Annual Checkup

Wow,

I seem to be really good at taking a year off of this thing. I'm sorry y'all. No more of that. It's just that I'm pretty busy. Since I last was on here, I have been keeping myself going. I am still a ghostwriter and working on some projects of my own (when I find the time.) I also do audio, host a podcast, and am going to start a craft blog because we do a TON of crafts, so be on the lookout for that one. Life of Xaoc will go back to being a story about my crazy life and more of an online journal for anyone to follow the crazy things I do. I'll still post stuff about music, movies, life, work, exercise, food, crafts, photography, you know, pretty much everything. I like to keep busy. So, stay tuned for new blogs and even more Xaoc (which, if you are wondering, is Russian for chaos) because Xaoc is my life.

Thanks for you continued following. I do appreciate it.

-MK

Inches Matter or a Matter of Inches

Guys!  I can not begin to tell y'all how important it is to ditch that scale and find other ways of measuring your success.  And I say success because that is what you will get.  A slight up fluctuation can send you into a tailspin and make you feel like a failure, that is the problem with weighing daily or weakly.  I can honestly say that I have NO IDEA how much I weigh right now.  While I'm not altogether comfortable with the shape of my body, I'm learning new ways to use it, to change it, alter it to be the body I want it to be.  I don't care much about society standars, I want to be fit, healthy and strong for me.  Ok, mostly for my poor knees, which actually means I will have to weigh less, but that's kind of like an added benefit to this whole thing.

So today, after my kettlebell workout (which totally kicked my butt today,) I went for my usual 3 mile walk.  It rained a bit so I got a little wet.  I mean, that's what happens when you walk out in the rain!  Anyway, when I got home, I noticed my shirt seemed a little longer than usual.  I figured maybe cuz it was wet?  No matter the case I went ahead and did some chores, showered, etc.  The next shirt I put.....also seemingly really long to me.  Maybe I just never noticed they were that long, but I'm pretty sure when I wore these and put my hands over my head, my belly would hang out. "Hello world, look at me, the grotesque underbelly, behold my pale and flabby fabulousness!"  So I did an experiment.

Bet you can't guess what I did....

That's right, I put my arms up.  Simple test right.  Guess what, no mondo  (thanks for that  name Jessica. I'll never forget it.) So what happened?  My shirt did not come up past the button on my jeans!

For some of you, this may be no big deal, but let me tell you the secret of my extrodinarily long torso.  Finding a shirt to fit is nearly impossible,  so I tend to wear men's t shirts....when those ride up over my gut, it makes me sad.  When my favorite t shirts no longer ride high, I feel amazing. 

I decided to unofficially take my measurements.  I'm down at least 1/4 to a half inch in most of the areas, and something like almost 8 inches in my waist.  I swear I must have measured wrong before because I don't feel like I've burned that much fat away, and I'm still really big, but the changes are happening. 

So don't be discouraged by the scale. Remember there are other ways to measure your changes, even if they aren't so concrete.  Remember, the more inches you move, the more inches you lose.  Am I right? 

Veterans and Physical Therapy

So, today, I went to my first physical therapy appointment.  I met with the therapist, talked over my case a bit, told her what I'm doing at home and did a few strength tests on my knee.  The only place of weakness was when attempting to come down stairs.  I always feel like it's going to give on me when descending.  I can go up just fine, but all my weight on that one knee is a beast.  Essentiall, she told me I was doing great, keep it up. Then she gave me a sheet of exercises to do daily with my other routine. 
And that was the story of my last day of physical therapy.  I just have to be cleared by my surgeon and do my exercises and I should be done with this whole mess!

Today is also Veterans day.  I wore my old school shirt with the military star and stripes and my old unit cap (which I wear every Veterans Day when I can).  It is nice to see all the support for those who have served and are serving today.  It is a voluntary choice for most of us who do join.  I come from a long line of military, and many of my extended family and friends are or were military, or police, or firefighters, or first responders.  All of those people and their families deserve our thanks today.  I have never been a military spouse, but I can imagine the hardship of trying to keep things together on your own while your other half is out their putting their lives in danger.  Same for police persons and firemen.  These people go to work every day without the guarantee that they will come home safely.  You just never know what's going to happen out there.

So each and every one of the people who have served, are serving, or are considering it, you are my hero.  Thank you for keeping Americans free so that they can be outraged by a cup. 

I kid on that last bit, but I'm serious about thanking you and will continue to thank each person I see in uniform out and about, be they service persons, police, fire, or first responder.  Heroes, each and every one of you.

Day 3

So, today I stayed home from work because last night my child thought projectile vomit would make a good room decor.   To say the least it was an exciting, if not terribly restful night.  He still felt kind of blase this morning, so he and I stayed home. 

It was kind of good because I got a lot of research done.  I looked into a lot of programs and diets and even a few apps, basically looking for the tools that would be the most advantageous to me and my current struggle.  I also found a few charts and tracking tools that will help me along the way.

Again, I did no exercise, but I did pay better attention to my eating and found that I snack more than I had originally thought.  I also have an addiction to milk.  I love it.  I may have to cut it back a bit. 

I was going to take my measurement today but I got caught up in a couple other things.  I now have another super huge reason to buckle down and get this weight off.  And I will do it!

I have also been given a task or two that will take my mind off of the incredible  boredom I'm faced with daily.  I've got a mission that engages my brain and that means I'll spend less time eating to cure my boredom.  Less, hmmm, maybe I'm hungry, when in fact I'm not.

So there's where we are on day 3

Unofficial weight loss progress: 5 pounds down
Water intake: two liters

Off we go!

Official progress will begin when I can decide the best time to weigh myself each week.

Day 2 reflections

Today I took some time to think about why I quit last time I tried weight loss.  I quit because, frankly it sucks.  It sucks to remember to log everything you eat. It sucks to push your body.  It sucks being out of breath or sore. To carry around a little notebook or drain your battery trying to input food and workout data into an app on your phone. Sweat.  Sweat sucks.  It sucks because, well, math.  I hate math, I'm no good at math and I severely dislike number problems.  Sadly that's what weight loss is, it's math.  Numbers in vs. Numbers out.  This many macros and micronutrients, if I eat this I have to run one more mile, this this and this will put me over for the day, but wait, this has too many carbs so I'll put this instead. 

I HATE it.

But I'm not going to let that stop me.

Some other issues I've discovered.   One is my job.  I love my job, it's awesome, but I don't move much.  I basically sit at a desk all day.  Plus I can have my phone inside to log (and I've already tried the notebook, I lost 3).  Lastly, I rarely take lunches at work.  I don't go out and spend money on food.  Why? Because my job feeds me.  Sure, it's prison food, but I find myself trying to see food more as fuel and less as a decadent thing.  I just shovel in what I'm given.  The worst part is that I have NO IDEA how to log it.  Not a clue.  I'm not even sure what's in it (sounds terrible doesn't it) But, it's free and I'm hungry so there you have it.

On another note, I found my favorite belt hidden in the back of my closet.  I can't even get it around me.  I have maybe an inch before I can snap it into the biggest possible position.  So, what does this mean?  This means I have a new goal.  A mini one, sure, but I will be wearing that belt by the end of this year.  I realize that does seem like a long time, and I will probably be wearing it much sooner than that, but that's where I'm at with it now. 

I was going to take measurements tonight but then my child started vomiting and, well, that kind of derailed my whole day.  Something about acidic high velocity spatter coming out of him has really put me off.  So I think I'm just gonna try to get him to rest and pick back up tomorrow.

Weight loss progress-- no change