35 before 35: #12

#12: Release 35 pounds

One year ago and today.

When I stepped on the scale this morning, I saw a beautiful number: 169.0. That makes 35 pounds down since I started following Trim Healthy Mama and 37 pounds total. I am more than halfway to my goal of 140, but honestly, whether I get there or not isn't so important to me. What is important to me is that I feel good, and in order to do that, I've had to slow down the weight loss.

Let me explain.

When I started THM, the weight came off pretty easily. My rate of loss wasn't nearly as quick as many of the women posting in the THM Facebook groups, but for me, it was rapid. So I have no doubt that THM works. One of the basic principles of THM is separating your fats and carbs. If you're going to eat a meal with more fats (say, pot roast), then you severely limit your carbs. If you're going to eat a meal with more carbs (like chicken breast and brown rice), you severely limit your fat. And you eat every three hours. You can have a carb meal or a fat meal whenever you want, as long as you're waiting enough time between meals.

The problem for me was that I had a much easier time coming up with fat meals, so I hardly ever ate carbs. In essence, I was following Atkins by default. This was fine at first. I told my mom once that my body told me when I needed more carbs by making me crave them, and I think that was true at first. But in April, after getting slammed by the nastiest cold I've had in years, I started feeling pretty bad again. Not as bad as I felt before I went gluten free and found my endocrinologist who put me on a T3 medication in addition to the T4, but still pretty bad. (If you're not a thyroid patient, don't worry about the gobbledegook I just spewed forth. If you are, and you haven't checked into T3, do it! It's made a world of difference for me.)

I started doing thyroid research again, and I found several sources that talked about how Hashimoto's patients need good carbs. Then I did a little experiment and found that I feel much better if I have a good portion of carbs for lunch. (I also found that I feel better if I avoid carbs at breakfast--either having greek yogurt or eggs in some form.)

So here's how Trim Healthy Mama works for me. (I don't always follow this, but I feel better if I do.) I probably shouldn't even call it THM anymore ... but I don't have a better name for it.

• I always have carbs with lunch. If I'm having a fat meal, like pork roast, I'll have a small portion of carbs. (I believe this puts it into S-Helper category for THM, but I could be wrong.) If I'm having a low-fat protein, then I'll have a larger portion of carbs.
• I've stopped avoiding potatoes and white rice; I just monitor my portions. They're higher on the glycemic index, which is what makes them a THM no-no. 
• I avoid refined sugar if at all possible.
• The only non-caloric sweeteners I use are stevia (in very limited portions) and Splenda (which is in the delicious Breyer's Carb Smart ice cream I eat two or three times per week). Otherwise, I use coconut sugar, honey, and maple syrup in baked goods ... and I limit my portions to one piece (most of the time).

While I've been following this modified diet, I've still lost weight ... it's just that things are going slower. In the past two months, I've only lost seven pounds, but I feel a whole lot better, and that's what's important!

See all of my 35 before 35 posts, where you'll learn that I have a ways to go in 13 months!

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a spectacular fourth!

I intended to post this yesterday, but then I got a speeding ticket and my day went to pot. Now on to happier things!

My mom and I just returned from a wonderful weekend in Indiana visiting my sister and brother-in-law. Val and Greg live in my college town, and it's always fun to go back, especially when we happen to be there on a Sunday and can go to the church I attended in college (which is also the church they attend).

We set out mid-morning on Thursday ... and it was just about the longest trip ever. From heavy rain to me not feeling well to my mom's shingles (which she came down with the week before), it felt like the trip that would never end! (This picture was obviously taken at the beginning of the trip.)

Finally, though, we made it. And we met this cutie:

Seriously, Miss Chloe is just about the cutest thing ever! Just like her "cousin" Skaara, she loves chasing pink fabric.

We slept in on Friday, and then we wandered around the shops in the Village at Winona for a while. We also hit the local T.J. Maxx, which is a bit, uh, classier than the one in Grand Island ... and there I bought some size 10 pants. Seriously? Size 10??? I haven't been a 10 since junior high! (I'm probably closer to a 12 normally, but the 10 of this particular brand is what fit.)

That evening, we ate at The Boathouse, where I longed to have my favorite dish, the chicken & bacon wrap ... but I was good, stuck to the gluten free thing, and had a cheeseburger with no bun. Then we girls saw Bye Bye Birdie at the Wagon Wheel Theatre. I'd heard all about the Wagon Wheel when I was at Grace, but this was the first show I saw there. It was fantastic! The acting was great, and the show was so fun. Bravo!

Saturday was super relaxing. I read this book for a while, we played Rummy (I lost ... but it wasn't a massacre like it sometimes is), and Greg grilled burgers for supper. Also, Val and Mom conspired to kill me--Val prayed for our meal, and she tacked on a quick "and please help us get good seats for the concert" onto the end. Mom proceeded to mock her, and I couldn't help but laugh ... with a mouthful of water. Basically, I ended up choking--I absolutely could not breathe. I did eventually recover :-)

Then we went down to Winona Lake for the Masterworks Patriotic Pops Concert and fireworks.

Lots of people were already there when we arrived, so we ended up sitting to the side of the orchestra. Val decided that, since we couldn't see very well anyway, we should face the lake, as that's where the fireworks after the concert would be.

So Mom spent the concert like this:

Something about her discomfort at being turned a different direction than everyone else was hilarious to Val and me. And when you think about it, Val's reasoning didn't make any sense, but we all went along with it.

Then, when it was time for fireworks, we moved--so Mom's discomfort was for nothing!

On Sunday, we went to Christ's Covenant (it's always so great to be back, even though I really don't know anyone there anymore) before heading to Fort Wayne for the afternoon: lunch at Granite City, shopping at Target, and watching Jurassic World.

We had to say goodbye to Greg, Val, and Chloe and head back to real life on Monday. This drive didn't feel quite as long as the first, though. Maybe because we stopped for lunch at Cracker Barrel, and then we meandered through several stores at the Tanger Outlets in Iowa. Mom even found a deeply discounted dress and ridiculously cheap dress pants (something like $7)! And we had to get coffee and chocolate at Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory before getting back on the road. (My selfie skills were not on point ...)

Really, we made great time! And then I came home to this:

It's not pretty; it's a $35 stove I got off a garage sale. It's not my dream stove by any means...but it is a GAS stove. For someone who learned to cook on gas and hasn't had a gas stove since moving out of her parents' house 10 years ago, this is a big deal! My dad, who stayed home to work on a variety of projects, made running a gas line and hooking up the stove one of those projects. Thanks, Dad! It's very much appreciated :-)

Overall, it was a fantastic way to spend the Fourth of July. I just wish the vacation could have lasted longer ...

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a little perspective

After my fantastic weekend in Indiana (really, a post is coming--I promise!), I returned to reality today. And boy did it strike with a vengeance!

I went back to work this morning--which isn't a bad thing, but I would have liked to have a longer vacation. Then, at 11:30, I left for lunch. That's when things fell apart.

I was headed back into town on the road I take every day, a road where the speed limit drops rapidly and virtually no one follows the posted speed limit. I had just hit the 35 mph zone when I noticed the cop parked off the road up ahead. You guessed it: I was not yet down to 35 mph. I braked, passed the cop, and kept driving. He turned around and followed me for a couple blocks (maybe to see if I'd commit any other infractions?) before flipping on his lights.

And I got my first-ever speeding ticket.

Did I deserve the ticket? Absolutely. I am 100% sure I was not going 35 when I got to the 35 mph sign. (Was I going as fast as the cop said? Highly unlikely. But I absolutely was speeding.) And in my 19 years of driving, I've probably sped way more than I've followed the speed limit. Many times I only go over by 1 or 2 mph, but speeding is speeding. So I'm pretty fortunate to have only this one ticket.

Still, though, I'm upset. As I said to my mom, "I know I was wrong. I know I deserve it. But I'm still mad about it!"

And isn't that the way we humans are? We want to do what we want, when we want, with whomever we want. We don't want to submit to authority; we want to be our own authority. And when we get called on it, we get mad.

The officer could have chosen to show me mercy today, but he didn't. And as I thought about that this afternoon, it made me grateful for a God who did choose to show me mercy. I deserve so much more than a $123 speeding ticket, which is miniscule in the grand scheme of things--I deserve hell for all eternity.

So thank you, Officer I'm-sorry-I-can't-remember-your-name-and-your-signature-was-illegible. Though I'm sure this was not your intent when you gave me that ticket, thank you for reminding me of my sin nature and for pointing me back to Christ.

As I drove home from work tonight, I was careful to observe the speed limit the entire way. Judging by how slow the drive felt, I was never remotely close to following the law in the past. Lesson learned.

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inspy award winners!

A couple months ago, I talked about being selected as a judge for the INSPY awards. Earlier this month, I spent an intense week reading all five of the shortlisted books in the Contemporary Romance/Romantic Suspense category. They were great, and it was so hard to keep from shouting their praises from the rooftops!

Now that the winning books have been announced on the INSPY website, I can tell you that Becky Wade's excellent Meant to Be Mine was chosen as the winner in the category I judged. (Here's the review I wrote when I read it the first time. It definitely holds up on the second read!) You can see all the winners on the INSPY site.

If you're looking for a good book to read, these books are a great place to start!

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30 down!

When I stepped on the scale this morning, I was greeted by a wonderful number: 176. That means I am officially down 30 pounds since I went gluten free on May 27, 2014. (Twenty-eight of these pounds have come off since I started THM in December ... I did lose and gain about five pounds a few times between May and December, but the weight loss didn't really begin until THM.)

Who-hoo!!!!!!!!!!

Not only is this an awesome milestone, but it represents something even bigger. Back in 2010 when I started having gallbladder problems, I lost a little weight. As a motivator for myself, I bought a TV series on DVD that I really wanted ... and then promised myself I wouldn't watch it until I lost 30 pounds. At the time, I thought it would take maybe a year ... but then I started feeling better and eating worse, and I began to wonder if I would ever get to pull those DVDs out of the box.

But finally, today is that day!

The funny thing is, Sports Night doesn't hold that much of an attraction to me right now ... but I'm still going to watch an episode to celebrate!

Here's to the next 30!!!

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a mother's day at home

First of all, let me be clear: I appreciate the sentiment behind Mother's Day, just as I appreciate the sentiment behind Father's Day. I think it's important to honor those who raised us, who prayed and cried over us, who sacrificed for us in ways we'll never fully understand.

I just don't like that Mother's Day is on a Sunday. If I wasn't a churchgoing Christian, the day that Mother's Day falls on probably wouldn't matter. But going to church on Mother's Day when you yourself don't have children can be hard.

I didn't really comprehend this until four years ago. That day, I walked into church, not even realizing that it was Mother's Day ... until two well-meaning greeters wished me "Happy Mother's Day" on my way into the sanctuary. I blogged about it then, so I don't need to rehash it all here. Let's just say that I realized then how difficult Mother's Day can be for the single woman, the woman struggling with infertility, the woman who no longer has custody of her children, and on and on and on.

My Mother's Day church attendance has been hit or miss since that day. Even though I normally am fine with not being a mother, and I actually enjoy my single, childless existence, something about being wished a Happy Mother's Day has a tendency to make me feel less than ... less than normal, less than chosen, less than loved. I know those are all lies that Satan wants me to believe about myself. I know that I am special, I am chosen, and I am loved by the King of Kings, and today of all days, I need to cling to that truth!

So I decided to suck it up, be a big girl, and go to church today. To smile at anyone who happened to wish me a Happy Mother's Day. To worship God with my chosen body of believers.

And then my car wouldn't start.

I had to laugh. It's almost as if God was telling me not to worry about today, to enjoy my morning and then celebrate my own mother.

So that's exactly what I intend to do!

Happy Mother's Day, Mom! (photo by Dad)

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five friday favorites #17: week of may 1, 2015

Happy Friday, everyone! This hasn't been a particularly great week for me--I came down with a cold last Saturday, and I'm still fighting it. A silver lining, though: since I've felt pretty terrible all week, I haven't been in the mood to read or work on my editing project much (and honestly, I'm not sure my brain could even have handled either one after eight hours at the office), so I've spent my spare time with mindless entertainment. Namely, Baby Daddy. It's completely hilarious ... due in large part to Tahj Mowry's Tucker. Tucker is the best friend and roommate of Ben, the titular baby daddy. And he is so, so funny. But, as much as I enjoyed binge watching Baby Daddy this week, it's not one of my Friday Favorites. These are ...

1. Let It Be Jesus
I recently had the opportunity to review Christy Nockels' new live album, Let It Be Jesus. It's so, so good, you guys! I've been listening to it practically non-stop. (I do tend to get a bit obsessive about my listening choices when I find something I love!)

Also, I'm able to give away a digital copy of the album to one of my blog readers! So head on over to my review and enter! Entries are low, and the giveaway runs through Saturday. Good luck!

2. Being Overweight
Sounds odd, right? A Friday Favorite is being overweight??? Well, in this case, it is! Because for me, being overweight signals that I'm no longer classified as obese. Two weeks ago, I officially rolled over into the overweight category with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 30.0. Then last week, I dropped into the 170s. I think the last time I weighed in the 170s was junior high--which was 20 years ago! Only three pounds to go before I'm 30 pounds lighter than I was when I started this gluten free journey nearly a year ago.

3. Full House reboot
Surely you've heard about this by now, right? Netflix is bringing back Full House as Fuller House, which will focus on a newly-widowed D.J. raising her boys ... and Kimmy and Stephanie move in to help her.

At first, I was outraged when I read that D.J. was recently widowed. How could they kill off Steve??? Except they didn't. D.J.'s dearly departed husband's last name was Fuller (hence the Fuller House), and Steve's last name was Hale. So apparently Steve and D.J.'s series finale reunion didn't stick ... and this gives the lovebirds a second chance (hopefully). This tweet from Scott Weinger (Steve, as well as the voice of Aladdin) gives me hope:

I'm touched by everybody's concern for Steve's welfare. All I can say is, things are in the works for your favorite over-eater! #FullHouse
— Scott Weinger (@ScottWeinger) April 21, 2015

4. Being an INSPY Judge
Never heard of the INSPYs? Neither had I, until about a year ago. The INSPYs were, according to their website, "created by bloggers to discover and highlight the very best in literature that grapples with expressions of the Christian faith." Readers nominate the books, the INSPY advisory board creates a shortlist of five books in each category, and then judges select the winners. On a whim, I applied to be a judge this year, and I was selected! I'll be judging the Contemporary Romance/Romantic Suspense category along with two other bloggers. The shortlist was announced yesterday, and, while I can't specifically comment on any of the books until after the winners are selected, let me just say that I am super excited to get reading! You can meet the judges here and see all the shortlisted books here.

5. Against the Grain

I adopted a gluten free lifestyle almost a year ago, and it has helped so much with my health issues. I recently reviewed a gluten free cookbook called Against the Grain, and it is full of fantastic gluten free recipes ... without weird ingredients. If you're gluten free, you should definitely check it out!

Thanks for stopping by! I'm linking up with the usuals: Erika, Karli, and April.

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