July 12, 2012 Update

Wow! It’s been a long time since I’ve posted but it seemed time for an update. So here it is.

I gave up drinking soda on April 15^th, nearly 3months ago. Since that time, I have had soda – diet (which was my drug of choice) – twice. I still think about having it when I go out to eat but I seldom think about buying it when I stop for gas or head to the grocery store. How do I feel? Well, not really much different to be honest. The biggest difference I’ve noticed is fewer trips to the bathroom. In its place, I still drink my decaf coffee in the morning. In the afternoons & evenings, it’s almost exclusively ice water. Has it helped my weight loss – no. As a matter of fact I gained a couple of pounds but I’m sure that had to do with other issues.

I’ve had a couple of minor flare ups with my eyes, seeing spots and lightning bolts but nothing like the episode in April. I’m monitoring that situation.

I got my CPAP machine finally on June, 21, three weeks ago today. Do I feel better? OMG, YES! IT took a week to get used to. The mask, though small, still hurt my face at first, leaving tender spots that were sore to the touch. Now that I have adjusted, I am sleeping like a baby. Instead of tossing and turning, some times as much as 20 or more times a night, I turn maybe once. I dream again. I wake up refreshed and don’t feel like I need a nap at 10:00 AM. To my husband’s delight, I don’t snore and he is sleeping better too. 

Did I lose weight just from having the mask? No. The first two weeks I had it, the temperatures here were over 100 nearly every day with high humidity. It was too hot to exercise but I had more energy and was able to do things like mop floors, vacuum the stairs and clean the oven without being exhausted afterward. Definitely a good start. 

This week, the temps have dropped to more normal ranges allowing me to start exercising. At 273.4 and after having been virtually sedentary for months, I decided to start slowly. I use my treadmill twice a day for 10 mins each time. It is set at an incline of 1 and a speed of 2.5 – a leisurely walk for most. I carry 1 lb weights in each hand. About five minutes into the routine, my lower back begins to really ache. This is no doubt because I am carrying the equivalent of an entire extra person on my 5’ 6” frame, mostly in the front and around my hips. Today is day 4 of this new plan and I am pushing my way through the pain. I know it will be uncomfortable until I get this person off my back, so to speak.

So the baby steps seem to be working. First the soda, then the CPAP, now the exercise. I’m hoping by the end of the year to post another picture of myself that will show some noticeable changes. Keep coming back to find out, won’t you?