Tag Archives: Diet

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19 Forever!!!!

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I have been stuck at 19 pounds lost for a couple of weeks now. Argh!!! I know I need to be happy with my 19 pounds. I’ve worked and fought hard for those 19 pounds. Yay, me, and all that, right?<SCREAM>

I keep telling myself that I’m building muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat. I keep reminding myself how much better I feel now than I did those 11 weeks ago. I keep reminding myself that I can walk upstairs without being completely out of breath now. I keep reminding myself that I am a strong, capable woman. I keep reminding myself that I can just keep doing this and eventually something, hopefully some fat, will shake loose. But this is frustrating!

So I ordered myself a Disney Halloween Spirit Jersey, to celebrate my hard work. It arrived today and cheered me up immensely. See the pictures? So pretty!

And so I’ll keep on keeping on to meet you at the Kingdom.

Donna

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Hard Fought Progress

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I have to tell you this is the hardest I have ever worked in my life to take off weight. Each pound, heck, each ounce, is slow, steady work. I do feel stronger than I did ten weeks ago. I have to make an appointment to see my Doc though. After having high blood pressure for years and being on meds, suddenly my blood pressure is low. I’ll keep checking for a few days just to make sure.

All this work. All these healthy, calorie conscious meals. Taking two walks each day. This is hard work for me. But I am happy being 18 pounds down in my ten weeks on Noom. Is all the work worth it? You betcha!

I have visions of Disneyland Paris dancing in my head. It’s still nearly two years until we hope to visit there. I might have just enough time to take off a few more pounds. 🙂

Meet me at the Kingdom!

Donna

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Disney Dreaming

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Today I received a package in the mail. The return address showed that it was from Pixie Dust Delivery Service! My heart beat a little faster, my pupils dilated, and I let out an involuntary, “Woo hoo!”

A little over a week ago I messaged Amy at Pixie Dust Delivery Service and requested three, new Old Key West Resort things: a magnet, an ornament, and a shirt. (See photos below this blog.)

I really dig the new emphasis on the lighthouse, the palm trees and of course Mickey and Minnie Mouse! It was a real “treat myself” kind of moment and a much needed shot in the arm to my exhausted-from-working-out body.

You see, even though I’m being careful when I take my walks: knees slightly bent, rolling from heel through toes, tucking my pelvis under, staying as relaxed as possible, and above all breathing, breathing, breathing, I am tired! This is hard, sweat inducing, knees aching, ankles and hips protesting work! At my weight and at my age, a simple walk exhausts me.

This package today helps me to refocus, to embrace this new more active lifestyle, to savor healthier food choices. My trip to Disneyland Paris is ever closer to becoming a reality. And I am renewed in my determination to be a healthier me when I get there.

Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna

P.S. Thank you to http://www.disneyfoodblog.com for the photos! This is my favorite blog, and I check it out every day.

P.P.S. Thank you to Amy of Pixie Dust Delivery Service! I’ve ordered many time from Amy, and she has never let me down. Check her out at http://www.pixiedustdelivery.com.

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Halfway Through

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Today I begin my ninth week on Noom. It’s the halfway point as Noom is a sixteen week program. I’ve lost fifteen pounds in eight weeks, I am very happy with that result. My metabolism has finally kicked in so I am not gaining weight every other day like I was when I started. It’s a very livable program. The psyche tricks are good. The support is great. And it is exposing me to new ways of thinking about food and movement.

I’ve been having fun listening to some new music when I take my walks. Taylor Swift‘s new album, Love, has a couple of tracks that I’ve fallen for: ME! and You Need to Calm Down are very fun and poppy. The Jonas Brothers‘ Happiness Begins album is fantastic. I especially like Sucker, Cool, Happy When I’m Sad and Rollercoaster. The songs are great, and they are a good pace for my walk. And I’m enjoying the soundtrack to the movie Ugly Dolls. I mean, Kelly Clarkson, Janelle Monae, Bebe Rexha and Pentatonix all on one album? Yes, please!

So as I keep eating better and moving more, I am encouraged by my energy level and the feeling of well being that I have. This journey is really tough. Some days I drag myself out the door for a walk. Some days I fly out the door. Some days I wake up feeling strong and empowered. Some days I drag myself out of bed and struggle to put one foot in front of the other. But my resolve to stay the course is strong.

Thanks for hanging in there with me, Dear Readers. I truly appreciate your support and encouragement.

Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna

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3 steps forward, 2 steps back

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Time to check back in with you, Dear Readers. Eight weeks in on my Noom program, I am down 13 pounds. I have faced large ups and incremental downs on the road to 13 pounds. In a day and a half at the 4th of July I gained six pounds, and I didn’t eat nearly as crazily as I have in the past. but it was salty, heavy foods. It took me a week to re-lose the six pounds. BUT it did happen with hard work and determination.

Then we traveled back to the beautiful U.P. to visit with relatives and friends. There are two foods that are prevalent in the mid-U.P. (Land of many, many Finns like me) that I choose to not resist: pasty and cudighi. And I enjoyed both twice while there.

Pasty consists of potato, rutabaga, onion, ground beef wrapped in a crust. The U.P. is Iron Mining Country. (Please, don’t call it the Rust Belt! That has a very negative connotation.) So when the Cornish miners came over to be the bosses at the iron mines, they brought pasties. They made a great miners lunch, kept warm in tin foil in their lunch pail. They could wash them down with hot coffee from their thermoses. Anyway, they were the meal of choice at least a couple of times a month when I was growing up in the U.P.

Cudighi is really only found in the U.P. It is like Italian sausage, but the spices are a bit different. There are many Italian descendants in the U.P. too. Cudughi is usually served on a crusty white bun, with tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, onions, green pepper. So scrumptious!

Well, after five days away, I gained 10 pounds, yes, a shocking 10 pounds! It was mostly salt and retaining fluids, but it was still a shock. The weight came off in five days of eating well and walking more.

Do I recommend this type of binging? No. Do I regret that I did it? No. I made the conscious decision to eat and enjoy these childhood favorites while I was on vacation. I savored every bite.

Now I’m back home and recommitted to my Noom program and to my pilgrimage to better health. I really do want to be able to walk around Disneyland Paris with my family in 2021. This is the journey I am on. And, hey, today was really exciting because I dropped below another 10 pound mark on the scale. Woo hoo!

Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna

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Christmas in July

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Ok, so here’s the deal. I love Christmas! When I say that, people usually say, “Oh, I like Christmas, too.” They do not understand. When I say, “I love Christmas,” I mean, I LOVE Christmas!! As a matter of fact, I love the whole month of December.

How could I not? My birthday is the first week of December. My brother’s birthday is the second week of December. My other brother’s wedding anniversary is the third week of December. Christmas is the fourth week of December. And then the month is capped off with the celebration of the New Year.

Party, party, party, right? And that’s pretty much the way it was at our house growing up. We had something to celebrate every single week, so who cared if it was cold and super snowy outside? It was a golden month.

So maybe you’ll understand why I celebrate Christmas in July. I watch Christmas movies on Hallmark. I drink my coffee in the morning out my favorite Christmas mug. And I make it a point to greet the people I see. Rather than “Merry Christmas”, I say, “Hello, how are you doing today?” No slipping by people with eyes averted. No being stuck in my own shell. I make a concerted effort to engage people.

It feels good. My mood is elevated. All seems right with my nearby world.

So “Hello, Dear Readers, how are you doing today?”

Meet me at the Kingdom!

P.S. I’m still Nooming and still watching the scale move slowly down. I’m getting in more steps each day, and I’m selecting foods that are good for my body. “I feel good, da da da da da da da. You know that I should now, da, da, da, da, da, da, da…”

P.P.S. Today’s featured photo is my son-in-love placing the tree topper on our Christmas tree. I love it!

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Riding the (Now) Life Style Wave

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This is my life now. Eating better and moving more.  I’ve befriended breakfast. I am eating regularly on a schedule whenever possible. I am mindful of my portions and measuring when in doubt. I am attempting to unprocess my diet. I am fighting to lose the way I label things, like “Oh well, I made a mistake so this whole day is shot. I might as well eat…” I have ditched the high calorie drinks. I am eating more mindfully, focusing on the food not distractions.

And yet I have resigned myself to the fact that losing weight quickly is a thing of the past for me. I am 63 years old, so I shouldn’t be surprised. Three weeks in I’ve lost nine pounds. Nine hard earned pounds. Just a drop in the proverbial bucket. But I feel so much better than I did three weeks ago. I mean, so much better. I have more energy. I have lost my sugar cravings. I am sleeping better. And I am moving more. Wins all around, right?

That’s where I am. Beyond the honeymoon phase and on to the hard-work phase. Now to just keep on keeping on.

Meet you at the Kingdom.

Donna

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Living with Peaks and Valleys

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My body is driving me crazy!! It’s never been this hard for me to take off some weight before. I’m nearly three weeks in, and I’ve only lost eight pounds. Eight freaking pounds! Being 63 years old and trying to take weight off is almost torturous. Argh!! So frustrating.

Here’s my current MO: I gain a bit of weight two days in a row, then I lose enough on the third day to put me at a new lower weight. Then it’s gain, gain, lose again and again and again.

There I needed to vent that. Now let me say how my life has improved in those same few weeks. My blood pressure is down to normal numbers. My blood sugar levels are so much better. I’m not exhausted after climbing a set of stairs. I have so much more energy. I’m not so depressed. And I just plain feel better. So…forget you scale! I am winning this battle ever so slowly, but surely.

This morning when I weighed myself, I was bummed! But after take my other stats, taking my daily walk, eating foods that actually fuel my body, and thinking and praying about it, I feel renewed.

I can do this. I can be healthier. And if I lose pounds along the way, that’s a wonderful side effect.  My focus has to be my health and wellness, not just my weight.

I want to be able to really enjoy walking around Disneyland Paris and Walt Disney Studio Parc is two years. And maybe even spend a couple days touring Paris. This is my goal. This is my journey. I’m claiming it, and I’m sending it out into the universe.

Meet me at the Kingdom!

Donna

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Delicious Day

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This morning I woke up with a craving. I wanted a bagel. I knew there were still two Thomas’s Everything Bagels in the bread cupboard, and some Philadelphia Cream Cheese in the fridge. My Noom app let me check out the calories, and it didn’t look bad. So I treated myself to a bagel and two tablespoons of cream cheese for breakfast. It was pure bliss! I used up all of my red calories for the day, but it was so worth it today.

Noom is structured in a red foods, yellow foods and green foods method. Red is not bad, but the goal is to keep those calories to 25% of daily caloric intake. They recommend 45% yellow foods and 30% green foods. Here’s what Noom has to say about red foods, “Red foods simply raise a red flag for foods that contain a lot of calories without filling you up. So while you can eat green foods in larger quantities, you need to be more mindful of how much red foods you’re eating.”

Noom does recommend a treat once a week, so that incredible bagel was my treat. Every time I put something in my mouth, I’m making a decision. Am I going to eat something that will build my body up like vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins? Or am I going to settle for something that will excite my taste buds for a few minutes, but potentially sabotage my body like candy, cake, cookies, or the myriad or other sugary foods that I seem to prefer? Today I will choose the former. Since I had such a satisfying treat for breakfast, my lunch will be a salad, and my dinner will be baked salmon with a small portion of sweet potato and some fresh raw vegetables.

And today I will add five minutes to my walk. Five more minutes trucking to the sound of the JoBros. (I really love their new CD!) My body will thank me tomorrow.

Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna

P.S. My weight fluctuated in my preferred way this morning, down another half pound. A nice treat after yesterday’s weigh -in.

 

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Ebbs and Flows

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I had a perfect Noom day yesterday. I stayed in my calorie count. I exercised. I got my steps in. It was a wonderful accomplishment. However, when I weighed myself this morning fully expecting to weigh the same or slightly less than yesterday, I was .2 pounds up.

My first thought was That can’t be right. So I stepped on the scale again and again and one more time. It was right.

The body is a funny thing. the littlest things can make our weight fluctuate. I know this from previous weight programs: Weight Watchers, Tops, Jenny Craig, and many more. I have lost weight on all these programs, hundreds of pounds throughout the years. They all work. And I’ve put those pounds back on. But in all of them I learned that our bodies fluctuate. Sometimes we retain water. Sometimes we don’t. That’s why I’m not discouraged.

I’ve never been a fan of getting on the scale every day. It’s one of the rules for Noom. But I do think it is interesting to see how weight fluctuates daily, so I’ll keep hopping on that scale every morning.

I know I just have to keep on keeping on. Keep making healthy food choices within my calorie budget, keep getting my daily steps in, keep exercising, and keep believing that this change is possible. I can become a healthier me. I’m on my way there right now.

Meet me at the Kingdom.

Donna