Cars, Compliments, and a little gym-pool-OCD

Hello, hello. Things are good here- I got a brand new car and I LOVE it! It was quite a whirlwind week of test driving cars, making decisions (difficult for me), haggling with the car salesman over price (I did good!), cleaning out my old car, and getting insurance, registration, et al., in order.

It was all worth it because...

I LOVE my new car!

It's fancy!

Isn't it beautiful? And the inside is so fancy, too!

In other news, I am doing great with my new, healthy lifestyle. I worked out for about 45 minutes today on the Elliptical and then ventured into the weights/machines/resistance training and did a little muscle work. And then, because I am turning into a gym nut, I swam for an hour.

I made a new pool friend. His name is Eddie and he is quite a swimmer (and quite good-looking!). Anyways, we chatted a little bit at the end of the lane. Turns out that I'm not the only one who thinks the pool is kind of dirty. Eddie and I banded together to *encourage* the gym to clean the pool. I'm hoping it happens soon because I love to swim but I'd prefer a sparkling clean pool!

My blood sugar is good. Averaging 105 in the mornings and 80 in the evenings. I've had a couple of hypoglycemic incidents with my blood sugar dropping too low but I'm getting more aware of the symptoms and trying hard to keep everything regulated. I saw my doctor this week. He was happy with everything but says that I have to lose weight before I can come off of any of the blood sugar medications. He said that if I don't lose more weight, my blood sugar will just shoot back up without the medicine.

It's frustrating because I am working so hard with exercise and eating healthy, counting carbs/calories/protein. I can feel the difference and I have lost some weight (well, 47 pounds to be exact. I guess that qualifies as *some* weight) but only 7 pounds since the diagnosis and total lifestyle change.

A big part of the problem is my thyroid. I was diagnosed with a thyroid disorder in April 2011 and I've been on medication and seeing an Endocrinologist ever since. The thing about having a thyroid problem is that it is directly linked to my metabolism and weight.  You know how some people have *gland* problems that mess with their weight? Lucky me, I'm one of those people. The Endo thinks my thyroid has been wonky for years but it wasn't diagnosed until my hair started falling out and my thyroid grew so large that you can touch my neck and feel it. The thyroid disorder caused me to gain weight to begin with which means that my thyroid disorder, via causing me to gain weight, caused the diabetes. That stinks. And it's making it difficult for me to lose weight. 

But I'm hanging in there- totally motivated and feeling really good, even if the number on the scale is moving so slooooowly.

In other news, I have a thing for movie star sunglasses (i.e., huge sunglasses). My addiction started in college when a roommate gave me an awesome pair of movie star sunglasses. On Friday, I was waiting for a friend to go get lunch down at City Hall in Phoenix. I was sitting outside and, of course, wearing my current movie star sunglasses (black with sparklies on the sides). A woman walked by me, did a double take, turned around, and stared at me. 

She then walked over to me, apologized for staring, and told me she has very similar sunglasses. She then said, "When I saw you and realized we had the same glasses, I wondered if they looked that good on me? I wonder if I look like a movie star, too?"

Movie star sunglasses. Whether you really look like a movie star or not, they are good for the ego (and 

for blocking the sun).

Movin' it!

I'm still moving it- it as in myself. Swimming for an hour twice a week, and 4 days a week spending 60 minutes on the ellipticals/serious cardio. My system right now is 30 minutes on the old school elliptical and then 30 minutes on the total body crossfit elliptical (arms and legs).

The first 20 minutes of cardio and swimming is the hardest, mostly mentally. Physically, I can totally do an hour of hardcore sweating my ass off workouts (especially now that they've redesigned the ellipticals so my feet and tootsies don't fall asleep anymore- that used to be the worst part about using the elliptical).

Mentally, I have to dissociate a little in order to stick it out in the pool and on the machines. I try to just stop thinking and when I can get to that space, no thinking, only focusing on my body and breathing, I can stick it out without issue. I also use narratives with myself, in my head, while working out, to remind myself why I'm doing this. For health. For life. For ME.

I tweaked my knee in the pool on Tuesday, it's finally starting to feel better and only gave me some weird twinges at the very end of my workout today. I took Wednesday off of working out to try and give my knee a little breathing room. Back to working out on Thursday and I've been very consistent. I'm proud of my self. Slightly irritated that my weight isn't falling off like on the Biggest Loser, I have to work my ass off for every ounce. But it's really not about weight, my weight is the lowest it's been in 10 years. It's about blood sugar and overall health.

Blood sugar-wise, things are very confusing. I just can't predict where my blood sugar is going to be at any given time. The good news is that it's low and even the highs aren't too highly concerning (highs currently are around 135 in the mornings, still over 330 points lower than the day of my diagnosis- 471- yikes). My evening levels are starting to get too low (as low as 72-82) and that is good news for getting off some of this medicine soon. Next doctor's appointment is on Wednesday morning.

Eating is going really well. The Lose it! program on my phone is a life-saver in keeping track of my carbs and nutrients. Plus, my mom sent me a George Foreman grill and a new toaster oven. Haven't used the toaster oven. Friends that know me well already know that I am afraid of appliances and electricity. And I haven't had a microwave in 13 years. I think they are scary. And yes, I am afraid of the new toaster oven.

I am afraid of the GF grill, too, but I conquered my fear today and used it. As a vegetarian, I am super excited about using the new grill for grilling vegetables! Today I grilled fresh asparagus, fresh green beans, and fresh red and green peppers. I added them to my high protein, low-carb after workout lunch of egg whites and mushrooms and fresh avocado. It was an awesome lunch! Really yummy, with less than 40 carbs (who knew that asparagus and green beans have so many damn carbs?! But those are good carbs, right?!).

Overall, I'm doing well! Really kicking ass, still totally motivated, and getting healthier and stronger every day. It's easier on the weekends, both working out and eating, but I've been working hard to keep things consistent during the work week, too. My goal is to kick diabetes' ass right out of my body.