Hello

So, I thought I'd try this blogging thing. I'm not very clever, so you may not be entertained, but I'll try not to bore you. My main goal for this blog is to be held responsible for my actions, specifically regarding my weight.
A bit of history:

Growing up I was always the skinny one. Very tall, knobby knees, slightly uncoordinated, and ate voraciously. This continued through high school. I ate whatever I wanted. I don't think I ate much, but what I did eat was junk. Lots of candy (I had a teacher ask me once if I had a blood sugar problem because I always had candy in class). We didn't have a whole lot of money, so dinner was small, but junk food was cheap, so there was always plenty of that. I graduated from high school weighing around 121lbs at 5'11". Like I said: skinny.

Then my one year of college. With my housing program, I was able to have three meals a day. Good solid food, unlimited, almost. Man, that was an awesome time. Never hungry. Loved it. Most freshmen gain 15lbs, right? I gained close to 30lbs. I specifically remember needing to buy clothes and having to buy a size 10, and being shocked by having to buy a double-digit size. I probably needed that weight, though. I suddenly had boobs! :) This is exciting to an 18-yr old, you know.

When I went back home, I was living on my own and responsible for all my own expenses. Back to no money for food. At least, not much after going out. Now, I didn't drink all that much (still don't), but I LOVE to dance. Was club dancing nearly every weekend (whenever someone would drive, as I didn't have a car). So, this means lots of exercise and the bare minimum of food. I lost 15lbs and was around 135lbs within a year (and was by now 6' tall). Was I healthy? No. I remember standing at the bus stop during the Texas summer and nearly passing out. I used to think it was because I was getting sick. Now I know, it's because I was malnourished. Hindsight is so clear, isn't it?

I went to live with my dad for a little while. Ooh, regular food again. No dancing, but occassional walking. Gained weight to 155lbs. Came back home a little wiser eight months later. Resumed my club nights, but tried to eat a bit more food. Was doing all right around 150lbs and I think I was a size 10 or 12, depending on the clothes of course.

Then I started dating my now husband. All my dancing stopped and regular meals began. My husband likes food just like I like food. When we got married (nine years after high school, 1997) I weighed 165lbs. In 1999, I weighed 195lbs. Then I got pregnant and gained 60lbs!! My doctor was never worried and my blood sugar was never out of whack. In my defense I delivered a very healthy 10lb, 2oz boy. Two years later I was able to return to 195lbs. Then baby #2 and another 60lbs begat a 8lb, 6oz boy. Six years later I reside somewhere between 205-220lbs. I keep going up and down between these numbers.


I have tried to introduce exercise and food control over the last three years. Where I stand right now is that because of the weight and other factors, my joints are not happy. I just recently got an MRI of my knee and am awaiting the results. So, since exercise is sort of on hold, I'm going to do something about my food intake.

I am a soda fanatic. Love the bubbly stuff - specifically Coke, Vault, and Mountain Dew. Notice the caffeine? Probably 75% of my love for soda. I've been able to break the caffeine habit once, but then my taste buds start craving a soda, then I don't get all the sleep I need, then I'm right back on the crazy train. I currently, if left unchecked, would drink soda constantly throughout the day. I've learned that drinking more than 20oz of Vault does not sit well with the stomach, so I've cut that down to only dire situations. Mountain Dew is great as long as my stomach has some food in it (see where I'm headed?). Coke is mainly for taste, as there isn't much caffeine it it and it can sometimes put me to sleep. I can't drink diet drinks as the artificial sweeteners give me headaches and make me nauseous. And lately I read that diet sodas aren't all they're cracked up to be, so I'll keep to the real sugar, thank you.

The times that I've tried to make a "food lifestyle change" I've gone gung-ho and stopped everything at once. I tried to immediately start only taking in 1600-1900 calories, as opposed to the likely 2500 calories I usually ingest. This does not make for a happy Lisa. Headaches, grouchy, hungry - not very pleasant to be around. So, I'm going for something different this time. This time, I'll do it in stages. First - the soda. Water, milk, and juice only, from here on out. I'm not going to make adjustments to my food intake. The hard part will be breaking the soda habit, so that's my focus.

I will (hopefully) log my status here daily and let you know how it goes. What I'm feeling, eating, drinking. I know you've read this all before from others (I certainly have), but I'm going to do this for me and see where it takes me.