Teri - My history

Ok, here goes my accountability part. After a whole lifetime of struggle with being overweight, I have started my journey to living healthy in 2008. I made a decision in the latter part of 2007 that I didn’t want to live the next 33 years of my life like I did the first 33 years. Plus, I want to make sure I get the next 33 years!

So my husband and I attended a weight loss surgery seminar at Riverside Methodist Hospital. It was very informative and I knew in my heart that this was the place for me. This was the help I had needed all these years. Not just the surgery, but the support and information they provide long before surgery and long after. Unfortunately, my hubby didn’t feel the same way. He was very interested in it until he heard that he couldn’t eat steak anymore. Then I sadly saw the interest fade from his eyes.

I took time and thought it over weighing the good against the bad. Could I really give up doughy breads and my Mt. Dew?? Let me digress. . .my name is Teri, and I’m a Mt. Dew-oholic. I use to average a 12 pack – or more – a day. Ok, now back to the present . . . Could I really give up the food that I loved? Finding out I was type 2 diabetic only changed my habits for a short time. Did I really love all that food more than my kids? Heck no!! I have to do this -- I HAVE to learn how to “eat” again.

So on December 6, 2007, I started the process. I reported to the doctor’s office to submit my urine and give blood for all those tests. Throughout that day, I met with a dietician, a counselor – who gave more tests than in school - and, finally, a doctor. Come to find out all is good except one thing with my blood tests. I have to take antibiotics for 14 days to get rid of some bacteria in my tummy – no biggie. (No one told me they were horse pills!) Then the counselor thinks I’m ADD, but that has yet to be proven! Since I’m too big of a scaredy-cat, I am choosing the lap-band over the gastric bypass. The doctor did think my choice in the lap-band surgery was appropriate and he feels that I will loose 100% of my weight loss goal considering my age and mobility. It’s all up to me now. All 120 pounds of it!

I’m hoping that keeping this accountability log will help me with this process and maybe encourage others that they can do it too! I’ll try to post as often as I can.

Still unmotivated

So, not 100% yet and just feeling lazy. I really want to clean my house though and get motivated to get back on track. Any idea, thoughts, help in that area would be appreciated. (And, no "just do it" doesn't really help, so please don't say that!)

Being Sick = Eating Bad?

Well, for me, being sick definitely means eating bad! I'm lonely, off-work, tired, sad, and sick of being sick. So, I compensate with food. But, it has to be food easily eaten, which takes out things like apples (too crunchy) or oranges (too hard to peel with shaky hands) or even full meals. So, over the past three days while being off-work two afternoons and a whole day, I ate REALLY bad.

Lots of soda - the bubbles are better on my stomach than regular water for some reason I've never understood. It didn't matter what type of soda it was, I just couldn't handle drinking regular water and milk was definitely out. I really wanted some orange juice, but a singing teacher once told me that orange juice increases mucus production (which is why you don't drink it before singing BTW!) so I lay off when I've got a head full of mucusy crap!

Lots of pasta. Very easily to make and easier to eat - especially when slathered with melted butter. I must have had at least 4 big bowls each day. :(

Lots of cookies. I know that sounds weird. But all I could fathom eating was pasta and my recently acquired Girl Scout cookies. I personally have polished off two boxes of the darn things! And no, not the new 100 calorie packs (that are REALLY good) or the low-fat lemonades. I had to eat a box of peanut butter patties and a box of caramel delights.

So, on top of feeling sick - still - I now feel really bad about the "binging".

But, I do have to say that I had the chicken and potatoes that my husband made tonight (since he made it and cleaned up, it was much easier!) and I did drink lots of decaf tea when I was at work this week instead of lots of coffee. And I did have to drink more water -whether my stomach liked it or not! - as the decongestants were making me really dehydrated without. I also found some Yoga sites and other weight loss/workout information online today while the house was quiet. So, it wasn't all bad. Let's see what I do to turn it around when I feel better!

Losing Steam

So - I have ZERO motivation, ZERO success to describe and ZERO joy in mudville.

But, my pants are looser although the scale keeps going up and down with the same 3-lb. range. And, I woke up 30 minutes early this morning and enjoy a quiet read. So, maybe those are positives - just not the ones I was looking for at this time.

The treadmill still hasn't made it in the house, but it will this weekend by golly - if i have to wrangle it in myself, it will come back in! That in and of itself will be a 2 hours workout!

I am playing more with my kids though and running around with them. I also checked out the local Y and I just need to get the membership costs from them. There's 3 within a 15-minute radius of me - all with weights, cardio classes and pools - my three requirements. I should have a decision made by this weekend...

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Still looking for other authors on this blog. Trust me - it will be fun! And if it's not - if you don't get the support and help you want here, you just stop writing. Easy as that! So c'mon - give it a try!