Monday, March 20, 2017

Deciding to LOVE Myself...Beginning a Low-Carb Diet

Love is the greatest of all things!

Love conquers all! 

Love makes the world go 'round! 

Love will keep us together! 

Love is a many splendored thing! 

Love is all you need! 

I love LOVE

But as I reflected who and what I love, I realized that there was one person who didn't get much consideration or love at all....and that person is me. 

I don't love me (which is sad, because I think I'm pretty lovable). But I will admit here friends, that I have been terribly unhappy lately. To the point where I'm wondering if I need medication or counseling or therapy, it's that profound. 

Profoundly unhappy.

Life is too short and too beautiful a gift to spend it miserable. 

I need a change.

Now, I'm not going to bore you with a long, giant explanation for why I'm experiencing despair and choosing to overhaul and revamp my life; those reasons will unfold as the days, and all I need to do to accomplish this overhaul unfolds (because overhauling a life is no small undertaking, so there will be lots to talk about)!

Just let me say that I am maybe the unhappiest I've ever been. Some of it is external, but only because of my own doing. I firmly believe that no one has the power to make you happy or unhappy...IT'S ALL ON YOU! 

But there are some external things, namely my home environment (disorganized, cluttered), for example, that is causing a good deal of unhappiness in my life. One could say that it's probably because I am disorganized and cluttered! 

Another reason for my unhappiness, the thing that I am starting off with today is my health. It's time to change my eating and activity level. Not because I want to look good, but because, as I look to the future, I don't want to feel like I do now...and right now, I feel OLD and TIRED and I HURT. 

If I feel this way at 41, how will I feel at 61? 

Sixty isn't considered "elderly" anymore! I mean, have you seen Christie Brinkley? She's 60 and looks FABULOUS! She is going to be in Sports Illustrated again...AT 60!!! My mind is blown!

Sports Illustrated 2017

I will talk more about the specifics of my health another day, but for today, let's just talk about revamping my eating with a low-carb eating plan. I have arthritis, bursitis, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and even had a stroke last year (we'll talk more about that later)! Some of you may condemn a drastic change in eating, but when you've had an experience such as having a stroke, you know drastic is paramount!

I weighed 289.3 pounds this morning (I should also mention that I'm nearly 6' tall...5' 11 3/4" to be exact). 



Pics from this week...

Just a few years ago, I had gotten down to 239 on the divorce diet (don't recommend that one). 


Me at 250 lbs...much better

I jest, but going through a painful divorce cause me to lose a lot of weight...and I actually felt great! No pain, I had energy, I felt lighter, and I even wanted to exercise! I started hiking and getting outside, it was wonderful! 

But when I gained the weight back, not only did I have a stroke, but my gallbladder had to be removed (turning 40 was rough!).

My doctor recommended a low-carb diet, which I've had a lot of success with in the past. I've also read that sugar is a terrible inflammatory, which will help ease the pain of the arthritis and bursitis in my hip joints. Some days it's hard to even walk.

So, there you go...deciding to love myself, step one? Eating a low carb diet! 

THIS is what I brought to eat at work.



Boiled eggs and bacon for breakfast, coffee with cream and Splenda, pepperoni slices, diet Coke, flavored water, pork rinds for snacks, and chicken wings with blue cheese dressing for lunch (it was sooo good!). 

I know there are a lot of artificial sweeteners in my drinks, which some don't like because they are said to cause cancer. But like I said before, my situation is urgent and I have to weigh my current poor health (stroke) against whether or not a packet of Splenda may or may not cause cancer. I just can't worry about that right now. Maybe sometime down the road, because it is a legitimate concern. But right now, I have to focus on the issues at hand, and the most important thing is using what I have and getting my weight down. I know that there are other sugar substitute alternatives (I do my research people), but I will have to get those later. Right now, I have Splenda, and Splenda is what I'm using. :)

When I got home from work, I ate a cup of sugar-free jello with whipped cream (full fat!), and for dinner I had a simple salad (lettuce, tomato, dressing) because I really wasn't all that hungry. When I've done this diet in the past, that is my norm (to eat very light come dinner time). 

As an aside....it feels good to be writing again...to create and to share. I'm glad I have this little nook here on the interwebs to share with you. I hope you will comment and subscribe so we can make this journey together. :)



No comments:

Post a Comment

Thanks for visiting. I read and value each one of your comments, so type away! Blessings!