Here we go ...

 

Day 1 road trip! Two more days in the car before we get to our vacation destination.   This is our normal length of car travel and it was great to see family for the first stop.  

Since it was our normal distance I didn't even need to break out any of the new travel goodies, which I think will help with the next two days.  

Hoping all the hopping on the trampoline will help a certain little one fall asleep and stay asleep! 

The adventure has begun and I am excited for the memories to be made.  Stay tuned as we test some of the best car hacks to keep kids entertained on long car trips.  

Home work

 

So some how my E ran away again, my little man says raptor blue took it. 

But it actually works, "Body Image" - when you look at others you see their hardwork and the small changes showing through, but when you look at yourself all you manage to see is the mkstakes, failure, or one part you wish would shrink or tone. This is not ok.
I ask you to work on that this week.  Find some older pictures, take some new pictures of yourself all week and everyday this week find something good to say about yourself.  I'd love if you'd share it, but this is for you and doesn't need to be shared with anyone else if you don't wish.
Happy Monday!
#irun4jocelyn
#nevermissamonday

Questions answered

 I know it's been way go long! There is a lot to my story since the last post, but here is a recap. Spoiler alert I survived the two week liquid stage without too much difficulty. 

What was your life like prior to deciding to have surgery?

   Life in general was good, but I was beyond frustrated with following all the diet and exercise rules and it never being enough. 

How long ago was your surgery?

   October 8th, 2021 will be my 2 year anniversary 

Which surgery did you have?

    I had the gastric sleeve

What made you consider surgery?

    My regular doctor, whom I had been working with for over 5 years, spoke to me quite frankly. She told me that we had tried everything she had to offer and that I needed to look into weight loss surgery. 

How did you find out about this?

    My doctor recommended Dr. Allison and the Newfield program specifically. 

What was your heaviest recorded weight? 

   360

Denial about your weight?

   I wasn't in denial about my weight, but I was in denial about all the programs I tried not working. I was sure the next thing would be the right formula. I was even able to talk to other people about the right things to do and watch it work for them and not me.   

Anything specific that pushed you to finally decide to have surgery? 

    My husband and I did a lot of research and after what my doctor said I just felt like I had no other choice. Up until then I had no other "bad" health numbers besides the number on the scale.  However after my son was born my blood pressure wouldn't go back to normal.  

When your doctor recommended it, what were your thoughts?

    I was really hesitant.  Though I knew it wouldn't be easy, I didn't want to been seen as taking the easy way out.  

Dieting and losing the required 20lbs - thoughts? 

    I think this was the part I was most afraid of. I was already trying to loose weight and had very small successes,  but 20lbs seemed almost unattainable.  I felt this so much I started moving myself to the liquid very shortly after making the decision.  I started slow, just making breakfast a protein drink. I did that for a week, then went to breakfast and lunch as protein drinks. By the time it was time for the two week liquid stage I was down to only one snack and dinner that need to go to liquid.

How was the 2 week liquliquid.

    Because of how I eased into it I didn't find it very difficult.  Also I decided that if I was really in this for the long haul my eating habits would always be different and I would need to be ok being around others no matter what they were eating and not change my eating habits. So during the liquid phase I still made dinner for my family and I sat down at the dinner table with them to eat ( drink). 

Personality traits prior to/after surgery 

   I struggle with being a little more quickly irritated than before, but the farther out I get the more I seem to be pulling that back. 

Did your taste change?

   I got lucky on this on. My only taste change is that regular water taste almost chalky to me. If I just add a little flavor to it it's all good. 

Stage 2 of 5, tough but doable

So I wasn't sure how much I was going or not going to share. But I know there are more out there like me so I am sharing.
Back in November my doctor told me that we had tried everything and that I needed to consider weight loss surgery.
Metally I wasn't ready to hear that. It took months for me to find the right head space to absorb this, then I had my husband do some research of his own to see of he would be on board.  We came to the conclusion that this was the right path forward and made the first doctors appointment in June.  So began Stage 1 - 3 months of nutritionist visits, check ins with the  doctor, and a psycological evaluation.  Then to wait for insurance to approve to obtain a surgery  date.
Knowing I would have to be on only liquids for two full weeks  before surgery I followed the recommendation of the nutritionist on started two meals a day replaced with the protein shakes and zero calorie drinks.   I lost weight, and started to wonder do I really need surgery? So I had a few days with lunch  and dinner .... I started  gaining again - for me that was the final confirmation I needed.
I got my date - October 8th I will have the Gastric Sleeve.
So this past Tuesday 9/24 I started the 2 week liquid stage 2.   It is not easy, but I couldn't imagine going from eating normal to 100 liquid, glad I tapered dow.
I do not avoid others eating,  I sit down to dinner with my family every night.  Os it easy,  no, but what and how I eat is drastically changing and is a life time change so better to adapt now.

I have been still doing some workouts, mostly walking, but I have been talking to trainer and nutritionist and do to the decrease in calories (by a significant amount) I have to be really careful.

I will post more as these next stages progress,  I have included pictures of what first 3 days of liquid looks like

Round 1 measurements

First I LOVE Transform 20! I feel stronger, and I know from the moves I can do now that I couldn't do before that I am stronger.  I love it so much I am going for round 2 (which if you following me on facebook (RinesFit4Life) you already know.

If you have already looked at the image above you already know - I lost 2 inches over all, but gained 2 pounds.  That was hard to deal with at first, but it is not always about what the scale says - it just means that this round I need to dial the nutrition in even more. 

My husband is on board and is helping hold me accountable to the nutrition, I believe this will be a big help.  I also have an appointment with a doctor.  Depending on where that goes I will share.

Stay strong and push play!

No tomato sauce - Yum!

No links shared here are affiliate links - I get nothing for sharing them.

So I got asked to share a recipe we tried in our family recently and I thought others might like it as well.  My husband recently found out he has an issue with tomatoes - so for a bit we thought that cut out everything with pasts sauce, but we have found a recipe we love!

https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/201097/no-tomato-pasta-sauce/

No for ease it calls for canned sliced carrots and beats, but this last time I made it with raw carrots and beets that I cut up and then put in the food processor.

It was a hit not only for my husband and I, but our picky 11 year old as well.

We used this on a spaghetti meal and then decided to try in in chili.  We used this in place of the tomatoes and the tomato paste.  The only thing different I would do with that is to make the tomato sauce more liquid rather then paste.  So the chili is more chili rather than sloppy joeish. 

Give it a try and let me know what you think and let me know what you've added to it or how you've used it.

Not as planned

I have been posting to my facebook page regularly, but not blogging.  I will be better about that.
I have recently started two new journeys-
 1. The 90 day contentment journel (#contentmentchallenge) by Rachel Cruze.  I use to write All The Time, but as I left college got out of the habit.  I am happy to have this promt guided journal to get going again.  14 days in and I hadn't missed a day, but sometimes thishs dont fo as planned - my son got another ear infection with a high fever. We were lucky if we got an hour sleep on Saturday and 4 or 5 on Sunday - thankfully going into Monday we got a full night. And I was able to journal again today.
 2. Transform 20 42 day work out with ShaunT that as part of the tracker also asks you to transform your mind as well as your body. It asks you to write about your struggles and how you conquered them. Today was day 16 of 42. Same reason as before I missed a workout, but just 1! Since I had my son this is the first time that missing a day hasn't caused a bigger slip.  And if nap time allows I am thinking about doing workout #2 to be back on the right day!!
Not as planned - journaling, working out - both going well. The number on the scale? Not so much I am bouncing around 305-312.
Since starting Transform 20:
I am up 1.25" and up 1.5lbs

Since my last post in Nov:
I am down 8" and up 0.4lbs.

Yes I am working with my doctor. Any encouragement or things that have worked for you I would appreciate.