Thursday, October 27, 2011

Happy Hour

The job keeps getting better. Or, I should say the perks. Today at 4:30 PM started the Halloween Happy Hour (really 2 hours if you wanted to stay until the 6:30 PM end time), complete with adult beverages, smoking cauldrons, homemade goodies to look like eyeballs, skeleton goblets, spooky music, mood lighting, spiders and bones decorations, and more. The spread was quite impressive! I so badly wanted to take pics but that would've been too weird, I think. Yes, even weirder than the decorations. I stopped by for a few minutes but passed up everything except a deviled eyeball, I mean, egg. I didn't think drinking and driving home in rush hour mixed too well. I could imagine me flying off the Crosstown (elevated highway) without much help. ;-)

I wore 100% RTW today. I am really getting my $18's worth out of this dress.The colors are just so me. I have at least 3 top layers that match it, so I hope I'm appearing to be wearing different outfits when I mix it up every week. Probably not fooling anyone, but it's nice to pretend.


I'm also getting really good at sucking in my stomach. Heh. I'm about to explode here. ;-) But at least it actually IS sucking in now. The actual weight loss isn't as dramatic lately (probably around 7 lbs. in the last few weeks), but things are definitely shifting because I'm fitting into smaller things in the stores, in patterns, and in my closet, and my measurements are smaller.


I've had a few comments asking what I'm doing to lose the weight. Well, one thing I'm NOT doing which I should be is to exercise. I need to move my eliptical (and probably myself, my TV and DVDs too) into the empty bedroom instead of waiting to move house, since at this point, who knows when that's happening and my preferred time to excercise would be early morning and alone, which I am NOT at the moment. We're still sharing the bedroom but with two dogs between us, it's hardly a marital bed. And *someone* is a late sleeper. Pffft. ;-)

But what I am doing is actively avoiding carbs, eating around 40-60g per day with nearly all of those coming from produce. I do not eat any processed foods, except 3-4 times a week, a whole-grain, high-fiber bread "round" with one meal. I don't eat potatoes, pasta, rice, sweets/sugars, or many fruits. I do eat lots of protein (fish, chicken, eggs, nuts, seeds, and some meats but they're harder for me to chew), reasonable amounts of fat and whole dairy, and lots of veggies and some berries. I don't count calories or measure anything. It's basically Atkins (not the induction phase), but I'm not following Atkins per se. I started eating this way out of necessity after my dental work, and the "side effects" were obvious so I researched low-carb eating both on the internet and in books from the library and came up with a routine and foods within that plan that work for me.

I bring a salad to work for lunch nearly every day but sometimes I bring a low-carb wrap filled with tuna or chicken salad, with guacamole on the side, and a sugar-free Jello or Atkins bar (OK, those are processed but not quite in the same group as what I call crap). I'm never hungry. The protein, fat, and fiber take care of that. I have hardly any interest in food except to fuel myself. It's not a comfort anymore. Looking in the mirror and wearing smaller clothes is my comfort. I've actually caught myself forgetting to eat. Which is a miracle compared to what I was doing a year ago, drowning my sorrows in sweets.

I don't miss anything about my former eating habits so I really don't think I'll be going back to it. I just feel too good with what I'm doing to change it. I only wish I had found this 15 years ago. When I was at my sister's (an RN) back in July, she took my blood pressure at my request. It was only slightly more elevated than super-fit-and-healthy Tyler's, and well within the normal/healthy range. I'm guessing it's even better now. High blood pressure runs in my family so to be "normal" is doubly great. At some point, I plan to have a complete blood panel done as well as a physical. It would've been nice to know my starting point, but I'll be happy with healthy numbers now and no comparison. And maybe I will actually acknowledge my next birthday. ;-)

18 comments:

  1. You are looking great, Debbie!

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  2. Looking good!! We've recently started a similar diet, and I haven't had a candy bar, junk food, grains, starches, and sugars for at least two weeks. However, my stomach still sticks out more than my boobs, so I'm a little jealous!

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  3. Well, you are looking pretty cute...and happy. And I'm glad your job is going so well.

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  4. You are looking great and happy, you are inspiring me to get moving and change my diet!

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  5. Definitely, absolutely, immediately move into the empty bedroom with your exercise stuff.. Much better for your mental and physical health both. If you are doing netflix, they have a really good variety of helpful exercise videos, so you can put the dvd to good use too. You really shouldn't be losing that much weight without exercising, you'll end up with no muscle left at all.

    I really don't think your coworkers are wasting any time counting how many times you're wearing that great dress or anything. They may think you're totally obsessed with brown and teal :-), but that's really a minor point of personality.

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  6. You look wonderful, in a glowing self satisfied sort of way. That's a great thing. Congrats to you on finding what works. Those recent mirror shots must be so satisfying.

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  7. You look absolutely awesome...good for you...and yes move that exercise equipment into that spare room :)

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  8. Low carb does seem to work well for some; the insomnia however, made me give it up. You are looking fabulous, with a fab new job, how great is that!

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  9. You're looking fabulous! Your diet sounds very similar to my mom's low-carb habits, which she's been doing more or less successfully since the late nineties. I was just hearing about another study that found eating higher amounts of protein reduced snacking behaviour and thus calorie intake, too...

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  10. I have been following your progress Debbie, and I am so impressed! You do look healthy and just great!
    At this point, the exercise that you should be doing is toning with weights to preserve your muscles , 15 minutes for 3-4 times a week. Hand-held weights are inexpensive and you can find beginner routines at the video store (I like Denise Austin) or on the web (check the free site Sparkpeople.com for tons of free routines). Keep up the good work!

    Eve

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  11. I have been following your progress Debbie, and I am so impressed! You do look healthy and just great!
    At this point, the exercise that you should be doing is toning with weights to preserve your muscles , 15 minutes for 3-4 times a week. Hand-held weights are inexpensive and you can find beginner routines at the video store (I like Denise Austin) or on the web (check the free site Sparkpeople.com for tons of free routines). Keep up the good work!

    Eve

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  12. You look fabulous & thin!!

    The eating plan worked for me 15 years ago, but i didn't lose weight, just sizes. I went from 12 to a 4/6.

    my sister (RN) told me my diet was dangerous back then, when people believed that counting calories was good. & eating Fat was evil (back in the day)

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  13. I do a variation of your diet, but mine is medical in nature and I'm allowed carbs as long as I'm cautious with wheat. I don't lose weight but I do feel healthier, which I think is more important. You do need to exercise, though. Maybe a brisk walk would work better than an indoor trainer?

    Your workplace sounds like a blast! I guarantee that nobody is noticing you are wearing the same clothes, they just notice that you look chic and pulled together.

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  14. You are looking good, Debbie!

    Our doctor told my beloved that he's borderline diabetic, with elevated cholesterol. Then he just handed me a sheet of "foods to use" and "foods to avoid" when I asked him how to cook for that. A couple of good cookbooks that I found at the last used book sale have finally helped me start getting his numbers under control, he's lost 5 pounds (which he didn't need), and I've lost 3. And we're doing much of what you're doing. You're sounding pretty happy these days, and your improved looks and feeling better are doubtless helping that. Keep up the good work, so every hour is "Happy Hour!"

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  15. I believe part of your weight loss was making a decision about your problems. Once you decided on your direction (to leave the marriage/to sell the house/okay to let the kids know) it helped to get things in gear for weight loss. It also helps to be really energized about your job and new beginnings.
    Keep up the great 'daily' blogging. I'm on the west coast - so this is one of the first blogs I hit when I turn the computer on at night.

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  16. you look great!!! love, love, love the dress

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  17. You're melting before our eyes, Debbie, and you do look great. I'm so glad to read how happy you are with your weight loss.

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  18. Echoing what others have said, you look great. I wish you well on your journey.

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Thank you for each and every comment. I appreciate them all, but I have to be honest and let you know that I'm usually bad about answering questions. I hope you understand that there just isn't enough time in the day to do everything I want to do.

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