My Journey 2015: This Time Stronger and Smarter!

MandyH

MandyH

0
I've had an interesting start to my year. I came back briefly in January, but had to step back again because of some health issues. My medication for RA had to be adjusted. There was some soreness and I had to take things very slowly to get back into the swing of things. I told myself once I was well enough to work out again and after I put in one good week of eating and exercising, I'd start a new journal. So, after having that week here I am.

Last week I had a VERY good week... for me. My diet consisted mostly of fresh fruits and vegetables along with much smarter choices of protein and smaller portions. I also got back into the swing of things for exercising... in the morning... which has been my nemesis through all of this. As a result, my weight on 2/1 was 222.6lb and this morning I weighed in at 220.8lb. A good step in the right direction!

Now, you'll notice I mentioned that I'm smarter this time around. Let me explain. I had often wondered why the weight came off so slowly starting in 2013. I made good progress back then it's true, but it was slow. I've been doing some research and have discovered that a lot of my food choices, while they are considered healthy for the "normal" person, were not so healthy for me and my condition (rheumatoid arthritis). I was picking a lot of foods which actually cause and promote inflammation which is basically what arthritis is. So, when I thought I was making smart choices, in reality I was causing more harm than good. So my goal this year is to limit processed foods as much as I can. People with my condition need to eat mostly fresh fruits and veggies (mainly leafy greens). I know I can't completely get away from processed foods, but last week proved I could do a LOT better than I have been. I'm excited about this. I'm excited to see how things progress now that I am educating myself to make wiser choices for ME. :)
 
Morning work out done! Weighed in at 220.6lb. Slightly less than yesterday.

I made a mistake today. I was so focused on fruits and vegetables that I forgot about the protein side of things. I definitely need to work harder to get my new meal plan straight in my head.
 
Welcome back, Mandy!!! It's gotta be tough to have the extra worry with the RA. Be patient with yourself while you figure out the food plan. It'll get easier and easier once you get into a routine.
 
Hi Mandy. Ouch re Rheumatoid Arthritis! Kudos to you getting back on track sweets, xo Cate
 
Thanks guys. It feels so good to have my focus back once again! :)

So the rest of my day was off. I went to work as usual, but because of the snow storm that's hitting our area we were sent home at noon. Mom decided to take me out to lunch. We were going to go to a little diner, but it was closed so we ended up at T-Bones. I was bad. I ordered a burger with fries and a root beer. I ate it all, but only drank half of the soda. The good thing is that we had a lot of shoveling to do when we got home so I got to burn some of it off. It also kept me full until just a little while ago so I had some oats and fruit. Not too bad I guess. Water in take was really good too. :)

Tomorrow's another day......................
 
No workout this morning. My knee was very sore when I woke up. I think I did too much shoveling. :(

Morning weigh in was slightly up at 221.2lb. Not worried one bit.
 
Morning weigh in was 220.6lb.

My knee feels a lot better today!

Did you ever wake up... apparently... and not remember it? Well, that happened to me today. Either I forgot to set my alarm last night or I woke up and shut it off, but don't remember doing it. Either way, I slept in and didn't get my workout in. I'm not sure if I'll have time tonight, but am going to try.
 
Yay! Welcome back Mandy. I always enjoy reading your diary. Snow shovelling is one of my favourite forms of exercise. Last winter I was just doing it for fun instead of going to the gym and no one else was out there and half an hour later there was 4 guys out there I guess the felt guilty seeing a girl out doing the block sidewalk alone lol.
 
Great to see you back! Less processed food is good for everybody. Your dietary changes will be really good for you.

What worked well for me getting the exercise habit going was to commit to doing something daily. It doesn't have to be anything that will really make a difference or take up any time or effort. The idea is just to establish a daily habit. Stretch or do some tiny calisthenics on days when you don't feel well. I would literally touch my toes or do 5 jumping jacks before bed on some days. It didn't do much for me, but it got me in the mindset that I can do something every day. I did that for a couple weeks and then just increased the efforts little by little. Everyone has to find their own path, but it might be worth a try and it isn't difficult to do.

Nice progress already! Keep at it!
 
Hi guys, just popping in to say I am still alive. Nothing new to report weight wise as I stopped weighing in and working out for that matter. My guess is that I've gained a bit though.

The reason for not working out is a mixture of soreness and laziness, not going to lie. Although, I did walk a couple of miles yesterday. It was in the 40's which felt like a heat wave!

I am going to be starting a very challenging diet plan on 3/1. It's an elmination diet which I will continue for 6-8 weeks at which point I will add foods (very little to no processed) back slowly one at a time to see how my.body reacts. The point in doing this is to both heal my gut and to pinpoint which foods trigger my RA. I'm excited and nervous about how his will pan out, but hopeful that it will help me in the long run.
 
Thanks Vee. :)

Well, my elimination diet did not start today as planned. I was unable to make it to the store in time to start yesterday so tomorrow's my start date now. I've already gone to the store and made my first dish (which will be my breakfast for the next few days). I'm excited to be doing this, but also very nervous. After having such a horrible relationship with food for YEARS, it'll be hard to break all of the bad habits and not give in. I'm giving it all I've got though. I NEED to do this. For me!
 
Hi Mandy. You do need to do this for yourself, & change your relationship with food. I love food, but I especially love healthy, nutritious food cooked well. It makes you feel much better because you know it's good for you. That sounds simplistic, but what I'm trying to say is that, when I eat bad food or too much, I feel guilty & fat, but when I eat something really healthy & don't over-eat, I feel physically & mentally much better. Cutting down on processed food permanently would be a good option for all of us. You can do this Mandy. You really need to want to be slim & healthy, more than just about anything else. Go Mandy! xo Cate
 
Thanks Cate, that's definitely my goal. Learning and feeling how good REAL food is for me compared to the boxed and bagged foods. I CAN do this and I AM GOING to do this! :D

My first day on the diet went well up until dinner. I tried to make fish sticks using cod and sweet potato chips as breading. I found the recipe online and it's in the program I'm working with so I figured I'd give it a go. I'm not a fish person, but I also know I need to eat more variety. I also tried making zoodles (zucchini pasta). Well... I couldn't stomach it. Either one! I almost gave in and made a box of Kraft Mac & Cheese, but reminded myself of what I'm trying to achieve. So, I ended up popping a chicken thigh in the oven with some carrots and had my backup meal. Day one is in the books as a success. :)

Oh, I weighed in this morning at an even 222. Good starting point.
 
WOW! My morning weigh in today was 220lb. That's a 2lb loss in just one day on the elimination diet! Haha... if it were only that easy. I know it's just a normal fluctuation and not actual fat loss, but I'm happy it was in the right direction. :)
 
Use that loss as motivation, no matter what it's from! I'm looking forward to hearing more about your diet. I hate cooking so I would have given in to that mac and cheese.... Great job staying strong!!
 
Oaks if you're curious, look into the autoimmune protocol. That's the "diet" I'm following right now. It's basically a plan to cut out all foods known for causing inflammation issues. That means all grains, pastas, nuts, seeds, nightshades (including my beloved tomatoes!), dairy, etc. Basically all I can eat through this is meat (preferably grass fed), fish (which I don't eat), lots of veggies, and some fruit. After the 30 days I can add one food back by having a little bit over the course of 2 days and then I'll need to wait a few days to see how it makes me feel. If I don't have any setbacks, I'm good and move on to the next food. If that food doesn't agree with me, I'll have to wait a couple of weeks to add the next food. It'll be a long process, but a lot of people have great luck with it so we'll see. :)

So my 2nd day went ok. I ended up getting a pretty bad headache this afternoon. I'm wondering if it's carb withdrawals as I've heard that can happen. Oh well, still on track with the plan. :)
 
Another great weigh in this morning. 218.4lb! I'm guessing this has mostly been water weight. Excited to be moving in he right direction.
 
Yay that's awesome! So nice to see good results right away, who cares if some may be water weight it's still pounds down.

I can't believe you didn't like the zoodles. I made spaghetti squash pasta and I loved it with some homemade meat sauce and a little parm
 
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