I'm Ba-ack!

Maybe you've noticed (or maybe you haven't), that I have been MIA for several weeks. I'm not a deserter...I just needed a little time out for surgery. I am now home recovering.

I mistakenly thought that I would have plenty of time to complete the dozens of blog posts that I have started and taken pictures for, while "sitting around" recovering. Turns out that there is very little time left between PT, naps, visiting with friends who stop by and just taking care of every day activities that take me twice as long to complete. I'm not complaining...not at all! Those of you who know me well know that I had this same surgery exactly one year ago on the other side (total hip replacement) and it was a long, difficult recovery.

As I add this to my list of nearly 40 surgeries and procedures, I joke that my purpose in life must be to experience every medical procedure I possibly can. I now need to figure out how I can use those experiences to help others (while making a living). Anyway, I approached this surgery differently by putting together a plan for everything that didn't go as well as I would have liked, or I thought could have gone better with last years surgery. I discussed my plan with the Doctors ahead of time and got their buy in. Among other things, my plan included a different drug protocol before, during and after surgery as well as juicing for intense nutritional therapy before and immediately following surgery. Yes, I prepared my own fresh juice and Doug brought it to the hospital in a cooler.

Let me just say, "Woo Hoo!!" HUGE SUCCESS!! I feel great. I was able to get out of bed BY MYSELF just 15 hours after surgery. (For comparison, last year it was three days before I could get up and then with great assistance.) I felt wonderful immediately. It is still a lengthy recovery for my hip, but I feel good and have great energy. At three weeks after surgery, I would compare my overall strength and energy right now to where I was week seven or eight of last year. The whole experience has been 100% better and overall I am thrilled with where I'm at and the progress I've made.

My hospital experience was super positive. Just a quick shout out to the staff on the 3rd floor, orthopedic wing of Arrowhead Hospital in Glendale, Az. When I arrived in my room after surgery I was thrilled to find that my nurse and CNA were the same wonderful people that had assisted me last year. PT and OT were the same too. It's a good thing they were awesome and I was happy to see them, huh? I guess if they hadn't been so wonderful last year, it would have been a long four days. And my incredible husband, Doug, was beside me in the hospital the whole time. He may hold the record for most days spent sleeping in a hospital room chair! We just don't like being apart. We're still newlyweds...it's only been 11 years. I love that we love being together!


I actually asked my Dr. to take a picture of my hip as they replaced it. He did, and then emailed it to me. I thought about putting it in this post, but don't want to freak anyone out who doesn't have the stomach for things like that. I think it was quite interesting to see what had been causing all the pain.

I can't wait to get active again! Those who know me also know that I'm not the type to sit still for long. I love the outdoors and I crave activity. Even when watching tv I'd rather be walking on the treadmill or riding my bike on the trainer than sitting in a chair. I'm learning to accept that I won't be able to run any more. I'll have to walk/hike the mountain instead of run the mountain. I was training for a marathon when my first knee went out. Now I've had two hip replacements (consequences of a very active life and cancer drugs that destroyed my joints) and have to protect my knees as well. Right now I am working on being able to walk without crutches. That may take a while, but I'll get there. I'm faithful in doing my PT every day

I'm trying to wrap my brain around walking a marathon. Have you ever done that? When I think marathon, I think running. But I'm trying to get to the mindset that it would be just as great of an accomplishment to walk it. If you've walked a marathon, what tips or advice can you offer me?

I'm working on getting a few posts up before Fathers Day: quick and easy table decor and yummy homemade whoopie pies. But let me just say, if you need a killer dessert for Father's Day that never disappoints, try Almost Better Than Sex Cake; even guys who aren't crazy for chocolate love it! Another hit with the guys is Butterfinger Pie.  Mmmmm...good!

It's good to be back; with a little time, I'll be back stronger than ever!

Weekly Weigh In: I Already Blew It, So It Doesn't Matter What I Eat!

I read something last week that said "If you're tired of starting over, stop giving up!" Well, isn't that just about the most applicable statement you've ever read when it comes to taking care of your health and/or losing weight?!

Change happens immediately, but sometimes progress is slower than others. It might be due to curve balls thrown at us (beyond our control) that knock us off balance. It might be due to our own wavering commitment. The important thing is that we continue to move in the direction of our goal. 

You've heard "Rome wasn't built in a day", or "How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time!" "A child learns to walk one step at a time." These statements are applicable when we have made a change and are working towards a goal. While the "change" happens immediately, the results take a little longer to show up.

Let me clarify. You don't "ease into" making a change. It doesn't take a long time to make a change. It sometimes takes a long time "decide" to make a change, or to be ready to make the commitment. You can think about it for a long time, but the moment you make the decision to change, you've made a change. The change in our thought process and our actions happens immediately. The results, however, don't happen immediately.


Just thinking about it and telling yourself that you "should" eat healthier or exercise more isn't making a change. Even telling yourself that you "want to" or "need to" isn't making a change. Saying "I will" and "I am" and then taking the required steps is making a change. Here are some ideas for implementing Healthy Habits.


When you decide you are going to change the way you eat by adding fresh fruits and vegetables, lean protein and whole grains to your diet, you do it. When you decide to eliminate processed food or fried food from your diet, you do it. You make the change today and your health begins to improve immediately. But it will take a number of days to see the full affect of this change. Educating yourself on the nutritional value of the food you eat is a "step". Each good food choice you make today is a "bite" of your elephant. Each day that you follow the plan that you have committed to is another "day" towards building your Rome.


So you indulged in the fresh apple fritter your husband brought home from the bakery Saturday morning. Or you went out to eat for date night and ate a little, (okay a LOT) too much. Does that mean that the steps you've taken don't matter and aren't helping you reach your goal? Of course not!

When a child is learning to walk, they take a step and fall down. No one tells them to just stay on the floor because it's hopeless and they will never learn to walk anyway! Instead, everyone claps their hands, congratulates them for the steps they did take and makes all sorts of sounds to positively reinforce the child. We then reach down to give them a hand to hold so they can stand up and try again.

So what do you tell yourself when you splurge on something that doesn't fit into your "healthy food" plan? What do you tell yourself when you finish a big dinner and then dessert on top of it and now feel uncomfortable with a full and bloated stomach? Have you ever said, "I already blew it today, so it doesn't matter what I eat the rest of the day!"? (Come on, be honest.)

That's like saying, "I already dropped my phone, so I'll just stomp on it til it's broken!"  Seriously? Don't be ridiculous, you say? I'll just pick my phone up, dust it off and it will be fine.

If you stepped off the curb and then looked up to see that the light wasn't green for you to cross, would you just keep walking into the middle of the street and say, "Oh, well, I'm already off the curb...so what if I get hit."? 

I love analogies! The same principle applies to your goals. So you stepped off the curb of your healthy eating plan. If you stay there you may get run over, and recovery will be a lot harder. Acknowledge that you chose to do it. Then step right back up. I love My Friend Marie's Attitude about running her own race.


In my last Weekly Weigh In I had stepped off the curb and gained some weight. I didn't even weigh because I knew I was up; I didn't care how much, I just resolved to take care of it. This week I lost whatever I had gained, plus another 2 lbs.


I am committed to eating the whole "elephant". I am building a pretty cool "Rome". I am very aware that I am also dealing with some major curve balls being thrown at me right now. But I am committed to my health! I am committed to me! The change is made. My commitment is strong. Each day is a step towards my desired result! Click here for more Weekly Weigh Ins.


Have you committed to change in your health? Do you know what steps you need to take to achieve your goal? To leave a comment Click Here.

The Benefits of Exercise for Cancer Patients

Many of you have asked about my experience with breast cancer. I am preparing a series of posts in which I will share what I have gone (and am going) through and answer questions I have been asked. One of the most  important, yet sometimes most difficult (physically) things I deal with is exercise. Today's guest post is from Liz Davies; enjoy her insights on the benefits of exercise for cancer patients. Thanks, Liz!

The Benefits of Exercise for Cancer Patients

The vast array of benefits that accrue from regular exercise for cancer patients  is unquestionable. In the context of this article, physical activity refers to any sort of bodily movement produced by skeletal movement that requires an expenditure of energy. There are numerous general health effects of exercise that range from helping to control weight, maintaining health bones, muscles and joints, reducing risk of high blood pressure and diabetes and promoting psychological well-being. All of these general health effects would prove to be extremely beneficial for cancer patients in helping to maintain the foundational health of the body during intensive cancer treatments such as Chemotherapy, which can be very hard on the body.

However, the most important positive influence of exercise for cancer patients is likely the psychological benefit of improved well-being. This benefit is crucial because cancer is such an emotionally and psychologically demanding illness and as a result, the emotional/mental health of cancer patients often deteriorates and is neglected due to the overriding importance of keeping the cancer in check or in remission. Moreover, exercise has been shown to aid in improving cancer patients' self-perception of physical image, which often poses a problem due to side effects from chemotherapy and surgeries. From this perspective, exercise can help improve psychological well being which will help cancer patients confront depression, lethargy, anxiety and high levels of stress, which often occur as side effects of having cancer and undergoing traditional cancer treatment protocols.

To this end, recent research indicates that physical activity after a diagnosis of breast cancer may be beneficial in improving the quality of life, reducing fatigue, and assisting with energy balance. Exercise is especially helpful in bases of hormone responsive tumors, such as some types of breast cancer, since exercise has been known to have a normalizing effect on endocrine secretion and thus promote hormonal balance in some cases. One study found that women who exercised moderately (the equivalent of walking 3 to 5 hours per week at an average pace) after a diagnosis of breast cancer had improved survival rates compared with more sedentary women. These scientifically-validated findings indicate that exercise should be promoted as an adjunct therapy for cancer patients in light of the potential psychological and physical benefits that may ensue.

In order to stay motivated with an exercise program, cancer patients must make sure to stick to a regular plan that fits with their current physical capabilities so that it will be easy to incorporate into one's lifestyle. To this end, it is recommended that cancer patients embrace a simple routine that is specifically tailored to the contextual factors of their illness, such as moderately-paced walking a few times per week. This process would likely be enhanced by working with an accredited personal trainer and would thus help to maximize psychological and physical benefits. If in need of more psychological help there are many groups for people with all types of cancers like breast cancer, liver cancer and even mesothelioma support groups.

Liz Davies is a recent college graduate and aspiring writer especially interested in health and wellness. She wants to make a difference in people’s lives because she sees how cancer has devastated so many people in this world. Liz also likes running, playing lacrosse, reading and playing with her dog, April. You can contact Liz at healthylizd@gmail.com

Do You Have A Weight Loss Goal? Here's Mine.

So how did you do on the 7 day challenge to record everything you ate?

Did you choose to use pen and paper, an APP on your phone or a website on your PC?

What did you learn about yourself and your eating habits?

Are you eating as many veggies as you thought you were?

Are you consuming more (or less) calories than you thought you were?

I didn’t pay particularly close attention to what I ate, but I did record everything I ate. Hubby and I attended a couple of events centered around food, and Sunday (being cold and drizzly) was a perfect day to dive into a huge pan of homemade Mac-N-Cheese (five cheeses and bacon…Mmmmmm, SO good!) and curl up on the couch to watch football. ( I can’t believe I didn’t think to take a pic of it and post the recipe; I make it so rarely. Might have to make it for Super Bowl now just to get a pic.)

I didn’t lose any weight this week, and I didn’t gain any weight this week (whew!). So what I learned is that I have pretty good instincts on eating enough to maintain my weight. However, my goal right now is to take off a few lbs that I’ve put on over the past two years while recovering from surgeries that didn’t allow me to be physically active. So maintaining is not going to work for me!

Has participating in this challenge motivated you to make changes to your eating habits? It has me. It was a good jump start to tracking food and exercise with a goal in mind.

I've heard that when you really want something it helps to tell someone so you have accountability for following through. So here's my goal. I WILL LOSE 38 lbs by my birthday, June 7th. Lofty? Maybe. Unreasonable? No! Reachable? ABSOLUTELY!

Yes, I realize that I am putting my goal out for all the world to see. Here's how I'm gonna do it.

I will continue to log everything I eat on http://www.loseit.com. I will also log my exercise there. Putting in some calories burned is always motivating! If you choose to use this website/phone APP you can connect with me there: mhobbs2001@gmail.com.

I know how many calories it takes to maintain my weight and I know how many calories I need in order to lose. I will cut some of those calories out of my food intake and I will burn some of those calories through exercise. Click here to figure out how many calories you need. I am going to give myself a range of 1200-1400 calories a day. I will eat at least 1200 but no more than 1400 calories per day. I will exercise a minimum of five days a week. I will give myself one day a week to splurge on something special or try out new recipes that I will post.

I will reach my goal by tracking everything I eat so I can stay within my calorie allotment and exercising at least five times a week. This might be walking (outside or treadmill), bicycle (outside or stationary), aerobics, video (love Bob & Jillian's Biggest Loser workouts)...anything that gets me moving and sweaty.

Now I feel accountable knowing that I have to keep you posted on how I'm doing.

What is your health goal? Take a leap and share it. Let's do this together.

What information do you need to help you?

What will motivate you to achieve your goal?

IF YOU BITE IT, WRITE IT!

Is one of your goals this year in any way related to your health…lose weight, eat less, eat more fruits and veggies, exercise more?

Do you not have a clue how many calories you eat each day and you’d like to know?

If so, join me in this seven day challenge: IF YOU BITE IT, WRITE IT!

For seven days write down everything, yes every single thing, that you put in your mouth. Every almond, every cracker, every M&M, every grape, every taste of food as you are cooking…EVERYTHING!!

It’s been proven that most of us consume more calories than we think we do. If you have no idea how many calories you eat each day, this is a great way to find out. Don’t change your eating habits, just write down everything you eat. If you do it in an online program it will figure the calories for you.

If you do have an idea of how many calories you consume and want to cut it back or change the ratio of protein or fruits and veggies in your diet logging your intake is an excellent way to do that. Most of us underestimate how much we eat. Tracking it in written form shows the cold hard truth.

Losing weight is a simple formula of calories in, calories out. You must expend (calories out) more calories than you take in, creating a deficit and forcing your body to burn stored fat for energy. The more fat used, the more weight you lose!

Many studies have proven that those who record everything they eat lose more weight. My own experience is that recording every single bite I eat sometimes prevents me from eating something because I don’t want to look it up and write it down, or I don’t want to see it on my daily log. If I also have a predetermined number of calories allotted for the day it helps me make better food choices. Better choices means I get to eat more food while consuming less calories.

So here’s the challenge…if you eat it, write it down. Simple as that. Can you do it for seven days?

You can use pencil and paper or one of many websites available or an app for your phone.

I will use www.LoseIt.com which allows me to make my entries from either my computer or my phone. If you choose this site as well, we can connect. You can find me on www.LoseIt.com by my email, mhobbs2001@gmail.com. This site also allows you to record any form of exercise.

Other good websites and apps include Fitday.com. Livestrong.com, CalorieCounter.com. It doesn’t matter which one you choose, just that you do choose one!

Today choose your method of recording. Tomorrow, Jan 9^th, 2012, we start tracking. I will post my progress and experience and look forward to hearing your comments and experience as well.

Healthy Habits: Small Changes Cutting Big Calories

The fastest way to lose weight and/or live a healthier lifestyle is to go cold turkey: eat a clean diet and exercise every day. However, being the humans we are, few people are willing to make those kind of changes that they perceive as drastic. So, if you think that making small changes that you can integrate into your life creating new habits is something you are willing to do, here are a few small changes you can make that will reward you with greater energy and better health.

STOP EATING DESSERT FOR BREAKFAST: Let's face it, many 'breakfast' foods eaten at any other time would be considered dessert. Sugar coated cereals, pastries, muffins (muffins=cake), etc. You know when you eat it! You're only fooling yourself.
Choose instead to eat something that will fuel your body with energy (such as fresh fruit and whole grains) and leave you feeling satisfied instead of craving more sugar.

EAT SMALLER MEALS MORE FREQUENTLY: Eating smaller meals five or six times a day ensures that you will be giving your body fuel every time it needs it and when it needs it. Waiting until you are 'starving' causes you to eat more than you need, making you feel over full and dragging physically.

GET ENOUGH SLEEP: When we are tired, our bodies crave food because they are looking for energy. Pay special attention to how you feel the next time you have a regular day of activities after a short night of sleep. It is usually a struggle to not overeat on those days. The funny thing is, it is sleep that our bodies really need in order to feel energized...we give it food instead. Try taking a nap and see if you don't feel better. If napping doesn't work into your schedule (I know it doesn't for me) then it is extra important to plan to get enough sleep at night.

GET REGULAR EXERCISE: Strive for 30 minutes each day. Few people have a schedule that is so tight that they can't fit in 30 minutes of exercise. If you found 30 minutes to watch tv then you have 30 minutes to exercise, it's all a matter of priority. If you truly can't find 30 solid minutes, then split it into three 10-minute sessions (walk, stairs, weights, sit-ups, push-ups, etc). Three 10-minute workouts over the course of a day is not as good as doing one solid 30 minute workout. This is because you release metabolism boosting hormones over the duration of longer exercise. But, 10 minute bouts are better than no exercise at all!!

What small (or large) changes have you made in your life that are making a difference? What changes do you struggle with that you would like to make in order to live a healthier lifestyle?

Healthy Habits: Do You Know How Many Calories Your Body Needs?

Pretty much everyone is aware by now that the only way to lose weight is to "take in less calories than you put out". Or said another way, "expend more calories than you eat". Or said another way "intake < output".  

There are two ways to lose weight: 
1. Eat less than you burn (change what you eat or how you eat to consume less calories) 
2. Burn more calories than you eat (become more active)

So how do you know how many calories your body needs to maintain or to lose weight? Your body uses about 10 calories per pound just to function each day (sedentary lifestyle). If you weigh 180lbs then your body uses 1800 calories a day. In order to lose weight, you need to eat less calories than your body burns, forcing it to draw from fat stores to make up the difference. 

An aggressive but solid weight loss plan would be to take in 7 calories per lb. The same person weighing 180 lbs will then need 1260 calories per day, or 540 calories less than the body needs to function.

3500 calories = one pound. That means that if you eat 3500 less calories in the week you will lose a little over one pound a week. The 180 lb person cutting back 540 calories a day will lose one pound a week. 540 (calories cut back ea day) X 7 (days in wk) = 3780 (calories cut back in one week) which equates to 1.08 lbs lost per week. 

Note: It's not healthy to drop below 1000 calories a day for more than a couple of days. If 7 calories per pound equals less than 1000 calories for you, it is better to eat at least 1000 calories and increase your exercise to burn more calories.

The second way to lose weight is to burn more calories than you eat. Everything you do burns calories. If you keep your caloric intake the same while increasing your activity to burn 500 more calories a day, you will lose one pound a week. If you burn an extra 1000 calories a day you will lose 2 pounds a week from exercise alone.

Note: If you increase the amount of food you are eating it will offset that exercise and you won't lose weight. This alone is a great reason to keep a food journal. It is motivating at the end of the day to see your caloric intake and your calories burned.

What if you cut back by 500 calories a day and also burn 500 calories a day in extra activities? You will lose 2 pounds a week. However, if you stick to this religiously you may find that you have lost 10 lbs at the end of the month instead of just the 8 you expected. Regular exercise increases your metabolism and keeps your body burning calories at a higher rate for hours after you stop exercising.

There is a reason everyone in the fitness and weight loss industry keeps harping on keeping a food journal and recording EVERY SINGLE bite you put in your mouth. That is truly the only way to know exactly how many calories you are eating. If you also track your exercise you can know if you are burning more calories than you are eating.

There are several free websites that provide an excellent way to track both your food intake as well as calories burned through exercise. Each has different features. Try them out and see which you prefer. 

http://www.livestrong.com/   (will even give you calories for your favorite restaurant food)

http://sparkpeople.com/   (also tracks restaurant food)

http://fitday.com/    (has nice charts that can be motivating)

http://www.mytrainerbob.com/   (if you are a Bob Harper fan)

There are several APP's available for use on your smart phone as well.

You can also get the calorie count for food and exercise from websites or books and keep track  of it in a paper journal if you prefer.

It has been proven time and time again that individuals who keep a food journal (paper or online) repeatedly lose more weight and lose it faster than those who don't track their food intake. I don't like to admit this, but I have proven to myself that it is true. I don't like to admit it because I consider myself a fairly intelligent person who is knowledgeable about health and nutrition. I like to think that I can 'do it' without having to write every little thing down.

But I'm here to tell you that I did track every little thing I ate on an online program when I was losing 10-12 lbs a month. Every 7 calorie strawberry that went into my mouth was accounted for. I have tried to do it lately (working on the last lbs to lose) 'in my head'. IT'S NOT WORKING!

There is something about having to look at it on paper that makes you stop and think, "I don't want to write this down, so I won't eat it". Or, in figuring out how many calories to write down, you think "Wow, that's a lot of calories for that little thing...not worth it!" Something about having to face (written down in front of you) every bite of cookie or biscuit or peanut butter treat that holds you accountable to yourself.

Again, let me say that I hate that this is a fact of human nature...I want to be better than that! But I know from experience that I can maintain my weight with no problem but when I want to lose I must keep a food journal.

Have you tried keeping a food journal? If not, why not? If so, what is your experience? Would you willing to do it if you felt it would 'guarantee' weight loss?

Which online tracking tool is your favorite and why?








 

Before and 3/4 way there photos

I'm really stepping outside of my comfort zone here, but I'm going to post 'before' and '2/3 of the way there'  pictures in this post. There aren't too many before pics to choose from. Those who are on this same journey of weight loss and improved health will understand that I did my best to stay OUT of pictures. Maybe I can ignore it a little longer if I don't actually see myself. And more importantly, this is not how I want to be remembered as people look back at the pictures. I'll take pictures after I lose some weight and feel better about myself.

My journey is unique in many ways and yet very similar to others in many ways. I had entered  a new phase of life March 8th, 2001 when I met my awesome husband. (We were married July 31st, 2001. I'll save that amazing story for another post). I will say that my 'weight' challenge began Thursday, Dec 13th, 2001. 

I lived a healthy lifestyle and was athletic. I didn't eat fast food, had a diet consisting mainly of fresh fruits & veggies, lean protein and complex carbs. I drank only water, no soda, juice or alcohol. I didn't smoke, and I exercised regularly. In fact, my idea of a great date was to run Thunderbird Mountain (with a little friendly competition involved), ending at the picnic tables for a healthy dinner picnic of veggies and protein while watching the sunset. (I probably wouldn't have admitted that I ran that circuit every morning after dropping my son off at school until after the date.) I was a regular at the gym and enjoyed feeling alive, strong and energetic from my workouts.

December 13th, 2001 I received the diagnosis of breast cancer. If that wasn't enough, there was two types present...Inflammatory Breast Cancer (very rare-no lumps involved) and Ductal Invasive (very common-has lumps). I will save the BC story for another post, as it is an amazing journey of it's own. There is good in everything, if you allow yourself to see it. But suffice it to say, 12 surgeries and 30 weeks of aggressive chemo in 12 months really took a toll on my body. But the day I was given the okay to begin exercising again, I did. It didn't last long though. While I thought the fight with Cancer was over, little did I know that it had only just begun. The trickle down affect, the consequences, repercussions or fall-out if you will, from treatment received during that year would now begin.


I was given massive amounts of steroids with my treatments. Summarizing a year in a few short sentences: I gained 70 lbs during my year of treatment. I gained weight so fast I could feel my skin stretch...and no, that is not a pleasant feeling. My eating habits changed. The healthy foods I loved to eat made me nauseous. Food with a high fat content seemed to sit well in my stomach. I honestly thought "I'll eat what ever I can tolerate now, and when I'm done with this I will go back to my usual eating habits". Word to the wise: It's not so easy to change habits that you have ingrained for a year.

After completing chemo and being pronounced cancer free, most Doctors like to follow breast cancer treatment with five years of Tamoxifen or Aromasin (or other similar drug). I took Aromasin.This drug began incapacitating me, but so slowly that no one recognized that it was an affect of the drug. My joints would swell until they were unusable. My knees were the size of volley balls. I found myself using crutches or at best a cane. If I sat in a chair where I was sitting lower than my knees I couldn't get up without assistance. One day it would seem to be better, then the next day I was completely unable to walk. For a period of time I borrowed a wheel chair. It affected all of my joints but the most obvious was my knees because they carry the rest of my body. 

Within a couple of weeks of starting this drug I was no longer able to exercise. I continued to take this drug for 18 months while being tested for everything under the sun. I didn't know that there are over 100 different types of arthritis. When I did stop taking it, the damage had been done. The inflammation went down over a number of months...literally months. But my joints never returned to normal. They had received permanent damage.

Jump ahead to 2009. I was now seven years cancer free, but still fighting to recover from the damage that had been done to my body from chemo and other drugs. I was still 70 lbs over weight. Many times I had tried to start an exercise program and had to stop because of 'over use' injuries. Once I started walking to the end of my street and back and developed plantar fasciitis. Ouch!! I thought only tennis pros got that! I had injuries in my elbows from carrying the groceries and injuries in my back and knees from standing too long to do dishes. Three years in a row I was in for cortisone injections in my lower back. I was more than frustrated. This was not ME. I felt like my soul was in someone else's body. I was uncomfortable and lacking energy and I wanted to hide. I felt beaten down emotionally and physically. It was easy to blame all the reasons I couldn't lose weight for how I felt. 


One day, I got tired of reviewing all of the things that stood in my way and the reasons why I couldn't exercise and lose weight; basically all of the things that were  out of my control. I decided to look at what I COULD control. For starters, I could control what went in  my mouth. (It's just hard to be motivated to eat right when you don't feel well physically). Although slowly, I could still walk around the grocery store, so that meant I could walk for 10 minutes. I knew that if I did EVERYTHING that I could do to get my health back and lose the weight and it didn't work, then I had something to complain about. But until then, it was just an excuse.

That very day I cleaned up my diet. What does that mean? Fresh fruits & vegetables. Lean protein (not fried, breaded or surrounded in fat), complex carbs: whole grains (no white flour or sugar). No processed foods from cans, bags or boxes or fast food joints. After about 3 days of having no sugar your body quits craving it. Sweet fruit such as pineapple then tastes like 'sugar' to you and satisfies in a much deeper sense.

That same day I began to walk on the treadmill. If you think you are too heavy or tired to walk, it's not true...listen to how I started. I had just had another series of cortisone injections in my lower back to try to stabilize degenerative, herniated discs. They inflame easily. I got on the treadmill at 1.8 MPH. If you don't now how fast/slow that is, your toddler walks faster than that. I didn't care about speed, I was committed to doing whatever I could. I needed to feel like I had control of my life once again. I could only walk for 10 minutes then I had to get off and lay on ice for my lower back. I came back and did it again that evening. For two weeks I did that, morning and night until I was able to increase my time to 12 minutes. Again, after each short walk I laid on ice to reduce inflammation in my back. 

Slowly, I built up the time as well as the speed that I was able to walk. All the time eating a 'clean' diet as described above. Six months later I had literally walked off 65 pounds. During this six months all I did was eat a clean diet and walk. In the end I was walking 1.5 hours in the morning and 1.5 hours at night. Yes, that is a substantial amount of time. But I was willing to give that time to lose over 10 pounds a month and feel great. If I could run or weight lift or do some other form of exercise that would burn more calories then I wouldn't have had to dedicate 3 hours a day. But I couldn't, so I did what I could do. 

If someone could guarantee you that if you paid them $1000 you would look and feel like you wanted, would you do it? If someone guaranteed you that if you spent 3 hours a day for six months walking, you would look and feel like you wanted, would you do it? Would it be worth that short term sacrifice? That's how I looked at it. Remember, I started out 10 minutes at a time. Six months later it was 1.5 hours at a time. If you don't have similar back restrictions and can walk faster or jog slowly, you can do it in much less time.


I have managed to maintain my weight loss for over a year now. I feel good, but I want to feel great. I realize that I need to lose another 20 lbs (roughly) to feel great. I say roughly because I  don't care what the number on the scale is, it's how I look and feel. I will know when I hit that point. If you are ready to begin or continue your journey to weight loss and better health, begin today with me. 

My next post will be sharing five fabulous tips that I found for losing weight that may surprise you and do not require major changes in your diet or lifestyle. If you are not ready to eat a completely clean diet yet, these five tips will give you results and motivate you to make bigger changes for greater results!

So, here are my before and 2/3 there pictures. I look forward to being comfortable enough to take an 'after' picture soon!!