My First Week of New Habits

So my first week of changing up my habits has now come and gone and I would like to give a little snippet of what I encountered.

First of all I am involved in a group chat with a bunch of awesome people who provide motivation to each other. This is not only a motivational platform but also a place of comfort and caring for one another. We have shared everything from delicious and healthy meals to crazy workouts. There have also been times of panic and grief. Yes... all this in only a week. This has made me realize that if I truly want to go down this path, I cannot do it alone and that is okay. Surrounding yourself with others who will motivate you and share their own journey with you is a great tool for success.

The next big success in the week can be attributed to the fact that Nate and I came up with a meal plan and stuck with it. I used to make excuses about how much time it would take to meal plan or even prep my lunch. Well, no more excuses. Yes... it took a while to come up with a plan we were both satisfied with, but we are not going to succeed together if we are not truly in this together. So yes, we will take the time to find a menu that we are both excited to consume.

Did I want to eat other things in between what we had planned? Yes. Did I want to eat all the "bad" things that would send me out of ketosis? Yes. Did I give in this time? Well I would be lying if I said no. On Tuesday we were back in school with our students which meant all the temptations were back such as breakfast, access to the not low-carb snacks I provide for my classroom, and the added temptation of Krispy Kremes in the office. I managed to resist all of those all the way until the end of the day at 4:00 pm. But then I started thinking about how I still had to be there two more hours for tutoring. Two more hours until I could go home to my planned dinner. Two more hours added on to the already tiring day I had. I was not happy that day about those two more hours. So what did I do? I ate 3 (three!!) fun-size packets of Skittles. Boom! Already making the excuses. But here is why I am choosing to admit it to myself and everyone. I don't want to start making all of those excuses again such as, "oh well it is only one... and then one more. I'm tired and stressed. I deserve this, I made it through the first day back!" NO! The second I consumed them I had instant regret. The small moment of happiness I got from the sweet delicious treat was immediately followed by a hate in myself for doing that. The difference this time is that I actually logged it into my food diary. Where as before I would make the other excuse, "well since it was only one I won't log it into my food diary." That is where my mistakes were made in the past. Do you know how many "oops" foods I didn't log last year? Enough to help me gain back all the weight I had lost the first time and then some. The second I start down the path of eating food that is not on the plan and start making excuses and trying to hide my mistakes is the second I lose control. This time I am in control and I am going to recognize my excuses and not use them as a means to eat poorly.

This leads me to the third advantage of the week. Logging my meals. This is tedious and yes I forget a lot, but my back up plan of taking pictures of my meal really helped me out in remembering what to log. The first time I was successful with keto, I logged faithfully. The second, third, and fourth time I failed keto, I did not log. Logging meals and snacks is a tool for accountability. If I follow my meal plan and log what I eat, I'm holding myself accountable for what goes in my body.

Finally (and probably the most annoying thing as a teacher), I can attribute much of my success to water. I have made a commitment to drink an entire gallon of water daily. This is easily achieved as I am now starting the day with a gallon container which does not need to be refilled. Shout out and thanks to my friend Rose Downing for showing me what to get and where to get it! This bottle is so much more sleek and stylish than carrying around a milk jug! I will post a link to one at the end for those interested. My downfall last semester was the fact that I am so busy during the day that I forget or do not have time to refill my smaller water bottles enough times to equate to a gallon of water. To anyone out there with a gallon a day goal, I recommend getting something that you only have to keep track of filling once a day. It has really helped me. Now, do I have to pee a lot? Yes. But I just remember that it is good and healthy if I am going to be getting rid of all my toxins in my body. My skin has looked and felt more rejuvenated, and I have stayed away from Diet Dr. Pepper and sugar free Red Bull, which I was basically drinking two a day before break. Sure, water rusts pipes (that one is for you Uncle Mark), but it is way better than what I was surviving on before.

As I close today's blog I would like to note that I have lost 7 pounds this week! I know that such a sudden "whoosh" of water weight is normal for those beginning a keto diet, so I don't expect that to be a typical result going forward but it is nice to see that I am moving in the right direction. I was also able to squeeze into some jeans on Friday which I was not able to do the whole three weeks leading up to Christmas break. I will consider that a win and keep at it for this week!

Mrs. Imparato

p.s. Here's the Amazon link to the gallon water bottle I found: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07CYJW9SV

Being Honest with Myself in 2019

I’m pretty sure I have made this post before with this same subject matter. Weight loss. A heavily over-talked subject for this time of year. Yes, I know everyone’s resolutions are flowing in and yes, I realize I am one of them too. I will not deny that January 1st each new year is a new opportunity to take control. A new opportunity to say, “hey, it will be different.” Yes, I am not stranger to the routine.

A friend of mine recently said that it starts with honesty. Being honest with yourself. So here goes...

Dear Self,

As you and I both know, being of one body, 2018 sucked. How, you ask? Well look back to your blog post precisely one year ago. Remember... the one with the food baby bump? Yeah, the one that you totally made a first class dipwad out of yourself. Okay we are being honest... not brutal. You had every good intention, yes. But what you did not have was focus, determination, and the will to make a change for the better. You looked at it as a “Oh yeah, I’ve been there and done that. It is totally within my grasp.” You saw it as an easy way out to say you were going to make the change but you never really got the stamina to really make the change. You kept finding those little excuses that you needed to make the choices you were making. You kept buying terrible food and saying, “Well this is going to be my last bad meal so why not make it something worth having?” I can’t even count on both hands how many of those “last meals” you had in 2018.

Now sure, a lot of those things in 2018 were so worth it, such as dining with your husband at Disney World’s Food and Wine Festival, and partaking in different festivities closer to home. You did have a good time, but those good times are not because of the food you ate. It was due to the experiences you had with those around you. Self, if there is one piece of wisdom I impart on you for 2019 it is this... food is not the cause of great experiences. Great experiences come from those you experience life with. Yes, food will always be there, but it will not define how good of a time you have in life.

Let’s talk about the bad times, because there were some of those too in 2018. You will NOT blame your grandpa’s death as the reason you are now at your all time highest weight of your life. That is not fair to him or you, and you know that is not the reason. The reason is you have made food a comfort. I’m here to tell you, food is not a long term comfort. Food will comfort you for the first few bites, but as you continue to stuff your mouth, you will question if it is right you should be eating those things. Next you will question why you did that to yourself as you are writhing with the stomach pain of over-stuffing. Then to sum up 2018 you will stand on the scale in your bathroom looking at numbers you have never seen before and trying to make jokes about being so big that you are wearing certain clothes because none of your other “go-to’s” fit right. You will then start feeling sorry for yourself and wander down a path that is not good for anyone to walk down.

Self, I am not saying any of this to you for pity. I am saying this because I have come to realize that we need a change in attitude about a lot of things. Do we need to lose weight? Sure. But more importantly we need to get back to a healthy attitude about ourself. (Yes world I know that is not a word... just go with it!)

So... now that I have been honest with myself there is just one thing left to do. Get back on track to a healthier lifestyle whatever that may entail. I will not be posting “before” pictures just yet, even though I have definitely taken them. I want those to stay a motivation just for me as I begin my journey again. I will also not set hard limits for myself in front of everyone as that is a hard goal to achieve. I would like to walk my own walk before I talk the talk so to speak. So to everyone with their own goals for 2019, I wish you the best of luck in achieving your dreams.

Mrs. Imparato

New Year... Fresh Start... Nope, that’s no baby!

Carb baby has grown as much as I will allow!

 No, I am not starting off the new year with child... but rather with booze, lasagna, potatoes, and sugar... lots and lots of sugar. As much as I would rather answer awkward questions about my belly bloat with phrases other than, “nope... just had a really large burrito,” that just wouldn’t be the cold hard truth brought upon by choices that I have made for myself over the last few months years. So with carb baby (as I’ve so lovingly named my robust belly) as fully grown as he will get, there will come a new plan for this new year.

As a lot of my family and friends saw in 2015, Nate and I saw a lot of success with a keto lifestyle change which I have written about before, and with the internet full of more information about this way of living I will not go into detail here. I went from 190 lbs to 174 lbs in a matter of months all while feeling energized and healthier overall! My demise came when we went to Disney World and I did not have any respect toward the lifestyle while vacationing. Once back home, the carbs continued to find me. I would go off and on trying to get back into ketosis, but I never actually stuck with it as I did the first time.

As you can tell in previous blogs I also experimented with different dieting plans like Herbalife where I also saw a little success, but ultimately I personally could not continue accepting a shake as my meal. I missed chewing and experiencing my food, and as long as I am able, I would prefer to eat in in solid form. Thus continued my yo-yo experience with carbohydrates.

Well jump to today, January 1, 2018. Sure, I have taken a humorous approach to my current state, because that is all I can do right now. It is what it is, and the truth is that I have found all the pounds I have lost and then some. Nate will be the first one to confirm that I have already thrown my pity party. I have been so down on myself and so critical of what is in the mirror when I gaze at the reflection. Well guess what, there is nothing good coming from that angle. So enough is enough, I gained weight. Was it more than I ever wanted to gain again? Of course! But now I have the power to do something about it, and what I do with that power is my choice... not to mention I’m supposed to go to the beach in June... so there’s that motivation.

I’m hoping by opening myself up and sharing my vulnerable moments it will help me stay on track and maybe motivate others in similar positions. I am not only in it for weightloss but I also want to live a healthier lifestyle and become more active in 2018!

Thank you for your support and best wishes to you achieving your personal goals for the new year!

Mrs. Imparato

Difficulty with Selfishness and Alzheimer’s

This has been a touchy subject for me. I am ashamed to say that I have been avoiding acceptance of the disease and the course it is taking. In doing so have been avoiding my family altogether.

For quite especially the last two years, for every holiday or birthday, I have been going over to visit two strangers. Strangers who become different to me each new visit I make. Although I remain recognizable to them, they are nowhere resembling the grandparents I grew up with. You may have guessed it by now, but my grandparents have fallen victim to the heartbreaking diseases of Alzheimer’s and dementia.

I have been sitting back and staying away for very selfish reasons wondering if that is the norm of this disease... selfishness. Is it selfish to want to turn back time back to when we could have coherent conversations? Is it selfish to not want to have to talk my Grandma out of a meltdown because she is extremely confused? Is it selfish to go home and cry that you don’t want to go back after watching your Grandpa get lost going to his bedroom? Is it selfish to know you should go visit, but don’t make a valiant effort out of fear of being uncomfortable around people who used to help raise you? Am I a selfish jerk for being thankful that this horrible disease is not in my blood line?

And I am only the granddaughter. I definitely do not envy my mom for having to be in the frontline during this time. She has been a serious angel for her parents. The hardest job she will ever have is becoming a parent for the people who raised her. It is difficult to see her so sad over something she has absolutely no control over. I love here and I will be here for her, but something she said tonight really made my heart ache. She uttered the words, “I just need my mom.” I can’t imagine not being able to talk to my mom about something so challenging.

All I have control over now are the sweet memories I have of my grandparents and the wonderful times we have shared together. I can be thankful that I still have grandparents who I can go over and spoil since they spent so much time spoiling me. I am thankful that they are living their life out in their own home under the utmost care of their amazing caregivers. I am thankful for the family and friends who continue to wrap their arms around my mom and show her love as she continues to struggle with the ugliness of this disease.

Hold your family close and continue to make beautiful memories that you can cherish forever!

Finding a Happy and Healthy Me!

Be it a diet, a lifestyle change, or whatever description you choose to call a change in your nutritional intake in order to lose weight, gain weight, maintain weight, or just get healthy... I have tried many different scenarios talked about in the world today. Back in college when I gained my freshman fifteen forty I definitely needed a change. At close to 220 lbs I was feeling a tad miserable about my choice to eat a hamburger and fries every day at good ol Kramer Dining Center. (But they were so good and convenient!!!) Needless to say my ways of eating needed an adaptation. That is when I decided to try the Weight Watcher’s program. Did I actually attend meetings and such? No. But my grandma did and she was wonderful enough to share all of her wisdom with me, and I am happy to say with that program I was able to lose 40 lbs! There was a definite change in my body after that! I was feeling pretty great about myself, but I wanted to continue to reach my ultimate goal, unfortunately that is when the dreaded plateau hit. At this point in time I was also extremely bored with Weight Watchers. I don’t have anything negative against it, but it was not something I was excited about sticking with. Figuring all of the points for everything became a chore for me and thus my journey with Weight Watchers was over.

I had managed to maintain my 180 for quite some time which for me, felt pretty good, but I knew I could feel even better about myself. Which is when I started on SlimFast shakes as meal replacements. I was a bad person and would usually skip breakfast because I was always rushing around in the morning, but then I would have my shake for lunch with a side of something on the healthier side. Only problem was I wasn’t following an actual program and I was still sitting at my 180. So SlimFast went the way of Weight Watchers... out the diet door. For a while I just kept tabs on my food intake and portion control, and 180 and I lived to be very comfortable together as my wedding day was approaching (obviously you don’t really want to have drastic wedding gown alterations before the big day) so we just kind of hung out together. I will mention that for the better part of a year up until this point I had given up soda and was feeling really great about that, but then came our honeymoon and my unfortunate motto became “Oh why not, I’m on vacation!” Well once you go on vacation with the dieting and being careful with what you eat, you do not want to come back from vacation.


Months had passed since we arrived home from Mexico and 180 and I sadly parted ways and I met up with 193. Seeing this number on the scale and letting it sink in let me to a scary realization that if I kept these habits up I would be right back to 220 again. (The place where I was most miserable about myself) Enter my amazingly supportive husband... He introduced me to the Keto diet which I previously featured in one of my posts, so I won’t go into all of the details on what it is. With that I said goodbye to 193, goodbye to 180, and found a new friend... 174. Again this was progress, but still not my personal goal. I had more business to attend to but... another plateau as well as another vacation... this time to Disney World’s Food and Wine Festival... Goodbye keto... hello carbs! Let me tell you something about low/no carb diets... once you find the carbs again... you never want to give them up at all. Again coming back from vacation I could never seem to get back completely on track especially with the holiday season coming up and then excuse after excuse would find itself engaging in me eating too much of stuff I shouldn’t be having which leads me to now...

I was close to meeting 190something again and feeling sorry for myself and the choices I have made. I am skeptical of diets and what they have to offer, but I saw one of my friends having success with this program that I have decided to try the Herbalife 3 Day Trial. Yes, I have researched. Yes, I have some skepticism. But I also know what I feel like I need to hold myself accountable with any nutrition program. I need something simple, quick, and planned out (for the most part). I am that weird person that would rather have a shake most meals that something else. I am excited even though I still have some reserves about this program as I do with anything new, but I want to document my experience not to promote Herbalife or say negative things about it, but rather to share my own unique experience the 3 day trial brings for me, so stay tuned.

(I want to make a note that my goal number is one which will put me in the healthy BMI range. As of now according to my height and body fat percentage I am considered in the overweight category. Losing weight for me isn't about superficial issues, it is about feeling good about myself, gaining confidence in myself, and most importantly getting to a healthy stage of my life so I can continue to make the most of it.)

Mrs. Imparato

My Child Has Autism...

My child has autism… and I have a carrousel of emotions spinning in my head on a daily basis: feelings of embarrassment, frustration, aggravation, but also feelings of compassion, admiration, and love.

After our last few days of social interactions, I have had ample time to reflect on my thoughts on having a child with autism:

1. My child has autism… she has no filter and YES I do notice.

           

            I do not ignore her sometimes (most often times) inappropriate outbursts or over fixations out of being a bad parent. I do it out of her not always being able to control herself or change these fixations. Yes I do see you staring at me, probably wondering what sort of things we subject her to at home, but lets face it, the world is a lot more desensitized than it was when we were even kids. YES we have had conversations with her about what is appropriate and inappropriate behavior in social situations, but these new habits will not happen overnight. We do however try to provide appropriate social situations at home. YES she is 9 and has seen the puberty video at school and YESSS this has become a new area of fixation for her (unfortunately). But at least she is educated and YES we have and will continue to have conversations with her about how that is a topic only to be discussed with family or a trusted adult at school, so here is my public apology for anyone she offended tonight or any other moment when speaking out about puberty and I quote, "the bloody part."

2. My child has autism… she does not have complete social awareness.

            Oh were you having an adult conversation with just adults? Well sorry about that but my child is going to interrupt the heck out of that conversation with about 36 questions/opinions of her own. Were you trying to eat something? Oh sorry about that too because my child is now going to talk about how corn syrup gives her runny poops. You live in a dwelling that does not contain children and expect everything to stay in its perfectly placed spot when we come to visit? Well I apologize for that too because it is just not going to happen when you have an extremely curious child seeking out tons of new knowledge as she gets older and more aware of her surroundings. YES again I notice these things and wish there was more I could do to help these situations be easier and more convenient for you, but these are my everyday situations at home and we do what we can to adapt and provide positive learning opportunities for when we venture out into the world but that is not always going to be enough. This is where my frustration and aggravation comes into play because again I can feel the searing gaze of your eyes looking at me as if I have the magic button to turn off the autism and make her act like a typical child her age. Trust me, if I had that button I would need about 50 replacement batteries by now, but the truth is there is not such a device and aside from restraining her there is no immediate solution to your inconvenience, so suck it up buttercup… you see her for a couple hours? I get this 24/7. It will take time and practice (lots of it) to see these changes, and that is just the way it is.

3. My child has autism… what would you like to know about?

            One of the most wonderful things I see everyday is the breadth of knowledge this girl has. She can recall some of the most amazing facts that may have otherwise gone unnoticed by us “normal” folks. She also takes an interest in things that her peers may otherwise find boring. Lately this 9 year old wants to know everything and anything about history. Civil War, California Gold Rush, you name it. We recently had a conversation in the car that completely took me by surprise the other day wherein she asked if we could go to church because she wants to learn things she cannot learn in school. Her appetite for learning just astounds me and I really hope this is a trait she will hang onto for quite some time to come.

4. My child has autism… do I wish she did not have autism? NO!

            Lets start with this, would I wish this disability on anyone including her, no I wouldn’t, but would I wish it to go away so she could suddenly be “normal”? Absolutely not. This is her normal, this is our normal, it is what makes her the person she is, and in my opinion (which may contain a little bias) she is one fabulous kiddo! Yes, we have our rough moments, and YES I know everyone is watching to see what our next move as parents is going to be when these rough moments arise, but quite frankly I don’t give a squat what anyone may be thinking as they witness our worst moments, because unless they are also there to witness the wonderful moments we have with her, they are not getting the complete picture. We will continue on with what has been working and try new strategies for things which are not working in terms of helping her grow into a more well rounded being so we can prepare her for a future filled with endless possibilities. And when it gets down to it, I suppose this is what any parent wants for their child.

Mrs. Imparato

Oh SH--ugar!

Two months ago my husband and I embarked on a journey that has resulted in a huge lifestyle change. We began and are still taking part in a ketogenic diet lifestyle change.

What is a ketogenic diet?

To get you started I have listed some resources that Nate and I are frequently checking into. Yes… I’ve listed reddit as a source, but please don’t let that scare you away.

http://www.reddit.com/r/keto/wiki/faq

http://www.ketogenic-diet-resource.com/ketogenic-diet-plan.html

In a nutshell the ketogenic diet lifestyle change is as follows: of your daily calorie intake 70-75% of those should be calories from fat… yes FAT, 20-25% of them should come from protein, with 5-10% coming from carbohydrates. CALORIES ARE NOT RESTRICTED, but you should be mindful of what you are eating.

But wait… Isn’t this just Atkins?

More or less, yes it is, except I am not spending tons of money buying premade meals containing who knows what still hiding inside them. I am taking charge of my own life and body by choosing the right path for me.

Why the ketogenic lifestyle change?

As with any diet lifestyle change, I started with the personal problem of being overweight. No one was telling me this or saying anything nasty to me, but in all reality I was 5 foot 8 inches and 193 pounds… do some number crunching for yourself and you will find that a size of that proportion is in fact overweight. I also had a friend’s wedding approaching and my bridesmaid dress did not want to fit, so I knew I had some work to do.

After complaining to my husband at how horrible I feel about myself and how crappy I look, he finally took it upon himself to propose to me for the second time. Only this proposal was quite different, this proposal would not lead to a lifetime of love for each other, but rather a lifetime of love for our bodies. Let’s rewind about 10 months ago…

We were on our way to being married and I was sitting at a plateauing weight of about 178-180 pounds. I had been stressed with wedding planning without real time to think about eating everything in sight. After we exchanged I Do’s and settled down into what would be our day-to-day lives I started thinking about being more “health conscious.” We would go grocery shopping and I would immediately seize all of the 100 calorie, low/reduced fat, lean foods that were lining the shelves. I started taking part in replacing one of my meals a day with a protein shake to help myself cut the calories. I was making healthier choices for my body… or so I thought. Over the months I watched my weight fluctuate from between 178-180 lbs to 180-183 lbs to 183-185 lbs until finally I had reached my breaking point of stepping on the scale and reading 193 lbs. What had I done to myself? I was leading a fairly active lifestyle while eating all of these healthier foods! (There is where my problems were growing.)

If you inspect all of these so called “healthy” foods, you will notice all of the added sugar these companies put in to compensate for the lack of fat. Why do they add sugar? The companies add in the extra sugar to make the food taste better. When they get rid of the fat, they get rid of the flavor, so they need to replace it with sugar. So while on this very high sugar diet I unknowingly put myself on from lack of education, I was becoming addicted to sugar. A lot of people may say that a sugar addiction is pure fiction, but when I first started my keto diet lifestyle change and kicked all sugar to the curb, I found myself balled up on my kitchen floor throwing a major tantrum with my husband because he wouldn’t let me take a step backwards and eat a girl scout cookie that was staring me in the face. If wailing for a cookie on the kitchen floor in front of your husband isn’t a sign of a problem then I don’t know what is.

After that I vowed to do something differently, and I can proudly say that two months later I have said sayonara to sugar and I have dropped 20 lbs! I am feeling more active and better about my body. I am not constantly hungry and wanting more snacks all the time. I am not going to lie, it was very difficult in the beginning weeks. There are temptations all around, and not everyone is considerate towards your dietary needs. You will need to look out for yourself and plan ahead if you are participating in any sort of special occasion where there will be a lot of sugary snacks/drinks. It is your job to work around what is going on, not make everyone work around you. You need to have discipline… if you want to make this lifestyle change, then you need to take charge.

I am by no means an expert in this field. I am only doing what I feel is the right thing for my body. If you are interested in making a lifestyle change for yourself such as this one please please PLEASE do the proper research and consult with your physician if you need to do so. I only know what this has done for me, and I can only share that much. I call it a lifestyle change rather than a diet for 2 reasons: 1. you really do need to change up a lot of your life if you are used to eating the way I once ate, 2. I personally feel that diets have a negative stigma associated with them.

Mrs. Imparato

P.S. 

If you have not seen this documentary, then I highly recommend it. "Fed Up"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aCUbvOwwfWM