I made a very interesting discovery this week at my meeting. One of the other members and I were discussing our weight stalls and holding patterns. She's been stuck in one for nearly 6 months. Hey, it's been happening to a lot of folks I know, including myself. Even my leader remarked to some ladies from the earlier meeting (at some introductions) that I have actually been in maintenance for about 6 months.
It gave me an idea -- I went back through my weight record in the Guide Book and realized that she was absolutely right. On March 26, I hit a certain weight point, and with a couple of exceptions (like the week I made goal, the week I hit lifetime, one really odd week where I had a massive unexplained gain), I have held right around that number since..... oddly enough, guess where it is?
Yeah: My upper limit for "freedom" each month. It may be time to consider changing my final goal weight -- which I can do by sending a note to Corporate. At least changing it until I finally get rid of some of this excess skin.
It's strange, isn't it? My body apparently has decided its happy point is exactly 2 pounds above what my idea of "happy point" is, and what my official goal weight is. Big heaving le sigh.
But you know, I am doing fine. I am continuing to make good food choices. I am pretty creative in the kitchen. I'm reading labels even more closely, especially watching the sodium (the water retention thing). And I am way more proactive with my health than I ever was before. I avoided doctors' offices because they always focused on "the weight" ..... and now I realize, they had a valid point. The weight made a difference in my health. And now, I'm doing one massive cleanup effort. EPA's Superfund has NOTHING on cleaning up my radioactive mess!
***
Speaking of health things, I will go to my family doctor next week for a consultation -- I want to talk with him about family history, the lymphedema, trying to get him to send information to the plastic surgeon's, talking to him about what kind of tests I should have done now that I'm about to see the big 4-0, etc. And I want to discuss my headaches with him.
Since I was a child, I've always had headaches. Back in the day, we all thought they were just sinus headaches. I mean, holy mackerel, I am the poster child for chronic sinusitis. My entire life, it seems, I have awakened with stuffy nose and gone to bed the same way. Faceaches, and pressure around the eyes, and everything that points to perpetually inflamed sinus cavities. Yuck, yuck, yuck.
Only..... a few years ago, I read an article on WebMD about this. And the old conventional wisdom was wrong. It's one thing to have an active sinus infection and a headache, but these are actually a type of migraine. I mentioned it to the PCP (I was seeing another doctor in that practice) and he said, "Oh yeah.... how about...?" He put me on a calcium channel blocker not for hypertension but for an "off-label" use of helping prevent migraines. And it worked -- worked so well I weaned myself off and didn't have too many problems for a long time.
And with the summer heat, I know I tend to have more headaches. But I had a couple of weird ones lately that really concerned me. Last Friday evening, I came home from work, hit my exercise bike for 25 minutes, and 2 hours later, had a hellacious headache unlike any other I've ever experienced. All the face pain of a "sinus headache" with the nausea of a migraine. My migraines tend to come up the right side of my neck and settle right behind my eyes. I can feel it coming on. I don't get auras (thank you God for that!) but I get the "march of the headache soldiers" .... it really is almost like I can feel it making its way up from my back to my neck and into my head. This was like getting gobsmacked in the face and punched in the gut. And it happened in a heartbeat. I went from feeling fine to WHAMMO. Okay, I chalked it up to heat, a crazy week, etc.
Monday, I went to the Y with my family (they are all current members, I went as "guest"). Did 25 minutes on the elliptical (and dang, it felt GOOOOD!) and another 10 as a cool-down on the bike. I would have gotten in the pool but I didn't bring a swimsuit. Got home and started feeling sleepy and headache-y. Not the migraine place, and not a full-on faceache either. Kind of a 1-2 on a 10-scale of pain. Just enough to make me go, you know I'm not going to be 100%. Took a couple of Excedrin Migraine and a short nap. And I kept that level 2 feeling the rest of the night. I didn't get nausea, but just the sense that things were not quite right.
I mentioned this to some friends who are medical professionals and fitness trainers. They all said, "Stop the heavy exercise until your doctor clears you." I finally went for a short walk last night because I didn't do anything Tuesday through Thursday -- and would go bonkers otherwise. I also waited until it was nearly dark and much cooler. It turned out fine.
I enjoy the cycling and I don't want to stop it. I like the idea of making my body work harder to strengthen it. God help me, there are days I even think of taking up running -- once I get this extra flab excised and I heal up fully from that, I just may. The idea of stopping all that progress makes me nutsoid.
I have thought of every possibility -- did I drink too much water and throw my electrolytes off (I bought some low-cal Gatorade to have on hand for that)? is it possible I'm hypoglycemic and that threw me off? maybe exercising on a nearly empty stomach? (I don't like to eat before a workout but now I may have to). There are so many possibilities and I want to make sure I'm in the best shape and condition I can be in for this next stage of my life.
Lots and lots of things to consider in the next few weeks.
It gave me an idea -- I went back through my weight record in the Guide Book and realized that she was absolutely right. On March 26, I hit a certain weight point, and with a couple of exceptions (like the week I made goal, the week I hit lifetime, one really odd week where I had a massive unexplained gain), I have held right around that number since..... oddly enough, guess where it is?
Yeah: My upper limit for "freedom" each month. It may be time to consider changing my final goal weight -- which I can do by sending a note to Corporate. At least changing it until I finally get rid of some of this excess skin.
It's strange, isn't it? My body apparently has decided its happy point is exactly 2 pounds above what my idea of "happy point" is, and what my official goal weight is. Big heaving le sigh.
But you know, I am doing fine. I am continuing to make good food choices. I am pretty creative in the kitchen. I'm reading labels even more closely, especially watching the sodium (the water retention thing). And I am way more proactive with my health than I ever was before. I avoided doctors' offices because they always focused on "the weight" ..... and now I realize, they had a valid point. The weight made a difference in my health. And now, I'm doing one massive cleanup effort. EPA's Superfund has NOTHING on cleaning up my radioactive mess!
***
Speaking of health things, I will go to my family doctor next week for a consultation -- I want to talk with him about family history, the lymphedema, trying to get him to send information to the plastic surgeon's, talking to him about what kind of tests I should have done now that I'm about to see the big 4-0, etc. And I want to discuss my headaches with him.
Since I was a child, I've always had headaches. Back in the day, we all thought they were just sinus headaches. I mean, holy mackerel, I am the poster child for chronic sinusitis. My entire life, it seems, I have awakened with stuffy nose and gone to bed the same way. Faceaches, and pressure around the eyes, and everything that points to perpetually inflamed sinus cavities. Yuck, yuck, yuck.
Only..... a few years ago, I read an article on WebMD about this. And the old conventional wisdom was wrong. It's one thing to have an active sinus infection and a headache, but these are actually a type of migraine. I mentioned it to the PCP (I was seeing another doctor in that practice) and he said, "Oh yeah.... how about...?" He put me on a calcium channel blocker not for hypertension but for an "off-label" use of helping prevent migraines. And it worked -- worked so well I weaned myself off and didn't have too many problems for a long time.
And with the summer heat, I know I tend to have more headaches. But I had a couple of weird ones lately that really concerned me. Last Friday evening, I came home from work, hit my exercise bike for 25 minutes, and 2 hours later, had a hellacious headache unlike any other I've ever experienced. All the face pain of a "sinus headache" with the nausea of a migraine. My migraines tend to come up the right side of my neck and settle right behind my eyes. I can feel it coming on. I don't get auras (thank you God for that!) but I get the "march of the headache soldiers" .... it really is almost like I can feel it making its way up from my back to my neck and into my head. This was like getting gobsmacked in the face and punched in the gut. And it happened in a heartbeat. I went from feeling fine to WHAMMO. Okay, I chalked it up to heat, a crazy week, etc.
Monday, I went to the Y with my family (they are all current members, I went as "guest"). Did 25 minutes on the elliptical (and dang, it felt GOOOOD!) and another 10 as a cool-down on the bike. I would have gotten in the pool but I didn't bring a swimsuit. Got home and started feeling sleepy and headache-y. Not the migraine place, and not a full-on faceache either. Kind of a 1-2 on a 10-scale of pain. Just enough to make me go, you know I'm not going to be 100%. Took a couple of Excedrin Migraine and a short nap. And I kept that level 2 feeling the rest of the night. I didn't get nausea, but just the sense that things were not quite right.
I mentioned this to some friends who are medical professionals and fitness trainers. They all said, "Stop the heavy exercise until your doctor clears you." I finally went for a short walk last night because I didn't do anything Tuesday through Thursday -- and would go bonkers otherwise. I also waited until it was nearly dark and much cooler. It turned out fine.
I enjoy the cycling and I don't want to stop it. I like the idea of making my body work harder to strengthen it. God help me, there are days I even think of taking up running -- once I get this extra flab excised and I heal up fully from that, I just may. The idea of stopping all that progress makes me nutsoid.
I have thought of every possibility -- did I drink too much water and throw my electrolytes off (I bought some low-cal Gatorade to have on hand for that)? is it possible I'm hypoglycemic and that threw me off? maybe exercising on a nearly empty stomach? (I don't like to eat before a workout but now I may have to). There are so many possibilities and I want to make sure I'm in the best shape and condition I can be in for this next stage of my life.
Lots and lots of things to consider in the next few weeks.
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