Archive for the ‘Body Measurements’ Category

Journal:  a daily record, as of occurrences, experiences, or observations.  I remember as a little girl, I kept a journal of the exciting events that occurred in the life of a ten year old.  (What on earth could possibly be so exciting, I have not a clue!)  Through the years, I have continued journal entries as a way to document important happenings that I want to remember later in life. These include both positive and negative events which altered my life in some way.

In many weight loss programs, nutritionists teach the importance of food journals. It sounds somewhat strange that a person would need to remember what they ate six months ago!  With my poor memory, I can barely remember what I ate yesterday though. And depending on how I fared with my eating, I may actually choose to FORGET what I ate as it might not have been the best choice. 

There are advantages to food journaling though.  I use an online program called The Daily Plate.  It’s a free program which allows you to enter many brand name foods that you consume each day.  I also record my weight on a continual basis.  This program helps you keep track of your daily intake because it shows number of calories, fats, carbohydrates, protein, and sugar content.  

A few months ago I stopped journaling.  I reached a place where I thought I didn’t need to do this any longer.  I thought I was eating the same amount of calories, carbs, and taking in a high amount of protein.  However, I did not know that I was able to eat more food and no longer needed as many protein shakes each day. I also stopped exercising this past winter because it was too cold for me, and never started back.  As a result, activity was at a low and calories were at a high.  

Last week I decided it was time to make a change.  I got back onto The Daily Plate and entered my foods.  Then I clicked on the weight record and searched my weight back to last September.  It said I had gained 12 lbs since then!  I could not believe it!  There it was, right before my eyes in black and white, and I could not deny the numbers.  It was a stark reality check to say the least.

I have diligently recorded my calories since then, lowered my daily caloric intake which has been difficult.  And, I also started walking twice a day.  It is soooooo easy to fall back into old habits and routines.  All it takes is one day of losing activity, or one day of eating too many calories to form a bad habit.  The next day we become a little more lax, until eventually it is our lifestyle once again.

The nutritionists do have valid points in their reasons for food journaling.  It is a wonderful tool to look back on and helps you find out what areas you may be weak in and need to correct.  It has helped me break a bad cycle before things got too far out of control. 

My weight has not changed.  My average is 120 lbs.  It goes up and down a few lbs depending on what time of month it is.  But I TRY my best not to get overly upset with this change in the scales.  It used to discourage me and cause a panic because of the fear of regaining.  As a matter of fact, I no longer weigh myself every day.  Lately I have skipped the rigamarole all together.  A few or three days will pass and I think, “Well, I guess I will get on the scales.”  That is just to make sure I stay within a normal weight range.  My ideal range is 118 – 122.  If I get up to 125, THEN I panic!

Recently I have noticed some changes in my body.  I had a pocket on my left middle abdomen which appeared to be a roll of fat.  If I wore a thin t-shirt that came close to my body, you could see the roll.  I am including a picture here for you to see an example. I consulted the plastic surgeon about this some months ago and he said that it IS loose skin and that he could do a midline incision, but honestly in his opinion, he did not think that he could reverse the effects of my obesity.  There would still be problems with loose skin.  The left side is more notable to ME but as you can tell by the picture, the pocket goes all the way across my midsection.

Now back to my theory. Lately it appears that the roll has dropped.  It is not as pronounced.  Now I am wondering if its a shift in the body weight, or perhaps I was still swollen from plastic surgery.  Swelling can reap havoc on the plastics patient for up to one year after the procedure.  There is a particular pair of underwear that made me have a muffin top – you know what I mean…  they push all the fat/loose skin up above the waistband and give the effect of a muffin (small on bottom, puffy and big on top!).  These underwear now fit wonderful and there is no longer a bulk of fat/skin on top of the band.  It just really frustrates me!

Disclaimer: The weight on the scale in the above photo does not necessarily state or reflect the weight of the owner of this site and cannot be used for black mail purposes.Well my trusty scales did exactly as I expected them to. Saturday’s 124.7 is down today to 120.1. Oh I just want to sing its praises and tell you all how proud I am to be her friend today.

I want you to know that I do allow myself about 3-4 lbs range each month during “Aunt Flow” as one OH poster recently titled that time of month. However, I have been watching as the scale went up for over a month (maybe almost two). Never has it continued to climb and quite honestly, it did not worry me at first. I did quite nicely in adjusting, reassuring myself that I know how to lose weight if in fact its due to my eating habits (which I didn’t think it was).

But then when the number didn’t start to go down in the usual expected timeframe after my period, I said “Utt OHHhhh…. Houston, we have a problem!” I did start back logging foods and scaled back a little on my food this past Sunday. Also my father reminded me of the fluid pill that I was supposed to start back on again per the gyn. I started that on Sunday and once again, scales are going down. My system has just been so messed up, etc. I’m really not THAT obsessive over my weight. But when it just kept on going up from 118, 120, 122, 124. I would surely not want it to go up past 125 as that is my “cut off”. That is the number of pounds that I don’t want to go over, and if I get up to it or close, I know that’s my signal that I need to do something!

Now why do I post these things? Why do I so openly blatantly post things about my personal feelings and ways that I view my life to the public? I really hope that by saying it out loud, bringing into the open things that we all so often keep to ourselves, that it helps someone else think “Hey! That’s how I feel! I guess what I am experiencing is normal after all.” That way you don’t feel so alone in your fears, insecurities and struggles. You know that there is someone else out there, probably a lot more than you realize, who feel the exact same way. I have come under fire and criticized and given advice for sharing so much openly. But, if it helps at least one person… my job is done – - to validate others’ feelings and experiences.

My trusty scales went up on me this past month or so. Little by little, from 120 to 124.8 on Saturday. I have been watching the number climb but tried my best to remain calm. Until, Friday. I told Tim that on Monday (today) I was going to get back to the basics! I was going to log every single morsel that I put into my mouth on The Daily Plate. Now to some, this is a chore. To me, however, I actually do not mind entering the data. I have done office work my entire adult life and I type much faster than I write, and sometimes type faster than I think! And I love the internet.

Yesterday I decided, why wait until Monday? I would start Sunday instead. I was cautious of everything I ate, and journaled it all. I looked at the report at day’s end and felt that it was in great shape, but not tip top shape. I have this week to get things tweeked and back to working like a perfectly oiled machine that it once was! I believe that before an engine gets to the point where it needs a complete overhaul, it would have been much easier and less costly to have just done a little bit of preventive maintenance. I’d like to think that’s what I am doing… some prevention in this maintenance mode stage that I’m in now.

Today the scales were nicer to me. They patted me on the back and said “Great job! Now keep up the good work and I will be extra nice to you tomorrow… and Weds… and Thursday… and Friday…” And then in no time, I will be back down to my trusty 118 – 120 lbs. That is where I feel the best in my clothes. Most people probably don’t notice it because where I gain the weight is in my tummy area where there is loose skin. I notice it! But others do not. Clothes can hide it pretty well even though I feel a little self conscious with the roll that protrudes from my waist band. Yes, I have loose skin issues! Even after a tummy tuck! I needed a mid line incision and a full belt lipectomy but money prevented me from doing that. I was too much of a tight wad, and thought I could live with the results. I can, but like I said, if I gain that 5 lbs, its all right there in my upper left tummy!

All of us who lose weight have some kind of issues! For some, its their arms, to others, their legs. But as I look around, I see that people who have never had a weight problem in their life also struggle with a part of their body that they don’t necessarily LOVE. Not that they HATE it… they would just rather diminish the appearance in some slight ways.

But guess what? Like I said the other day! LIFE IS GOOD! Regardless if I am 5 lbs heavier, 15 lbs heavier, 25 lbs heavier, LIFE IS GOOD, and I am now able to live it. I am not carrying around that 135 lbs that once kept me tired and achy.

Have a great day! Get out and live! Soak up the sun!