Since going low carb and taking my Metformin (1/2 pill) I have noticed many great changes.
-i fall asleep faster and sleep better through the night
- i have more energy throughout the day but i'm not back to full energy to workout like i used to (yet)
- my overall mood is better
-1 cup of coffee a day will do me just fine
-no more body aches
-no more sleep apnea attacks in the night
-lost an inch off my waist
-lost a pound and a half
And I have had quite a few non scale victories (NSV) lately
-fit into my pre-pregnancy underwear!!! yayy!!! threw out all my bigger ones.
-fit into a pair of shorts i haven't worn in 3yrs!
-bought 2 pairs of shorts (one of them jean which i never wear) size 20 and size 18! and neither of them have elastic waists!!! i have bee wearing elastic waists for.....gosh....at least 3yrs. if not more.
these are huge milestones for me. i am beyond ecstatic and grateful that with the PCOS stuff out of the way i can finally see the rewards for all the hard work i've been putting in this year. i kept going even when i didn't see the light. and i'm so glad i did. what excites me the most is that things are starting to pick up and i have even more motivation. i'm getting back to where i was at my lowest after my surgery and before pregnancy, and i will surpass it! i'm going to be venturing into a place i've never been before. at a weight i have never seen in my adult life. i am curious and excited and driven!
Monday, August 25, 2014
Sunday, August 24, 2014
Keto or low carb?
Ok so this is where I'm at right now with my thought process. I know that a ketogenic diet would be very beneficial for me in many ways. However my brain is stuck on the rules/restrictions and counting of carbs. Like no one likes counting calories and counting carbs is even more of a fucking headache bc there are carbs in just about everything and you have to calculate minuscule amount and what a fucking headache. I mean, spices!!! Fucking spices!! Jesus. And what if I wanna go out to eat for a special occasion and enjoy one of my fav meals (bang bang shrimp) or some other breaded goodness? The thought of not being able to have those moments (bc let's face it, it's all mental) is really what's keeping me from jumping on board. Like....life isn't predictable, shit happens. I don't wanna constantly be worrying about it.
I am enjoying low carb. Low carb is very doable for me. And once in a while if I splurge on something it's no biggy. I just go back to eating low carb the next day. 80/20 or even 90/10 really. I believe that for sanity sake and to make it a lifestyle you need moderation. Like, I could do keto but I would probably not do it forever. I would be like ok I only have to do it for this long and then I can go back to low carb. That's just real talk. My mind always has to know it has option. The way that just knowing there is a bathroom near by keeps me from having to go right this minute.
Also a low carb diet is beneficial. I have already noticed changes in my body. I could easily continue this for the rest of my life. It's a lifestyle. So why stress myself out with the rules and restrictions of something like ketosis where your carbs are almost non existent or you get knocked out of ketosis?
Just being honest. This is my honest thought process. I'm thinking if slowly incorporating it though. Another way of looking at it is, just try it for a few weeks and see what happens. If I hate it that much just go back to low carb. There's no keto police coming to get me. There's no one I have to answer to but myself. And who knows, maybe it will be doable. Maybe after 3 weeks I'll be like, I like how I feel, I'm good, I can keep this up. And just see where it gets me.
If it was just "eat meats, eat cheese, eat full fat dairy, eat good fats" I would so do it!!! I really don't feel like counting. That's really turning me off.
Pre-diabetic symptoms
in my research for a ketogenic diet i stumbled upon this page. Holy crap!!! i have (or have had recently) 90% of the symptoms listed here!
but just to give you a sampling....
These are all the things I thought were thyroid issues. Amazing.
but just to give you a sampling....
These are all the things I thought were thyroid issues. Amazing.
Saturday, August 23, 2014
Looking into Keto
Ok I just want to start by saying that when I talk about any way of eating it only pertains to ME personally. I don't believe in telling people how to eat especially since its so subjective. Every person is different and what works for them is a very individual thing. That being said I wanted to share my journey with you.
My friend Anthony whom I respect very much and see as a mentor (he is also a dad who is currently working towards being a trainer himself) has coached me through various things. He got me started with my exercise, he's answered countless questions i have, and he told me that a ketogenic diet would be very beneficial to me. I looked into it but got super stressed (this was during the anxiety of the thyroid diagnosis i gave myself) and decided I couldn't mentally handle all the restriction right now. I needed to just do low carb, and relax. And I have, and its been going well. But I'm doing research on my own into Ketosis and the Ketogenic diet. I'm trying to figure out why? Why is this good for me? How does it work in the body? Doesn't my body need carbs to be strong? etc etc etc. In my research I found this video of a man named Peter Attia doing a talk about how it worked in HIS body. I found it scientific with a bit of humor and also palatable. He explained it in a way I could understand. And the visuals help. I wanted to post this on here for anyone who has ever considered ketosis. He answers all the questions about why and what it actually does in your body. He actually talks about insulin resistance which is what I have. I realize this is a good fit for me healthwise. But mentally I'm not there yet. I feel like I have to ease my brain into it. I still have more questions on the how. How do i get into ketosis? What are the guidelines? and so forth.
but for now I wanted to post this, mostly for my own reference, but for anyone else interested.
My friend Anthony whom I respect very much and see as a mentor (he is also a dad who is currently working towards being a trainer himself) has coached me through various things. He got me started with my exercise, he's answered countless questions i have, and he told me that a ketogenic diet would be very beneficial to me. I looked into it but got super stressed (this was during the anxiety of the thyroid diagnosis i gave myself) and decided I couldn't mentally handle all the restriction right now. I needed to just do low carb, and relax. And I have, and its been going well. But I'm doing research on my own into Ketosis and the Ketogenic diet. I'm trying to figure out why? Why is this good for me? How does it work in the body? Doesn't my body need carbs to be strong? etc etc etc. In my research I found this video of a man named Peter Attia doing a talk about how it worked in HIS body. I found it scientific with a bit of humor and also palatable. He explained it in a way I could understand. And the visuals help. I wanted to post this on here for anyone who has ever considered ketosis. He answers all the questions about why and what it actually does in your body. He actually talks about insulin resistance which is what I have. I realize this is a good fit for me healthwise. But mentally I'm not there yet. I feel like I have to ease my brain into it. I still have more questions on the how. How do i get into ketosis? What are the guidelines? and so forth.
but for now I wanted to post this, mostly for my own reference, but for anyone else interested.
whats really wrong with me? i finally get an answer. and its not what i thought!
So I've been having health issues since May. Started out small and grew over time and got worse and worse. Started with serious fatigue. Like no matter how much i forced myself at workouts, i just wanted to sleep. It was more than low energy, it was no energy. I hit a wall. I was able to push through for a couple months. May and June I went hard. 6 workouts a week, lifting heavy weights, pushing myself. but definitely struggling.
The first time I noticed I had a problem I let it go. And it went away. But then it came back. I thought, my iron must be low! thats it. i've been slacking on my iron supplements. So i started to take them and that same day I felt better. So for two weeks i thought i had solved the problem!
Then it happened again. Now I'm stumped. I looked at my macros. I've been doing bad. not getting enough carbs (so i thought) and not getting enough calories (this was true). i thought the less cals the better. but i was hungry and cranky and tired. So i self diagnosed. this must be the problem. i went back to my old easy macros (more carbs, more cals) and i felt great! more energy! i thought i had fixed myself!!
but then it came back again.....this time it came back HARD. i said holy shit, this is serious. what the fuck is going on? this time i had severe fatigue, depression, anxiety, irregular periods, no weight loss and sometimes weight gain despite working out and dieting. it was clear to me this was hormonal. people had been telling me from the begining that it sounded like my thyroid. but for some reason i always thought there had to be a simpler answer. until i started to actually look into thyroid diseases. oh fuck.....alot of the stuff i had seemed to be on the checklist for hypothyroidism. the more i researched, the more convinced i was. this was it. on the one hand just knowing what this was made me feel more in control. on the other it stressed me the fuck out because its SO serious!! plus it looked like i could have Hashimotos which is even worse!!! ughhhh!!!
i went for weeks convinced this is what i had. i made it known. every self diagnosis was of course proclaimed to the world.
I finally went for a follow up on my bloodwork and they told me right off the bat, it wasn't my thryroid. my thyroid was fine. are you sure??!?! yup. they said all my numbers look great except for one. The A1 something? it shows i'm pre-diabetic. ok. i didn't panic, been there before, it was prolly the carbs, but no worries, i went to low carb 2 weeks ago. but i'm so dumb that i couldn't put it together. ok so...what was making me tired?? (duh) doc and i started to talk and i told her it all seemed hormonal. and she was like...hmm...you've already been diagnosed with PCOS right? yes. well it sounds like the carbs in your diet made the PCOS re-activate. what?!! that happens?? yup. i thought bc i lose 90lbs i didn't have to worry about PCOS. WRONG. then it all started to make sense. all of it. sweet smelling urine. hello. can you believe i put myself back into pre-diabetic mode just from putting carbs back into my diet?? my doc said low carb has to be the standard for me. because of the insulin resistance. and now i know. no matter what these fitness people tell me, i know that for me personally this is what i have to do. i didn't sweat it too much because low carb is my comfort zone. i did it for so long. plus i do love fats and i'm happy to forgo the carbs for more fats!! she also put me on a low dose metformin to help.
so i'm doing all the right things. i'm hoping that once my levels even out i will get back to my old self. i already see improvements. my mood is better. i don't have energy to work out alot, yet. i'm hoping that will come back. but i have seen definite changes physically. first off, i lost one lb, and an inch off my waist already. i'm even back in my pre-pregnancy underwear!!!!! woohooo!!!!!!!! i'm so happy that this didn't knock me off my path. just another test. i passed!
i'm so happy that i'm seeing some changes. it felt like my journey was on pause for months! i'm gonna assume since the doc told me this (i didn't self diagnose) that this is it. but the way this thing's been going, when i make a definitive statement it backfires on me. lol.
The first time I noticed I had a problem I let it go. And it went away. But then it came back. I thought, my iron must be low! thats it. i've been slacking on my iron supplements. So i started to take them and that same day I felt better. So for two weeks i thought i had solved the problem!
Then it happened again. Now I'm stumped. I looked at my macros. I've been doing bad. not getting enough carbs (so i thought) and not getting enough calories (this was true). i thought the less cals the better. but i was hungry and cranky and tired. So i self diagnosed. this must be the problem. i went back to my old easy macros (more carbs, more cals) and i felt great! more energy! i thought i had fixed myself!!
but then it came back again.....this time it came back HARD. i said holy shit, this is serious. what the fuck is going on? this time i had severe fatigue, depression, anxiety, irregular periods, no weight loss and sometimes weight gain despite working out and dieting. it was clear to me this was hormonal. people had been telling me from the begining that it sounded like my thyroid. but for some reason i always thought there had to be a simpler answer. until i started to actually look into thyroid diseases. oh fuck.....alot of the stuff i had seemed to be on the checklist for hypothyroidism. the more i researched, the more convinced i was. this was it. on the one hand just knowing what this was made me feel more in control. on the other it stressed me the fuck out because its SO serious!! plus it looked like i could have Hashimotos which is even worse!!! ughhhh!!!
i went for weeks convinced this is what i had. i made it known. every self diagnosis was of course proclaimed to the world.
I finally went for a follow up on my bloodwork and they told me right off the bat, it wasn't my thryroid. my thyroid was fine. are you sure??!?! yup. they said all my numbers look great except for one. The A1 something? it shows i'm pre-diabetic. ok. i didn't panic, been there before, it was prolly the carbs, but no worries, i went to low carb 2 weeks ago. but i'm so dumb that i couldn't put it together. ok so...what was making me tired?? (duh) doc and i started to talk and i told her it all seemed hormonal. and she was like...hmm...you've already been diagnosed with PCOS right? yes. well it sounds like the carbs in your diet made the PCOS re-activate. what?!! that happens?? yup. i thought bc i lose 90lbs i didn't have to worry about PCOS. WRONG. then it all started to make sense. all of it. sweet smelling urine. hello. can you believe i put myself back into pre-diabetic mode just from putting carbs back into my diet?? my doc said low carb has to be the standard for me. because of the insulin resistance. and now i know. no matter what these fitness people tell me, i know that for me personally this is what i have to do. i didn't sweat it too much because low carb is my comfort zone. i did it for so long. plus i do love fats and i'm happy to forgo the carbs for more fats!! she also put me on a low dose metformin to help.
so i'm doing all the right things. i'm hoping that once my levels even out i will get back to my old self. i already see improvements. my mood is better. i don't have energy to work out alot, yet. i'm hoping that will come back. but i have seen definite changes physically. first off, i lost one lb, and an inch off my waist already. i'm even back in my pre-pregnancy underwear!!!!! woohooo!!!!!!!! i'm so happy that this didn't knock me off my path. just another test. i passed!
i'm so happy that i'm seeing some changes. it felt like my journey was on pause for months! i'm gonna assume since the doc told me this (i didn't self diagnose) that this is it. but the way this thing's been going, when i make a definitive statement it backfires on me. lol.
Saturday, August 9, 2014
The kind of mom I want to be
Last year I remember taking benji to the park and trying to sit as much as possible and getting tired just walking around after him. And I'll tell you, on my bad days (fatigue), I'm still that bad if not worse. But on a good day where I'm myself I am shocked at how well I keep up with him.
Yesterday after our nap we drove to the park and I was like ok come on let's do push ups, let's do squats, come in let's jog. He would imitate me. I did push ups on park benches, I did dips on playground equipment, and stepped up on other playground equipment, I jogged around the track. And my 1 1/2yr old son wanted me to carry him. He was tired and couldn't keep up with ME!! Talk about a first!!! So I carried him and jogged. Then I sat him on the park bench with some water and snacks and kept on doing my thing, jumping jacks, squats, etc.
It felt amazing to be this person. To be able to not only keep up with my son but to lead him. To set a good example. I'm so happy to know that my son will grow up with good habits. And that he will have a healthy relationship with fitness and food. And that he won't know me as the lazy tired out of shape person I was before. He will know a better version of me. And to me that is a blessing. So proud of myself and my journey. It's so worth it.
Tuesday, August 5, 2014
up and down...riding the wave
i had 2 good days recently. saturday and sunday. i felt normal. i worked out. i got so much done saturday. it was so great to be my normal self. i forgot just how capable i am at handling life. the bad days make me feel like a lazy good for nothing. anyway the good days are fewer and further between. i don't know when the next one will be. on those days i feel like i can get back to my agenda and take on the world and do anything. then it goes away when i can hardly get through my day.
but we keep going...hoping that the next leap will be the leap home....(quantum leap reference)
but we keep going...hoping that the next leap will be the leap home....(quantum leap reference)
Protein Review #8: CLICK Espresso Protein Drink, Vanilla Latte
ahh...Click. Click, click click click click....what can i say.....
If you know me, you know I love my coffee. I enjoy it. I look forward to it everyday. I wanna make sweet sweet love to it. Everyone has their own specific way they like THEIR coffee. and its very specific. and it doesn't change. Perhaps thats why it took me so long to try this. because everytime i was about to i said, nah i'd rather have MY coffee. but today was one of those days when i was low on protein and it was my 2nd cup of the day and i decided, what the fuck, lets do it. its supposed to be really good. i've seen so many good reviews of CLICK and been hearing people rave about it for years. so i followed the instructions for making it hot because i don't do cold coffee.
it tasted like plastic, no cardboard, no, like cobwebs....well it didn't taste fresh lets just say. it wasn't good tasting at all. i though hmmm...maybe i need to stir it. so i did. didn't help. i don't take coffee lightly. i through that shit right down the drain and made MY coffee. i needed to! just to get that yucky taste out of my mouth!!! and my coffee was of course pure heaven in a cup.
so i dunno. some people swear by it, i think it tasted hideous. you're better off getting a sample, i always encourage sampling. so you can see for yourself. this company makes samples so you should be able to get them online. you might like it. i did not.
Who knows. maybe the sample was really old and the canister is fresher. or maybe the mocha flavor tastes better. or maybe it just isn't for me. but here's my honest review.
If you know me, you know I love my coffee. I enjoy it. I look forward to it everyday. I wanna make sweet sweet love to it. Everyone has their own specific way they like THEIR coffee. and its very specific. and it doesn't change. Perhaps thats why it took me so long to try this. because everytime i was about to i said, nah i'd rather have MY coffee. but today was one of those days when i was low on protein and it was my 2nd cup of the day and i decided, what the fuck, lets do it. its supposed to be really good. i've seen so many good reviews of CLICK and been hearing people rave about it for years. so i followed the instructions for making it hot because i don't do cold coffee.
it tasted like plastic, no cardboard, no, like cobwebs....well it didn't taste fresh lets just say. it wasn't good tasting at all. i though hmmm...maybe i need to stir it. so i did. didn't help. i don't take coffee lightly. i through that shit right down the drain and made MY coffee. i needed to! just to get that yucky taste out of my mouth!!! and my coffee was of course pure heaven in a cup.
so i dunno. some people swear by it, i think it tasted hideous. you're better off getting a sample, i always encourage sampling. so you can see for yourself. this company makes samples so you should be able to get them online. you might like it. i did not.
Who knows. maybe the sample was really old and the canister is fresher. or maybe the mocha flavor tastes better. or maybe it just isn't for me. but here's my honest review.
Saturday, August 2, 2014
Protein Review #7: Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard, Banana Cream
ok....All i'm gonna say about this one is...meh. fake banana extract flavor. texture is good with milk. not my fav. not even in my top 5. Honestly, as much as I love ON, i think they do creamy flavors better than the fruity ones. Now that I've tasted Syntrax Nectar flavors I'm spoiled.
Friday, August 1, 2014
Protein Review #6: Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard, Rocky Road
Ok this review is for Optimum Nutrition 100% Whey Gold Standard, Rocky Road.
I personally love ON. They are one of the top brands. It's a clean protein, it doesn't do a lot of caloric damage, excellent muscle recovery, moderately priced (actually you can get these on sale all the time), tons of flavors, and they're thin so they won't fill you up. I have tried strawberry(meh), strawberry banana (pretty good) and fruit punch (good) by the tub. but i didn't want to buy a WHOLE tub to try a new flavor. Luckily thanks to Nashua Nutrition I was able to get some samples. The first one being rocky road.
Guuuuuuuurrrrrrl. You know I'm more of a fruity person, i don't really like chocolate flavors but DAMN!!! This shit was SO yummy!!! It had almost an almondy type flavor which might be the marshmallow part of rocky road. I really enjoyed it! I could probably drink this every day. I think this might be my go to creamy flavor.
I personally love ON. They are one of the top brands. It's a clean protein, it doesn't do a lot of caloric damage, excellent muscle recovery, moderately priced (actually you can get these on sale all the time), tons of flavors, and they're thin so they won't fill you up. I have tried strawberry(meh), strawberry banana (pretty good) and fruit punch (good) by the tub. but i didn't want to buy a WHOLE tub to try a new flavor. Luckily thanks to Nashua Nutrition I was able to get some samples. The first one being rocky road.
Guuuuuuuurrrrrrl. You know I'm more of a fruity person, i don't really like chocolate flavors but DAMN!!! This shit was SO yummy!!! It had almost an almondy type flavor which might be the marshmallow part of rocky road. I really enjoyed it! I could probably drink this every day. I think this might be my go to creamy flavor.
I have to say though, in all honesty, the fruity flavors of ON don't hold a candle to the Nectar flavors. If you want a really good tasting fruity flavor, Nectar is the way to go.
Protein Review #5: Syntrax - Nectar Caribbean Cooler
This is a review for Syntrax - Nectar Caribbean Cooler
i'm just gonna tell you, it tastes damn good. DAMN GOOD. why? because i added milk instead of water. had a nice milkshake taste. but more of a fruity island frozen drink, and those are my favorite!! yum yum yum. i truly enjoyed this protein. you may want to use water instead and thats up to you but the texture is WAY better with milk.
So per scoop we're talking 100 calories and no fat and no carbs/sugars. Really? hmm...seems to good to be true! This might have to be my go to fruity flavor, just based on taste alone. I think I will get one fruity flavor and one creamy flavor so that i can have options depending on my mood.
I have to say all the Nectar flavors I've tried have all been really tasty. I don't think you could go wrong with this brand.
i'm just gonna tell you, it tastes damn good. DAMN GOOD. why? because i added milk instead of water. had a nice milkshake taste. but more of a fruity island frozen drink, and those are my favorite!! yum yum yum. i truly enjoyed this protein. you may want to use water instead and thats up to you but the texture is WAY better with milk.
So per scoop we're talking 100 calories and no fat and no carbs/sugars. Really? hmm...seems to good to be true! This might have to be my go to fruity flavor, just based on taste alone. I think I will get one fruity flavor and one creamy flavor so that i can have options depending on my mood.
I have to say all the Nectar flavors I've tried have all been really tasty. I don't think you could go wrong with this brand.
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