Happy Thanksgiving all!

I'm thankful for:
-My family who has always been supportive
-My friends who I can always count on
-My husband who is my rock
-My cat who's a cuddle bunny when he isn't a holy terror
-My home to keep me warm
-My job that even though it has its challenges, is rewarding every day
-My grad classes that allow my paycheck to rise
-My alarm clock that helps me get to said job on time

and lastly, my health. My health hasn't been the best to me this year as I am still battling monthly stomach issues. I am scheduled to go to a GI doc in January. I've stopped all excess fiber I was trying to consume and just sticking to my regular diet.

I am getting back to exercising. I did two nights on the treadmill for 30-35 minutes, getting in two miles at a fast walking pace. Yes, I was sweating. We have two Thanksgivings this year. One is today at my in-laws and one Sunday at my grandma's in Illinois. I'm not overly worried about the eating because I never usually pig out at holiday gatherings....it's when I'm at home that I go bonkers.

Have a happy and blessed Thanksgiving with your families and be thankful for all you have!

A Letter to Me

Dear Me,

I'm going to be frank with you here. You've got to stop letting the excuses run your life. You've got to stop letting food run your life. Do you know how many calories you consumed yesterday? Exactly, because you're not tracking them. By letting food control you, you're blind to everything else. Food controls what you do when...because you wouldn't want to miss snacks in the lounge, right? WRONG!!! Did you need those? How about when you got home? Why do you always go to the fridge/cupboard? When you do, you just grab crap anyway.

You need to get serious. You're health and well-being depend on it. You know your husband is behind you. Look at him running four miles a day. Do you see him snacking all of the time?

And no excuses about the holidays coming up. Remember last year? You kept exercising and watched your portions and you lost weight during Thanksgiving and Christmas. You need to get back to that.

You keep saying I want to weigh under 200 pounds. Well, lately, you sure haven't showed it. I know you've had health issues, but those have mostly cleared up, so what's stopping you?

What's that you say? You. You're stopping you. You're the only one who decides what goes in your body and you've been feeding it crap lately. Seriously...cheese, brownies, chips, bread, etc. And too much of it. It's okay to have one, not three.

And what's with the lack of workouts? I know, you've had report cards, I get that. They're done now and you're free sailing. Get off your duff and sweat. You'll feel better, I promise.

Love,
Me

**Sorry for the discussion with myself, but maybe by rereading it, I'll snap into reality.

Health Update....FINALLY!

Hello!

I haven't been away...I've just been waiting. Here are my updates:

Regular Doctor-Thyroid levels are low enough that she's upping my dose. We will monitor energy level and intestinal movements and go from there. Pap came back normal, so that's always reassuring.

Chiropractor-I had a rib out of place. He put that baby back in place and gave me orders to take Advil and ice it every evening. Being that rib was out of place for over a week, my muscles wrapped around it and now that it's back in place, my muscles aren't. So for the next few days he has be doing that. He also has me limited to walking for the next week. He said that especially since I'm a tae bo fan, any upper body movements like that can easily pop it back out of place. So, unless I wanted to visit him frequently, I need to take it easy on the back. I also talked to him about my intestinal issues. He has me doing an herbal cleanse for the next 10 days. The only reason he's having me do this is because with three months of problems and build up, he said my diet changes aren't helping and my system isn't cleaning out properly. So, I'm giving this a shot. I've learned that fiber drinks (metamucil) are utterly disgusting and my gag reflex has prohibited me from drinking them, so I'm taking a fiber supplement for that part. Anxious to see how I feel after this.

So, that's where I'm at. I feel good about what's gone on and anxious to see if things change. I'm ready to get back into the groove of everything.

Thyroid??

So, I went to my yearly physical today (yes, that dreaded womanly visit) to get my annual done but to also ask about my issues with my health lately. My doctor has a suspicion that my thyroid may not be working up to speed. To backtrack, I am on meds for an underactive thyroid. I have been for about 5 years. I get it tested every year and every year it turns up normal. My doc said that if my thyroid is not functioning appropriately, it can slow my systems down (hence, my intestinal issues). So, I got my blood drawn and will know the results in a couple of days.

Now, before you get all excited for me, she said that may not be the answer. If it's not, then I get to shop in the aisle at the store where everyone over the age of 80 shops....the fiber supplement aisle. She said to make sure I'm getting 25-30 grams of fiber in my diet and then add some additional fiber supplements along with a ton of water (which I already drink due to my kidney stone history).

Awesome. So, granny, what do you recommend....metamucil or benelax? UUGHHHH!!!

I'm hoping to squeeze in some working out tonight, but we'll see how it goes. My back still has a catch in it (get to go to the chiro on Wednesday...FINALLY), so I gotta be careful with what I do. I've got two sets of tests to correct yet, too tonight, so I don't know.

I was talking to my mom on the phone and asked her, "When will I just be normal?" Her response? "Good question!"