Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Report!
Okay--here's a quickie. Lost .5 lbs. this week--everything downward is good! AND on Sunday, after a very long dry spell, somebody actually said I looked very nice in the skirt I had on. Okay--it was Eden, but still....
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
Thyroid?
The thyroid has a big job: The hormones it secretes help regulate heart rate, maintain healthy skin, and play a crucial part in metabolism. When the gland is sluggish (hypothyroidism), it can rob you of energy, dry out your skin, make your joints ache, cause weight gain, and kick-start depression. When it becomes overworked—hyperthyroidism—and produces too much hormone, it can cause racing heart, sleep disturbances, and weight loss. That's a lot of grief for a gland the size and shape of a buckeye butterfly.
Given what can go wrong, you may be surprised to hear that about half of the estimated 27 million Americans with thyroid disease remain undiagnosed, according to the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.
Most people with thyroid disease, about 80 percent, have the hypo version. Should symptoms drive you to make a doctor's appointment, one of the first things your physician will ask is if you have a relative with the disease, since thyroid disease tends to run in families. Your risk also increases as you get older; in addition, being female (the disorder is as much as eight times more common in women), or having another autoimmune disorder such as type 1 diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis can worsen your odds.
Here is how you can test yourself for hypothyroidism--this was sent to me by Janel--
If you suspect hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid function) – you may consider the following methods and tests to help identify this problem:
Symptom Questionnaire
Complete a questionnaire on hypothyroid symptoms such as the one found in books by Mary Shomon’s Living Well with Hypothyroidism or Richard and Karilee Shames’ Thyroid Power. You may want to bring a completed questionnaire to your physician for his or her review.
Basal Temperature
Record your underarm basal body temperature with a glass thermometer (not digital). The procedure for doing so is the following:
1. Get a glass thermometer, not digital (the digital ones stop reading after a minute or two and are not as accurate). Non-mercury glass thermometers are now commercially available at Walgreen’s and other pharmacies (if you have trouble locating a mercury thermometer).
2. Shake down the thermometer the night before you do the test (using your muscles to shake the thermometer will raise your temperature and throw off the test).
Place the thermometer at your bedside with a book (the book will be obvious in a moment).
3. Go to sleep without an extraneous heat source such as a bed partner (spouse, dog, etc), an electric blanket or on a waterbed (they are heated). You are allowed to wear pajamas and use as many blankets as you desire, as they do not throw off the test.
When you wake up in the morning (or if you sleep during the day, when you wake up after at least 4 hours of sleep), use as little movement as possible (all movement moves your muscles and raises your temperature) and place the thermometer in your armpit. Why the armpit? Patients with low thyroid often have allergies or get sinus infections – which raise the temperature inside the mouth. Patients rarely get armpit infections, so this site is more reliable. I have had only one patient who had a difference in temperature between armpits, but that was due to unusual anatomy (she had something called an atrial-venous malformation (AVM) in one armpit). Leave it there for at least ten minutes (hence, you have a book to read. J)
4. Women who still have periods should take their temperature over the first 3 days of their period and average the numbers. Women who have had a hysterectomy but still have at least one ovary will probably want to test over a period of 14 days and use the 3 days with the “lowest" readings. Men and postmenopausal women can test for any 3 days and average.
5. Normal axillary body temperature is between 97.4 and 98.2 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures below that are suggestive of low thyroid.
Given what can go wrong, you may be surprised to hear that about half of the estimated 27 million Americans with thyroid disease remain undiagnosed, according to the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.
Most people with thyroid disease, about 80 percent, have the hypo version. Should symptoms drive you to make a doctor's appointment, one of the first things your physician will ask is if you have a relative with the disease, since thyroid disease tends to run in families. Your risk also increases as you get older; in addition, being female (the disorder is as much as eight times more common in women), or having another autoimmune disorder such as type 1 diabetes or rheumatoid arthritis can worsen your odds.
Here is how you can test yourself for hypothyroidism--this was sent to me by Janel--
If you suspect hypothyroidism (underactive thyroid function) – you may consider the following methods and tests to help identify this problem:
Symptom Questionnaire
Complete a questionnaire on hypothyroid symptoms such as the one found in books by Mary Shomon’s Living Well with Hypothyroidism or Richard and Karilee Shames’ Thyroid Power. You may want to bring a completed questionnaire to your physician for his or her review.
Basal Temperature
Record your underarm basal body temperature with a glass thermometer (not digital). The procedure for doing so is the following:
1. Get a glass thermometer, not digital (the digital ones stop reading after a minute or two and are not as accurate). Non-mercury glass thermometers are now commercially available at Walgreen’s and other pharmacies (if you have trouble locating a mercury thermometer).
2. Shake down the thermometer the night before you do the test (using your muscles to shake the thermometer will raise your temperature and throw off the test).
Place the thermometer at your bedside with a book (the book will be obvious in a moment).
3. Go to sleep without an extraneous heat source such as a bed partner (spouse, dog, etc), an electric blanket or on a waterbed (they are heated). You are allowed to wear pajamas and use as many blankets as you desire, as they do not throw off the test.
When you wake up in the morning (or if you sleep during the day, when you wake up after at least 4 hours of sleep), use as little movement as possible (all movement moves your muscles and raises your temperature) and place the thermometer in your armpit. Why the armpit? Patients with low thyroid often have allergies or get sinus infections – which raise the temperature inside the mouth. Patients rarely get armpit infections, so this site is more reliable. I have had only one patient who had a difference in temperature between armpits, but that was due to unusual anatomy (she had something called an atrial-venous malformation (AVM) in one armpit). Leave it there for at least ten minutes (hence, you have a book to read. J)
4. Women who still have periods should take their temperature over the first 3 days of their period and average the numbers. Women who have had a hysterectomy but still have at least one ovary will probably want to test over a period of 14 days and use the 3 days with the “lowest" readings. Men and postmenopausal women can test for any 3 days and average.
5. Normal axillary body temperature is between 97.4 and 98.2 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures below that are suggestive of low thyroid.
Resource: about.com and oprah.com
Monday, June 20, 2011
Yum-num-num-num
Check this out--I'm sure everyone who reads this is going to find something they like! Snacks! And all 100 calories or less AND healthy for you (see #26 and 27). No need to thank me... :)
Sunday, June 19, 2011
All Good Things Go Down
It's a success whether it's fast or whether it's slow, or big, or small, as long as it's down!
And I lost another pound. Oh yeah. :D
And I lost another pound. Oh yeah. :D
Monday, June 13, 2011
C'mon Ladies!
Blog it off! When you're cravings are ready to drive insane just log in and type it all here--talk yourself right out of it. Think how great you're going to look in those skinny jeans. Remember how clothes used to feel so comfortable you didn't even think about it? You be in charge of you, not food in charge of you!
Thanks to Janel, Bob, Mal, and MJ for posting so far. Post anything that you think will be motivational, inspirational, or just recreational--RE-creating is what it's all about my dears! WE GONNA LOSE IT LOSE IT!
Thanks to Janel, Bob, Mal, and MJ for posting so far. Post anything that you think will be motivational, inspirational, or just recreational--RE-creating is what it's all about my dears! WE GONNA LOSE IT LOSE IT!
Weigh In
Well, this is kind of convoluted (that's what my mother would say anyway), but here goes. When I started out I weighed 153 lbs.--I'm 5'4". After a week on Atkins, I dropped the 6 lbs. to 147--the weight loss helped me ignore the fact that I felt blah. After another week on Atkins - nothing but a headache. After a weekend of self-soothing (aka eating), I weighed 152--slow learner, quick gainer. After a week on the John-Alexa- blah-blah-blah diet, I weighed 148.5 lbs and this morning (the end of the 4th week) I weighed 146.5. :D I'm a happy camper!
I'm also getting up at 6 am every morning to study scriptures for 30 minutes in peace and quiet and working out at the gym: MWF=weight training and 20 min on treadmill; TTH=40 min on treadmill; SS=I don't get up at 6 and I don't go to the gym. Works for me!
I'm also getting up at 6 am every morning to study scriptures for 30 minutes in peace and quiet and working out at the gym: MWF=weight training and 20 min on treadmill; TTH=40 min on treadmill; SS=I don't get up at 6 and I don't go to the gym. Works for me!
Wednesday, June 8, 2011
Making Time
This is probably the fifth time I've tried to post. I keep getting distracted. Between the 3 year old, the 17 month old, potty-training (just the 3 year old), naps (for both, sometimes for me, too), the upheaval going on at my and my husband's place of work, and the insane stress of buying a house (we close in TWO DAYS!!), well, it's pretty easy to get distracted.
But the thing is, I NEED to make time for myself.
And I NEED the accountability that doing this on a blog will provide for me.
First weigh-in, today, Wednesday, June 8th, is 212.6 lbs. I'm 5'9".
And I could go into all the reasons I weigh what I weigh, but that's not the point of this. The point is to LOSE it.
I recently had my thyroid checked, and thankfully it came back normal (though I'd like to know where in the normal spectrum I fell, because this isn't the first time my doctor has wanted to check my thyroid...).
In any case, as things are now, I'm good to go in getting rid of this weight. The buying a house process is winding down, we've got everything we need paperwork-wise, just need to sign, (FRIDAY!!! 11am!!!!), and then starts the moving process, but that's something I'm excited to get done, not a chore that's going to stress me out. Oh, and did I mention we are NEVER moving again???? Yeah.
Now I need to make time for me.
Starting today, I'm going to write down everything that I eat. I'm not going to write down exact measurements, that is too tedious, but I am going to pay attention to portion sizes. I'll only drink 2 sodas today. Believe me, that's gonna be difficult enough.
That's enough for now. Otherwise, I'll get overwhelmed! :)
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Post-Atkins
What?!!! POST-Atkins? How can that be?
I know, I know. But here's the thing: I CAN'T LIVE LIKE THAT!!! Atkins may be the final solution for oh so many, but not for me. So, I've gone back to "The-John-Alexa-No-Fail-Get-Control-Of-Yourself-Diet" which has one hard and fast rule that is incredibly easy to remember (though sometimes tempting to ignore):
The-John-Alexa-No-Fail-Get-Control-Of-Yourself-Diet
1. Don't eat so much. Duh.
It's working. And the good thing is that I know that I CAN live like this even after I've lost what I need to lose. And I feel good--no "Atkins Flu". And, best of all, slowly but surely the scale is going down. I've almost lost those 6 pounds that found me hiding behind Atkins.... ;)
I know, I know. But here's the thing: I CAN'T LIVE LIKE THAT!!! Atkins may be the final solution for oh so many, but not for me. So, I've gone back to "The-John-Alexa-No-Fail-Get-Control-Of-Yourself-Diet" which has one hard and fast rule that is incredibly easy to remember (though sometimes tempting to ignore):
The-John-Alexa-No-Fail-Get-Control-Of-Yourself-Diet
1. Don't eat so much. Duh.
It's working. And the good thing is that I know that I CAN live like this even after I've lost what I need to lose. And I feel good--no "Atkins Flu". And, best of all, slowly but surely the scale is going down. I've almost lost those 6 pounds that found me hiding behind Atkins.... ;)
Two Words:
Krav Maga.
Mike and I went to try out this not-so-ancient form of hand-to-hand combat at a gym here in town. They have three classes a week and they were giving us a free trial, but because the two self-defense/combat training classes (which is what we were particularly interested in) are on nights Mike has class we could only make it to the Krav Maga fitness class.
Two more words: holy crap.
I thought I was going to pass out in the first fifteen minutes. After the warm-up it wasn't quite so bad--I guess that's what the warm up is for--but now that it's the next morning everything between the soles of my feet and my lower back is in exultant post-intense-workout pain.
You have got to YouTube this stuff.
Mike and I went to try out this not-so-ancient form of hand-to-hand combat at a gym here in town. They have three classes a week and they were giving us a free trial, but because the two self-defense/combat training classes (which is what we were particularly interested in) are on nights Mike has class we could only make it to the Krav Maga fitness class.
Two more words: holy crap.
I thought I was going to pass out in the first fifteen minutes. After the warm-up it wasn't quite so bad--I guess that's what the warm up is for--but now that it's the next morning everything between the soles of my feet and my lower back is in exultant post-intense-workout pain.
You have got to YouTube this stuff.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)