November 04, 2020

A "Regress" Photo (five pound gain)

Today is Day 115 of my walk streak. Ever since I got done with 75 Hard, I switched to walking five miles every morning (with Joey in tow). I'm pretty proud of myself for doing it! And I honestly don't dread it at all.

I wish I could say I was doing well on the weight loss front, but I have actually gained back five of the thirteen pounds I lost during the summer! Here is this week's "progress" picture (which is actually a "regress" picture. I'm super embarrassed to post it:

As promised, I wore tight fitting clothes for this picture. I'm going to try to wear the same outfit each week so it'll be easier to see (hopeful) progress. (Just the fact that I'm posting this photo is a big deal--I HATE it, but I'm trying really hard to just show things like they are and stop trying to hide it.)

Something that drives me crazy about my body is that I don't gain any fat underneath my surgery scar--you can see it just above where my hips stick out. That's where my scar is and because the fat doesn't grow under there, it gives me saddle bags and a muffin top.

I want to lose enough weight to get back to my best skin removal results. I was 143 pounds when I got my surgery, so it'd be nice to get back there and have my results look smooth again. The curves on my sides were smooth. Here is a photo from when I was 135-ish pounds in the same shirt:


I know exactly what the problem is, too. I messed up my intermittent fasting "eating window" one day and that made me feel RAVENOUS the next morning. 

Usually, I don't even get hungry until 4:00 when I eat dinner, but when I ate far outside my window one day, I paid for it the next day. And after that, it was just so hard to get back to my routine that was working so well. Now, my window has grown to about eight hours, which is way too long for me. I need about a two-hour window (and I actually enjoy a two-hour window!).

When I first started intermittent fasting, I remember it being very hard for about four days. After that, I fell in LOVE with it because it seemed so easy! I felt a lot better, too--sleeping well, not thinking about food, truly enjoying the food I ate, not getting stomachaches, and having a ton of energy. So I know I just need to power through a few days to get to that point again. That has been my goal for this week--wait until 4:00 and eat a good, filling meal. 

Yesterday, my brother gave me some extra boards and plywood that he had leftover from a project. Not enough to do the nightstands, but enough to make something out of it. I'm going to see what I can find. I still plan to do the nightstands--I'll probably buy the stuff this weekend when Jerry is off work. I want a project to look forward to each day that will keep me super busy.

Well, it's already 11:40(!) so I better go to bed. Remember how I was complaining about not being able to sleep? Well, the complaining must have worked. Last night, I slept from 10:15 pm to 8:15 am!! And it was GOOD sleep, too--I didn't wake up at all--not even when Jerry got home, took a shower, and climbed into bed with me. That NEVER happens. 

It could have been because I took a couple of muscle relaxers last night. When my anxiety and/or stress get high, I get a lot of knots in my shoulders and neck. Jerry can literally feel them when he massages my back. When I have my anxiety under control, the knots go away. It's so weird! I was particularly painful yesterday so I took the muscle relaxers hoping they'd help. Unfortunately they didn't do anything.

If anyone has tips on relaxing shoulders/neck/back that get super tense and painful with knots, please feel free to let me know! I've tried physical therapy and chiropractic--it didn't help.

But anyways, it was absolutely fantastic to sleep so good last night. Which is probably why I'm still awake at 11:30--I'm not at all tired, but I want to try to sleep. G'night!


8 comments:

  1. I recently was introduced to dry needling and--no hyperbole--it changed my life. I had a couple of awful, longstanding knots (5 years) in my traps and delts that were getting worse with my work as a baker. I went from regular PT to trigger point injections (which only helped take the edge off for a few days) to dry needling, and it has been a GODSEND.

    It's electrostimulus hooked up to acupuncture-sized needles that are stuck into the knotted muscles. The intense stimulation forces contractions in sessions that last about 15 minutes. It helps to break up knots and get the muscles to relax. You will need to focus on strengthening exercises as well in order to keep the pain at bay, but the relief is almost immediate.

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  2. Well done on admiting you weight. If you know where you are you can see when you improve. For tense shoulders, I relax and physically put then down every time you sit down or lie down. Practice relaxing them for a minute or two, you should always feel the difference between tensed up and down otherwise your not relaxing. It's also important sitting at a computer. Eventually it becomes a habit.

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  3. I also get a ton of knots in my shoulders/upper back and they've been worse than normal lately also. I use the Back Buddy tool. It's an S-shaped thing that helps reach the knots and help when I use it regularly. I've never thought to try a muscle relaxer, that sure would be better if it worked

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  4. I still think you look great!! And as for the knots- I love my “body back buddy.” Sometimes John isn’t the best at massaging me or getting knots loosened, but this thing actually works pretty decently, oddly enough!

    https://www.amazon.com/Body-Back-Companys-Buddy-Therapy/dp/B00PJ92IWK/ref=mp_s_a_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=body+back+buddy&sr=8-5

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  5. You might try a TENS machine for relaxing those muscles. I find it helps a lot.

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  6. You look really good. Wish you were feeling that way. It's so impressive that you walk five miles every morning. and Joey, how wonderful for him. I'm sure my running days have come to an end because of a neck injury that happened when I was four years old. Now I can't cause impact to the neck. It's a major bummer because I love working up a sweat. The harder the workout, the better. My doctor thinks I'm faking even though an xray and THREE MRI's show why it hurts.

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  7. I was encouraged to try a magnesium supplement to help with my headaches and when I went to buy it there was also a topical magnesium spray which I have been using on my neck because I get super tense there too. It really helps! I notice a difference soon after I use it.

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  8. You’ve talked about your weighted blanked in the past... have you ever tried to sleep with it? It is my godsend when I can’t fall asleep at night. And I get the deepest sleep when I use it. Maybe it would help?

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