Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Week 12 -The Wallet - September 10th

LessLacie
Week 11
The Wallet

I AM IRON GIRL!
We had the most fun at the 2009 Aflac Iron Girl 5K event on Saturday. I went with four ladies from Team Fitness and I have to say it was a spiritual event. Green Lake was a sea of pink and the estrogen power could be felt, almost physically, hanging in the air. After we registered, received our super cute race shirts and Quacking Aflac duck, we went shopping. We all bought matching pink fleece Iron Girl jackets that we wore proudly.

17 minutes before the race was to start I felt the water take effect. I ignored it for another 2 minutes when I decided I better go now unless I want to find a bush after Mile 1. The line was hundreds long! The row of Honey Buckets were in constant motion, switching from vacant to occupied every 30 seconds, as I was obviously not the only woman who had carried children and doubting my ability to run and not pee my pants. The sea of people laughed as the Master of Ceremonies announced the race was delayed 10 minutes due to the long lines at the bathroom.

I made it back to my teammates seconds before the national anthem and the race began. I felt the excitement pulsing in the crowd as we inched forward in the shoot, towards the start line. Finally breaking free from the herd, my feet were in motion. I felt like a graceful gazelle leaping through the field, past the Honey Buckets until I was adjacent to the lakes edge. I was running! I trained for this! I knew I was going to beat my Auquafest 5K time of 45:21. The energy around me was infectious- ladies were smiling, husbands were on the sidelines with strollers and “GO MOMMY” signs! There was cheering and a general feeling of pride and power resonating from the runners. Then it happened…In just a matter of seconds I lost control of my breathing…I started gasping for air…I started to panic…I was sure I was going to be the only person in history to suffocate herself while running. I started to walk and sing “The Climb” by Miley Cirus. Not only is this my 100 pound journey theme song, but singing will help to regulate your breathing quickly. As I rounded the bend I saw the glorious halfway point water station. I approached the watering hole, grabbed my Dixie cup of refreshment, and took off again, pacing myself this time with a jog/walk.

I crossed the finish line, arms in victory, with a final time of 44:06. I beat my last time by a 1:15! They called my name “Lacie Carroll- 5K” and the photographer snapped my picture! I was a celebrity! Someone put a medal around my neck and pointed me in the direction of the water. I did it!

I came home to find my husband cleaning out the garage. After some parading around in my medal for a few minutes, I jumped in to help clean up the graveyard for bicycle parts, empty cardboard boxes from birthdays past and the general chaos of sporting equipment “put away” by six year olds.

I found my red wallet hiding in a beach bag from last summer. I was convinced some thug had stolen it. I unzipped my treasure and pulled out my old driver’s license and looked at the weight. It read 235 but I knew I was more like 250 pounds in the picture. I pulled out my old Costco card and studied it. Even through the grainy photograph I could count numerous chins. Then I pulled out the receipts! Oh My GAWD! Nine receipts from fast food joints, 3 receipts for single candy bar purchases at 7-11 and one grocery receipt from Safeway. I scanned the long list of evidence detailing my eating disorder. Three bags of chips, Oreo cookies, break and bake cookies, two cases of pop, pork ribs, ice cream and one bag of Caesar salad to highlight a few of the items. I showed my husband and he started laughing, reminiscing about the good ‘ol days. He misses the Twinkies and beer. He has the metabolism of a fruit fly and has never had to worry about his weight- he has had to make several sacrifices to support me and I love him for the support. But I digress…

It’s been a tough week this week, not due to a major eating holiday or an emotional event, or even stress at work- it’s THAT time! I was Hungry all week! I know that in Week 4 and Week 8 I gained weight due to my cycle. This is week 12 and sure enough I gained 4 pounds! I was like a food vacuum. I stayed on track for most of the week, but hindsight being what it is…realized I may have consumed a few too many “diet” calories. Four 100 Calorie dehydrated Oreo snack packs and two Skinny cow ice-cream sandwiches are still 600 calories. Monday, I couldn’t wait until I was at my desk. I needed to eat breakfast on my way to work. I was craving chocolate at 6:00am. I took the S’more flavor diet bar out of my purse and took a bite. I was hungry! Let me tell anyone reading this thinking about diet bars as a meal replacement- THEY ARE NOT A MEAL! I took one bite and as I pulled it away from my mouth I realized I had eaten half the bar- so I chewed it to liquid form. I continued to take TINY bites from then on…feeling like a squirrel holding my tiny little bar trying to isolate the miniscule flakes of chocolate. I was still hungry! Once I got to my desk I ate a banana and a yogurt...and another 100 calorie snack pack. I was close to 500 calories. It’s been like this all week.

Today as I write this, I am officially past the Week 12 cravings. I am back on track. I had a normal size serving of Total this morning and was completely satisfied. I’ll have my grilled chicken spinach salad with onion dressing for lunch and eat some hummus and pretzels (18 to be exact) for my 200 calorie snack this afternoon. Dinner will be a lean turkey breast with a small portion of roasted red potatoes and fresh green beans. Dessert will only be ONE skinny cow ice cream sandwich.

I challenge everyone to pull out last weeks receipts and really look at what you’re buying…you may be surprised!

My Stats for the week:

Starting weight: 254 pounds
Previous weight: 221 pounds
Current weight: 225 pounds
Current Weight Loss: +4 pounds
Total weight loss: 29 pounds

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