Week ?? Day ? :-)

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. So I'm over my prednisone dosing, my kidney function has improved a bit (alhamdulillah!) and here I am again. With good news to report... I didn't gain any, I actually lost! I think because by this point I've been on prednisone continually for 9 years so I didn't react quite the same. Alhamdulillah! I was anticipating 15+ pounds which did NOT happen; I actually lost a couple.

It's been so long since I've posted (as I said I would be taking a hiatus during my health issue) I've lost track of weeks/days. I guess I could start over or just do the math, we'll see.

Anyway I also changed my goal to reflect an easier target. That way I won't get discouraged as easily; I will admit it, I am a numbers girl. I like to see myself getting closer to that number that I want to have. So I've changed it to 190; I thought 200 was too easy and 180 too far. Really 190 was kinda random but I popped it in so there it is. Now when I lose my progress will show up more apparently and I think it will just encourage me.

I don't think I am going to rejoin WW. I really enjoyed it but in the month I was there, I think I learned enough about what to do/ not to do that I am able to be successful on my own. And save the $38 a month. lol To be honest, if I had liked the meetings (which I really wanted to) I would still attend. However I only liked the accountability portion of the meeting; otherwise I always felt kinda disconnected. There was some good information but I'm just not a support meeting kinda girl.

If I do well on my own I'll stay solo. If I seem to have problems, I'll rejoin because I do think it's a good program. So that's where I'm at for now.

Alright my sisters I'll be updating here more frequently now in that effort to pull off some more weight insha'Allah. :-) Ma salaama  ya'll...

Week 5 day 5: early weigh-in

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. I lost 2 pounds so far this week but I had to weigh-in early; who knows what might have happened? Anyway it brings my total loss to 9 lbs yay!

Now for my reason for early weigh-in: my transplanted kidney is experiencing some problems and I have to begin a pretty heavy regimen of steroids for 2 weeks. I will definitely gain weight (hopefully just fluids) so I won't be weighing for a few weeks (at least not for weigh-loss purposes).

I will be updating my other blog until I get back to this new weight (222.2 lbs) insha'Allah. Please bear with me and keep me in your duaat that the medication halts my rejection episode and that it's side effects aren't too severe this time. I know I will get disheartened when I begin to swell and gain weight from the meds but insha'Allah I won't use it as an excuse to just eat and eat. Although prednisone makes you HONGRY! :-) Yes hungry with an "O" is hungrier and very proper southern-ese. :-)

Jazakum Allahu khair....

Week 5 day 1: Sorry!!!

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll and soooo sorry for the lack of posts! I've been super-tired lately and just lacking in initiative. You know, when you start something new, like a hobby or a WEIGHT LOSS EFFORT ;-) it's very easy in the beginning to pick up steam. But then you remember, oh wait, yeah, I have a life and responsibilities and I am B U S Y. So yeah, all of that caught up with me.

Alhamdulillah I lost again!!! I think maybe last week wasn't a true gain, as I had mentioned, but rather my kidney being all weird. Speaking of, my creatnine (which is a by-product of protein breakdown and is used to calculate kidney function) has risen the past two weeks. It's a very sensitive measurement. For example, as a healthy person, most of ya'll reading would have a creatnine level of .8 to 1.1. Not a dot more.

So my creatnine, since transplant, has been steady at 1.2 to 1.3, which is seriously awesome for a transplant patient! For a healthy person, it would definitely raise doctor's concerns. So my was 1.7 two weeks ago and was 1.89 upon retest. Alhamdulillah. I'll be having a biopsy on my kidney in the next week or so insha'Allah and we will see if my kidney is starting to show it's "age". It's been almost 9 years since my transplant.

Anyway, that was a big seque, but only saying it to say that yeah, if my kidney is being cranky I could very easily retain fluid. :-)

OK I have to go, housework and Aaminah calls!!!!! Ma salaama ya'll and insha'allah I'll post more often but probably not every night. It just isn't realistic for my situation. :-)

Week 4 day 1: weigh in woes

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. I gained 1.4 pounds the past week. WTHeck?!? I know I 'fessed up to some not-so-great choices but I really didn't think I had gained. I have a couple of explanations for this, none of which involve blaming myself! lol

1. My transplanted kidney does not always do a good job of keeping my hydration level on target so I could be retaining fluid from kidney-related issues.

2. I am at the exact time in my monthly cycle when I a) want to eat nonstop and b) seem to retain fluid. Paired with #1 and that could easily equal 1.4 lbs.

3. It's a conspiracy with the people at WW who are afraid of my almost super-human resolve and worry I'll make the others look bad with my awesome weight loss. :-))

Ahhhh scenario #3 not so much but I really think the 1 and 2 did me in. I really told myself it doesn't matter, it's a momentary set-back, I can do this, blah blah blah but inside yeah, I was a little down. Alhamdulillah each day is new and we have the choice to do better.

So did I do better today? That is the question. OK I had 1 egg on 2 pieces of high fiber, high protein bread. BTW don't try it. lol It's Arnold's brand which we love but this really wasn't that palatable. Insha'Allah I'll just get the oatnut next time. :-) Anyway that was breakfast along with my 8 oz of steaming hot milky tea.

Lunch was non-descript... OK I'm trying to cheat a little here. :-) I had to run out for some errands at lunch time and I ended up buying a small sandwich and fries at BK. I didn't stress about it, I got the smallest available and I always drink diet drinks so alhamdulillah minimal damage.

I made maqlouba tonight (a traditional Palestinian dish) which I make in my own manner. :-) It has a healthy mix of veggies but you do fry them first. I fried in them in a very small amount of oil (NOT deep-fried) and ate a reasonable amount. This is the kind of dish you don't just throw together on the spur of the moment so I did eat for enjoyment but didn't over do it. Alhamdulillah my day is ok and I feel back on track.

Make dua' for me sisters that I make positive headway next week! Ma salaama ya'll

Week 3 day 1: hi five!

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. Yep that's right, I've posted a loss 2 weeks in a row, boo-yah! I lost 1.8 pounds (see my "one pound at a time" ticker for my progress) and I feel ok about that. I KNOW that 1-2 pounds ia a safe weight loss per week, the type that is likely to STAY GONE, and means loss of FAT not loss of MUSCLE. Still... I have that little voice inside that says, if you had just done this or if you hadn't eaten that you could have lost MORE.

But I am ignoring that little voice. I am embarking on a new (physical) me and I don't want to get sidetracked by some invisible nay-sayer. :-) Alright that makes a grand total of 4.6 pounds lost, almost a fiver!!! Another way to think of this is the following:

1. I have lost almost 1 bag of sugar/flour (in the US a 5 lb bad is the norm)
2. I have lost 9 STICKS OF BUTTER. Wow that one is a gross visual but more accurate as it's fat too!
3. I have lost the equivalent weight of over a half gallon of water. Those are heavy to carry!!!

Nasty? Yes. Inspiring? you betcha!!!!

I personally like the above visual. So THAT is why my underpants are looser!!! 5 pounds of fat takes up far more room than 5 pounds of muscle so when we lose fat we notice a definite difference in our appearance, how our clothes look, etc. I am excited!!!

Not sure if I'll post later; I think this should suffice!

Week 2 day 1: Read 'em and weep!

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. So as you can see by the little weight loss ticker above all recent posts, I lost 2.8 pounds my first week. Yay! As we all know, safe weight loss is from 1-2 pounds per week. Of course, knowing that I still had this dream that somehow my dormant/non-existent metabolism would kick in and I'd be the super-star of weight loss, the Jared of WW, and lose an astonishing 7 pounds my first week. :-D But alhamdulillah I am more realistic than that and was really pleased with my 2.8

That is, until my best friend L, upon being asked, "Guess how much I lost?" guessed some very crazy numbers I was no where near attaining. LOL Silly of me to ask. :-)

Anyway so now I am into week 2 and alhamdulillah I really feel up for the challenge. Tonight I made homemade spaghetti but had a very reasonable serving plus my green leafies before hand so I think I'm really getting the hang of it. Before I would have had maybe another half serving; not piggishly overeating but eating until I was FULL not just satisfied. Alhamdulillah I am learning the difference; even a mere extra 200 calories a day will result in a pound every 3 months or so. A pound of pure FAT that is. Ick. So I feel good about every little gain I make, as long as it's positive!

I got applauded at the meeting. :-/ lol I like to share my successes or failures but dude, ya ain't gotta give it up for me. I was like um ok thanks. THEN I got a star sticker! Which I promptly gave to Aaminah. LOL She was my little meeting buddy.

My total diet today was a bit weird (I say that everyday right? lol) but that's because I didn't wanna eat before meeting and have that weight of the food and drink sitting in my gut. So afterwards we went to the mall (it was -8 here today at times!) so I could walk around and let Aaminah ride the carousel. We opted for a roasted chicken sandwich which we shared but still the pointsplus value of it was unbelievable (to me). I would have preferred to have gotten either a bit more food for the point cost or something decadent (like a mini cinnabon cinnamon bun). lol Alhamdulillah live and learn. :-)

So please just stick in here with me and please feel free to write about your weight loss struggles and successes. We CAN inspire each other. Really I try to think of the sahaba, of the Prophet Muhammad saws, who so often had little food to eat. Of course I also thinkg of the hadith which mentions (paraphrased) a 1/3 of your stomach for food, a 1/3 for water, and a 1/3 for air. Subhanallah. May Allah help us all strive to follow the sunnah of our beloved RasoolAllah and Nabi. Amin!

First post (aptly titled)

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. So this is gonna be my weight-loss journey blog. I decided to make a separate blog for all stuff related to me being less fat. I really want to update it daily (hmm we'll see!) and I didn't want that to be the focus of my personal blog.

Or of my life but... until I get it figured out it looks like it's gonna be. You know I even tried to put off starting this blog! One thing then another and it was 11 pm. Time for shower and bed. But I was so refreshed afterwards and felt like such a loser for procratinating that now, at 12:10 am, I sit here, doing my first post.

I weigh 231.2  Yes, .2 pounds. They are very particular it seems over at weightwatchers. I have a childhood bestfriend who was overweight all her adult life; she joined WW a few years ago and really just feels amazing. She is even a meeting leader or whatever now in W VA; any of ya'll live in Meadowbridge, give her a shout out. lol

Anyway so there is the number. Daaaaang it's big. B I G big. Not just Big. Oh and I will use self-deprecating humor; please don't tell me to love myself. Loving myself is what got me to 231.2 pounds. :-D I don't use humor as a shield, I use it as humor. I find it funny; if you are appalled by fat jokes, move on. It'll just be easier this way.

I guess if you are here you know me from my other blog (more than likely). So you know I am a proud and unapologetic Muslimah alhamdulillah! You also know I am a wife and a mother and those are my 3 biggest joys in this life. Oh and then there is food. Yes food, beautiful food, how I love thee! I can covet a culinary work of art like other women might covet a new diamond bracelet. :-) It's one of my interests, cooking and eating, thusly... we are here.

Umm I think I am rambling a little sorry. I'll get back to the program! OK so I chose WW. I have divulged my weight. I intend to take my measurements and keep up here with my inches lost. I won't post those for obvious reasons but I'll do a running tally of my losses.

I would like to say something in all seriousness. It takes alot to open up to others about your weaknesses. Food has become one of mine. Not in the "my precious" creepy kinda way but in the "I cook for a small army and by dangit I'm gonna eat it too!" kinda way. Coupled with the "too tired to move my ever-widening rear end off the sofa" way and well.... recipe for disaster.

You might be interested in this very precise mathematical formula I derived. Oh and yes, the original artwork is by me. :-)


Or if you do get them tied, you tie them towards the outside, not centered, cause you have to put your leg up on your knee to reach the laces. lol

 OK so (sigh) I am very tired now and just realized, as I have a fingerpad for a mouse, I could have found a stylus-type instrument and actually drawn a kinda decent little sketch. I'm not too shabby at art but my finger tracing left a bit to be desired.

I've run out of time and energy to post what I ate today. However I will leave you with this:

After I left the WW meeting, I took Zainab and Aaminah out to McDonald's and promptly ran through the rest of the points I had for the day. LOL Ain't life sweet? Subhanallah. :-)

See ya'll back soon, salaam!

Oh yes, right. I just figured out little stick figure Jeanna will be the picture posted by my blog entry. Oh well, no followers yet so it's all good! :-)