Wegovy Wednesday Week 7

This is for my Blogger Readers:

This experience I've gone through these last few months, I do mean ALL of it, has changed my life and perspective. I encountered a crossroads and forged a whole new path forward, and you supported me along the way.

So to all of you who supported me with your kindness, words of encouragement, and grace these last few months: 

Thank you. 

Truly. 

Joy, JN, Smarty, Odds, Bbuckwwheat, Bow, Bloom, Goddess, and Curious.

You are incredible people and deserve more than just my gratitude.

Now, onto our regularly scheduled programming:

I don't know why I keep needing to do a spiel at the beginning of these anymore. They're super repetitive, don't you think? TLDR: Been on Wegovy for seven weeks due to health issues. If you want to know more, I suggest you read the previous entries. :) All you have to do is click on the Wegovy link at the bottom of this post. 

For those who are thinking, what happens when you go off this medication? I say to you, I was prepared to take statins (cholesterol medication) and high blood pressure medication for the rest of my life, why does it matter if I add another one? Lots of people, especially as we age, start taking all kinds of medications for the rest of our lives. I looked at the risks and compared them to the risks of continuing to live the way I was, and Wegovy came out on top. 

I am better at eating nowadays, more mindful of eating when I don't necessarily want to is what I'm saying. When I wake, I drink a protein shake; about two hours later I have a smoothie; two hours after that I have some kind of protein and vegetable or fruit; snack; then repeat the latter two until around 9pm. I never eat past 9pm, anymore.

Again, I'm off all carbs unless they come from whole food. No bread, pasta, nada. This wasn't necessarily by design, but more by necessity. I realized I could get enough carbs and fiber from other food groups, and bread and even tortillas and rice to some extent was filling me up too much, limiting my ability to use other foods as fuel. This is not to say I haven't enjoyed brown rice or popcorn from time to time, I just don't eat pre-made food, except the protein shake. Hell, I even stopped eating peanut butter because I realized there are better, healthier protein options. 

So, the one habit that hasn't left me is the Diet Coke one. Look, everyone can let out their collective groans now, I don't drink coffee or tea. I drink Diet Coke and water (more water than Diet Coke), that's it. Let me have my vice, mmmkay? My doctor knows and is okay with it. That said, I've been thinking of dipping my toes into sparkling water. We'll see. I hesitate because while it may sound gross to many of you, I love the taste of Diet Coke and have since I was in my teens.

If you have sparkling water suggestions, please feel free to give them to me. I don't enjoy lemon or lime drinks all that much, so the brand has to have other flavors.

I upped my reps at the gym, keeping the weights low so as not to aggravate the back. I'm currently doing forty minutes, five times a week. If the Radio Frequency Ablation works on my back, I do think I may try a beginner yoga class. Thanks to a friend for that thought. She didn't say anything, to me personally, I would read her posts about yoga and think...I should do this when my back is better.

When I went to the back doctor last week, my blood pressure was 105/74. It hasn't been that low since before the heart attack. :D That's not to say I had uncontrolled high blood pressure, the blood pressure meds were working, more that my blood pressure had remained around 124/85 until recently. My pulse ox is up, as well. Health-wise, all these diet and lifestyle changes are starting to show in more ways.

I shall repeat, this is a tool, it is not a miracle drug. I am still putting in the work required, the drug just makes that work easier than any time I've tried in the past. I have cravings for things like fruit, not cookies. 

Sunday, I wanted a baked potato (jacket potato) so much that I went ahead and made one. Then, could only eat a third with all the veggies and chicken I put on top of it. But, that's okay, I just ate it for the next few meals. I still got my potato, so I didn't deny myself anything.

The other thing I wanted to mention and haven't in any other post is that I go to therapy. Changing my life like this? Losing food as a source of comfort? I didn't just try to go through that without help. I knew this would be a challenge for my mental health. My therapist stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the park, as far as I'm concerned. Offering suggestions for coping skills, listening to me obsess over protein, etc.

Another change I made was to switch to Oikos Pro Yogurt with 25 grams of protein. Compare that to regular nonfat Greek Yogurt which has 17g. When you're eating in such a large calorie deficit, it can be easy to lose a lot of lean muscle mass, my fixation on protein is to combat that. Plus, I'm strength training, and I need the extra protein.

Again, individual results may vary. I recognize how very fortunate I have been to have an insurance company willing to cover the majority of the cost, as well as the cost of the gym, friends and family who support me, for it to have worked so well from the start, and to not have experienced any side effects that weren't caused by my decisions.

Happy Wednesday!