The Physical Therapist...Thursday

Well, that pretty much went as expected. Painful. I hope these people know what they're doing!! I have really been trying to move my shoulder a lot over the last week to prepare myself for therapy. I am so glad I did, or that could have been a LOT worse! We scheduled my visits for three times a week for the next six weeks. I hope at the end of that to be able to lift light weights at Bootcamp! I forgot to ask specifically when I could do that.

I got my three miles in on the treadmill at 7%, then went down to 0% and walked another mile. I really wasn't going to have time on Friday to get any exercise in, and now I have somewhat made up for what I missed on
Tuesday.

I now have 36 miles logged!





Here are Thursday's Eats....







Friday morning I went in for my second PT Appointment and they worked me over good! I didn't even cry. I came home and iced! I really can't believe though how much more movement I have in just a couple of days. It's strange what I can make my right arm do with the assistance of my left arm, but alone? There doesn't seem to be much strength? Time and patience. Oh, and PT exercises.

Friday's weigh in went even better than expected! I was hoping for 169 something, and I weighed 168.4! :) That's down 3 pounds from last week.





I did get down to 165 this summer, so no real big celebrations until I hit 164. Then I will really feel like I am moving forward and proving to myself that I CAN do this. But it certainly does feel good to be back in the game.


Drinking a minimum of 8 glasses of water, eating lots of Power Foods, walking on the treadmill, planning for the weeks meals, and averaging 30 PPV a day, seemed to work out really well.

I did drink red wine during the week, but I haven't had any beer in several weeks. I tend to eat a LOT of bananas and probably don't write them all down, so this week, I just didn't buy any, and I do think it helped me eat less mindless calories. So I'll skip the bananas again this week and see how things go.

I was so excited, I bought new shoes!!





Then I was taken back to my childhood when I saw these!!!
Pom Pom socks! I can't wait to wear them!!






Friday night I went with several friends to Happy Hour at another friends house and we sat outside all night and I had wine and snacks. I truly did not count my points, but believe I may have overdone a bit. I don't want that to discourage me or slow things down, so I need to be very diligent the rest of my WW week.

I just went ahead and tracked that I ate all of my 49 extra points, although I don't think I did. I just think I will feel better about next Fridays weigh in if I only eat 26 PPV the next 6 days, instead of 30 PPV.

I am anxious to talk to my coach later today for the kudos on my loss, but also to get advice on the next 6 days. I may be over thinking things a bit.








I keep telling myself this!



"love the life you live, live the life you love"

Walk, walk and walk some more!

I felt really weird missing my walk on Tuesday. Notice I didn't use the word "guilty". I have removed it from my vocabulary. But I did feel like my day was "missing" something.

So I walked three miles on the treadmill, AND I walked two miles with a girlfriend outside late yesterday afternoon! Sure felt good to get outside and get some of that fresh air into these lungs!

I haven't posted any foodie pictures lately, but I made these last night for dinner, and wanted to share. Instead of potato skins? Zucchini boat skins!
(Pictured with a turkey burger with caramelized red onions and reduced fat feta on a toasted bun with avocado slices.)





This is the recipe from Hungry Girl for the Zucchini Boats

Ingredients:
2 slices center-cut bacon or turkey bacon
2 medium-large zucchini, stem ends removed
1/2 cup shredded reduced-fat Mexican-blend cheese
1/4 cup chopped tomato
1 tbsp. chopped scallions
Optional toppings: light or fat-free sour cream, salsa

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spray an 8" X 8" baking pan with nonstick spray.

Cook bacon until crispy, either in a skillet over medium heat or on a microwave-safe plate in the microwave. (See package for cook times.)

Pierce zucchini several times with a fork. Place zucchini on a microwave-safe plate, and microwave for 2 minutes.

Flip zucchini and microwave for 2 more minutes, or until softened.

Pat dry. Let cool, about 5 minutes. Cut zucchini in half lengthwise. Gently scoop out and discard the inside flesh, leaving about 1/4 inch inside the skin. Thoroughly pat dry.

Place hollowed-out zucchini in the baking pan, cut sides up.

Distribute cheese among the zucchini. Chop or crumble bacon, and sprinkle over cheese.

Bake until cheese has melted and bacon is hot, about 5 minutes.

Cut each piece in half widthwise, and sprinkle with tomato and scallions. Enjoy!

MAKES 4 SERVINGS

Serving Size: 2 skins (1/4th of recipe)
Calories: 80
Fat: 4.5g
Sodium: 195mg
Carbs: 6g
Fiber: 1.5g
Sugars: 3.5g
Protein: 6.5g

PointsPlus® value 2*

I ate a little more than my goal of 30 PPV yesterday. I had the Munchies all day long and munched on pistachios, along with a few other things. Pistachios are HIGH in points! As most nuts are. :)

I still felt good at the end of the day and I feel confident that Fridays weigh in will be a good one!












I am headed to my first appointment with the Physical Therapist this afternoon. I am anxious and nervous all at the same time. Since my post-op appointment last week, and the removal of my sling, I have been trying really hard to move my shoulder in positions that are truly every day movements, yet super painful. I believe the goal at the end of the next four weeks, is to be able to put my right hand on top of my head. The body is a crazy thing.

I am prepared to come home and sit with an ice pack and stare at Facebook.





"love the life you live, live the life you love"

The Day That Got Away!

Tuesday was packed full, unexpectedly, but I loved it! It felt great to be gone and busy all day!

I left my house late morning to meet my mom for coffee, then the plan was to head home to treadmill. I was make-up free and in my exercise clothes, my morning all planned out. Well, mom was a bit late, then we chatted til lunchtime. While having coffee with mom, a girlfriend called and we decided to see an afternoon movie. I ran a couple of errands before the movie and ran into an old friend while at Target. It was great to see her and catch up a bit. My morning flew and it was movie time!

We ended up spending the rest of the afternoon together at a cozy little spot for a glass of wine and good girl chat. (I seem to be struggling a bit with the goal of drinking two times a month, but I don't seem to be overdoing. I'm really not trying to make excuses for myself, and I did stay within my points.)

We saw Identity Thief and giggled all the way through it!

I didn't get home until almost 7:00 and never did get on the treadmill, so I will have to make up those missed miles on Friday!










"love the life you live, live the life you love"

It's a Marathon!!

Well, kinda. I have now completed over 26.2 miles on my chart. 27 miles to be exact! It feels amazing to look at that silly thing and see how many miles I've walked! Yes, walked. Okay, so I didn't run a marathon, but at the end of my goal of 200 miles, (I guess I need to now make my goal to 209.6 so I can say I walked 8 marathons!), it's going feel awesome to look back and see all those charted miles!!! And so far, all uphill on the treadmill! I am looking forward to warmer weather so I can get outside and soak up some of that fresh air and sunshine!






I agreed with my coach to weigh at home on Monday mornings and plot it on my graph. We agreed that Monday weigh in's would keep me on track over the weekend. Monday mornings weight?

169.2 :)





My eats for Monday.....








I LOVE THIS!!





"love the life you live, live the life you love"

Sunday Meal Planning...Grocery Shopping

Before I go into planning........

.......... I was so excited to see 169 on the scale at home Saturday morning (which is not on my graph, only Friday and Monday weigh in's will be plotted), that I completely forgot to mention "Life without my sling!"

I haven't worn it since I walked out of the Doc's office on Thursday, (Mike and I dismantled it with a plan for sleeping in mind, but that failed), and while Thursday night was completely sleepless, Friday night and Saturday night were great! (Drugs can be really amazing! So can proper pillow placement.) The weight of my arm has certainly made it achy and kind of a burning feeling, but I am telling myself to push through it. I know when I start working next week with my Physical Therapist, today's pain will mean nothing!!

Saturday was my first treadmill experience without the sling, and I decided to see what I could handle. I have been keeping the speed at 2.5 mph, because that seemed to keep my shoulder from any throbbing. I decided since I was four weeks out from surgery, and a little less sensitive, I would try 3.0 mph and see how it felt. I was also able to put on my heart rate monitor! I kept up my pace for 60 minutes, and I had the incline at 7%. I felt like I had actually exercised for the first time since surgery! Yay! Progress....progress.....progress!!

And I was able to add 3 miles to my chart. I am at 21 miles, and only 179 miles to go!

(I did the treadmill on Sunday after this photo, and added 3 more miles to the chart! Now that I know that I can do 60 minutes at 3.0 mph at a 7% incline, I can't allow myself to do anything less. That's good and sucky all at the same time!)





When I met with my coach on Saturday, I told her how I hated that my line on my weight graph had to go up! She said we should have started my graph at 173.0, which is what I weighed the day before we met and came up with my new plan, so I decided to go ahead and draw it in. It just made me feel a bit better to see the progress. As long as I remain below the green line, I will make it!'





We talked about planning at Fridays WW meeting. Planning for the day, or planning for the entire week. Planning for the week, if you have the time to do that, really does take a lot of stress away from the rest of the week, whether you are a WW member, or just a mom or dad trying to get a meal on the table for your family! I planned five meals for the week, (I asked Mike for a couple of suggestions too) and left a couple of days open for eating out. My coach also really likes the idea of planning. Planning allows you to spend less time thinking about food later in the week. The decisions are, for the most part, made.

Do you plan your meals for the week?






Sunday's eats......








"love the life you live, live the life you love"

Stupid Scale

Stupid Scale
Stupid Salt
Stupid weight
Stupid €£¥#}~"&@$!!!!!!

This post actually has a happy ending.

Since I bought a new scale to use at home for a "middle of the week weigh in", I have been stepping on it every morning, you know, out of curiosity?

Well, what I was seeing on the scale wasn't really jiving with the points I was eating. It's funny, because as long as I have been at this weight loss, point counting, water drinking, treadmill walking journey, you would think I would be used to the scale going all over the place in between actual losses. But I'm not.

When I met with my coach on Saturday afternoon, we talked about my week, and the salt that I ate, and the fact that I drank wine two nights in a row, and how THAT IS NOT MY PLAN! I agreed to drink only twice a month.

However, salt, wine and my "time of the month" aside, when I stepped on the scale Saturday morning, I saw 169, and was ecstatic! So, this New Strategy, and having a personal coach, is working for me, and I'm super happy about it!













"love the life you live, live the life you love"

Sleepless in ????? Does it really matter?

Sleepless in bed, sleepless in the recliner, sleepless on the couch.

After getting the great news that I could do away with the arm/brace/sling thingamabob, Mike and I dismantled it (with approval from the Doc), so I could just use the sling part. I hadn't really thought through sleeping without it, as excited as I was to NOT have to actually sleep in it. It's a stability sling, for lack of a better term, (that's the only thing I can think of to call it), and there is a lot of metal in it, and velcro, and straps. Well, we completely took it apart, so basically, now it is just a sling. I dream kinda crazy and jerk around a lot in the middle of the night, and I was concerned my arms might go flailing about in a dream, so we attempted to put it back together, but without all the metal, so I could sleep with it around my waist a few more nights. The thought of my arm flying up in the middle of the night to punch whoever might be trying to chase me in a dream, or rob me at gunpoint, was freaking me out! Well, I was miserably uncomfortable, and as awkward as all that metal was, it held my arm out away from my body in a position that was comfortable for my shoulder. After shoving pillows under my arm and my shoulder, and trying to sleep on my left side, then sitting upright, then lying back down, I just got up.

I went to the recliner, then to the couch, then back to the recliner. Sleep 15 minutes, wake up, sleep 10 minutes, wake up, sleep, wake, sleep, wake. It was exhausting. I have no idea what I am going to do for a good nights sleep the next few nights.

Exhausted, I drove to my WW meeting. Last Friday was a great weigh in. Monday at home was a great weigh in. I decided to try out my new scale each morning, just out of curiosity. I was doing so good, and it always feels so good to watch that number go down. Tuesday? UP!!!! Wednesday? Same as Tuesday! Thursday? Still the same! And each morning, it said the exact same thing. 172.1. I thought that was weird. I never weigh the exact same thing two days in a row, none the less, three days in a row. I thought perhaps my new scale was broken. Friday? Back down a bit. 171.2. What the ..........??????

So I weighed in at 171.4 at WW, which is a gain of 0.6 from last weeks awesome weigh in at the Weight Watchers scale. The only thing I can figure is too much salt this week, too many fruits (I did eat a lot of fruit, and not always with a protein) and being that lovely time of the month! It really is frustrating to eat within your points, (and I walked six days on the treadmill!) drink all your water, then gain!!! But I have been doing this long enough, that I know to expect to not understand exactly what my body is doing all the time. So, I will remain confident that my new strategy and my coach will get me to goal by the end of August, and start this week with a positive attitude.

I am meeting my coach on Saturday to review my week!












"love the life you live, live the life you love"

Four Weeks Post-op and some Quinoa!

As the Doc entered the room with his great big smile (I really do like this guy), he said...

"Well, how's it going?"

To which I replied....

"I am now 100% ambidextrous. Actually, I don't even think I need the right arm anymore, it's just in the way. Take it off. Oh....... why didn't you warn me of all the difficulties a woman might have following this surgery? Styling my hair and putting on my bra are at the top of list of things I should have been warned about!"

Doc....

"You would be surprised at how much I have learned about bra's from my patients following this surgery."

:)

Then he did the whole physical exam, bending, turning and twisting my arm in positions it had forgotten about.

"Yeeeewwwwouch Doc! Do you know what you're doing???"

Then he informed me that I no longer had to wear the arm/brace/sling thingamabob!!!

"WHAT??? How will people know to keep their distance? It has become my safeguard!! What if someone bumps me and the stitches TEAR?? Are you INSANE????"

Then he had the nerve to just smile and assure me that the stitches would not tear, and after four weeks of healing, it was time to start the movement phase of recovery. He did recommend though, that when out in public it was a good idea to wear it for protection, and that if my arm felt too heavy during the day, or tired, I could put the sling on. WHEW!! Okay, I can handle that.

So, I checked out and walked to my car, CARRYING MY SLING!!!
YIPPEE! HORRAY! YAHOO!!!!

I felt so normal, I went to the car wash......





After that, I came home to blog......at the kitchen table, typing with both hands. It took me a minute to get the right hand up on the table, but after I got through the stretch to get it there, it was all good.

So, the first month was healing, the second month is movement, then we move on to strength. I do love progress!

FOOD.....

I am trying to like Quinoa. I'm torn. I guess it's a texture thing. I tried this recipe for a variety in breakfast or an afternoon snack.

Click Here for the recipe.

The recipe calls for 4 eggs and 1/3 C. soy milk, but I used Vanilla Unsweetened Almond milk and 1 C. of egg whites. The recipe suggest a dollop of nut butter on top. I had Better N Peanut Butter, so I took that advice.











After the doc's visit and taking the sling off, my shoulder was feeling pretty tender, but I did manage to get in 40 minutes on the treadmill.




"love the life you live, live the life you love"

Egads.....shoulda planned better.

Morning? Great.

Afternoon? Well.......

I met my dad for lunch at a place we had never been. I had no idea what the menu included. The options were few. I was hungry. I ordered 1/2 turkey sandwich on wheat, a cup of Roasted Red Pepper Bisque and a nonfat latte. The Bisque was wear it all went sour. No, the soup wasn't sour, but I should have thought about this. Bisque means cream. It was good and I ate it all. After I ate my sandwich, I realized I would have probably been fine with just the soup.

When I got home, I looked up the nutritional info. Yip, shoulda just had one or the other.

Dinner? I hadn't planned lunch OR dinner! I wasn't cooking due to leftovers that needed to be eaten, but then I ended up eating a Protein bar that I thought was 5 PPV. I later realized it was 7 PPV.

Then, I over indulged on a banana, fresh pineapple and fresh blueberries, trying to fill up on zero point foods. A cucumber just didn't sound good.

I stayed within my 30 points, I drank 10 glasses of water, I walked 2.5 miles (0.5 mile more than I have been), but I feel like I ate all the wrong things.

Not a big deal really, but it did make me realize that planning what I will eat for the entire day, the first thing in the morning, seemed to be working for me!









PLAN, PLAN, PLAN.........


"love the life you live, live the life you love"

Rotator Cuff?

Now that I am getting out and about more, I am finding Rotator Cuff surgery is REALLY common! Random people just look at my brace, then my face, give a little nod, as if they know, then say.....

"Rotator Cuff?"

I'm like......

"Yip."

One guy said....

"Look what I can do, and I had my surgery six months ago!" Then he preceded to put his hand up in the air over his head! I was amazed. Really!

I have noticed lately that I have this ridiculous urge to go into a full body stretch! With moans and groans and the whole shabang! I just wanna stretch out, right arm included. Guess I'll be waiting awhile to satisfy that urge.

Treadmill workout for Tuesday, same as Monday.

2.5 mph
50 minutes
2.0 miles
1.5 miles at 6%
0.5 miles at 7%

Wednesday I am getting a haircut. I'm going to have to do something a little more adaptable to the one hand only styling method! I have been known for drastically changing up my hairstyles, so I really don't know what I will come home looking like. :)

Thursday I go back to the Dr. for my 4 Week post-op. I am really looking forward to starting physical therapy so I can get moving forward. I am trying really hard not to get to anxious, but it ain't easy.....

Tuesdays eats.....

















"love the life you live, live the life you love"

First line on my Graph!

I will be weighing on Monday's at home now, along with my Friday weigh in at Weight Watchers, and plotting it on my graph.

Today I drew my first line on my graph, and I must say, it did feel good.




Monday's Treadmill

6% incline for 1.5 miles
7% incline for 0.5 miles (this was progress)
2.5 mph
50 minutes
2.0 miles

:)

169.3 lbs (I shed my brace for the photo)

I am going to take a picture for the chart each week. Here is the first one.
I should work on a lighter background. Kinda hard to really see how wide my hips are.




Here's my belly though........




First time wearing jeans since surgery. This will not be happening again anytime soon! I almost wet my pants at the restaurant trying to get my pants down!! (my brace in nicely camouflaged under my shawl! Christmas present from Tess this year!)




I had my food all planned out for the day, but failed to include points for the olive oil in my fajitas until after I ate!

Oops














"love the life you live, live the life you love"