Reading List

I've been reading several non-fiction health related books lately, and have decided to expand into other forrays again. I took a look at the Modern Library 100 Best Books list this morning, and have checked out William Faulkner's The Sound and the Fury. There are just too many classics I haven't read yet!

State of flux

This morning at weigh in, I gained .7 lbs from yesterday. :( I stayed on the diet, too, with some flexibility in choices. I didn't exercise my usual 60 minutes, but only 35 last night. Do I have to exercise an hour a day to lose weight? Wow.

Since starting and sticking to the Rice Diet, I do feel a little more invincible, like I can tackle harder tasks and do them with more confidence. I also feel a little more self-conscious about my feelings/emotions. I'm used to eating to sooth or celebrate, and I'm not doing that anymore.

Late workout

I didn't get to the gym until 9:30 last night, but was determined to get my hour of exercise in. It paid off, as I was down 1.7 lbs on the scales this morning, and 18.8 lbs overall. I'm determined that the combination of exercise and diet are helping me become healthier. My blood sugars continue to come down, and so do my doses on insulin. I'm becoming more and more convinced to stay the course with this vegan diet, though I may have to have some fish on occasion.

I get daily updates from one of my favorite websites, Hungry Girl, and there was a recommendation for Boca products in today's update. I've checked out their website, and the products--burgers, chili, lasagna, even pizza, sound yummy! Of course, I'll have to watch the sodium content.

George came over after my workout last night, and it was really nice to see him! It was so late, though, that we didn't have much time to catch up.

My car is well now

I got my car back yesterday, all well now. I missed driving it! I was thankful to have Dad's old Lincoln Town Car to get me around, but it is a pretty big (and long) car, a good bit bigger than I'm used to.

Last night, I only got 15 minutes of exercise in, better than nothing but not good enough. Tonight I have a strength training appointment with Heather, and will do cardio as well. I hope the scales will be kinder to me tomorrow morning.

Weekend update

I took my car in to be fixed on Saturday, but they couldn't fix it then, so I returned and left it to be fixed today. George helped coordinate so that I could pick up Dad's old car at the townhouse.

Yesterday, George and I had a relaxing day. We exercised first at Peak Fitness, and after lunch we went to MetroSport to enjoy the outdoor pool. Last night we watched "The Road to Wellville."

I finished the book Fat Like Us yesterday, and found it very insightful, especially about the diet culture here in Durham. Now I'm reading Vegan: The New Ethics of Eating, by Erik Marcus. I wonder if it'll help sway me to stick with the vegan diet I'n currently eating. I still miss cheese a lot, but it was the source of a good bit of my weight gain, I bet. I'm not opposed to leather, furs, and other products made from animals at this point, but the vegan diet definitely seems a lot healthier for me so far.

I'm down 17.1 lbs in 3 weeks on the vegan diet that is Phase I of the Rice Diet Program. Hoping to hit the 20 lb. loss mark by this time next week.

Sense of Adventure

An acquantaince of mine, Debbie, is on her way to China to teach English. I'm so impressed with her for taking the chance and moving to a country with a different culture, especially one where she doesn't know the language herself.

Laura spent 6 weeks in Mexico this summer through a program called AMIGOS, and says she had a great time and improved her Spanish in the mean time. I'm proud of her for doing that. Both Debbie and Laura have really stepped out of their comfort zones, in my book, to have neat and adventurous experiences.

It's made me yearn to improve on my sense of adventure. With working so hard on my recovery lately, I'm feeling very responsible and punctual, and all that good stuff. My new routines have helped me get better, I know. Now, what can I do that's adventurous? What would make a good story? Certainly, being in the hospital was an adventure, but not one I was looking for. Being part of the Rice Diet is an adventure, and a very good one, but it's driving a large part of my structured daily routine now. Hmmm......

Speaking of the Rice Diet, my food choices now are all vegan, and I've been thinking about continuing to be a vegan once I've stopped going to meals at the Rice House. Oh, how I love cheese, but it's been one of my downfalls. I've got a library book at home about becoming vegan, and some of the ethics involved. I'm looking forward to reading the book and learning more. It may give me more motivation to stick with the healthy eating, even though I don't really have an activist personality.

Next goal hit

I was excited at weigh-in this morning to have lost a pound and a half since yesterday. Now I've lost 15.2 lbs. Yay! Right now my goals are in 5 lb. increments, so now I'm reaching for the 20 pound mark. The average weight loss for women at the Rice Diet for one month is 19 lbs, and I'd like to have lost at least 20.

I'm really enjoying the book Fat Like Us. It's giving me interesting insights. I wish I had more time to read these days, but I'm making time, even if it's just a few pages here and there.

In fact, I was going to read during lunch today, as I sat outside to eat, but I ended up being joined by one coworker, then another. It was nice to have company for lunch.

Ups and downs

Last night we have Covenant Group (our small discussion group of ERUUF members) at Jim's new house out in the countryside of Orange County. His house is just beautiful, and the drive out was very pretty. Everyone in the group was there last night, so it was fun to catch up, and we had an interesting discussion.

The only downside was getting home late (after 10 PM), so I opted not to go exercise after I got home. In the future, I should probably plan ahead and get up a little early in the morning for some exercise. This morning I was up a few tenths of a pound, but the nurse was encouraging. She said as long as I stay on the program, small increases may occur sometimes, but will be counteracted by bigger losses. Tonight, it's back to the gym for me!

Yesterday I found the book Fat Like Us in the library, and checked it out. I started reading it last night, and I think it'll be a good read. The author did the Rice Diet Program, and wrote this book about her experience.

Time on the treadmill

Spent 50 minutes on the treadmill for a change of pace last night. I'm a little sore this morning, but it paid off with a little more weight loss this morning. Down 14.3 lbs total now. It felt good to have the long walk, and I'm looking forward to training my body to go longer and faster.

Continuing to exercise

Yesterday afternoon, I survived on the elliptical for a whole hour, am excited about that! Hoping to exercise for an hour again tonight when George and I go to the gym tonight after supper. Unfortunately, the morning scales didn't reward me for yesterday's efforts, but hopefully tomorrow will show another loss. So far, I'm down 13.5 lbs in 13 days, nothing to sneeze at. And last night, I survived dinner at the Mellow Mushroom in Raleigh with George, Henry, and their cousin David. That was challenging, but I had saved my apple and ate it when their pizza arrived. Afterward, I was glad I did it.

After dinner, we went down the street to Comedy Worx, a favorite spot for George and me. It's team-on-team improv comedy, and it's very funny! No matter what my mood going in, I always feel better at the end. It was especially nice to enjoy the show last night after surviving the pizza dinner. (George ordered a saled, though, no pizza. I was impressed.)

This morning, I finished The Rice Diet Solution, was very insightful. I'm looking forward to trying some of the recipes when I get to the stage where I'm cooking my own meals.

Marching on....

I'm still with the Rice Diet, eating breakfast and dinner there, and taking my lunches to go during the work week. I'm glad to have survived this first week back at work, partly because of the extra coordination of the Rice Diet into "normal" life. I'm feeling less tired as well, though I'll definitely sleep well tonight.

I do miss the classes during the day at the Rice House. They were quite good. I've enjoyed telling people back at work about the Rice Diet, though. So far, I've lost 12.6 lbs. Can't wait to hit the 20 lb. mark.

Woohoo!

I hit my first weight loss goal, netting a 10.5 lb loss for the week at this morning's weigh-in at the Rice House. I'm back at work today, and am tired, but will survive the day okay. I look forward to crawling into bed this evening, that's for sure!

Getting closer to first goal

This morning at the medical check-in at the Rice Diet Program, I weighed in and am down 7.9 lbs since Tuesday. I'm looking forward to hitting the 10 lb. mark and beyond. I continue to be impressed with the program, and am enjoying talking to the other participants. I still have my cravings for things like pizza, pasta, and cheese (you'd think I'm Italian!), but so far I'm working through them.

I'm excited about getting back into my exercise program. For three days in a row, I've exercised for 40 minutes! Can't wait to do another 5K and improve on my time.

I'm returning to work on Monday, so this weekend I plan to work on cleaning my apartment and getting my ducks in a row.

The march continues

I've lost a total of 7 lbs now on the Rice Diet! That's since Tuesday. I wonder if I'll hit the 10 lb. mark by the end of my first week. Never thought I'd be eating a vegan diet, which is basically what this is, at least during Phase I.

Last night I returned to the gym and spent 40 minutes on the elliptical machine. I'm trying to work up to an hour of exercise a day, which is what they recommend here. That's a pretty big time commitment, but I need to do it.

More health progress

The Rice Diet continues to be a challenge, but a great one! At my check-in this morning, the numbers continued to come down. I enjoy meeting others on the program--they are very encouraging and inspiring.

Rice Diet

I've been on the Rice Diet for 24 hours now, and am already seeing results. I'm impressed with the variety of food choices, but I'm still getting hungry between meals. I hear that will change. I've lost 2.8 lbs so far. Since this is a low-sodium diet, some of that may be water weight. Looking forward to seeing more changes along the way. My blood pressure and fasting blood sugar were lower this morning at my first medical check-in!

Meanwhile, I made it back to the gym last evening, and that felt great! This morning, I've already done a yoga class, a very good stretch for me.

Getting better all the time.....

Wow, what a difference a week makes. This this time last week, I was waking up from my third night in the hospital, where I was admitted for pneumonia and diabetic ketoacidosis. I was feeling pretty bad when I went in, but and feeling much better now. I stayed at home this past week to recuperate some more, and to get accustomed to giving myself insulin shots for the remaining diabetes. I am hopeful that I can get off insulin in time, with more weight loss and a better diet. I'm almost certain I will start the Rice Diet next week. I'm both excited and nervous about that.

The trip to the hospital was my first trip in an ambulance. I went to my doctor for a bronchitis follow-up (I'd been to an Urgent Care place initially), and she decided to help expedite my admission to the hospital. (Otherwise, I nay have had to wait in the ER for a spell.)

George was really great, taking care of me before the trip to the hospital, and staying with me while there. His mom, Tina, came to sit with me periodically to give George a break. It was nice getting to know her better.