A Lot Can Happen In 3 Weeks!

Sorry for my absence! I stopped posting because I got Covid! I was down for several days. Everything tasted weird so I had a couple of days of carbs because it was the only thing that tasted good. 

Right after that we took our daughter to college at the CIA in the beginning of September.

My husband and I ate our emotions. so it didn't go well for the diet. I was at 199.2 on 9/6. So pretty much back where I started after vacation. 

I have been working hard. On 8/23 I started archery! I've had an interest for years! I'll talk more about that in another post. But it has helped me get fit.

On 9/13 I weighed in at 190.4. So I'm making progress! We took my daughters car to her this past weekend and my weight jumped up a little from eating out. I did fairly well. I was at 192.4 this morning.  I'm hoping that will drop off quickly.  I'm just glad I'm getting back on track!! Hopefully I'll be back in the 180's very soon! Hopefully this week!! 

Full Fast Done!

 I did a full fast yesterday. I'm hoping this fast will last about 22 hours or more. I started it at 1pm yesterday. I will probably eat around 10am or so. I was right on target to where I want to be with eating yesterday and I am down to 188.4 this morning! 

I'm already feeling the effects of less carbs in my diet. It has been easier for me to fast. Even though I had a couple of higher days, but no more then 50, I can see that the lower numbers around 20 are quite effective in helping with the cravings. Plus, I've been trying to focus on getting on an exercise routine. I did over 10K steps yesterday and 90 minutes of moderate activity thanks to my archery! Hopefully I can continue in the right direction and be in the 170's again in no time!

Doing Great & Moving Forward!

Doing great this week. Went out with my family on Tuesday and ate out all day but still managed to keep my calories below what I burned and had 50 grams of carbs equalling only 32 net carbs. I do want to stay under 20 but this worked for a fun day out. I weighed in at 193 yesterday morning. So no real change even after eating more carbs and calories. 

Yesterday I had a fast day. I had 512 calories and 16 grams of carbs. I weighed in at 190.2 this morning! That is an 8.8 pound loss since Saturday! Woohoo! Almost back in the 180's!

 

Good Weigh In This Morning!

 Weighed in at 192.8 this morning! Which is awesome considering I was 199 on Saturday morning! I hope to keep up this momentum and hopefully get back to the 180's before these quick drops end! I will say I have been dealing with a lot of pain issues. Again, my feet still hurt. My back has been the worst it has been in awhile. I do fine once I move but it bothers me at night and in the morning until I get moving. I also have been having a lot of pain in my hands which has been fairly new. I've noticed it off and on over the last month or two. My shoulder also bothered me on the trip as I had a hard time with my backpack and had to carry it on one shoulder. I know some of this was the trip but I've walked a lot before and haven't felt quite this soar after. So hopefully taking myself off the carbs will help. I wanted to take the time to document how I was feeling this morning so I can track the pain  and see if it gets better the longer I'm on KETO and to see how my next trip goes when I walk a lot. I am usually tired, I just don't remember feeling as much pain. So we will see how it goes on my next trip at the end of September when I will be gone a week and most likely walking a lot! 

Great Start!

08/19/24 -  I'm having a great start so far! Weighed in at 195.6 so I am headed in the right direction. Yesterday I had under 1500 calories and 27 carbs (Net: 24) . Today I was at 1678 for calories and 30 carbs (Net 25)! That is over 20 but much better than before I left on vacation. So definately an improvement! 

Took A Side Turn - Time For A Reset!!

So as we can tell, I have not posted in awhile. Life has just been super busy and my motivation hasn't been where it needs to be. I was on vacation in Montreal this past week and decided to just enjoy the week with some delicious food! I got home Friday and took yesterday as another day to relax and enjoy. I weighed in at 199 yesterday morning.  This morning I was at 197.6. I was at 189.8 on 8/9/24. I left for vacation on 8/11/24. That is actually really good! We did do a LOT of walking while in Montreal. We visited the underground shopping area and walked 20K steps on Tuesday alone. I'm sure this has helped my vacation gain from being a lot worse!

I am super motivated at this point and am feeling very ready for change. I have noticed that my mood has been just ok, my s. drive is at the mid to low end. It's like I want to but am too tired to follow through and initiate. Most importantly I have been feeling a lot of aches and pains. I am sure some of it is from all the activity this past week but I can't help but feel eating all the carbs doesn't help! My hands have hurt, my back and my shoulders, too. My feet hurt but that is from all the walking I'm sure!

I also just feel less confident, more figity and anxious and just don't feel as good as I was during the better days on KETO. I think the confidence issue is more from me failing and not doing what I need to to get back on track. I am also questioning if my blood pressure may be up now and then. I am considering investing in a blood pressure meter. I have never had high blood pressure, but I know it can be an issue as you age. Definately something I want to consider checking more regularly to be sure I am not having an issue with that. 

I think doing 50 carbs just isn't going to work for me right now. I need to stick around 20. Preferably below that! I want to get to the 160's, which has been my goal for awhile and I have had difficuty getting there. Once I do, I may then consider 50 carbs a day once I see how I feel. I do think when I'm trying to cut my carbs initially I need to do it all or nothing. I think the more I step away from carbs in the beginning, the better start I have. I can honestly say being around the 50 carb mark made it too easy to have a little extra here and there. The beginning is always the hardest for me as I try to get away from the carbs. The craving seemed to stick around longer this time with me being around 50. Many times not really making it that low. So the lower I go the easier and quicker it is to stay away from the carbs. The cravings disappear quicker!

I am also evaluating my exercise routine. In all honesty, I don't have one right now. I found this great exercise app. It provides challenges and you get a medal at the end of the challenge. They have a great app and themes to go along with it. I just signed up today for their Scooby Doo Challenge with my family and a couple of friends. I have to walk 50 miles! It's called The Conquerer Challenge. I will post more about that when I have more time. 

I also want to start trying different things for exercise. I have cancelled my gym membership today as I never seem to get there. I am going to start trying to think of creative ways to walk during the winter months instead. I am also going to try changing things up and incorporating stength training into my routine as I know it's more important the older I get. Here are some of my ideas: 

Archery Twice A Week - Fetching each arrow one at a time for more steps. 

Strength Training Three Times A Week - Including up and down my steps, squats, push ups, Leg Lifts, Etc. 

Tae Kwon Do Once A Week - Practice Patterns

Walking Two to Three Times A Week

So far today has gone well. I haven't calculated everything yet and I know I am over 20 grams of carbs, but I do know I did really well for my first day! 

KETO Effects Journal Day 9

Calories:  1210

Carbs: 72 (Net 48)

Weight: 191.2

Surges: High!

Pain: None

Speech: None

Mood: Good

KETO Effects Journal Day 8

Calories:  1336

Carbs: 56

Weight: 191.6

Surges: Low

Pain: Back Pain This Morning

Speech: A couple

Mood: Good

Yesterday went well with calories and I am slowly edging my carbs down! I am using My Fitness Pal now to track my food as Fitbit yet again took away some options for tracking food when they got rid of the option to log your food on the computer as well as on your phone. 

KETO Effects Journal Day 7

Yesterday was a busy day. I again had way too many carbs. I had 148 carbs & 1848 calories. I really got to get a grip on my carbs. I did have a fun day out with my daughter getting some of the last remaining things she needs for college. I do think the days I have cut back have been beneficial. My surges were high yesterday. I did have a couple of word mess ups and back pain this morning after driving all day to run errands. I find long drives & using the recliner seem to be my triggers for back pain. I will be curios to see if lowing my carbs more will help with that. 

Calories: 1848

Carbs: 148

Weight: Forgot to weigh in. 

S. Drive: High

Pain: None

Speech: 2 incidents.  

Mood: Not great in the morning but better in the afternoon/evening. 

KETO Effects Journal Day 6

 At camp. Weighed 188.8 this morning. Hoping that is fairly accurate considering I'm using a different scale. Calories 1703 carbs 108. Had at least one word mess up. My carbs were high but I tried Fiber One Cereal. Has 33 grams carbs but 18 grams fiber. Figured it's a trade off. But my carbs were too high in either case! I'll definitely do better tomorrow!  I have had periods of anxious/restless sleep last night.

KETO Effects Journal Day 5

 Weighed in at 190.2  this morning.  Calories 1692 carbs 69. It's been a struggle getting my carbs down but I'm working on it. I had two incidents where I couldn't pull my words together. Pain levels were ok. Drive fairly normal. 

KETO Effects Journal Day 4

 Weighed in at 191 yesterday morning. My back wasn't too bad considering I worked in my carport and did a lot of physical work yesterday. No word issues that I can recall. Sex drive was normal. Not low or high.