Frustrated

I went back to the doctor yesterday because my ringworm is still present. The itching and burning has been driving me insane! The doctor prescribed me a new medicine and insisted that I not sweat until everything is cleared up. This is really frustrating for me as I am trying so hard to lose weight. I need my body to heal though so this time I'm going to listen.

So what can I do?

Because I will not be working out, I can cut calories. My body won't be using as much fuel so I can cut back without starving or harming it.

Another thing I can do is strap my leg weights on while I walk. This way I hope to maintain my muscle use without breaking into a sweat.


Sometimes things come up that challenge us and make it hard to stay on track with our weight loss goals but as long as we must find a way to keep moving forward.

Smaller Jeans!

I am in a size smaller jeans now! I am so excited to be moving in the right direction. It feels good!

Ironically, I haven't lost any more weight. One thing that has changed with the scale is that I don't fluctuate so high anymore. My weight is consistently within 2 pounds of my lowest weigh in, even after eating, etc.

I haven't pin pointed the problem of why the scale hasn't been dropping numbers but knowing my body is being reshaped helps ease that frustration. I know I just need to keep working hard and stick with balanced meals. The pounds will drop in time as will my pants size.

Minor Road Block

A few days ago I went to the doctor because I had what I thought was razor burn under my left arm. I had tried many different things on it for a month and nothing was helping. The pain and itching was really grinding on my nerves. That rash was actually ringworm. Yuck! I do not know where I picked it up from but now it's no wonder one of my lotions or creams, etc were helping it.

Along with a prescribed cream and pill to take for it, the doctor advised me to keep the area as friction free as possible and dry. This has meant no jumping on the elliptical every morning. It's been a big disruption in my routine to skip working out. I can't believe it but I actually miss it! Working out gives me that sense of accomplishment and energy boost that sustains me through the rest of my day.

So today I am being naughty and I am getting back on the elliptical. I won't use the arm bars and will be sure to wash and dry the area immediately after I am done. I need my work out!

And although it's true I could do leg weights or sit ups I haven't had the motivation to with skipping my cardio. That was actually pretty lazy on my part. So today I am going to do both things after my important elliptical time.

I am pumped and ready to go!

224...Still

I didn't lose any pounds on the scale this week. I worked out harder than I have been and still stuck to my diet. I've read that it's quite normal not to lose weight when you first begin weight training. The reason for this is that generally your body will hold on to water.

Although the numbers on the scale didn't change, my body certainly has! I am much less lumpy. lol It's true though, I don't have a belly that hangs over and my back and sides have smoothed out. I am even able to wear a pair of jeans I couldn't previously.

My biggest accomplishment this week was going hiking with a friend on Thursday. We hiked for an hour without stopping. My leg muscles were killing me as it was a steady incline the whole way. I am not going to lie, I complained how hard it was several times. But I kept going! And when I reached the top of the hills and looked out over the city I felt completely exhilarated!

So it may be true that I haven't lost weight this week but I feel stronger and am looking better.

Why Weight?

Yesterday I finally went to my community Clubhouse to use the gym. It's rather small and doesn't have many weight machines. There are a few elliptical machines, treadmills, and bikes. The gym did have two arm/shoulder machines and about as many leg machines. No abs machines (which is a bummer because I actually love those most).

I made the most of what was available and did a few sets of 10 on the arm machines. Oh.my.heavens. It was hard!!! I cannot believe just how weak my muscles are. I was really struggling but finished all the reps I wanted to do. Then I picked up 5 lbs free weights and did a few moves with those. My muscles were wondering what was happening. Confused as they were, I did what I could and feel really accomplished for it.

Today my upper body is really sore so I am doing light stretches to help ease cramping. There is a part of me that is glad my muscles hurt because to me that signifies that I actually used them.

Lifting weights is an important part of working out. When you are building muscle you don't just get stronger, you shape your body more effectively and are even able to burn more fat when you've built lean muscle.

It took my three weeks to venture into finally lifting weights but here I am now!

224

Three more pounds down this last week! And even more exciting then that: I got my first comment that it looks like I am losing weight. Hooray!!

I had so much more energy this past week during Spring Break with my kids then I normally would have had and my kids were loving it! We went on hikes, walks, played soccer and croquet, it was a blast!

I am so glad I've made this change in my life and I am already benefiting from it more than just the numbers on the scale going down. I feel more energetic and happy. I have more patience because I don't feel so worn out.

16 lbs. down also means my clothes are fitting better. I do feel like I am losing inches which I believe is why my weight loss is starting to be noticed. I look forward to where I'll be 3 months from now when it will be more noticeable to everyone that I have genuinely changed my life for the better.

Vitamins

For the last two weeks I've been taking daily vitamins. I use to be great with this but kind of fell of the wagon a couple of years ago. Vitamin pills are a great way to get some of the vitamins our bodies need that we may not be getting enough of through diet. They range of vitamins and their benefits is pretty extensive.

The vitamins I take daily are Super Complex B, Fish Oil, and Biotin. My mood has improved, I feel like I have more energy, and my skin looks cleaner and has the start of a glow. Although a lot of this is also contributed by diet and exercise, I know the vitamins are helping amplify that.

I'm not a big supplements girl and I tend to roll my eyes at the latest diet fads or health kick fads. I prefer things that my family doctor would recommend, which are generally backed up by years of medical research. For this reason, I'll stick to a few daily vitamin pills I can take safely that are also proven to give you more energy, improve heart health, and so on.

Taking vitamins won't solve all of your health issues, but as part of a healthy diet and exercise regimen, they can help improve your healthy lifestyle.