Looking back on these posts, I am impressed by how FAST time passes.  I have been dragging my heels for MONTHS, staying well above 280, fluctuating in the 280s and 290s.  (Mostly staying above 290.)  Thank the Lord I am keeping my thoughts positive and hopeful.  Now I need to keep my actions positive and hopeful as well.  Plan menus from DASH.  Eat what is on those menus.   Exercise at the rec center on a regular basis.

Bob and I both--at last--weighed ourselves after weeks of careless eating.  I gained 7 or 8 pounds and he gained 9.  Both of us jumped back on the band wagon and spent yesterday behaving.  Bob has been going to the rec center, but since my fall on the ice last month, I am stalling about getting into exercise.  The parking lot at the center is now clear of ice, but yesterday I was feeling sick.  I assume it was what I call withdrawal from sugar.  I do feel much better today.  But still weak.

So, I weigh 292.  I was down to 285.  I really can't think to write any more right now.

Over a month has passed since I last wrote here on my blog!!!  Time speeds more every day I live, and I plan to live many more years.

Since this is mostly a record of my health concerns and weight loss, I have to admit I have gained a pound over the least I weighed since I started DASH.  Again, DASH stands for Dietetic Approaches to Stop Hypertension. Or something like that.  It seems mostly concerned with high blood pressure when you read the words.  I only have a slight BP concern, and I'm on a med for that.  I'm thinking I'll get OFF that med when I lose more weight and get more fit.  At any rate, DASH is the diet our old hospital in Minnesota has their senior citizens and others with cardiac concerns following.  It is basically a whole food diet for diabetics as well, so I call it the diet every human being should follow.

I spent last Thursday through Saturday on a solo trip of a bit over 200 miles to be at the Saturday birthday party for Dan and Jenny's older daughter, Grace, who turns 2 years old this week.  Nora is 4 months old.  They have their hands full!  And to think they were afraid they would never be able to conceive.  They went to a fertility doctor and had Grace.  Then Nora came all on her own.  A bonus!!! So I had a great time, and was able to drive without any problem.  I had an energy drink along, just in case.

Sunday I was super achey and tired and had a very upset stomach, probably because I was eating all kinds of stuff.  Sugar drinks, birthday cake, croissants.  Had Mountain Dew in the car on the way back to SD.  2 cans.  I called in sick for church, and Pam Taylor played piano for sacrament service.  Since our church's water was still frozen and so was the water in the hose from the neighboring church, our church was dismissed after that meeting.  So no Sunday School classes and no Primary/RS/priesthood/youth classes.  I slept most of Sunday.  But I was so glad to have been with family and friends for that party.

So now I'm trying to be faithful to DASH, and I'm not doing well so far.  While in MN, I went to Costco with Dan and Jenny and the girls.  I bought mixed nuts, among other things, and have been munching away at them since Saturday.  I also bought almonds, but they aren't such a temptation.  So I learned to not buy mixed nuts again until I am stronger in my determination.  I also bought some mixed snacks, which are like Gardettos, but I gave them to Miranda's family this evening because they contain a lot of gluten snacks.  In fact, I think all the parts of the mix are made from wheat flour.  Bob doesn't care of them, and I decided it best to give them to Miranda and kids because they will enjoy them.  I should have been strong enough to give them the mixed nuts, but Bob really likes them.  Oh well. . . .

Today I went to the hospital to get a blood draw as I routinely do to keep track of my INR while I am on coumadin/warfarin.  While walking back to the car, I noticed I was getting a bit winded, showing myself what lack of exercise does.  We have a rec center membership, but since I fell on the ice last month, I have been staying in the house.  Lots of people came and helped me up, but I was quite sore and very bruised, especially on my right knee and leg.  Hurt a lot!  And very embarrassing.  I was SOOOO glad to be 70 lighter than my highest weight.

At the party, I had Abby take a picture of me and Ginger.  Oh, how ugly.  I look just as fat as I was before I lost 70 pounds.  I obviously never had a clear picture of myself.  But I am keeping the picture on my phone to remind myself what I really look like!  I am, after all, wearing the same clothes, only they are looser.  Maybe I'm changing from semi-solid to mostly-flabby.  But I do fit into the theater seats at Cinema 5 here in Watertown and into restaurant booths.

And I do feel so much better, especially when I stay true to the DASH plan.  My weight is 286, one pound up from my lowest recorded weight.  I haven't lost a thing since last December.  Time to repent!!!  I want to be in the best shape I am able so I can enjoy life and get around now that Bob and I are both retired.  I refuse to be one of those seniors who simply lets inactivity and bad diet make them unable to move about and join in life with family and friends.

More than half done with Phase 1.  Today is day 8.  However, yesterday I ate an Arby's roast beef without removing the bun.  In other words, I ate bread, which is NOT included in this phase.

So I felt guilty.  I still feel somewhat guilty today, but know holding onto that will only chip away at my resolve to lose the rest of my excess weight.  It could even drive me to give up completely, as I have (OBVIOUSLY) in the past.

But by next Friday, I want to be able to  register a total weight loss of 70 pounds.  I will publish Friday's weight.  BTW: I broke my word because I have been weighing myself.  I stated at the beginning of Phase 1 I wouldn't weigh again until after Phase 1 was over.  I modified that and will not PUBLISH my weight until next Friday or Saturday.

I had to go to the hospital for my routine blood draw, so I also went to Walmart and bought some groceries.  Bob has been so good about getting me what I need to stay on DASH that I got him some bananas and oranges.  He has been changing his diet snacks more to fruit than candy and other high calorie food.  The only thing they don't have it Real Peanut Butter, so I'll get that Monday at HyVee.  After finding their brand of light yogurt's banana flavor, I tried their key lime flavor and found it great also.  On Phase 1 I get to have one 6-oz yogurt per day.  Still relishing that by taking time to eat it very slowly.  I bought romaine to make my "sandwiches" and found smoked sliced turkey at the deli counter for only $2.98 per pound.  I suppose it is made from the leftover meat at some processing plant, but hey, how bad could it taste?  I'll find out today at lunch.

While out yesterday I got some cash and some gas for the Escape.  As I waited for the attendant to fill the tank and bring out the paper to sign for the charge card (Yes, we have a Sinclair station where gas is pumped for us!), I had the window open.  It was fairly cold, but it felt good to get a bit chilly with the sun shining on me.  I felt so alive and clear.

So I'm planning to keep myself alive and clear on this 8th day of Phase 1.   I'll let you know next time I post!

Day 5 of Phase 1.  I will not mention weight until the 14 days are over and I start on Phase 2.  Phase 2 is another word for the rest of my life eating plan.

Day 4 (yesterday) I was successful in keeping my eating on track.  So exhilarating!  I believe my talking about DASH diet on Facebook is helping me.  For one, I want to keep up with so many friends who are losing weight and getting healthier.  For another, I don't want to disappoint others who are giving me kudos for losing weight.  And finally, I don't want to disappoint myself after having come this far.

To most, losing 66 pounds is a great accomplishment.  Marie Osmond lost only 50, but she has earned bragging rights and tells about her success many times a day in her ad for Nutrisystem.  I was on Nutrisystem for a number of months and know it is a marvelous diet.  Of course, I stopped using it and regained weight and added even more for good measure!  What I am concentrating on now is choosing foods that are readily available and using them as they were meant to be used.  The Word of Wisdom, a revelation given to Joseph Smith in the 1800s, advises us how to eat.  The main advice about food is moderation.  

I remember when I was 30.  That was in 1976.  I had my stomach "stapled" by a surgeon who did many of those procedures.  I had that surgeon operate again a few years later because the suture line had come undone.  After the second surgery, I could tell the suture line failed again, so I didn't go see him again.  In 1997 or so, I had my third bariatric surgery, only this time by Dr Dan Baker in the Minneapolis area.  I lost after that, but then started re-gaining.  Again, I gained even more.  I think I was around 275-295 for a long time after that.  Then Nutrisystem and a few other seminars/plans.  Years later, I somehow got up to 354, even though I could tell my third surgery suture line held up.  It is indeed possible to graze one's way to morbid obesity even after successful surgery.  Gastric bypass only gives you a year or less to lose weight while you take on better habits.  The surgeon's offices are full of scrapbook pages of those who have lost all their excess weight after surgery.  They do not show any pictures of those of us who regained their weight.  I hope they now advise people that it is possible to get obese again.  I know they have support groups, unlike when I had surgery.

I will never forget one of the security guards at Mercy Hospital.  She was very tall and fairly young.  Only she was morbidly obese.  She walked around strong and proud. But she avoided eye contact.  Well, she had the surgery and got almost down to being normal weight.  Then she regained every pound she had lost.  I was not one of her acquaintances, so I didn't ever have the occasion to talk with her about anything, much less her surgery.  But I was as sadder for than for myself.

Feeling a bit down today.  Weather is so cold.  Bob is fretting because he can't think of what we should have for dinner.  I told him we should steam our fresh cauliflower and have some meat and a lettuce salad.  We have plenty of food here.  I guess nothing is inspiring him today.

I really should take a new picture of myself for Facebook.  I can easily take a "selfie" with the iPhone.  I might even be able to post it without help from Phil or Ryan!!

I had better get something to drink.  I'm so dry!  I have to keep reminding myself to drink water when I feel hungry.  I have too often mistaken thirst for hunger and eaten instead of having a drink of water.  I could then also have my light yogurt, which I love to enjoy slowly while I watch TV.   Last night I finished off a stalk of celery, but I have another I can clean and bag for today.  I'd like to buy the celery hearts rather than whole stalks because the outside stalks are most often not as good a flavor as the others.  When I get a whole stalk, I feel honor bound to eat all of the stalks.  Oh well.

I haven't used this blogsite since last November, when I weighed in at 294.  My last weight was 288, just before Christmas, I believe.  So you can see I hardly lost much weight before the holidays.  Then during the holidays I have to admit I fluctuated a bit, but essentially stayed the same weight.

I last weighed last Friday, the day before I started Phase 1 of the DASH diet.  That was 289, but it was during the day, after eating and drinking diet soda and water.  So in order to stop myself from panicking too much, I am calling it 288 and saying I managed to keep my initial weigh loss over the past couple of months, or "over the holidays."

My highest recorded weight was 354.  I finally found that I could admit that after getting below the 300 mark!   It got up that high after our move to Watertown when Bob retired.  We moved here September 30, 2012.  Perhaps I had been that high or higher before we moved.  I remember I would plan my steps through the house to "conserve my energy."  I couldn't make it from room to room, from the bedroom to the bathroom, from the living room to the kitchen, without needing to sit down to catch my breath.  I got winded going from the parking lot into the clinic and needed to sit down to catch my breath before going to the check-in desk.  Then it hurt to stand and wait my turn because of my back.  I had to sit in the extra wide chairs in the waiting room.  At the stores I got breathless walking even short distances and was constantly looking for places to sit down to rest and catch my breath.

When I went to the bathroom, I had to use the wrong end of my toothbrush--with a cloth or flushable wipe wrapped around it--as an extension to clean myself after a bowel movement.  I couldn't reach that far back with only my arm and hand.  This is one thing I have mentioned to almost no one until today.  It is not a very pretty item to mention, but I guess I'm feeling kind of confessional.

And while telling about my weight, I should mention this one kind of uplifting note.  Use Lamisil--which is recommended for jock itch and athlete's foot--in the fat folds.  I like the spray liquid best.  I know someone who uses a generic creme with the same drug/ingredients, and she says it works fine for her.  She uses it every day after she takes her shower.  It takes care of the yeast that grows in fat folds.  I only use it when I think I'm getting a yeast infection again.  But when I'm off sugar, I rarely grow any.  Yeast feeds on sugar.  I wish I knew a way to spread the word on this.  I saw a young teen girl on a talk or health show, talking about how she wanted obesity surgery.  She talked about how much "infection" she got in her fat folds and how it itched and stunk.  (Her mother, like mine, was trim.)  I wished I could have jumped into the TV to tell her about Lamisil!

So I'm on day 3 of Phase 1 DASH diet.  I woke up with a big headache Saturday, the first day.  It must have been because I had no sugar of any kind Friday before I started day 1.  I was pretty wiped out that first day, but I kept on program and the headache finally calmed down by the end of the day.  I was looking forward to church on Sunday, partly because it would get me away from home and my eating plan for several hours.  But church was canceled because of the icy roads and snow.  So I didn't do much but watch TV and read.

Today I got dressed, even with my bra on!  I slept through The Price is Right and Jeopardy and started with breakfast about noon.  No headache, not much appetite now at 3pm.  I ate breakfast and a snack.  Now I have to eat lunch and another snack before dinner!  The DASH eating plan says not to skip any meals, so I'm spreading them out and will catch up by this evening.  After completing this entry and posting on Facebook, Il write to a couple of friends and do some sewing.  Not going out of the house until Wednesday because of the cold.  We have plenty of the right foods stocked.

Yesterday I finally admitted I do NOT like plain Jell-O.  I decided I would not use it, even though DASH says I should.  It is one item I can have as many servings of as I can eat.  Today, however, I'm thinking I should go ahead and eat it.  The author of my book on the DASH diet says it kills your hunger for sweets and fruits (fruits are not on Phase 1), so since we have a number of cups of it in the frig, I'm eating it as suggested in the Phase 1 menu.  If nothing else, it does kind of turn off my ability to enjoy food.  I suppose I will learn to love it after a while.  When I get to Phase 2, I think I'll put some fruit in with the Jell-O.

Sunday I did eat some refried beans.  I microwaved about 6 ounces with some shredded cheese.  That was not expressly on the menu, but it was something allowed during this phase.  It really filled me up and seemed to comfort me.  The book says to have more of, say, a protein food if you are feeling weak.  So I used that advice as justification.

On DASH, we can have diet gelatin and non-starch vegetables in unlimited quantities.  I have my peanuts in the form of organic peanut butter, which I spread on celery.  I LOVE that.  I also love my lunch meat and cheese roll-ups in place of sandwiches.  (It's a sandwich without the bread.)  Wednesday when we go out, I'll get lots of Romaine lettuce so I can roll up the meat and cheese in it.

I'm going to go now and fix my lunch and have a whole can of string beans, which we got for 29 cents a can of sale.  Oh, and I want to mention my discovery of Walmart's Great Value brand light yogurt Banana Creme Pie flavor.  It contains fructose and artificial sweeteners, but I love banana flavor!  And only one cup (6 oz) of yogurt is allowed per day during Phase 1.

So happy eating to anyone reading this blog.  I will journal about my eating plan here.  And I encourage all of us to pray for the strength to do what it takes to make ourselves healthier.  I thank the Lord for the strength he gives me to carry on eating right and for His forgiveness of so many years that I did not take care of my body.