Do not alter your diet to include mostly healthy foods and then splurge on a greasy burger AND an Italian sausage in the same meal. Especially if you have had your gall bladder removed. If you do, you might be kept up most of the night writhing in pain with a horrendous stomach ache, just wishing you would vomit so that you would feel better. ASK ME HOW I KNOW.
But besides that, week four brought a loss of 1.5 pounds! I was a little lax on the weekend {see mental note above} due to a first birthday we attended and because it was Sunday. I've also decided that I'm not going to count POINTS on Sunday as part of my 'keeping the Sabbath'. I'm trying not to go crazy with the eating just because I'm not keeping track, though. I've realized that I prefer to 'eat clean', as I call it, during the week and splurge a little on the weekends, as opposed to just eating a little extra on a daily basis to use my 'weekly' POINTS. Since the weekends usually have more opportunities for eating out or at parties, I figure this is practical too.
So after only four weeks, I've lost about 9 pounds! I need to start thinking about a nifty reward for the 10 pound mark. Ideas?
This has always stuck with me as tragically funny, but I've never blogged about it before. Upon discovering that I was newly pregnant, I went to my initial OB visit, which was just with the nurse to confirm the pregnancy, take medical history {even though I've delivered 3 babies with them before}, review necessary testing, appropriate medications during pregnancy, etc. Still having concern for a healthy weight, I inquired about nutrition during pregnancy. This particular nurse was no spring chicken, so maybe she just subscribes to ancient thought when it comes to pregnancy & eating.
Me: So, I'm wondering what my calorie intake should be while I'm pregnant. I have been doing Weight Watchers so would like to continue to eat healthy.
Nurse: Pregnant women need 2500 calories per day.
Me: Ok....so, it doesn't depend on my starting weight or other factors?
Nurse: No, you just need to eat 2500 calories per day.
Me: {slight look of disbelief}
Nurse: Ya know, just keep eating healthy. Like if you go to McDonald's {I almost burst out laughing at this next part}, just order a Quarter Pounder & drink. Skip the fries.
Me: {trying as hard as possible to keep a straight face} Ok. Thanks.
I'm no MD or even RN for that matter, but wouldn't common sense tell us that a woman's starting weight has everything to do with how many calories she would need while pregnant? So if I weighed 300 pounds to start or 115 pounds, I would still need 2500 calories? And that McDonald's comment?! I guess she doesn't realize that a Quarter Pounder & drink would qualify for the healthy eating plan! Obviously this nurse needs a little refresher course on pregnancy nutrition!
I've since discovered that preggos need an additional 300 calories a day during the second and third trimester {no increase during the first trimester}, which makes much more sense to me. This really doesn't amount to that much more food, about an apple, a yogurt, and a couple slices of bread. Several websites did indicate that this comes out to about 1,900 - 2,500 calories per day for the "average" woman, but I don't think we should prescribe that upper amount as a one-size-fits-all solution.
....I got sick & stopped counting POINTS. I am still sick & still not counting, focusing on just getting better. I figured that even if I don't lose anything {or even gain a pound} it won't be too big of a deal. I rather spend the little energy that I do have on homeschooling, my family & my home, instead of on keeping track of & planning what I am eating. I did already lose another 2 pounds last week, so I am getting pretty close to breaking into the 160s. That will be so exciting!! I think it's probably been about 3 years since I weighed one-sixty-anything.
Breaking the news.....
In all honesty, the reason I haven't shared this blog with anyone boils down to one thing: fear of failure. I figured if I didn't tell anyone that I was trying to make healthier lifestyle choices & I failed, then no one would know. It's not something that I should care too much about in the first place: what other people think, I mean. I promised myself that once I had lost enough pounds for others to start noticing, that I would go public with this blog, aka announcing it on my personal blog. Well, someone noticed. It's just one person, but it encourages me that I am beginning to look different. I definitely feel different and my clothes feel different {mostly being too big}! I think it will be soon that I will put this out there for more people to see.
I can't wait to start feeling better so I can get back on track with managing my eating a bit better. Ta-ta for now!
Nothin' worse than having a case of the sickies {well, except if Hubby has it at the same time}. Runny nose. Body chills. Headache. I don't know if it was the rapid change in weather that spurred it on or just some virus acquired from who-knows-where. In any case, I am not worrying about counting POINTS or losing weight this week. Just trying to take care of my body & eat what feels good. English muffins. Soup. Hot tea. Sipping on apple juice. Cream of wheat for breakfast. That doesn't mean that I should eat a quart of ice cream because I'm not paying attention. I am trying to stick to healthy foods as much as possible. Once my body has recovered, then I will return to my more planned eating approach. Until then......