Newness of Weight Loss

I have just lost 1/6 of the body fat I want to lose. I have lost 20 pounds! Now that may not seem like much to you and it doesn't really sound like so much to me. But I will tell you one thing for sure, it feels like a phenomenal amount of loss to me. Since I am religiously doing my aerobic exercises, I can breath so much better. I went to lunch with a co worker yesterday. I had been eating in my office for two months because I was bringing whatever was on my program each day. When my co-worker and I walked to her car I just felt wonderful because I had spring in my step and I was not winded while walking. I have asthma, but it is much better with just this little amount of weight loss.

Also, and I know this sounds simple, but everytime I get up out of a upholstered chair or couch it is so much easier. I get up off the floor with so much less effort and really less pain. I have a long way to go. But, when I loose all of the weight I want to I think I might just float around. It is mind boggling to imagine how I will feel when I have off 100 pounds!!!! Yea, I think I will float around then. Sounds good, huh.

I don't know if anybody but a few family members will read this, but if you are needing to lose 20 pounds or 200 pounds then the one tip I have for you is GET UP AND MOVE (I got that from my brother who has lost a tremendous amount of weight on determination, effort and right eating). And, while you are moving don't move to the kitchen.

The human body responds so quickly to just a little bit of extended exercise it will amaze you if you are not exercising regularly. Just go for some 30 minute walks every day. If you can't do that just walk 5 minutes with the 30 minutes as your goal. Just get up and do something. I promise you - your life will change.

Can't Wait to Garden Again

This has been a long cold winter and I just can't wait to get outside and garden again. That is great exercise. Usually just a plan to mow the yard on a weekend will turn into four to six hours of working in the yard and I have burned up some major calories doing yard work before.

Last summer was just too hot and most everything burned up before it could really be enjoyed. We have had a lot of rain this winter and I am hoping that will help to have a great garden. Really what I have is garden spots and I will plant tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, beans and then flowers, flowers, flowers. As you can see it is the flowers that I love. I had some seeds inside sprouting now under grow lights and when those get big enough to move to little pots I will start some more tomatoes and flower seeds.

I will have tall flowers, short flowers, waves of flowers and cascading flowers if all goes well. I just can't wait for the Spring to spring. In the mean time I am working on chopping up some weeds and trying to get them out of the way so the ground can dry out and I can get out my little tiller and mix up some soil.

This makes me excited about life - plants that come from live seeds and grandchildren! There is nothing better. Well my kids are pretty good too!

When I am working in my yard I don't think about eating. And, if I am really working it burns up the calories fast. Try out this great way to make the world more beautiful and build some strength.

Have a good day.

Week End

I had a great weekend last Saturday & Sunday. Two of my daughters came to visit and my two grandsons, 3 & 3/4 and 1 & 1/2. We had a blast. I played all kinds of things with the boys and life is never better when you have your grandchildren around. The girls and I just talked and talked about all kinds of stuff. Everybody was happy to see each other, I think.

Grandchildren are such a blessing. Children are awsome but grandchildren are icing on the family cake.

Thanks for coming to see me! My son says that is when I shine - around the kids.

Home Early Today

I am home early today because we have a little snow again and work let us go home early.
I am always thankful to be home early. I can quilt or just chill. Maybe I can even walk a mile on the elliptical in a bit.

Last week, the bad week, I gained a pound, but by this morning I had lost it again. I know some say that you shouldn't weigh every day, but I just have to to make sure I don't gain five pounds back. At any rate I have have kicked up my elliptical to put a little more pressure on myself. I have gotten to where I can do all the programs without too much trouble so I decided to try to add some speed to my workouts.

I need to be doing more resistance training with my dumbells, but I have to be very careful because I have a bad shoulder and degenerated upper vertebra and if I am not careful I will have pains from nerves not sore muscles. There is something just plain wrong with my right bicep. It is like it is shriveled up. I do have trouble in the right shoulder and have had pain in that bicep muscle for a couple of years, but it just is so much smaller than the left bicep and weak in comparison. I am working on that slowly too. I will ask the doctor about that when I go in a few months. Someone said that I may have torn that bicep in the past. Possibly doing some work in my garden or yard.

I am in much better spirits this week and will persevere. Take care and have a warm day.
Quiltblue

Need Some Advice

I have drifted into a real mental "down" state by the end of this week. I can't seem to lift myself out of. I am just hungry for some "good tasting sweets" to make me feel better as I have always done.

I need divine intervention!!!!!!

Middle of the Week Dulldrums

You know I really want to lose all of my extra weight. But I have come to a point in the eating process that I am just tired of the food I can eat and really would like to have some chips or just a lot of something. I cheated yesterday when nobody was looking and ate three little pieces of candy from the conference room candy bowl. I wasn't worth it though.

I would just love to stop at the pastry shop on the way to work and have a pastry or maybe two for breakfast. Those probably have enough calories for a week! Or some rice. I would love to have a huge amount of rice. Not just a half a cup.

I know that my brother says, "You didn't gain it in a week and you can't lose it in a week" but I am just hungry!

I can't feel the weight coming off this week and I am a little lower in spirit. My clothes fit much better though. I just can't imagine doing this the rest of my life. I have to get back to the mindset that food is just something that keeps me alive and not the pleasure of my life. I NEED SPRING TO COME.

Weight Loss Report

I lost 2 pounds last week. I am thrilled about that. If I can get 2 pounds a week then I will have a more solid lose. I am thrilled.

I am up really early this morning and so maybe I can do the elliptical and then some free weights too. I didn't really do much free weights last week and need to do more this week.

My hardest time is when I get home from work. I am usually starving for something that tastes good. A lot of times I will have some soup right away to quieting that hunger. I don't keep junk food or sweets in the house because I WILL eat them.

I am a little in a "down mood" this week - well yesterday, and that makes me desire food to pick up my mood. Not a good idea. So I had to work real hard yesterday not to go to the junk machine at work. The 2 pound loss helped.

Have a good day and give me a little prayer that I will continue to lose at least 2 pounds a week for a long time. I will have another 20 pound lose in 10 weeks then.

Blessing to all......I think God every day for helping me to stick with this routine.

Snowing in Texas!!!!

Yes, you read it first here. It is snowing at my house in North Central Texas!!!!! Shock and amazement! Won't have to go to work on time tomorrow. We are not prepared for ice and snow here. It is only temporary though.

Not So Up Week

I try my best to be positive all of the time in my thoughts and in my speach. This is something I have had difficulty with in the past and because I believe that your thoughts shape who you are I make a consicous effort to control my negative thoughts. Albiet it the case I am had some difficulty keeping positive this week when I gained one pound back after losing fifteen pounds the previous two weeks. I think that the second week when I lost five pounds could be attributed to having spent an entire Saturday afternoon playing with my two grandsons who are 3 1/2 and 17 months. That is exhausting and I got plenty of exercise. I would do that more often, but they are a three hour drive from where I live. When I made that drive two weeks ago it was the first time I have driven there and home without having two Hershey bars on the trip to and from. I had apples and water.

I just decided to keep up with what I am doing to get in better health, give it two more weeks before I make adjustments and think positive.

I have heard that the healthy amount of weight for a woman to lose is a maximum of two pounds per week. Given my age I believe this will be a good goal for me. Faster weight lose means it is easier to put the pounds right back on if you slip off your new routine or new lifesytle. Permanent weight loss can't be maintained with out a lifestyle change. But, then we all know that. My doctor is not big on "diet plans". He says most people he sees who lose weight on them gain it back and more and that is very unhealthy. But he gave me a good foods to eat guideline and mostly what it had on it was rabbit food.

I just decided to chalk up the one pound gain, which taking into account the two pounds I should have lost, is really a three pound loss to gaining muscle. I have been using free weights a little for my upper body.

I feel sure if I keep up varying my elliptical programs ( there are five on the machine) then I will lose my two pounds this week.

Well, it is still too cold here in my part of Texas and we are really tired of the overcast days, but at least we are not having to shovel snow away from the house to get out the door in the mornings like up East. We have no snow. People actually wish for snow here. Sorry Yankees, eat your heart out.

Blessing to us all......QuiltBlue

New week new challenges

Well, I have been really busy at work and had some other news that was a bit upsetting, but I am still going with my new eating trip. Last week I lost another 5 lbs. Now, I don't imagine that I will be losing any more as fast as the last two weeks. But if I want to lose 2 lbs a week, and that is my goal, then I am up seven weeks on my goal. Does that make sense. My friend at work told me that today because I am really hungry. You know stress makes you hungry.

Thanks for the comments from a couple of people. I'm not going to tell how much I weigh now or how much I want to lose until I have successfully gotten a lot of pounds down. It is just too embarassing. But, I will tell you this just these 15 lbs of loss feels better.

Let me just say it is never too late to start to improve you health and vegetables and fruit are your best friends if you do. When lettuce starts to taste sweet then you know you are on your way.