Don't Worry, Be Happy

The past couple of weeks have been kind of a roller coaster.  Where do I begin?  

My hubby John was away for 11 days on a mission trip to the Galapagos Islands, 600 miles off the coast of Ecuador.  After 35 years, I am kind of used to having him around, so it was lonely without him.

Fortunately, 4th of July happened while he was gone and family and friends gathered here to celebrate Titusville's small town festivities.  Everyone pitched in - most especially my son Mike - and made it an enjoyable day for me.  I also met my son John's girlfriend for the first time (I had already met Mike's).  The only downside is my brother had an accident on the way home.  His car was damaged but he and his wife are okay - Praise the Lord.

Monday night I went out for dinner with my friend Barb and Tuesday I had a special treat.  I met my childhood best friend, Rose, for lunch.  We had not seen each other to visit in over a year so the conversation never stopped.  The time flew by way too quickly.

Tuesday night and Friday afternoon I worked with a personal trainer at the gym.  Wednesday night I went shopping with Barb and was happy to get some sale items in a smaller size than previously.

Friday morning I had an appointment with my dietitian.  Honestly, after the last visit, I was not looking forward to it.  Since March of 2008, I have been losing weigh consistently until the end of March 2009.  For some unknown reason, my body started holding on to the pounds, instead of letting them go.  I was exercising more than ever, eating all the right amounts, but making no progress.  And I was feeling discouraged enough.  Then at the previous dietitian appointment at weigh in I GAINED a pound.  I know it does not sound like much.  I know I have lost 90 pounds and should not be concerned about 1 pound gain.  But this had been going on for over three months now.  Working this hard and making no progress.  I record every bite of food that goes into my mouth.  I exercise a minimum of 500 calories per day, at least 6 days a week.  And to gain a pound put me over the edge.

At that visit the dietitian changed my eating plan to zig zag the calories - so the average calorie intake for the week remains the same, but the daily intake varies up and down.

SO here I am having to face the scale again, after the gain.  

The other disappointing thing to me was that I had been hoping to reach the halfway point in my weight loss, and instead I was a pound further from it.

When I stepped on the scale I had lost 5 pounds in two weeks.  I reached the halfway point!  WOOHOO!  (In my next blog maybe I will share some of my thoughts about reaching that milestone).

To continue on with my two weeks.  On July 10th, my cousin Judy's husband passed away at age 68.  It hit me hard because Don is from my generation, not my parents'.

Then I got news my Aunt Evelyn had been taken to the hospital, was in a coma and not expected to live.  I began to pray for her and the family.  And God did a miracle.  The doctors performed surgery to ease the pressure on her brain as well as tying off the leaking artery.  She is now awake and walking around.  Praise God.

Also John returned from his mission trip at the beginning of this week and has been dealing with an intestinal issue.  

SO the time has had its ups and downs.  I can thank God for His many blessings.  Next time - Halfway There.

I Lost All Of My Groceries

(I posted this on Spark People but I wanted to share it with my other friends too)

For 30 years I did the grocery store routine every week or so. Then about 5 years ago my lower back began to hurt when i walked. My husband had to start coming with me to help me make it through the shopping trip. Finally it got so bad, I just could not go to the store any

mor

e. 
Thankfully, I found PEAPOD on line. I could order all of my groceries on the computer and have them delivered to my house. All I had to do was unpack them

 and put them away. Still painful but not as much. 
I am thrilled to report that in the past few months, due to all I have accomplished here on SP (eating healthy, exercising and losing weight), I can now go to the grocery store again

. As long as I have the cart to lean on, I can make it through the store and checkout, and get the groceries into the car. When I get home, most of the time there is someone here to help carry them into the house. 
Last week, my husband was the one who helped me. But I noticed before he brought the bags into the kitchen, he first carried them upstairs. I wondered if this was a new exercise routine he was trying out. When all of the groceries were in the house, I asked him why did he have to carry the bags upstairs first.
This is what he told me, " I thought when I picked up th

e bags, how heavy they felt and I wondered how much all of the groceries you bought weighed. SO I took them upstairs and weighed them. " All of the bags totaled just over 90 pounds. He continued, "SO look at all of these bags of groceries and you will see how much weight you have lost so far." WOW! That was a lot of groceries. I used to carry all of that around with me every day. I could not even carry two of those bags let alone all of them at the same time. 
It gave me a real picture of what my weight loss has been so far. When I think that I used to carry all of that around it amazes me. 
Lately I have felt a bit discouraged because the weight has not been coming off as much as I would like it to, but when I think about losing all of my groceries in weight, I realize how much I have accomplished so far. Yes, I have to lose that many groceries still to get to my goal, but I am proud to say, I have lost all of my groceries! 

Unexpected Blessing

I joined the gym at the beginning of this year. It is something I never thought I would be able to do, due to my back problems. I go there 6 days a week.
Although I am very limited in what I can do, I work hard at those things I can do.
Today when I got there, I started by trying to walk the track. After 2 sets of 2 laps I had to stop because my back hurt so badly. I went right to the seated back extension machine to try and get some relief.
At 3 I was scheduled for a half hour with my personal trainer, so I had an hour to do cardio before that. Since my back was in pain, I decided the recumbent bike would be the best option. I set it for 40 minutes and off I went. While riding, I looked around.
Although I have been going to the gym for over 5 months, I really do not know anyone there. I spend my time alone, talking to no one.
Today as I was riding, I noticed a man I see there a lot. Every time I see him he is with one of three of four women. Today was no different. I began thinking how lonely it is for me at the gym. I was wishing my hubby could come with me sometime.
When I finished my cardio, I sat and cooled down for a few minutes before my training session. I saw my trainer finishing up with her client. After they were through, the woman she had been training, who I did not know, walked right over to me. She smiled and said, "I just want you to know what a great job you are doing." I must have looked confused because she continued, "I walk in the back and notice how hard you work and the commitment you have. You are really doing well." WOW! What a nice surprise.
Of course, I thanked her for her encouragement, explaining about my limitations. She said we all need encouragement, don't we?
That lonely feeling was gone for those few minutes we spoke. I do not even know her name. I just know she took the time to speak to a stranger and made my day!
I once read a book about God Smiles - little ways God shows us He is smiling at us. This was a God Smile for me. I hope I see that kind woman again and find out her name.
Thank you, Lord, for smiling at me today through her.

Presence, Joy and Heart

This past weekend my hubby took me to the Great Smoky Mountains. But that is not what this blog is about. I only mention it because it was the drive home that inspired this blog.
During the twelve plus hour drive home, we were listening to one of my IPOD playlists. It was a mixed bag of songs of many genres and artists. The majority of songs were by Don Moen (no surprise, huh?) and Regi Stone. There were also several by Geron Davis.
Anyone who knows me well, is aware that these are three of my favorite worship leaders/songwriters. Just listening to their music is ultimate worship for me.
During the drive I came to realize each of them has a different aspect of worship in their style, yet each ministers powerfully creating an atmosphere of worship.
Geron Davis, who is probably best know for writing "Holy Ground" when he was 18 years old, focuses on the joy of worship. Many of his songs are upbeat, yet speak powerful messages about Who God is and how powerful He is. "My heart is burning, my spirit's yearning to worship You and Your Holy Name"; "In all things, Jesus, You are King"; "Evermore, I will love You, Evermore I will Praise You, Evermore I will glorify the name of the Lord". These are just a few of his worship songs. All bring us into the joy of the Lord.
Regi Stone may be the least well known of the three. He is worship leader at Christ Church Nashville. His music reflects his commitment to worship and focuses on the Heart of worship. It is all about surrendering our hearts completely and opening our hearts for the Lord to minister. "How Can I tell You How Much I love you? " O that I may know You, O that I may worship, O that I may bow down at Your feet"; "We love You, Lord, We love YOu, Jesus, For Your arms hold us, Your mercy keeps us." Regi's worship guides us right to the heart of the Lord.
Don Moen records and works for Integrity music. His desire is to usher people into the Presence of the Lord with his music. I can be listening to his songs or watching him on a DVD and I am immediately transported into God's presence. "Here we are lifting our hands to You"; "I need You Jesus, to come to my rescue"; "Jesus, we lift You on our praises, so every eye can see Your face, Your power and grace, behold You as You really are." Don's heart is for every worshipper to experience the sweet presence of the Lord.
Listening to the songs of these three, all mixed together during this trip, made their focus become clear to me. Each has a love of worship. Each knows the power of worship. Each knows the deep place worship can take us. Through their music they can take us there - each in their own style and focus, yet each very powerful. They help me realize worship can be so much more and I desire that in my life.

Smoky Mountains May, 2009 trip

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Garden May, 2009

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Changes, DIsappointments and What Should Have Been

Changes:
I saw my dietitian last week. For the past seven weeks, my weight loss has slowed practically to a halt. In the previous month, I lost just one pound. This past three weeks, I lost 1.5 pounds. While I am thankful it was a loss, I was confused as to why it was not more. I have been staying on track with my eating and exercising at the gym more than I have ever been able to do. My dietitian is also confused. Last time she told me to eat more, to lose more. I tried, but I just never could get to the higher end of my calorie range, without going over in my carbs and proteins. I did cut back on my time and exertion at the gym. But apparently this was not doing the trick.
She told me about the zone diet. You have to pick from a list of allowed foods in blocks for each meal. It is based on different percentages of proteins, carbs and fats than I now follow.
I reminded her that from the start I do not want a "diet", I want a lifestyle - to be able to eat the foods I eat, in the right amounts and combinations for the rest of my life. Lifestyle is a whole different mindset than "diet". Diets begin and end. When the diet ends, my mindset is "Okay now I can go back and eat 'normally'" - in other words go back to my bad choices and habits. This is not what I am doing. Yes, I have a goal weight in mind, but it is flexible. But when I get there, I am continuing to eat just the way I eat now. I have come too far and learned too much to go back to old unhealthy habits.
What is great about my dietitian is she understands that, and instead of pushing me onto the zone diet, asked if we could try adjusting my nutritional values to the same percentages as the zone diet, but I would keep eating and tracking as I already do, just with different ranges. That sounded like it would work for me.
My current percentages were protein 30%, fat 20% and carbs 50%. My adjusted rates are protein 30%, fat 30% and carbs 40%.
It has not been too hard to add the additional fat. For the first time in years and years I am using 1% milk instead of fat free. It tastes like cream to me! The harder part is cutting back on the carbs. I rarely eat bread or pasta or rice, due to low carbs to start with. I get most of my carbs from fruits and vegetables. But I am working it out. Although she had told me adding fat should increase the calories, I have not found this to be the case yet. I am still at about the same calorie intake.
She has told me to stay off the scale because I was getting obsessed, weighing myself several times a day. Thus I have no idea if this new plan is working or not. I have to check in with her at the end of this week to let he know how I am doing.
Two things I do notice - I am not as hungry feeling at night and I am sleeping better.
Disappointments:
As I have noted in as previous blog, I am a big fan of Dancing With the Stars and American Idol. They both had finales this week. I am disappointed with both of the winners.
Although I enjoyed Shawn and Mark, in my opinion she was NOT the best dancer.
I did not even watch the American Idol finale because I do not think the final two were the best singers in the competition.
What Should Have Been:
Everyone is entitled to his/her own opinions. SO here are mine. When Danny Gokey was voted off American Idol, it was just wrong. Throughout the competition he was one of the very best singers. He was always on pitch (except for the final note on rock week). He was passionate and creative. HE had a great attitude and personality. From the beginning, it was obvious most of the judges wanted Adam to win. Adam has a good voice when he does not scream. But I began to call him a one trick pony, because I got tired of the screaming week after week. I wondered if the judges arranged it so Danny got eliminated thinking Kris would leave the way open for Adam to win. The rules allow them to do that, to override the voters.
Well, surprise, surprise - I am guessing all of Danny's followers voted for Kris and he won the title. Nothing against Kris, but he should not have won. Danny should have won. That's the way I think it should have been.
Dancing with the Stars - From the beginning Gilles and Cheryl were standouts. Gilles became a wonderful dancer. He was in a league way above all of the other stars. Melissa and Shawn were worthy competitors, but he was beyond them in his dancing abilities. He was graceful, passionate and he took on the personality of the dance. His and Cheryl's routines earned them more 30s than in the history of the show. SO why didn't Gilles win the trophy? Did the audience turn it into a popularity contest instead of a dance contest?
Nothing against Shawn, but she should not have that trophy. Gilles should have won Dancing With the Stars. That's the way it should have been.