This heat and my weight loss (or gain?)

So, earlier this week I hit the 10 pound weight loss mark.

I was so proud of  myself.

Fully a week ahead of schedule!

Then yesterday happened.

Ooops.

Up two pounds.

What the heck is going on?

I realize that, as a woman, my weight will fluctuate from one day to the next, but by two pounds?

Then it hit me.

It's been hot as hades around here of late. Humidity has to be up over 100%.

The nights have been unbearably hot.  And when that happens, I suffer.  Big time.

So perhaps, in spite of all the excessive sweating I'm doing, I'm also retaining water -- hence the weight gain?

I ran the idea by my little chickadee and she thought that one should weigh less if one is sweating more.  Sounds good.  But what about all the excess fluid one retains in high humidity -- how else do you explain the swelling?

So I googled it.  And very quickly found two references that explained the phenomenon.  Without going into all the scientific explanation that was provided, here's the bottom line:

"The net effect is an increase in both the blood volume and total body water content.  This effect becomes especially pronounced during the summertime, when body weight will jump up several pounds due to increased water content."

So there you have it.
My weight is higher due to this damned weather.
That's my excuse, and I'm sticking to it!

If only!

Wish that that were the case.

My body would appear to be a particularly attractive source of nutrients for mosquitoes.

In fact, I'm a very good mosquito repellent to keep near you -- they won't bother you one bit if I'm around!

Already this season, I've lost count of the number of bites I've accumulated.

So surely if they sucked fat, rather than blood, I'd not need to worry about my weight at all!

Thank God it's Morning!

Wow, that was a long night! Am I ever glad it's over.

My dreams were filled with scenarios to explain the degree of pain I was experiencing. As I came to consciousness for the umpteenth time this morning, my brain was trying to rationalize some explanation for my increased discomfort.

Lack of physio session last week?  Sure hope not, because I don't have a session this week again.  (Therapist is still on holiday!)  If that is the cause, I opined, does that mean that ten days is the most my body can tolerate without a treatment?  Possible, I guessed.

And then it hit me.

Last week, I upped my treadmill time from 20 minutes to 25 minutes. One wouldn't think that should make a great deal of difference but I wanted to step up my weight loss chances.

When I reached the 20 minute mark on the treadmill, my physiotherapist had advised me not to exceed that time --  she was concerned that my hips could not tolerate longer than that.

Yesterday marked five consecutive days at 25 minutes each.

Today, I will return to 20 minutes, and leave it at that here on after.  (That of course assumes that I will be able to do any time on the treadmill today.)

I guess I should listen to my physiotherapist.

She has proven time and again that she knows of what she speaks!

Weigh-in Day

Ouch!

It's weigh-in day and I'm not liking what the scale has to say today. It's better than what it's been saying all week, mind you.

I was getting really worried there, when since the gun club dinner on Saturday evening my weight has been as much as four pounds heavier than it had been last weigh-in day.

This morning, I'm only a quarter of a pound heavier than last week.

So I guess I should be content with the fact that I'm essentially "holding."

I'd have preferred to see a loss, but ...

Better luck next week.

I really want to see a ten pound loss by the end of my fat classes on June 4th.  My weigh-in will be on June 6th.

Sure hope I can pull it off.

Fat Class Tuesday

Today is my "Fat Class" day.

I don't have to go into the big city for physio because my therapist is on holiday in Turkey for two weeks!  Imagine.  I mean, really.  A therapist taking holidays. The nerve!  

Seriously though, I'll miss the sessions with her but at least it gets me off the hook for making that round trip this week and next.

And it's just as well I tell you.  After the "down" day I had this past Saturday, I had a wipe out day on Sunday.  Slept practically all day long.  Had three naps throughout the day and still went to bed for the night fairly early.  Didn't even do my treadmill or stretching or weights that day.  Not at all in character for me.  

Yesterday was another lazy day but I first got in all my exercising.

I'm still not feeling particularly energetic but no "illness" has surfaced either.

Here it is, 8:45 am and I've had breakfast; I'm ready to go to my "fat class" but I'm not enthused about it.  I could just as easily stay home and do nothing (or take care of household chores).  Of course, it doesn't help that I'm bored to tears in these classes.  Only three more to go!

Normally, I would have already done my treadmill and stretches and weights by now.  But since I'll be coming home from the class (rather than heading into the big city for physio), I'll do that stuff later this morning.

Onward and upward ...

Oh dear this is a down day!

Well, I'm not sure what's up wirh me today but I'm certainly not up to snuff.

I had a good night's sleep, I thought.  Didn't get up until 6:00 am, although I do recall having wakened more than once.

Yet, here I am today, feeling weak as a kitten.

I did manage my usual 20 minutes on the treadmill, and I did my stretches.  But the weights were right out of the question.

No can do.

I've already had a brief nap (from which my little chickadee's phone call woke me) and I might take another one yet.

Later, I'll have to come alive, jump into the shower and get presentable.  It's dinner at John's gun club again tonight.

Until then, I'll loll about and watch my boys -- hopefully -- beat dem damn Yanks!

My doctor is a sweetheart!

I had a most interesting telephone call yesterday morning.

My doctor called me, out of the blue, and said she had thought of me the night before when she was reading an e-mail.  It had prompted her to do further research and now she was calling me to find out if I would be agreeable to what she was thinking would be a potentially beneficial line of treatment for me.

It's called "aspirin desensitisation" and it is a proven protocol to hopefully allow a patient who otherwise cannot tolerate aspirin to be able to take it and other NSAIDs.

Sounds good to me!  If it works, it could address my issue with my hips, my hands, my knees, my shoulders, etc.

So she's referring me to an allergist (who is also an internist) because she believes I should be monitored by a specialist for such an undertaking.

I couldn't disagree with that line of thinking.

While I had her on the phone, I explained that I had intended to call for an appointment because I want to start the Synvisc injections for my knees again.  I knew that she was not in the office on Fridays and I want to have them administered on successive Fridays.   (I have to stay off my feet for 48 hours after the injections.)

"No problem," she said, "the doctor who gave you the injections last year will be here on Fridays and I have no difficulty with you seeing her again for that purpose."

"OK, but I'll need a prescription for the stuff," I said.

"I'll fax it to the pharmacy right now," she replied.

And just like that, it's done.  All I have to do now is call to make the appointments for three consecutive Fridays to get the shots.
I'll do that this morning, to start the shots on Friday, May 31st. (I'm busy next Friday!)

You know you have a good doctor when ...


On another note, today is Thursday, and by now, you all know how much I looooooove Thursdays.
Now, I have another reason to love the day.
It's my weigh-in day.  And today, I'm down eight pounds!  Eight pounds I tell you!
Yee haw -- I'm on my way to getting that tummy tuck!

Perhaps I should hide better!

My weight continues to go down, ever so slowly.  But down it is going.

My waist has also shrunk by two inches since April 11th so I'm very pleased with that progress!

And it's true -- "I keep losing weight but it keeps finding me" -- because from one day to the next my weight is up and down like a yo-yo.

Thankfully, I only record the weight I register on a Thursday morning -- (my "starting weight" was recorded by the nurse on a Thursday) -- and it's always down on Thursdays.  

Phew!

As of last Thursday, I'm down 6.2 pounds.

Now my mission is to ensure that the weight loss continues, and that I lose it to somewhere where it can't find me again.

Happy Mothers' Day!

To all mothers everywhere, have a wonderful day.

To my little chickadee, thank you for making every day mother's day.

Is there any doubt that he looks like his mother?

To my striking young man, thank you for making the role of grandmother such a rewarding one (and for having that relationship with me).

And to my extended family, all of whom enrich the day that much more, thank you for making "stepmother" a pleasantly easy role to fill.

Love to all of you on Mother's Day and every day.

Shall I Abdicate?

This tickled my funny bone yesterday so I had to share.

It just so captures my state of mind of late!

Wow, it's been a while!

Oooooops!

Where does the time go?

May 10th already!!!!!!!!

Let's see now.  What ever has kept me so busy for the past almost two weeks, I wonder?

On Tuesday mornings, I now have my "Healthy You" Class.  I call them my "Fat Class" but that will be our secret!  I've come to resent the time those classes are taking out of my life I tell you.

I find the classes a complete bore!  Turns out I learned what I needed to know at my assessment visit with the nurse on April 11th.  Not a single iota of helpful new information has come to me as a result of the classes - yet.  But I will stick with them to the end because I committed to the seven-class series.  There's only four more to go. (That's four more Tuesday mornings taken out of my life!)

What is the "new information" that I learned from the nurse? (1) Eat three meals and two snacks every day; and (2) Eat within 60 minutes of getting up every day.

So, I've incorporated both those habits into my daily schedule.  But that's the only thing I'm doing differently. (Other than I switched from 2% to skim milk, again as a result of my meeting with the nurse -- not as a result of these classes.)

My weight loss has been slow, but steady and I will continue doing what I'm doing.  But again, I did the same thing a year and a half ago -- without going to class to do it.  And a year and half ago, when I successfully lost 20 pounds over two and half months, I wasn't doing the three meals and two snacks a day and I most certainly was not eating within 60 minutes of waking.

But, this is not the first time I've heard that one should not go the great lengths of time between eating that I used to be able to go.  My body is being trained to need food at regular intervals.  (I am nevertheless still being challenged to reach that 1200 calories a day threshold!)

On May 1st I had my appointment with the surgeon to review the results of my MRI.

Yeh, that was another complete waste of my time!

"Well, the tendons aren't torn.  That's good,"  he says.  "How's your right leg doing?"

"Have you ever had an injection in the right joint?" he asked. "Would you like another one?"

"I'll see you again in six months."

There was actually a two-way conversation that took place but that's the summary of what was discussed.  He had absolutely nothing to offer about the persistent pain in my bursa area.  He simply sent me on my way.

I came home and cleaned my porch to burn the anger-energy that needed to be expended.

The next morning I saw my doctor to discuss the visit with the surgeon and she took the time to actually review the MRI results with me.  She gave me a copy of the report and suggested that it would be good to take a copy to my physiotherapist, who could give me exercises to address the specific muscles that need work.  Perhaps it is the atrophied muscles that are a large cause of the pain (besides the role that fibromyalgia is playing in the whole scenario).

When my physiotherapist saw the report, she was delighted at its depth.  She eagerly came up with a series of exercises to give me and I have added them to my regimen.  Pretty soon, my entire day will be taken up with exercise if this keeps up!

Of course, yesterday was Thursday.

Massage day.

My otherwise "do nothing" day.

I love Thursdays!