Back from New York

Sorry to have disappeared for a few days, but I was chaperoning the Provo High School Chamber Singers on their tour to New York City. The choir was invited to sing at Carnegie Hall as part of a National Youth Choir. They were also selected as the featured choir for the event and had their own segment of the performance. With all the rehearsals to get ready for the performance, the time we had for sightseeing was very limited. We had to rush everywhere! We walked a ton on this trip! Lots of walking and taking the subway. If you've never taken the subway, you don't realize that you can get a workout just by standing and trying to keep your balance as the train moves about. There were six different choirs as part of this event who were staying in the same hotel. They rehearsed in a big meeting room and the elevators were packed full as the kids came and went. I ended up taking the stairs many times to get down to the lobby or back to my room. Toughest workout I ever had (we were on the 22nd floor). Eating right was a terrible challenge during this trip. We hardly ever stopped and I was really hungry by the time we got to eat. In order to keep the group together, we didn't really offer too many choices of where to go eat. When we arrived Friday morning, we didn't get to eat anything until around 10 am. We ate at the cafe at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. I had a croissant and a bagel since there weren't too many other choices. I was happy that I skipped out on the muffins and donuts. After we left the museum, I had a hot dog from a vendor cart outside. That ended up being my lunch. That night we ate dinner in the theater district. I had a salad and a slice of vegetable medley pizza. The thing I liked about eating in New York is that they post the calorie counts on the menu at most places. I knew I had room for the slice of pizza and I split a piece of New York cheesecake with my son. Saturday morning's breakfast was oatmeal I brought from home. Having a coffeemaker in the hotel room made this easy. My "roomies" also brought a variety of food so they could eat healthy. The kids had rehearsals most of the day so we picked up pizzas from a place down the street. I had a slice and that kept me going. For dinner that night, they had arranged for us to eat at the Hard Rock Cafe. They had a set menu for groups and I chose a pulled pork sandwich. I didn''t think the salad selection would be enough and I definitely wanted to avoid the more fattening choices. Sunday's breakfast was more oatmeal. After more sightseeing, we ended up eating lunch at a deli near Ground Zero (also near our hotel). I skipped the greasy burgers and had a turkey wrap and some fruit. The kids had one more rehearsal and then had to get ready for their Carnegie Hall performance. It was late when we got back to the hotel and we had a late "dinner" of sub sandwiches. I split mine with a friend since we were going right to bed. More oatmeal Monday morning and some yogurt. We toured the city more and the kids sang in Trinity Church, outside of St. Paul's, and then visited St. Patrick's Cathedral. I had a hot dog off a cart before we took a tour of Radio City Music Hall. We left for the airport late in the afternoon and ate dinner there before boarding our plane back to Utah. I didn't make my best choice on this one. I had a cheeseburger and shared some fries and onion rings with my son. I figured it wasn't too bad since I hardly ate all day. I also had a Jamba Juice smoothie. We got back home about 1:30 this morning. I was beyond tired and my legs hurt like crazy. Fortunately, after some sleep, I felt a lot better. It was nice to see Whitney at the gym tonight. It will be good to get back into my routine. I was disappointed that all that walking didn't help me lose any weight, but I know I got stronger since I was able to do the elliptical on level 8 tonight.

A Better Day

This morning I woke up feeling so much better. It's great to get back on track again. I weighed myself before my workout with Whitney tonight (yes, I know that's getting a bit obsessive), and I had lost 4 more pounds. Hallelujah!! I did 30 minutes on the treadmill tonight - a new record for me. My calves and ankles were really hurting and I was going to switch to the bike or elliptical once I hit 15 minutes, but Whitney told me that if I could do 15 minutes, then I could easily go 20 minutes. Then her fiance challenged me to go 25 minutes. By the time I hit 20 minutes, I didn't hurt as badly and I ended up going 30 minutes. My legs are very sore, but I didn't give up. I tease Whitney that she's being mean to me, but without her I know I would give up too soon and never find out what I'm really capable of doing.

Back on track

First I was scared I gained weight over the last week. When I stood on the scale and saw that I hadn't gained weight, but I hadn't lost weight either, instead of being happy that I hadn't gone backwards, I got frustrated that I had stayed the same. After talking to friends and seeing how silly that was, I got back on track with my eating and exercising yesterday. I feel great this morning! Reading the other ladies' blogs helps since I can see we are all struggling at one time or another. I had to laugh last night when my own son denied me a donut even though I had the calories to spare for it. "No donuts until you win this challenge," he said. It was sweet even though it would have been nicer if he hadn't brought home the donuts in the first place.

Detour

I hit a bit of a detour this weekend. We had family in from out of town and my whole schedule was thrown off. We ate out and I was faced with more temptations than usual. Too much free time had me constantly thinking about food. I wish I could say that I made it through with no problems. Tomorrow's weigh-in scares me because I know I will have problems if I gained weight. It will end up being a huge struggle to keep myself going and not give up on myself. That probably sounds silly, but I've been there before.

Habits

I'm noticing that the changes I've made are starting to become habits now. It doesn't seem like a chore to look at food labels and actually think about my food choices. Other than yesterday's dip into the french fries at Apollo Burger, greasy and fattening foods don't really appeal to me. Even with the french fries I managed to not get carried away and I still stayed within my calorie limit. My husband and I now go to the gym every night for an hour. It has become such a normal thing for me now. It's still hard work, but I don't even get tempted to skip it. I have also noticed that when I get busy and stressed at work and I start thinking about food, I can pause and figure out whether I'm actually hungry or I'm just stress eating. Part of why this seems to be working is that I don't feel like I'm denying myself anything. If I want something, I eat it. I eat slowly and think about whether or not I really need that next bite. Sometimes I only want a taste of something in order to be satisfied. Other times, I adjust what I eat for the rest of the day to make room for it. It's hard to explain how good I feel about all of this. I have learned so much and can't wait to live a very long life as my reward.

Intuitive Eating

In nutrition class this morning we went over some information from the book "Intuitive Eating." There are several different types of eaters identified in the book. I have some traits of the Professional Dieter, but I mostly fall into the category of Unconscious Eater. With the Professional Dieter mentality, I have often looked for some quick and easy way to lose weight. It truly doesn't exist. The only sure-fire way to lose weight is through diet and exercise. I have often had that "Last Supper" in anticipation of giving up all the foods I love. When the new diet doesn't work, I go crazy eating again. There are four types of Unconscious Eaters, and have managed to be all of them. I eat when I'm stressed and/or emotional and when I'm busy, although I often go all day at work without eating at all because I'm too busy. By the time I get home, I'm ready to eat everything in the house. I'm also very reluctant to turn down food when it's offered or available and I was raised with a "clean your plate" mentality, so I don't like to waste food. In the past, I have been known to buy a box of donuts because it's a better deal than just buying one donut. Unfortunately, the purchase is usually followed by me eating half or all of the donuts in the box. Food leftover from meetings is often sent my way at work. I am finally learning that it's okay to try some food and it's equally okay to decline the offer. The idea of eating intuitively is to listen to your body's signals rather than get wrapped up in calorie, carb, or fat counts. No food is forbidden, therefore no "last supper" is needed. This change in thinking won't happen overnight, but it has already helped me to make some wise choices and to not feel guilty about indulging a craving as long as I don't get carried away.

I'm a loser!

I don't normally celebrate being a loser, but today I am. I have lost 10 pounds now!!!
At the start of this challenge, I was 100 pounds heaver than the weight I should be. I am now 10% closer to being there. A recent visit to the doctor made me realize how fortunate I am to be in this heart challenge. The doctor told me that I was probably only a matter of a few months from being diabetic and that if it weren't for everything I'm doing in the challenge, she would have to immediately put me on medication for that and for my high blood pressure. My blood pressure has already come down some and I'm determined to get myself out of this dangerous situation. Without the assessments we did at the beginning of the challenge, I wouldn't have known how truly bad my health was, and without all the changes to how I eat and exercise, I would be a perfect candidate for diabetes and heart disease. For those who are reading this blog, I beg you to get yourself tested so you won't be as blind as I was to the state of your health.

Forgotten Appliances

Over the past week I have rediscovered two appliances in my kitchen that had been pushed way back in the cupboard. One is a high-powered blender that is great for making smoothies. I was able to make a low calorie chocolate "ice cream" that was more icy than creamy. It sure addressed a serious dessert craving I was battling. The second appliance is my rice cooker. I do occasionally use it to cook rice, but I remembered tonight that it has a steamer basket attachment and I was able to steam potatoes and spinach for tonight's dinner. It was wonderful! I love fresh spinach, but hate boiling all the nutrients and flavor away. I'm going to be doing a lot more steaming. Now if I just had an appliance that did all the work for me in the kitchen....

Timing is Everything Too

Today I was reminded (the hard way) of how important it is to eat smaller quantities of food more often so I don't get so hungry that I overeat. Those snacks between breakfast, lunch, and dinner are not optional. We had a busy day planned today and I had only eaten breakfast. By the time we had a chance to eat lunch, I was absolutely starving. We went to Cafe Rio and I was sure I would devour an entire burrito in no time at all. Fortunately, I ate slowly and after a few bites, that ravenous feeling was gone. I only ate half the burrito and saved the rest for dinner. Crisis averted...for now.

Missing My Trainer

My trainer, Whitney, is out of town until Sunday, so I'm on my own. I decided not to work out at our regular time (6 pm) and instead waited until 10 pm when my husband went to the gym. In the meantime, I found myself really struggling with cravings for donuts, cake, cookies, etc. Fortunately, I don't have any of that stuff around the house. I really enjoyed my cardio workout tonight, but I missed having Whitney there to cheer me on. On the way home from the gym, my husband stopped to get a diet Coke. I was actually surprised that I walked past all the yummy treats in the convenience store and didn't even want them anymore. That was a benefit of exercise I hadn't expected. If it weren't for my husband going to the gym, I could have easily talked myself out of today's workout. It really helps to have someone to exercise with and to feel somewhat accountable to.

Body Image

In today's nutrition class we discussed body image. It's important to be realistic about how you look and be positive about your body even if you don't look the way you'd like to. A friend of mine at work said, "I'm always have my body image wrong. When I'm skinny, I think I look fat. When I'm fat, I never think I look as bad as I really do." I know I would give anything to have the body I did when I was 18. Of course, I thought I looked fat because the smallest size I could ever wear was a size 12. My body frame couldn't shrink any smaller than that without removing ribs and other important things. Now, I can't even imagine being in a size 12 again. I would be thrilled to be in a 16 or a 14 again. Jalaine had us list the body parts we didn't like and then she had us say something positive about each part. It seemed silly, but it helped us to not put ourselves down so much. I may have a big butt, but that's an advantage when playing musical chairs. My thunder thighs have ample room for sitting with my dog in my lap. Even though I don't want to remain this size, I need to enjoy who I am and try to avoid thinking of myself as some fat, ugly, repulsive person.

At 18 years old


Now

Experimenting in the Kitchen

Today is my trainer's birthday. Happy Birthday, Whitney!!
I wanted to do something nice for her, but didn't want it to be some fattening or sugary treat. While searching recipes on Spark People, I found one for Guiltless Chocolate Muffins. It used whole wheat flour, Splenda, and applesauce (and a few other ingredients). I didn't have any applesauce on hand, but remembered that we could use pumpkin to substitute for oil in baking just like we use applesauce. The recipe also called for chocolate chips, but I substituted cinnamon chips that I had on hand. The result was a 95 calorie muffin that was rich and delicious. I shared them with people at work and they thought they were great. When I met Whitney tonight to work out, I presented her with two of the muffins (with baby carrots stuck in the top like candles). She loved them. I'm encouraged that I can play around with food a little and make some delicious stuff.

Success?

At this morning's weigh-in, I had lost 3 more pounds! People at work have even noticed the weight loss by how my clothes are fitting on me. I'm happy to be losing, but a little down because I feel like I'm working so hard and eating sooo much less and feel like I should have lost more by now. It probably doesn't help that when I watch "Biggest Loser," they lose lots of weight each week. I may not be spending all day in the gym, but I went from practically no exercise to 6 or more hours per week and from probably 3-4,000 calories per day consumed to only 1,600.

I need to try to stay positive.

• Any weight loss is definitely welcome.
  
• Clothes fitting better is nice too.
  
• I also checked my blood pressure at Smith's the other day and it has improved too.
• My dogs are getting more walks than ever before (and they like that).
  
• I'm spending less on Diet Coke since I'm drinking more water.
• My huffing and puffing while going up and down stairs has nearly gone away.
• My husband has joined me in reading labels on food and working out on Saturday mornings.
  

Down Day

I decided to go into the gym today since I keep feeling like I'm not doing enough. At first, I was kind of happy there was nobody else working out because I feel so awkward in there. It didn't take long before I felt no motivation to continue. I ended up doing 16 minutes on the bike, then 5 minutes on the cross trainer, 20 minutes on the elliptical, then 11 minutes on the treadmill. I just couldn't push myself to keep going on just one machine. I did a whole bunch of strength training after that, but still went home feeling pretty blah about the whole experience. It was hard not to pig out when I got home (or on the way home) since I tend to be an emotional eater. Somehow, I managed to get past all that and cook a very healthy dinner. I probably shouldn't have expected every day to be a good one, but the first three weeks of this challenge have been pretty uplifting overall.

Saturday Workout

I had another Saturday workout with my husband. When we get to the gym, I start my hour of cardio and he does 30 minutes of cardio and then moves on to weights. That leaves him free to help me when I'm ready to lift weights. I always feel kind of dorky in the gym. To find the machine I need, I always have to read the little signs on them with the name of the exercise, the pictures of the muscles it works, and the detailed instructions on how to use the machine properly. Each gym is a little different, so I almost always feel kind of lost. My trainer wants me to start adding more strength training exercises, so my husband helped me with those this morning. Because I'm not very athletic or coordinated, it takes me a long time to understand how to do some exercises using free weights. My husband has resorted to pushing on my shoulder to keep it down when I do tricep kick-backs because if I focus on keeping my elbow in, I forget to keep my shoulder down. We spent a long time this morning on him teaching me how to do "snatches." If you've ever watched those Olympic weightlifters, the snatch is how they get the bar to shoulder level. I'm so glad the hubby didn't give up on me...it was a great exercise, even though I struggle to keep the right form. I left the gym pretty pleased with myself and decided to get creative with breakfast. I added chopped bell peppers and finely chopped fresh spinach to my scrambled eggs and they were delicious as well as nutritious. I found it hard to just sit around the house, so I just finished taking my beagle for a walk. I can honestly say I feel great!!!

SparkPeople

Just a quick note to mention how I'm tracking my eating and exercising. I tried keeping a notebook, but kept forgetting to bring it to work with me. Now, I am using www.sparkpeople.com to track everything. You can enter foods and it tracks the calories. You can enter all your exercising, set goals, track your weight and measurements, get progress reports, and participate in forums focused on specific groups. They have exercise demos, recipes, and great articles. A friend showed me the website and I was hooked. Now I can track everything at home and at work. I also keep a notepad in my purse to write down what I eat when I'm not near a computer. It helps to estimate the quantities of each food item so I can enter everything properly.

Pushing Myself

I managed to get through the day without messing up on what I ate - it helps to be busy at work. My work day had me pretty frustrated, so I was actually looking forward to my workout afterward. I pushed myself really hard and even bumped myself up two levels on the elliptical trainer. Mission accomplished! I left the gym tired and a lot less frustrated. If I could do things differently right now, I would change to working out early in the morning. Unfortunately, my high schooler just won't get out of bed and get ready on his own, so I'm stuck waiting until after work to hit the gym. On Saturdays, my husband and I go to the gym together in the morning and I feel so energized afterwards. I even take my dogs for a walk when I get home. When I go to the gym at night, I'm already somewhat tired and when I get home, all I want to do is collapse. Today I did the majority of my strength training during my lunch. I'm pretty lucky since my husband is a weightlifting teacher at the same school where I work. He helps me figure out how to do my exercises using his equipment (he's stuck with older weight machines and fewer options due to budget limitations). It's nice to know I have his support (and his weight room). :-)

Tough Morning

I have been enjoying a couple of weeks of feeling pretty good and more energetic, so I guess it was inevitable that I eventually face a morning where I feel slow, sore, and generally miserable. This is one of those mornings where I long for the comfort foods I'm trying to give up. Now I have to hope that temptation doesn't cross my path in the form of coworkers offering fattening treats. I know I have the willpower to resist...if I try hard enough. I'm going to try doing a small lunchtime exercise session to see if that will pick me up.

It's all about the portions!

The nutrition class this morning was great. Jalaine gave us some handouts on portion sizes and I could quickly see how I had put on all these extra pounds. It's easy to get carried away eating the huge meals that we've all gotten used to. We also got some handouts on how to modify recipes. There were lists of items you could substitute with healthier options. My favorite is to use applesauce in place of vegetable oil when baking cakes. The cakes actually taste better and they're moister. We're having a health fair at work on Friday, so I shared the information with our nurse so she could make copies. After class, several of us talked about different foods we had discovered, good places to shop, and whatever tips we could share. I'm so glad we're doing this together!

I got to the gym early last night - beat my trainer there. It's hard to believe that I get excited about exercising now. Part of what keeps me going to the gym is knowing that Whitney is expecting me to be there. I don't want to let her down. After one hour of cardio and a round of strength training, I was pretty tired. The tough part is going home and having to cook when I'm worn out. It's tempting to stop for burgers so I don't have to cook. Fortunately, my husband figured out something quick and easy I could make for the family and I fixed myself a really nice salad since I'd had a bigger lunch. Survived another day!!

Recap of the first two weeks

We had all our tests and weigh-in on Feb. 13. I couldn't believe how bad my numbers were and I found myself wondering how long I had been in this bad of shape. It scares me to think that my health was this bad and I didn't even know it.

The nutrition portion has been a little confusing so far. We started out using a diabetic exchange system. That wasn't too difficult to get used to, but last week's nutrition class switched the focus to calories. I'm allowed up to 1600 calories per day. When I started keeping a detailed food journal, I realized how easy it was to go through 1600 calories. I also noticed that what I had been eating before this challenge was probably 5 times that...ouch! I had a fundraiser I attended for work last week and I started to panic because it was called the "Chocolate Extravaganza." Fortunately, I ate conservatively during the day and the portions at the event were very small. I got little tastes of all the goodies and the dinner food, but I didn't go back for refills or stuff myself. I'm so proud of myself!!

My first workout with my trainer, Whitney, was tough. I was on the bike and the elliptical trainer for a total of 55 minutes. Normally, I would have been out of there after 10 minutes, but Whitney was there to keep pushing me. Talking to her makes the time go so much faster! For my Saturday workouts, my husband goes with me, so I still have a personal trainer :-)

Off We Go!!

First, I'd like to introduce myself. My name is Karen and I live in Provo. I am 41 years old, married, and have two sons (ages 16 & 19). I work full-time for Heritage Schools, Inc., a nonprofit psychiatric residential treatment center for teens. Since I ride a desk all day, exercise is mostly an after-hours activity. I grew up on the Oregon coast and moved to Utah about 22 years ago.

My mom passed away in 1999 at the age of 54 from complications due to her multiple sclerosis. She struggled with weight problems most of her married life. My dad passed away on Feb. 10 at the age of 62 after a lifetime of heart problems and alcoholism. I'm going into my older years with no clue as to what health problems may lie in store.

Being selected to do the 100-Day Heart Challenge is so exciting! I've struggled with getting motivated enough to do something about my weight and overall wellness. By chronicling my journey in this public forum, there is a little extra pressure to keep going. Sharing this experience with 14 other ladies is also really fun. I've never done well without some sort of support system. So here's hoping that this is just the motivation I need to build some great habits so I can be with my family for many, many years to come.