Monday, January 28, 2008

Weekly Weight & Measurements 1/28/08

Here are the stats for this week:
Weight 186.1 (down 0.4 lbs)
Abs 37.5" (down 1/4")
Sucked In Abs 34" (up 2 1/4")
Chest 42.75" (down 1/2")
R arm 11.75"/15.75" (down 3/4" & 1/2")
L arm 11.75"/15.75" (down 3/4" & 1/4")
R thigh 22.75" (up 1/4")
L thigh 23 (no change)
Neck 15.25" (up 1/8")
Pannus 44.5" (up 1/4")

I'm ok with these measurements. I think they accurately reflect my effort. With more of an effort, there will be more of a change. Now that I am feeling good, it's time to push harder with the exercise again. Just walking 30 minutes a day, isn't enough. I put my "money where my mouth is" and pushed for 40 minutes at the gym this morning. I'm also getting reaady to go on a bike ride with my hubby shortly. I feel good about that.

I'm on day 9 of the 21 day challenge. I'm going to kick the tail out of the exercise requirement today. YEE HAW!!

Have a super day!
Shannon

Sunday, January 27, 2008

Sunday, Sunday

Hey there!
It's a rainy, rainy Sunday morning here in AZ. It's really nice actually. The rain on the roof and the sound of the rain coming down is wonderful! It's been nice all night long. I love the rain! It happens so infrequently here, I can honestly say that I LOVE the rain. Now if I were in Seattle, well that'd probably be a different story, but I'm not, I'm in "The Valley of the Sun", therefore I love the rain.

We had a GS sleepover on Friday night. It was nice. We watched a number of "Passport to Europe" episodes that highlighted London, Paris & Barcelona (the three desitinations we are hoping to get to this summer with our troop). The girls also made "Dream Boards". They were awesome! They wrote about their dreams and cut out photos of their dreams to glue onto a poster board. After they were done we put clear contact paper over the boards so they could post them at home and not worry about them falling apart. The boards were really cool! We've got awesome girls in our troop. We really do!

Yesterday my oldest and middle DD went out door to door for GS cookie pre order sales. It was fun. I think we'll do it again today, even in the rain. We'll pull out the umbrellas and go for it. Heck, everyone's home on a rainy day! LOL!

I've been eating ok and exercising daily. I'm on day 8 of the 21 day challenge (have I talked about that yet?). I almost didn't get enough water in yesterday so I was still drinking it at 11:30 last night. Needless to say, I was up lots during the night thanks to my water procrastination. I don't think I'll do that again soon. I'm actually going to get a large glass of water when I'm finished typing. :-)

I will be taking my weight and measurements today or tomorrow and posting them. I'm feeling good, even though the last two days I've felt hungry a lot. I've munched on healthy stuff though, so I don't have issues with feeling bad about food. Actually, that's one of the really cool things to evolve on this journey. I rarely, if ever, have guilt feelings over food. It's food. It doesn't control me. I decide to eat it. If I want it, I mean really, really want it, I eat it. If I don't really, really want it, I don't eat it. (I'm referring to things I "shouldn't eat"----which I don't do often at all and when I do it's only a little bit of whatever the item is vs. the portion amounts I used to eat).
It's a good feeling. It's nice to feel confident about that. It really is.

OK, I'm off for now. I want to get this day going. It's time to wake up all the sleepy heads in my house. HOLY COW people, it's almost 10 AM. Teenagers and hubby's....sheesh! LOL!

Have a super day and make good choices!
Hugs from AZ,
Shannon

Tuesday, January 22, 2008

Total Inches Lost 49.975!!!!

OMG!!! I just tallied my total inches of fat lost! I've lost 49.875 inches since I started measuring on July 12, 2007. How awesome is that?!?! That ROCKS!!

Here are the individual item totals:
Abs-Down 6.625"
Sucked In Abs-Down 10.375"
R arm-Down 5"
L arm-Down 5.25"
R thigh-Down 5.125"
L thigh-Down 4"
Chest-Down 4.875"
Neck-Down 2.125"
Pannus-Down 6.5"

YAHOO!!! How motivating is THAT?! I am PUMPED!

I can't believe how far I've come! My heart is leaping with joy! YAHOO!! YIPEE!! THAT TOTALLY ROCKS!!!

I knew it was going to be a motivator for me to do the totals but I didn't actually realize how far I'd come. That's soooooooooooooooooooooooo cool! I can't believe it!

What a great motivator to keep moving forward (not that I wasn't planning to anyway). ;-)

I actually just called my husband with the info too. I asked him to "Guess how many inches I've lost so far, since I started measuring myself in July?". He said, "Ummm.....20 inches?". I said, "Nope, double that plus". He said, "OMG, really?" and I said, "How about 49.875 inches of fat!?!". He was amazed! He said, "That's so awesome! It's amazing! Great job honey!". I think he's going to start measuring himself too. Heck, how do you keep track of how far you've come, if you don't have a baseline. Right?

OK Folks---the lesson here is measure yourself! Take those measurements weekly or bi-monthly so you know where you've been and you can keep track of your progress. I can tell you it is an absolutely AMAZING feeling to be on this side of almost 50 inches of fat gone!! :-)

I'm on cloud 9 and I'm going to go for a bike ride! Here's to even more success!
Hugs from a very happy Phoenician,
Shannon

Monday, January 21, 2008

Weekly Measurements 1/18/08 & Weight as of 1/20/08

I took my measurements on Friday and was able to get in the gym yesterday to weigh myself (and to exercise...YIPEE!!).

Weight-186.5 lbs
Abs-37 7/8" (down 1 1/8")
Sucked In Abs-31.75" (down 2.5"----WOW!!!)
Chest 43.25" (up 1")
R arm 12.5"/16.5" (up 0.25"/down 0.25")
L arm 12.5"/16" (no change/down 0.25")
R thigh 22 3/8" (down 0.5")
L thigh 23" (down 0.25")
Neck 15 3/8" (no change)
Pannus 44.25 (down 1"----YIPEE!!)

I'm happy with those. Especially with the Abs & Pannus measurements. It's great to see those finally take a bit of a dive. It's been a rough couple of weeks though being sick. I'm glad I'm finally feeling better and am ready to jump into my exercising again. DH and I went to the gym for 30 minutes yesterday (we are being smart and starting slow since we are still pretty congested and wheezy). It felt great but it was definitely tiring. I thought I'd have lost more since I saw such a change in the measurements but I'm OK that I didn't.

Exercise is the key to those numbers moving down, so without exercise the weight will not come off. I can understand that and I can deal with that. I am a realist and I am very realistic about my actions effecting the bottom line (the weight loss). This is a good thing. I'm not in denial about it. I know that hard work pays off. I'm ready to start putting in some more hard work.

I am motivated. I am proud. I am happy. I am almost well. I am a fighter. I AM going to lose this weight. I am going to be thin. I am healthy. I am! I am SURE!

Hugs from AZ,
Shannon

Friday, January 18, 2008

Still got "the crud"

I've still got "the crud"....unfortunately, although the cyst issue seems to be resolving well. I only have a twinge every now and then. The girls gave me the upper respiratory crud this week, so it's keeping me slowed down. This is a bummer because I was hoping to be going full swing at the gym by now. No such luck. I am hoping to go weigh myself today, even if I can't exercise in there yet. I do need to know what I weigh, it's been like 2 weeks since I checked. I also need to do the measurements but haven't yet, since I don't know the weight part.

I bought new batteries for my home scale, but that apparently wasn't the problem as it's telling me I weigh 151. Although I love that number, I know it's 35+ pounds too light. I think it's time to purchase a new scale. I need to be able to weigh myself at home, not just at the gym.

I'm eating OK but not exercising. I rode my bike to the library with middle DH yesterday but it probably wasn't such a smart thing to do, even though it was only a 5 minute ride. My chest is ridiculously full and I could hear myself wheezing during the night. I am just really craving some exercise. I'm hoping I feel better this weekend, at least well enough to do some good walking or bike riding, even if I'm not ready for the gym workout.

I think I'll go relax for a bit. I have to leave in about 2.5 hours to pick up middle DD. She's going to a leadership camp this weekend in Prescott and I am taking her to the pick up area at 12:15 pm. I think she's going to have a blast! I hope she allows herself to, sometimes she can be very stubborn! Hmmmm....wonder where she gets that? ;-)

Off for now!
Hugs from AZ,
Shannon

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Hanging in there..........

Well Friday night I had a 103 degree fever and felt awful. I was chilling for hours and just could not get warm. Advil didn't bring the fever down so I took a Tylenol after about 3 hours of no results. Not too much of a change so I decided to drag my freezing butt into bed. After about 2 hours of sleep, the sweats came. UGH! I proceeded to sweat (break my fever) for the rest of the night. It was awful. I was literally soaked. The upside of that though was I wasn't freezing anymore so I would much rather be sweating than freezing. :-)

I laid low most of the weekend since I was concerned the fever would come back. I was feeling good by Monday. The cyst issue is still there but it's just lurking in the back ground now, which is nice. I hate the sharp, stabbing pain with the bloating that the cyst(s) bring. I much prefer the dull "I'm still here" ache it presents as its going away (post rupture).

However, today brings a sore throat that I have caught from my oldest DD. Unfortunately she has spread her germs (LOL) to everyone. All the girls aren't feeling well. The oldest is feeling better as the others are feeling cruddy. My youngest DD is just well enough to go to school but feels crummy. My middle daughter is just slightly ill, like me, with a sore throat.

UGH! I'm ready for a healthy house again---especially with myself. I'm tired of feeling ill. I WANT TO GO TO THE GYM!! Well part of the process of getting better is being crabby.....so I guess I'm almost well! LOL!!! I think I actually do feel well enough to hit the gym tonight. I'll take it slow and maybe only do 30 minutes. I need to get on the scale too as I haven't weighed myself in over a week.

Other than that, things are going a-ok here. I'm eating well. That's always a good thing.

I'll be sure to write more later this week. I will also post my weight & measurements as soon as I have them.
Hugs from AZ,
Shannon

Friday, January 11, 2008

Ovarian Cysts has me down---but not out!

Hey all!
Sorry the few days of no posting. I have yet another ovarian cyst issue. It started early Tuesday morning and just has persisted. I'm feeling better today but I'm not near 100% yet. I haven't been able to exercise since Monday and I hate that. I think I'll be able to get some walking in today. I just have to get a bit of exercise in. It makes me feel so much better.

I feel very bloated. That's one of the side effects of the ovarian cyst issue. UGH! I had this last time, in October too. At least I know what it is this time and I don't have to dash in to Urgent Care for it. I've just been laying low, using the heating pad and taking Darvocet & Advil. (Mostly Advil, I only needed the Darvocet on the second day).

I'll post more soon. I'm eating well, even if I can't exercise.
Keep up the great work everyone!
Shannon

Sunday, January 6, 2008

Positive Reflections & Revelations

Hello!
I've been reflecting on some of the wonderful changes that have happened to me because of my weight loss journey. I've shared them with the folks on my YOAD message board and I thought I'd share them here too. Here are a few things I've noticed and a few things that are much better in my life, since I've lost the 68 pounds. Many of you will not be able to relate to some of these, since you were never as heavy as I was, however you still will be able to appreciate them. Here they are, in no particular order.

1. I'm no longer the "fat girl" in my exercise classes at the gym.
2. I'm not the fattest person in my family anymore.
3. I can go out to eat and sit in a booth, very comfortably. I NEVER have to push the table back so I can fit in the seat.
4. I can fit in a child's desk in the girls' classrooms.
5. I can take a shower at the gym without being 100% self conscious. (Now I'm only 60% self conscious LOL).
6. My thighs no longer touch each other when I'm standing up. (How cool is that?!)
7. I can cross my legs when I sit down. Either leg I choose is a really comfortable way to sit. I have NEVER been able to comfortably cross my legs, EVER. AWESOME!
8. I fit comfortably in a movie theater seat and my sides don't touch or go over the arms of the chair. There is actually quite a bit of room now on both sides of my body and the arm rests. SWEET!!
9. I can drive my car and my abdomen doesn't touch the steering wheel (it used to). Now it's about 6 inches from it. YEE HAW!
10. I no longer think people look at me and think "Wow, she's fat". They may think I'm overweight but I'm no longer one of those people that you look at and think "how sad". (That is SUPER sweet)!
11. I can comfortably make whopee with my DH! (Weird to post but just a plain fact). We both have much flatter bellies and can breathe (at times...LOL) without any difficulties. Ain't life grand?!
12. There are actually people that don't recognize me anymore. That's kind of wild, but it's cool! It's great to know that I've changed THAT much.

I've decided that I'd like to start keeping track of these "revelations and reflections". They'll be wonderful to look back on as I pass through certain milestones along my journey.

Have a wonderful day, keep moving forward and push yourself today!
Hugs from AZ,
Shannon

Saturday, January 5, 2008

Weekly Weight 1/3/07 & Measurements 1/5/07

Here they are as promised, my weekly weight and measurements. I took my weight at the gym on Thursday, 1/3 but didn't take my measurments until this morning (I forgot on Thursday and things got crazy with the birth of the baby so I forgot until late last night. I decided I'd rather measure this morning vs. late in the PM).

Weight-187.2 lbs (down 1.5 lbs)

Abs-38" (down 0.25")
Sucked In Abs-34.25" (down 0.75") YIPEE
Chest-42.25" (down 0.25")
R arm-12.25" (down 0.25") Largest Part 16.5" (no change)
L arm-12" (down 0.25") Largest Part 16.5" (no change)
R thigh-23.25 (down 0.25")
L thigh-23.25" (no change)
Neck-15 3/8" (down 1/8")
Pannus-45.25" (down 0.25")

I'm really encouraged by these measurements! Especially the sucked in abs and the pannus measurements. It's nice to see these finally move! You can see the results from stepping up the exercise again and tuning in a bit harder on food portions. I'm feeling good!

Have an amazing day full of exercise, healthy food and family!
Hugs from AZ,
Shannon

P.S. I decided that next week I'll be summing up my progress for the past 6 months. I want to post how much weight and inches I've lost, since keeping track of the measurements on July 12th. It will be fun to see and VERY motivating to both of us.

Friday, January 4, 2008

It's a BOY!

It's a BOY!! Not for me though silly! ;-) My cousin and his wife had a beautiful, healthy, baby boy today. He's amazing! He is so adorable! Mother, Father & baby are doing super too. This is their first child and they are both in their early thirties. It's so fun watching them together with him. He was born this morning and they are so new to the parenting thing. It's just adorable!

I bought a new bike today. Yep, I finally bought a bike for me. I no longer need to ride one of my DD's bikes. It's wonderful! We went on about a 10 mile ride today and it was great! I LOVE MY BIKE!! I will be riding it often, that's for sure.

We actually rode our bikes to the movie theater too. We saw "Charlie Wilson's War". It was a really good movie. The acting was super! I'm not sure how accurate the story was, but either way, it was great!

I ate well today. I had a small bowl of Special K with Strawberries & skim milk for breakfast. I had a veggie omelette, fruit and whole grain pancakes for lunch (it was a big lunch, so dinner was small). I had a small bowl of leftover turkey chili for dinner. YUM!

I just realized that I didn't post my measurements yet this week. I'll be sure and do that tomorrow. I did weigh myself yesterday at the gym though. I'm at 187.2 pounds. I lost 1.5 pounds this week. Heck, I'll take that. :-)

Off to play cards with hubby. I meant to do that 20 minutes ago but thought I'd pop in here to post before doing that. (I had already posted on my YOAD message board and figured I needed to do that here too). I want to be sure and blog regularly. The more I blog, the more accountable I am to myself and the better I feel (inside & out).

I hope everyone has a great night! I'll blog tomorrow.
Big hugs,
Shannon

Tuesday, January 1, 2008

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Well.....here it is, 2008!! How surreal is that?! You know, our oldest DD graduates this year. DH and I were reminicsing about the fact its 2008 now. When our DD was born, 2008 seemed like it was light years away. It was as unrealistic as 1999 was when Prince's song came out, ya know? It was as unrealistic as George Orwell's 1984 was. It was as unrealistic as the "new millennium", the "turn of the century" and the year 2000 was. WOW....it's just so WILD that its here. How these past 18 years have whizzed by, I just don't know. Even though it seems like many of them went by at a snails pace, now that we're reflecting on them, they were just a blur.
It makes us kind of sad now, knowing that our middle DD and our youngest DD will all be finished with high school by 2011. Once upon a time, that was far away, it isn't anymore.

Today has been a really nice day. DH and I went for a bike ride together this morning. We went just shy of 5.5 miles. It was a good ride and very relaxing. At 2 PM, we're going hiking at a local mountain park, with my sister & brother in law. We're looking forward to it.

I used my daughters bike for the ride, as I don't have a bike. I've decided it's time for me to go out and get one. I think I'll start looking for one either tomorrow or Thursday. I'm excited about that!

It's so amazing how different this year is compared to last year. Heck, I don't even know what I was doing on New Years Day BUT I can guarantee you it wasn't exercising OR eating healthy. Let alone planning the entire day around exercising. Who says that change is a bad thing?? No one at my house, that's for SURE!

I honestly can not believe how much more energy I have now. I would have never guessed that 67 pounds could have brought me that. It's so great! I love not being short of breath before other people, I love not having my feet swell when I've been sitting for too long, I love being able to run around (and sometimes out run) with the kids, I love being active, I love the better attitude I have (most of the time) and I just plain LOVE my life right now. I'm a happy person inside and out. Life is GOOD!

Tomorrow we are working the concession stand at the U of P Stadium for the Fiesta Bowl game. It should be a lot of fun! For those of you that don't know this, we've been volunteering at a concession stand at the AZ Cardinals games all year. We're helping our GS troop earn funds to go to Europe this summer. We're hoping it's a good game with TONS of tips (so far, tips have been pretty lame-o....LOL). I'm looking forward to the game. I'm sure the atmosphere will be a blast! :-)

I suppose I better get moving. I need to run to the store really quick, before we go hiking.
Have a fantastic day! Make good choices and be proud of yourself. Never forget that this is a journey to health. It's not a "quick trip" and the weight isn't going to fall off fast. It's going to go kicking and screaming all the way. That's OK! We'll win this war, I have NO DOUBTS!! :-)

Keep moving forward,
Shannon