Look Out London Here I Come

We are actually in the air for leg one of our trip to London today. We fly into Charlotte and then leave from there tonight and fly into London. Words cannot express how excited I am. I have been so excited for a year to make this trip. I was hopeful that I could get my Fibro aching body in good enough shape to meet the schedule. And here I am!

Last June I knew I was going to have to make some physical changes so that I could be in better condition. That’s when I started losing weight and exercising. I knew there would be a lot of walking involved. At that time I knew there was no way I could meet the challenge of keeping up with everyone. Because I sold Advocare I ordered the 24 Day Challenge and worked toward eating a more nutritionally balanced set of meals. As it turned out I have now lost a total of 60 pounds and I can walk with the best of them. However, what I’ve learned in the last two months is that while I thought I was getting healthier for London I was actually getting my body ready for cancer. But either way I’m set. When we get back from London next Sunday I will resume chemo. I’m good to go either way.

I know this blog is short and sweet. But I only bought 30 minutes of wifi on the plane and it’s just about up. But I just wanted to pop  in and tell you how thrilled I was to be meeting the goal that I’ve been working toward for so long. LOOK OUT, LONDON, HERE I COME!!!!

The Weight Is Falling Away

I am currently 3 pounds away from losing 40 pounds. Huh? Did you not catch that? I’ll say it just a little bit louder for you.

I AM CURRENTLY 3 POUNDS AWAY FROM LOSING 40 POUNDS!!!!!!

Did you catch it that time? I thought you might. I have never in my life ever lost this much weight. I’m really kind of afraid to say it out loud – know what I mean? I’m gonna be perfectly honest with you here because it all plays into my goals. When I originally started losing weight in June I really didn’t have a specific goal in mind. I just knew I didn’t want to weigh what I was anymore. My scale said I weighed 232. And I knew that was too much.

 

Yep – that was me at 232 pounds. Interestingly enough I never really thought I looked that big. But whatever – that’s what the scale said. So after the kids’ graduation in May I decided it was time to get busy. I work with Advocare and we have a trim line so I decided I would order everything in our trim line, change the way I eat and start exercising. So that’s what I did. The weight started dropping off. I started dropping about 5 pounds a month. I also asked my doctor to change any medications I was on that caused weight gain. She was all for it.

By the time August rolled around and we took the kids to college I had lost down to 209. Not done yet but still pleased and very motivated to keep on going.

 

I’m getting there! I’ve continued what I’ve been doing. But for the last 6 months I’ve been pretty much stuck within spittin’ distance of 200 pounds. My first goal was to get below the 200 mark on the scale. I haven’t been below 200 since before I was pregnant with Michael in 1993. When I got pregnant with him I was 170 pounds. So that first goal was to get 199 just to get below 200. Advocare came out with an exercise DVD to accompany the 24 Day Challenge (the full weight loss challenge program). The Advocare 24 Day Challenge started the first half of the year on sale. So I decided this was the chance to overcome my plateau and reach my next goal.

I am currently on day 4 of the 24 Day Challenge. It’s all going smoothly. Smooth as silk. You aren’t supposed to step on the scale till Day 11 for your first weigh in – which is hard because I’m used to stepping on every day – but I’ve done very well. However, I went to the doctor this morning. I noticed when I put my clothes on this morning that my pants fit much nicer. I knew that was a good sign. I decided I would look when she asked me step on the scale. Boy am I glad I did. Not only had I moved off the plateau of the last couple of months but I had also gone BELOW the 200 mark!! I hit 195. I kept saying “that’s a 1…that’s a 1…that’s a 1…” So I hit a goal! I made it below the 200. And that 195 puts me 3 pounds away from 40 pounds. I’ve never lost this much weight! NEVER!!!

My next goal is to drop below the weight I was when I got pregnant with Michael – 170. So my next goal is 169! Anything after that is gravy! I might even taste the gravy – with a biscuit!

This picture was 7 whole pounds ago but you get the idea!

 

There Are 7 Less Pounds Of Me To Love

A few things have changed around here in the last 10 days or so. Actually it’s about 7 things have walked out the door. They are POUNDS!!!! I have decided I’m sick of eating useless calories and laying around like a beached animal waiting to be thrown back to sea. So last Sunday I decided it was time to make some changes. Here are the changes I made.

I uploaded and am using the Map My Walk application on my iPhone. I have created a walking path on the map and before I walk out the door to walk in the mornings I activate the app and walk out. It keeps track of my distance, my speed, my path and the number of calories I burn. So I have a running total of all of that right on my phone. Oh and she talks to me when I hit 1 mile and tells me how I’m doing. The first time she started talking to me I looked dumb because I stopped on the sidewalk and looked around to see who was talking to me. Hey – the app doesn’t make me smarter!

I also went to my Advocare cabinet to see what I had stocked up in there that could help me with my weight loss journey. I have put together 5 products that are kind of combination that I just happened to already have on hand and started using. Here is a brief run down of each of them including a direct link to the information page on my site.

Carb-Ease Plus – It helps to break down the absorption of carbs and fats that you eat. If you want to lose weight but just can’t say NO to some carbs (like me – I love pasta) then this is a good helper. You can eat a few carbs to satisfy your craving and this will help make it a little easier on your system and your weight loss efforts!

Catalyst – This product is a secret weapon to help you with your workouts. Each morning about 20 minutes before I go walking I take a dose of these. It helps you to maintain your muscle mass when you exercise. And it helps to keep your energy level up and repair/protect your muscles. As someone with Fibromyalgia I can tell you that anything that helps your muscles in any way, shape or form is a good thing. It helps you to retain muscle and reduce fat. Somehow this little product helps your body respond more favorably in your workout routine – even if it’s just walking.

Thermoplus – This is another little gift from God in your weight loss battle. This product helps your body convert fat to energy, speeds up metabolism and suppresses your appetite thanks to the oolong tea and sage extracts. All of our products have all natural ingredients.

Fibro-Trim – This product helps to bind up all those nasty fats and flush them out of your system. It gives you a feeling of fullness so it suppresses your appetite. And an added plus is it helps keep your cholesterol in a nice healthy range and it keeps your intestines nice an squeaky clean. Isn’t that a lovely thought?

In addition to those 4 products I am using the Advocare Muscle Gain Protein Shake. This product comes in one of those big tubs of powder or in individual packets. Obviously buying the tub is a better deal economically. I usually make myself one of these after returning from my walk. This way I’m sure that no matter what I eat the rest of the day I know I’m getting a healthy dose of protein to get me going right. It helps to restore your energy supply you just used in working out. And it has a healthy portion of Vitamins C & B6 and Calcium.

The rest of the day I try to eat low calorie foods with more veggies than I used to and leaner types of meats. Oh and PLENTY of water. Yes you will spend most of the first couple of days in the bathroom if you don’t currently drink much water. But about 3 years ago I made a big change in my life and cut out 99% of the soda from my life (I do occasionally order a Coke or Dr. Pepper if we go out to dinner. But I make sure I hold myself at one glass or less). Since I moved from a diet of mostly soda to all water I have truly seen my complexion clear up. I know everyone tells you that will happen but I didn’t really believe them until the last few months I really stopped to notice. My face has been much clearer in the last few years.

Honestly those are the things I am doing. In 7 days I’ve lost 7 pounds. I can’t believe it either, people. But it’s right there in those little digital numbers on the scale in my bathroom. I’m waiting on a new shipment from Dallas (Advocare) at the moment. I do know it’s possible to lose weight without the healthy herbs and minerals in the Advocare products (because I did it 3 years ago) but it’s really nice to have a little help in those bottles. If it helps me then it will help you too. I’m clearly the laziest person on the planet. But this process is helping me to get up and move. Well, all of these plus some Spark. And that’s a miracle all on it’s own.

Shrinking Jeans Challenge

Ok – I’ve been sitting around doing nothing for months upon months. I lost 35 pounds in 2009. In 2010 my dad was diagnosed with cancer and suddenly it was no longer about me and my health. It was all about my dad and his health. I let myself go and spent many hours on the road between here and Ohio and sitting in hospitals. I completely let myself go right back to where I was. I gained every pound right back again. I’ve been saying “when I lost 35 pounds in 2009….” for 2 years now. Last summer I did decide to once again start making healthier choices with my eating. Since June 2011 I have RELOST half of those 35 pounds. Yay me! But now I am stuck. I currently weight 5 pounds more than I did when I was 8 months pregnant with Michael (I say 8 months because that is when he was born). That is not acceptable.

I’ve ignored it. I’ve avoided mirrors. I have a large range of clothes in my closet. I am halfway between the fat clothes and the skinny clothes. I quite honestly disgust myself. I need motivation. My motivation in 2009 was a weight loss contest Ron was having at his office. They were doing a Biggest Loser contest. They weighed in each Tuesday. While I couldn’t legitimately participate I did so here at home. I kept up with his employees progress. At the end of the challenge I had come in second place out of all the employees. Each Tuesday I weighed in and I kept a chart on the kitchen wall with my progress. I wrote down my actual weight before/after and my +/- for that week. I kept that chart up there the entire time for God and everybody to see. It was humiliating at first – everyone knowing how much I weighed. But then it became something to be proud of to see those numbers going down down down. I think that was my motivator at the time.

I’m not competitive for myself – put me on the sidelines of one of my kids’s games and that story changes for them. But competition doesn’t really matter to me. But that time it all worked. I’m not sure what it will take this time to light a fire under me. But I want it lit! I want something to push me. I’m considering rejoining the activities over at The Sisterhood of the Shrinking Jeans. They have a lot of various challenges going. Maybe some of you are in the same position I am in. Their current challenge is

It actually started the end of March and runs through May 9th but I’m gonna jump in anyway. The check in for this challenge is Wednesdays. I’m gonna get started.

They also have a running challenge. At the time I had to stop exercising in December 2009 I had just started running. I had to have foot surgery and have a damaged tendon removed – which put me on crutches and out of action for quite a while. I would one day love to run a marathon. My best friend does that. I’d love to run one with her sometime.

So there you have it – the ugly truth of my laziness. I know I can’t possibly be alone. I REALLY want to make a change. My kids graduate in less than a month. I’d love to lose 5 pounds by graduation day. I want to challenge myself to do that. I’ve done it before – I can do it again! Who is with me? Who wants to shrink their jeans with me?

LET’S DO THIS!!!!!

Let’s Try Something New

I tweeted last night that I was starting two new products this morning to see how my Fibromyalgia responds. I’m excited to see what the changes will be. I’m going to Ohio next week. And I will be having a 3 day yard sale with my mom. Trips are usually enough to do me in. But carrying all my junk up there and then doing a garage sale for 3 days and then traveling back home will be an excellent test to see how I respond to the products. I will report on how I do on them over the next couple of weeks and let you know. I hope that you keep in mind that I am not “selling Advocare” to make money. I’m offering it because it helps me. I see so many people struggling all around me and getting very little help by the regular means. My goal is to offer a little something extra that you can add to your current routine in order to make a difference in your quality of life. Again I repeat, none of this is gonna cure you!!!! My only hope is to offer you the tools to get back into your life like I am. I’ve pretty much been bedridden by FATIGUE for the last year. I am out of bed. That speaks volumes to me. Yes, I still hurt. Uhhhh I have Fibromyalgia. Nothing is gonna change that. I am merely taking my health in my hands and finding something to put side by side with what my doctor is doing for me to produce a better result for ME. OH well, you already knew all of that. These are the products I started this morning.

BioTools

The first one is BioTools. I believe this product is probably exactly what someone with Fibromyalgia needs. Listen to the description:

For those who do not maintain an active lifestyle, twinges, aches, stiffness and pains may be a common and constant companion. An imbalance in the epigenome is a major contributor to these events. In addition to the BCAAs, the botanicals in BioCharge are known to help correct these imbalances in the epigenome and provide anti-inflammatory actions.

Goodness gracious! Is that us or what??? BioTools comes with two products. It comes with 30 packets of BioCharge powder that you mix with 4 oz (or as much as you want for taste). It contains Amino Acids, Grape Seed, Green Tea, B Vitamins, Taurine and Cat’s Claw. I’m just finishing up my first drink now. As you can see it’s only gonna be healthy. And it tastes pretty good too. The second product that comes in the BioTools package is BioTune. These are capsules containing curcumin, amla, resveratrol, cat’s claw, grape seed extract, zinc, selenium, alpha lipoic acid, boswellic acid, quercetin and green tea extract. The job of the BioTune is to protect the epigenome mentioned above so they can maintain a balance, thus balancing our body to control our aches, pains and stiffness associated with Fibromyalgia and so many other illnesses.

Keep in mind that I am talking about how these products help with my Fibromyalgia. These exact same products are beneficial for many other chronic conditions as well. All of these products are designed to support our bodies and maintain a general overall wellness to our various systems. If you have any questions about a specific condition I will be glad to help you research and contact our medical board members to get answers for you. And of course it’s always good to print off the product information and take it to your doctor to get his/her opinion.

MNS Max 3

The other product that I started this morning is the MNS Max 3. This product is like a super power!! It contains the following products CorePlex®, OmegaPlex®, ProBiotic Restore™, Calcium Plus, Amplify A.T. These are all seperate products but they are prepackaged into small packs for you to take in the morning and then again in the afternoon. The benefits cover everything from appetite control to a sustained release energy. The list of ingredients in this one product is extensive. vitamins A, C, D, E, B-6, B-12, folic acid, niacin, riboflavin, omega-3 fatty acids, astaxanthin, calcium, citrus flavonoids, green tea extract, lutein, lycopene, guarana, biotin, oolong tea, taurine, lactobacillus acidophilus, bifdobacterium, bifidum, artichoke, magnesium, zinc, chromium.

So I’m excited about what the BioTools will do for my body physically. And I’m excited about what the MNS Max 3 will do for my weight control and my stamina. These alone with the Spark. Somebody better watch out!!!

I will keep you informed on my progress – whether good or bad. Although I can’t imagine there would be any bad results. But I’m not gonna lead anyone astray. I am honest and I’m gonna continue being honest with you all too. This is something new. Who knows what it will do. But so far I’ve had NOTHING bad to say about ANY of it!

Advocare Blender Bottle

Now on a final note, remember I am offering a free Advocare Blender Bottle to anyone placing an order in the month of June. We have a number of yummy things to mix and stir. This bottle will make it all so much easier. You can just visit my Advocare Website and place and order. It’s that simple. No money exchanging hands between us. It’s all taken care of for you.

The Dirty Word

I have a dirty word that I’ve been thinking. I’ve actually even been saying it for months. I don’t like it. It really just brings pain. But I’ve noticed that after a while the pain seems to dull. There even comes a time when you enjoy it and look forward to it.  But it is truly a dirty word. That word is exercise. Exercise is so important for everyone. It sounds so simple. Take a walk – that sounds nonthreatening, doesn’t it? Do some yoga stretches – how simple is that? If it’s so easy then why is getting started so hard? Why is getting up off the couch so difficult? Yes it hurts for a few days. But if you manage your plan correctly it really can make you feel better.

If you have known me for very long you probably know that two summers ago I changed my eating habits and started exercising. I lost 35 pounds and felt amazing. I felt like a new person. I wasn’t satisfied with the person I was before. I didn’t like me. One day in May 2009 I woke up and just decided THAT was the day I was changing. I kind of shocked myself. I am a status quo kind of girl. I’m average and I’m ok with that. There is nothing spectacular about me. I’m overweight. I have thick coarse hair that is difficult to manage. I’m ok with just doing enough to “get by” usually. Really – I am ok with it. I have always been this way. But something that morning clicked in my head. I got up and put on some tennis shoes and took a walk. I made a weight chart and hung it on the kitchen wall. I read labels. I cut out sugar, white foods and ate healthier. Once a week I weighed in and WROTE MY ACTUAL WEIGHT ON THE CHART ON THE WALL. I was making a change. And you know what happened? Yes I changed in my appearance. But something switched in my head. I began seeing that I could put forth more effort than I thought I could and it paid off. I saw that exercise truly does help my Fibro body to feel better. Eating right can help the pain and fatigue. The doctors have been right all of those years. I had just been telling myself “I can’t” for so long that I truly believed it.

As a result of all of that exercise I tore a ligament in my foot and had to have foot surgery in December 2009. At the same time my dad got very ill. You may remember me writing about it here. I put myself aside during my recuperation period  because I was down to one leg, I let the stress take over and I completely reversed all of my hard work. I went back to my satisfaction with being average. I went back to my negative thoughts. I went back to all the foods that I knew were unhealthy for me. And I stopped moving. And yep, you guessed it, I have gained every ounce back. I am now all the way back to where I was the day before that day in May 2009. I keep waiting to wake up and feel that feeling again. I can still remember how good I felt about myself and how good my body felt. Yet I still choose to stay on the couch. I THINK about putting in my Yoga DVD. I THINK about taking a walk. I THINK about seeing the numbers fall on the scale. But sadly thinking about those things doesn’t make them so. They take effort. They take action. They take a change in thinking. They take gumption. I’ve never been good in the gumption department. But that year proved to me that I CAN do it. It IS possible. I CAN be successful. I CAN be healthy. I CAN take control of my disease and change my body. I’ve done it before and I can do it again.

Now I just need to do it! I need to do it for my body…for my fibro…for my husband…for my kids…for my grandkids…for ME. I need to prove to myself that I can be successful at it again. I need to prove to myself that I can do what it takes to help myself feel better. The Advocare Spark has given me my energy back. Now I just need to put that energy to the right use. I think my body is willing but my mind is weak. I’ll be adding more Advocare products to my regimen this week. They are gonna make me feel even better – I think change is on the way. I can feel it coming. I can see it. I sense my Fibro changing.

I just poured out my heart to you. Do you need to sound off and Pour Your Heart Out as well? Go for it and then jump over to Shell’s blog and link it up.

I Chose The Road Less Traveled By

Two Roads Diverged In A Week and I choose the one less traveled by……I’m not 100% on my way to a healthy lifestyle yet.  But I’m making smarter choices.  Last night was the most recent and the ones I am proudest of.  We went to Cheddars for dinner.  I LOVE cheddars.  Because I have not had any soda since New YEars Eve day I was determined not to break that now.  So, while I always prefer a Coke when out to dinner this time I chose water.  But I REALLY wanted a coke.  Instead of a baked potato I order veggies which was VERY unlike me.  But I’m trying to cut out all white stuff.  I’m not 100% successful in that yet. But I feel good about making that decision last night.  I did order a rib-eye steak but I only ate half of it.  Ron mentioned going to get ice cream afterwards.  I did a quick look to see which ice cream would be the best choice for my WW points.  I decided a frozen yogurt would be best.  Thankfully though we went shopping for a bit before that.  Then when we all got back in the car we decided we didn’t want ice cream after all.

It’s supposed to warm up this weekend – thankfully the freeze out will break for a bit.  I plan to get out and walk when it warms up above freezing.  This healthy living is not easy.  I made some bad choices.  But Two Roads Diverged In A Week is about sharing the good choices.  One day at a time.  One positive choice at a time.

Come by the Two Roads Diverged In A Week blog hop and add your entry of positive choices you’ve made throughout the week.  Click the link at the end of the hop entry to visit the blogs and/or enter your own.