Walking, Walking, Walking!

You may remember back in January when I started walking?  I could only do once around the church building and then didn't even know if I could do that!  Erika jokingly told me, "If you only make it halfway I will come pick you up in the car!"  I knew as much as she was joking, she was also serious.  Only once did I not make it around the building.  We walked down one side turned around and came back. I was not feeling well that morning, but at least I did it.

When we started this journey of walking, it was once around the building (about 1/4 of a mile) twice a week.  I eventually graduated to three times a week, then five days a week.  Then I started out with two times, twice around the building for about 1/2 mile.

My goal by June 1st was to walk 1/2 mile five days a week!!  Today WE DID IT!!  But I could never have done this without Tiffany, Erika and Ramona and all the munchkins who come with us. 

For those still struggling and saying "Yeah Laura, I know I need to do something..."

JUST DO IT!!!

This crazy life and world we live in is a journey!!!  Too often we are taught to be fast and quick and just get it done.  For me, it is easy to quit and tell myself  "what good is 1/4 of a mile"?  You build upon that!  We build upon everything in our lives.  If we can remember that, we can do this!

Many times I have had people approach me (yes complete strangers!) and say, "have you ever looked into Gastic Bypass surgery?"  I have had people say, "I have a diet for you to try!"  I politely turn them down and remember to try to take one step at a time.  I am firm believer, that before I could ever change the outside I had to change the inside.  That is also coming very slowly.  I think the best thing I could have done to have success with all this is to know people care and I am loved.  I really believe it took me getting rid of the anger in me and finding love to be able to do this!!

Don't Ever Give Up!!

Sorry I have not updated as I should!!  But I would love to hear how everyone is doing in their exercising, sugar and soda etc.  I still stay away from it all for the most part.  I will have a treat every now and then, but does not really tempt me as it did.  Now maybe I will have to work on this with my salt intake!  Ha

Hugs Laura

Six Month Update.....

Today my friend Carol and I were working on my book.  Interestingly enough, as we were working through the chapter it hit me.  My whole life I have tried to please people, but often it was never good enough.  They always seemed to find fault with me or something I did.  I took the attitude, "it's useless so why even try."  I gave up on myself.

Today I saw what the years of negativity and abuse did to me. I turned to Carol and said, "I am the result of abuse."  I know I have been very lucky and fortunate that I am still alive and on this earth to pass along my story.

I know I have said this before, but without Tiffany and Erika I would not be out walking every day.  We have been doing this since January.  People keep telling me I am looking good, but I can't see it because I see myself every day.  One thing that has helped me is by taking pictures of myself every six months or so.  I had a picture of myself from right before I came to Texas. Then a year later in October 2010, I had another picture taken.  Yesterday we took another to mark a "six month" photo (yes I know it was 7 months) but you get the drift.  I thought I would share those photos with you.

Interesting enough tonight when I showed them to someone, they said, "Yes you have lost some but you got a long ways to go."  Really!!  What gave you the first clue Dick Tracy!  My reply to him was, "Really thanks for telling me that I didn't know!  Bless your heart!"  And for those that are from the South knows that when "Bless your heart is followed with a comment it is not good! 

I know many have said they didn't see the pounds come off with giving up sugar and soda.  I didn't either, then again I don't weigh myself.  But seeing these pictures, I can see a slight difference.  I can hardly wait to get to the point (when I have a job and $$) that I can get my hair cut and colored! 

So thank you all for your support and following.  I have gone back and forth with the no sugar and no soda, but it works for me so I am going to continue to do it.  I may have the sugar on special occasions, but now know I can leave it alone. Soda doesn't bother me anymore.  Slowly I am changing my habits with chips.  I either get a small .25 cent bag, or go with tortilla chips and salsa.  I haven't bought bread in a while, and go more for the nuts for my grains.  I leave bread for special occasions such as Easter. I am amazed by changing my habits, I have changed my eating patterns.

I hope you will continue to follow my blog.  It will be interesting to see where I am a year from now as we do our 5K and fifteen months from now when I attend my 35 year high school reunion.  If there is one thing I have learned it is to keep at it and

DO NOT GIVE UP!!  

Daily Routines and Habits!!!

 Have you ever noticed how "bad habits" come so easily but so hard to break them?  When we want to do a "Good Habit" it is even harder to form it and make it a part of our daily routine. 

Erika, Tiffany and I have been walking since January.  It has taken me till April to be able to do 1/2 mile twice a week.  On Friday we had another lady join us, Ramona.  She assured me, she cannot walk fast.  I said, "No problem, neither do I!"  I will just Ramona put me to shame....I am UPPING MY GAME!!!  She just took off and we never did catch up with her.  By the time Erika and I rounded the back end of the building, Ramona was just about rounding the front end!!  Erika tried to tell me "don't compare yourself" but maybe this is what I need to poke me along a little bit more.

With swollen legs and arthritic knees, it is just so hard for me with every step I take.  I can feel they are getting better and I just need to be patient and keep moving forward.  The thing I have realized though, is that I miss walking when we do not go.  When I say "do not go" I mean on the weekends not during the week.

I truly hope you all have found a partner to go walking with you and you commit yourselves to one another on changing your habits.  I know it is not easy.  I also know I am very lucked and blessed to have Erika and Tiffany out with me everyday, knowing I can count on them.

I will continue to battle the No Sugar and No Soda because that is how I feel I do the best.  I think this time around though I am going to focus on exercise and getting stronger in my legs.  I have noticed other things I have changed without even trying.  Every once in a while, I want a nice piece of hot bread, but I don't buy bread anymore.  I go for a salad with a chicken strip across the top.  I am a very simple eater.  My problem was all my snacking and my sugar!!

I know so many things can affect your eating habits.  I hope somewhere in all my babbling and this blog, you have found ways to help combat your issues you are struggling with.  I met a lady in the grocery store yesterday who was struggling with what Shrimp Cocktail Sauce to buy.  Seems like an easy choice right?  She concentrates on the labels and one had 760 sodium in one and 820 sodium in another, and this was for only 1/4 cup of cocktail sauce.  Salt is another one of my bad habits I need to find a way to battle.

But for right now, I want to add exercise to my daily routines and habits.  So what about you?  Now that we are 1/4th into the year are you still striving to work on your habits from the beginning of the year?  Or have they been pushed aside with the excuse of "not enough time".  I can tell you, until you start making the life style changes and make good habits, and break the old habits, you will chase yourself in circles.  Remember if you need support, come here and vent!!  Let's do this!!!

What Have You Learned From No Sugar and No Soda?

So how did every one do with the last challenge of No Sugar No Soda till Easter?  I think for me more than anything it has helped me break the habit of not getting the candy bars and pop as I head through the checkout stands.  Here are some things I have learned: 

• I don't eat till I am full, I eat till the food is all gone.  And it doesn't matter what kind of food it is.  That is why I cannot buy a bag of candy, or package of cookies and think I can eat just one.

• Walking everyday, I can finally see the benefit of the exercise and I can start making plans for the future.  I will be the first to admit it has not been easy and there have been many mornings I did not want to go.  But having buddies to go with changed everything.  Erika even told me she was so sore and achy this morning, she didn't want to go but she did.  She knows I will be there and I know she will be there every morning.

• Advice and remarks from others, although well meaning can still be very hurtful.  But you need to stand your ground.  I know people only want to "help" but you are the only one who knows what is best for you.  My weight is coming off slowly, but I am not really on a diet, I am trying to make life changes.  By taking shakes, or other "weight loss" alternatives does not teach you to change your habits.  You need to change your habits!!

• When I do eat sugar, I realize my patience and my "last nerve" becomes very short.  Laying off the sugar has a lot of affects on my body chemistry. 

• I decide to lay off the sugar now "by choice".  I have decided this go around I will allow my self a treat once a month if I want one...but it has got to be worth it!!  Really worth it!!!  Ha Ha

 So what have you learned from laying off Sugar and Soda?

Are You Up For a New Challenge?

I have a new challenge for all of you. As I mentioned in my last post, I have finally begun to see some progress in my legs and walking.  I have gone from walking 1/4 a mile to 1/2 mile.  It has not been easy, but I can tell you it is becoming so worth it for me.  It's a matter of getting up and moving!  Last Saturday I was at a baby shower and heard a couple of the ladies talk about a 5K they had just done that morning.  I listened to them and thought, "Man I could never do that!!!"  In talking to one of the ladies I jokingly said, "I do good to do my 1/4 of a mile, and just last week started doing 1/2 mile a couple days a week". She said, "Laura it doesn't matter how far you go just get moving!!!" 

So this weighed on my mind all weekend and into the week and Wednesday proposed it to my walking buddies.  Erika and Tiffany said, "Let's do it!!" 

Next Spring we are going to do a 5K!

Mind you we are WALKING not RUNNING.  I have tried to gather other friends, most have laughed and said "Good Luck!  But no!" 

So I propose the same challenge to all of you!!!  It is a year away.  No matter where you are I am sure there are 5K's in your area.  A 5K is about 3 1/2 miles, so not really too far. When you think about going to Disneyland or Disney World it is nothing to walk that much in a couple of hours.

If you are like me and think "But I can hardly walk" this is your chance to make a goal and get up and get moving!!  This all comes line upon line.....one step at a time.  Right now we are only at 1/2 mile a few times a week then we will work up to 3/4 a mile, then a mile and so forth.

I am going to continue my blog, I will try to update at least once a week to let you know how I am doing.  How is everyone else doing?  With my No Sugar and No Soda, I have learned something interesting.  It started out by giving up Sugar and Soda because I needed control of my life.  It kept me away from sweets and broke my habit of getting a candy bar every time I went through the check out line.  I don't buy a bag of candy because I know I will eat it all.  But I can seem to control myself more now with sweets more than I ever could before.  Last Sunday we were all three in a meeting and I passed up the brownies because Erika and Tiffany were there.  I laugh at myself, because why don't I just go buy brownies?  Maybe it is because I have finally realized I don't need a brownie every time I see one. 

Little by little things will come, just start one step at a time.  I am anxious to hear how everyone else has done on their goals.  I am looking forward to Easter and having a Bunny!!!  Thank you for following my blog and my journey!!  I want to hear about yours!!

Never, Never, Never GIVE UP!!!!

I apologize for the lack of support and updates lately.  I am very limited on my computer time and it seems so much of my time is spent on catching up with email and the happenings of the world and life.  So I truly apologize!  How is everyone doing on the No Sugar and No Soda.

I know Kathy has said she has not lost any weight and so after Easter was not going to do it anymore. For me I will continue to do it, because it keeps me from just going and buying candy and then eating it all.  I actually made quite the breakthrough today!!! I WALKED 1/2 MILE!!!

Now I know what you are thinking, Laura ANYONE can do 1/2 mile.....No not anyone!!!  About a year ago I was on a cane and have decided I was going to get healthy.  I got rid of the soda, the sweets, and at the first of the year started walking.  Erika and I were talking today about when we started walking.  It was late January or February.  When we first started, I could barely do the 1/4 of a mile.  But she kept reminding me, BUT YOU DID IT!  Gradually we went from three days a week to five. Today she told me how good I did going around the building and we decided to do another lap!!  Go US!!

If there is anything I can say to any of you about fighting the weight loss battle, it is to NEVER, NEVER GIVE UP!!  Maybe the no sugar and no soda is not working for you.  For me it helped me to see habits and how easy it was to grab a candy bar on the way out the door.  Also because I know longer have those things in my midst, I do not snack as I used to. 

This has also taught me PATIENCE!!!  No one can ever know the pain in my legs and knees I tolerate to just be able to walk a few steps a day.  There were times at night that my legs hurt so badly they throbbed.  I would try various medications on them just hoping the throbbing would die down enough that I could get some sleep.  There are a few things I found helped some.  The Lymph Gland Cleanse seemed to help the swelling in my legs some.  I started to take a daily vitamin, Alleve every day and some Glucosamine Chondroitin.  Supposedly this is supposed to help you rebuild the cartilage in your joints.

One of the problems I could feel with my knees, is they would grind when I tried to bend them.  Sometimes my knee would catch and when it would "un-catch" it hurt.  But through all this I decided if I was to ever get better, I had to keep trying.  Today FINALLY I saw some different results.  YEAAA ME!!

I could have never had done this without the support and belief of all of you.  And without Erika and Tiffany!!  You all rock!!!  Even if you feel you need to take a break from all this, just DON"T EVER GIVE UP!!! 

Trials, Struggles and Crashes -- OH MY!!

Hey Everyone....I hope you are all hanging in there and doing the best you can!!  Easter is just around the corner!  For what ever reason this has been an extremely hard month and beginning of year for me.  There is good news....I have begun to walk five times a week instead of just three times a week!!!  Yea Me!!  I am trying to celebrate the little things.

On the flip side of that, my computer  has CRASHED!!!  UGH!!!  I have been using computers since 1988 and this is the first time I have ever had a computer crash!!!  I have very limited access to one in the Family History Center.  Please forgive me for not keeping this blog up....I will try do better once I get a computer again!

Hugs to all and Hang In There!!!  Laura

Feeding Times....Do They Exist?

A few years ago, someone told me their mom had lost quite a bit of weight by changing a few things.

1. Ate cereal for breakfast
2. Had a large salad for Lunch.
3. Ate anything she wanted for dinner with these exceptions:
1. She could not eat after 6 p.m.

I thought this was crazy!!! But thought I would give it a try.  After only a couple of weeks my friend said, "Laura you have lost weight."  That made me smile.  But of course when I told them what I was doing they didn't believe me.  I am not a cereal eater either, but I realized I did like some cereal.

One of the side affects of this I saw real fast, was that I would wake up in the middle of the night starving.  My tummy would grumble like it had not eaten in a week.  I learned that water could quiet my stomach down enough until I could eat in the morning.  I stuck to my guns about not eating after 6 p.m.  On a few occasions I had to politely turned down someone's offer to eat after my dead line.  Some understood but many more let me know how ridiculous it was and tried to guilt me into eating. 

So again, my point here is changing another habit.  Maybe you cannot set a 6 p.m. deadline, maybe it is a 6:30 or 7 deadline.  But just like everything else we need to do in our lives, it needs to be budgeted.  When you don't budget the times, like everything else it can spin out of control faster than chocolate disappears from a chocoholic's hand to their mouth.  In other words, DON'T BLINK.

Find times that work for you and your family.  It may be difficult at first to get everyone together for dinner, but keep trying till you work out the quirks.  It will come.

I am interested to hear if anyone else has set feeding times?

Living In a Perfect Society.....

I was thinking about this morning, if you could have one thing perfect in your life what would it be?

Is it a perfect body?  Family?  Ideal job? Clean house?  Bank account?  What would it be?

This has been on my mind, because I am learning through my life that nothing is perfect although we always seem to strive for that.  But what is Perfect?  Is it what we set for ourselves, or do we tend to gear towards what society thinks is perfect?

Take our bodies.  For me it didn't matter if I was 20 lbs overweight or 200 lbs overweight I was still referred to as an animal.  I have been through all this before, because I was seen as an animal, that is how I saw myself.  Today, I can see how I have lost weight, and whiles others say "Great Job, Laura!"  there are those that look me up and down and then proceed to give me their advice of how I need to go on a diet, lose weight etc.  But it doesn't stop with just our self image.

I look at families.  I remember a family who lived up the street from us my mom would call "the baby factory".  Why? Was it because of the amount of children (who I believe had one or two more than she did) or was it because it was the society standard to go against those with large families?  What about the wayward teenager?  Too many times I hear a parent say, "my child would never do that" or "he is so out of control he is no longer my problem".  Why could it never be your child or why is he/she is no longer your "problem"?

I have had jobs that were great and I loved and believe I even once had the perfect job.  But sometimes things happen in our "perfect societies" that we need to re-evaluate and try again.  The key to all this I believe is not striving for a "perfect life" but to strive for a way that we learn to stand up for what is right for us, not what is popular by society.

I am a BYU Fan and yes I have been "JIMMERED"!  Just when we thought life was getting perfect for BYU Basketball a snafu was thrown into the mix.  The day after making a 3rd ranking in the polls, it was announced one of the players had been suspended from the team for an honor code violation.  Immediately it was all over the news.  What became interesting to me were the people (mainly younger generation) who said, "So what it was only pre-martial sex.  Come to our school, you can drink, party, have sex as much as you want and not be judged." The older generation seemed to give a high five to BYU that they stuck to the rules and everyone is treated the same.  The thing that impressed me the most, was it was the player who came to them and admitted what he had done.  Coach Rose went on to say we put our arms around him to let him know he was loved and to help him back. 

I saw this as a great service of love.  On Seniors Day, Brandon was there with the team on the bench in street clothes.  The fans were behind Brandon, letting him know "yeah we all mess up...you're just being slung through the dirt.....but we are right here for you!" When it came time to cutting down the net, Brandon had to be found to cut down a piece and received a "Standing Ovation (SO)".  The SO was not about what he had done that made national headlines, it was about he did RIGHT that brought everyone to their feet. 

I have thought about Brandon in the last couple of weeks.  He has taught me, "Stand up for what is right, not what is popular."  I apply this to my own life this way.  People do not need to tell me I am overweight, I know that.  But I also learned instead of sitting there and feeling bad about the lecture or "advice" that was given me, I need to speak up for a people that often is looked at as not being strong enough.  That is hogwash, we are strong!!  We just need to stand up and say so!

Part of losing weight is about what you eat, but it is not the WHOLE PICTURE!!  You cannot fix the outside till we fix the inside. That means becoming stronger people!! And it means not letting the words and actions of others dictate what we know is right for us, not for society.

Sometimes we are going to fall, we need to get back up and try again.  Sometimes we are going to let society get to us and question our abilities, we need to get back up and keep trying. So what would I want perfect in my life?  Not sure. I know now that my weaknesses will become my strengths, and I never want to stop growing!  I have decided I no longer need a perfect life or society to live with in, I just need what is right for me. 


Whew!!  Now I feel better, coming down off my soapbox!!

Zzzzzz....How Are You Sleeping?

In the last few weeks I have made a significant change in my life.  As strange as it sounds, I think it has helped in what I eat during the day.  So I guess you can say, that I found a secret weapon to the weight loss battle.  It is called SLEEP!!!  In my younger years, when it came 10:00 p.m. I turned into a pumpkin.  My body would just shut down at 10:00.

In the last several months I noticed with no "set schedule" I went to bed whenever.  Unfortunately I couldn't sleep into whenever I wanted, as there was noise that would awake me. I will admit I got pretty annoyed and ticked off.  I have to remember I cannot go to the "angry and ticked off corner" that is how I got here in the first place!!!

Since we are all about improving our health, let's talk sleep?  Do you get 8 hours of sleep?  Or do you make do on 6?  According to health officials, the 8 hours of sleep our bodies require is indeed a REQUIREMENT not an OPTION.

I found this article from Samantha Gibbons, 10 Lifestyle Changes You Can Make to Lose Weight Naturally
Change #5 Sleep!!!!  She states we need at least 7 hours of sleep on a regular basis because our body needs to repair itself properly.  Also because of being tired we feel sluggish and less likely to exercise.  So what do we do?  EAT!!!  There have been many a times I was in this situation and could not stay awake and so I went to get a candy bar to pick me up.  Did it work?  For maybe 10 minutes and then I needed another pick me up!!! It' a vicious cycle.

 
I do think in today's perfect society we tend to cram too much into our lives.What do you do to get 8 hours of sleep a night or do you?  Do you feel it affects what you eat the next morning?  Your weight loss?  Would love to hear your comments.

Life and Weight Loss Excuses!!

We all do them!!!  I think I lead the pack!!  Ha Ha  Here are some of the ones I found online are and ones of my own at the end.

My parents (ancestors) were overweight, so I am too.  

Great Grandmother

Grandmother

  We have to remember we are the one who chooses our own destiny.  Yes the genes play a part in it, but we are the only ones who can change who we are.  Here are some pictures of my grandmother and great grandmother. When I first saw these pictures, I thought yep I am dead meat!! On the left is my grandmother Grace Linn Moore, and on the right is Carrie Valls Schoenbohm.  I have their same body type!!!  I showed the picture to my manager who said, "Well we know where you body type comes from!"  So yes genes have a big part to play in our weight, but so does alot of other factors.  I am stubborn enough and determined enough to break cycles in my life and change me.

My Family Won't Eat Healthy Food.
We can't expect ourselves or our family to automatically go from eating junk food to eating a healthier diet.  It just doesn't work that way.  We need to find small ways to change our eating habits rather than big ones. I had a friend who used to have one green vegetable for dinner every night.  Those green vegetables varied, between green beans, broccoli, salad, brussell sprouts etc. I had a friend who added one new fruit to her vegetable each week. So think of little changes to incorporate to begin with. This reminds me of a story:

STORY TIME

My brother would easily go through a gallon of milk in a day or two.  Remember how I said earlier my mom used to tell us to slow down we were not going to a fire?  Well my brother could eat. She often said, "he can't be tasting what he is eating." My mom in all her wisdom decided to go with a cheaper milk and see if he could taste the difference.  For about three months he could not.  Then one day, "Mom this milk tastes funny!! I think it is spoiled!"  She tried to explain there was nothing wrong with the milk, it was just a different kind and not the whole milk.  He replied, "I can't drink this stuff it's gross!!!"  I don't think she went back to the whole milk and he had to get used to the 2% milk.

I have never been a milk drinker, although I do like and can drink skim milk.  And yes I can tell the difference between whole milk and skim milk!!  But the point to this whole story is, sometimes we just shove things in our mouths without even thinking about it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Adding little changes to our food is probably not going to be noticeable.  What small changes can you make to your food to make them healthier?

I Don't Have Time!
Don't get me started on this one!!!   Let's start with lunch at work.  By the time you go out to get lunch, bring it back and snarf it down, there is no time to enjoy lunch or even relax.  But if you got in the habit of making your lunch at night and taking it to work with you, not only would you be saving $$ but also you could relax and maybe go for a walk, or read a book or do something else besides run to get lunch and be stressed.  There have been several jobs where I have taken a 10 minute walk and then eaten lunch. I have mentioned before my water aerobics story and the success I had with it.  I had joined a website that had a message board and most of the replies were positive when I posted my successes. The keyword being MOST!!!  But one lady said, "I wish I had the free time you did to do water aerobics."  Hello did I miss something?  FREE TIME?  I left my house at 6:30 in the morning, worked all day, then drove straight to water aerobics after work, did an hour class, was lucky if I got home by 7:00 pm at night. And I was always early for work, because of parking and the 15 minute hike to my building.  It was all about changing priorities to make time.

I Don't Have Any Support.
I do understand this one.  I have said this before, I do not know what I would do without Erika.  On Monday I was a tad bit later than normal getting to the church and she had begun loading Audrey her daughter into the car to leave.  I showed up just in time!!!  We did our walk around the building.  She is my motivator.  And I have never had anyone like that before to really support me and make sure I go walking.  We could have very easily said, "Let' not do it today" but we were both there so why not do it!!  Do you have a dog you can take for a walk?  Maybe a neighbor or co-worker will go with you. Not take the neighbor or co-worker for a walk, (ha ha) but have them walk with you.  Remember it doesn't take much, you are just trying to change your habits and make small changes that will become bigger habits.


I Am Afraid of Regaining It All.
What is your thought on this?  This has never crossed my mind.  I guess because I have always lost the same pounds over and over.  Ha Ha This time it is going to be different.

All of the above is from the article "Weight Loss Excuses" on about.com.

Here are some of my own thoughts:


What will happen when I get thin?
Even when I have lost weight before, I do not have the mindset in me to think differently when I was thinner. Part of it becomes because even when  I was 20 lbs overweight, I was still referred to as a cow, water buffalo, horse etc. There was a time in my life where I had lots a substantial amount of weight.  I had gotten off a bus and was walking to a friends house when I got whistled at. I hurried to my friends house and it was all I could do to not cry.  Eventually I told my friend what happened and she said, "Laura that is a good thing" but I could never make myself believe that.  So that worries me.  Even if I was to get into a single digit size, I worry how I will be viewed and what would happen.  Whistles?  Name calling?  I don't think I could handle any attention and that bothers me deep down.  I know, I know, there are some deep mental issues inside there.

Failure
Also now, I can blame all my failures to my weight.  When I lose the weight, I can blame my weight anymore for my failures.

Do I Deserve To Be Thin and Healthy?
I have a very dear friend who is Diabetic.  I watch her struggle on a daily basis with her diabetes.  Today I was thinking to myself as I watched her check her blood sugar, why is it she has diabetes?  She is very trim and tiny and watches what she eats -- or at least I think she does.  And yet her diabetes is such a burden to her and her lifestyle.  I have been tested for diabetes on many occasions, and always told the same thing.  There is nothing wrong with me. I know that is not right, but they have to go off the blood work.  So I do what I can now and hopefully I will be able to dodge the bullet.

See for me this is all a mind game.  There is a book I am going to check into that is called:  Train Your Brain to Think Like a Thin Person  I want to read this as I think it will help deal with the issues in my head.

So what about all of you?  What are your excuses?  How are you going to combat them?  Any advice from those who have met their goals and gotten to their goal weight?

Three Muskateer Day....

Now I know what you all are thinking, "Laura YOU DIDN'T?"  Nope I didn't.....I did not give in but I did think about it.  Why?  Because I ran to the grocery store today and Three Muskateers were on sale 2/$1.00.  Three Muskateers are my most favorite candy bar!!! Snickers is close, but I am a Three Muskateers Girl.  Normally they do not tempt me but today I saw the SALE and PICK ME PICK ME sign!!!

I did manage to sneak by them with out one jumping in my cart. Whew!!  Off to Walgreen's I headed.  Guess what I found there?  The king size GIGANTIC Three Muskateer bars on sale for some ridiculous price too!!  I was afraid to go anywhere else!!!

I thought about those candy bars today, but not so much how I wanted one as I was able to pass them up.  I am realizing the sugar does not tempt me so much anymore. But as it has been said here before, often times we simply substitute one thing for another.  Maybe this is not a bad thing as long as eventually we substitute the good things we need in our life for a healthy diet and balance.

So that's all.  I just wanted to let you all know I did pass up the Three Muskateers Today.  Yeaaa Me!!!  And I did make it out walking thanks to Erika ...Yeaaa Me!!!

Tips for Breaking Habits

Getting back on track!

I am an avid Woman's World Magazine reader.  There are just some all around great tips, information and encouragement in the magazine. There was an article in the March 14th issue on breaking bad habits I thought was quite interesting and wanted to share with all of you.  Three topics were talked about; Eating, Smoking and Shopping. Here we will talk about our favorite thing EATING!!

30 Second  Trick:

Take a bite and leave it in your mouth for 30 seconds.  Elaine Magee (MPH, RD) has her students take a Hershey Kiss and let it sit in their mouth for 30 seconds. Her students swallow the chocolate sooner than 30 seconds as the taste of the chocolate becomes too intense.

Sip Flavored Green Tea
Often times hunger is mistaken for thirst.  Drinking something will help take the curve off the hunger. I do know when I drink Pink Lemonade (Wyler's Light) when I think I am hungry, it takes the hunger away for awhile. I have switched the Wyler's Pink Lemonade to simply water with lemon.  The Wyler's has aspartame in it which I am trying to avoid.  But the point is, try something to drink if you feel hungry.  And no Sugar Free Soda does not count!!!

Eat More Grapefruit
I love grapefruit, I just hate cutting it up!  According to this article if you have one half grapefruit before each meal, in one month you will lose 4 pounds. The reasoning behind it is that it lowers the insulin  levels, dodging sugar spikes that cause cravings.

I took an inventory of my own life and did some additional research and here are some of my bad habits:

Speed eater aka "Slow down you are not going to a fire!"  That is what my mom would tell us.  I have always heard that it takes 20 minutes for your brain to tell your stomach, Stop already!  I'm Full!!  By the time I get through eating I am so stuffed I feel sick.  What I have learned is when you eat fast, you take in access air that can lead to bloating.  Because we are also not chewing our food, the digestive tract has to work harder.  Some tips:  Don't eat finger foods!!  Put the food on a plate, eat with utensils and sip water between bites.

Eating out of a Bad Mood:  Food is my comfort food.  It listens to my tears, and fears, frustrations etc. Many of us will turn to carbohydrates.  In doing so carbs produce tryptophan (a type of amino acid) which the brain uses to manufacture serotonin.  The serotonin helps our mood improve only temporarily. To reverse the bad mood try going for a walk, seeing a movie, or talking to a friend.  If you opt for something to eat, try something whole grain with less sugar and more fiber.  I guess my tortilla chips and salsa do not count towards this does it?

Weekend Binging.  Is it possible to eat healthy all week and by binging on the weekend, undo everything from the week?  According to an article I found on CNN.com it is.  Their suggestion is to have a mini meal before you go out and volunteer to be the designated driver for the night to limit the alcohol intake. I have done this method before and this is what I found.  Monday-Friday I ate meat, fruits and vegetables. On Saturday I would have A TREAT, and then on Sunday would be a mixture of meat, fruits, vegetables and add some carbs.  So if I wanted spaghetti, or sandwich I would have it. I did lose weight.

Here is an article on CNN about breaking eating habits.

STORY TIME

Let me share with you my experience of doing this and what happened.  I joined a Women's Only gym in Nashville because 1) it was Women Only 2) I could do water aerobics.  Four days a week I did an hour of water aerobics. After every twelve visits (three weeks), they would weigh and measure you and record your progress. On my 13th visit, I was excited to get measured and weighed (imagine that!  ha ha)  As the assistant measured me and compared them to the original measurements she said, "This can't be right, let me try again."  So she did it again.  The numbers were so far off, she called the manager (who originally weighed and measured me) to take them again.  Amazingly she got the same results as the assistant who had just measured me.  Then they weighed me and were completely astonished.  "What have you been doing?" she asked me.  I became somewhat confused because I knew I had lost weight.  They then showed me my results.  I had lost 67 1/2 inches and 27 lbs in three weeks!!  I looked at them and said, "Is that good or bad?"  LOL  They said, "That is really good!  We have never seen anyone do that before!" I felt much better.  I revealed my secret diet to them.  M-F I ate meat, fruits and vegetables, and on the weekend I would allow myself ONE TREAT.  On Sunday I had a mixture of meats, fruits, vegetables, and a small amount of carbs.

My next measurement was not as high, and I don't remember the exact amounts.  I believe it was somewhere in the 30's for inches and about 15-20 lbs in weight loss.  Shortly after that I hurt my knee and could never get back into it the same way.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
My point is, I think you can have A TREAT on the weekend if you are disciplined enough. Even though I have done it before, I am not disciplined to do it right now  Maybe in the future I will be.

I do know I have to break bad habits and form good habits.  It is my struggle and something I will constantly struggle with.  Have you been able to identify other bad habits?  What do you do? I want to find ways to become more active, but it is so hard right now with my legs.  They do not want to cooperate with me!!

Just remember do what you can!!!  Taking baby steps will go much further than going full force and running out of steam!

Still Here!!

I have been such a slacker this week in blogging!!!  I apologize ...but I am still off the sugar and soda.  How is everyone else doing?  This is a new week and a new me!!! 

Since I talk about Tiffany and Erika so much, this is us.  I hope you all have a partner to do this with!!  It makes such a difference!!

Me, Tiffany, Erika, Baby Jake and Cute Gabby!!!

Hugs and Loves Laura

How Do You Know When You're Full?

That is my question to all of you.  How do you know when you are full?  I wish I could stop at what I know I should stop at, but I don't.  I stop when it's gone. By that time I am sooo full and bloated it is only then I realize what I have done.  I am curious if this is just me or if it happens to others?

I have heard that when people have Gastric Bypass surgery done there is a "switch" or something that is usually missing for folks and part of the reason they overeat.  It also seems like there is a vitamin missing in you that does not send the information to your brain that says "STOP I AM FULL".  Has anyone else ever heard this?  I can't remember what it is called but I will continue to look and see if I can find it.

Thought it was interesting as I Googled "How do I know when I am full".  There were a variety of answers.  For the older generation (me) here are some things we used to hear:

1. There are starving children in Africa.  We had to clear our plates no matter how full or how nasty the food was.  In elementary school we used to have mashed potatoes, and hamburger gravy on top.  I remember one time I did not eat it, and was told I had to not only eat it but also clear my plate before I could go to recess.  It only took that once and never again did they (the lunch ladies) make me clean my plate and especially eat the nasty hamburger gravy.  Yep, I tossed it all up, all over them!!!  
2. Another thing was you were done eating when the TV program was over.  Ha Ha  Now imagine that being an hour long program compared to a 30 minute program.  How many of us have gone back during commercials for seconds.  Never thought about it till now but true.
3. You were done eating when someone else was done eating.  I see myself doing this one too. Going along with this, as a child my brothers ate first.  So if I wanted seconds, I had to eat fast!!  Ugh all those bad habits I have today.

Now that we have identified things that we associate with "we are full" how do we stop them.  Again as you can see they are HABITS!!!  Habits can be formed and they can be broken!!! 

1. Okay so the starving children n Africa, we know we can find other ways to help besides clean our plate.  
2. As for our TV Shows, DON'T EAT IN FRONT OF THE TV.  In my case it is the computer.  
3. This one will be a bit harder for me, BUT I know I simply have to slow down when I eat. I am not going to a fire!!!   Even after I left home and had roommates, I cannot begin to tell you the times I went to get something and it would be gone.  UGH!!  So if I did not eat it, someone else would!!!

STORY TIME

I have not done this in a long time, and this just reminded me of a story.  If I had a favorite meal it would be SPAGHETTI!!! I love SPAGHETTI!!!  How much do I love spaghetti? 

True story:  My mom had made spaghetti for dinner when I was little and lived in Texas.  My dad was a police officer and worked the night shift.  My dad would go to work after we went to bed, and was there when we got up in the morning.  My mom would often pack his lunch for him.  This night she thought she would heat up some spaghetti (this was before microwave ovens-see I told you I was old!). My mom sent us to bed and I think they must have gone to lay down as well and then get up when my Dad had to get up to get ready for work. My mom went to get the spaghetti to heat up and put in my Dad's thermos and there was no spaghetti.  The bowl and all was gone! She could not figure out what happened to the spaghetti!  My dad ended up with a cold bolonga sandwich instead.  In the morning my mom came in to wake me up and her words to me as she told me this story was:  "I could have killed you!!!" She walked in my room and found the missing spaghetti!!!  I had the bowl with me in bed.  But there was spaghetti all on me, my bed, bedding, floor, ceiling, even in the closet.  Don't ask me how it got on the ceiling and in the closet!!!  I have no idea how I did it when I was only about 6 years old.  I was creative even then!!  So you can see my love for spaghetti.

As I got on my own spaghetti became my special meal. It is always the first meal when I move into a new apartment.  And just for the record, if you have never tried a bit of mustard in your spaghetti sauce, you should.  Good stuff!!  This one particular time I made some spaghetti and had some leftovers for the next day.  Or so I thought. I had even frozen it so my roommates would not be tempted to eat it.  Yes we had "big mice" and food seemed to walk away.  Imagine my surprise to go and get my spaghetti and I found TWO BITES left!!!  When I questioned my roommates, no one had eaten it.  Finally one confessed she had "just tasted it".  From there it went down hill as she always had to have a "taste" which was never really a taste, and then she had to critique my cooking.  Ugh!!  No wonder I am so messed up with food.

Anyway.....back to the blog.  How do we know when we are full?  Or do we?  I stop when the food is gone.  What do all of you do?  I really need to change this with me!!!  Looking for ideas!!!

Thanks all!!!

Up and at 'Em!!!

Okay I figure since I have been moaning and groaning about Tiffany and Erika getting me walking and I vowed to not complain any longer, I needed to put on my BGP (Big Girl Panties) and up my game.  I was very proud of myself, I was at the store yesterday and did not buy CHIPS!! Yeaa Me.  But that was not upping my game enough!

One of my biggest fears (I tell myself) is falling when I am out walking.  Tiffany says, "So, we will pick you up!" They just won't let me use excuses of any kind.  Last Friday I took very very baby steps to get around the building and it really bothered me that a little three year old could walk faster than I could!  Today a friend posted pictures of hiking to the Delicate Arch and I would love to do that, but know I can't with these legs.  So I need to up my game!

I want to get my legs better, if I can get them better I can really progress on myself.  Every morning I wake up and my right arm I can feel is somewhat swollen.  When I get on the computer in the morning, sometimes my fingers begin to go numb that I need to stop and exercise them.  At the grocery store I often have to sit down and rest my feet as the right bottom goes a bit numb and bugs me.  Once I sit down for five minutes, it is fine.

I decided this morning I need to find out what is wrong with me. I Googled "poor circulation for body" and found an interesting article I thought I would share with all of you. The article is entitled  "How to Improve Circulation Naturally".

• Increase your water intake.  Everyone says, eight glasses of water a day but who has time to count.  If you get a 32 oz refillable cup and make sure you drink two of them a day, there will be your 64 oz.  I know there are different theories, but remember we are just looking to make changes.
• Add lemon to your diet.  Lemon contains citrate which is good for blood circulation.  Various ways to do this!!  But need to add lemon.
• Take a Multivitamin every day.  I do not do this but am going to start again.  I am awful at having good habits!!  Bad habits are so much easier to form!!!

Those three I thought were easy things I could do right away and change to begin making good habits.  Here are some other tips that were listed:

• Follow a healthy diet plan.  I have a hard time with the word DIET....I need a life style change.  However it did say to limit your intake of sugar, alcohol, sodium, and caffeine.  Yeaaa us!!!
• Exercise, yes we all know we need to get moving more!  Snoopy Dance everyone!!!
• Apply heat to your body to help the blood flow move.
• Get a foot massage " Visit a local spa or salon and have someone massage the reflex point on the bottom of each foot. This helps to increase blood flow to the various organs in your body".

Yes it really said to get a foot massage!!!  You think that can be done with health insurance?  <g>

Here is the link to the entire article How to Improve Circulation Naturally  (interesting read).  I am going to do the things in the first group and work on the ones in the second group.

I would love to know for any who try these if they make a difference for them.  I am going to start them as well and report back if I feel better.  We are starting on week two everyone!!!  Hang in there with everything you are doing!!!  Now let's get up and Snoopy Dance!!! (Your aerobic exercise for the day!!)

Revamping Life.....

Is it really ONLY day 4 of the No Sugar, No Soda challenge?  It seems like it has been a month and we should be on the downhill side of it!!  Yes it has been one of those weeks again that I am getting quite tired of.  It seems like it is week after week after week of this.

Today "my girls" Tiffany and Erika dragged me out to go walking AGAIN!!!  It was spitting rain and I really didn't want to go.  Erika reminded me since I don't have any sugar in me, I would not melt!  So we walked around the building, baby step by baby step for me. It was odd, just this morning I felt so puffy and thought I needed to get rid of this puffiness and thought about trying to eliminate salt from my diet as well as the sugar and soda.  I know that leaves very little to eat.  Actually maybe I will eat what I am supposed to eat!  Ha

As we were walking Tiffany said I am going to be your back seat driver (I think is what she called herself) and said, "We need to eliminate salt from our diet."  How weird that I had just thought the same thing this morning before we walked.  So with that on my mind, from walking I went to yet another staffing agency interview. I had some small hopes of maybe getting interviewed for a REAL JOB....but no that did not happen.  That has been the story lately.

Anyway, it was so hard for me to walk and I admit shed more tears than I have recently.  The rain and humidity makes my hair look as though I have not brushed it in a month.  It was just a rough day AGAIN.  Then I was on a wild goose chase for a package (I did not order - another story) and on my way home I stopped at the Family History Center to work on my community service.  Yes I have community service.

In December I was stopped and presented two gift certificates (tickets) from the Williamson County Sheriff.  I was told I was stopped for not coming to a complete three second stop at the stop sign.  Sorry about that, it was only 2 1/2 seconds!!  But that is not what the tickets were for.  One was for letting my registration expire the day before the other was for having a Utah Driver's license.  Because with no job or money to pay the ticket I was giving 15 hours of community service.  Where?  In the Family History Center where I love to be!!!

So here is my problem and why I need to revamp my life.  First of all I feel guilty for doing community service for the Family History Center, even though I know we service much of the community there. Everyone else has said, "What a great blessing" and I tell myself, "I don't deserve this." I feel as though I deserve to be put on display somewhere being laughed at and mocked. I was trying to figure out why I felt like this and it keeps going back to all the inside crap I keep carrying around with me.  I feel as though I have tried "everything" to rid myself of it.  Maybe I have not tried hard enough?  Maybe I am missing something?

Even though I can leave the sugar and soda alone, I still find myself reaching for food (any food) when I get stressed.  But I am going to work very hard on cutting back on the salt starting with the chips. So as far as revamping my life here is what I am going to try and do. You all also have my permission to call me on something I slip up on:

1. Stop my complaining period!  I need to look at each day as a blessing and not burdens!
2. Keep staying away from the sugar and soda.
3. Keep not eating in my car (I am failing at this miserably!!)
4. Drink at least 64 oz of water a day.
5. Write down all I eat.  How do you all do this?  I do not have an Iphone so that is out.  Any ideas?
6. Continue to walk 3 times a week, but really need to step it up to twice around the building instead of once.
7. I need to learn how to LOVE MYSELF!!

I hope all of you have a partner you can do all this with.  I do not know what I would do if I did not have Erika and Tiffany.  One of the problems I have is that whether I want to admit it or not, I have a hard time accepting the fact that people love me and want to help me.  I hear the words, and know they care.  But inside of me I ask myself  "Why does anyone care?"  Soooo hard!!!  Harder than leaving a stupid piece of chocolate alone.

I recently came across a quote that I liked and thought I would share here.

"Life is lived forward, but understood backwards." 

I do understand so much more now than I ever have.  I know that all of the garbage in me is from years of abuse by others and myself.  I just need to find the key to unlock the door and straighten it all out.

So there you go....my last pity party and why I have been absent the last few days.  I am still here and still am going to do this to the best of my ability!!!  Sorry for dumping on you all again!!! 
How is everyone else doing?



 

Phase II -- Here We Go Again !!

So here we are back at Day 1 again with new a new goal!!  We are going to go through Easter which is April 24, 2011 in the US.  If my calculations are correct we are on No Sugar, No Soda for 69 Days!!!!  Whew!!!  But I know we all can do this again!!!

For me I was a bit afraid I would not be able to go back to having No Sugar, No Soda after having it for one day. Today, though I have been just fine.  Maybe it is knowing that it will be there tomorrow and the next day and I don't have to have it all right now.  I really think though it is having to answer to all of you!!!

Now that we have all been through this once, I thought maybe we could step it up a bit (if you want).  Remember the three baby steps we were going to do before as our goals along with the No Sugar, No Soda?  I thought we could start them earlier in this process and maybe we might be more successful on them.  I know I failed miserably!!!  LOL  Kathy calls them "The Power of Three Checklist".  So here are my three again and this time I am going to do them!!!  Okay so math is not one of my strong points, I added a fourth to mine.  Ha Ha

1) Go Walking three times a week (you all need a friend like Erika!!  She keeps me going!)
2) Get in the habit of writing everyday what I eat and my feelings for the day.
3) Do not in the car while driving.  Big one of mine.  Bad me!
4) Drink water, water, water!!  I have a two quart bottle I try to down at least once a day.
 
This has been an interesting day and yes I know it is only Tuesday. I mentioned yesterday I had to go take care of a ticket.  Then today I had an interview with a staffing agency, but when I got there on the window next to the door was a sign that read:  "NO TRESPASSING!  THE POLICE HAVE BEEN INFORMED!"

My first thought was, "don't tell me they have shut down this office since yesterday!!"  I peaked in the window and it looked like it was still  open, the door was unlocked and I went inside.  I rang the bell to get the attention of someone and after several minutes someone finally came out.  Then I waited several more minutes before being taken back for my interview.  The first thing I was told was, "I am sorry to tell you this, but the position I talked to you yesterday about is not longer available but I did not cancel because I still wanted to interview you.  After going through a 30 minute interview, I asked what positions were available and she said, "None".  I felt as though I was going to be sent on my way, but stuck my foot out and asked to fill out paper work so I would not have to come back.  It was 20 miles one way.

Through this all I was a bit ticked because once again I felt it was a waste of time and here someone was making me jump through hoops for show.  It is frustrating.  Since getting home I have listened to a young man's commencement speech who has 90% hearing loss.  It reminded me, "Laura what do you have to complain about?"  So with this new beginning on another journey of No Sugar, No Soda  I am going to look for the positive things in life and on this journey and not complain so much.  We all know how to do that (complain) most of us probably don't need help in that department.  I am going to stand a little taller, and be a little stronger and step it up this go around.

Those pounds I want to lose this year are not going to just say one day, "Here you go Laura we are going to run away today" no. I am going to have to work for every ounce there is.  So all I am asking you all to do, is be a little stronger this go around!!  Good Luck  I know ya'all can do it!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!!

After much thought and consideration, I too decided to take a break from the No Sugar, No Soda and enjoy today!!! Yes I indulged in some chocolate. Let me show you....Okay I didn't have 8, I had two.  But I decided to do it for a couple of reasons. 

First of all I did it for me and no one else.  Why?  Because I had to remind myself this was my challenge and no one else's.  When I even began to THINK about having a donut I felt so much opposition come at me.  It made me crazy.  On my way home from a hearing on my ticket (long story) I was going to head to the store and get a few things to make some goody bags for some friends.  Then I remembered, this was our FREE DAY....if I wanted to have sugar, this was the day.  And only one, not an all day sugar feast.  That is when I remembered I was by Round Rock Donuts and somehow my car just magically turned to go.   I must admit, they were tastie but not something I could eat everyday.  So today was sufficient. 

The second reason I did this, I want to see if I can go in challenges as we did, and pick up my no sugar again till the next goal.  I have set my mind to do this. Before when I tried this, I couldn't do it BECAUSE I was not committed to my goal as I am this time.  As I have said before, I could never do this with out all of you!!! 

Whether you know it or not, by sharing your stories you help all of us.  I can tell you as someone who has lived in an obese body, society and life is less than fair with us.  We have to grow thick skin in order to survive and tolerate just to survive sometimes. And though we my have a brave face on the outside, inside we must strive everyday to not let our hearts become harden because of this. 

A few years ago I went and supported a friend who was in an AIDS bike ride.  I was "cautioned" and "counseled" I should not go because that meant I was supporting what AIDS stood for.  I shared the story of my friend I was going to support, but still his answer was, "Well I am just telling you if I was in this position I would not go."  When I asked him, "Why?" His answer was, "Because of the way I live my life I will never have to worry about AIDS."  It was that comment that confirmed to me I needed to go!!!  I am so glad I did.  Because as I sat at the closing ceremonies and heard who the riders were riding for, and heard the stories I realized the ride was not about AIDS.  It was for every person who had a passion and a fight for a cause in them. So many people I met touched my life forever with their stories. 

Obesity and abuse will always be my fights.  It has made me who I am.  Through it all I have had to learn to develop that tough skin, to forgive,  and to love.  But now instead of getting mad all the time I try to find a way to teach with love.  That is what I am going to do today.  Two little girls yesterday just made my day at church.  So today I will let their families know how much I appreciated them.  That is how I will spend Valentine's Day.

How about all of you?  Are you ready for a new challenge tomorrow?

Party Time!!

First of all I want to say thank you to all who have joined and shared their comments, challenges, ups and downs and support with all of us.  These last two weeks have been very challenging for me.  Haven't I said that before?  It just seems ever week becomes more and more challenging. 

This week I went into Walgreens and this little girl about 7 or 8 yelled, "Daddy look at the big fat ugly lady!  She is so fat."  I will admit it not only took me off guard, but knocked me back a few hundred steps.  A child said this.  And yes I know I have to remember she is just a child.  When all the customers turned and stared, and then glanced away, I decided I was not going to run this time.  I would stand there and take whatever was given to me. When nothing was said, I looked at the little girl and said, "I hope one day you can learn some manners."  The father who originally glanced my way and then turned away, looked at me and then her, and said, "What did you say?"  Did he not hear her the first time?  Everyone else did?  And then she repeated herself, grinning, "Look at that big fat ugly lady! She is so fat!"  It was then he got after her and said "You do not say things like that to people."  I thought that would be the end of it. But after they finished checking out, I was still standing there looking at the ad, and he came over and apologized for her. Or I thought.  Then he made her come over and apologize.  When he did that she got scared and began to cry.  I took her hand and told her, "I just want you to know I am a girl like you are and that hurt my feelings."  I gave her a hug, she was reluctant at first.  But once again her father made her accept the hug.  Her father then told me she has leukemia and that day was her first treatment.

Part of me felt bad that the situation turned into what it had, but at the same time I was tired of running.  As I picked up my few items the cashier told me, "I think you handled that very well."  Still it has been on my mind.  Today a little girl came up to me and hugged me. Her name is Mei. Mei at one time told me, "You are too big!" I think most of the time parents just tune out what children say, because when I said, "You think I am too big?"  "Yes" she said.  Her parents got after her for the comment.  I had Mei come to me so I could give her a hug. The one thing I have learned with children, is when they get in trouble because of me I want them to know I still like/love them.  Now when I see Mei she comes running up and hugs me.  I think it is that when they see someone who is so different than they are, they deal with it as they see others deal with it.  Not always parents, but somewhere they have gotten this idea.

So with all that said, as Valentine's Day approaches tomorrow I have contemplated how to "celebrate".  As an adult, Valentine's Day just comes and goes for me. I need to get out of this mood I am in and the only way I know how to get out of it is by serving.  So I am thinking tomorrow I am going to go to the store and get Valentine treats for two different families.  Just because I know it will make me feel better and feel more love, and that is what I need right now.  I know that is being selfish in a way.  But sometimes it is okay to be selfish.  And that is how I think I am going to celebrate tomorrow.  By giving to others.

So with all that said, I hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day with your honey!!!  Enjoy your chocolate and/or celebrations and let's get ready for Round 2!!!  Thank you all for taking this journey with me!!  I am going to try very hard to not have so many emotional ups and downs as I did this time!! 

CONGRATS!!  WE DID IT!!

Ya Think???

How do you plan to celebrate February 14th, making it to our 45th day for the No Sugar, No Soda challenge?

I ask because I have noticed in about the last week, I have people coming out of the woodwork offering their advice on what I should and should not be doing with MY challenge. I am not saying "my challenge" as in this is what you must do.  Each one of us (I hope) has taken the No Sugar, No Soda guidelines and worked them according to what you needed in your life.

One person wanted to cut down their soda to one a day.  For them that was a big step. Others simply wanted to see if they could go 45 days with no sweets and no soda.  For me, I am continuously trying to break my habits that just because I am standing in line where the candy and sodas are, it does not mean I have to buy them.

Interesting I have been told, "Oh honey you shouldn't eliminate it all, just cut back."  Ya think?  If I could just cut back I would.  But I know if it is within range of me seeing it, it is a goner.  I have also been told when I mention that occasionally I have sugar free chocolate "Well that is even worse for you, you might as well eat the real stuff."  Erika (bless her heart and Thank You Erika!) gets me out to go walking three times a week around our church building.  If it was not for her I probably wouldn't go.  For me I am quite proud of myself for doing it.  But mentioning it to one person, "Well that is not very far, you need to walk more."  Ya think? My point is I simply gave guidelines to those who asked if they could join this challenge the next time I did it.  No Sugar, No Soda could be interpreted many different ways.

Now we have made it this far, we see the finish line in sight.  I was asked "How are you going to celebrate?"  At first I was going to go try the entire year through Thanksgiving again with No Sugar, No Soda.  But, lately I have been seeing this ad for donuts.  If you think Krispy Kreme donuts are wonderful, you should have Round Rock Donuts.  Yes, they are that good and even been featured on the Travel Channel.  I will do you a favor and not post the link to their website.  <g>  So I have been thinking maybe I will go get a Chocolate Round Rock donut on Monday.

Part of me knows, when I go to begin the challenge again it will be very very hard if I go off now and have sugar and especially that donut.  Part of me is saying "Laura it is one donut!"  LOL  That good and evil sitting on my shoulder.  So I have not quite decided what  will do yet.  There are have been those who have offered their opinions when I posted I was thinking of this.

Just as a side note, yes I am aware that artificial sweeteners are worse than real sugar, but again I need to break habits.  That was my whole purpose and to gain some kind of control for my sugar addiction.  Has it helped?  Yes.  I can pass up the sweets and I am okay.  But I have gotten a few opinions from others on this matter!!!  LOL  Through all the frustrations this year, I feel as though I have pulled through pretty well.  So I am looking forward to Monday as a milestone for me. Will I celebrate, now sure yet or if I do how will I do it.

Do you all want to do this again?  Kathy made the comment on her blog to go again till Easter.  I thought that was a good goal for Phase II of the No Sugar, No Soda.  What do you all think?  How have you all fared through all this and what have you learned?

GREAT JOB EVERYONE!!!

501 Ways to Get The Sugar Out

No I am not going to list 501 ways, BUT I thought I would share with you a book that I love!!  In 2001 I was preparing for chance of a lifetime.  I was going to be a Volunteer for the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympic Games.  This had been a 2 year process of paper work, test events, training, FINALLY getting an assignment, my uniform etc.  The one thing I had not been able to do though was to lose weight.  One day my friend and I were at the library and I found a book called, "Get The Sugar Out".  It sounded interesting so I checked it out and read it.

I already knew I had a problem with sugar, but it was hard to admit it. I was on a last ditch effort to take off some weight before the games started.  On December 29th, I began to take all the sugar out of my diet.  This included, sweets, pasta, bread, potatoes, soda, all things sugar.  I mentioned to another friend on New Year's Eve how I was giving up sugar and she laughed at me.  She went on to say we all need sugar, and I could never give it up.  That go around, I went 6 months with no sugar before I caved in.  But by eliminating those things and walking 1 mile a day five times a week I lost over 40 lbs in a month.  The weight fell off.  Even though I had done it for six months, I felt like I failed.

However, after the Olympics were over, I heard my friend's voice over and over, You Can't Do It!!!  I was so mad at myself when I did cave in thinking I would simply go back off the sugar again.  It was not that easy.  Last September was the first time I had been able to give it up since 2002.  My thought when I think back to this is why couldn't she just be supportive?

This part of my life reminds me of a favorite children's story.  There is a series of books by Ricky Van Shelton called Tales From a Duck Named Quacker, Quacker meets Mrs, Moo, and Quacker Meets Candadian Geese.  There are four of them (I do not have the fourth one) and each one tells a different story and a different moral.  One of my favorites (if anyone really wants to know what the title is, leave a message and I will dig them out) tells the story of Quacker and a friend.  His friend asks him,
"Why do you wag your tail and bark like a dog?"
Quacker replies, "Because that is who I am."
His friend replies, "No you're not, that is a dog and you are a duck."
Quacker asks, "Don't you like me for who I am?  This is all I know how to be." 

This story always touches me because our true friends and those we love seem to accept us for who we are, yet they also sometimes want to mold us into what they want or what is acceptable to society or something!   I have not quite got that part figured out yet.  They don't mean the harm, but sometimes it is still there.  I have said before, I did this last September to gain control of my life, because somewhere I had to have some control over something.  Through it all there have been challenges, victories, defeats and downfalls.  But despite all of that it is the things I have learned that I know one day I will will by battle to become a healthier me. It all starts with doing what you can and building upon it.

Early in the book, "Get the Sugar Out" Ann Gittleman starts by listing the problems with sugar in heart disease, diabetes and cancer, the three leading disease killers.  Also listed on the list is your immune system.  I just thought of this while writing this blog.  Since being off the sugar in September I have been sick once.  I think it was more the stress than anything, but none the less I was a sick little puppy.  Now all my friends are getting sick and (knock on wood) I have avoided it all.  Could it be by being off the sugar my immune system has increased that I have avoided all the nasty bugs that are going around?  Hmmm interesting thought.

Back to the book, besides the obvious diseases and ailments listed above Ms. Gittleman lists many others.  Some that are included are:

Acne, Allergies, Arthritis, Cancer, Constipation (excuse me need to potty!!! LOL Sorry I couldn't resist!), Depression, Fatique, Mood Swings, Premature Aging and the list goes on.  But the point is, trying to get rid of the sugar is not just about losing weight, it is about getting healthier.  Here are the Top 10 Hints for getting sugar out of your diet::

1-Stop adding sugar to cereal and fruit.
2-Eliminate processed carbohydrates from your kitchen - yes white bread, white pasta, whit rice
3-Go with whole and unprocessed foods
4-Thin out sweeteners or sweet foods
5-Beware of "Fat Free" it does not mean they are less sugar
6-The more natural food the better
7-Become a food detectve
8-Eat for taste and nutrition
9-Listen to your body
10-Eat regular and balanced meals.

Okay so looking at this list even I GET OVERWHELMED!  I am going to take three of them and work on them. I don't have a problem with number 1, but I need #2 and #3, and #10.

This is a very good book that explains all you ever want to know about sugar.  It talks about the Glycemic Index on foods.  The whole goal is to keep your blood sugar at an even level so as not to get the cravings, and binges etc.  It's all doable and all possible....with time.  There are several good books on the market that will help you understand your body and how it reacts to sugar. Someone has mentioned "Eating for your Body Type".  While we all need to watch what we eat and exercise, I believe there is more to it than that.  It means educating our selves on what is right for us and only we will know "that" is.

Have you found other books you like and are helpful?  Please share them with us here!!

37 Days Down 8 More To Go!!!

What have I learned from all of this?  What have you learned from the last 37 days? I think I learned this was a tiny step for me.  I have seen where I can cut the sugar and soda out and be okay.  But it is not the big challenge it was last year, or the beginning of January.   A friend at church mentioned how I should just "cut back" on the sweets and still enjoy them.  My mouth said, "yeah" but my mind was laughing.  Then Kathy said something that really stuck in me, "all or nothing".  That is me.  I am an all or nothing kind of girl.  So with that said, and looking back here is what I have learned.

1) Support. I have never had much support in my life.  I have always had to do things by myself.  Here when I wanted to quit I couldn't because I thought of all the support that was here for me and everyone else.  I know I have heard to have a support system, a friend to do things with because you will stay more committed and motivared.  But I guess I just figured I could just as easily do it alone.  I can't.  I need all the help I can get and it is okay to ask for that help.

2) Goals.  We all have to have some kind of goals to reach for.  I have never been a goal setter.  I think because if I didn't make them, then I wouldn't feel like such a failure.  For months, I have said I was going to go walking but I never did.  Not until a friend said, "I will go with you."  Last week was only our second week of walking.  On Tuesday when it was cold outside (Cold for Texas anyway) Erika was still waiting for me when I was 10 minutes late and she made me go walking!!!  She told me, I know you can do this.  I know now I can too!!!  So now I need to set my goals for my walking, food, exercise, etc to really make some progress.

3) Emotions.  Man I think this was one of the biggest things I learned this time. It is amazing to me how many emotions go through our mind set that thrust us into high gear to eat.  Last time I did the No Sugar and No Soda, it was to gain some self control.  But this time I can see how emotions played more into it to help us gain that self control.  When I needed to drown myself, it would be nothing to get a huge page of Peanut M&M's and drown myself.  All of a sudden they sound good!!  LOL  But now, I see myself not so much going for food, as taking a step back and figuring out (or trying to) why I got upset by someone's actions or words.  Just last week I did not get all my change back from a drive thru  I went through.  When I asked for the change as well, the employee got a bit perturbed and said, "Gosh it wasn't that much!"  She was right it wasn't. But if I had been asked to I want to donate to something, it would have been a different story.  She did not give me that choice, and so I asked for it.  Normally that would send me through a few drive thru's, but this time it didn't.

4) Ownership.  Maybe I am finally taking responsibility for me.  It's easy for me to say my weight gain is because of all the abuse I have gone through in my life, but eventually if I want to get smaller and healthy I need to stop putting the blame on others and especially my mom. 

5) Read Labels.   Oh yeah I so need to do this!!  It doesn't do me any good to eat it THEN read the label.  Duhh me. The old saying, "it is easier to ask for forgiveness than permission". That is a cop out to me. I have a hard time with reading labels, so I have pretty much decided to stick to the perimeter of the grocery store when  go shopping until I can get better at reading the labels.  I get in trouble on the bread aisle.  =(

I am sure there are other things. I have not learned to write everything down, and my previous goals like no eating in the car  have not been conquered.  But in time I will conquer them.  But I am proud of myself for being able to do this once again.  But again I could never do it without all of your support.  Thank you again for sticking with me!!!

How Do You Define Healthy?

I ask because, I am realizing "healthy" means different things to different people. Now I know I need to read the labels more closely.  Actually I have tried on this particular product and couldn't find the labels and thought maybe it was one of those hidden ones where you have to peel something back to read the whole thing?  And it was  in a 4-Pack for .89 so I thought what the heck I will try it.

What is it?  Actvia Yogurt.  I know I posted early in all this about a label I found for my favorite yogurt (I am not a huge yogurt fan but do like them occasionally).  In taking off the top lid/label part of the yogurt, I just ripped it off and put it aside.  After two or three bites, I took off my glasses to read the label a bit clearer.  This is what it said:

Nonfat yogurt with Fructose, Aspartame, Acesfulame Potassium, and Sucraclose.  Now  I am no expert on ingredients, but I do know anything that ends with -ose is a form of sugar.  Asparteme is an artificial sweetener as well as the Acesfulame Potassium. This label also states less than 1/3 fewer calories than regular yogurt.  So I was confused.  If this was "healthy" for you what was their angle of "healthy".

STORY TIME

When I was 15 (man was than an interesting year in my life!) my brother and I got into a typical fight.  Only instead of beating me he threw a knife at me.  I put up my hand and the knife sliced through my right thumb.  My mom had told us we were never to call her at work, so when she got home and saw the blood (she was not too happy) and I had to go to the hospital for stitches.  This probably had happened about 10 or 11 in the morning and it was about 6 or so when she got home.  So I had lost alot of blood.  I got stitched up.  I believe I had about 20 some stitches in my thumb.  They had to sew the inside and the outside. The doctor prescribed among other things, YOGURT!  I had never had yogurt before, none of us had.  We went to the store and picked out some yogurt.  I think I had to eat one a day or so for a week.  I picked up some vanilla, and some kind of berry one.  I took one bite of it and thought this stuff is awful!!  I could not understand why people would want to BUY YOGURT!!  My mom made me eat it anyway and we finally realized after a few that not all tasted that bad.  The first couple I had that were nasty were spoiled.  Needless to say, it took me a long time to try yogurt again!  My point is, the yogurt was supposed to help me build up my immune system that was on a fast nose dive downwards.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

So with what I saw on the label this week and what I remember from my teenage years, I decided to find out what yogurt was really for.  According to WebMD Healthy Eating and Diet there are good things about Yogurt.  According to  Elaine Magee, MPH, RD our bodies need a certain amount of "good bacteria" in our digestive tracts.  This article also goes on to state that yogurt may help prevent Osteoporosis, reduce the risk of high blood pressure, active cultures to help the gut (I think this is where they are politely telling us it helps us go potty better or more?), discourage vaginal infections (I am just saying what they are saying) and may help you feel fuller. Here is the link to the entire article if you need a good read.  Benefits of Yogurt.

Okay with all that said, I am having a hard time being convinced that this stuff with all the forms of sugar in it, is really that healthy and good for you? What do you all think?  I would love some feedback on this.

I thought it was interesting the other day, after Institute class at our church people come into the Family History Center to work on Genealogy.  Lately the teacher has been bringing the best tangelos.  I think they are called?  The small oranges.  They peel beautifully!!  I hate peeling oranges!!!  Anyway one of the girls will usually bring me one knowing I do not eat sugar.  Let me just add there is a bowl of candy that sits at our sign in table.  Another friend popped in and picked up a piece of chocolate and I said to him (teasingly) "Where is your orange?"  He knows I am off the sugar.  He said, "I don't eat oranges because of all the acid in them." I said, "And sugar is okay?"  He laughed and said, "Yes".  Now I know that bodies that become too acidic can have problems as well.  So where do we draw the line?

For me I truly believe if I can get rid of the junk I have put inside me for years, I can begin to get on a path to better health.  I know I need to eat the stuff on the perimeter of the store and not down the aisles.  LOL  But sometimes I just can't help myself.  So I guess in the mean time, I just try to get better and educate myself more than before. 

The yogurt thing really flipped me out.  I did notice though that eating it did....how do I say this lady likesh?  Make my trips to the bathroom more productive?  <g>  I would love your thoughts!!!