It’s Monday, and I’m ready for a fresh start: to hold myself accountable to a re-start, and getting more serious about my (short term) year-end goals. How about you? 🙂 I had a nice slow weekend of post-holiday rest & recovery, and a really great time at my friend’s Thanksgiving get together last Thursday! And now I’m ready to get serious about the starting over stuff I mentioned in my last note.
That’s going to look a little different for me than it has in the past, but also the same – because now I know “what works” (for me), and have some experience (and success!) under my belt from before that gives me a little ‘comfort & confidence’ about it all. 😉
I got my Perfect Keto order on Saturday (that came fast!!) so I’m all stocked up on my staples. I use their unflavored collagen powder and love their Almond Butter Brownie protein bars. 🍫 Those hold me over WAY better & longer than any other keto bars, so they’re a great meal replacement.
I’m struggling with my appetite, gut health issues, energy – so many things. That’s partly because of my condition, but also my sense of smell is still really messed up, and most days I can’t even want to eat meat or anything green – which is really limiting. 😏
I start my day with a collagen coffee, then have a bar around mid morning at my desk while I’m working, and lately I’ve just been having a low carb grilled cheese for dinner.
The bars are great as something to curb my nausea when that hits, or to have a few bites on my stomach for when I take my supplements. I can’t even always finish a bar, so I might have half then finish it later if I get a little hungry.
All that to say, as I document my journey back to the amazing health I achieved before… my food diaries and updates are going to look a little different than they used to (for now).
But I do have TONS of low carb recipes, daily food diaries & grocery lists in my 12 years of archives here if you need some ideas & inspiration.
I would love to hear your current goals!
Whether they’re about fitness or weight loss, or just lifestyle goals, I would love to hear what YOU most want to work on right now. 🙂 I’m really focused on short-term goals myself, baby steps even : small changes and consistent improvements.
I have a fun road trip planned for the end of the year, so my main goal is to FEEL GOOD and ENJOY IT!! 💯 I haven’t been well enough to travel for more than 2 years, so this is GREAT motivation for me – because I’m really excited about it. 🤩
After tons of trial & error, I seem to have a good combination of supplements & symptom management down. I’m getting by at least, WAY better than last winter – which is a huge relief. That was a seriously scary time. It’s still hit or miss and a crazy roller coaster (with way more down time than up), but I’m hanging in there with all the grace & patience I can muster. 😉
I just found and started taking a new supplement last week, too. It’s called NAC (N-Acetyl L-Cysteine) – recommended by others in my longcovid support group.
I’m cautiously optimistic, but I have been more alert! I even managed a FULL day of socializing on Thursday without totally crashing. 🙃 I may be a little TOO optimistic, because I have a lunch date with friends planned for this week too – and it’s been quite a long while since I’ve been able to do two big things like that within a week of each other! So we’ll see, lol. Wish me luck!
Let’s state our goals!
I need some accountability and motivation. 🙂 I really do NOT want these next 4 or 5 weeks to just get away from me, and find myself having regrets when the New Year sneaks up on me. I plan to be DANCING when the ball drops – not dropping with it. 😂
I’m already eating low carb. I did enjoy my friend’s holiday meal, plus a plate the next day my daughter brought me from HER friend’s holiday meal, but I’ve been back on track since.
My “food goal” is to make my way back to super clean eating like I was doing before I got sick again in August (that thing that wrecked my smell buds!). The low carb bread has been a good crutch to get me by, and I can eat a few bites of sausage & eggs some days, but I’d really like to get back to “single ingredient meat & greens” style meals like I was doing before.
My other goal, and the one that is MOST important to me right now, is working my way back up to short walks. I used to run the back country, walk 4 miles in 42 minutes, and climb waterfalls lol… but right now I’d give anything to be able to walk to the end of the block and back by myself. So that’s my first goal!
YES it’s HARD starting over.
It’s especially hard starting over way further behind than you were before. I’ve only been back on my feet for a little over 2 months. Before that, I could only walk in the swimming pool (without falling, or fear of falling). And even in water I had to wear braces. So it feels great to be back on my feet! And without braces & support even. 🙂 Physical therapy + patience worked!
Lately I’ve been taking the dogs out a lot. I took over dog duty 🙂 which is one flight of stairs down and back up, and I’m doing that at least 6 times a day, and more on days I can – which the girls love. 🐾☺️🐾 I have a big back yard that’s fenced in so they walk me out and back in, and run “zoomies” with each other while I sit and rest in between.
I feel like I’m going to do fine with short walks, but I’m not totally confident in that yet. My biggest concern is the factors I can’t control. Like if I get out even just half a block away and a fire truck goes by or a car alarm goes off. Even something like a leaf blower or just anything really can send me into tremors and confusion – and “a good day” can turn into a neurological nightmare just like that.
I have synesthesia now, which is a fancy word for “all my senses are mixed up now” – which can actually be pretty cool sometimes, just not when I’m trying to DO something lol.
Anyway, to start – I broke out my faithful Gazelle Edge. It’s a low impact workout machine where you can do an easy walk, or leverage your own body weight to do a good variety of strength building exercises. I had my daughter set it back up for me, and I’m going to find a good series to watch on Netflix that motivates me to get on it (!) so I can practice walking – and actually enjoy it. 😛
If you have a good Netflix recommendation, let me know! 😉
Those are my goals. They’re pretty easy really, very simple…
I’d love to hear yours!
I know we’re all at different places right now. You might have a whole different set of lifestyle goals or improvements you want to make. I have others too, like financial goals, mood & motivation, business goals, and social goals even, just to name a few. I’d really love to get out with friends more now that I can drive and walk again, so I’m working on that as well. 💕
If you haven’t set any goals yet, or thought much about it maybe, questions I like to ask myself include: What LIGHTS ME UP? What’s something I MISS? What would make my life amazingly awesome right now? What’s something I’d really love to change?
Sitting down with questions like that and using them as journal prompts can really inspire some good ideas & great motivation! That’s what inspired me to book my NYE trip, which has me taking action on my goals. Even if they are baby steps, to start!
I’m off to rest – and finish my protein bar 😉 but…
Happy Monday! 🙂
I look forward to talking goals, and working on them together!
Best,
Lynn Terry
aka @LowCarbTraveler
Discount Code: LOWCARBTRAVELER
Hi, me too, definitely starting over today the 28thβ¦..last oct(2021) I had lost 30 lbs! I felt amazingβ¦.. now I am 30 over β¦. What the heck? Does food( sweets) rule me? I really want to be much lighter and fitterβ¦.. HELP!
Thank for listening!
Millie
Hi Millie π I’ve been eating low carb for 12 years now, but the first few years I really struggled with the off/on thing. I must have lost and gained that last 20-30 pounds at least 10 times, lol. It’s frustrating I know! But hang in there, and keep starting over. Eventually it DOES stick. π
What worked for me was when I finally got really frustrated about it, and decided I just wanted to see what it FELT LIKE to BE my goal weight. And then after that I could do whatever I wanted, but I wanted to beat the self-sabotage, and get OUT of the maddening cycle of up/down on/off – just once – just to see what it felt like to be lean and strong. And then once I got there, I LOVED IT and never went back. π It *did* stick, and it became easy!
Of course, then I got sick, which wrecked my metabolic health in every way possible. LOL – I laugh, thinking that’s life’s way of humbling me or teaching me some big fancy lesson, ha. So I’m starting over too, but for different reasons.
As for sweets and “bad foods” ruling you, personally I found my cravings totally went away once I got and stayed in ketosis consistently – and my taste buds totally changed. Those things didn’t appeal to me anymore. I still enjoy chocolate sometimes, but I’ve found sugar free chocolate I really like, and sugar free ice cream I love too. Those things make it a lot easier to stay on track!
Hi Lynn, good to hear from you and all your goals. Ive been following you for about 5 years now, and so enjoy all your inspiration! All that you said above I love, but what sticks out to me the most was when you said “dogs” did you get another dog to make it two dogs? haha
Haha! I caught that βdogsβ too and am curious! Maybe another Dane rescue?
Thank you Janet! π Ha – NO, but I have been dog sitting for the kids while they work extra shifts & long hours. Luna Rose (my great dane) is really enjoying having a playmate π especially since I’ve been resting so much. My daughter’s boyfriend has a sweet pup named Honey, and she stays with me when they work or travel – until they move sometime this year, at least.
It’s been nice. The girls play well together, we all sit out on the deck together (they love the morning sun as much as I do!), and today was beautiful (but I still can’t walk far) so I took them for a nice ride with the windows down so they could wave their floppy ears in the wind. π They had fun, and made me laugh – a lot! haha
I miss Slim, my old man dane. He passed in 2021, almost 2 years ago now I guess, it was 5 months after I got sick. But life goes on, and Luna and I have bonded well, and I’m so grateful for her loving company. I think of Slim often and smile… we had an amazing decade together!!
Hi Lynn Iβm so glad to see youβre making great progress! I too an struggling with getting back to low carb! I hit a plateau and give up but I truly need to stick with it because I feel so much better and my joints also! Looking forward to a new 2023 and pray for a better year
I hope your 2023 year is starting off great, Sherry!
I get it with those stalls and plateaus. They are common though, and there is something SO empowering about riding them out, and getting to the other side. π It feels amazing!!
When you first start eating low carb, or start back, the first week or so go great. Your body responds really well to the changes. You go through an obvious “detox” with a diuretic effect getting into ketosis and feel SO much better.
People usually lose a substantial amount of weight in the beginning, so during week 2 and/or week 3 you experience that first “stall” where the scales STOP moving. That’s where most people get discouraged and quit, but it’s simply your body adjusting – and also your body composition.
My advice is always: keep doing what was obviously working so well and allow your body to hold/adjust. OR, if you changed/added anything, just go back to what WAS working so well. π
I got in the habit of saying, “Today I’m eating for my health, not for my scales.” Because I knew that even those weeks the scale wasn’t showing me any results (ie immediate gratification)… I was still eating and living healthy, and that is GOOD.
Besides, eating junk food or binge eating (my norm in the past) is a surefire to get the scales TO move – in the wrong direction. π lol … And it’s also not helping me be the happiest healthiest version of myself.
Sticking it out, not for the scales, but for myself, gave me a feel-good sense of accomplishment at the end of the day! Where giving up or giving in always just left me discouraged and disappointed in myself – which is not a good feeling.