Back on the horse.

I took two weeks off from the blog world and I'm back now! I was just waiting to get all test results back so I could update everyone on everything at the same time.  The surgery went really well and I spent my recovery days resting and watching WAYYY too much tv; mostly Duck Dynasty, Big Bang Theory and Girls.  Imagine my pain-medicine filled dreams after watching those all day?? Uncle Si and Sheldon Cooper built a beaver-dam-destroying-robot-
boat...

I had my final post-op exam yesterday and got a 97% clean bill of lady health.  I had more lesions and polyps than my OB had initially seen but she was able to take care of them all and send them off for pathology testing.  Thankfully, everything came back negative:  no cancerous cells and no real abnormalities in the tissue.  Now the only thing we'll still be addressing (hopefully) is the hormonal side of things that have me covered in zits and looking like a 7th-grader before the first school dance.  I've healed well and just have to follow up for some final labs in 90 days.  I really appreciate that so many people took time to check on me that week. It really touched me.  It's funny who you hear from when things like this pop up; and even more peculiar who you don't hear from.

So just a couple days post-op I took by self back to the gym with Big A.  I couldn't really lift so we did a makeshift spin class on the bike which was a lot of fun and got us a lot of strange looks from the people around.  It was just what I needed even though I was absolutely spent the next day! I've slowly worked my way back in and I'm back to my routine now...with one change...this girl is starting to do 3 training sessions per week now! I'm trying to get down to the XL by the end of the summer! In addition to the Redskins shirt, I ordered my jacket (specifically for the Washington trip) in an XL.  There's work to do!! My butt and legs have gotten memo but my gut has not!

Let's talk about the pounds then shall we?  

So my sweet husband drove me (in my cloudy state) all the way to my WW meeting the day after my procedure to I could see my team JAG girls and weigh in.  I was up 1 pound. :(  I wasn't destroyed or anything b/c I was still swollen, etc. No biggie. It was just important that I was there even though it was only for 2 minutes.  The following week (last Wednesday) I lost 1.6 pounds! And......this Wednesday I had a loss of 4.2 pounds!! I was so excited! I won't have a week like that every time, but that really helped motivate me. The team JAG girls have lost well over 70 pounds total now! That brings my current weight to 260 even. (When I posted my first blog in October, 2012, I was at 287 pounds.)  I have some ups and downs in there; and I calculated last night that I have lost 23 since starting with my trainer.

What's next?
I still plan to participate in the 5k here in a couple of weeks with my friend.  (You can sign up too - www.hoosheal.com)  I can easily cover the 3.2 mile distance now at a slow pace.  This first one, though, may be more walking that running.  I'll keep building up and doing more though and eventually I'll be able to run a whole race!

I started two to grad. classes last week - taking two together is insane, but I'm maintaining.  My social life will suffer but that's ok. At this point, as long as I get in husband time, homework time, and gym time each week I'll be ok.  Hopefully my friends and family understand - and I think they do. I know many of them want this for me as much as I want it for myself, which is awesome!

Other bits and pieces
Basketball season ended for the year when my Hoos lost in the NIT round of 16 Wednesday night.  I'm totally bummed but I know both our men's and women's teams have so much potential! The good thing is that an end to basketball means two things: more baseball!! and spring football!! Speaking of football...REALLY Dallas?? I'm now convinced that Jerry Jones has finally lost his damn mind. Six more years for Tony Romo at $108 million? "He's a franchise quarterback!" people say. He's going to dump your franchise in the pooper I say.  I can't believe I'm saying this - but Dallas' fans deserve better.   Now...Hail to the Redskins!

Snow must make people crazy.

Here's a funny for you.  It's no secret that I'm working to get healthy but I try not to talk about it obsessively at work, etc. unless I'm asked.  The exception to that is my friend Ana - to whom I blabber all day long!  Anyway, part of that is because I'm sure other people don't want to hear it all the time and I work in a shared space. That's one reason I blog - if you want to know, great! -If not, that's okay too.  

Someone did ask me how things were going recently within earshot of some other folks that I know, and I was happy to report my progress.  I was also talking about the minor surgery that I have coming up next week.  (I'll get to those details in a second.)  Well I heard out of one ear the other folks talking (thinking they were whispering) as we were finishing up and here are the key words you need to know:  Angel. I heard. be honest. lap band. gastric bypass. everyone knows.  

I let my friend leave and I piped up and asked - "What's going on? Who's having a lap band?"  -And the response I got kind of shocked me: "Well I heard you say you're having surgery for 'female issues' but isn't it for weight loss? I just assumed it was."  Really dude, you just assumed I wanted/needed to have gastric bypass because I'm fat? Come on.  Oh, and also, I COULD HEAR YOU TALKING ABOUT ME BECAUSE I'M 10 FEET AWAY.  Why would I lie about my medical issues to cover up a weight loss surgery?  Nuts. People are nuts.  So who knows who else they told and what they told them because they seem to enjoy spreading things around.  What is wrong with people? The other thing that bugs me is that they were talking about these surgeries like they are frivolous and that the people who have them are sooooo horrible.  That is so wrong.  First of all, there is nothing wrong with seeking medical help if you truly need it.  I know people whose lives have been drastically improved by lap band and other procedures.  It's also very serious and it's not an immediate fix; and there are many post-operative changes that have to be made in order for things to work out.  I know that something like that is not for me right now, but I don't judge others who do need that option and you shouldn't either.

On to my actual procedure.  I while back I posted that I was checking in to my overall health and that I may have some medical obstacles that would pose a challenge to my quest for a lighter me.  Well first, here's the good news:  My thyroid levels and blood pressure are much improved since October. I am no longer medicated for either issue. 

 (Oh, almost forgot my warning for the men - I'm about to use the words estrogen, menstrual, uterus and cervix now.  Avert your eyes if you can't deal.) 

Here's the bad:  my hormones are nutty, my menstrual cycles are wayyy out of control, and I am making too much estrogen.  We're on the road to fixing that.  After exams and ultrasounds, my doctor discovered lesions in my cervix and lower uterus and those jerks have to get the boot.  I also have developed endometriosis and that jerk has to go too! I have the worse uterus party guests ever.  Next week, the party is over.  My doctor will be doing two procedures (at one time) to take care of all of that.    She'll also send off the lesions and such to pathology to make sure everything's okay.  Hopefully that will help re-start my little estrogen makers and that, combined with continued exercise and weight loss, should help my levels.  It should definitely take care of the daily pain that I've been experiencing for quite a long while.  If all goes well after a few days of rest, I should be back at work and back in the gym getting after it! It seems fairly straight forward, but I'll still gladly take any prayers and good thoughts you'd like to send my way!

Version of Burpee

I didn't weigh in at WW this week - we were snowed in without power. Yuck.  What I DID do, though, was work out in my living room.  Big A called folks out on Facebook and put out a 'workout' we could do at home and he expected us to post our times.  Well with text message support from him, I did it.  The assignment was:  10 sets of 10 (so 100 reps each ) of 5 different exercises- sit ups, push ups, squats, jump squats, and Burpees.  Oh. Dear. Lord.  I did have to modify the Burpee part because I thought was going to die, but I did all 500 reps.  It took me roughly 30 minutes.  I think the fact that it was 48 degrees in our house and I wanted to keep warm helped me through.  I was all excited that I finished and it didn't take 3 hours...until I got the text message from him with his time:  13 minutes and 33 seconds.  Dang. I've got work to do!  I still think it was cool though that a. he even wanted to motivate us on a snow day and b.  he did it too.  Very cool.  By the way, I was the only person that did it that we know of.  

I guess that is plenty for tonight. Too much even.  Have a fabulous weekend everyone! 

Don't Give Up....Don't Ever Give Up.

As my friend Nita would say.. "So there I was...."  on the treadmill tonight in the gym. My goal tonight was a 30 minute session walking for 45 seconds and running for 1:15 (alternating).  I wasn't really tracking distance tonight I just needed my tired legs to complete a good 30 minutes with no pauses to huff and puff! I was doing well, listening to my secret husbands Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z and watching Sportscenter on the tv.  At 5-10-15-20-25 minutes I felt ok. Tired, but ok.  Then I started to slow down and sweat got in my eye and I said to myself "Self, you're good - go ahead and slow it down and hop off."

Then I looked up at the TV.  ESPN was marking the 20 year date of Jim Valvano's speech at the ESPY  awards.  There was a man who knew he was dying, could barely walk and still he managed to get there and inspire others.  I had to finish the 30! So I kept going and going for those last minutes while I watched the speech.  If Jimmy V can do what he did then, I can shuffle my sausage feet for 4 more minutes.  If you're not a huge sports fan, you may not have ever seen the speech.  You should check it out: http://www.jimmyv.org/about-us/remembering-jim/jimmy-v-espy-awards-speech/ .

We'll see how training and weigh-in goes this week. I feel like I've eaten nothing but carby carbs this past week.

Yes, yes I did.

I took the day off from the gym today (after completing my first 3 mile run/walk yesterday and still going at night to do upper body stuff). And I ate Cheetos after I finished writing my paper today. My fingers are still orange and I'm not sorry.