4 Week Update on Getting Healthy

Today marks 4 weeks since I started my get healthy journey.  I am not sharing this because I have "arrived" nor because I think I now have the best road map.  I am sharing it for a few reasons....I need to be accountable to people and by making this public I will be less tempted to go down the alleys.  This blog is also my diary where I keep record of the highlights of our lives here on the farm and in our personal lives.  I know that losing weight is not an easy thing and all of you who may be thinking about starting your journey, or may have already started it - it is good to have a cheering squad and to encourage one another.  Whether you have 10, 35, 75 or over 100 lbs. to lose, the experience is the same.  Habits have to be examined and changed (and that is no easy feat!), nutritional knowledge has to be learned, and a drive and determination has be present.

I am going to be vulnerable .....what finally drove me to seeking help was the fact that my eating was wwwaaayyy out of control.  I had become so disgusted with myself, with my lack of self control, with not liking what I saw in the mirror, and being limited in my physical activities.  Dear friends, you don't need to guzzle alcohol, snort drugs, or view pornography to be called an addict!  Oh, no!  Addictions can come quite close to home and we turn our backs on them and call them a "weakness" or some other name that makes us feel more righteous than drunks, druggies, and perverts.  Addiction is addiction is addiction.  Same control, same power!  I am not a expert on "addictions", but there is something in all of them that effect our physical (and emotional) bodies and drive us back for more, more, more!

For weeks before my journey, I spent my days feeling hungry all the time!  I was addicted to eating.  Never satisfied!  I hated it!  I sought help and I will briefly tell you what was mapped out for me.  For the first week, every day I had to have 6 servings of vegetables, 3 fruit, 3 grains, 3 milks, 6 proteins and 3 fats. NO SUGAR! And I was to walk 1 mile every day.  I felt better for the first 2 days and then those "hungries" came back full force.  It is horrible to diet when hunger is present all the time.  My nutritionist made some changes the 2nd week.  No milk, more protein and walk 40 minutes every day. The next day - still hungry all the time and feeling lightheaded and giddy.  She took me off all wheat and added a fat.  I immediately felt much better and best of all, I was not hungry, however, I had to eat every 4 hours or my blood sugar would drop.  Believe me, that is worse than the hungries!  By the end of the 3rd week, I felt significantly better. In the 4th week, I could go longer than 4 hours without eating and when I do eat I can hardly eat all the food I am suppose to.  I am still off milk, wheat and sugar and food no longer controls me - I control the food and that makes me extremely happy.  According to my nutritionist, sugar is addictive and with me, so is wheat.  Both effected my body to create the "addictions". The more sugar and wheat - the more hungry I was.  I have lost 9.8 lbs.  (25.2 to go), and 8 1/4 inches.   It has been worth it so far!    To all my fellow travel companions - hang in there!

Until next time...........