Returning to the Grind

So, I have made it official. I am returning to school, one more time. It is time to return to the completion of the Bachelor's degree. After a lot of soul searching, encouragement from friends and family -- and the incentive of having to complete the degree to advance -- I have made the jump again. I should make it a total of all four Armstrong children in school, starting this fall. That has never happened -- so this should be an interesting event. I am returning to Weber State -- so that officially puts all the Armstrong children in a different school as well. Life should be interesting from here on in. It will make for an interesting California vacation! Talk to you all soon.

Frustrations and Accomplishments

So, I have had a really frustrating couple of weeks. Not that I haven't been working hard. I am up to 2 to 4 miles a day of walking. And I have been very faithful about that. But I just haven't felt like I was getting anywhere. I just feel like I am not seeing anything -- for all of the hard work I am putting in.

So Yesterday I went and did my 2 miles in the morning, and then Kim and I did another 2 miles at lunch. By the time we were done -- my pants had officially qualified for being declared completely worn out, and had to be thrown away. So I was trying to find something that I could wear for my exercise -- and guess what. I officially have pulled out an old pair of pants out of the closet, and was able to put them on. So even though I am not seeing the pounds coming off as quickly as I would like, I am thrilled to report that I am starting to get close to breaking out some of the old pants in the closet! Yeah!

That made me feel real good. Also -- I am finding that the exercise world is a group of very friendly, and encouraging people. You usually pass the same people each day during exercise time, and they are all very friendly, and say hello or waive. Some even offer encouragement of good job, or keep going. So overall, I guess I am making more progress than I have been feeling like for the last couple of weeks.

Catching Up and Getting Back In the Groove

Ok -- so I have had to do some catch up -- since I have had a real sucky week. Last week on Wednesday I had to go up to Snowbird for a business retreat. As far as the scenery, and time with friends -- it was great! As far as my diet and exercise -- it really sucked!!!! I was tied to the food that the State was serving for the employees -- and it was only slightly close to being good for me. And as for the exercise -- well I tried once, and had a lot of trouble with the high altitude. It was triggering my asthma, and I spent most of the weekend using my inhaler. (Yes I know -- one of those getting old things that has shown up. The doctor thinks it is a residual left over of all my bouts with pneumonia.)

When I got home I went up and spent the rest of the weekend with Mom and Dad -- and figured that the diet was already shot -- so finish the weekend, and start Monday morning. After all -- that drive up to Bear Lake, and the raspberry shakes just couldn't be passed up -- they are just too good, even if they are not on my diet. So all and all -- the diet hasn't been much for the weekend. Even Mom asked if I had just given up on my diet. I have now received an email from Bob -- and for the record -- I will be transferring this blog over to my new site -- once I get it all worked out, and set up. But for now we stay with this, and the answer is -- NO.

In fact I have had a really good start back in this week. I am back to my diet and feeling much better about it. I wasn't feeling really good by the end of the weekend -- I was feeling slow, and sluggish from all the food I was cutting out for so long, and then suddenly reintroduced back into my eating. Now I am feeling back to having more energy again, and I am doing much better. Also -- more good news. Yesterday Kim and I went out and started my walking program again. I'm not doing twice a day -- but I have extended my walking while I am out. Yesterday we went 1 mile round trip. And today we extended it and did the whole 2 miles! I feel great -- and yes, I am very proud of myself for that accomplishment!

So overall, things are back on target -- and I am doing good. I just have a hard time staying on course when I am out of town, and staying at a resort that the food starts at $26 a plate. I either break the bank, or eat what the State has made arrangements for. What do you do! Thank you to all of you for following up, and checking in with me. I really appreciate the moral support, and I feel much better now.

A Day In the Life

So Bob has asked some very specific questions, as he looks to stepping up my program. So for today's entry, I am going to do an average day in the life of ME! For point of reference, these are the questions, specifically that I am responding to.

1. How and what is my breakfast?

2. Am I starting my day with a glass of water?

3. Am I doing any upper body muscle exercises yet?

4. What vitamins/supplements am I taking?

So, with this down, now I will give you an idea of what a day in my life is like. And I will even list the changes that I have made -- for those who are wondering what the process is that I am working on.

I usually get up at 5:30, and start my morning with a glass of water, in order to take my prilosec. (Otherwise, my tummy will never be happy.) Since I can't eat for 30 minutes, following my taking of my medication, I then go out and take my first walk of the day. I walk around the apartment complex 4 times, which takes me about 30 minutes exactly -- and is roughly one mile. (This is only an estimate -- I haven't actually clocked the distance.) Following my morning walk, I then go in and have breakfast.

This of course is a huge change from before. Prior to starting this lifestyle, I never ate breakfast -- or if I did it was usually a Super Big Gulp of Diet Dr. Pepper. Breakfast was something that I never really made time for. I just wasn't interested. So this was one of the biggest changes, was learning to cut my dinner way back, and making breakfast and lunch my main meals of the day.

Breakfast will usually be either a 1/2 cup of whole grain cereal (I have really found I like the Kashi brand cereals), with 8 ounces of milk, and a whole piece of fruit. Or some mornings I will have one serving of egg substitute, with two slices of my homemade, whole grain bread. On those mornings I will also have 1 serving of low-fat yogurt, (I love the yoplait yogurts), and one serving of whole fruit. (Banana, apple, cherries, plums, peaches, etc. . .), On these mornings I will also have either a bottle of water, or 8 ounces of milk. During breakfast, I will also take my multi-vitamin. I have just a generic brand that I picked up at Wal-Mart. It is comparable to Centrum.

Once I get to work I make sure I try to get in 24 ounces of water during the morning, but I am not always successful at this. There are some mornings I just have to have my Diet Dr. Pepper. Between 10, and 10:15 I will take my break and I will have my mid morning meal. This usually consists of either a serving of veggies (I love peas, or baby carrots), and some string cheese. I will also have a couple slices of whole grain bread, toasted. Sometimes, I will have another whole piece of fruit (bananas, and apples are really easy to carry. But I have also found that they do alot in the produce section that is designed for easy transport, so you just have to look around.

At lunch, I will go out with my friend, and we will go for a walk for 30 minutes, before coming back and having lunch. This walk will also be a mile, and this distance I am more sure of. (Although I ended up getting really wet yesterday, when it started raining after I had been walking for only 5 minutes!) After the walk, I will usually have a sandwich for lunch. It will consist of two slices of whole grain bread, one serving of shaved turkey (sometimes ham or chicken, but I prefer turkey or chicken.), sliced tomato, a whole sliced avocado, and low-fat mayonnaise.

Sometimes for lunch I will also bring a beans dish in place of the sandwich. I use beans of all kinds -- and I use the dried kind that I prepare the night before. That way I don't have to worry about any additives. (See my recipe web site.) I will usually put either broccoli, peas, or corn in these dishes. When I do these dishes I don't have to add any thing else for the meal. This is plenty filling, and has something from all the food groups.

For dinner I will usually prepare either a serving of chicken, or a serving of salmon. This I will bake in the oven with either various spices, or sometimes just a little bit of butter with Splenda brown sugar baked in. I will also have a slice of whole grain bread, and a large side dish of veggies. These will vary -- broccoli, carrots, peas, corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes, etc. . .

I will usually try to keep my soda intake down to 2 to 3 cans of Diet Dr. Pepper a day. And I try to make sure that every meal has something -- at least one serving out of every food group. I watch the portions, and make sure they are within prescribed proportions.

I have also found that I allow myself one free day -- which is Sundays, with family dinner. On these days, I have certain rules that I insist I follow. I never get up from the table feeling excessively full. I also have to make sure that there is something from every food group represented on my plate. That way, I don't feel like I have gone off the deep end. But I do allow myself dessert on this one free day.

For dessert alternatives during the week, when I am craving something sweet, I have found that I do well with the fat free chocolate pudding. I also use fat free ice cream for this trick. But I am very careful of when I allow myself to eat these, and the proportions that I eat them in.

As for my upper body exercises -- I haven't added anything of this sort into my program yet. I guess, I am not really sure where to start with this one. Hopefully this covers all the questions I was to answer. As you can see, I am not starving myself. I always feel satisfied food wise, and I never feel like I am depriving myself. Overall, I have found that this has been working. So let me know if anyone feels that anything needs to be adjusted. Basically I have decided not to diet, but rather to change my lifestyle, and my eating habits. This approach works for me, and it makes me feel like this is something that I can maintain.

Thank you for all of you, and all of your support. Talk to you all soon!

Me.

New Places To Walk

I finally feel like I have crossed over into the getting serious category. I am usually walking twice a day now, once in the morning, and once at lunch. I am finding that I am feeling so much better. I am thinking clearer, and I find that my afternoon walks have really helped to reduce my stress level at work, and help me get through the afternoon, without that afternoon drag. My knee pain is pretty well gone, except for when I am getting up from a really low seat, or the floor. And my energy level is increasing!

I have been struggling with getting bored with always seeing the same old stuff when I walk, and it was starting to frustrate me, however. So I started doing some investigating. And thanks to a great website I found, Utah Walks, I came across some fun new places to explore! This is a great website for promoting a healthy Utah! It provides a calendar where you can track the miles that you walk, and it will also graph your weight change as you progress! They have an entire section of maps as well that have great ideas for new, and different places to walk! It is really a great site to look into.

So for today's walk I used one of the Golden Medal Mile courses. These are tracks that were set up for the 2002 Olympics, as part of the get healthy Utah program. And I am able to track all my new walking in the website's Walk Tracker that tracks how far you walk each day. The track I used today was the Jordan River Parkway. It is a great little walking course because it is off the beaten path. There isn't a lot of traffic, and it runs parallel to the Jordan River. It is exactly one mile, so it is easy to know how far you have gone, and they have provided mile markers along the way. I know this track has been extended significantly. But it is a wonderful, paved course, with the sound of the running water, and the wildlife.

This has given me a whole new incentive for trying to locate new places for walking. I am excited about what I have found, and I am looking forward to trying out new places, and seeing new sights!

My Body is Finally Adapting

My body is finally starting to play nice. And things are definitely improving. I was in to the doctor's office yesterday, mainly because of this stupid cough. And all that aside, things were looking real good on the diet side.

My blood pressure is coming down (116/80), and my sleep is finally improving. I also find that my energy level is starting to go up during the day, and I am not in nearly as much pain. My knees are feeling much better, and the pain in them has become much less. I am even starting to be able to tolerate stairs much better (not that I ever think I will be running flights of stairs again for my exercise -- or any thing.) But I find that my muscle tone is getting better, and my knees are moving easier. I also find that I am just generally feeling better.

The doctor thinks things are looking real good, aside from the stupid cough that the antibiotics will take care of. So overall, the improvements are finally starting to kick in. I feel much better about how things are going. It is really a good feeling to be able to go outside and go for a short walk, and actually enjoy it now.

Also, the doctor encouraged me to keep working. She said as long as the cough was not inhibitory, and I didn't have a fever -- there was no reason to stop the exercise. But I have to be cautious on the days that my body is really dragging, and I am having a hard time moving, as those are days that I need more sleep, and my body probably needs some healing.

Illness, and Successes!

It has been a couple of days, due to illness. It seems I managed to come down with the same thing the whole family has. Summer colds, compounded by allergies. But I am pleased to say that even through that I have managed to stay on target.

I have worked real hard to stay with my appropriate meals. And even though I don't eat as much because I have been asleep for the last couple of days -- I have been really careful when I do eat. I have managed to get some walking in, but I have had to be careful -- due to the fatigue. This illness has left me really tired all the time.

However, the great news is, I am happy to report that I am down 6 pounds! So I am feeling really good about that! Nothing feels better than seeing that all the hard work is actually having results! Hang in there everyone! You can make it!