Saturday's here and so am I!

Its overcast and those clouds look as if they might contain snow. It would be a welcome change from the rain. Afterall it is Mid November and Minnesota. So many folks are eager for a good blanket of snow.

Thanksgiving Weekend is normally the kickoff to ski season. The prognosis is pretty bleak. But eventually we will get the winter conditions all are waiting for. (And as sure as winter falls--come March we will all be struck with terrible cases of Cabin Fever and the desire for spring. Humans we are so fickle.)
In the meantime--the warmer weather is great on the heating bills.

An update on my ER visit. Today I'm feeling lots better. The pain is now located in my stomach area. This is a great sign. Especially when the pain is eased by taking Maalox my new favorite suppliment. My tooth pain is finally getting under control and in a few minutes my son and I are heading to the gym.
Hey I know I said I was going to take two free days...but, how can I miss a date with my boy?

Tonight I have a date with my husband. We'll be attending the PAVSA art aution in Duluth. Its an annual event to raise money to aid victims of sexual assault. Its such a serious subject and a great community effort to combat the problem. The auction is also a lot of fun. We are the auctioneers. One of my co-anchors and I will attempt to do an auctioneer's chant to sell the art work...my wonderful husband will be the ring man. He's the one that goes out into the audience an convinces them to bid and bid again!

This will be our third year working the event. I can't wait--its a pretty glamorous night (cocktail dresses now thanks to BFL, a much smaller cocktail dress for me) and its for a great cause!

My fourth BFL challenge ends nearly next week. I am really looking to challenge number five.
I'm thinking its finally time to grow up and get control of my free day binging.(Yes that means you Ben and Jerry's...you will no longer be my favorite Sunday Night date.) It's the only thing holding me back from the results I know I can have on this program.

BFL works if you work BFL.
Have a great weekend...do what ever it takes to make tommorrow a better day in your life and in the lives of those you love.

Don't rain on my parade....

Its been a very hectic day here in Northern Minnesota. I was set to have a root canal this morning--instead I found myself in the ER in Duluth with symptoms of a heart attack. For years I have been reporting on symptoms telling women to get to the ER when they arise....funny I never thought I'd have to heed that advice.

I have also become somewhat of a spokeswoman for the Northland Chapter of the American Heart Association...talking about my transformation and the importance of heart health.

Just five months ago I had gone thru a testing regiment that put my risk of heart attack in the next ten years at just one percent. (I have BFL to thank for that.)

But last night I awoke in a sweat, had chest pains, a radiating pain from my jaw....and pains in my shoulders.
Sounds pretty classic. All the symptoms I have preached about.
We'll instead of going to the ER last night I took two aspirin and went back to bed.
When the symptoms persisted this morning, I cancelled the root canal and the mammogram and went to the Emergency room for a workup.

Testing is inconclusive at this point.
Blood work looks good...but I have a strong family history of fatal heart attacks.
Vital signs were great. My resting pulse was 48. My blood pressure was 100/56. The young Doc in the White Smock who asked...are you a runner?

No I answered, I'm a BFL'er.

Well before I could explain to him what a BFL'er was...I was poked and prodded some more...IV'd...and forced to take Nitro.

When the nitro failed to resolve the symptoms I was given a powerful strength Maalox cocktail. After two of those my symptoms began to flag a bit.
At this point my diagnosis is Atypical Chest Pain--likely Gerd. Gerd is a fancy word for acid reflux. As I was eagerly pulling out my IV I told the Doc. I thought it might simply be a reaction to all of the aspirin products and antibiotics I'd been taking because of my tooth pain.

Just to make sure next Friday I will have a stress ecocardiogram.

After all of this I am feeling a bit foolish...but I keep telling myself there are hundreds of women no longer in this world who thought the same thing but failed to go to the ER. One in two women will died of heart attack or stroke. We need to be vigilent and take heart disease as a serious threat.

So here I am at work---I just popped a new pill and have chewed a couple of maalox tabs. In about an hour we will begin our Christmas City of the North Parade.
I have helped announce the parade live on television for the past 14 years.

It's raining but families are already lining the streets to watch the fun.

My boss wants me to go home. But I can't imagine not taking part in such an important tradition.

So I'll bundle up---take along my maalox and enjoy the big kick off to Christmas.

Have a great weekend.

I'll be kicking back.....I may even have to take two free days from exercise...but come Monday watch out! I'll be back!

Sunny and fifty--hey--where's Minnesota?

We are experiencing some of the nicest late fall weather in Northern Minnesota history today. Last night the fog lifted and this morning the sun made a command performance. The lakewalk is very popular today---as families take one of the last opportunities of the seasons to enjoy the beauty of Lake Superior up close and personal before the next shoe drops.

Winter can come fast. The weather man is predicting snow this weekend. As we old timers know that means the temps will plummet and the snow will begin to pile up in ernest. When they do---it won't be until May before we will want to be out doors in our shirt sleeves.
So as you can imagine these next two days will be enjoyed and remembered by many.

Tooth pain update. Tommorrow I am scheduled for root canal surgery. Hey it gets better, right after I have my six months mammogram check...to see if last summer's lumpectomy did the trick.

I am looking forward to being worry and pain free by tommorrow night.
Can't wait to watch the 45th Annual Christmas City of the North Parade. It's one of the biggest events of the year here in Duluth. Marching bands, Community princesses, floats and dance groups.
Thousands will be lining Superior Street to watch the parade which officially kicks off our community's Holiday Season.

Not to many things can over-shadow our annual parade...but Cher did!
She made a concert appearance in Duluth last night....she made the front page of the paper this morning in all of her finery, standing on a chandelier that had just lowered her down to the stage at the DECC.
What a woman! What a show. (I had to work. I probably wouldn't have been able to get tickets. The show sold out in 30 minutes!) But from the talk in the coffee shops today...she is still remarkible and remains at the top of the DIVA heap. I can't help but think that Cher must be a Body for Lifer. How else can she remain so strong and vibrant?

Yesterday I read something on Dr. Hussman's website. It was so profound I wrote it down on a sticky note and its now stuck to my daytimer.

Paraphrasing and personalizing here:
"Tommorrow and every day I will wake up leaner, stronger and more muscular. I will have a more defined butt and abs....my arms will be rock solid pipes. Today, I will do everthing it takes to achieve these goals."

And that's the way it is--here in Northern Minnesota today.

Good News Bad News.....

Today I measured, weighed and took a long hard look at my "progress"over the past five months. First, I have gained 5.95 pounds of muscle. Woopie! Wow! Cheer!

Second, I have gained 4.05 pounds of fat! Ouch!

Measurement wize I have gained about a 1/4 inch everywhere. I'm on the last week of my challenge four.

My free days are the same as those taken in challenges 1,2 and 3. I'm pretty sure my calories are about the same. The only difference I can see with this present challenge is my attitude. For weeks I have been drowning in a "mindset of frustration and a real lack of focus." This midset has obviously influenced my progress of late. Or should I say the recent lack of progress.

We are supposed to ignore the scale...(I did for the past five months--and it didn't work for me.) I now realize I am one of those BFL'ers who in order to stay diligent will need to use a scale regularly to chart and maintain a successful course.

The big picture: I have found such success with Body for Life. I know that without this program and its structure I will find just as much success getting fat again.

Here is my plan of action.
A) measure and pack all my meals for work. (no more subway visits.)
B)work hard to hit my tens in the gym.
C) each day take 30 minutes to visualize, deep breathe and thank God for my health and the many blessings he has bestowed on me, my family and my friends.
Tommorrow, I will repeat A, B and C.

While I know I can't drop 4.05 pounds of fat between now and next week....I will end challenge four on a high note.

Its funny about BFL. When the numbers start to climb...I know what I have done wrong.
When they start to drop...I know what I have done right.

Can it get more simplier than this?

I have also noticed in some of my posts that I have started to border a bit on whining. I don't like whiners---and I will work to control this negative habit!

Minnesota Hotdish

Here in Minnesota we have a favorite food for family get-togethers and community events. Its called "hotdish." Basically you throw everything from the fridge into a baking dish, cover it with cheese and bake at 350 until it is done.
Today's post is a lot like hotdish.
First,
I need to talk about my 78 year old Mom. Mom loves pain and suffering. She loves to talk about it...and she loves to think about it. You've heard of the title Drama Queen? Who ever came up with that title, knew Betty Jane.

She calls once a week. During the call she updates me on the trials and tribulations of my family members. The latest DWI, the latest attempted suicides, the latest fatal illnesses. She then adds the health updates of all of her senior citizen friends from their mobile home park in Texas. People I don't even know...
I used to get sucked into this swirling mass of pity...but no longer.

Now I listen for a short time and then say, Mom, is there anything good happening in your life right now you can talk about? It takes her awhile, but ultimately she finds something to talk about.

The next ingredient to this great hotdish--involves a problem I have been working through for the past two months. Dental work. I had some major work done that threw off my bite. Sounds like a small thing...but my lips, tongue and jaw think its a big deal. And all are sending me some mighty painful signals.
The solution to this pain is dental grinding. So for the past two months I have been in the dental chair getting my teeth ground down without pain meds--twice a week.

I just got back from a session...I am hopeful that this will be the last time.

Without sounding to much like a mini drama queen...the pain can be so severe it causes headaches behind the eyes. The pain is threatening to impact my efforts to maintain my new, BFL lifestyle. And that my friend, is causing me a greater pain!

So--the last ingredient to my Minnesota hotdish is hope.
(No cheese.)
I am hopeful that today was the last day at the dentist for awhile.

And that begs the question..."Michelle is there anything good happening in your life?"
Yes--as a matter of fact there is!
Despite day to day struggles I continue to take the actions I need to live my new, healthy lifestyle.
Right now I am heading upstairs to perform my cardio exercises and get in some upper body strength training.

Fall in Minnesota...

It has been so beautiful this fall. The leaves have turned color, dropped and have been raked up. The Northern Lights have paid us some spectacular visits....and we've had some unseasonably warm days. Minnesota deer hunters have really had some nice hunting conditions. This past weekend a Twin Ports hunter bagged a 27 point buck. I'm not a hunter but I do appreciate the thinning of the herd.
I have a long commute and the deer pop up on the freeway regularly. In the past twenty + years I have managed to hit two...in recent years I've been pretty lucky to have missed the ones I have seen.
I was thinking about the two hours I spend each day in my car. Over the years I have logged well over a half million miles between work and home.
Spending so much time in the car--its not surprising that I did a lot of my eating there too.
Traveling home late, I would often be tired....and could always rely on a dose of sugar to wake me up.
Cookies, fudge and ice cream(yes its really possible to eat Ben and Jerry's while driving a car)---really gave me energy. But they also gave me guilt, feelings of sadness, frustation, a sense of being out of control.
Many of the people in my family turned to alcohol as their drug of choice. Not me...I have always turned to food for comfort.
Tried alcohol when I was in my twenties. Just got sick.
So these past thirty years I've struggled with compulsive overeating, medicating with food and binging to fill my emotional needs. Not surprisingly I have also struggled with weight gain and a warped sense of self-image.
In my mind I have always been fat. Even now, I look in the mirror and see what little fat is left before I can compliment myself on my hard earned muscles.
In recent months I have learned that my past behaviors were the only way I knew to survive the sometimes unpleasant emotions that result from life. They did serve their purpose.
I survived.
But now I want to do more than just survive. I want to live the rest of my life as a happy, healthy woman.
Now I am beginning to realize that I need to adopt new approaches in resolving my problems....like reaching out and asking for help.
Now I realize that a healthy mind, starts with a healthy body.
Now I know my healthy body depends on BFL.

I guess this BFL is a lifetime journey. Each day I learn a little more...but my number one lesson learned is---you got to take care of yourself, before you can care for others.