Monday, February 16, 2015

Health Update - Lifestyle Changes

Fridays are my health update days, but Friday kind of came and went.  I typed that sentence on Saturday and have tried to continue since then.  A miracle happened tonight and both kids are asleep by 8 (thanks to Aiden not napping), which means I actually have time to finish this!  It is getting harder to find time to keep up – which I’m sure is why most people who start blogs only last a month or so – but I’m determined to keep at it.  I enjoy having someplace to “dump” all of my thoughts, even if no one ends up reading them!

Today marked 5 weeks since my surgery.  In a way it feels like it’s been months, but mostly it feels like time is dragging on.  I do not want to wish time away, especially time with my babies, but I am VERY ready to feel normal again.  My incision is healing nicely and my energy is coming back but I’m having pain that I forgot about from last time.  Because I have been so hunched over and in weird positions since surgery, I have horrible neck and back pain.  A heating pad and trying to have correct posture helps, but I can definitely tell I was taken apart and put back together again.  But still, it’s manageable and things could be FAR worse, so I’ll stop whining.

So now on to my journey of health and weight loss.  I’ve managed to keep my weight steady since losing the 10 pounds after surgery, which was my goal.  I do want to lose weight, but I don’t think it’s practical to set an unrealistic goal of losing a lot before I am able to work out and burn significant calories.  Reflecting back on this week, though, I need to be careful.  I’d say I’m making good food choices 70% of the time, which isn’t going to be enough to keep weight off long term.  I’ve mentioned my downfall is sweets; well it’s also comfort food.  Mashed potatoes, French fries, creamy soups, etc.  have crept into my diet as a comfort for the pain, restlessness and cold, snowy weather.  I’ve always tied eating to my emotions.  I’m not sure why I feel the need to bake cookies and eat a calorie-filled crock-pot meal when it’s snowing, but I do.  It is seriously like an addiction that needs to be broken.  It took all I had today to not bake cookies (and then eat several). 

It’s not just snow that has an association with food.  Holidays, birthdays, certain times of the year, different activities – so many things are tied with food.  I tell myself that these are the times when moderation is key, as well as small portions.  Which is all well and good, except these times make up MOST of the year!  So really, the exception has become the rule.  Aiden’s birthday party is this weekend and when planning what to eat, I had to go with easy, not necessarily healthy.  But, moving forward, I want to try and incorporate healthy foods into events, holidays and even snow days, so that not only am I leading a healthier lifestyle, but it will be the norm for my kids.  Old habits die hard, so why not try to not even make it a habit?  And why stop at food choices?  I’d also like to start making activity a part of these times too.  Like a football game on Thanksgiving or snow tubing the day after Christmas.  This is the lifestyle I see for my family.

Now to wrap up this babble of a post (sorry for no pictures, by the way)!  My goals for this week…1. Try to not stress while prepping for Aiden’s party. 2. Use the app MyFitnessPal on a regular basis. 3. Hopefully get a release signed by my cardiologist on Friday so I can start working out with a trainer at my gym. 4. Make good food choices 85% of the time…so if you see me post a picture of cookies I baked, point me to this post. :) 







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