Thanks So Much!

Hey, everyone!  As the title says, "Thanks SO Much!" for all of your support and encouragement so far!  This blog is doing exactly what we wanted it to do.  So many people have said, "Hey! We love your blog!" and given us great ideas.  And now we know that you're watching, which hopefully keeps us self-aware and watching ourselves, too!

I've got good news already to share!  Last post I (Jen) mentioned I need to drop my A1C and so far, I'm on the way down!  For those who don't know, an A1C below 6 is normal, but anything over that is pre-diabetic or full on diabetes.  When I was first diagnosed, my score was 11 something.  This was back in 2009 or so, and I immediately went on medication.  It helped slightly, but back in September, I was still at a 9.4.  Since I've started being more conscious of my medication and going to the gym, I've been able to drop it half of a point.  I'm currently at an 8.9!  This is a sign that I'm improving, but not fully managed yet.  For diabetes to be considered under control, I should have a score of 7 or less.  And as I mentioned in the last post, that's my goal by April.  But YAY! for progress now!

A lot of people ask us, "What are you doing?" and I wanted to kinda update on that.  I talked about our goals, but not really our process.  Currently, our focus is just getting more active and going to the YMCA whenever possible.  We document each visit with a star and are trying for at least 3 times a week.  I'm silver and Matt is blue.

We're still trying to figure out the logistics of our schedules. 

• Monday evening, we enjoy the water fitness class they have. 
• Tuesday, I'm up for the 6:15 Zumba class (yes, actually up)  and we might go together in the evenings (this week we got our new water shoes in the mail and went to try them out!). 
• Wednesday is currently the evening we attend our Real Marriage study, but will eventually be back to small group evening with our church family, so nothing happens this day. 
• Thursday has never really panned out for us.
• Fridays are occasionally okay, but I tend to work late on Fridays.
• Saturday, I love to go to Zumba, but it's only every other weekend, but the water fitness class is offered every week, so I'll go to that and sometimes drag Matt along. 
• Sunday's usually a lost cause, exercise-wise.  We love having a long lunch with friends after church and then Matt usually sacks out for the next six hours or so, but that's okay, since he's been up all night making money, lol!

I'd love to go in the mornings, but Matt has the car at work and isn't usually home until about 7:30, and that's when I have to start getting ready to leave...and it's too cold and dark currently to walk the half mile to the Y at 6 AM.  Thoughts? Suggestions for this conundrum?

I hope to get our individual introductions up soon and maybe be able to share some more good news as it comes along.  Keep praying and thinking about us and we'll do the hard work! 

Actual Up?

One of my favorite scenes from a movie is the beginning of Spanglish.  The dad opens the door to his kid's room and says something to the effect of you don't have to get up right now, but you need to start seriously thinking about it.  Later, he comes back and says it's time to get up. Actual up? the boy asks.  Yes. Actually up. 

This plays out in our bedroom every Tuesday morning.  5:35: Alarm goes off and I have to tell myself...you've got to seriously think about getting up.  You don't have to actually get up, but you at least have to think about it.  SNOOZE!

5:45: Alarm goes off again.  OK, only 30 minutes until class.  My clothes are laid out, so it should only take me about 5 minutes to get dressed and 5 more minutes to drive over there. I don't actually have to get up now.  SNOOZE!

5:55: Alarm goes off again.  OK, only 20 minutes until class.  Do I really want to go?  I mean, I'm not feeling very well.  I'm so tired. My back hurts. Is it worth it? Actual up?  Yes. Actually up.  Alrighty...here we go. 

And it sucks...for about the next 30 minutes.  Well into the second song of the class, I'm regretting getting up, leaving the bed, and suffering the cold.  Then everything shifts and 45 minutes later, class is over.  I'm tired, but oh so glad I did it.  But I know, next Tuesday will be the same routine all over again. :-)

Measuring Progess

Matt and I went to a water aerobics class at the YMCA tonight and an hour and a half after it was over, he was still commenting about how good he felt!  Like, really good!  I'd say that's progress!

And speaking of progress, one of the things we've charged ourselves with thinking and talking about today is goals.  If we don't know where we're going, how will we know when we get there?  How are we going to measure progress and celebrate the milestones?  So tonight over our post-workout-Subway-dinner, we formulated our plan. 

We both have agreed on setting at least one concrete numerical goal as we are starting out.  And our deadline is my 30th birthday, April 6.

• Jen plans on losing 10% of her current weight or 31 pounds and running a 5k either on or before her birthday. (More on the 5k dream in a future post!)
• Matt plans on losing 15% of his current weight, or 57 pounds. (He also plans on running a 5k, but not until October.)

We also have more goals based on quality of life that we hope to achieve. 

Matt hopes to reduce his chronic pain level and provide an outlet for some of his stress, which should also help the pain level.  He wants to be able to travel, as well.  Currently, long car rides are very painful and require many stops and rests to stretch and relieve the pain.  He would also love to fly, but is worried it would require the purchase of another seat or be very uncomfortable due to his size.  He's definitely looking forward to size not being an issue, as am I!

For my goals, I will be focusing on my health, which seems like a given.  But for those of you who don't know, I am a diabetic and need to focus on improving my A1C score and controlling the disease.  I also hope to eventually be able to come off of my meds by controlling the diabetes with diet and exercise.  And, lastly, I'm looking forward to being physically capable of carrying a child.  Currently, I might be able to sustain a pregnancy, but my doctor doesn't recommend it.  I want that to not be the case. 

And as we talked tonight, we realized that there are things we both want through this process.  We want to be able to buy normal clothes from normal stores.  We want to be able to go to amusement parks and ride the rides.  We want to run together.  Basically we want to experience all that we are missing out on in life due to our size.

Inch by inch, pound  by pound, we'll get there.  We're still super excited about finally doing this together and sharing it with the world.  Thanks for walking it with us friends!

Let's get the ball rolling!

This was us in April.  So happy! So in love! So fat!

 

 

And to be honest...that's still us today. But hopefully not for long!  Well, I mean, the happy and love parts can stay, but the fat's gotta go! 

 

We have said to one another since we got married, "Oh man, we gotta do something about our weight!" We would agree and a month and two doctors visits later, we'd have the same conversation.  Well, how do you break that rut?  We decided going public would be our best option.  Let's let our friends and family in on the conversation, invite their encouragement and support as we work the process and their  **gentle** chiding when we're not staying true to our commitment. 

 

So, that's why you're here today.  We're starting our journey and we welcome you aboard!

 

Along with the welcome, though, come a few ground rules:

1. This is for us. Not for you.  If you don't want to see our "At-Our-Worst" pictures, Biggest Loser weigh-in style, block this web adress from your browser, because they are coming.  If you don't want to hear our sob stories when times are tough, or celebrate with us when things are good, you might want to avoid this blog.  And for that reason...
2. We'll be monitoring comments.  We will be monitoring, but not censoring without cause.  Criticism is welcome, but be nice.  If we interpret your comments to come from a place of spite or meanspiritedness, they will be gone. 

So, this is our introduction of our blog.  A goals and mission post will be coming soon.  We look forward to sharing this with you. We look forward to being held accountable by you.  Ultimately, thank you for your help and support!