getting your shit together

Sometimes being on program, WW-wise, also helps me get my other shit together. Over the last two-ish weeks I have spent some QT on my finances whilst remaining relatively on program food and half-marathon-training-wise. I’ve done my taxes, made a bill-paying system for my housemates and I, figured out how to pay off all my student debt by May-ish, and how to start saving for super adult things like a house.

st. patty’s dinner party

Want to have your awesome guinness and steak pie and eat it too? Then maybe invite 6 people over to eat it with  you and give your roommate the leftovers. Worked for me.

So yeah, yesterday I  had some friends over for an awesome St. Patty’s day dinner. We had steak and guinness pie,, garlic mashed potatoes and spinach salad. What a glorious meal. Definitely well-spent flex points, AND a friend of mine also polished off the rest of that blueberry pie, so now it is not mocking me anymore. Hazah!

confound you, scale

I can’t figure out how to make my fancy new scale take my body fat percentage. CONFOUND YOU SCALE.

I am sure I will, eventually. So for this week I am just going to take the median of my weight for 7 days as a proxy for my weight loss efforts.

versus blueberry pie for breakfast

I managed to not eat pie for breakfast this morning. Kind of an amazing feat. I baked a blueberry pie last night that I brought home from visiting the ‘rents. It was epic. Normal behaviour would be to have the pie for breakfast. (Normal for me. And something that happened with an apple pie recently…) But, this morning I made up some oatmeal with roasted almonds and a small apple for breakfast. Yay for little victories!

being medium

I had a hard time with my spinning class yesterday (after a spinningless week) so I skipped my uber-hard spinning class this morning and went on a walk. It is SO beautiful out. It’s all not-in-the-minuses and snow-melting-y out there. Purpose of the walk: Exercise + Finally bought some this-time-of-year appropriate running pants. In a medium. I still get surprised that I am not a large anymore. I always grab a few larges for the changeroom, just incase I was wrong about the whole being thinner thing, and am always happily surprised when they don’t fit anymore. Anywho, tomorrow is a long run day, and I am going to do it up outside! Eff you treadmills! I AM FREE! AND A MEDIUM! HAZAH!

constant vigilance

And I am back home. Went to a comedy club with some friends last night (scored free tickets) and tonight I am off to a cocktail party for a friend’s birthday. So maybe not quite back to normal. Like normal plus way extra socializing.

Also, I am down 3 lbs since the last time I weighed in (2ish weeks ago). Usually, after I hit 161 – 162 ish I gain it back till I hit 167ish, then freak out and lose it again. Freak out is a bit strong but you get what I mean.

Is this time different? I am aware of my pattern, as per usual.  I have a lot of willpower, I just need to exercise it. What an easy thing to say.

I think it’ll be helpful to not expect loss so quickly. When you first lose weight it sheds off so fast, later it can be disheartening when you are working SO HARD and are seeing little to no movement on the scale. And then I give up.

I need to break the pattern of trying uber hard and then not at all. Maybe the whole measuring percent body fat thing will help that out. I am off to buy a scale this weekend. Wish me luck.

step away from the ephedrine

Ephedrine (EPH) is a sympathomimetic amine commonly used as a stimulant, appetite suppressant, concentration aid, decongestant, and to treat hypotension associated with anaesthesia. Ephedrine is similar in structure to the synthetic derivatives amphetamine and methamphetamine.

Two women and one guy I know have used ephedrine to help with their weight loss. The two women were about my size till they took the drug. They use it for its appetite suppression, and because it speeds up their metabolism, forgetting the adverse drug reactions that go with including this substance in your diet. Thinking about incorporating ephedrine into your diet? Think again.

Adverse effects

Adverse drug reactions (ADRs) are more common with systemic administration (e.g. injection or oral administration) compared to topical administration (e.g. nasal instillations). ADRs associated with ephedrine therapy include:[4]

• Cardiovascular: tachycardia, cardiac arrhythmias, Angina pectoris, vasoconstriction with hypertension
• Dermatological: flushing, sweating, acne vulgaris
• Gastrointestinal: nausea, appetite loss
• Genitourinary: increased urine output due to increased blood flow (difficulty urinating is not uncommon, as alpha-agonists such as ephedrine constrict the internal urethral sphincter, mimicking the effects of sympathetic nervous system stimulation)
• Nervous system: restlessness, confusion, insomnia, mild euphoria, mania/hallucinations (rare except in previously existing psychiatric conditions), delusions, formication (may be possible, but lacks documented evidence) paranoia, hostility, panic, agitation
• Respiratory: dyspnea, pulmonary edema
• Miscellaneous: dizziness, headache, tremor, hyperglycemic reactions

The approved maximum daily dosage of ephedrine for use as a bronchodilator is 150 mg, as specified on the packaging of the bronchodilator and expectorant combination, Bronkaid, made by Bayer pharmaceuticals.

Overdose can lead to death, although the approved dose is not likely to cause severe reactions when used as directed.

Ephedrine can also lead to damage of the brain receptors’ over a period of high usage; this is because of its constant action on the neurochemicals. It also leads to high increase in blood pressure which over time can lead to damage in the blood vessels.

It’s so messed up that we live in a society where there is so much pressure to look like an ideal that people will self-medicate and endanger their health to look like that ideal.

Step away from the ephedrine. Weight loss is hard. Weight maintainence is hard. And a little pill may seem like it makes it easier, but it is more difficult on your system, in the end.

My $0.02

versus the all-you-can-eat sushi buffet

Uncomfortably full right now. Food pushing won out in the battle of the all-you-can-eat sushi buffet. I love my family, but they aren’t very supportive food choice wise. Ultimately, what I put in my mouth is my choice, but it’d be nice if people helped making good choices be easier.

my beef with women’s gyms and magazines

On the biggest loser a couple of weeks ago the male trainer whose name I can’t remember talked about how a gym needs to have energy. (It was the episode where almost all the teams had to work out not in the gym.) My gym membership allows me to go to any gym. While visiting I have been going to the women’s gym because it is close to my parent’s place. And I hate it. It is devoid of energy, for one thing. There were plenty of people there, but they were all walking and reading magazines and things like that. Which is completely awesome, when you are starting out exercising. It is less awesome if you are slightly hardcorer. Also less awesome was the complete lack of free weights and weight lifting equipment. They didn’t even have stuff for squats! Or deadlifts! What is that?? Those are KEY and STANDARD work out shit. I hate how women’s gyms and magazines tell women to do things like bicep curls with a can of soup or squats with 10 lb barbells.

Women can be as strong as men. Especially if you create a space conducive to building that stength.

Next time you are in a magazine shop compare a Men’s Health magazine to a Women’s Health magazine and try not to get your feminism panties in a knot.

Also, my shoes were stolen.

Yes, seriously.
Now I am walking around like Jerry Seinfeld with white sneakers (that smell because they are my running shoes).

no weigh-in today

Today is my usual weigh-in day, but I am in another town, so I am pushing my weigh-in back till Friday. I have no idea how I am doing, scale-wise, because I skipped last week. Could go either way. It is likely that I have maintained, as per the last year or so.

After I go through my last few tickets I am going to go it alone. I am going to get a scale that will tell me my weight, percentage body fat, and hydration, weigh myself at the same time every day, and take the median over 7 days as an indicator for how I am doing. This will get me out of the habit I have of not eating much the day before weigh-in, then eating a whole bunch post-weigh-in, which is not a helpful mindset. Sure, I could do this on weight watchers, but I don’t and I haven’t and I probably won’t. So, it is off to Canadian Tire for me to get a scale. Probably on the weekend. Also, I really want to focus on reducing my fat content, as opposed to my overall weight, because I see that as healthier. I wonder if WW will ever move toward that direction.