Week 23 Profile by Sanford

Hello!

So, I was still pretty off-plan this last week although I did make some better choices, such as taking advantage of Panera's Rapid Pick Up service - I'd order a customized salad on the app and schedule it to be ready when I dropped my husband off and there was my lunch!  It's been hard finding and keeping decent salads/mixes at home lately....

Up a bit this week - understandable as there's not been a lot of walking and not getting all my water in most days either.

So back to the walking I must get!  I found some great beginner resistance tube workouts on Pinterest and when my husband gets home this afternoon we're going to talk about food and exercise.  He's been wanting to get back on his bicycle and I would like to get back on mine as well.  It's been really hard for him - he's used to bicycling everywhere and hasn't been able to do much at all since we got here a bit over a year ago.  There are some local people on the Profile Facebook group and we're hoping to schedule a weekly meetup at Planet Fitness - I think that will be fun!

My coach and I finally reconnected this week; it feels like it's been forever since we've talked!  And she was kind of sly in putting in the, "You don't think you can make yourself a priority?" in the conversation.  And she's right.  My biggest issue, I thought, was that I don't like a lot of vegetables.  So we agreed that veggies would be my focus this week.  So I took out my Profile guide out and wrote down a list of veggies I like, veggies that I'm "meh" about, and veggies I'd like to try.  It's a bit of a long list!  But Friday, as we were at the grocery store getting things together for a Father's Day picnic, I realized what is probably more of the problem.  I wanted to make rollups instead of sandwiches for myself and for that I needed romaine lettuce.  Granted, we only went to that big box store we all know and dislike, and so that might have been part of it.  But of the 7 or 8 packages of romaine, all had brown tips, bug holes, and slimy spots (and 1 ladybug!).  So I'm wondering if it's more of a "I like veggies but can't find decent produce!" thing?  So I'm busily pinning recipes (and if you have any suggestions, please post them below!) and what I might do is make a "master list" to take to the Farmer's Market Tuesday night.  Then for at least a few days I can have good veggies and may have to figure out leftovers and frozen or tricks (like spinach in the strawberry shake!) for the rest of the week.

So goals this week are to get strength training in 3 days a week, bike with my husband 2-3 days a week, meet up at PF 1 day a week, and walk on all my breaks!

On the Skoolie front, they got the flooring in!  We went with a hardwood laminate and then opted to lay it sideways instead of length-wise and we're all pretty tickled with it!

My husband has sketched in wall framing and we got 1 more package of hardwood flooring (but a different style that was less expensive) - we were short about 10 square feet to also do under the bed so we'll use up the flooring above and put the new flooring where it won't be visible along the walls.  Easy finish option as it will all be level and no hard thought required!!  Those first 2 open spaces on the right (well, the corner of the first one!) are where the benches will go for the dinette.  Then the floored section after is where the sink/Panda washing machine/water heater will go.  Then bathroom area.  That black stock tank is our shower tub!!  And it's back by where the bed will go.  Coming back down, the wheel well you can see on the left will be where the closet will be built, then fridge, cooktop, and new countertop oven we decided would be better than our toaster oven, countertop, and then a quasi-entertainment center - it will be countertop that sits lower than the kitchen countertop (level with the bottom of the windows, whereas the kitchen countertop will be taller and a more workable working height) and will be where a TV or computer monitor will go, and will hold games and home office supplies and probably some of our art stuff, too.  Getting there!!  With more of a set schedule, hopefully they can get a lot more progress done and soon so we can give it a good test!!

My little Ukulele loom came in from Windhaven Fiber Tools last Friday!!  I'm still waiting on the Accordian loom, but this little guy is such fun!!  Dad made the jig for me once I determined the best length heddle to make and hopefully the piece of scrap wood we selected is long enough for the Accordian heddles too - but if not, we can always find more scrap wood!!  Then I'll get corks to put over the tops of the nails to prevent hurting anyone accidentally!

And in the short amount of time I've had it, I've gone from this:

To this:

And last night I was working on this:

So I've definitely been having fun with that!  There's some fun tablet weaving patterns I want to try but I'm afraid that unless I made 1-inch tablets/cards, it's not at all feasible with this little guy!  (Doesn't mean I won't try later on!)  But there are some lovely patterns out there and I've got plenty to play with!

Until next time!

H

Weeks 19-22 Profile by Sanford

Wow - time has flown!  We've had birthdays, holidays, sickness, accidents, and family visits.  Job changes, job changes again, and hot hot weather!  I think we literally went from still running the wood stove to where's the air conditioner in less than 24 hours at one point!

I have been as off-plan as off-plan can get, too.  I've maintained the weight loss, though, which says a lot as previously I've always gained it back after being off-plan for so long. That tells me that the mental side of it is kicking in and I'm making better choices.

In there I had my birthday and Memorial Day and Mother's Day...all bad for the waistline if you let them!  Last week I had a cold bad enough to keep me home from work for 2 days and still coughing a week later.  But finally feeling mostly back to normal.  That means, of course, not a lot of walking has been happening because it was really  hard to breathe.  My Fitbit stats reflect that a little bit - for brevity I'm only posting the most recent week:

But I'm already ansty to get back to walking and you can see by Monday and Tuesday I was ready to go!  I've purchased some resistance bands from Profile by Sanford and will be adding strength training to me repertoire somehow.  That's part of today's tasks, to figure that out!

On the weight loss front, I'm not quite to Twodorland but I'm super close!!

For reference:

That's a whole lotta fast food!!

My sister-in-law's parents are in town and we had a lovely visit with them, going to Bear Country, USA and then lunch at Famous Dave's - and I think the 3 ladies were the only ones who weren't regretting eating there!  I had the catfish fingers (breaded and fried but not greasy which is nice!) and garlic mashed potatoes and 1 corn bread muffin.  I was satisfied without having gone overboard.

Earlier this week we were in a 4-car accident - thankfully no serious injuries!  Everyone walked away!  One lady did get checked over by the EMTs but she went home with her daughter and her other daughter drove that car home - although I'm sure it's a total loss.  We were at an intersection, fully stopped, waiting for the SUV in front of us to turn left and she was waiting for oncoming traffic to open up so she could do so safely.  A pickup that had been jacked up and "tricked out" rear-ended car #1, pushing that into car #2, pushing car #2 into our rear end, lifting it and moving us forward 2 feet.  We have an '02 Durango, not a light vehicle at all, and again, fully stopped, brakes fully engaged.  Car #1 was crumpled, multiple fluids leaking, but driver was safe.  Car #2 rear end was crumpled, and passenger side fender was crumpled.  Both will most likely be considered a total loss by insurance.  We sustained minor damage - the hitch we just put on a few weeks ago needs to be replaced as does the bumper and bumper assembly.  But it's drive-able, the parts will be in in a few days, and it will be back to the way it was.  The advantages of a good solid vehicle!  We did go to Urgent Care and get checked out - my brother had literally just gotten off the plane coming home from a conference and he came to follow us over to make sure we were good and the Durango was good.  Yay brother to the rescue! ☺

I did purchase a Nutri Ninja with Auto-iQ so I can start making my shakes into smoothies, including adding spinach to the strawberry one.  I had a gift card yet from Christmas to use which helped - but since I'd killed the store-brand version when we were in Ohio, I figured a Ninja should serve me well!

Things should be getting back on track - more so now that we've ironed some things out with my husband's employer.  He took a leave of absence (they didn't want him to quit when he found a different job - that job didn't work out as well as we'd hoped) and agreed to come back on our terms - no more opening and specific hours availability, and basically set days off unless absolutely necessary.  He also wanted some recognition for the fact that the majority of the customer comments/compliments mention him by name, that he's the only one who has yet to call off since they opened, he has the experience others don't but is still stuck at the cash register.  So he received training to become a trainer and is in line for supervisor training, finally.  That means I can schedule things accordingly - like meeting local Profile people once a week.  And it means being able to schedule workout times for strength training.

Until next time!

H

Week 18 on Profile by Sanford

Again, my Profile weeks run from Wednesday to Tuesday, since I started on a Wednesday. So this is from May 3through May 9, 2017. I do tend to get discombobulated a bit so while the weight/measurements run those weeks, what I write about may not. :-)

This week as all up in the air - I took Thursday and Friday off, partly for my birthday and partly to get some work done on the Skoolie.  Friday was also a 5th grade entrepreneur fair - my nephew had designed desk water bottle holders last year and so this year he used those as his product.  If I'm remembering correctly, each student had to have a product, determine cost to make it, apply for a loan from the school, obtain a "business license" from the school, and pay a fee for space, make the products, and sell them.  Any profit they made was theirs to keep.  The fair was open to the public and there were some really cool ideas!!  

So Thursday and Friday mornings my husband and I tinted most of the windows on the Skoolie.  Friday afternoon was the school fair, and then we went to our favorite Mexican restaurant for supper and had birthday cake.  Saturday was a lay-about day.  Just not a lot of oomph.  :-)  Today we got all but the back door and 2 corner windows tinted - we need one more roll of tint.  

Last Saturday we went to Custer State Park - we took Needles Highway down there and he got to see the Needles Eye - as a rock hound, he was tickled with that whole bit.  Then we took the wildlife loop through the park - and those buffalo calves are sure cute as they're learning to use their legs!  The burros were happy to eat the chips we brought, as always, and even the prairie dogs and antelope made an appearance!  We took Iron Mountain Road back to Hill City via Keystone and had a drink at the winery where he works.  All in all, a very lovely day (and a very not-so-lovely sunburn on my left arm....oops!!)

So, here are the numbers - again, not worried, not going to fret - learning to just go with it.  I know that trying to stick to plan 100% of the time isn't going to work for me and I know that my numbers will show that.  I strive for 95% and am happy at 80% - and that's about what you do at maintenance levels, depending on who you talk to.  Part of the program is learning to overcome the mental obstacles and the striving for perfection is the hardest one for me.

Those weekends and my steps...we need to learn to dance better!!  :-)

Until next week!!

Heather

Week 16 on Profile by Sanford

Again, my Profile weeks run from Wednesday to Tuesday, since I started on a Wednesday. So this is from April 19 through April 25, 2017. I do tend to get discombobulated a bit so while the weight/measurements run those weeks, what I write about may not. :-)

What a rough month and, consequently, week.  Let's just get these numbers over with, shall we?

Uff da.  But, in looking back, I've been off plan far more than on plan, I'm afraid.  And it shows - no loss this month.  In fact, 2/10 of a pound in gain.  BUT for all the off-plan, I'm impressed that that's all the gain I had.  I would almost say it's more of a maintenance than a gain.  We ended up eating out a couple of times and that doesn't help, of course.  No excuses, but things to remember for the future.

Getting steps in has been interesting with this crazy South Dakota weather!  We woke up to snow TWICE this week and it was cold/rainy all week long.

Walking in the winter coat that didn't zip up at Christmas!

Punny.....

Windy day!!!

But I did it - even on the weekends!! 

And I think it was Tuesday - but it might have been Wednesday or Thursday after these stats - it was raining out on my first break and I really didn't want to walk outside - and I really didn't want to walk around the break room as that's when a lot of people are just getting in to work and getting their coffee, etc.  Then I remembered! Leslie Sansone, of WATP (Walk Away The Pounds), has some workouts on her YouTube channel - including a couple of 5-minute ones!  So I went upstairs (and walked up the stairs, no elevator!!) to a quiet area rarely frequented, hit play, and went for it!  Then back down the stairs, across the building to the breakroom to get my blender bottle (I fill those with water when I first get to work and put them in the fridge) and back to my desk.  My goal for the next month is to hit that step goal every weekend too, then increase it by a factor of 10%.  Even though I'm hitting it during the week, weekends seems to be a bear for me.  No structure, no schedule is hard for me.  

And while there was no weight loss this month, there's still things to be proud of.  Those steps, for example.  Feeling more energetic as a general rule (not counting the being so tired from getting up at 3am for his job).  Going to my new favorite store, Torrid, and buying denim capris a size smaller.  Flappy jeans when I'm walking (which amuses me to no end!).  (Flappy jeans - the material flaps as I walk because it's so loose.)  And ALL my jeans can now be taken off without unbuttoning or unzipping.  That's even the pair that was still snug a couple of weeks ago.  So while measurements haven't been changing much, weight loss has been stalled, things are really looking up.

For example, blood pressure.  Ideally, it should be between 90/60 and 120/80.  January 3rd it was 143/84.  I take this with the proverbial grain of salt because I was definitely feeling dehydrated that morning (we'd spent the night in a very warm hotel room the night before and I was doing fasting blood work that morning as well) and the nurse had tried 3 times with an arm cuff before switching to a wrist cuff.  Still, kind of scary.  I've been regularly checking it Wednesday evenings and this last week it was at 123/62.  It ranges up to the 130s over 80s, and sometimes higher if I forget to sit still during the reading or forget to wait a few minutes after coming upstairs.  But I like these numbers.  The beginning of July I plan on getting the blood work done again to see how that has changed also.

Other news - there are only 11 more days of waking up before the crack of dawn!!  My husband got a job at one of the winery/breweries in Hill City.  It will mean a fair bit more driving and a lot more meal planning - but it will get us on a more normal biorhythm, too.  My goal is on nice days to go walking/biking outside and on yucky days to stop at Planet Fitness before going to pick him up.  I was able to switch my schedule from 6:30am-3:00pm to 9:30am-6:00pm.  The earliest his shift ends will be 6:00pm so this will work out nicely.  I'm mentally planning larger breakfasts and lunches which will also help with sleeping at night.

Skoolie news - insulation is in!

That pile is what is left plus one more roll - and let me tell you what: even with the cold weather we had, the temperature difference inside the Skoolie is noticeable.  In just a t-shirt and jeans I was almost comfortable.  Hard to believe, isn't it?  Definitely a good investment and a great score!  (Regular price would have been $350 and he got it for $35!!)

We thought we had an on-demand water heater but on closer viewing it's a hot water dispenser - meaning it has a tiny tank inside for providing hot water for a cup of coffee or tea.  Not what we need at all!  So we're going to test it anyway and if it works sell it.  We had one in mind anyway so now it's a matter of looking at budget for that and what else we need right now to start framing around.  I think the water heater/plumbing are the only two issues.  

So, until next week!!

H

Week 15 with Profile by Sanford

Again, my Profile weeks run from Wednesday to Tuesday, since I started on a Wednesday. So this is from April 12 through April 18, 2017. I do tend to get discombobulated a bit so while the weight/measurements run those weeks, what I write about may not. :-)

As mentioned last week, I will no longer be tracking body measurements weekly.  The next measurements will be taken on May 3rd.  Instead, I'll be adding my Fitbit stats up here.  This past week a friend invited me to a Workweek Hustle challenge and I was within a few hundred steps of one of her friends most of the week - but he pulled ahead by a couple of thousand on Thursday.  Next week, good man, next week!  😅

Weekends are still the bane of my walking existence but I'm getting there!  My daily goal right now 4,000 steps per day.  I've re-started walking on my morning and afternoon breaks and added walking on my lunch break.  That definitely makes hitting that goal easy, as evidenced by Monday and Tuesday!!  

Weight/BMI stats for this week:

Not a lot of change but Saturday we had our Easter dinner - and with good ham comes lots of sodium.  This isn't something I'm going to fret over - but definitely need to refocus.  Which I've said how many weeks now?  😖  A big challenge this week was.....vegetables.  I was so over vegetables this week.  My favorite, riced cauliflower with peas, carrots, and green onions and I couldn't eat them.  After talking to my coach Thursday, I went out to the food truck (I'm fortunate in that my employer allows local vendors to set up shop for lunches) and got their cheese salad.  We're talking the basics, here.  Iceberg lettuce, shredded cheddar, and their house ranch (they do cajun foods as a specialty) and talk about hitting the spot.  So Friday I brought a similar salad to work as well.  There's also been some Panera goings-on for breakfast Friday and Saturday, so I definitely have some work to do.  

Saturday I went in to town with my husband so I could pick up a bit more overtime.  I had a seasonal greens salad at Panera for lunch and tweaked it a bit.  I'm not sure I'll ever be able to eat raw kale....haha  He had a "working interview" Saturday afternoon and we ate in Hill City again.  He'd had the initial application and chat Friday night and we splurged by eating at the Alpine Inn.  The menu consists of 6-ounce or 9-ounce filet mignon, iceberg wedge, house dressing, baked potato and Texas toast.  Nice and simple, yes?  Well.....until you get the dessert menu!  If you're ever in Hill City, SD, you must check them out.  But get there early - the lines form quickly!!

Saturday night we chose a different restaurant and opted for a buffalo/elk burger.  Yum!!  But it was also 8 ounce, plus the bun, plus sweet potato fries, and dessert.  I really, really should have eaten only half and boxed the rest - I was physically uncomfortable the rest of the night.  But his "working interview" seemed to go really well and perhaps there will be news on that front next week.

In other news, I have a cousin getting married this fall and so I've started to crochet one of my favorite afghans.  It's the Very Victorian by Maggie Weldon.  So his socks and my shrug are on a back burner again!  But not for long - I crochet fairly quickly.  I am using my new Trindle drop spindle and get a little bit more spun now and again.  I'm hoping there will be time soon to get my weaving/spinning bench built so I can get my spinning wheel out.  I'm working on a couple of alpaca/merino/silk blends that I'm hoping to spin into a fine yarn with which to weave a wrap on my Kromski Harp rigid heddle loom.  It's nice having a front patio to sit on, but I have to be able to sit!  My wheel sits a bit too tall for any standard chairs so we bought the supplies to build this bench and hopefully we can work on it this spring, along with a lazy kate for plying the singles I spin.

And, some Skoolie progress.  My husband was meandering Menards last weekend looking for insulation.  We had thought the foam boards we planned on using were a lot less expensive than they actually are - but he managed to find rolls of a wool blend for $2.50 a roll - the regular price is around $25!  He grabbed it all up - there was 14 rolls, and there's just a wee bit left.  The best part is it takes the R factor from 7 to 15 and he said when he and Dad were installing it you could already feel a difference.  Nice Skoolie Skore!!  We're very fortunate and grateful that Dad has, as a wedding gift, said we can stay in his driveway another year to test it all out rather than trying to find a place to park it in town.  I'm hoping we'll be "living" in it by June but there's still a lot of work to do.

Until next week!

Heather

Week 8 on Profile by Sanford

Again, my Profile weeks run from Wednesday to Tuesday, since I started on a Wednesday. So this is from February 22 through 28, 2017.

Last Friday we babysat our two fantastic nephews - and we got pizza again. But again with spinach and zucchini added. I decided to just not fret over the weekend as we spent some fun times with my brother, sister-in-law, and nephews. I did watch my portions and stopped when I was done instead of worrying about that clean plate club.



This past week has been a bit rough, too. But for the most part I was on plan. We were still on overtime Monday and Tuesday and that takes its toll on me - I worked over 13 hours on Tuesday. So I knew I wasn't going to have a lot of changes because when I'm tired and frustrated I retain water. When I am not moving for long stretches of time, my ankles start looking like softballs, poor things. But I am most definitely not complaining because I am still seeing progress:



Was it "only" 1 pound? Yup. But look at those hips - down 5 inches. That's a lot!! And in my blue jeans, it shows. They don't fit right there anymore and chafe a wee bit. My abdomen, which is measured at the belly button - 3-1/2 inches. And I know that this is not an all-or-nothing thing - I am not always going to lose weight. But I am healthier, and I can feel it. For the first time all winter, I got a sinus infection. That comes from eating healthier, people. I feel more confident, too. Of course, this might have helped in that area: I tried on a dress a couple of weeks ago and while Casey and the store attendant both said it looked great, I still wasn't sure. Three teenage girls came in and all three squee'd and said how fantastic/gorgeous/wonderful it looked on me. On me. And you know those teenage girls aren't going to lie! hehe (And yes, the dress came home and when the weather is appropriate it will get worn!) Those are all things that will help me along this path.

The air fryer is definitely getting used. Chicken, just plain with seasonings, no breading, comes out super moist in that thing. Fish last night, again, fantastic. And today I got up the gumption to experiment a bit!



Spinach pizza crust from Profile by Sanford here - spinach, grated Parmesan, an egg - we were out of basil so I added garlic salt (fresh ground) and some oregano instead. I put it in the air fryer for 15 minutes at 400. I was a bit concerned when I took it out as it looked almost over-cooked. But I flipped it over and it was not done on that side. I added a bit of marinara sauce and some shredded cheese and put it back in for 5 minutes at 350 (all temps Fahrenheit). SUPER good. I'll definitely be making more of these - time to prep onions, mushrooms, and other toppings! It was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, almost like a bread crust would have been! I couldn't taste the spinach hardly at all, either.

This week is back to regular time at work and I'm hoping for some walks after work as the weather is looking to be pretty doggone nice! We got some tint for the windows of the Skoolie yesterday and that's on this week's agenda. Once the tint is up we can focus on final layout and get started framing. Progress!!

Heather

Week 7 on Profile by Sanford

Again, my Profile weeks run from Wednesday to Tuesday, since I started on a Wednesday. So this is from February 15 through 21, 2017.

So, last Friday we also ate out and not in a healthy way. We went to a restaurant that sells pizza puffs - and I had really been craving pizza. I got a 3-pack, Casey got a 6-pack. Turns out, these things are huge. Like baseball-sized. And not as good as I had hoped. They were good, but I doubt I'll have them again. More overtime at work means no extra time for exercise but I am walking around the building a bit more and building up my steps on my FitBit so that's small steps (pun intended!). The problem with going to the gym after work is I'm mentally exhausted and just plain don't want to do anything other than go home and rest. That's a block I'll need to learn to work around because I know, too, that exercising will kick the brain back into gear as well. And come spring, we'll have the bicycles ready to go and hopefully a hitch on the SUV so we can take them with.

We did have pizza Tuesday night from a popular take and bake place. I had a large salad and 1 piece - which we had gotten the thin crust and had them add zucchini and spinach. I was pleased with that and it gave him plenty of leftovers for Wednesday! We have been making use of the air fryer - chicken, tater tots for him and veggie tots for me, steak, and it's all turned out delicious so far! One of my goals is to find the spinach pizza crust recipe and try that in the mini baking pan that comes as an accessory.

So, without further ado:





I am pretty tickled with that, to say the least! And for some non-scale victories - the blue pair of jeans that I couldn't zip at the beginning of the year now require me nearly constantly hitching them up as I'm walking and the black pair that I couldn't even get on at the beginning of the year are now comfortable enough to not require changing out of them when I get home. The flannel shirt Casey gave me for Christmas that wouldn't button now buttons with the exception of around my hips (which, given it's a men's shirt, that's not at all surprising). Most of the time, stairs are not a problem anymore, too. Small things adding up to big things!!

On the Skoolie side - we got our tub this past weekend - a 40-gallon livestock tub:



Our plan is to frame around it so we can add insulation as well. At the Restore store we also got five 12-inch square vinyl tiles with a rose in the center and we'll frame those in for decoration. We're still on the lookout for countertop - it seems that all we can find in the Restore stores is precut for a sink, understandably. Unfortunately, it's for a double-sink and we've got a single-sink. But the right one will come along - even if we end up building one!

So, until next time,

Enjoy life!

Heather

Week 3 Profile by Sanford and another Skoolie update!

Again, my Profile weeks run from Wednesday to Tuesday, since I started on a Wednesday. So this is from January 18-24, 2017.

The week had fewer challenges as far as eating out, but man did I feel hungry a lot this week. I wasn't hungry, but I just wanted to eat. Which is part of why I wanted to do a very rigid program like Profile by Sanford. Because the meals are already laid out for the day, I don't have to think about it. I know I can have a ShapeWise chew or an additional fiber drink (water soluble fiber for a feeling of fullness) and not go off-track. Saturday we did go to Q'doba and I had a chicken salad - I may have gone over on protein and fat just a bit for the day but still far better than I could have done!! So, without further ado....




Up in a couple spots inches-wise, but that's okay. We measured in the morning versus the afternoon and so that might have made a difference, too. Progress is still progress! My coach is pretty fantastic - he put a hand-written note of encouragement in with my order this week! And an NSV (non-scale victory) this week! Last fall I had purchased 2 pairs of jeans from Avenue online. Now, this store was the first store in years where I could walk in to the store and get jeans off the rack that fit and fit like I'd been wearing them forever. That nice, cozy, comfy feeling. So imagine my disappointment when these didn't fit!! I couldn't zip the blue pair up and the black pair didn't want to go on hardly at all past the hips! Well, last week the blue pair zipped! And were mostly comfortable but by the end of the day I needed to change out of them. This week? Well, last night I forgot to change out of them! Next week, pending measurements, I'll be trying that black pair on!!

I'm expanding my horizons a bit - I got their peppered chicken gumbo and their homestyle beef stew, as well as their vegetarian chili and sloppy joe mix. I believe these are meal replacements, so in lieu of the shake at lunchtime, for example. And for evenings, I did get a box of the chocolate fudge cake. I have PB2 powder to add for chocolate peanut butter, too. Or strawberry syrup or caramel syrup...yum!! I also got a sample of the pancakes and cheesy fiesta pasta. To go with the pancakes, I ordered from Walden Farms syrup and chipotle ranch dressing and packets of dressing for eating out - I can tuck those into my purse. So lots of fun things to try!

On the Skoolie note - we did pick up the hardwood flooring at Menards, and the underlayer. We also splurged a bit there and got a version that also added a bit of insulating factor - every bit will help in the winters!! We've decided on the wall board, but didn't pick it up - we'll need a bigger truck for that as it's 4 foot by 8 foot. The cooktop came in and it's bigger than we pictured, even after drawing up measurements from the schematics, but it's not too big -it's a more functional size, actually. And the heaters arrived, too! Busy week for FedEx at our house! The heaters were also a lot bigger than we thought, too. But they tried the one and it puts out a fair bit of heat so with one on each end of the Skoolie we'll be nice and cozy!

Sometime this week my aunt and uncle are going to be here for a visit - I think the spiralizer will get quite the workout as we tempt her with zoodles!! (She has celiac so probably hasn't had noodles in years!) Looking forward to seeing them again - especially since the last time we saw them I had started that elemental shawl and this time - well, except for blocking it will be done this week!!

Cheers!

Heather

Week 2 Profile by Sanford & Skoolie update

For ease of simplicity, I'm going to refer to my weeks on Profile by Sanford vs days. I'll try to remember to put at the beginning that my Profile weeks run from Wednesday to Tuesday, since I started on a Wednesday. I weigh in the morning and we do measurements at night. This week we got a better tape measure so the measurements felt a bit off kilter but not too bad and certainly nothing to fret over. Next week they'll be back in sync with the new tape measure. I did decide to continue the app, Weight Track Assistant and in the "forearm" part I'm putting my calf measurement. My blood pressure is in a Blood Pressure - MyDiary app as well.

So. Week 2 results:



Certainly no complaints there! There were a couple of challenges - and there always will be - Friday night my first childhood friend invited us to her home for dinner and was very accommodating of my needs. We had a lovely time with her family and I'm hoping we will get to spend more time with them. Casey and her oldest daughter had a great time talking about knitting and I foresee several knitting-on-the-back-porch sessions! We went out to eat a total of 3 times (2 planned, 1 unplanned) - and I did really well, I think. Friday night we went to Chilis and I got their Ancho Salmon with broccoli - I swapped the lime-chili rice for asparagus and tomatoes and that was a lot of food for not a lot of calories and zero loss in taste. And Casey helped me clean my plate, which also helped! :-) (Although in hindsight, still about 570 calories...and that's off the "ligher fare" menu!)

Saturday we did a town run. It's really hard to look for things for the Skoolie after work and I really wanted to see "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them." We planned on lunch at Panera and I got the Spicy Thai Chicken Salad, half size. I swapped the edamame and wonton strips, chose the more greens option for lettuce, and had the dressings on the side. About 260 calories all told. And water to drink. It was a packed house and a couple sat next to us and asked about bussing tables (it was so packed people were sitting at tables before the poor staff could clean off the tables!). I noticed the scarf she was wearing and asked if she knit it - she had! Lovely conversation later, we made hopeful new friends, too! (And look for Brim Collections on Instagram - knitting patterns and yarn coming soon!)

We then went to the Restore Store and got some things for the Skoolie - the kitchen sink, included! We got new seats for the benches - the pieces look like they're from a corner bench table set and they'll be a lot more comfortable than the plain plywood - these have the gentle curve for sitting and they're a good, solid wood. We got a toilet set because it was shell-shaped (and only $1.50!!) so we can start plans to build the composting toilet too. (And I have an excuse to buy octopus stuff! Ha!) We got a very ornate towel holder - the wall-mounts look almost Victorian, and we found some lovely drawer pulls, too. All in all, $50! We did look at hardwood flooring but felt that was an area we didn't want to skimp on and what they had was kind of rough. (Menards quite conveniently put some on sale today along with free underflooring with mail in rebate! Guess where we're going tomorrow!) The stove top is on order as are the EnviHeat heaters. We're still deciding on the size of the shower (we have it marked off at 36 inches square but may be able to go smaller) and then countertop. They had some nice counters at the Restore store, but the holes were for a double-sink and ours is a single sink. So we'll look for that next, I think, plus wall paneling. It's exciting to be getting close to being done - and to being able to find a place to park it to live in for awhile!

We went to the movie and I was not at all tempted by the popcorn - even after walking up three floors to the screen the movie was playing! And he got me a large water, so I was good there. We went to the 4:00 show and it was 6:15 before it was done. We decided to go to IHOP for supper. I don't think we'll be going again. It doesn't look like upkeep is high on the owner's priority list - it's not a very old building but it looks like it. Our server also left a fair bit to be desired. I asked for water and he asked for coffee. Over 5 minutes later she came back with 2 coffee cups, a carafe of coffee, and no water. She apologized, and it took close to another 5 minutes before she finally brought 2 glasses of water. That probably should have been a clue to just leave. A salad at a fast food joint would have been better. I ordered the white-egg veggie omelette, swapping the avocado for mushrooms, sourdough toast as the side (for Casey), and a salad. Casey ordered a steak omelette with hashbrowns for his side. She brings me the omelette (made correctly) with the fruit cup and toast (so 2 sides instead of 1) and Casey's omelette with hashbrowns. I said this isn't right because I can't have fruit. "Well, this is what I wrote down" as she's looking the printout - "Oh! You ordered a salad! I'll be right out with it, I'm so sorry!" She said she'd cover it, which was nice. I ate the omelette, started on the salad pulling out the occasional "slimy" pieces. Not a big deal, it happens. Except I looked closer at a speck to see if it was bad or just a spot I could remove - and it moved. Casey pulled over the other waitress (who we've had in the past and is fantastic) and pointed it out to her, just politely saying that they may need to check their stock and I declined another salad as I was quite full and she immediately went back and told our server to take off 20% of the meal. So they made it right for the most part, but overall it left a bad taste in my mouth - literally as well as figuratively.

So lots of progress this week - we sat down and did a basic menu for the week trying new recipes that hopefully won't bore Dad. hehe Wednesday night his lady-friend will be cooking for us, and will be baking chicken and making a salad. She works in a hospital so Dad is confident she can accommodate my needs. We've never met her before, so it will be an interesting evening!

Until next week!

Happy 2017!!

Another year has gone by, and what a crazy year it was!

Quick recap: Bought a Skoolie in February, got jerked around by a well-known truck service company in Ohio for a month, but managed to leave Ohio and end up in South Dakota in April. Our intent was to get to Washington state but that's on hold for a bit. Got good jobs, Dad and Casey are kicking butt on the Skoolie renovation (it had already been converted to a motorhome but now it will be a much cleaner, safer, nicer one!), got a new used car, and have had great times with family and friends!

Biggest change for 2017 is weight loss. And a lot of it. I had been talking about Optifast previously, and while I still feel it would have been a good fit for me (as always, consult with your physician for what will work best for you), I was able to take the delay in finances and do some additional research. Optifast ends at either 12 or 18 weeks, whether you're close to goal or not. That had the potential to be a major downside given the amount of weight I need to lose. I had seen a commercial for what I knew was a gimmick product but I'm always curious about the "claims" they make so I did some digging, read some reviews, and one of those reviews mentioned Profile by Sanford. My ears perked up a bit as I know the name Sanford, as in Sanford Health, very well having previously used their health insurance plans offered through employers in the Huron, SD area. And so I did some digging and it is very similar to Optifast but with a few noticeable differences. One, you're not meeting with one of their doctors - which is okay with me as I much prefer meeting with my regular physician anyway. Labs are not included - which is also okay because getting those done through my doctor means they apply to my deductible instead. You still get weekly coaching sessions for up to 18 weeks, but your subscription is for 1 year - and so you have access to the tools for one year plus you can always pay for another year if you want. Also included in that is a wifi scale and network bridge that syncs to your account automatically. And while they are primarily located in Eastern South Dakota, MN, and that area, they have a virtual option so that's what I'll be doing. It does sound like they're planning on opening one near me this year, but it is nice that I don't have to wait. They do offer education as well, which is a big deal for me. I need to relearn a lot when it comes to eating habits, especially emotional habits.

So, after talking to a coach for an initial consultation in November, I placed my order on December 26th. Keeping in mind it is the holidays, I did experience a bit of disappointment which I will be bringing up with them. I did not get a confirmation email for my order, and along with that, no tracking information. All I knew was that they took my money. They did pre-honor their $99 pricing that wasn't to go into effect until the 1st of the year, and I did add the cookbook (pricing as of right now is $10). But I really would have liked an invoice, even via email since there wasn't one in the package, of how that money was utilized. I don't know what the cost of the meal replacements were, for example. I'm sure had I gone in person I would have an itemized receipt and frankly, I expect no less when I'm purchasing online. I also have no access to my profile on their site - it needs to be activated, and I received no information on when I can expect my first coaching session nor when they want me to start the program. That being said, when I did my initial consultation, he had laid out what to eat and about when, and how to read the grocery list, so I am planning on starting meal replacements Wednesday, January 4th. This is because I have a doctor's appointment Tuesday for blood work and I want that to be pre-plan. This will give me solid starting numbers that are not dependent on a scale or a tape measure and will be additional data for me to help keep me focused. The only other issue is that they don't have hours for the virtual program as far as when you can call if you have questions - they have store hours for their physical locations, but even so, calling during those hours I've had twice where they've answered and twice where I've left a voice message with no indication of hours. These are, though, small things that will be worked out over time.

We are hoping to have the Skoolie done by spring and plan on finding a place to park it and live in it - at least over the summer/fall to test it out. The finance company where we got our car sounds like they're pretty picky on customers leaving the area owing them money (understandable as they are loaning to high-risk customers) and so we need to be a lot closer to having it paid off before we can head out of town again. My hope is to find a mobile home park but we shall see what we shall see. We picked up the fridge yesterday and it's in the house waiting to be installed. Our biggest concern right now is a heating system - we'd like a convection-style wall-mount system and we did find one that we think will do the trick - we'd need 2 units and if it doesn't, it's a 15% restocking fee on each one, plus the cost of shipping both ways. Before we can do any interior framing and building, we need to tint the windows which would be a good time to test any heating system due to the frigid cold we're experiencing!! We have a layout in mind, and it's even been taped out on the floor so we have an idea of what to expect. I was rather surprised to see we would have room for a 36" shower - and told Casey we can definitely go as small as 28" if we need to. It's looking like we may still have a small bit of closet space where the old closet was, which will be nice. Any extra space will be nice!

It's looking like we'll have a busy 2017 - may it be a wonderful year to all of you!

Heather

Life...again.

Well, Optifast will be getting put on hold until the next round - we need a car and soon and until Casey is working again, that became a priority. I was a bit frustrated that the clinic never called with the financial department's information so I could talk to them to see if something could be arranged but it's better not to have an extra payment until we know what he'll have for income again. In the meantime, I can still work on the little things - not feeding the vending machines being the biggest one!! But those chocolate iced honey buns....yum!!

I've tried a lot of things over the years, and have lost nearly 50 pounds three times, so I know I can do it. It's just that for some reason, just before I hit that 50 pound mark, it's like a switch flips and all the work I've done to create new habits flies out the window. Part of the appeal of Optifast was it not only takes the "work" out of it by literally giving you their meal products (which sounds so sci-fi, I know!) and telling you how much to consume a day and about at what times, but they also work on the behavioral and emotional sides, along with the personal trainer once and the nutritionist weekly. It is a very rounded program and the only "reward" system is your health. Another blogger (I've read so many, I wish I would have taken notes!) said she didn't like Weight Watchers at that time because you could earn back more food - if you worked out more, you could eat more - and I agree. I think that food as a reward kind of defeats the purpose of watching what you eat. I do know I have comfort issues with food as well, and so between the two, I have some issues! (Boy, I hope my brother doesn't read that! haha)

So, while I've postponed the Optifast program for now, I do want to review our budget, and do an Overall Health Assessment, which includes:
• Body Composition Analysis
o Results provide an easy and quick overview of your body make up including lean body mass, body fat mass, basal metabolic rate.
• Functional Assessment
o Assess strength, flexibility, range of motion and functional health of your body
• Cardio Assessment
o Assess cardiovascular health and stamina
• Overall Assessment and Fitness Improvement Plan
o Completed by Certified Personal Trainer
I’ve done the Body Composition Analysis already and it was also a chance to meet one of the personal trainers on staff. He was very nice and informative and I felt comfortable with him, which is always a good thing. The price for the assessment is currently $60 and I feel that there will definitely be value there.

The other thing I want to budget for is Nutritional Wellness Counseling. The description from the Regional Weight Loss site is:

Nutrition Wellness Counseling (pricing plans are identical to personal trainer options, listed above)
Take charge of your diet to promote health, wellness and a healthy body weight.
One-on-one nutrition counseling with a registered dietitian
• Supportive and non-judgmental environment
• Advice about weight control and healthy eating
• Set realistic short and long-term wellness goals
• Develop a unique plan to help you achieve your goals
They have very reasonable rates and package options so for both the nutritionists and the personal trainers and so I think that this well be a good start in the right direction. There is room in the budget, I think, for both as long as we focus.

I’m a member of Sparkpeople and while I am definitely a fan of the creator (he self-funded the site to make it a free site for all users) and they have a lot of great information and people and tools – it was also disheartening for me to see people making so much progress and I would be making none. I’ve also realized I was using it to stay on the computer – which isn’t conducive to health improvement! I tried MyFitnessPal.com as well and while it was a little easier to use as far as tracking, the forums are less than pleasant. I did meet a few fantastic people and there were a few family members on there as well, but I just couldn’t get past the unpleasantness if you asked questions on the forums. A lot of people were friendly and tried to help but it felt like a few were there specifically to promote their own agenda and their own views and if you disagreed they were very rude and judgmental. Which defeats the purpose of an online support system, I think.

So, this week I’ll be refocusing on not feeding the vending machine, getting a budget put together again, and baby steps again. The hardest part about that is that we’re staying with my father and I feel a little obligated to be social and that makes it hard to go upstairs and do a Leslie Sansone WATP dvd or a yoga video or meditation or anything like that. He’s like me – it’s hard to really understand something you’re not directly affected by and so for him, it’s all about moving more/eating less but yet evenings are for relaxing and watching TV. It’s how I grew up. What he is unable to grasp, because he’s not living it, is that essentially my inner organs are smushed in a corset with limited room to move so deep breathing doesn’t happen, my heart rate is slow so I can get dizzy easier, and then add to that an additional 100 pounds of body weight he’s not carrying. I think if I could somehow put him in that situation, that sensation, he would definitely grasp it and it would be easier for him to understand. I can do a fair bit of walking yet – last weekend we had a lovely time with my brother, sister-in-law, nephews, and Dad walking to see a couple of waterfalls – and that was a lot of walking for me! I could do it – albeit slowly – but I was definitely wore out. (And I am so grateful that there were no comments about my slowness, only patience – even from my not-so-patient brother!) Baby steps. And perhaps some communication improvement. :-)

The Skoolie is nearly completely gutted inside as I’m typing this. The mattress has been put in plastic and into the garden shed. The bed framing has been removed and sitting on the driveway for now. Dad was amused by the amount of clothes Casey had tucked away. The man has more clothes than most women do! To be fair, a lot of his attire is bicycle-specific and since that is usually his preferred form of transportation, it’s necessary. But I’m also pretty sure he could get by with not wearing the same t-shirt more than once in a 90-day period…

We’re looking at vinyl planks for the floor, in a hardwood pattern. Easy to clean for me! We’re still working out configurations for things, including the bathroom. It’s a 32-foot long bus, but we lose about half of that in the engine compartment. So we have around 24 feet to play with – and of course the king-size bed takes up a fair chunk of that! We’ve met a couple of fellow Skoolies, including Dredman, and they’ve had some neat ideas that we’re hoping to make our own. Our biggest problem is the bathroom – we’ll be using a composting toilet so plumbing and black tank for that won’t be an issue – but bathing is a necessity. There are plumbing holes in the floor already so we’ll just have to see what we can do with what’s existing and kind of design around that. Our intent is to have all the plumbing on the driver’s side of the Skoolie so the sink will be there as well as the Panda washing machine. It will be a challenge, but a fun one!

They did put in new roof vents – we purchased two with fans and two without. Over the bedroom area will be the fan blowing into the Skoolie, then a fanless, then a fan wired to blow out of the Skoolie, then the other fanless vent. That will make for some respectable air circulation. We are planning on getting at least two LED-lit garnish rings and possibly four. And as I was typing this – they are down to the wall framework and lots of cleaning up of fiberglass insulation and general debris. They’re speedy!

As I mentioned in a previous post – there will be some changes. I’ll be monetizing this site so look for some Amazon links and probably Google ads if I can figure out why they aren’t working. We’re looking at other things to do for supplemental income and so down the road we may have some pieces of art for sale as well. I’m going to put up a progress sidebar for my health tracking as well. Stay tuned, folks!

~Heather

This crazy thing called life....

So....we finally left Akron. Thank goodness. It really was not a good fit for us. In fact, it took us 2 days to get out of Ohio!! There's a NaNoWriMo project in there, so you will have to wait to hear that story.

We did make it to the Black Hills of South Dakota in April and have been there since. We don't really have a long-term game plan anymore. If we learned one thing on that trip, it's to not plan too far ahead. We've been busy though. I've been working full time for a finance company and really enjoying it. I have a great team with some great coworkers. He worked for part of the summer and then took some time off to get the exterior of the motorhome done. If it was going to be outside in a South Dakota winter, it needed a lot of work to survive!! He and Dad had already spent a lot of the summer doing some major bodywork - even rebuilding some spots! They removed almost all of the old paint and we all helped give her a new coat - my brother, sister-in-law, and 2 nephews included! Here are some before/after pictures of her:

It's like an entirely different vehicle!! This winter we'll be spending a lot of time gutting the interior completely and redoing it to meet our needs. I'm looking forward to sharing more as we go along! Where we're staying we have slow internet and a data cap so I'm looking at ways to post regularly because not only are we going to be working on our Skoolie, I'm going to be working on me.

My weight has become an issue lately. It's gotten to a point where walking up a flight of stairs leaves me winded. And yesterday, for the first time ever, I didn't fit in the seat at the theater. (Thankfully, the arm rest went up and that was really all I needed but still - very hard on the self psyche!!) I'd been looking at having the LapBand procedure done when we got to the Pacific Northwest because I know that I need more help than I can give myself now. With my 2 past surgeries, I'm fairly certain a lot of hormonal issues were going on - and really, when one has an ovarian cyst the size of a gallon of milk, it would be kind of silly to think otherwise. But after doing a lot of thinking, some of which was misinformed, I decided I really wasn't looking forward to another surgery, even an outpatient one. I had been reading that my health insurance provided required a year of medically supervised weight loss attempt before they would approve the surgery and so why not try that route? I went to the local hospital's site and started reading about a non-surgical weight loss program; Optifast. The more I read, the more intrigued I became. It's not just a VLCD (Very Low Calorie Diet). It's also a form of counseling - you have group and one-on-one sessions. It's medically supervised. I'll also be meeting with a physical trainer and a nutritionist. So, even though I did find out my health insurance does cover LapBand after only 3 months of medically supervised weight loss, I'm going to put that thought on the back burner. I don't want something that simply physically restricts me from eating a lot. I need something that basically re-teaches me how to eat for fuel. There's some mental blocks going on and this program will help with those.

I considered creating a new blog for this. One blogger I had read said she was treating her weight loss like a cancer - 5 years before she considers herself in full remission, so to speak. And that's my plan - 5 years of treating myself holistically. I decided to keep this blog going instead and there will be many changes coming up. My goal is to set up a plan for regular updates. The good, the bad, and the ugly. And from everything I read, there will be ugly. But I have a wonderful partner who is prepared to help me through those moments. I have a great team of coworkers who are already supportive of this plan. I got the call on Friday and I see the doctor on October 19th and start. I'm going to start at the beginning of the biggest feasting holidays of the year...what a wild ride this well be!!! I can't wait to share it with you!

~~Heather