One-week Challenge and Getting Back on the Train

Since I last blogged, I really didn't make much of an effort to eat any better. I kinda figured I'd wait until after Thanksgiving, which would allow me to eat whatever I wanted without guilt tripping myself. So, I did just that. I also let myself skip the gym more than necessary, telling myself [again] that I'd wait until after Thanksgiving. Now, however, I'm working on getting back on track for two reasons: 1) I can feel the effects of not exercising (I'm waaaaay cranky all the time) and 2) Nasur's fiancé visa was approved (!!!!!) and I want to feel like I look at least a little better when I see him next.

So, I've begun intermittent fasting again and going back to the gym. This week was my first week back to the gym after a two-week hiatus and today was my first appointment with my personal trainer in a month. I don't think we did anything super remarkable, but I felt like death afterwards. It may have been because I've been having diarrhea since yesterday, but when I got home, all I wanted to do was lay in bed forever. However, I only laid in bed for an hour because my friend Adam and I had planned to go to see the Nutcracker at the Detroit Opera House. I've never actually seen that ballet live before and it was a great performance. Afterwards, we braved the cold to go get some sushi, which was worth it. Since getting home, the diarrhea has picked up in frequency and decreased in viscosity. It's pretty miserable. I'm hoping it magically resolves overnight because I have a lot I want to accomplish tomorrow.

In other news, I'm going to do a one-week challenge for the gym to really get myself back on the train. I work every single day from the 7th until the 30th, so I figure I'll work really hard for this first week and taper my gym visits to 3-4 times a week as I get more and more and more exhausted. So, the challenge starts tomorrow! Wish me luck! 

Some recent eats/dog photos:

Cold spaghetti - yum!

Breakfast

Bailey

Bailey, Mayzie (and Katniss in the background)

My go-to sandwich

Photos for you and starting fourth year of med school!

Hey friends. So, it's been about a month since I last posted. Things got a bit hectic and the blog was the first thing to go. First of all, I was maid of honor in a wedding, which was a long weekend of fun, but left me with only two weeks to cram for a huge exam at the end of the month. Here are some wedding pics:

Rehearsal dinner - bride's wedding party

Getting ready on the day (L to R): mother of bride, bride, college roommate/bridesmaid, me

We needed you guys to see the back

At the head table with my college roommate

The happy couple

I did pretty well on my end-of-rotation exam as well as the fake patient exam we took earlier in the month, which was 8 hours of fun the day after the bachelorette weekend.

And then my third year ended. It was weird. It essentially ended when my exam was over, which was incredibly anticlimactic. But that night I celebrated with some zumba and dinner out with some friends who were moving away for their clinical rotations the next day. I helped them move on Saturday and then my official one week summer vacation. On Monday, I helped some other friends move and went to yoga for the first time in forever. On Tuesday, some friends and I went to Michigan's Adventure. On Wednesday, I did a whole apartment deep clean and then headed home where I stayed and hung out with the dogs, my mom, and my little sister. My mom fed me and I got to hang out by the pool Thursday, Friday, and Saturday.

Michigan's Adventure's biggest roller coaster, Shivering Timbers

Bailey, our smallest pup

Mayzie, our medium pup

Doc, our largest pup (and my personal favorite/buddy)

Now, however, fourth year is starting and I have got to get my shit together. Not just in terms of school work, but in terms of my health. I know I do this every month or so, but man oh man, blogging makes a huge difference in terms of keeping me accountable. It helps me track my food, make better choices, and put my health higher up in terms of priority. So, I'd like to set some fourth year goals. 

Big fourth year goal: Lose the weight I gained in medical school/get back to 210 (or lower)

Little goals: Blog 3-4 times a week

1. Work out 3-4 times a week and keep changing it up: alternate zumba, yoga, strength, and maybe even some swimming!
2. Track, track, track! Weight, food, etc.
• Weekly weigh-ins on Mondays with a 2 pound goal per week
3. No eating out, fast food, or hospital meals - I will pack all my food so I'm more accountable and I will eat what I pack (sometimes I like to pack food and then just buy food anyway)
• When with friends, eating out is okay (just not going out by myself because I'm being lazy)
4. Write a daily positive when blogging
5. Choose to be happy and laugh rather than frown and grumble

That's it, folks. I don't want to be too strict because I know that just fucks with my head. So, there you go. Plain and simple: eat better, work out more, and blog/talk about it!

Thanks in advance for your support. I officially graduate on May 16, 2015, so I'm going to set that as my deadline for my big goal!

Also, some food porn and other photos for you (because I love you):

On his way back to the vet - he's healthier now!

SkipBo with my mom

Dining outdoors - my favorite!

Walking rather than blading

Well, blading didn't exactly happen. Damn rain. We did take the dogs for a walk, but when I tried running with Doc, he stopped and then I was pulled back and he started limping. Newfoundlands are known for having bad hips, so I'm hoping I didn't hurt him. He walked fine for the rest of our walk, but I stopped running with him.

Anywho, the rest of the day was very chill. I took my ibuprofen every 6 or so hours and my knees are doing a bit better. Now my mom and I are just hanging out. 

I talked with her about my plans to work out now that this rotation is going to start. I was thinking about going to the gym in the mornings because I'm not very productive when I go at night. But I have a really hard time getting up early in the mornings. I don't know if I'd rather pack a lunch or get up early. Hard to say which one sucks more.

I'm hoping that tomorrow I'll be able to blade in the morning. My mom and I are going to make some healthy meals so that I have healthy stuff to eat this week and then I'll head back to Grand Rapids to get my shizz together for this rotation. I need to study my butt off and I really, really, really want to get some semblance of a workout schedule made.

Here are today's pics:

Breakfast was going to be scrambled eggs and salmon, but apparently my mom had hard boiled them

Breakfast part 2

Snack/what ended up being lunch, I suppose

Dinner with Doc

Mayzie

Doc again

Teeny bit of ice cream

Not pictured was the South Beach protein bar I ate nor the chips and salsa for the afternoon snack. I'm still hungry, buuuut it's past 8 so I guess I'll just have to make due. I'm not starving and I'm probs just thirsty. So, tomorrow I'll try to be cognizant and eat some more filling things.

Puppy love

Last night sucked. Like a lot. Let me tell you why.

This week is my spring break and I decided that I wanted to up my dancing skills, so I've been going to zumba everyday. My knees and hips decided to stage a protest last night. It took me like 4 hours to fall asleep because of the pain. I had to get up and take ibuprofen and then ice my knees for a bit. Not cool, joints. Not cool.

So this morning, rather than hitting the gym, I decided to take it easy. I want to recuperate so that next week when I start work again, I'm not too painful. That, and I need to re-evaluate my shoe choices.

This morning I also weighed in. Yikes, you guys. Yikes. I really, really, really don't want to post it, buuuuut this is a judgment-free zone. If you're in a judging mood, go ahead and navigate elsewhere.

Now, to be fair, when I first got on the scale, it said 238.0, but it was kinda blurry, so I got back on and I'd gained 0.8 pounds. I tried several more times, but 238.8 was there to stay. So, I had to settle.

But, I made myself a yummy breakfast (and finished off my bacon) and then cleaned up my apartment. I headed back home this afternoon for the first time in forever and got to spend some quality time with the puppies and the mom.

Here are today's pictures:

Breakfast

Snack/lunch since I wasn't hungry enough

Lounging with the legs up

Doc is a happy pup

Mayzie is an attention whore

Happy boy!

She likes her crate

Blurry pic with the mom

Dinner with Doc

We had fish, beans, and rice

Small dish of ice cream

Tomorrow, if the weather holds, I'm hoping to go blading. It's not looking too good. We'll see!