Yay! Hubby's back! And looking much skinnier though probably not from what he ate on the trip, he definitely wasn't being primal. I really need to toughen his palate to spices and heat so he can go on these trips and eat authentic foods without heart burn and other problems. Though, I have to agree with him, naan is yummy!
Its nice having him home, though we have slacked a bit in the cooking department. But after being home only a day he suggested we try a Whole30!! Seems he's been mulling over his health and how he's been feeling lately and decided he needs to do...something...and I've been going on about primal and Whole30 now for a while and have been trying to stick to it with some noticeable results so he wants to give it a shot as well. I was shocked! Tomorrow we both go in and get blood work done (I really pushed this because I think if he sees results in black and white it might help him stay the course for more than 30 days) and then Sunday we are going to start Whole30!
I'm excited. While he was gone I was eating very close to a Whole30 diet with the inclusion of some dairy. I noticed a huge change in how I felt mentally though I had a lot of trouble falling asleep at night. I think I wasn't getting enough physical exercise. I only lost 3 pounds though, which depressed me as I was hoping to lose more (and no, my clothes don't fit any different either.)
It will be very hard for hubby, he'd live on cheese, crackers, and beer if he was allowed. He's also gotten into a horrible habit of drinking Crystal Light mixes instead of plain water, those will have to go as well. Its going to be stressful for him but I think he will find it jump starts his weight-loss and will improve how he feels. Hopefully that will be enough to keep him on track for the full 30 days. We will have to get through 4th of July (shouldn't be that hard) and a family reunion (really really hard...not sure if we'll make it through that) so there will be some major obstacles. But heck, if it was easy it wouldn't be as much fun, right?
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Friday, June 24, 2011
Feel the burn...
One of the great benefits of the standing desk: leg work outs. While waiting for a web page to load I'll do leg lifts or squats. While reading through long pieces of texts I'll do toe-raises. Sometimes I jog in place, or stretch, or balance on one foot. It seems like, even though I'm surfing the web, I have to be motion and I'm starting to notice a slight difference in my legs. Its small, there is still a lot of flab to burn off but its there. I love the standing desk!
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Updates
Haven't been online much what with all the doctor visits, sunshine, and hectic chaos that has been life lately. Do have lots to share though!
After several visits to the pediatrician we were referred to an allergist and found kiddo is sensitive to milk, egg white, soy, cats and dogs. We've spent the last week keeping all dairy, eggs and soy out of her diet and the hives and swelling have nearly disappeared. We also scrubbed the house down and gave the cat and dog a bath. We go back to the allergist tomorrow and I believe we'll add back one food item at a time to see what the culprit was. I am hoping we can add back some dairy, its been hard not cooking with butter or cream. Thankfully I have a supply of rendered bacon fat and coconut milk, but it just doesn't taste the same to us grown-ups. Kiddo hasn't seemed to mind though.
Kitty is getting older and crankier and has been refusing to let us brush him or clip his nails for months. We finally gave in and went to the vet for a sedative. Everyone at the office loved him (helps that he's roughly the size of a St Bernard puppy-this cat is huge!) and we got a prescription for Ace. A couple of those and he was one relaxed feline-which was good since his nails were atrocious. He probably lost a pound of fur and after a bath is back to his sleek, shiny self. Wolf-dog also got a brushing and a scrubbing, its amazing what a good brushing can do at this time of year. He was getting a very dull, yellow-ish tint to him but now he's silvery again.
I gave up on my pepper and tomato seedlings, they're dead and no amount of coaxing and watering will bring them back. Hubby surprised me with big plants from Bi-Mart to replace them and suddenly my garden is looking green and bushy. I also transplanted the lettuce, broccoli, and cauliflower seedlings-it actually looks like a garden now instead of a mud pit! I waited on the corn, squashes and melons since those seedlings are still rather small but did plant a ton of wildflower seeds and bulbs. Hopefully in a couple weeks the house will be surrounded by color and scent.
Hubby has taken off for a work trip so I'm a single mom/work widow for the next two weeks. Since its just me and kiddo (and she doesn't exactly complain about what I cook) we are buckling down to a more Whole30 menu for me, with more carbs for her. Over the past couple weeks with all her health issues I've found hubby and I slacking more and more-to the point I caught myself inhaling Dove chocolate squares last night (and saying with each one that THAT'S IT, only to start unwrapping another piece). Time to nip that in the bud and get back to steak, steak, and more steak!!* I've got a ton of green, leafy stuff in the fridge and a freezer full of meat. Long live fat!
Incidentally, if anyone has an awesome recipe for chicken thighs I'm all ears. I've burned through all of mine and I think the birds are multiplying, every time I think we've finally finished all the chicken thighs I find another 4 or 5 packages hiding behind a roast LOL!
*We probably aren't being as bad as it feels but when you have as much weight to lose any slip-ups feel like complete failures
After several visits to the pediatrician we were referred to an allergist and found kiddo is sensitive to milk, egg white, soy, cats and dogs. We've spent the last week keeping all dairy, eggs and soy out of her diet and the hives and swelling have nearly disappeared. We also scrubbed the house down and gave the cat and dog a bath. We go back to the allergist tomorrow and I believe we'll add back one food item at a time to see what the culprit was. I am hoping we can add back some dairy, its been hard not cooking with butter or cream. Thankfully I have a supply of rendered bacon fat and coconut milk, but it just doesn't taste the same to us grown-ups. Kiddo hasn't seemed to mind though.
Kitty is getting older and crankier and has been refusing to let us brush him or clip his nails for months. We finally gave in and went to the vet for a sedative. Everyone at the office loved him (helps that he's roughly the size of a St Bernard puppy-this cat is huge!) and we got a prescription for Ace. A couple of those and he was one relaxed feline-which was good since his nails were atrocious. He probably lost a pound of fur and after a bath is back to his sleek, shiny self. Wolf-dog also got a brushing and a scrubbing, its amazing what a good brushing can do at this time of year. He was getting a very dull, yellow-ish tint to him but now he's silvery again.
I gave up on my pepper and tomato seedlings, they're dead and no amount of coaxing and watering will bring them back. Hubby surprised me with big plants from Bi-Mart to replace them and suddenly my garden is looking green and bushy. I also transplanted the lettuce, broccoli, and cauliflower seedlings-it actually looks like a garden now instead of a mud pit! I waited on the corn, squashes and melons since those seedlings are still rather small but did plant a ton of wildflower seeds and bulbs. Hopefully in a couple weeks the house will be surrounded by color and scent.
Hubby has taken off for a work trip so I'm a single mom/work widow for the next two weeks. Since its just me and kiddo (and she doesn't exactly complain about what I cook) we are buckling down to a more Whole30 menu for me, with more carbs for her. Over the past couple weeks with all her health issues I've found hubby and I slacking more and more-to the point I caught myself inhaling Dove chocolate squares last night (and saying with each one that THAT'S IT, only to start unwrapping another piece). Time to nip that in the bud and get back to steak, steak, and more steak!!* I've got a ton of green, leafy stuff in the fridge and a freezer full of meat. Long live fat!
Incidentally, if anyone has an awesome recipe for chicken thighs I'm all ears. I've burned through all of mine and I think the birds are multiplying, every time I think we've finally finished all the chicken thighs I find another 4 or 5 packages hiding behind a roast LOL!
*We probably aren't being as bad as it feels but when you have as much weight to lose any slip-ups feel like complete failures
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Less computer, more standing
For five years I've lived online. My job required me to be on the computer for 10+ hours a day. My employer wouldn't put in a standing desk without a doctor's note, and it was more of a pain to try and get in to see a doctor than seemed worth it. Plus I already had to deal with co-worker envy and a standing desk would have made it worse.
My last month of pregnancy I was put on bed rest due to complications from high blood pressure and other issues; I spent the time surfing the web, terrifying myself with what could go wrong with baby, finding new recipes to try once I could handle being back on my feet, ordering books and baby cloths, just having a grand time...but still on the computer for hours on end.
Fast forward, baby's born and I can't handle putting her down (and after a while she'd cry if I did), the three slings we'd bought were either too big or two small and, finally I got where I would sit or lay next to her all day long. During the long hours while she slept peacefully in my arms I would surf the web one-handed. After all, there are only so many sleeping baby pictures to take, and so many hours of staring at sleeping baby before the attention wanders.
Do you see a habit? Oh yeah, I have a computer addiction. A bad one. On top of that I have low back pain, hip pain and an almost inability to bend and flex. All these years of sitting have done a number on the bod, and its time to take it back!!
This morning I traumatized the poor, cheap wood bookshelf that sits in our den. Moved shelves around, drilled holes, moved books to other places in the house and ta-da!!! A standing desk! The laptop sits at a perfect height for my hands, though I have to look down at the screen. Already I'm noticing some aches and pains in my legs and hips-no doubt the bod is starting to unkink from years of sitting for so long.
It's only been half a day but I've already noticed I'm avoiding the computer. I still fulfill my surfing addiction, and those Farmville animals need fed, but once I'm done I don't sit mindlessly surfing news articles or eBay or any of the other sites I'd go to, just to kill time waiting for kiddo to wake from a nap, or trying not to interrupt her intense independent play.
While I can't say I'll give up internet completely, and with school I can't give up the computer, I can say I've started to drastically reduce the time spent staring at the glowing screen, which will no doubt improve my health in the long run.
Now for some couch stretches!
Don't Go in the Pain Cave
My last month of pregnancy I was put on bed rest due to complications from high blood pressure and other issues; I spent the time surfing the web, terrifying myself with what could go wrong with baby, finding new recipes to try once I could handle being back on my feet, ordering books and baby cloths, just having a grand time...but still on the computer for hours on end.
Fast forward, baby's born and I can't handle putting her down (and after a while she'd cry if I did), the three slings we'd bought were either too big or two small and, finally I got where I would sit or lay next to her all day long. During the long hours while she slept peacefully in my arms I would surf the web one-handed. After all, there are only so many sleeping baby pictures to take, and so many hours of staring at sleeping baby before the attention wanders.
Do you see a habit? Oh yeah, I have a computer addiction. A bad one. On top of that I have low back pain, hip pain and an almost inability to bend and flex. All these years of sitting have done a number on the bod, and its time to take it back!!
This morning I traumatized the poor, cheap wood bookshelf that sits in our den. Moved shelves around, drilled holes, moved books to other places in the house and ta-da!!! A standing desk! The laptop sits at a perfect height for my hands, though I have to look down at the screen. Already I'm noticing some aches and pains in my legs and hips-no doubt the bod is starting to unkink from years of sitting for so long.
It's only been half a day but I've already noticed I'm avoiding the computer. I still fulfill my surfing addiction, and those Farmville animals need fed, but once I'm done I don't sit mindlessly surfing news articles or eBay or any of the other sites I'd go to, just to kill time waiting for kiddo to wake from a nap, or trying not to interrupt her intense independent play.
While I can't say I'll give up internet completely, and with school I can't give up the computer, I can say I've started to drastically reduce the time spent staring at the glowing screen, which will no doubt improve my health in the long run.
Now for some couch stretches!
Don't Go in the Pain Cave
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