Peeking Out of the Broom Closet and Getting Off the Broom

Bust: 40.5
Waist: 36
Hips: 38.5
Half an inch each off the bust and the hips, waist is the same.

Diet was shot to heck this week. I was submarined by chocolate and candy corn. I have gotten it out of the house, so this week will be better. 

I have a mandatory luncheon with state legislators at work this week and will be bringing red velvet and cream cheese brownies and blondies, but I intend to use stevia in place of sugar. I'll let everyone know how they turn out. The menu is chicken spaghetti, so once again, I'll have to bring a microwave dinner (Amy's). We have these luncheons once a month, and they have yet to select a menu that everyone can eat. Why not a baked potato bar?

The mini challenge for the week was to examine the reason(s) for participating in this challenge. Self examination. OK.

A year ago I weighed over 200 pounds (15 + stone for friends across the pond).

I'm 5" 1". I looked like a refrigerator with a head. I wore a size 2X.  I wheezed when I walked. My doctor wanted to remove my gallbladder, my liver functions were bad, my cholesterol was too high, my blood pressure was too high, my arthritis was spreading, and I was bordering on type two diabetes. I was "4F"--Fair, Female, Fat & Fifty-something. I couldn't see my feet. I hated shopping for clothes.

Then I flew to Phoenix to see my little sister.  She showed me the little gizmo that had helped her take off her post surgery weight gain: a device from http://www.bodymedia.com/

I decided that my goal in 2011 would be to get to a size 10.  I invested in the program and equipment.  I knew what I needed to eat and began walking. The computer program keeps me honest.  I started an herbal supplement routine to deal with the liver-gallstones-cholesterol-boodsugar issues. (The doc said they wouldn't work. I said I'd retake the tests in 3 months).

 I am at a 10/12 trouser. I still need a Large size in shirts, usually. I still need to tone the upper body and whittle down the waist. I still wear the body sensor and try to eat well. And I find that I like walking. I don't mind getting up before dawn and walking.

Sometimes I wonder about hereditary insanity.

Holidays (for the poor) are about food. We can't afford a lot of "things", but if you can feed the family and guests, then psychologically, you improve your self-image ("at least we have a good meal"); in short, you feed the body and the ego. The traditional foods during the holiday tend to boost serotonin (that "feel-good" hormone). Being "working poor" (living from paycheck to paycheck), I tend to cook way too much with cream gravy, desserts, and home-made candies, cookies, etc. for friends and family. I think being poor equates a full belly to love in some fashion. And I have been poor or working poor most of my adult life.

The government classification still places me in the "working poor" catagory. I will still cook a big meal and feed a lot of the elderly in my neighborhood (with enough for a take-home meal).  I will have a second family meal with relatives later in the weekend. But I will try to cut back on high fat ingredients and make sensible substitutions where I can. I will bundle up and keep walking.

None of my winter clothes fit, so I will have to go shopping, which I still hate to do. My mindset hasn't changed there. i don't care for the colors or styles right now. maybe I should "do a Steve Jobs" and get a signature shirt and trousers. Unfortunately, I have Champagne taste and a Kool-Aid budget.

Oh, my blood sugar is fine. Ditto the liver function, cholesterol, and I still take one prescription for hypertension. I still have my gallbladder. The arthritis is mostly in my hands and shoulders. I still take my herbal supplements. My doctor shut up about them.

And I joined the challenge because I thought it was a good idea. I wanted more motivation. I wanted to find new friends with similar backgrounds. I wanted to help, if possible.

Now, I think I'll take my 90 year old mother out to breakfast and then go shopping with her..