Well so much for that plan!

 GAH!! It's the end of MAY! 

There were a few times that I was going to come in and give an update and had nothing to write about so I just said "f" it! 

But I've decided to get serious again so here we are back at the stuff that worked and tweaking the stuff that no longer works. 

Here's the crunch of it all. I'm now 195.1 (at least that is what the scale said this morning), so I have gained 5 lbs since the start of the year. And actually I would think it's more like 8 lbs because that 190 was on a high end of normal for me. 

I had two weight events in the last 6 months worth mentioning here:

I started a workout plan in january and slowly started trying to up my fibe (as per doc) to help improve my heart health. In February I got sick. Like really really really sick with the flu. I have never felt as bad as I did for that week in my life. Many times I thought I might die. I could not eat, keep anything down etc for 2 days straight and as a result I lost 10 lbs in that week. 

Being sick sucks. The weight loss is amazing. I figured, I could start my journey as soon as I could get the strength and motivation to start working out again. It took me almost 6 weeks to get back on my bike and start doing some sort of movement again. Not due to the sickness, but my motivation. My weight did creep back up but it was slow and I managed to stay in the 180s for some time. 

We had a big family wedding in Scottsdale in April so I worked at trying to hit the 170s for that. Didn't make it. I got down to 185 for that and have to admit that holiday was an eating frenzy. We ate, drank and had almost nothing healthy at all! It was a good time. 

I came back from scottsdale and checked my weight thinking it was going to be back in the 190s. It wasn't! I was still at 185.  And here is where I truly screwed up. 

Instead of knowing that the vacation weight would eventually appear, because it always does with me, up to 1 week after I return. I continued with the vacation at home. Eating and drinking whatever I wanted. 

Within 2 weeks of getting back (end of april), I was up to 195. 

I was so uncomfortable in my body. I was so bloated with gas and just feeling gross.  At the start of May I said, enough is enough and I started stripping the badness from my diet and expecting the drops on the scale to follow 

They have not.  

I'm still struggling with bloating but seem to have a bit of a handle on it now that I am taking a digestive enzyme with each meal. It seems to temper the gassy bloatedness. 

I'm eating better. Less food. Getting great sleep. Working out again moderately. 

The scale is not moving. 

I'm frustrated. I'm 54 now (or will be officially in 2 days) and I have never been in a position where I can't lose weight (even a few lbs) when I try. 

Doing the same old things that used to work, just don't work for me anymore. I know it's possibly my hormones and being in menopause are a huge contributor, so I'm going to give it another month and if it's still nothing, I'm going to see my doctor and see if she has suggestions or ideas. 

I really don't want to go the GLP-1 route. Maybe an HRT? 

Goals for 2026

It's been over 6 months since I last posted. Just crazy and amazing how fast time flies! 

 Figured it was a good time to dust off the old vlog and post an update and also a good time to set some goals for 2026. 

As far as an update, there is really not much to report. Summer was good, quiet but nothing earth shattering occurred which is great.  Fall was fine as well.  No news is good news, right? 

I'm still sitting at the same weight I was 6 months ago, which is not good, but at the same time, I'm at least happy I have not gained anymore. 

So I started this morning at 190.1 on the scale. Much higher than I want it to be, but all in all, not terrible given I was 190 just before the holidays began. I managed to get through all the wine, and cheese and bread and goodies. 

With the start of any year, I try to set up some new goals. I am fully aware that new year's resolutions often die within the first month, but it gives me something to at least start and hopefully with any luck, something will catch and become a new norm. 

1. Lose weight. Always the top goal but I do want to shed 15-20 lbs this year. I know my body is more comfortable in the 170s so I want to get back down there. I'm not pushing myself to get into the 160s as I don't think that is realistic right now, but I'd be beyond joyous to see 170. 

2. Work on blood pressure and cholesterol.  At the start of September we managed to get a new GP, which is great as going 18 months without a family doctor was stressful. Bonus, is that it's a female doctor so I feel good having a female entering this new phase of my life.  To reduce my BP and Cholesterol I am trying to add more protein and fibre to my diet and also a bit more cardio. Cardio will not be my focus this year, but I do want to add more as it helps the heart. 

3. Add more strength training and stretching.  I plan to do 2 to 3 strength training sessions weekly. One may be yoga or Pilates but the focus this year will be on strength and flexibility. 

4. Save some more money and pay off CC bills. I do have some credit card bills that I'm not proud of. I can get rid of them quite quickly and I do plan to do that. With hubby planning his retirement in the summer, I want to be rid of any debt and also have some play money so that we can plan some trips. 

5. Drink more water.  This is the easiest of the goals, but seems to be one that I struggle with. I know it's a habit thing and that once I get into the habit of drinking more water it will be a no brainer, but for now, I'm writing it down cause I suck at it! 

I'm hoping I can check in at least monthly and report how I'm tackling each of the goals. 

So, until February..... 

Cold or Allergies?

I've been under the weather this week. At first I thought it was allergies, but now I'm starting to think it's a cold.  Not too bad but I do seem to be dragging my butt more than usual.  No workouts yet this week and I've been in bed by 8pm each night. 

Today, I am feeling more energy so far, but not going to push it by doing a workout. If I feel even better tomorrow, I'll get one in. 

It's my birthday on Friday (53!!!) Ugh. Where has the time gone?  Dare I say, I feel 42? I mean, I do.  I hope that I can feel 53 when I'm 65! 

Recently took up pickleball. All the friends seem to be doing it, so thought, what the hell!?  I've been avoiding it because I never enjoyed playing tennis, but I have to admit, pickleball is fun.  Need to try and get out a bit more often to practice. 

A couple small trips planned this summer. We are going to the okanagan for our annual bike trip with friends. Have rented an airbnb on the beach so it should be a nice break. And then we are flying to Quebec in July with some other friends. Spending a week touring through Quebec City and then Montreal for a few days. Looking forward to it! 

So, I have a vacation goal. I would like to get down to 175 by my Quebec trip. I'd actually be happy anywhere in the 170s but mid mark would be great. 

This sickness that I'm experiencing right now has set my hunger on the back burner. I'm just not hungry so I'm going to take advantage of that and hopefully kick start me into eating more controlled meals and not snacking all the time, as I know it's the snacking that really kills me! 

Just over 2 months to lose 14 lbs. Doable.... but going to be a challenge for sure. 

Still here and still fat!

I can't believe my last post was in November. 

I have had literally nothing to report or write about so I've been avoiding.  My weight is the same and maybe even a bit higher than it was before. Lovely. 

I'm just sick of being fat 

But I don't know what to do about it. I try and I do well for a few days and then I fail and become a prisoner to crap food and crap drinks. 

Maybe, just maybe something can change if I admit it on here. I've never had many readers out there for  this oh so "not interesting blog",  but if there is someone out there that wants to be an accountability partner for me, I'd love it.  

Although in all honesty, I don't even know what I want to be accountable for. Maybe my food? Maybe my exercise?... I don't know... any suggestions?  

I know a few things:

I need to drink more water

I need to eat less calories

I need to move more and more intensely 

It's just so much harder now that I'm in menopause.  Let me know how you have been doing and what's been working or not working for you!  Share your successes. Maybe I can hop on your bandwagon and we can ride this journey together. 

A few improvements

 It's been a few weeks since I posted and I am happy to say that things seem to be improving. Not on track every single day, but better than I was. 

I did really well at tracking my food that first week, but as soon as the weekend came, I forgot to track and haven't really tracked since. I hope to get back to that on a regular basis because it's the tracking that really wakes me up to the reality of what I'm eating during the day.  I tend to forget about the cracker here, piece of cheese there.  Weekends are hard and I'm not going to beat myself up about the fact that I don't track on the weekends right now. If I can be better during the week, that's a plus and maybe the habit will wear into the weekends too. My snacking has been under control for the most part, but when I track I don't tend to track at all so tracking needs to be a goal.  

Exercise has been good. I'm trying to ride the bike a minimum of 3 times as week and I also do my stretching 4-5 times a week. 

We haven't been socializing as much lately which also keeps the social wine here and there at a minimum. 

I started checking my blood pressure again and it's been looking good.  Hopefully sometime in the new year it will start really dropping and I can request a reduction in my medication. 

The sciatica pain that I had a month or so ago is all but gone. I can feel it creep in once and awhile but nothing like it was.  The stretching definitely helped that pain so I need to keep that up. 

One oddity is that after 8 months of no period, I had 2 days of very very light spotting. Nothing that I would have even cared about before but found it odd after so long. I made a note of it. 

Weight was down to 185.5 this morning. It was 189.6 at last post so I'm very happy with that. It has been yoyoing around a bit, but this was the lowest that it's been in a long time. If I can break down into the low 180s then hopefully it won't be long until I see the 170s again. My goal! 

Do the graphics make it more real?

I've been bitchin' and moanin' about my weight pretty much all summer. It's going up, what am I going to do? I'm going to get serious blah blah blah. 

Yet another week/weekend goes by where I start really well, the exercise is improving, but I know that it's the kitchen where the weight loss happens. I am good during the day when nobody is here but when everyone gets home from work, that's when it all blows up. Makes no sense, right?  I'm not the type of person that sits and snacks in a closet away from the judgement eyes. No. I'm the type that eats right in front of you, along with everyone else.  It's when they get home from work and want a snack that I join right in with them. 

Yesterday I tracked my lunch and I was sitting in a good position. Dinner was already planned to be some broccoli/cheese soup and a small salad with chicken. Which we did have.   And if I had only had that, my numbers would have been great and I could have been proud for the day. But instead... 

Here's a snapshot of my food yesterday. I had entered my lunch (first meal for the day) and then stopped. I entered the remaining food that I ate, this morning and above are the results. I overate again.  And what did I overeat on? Carbs... I snacked with my son when he got home from work. I ate pita chips and hummus and after dinner I ate regular sugar yogurt.  So nothing terrible at all, but out of plan and the little nips here and there are what throw me over my numbers and what is in the end, causing my weight gain. 

It's the damn snacking. I have to stop. 

I weighed in this morning and it was so much higher than my last weigh in that the app actually asked me if it was correct? Said that my new weight was considerable different from my last weigh in and did I still want to save the number! 

When I went in to show the graphic of my weight fluctuations?? It's not drastic, I know. It's a change of a little over 10 lbs, but it's the fact that it is just going up, up, up.. Over 12 months, this is what my weight has done.  I had control for a while and it was on it's way down and since the trip to Hawaii, it's been slowly creeping up. If I don't get a handle of it soon, it will keep heading in the wrong direction. 

I know I have to get serious. I know it's habits and I will break out of them. I'm hoping that looking at a few graphics that truly tell the story, will help me move forward in the right direction, because what I'm doing now, is not working. 

The Dreaded Sweats

It's been a while since I posted because there has been nothing to report.  I know in the back of my mind that this blog is for myself and to keep myself accountable so I need to be better about keeping it current. 

Here is my current. I have lost nothing, in fact I have gained. I saw 191 on the scale on sunday night and just about broke down and cried. 

Back in the spring I had worked hard to get in the mid 170s and I was proud of myself. I did the work to go on a spring holiday with the family. We went on the vacation and bam.. the weight just started to pile on during the months that followed. 

I don't think I've been terrible with my eating and although I'm not exercising daily, I have been doing my usual 3 days of cardio/strength a week. Things have not changed. 

Here's the thing.... my last period was April 5th! I've been on the slow train to menopause. It's been 194 days since my last period. So although I haven't done anything drastic food or exercise wise to account for the now 15 lb weight gain, I think I need to come to the realization that the perimenopause/menopause that is happening in my body is likely attributing to the gain and I need to adjust my way of thinking and acting. 

What used to work, is just not going to work any more. 

The last 2 months I have really seen a change in my body, both inside and outside.  The weight I'm sure is a big factor but I think the hormones are also creating a new me that I need to adjust to. 

My body aches more than it used to. I know if I sit on the couch or chair for too long and get up, I'm stiff. It's even gotten to the point where my son asked me why I was limping. 

I wake up multiple times in the night - usually 2 but can be up to 4 times a night with night sweats. 

I get flashes during the day. Nothing terrible and they seem to only last for 20-30 seconds or so but they are there. So much so that I don't think I will be able to wear sweaters this fall. Maybe a cardigan but I'm worried about being a walking oven and not having the ability to easily delayer. 

I've struggled with bad sciatica pain the last few months. Not in my glute but in my calf just below knee. I finally went to the chiropractor and she managed to work out a bad kink in my buttocks. It feels much better but when I sit for too long without moving or stretching, the pain starts to creep back in. 

So the old changes that worked so well for me, just don't work any longer. I need to find the new things that will work to keep this body moving and grooving into old age. 

First things first is that I have to get this weight off. It means I need to get back to tracking my food so I know where I am with calories.  I'm also going to focus on eating more protein as I know that I need more protein to help strengthen and build my muscles. 

Another thing I've started doing, mainly because of the sciatica pain, is to stretch daily. 15-20 minutes. It's been so helpful. My body is so tight but I have seen some improvement in just a week of stretching daily. 

Lastly, I need to reduce my alcohol intake. I don't drink a ton but on the weekend I really do enjoy a couple glasses of wine or a cocktail before dinner. It's just been part of my life for so long and it's just what we do when we go out with friends or have dinner parties. But I'm noticing that my sleep is much better on nights where I don't drink anything.  So I will need to make an effort of reducing my glasses of wine. 

So here's to getting old. *raising my glass of water*