Going Down? Yes, Please!

This blog is about to make a hard u-turn back to where it started. But first, a little back story. I know I've been gone a few days.

Reason for my absence: We had a storm come and knock a tree down on our house. Which then made a hole in the roof. Which then caused a waterfall in my bedroom. All over my bed. And my carpet. Everywhere. Just water. Dirty, outside, attic traveling through, rain water. So, my room has been out of commission for over a week now. I've been sleeping on the couch while we get everything back together. The roof is fixed, the water has dried up and now we are replacing the floors. It's a hot mess. So my skin care rituals and nail polish painting sessions have taken a back seat. As well as my blogging. I don't have access to my computer, and I don't like typing on my mom's. A while back I cleaned her keyboard...and somehow made them all very hard to push now. *shaking my head* But, I can't wait anymore so I am getting carpel tunnel in my wrists trying to smash these keys in to type a story to you tonight. Anyway...on to the back story. (nope, that wasn't it)

Before we left California, I was stressing big time. My skin went to hell and my weight went to the moon. I had gone up to 253 pounds. Ridiculous. I was worried about so many things and scared and nervous and not concentrating on taking care of myself. And all along I had joked that when we moved to Texas, I was sure to gain 20 pounds because of all the good food they have around here. Cracker Barrel alone. Mmmmmmm.

As it turns out, the exact opposite was true. When I started working nights, I was walking and sweating all night long. I was too tired during the day to eat most of the time. Within a matter of 2 or 3 weeks I had lost 10 pounds. It stalled right there. When I quit that job, I inexplicably lost another 3 pounds a week later. Within the next few weeks, a few more pounds came off. I'm not sure how. I didn't really do anything different that I can think of. Maybe I just was so happy not to be working nights anymore, I didn't eat as much comfort food?? I don't know. But then I started thinking, while all this weight is sort of coming off...I might as well begin to help it along.

So I made the decision to stop drinking sodas. Now here is how I did that. I am a major caffeine addict. I need a Coke before 10am or I will get an uncontrollable migraine for the remainder of the day that no amount of drugs will take away. DISCLAIMER: I am not a doctor. I am not a health professional. I am not a nutritionist. I am nothing nor no one that has been trained in anything body/health wise nor do I pretend to understand all the things that are good or bad to eat or drink. I get corrected by my health friends every day. That being said, here is my fool proof caffeine quitting process.

Besides the addiction to the caffeine, I like the taste of soda. Especially Dr Pepper. Nom nom nom. So, when I have my obligatory "don't give me a headache" 10 am soda, I get the taste in my mouth and then I want another. And another. And another. So, in order to get the caffeine hit without the taste, I take a diet pill. Not the healthiest thing to do, but hear me out. The diet pills that they want you to take about 8 a day of, I take one. Just one. It has enough caffeine in it to stave off the headaches. A "no doze" would work just as well. It's just a caffeine tablet. I just happened to have some left over diet pills in the house. And since I have no headache, I never "need" to get the soda. And since I never drink the first one, I don't get the taste in my mouth that makes me want more. I do this every morning for about a week. Until I eventually forget to take the pill in the morning. In the mean time, my body has started to learn to live with less of the caffeine. About a day or two after I have forgotten to take my pill, I realize that I am over my addiction. The hard part is actively resisting to go after the taste of soda again.

After that, I dropped another few pounds. Then I decided that i might as well go all out with this thing. I downloaded the LiveStong app for my phone and I put in everything I eat. It calculated how many calories I should have every day in order to lose 2 pounds a week. It started me out in the 1500's. This week I am down to the 1400's. I am using knowledge I gained from Jenny Craig, and trying to keep my foods low in not just calories, but fat as well. As I go along, I talk to my "health friends" and get tips from them. So far, since moving to Texas I have lost a total of 24 pounds.

When I realized that, I decided to take it one step further. I am braving the 102 degree heat and starting to go for walks around my neighborhood. My daughter likes to come with me. I downloaded the Nike + Running app and use it to track my progress. Then I started thinking that I might want to work up to jogging. So the other day I went out to a runners store and got professionally fitted for running shoes. The perfect running shoes for me. I am going all out this time. I am in such a good place mentally. The weight falling off by itself in the beginning really kick started this journey. I can't wait to keep going. I can already feel my body and mind changing. Today I took my daughter to the movies and indulged in some popcorn. My body is still pissed about that, so I don't think I'll be doing that again. And tonight I was a little hungry and wanted something sweet. I have ice cream in the house. Weight Watchers approved ice cream, even. But I didn't want that. You know what I wanted instead? What my body honestly craved? Grapes! OMG grapes. I ate about a handful and I feel so satisfied. That is how I know it is working this time. That now is the time that my mind and body are ready to keep this up. Got me some running shoes, some healthier foods and a lack of caffeine. Get out of my way or follow along. Because you can't stop me now.

Chasing my dreams!