14th July 2014 Going back down 99,7 kgs (219.34 lbs)

I have had an operation on my wrist for OOS last Friday so have not been to the gym. It has a few good points beyond having a more comfortable wrist when it is healed; it is difficult to get some food one handed so I am eating better and less again, also regular panadol means I am drinking more which is also good for my body. I was often forgetting to drink enough so am now getting back into that habit again. I had a bad habit of not drinking enough earlier in the day (it goes back to when I was doing morning shifts as a nurse) and that has a flow on effect down the other end of the body. Much better now.

They usually do both wrists at the same time but as Mum's carer I refused that. As it is she has to do some of the things I can't do. I take them to her mostly: vegetables that I can't prepare, pillows that need covers on, washing to fold etc. She helps me wrap my hand in a plastic bag and tapes it so I can shower and does my bra up for me. Together we are muddling through. My eldest younger brother came over the day of the op and looked after Mum. He cooked a lovely beef roast for tea and cut my food up for me. My middle younger brother took me to and from the hospital. Family there when you need them, brilliant.

I think the weight loss has come from the difficulty in getting the food so I am eating less (e.g. not nibbling) and also with only using one hand you have to do more walking to put things away etc. I want to be back to the gym on Wednesday on the treadmill and/or Exercycle at least, maybe some ball squats and abdominal exercises too. The weather has finally improved a little; no gale force winds and only the occasional shower instead of torrential rain. We did wake up to the thickest fog for many years though. I have done a lot of reading over the weekend so might go for a walk to the library today to get some extra exercise in. That is something I can do if the gym doesn't work for me; long regular walks around our area.

Here are some good reasons to get fit and reduce your size if you are too big. These are all things I find are coming back into my life. I had the first weekday writer's group last week and there were 12 of us altogether which is a good size for a group that wants to write and grow by being critiqued by others also hoping to write better. We all come to the group with different skills so it can hopefully be a growth experience. I would love it if we all get published at some stage. I am learning a lot already as I do preparation for each group session so that can only be helpful. We are going to try fortnightly at first and see how that goes. Building my confidence with the lessening of my weight has helped immensely.

6th July 2014 Yo yo weight at the moment

Winter has struck in New Zealand and the temperatures are heading downwards. Lower down the North Island and parts of the South Island have had snow in the last week. In fact I have just put my fingerless gloves on and the fan heater going to warm up my room. I was chilling down. At least the shortest day (or longest night depending on the way you look at it ) is over. We are on the upward rise to more sunlight. I find in winter that I want to eat more and exercise less so it can be an uphill battle even now. I don't get SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) syndrome but I have family and friends who show it more .

I find that getting up at the same time and going to the gym, as I am this year, is helping me though. Saying that; our upstairs neighbours (young) were disrupting our sleep and I found that for a couple of weeks I only made it to the gym about 3 times a week and I ate more to get some energy. This of course showed up in a weight gain of 1.5 kg. I have lost most of that again but it annoys me that it occurred. I have only one week to my 1st year post-op anniversary and I wanted to be lighter than 97 kgs. Today is a new day though and I had 90 minutes at the gym this morning and got the endorphin buzz so must have worked hard enough. I'll be there tomorrow. I might even start getting up at 7 a.m., going to the gym a bit earlier and coming home to do some writing on my children's novel each day. I find I seem to write at 1000 words per hour. I would love to get published when it is finished so here's hoping.

Doctors, dietitians and new age gurus all emphasize that a regular life is best for you. It is called a circadian rhythm that our body works to and some times are better than others to do things. They have found that even the time you take medication or chemo can make a major difference in how it effects your body. One of the people I read said that your day should start at 6.30 am and you should be in bed trying to sleep at 10.30 pm every day including the weekend. If I find that recommendation, in full, again I shall post it on this blog.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circadian_rhythm

My friendly librarian wondered if I would be interested in starting a weekday writer's group at the library. i was already attending one there once a month on the 3rd Saturday but she thought that a weekday one might be good for those who are unable to attend a weekend one. She put up a poster in the library I put a notice in the local free paper and it looks like we shall have people on seats this coming Tuesday. I have taken a number of phone calls from interested people. I want to use the first day to set up what we want to happen within the group for us as writers. This blog is one of my forms of writing. I have entered into The BNZ Literary Awards in the Short, Short category and the Novice Awards this year again. It's practice if nothing else. I also put 2 poems into Poems4Peace but didn't get chosen. A person I know did though so good on them. Last year I would probably not had the confidence to start up a writing group so my weight loss so far is creating all sorts of changes in my life.

Winter garb makes you look bigger with the layers you have on. By summer I will be smaller yet again and might shock you with a swimsuit picture if I look good then.I got my hair cut short in an urchin cut last week. I have a home color pack in my bathroom cupboard to take my hair back to brown when I get time to do it properly. The last color was too blond and it looks a bit coppery still from the color before that. I scored 1 jumper, one top and one flash singlet top for $15 altogether the other day so I am happy.