oops

Just a few of the things I have found since starting this new plan of eating.  How did I find it? First, my endocrinologist urged me to find a low glycemic/simple carb plan to help balance out and re-calibrate my system.  I thought it was going to be costly, time consuming, and I also thought I was going to STARVE and be be cranky.  I'm a foodie, and reducing the foods I love (and those that I think make me feel better) makes me grumpy. However, almost one month later, I feel better than I have in a VERY long time.  Eating balanced portions of balanced fuel has helped my body begin to heal.  Hmmmm....I think I have heard that somewhere before.  Like from my own mouth!  Life's struggles led me back into old feeding unhealthy cycles of forgetting to eat, grabbing whatever as handy (despite nutritional value), overexercising then feeling too exhausted to sleep well, waking up groggy and then repeating again.. And again.  Day after day.  Week aft...

So today was Day One. The Five and One plan from TSFL was not as bad and empty as I had imagined.  I was able to keep stay pretty well on my plan.  I was even able to opt out of rolls and potatoes from Maddox (church Christmas party) and the 3 tables of homemade treats.   I filled up on salad, and the meat on a breast of chicken.   Did I mention I love Maddox?  Interesting how each time we make a choice for health....our "ability" to do it the next time is stronger!  I have a really good feeling about this new plan for my health! I had this faint feeling of freedom, and it was refreshing.  A slight remembrance of "her" the girl that saw food as just that...food.  It didn't have any power or control.  Self-shaming, and regret gone. I'm liking the reminder of me at my best.  One day closer to constant freedom...

*Comeback Update: Scale isn't budging, but I feel SO incredible!  I have the stamina and strength for a 15 minute mile (started at 20+), I am sleeping, and grief attacks are less frequent (but still tsunami-like in power).  I'm managing the thoughts/emotion train a bit better, and not letting the trolls have the driver's seat.  For the most part (hallelujah) persistence is working in my favor, and I am keeping the BED at bay by following a healthy plan of eating, and ENJOYING a splurge day free of guilt.  And...there is a little glimmer back in the far back of the room.  It fades in and ALMOST out, but never quite disappears.  I think it might be hope. This new journey has required the building of another bridge. I say bridge because weight loss and habit change sometimes feels like a river too big to cross easily and to deep to swim in.  This time around, I know more about bridge building, I am learning more, I am trusting the process more, I am resti...

I used to do incline situps with a 25 pound weight while alternating oblique twists.   Post c-section...I'm proud of this little win, a victory off the scale.  5 inclined situps.  I was aiming for one!

Working in gym, I get to see a variety of people from all walks of life and how all those people share the common thread of fitness.  It is my personal experience that the "face" of fitness is NOT always the perfectly chiseled body with every muscle in tip top performance.   These seem to be telling us, this is how "to be" and if you aren't here, you don't "measure up" to our standards and therefore must be making excuses as to why you don't.  I shuddered at the post making headlines in the fitness industry of "What's Your Excuse" by self-proclaimed fitness enthusiast Maria Kang.  Don't get me wrong those gym enthusiast work hard to achieve goals, and I absolutely applaud them for it.  I shudder because it only tells ONE kind of story.  To be labeled as "fit" you must look, feel, and act like....." regardless.  Daunting when you think about it.  I am always intrigued by the not so common faces of fitness - thos...

As I write this post I'm finishing my workout...successfully fought the ANTS (automated negative thoughts) that surfaced this morning when I stepped on the scale for my weekly weigh in and got the "bad"  feedback. What!!? I have "been good" this week and upped my workout intensity, and fully expected that number to be far less than last week.  EPIC fail.... Or was it?   I've been doing this long enough that I have faced this path in my journey quite often. I have learned to see it as a crossroads.  I can choose the path filled with ANTS that starts with a "I failed" mentality and find myself thinking "why try anymore?  I am not getting results, so why bother?"  Or I can take the less trodden path (I'm still learning to recognize the ANTS) of "I will not let that number determine me or derail me from my goals and success.  I will be persistent and trust the proven process."  My choice is to give up (which will only lead me ba...