poop...poo...doo-doo...dookie...crap...caca...(possible TMI)

Four days ago, I ran out of Fiber 35 powder (similar to Benefiber).  I usually put about 1 Tbsp in my smoothies every morning.  I do this because with the "protein first" and all that, I feel like I might not be getting enough fiber from vegetables & such.

Four days ago, I pooped.  Today, I pooped again.  There was no pooping in between.  It was uncomfortable.  And, such a relief!  I haven't weighed myself, but I swear I feel 10 lbs lighter!

Note to self:  Never, never, never run out of fiber powder.  Ever.  The End.  

and then there was eggnog...

Apparently, I drank an entire days worth of calories last night--in the form of eggnog (sans alcohol).  Did you know the stuff has 200 calories for just 1/2 cup?!?!?!  Yep, if you do the math you'll see that I drank 3 cups of the stuff equalling 1200 calories.  Oy!--no wonder Santa has a big belly!

Cheers!

food journaling success...traveling...and an apology... (not necessarily in that order)

APOLOGY:

First, I'd like to apologize for my little outburst yesterday.  As it turns out, I'd forgotten to take my Lexapro for 3 days and, as my husband would undoubtedly confirm, extreme and undue grumpiness is one of my biggest symptoms.

FOOD JOURNALING:

Now onto the main event.  It would seem that my food journaling is having a positive impact--and after only 4 days!  I think the biggest benefit is that it makes me aware of EVERYTHING that goes in my mouth.  I am also more aware of how much water I am (or am not) drinking.  I have discovered that if I eat purposefully and mindfully, then I come in right around the 1000-1200 calorie mark and have no problem meeting my daily protein goal (more about this and hair loss in another post).

As you may notice from my graph, my weight has started moving downward again.  YIPPEE!!!  And, I am going to set a fairly aggressive goal...10lb loss in the next 4 weeks.  That's 2.5 lbs/week and something I haven't achieved since the first month after surgery.  Why so aggressive?--I'm turning 40 on January 6 and really want to be under 200 lbs.  I think I have the food and water under control.  But, in order meet this goal, I absolutely must exercise!

TRAVELING:

Here's the part where I need your advice and recommendations.  Darrell and I will be staying with friends in Fort Collins for about a week at the end of the year.  Everyone there knows about the surgery and has been extremely supportive.  However, since my last mega-fill, I have had to be "picky" about my eating--especially with my morning smoothies (regular breakfast is an absolute NO for me these days).

How to you maintain Band-appropriate eating while also being a gracious house-guest?

Cheers!

cleaning house...

In order to help me with my focus on ME, I am doing some "house-cleaning" in blogland today.  Specifically, I'm getting familiar with the "un-follow" button.  I realized that I'm following waaaaay to many blogs--and I don't even really read many of them.  I spend a lot of time filtering through my blog list and that's just a waste of time.  

The criteria for un-following is:

1. The blog author doesn't follow me
2. The blog hasn't been updated in 2+ months
3. The blog is negative
4. The blog just doesn't speak to me

I lost a follower recently and was surprised that it didn't bother me much.  I suppose my blog just didn't speak to her/him.  Maybe we didn't have much in common, or maybe what is important to me is not important to them.  It happens.  Carry on.

So, if I un-followed you and you think it might have been a mistake (i.e. you comment here often, or we've swapped emails, or maybe I've commented on your blog recently) please let me know.

Cheers!

PS  I'm also changing my "follow" status from public to anonymous on ALL blogs.  That way, I'll avoid the confrontations of "why did you stop following me but you're still following her?"

food log revelations...

After only 2 days of tracking my food intake, I already have had a revelation--I eat more than I thought!

I have been amazed at how many calories I've been taking in (I know the ice cream doesn't help!).  I honestly thought that I was well below the 1000 calorie mark.  However, I should still be losing faster based on the actual calorie count.  So, I will continue to look for other indicators of what is stalling my weight loss.

The most obvious potential villains are:

1. exercise
2. water

I am failing spectacularly in the water & exercise department.  The water is an easy fix:  Today, I commit to drinking 8oz of water prior to every meal/snack. That should give me the boost I need.

The exercise will be more difficult to get under control (just because I'm essentially lazy).  But, it will not be impossible:  Today, I commit to walking on the treadmill for 30 minutes at no less than 3.5 speed/2% incline.  The sad thing is that I really enjoy exercising if I can only convince myself to get started.

I will need more data in order to identify trends of what does/doesn't get stuck (and when).

Thanks to everyone for the encouragement!

Food log info

If you're interested in my food log, you can access it here (password: imaboob).

progress (ish)?

Starting weight:  241.5

Day of surgery weight:  231.5

Current weight:  211.5

Months since surgery: 6

Weight loss since surgery:  20 lbs

Although I am glad to be making progress, I will admit to being frustrated with the snail's pace.  You may remember earlier posts where I talked about how the band is "just a tool" and that I would still have to work in order to make it successful.  I believed that then and I believe it now.  But, I really thought it would be easier and that the weight would come off more quickly.

This hasn't been an easy road for me.  I've been very disappointed with my aftercare and am in the process of trying to get on with a different doctor.  I have trouble getting in for fills, which led me to accept a "too tight" fill in October.  I've been stuck. I've PB'd too many times to count.  I am often in pain or hungry.  I've lost about 1 lb in the last 2 months.

But, I realized recently that I can't really blame it all on my crappy doctor's office and their lack of support/concern/availability.  I haven't been exercising.  I don't measure my food.  I don't plan my meals.  I'm not actively following the "rules."  

Why not?  This is a question that I have been pondering for the last week or so.  And, I think I've figured it out.  I have been trying to live & eat like a band-ster at the end of my journey and not like one at the beginning.  I have been relying on the band to tell me what to do (what to eat, when to stop, etc) but I haven't given myself enough time to learn it's language.  

So, now I have to put my money where my mouth is.  I need to figure out how to work WITH the band and not AGAINST it.  As much as I hate to do this, I am going to start keeping a food log.  Not only to track nutrients & calories, but also to track what does & doesn't work for me and my band.  This way, I can hopefully figure out patterns and do a better job of planning.  I have to realize that at this stage in my journey, I am not experienced enough to just "wing it."  I am still learning--and learning requires research & study.

I will probably be taking a break from the blogs for a while.  While I will still be posting on my own blog (after-all, this is supposed to be my journal), I may not be reading or commenting on others.  I need to focus on my own journey for a while and not get distracted by others.  

Cheers!
Lynda