Weekly Workout Thread 25th June till 1st July

[Rod]

Hey.......it''s 5 and I''ll be heading to the gym soon.............I''m not having a great day though..........

For a long time, I''ve had chronic prostate problems and this morning, I had my 6 month check up at the urologist and he informed me it''s time to have my prostate biopsied. Agghhhhhhh......I''ve had what''s called BHP, which is enlargement of the prostate but the medicine I take for it keeps it in check. But my PSA is steadily going up and he feels it''s time to see if there''s anything cancerous in there. I''m like speechless as he''s telling me about this. I''m only 52 and in very good health (at least I hope I am). And to complicate matters, my new insurance, which is actually my old insurance may deny the biopsy because they are likely to consider this a pre-existing condition. They knew I had prostate issues because they were my insurance before being laid off and now that I''ve been rehired, they can actually consider this a pre-existing condition. I think insurance in America is a rip-off supreme. Of course, I''ve been researching this on the Internet (note to self, researching things like this on the net can scare the crap out of oneself). Supposedly the biopsy is an outpatient surgery like having a colonoscopy. They go in and take 12 little slivers and send them to the pathologist and then you wait. Plus, for a week afterwards, I won''t be allowed to work out, which will really increase my stress level.

Anyway, now I have to wait until sometime this week to see if the insurance company will cover this. If they won''t my doctor says it can wait until next May, when the pre-existing condition issue would be removed, but do I want to wait that long?

Anyway, I really really really really really need to hit the gym and abuse some equipment.

I hope you''ve had a better day than I have...........

 

[Dee*Jay]

Oh Rod I'm so sorry to hear this!

About the insurance though, if your insurance indeed won't cover this you should be able to negotiate with the hospital *ahead of time* (that is the key) to bill you at a reduced rate since you will be pay for this yourself. That being said, did you have continuous coverage, even during the time you weren't working (i.e., did you elect COBRA)? If you had continuous coverage I don't think they can deny you at this point.

And yes, stay off the internet! Remember all the trauma/drama I caused myself over that chest pain trying to self-diagnose using the magic of the world wide web? Ug!

 

[Rod]

Thanks DeeJay, and no I wasn''t on Cobra. So, they really can deny this. I could have elected Cobra from the company in Raleigh, up to a certain date, which I would have done, but since I was rehired by my old company and the coverage would go into effect my first day before the cutoff for the Cobra election, I didn''t feel the need to pay for Cobra. It was a calculated risk, but in hinds sight now, probably not the best one. Still, I would have dropped the plan from the company in NC., and taken my old plan, so I''m not sure I would be in a better position regardless.

And yes, I will stay off the internet. I''ve got myself nearly dead with a cholostomy bag. Oh the horror..........

 

[mrssalvo]

oh Rod I'm sorry

I agree with deejay that you should stay off the internet. My 50 something was diagnosed with prostate cancer towards the end of last year. He had surgery in Jan. and thankfully they got it all. The good news is that it is a very slow growing cancer and easily treatable. But, please don't go worrying about anything until you have the test and find out what the results are. Fingers crossed for you that your insurance will cover everything. Have a good hard workout at the gym and then go treat yourself to some of that new yogurt

 

[Skippy123]

Rod,
Don't worry until your tests are done. My dad went through the same thing and was fine but it is good your doctor is checking it out. Insurance really sucks sometimes!!! I am so sorry. I am thinking of you and yes, take it all out at the gym. You are in my prayers that this all works out.

 

[Dee*Jay]

Date: 6/26/2007 5:36:20 PM
Author: Rod
Thanks DeeJay, and no I wasn''t on Cobra. So, they really can deny this. I could have elected Cobra from the company in Raleigh, up to a certain date, which I would have done, but since I was rehired by my old company and the coverage would go into effect my first day before the cutoff for the Cobra election, I didn''t feel the need to pay for Cobra. It was a calculated risk, but in hinds sight now, probably not the best one. Still, I would have dropped the plan from the company in NC., and taken my old plan, so I''m not sure I would be in a better position regardless.


And yes, I will stay off the internet. I''ve got myself nearly dead with a cholostomy bag. Oh the horror..........

Rod, I think you have a certain time frame (literally several months) to elect COBRA and pay the back premium; it might not be too late to bridge the coverage so it''s considered continuous.

 

[Stephanie]

This is my first post in here, but I have been a lurking reader.. I just love all the options that you give each other!

Rod, I am sorry to hear about your condition and your insurance problem. It is a terrible travesty that you had to be taken off insurance just to be put right back on there with so many restrictions. It''s simply awful and the health insurance companies that are there to manipulate you. End rant..

Mara, the swelling may just be reaction to the hormones. Or it may be your body''s reaction to the fiber. I would see what happens in the next couple of days. I have one question though, are you having any mid-cycle pain of any kind? If you are having pains, I would make an ob/gyn appointment. If everything is okay, perhaps just a general checkup at your family doctor would be fine.

I am having some issues with my weight lately - hence why I am here reading all of the advice posted! And I just can''t seem to get a grip on things. I don''t want a crash diet thing, I don''t want to take anything - I want a healthier life style. I already have made it a point to get into the gym - I actually quit my job so that I could get to the gym (I got one that is closer to home/gym/school.) So since May I have been running everyday on the elliptical machine for 35 minutes (hard - 8 min. miles) and I do strength training three days a week. I also have cut out the fast food and the soda and I am trying to eat healthier and drink tons of water. But in the six weeks, I have had nothing happen. Minimal weight loss (like 2lbs.) and inches (again, like two.) It used to be that when I worked out like this, the weight just flew off. But now, what''s the deal? I know that I am older and that it definitely doesn''t get easier with age. I just feel stuck. Do I need to try something different? I love running and do different strength things every week. I am sore after strength workouts and tired after running - so I know that I am pushing my body, but no results. I just find it frustrating..

 

[Skippy123]

Welcome Stephanie!!! BTW, that is my real name

Maybe you need to cut back on portion sizes. Even if you eat healthy. . . maybe you are eating a little more. Try and do it slowly and see if that helps. Also, track your calories; that should give you a better idea of what and how much you are eating. Also, buy a food scale too.

 

[mrssalvo]

welcome stephanie..i''d also suggest checking out www.sparkpeople.com if you haven''t already. you can keep track of your calories very easily on the spread sheet they provide and chart for you. you can also track your workouts. It''s possible that although you eat good for you foods, you still are consuming too many calories. it''s also possible that your body has just found it''s ideal weight. Have you had your body fat tested? that might be a good indicator to where you really are. Also many gym''s will do fitness testing so that might be something to look into too. i hope you''ll stick around, this is such a great motivational thread which great support, ideas and recipes...

 

[Mara]

welcome stephanie!! i was kind of like you when i was trying to lose weight, i was doing all the right things but i wasn't losing weight. finally i started being more diligent about counting cals and working out a bit harder and it started to come off, but i think the ~2 months that i was doing all the right stuff but not losing i was actually burning off fat and building muscle which is why the scale was not showing anything but my clothes were fitting more loosely. finally the weight started dropping off, in chunks actually, like 3-4 lbs every few weeks, after 2 months of nothing. eventually i got to (and surpassed) my goal, so stick with it, you are definitely doing better and more healthy things for yourself even if the scale is not cooperating just yet. it's funny because i have always hated the scale, it always shows higher numbers for me as i carry a lot of muscle. but my clothes and my visual size are much smaller than what a scale # says to me...so i try to remember that and actually i have gotten way more lax lately about weighing myself and just going off fit of my smallest clothes and the measurements on the tape. that is way more mentally positive for me. i also notice that i fluctuate ~4-5 lbs in a DAY previously when i have weighed myself consistently morning and night when i had a scale while we were traveling for 5 days...and after that i was like yeah okay so this thing is soo not accurate, why do i mentally subscribe to it?

anyhow, stick with it and i am sure you will see results eventually, you can always also tweak things like calories or what you are eating, watch portions etc etc. good luck!

so i had my wow cow (blueberry cheesecake and cappucino) and now am having a 3oz baggie of carrots, my new thing. 38 cals and they are crunchy, i can pretend they are chips lol. tonite for dinner it's just me (greg has rehearsal) so after my hike i am going to go home and make some tasty crab cakes (love those things!) with horseradish cocktail sauce, and a big spinach salad with corn and shredded carrots with TJ balsamic vinaigrette. mmmm!!

rod sorry to hear about the health issues, but perk up, don't be negative about it, you don't know that anything is even wrong...don't let your imagination run away with you and YES stay off the internet. keep us posted.

 

[Skippy123]

Date: 6/26/2007 7:01:20 PM
Author: Mara
now am having a 3oz baggie of carrots, my new thing. 38 cals and they are crunchy, i can pretend they are chips lol.

LOL!!!!

 

[Haven]

Thanks everyone for your warm welcome(s)!

Everyone has accomplished amazing things here, congrats to you all; your stories are very inspiring.

Dee--did you happen to see the Cool Globes that were at Navy Pier? We went to see them on Sunday and they were pretty interesting. I thought the exhibit would be more thought-provoking, but it was more of a plain old exhibit. Although, Novo Nordisk had a tent set up and they were doing health screenings, so BF and I got our cholesterol levels and blood pressure checked, I''m proud to say I am quite healthy, thankyouverymuch.

Your colleague''s story is amazing! Wow. That''s all I can say.

Okay--Confession Time: I generally eat pretty well during the week. I have a Luna Bar for breakfast, a turkey sandwich for lunch, and then chicken or pasta or chicken & pasta, or soup for dinner. BORING, I know, but I''m so busy I don''t want to take the time to jazz it up.

I tend to indulge more on the weekends, especially if we''re out for a good meal (Morton''s, anyone? Yummmm) but I''m pretty happy with my meal choices overall.

My problem is that I work in a school, and I attend grad school after work, and for some reason educators seem to LOVE FEEDING PEOPLE! There is so much to snack on all over the place.

My exercise habits are much less consistent than my eating habits. I used to train with a martial arts team, so I was doing serious kickboxing or karate drills four days a week, and let me tell you--I was in the best shape of my life. I was also a personal trainer for several years during undergrad and the last graduate program I went through, so until about three years ago I was a serious fitness fanatic.

Alas, since I''ve gotten an honest job, I''ve become a SLACKER! Sometimes I am very good about exercising, and others, well, let''s just say sometimes I''m too busy eating yummy foods to work out! It''s not that bad, but it''s not great either.

I''m doing okay so far this week. I had Luna Bars for breakfast yesterday and today, and then I''ve had turkey sandwiches for lunch both days, and I had leftover Chinese food for dinner Monday, and I''ll probably make soup tonight. I''ve been walking a lot lately, and I just came back from the gym where I ran two miles, and biked two miles.

Tomorrow is a different story--I only have to teach summer school until noon tomorrow, and that''s when the temptation comes in--Shall I stop at Chipotle on my way home? How about a nice garbage salad from Portillo''s? So-hard-to-resist-yummy-fast-food! I will though, because I know I''ll have to fess up to you all on this board!

 

[Mara]

Haven if you stop at Chipotle and get their burrito bol or whatever it is without the tortilla it's like 600 cals or something. Definitely not a low-cal item but that is not bad for a full dinner if you don't get chips and other things as well. Or get a burrito and just eat 1/2. Chipotle is really not THAT bad for you...!! Depends on portions and also what you eat there. Just thought I'd throw that in there. I eat at TB (my guilty pleasure) once a in while and know I can get the beef burrito supreme sans sour cream and a regular taco for 550 cals. I pair it with a salad so I get some nutritionals. hehee. There are defintiely ways to get a fast food fix in if you really want to...and many places have their stats and nutrition online. Just an FYI and welcome.

ETA this is a good site to see what won't kill your lifestyle at Chipotle:
http://www.chipotlefan.com/index.php?id=nutrition_calculator

And also I saw online that a Chicken Burrito Bol with no rice is 430 cals and with is 650. Not TOO Bad.

 

[Haven]

I did not realize how long that post was--sorry to drone on.

Mrssalvo, I love the sparkpeople site, I''m going to start using it asap, thanks!

Stephanie--You must be so frustrated, and I think a lot of people go through what you are going through right now. Mara''s advice might be very true, perhaps you are losing weight and gaining muscle. Whatever the reason, give it time--it takes time to gain weight, after all, so it stands to reason that it will take time to lose weight. Good luck!

 

[Haven]

Every time I post I see some new interesting things to respond to!

Mara--LOVE that link, I always get a chicken bol, but I get the sour cream & cheese, so my current bol is 747 calories and 38(!) grams of fat (16 saturated)--YIKES! If I cut out the sour cream & cheese, then it''s only 517 cals, 19 g fat (3 saturated)--what an improvement!

Thanks for taking away my guilt about eating Chipotle! I am seriously addicted, yummmm.

 

[Mara]

Date: 6/26/2007 7:44:38 PM
Author: Haven
Every time I post I see some new interesting things to respond to!

Mara--LOVE that link, I always get a chicken bol, but I get the sour cream & cheese, so my current bol is 747 calories and 38(!) grams of fat (16 saturated)--YIKES! If I cut out the sour cream & cheese, then it''s only 517 cals, 19 g fat (3 saturated)--what an improvement!

Thanks for taking away my guilt about eating Chipotle! I am seriously addicted, yummmm.

I found that honestly cutting the SC from the TB burrito doesn''t even take away any flavor...(and if i was desperate for SC i could put some on at home, the 1/2 fat Knudsen one that is only like 30 cals for a tablespoon) and same with cheese...if you want to add cheese, do it when you get home and use 2% shredded. But honestly I have found (and I LOVE burritos and the like...I am 1/2 Mexican) that doing something like black beans, lettuce, a bit of rice, meat and a TON of fresh salsa is sooo tasty...and you can use a little SC and cheese on the side. When we go to our fave Mexican place I get chicken soft tacos, only one tortilla each (they try to double layer them), and use lots of lettuce, black beans and salsa on them with a little guac. Tasty!! I *used* to get a pork tamale and cheese enchilada *and* refried beans and rice (with sour cream!)! I still do that SOMETIMES but far more often I get the tacos and they are really flavorful and I don''t feel 1/2 as weighed down as when I get the other plate.

 

[Dee*Jay]

Just back from a 740 cal adventure on the elliptical machine! I got a stitch in my side around the 45 minute mark which slowed me down; I was hoping to top the 761 cals I did last weekend. Oh well, it will give me something to shoot for.

I was slightly bad this afternoon because even after a handful of almonds I let myself go out for frozen yogurt--in a cone no less

. It never even occurred to me to ask whether it was fat free or not (god I hope so!) so when I tried to estimate the calories back in my office I had no real idea. It was "Annie''s" in case anyone happens to know and can point me in the right direction.

For dinner I had 180 cals of butternut squash soup, but I did have 30 cals of croutons with it (that''s five croutons CUT IN HALF in case anyone is interested

).

Welcome Stephanie!

Haven, I didn''t even notice the globes at Navy Pier--how sad is that?! I was so focused on weaving through the hoards of tourists and not spilling one drop of my precious icecream that I was oblivious to everyhing else. But now you (and Ben & Jerry!) have given me a good reason to go back!

BTW, what''s a "bol"? Is it the hard crispy shell that serves as a bowl for like a taco salad?

 

[neatfreak]

Mara, this is going to be totally random, but that is SO inspiring to hear that you didn't lose for the first two months!!! I am at that very frustrated stage where I'm not losing, but I'm working hard. But my clothes are fitting better, so I'm hoping the lbs will start to come off soon!!!

Today was an ok day calorie wise, but not nutrition wise. I ate a small quaker granola bar and iced tea for breakfast, then I went to the fried h*ll with a few friends as I call it. Literally NOTHING on their menu is not covered in bacon, grease, or cheese! I had a grilled veggie sandwich and fries, but only ate half of each. Probably not the end of the world, but wasn't great. Dinner again wasn't nutritionally great, but not the end of the world calorie wise, cereal, blueberries, and pretzels, lol.

I took a day off from exercise today, but still walked from school up to meet my friends for lunch which was about 2 miles, so it could have been worse.

Welcome Stephanie!!! If you haven't already done this, another thing I would suggest you run out and get right now is a food scale. Usually people are pretty poor estimators of portion sizes until they start to weigh things. It can make it really easy to keep track of EXACTLY what you're eating too.

 

[KimberlyH]

Rod, I''m so sorry about 1) the bad news and 2) the frustrating insurance situation.

DeeJay, your story cracked me up! A VIP and you didn''t even know it.

Danielle, thanks for the welcome home. We love our travels! It''s so great that he works for himself and I have such a flex schedule (until now anyways) with substituting that we can get away lots and lots.

Welcome, Stephanie! I thritto the calorie counting idea, it really changed the way I saw food. I''m not doing it anymore and am maintaining, but I know I have a safety net to catch me if I need it!

Today has been nonstop motion, my 2 hour position evolved into a 4 and a 1/2 hour position before I even walked in the door. Between that, school and making dinner I''ve been on the run all day. I do not know how I''m going to do it, but my sanity is questionable when I don''t work out, so I''m going to have to find a way to work it in tomorrow. I am determined to get 4 days of elliptical work in this week on top of my normal walking, etc.

I need to finish dinner.

 

[Rod]

DeeJay, I''m long past the time I could have elected Cobra from when I was laid off, or when I left the job in Raleigh. They don''t really give you that much time, like just a little over 2 months to elect the coverage. You are right that you can elect it and then pay the back premium, but in my case there''s little I can do. I''ll just hope Blue Cross Blue Shield of Minnesota, our corporate insurance company see''s that having the test now would ultimately save them in the future should I actually have prostate cancer. I''m just not going to worry myself sick over this. I can''t change anything by worrying anyway.

The good news is, I had a very strong workout. I joked with Charlie that I want to work out harder and be stronger to help me get through Chemo. He didn''t see the humor in that. Of course not too long ago he was obsessing over some of his blood work where for whatever reason his liver enzymes were completely out of whack. Of course it was absolutely nothing, but during the wait and be retested time, he had researched the internet and was dying a slow painful death to be sure. It''s funny what a little knowledge can do to your head. I got to the gym at 6 and didn''t hit the sauna until 8:30. I pushed really hard and just got absorbed in doing my stuff. And Tuesday nights are really crowded, but I managed to find what I wanted to use available when I wanted it, so it was a nice night. And of course I ended the session with 25 VERY intense minutes on the elliptical. I didn''t get one of the machines I like and had one I struggled at the beginning with, but after about 15 minutes, I really got moving on it and burned something like 575 calories, which in 35 minutes is pretty good. I traveled over 4.5 miles too.

Mrssalvo, I''m not sure who your 50 something is, but I''m curious to know after the surgery how life might have changed for him. For example, can he go the bathroom when he wants and needs to without the need for a cholostomy bag? For me, I think that''s the worst thought, that I could wind up having no control over when I go to the bathroom. Of course there are other issues I find difficult to imagine, but that''s a big one.

Anyway, I''m not going to imagine the worst until they tell me I need to really worry.

Have a nice night everyone.

 

[marcy]

Hi everyone.

Kimberly, that is great you didn’t gain much weight on vacation. I am glad you had a nice time.

Dee, it’s the Milky Ways that call my name but I figure the candy I took in will be gone soon.

Mara, I have all sorts of food allergies and some of them can cause you to bloat up. Those allergies can really do strange things to your body.

Skippy, I like you have different shoes for different activities. That is great REI will take back the shoes if you don’t like them. Thank you for your kind words about me. I am teaching summer semester at college so it’s only for 8 weeks.

Danielle, your 5 mile run sounds like a great achievement. I often don’t get to bed at a decent time but every night I make myself do some exercises anywhere from 10 to 30 minutes. Where I work is very large so I try to go for about a 10 to 20 minute walk and take the long way to get where I’m going. I try to do laundry a few nights a week and clean on weekends.

PG, sorry to hear you had problems with dehydration. I pack around bottled waters. Everyone teases me that I’m like the girl in the movie “Signs”. I tell them the theory works because there aren’t any aliens around.

Rod, I am sorry to hear what the doctor said. I’m with everyone on trying to self diagnose your symptoms. And try not to worry about anything until you know anything. Insurance is a pain; I hope they will cover the tests for you.

Welcome, Stephanie. Keep up the great workouts and eating healthy. I don’t loose weight when I am loosing inches and vice-versa. You probably gained muscle by starting to exercise so much. I use a scale and weigh everything I eat. It really helps. As long as you keep trying; you will see positive results.

Haven, I keep 100 calorie snacks in my car and in my purse so if I go somewhere that there are treats I can eat something and not blow my diet. I look up nutritional information for restaurants we like or frequent so I can pick ahead of time what I can eat. I eat hard shell tacos quite a bit or ½ of a beef enchilada. I allow myself 4 chips with salsa as well. I figure out the calories ahead of time to see how much I can eat. I don’t know if what I’m doing is right; but it is working for me. Most of the time I cut what I order in ½ and eat one half and take the other home.

We had our semi-annual office outing for a pizza buffet today. To compensate for my lunch I ate only 350 calories for breakfast and supper. I hope my pizza and dessert pizza didn’t push too much over 1200 calories. I did take a long walk around work today to help burn some of those calories. I did loose another pound this morning, making me minus 106 pounds now.

Have a great evening.
Marcy

 

[gailrmv]

Rod, I think coverage is considered continuous unless you had a 60 day (or more) gap. I hope everything will be OK.

Had another great workout and light eating day followed by a good dinner out... seafood again - halibut tonight. It was excellent! I usually dont eat out this much!

I am starting to get worried about my new job - will I like it, what will my exact responsibilities be, what will my schedule be, etc. (I start in about 10 days.) I want to enjoy my time off and NOT stress but I''ve always been a worrier. The good news is I worked on a related project last year so I think I have a better idea of what to expect than if I was going into it cold. I think it will be OK. I have REALLY enjoyed my time off - probably a little too much! But I find that when I am busy, I am more productive with my free time instead of now, where I take all day to do a half day''s worth of stuff!

 

[mrssalvo]

Date: 6/26/2007 9:54:43 PM
Author: Rod


Mrssalvo, I''m not sure who your 50 something is, but I''m curious to know after the surgery how life might have changed for him. For example, can he go the bathroom when he wants and needs to without the need for a cholostomy bag? For me, I think that''s the worst thought, that I could wind up having no control over when I go to the bathroom. Of course there are other issues I find difficult to imagine, but that''s a big one.

actually Rod, my uncle never had to do any chemo and was eating and drinking and going to the bathroom like normal before he even left the hospital and he was only there a couple of days. He has a family history of prostate cancer so they were looking for it and were aggressive right off the bat. he''s married to my aunt and was told no hanky panky for 6 months but things could have been so much worse and he was thankful to just be alive.

 

[Rod]

Gail I''m afraid the gap is well over 60 days. My last day of coverage under the plan I''m back under was December 31, 2006. At that time, I had already been under the new health plan with the company in Raleigh. So, my first day back under the plan I had that expired (confused yet??) 12/31 was June 4 a 5 month lapse.

Mrssalvo, it''s good to know that your Uncle has normal functions and they caught it early. I hope that at the ripe old age of 52 if I have anything, it is minor and I''ll be OK too.

And finally, Gail, I''m sure you''ll do great in your new job. Funny, I''m a worrier too. I think it''s genetic. My mom''s a worrier, her mother was a worrier and so on. I''ve actually written the first chapter of a book called, "Will Someone Shoot Me, I''ve Become My Mother." And the final sentence of chapter one says..........."And like my mother, I worry and that worries me a lot." But seriously, I''m sure you''ll be great at your job. I do understand though how much you could enjoy not working. I''ve tried really hard for my second career as a Lottery Winner to pay off, but it''s not working out so well. We buy lottery tickets every Saturday and on Sunday morning the first thing we do is check the numbers to see if we have to go to work Monday.

Night everyone!

 

[Mara]

rod, i am sure you won''t have to have any sort of bag or anything like that, in fact it''s probably a lot of nothing. seriously STOP thinking about it or you''ll drive yourself (and charlie i''m sure) insane before actually finding out. i am sure you''ll be fine! good for you on the hard workout.

neatfreak, yeah i have posted previously a lot about how long it took for me to see any results on the scale but it''s been a while since i''ve talked about it really, but yeah it was UBER frustrating...i was like okay what else do i have to do??? i kept ratcheting up what i was doing and then finally hit on counting cals and i also started eating more fruits and veggies and then finally it happened on the scale. and the fact that it would fall off in chunks to me told me that it was like muscle was pushing out fat. i didn''t lose like 1 lb a week or anything like that. it was like 3-4 lbs every 3 weeks. when it finally started happening it was fast for me. so you guys who are frustrated, just hang in there and keep doing the right things!! your body will catch up.

after work went to the preserve and did just shy of 5 miles. the funniest thing is that today i was kind of tired leg wise and i was booking it to make the whole thing go faster. i ended up doing the ~5m in about one hour and 15 minutes. so that''s about a 15 minute mile which is what i walk when on flat lands....but i guess on the hills i was totally motivated to just get up them and back down. so i am sure i will be a bit sore tomorrow for sure as i was feeling it while coming back down. but i was pretty impressed with myself hehee. also i looked up hiking with calculators online and it seems like on these up and down walks, i am probably burning about 550-575ish cals for a 75 minute hike. when we do an hour and a half it''s more like 600-650ish. not bad!! and pretty darn enjoyable to be outside too.

dinner was 2 baked toasty crab cakes, 1/2 a chicken breast and TJ''s wild rice, and a serving of baby zucchini with garlic. tasty!! i''m thinking about dessert but not sure what...i am only at 1250 cals for today and i would like to be more like 1350 so we''ll see what i come up with.

hope everyone is having a fabulous night!!!

 

[gailrmv]

hi Rod, thanks for the kind words about the job. Your book sounds really funny! I hope you finish it and publish it! Worrying runs in my family too. By the way, meant to respond to your post the other day that if I am ever in Tampa, I would love to have coffee with you under the oak tree!

About the continuous coverage, what I meant was, as long as you had ANY coverage with no gap of longer than 60 days, you are exempt from the pre-existing exclusions. This is part of the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) of 1997. Basically, say you work for your Tampa job until Dec 31 '06 and then you start your Raleigh job on Feb 1, and change insurance, and are uninsured for (lets say) 30 days. Then you quit the Raleigh job and move to the Tampa job and resume old insurance, and are uninsured for (lets say) 45 days. According to HIPAA the Tampa job's insurance must treat you like anyone else who they insured continuously. In other words, it doesn't matter who your insurance is with - as long as you are insured at all. One main purpose of HIPAA was to make it easier for people to change jobs and keep their insurance benefits. I'm a little hazy on the details, but I'm nearly positive about this. When you left your last insurance, you probably got a certificate of coverage stating what dates you were covered, which will be useful if you run into any trouble with your new insurance company. Hope this helps - I'm sure there is a lot of add'l info available online about it. I know the bigger issue is the test result itself, but getting the tests and any treatment paid for is a huge deal too!

 

[gailrmv]

Date: 6/26/2007 7:31:50 PM
Author: Mara
Haven if you stop at Chipotle and get their burrito bol or whatever it is without the tortilla it's like 600 cals or something. Definitely not a low-cal item but that is not bad for a full dinner if you don't get chips and other things as well. Or get a burrito and just eat 1/2. Chipotle is really not THAT bad for you...!! Depends on portions and also what you eat there. Just thought I'd throw that in there. I eat at TB (my guilty pleasure) once a in while and know I can get the beef burrito supreme sans sour cream and a regular taco for 550 cals. I pair it with a salad so I get some nutritionals. hehee. There are defintiely ways to get a fast food fix in if you really want to...and many places have their stats and nutrition online. Just an FYI and welcome.

ETA this is a good site to see what won't kill your lifestyle at Chipotle:
http://www.chipotlefan.com/index.php?id=nutrition_calculator

And also I saw online that a Chicken Burrito Bol with no rice is 430 cals and with is 650. Not TOO Bad.

Just wanted to say I LOVE Chipotle. Thank goodness it's not on the way anywhere I go regularly or I would probably weigh 10 lbs more than I do. DH and I used to go a lot and split one, which I think is a good way to have your cake and eat it too so to speak

ETA I just checked the calculator and my favorite burrito - veggie fajita with all the fixins - has 1230 cals and 59 grams of fat! YIKES! Glad I don't go very often, and I guess I won't be ordering that again

 

[Rod]

Date: 6/26/2007 11:46:39 PM
Author: gailrmv
hi Rod, thanks for the kind words about the job. Your book sounds really funny! I hope you finish it and publish it! Worrying runs in my family too. By the way, meant to respond to your post the other day that if I am ever in Tampa, I would love to have coffee with you under the oak tree!

About the continuous coverage, what I meant was, as long as you had ANY coverage with no gap of longer than 60 days, you are exempt from the pre-existing exclusions. This is part of the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) of 1997. Basically, say you work for your Tampa job until Dec 31 ''06 and then you start your Raleigh job on Feb 1, and change insurance, and are uninsured for (lets say) 30 days. Then you quit the Raleigh job and move to the Tampa job and resume old insurance, and are uninsured for (lets say) 45 days. According to HIPAA the Tampa job''s insurance must treat you like anyone else who they insured continuously. In other words, it doesn''t matter who your insurance is with - as long as you are insured at all. One main purpose of HIPAA was to make it easier for people to change jobs and keep their insurance benefits. I''m a little hazy on the details, but I''m nearly positive about this. When you left your last insurance, you probably got a certificate of coverage stating what dates you were covered, which will be useful if you run into any trouble with your new insurance company. Hope this helps - I''m sure there is a lot of add''l info available online about it. I know the bigger issue is the test result itself, but getting the tests and any treatment paid for is a huge deal too!

Thanks Gail......I''ll have to look further into this............I appreciate the information.

 

[Dee*Jay]

Let me start off by saying I have a killer migraine coming on. I get them once or twice a year and I've got a big one brewing. Damn I hate these things.

For the Wednesday morning weigh in I'm right at the 20 lb down mark. (Even though my head feels like it's going to explode and I'm totally nauseaus I still had the presence of mind to get on the scale this morning.)

Rod, yes, what Gail explained is critical to your situation. This occured to me last night as well, but I didn't have the energy to get out of bed and post at 1:00 am on it. Its the continuous coverage with any carrier, not necessarily the same carrier, that is important. And if you can't find the certificate of coverage that your insurance company would have issued when you terminated with them you can just call them up and get another one.

Will write more later; must now go off in search of Excedrine for Migraines since someone took the last one out of the bottle in my office and didn't tell me it was empty. Damn it.

 

[KimberlyH]

Good Morning Everyone!

Despite my inability to workout yesterday I am back on track weight wise. I even managed to lose another inch around my hips, I''m not getting my hopes up that it will remain off, I was content at 35.5 inches, but all that walking around Chicago did me some good. So here''s the stats (I''m including Week 1 because I''ve hit the 6 month mark and thought it would be interesting to see where I started/where I''ve landed):

Week 1 Week 25 Week 26
Height: 5''5"
Weight: 138 Weight: 125.0 Weight: 125.2
Bust: 34" Bust: 31" Bust: 31"
Waist: 28" Waist: 26.5" Waist: 26.5"
Lower Waist: 31" Lower Waist: 31.5" Lower Waist: 31.5"
Bicep: 12" Bicep: 12" Bicep: 12"
Hips: 39.5" Hips: 35.5” Hips: 34.5”
Thigh: 22" Thigh: 20.5" Thigh: 20.5"

So my hips have been my biggest loss overall. I still have the remains of lovehandles, but I''m beginning to chalk it up to the fact that I''m female and our bodies retain a certain amount of fat to protect us and it''s not worth losing sleep over.

I made a CL deep dish pizza for dinner last night, J made a green salad and it was really yummy!

Congrats on more lost weight, Marcy! You should be so proud.

Have a great morning all!