The New Normal

I'm starting to think this is the way it's going to be from here on out and I should just get used to it. Things get worse, things get better, it's always something. And I suppose if I really think about (and stop feeling sorry for myself!) that's pretty much the way everyone's life. is. It's just that for me, life has gotten really good in many, many ways but now it's my body that's the main irritation and source of concern.

The tendonitis in my wrist seems to slowly be getting better. I'm able to take the wrap off for short periods of time and the pain is more of a dull ache instead of sharp pain. The joints in my hands still hurt but it bothers me only in the morning and works itself out after a few hours. I've gotten a couple of test results back. The hypothyroid test was negative. The autoimmune antibody test was negative as well; however, it was on the high side of normal. I also saw that the rheumatoid arthritis factor test was a hair above normal (not what the doctor told me). I'm thinking of asking for another set of tests in 3-4 months to see if there is a trend or if that is normal for me. I haven't gotten the x-ray results yet and I'm having the EMG next Monday, so there's still more to come that may give a clearer picture.

The good news is that I lost another pound last week. Now at 225.6 lbs. I'm dropping another 100 calories a day this week (down to 2200) and adding more walking minutes. My plan is to drop 100 calories a week until I get to 1800 cal Mon-Fri and add minutes to my walking session until I'm up to 30 minutes per session. At that point I'll add a session of bike sprints. I want to do it slowly so my body gets used to less calories and more activity in a gentle way.

My workout this morning was really good. I had a small pang of "don't wanna go" but that passed quickly and I enjoyed being at the gym and working up a sweat. My hands hurt during my workout but I actually think it's good because I get some strength and mobility work for them. And that's never a bad thing.

Feeling Better

Still feeling pretty blah about workouts. I think it's the early morning hour, the fact that it's dark, cold and rainy in the morning and this pain in my hands and wrists (which is worse in the morning right after I wake up) that is making me so crabby about getting to the gym. The workout today was quite good and I felt stronger and more energized afterwards. Maybe I just need to keep telling myself I'll feel so much better if I get it done. That's the ticket.

No update on the tests. All I've gotten so far is the RA autoimmune test which was negative, as I figured it would be. The pain seems to be getting better, especially the tendonitis in my right wrist, so maybe it is healing although very slowly. Food is good but no weight loss yet. What do I expect when my deficit is not yet that deep? LOL

Onwards....

Some Days Feel Like Weeks

Very blah and unmotivated today. I almost didn't go to the gym because I felt so crappy (and crabby) when I woke up. But I knew if I didn't get to the gym to at least do SOMETHING that I'd be losing more ground in my journey. So to the gym I went...

I saw the doctor yesterday morning and didn't get many answers but just a lot of questions. Which still need to be answered. I had x-rays and lab tests yesterday to rule out osteoarthritis, wrist fracture, rheumatoid arthritis and hypothyroidism. I'm also having an EMG in two weeks to check for carpal tunnel damage. I go the results for the RA test back and that was negative. I'm almost hoping that something turns up so at least I'd have an answer that could be solved.

More update to come as I get results back....

My Traveling Nightmare

...or "No more connecting flights, ever again!"

My trip to Oakland was going so well until it came time to go home. The day started wonderfully, with a ferry ride across the bay to San Francisco. We didn't get to see much...just the Bay Bridge and a long-distance view of Alcatraz. From the Ferry Building we walked to the BART station for a 30 minute ride to the airport. My flight was scheduled for 1 pm and I had left early to take the ferry with a couple of people who were leaving earlier. No problem, I said. I can hang out for a couple of hours at the airport. Unfortunately for me (super unfortunate as it turned out), my flight was delayed long enough that I would miss my connecting flight in Dallas. Long story short, I wound up on a straight shot flight to Chicago that left at 7:30 pm San Fran time and didn't arrive in Chicago until 1:30 am. By the time I got home and in bed it was 3 am. I had to start my Friday with only 3 hours sleep. I am so bad when I don't get enough sleep.

Other than that, my trip went well. Only one workout but a lot of walking and my food was ok enough that I didn't take a weight gain hit. I'm back on my deficit plan and walking. Workouts will start again tomorrow. Time to grind it out to the goal!

California Dreamin'

Hey, guess where I am! I'm in Oakland, CA. Sitting in my hotel room after a looooong day of travel. My feet hurt and I haven't had dinner yet. Not complaining though.

Good thing #1: My food has been good today and I have no cravings or desire to overeat which traveling has a way of doing to me.
Good thing #2: The fitness center has weights. I thought I would be limited to a treadmill or bike but I'm walking so much I won't need those. I won't be able to do Rog's workouts but I'll cobble something awesome together using the dumbbells.

To update, I'm down another pound and feeling less bloated. I'm pretty fluffy right now though so I'm looking forward to getting these pounds off. I feel like my mindset is getting in the groove of the grind. So it's all good.

Mid-Week Check-In

And....so far, so good.

1. I'm down 2 lbs. of bloat and feeling much better.
2. Following my food plan.
3. Completed all 3 walks.
4. Up to 210 swings so far.
5. The new workout was tougher than I thought it would be. Especially the cable rows and ball plank. And looking at tomorrow's workout I can see I'll be stepping up my game to a new level.

Every Journey Begins With A Single Step

It's here! It's here! The first day of my new journey has arrived.

Boy, am I underwhelmed. Maybe it's just because I had a big weekend filled with fun, food (spoiler alert: it was lot), gambling, and family that's left me pretty tired today. The car is back in the shop getting the remaining fixes so we can past the air quality test so no gym this morning. Instead I walked, foam rolled and swung a kettle bell. I also weighed myself after a week of pretty much throwing caution to the wind, knowing the Big Day was right around the corner. Lo and behold, my weight was up to 230 lbs. Of course, bloat and carbs and all that, yada yada. Be that as it may, I was planning on a weight of 224 lbs to start so I have to add 6 lbs and maybe another two months to the plan. But 12 months is a nice round number and I was planning on doing this slowly anyway.

Goals for this week:
1. Three 15-minute walks. (one done today)
2. 2500 calories every day (which is less than I've been eating this last week).
3. 200 KB swings. (60 today)
4. Get my ducks in a row for next week's trip to Oakland.