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On Maintaining Weight Loss

January 30, 2015 · by Ari · 16 Comments

Maintaining weight loss and healthy habits can be difficult after the high of dropping the weight wears off, but it’s totally achievable and today I’m sharing my 5 healthy tips for maintaining weight loss, even without a scale!

Whew…this is a post I’ve been wanting to put together for a long time. It’s also one where I open up about a whole bunch of feelings–“I’m an actress! I have all of them!“–anyone else have The First Wive’s Club memorized? I watch it about once a month. Anyway, first a little history lesson if you’re new around here.

In 2008 I began my weight loss journey. This was actually round 2 for me after dangerously and unhealthily dropping about 50 lbs in high school, then gaining it all back + about 30 more.
I started at 230 lbs. About a year in, I had lost 60 lbs and hit a big, huge, annoying plateau. I finally was diagnosed with Hashimotos, and with the combination of figuring out my meds and starting to run, I lost an other 10ish.
Now I live anywhere from 155-160ish. I’m embarrassed to admit that, and I know that’s stupid. In fact, I didn’t want to put it in bold. Sometimes it makes me feel like a healthy living hoax because I have this idea that I should weigh less.
I never expected this to be my maintenance weight. And I still wish it wasn’t. Like, everyday wish it wasn’t. But this is where I can eat dessert, and not count every single calorie. This is where I can work out hard, eat mostly healthy, drink wine and bourbon, and eat fro yo. I made the (hard) decision that I wanted to feel freedom more than I wanted to hit what I thought was my goal weight.
I also threw out my scale. So for my weight, take it with a grain of salt. I don’t get weighed at the doctor, and I don’t weigh myself at home. If my pants start to feel tight, maybe I’ll rethink that, but I have truly never been happier than when I broke up with the scale, and *gasp* I didn’t magically gain 30 lbs when I did it either.
This is me. This is where my body lives, and I’m learning to accept that. I’d be lying if I said I was totally thrilled with this, but I can do a lot of things that lots of “skinny” people can’t. I can lift heavy things, and I am running faster than I have ever run in my life. I am always looking to improve my health and fitness, but I accept that this no longer means a number on the scale, and I am so much more interested in seeing a number at a finish line.

Okay, so let’s actually talk about maintaining weight loss because it’s a beast of it’s own. I had a hard freaking time when my weight loss stopped. I am a numbers person, and I had measured my progress for an entire year by seeing the number on the scale drop. This is the moment when so many people give up and gain the weight back. I’ve seen it so many times, and the one thing I know is that I don’t ever want to have to start my journey all over again. I feel like it’s a fear we all have, right? Anyone who has lost weight has the fear of gaining it back. Just like if you’ve experienced a running injury, or lost your job–it instills this fear of it happening again (and again, and again…).

I’ve put together a few tips that have worked for me to maintain my weight loss (even sans scale).

Set new goals: For me this meant running goals, and now goals at CrossFit as well. I was so bored with my normal workouts. The scale had stopped. I needed something. I decided to train for my first 5k, then my first half marathon, and now 2 full marathons and a half ironman later, I still have to constantly set new goals for myself so I have something to work towards. This can be a new time goal, a new workout plan all together (that’s how I fell in love with CrossFit), a new lifting goal, or even just upping your workouts from 3x per week to 5. There is seriously nothing better than knowing you succeeded in completing your goal!

Have fun in the kitchen: This little blog has been a life saver for meal boredom. Food is meant to be enjoyed. I am not one of those food = fuel people. We have 5 senses, and each one is meant to be enjoyed. I love to look at beautiful things, listen to music, and eat delicious food, and that’s not something I plan on trying to change. Figuring out healthy ways to enjoy your favorite foods is key. Look for inspiration to keep from getting bored, and challenge yourself to try new things in the kitchen, even if they intimidate you!

Make healthy friends: I am a social butterfly. I love to talk. In fact, my friends at CrossFit are constantly making fun of me for being so chatty. In fact, when I told them I have a friend that talks more than me during workouts, they told me I was never allowed to bring her in! Anyway, I love spending time with friends, and having friends to run and workout with makes me want to do it. Also, having friends that share your values makes it so much easier for dinner parties / going out to eat /staying accountable. Not to mention, some of my favorite people have come from a mutual passion for healthy living.

Find new ways to track your progress: Okay, so this is kind of similar to setting new goals, but I used to literally see the scale drop every single time I stepped on it. It has been a loooong time since life was like that (it was AWESOME!), but I do see progress (almost) every single week at the track. Track workouts are my favorite thing. I get to run with friends, and I can see my improvement so clearly. For example, a few weeks ago I had 3 mile repeats that I completed at 8:49, 8:39, 8:32 and I was thrilled. This week at the track I did 3 mile repeats in 8:17, 8:09, 7:47. Now, I’m not saying I see that much progress every time (this was particularly excited and shocking for me), but I can always look back at previous track workouts and see my progress. This is equally exciting to me as seeing the drop in the scale, and it keeps me motivated to stick to my healthy lifestyle so I can continue to improve. Have you ever tried to improve your fitness while eating like crap? Yeah…it doesn’t work out very well. So whatever it is that you enjoy, find a way to track some progress and celebrate your improvements!

Ditch your old clothes!: Ummm, if your new clothes start getting tight, are you going to drop a bunch of money on a whole new wardrobe, or are you just going to reign in your diet a little? There’s no point in hanging onto clothes from the past “just in case” because just in case isn’t going to happen. You’ve made it this far, you know what to do, there is no going backwards!

What about you? Any tips or advice for keeping it off?

WellnessFX

November 2, 2012 · by Ari · 3 Comments

Recently I had the amazing opportunity to work with WellnessFX through FitFluential. WellnessFX is a web-based platform that essentially enables you to be more informed about your health, and to use that knowledge to take control of your life. I did the WellnessFX Baseline.

How it works:

First, you purchase the package. Then, make an appointment for a blood draw, and within a couple of days, you will receive an email notification that your results have been posted to your account. Once your results have been posted, you receive an extensive list of health care professionals with different specialties, and choose the one that looks like the best fit for your consult. When it is time for your consult, you simply call in and speak to the health care professional–all you need is a phone and internet service to be able to view your results. Following the consultation, the notes from the consult will be posted in your account, and you can view them any time. Lastly, you are able to track your progress as you make lifestyle changes, and see them reflected in your personal account.

My experience:

I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but you know I am always excited about an opportunity to learn more about my body, and what I can do to live a healthier life style. I made an appointment at a lab just minutes from my house.

Does anyone else feel like they never know what to do when they pose for a picture alone? Apparently, I went back to the 90’s and went with a thumbs up….

Unfortunately, the whole blood draw thing happens way too often for me, and I’m not a fan. Sad to get poked, but excited for the information it will bring!

They literally called me in within 5 minutes of my appointment time (my doctors could stand to learn something from these guys!) and I would say I was in and out of the lab within 10 minutes! It was so easy, and the staff were super friendly. I feel like that is a requirement when you work with needles. Required: Pleasant disposition, good sense of humor, daily showers. Oh, and I guess a degree 😉

Within 2-3 days, I received an email that my results had been posted to my account. I have to admit, I had a little bit of anxiety–“WHAT IF I’M DYING?!?!?!”–but, shockingly, my results were mostly great!

You can see here that everything looks good (thank you WellnessFX for the AWESOME color coating that made everything so easy to understand!) except my Apo B (protein in LDL) and hs-CRP (general inflammation marker). The inflammation was no surprise–I am training for a marathon, but the Apo B had me a little concerned, because cholesterol problems run in my family.

Here, everything is looking good except for the ALP. I believe they told me this was linked to my vitamin D being low, if I remember correctly. You can see that even my TSH is in balance!! Hooray! It’s been a long battle, and I never get to see my actual lab results, so it was nice to see that my meds are still working properly. Thank you, Endo!

This section gets an A+ 🙂

Womp, womp. So much orange. Really, it’s just telling me that my vitamin D is low, which is very common. Low calcium is an other thing that runs in my family, so I was happy to see those counts were good. You can see how detailed of an evaluation they give you. I was thrilled to have access to so much of my medical information! I definitely spent some time googling things before my consult, because I’m impatient like that 😉

The consult:

I spoke with Rachel, an RD who specializes in endurance athletes. That’s why I chose her 🙂 The day before my appointment, I received a reminder email from WellnessFX (great for forgetful people like me!). That day, I simply called in at my scheduled appointment time and enjoyed being able to speak to a health care professional from the comfort of my own home, and actually getting to speak on time rather than waiting for hours in a waiting room. It was great! She asked what a typical day of eating was like for me, and then we moved on to my blood work.

Apo B: She said this is most likely related to my thyroid disease (I have Hashimotos AKA Hypothyroidism), and not to be concerned with it since all of my other cholesterol levels are good.
Inflammation: Typical for training for a marathon. She recommended fish oil and vitamin C, and suggested a more concentrated dose where I only have to take one pill.
Vitamin D/ALP: She said to have low vitamin D is very normal, and asked where I live. I don’t think it’s quite as normal for someone who is constantly running and biking in sunny Phoenix, however since I don’t eat a ton of dairy, it is likely that my body is having a difficult time getting vitamin D from nutrition, so she recommended a supplement.

Rachel was very nice, and asked if I had any further questions, but she covered just about everything I could think of, then uploaded the notes to my account. Easy.

Now what?

I purchased a vitamin D supplement, as well as a new fish oil.

The vitamin D in teeny tiny, and the fish oil has a special coating that prevents the fish burps that anyone who has ever taken fish oil can attest are the WORST part!

I can’t wait to see some improvement (hopefully) in my vitamin D, ALP and inflammation moving forward!

Would I recommend the WellnessFX Baseline program?

Heck yes! For someone like me who is fascinated by numbers, specifics and the way my body works, it was perfect! It helped me realize where my health could use some improvements, and hopefully making those changes will lead to a better quality of life. I feel like for all of us, there is so much to be gained in knowledge alone. The knowledge that your blood sugar or cholesterol are in the read could be the kick you need to change your diet, and refocus your health. I absolutely loved the convenience and ease of the whole process, and I would 100% recommend it.

FitFluential LLC compensated me for this Campaign. All opinions are my own.

Needles & Goiters

March 22, 2012 · by Ari · 4 Comments

And the award for best post title ever goes to….!

Not ME?!?!

You must be joking. Everyone wants to read a post about goiters. And since that is clearly the most exciting part of this post, let’s save that for last and start with needles. Yesterday, I returned to physical therapy for some more Trigger Point Dry Needling. As I mentioned on Tuesday, I have not been feeling great lately. I was beginning to lose hope about these super painful treatments, but I figured I started it and should stick it out. Yesterday was super fun because on my right calf, then hit a blood vessel.

See that bruise? Okay, so it's not as big and scary as I was expecting. I don't bruise very easily, but yesterday it was bleeding and that was kind of scary. Who knew needles could produce blood?

And on my left calf, hit some nerve that sent a tingling sensation in my foot and a burning sensation down my leg. Don’t be scared mom! I asked lots of questions and ~~even though they’ve never done this before~~ they said it’s totally normal 😉 I spent most of the afternoon walking like a freak with super tight calves which is always the case immediately after. But then I went to rehearsal, and for the first time in over a month I COULD DANCE WITH MY STUDENTS!!!! I don’t know if you realize how ridiculously difficult it is to teach choreography when you are having trouble with just walking around, but it is hard and painful and not fun. I didn’t even realize just how limited I have been until all of the sudden, I was able to actually move and it wasn’t hurting, and I felt happier and better physically than I have in over a month.

Then, this morning I got up and walked to the bathroom without stumbling!!! I’m always tentative and nervous to start moving in the morning because that’s when the pain is the worst, but this morning, I felt only slight stiffness AND I RAN YESTERDAY! And not just la la la look at the ducks and my snail pace run. I did a tempo run at my new half marathon goal pace (9 min/mi). The run was nothing too spectacular speed wise. I met my goal, and that was cool, but lately every single time I run, and often even if I don’t, the next day I feel absolutely awful. Yesterday I ran and danced and loved life and today I love life even more because I can walk, skip, jump and pick flowers while gazing at rays of sunshine 😀

Okay, now let’s talk about weird things like goiters. About 2 weeks ago, I went through a little bit of the crazies. I was dealing with crappy insurance changes, mistakes that were minor in the long run, but felt major at the time, and a stupid endocrinologist who I’ve always hated, but due to lack of communication, almost changed my prescription TWICE without having seen me in 3 months. If you have thyroid issues, you know just how crappy it feels when your dosage is wrong, so this obviously caused a ton of anxiety, and a few days of feeling like an emo teenager because I handle changes and lack of control about as well as those people on The Biggest Loser who spend hours crying in the gym because they have to train with a different trainer for the week.

Enough was enough, and I sought out a new specialist, and had an appointment within 2 weeks! I waited to get into Dr Brard’s office when I was diagnosed for 6 months. Ummm, listen Dr B, you suck and I wish I would have known that when I signed up for your stupid 6 month waiting list. So today I had my first appointment with a new endo that came pretty highly recommended. There aren’t very many of them in Phoenix and almost all of them come with super negative reviews. People are picky about their thyroids, and I don’t blame them.

I feel like this office was love at first site. The guy behind the desk was nice and friendly and didn’t mess anything up! Then the nurse laughed at my stupid jokes and didn’t seem annoyed by the fact that I refused to shut up or let her get a word in edge wise. Then the nice little assistant endo man asked a LOT more questions than I had ever been asked before, and noticed things that are associated with thyroid and still bothering me even with medication. Like the fact that my hands and feet are always freezing. Like as I type this, I wish I had mittens on. Then he asked if I had any stretch marks and I said “only from when I was fat” which prompted several more questions about my weight loss. He was nice. I liked him.

While I waited for the main doctor to come in, I started looking around the office, and they have all of these funny pictures.

Agreed.

He has a sense of humor! This place is just racking up the points in my book! Then the doctor came in and before he said anything, congratulated me on my weight loss. I guess his friend filled him in. It’s been so long now that I’ve been around the same weight, that I sometimes forget that I did something kind of cool, and lots of people would like to lose 75 lbs and never do. He seemed so impressed that I “get it” and mentioned that he sees people all the time that just never do. Thanks doc!

Then he felt around in my neck–let me tell you, this is the least fun thing (well that and all the blood drawing) about going to the thyroid doctor! I do not appreciate people touching my neck, and it always feels like I’m choking, but I mean that’s where the thyroid is, so whatev. Then he tells me “Yes, you have a goiter. It’s small, but firm.” To which I responded “LIKE THAT OLD WOMAN ON SEINFELD?!?!!??!

I can’t for the life of me figure out how to get the actual video on this post so you should click on this and watch it!

He knew what I was talking about which scored him more points, but I guess it’s very common with thyroid disease.

“Hashimoto’s thyroiditis is a more common cause of goiter formation in the US. This is a autoimmune condition in which there is destruction of the thyroid gland by one’s own immune system. As the gland becomes more damaged, it is less able to make adequate supplies of thyroid hormone. The pituitary gland senses a low thyroid hormone level and secretes more TSH to stimulate the thyroid. This stimulation causes the thyroid to grow, which may produce a goiter.”
Source

Anyway, I guess the goiter is no big deal, and my meds should keep it from getting any bigger. They better, because my so sensitive best friend Jason made sure to let me know that if it got like the woman on Sein, that he wouldn’t be able to be seen with me anymore. Thanks Jas. So glad our friendship is based on such meaningful deep qualities 😉 I guess if it keeps growing I’ll just have to call Elaine, and ask her to do some volunteer work hanging out with me…

That’s all for now. Got new blood work today, and have to get more on Monday, but really I’m just thankful to have a doctor who seems like he gets it and is not a jerk face!

On Maintaining Weight Loss

WellnessFX

Needles & Goiters

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