PCOS, I will defeat you!

In my last post I talked about my frustration with not losing any weight, especially since I was already 6 weeks into P90X. As far as I know, mid-week 8, I still haven't lost weight. But one thing has changed. I FINALLY made the commitment to go low-carb, high-protein cold turkey. I started this yesterday, in conjunction with taking the prescribed metformin. So far it has been pretty miserable. Thankfully I've been on the other side of the carbo "purge" my body is currently going through, so I know that it's worth it to stick with it. However, that doesn't make it any fun. Constant gurgling stomach, frequent emergency trips to the bathroom, and some pretty bad headaches are all par for the course.
BUT.... I know that within the next 2 weeks, my body will stop craving the carbs and will start craving the proteins. I will be used to not eating the carbs and I will feel so much better. And... I know for a fact that along with P90X (and when I'm done with that, Insanity!) this eating lifestyle will help me to drop the poundage quickly. My goal is to try to lose 5 pounds by the end of July, and another 15 pounds on August. That will officially get me to my pre-baby weight. Once there, I will tackle the rest of the 35-40 pounds like crazy! How cool would it be if I could hit my ideal weight by the end of the year?
So... as long as I don't waiver in my eating, journal everything that goes into my mouth, and stay accountable on this blog and on facebook, I know that I will have success. And, of course, I can only do any of this by the grace of God, who has charged me to take care of the one body he has given me. I am thankful that in spite of my weight I am healthy!

Week 6

I am smack dab in the middle of week 6 of P90X. I'm frustrated because I haven't lost any weight, although I do feel much better endurance and strength-wise. My beachbody coach (see my link to coach Scottie) encouraged me to join a BeachBody challenge which is about transforming your body and your life, and one of the things I need to do is journal or blog. So here's my blogging. :)
I'm having no problems doing the workouts and can, for the most part, keep up with the crazy-fit people on the videos. However, where my main weakness lies is in the nutrition. I am having such a hard time eating the way I should. And I'm confused about it. With how my body processes food, I can't really eat the way most people can, so I will be making an appointment to see my Dr. that treats me for PCOS. I want to find out what my calorie intake should be (based on how much I'm now burning each day with my workouts) and how to fuel my body the right way so that I don't crash. I'm wondering if there's anyone else out there who's really struggling with PCOS, and eating right, and exercising like crazy, and trying to lose weight? I've been stuck at this point for a while and I'm not sure where to go from here.
Sorry to be a downer this time around... it's real life, folks!
However, I DID order another beachbody program called Insanity, which I will start doing alongside P90X as soon as it arrives. Maybe that will help with getting the results that I want! (although I DO know that nutrition is 95% of the battle....)
I will update again soon.

30 days later...

I am officially 30 days into the P90X program. I'm actually really starting to dig the workouts (with the exception of YogaX!), and when I took my 30 day photos I was able to see some progress compared to day 1. I am NOT ready to post any of these pics yet... I want to wait until I have my final results at the end of 90 days before I'm willing to humiliate myself with my day 1 (and yes, also my day 30) photos.

The biggest difference I've noticed is the positive changes in my endurance and strength. One of the things I have struggled with for as long as I can remember is exercise-induced asthma. When I first started P90X, I was puffing on my inhaler 2-3 times per workout. Now, my breathing is easier and I only take it right before my workout! Also, with any of the cardio videos, I can now make it through the entire video without stopping AND I keep up with the crazy fit athletes in the videos. I'm able to control my heart rate a bit better as well, and keep it within range. Now I can't wait to see the pounds really come off on the scale.

And I'm SO excited to see what will happen by day 90!

Several months later...

Starting weight: 75 lbs to lose (new weight loss goal)
Total weight lost to date: 27 lbs

Guess I haven't been keeping up very well with my weight loss diary, have I? Well, I suppose I do have a few updates:

I did end up doing 10 sessions of swimming pool therapy for my back. That helped, but not enough. After that, I did 10 sessions of regular physical therapy, which made a big difference. I learned some tricks to strengthen the muscles in my lower back in order to support my spine where the herniations are. It has really improved my quality of life since then!

A month or 2 ago, I was able to put on my wedding ring, and somewhere along the way I decreased a pants size. So I guess that's 2 of my goals accomplished! I didn't lose 20 pounds in the month of October, but I had lost a total of 25 pounds by the time I reached Feb/March. I can't complain about that! After that, I hit a bit of a plateau, mainly because I lost focus of my goals stopped being careful about my eating. So I've stayed in the same range for 3 months. But this is about to change!

I am still focusing on eating a low-carb, high-protein diet (I should really say "lifestyle!") per my PCOS issues. My husband and I have also started doing P90X, and I'm almost to the end of week 3. Thankfully, the eating plan is going along with my eating lifestyle, so I am starting to see results. So far, my results have been more in my workouts than on the scale. Weight loss of only 2 pounds so far. However, my muscle soreness is virtually gone and I am able push myself much harder and accomplish more in my workouts than in my first week. In fact, today I did a cardio workout and burned 504 calories! And I'm at the point now where I enjoy my workouts!

Another update: I have changed my weight loss goal from 70 total pounds to 75 total pounds. I decided that my goal weight is the same weight I was when I graduated from college.

The Herbalife supplements (multivitamin, cell activator, calcium, etc) my Lifetime Wellness shake are part of my regime at least once a day. It's a great protein boost to start out my day.

I will do much better to stay updated with this blog, especially now that I have something to blog about again!

Here is a much more recent shot of me (with Ian). Don't know if you can tell the difference from the last pics that I posted but here ya go. :)