Luvmy2sams Takes on the Pounds

[luvmy2sams]

DH and I rang in 2005 in front of the castle at the Magic Kingdom. It was beautiful...it was romantic...it was a dream come true...and I was in pain. Since the birth of my DD almost six years earlier, I have suffered with recurring lower back pain. Little did I know that the pain I was feeling on that beautiful night would only get worse over the next seven months. I blamed myself....If only I had taken better care of myself by exercising regularly and watching those calories. I returned home and was soon an exercise guru. Walking on the treadmill was the only thing that would alleviate my back pain so I was able to function and take care of my family. There were days that I would literally walk on the treadmill for hours at a time...never going more than about 1.5-2.0 mph because my back couldn't handle it. It was great for my waistline, and I dropped 25 pounds over the next six months solely by exercising. By May, however, I'd finally found a doctor willing to send me for an MRI and to believe that my pain was as bad as I was professing it to be. Turns out that I had a disc so severely herniated that it was pressing on my spine and completely blocking the nerves. Well, that sure would explain the sciatica I now considered a normal part of my existence. I spent the next month and a half waiting on surgery and consuming an insane amount of hydrocodone in order to be able to get out of bed. The surgery day arrived, and one hour after being knocked out I awoke to zero pain. I now feel amazing! The downside is that the steroid therapy given to me shortly before surgery has resulted in a lovely weight gain of 17 pounds, which has made me lose all my motivation. I'm at that turning point in life where I've got to put up or shut up and suffer the consequences. I believe I've suffered enough, so I'm here to prove to myself that I can succeed.

I want to lose 65 pounds of unhealthy me. I'm following the Weight Watchers program, but my budget will not justify the cost of attending weekly meetings. My mom and several friends are doing this program, so I have built in accountability. The WISH board, however, has served me well in the past, and I think I'll be challenged the most by those reading this rambling initial post. I've joined the Christmas Challenge and will work to lose 15 pounds by Christmas. I hope to be 20 pounds lighter by the time we take our kids on a surprise trip to Disney in early January.

Thanks to anyone who has managed to read this novella without being bored to tears. I promise to check in here faithfully and to support all of my fellow losers.

~Angela

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi Angela!

I'm not sure if you remember me or not, but I wanted to stop by your journal and say.....

Welcome back to WISH! I am so glad to hear that your back pain is gone! Now that your back is feeling much better, your WISH friends will cheer you on as you strive to lose the weight! You CAN do it!

Hope you have a great Monday! Welcome back!

 

[gradtchr]

Welcome!! So glad your back isn't hurting anymore and we're here for you if you need us.

 

[luvmy2sams]

Of course I remember you, Tracy. Seems like so long ago that I was on that first ill-fated journal of mine. I thought about resurrecting it but in the end decided that I was going to start completely fresh. No more dwelling on what might have been for me.

Thanks gradtchr for stopping by. Making changes in your life is so much easier when there's lots of support around you. I do appreciate yours!

I'm off to do some cleaning. DS2 has managed to destroy in 10 minutes everything that I've put away over the past 2 hours. Gotta love those little boys!

 

[Jane E.]

Angela, welcome back to Wish! I'm so glad that you found a doctor willing to work with you. It must've felt amazing waking up pain free. Congrats for sticking with those workouts in spite of all the pain you were in. You're going to look great for that trip to Disney!

 

[luvmy2sams]

Thanks for stopping by, Jane E. While I was in pain, exercise was the only thing that would help loosen up the muscles enough that I could stand up straight, so it was no problem at all getting on that treadmill throughout the day. After that experience, I will never take my health for granted again.

Looks like there's no way I'm going to be able to be a daily journal poster here over the next few months. Life is simply too crazy right now. I've worked out every day this week (15-20 minutes PT stretches and 30 minutes on the treadmill) and have been journaling my food and counting the WW points. Things are going pretty well so far. I always seem to be a slow starter, but the scale is showing a little downward movement. I won't consider any loss official unless it shows up on Monday's weigh-in, though.

I'm so ready for the holidays. DH has been working lots of overtime so we haven't had a lot of family time over the past few weeks. DD is busy with school, dance and piano, and DS is two, which is all that needs to be said there. We always go to my parents' home in Houston for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and it's really nice to just go someplace else and just be for awhile. Know what I mean? Anway, I'm counting the days.

We took advantage of the new package offer Disney released earlier this week and booked the dining plan for our January trip. We originally had a room only AAA discount and were planning on purchasing park hopping MYW tickets and had budgeted an amount for a combination of character meals and counter service meals. Turns out that with the package we're paying $14 more than our budget, but in the end I think we'll save. Because of the snack credit, I don't have to mess with packing breakfast foods for the kids now. We'll just use those credits for fruit in the morning, and we'll be set. DH is so excited and has now booked all sorts of table service meals for our 11 day visit. It just sounds like way too much food for me, so we'll probably end up splitting lots of meals, etc. What in the world have I gotten myself into here? All that's left for the trip is figuring out how to surprise DD. She thinks we're spending the weekend in Dallas for her 7th birthday. The poor kid has never been on an airplane and thinks that we're not going back to Disney until the fall of 2007. Any suggestions? We've got ideas but haven't settled on anything specific.

Anyway...I should really go clean up this mess of a house I'm living in. I babysit another 2 year old boy each afternoon, and between he and my son, they've destroyed parts of each room in the house. There was no time to clean up before church last night, so I've got to get things in order before DH gets home tonight. Just once I'd like him to come home to a spotless house. He'll probably think he's lost, though.

Have a good day everyone! Gonna try to hit a few journals before cleaning time starts....

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi Angela,

Don't worry about not getting to your journal everyday. Just post when you can and we will be here to support you and cheer you on to VICTORY!

What kind of ideas do you have about surprising your DD with WDW? I'd love to hear them!

Thank you so much for your prayers and support.

Have a great weekend!

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi Angela!

Stopping by to WISH you a wonderful week! Take care!

 

[gradtchr]

Hey just stopping by to see how your weekend and week were. Hope all is well.

 

[luvmy2sams]

Good morning!

Thanks for stopping by, Tracy and gradtchr! Hope you both had great weekends. I'll try to get to journals sometime this morning.

DH and I took the kids to see Chicken Little over the weekend. DS wasn't too sure about the aliens, but he did a great job sitting still through the entire movie. Pretty good for a 2 year old, and a good sign for our upcoming trip to Disney. DD thought the movie was hilarious, and DH and I agreed that it was pretty cute. I didn't fall in love with it, but I'm sure it will grow on me.

Okay, Tracy, here's our tentative plan for surprising DD with the trip. We told DD that for her birthday this year we'd take her to Dallas for the weekend, complete with birthday dinner at the Rainforest Cafe and a trip to Build A Bear, so getting her to the airport location is easy enough. We've decided to tell her about the trip on her birthday (the night before our flight) so she can have at least a few hours for it to sink into her brain. The plan right now is to do the planned birthday stuff and then have a few surprise presents waiting back at the hotel. I've ordered the WDW for Kids by Kids 2006 edition and a book about Hidden Mickeys for her. We've thought about having each book wrapped separately, and then a final package that reveals the trip. We've got the Mickey/Minnie balloon from a previous trip that we've thought about filling with helium and attaching our itinerary to. The balloon was a fellow DISer's idea, and she'll recognize DH's itinerary as a Disney one immediately. Another thought was to have a scavenger hunt in the hotel, with prizes leading up to the grand reveal. DH also thought it might be fun to have the server at Rainforest Cafe bring out the balloon with her Volcano birthday cake. DH also wants to wait until the next morning to tell DD we're flying instead of driving. He's calling it a "layered surprise." I can't decide if that one's a good idea or not. Gee...can you tell I'm excited?

I weighed in yesterday a pound lighter than I was a week ago. Not a significant amount of weight, but for some reason my body always starts off slow. I'm continuing the exercise and have upped the treadmill time from 30 to 45 minutes. I can't wait to feel like I'm completely back on track!

I'm off to check out a few journals. Have a good day guys!

 

[luvmy2sams]

Am I the only one that cleans like a maniac in the weeks leading up to the holidays? We have a good friend that house- and pet-sits for us while we're out of town, and I've got it in my head that everything needs to be spotless. DH loves to make fun of me because his idea of cleaning up is putting things out of sight. My idea is to have everything organized...a place for everything, and everything in its place. DD has picked up my habits, so between the two of us we're hoping to drive DH crazy at some point.

I've stuck tightly to my points so far this week, which is a major accomplishment for me. I always get into trouble when I think I don't need to journal my food. A prime example was Monday night when DH made Marie Callender pot pies for dinner. I ate about half of mine and then decided to tally the points. That sucker had 24 points! For those numbers I'd much rather have a huge slice of cheesecake. Needless to say, I got to use 1/2 of my flex points for the week because of that one meal. Oh well...I've made up for it since then, and I won't make that mistake again.

I did 45 minutes on the treadmill and another 20 minutes of physical therapy exercises last night while watching Amazing Race. I love my DVR...I've started recording all my favorite shows and watching them while I walk on the treadmill. It makes the time go so much faster.

Well...it's time to pick DD up from school and take her to piano lessons. Tonight will be a busy one, with all the church activities we have going on. I plan on being home by 8pm, so I can get my exercise in while DH puts the kids to bed.

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi Angela,

I love the surprise that you have planned for your DD! I really like the idea of the waiter/waitress at Rainforest Cafe bringing out the balloon with the itinerary on it. Better have the camera ready for that one! I like the scavenger hunt idea and I like the "layered surprise" idea as well. You are going to have so much fun!

Great job sticking to your points this week! Keep up the good work!

We have a DVR too and I just love that thing! The only problem is when we go to other people's houses who don't have it. If I miss something on TV and ask them to rewind it, they can't. I've also found myself wanting to rewind to hear something again on the radio too.

Have a great week!

 

[TomB'sWidow]

Hi I am just now catching up with your journal I am happy that you
finally were able to get your back pain resolved. You seem very focused on staying on the right track. Keep it going! I too cannot post everyday but will check when I can. Good Luck

 

[luvmy2sams]

The past few days have been a bit around here. DS has this cough that won't seem to quit, and it's really worn him down over the last few days. All he wanted to do was cuddle, which was fine by me, but it also meant that I gave up my exercise time for several days. I've found that if I don't fit it in first thing in the morning or as soon as DH gets home from work, it just doesn't get done. Too much life going on right now. Oh well...today is a new day.

I weighed in this morning, and I'm down 3.5 pounds since last Monday. That's 4.5/15 for the Christmas challenge I joined two weeks ago. Hopefully, with lots of discipline, I'll be able to keep this trend going over the holidays.

This week will be nice and calm...today at least. The calendar for the rest of the week looks a little more chaotic. I love it, though.

DD and I have a date tonight. She's had a really tough couple of days at school, and I know we could both use some one-on-one time. She's deciding what the date will consist of, so there's no telling what I'll be doing this evening.

Off to check up on a few journals....

 

[TomB'sWidow]

It seems like your keeping your focus even with life getting in the way heres to you for focusing.

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi Angela,

I'm sorry to hear that your DS is not feeling well. Sending him some healing so he can get better soon.

How did your date go with your DD?

Congratulations on the weight you have lost so far! That is wonderful, Angela! Keep up the good work and you will make your goals!

Have a great Tuesday!

 

[luvmy2sams]

Good afternoon guys!

DS seems to be on the mend...thanks for the ...but now DD is starting with a little runny nose. She says that she doesn't feel bad, so we've decided to test out Airborne to see if it kicks the bugs to the curb. I've read several people's recommendations for taking it at the first sign of a cold or when they're traveling, so I thought we'd give it a try. DD says that it tastes great, so that's half my battle right there.

DD decided that she wanted to rearrange her room last night, so we ordered Chinese and did that instead of heading outside in the cold. I picked up a copy of The Lion, The Witch & The Wardrobe at the store yesterday, and we started reading that together last night, too. We'd planned on doing just a chapter a night, but she wasn't ready to stop, so we ended up reading the first four chapters. It turned into a really nice evening.

DS is keeping me on my toes this afternoon. My goal today is to finish all the laundry...those pesky hand-wash items are going to be the death of me!...and have the house spotless by the time DH gets home. I've got a meeting at church tonight, so I plan on DVR'ing The Biggest Loser and watching it while I work out tonight. The kids and I leave for my parents' house in Houston on Saturday, and I've a bazillion things to do between now and then, but I'm going to set aside this evening for ME! I'm sure the kids will understand.

 

[Cruise04]

Just getting around to journals and wanted to welcome you to the journal board. Sounds like you are doing great and how fun to surprise your dd. That is neat - I wish I could do that but I know I can't keep Disney a secret!!!!! ROFL

Take care
Keep on
Chris

 

[toystoryduo]

Hi Angela!

WISHing you and your family a Happy Thanksgiving! Take care!

 

[Cruise04]

Happy Thanksgiving!!!
Keep on
Chris