Whole30 D2

Day two.... easy breezy....

Woke up early, I had a smoothie - cranberries, banana, spinach, coconut oil, kefir and two eggs. The Kefir isn't actually Whole30 approved but I only use about 1/2 cup, its made from pastured organic milk that has only been lightly pasteurized and I make it myself so I think the "bad stuff" is really minimal and the probiotics really help my belly an enormous amount.

Worked and wasn't hungry at all! Lunch hit and I had salad and some meatballs leftover from yesterday that were Whole30 compliant.

TONS of water... but I always drink water... I feel like a fish....

After work I went to the gym. I started on the bike for about ten minutes to give my knee injury a break after yesterdays hike but the dang bike was SO boring... I couldn't take it longer then fifteen minutes. I switched over to the treadmill and just walked for another fifteen minutes. I wanted to run SO bad but I am really going to keep my knee protected for a bit longer so I stayed at about 4 mph on an incline.  Then I worked the weights with upper body.... and my plank and squats .... cus THAT is so fun....

After the gym it was shopping (Birthday party weekend for two of my kids!) and I was exhausted .... to exhausted to cook. I grabbed the kids Taco Bell and heated up the last of the meatballs, stir fried some broccoli slaw and bam... there was dinner.

Energy is good.... mood is good.... I know that the next few days will be a challenge but I am up for the challenge! No birthday cake and ice cream.... no junk food.... I am going to allow myself some extra fats (good fats) and protein to get through it . . . .

New Years Hike! Whole30D1

Had a great day today! Spent the day hiking in the woods with my kids and playing on the beach I know we had a minimum of a one hour hike but the reality is we went way longer then that. My gym was closed for New Years so I will go tomorrow at lunchtime!

Whole30 day One was a bit screwy because I forgot half of my lunch and was worried about a lack of protein so I ate some pepperoni which was NOT Whole30 compliant but I felt the fat and protein was a better choice then a sandwich!

Breakfast - 3 eggs scrambled in olive oil with kale, peppers, onions and garlic
Lunch - carrots, celery, tomato, pepperoni slices and an avocado
Dinner - meatballs (ground beef, fresh parsley, egg, garlic) with sautéed kale and onions.

My knee held up ok, it was a bit sore about ten minutes into the hike but then seemed to stabilize and feel better. I actually forgot it was bad for awhile!

Also started a plank challenge (today was only 20 seconds lol) and a squat challenge (will see how that goes with my knee....)

but here are some pics of our beautiful hike and fantastic way to ring in the new year!

New Years Eve - New Years Plan

Well this last two weeks has been a crazy up and down ride of emotions, from scared to frustrated to relief to just wondering what the hell makes any sense anymore!

It started with cold tingling feet... leg swelling.... high blood sugars... thoughts of blood clots and chest surgery... Oh the joy... one hospital visit and three Dr appointments later I think I am narrowing in on what is happening.

The bad part? Doesn't look like jogging is anytime in my immediate future.

The good part? I am alive! And overall pretty healthy....

So, it turns out I am diabetic... ouch.... which isn't a huge surprise because my maternal and paternal family is full of diabetics (parents, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc) but I have really worked hard to stay healthy so I am not very happy.

I have a problem with a swelling leg... its NOT a blood clot or a host of other things but it "MAY" be an injury that is draining into leg (not doing MRI at this time due to not having the ability to take time off work for surgery etc). This makes sense because I had a bad fall in October which banged my knee up. It was swollen and purple for weeks.. sigh... OR the swelling could be my lymph nodes draining - which also makes sense because I have increased my fermented foods/kombucha etc in an effort to detox.... and the Dr. even grudgingly admitted that could be part of what is going on.....

And it looks like some kind of auto-immune stuff going on.

SO the answer? I have zero clue. The Dr. and I argued over medication (and my refusal of meds) and stated that he is giving me 30 days to show that I can manage my numbers and make changes for the better. So, I am. I go back January 31st.

I have thought about this quite a bit in the last several days and think that the very best way to manage at this time is to engage in another Whole30. This will not only manage my blood sugars but also begin working on a lot of the auto immune issues that appear to be plaguing me...

I think I will record my progress here and over on SparkPeople. I think its somewhat ironic that it lines up with the new year!!!

So HERE is to 2014!!!

Spoke too soon!! 5K in APRIL!!!!

I JUST blogged about not doing a 5K anytime soon. See what happens when I make plans? The universe conspires against me!

Over Thanksgiving weekend (which I actually lost a pound, Thank You!) I was talking with my three lovely young adult daughters (when did they become adults??) and we decided we are all going to train and do our first 5K together!

Each spring our area has a Pear Blossom Festival with a 5K run. I have wanted to do this since I was a child. I remember our school secretary training for it, I would watch her jog by in her purple sweat suit and terry cloth headband and I would dream of being HER! She gave me advice to run from one telephone pole then walk to the next and alternate.... I tried so hard.

Nobody advised me that I would have to pay money.... and drive 50 miles away.... and have an adult... so that dream was lost.

However I secretly have always wanted to do it so here we go! That gives me roughly 17 weeks to get ready to run my first ever 5K!

SO excited!

I  worked out today, spend 25 minutes doing cardio (elliptical) and 30 minutes on weights. It feels good, I had so much energy afterwards! Plan on starting Yoga this week as well, though I have to admit to being more then a little intimidated by that!

Here goes the first week of December!

Back in the saddle again

I realized that I have forgotten all about this blog, likely because I was so busy with my entire world turning upside down that exercise, internet and blogging were at the bottom of my list. A down and dirty list of changes since July?  Oh well.... after the accident I realized I did not want to live 2200 miles from family anymore so I quit my job, fell in love, moved 2200 miles away, left my love back in Arkansas, moved to a new town, started a new job, made plans for my love to join me, had the flu, busted up my knee and finally.... JOINED THE GYM!

YES!

After knee injury from falling off the rocks and dangling over the ocean while the tide came in.... not something I recommend.... I began to wonder if I should pursue the 5K now that I have 2 bad knees. Well... I am not giving up yet however the first two runs I did (SHORT runs) resulted in swelling of the knee. It was zero fun. So I joined the gym, plan on working off the weight and maybe once my muscles build and my weight goes away I can once again start jogging.

There is a 5K in my future. I know there is. I just don't want to bust up my body in order to achieve it!

So, now I am settled in a cottage by the sea, I have only two.. TWO kids with me. I have a great new job that I enjoy, I am able to go to the gym daily. What's not to love?

I will keep updated. I am at Sparkpeople but I am not sure that I always find it the most helpful, primarily because I don't follow the standard diet. All the "low fat" and "sugar free" topics just scream CHEMICALS to me, and since I work hard to avoid that well. . . . sigh . . . But support and interaction is good! I can vent here :D

Grateful heart and restarting

I haven't posted in awhile. I was busy going on my way, hit my HUGE 25 pound weight loss and joined a BLC challenge on Sparkpeople. Life was bumping along.

Then the worst experience of my life happened. Driving home and saw a horrible wreck with a car still upside down on side of road, people trapped inside.

Saw a woman holding a baby, yelling about a boy on the ground.

I recognized in that awful moment it was my two daughters and my two grandchildren.

There are no words that can convey the horror of that moment... of the moments following... of the screaming that poured from my soul in ways that I have never experienced.

What happened next was a blur of lights, police, ambulance (who arrived after I did) and my children's screams. It was rushing to the hospital behind the ambulance and hysterically running into four rooms to look at all my babies faces. It was shock and absolute gratefulness that all four children survived a car wreck in which they plunged down an embankment and flipped 4-5 times. All over a deer. One lone deer crossing the road.

God is good, all of them were spared. My sweet 12 year old cheerleader has a serious concussion but was out of the hospital the next day. My adult daughter is in pain but is moving. The grandkids came through with bumps and bruises. Praise God.

I recognized several days ago I am having serious tummy issues... I feel bloated and tired... I am edgy...Initially the fogginess and exhaustion I contributed to the trauma and stress of accident (and that probably is partially true) but I also began to realize I wasn't paying any attention to what I was eating AND I realized that I haven't exercised since the accident. Ouch.

My diet has been a mix of hospital food, lots of comfort food as I cooked for my daughter. She wanted spaghetti... manicotti... mashed potatoes... cinnamon rolls, coffee cake and lots of bread. I am more then happy to give her anything that makes her heart happier right now and didn't give any thought to eating it myself.

I don't do grains. Grains hurt my belly bad. Really bad.

SO, I am recommitting to the Whole30 again. I think this is the best program to clean up your system and feel better. My teenager is flying back from a month in Oregon on Tuesday and will definitely need to adjust to a better diet as well. She has gallbladder issues and is in quite a bit of pain when she eats any form of gluten and grains so... Tomorrow will be returning back to our home and starting back on the whole30 to get the entire home back in shape. And I will begin running again.

I am almost to the point I can breathe again... almost.... the bruises and marks still panic my mama heart....

Shuffling through the weeks and ranting about the SAD

I have so many thoughts, and probably thoughts that shouldn't be shared but heck with it, I am sharing it anyway... That's how I roll

First, not running has taken its impact on me. Not really on a physical level, but more emotionally. I started out hating it, but now that I haven't run in a month I am really missing it. Exercising at home is still effective, but the emotions, the energy rush, the feeling of accomplishment is not the same. I am SO ready for my daughter to come home so I can get out and run again.

Which brings me to a rant.

I had a coworker come to me and tell me she was "concerned" because she had "heard" that I was running. She thinks that its not very healthy for me. She is worried about my joints. She thinks I need to reconsider.

Er.

I didn't ask her, or share with her, or consult her because... I don't know her and its none of her damn business.

Why do people get into info that isn't thiers to hold? I took a deep breath and explained that 1) I have researched this 2) I have good supportive shoes, 3) I was quite comfortable in my decision.

Soon, I had another person come to me with concerns because they know I use a lot of coconut oil products and butter. They have a lot of thoughts about that. They offered to show me this new program of prepackaged food and chemicals to lose a ton of weight.

So.... let me get this straight....  Eating chemical powders added to water, god knows what in a "protein" bar and food packed somewhere.... is healthier for me then food straight from a cow? I can't figure that logic out.

I understand that there is a "standard American diet" or SAD, however, it makes me just that. Sad. If I eat tons of rice, corn, bread, pastas, low-fat i.e. chemical laden dressings and prepackaged foods I feel miserable and fat. If I load up on "protein bars" my style ... i.e. a chicken breast or pastured bacon.... and dunk liberal amounts of healthy fats, and eat a crapload of vegetables...  I feel awesome and lose weight.

Isn't there room for all types?  Why do so many in the weight loss world want to push that THEIR way is the only way?

Ok... I admit I think my way of eating healthy whole foods is the best way but ... well... it is. At least its closer to the way nature intended.

And.... as a great side piece... I am now down 23 pounds.... Yes... 23 POUNDS! That is a small toddler! 5 inches off my waist! That is almost half a food off of my waist...

So, I will go eat my bacon and eggs, chomp on my chicken breast, salad and olive oil and gnaw on my ribs.... yall can have your powders and chemicals and we can all get along :D