15 pounds in 6 weeks!

Another 2 pounds! WHAT?

Moving right along... I've lost another 2 pounds since Nov. 12! 

I had a Doctors appt. yesterday. My weight loss Doc. I've officially lost 14 pounds in a little over a month. And 3 inches off of my waist! The combination of meds I'm on is working. Often times its a delicate balance each week when you are talking about hormones and insulin resistance. Because I'm taking the Belviq and Metformin I have to get a blood test every 6 weeks in the beginning, so I go next week for a blood draw and then another Doc appt.

So my appt. yesterday my blood pressure was pretty high. Doc's not sure why so she's put me on a diuretic to see if that helps. I have another appt. on Dec. 18 and well see if that med change worked. She also put me on a huge potassium pill! Then of course I needed my monthly refill for Belviq. As she handed me ALL those prescriptions I looked at her kind of sadly. She knows I don't like taking pharmaceuticals. She smiled and must have read my mind. Then told me "these aren't forever medications. At the rate of your improvement you'll be off all of these within a year, most likely even your blood pressure meds. Hang in there and trust me." She hasn't steered me wrong yet... And since I'm defiantly feeling better and losing weight the right way, I'm going to go on faith here and trust her.

So here's the plan: 

My goal per month is 10 pounds. Doc feels since I'm eating well (Low carb. Low GI) and working out its a very reasonable goal. I'd like to lose another 70 pounds. (Yes, I'm very overweight) So that's another 7 months on the Belviq. Then once I've reached my goal, to stay on the Belviq another 3 months to maintain and ween off the Belviq until I can maintain my new weight on my own. Along the way we will do blood work and re-adjust the other meds accordingly. 

Breaking it down. I'm going to take this one month at a time. I lost 10 pounds in November and 4 pounds in December! I'm not expecting to lose that much every month. Ten pounds a month is a good goal tho with the low carb meals and working out 7 days a week. So when you see the ticker at the bottom of my blog posts, its in the current month and reflecting my 10 pound goal not my overall goal. My over all goal ticker is at the top of my blog.

So now that we've covered the meds... lets get into to how and why I added a workout. The "how" you ask? Well I've been so out of shape. Plus being so heavy its hard on the body. So working out was painful and with the insulin resistance I would be SO tired after a workout that I would need a couple of days recovery time. So I turned to a workout called T-Tapp. T-Tapp is a mind body workout that works. Its aerobic but not crushing your bones aerobic. Its stretching and moving and everything you do has a purpose. It also helps balance hormones and blood sugar. Here is an example:

I've started doing this workout 3 times a week. I've added it to my bike riding which I do every day.

This workout is really been the boost I've been looking for. I've tried so many aerobic workouts and this is that only one that has worked for me. I'll never be a gym rat. Its just not my style. I feel this workout really fits my needs and you can do it in your living room as you don't need a lot of space for jumping around. In fact my hubby and I can do this work out side by side in the living room with no troubles.

YES, I CAN DO IT!

Progress!

Since my last post November 12th I've made some huge progress! I'm so excited that I've finally found the problem and have adjusted my eating and workouts accordingly. And I finally know that I will be able to reach my goals by this summer!

After a bumpy start with some side effects to the new meds. I persisted and have added exercise into my weekly routine. Walking, riding my bike and doing T-Tapp. Something everyday! I also use the Weight Watchers online program to keep track of my food and activity! Finally everything is coming together and working for me!

From November 11th to December 8th I've lost 12 pounds and 3 inches off of my waist in 4 and a 1/2 weeks!

Plus I am feeling so much better. I'm finally able to do a workout and not need 2 days recovery time. I'm able to stay awake all day if I need to... (But still like to take a little afternoon nap sometimes)

I've been eating Low Glycemic meals and its been SO EASY!

Here are some of the meals I've been having these past 4 weeks:

 Some of my breakfast meals

Watermelon Smoothie

1/2 cup vanilla yogurt and smashed strawberries with Truvia

Eggs florentine with 2 oz Spicy V8 juice

Here are some of my Lunches:

1 cup of cottage cheese with fresh diced tomato and green onion

Chicken salad and crackers

A large salad (with homemade Ranch) with a lean beef patty 

Tuna Salad stuffed tomatos 

Chicken Taco salad with homemade cilantro dressing

Here are some dinners I've been enjoying! 

Balsamic glazed lean pork chop and cut green beans with slivered almonds and dried cranberries

Sautéed chicken sausage with steamed carrots and cabbage

Sautéed pork chop with Dijon sauce and Fancy green beans

Lean beef stir fry with snow peas, carrots and water chestnuts

Roasted chicken breast with steamed and buttered broccoli and cauliflower.

Boiled shrimp and crab with 2 tab. catchup and horseradish and field green salad with fresh ginger dressing.

I'm not one bit nervous about the approaching holidays either! I lost those 12 pounds and 3 inches over Thanksgiving and a 10 day vacation in Newport Beach and Disneyland! 

I know I CAN do it!

Its been a while...

I am going to be honest here... I gave up for a while. I had been watching what I eat... Eating clean. Low carb, working out on the treadmill and doing the T-Tapp MORE workout. I tried HCG and lost a few pounds but they came right back with a vengeance. And NOTHING. I couldn't lose weight no matter what I tried. I was frustrated, unhappy and confused. Why can't I lose weight?

I went to my cardiologist because my my blood pressure was getting out of control, and even with meds its still hard to get down. I went to two naturopaths for a couple of years. One put me on HCG and the other just had me monitoring my calories. I kept telling my doctors "I'm so tired." They both checked my thyroid (because I've have had hypothyroid for 10 years and I'm on Naturthroid) And said my T3 and T4 is fine.

So I gave up.. deciding to embrace my "curvy" body and just accept the fact that I'm fat. I'm a Gramma after all... I need that cushy tummy for all my lap sitting grandkiddos. But alas... I wasn't happy. I was getting fatter too... My Daddy passed away from a heart attack a year ago and I gained 20 pounds! I really was sick and tired... Literally. I'd get on the floor with the kids and need help up. I'd go to Disneyland with the kids and rested more that I ran. I got winded doing my work out. Then I got scared. Then I was done "embracing my curvy body".

Through the help of my daughter in love I found a new doctor. Something was wrong and I needed to know what. It's not that I didn't want to be fat anymore but now I was getting sick from my weight. My knees hurt, my blood pressure was very high (even on meds) my lower back hurt and would occasionally spasm to the point that I needed bed rest. Yeah, I was DONE with being unfit and over weight.

My new doctor actually specializes in healthy hormones and weight loss. My first visit was brief, she weighed me (cringe) and we talked about symptoms... ALOT... Then she ordered a blood test and I made another appt. to go over the tests. When I went to the second appt. she told me that her suspicions were correct after my first visit. I have PCOS (Polycystic ovarian syndrome) and Insulin resistance. (Which usually go hand in hand.) My Insulin Resistance numbers were so high that she put me on a medication right away. Metformin. My free insulin was 47 and my total insulin was 61. She wants it down to 5 or 6!  She said no wonder you are so tired. The carbs you eat are not turning into energy! They are being stored in fat cells! Oh Jeeze... She also put me on a progesterone cream and a new drug called Belviq.

She also told me to get the book The GI diet for Dummies.

She dislikes the name of the book... but she said its to be my bible for the next part of my life. Understanding the Glycemic Index will help me not only lose weight but get to a more healthy place with my body.



Okay I'm in!

Sigh me up!

I've been on the Metformin, progesterone cream, and the Belviq faithfully for a week now and I have lost 7 pounds and 1 inch off my waist! However there are some disagreeable side effects to the Metformin and Belviq that I'm struggling with... None though that are going to make me quit taking it. Not with these results!

So join me on this continuing journey to be fit for the rest of my life! Especially if you are having trouble losing weight and are so terribly tired.
I'll be posting meals with low GI numbers and my progress with the PCOS and Insulin resistance. With blood tests and how I'm feeling. And inch and pounds lost. How my energy levels are and what work outs I've been able to do.

Let's 

Together!