Almost Two Months!

Weekly weigh in, today I didn't "feel" lighter when I went in so I kind of knew that I wasn't going to have a large loss for the week.  But every week can't be large and in charge, now can it?  Today I'm down 0.4 pounds.  So the new number is 181.8.  This week has been a slow week for work and I was off on Monday.  Ali was also off on Monday, which has been a rare thing as of late, so we went golfing on Monday.  Now the course we went to only does green fees.  Which means they don't care how many holes you play in that day, 9, 18, 36....whatever.  You pay one price, so we played 18 holes and we both got sunburned!!!  I also ended up with blisters to both of my heels before the day was done.  My old golf shoes rubbed me raw.  So this in turn effected my weekly exercise just a little bit.  I'm so mad at myself for not taking the time to make sure that I had the proper shoes and a stronger sunscreen.  I only applied it twice during the day, but I really don't think it would have mattered anyway if I'd applied it more.  Let's just say lesson learned.  El Paso has a wicked sun between 1 and 5 in the afternoon.  My runs have been a little less this week, my left calf is still sore and complains a bit when I start my runs, so I also bought a pair of compression sleeves this week to see if that helps some.  So far I've done two runs with them and it does seem to help.  I'll keep wearing them and see how it goes.  I just keep thinking I must look a sight when I run, bright neon orange Nikes, black compression sleeves, dirty white knee brace, black biking shorts, loose t-shirt, hair bunched in a ball on my head and sweat band.  Definitely nothing sexy about my running outfits yet!  But I am looking at getting a new one as a reward for getting to my half way mark.  I know I want a new one for race day in June.  So that was my exercise for the week, I still have two day left, but it will probably be an easy workout week, then I can ramp it up a bit for two weeks before tapering back down.                                                                                                                

As I said earlier today was a weigh in so that means another meeting with my consultant.  I like my consultant, Ericka.  Today we talked about food and my lack of eating it.  I never thought I would be told to eat.  Now on Monday I was advised to eat a protein bar or yogurt before my runs, because we are worried that I'm not getting enough calories.  Well because I did so much damage to myself on Monday, I haven't been running as far, so I didn't add the extra calories.  That did not go unnoticed today.   So I did get one more week at 1200 calories, only because she could see the sunburn and big blisters on my heels.  But next week it will be back up to 1500 calories a day and there it will stay until after my race.   She also doesn't think I'm getting enough water.  I truly think I'm drinking my eight 8oz glasses a day, but she wonders if I need more because of all the activity I"m doing.  I don't feel dehydrated, but then that's not say much is it?  So this week I will work on eating more calories and drinking more water.  On the positive side the program introduced and brought back different food items this week.  Not that I was getting bored with the food choices or anything.  But I can say I definitely knew which ones I liked and which ones were just okay.  They did take some other food items off the list to make room for the new ones, but that's okay.  Getting to taste new foods is good.  I'm looking forward to Sunday morning and cinnamon rolls for breakfast!   

That's it for this week, I work this weekend so it will be a little bit longer than a week for my next weigh in.  Until next time, keep moving!  ~ Darcy

I'm getting excited about going home in  June.  I think I want a pair of Ruby Slippers!

                  

Imagine!

Weigh in day!  I'm down another 4 pounds!  New number is now 182.2.  I admit I was a bit worried this morning with all the up and down I've been doing this week.  I'm totally happy with this number, but my consultant is not.  Oh she's happy I'm losing, but she is also worried that I am not getting enough calories.  I have been struggling a little this week, but more about that later.  So this week we basically discussed my daily calorie number and what we should or wanted to do about it.  She wants me to go back up, but I've talked her into letting me stay at 1200 for another week, maybe (hopefully) two.  She is going to talk with the nutritionist on staff to see what we can add to my daily menu to increase my calories.  I told her that I don't want "empty" calories.  If I need to increase the amount I'm taking in I want them to meaningful, not just junk food.  I'm torn, part of me knows that I need to have fuel to run and keep my energy up, but I also want to lose.  I tell myself that if I weigh less, it will make it easier to run, knowing that this is only partly true and that if I don't eat I won't make it through my race.  So she will get back with me on Monday and let me know what the experts think and I'm supposed to eat at least 1200 calories a day.  I skipped a few fruits this week because I found it difficult to stay under the 1200 mark eating all the foods on my menu.  Yes, I was told not to worry about going over, as long as they are good calories.                                                    

Now for the part that I said I would discuss later.  My running this week has been the good, the bad, and the ugly.  The first part of the week I just got in walks because of work and I found it difficult at best to run on days when I worked so I settled for at least a 30 minute walk.  I got those in this week, I got in one day of weighted ball upper body exercise, but I wanted to get in two.  I guess I'll try for that again next week.  I struggled with my miles on Tuesday and Wednesday.  I did get in 5 miles on Wednesday, but it took every last bit of me pushing myself to get me there.  I just wanted to stop at 4 miles.  I was tired and felt I just couldn't go on.  On Friday I did get in 6.7 miles though and was happy that I did.  It gives me hope that I will finish my 10K in June.  I plan on scaling back a little this week, not much, but a little.  I did an evening walk with my husband on Monday evening that turned out to be twice as long was I thought it was going to be and I'm sure it was longer than he had planned.  I was tired and very grumpy when we got home, well after midnight.  I had already put in a 12.5 hour work shift and did my 30 minute walk that morning.  He wanted to walk, so we walked, I don't think either of us wants to that again any time soon.                                                                      

So there you have it, another week on the JC train complete.  I'm really excited to get under the 180 mark.  But I will try to be a little more patient, try.  So till next time, keep moving everyone.

Mid-Week Check In!

     Just thought I would do a small post and since it's been a week since my last post.  I am not weighing in today, I will do my weigh in on Saturday, but so far this week I feel good and I feel like I should post at least a pound loss.  I wish I could say it feels like a larger loss, but the scale continues to go up and down this week.  Eating at a lower calorie count this week, I've noticed that I get closer to 1200 faster and sometimes go over by 50 to 60 calories.  Or maybe I just think I'm getting there faster, but I have found myself skipping snacks and fruits just to keep myself at or below that 1200 calorie a day mark.  I sometimes wonder if this is a good idea.  But I am happy with the progress that I have made during the program.  I still have a hard time seeing the weight loss when I look in the mirror though.  The fact that Ali has started to comment on the difference makes me feel good though.                                                                                                                                             

     I also did my first "official" run on my new treadmill yesterday.  I replaced the old one last Friday and spent that evening putting it together.  I was hopeful that I could get a short run in on Friday night, but sadly that was not to be.  Let me explain.  While I love my husband very much, he is not much of a "handyman".  He is a smart man that has many wonderful qualities, but fixing and building things is not one of them.  I also do not "fix and repair" things very well.  This is the major reason why I choose to buy a new treadmill instead of repairing the old one.  That plus the cost of the belt and other supplies needed to replace it and the time it would take to get here, just wasn't worth the money.  I can read the assembly directions and follow them pretty well.  I wasn't sure that I could replace a belt and do it the right way, so I didn't risk it.  So by the time we (my husband and I) finished getting the treadmill together it was almost midnight and it still needed a couple of bolts and screws tightened to be able to store it correctly.  I had to work the whole weekend, so I went to bed and got up the next morning at 4:30am and did my usual walk before work.                                        

     On Monday night my husband asks if I wanted to go for a walk after dinner because we were both off on Tuesday.  Now after already having done my usual 35 minute walk at 4:30 and then a 12.5 hour shift I thought "What?".   But I agreed to go anyway just so that I could get my husband a little active.  Big mistake!  I thought okay a short 30 or 40 minute walk.  We took a different route than we had before and ended up walking almost 4 miles!  It took us almost 2 hours to get back to the apartment and it was almost midnight when we got home.  I had to go to the bathroom at the 2 mile mark, my feet hurt, I was tired, and ended up being totally bitchy during the whole walk.  I felt bad for my hubby later because he had to listen to me the whole walk.  So that's my short mid week post.  Now time to stop stalling and get my run done!  I weigh in on Saturday.                    

Early Weigh In and Other Troubles!

I work this Saturday and tomorrow.  My counselor doesn't work on Friday's so I had to weigh in early this week.  This scared me in two ways this week.  One because I had so a big loss last week and was probably a little dehydrated when I weighed in and it was only four days after my last weigh in, plus I went in at 5pm to weigh in and I've never gone in that late.  Well I have posted my first gain.  I gained 0.2 pounds.  No my counselor in not worried about this gain in fact she's actually a little happy with it.  Let me explain.  We lowered my daily calories last week and she was really concerned with dropping calories.  Was worried I would come in and post another three to four pound loss and then would have to tell me I was going back up to 1500.  So she is telling me that this is okay and is probably just the food and water I've had during the day before the appointment.  I'm not happy with this gain, just because I don't want any gains in my record.  Yes I'm obsessive, but anyone that reads this blog or my Facebook page knows that.  But I can live with this, if it is the only one I have.   So we talked about my transition which will be in about 16 more pounds.  We also talked about eating all my meals and foods on the menu.  I missed another lunch on Monday while at work and last night I just didn't want my snack bar.  I went for a walk with my husband instead.  So the importance of getting all my calories was stressed and was ways to substitute.  On work days I may need to take in foods that are easy to eat quickly, meaning not frozen or those like the salads that don't need heating at all.  We will work on that this coming week.  If I need to rearrange some of my meals so I can eat a quick lunch, I'll do that this week. 

Now for the next issue, Monday during my run I kept feeling a lump under my left shoe while I was running.  Our apartment was hot and I was sweaty and I just cut my run short.  Probably a good thing.  When I looked at the treadmill the belt had begun to fray and might have broke if I had continued to run.  Today after a quick repair that we were hopeful would hold for at least a couple of days, I ran again.  Needless to say the repair did not hold.  I will be shopping for a new treadmill on Friday.  I will still try to walk tomorrow morning, but this is obviously going to be an easy week for me in the exercise area.  So that is my short post for this week.  I'm determined to put a loss on my record next week.  So guess I will be taking to the streets of El Paso for the rest of the week.......Till next time, keep moving! ~ Darcy

Weekly Weigh In!

Ah, the weekly weigh in.  I wasn't dreading the scales this week, but I sure wasn't expecting the surprise I got either!  Today I had a 7.4 pound loss!  I really expected to be at or near the 190 mark, I really did.  I think next week will be a struggle because of this number, but I'm okay with that.  Let me explain.  Yesterday was not a good day at all.  Work was hectic and I skipped lunch.  When I got home last night I was hungry and upset.  I ate way too fast and didn't keep any of the food down.  My husband tried to get me to eat or at least drink water, but nothing was appealing at that point and I just showered and went to bed.  So I think the loss is a bit misleading, but I can work with it.  I am totally happy to be under my lowest point for last year though.  Last September the lowest I got was 187 before I started yo-yoing up and down.  And eventually ended up with a gain of about 20 pounds.  So like I told my counselor today, this to me is my beginning point.                                                                                                                                                                                                    

So this week we talked again about sleep, I'm still not doing very well in this department.  I still average about 4-5 hours of sleep.  One night I even went as low as 3 hours!  Yikes!  So she gave some suggestions on how to unwind and things that I should probably stay away from, like t.v while in bed.  So I will still fight the sleep monster this week.  I'll try a little harder this week.  We also talked about ways to reward myself for reaching a goal.  I'm planning on buying a new pair of running shoes this coming week and last week I bought the "Weight Ball Kit" to start working out my arms.  She wants me to come up with a reward that is not centered around exercise or weight loss.  Any suggestions???                                                                                                                   

Last week we had talked about lowering my daily calories, but after my loss this week, my counselor had serious doubts about lowering them at all.  Well, we talked and we agreed that I would try one week at 1200 calories and see how I did.  I have to go in early next week because of my work schedule next week so I will go in on Wednesday  evening.  She will weigh me three days early and I had to promise to honest about how I was feeling physically when I go in.  If I'm losing too much too fast we will add some extra fruits and yogurt to the rest of next week.  So that's this week.  I've had a total of a 21.4 pound weight loss since starting JC a little over a month ago.  This is definitely not typical and not something that they shoot for in a month.  But I'm happy with it.  Come on summer "Skinny Clothes"!  Doing the "Happy Dance"!

As for my running this week, so far I've put in a total of 23 miles.  Not unhappy with this either.  Today's long run was a little rough, but I'm sure that was because I didn't get enough calories in my body on Friday.  I still pushed myself and finished my long run with 5.2 miles.  Now the last mile I walked a little more than normal.  I'm totally sure I was wore out because I didn't have enough fuel in my body.  So I'm getting closer to that 6 mile mark.  Next week I will push a little more and see if I can reach out and touch it just a little with my finger tips.  I still have well over a month and a half to until the race.  That's it for this week.  Til next week, keep moving!

Goal is close

My next weigh in isn't until Saturday, but you know me, ever compulsive.  I have gotten on and off the scale so much in the last few days.  If the scale could talk I'm sure it would tell me to "Go Away!".   I'm getting closer to my lowest weight of the summer and it's making me so antsy.  That along with the date of my 10K race creeping closer has got me a little wired.  Or maybe it's just the caffeine.  Sometimes I look at my daily miles and think there is no way I will be able to complete a 10K.  I don't know why, but I feel like I should be able to run at least 6 miles as a base to be able to complete this 10K with no problems.  I'm getting to the four and a half mark now on my daily runs, but there are days when I don't even feel like running that.  Three miles is such a comfortable zone for me.  I'm having a little bit of a hard time stretching out of this zone.  Last week I did walk a bit more of the miles than I wanted, but work really kicked my butt.  I'm not fond of working four 12 hour shifts in a week and working three back to back makes it really rough.  So I guess today's post is just a little vent to get the worry off my chest and to tell that little voice to "Be Quiet!"  Why do we push ourselves so hard?  This desire can be such a double edged sword.                                              

I did better last week with stress working all those hours.  I don't think I ever felt the need to implode at work last week, so that is a positive note.  Now I just need to get my legs and my feet to keep moving and learn to enjoy the moment for what it is when I'm running.  I listen to music to keep me motivated and moving.  Yesterday the play list was what kept me going during the last half mile.  This worries me also, because I have my sights on the "Cherry Blossom 10 mile run"  next year.  As I was looking at the website, iPods and headsets are not allowed in this run.  That is a challenge I will take a closer look at after June.  I will have to start looking for ways to wean myself off the music or find another race.  Well that's my post, I guess I feel a little bit better.   Time to stop stalling and lace my running shoes.  Til next time, keep moving!