Friday, August 29, 2008

Long Weekend

hmmmm not sure what I'm going to do this long weekend, but I better get off my duff and walk around and figure it out. No couch potato this weekend!!!!

Maybe a walk and a bike ride???

will keep you posted.

Sunday, August 24, 2008

$$$$ Cha-Ching $$$$$

naturopaths like thier vitamins and special expensive pills. to get myself healthy i have returned to my naturopath and am now taking fish oil, PGX, some Gluco something or other and two suspicious liquids 20 drops a day that taste awful. and to add to the expensive list....some wierd smelling ginger like pill to combat a parasite.

more testing by some random GP, whom i can convince there is a bigger problem than just a dust allergy to explain the high eosinophil and slightly high WBC, to allow me to take the poo parasite tests. FUN TIMES.

in the meantime, i'm no longer allowed to eat wheat, yeast, sugar, or red meat and eat more "roughage" and veggies and lean meats OH! and lots and lots of pumpkin seeds and cucumber. HMmmmm i'm craving all of this as i type.

to sum it up. i can no longer eat anything that's tasty and drink anything that puts me a drunken stupor. it's going to be a boring fall. not only that...my right knee doesn't like to bend or bend and have weight on it. the fun continues!

it's a sad day.

good thing it's raining.

Monday, August 18, 2008

who knew softball was so dangerous?

Friday night was a stagette that included a pole dancing class. it was a fricking hot night and combined with not enough water and a bit of alcohol i was definitely feeling the buzz. the pole dancing is fun and a good work out. however...i value my shoulders and it's just not something i can do more than once right now. we had fun. the bride had such a good time, especially when we went dancing a cheezy club that has many underagers trying to get in. we are old. but we had the best time.

Saturday - thank goodness our 8:30am softball game was cancelled, but we still had two more games to play. so our recreational team showed up for the 11:30am game. things were going well. until it started. the plague of injuries that just came one after another. and the fun that we were having was slowly disappearing.

i took a hit on the left shin, which caused so much pain it was ridiculous. my entire left foot went numb. i shook it off and continued to play. put some ice on it and hoped back in the game, however, not necessarily the same bubbly hungover self. now i'm in pain and on the verge of cranky.

NEXT one of our girls was taking 2nd base and a throw from the outfield, hit here square on the left thigh. by the time she came past home base, she had a huge bruise.

NEXT top of the 7th. i go up to bat. i hit. i run. i tag the base. at that precise moment a few things had to have happened...the bag slipped, the first baseman hit the bag with their foot my right knee snapped back, right ankle twisted, left ankle got caught on the bag so i couldn't get a foot in front of me and i catapulted into the air with the greatest of eaze. without a trapeze. landed with hands first, bruised my palms, thudded on my right shoulder.

please note. i have never screamed before when i have hurt myself. i have never had so much pain before when i have hurt myself. but this time, as soon as my knee snapped back, i screamed, i sobbed uncontrollably. it was instant pain not only in my knee but my entire body. everything hurt, i couldn't figure out what was the main pain after i hit the ground with a thud.

i got carried off the field, sat there with three ice bags on my right side of my body. and then sat and listened to the other team bitch and complain about how we weren't fun to play against. while i was sitting there. in pain. with ice bags. of course we are no longer fun to play against. fuck. we were no fun to play with each other at that point.

one of our players was pissed off because the league didn't have a proper first aid kit or any on site, i was okay whatever, i'm not going to the hospital, anyone got a tensor bandage. one of our guys had a really good one. awesome. put it on. i play back catcher. can't run. can barely throw a ball. but we needed a girl on the field. so i stepped up.

i think if the pain doesn't go away in a couple more days, i'm going to the doctors.

NEXT [ oh yes there is one more] one of our guys was taking 2nd base and the throw to 2nd was bad and the bounce of the ball hit him in the adam's apple. NOT FUN.

amazingly enough, we were in contention in both games, just we were so frustrated by all the errors that we gave up. it was a brutal day. enough so we've changed our team name to Walking Wounded. let's see if it sticks for next season.

Sunday - i went kayaking. 2 hours on the water in Deep Cove, North Vancouver, BC. we went out at 4pm. although a little choppy, we had a great time paddling around. it is something i want to do again. next time without a bad knee. it's a bit difficult to get in and out of the kayak, in more than out. especially on an incline.

all in all, it was an active weekend, but i wasn't suppose to but a wrench in the whole, get my body aligned program i'm on. i hope that this knee thing isn't anything too damaging. i probably should hit up physio....we will see...

next weekend. i'm wrapping myself in bubble wrap.

Friday, August 15, 2008

who needs sleep?

this weekend is going to be jam packed of things to do, I'm going to need a relaxing weekend on monday!

Friday - stagette but one that includes pole dancing for 1 hour and a half. therefore, workout complete.

Saturday - 3 softball games in a tournament. kind of athletic...kind of sloth like...but we role with it. evening at the outdoor pool for a swim in kits maybe???

Sunday - kayaking, 10am, that is if my pal organized resos for the boats.

did i mention the weather is crazy hot! HEAT WAVE!!!! whoot!

let's hope i survive.

Tuesday, August 12, 2008

painful correction

I guess it's only expected that upon trying to correct a back problem that took 8 years to happen, there is going to be a little bit of pain and discomfort once you start to fix it.

so i'm going to complain a bit.

my upper back is really sore and stiff. i'm unable to sleep because both my left and right shoulders are in pain. my lower back is sore from sitting in all day. and i am experiencing a lot of discomfort in my right shoulder which is my hand to operate my mouse.

now. before i get hints on proper posture and everything. trust me i'm trying. i have my monitor elevated, i have a ergonomic chair, i try not to slouch over my mouse when doing the mundane and repetative elements of my job when using a mouse.

8 years of stress and bad posture have taken it's toll and it feels like things are going to get worse before getting better.

in the mean time i'll persevere and walk everywhere and play softball and go kayaking...i'm just not allowed to start running...yet.

Monday, August 11, 2008

olympic couch potato finalist

a dormant weekend of nothing exciting.

i think i'm a contender for the couch potato olympics if not just to participate but to win.

yup.

i'm going to be a fat slob.

Thursday, August 7, 2008

thrown for an s-curve

living in lovely vancouver, canada there are a few things that we have at our disposal as tax paying citizens. one of those things is “free” health care. i say “free” because unless you are living in poverty you pay a monthly sum to have access to “free” doctor visits and surgical procedures covered. good system, because in comparison to our friends in the U.S. if you don’t have health care you are more than likely going into debt. but. i digress.

there are flaws with this system, too many patients, not enough doctors seems to be the first one that comes to mind and there is the problem with 15min. appointments to address problems. granted some problems can be addressed in that time, however, i don’t think that my complaint was addressed thoroughly or provided with a plausible solution.

i went to a walk in clinic to complain of pins & needles and burning sensation in my feet. doctor prescribed physiotheraphy. my reaction was….”seriously?”. needless to say i didn’t follow the doctors prescription. i was confident that there was an underlying problem. therefore i made an appointment to see my naturopath [whom i haven't seen in four years]. she was very adament that i see a chiropractor. i’ve been reluctant to see chiropractors in the past, but when the words “lifetime in a wheelchair” came flying out of her mouth i quickly asked around and made an appointment to see one. my friend works for a chiroprator and she’s a nutritionist and they don’t have a problem with working with a naturopath, therefore it’s not the chiropractor that my naturopath recommended, but they all can live with it.

so after my initial visit with the chiropractor, i had standing x-rays performed. they took pictures of my back from the front view and from the side view. last night we went over the results and i have an s-curve and rounded shoulders…my hump, because i have no natural curve in my neck. talk about a curve ball. it’s like the muscles have seized it into one place.
the good news is that this is fixable.

the bad news is that this is likely cause of my aches and pains and my reoccuring groin pull and anything else that can go wrong. because you know all your nerves for your body go through this thing we call a spine.

the upsetting news. five years of misdiagnosis because noone took the time to hear the problem and think that maybe it’s not just the groin, maybe it’s not shoulder pain.

the bitch of it all. any diagnostic tests wether its blood work or xrays are not covered under our “free” health care plan. luckily i have a pretty good extended health care plan at work, but it doesn’t cover anything. and it’s a good thing i’m able to convey my concerns enough to a doctor at a walk in clinic and eventually get tests that the naturopath wants and more because the doctor has an opinion. ultimately it’s my health, do what i want.

i’m 29 and feel like i’m 50, lets hope in six months i’ll feel like i’m 29 again.

becoming a humpback?

so i’ve seen my Naturopath and am taking some natural things…like fish oil and glucosamine something or other etc. etc. also i was told to see a Chiropractor regarding all the pins and needles that I’ve been getting. and not at all surprising…my shoulder problem that i have had for years is the ultimate cause of my feet. i just over did it playing beach volleyball one day five weeks ago and aggrevated these minor systems enough that it is now a chronic problem. it doesn’t help that my shoulders are rounded forward and i’m developing a hump.


i’m 29 and i’m developing a hump because of poor posture.


that’s it.

i’m getting a boob reduction.


i’ve started looking into it seriously, asking friends about plastic surgeons. well those who have had augmentation and those who work in the industry. it’s not like it’s a small procedure. we’re talking two weeks min out of comission. good bye South American vacation, hello bed rest. but first, i have to figure out which plastic surgeon to see and get assessed. with any luck this shouldn’t be seen as a cosmetic procedure where i’ll have to pay out of pocket. hopefully the many years of contributing to the health care system will come back for me and msp will cover it.


in the meantime. go to naturopath, go to chiropractor, continue my quest to drop the equivalent weight to my boobs…soo..what…400lbs each???

bridges play mindgames

I used to be pretty good at walking to and from work. About 3-4 years ago, it was the religious thing that I did every morning rain or shine. That was when I didn’t have a bridge to walk over. Something about having to go over a bridge, makes the distance feel that much farther away.

The mind plays funny tricks on you.

So I’m now trying to get a 45min walk into my schedule.

This is relatively easy as I live pretty close to work., Normally I would take the ever green choice of the bus. This bus ride can take 45min inc. the time it takes to walk to the bus, wait for the bus, watch the bus go by full in the AM, watch the second bus go by because it’s not the right bus, and then get on the bus for the 10-15min ride to get to downtown Vancouver and then walk the 2 blocks to work. I think you get the drift that I do not live that far away from where I work. Therefore instead of the 30-45min on the bus adventure. I am now making the comittment to myself to walk at least one way everyday. Yesterday I walked home from work, today I walked to work.

I think I might just walk home too after the gym. Vancouver is having an absolutely gorgeous summer.

let's begin


This isn’t the first time I have attempted to start this journey. But this is the first time that I am going to keep my word and stick to it on this journey. And this is the first time I am documenting it from beginning to end, truthfully to myself and inadvertently to you as well.

Sure I could have kept a personal journal, but seriuosly, what fun is that? I’m sure there are others out there that are looking and going through the same thing so why not share and work together.

It isn’t the first time worlds like change and lifestyle have been thrown around together. In fact I would say they are buzz words. And although they are buzz words, there is some truth to them. That it is a necessary change that society has to go through, that I need and must go through.

So here goes.

I have just turned 29 and I am over weight. I’m not fat or obease per say….but I don’t want to end up that way. Therefore I could stand to loose some weight and more importantly change my lifestyle.

I have always been curvy since as far as I can remember. I have been the biggest one in the class. And this is even with being active in dance and in sports. It’s amazing how easily the eating habits dictated by my parents have badly influenced me. Whatever was easy and quick was always on the table. Better yet if you could get it to go and eat it in the car…you were one up on time and therefore mom didn’t have to miss any episodes of Wheel of Fortune, Jeopardy or whatever else mindless entertainment was on tv.

So thus the path change has to happen and occur. I’ve made few headways into these bad habits along the way, however, they haven’t been permamently changed. I relapse and return to the old ways.

Currently I try and go to the gym 3x a week. This is not good enough for what I want to accomplish.

Currently I am suffering from a myriad of aches and pains that limit what I’m able to do for long periods of time like…run. Pins and needles along with burning feet do not make for a pleasant experience at the gym. Because we all love it so much all ready.

Currently I am learning how to cook albeit for one. This includes one big dish a week that has lots of leftovers to supplement the little salads and the bad dishes that I consume.

So for this inagural post i have touched on a few topics which I will explore further as I embark on this adventure. Parents, habits, food, exercise and whatever other elements of life this happens to tred into.

So the Goal.

To go from 200lbs to 160lbs and in the process change my lifestyle, by learning how to cook, trying new adventures, fit into clothes that I love but dare not wear and meet new people, maybe even someone worth having around.