and largely curbed ice cream in the evenings. But could do better about no other snacks.
PSA: So everyone, I highly recommend that you all be tested for lipoprotein (a) as part of your blood work this year. It is a one time test that looks at how your body manufactures cholesterol - the test can tell you your predisposition by around age 5. High lipoprotein (a) means you have a protein wrapped around your LDL molecules, which makes them sticky and more likely to clot. If you have high lipoprotein (a), you are at 2-3 times higher risk of heart attack or stroke, all other risk factors equal. You are also at higher risk of clotting if you contract COVID because your are more likely to have mini clots throughout your body or a stroke, so you would need to seek treatment immediately so be put on blood thinners. Lipoprotien (a) is more commonly tested in Europe, the test is covered by insurance, and is information everyone should have. Unfortunately, there is no medication to manage your liproprotein (a) and the levels are not impacted by diet or exercise. But if you have it, you need to be more aggressive about managing your heart health overall, as early as possible. Unfortunately, I don't know what this means exactly yet but it is one reason I have not been eating ice cream at night anymore.
My doctor ordered a calcium heart scan, which basically is a CT scan of your heart to see if their is build up of plaque on your artery walls. The test was $100 out of pocket. I am 49 years old and my score is 50, which is mild heart disease. However, it is all concentrated in one artery and puts me in the 97 percentile - meaning 97 percent of women my age have a better score than me. So this is something I need to figure out how to manage going forward. I have an appointment with a cardiologist next Tuesday and will probably have more diagnostic tests to see where I am at. But it is a bit of a shock because my total cholesterol has been at around 150 (with LDL in the normal range and low HDL) and I rarely eat red meat. My doctor looked at lipoprotein (a) in part because I had previously had high C-reactive protein, which measures inflammation in the body.
So the week has once again been stressful. I am not concerned with my weight fluctuation and I am not beating myself up about the non-scale goals. I happy about sleeping better, planning what needs to be done and what questions need to be asked, and not losing my mind. I have also been teaching my son to play the piano and found some of my old books at my mom's. That has been fun; despite no playing for 30 years it is amazing how some of the finger movements come back on songs I used to play.
I hope everyone is having a good week. Please be safe and take care of and love your precious bodies!7 -
aliciap0116 wrote: »Weigh-in Wednesday:
49 years old; 5'6"
SW: 236.4 (9/8/19)
7/31: 191.6
8/7: 189.5
8/12: 188.3
8/19: 189.5
My focus this month has been on stress management rather than a weight goal:- Mediation - I took my TM meditation class three weeks ago. They recommend 20 minutes, twice a day. Right now I am mediating about once every other day. I need to schedule this.
- Walking - First I planned to start walking in the morning; then in 10 minute walks through the day. I also need to schedule this.
- Bedtime - I will be in bed by 10 pm. I am in bed by 11 pm but the good news is I am actually sleeping now and haven't been waking up at 5 am and not being able to go back to sleep. I am also trying to start using my CPAP again.
- Journal - I will journal in some form to let go of the day and identify what I can and cannot control. This has been good; I am doing better about writing out my to do list, worries, and areas for follow up. We also started working on a COVID plan if my son, my husband or myself are exposed or test positive. Given my risk factors and that has been helpful. Happy to share it if anyone is interested or wants to see what it looks like.
- Intermittent fasting - I have nailed the morning routine and largely curbed ice cream in the evenings. But could do better about no other snacks.
PSA: So everyone, I highly recommend that you all be tested for lipoprotein (a) as part of your blood work this year. It is a one time test that looks at how your body manufactures cholesterol - the test can tell you your predisposition by around age 5. High lipoprotein (a) means you have a protein wrapped around your LDL molecules, which makes them sticky and more likely to clot. If you have high lipoprotein (a), you are at 2-3 times higher risk of heart attack or stroke, all other risk factors equal. You are also at higher risk of clotting if you contract COVID because your are more likely to have mini clots throughout your body or a stroke, so you would need to seek treatment immediately so be put on blood thinners. Lipoprotien (a) is more commonly tested in Europe, the test is covered by insurance, and is information everyone should have. Unfortunately, there is no medication to manage your liproprotein (a) and the levels are not impacted by diet or exercise. But if you have it, you need to be more aggressive about managing your heart health overall, as early as possible. Unfortunately, I don't know what this means exactly yet but it is one reason I have not been eating ice cream at night anymore.
My doctor ordered a calcium heart scan, which basically is a CT scan of your heart to see if their is build up of plaque on your artery walls. The test was $100 out of pocket. I am 49 years old and my score is 50, which is mild heart disease. However, it is all concentrated in one artery and puts me in the 97 percentile - meaning 97 percent of women my age have a better score than me. So this is something I need to figure out how to manage going forward. I have an appointment with a cardiologist next Tuesday and will probably have more diagnostic tests to see where I am at. But it is a bit of a shock because my total cholesterol has been at around 150 (with LDL in the normal range and low HDL) and I rarely eat red meat. My doctor looked at lipoprotein (a) in part because I had previously had high C-reactive protein, which measures inflammation in the body.
So the week has once again been stressful. I am not concerned with my weight fluctuation and I am not beating myself up about the non-scale goals. I happy about sleeping better, planning what needs to be done and what questions need to be asked, and not losing my mind. I have also been teaching my son to play the piano and found some of my old books at my mom's. That has been fun; despite no playing for 30 years it is amazing how some of the finger movements come back on songs I used to play.
I hope everyone is having a good week. Please be safe and take care of and love your precious bodies!
Thank you @aliciap0116 for the advice and an uplifting start to the day, and right on with your goals.2 -
wanderinglight wrote: »I was so grateful to receive news that I can heal my hamstring without surgery yesterday that I grabbed my daughter and went to walk beautiful Long Beach in Plymouth, MA. We both pledged to put ourselves first, take care of our bodies, minds, spirits and souls and do the things we love to do that we put aside for other people, or when life got too complicated. We walked more than two miles and the sea air was the best medicine possible. Now we just have to find a way to keep it up. Today we hope to pack up extra large water bottles for a walk along the Cape Cod Canal if the weather (and my leg) holds out. I’m back to work on Thursday so I’m making the most of my staycation now.
OMG! I'm from Plymouth!! Grew up on Bayshore Drive. Went to Sacred Heart. Worked at Cumberland Farms. Spent lots of time at Star Market (Stah Mahket). Used to hang out at Bert's on the beach. I miss it!!
P.S. That water looks as cold as ever. I still can't believe my mom made me take swimming lessons in the Atlantic in June at **7:30 in the damn morning** when I was a little kid. I get a headache just thinking about it.
You are kidding!! We live in Middleborough and go to Plymouth all the time. The water was freezing and the waves were huge and throwing rocks at our feet.
That's so great! Your pic made me a lil homesick! I haven't been back for 20+ years 3 -
Well the WL has slowed right down, which I knew would happen. Still pretty happy though, went on a 13 mile bike ride yesterday and it felt fabulous. Dinner was delayed last night and I was super hungry (OK I was hangry, had a really hard time not biting my husband's head off), so I made these frozen caramelized onion and feta bites (so good), not the healthiest, but I only had 3 and still managed to be in the green for calories.
SW: 233.6
CW: 228.0
# days on mpf: 10
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Oh man, I got some bad news today. They're bulldozing the building where my art studio and shop is, and replacing it with (of course) a giant mixed-use complex. To make things even more complicated, my studio is in Atlanta and I have temporarily relocated to Texas because of the pandemic. So now I need to decide whether to move my studio to TX or to keep it in GA. I'm so bummed because I love my space and we put so much work into last year with a custom buildout. It's so bright and cheery and exactly perfect for my business.
On a more positive note, I just did a great cardio workout (30 minute cardio with Amy from Bodyfit) and I feel great AND my kayak is supposed to arrive tomorrow!9 -
Wednesday weigh in
Highest weight: 435 (11/1/18)--lost 50 lbs. by the end of 2018 but got off track and gained back almost 31 lbs.
SW: 415.8 (4/17/19)
7/31: 220.6
8/5: 220.6
8/12: 216.2
8/19: 214.2
8/26:
8/31:
Aug. GW: 213.6
GW: 160 (then reevaluate)
Weekly exercise goals (still working on revising these):
- bike ride or exercise bike 5 times per week - 6/5
- strength training (including core specific exercises) 2 times per week - 2/2
- chair yoga 4 times per week - 4/4
- steps onto aerobic step platform twice a day at least 3 times per week - 4 days last week; increasing reps this week
- bonus: 2 hikes last week
I got a bonus bike ride in last week. On Saturday, my son went for a ride with me on a new trail. Most of it was along a small river. Just beautiful! And this trail had no road crossings the whole way (about 5.5 miles one way so we did 11 miles total), which is different than the trails I usually ride. It was kind of nice to enjoy the ride without having to check for traffic every mile or so. A couple of the trails I usually ride involve crossing busy highways. At one highway crossing, there is even a "ghost bike". It always makes me a bit sad and uneasy when I see it.
It will probably be challenging to hit my exercise goals this coming week. Another couple trips to my parents plus my daughter will be in town to attend the memorial service for a family friend. He died in April but there couldn't be any service at that time. This will be outside so it should be easier to maintain social distancing. When my daughter is home, my normal routine goes out the window. But that's okay. I'm happy to miss an exercise session or two in exchange for getting to see her (even though this time she is home for a sad reason).
Let's finish August focused and strong!4 -
Quick read back and check in. For those who've joined up during my absence I have a tendency to write books when I do get in lol.
@micwrites Worrying about your daughter while dealing with an injury can make it difficult to stay focused on weight loss plans for sure. You are worth it! Depression is a horrible thing on a personal level and also to watch someone you love deal with it. Planning to do things for yourself will replenish your own soul and then you will be able to give more help with your daughter. Do what you can at the moment to reach your goals and know it's ok to not be going all out right now. Mental health is important too. Taking the time to walk, talk, and make a pledge with a daughter made me smile. Hoping the therapy goes well and surgery won't be needed.
@orangequilt Ups and downs...gotta love them. Keep working your plan and the downs will keep coming.
@changeforeverlj Nice loss for the week!
@motivatedsister All losses are a great thing bc small ones add up. Don't let the lower step number get you down. You're adding in biking and what really matters is physical movement. Enjoy your new bike.
@suzr84 Congrats on your loss!
@astroamy Congrats...some water sure but not all so celebrate that big number!! You are killing it with the exercise and bike rides. Keep pedaling toward that 60 day mark.
@AlexandraFindsHerself1971 Awesome work overcoming what the dr felt would be your limit. I'm so happy you are now able to just take a walk for the heck of it. Doing something like that when told it may never be possible is a very big deal.
@ChrysalisCove Happy Birthday and glad you had a great weekend celebrating. Hoping your hubby won't be furloughed. The gnocchi looks delicious and I love that your son helped you. How cool.
@aliciap0116 Having no way to manage and control the lipoprotein is I'm sure a huge stress not to mention all the other things going on right now. Deciding to focus on your mental health right now is a great decision imo. Taking the walks will also help with weight so bonus there. I'm happy you decided to take up piano again and teach your son. I'm not musically talented at all but listening to music feeds my soul and my moods. Enjoy bringing that back into your life. Hugs that the rest of your week is much better.
@wanderinglight I'm so sorry you will be losing your beautiful studio place. If you like the area would you still be able to rent in the new facility once it is finished and hopefully re-create the beauty you have now? Maybe for now you could move it to TX and see how you like that? Way too many things to think about I'm sure. Sounds like a nice plan for a kayak day.
@MuttiNM Great loss this week!! Your bike ride sounds lovely without all the traffic/crossings. Enjoy the time with your daughter and know you can get back to routine next week.
I'm still doing deep cleaning house stuff so skipping exercise for the most part. Today I scrub brushed one of the bathroom floors/baseboards and washed the walls. My back is trying to spasm and fibro issues are flaring up from the effort but I'm proud of getting it done. I used to scrub floors weekly and hated mopping bc I didn't it feel like the floors were clean. When fibro started years ago my tune changed quick. Mops are awesome!! Many more chores on the list but I'm checking them off.
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@Khatmott you can turn that type 2 around
@speyerj glad rowing is going well and so is ‘maintenance’. I know you will get to exactly where you want to be.
@chupacabragumbo Have you seen Seattlites deal with almost 100° weather? It isn’t pretty. Especially when they can’t open any doors or windows that don’t have screens on them since the almost grown kittens will get out. Watch out for mercury levels. My kids were pescatarians but many of those days were vegetarian.
@pamiede Thanks part 2
@AlexandraFindsHerself I need to establish a food planning day. I get caught half-way through the week with no meals planned maybe because that is when I last planned meals after being caught half-way through the week the week before. My daughter wants me to make Thai Peanut sauce Pork again. It was your Peanut Pork that inspired me. Walking a mile for pleasure when you were told you would only be able to transfer as necessary inspiring.
@grandrory Yay! Congratulations on making Onderland!
@bluffgirl I need to start making soups and bagging leftovers to freeze especially vegetable soup, my favorite. We love the Kodiak whole wheat oak flapjack mix. This weekend was not the weekend to cook ahead though here. Seattlites are not able to cook for long in over 90° weather.
@micwrites I am sorry to hear of your challenges. I hope they figure out about you injury and healing goes well. I am glad you realize you need to continue to take care of yourself so you can help your daughter better. I hope she feels better soon. Thanks for sharing the beautiful picture. Maine is the only State I haven’t visited except for Alaska. I would love to go there .
@mphollins I am 5’6” not tall and I lose slowly but when I was younger I think I lost at a medium rate.
@changeforeverlj Great job getting into the next decade as @Cupcakecruesoe would say. I love sourdough. I didn’t know there were sourdough wraps.
@astroamy whether the loss was water or no you are working it!
@ChrysalisCove Happy birthday. I hope your husband keeps his job. Sweet potato gnocci sound so good!
@aliciap0116 Thanks for making us aware of this. I am looking into some health issues myself this last week too. It has caused me to refocus a bit for now.
@wanderlight sorry about your art studio/shop. It seems like we are having to keep dealing with changes every week to deal with during 2020. Enjoy your kayak.
@MuttiNM you just make progress no matter what!
This weekend was hot here. It was also a high calorie weekend. Our social distance meet up with friends included a sour cherry pie. We took the risk. My daughter decided she needed to introduce her boyfriend to cookie baking. There is a reason why we don't usually have cookies around the house. I am using this opportunity to practice moderation. That is harder to do when they are fresh out of the oven. Consequently this week I am concentrating on getting the scale back down again.
It seems like a few of us are dealing with medical issues now. I have a couple I am addressing. I am still logging and with the exception of cookies trying to keep my calories low. However this is affecting my exercise schedule some but yesterday I did my strength training routine. I am doing this 2 times a week and I think I am committed. I need something for the other 3-4 days a week that I am committed to. Anyway I got some results back and they were good. However it is recommended I have a day surgery and I have an ultrasound next week. I also have to have a blood draw to get my ferritin levels down.
This weekend I felt I needed a break from 2020 USA so I spent it in Somersetshire, Lyme, and Bath in the early 1800s. I reread my favorite Jane Austen for the 3rd time.
I feel like I just did my food planning yet it is time again. I wish I could come up with a week and a half of meals instead of just a week. I used to do more than 2 weeks when the pandemic started. Once we get out of August soups will start to be more tempting again.7 -
I food plan five weeks at a time. That way I get nice variation. If I do that, then while Thursday may always be pasta day, it's not ALWAYS spaghetti. You may have a family that doesn't care. Mine, however, does. (grin) And they want curry and peanut pork occasionally, but not all the time, and so it just winds up making sense to do the planning over a longer period. Then you look at Thursday as pasta day, and say week 1 is spaghetti with meatballs and week two is chicken broccoli alfredo and week 3 is shrimp with garlic and linguini, and week 4 is baked ziti. And no one gets too much of anything and no one is bored, because by the time the spaghetti comes around again, everyone is ready for it.
It takes me about an hour or so to do a five week plan, but often I sand off the dates on the last plan and repeat it for another month. After all, if you have a good light five-week summer menu, that you ate all July, why not eat it August into that first hot week of September? That takes even less time.5 -
@KeriA I was thinking that same thing -- needed a break from this country and this year, so I started watching Downton Abbey. I had only watched the first season many years ago when it came out. My binge was going so well until they got to the Spanish Flu pandemic!! Too close to home.
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So I'm going to be seeing my family for the first time since Christmas. (Thanks, covid.)
And I haven't told any of them about my weight loss, or that I've even been trying to lose some weight. They know I've been running/exercising more, and that I've been trying to eat better, but I haven't said anything specific about losing weight. By the time I see them in the beginning of September, I will probably be down right around 40lbs, which isn't insignificant. And even if I don't see much of a difference, I know it's there because people around me- friends, coworkers, etc. have commented on it.
and I'm weirdly... I don't know, nervous? to see family? all of my family (younger sister, mom, dad) are all "normal" weight, and none of them have ever been overweight. I've always been the fat one. and although they've never been intentionally cruel about it, I've definitely gotten my fair share of comments and concern over the years.
don't get me wrong, I love them, and I'm super excited to see them. but I find myself feeling kinda anxious about actually seeing them, and having them see me.9 -
@KeriA Good idea! I love Jane Austen. I used to read a ton, but with a little one now I just don't have the time. But as soon as I get a little time to myself I need to re-read a few of my favorites from Austen.2
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Good luck cupacabragumbo! Let us know how it goes with your family!3
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**Height 5' 4"
SW: 216.8 (10/10/2019)
CW 8/1: 207.2
8/7: 204.2 (-3)
8/14: 204.2 (0wk -3m)
8/21: 201.6 (-2.6wk -5.6m)
Aug GW: 199
GW: 150
Monthly Goals:
Cardio/elliptical 3/week (0)
Strength and Yoga 2/week (0)
Water 8c/day (7)
Migraine today so short celebration. After last week's standstill the scales dropped 2.6lbs which makes me very happy. Things are on track for the month's goal as long as I stay focused. Hope all have a great weekend.7 -
What an absolutely perfect late summer day here on the SouthCoast of Massachusetts. Dog woke me up early and I got a lot done, read my new book, The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett, great so far, did some homework (masters degree) worked outside, (I have a big dumpster and am throwing away everything not nailed down), swam for a while and took a nap! Now I’m waiting to play cribbage with my daughter after a great shower. (I’m really tired and could sleep now)!
I ate well today and really didn’t have much. I’m behind on water and need to catch up now. I’ll weigh tomorrow or Sunday. I don’t feel like anything has changed but I’m just trying to focus on being healthy and happy. I had a couple of pineapple margaritas last night and felt kind of crappy because of it today. I am really feeling like I need to give alcohol the heave ho. I just feel so much better and cleaner, less bloated without it.6 -
i started here Wednesday. everyone else seems so together compared to me. 5'3ish, 244.not much of a writer. read a lot of cozy mysteries.6
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SFFirebird wrote: »i started here Wednesday. everyone else seems so together compared to me. 5'3ish, 244.not much of a writer. read a lot of cozy mysteries.
Welcome! I can assure I am not together!4 -
I am going to a nice lunch at a "tearoom" with a friend tomorrow. I am looking forward to it, the menu for the month at the tearoom is called "Tea with Mr. Darcy", so all this talk about Jane Austen has made me smile. Since I am going to lunch I am going to relax the rules a bit. My main goals for tomorrow are to go on a long bike ride in the morning, then no snacking and eating at the lunch until I am lightly full.
@SFFirebird do you have any favorite cosy series, I like cosy mysteries too. Currently re-reading Agatha Christie (not *really* cosy I know) because I am listening to a podcast that talks about them and ranks them, so I am trying to reread the ones they are reviewing before the episode.
SW: 233.6
CW: 227.8
Days on mfp and sticking to the plan: 12
Have a great weekend everyone!6
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