September Cave Girl Report!

Hello Lovelies!

September has been a crazy busy month, but no complaints! I did a lot of celebrating for friends’ birthdays and my own…Hello, 35! Work has been crazy busy and my spoiled ass is in desperate need for another vacation. I’ll make this one short and sweet because I have more errands to run.

Virgo Love!
As mentioned, I was blessed to see 35 this month. I say blessed simply because in this crazy world, every birthday is a blessing and should be celebrated. Also, there was a time when I secretly questioned if I’d ever see my mid-30s. Morbid obesity doesn’t just do a number to your body…it plays with your mind too. I celebrated with my girls (dinner, private karaoke and lots of Ciroc!) and my boo on birthday night…he surprised me with dinner at III Forks. We had a wonderful dinner and a truly heartfelt conversation. Woo, I love him! I received quite a bit of birthday gift card loot, so I’ve been shopping like a crazy lady.

The gratis birthday dessert…rum soaked carrot cake and ice cream. I had ONE bite of cake and shared with my guests.

Don’t pat me on the back too much. I also got a free dessert at III Forks. I had 1/2 a piece of cake and ended up with GASTRIC CHAOS AND TURMOIL the next day. Seriously…Paleo treats from here on out. My system just can’t take the fluffy stuff anymore!

Fitness Stuff!
I knocked off 2 events this month! #9 was The Dallas Heart Walk to honor my general manager that passed from a heart attack last year. #10 was the Patriot Games mud run. Lawd have mercy…that course was brutal. Lots of upper body obstacles and I was feeling it 3 days later.

Paleo Rocks My World
Things are still going well. I can’t even view this as an experiment…it’s simply how I live now. I lost 6 lbs this month and I am super excited over it. Why? Because I essentially celebrated my birthday for 3 weeks lol. If I had to guess, I went out to dinner 8x during this month and my workouts decreased during social frenzy. To still knock off 6 lbs during this time is amazing to me. That shows me that what I’m doing completely fits into my life and I can enjoy myself for special occasions and keep it moving. The loss brings my Paleo total to 51 lbs. Woot! Woot! Happy Coco! On the geek side of things, my next nutrition book is Wheat Belly. I’ve just started but I’m already convinced that wheat was sent here to destroy me. LOL Dramatic, but the removal of it from my diet has improved life. I can’t argue with the thought process.

In other weight news, a friend (Hi, Jada!) has been urging me to post my story for awhile on a FB group called Black Women Losing Weight. I kind of blew it off until I suddenly felt an overwhelming urge to reach out. I shared my weight loss history (and struggle!) and included this newest RA/Autoimmune chapter. OMG…the response was OVERWHELMING. Dozens of women reached out to me on FB sharing their own story…mostly women with autoimmune diseases. I was inspired and saddened at the same time. The amount of women that mentioned being blown off by medical professionals was ridiculous. I reminded them that doctors work for us…we are the clients. Being your own health advocate is so important. I also stressed the importance of having a doctor that is open-minded enough to explore nutrition and the role that it plays in various medical conditions. Food is one of the few things that we deal with repeatedly day in and day out. I didn’t push the Paleo lifestyle to everyone (because we all know mileage varies on all nutrition/fitness plans), but I did stress the importance of eating whole foods, steering clear of processed junk and the GMO nonsense.

Anyway, I feel that I truly helped a few of the women that contacted me. Autoimmune diseases are frustrating and it’s definitely been a learning process for me! Luckily, I have a rheumatologist that spoke to me about nutrition before medication was mentioned.

Here’s what I shared…9/9/12

I decided to share my journey for those that have been in this battle for a long time and are possibly feeling discouraged. My before pictures are from March 2001. I was 23 years old, 400+ lbs and facing death by obesity. I chose Weight Watchers as my weapon in the battle and managed to lose 210 lbs in 5 years. The road got rocky after my initial success and I spent the next few years fighting a rebound gain and spinning my wheels.

Fast forward to May 2012. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune disease (rheumatoid arthritis) and it turned my world upside down. After research and recommendations, I decided to experiment with the Paleo diet and see if it made a difference with my pain level and joint inflammation. My "experiment" has turned into a new way of life. I have lost 47 lbs in the last 4 months and more importantly, my pain has decreased tremendously. I still have a few bad days with RA, but life has definitely improved. Embracing the concept of whole foods and eliminating processed junk has been a godsend. I stay active with spin class, outdoor cycling and regular visits with my friend Gym. 🙂 I am also blessed with a support system that keeps me on track and offers unwavering encouragement.

So…what am I trying to say? STICK WITH IT. Even if I never lose another pound from today, going back to my "before" is simply not an option. Embrace a lifestyle change and love yourself now…don’t wait to reach your goal weight/size to appreciate your hard work.

Soooo…that’s basically what’s been going on in my world this month. I am happy, healthy (RA be damned) and looking forward to what lies ahead. Wooo…this was not short and sweet! haha Hope everyone is doing well. 

See ya next month!
C

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