Transformation Day 2012: Update for 09/26/11

I’m nine weeks into my Transformation Day 2012 challenge and the news is excellent.  I weighed in at 262.2 pounds this morning, so the scale appears to be moving again.  That means I’ve lost 16.6 pounds so far, but I’m not as focused on that number as I am on all the positive long-term changes I’ve managed over these past weeks.

Last week, it got cool here in Indiana, so I took the opportunity to start some intentional, outdoor exercise.  I just can’t seem to stay motivated and enthused when it comes to my treadmill, but walking laps from my home to the highway (around 700 feet for one “lap”) really seemed to do the trick for me.  I also walked in a local parade with my daughter’s girl scout troop, and I have to say that THAT was a workout.  Fast-walking and sometimes jogging while singing the whole route really got my blood flowing.  I told my husband afterward that first of all, parades move much slower when you’re observing them, and second, I was going to have to walk a lot more driveway laps to get in shape for the next parade in October.  He just laughed.

Improving my physical condition is definitely a “survival topic” as well.  I’ve always been one to make simple choices that get me a little more exercise, but this weekend, I was eager to wrestle a 50-pound bag of dog food into our shopping cart and out of the shopping cart and into the car.  That kind of thing is hard for me because I have really short arms and I’m a girl, but it won’t take much more hard work like that to make a difference.  Don’t worry, I’m not fooling myself.  I know it’s going to take more than hefting a bag of dog food every now and then, but making choices like that gives me a good sense of accomplishment.

I also had the chance to get a new blood glucose meter yesterday.  I had been wondering if part of my overwhelming fatigue had something to do with elevated blood sugars even though I’m eating a low-carbohydrate diet.  Not long ago, even a protein-rich meal would trigger a blood sugar spike.  Now, it wasn’t ever anything dangerous, but the spike would tell me that my metabolism was already somewhat damaged.  Last night, however, my blood sugar was great — 89 mg/dL — and even more shocking to me was the fact that it was the same 89 mg/dL this morning.  I don’t need to see these kinds of numbers to convince me that I HAVE to follow a low-carb eating plan, but it’s nice to see that by limiting some of the low-carb foods that I’d normally consider “acceptable”, my fasting blood glucose level is firmly within the “normal” range instead of the usual “pre-diabetic” range.

I continue to feel positive about my progress even though some might view it as “slow”.  As I’ve said many times before, I knew it’d be slow when I set this challenge for myself.  As always though, I’m continuing to learn and improve so many aspects of my health.  Without doing that, storing supplies, learning skills, getting out of debt — all the things we do as “modern survivalists” — are meaningless.  If you don’t have your health, it’s very hard to have much of anything else.