In October 2011, I fell and hurt my right knee. Since then I have had a lot of pain in the inguinal area of the same leg, and because of the pain I became very sedentary. The lack of exercise combined with no change in my eating habits lead to a weight gain of 15-20 pounds (since I was not the thinnest crayon in the box before the fall, this additional weight was really not needed!)

After 4 1/2 months of inactivity, pain, and nagging my doctor half to death (LOL) I took the bull by the horns, and started taking care of myself.

The motivating factor was the fact that I lost 3 pounds in 3 weeks without even trying.

Now I’m actively trying to lose weight and get in shape.

What do I mean by trying? I am eating healthier as well as using portion control (for example, I now eat one small bowl of Doritos rather than eating the whole bag in one sitting, and I buy ONE ice cream bar rather than 4 half gallons of Breyers and a pint of Haagen Daazs).

I am using dumbbells and ankle weights (5-7 pounds and I have several sets of dumbbells as well as 2 sets of ankle weights) every night when I watch TV, and I’ve started using the exercise bike again.

Next month I plan on buying a quarterly pass for the local aquatic and fitness center. It’s about a 10 minute bus ride from my house so that is very convenient.

I do not know how much weight I’ve lost (other than the original 3 pounds) because several months ago I *accidentally* broke the scale. I can hear the snickers already!

Well, it really WAS an accident–I accidentally stepped on one side of the scale while trying to clean the bathroom and it slammed back down onto the floor and started making wierd noises–but I do have to admit that I did not run right to the store and replace it.

I still feel NO need to replace the scale LOL. I figure I get weighed at least every two months by my doctor(s) or nurse(s) so that’s good enough for me.

I do know that my clothes are a lot looser than they were, and that my legs/back/behind do not hurt when I walk now.

I have to give a shout out to two Facebook friends (Sondra and Traci) who are also fighting the battle of the bulge. Their posts on Facebook and pictures of the food they eat keep me motivated to do this long term. Also their feedback, asking questions, and their ‘liking’ of my posts keeps me accountable. I know if I don’t post for a few days my cousin (Traci) will say hey how are you doing? It’s like a Facebook weight loss support group.

Traci has also motivated me to try food that I’d never eaten before such as laughing cow spreadable cheeses and turkey bacon. Traci and I have similar tastes in food so if she says something is good I can pretty much trust her opinion (although if she ever recommends beef liver I will run in the other direction, been there, did that, didn’t get a t-shirt ROFL)

Another shout out goes to Spark People. http://www.sparkpeople.com/myspark/register.asp?from=friend&ReferredBy=2500605

I have belonged to Spark People for nearly 4 years but haven’t used them to their full potential until recently. There are nutrition and fitness trackers (seeing what I eat and how many fitness minutes I get in a day has been very motivating for me recently).

They also have blogs and spark pages http://www.sparkpeople.com/mypage_public_journal.asp?id=BUGSBUNNY1959

I am tracking protein, calories, fat, sodium, calcium, iron, potassium, cholesterol, and several vitamins. I am trying to get the RDA (recommended dietary allowance) without supplements other than potassium (I am extremely low in potassium even with the 1500 mg in potassium supplements I take every day, so I’m adding more tuna, bananas, etc to my meal plan)

Tonight I fixed a ‘healthy’ omelet: 1/2 cup Lucerne Best of the Egg, 2 slices turkey bacon, 1/4 cup shredded cheese, and 1/4 cup chopped white onion. I microwaved all of the ingredients in the same bowl for about 3 minutes — until the egg substitute was firm but still moist. For dessert, I had raspberries and grapes. I drank one can of Diet Coke with dinner, and one can of Diet Coke after dinner

I am also motivated to lose weight because there is a good possibility that I can stop taking my high blood pressure medication as well as my medication for my borderline diabetes.