Weight Loss

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Tuesday, May 1, 2012

May Day

I've had nothing really to say in the past few months about weight loss.  I'm very discouraged.  I've gotten some fills, but still can eat plenty.  I try not to anyway, but my life has been so incredibly stressful in the past few months, weight loss just has not seemed like any kind of priority.  I'm hoping things are starting to take a turn for the better, but I have such a long way to go with weight loss.

One of the most discouraging things was being told not to run, that I should be doing resistance training instead.  I can walk, or swim, but no running until I have more lean mass.  It's extremely frustrating because I don't seem to be able to fit resistance training into my days.  I'm experimenting a bit with bits of resistance within my day--not going to a gym, but things like pushups, squats, stuff you can do with a few spare minutes.  But I feel very frustrated that the things that are easiest to fit into my schedule are things that I shouldn't be doing.  It seems like I should do whatever exercise works for me, but apparently not.

It would appear that the past few years have not been good for my lean body mass.  I lost 70 lbs, between the band and running.  That was apparently largely lean muscle that I lost.  Meanwhile, I was in grad school, probably not helping the cause much. Then I got pregnant and had a baby.  More lean mass lost, and fat gained.  And now I have a baby/toddler.  I now know why new moms have a hard time losing baby weight, because it is so difficult to find a good way to fit exercise into the day when you have so many new responsibilities, plus all the old ones.  I'm trying to be creative and flexible about it, but it is very, very hard.

I'm still gaining weight, and depressed about it.  My eating, frankly, needs a lot of improvement.  My restriction could improve, but I just feel really discouraged by my exercise restrictions and limitations and by the band itself.  I recently had a surgical patient who had had a DS (switch) and have really considered whether I should pursue revision surgery.  If I was certain that I was not going to have any more babies, I would do it right now.

So there it is.  My daughter is doing great, 19 months old now and adorable, so much fun to be with.  My job is good.  My husband has been struggling, but is doing a bit better now. I'm just exhausted.

2 comments:

Gen said...

So sorry to hear you are struggling. I do remember how hard it is with toddlers! So hard to fit in time for you. But let me give you some positive news - I had to quit running because my knees were giving me trouble. I was really sad about it, but started resistance training about 18 months ago, and it has done wonders for my body! See if you can find a shorter class, or do 30 mins of personal training. Thats all you need to build muscle, 3-5x per week.

Good luck to you. Most of all, enjoy your baby. It really does go by in the blink of an eye. Best wishes :).

Sparkly Jules said...

Girl, don't be so hard on yourself. You have a lot on your plate. I can't imagine how you cope with all the things going on in your life. Be kind to yourself.

Let me ask you this: Why do you want to lose weight? Don't tell me, tell yourself.

Food is the great stress reliever, I get it. I was at the grocery tonight and I wanted everything I saw--potato chips, goldfish, carmel corn, cheese...oy. But I resisted. Since I broke my ankle, I'm trying to focus on healthy eating working in conjunction with healing, esp as a diabetic. I lost weight while in a non-weight bearing cast. (Of course, I lost my appetite after surgery/anesthesia, so that helped a lot.)

I guess what I'm trying to say is...be healthy first, everything else comes second. How can you do anything if you aren't in good health? Put yourself at the top of the list, for a while. It's going to be okay.

Get the iron infusions, feel better. HUGS. Hang in there.

SJ