Weekly Spark

The bottom line this week is the loss of one full pound.  I'm good with that.  I did toy with the idea of stepping up the exercise and trying to cut the calories a little more, but decided to just keep doing what I'm doing.  The weight loss is slow, but it's steady, and right now the routines are manageable.  I lost a pound, even though Walker requested lasagna for Valentines Day and we ate it for leftovers twice more last week.  And he gave me chocolate.  And I did not make time to do my Zumba at all.  I did get some walking in, four out of five nights during my dinner break at work.  I kept my calories within the recommended range at Spark People.  I drank water.  When I went to work without remembering to pack a lunch, I dug into the stash of oatmeal and Medifast bars I keep in my desk instead of running to one of the half dozen fast food places in a three block radius of my office.  I did okay this week, and I'm not going to mess with success.

On Saturday I went down into the laundry room, where every pair of Capri pants in my possession was hanging on a clothing rack in order of size.  Real size, determined by a tape measure, regardless of what the tags said.  I tried them on, starting with the biggest.  The first two pair are definitely too big.  The third pair fit, a little loose.  The next three pair are a perfect fit.  The next three went on but were tight, and the last two?  Well, I won't be wearing them any time soon.  Even so, I should be able to cobble together a vacation wardrobe with what I already own, whether I stay the same size or keep shrinking.  I'm looking forward to getting to the small end of the rack, to getting rid of the too-big clothes, and to finally having some spare closet space.  Good goals, all.

This week my focus is on making sure the exercise gets done.  I enjoy it, it helps me, and honestly?  Even when we're crazy busy I'm sure there are thirty minutes a day I can spare, somewhere.  My job is to find that time and utilize it.  Spark People recommends exercising four days a week.  I'm going to do five this week, just to prove I can.

Just a Few Random Bits

Ernie had her follow up at the vet.  Walker had to take her, as I'm still on the wonky schedule at the office.  He called me as soon as they got home, and he sounded....shaken.  Ernie must be feeling better, because he said she was not very well behaved this trip.  The vet, a very diplomatic gentleman, told Walker that Ernie gave him a urine sample he didn't ask for.  Walker said she was making noises he had never heard from a cat before, and she spit on him several times on the drive home.  I bet next time he puts her crate in the back seat. 

The vet said Ernie is responding well to treatment, but he also warned that we need to be realistic.  She is well over twenty-two years old.  If we give her the special diet and daily fluid injections, she could live up to a year.  If we stop the injections, she would live maybe a month before her kidneys shut down.  She's much less tolerant of the fluid injections, but we do give her some "juice" every day.  She's figured out this move where she bobs her head down really fast, which will dislodge the needle if I'm not holding it in.  So I hold it in, even though the extra pressure slows down the fluid drip and the process takes twice as long.  She hasn't fussed to the point where  I feel like we should stop the injections.  At least not so far.  We're taking it one day at a time.

By the end of this week, I should be back to my normal work schedule.  Which means I go in later in the afternoon, but I have to stay later, too.  This time of year I love my schedule, as I have lots of time with Diva during the day.  It's also starting to get light out when I get home, so I sometimes take my bike for a trail ride after work.  Most of the year I can't do that ~ too dark.  I love summer.

I haven't done a weigh in for a couple days, mostly because I haven't been great about sticking to my plan.  A while back a neighbor's mailbox was run over in the middle of the night, so Walker and Bro went over and put in a new one for him.  He thanked them with a packet of tickets to a fund raiser breakfast at the VFW.  Holy cow, that breakfast was good!  The food was pretty well salted, though, and I generally try to avoid salt.  So I knew I'd be holding water weight for a couple days.  Then Bro made lasagna for dinner - not exactly lean or green as my diet recommends. But ~ today at the office my coworker told me I look skinny, then when I put my keys in my pocket my pants slid down to my hips.  While mooning the office staff is really bad for them, it was pretty good for me.  I think it signals progress. I've also learned the hard way that if I need to pick something off the floor, I need to squat, not bend over, or I'll be flashing whoever is nearby.  My tops are loose, too.  With all the parts of me that should be covered falling out of my clothes, I think some shopping may be in order.  But not too much - I have a ways to go yet.