Enjoy this quick video of one of my favorite spots to visit after dropping the kids off at camp. Despite not being a morning person, I really enjoy these solo jaunts to take some time before starting my work for the day.
CW: DIETING, WEIGHT-LOSS
It’s been about 3 weeks since writing my post about some recent weight gain and my feelings about it and here’s an update.
I got on the scale for the 2nd time since that post and found I was down 4 pounds! After coming off a particularly uncomfortable period that included a lot of water retention, it was a relief to wake up today feeling better and well enough to get on the scale.
Even though I’m monitoring my weight a bit more these days, I still try not to get on the scale unless I’m genuinely curious about my weight, as opposed to obsessing over losing ounces and playing a numbers game with myself. But seeing the loss of 4 pounds today was a relief. I even noticed my bras feeling looser than they did this time last week — because, of course, where do I lose the weight first? My boobs, womp-womp.
I’ve been able to curb my Dunkin’ habit — funnily enough, the deals on the app haven’t been as enticing as they were in the winter when those hot beverages and heavy treats become my comfort go-to.
Those pesky but indulgent fridge cookies are still a welcome visitor in the house, but I’ve curbed that habit as well — aside from PMS/Period week when all bets are off. But I can already feel those cravings going away as my energy comes back.
I’ve had more pain from Adenomyosis this month and it’s made my daily yoga practice a bit harder. As much as the stretching loosens my muscles and relieves some of the tension stored in my hips and thighs from the uterine discomfort and cramps associated with Adenomyosis, the effort it takes to do those stretches sometimes feels like so much and if I don’t do it early enough in the day, I find I don’t have the spoons later in the day to do so.
I’ve kept up my almost-daily smoothie habit and I’m enjoying getting my spinach and some extra fruits this way.
In case anyone is curious about my smoothies, my recipe isn’t difficult or even precise, but you’re welcome to get some inspiration from it. I change it up depending on what’s available, but for the most part, this is the basic recipe:
1 cup assorted berries — I buy the frozen bags at Aldi or Target. Sometimes I’ll get bananas mixed in, but I tend to prefer mostly berries
A giant handful of spinach
Grated ginger — I really like the zing of ginger and use about a ½ tablespoon to a full tablespoon
A heavy splash of Bolthouse Farms Superfood Immunity Boost (I found it at Aldi and liked the tanginess)
Half an apple or splash of apple juice for sweetness
Blend on high for a minute
Add ice — this is the part I’ve been perfecting because if you add too much ice, it takes forever to blend. If you add too little, it doesn’t blend enough. I probably use about 1½ cups of ice.
Blend until ice is the right consistency for you.
For me, the next step is pure ethsetics, but it makes a huge difference when it comes to drinking this purple-ish, green sludge — get a fun tin cup and wide straw. The tin cup is for the old-fashioned milkshake feeling, but also to hide whatever unappetizing color the spinach has made the smoothie. And the straw is because I like that I can drink my fruits and veggies surprisingly quickly this way before it melts too much and becomes room temperature blah-juice.
Summer Update
Once again I’m finding myself not wanting to put myself out there as much. With the news going on, I’ve been in a very reactive state and it’s been difficult finding ways to channel what I’m processing and going through. I don’t feel like posting about it would really help anyone so I’ve been keeping to myself more. It’s also been a transition since school’s gotten out for the kids and they’ve both started camp so our schedules have all shifted and, once again, we’re all adjusting, as is life.
This may cause longer lapses between posts. It also causes me not to want to promote my posts, since I feel like I’m just adding to the noise sometimes, especially when there’s a lot of tension building about much more important matters. That said, I’m so grateful for those of you who hang out and read these posts 🙂 It means a lot. Thank you to those who have reached out and commented on past posts!
One more update that may seem small to some, but for me it’s kind of a big deal.
I made an impulsive decision to Google “church for Agnostics” and ended up checking out the Unitarian Universalist church. I’ve been coming to terms with a lot of my hangups about religion and church as I’ve always known it. While I won’t go into my religious history now, I’m excited to find folks with similar backgrounds to me and spiritual leanings as I’ve had for years and I expect to be writing about that in the near future.
Until then, hope you’re enjoying your summer!
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