I SURRENDER

I think I waited too long to share out an update because now I have so much swirling around in my brain, I don't know how to get it all out in an organized way. So apologies in advance if this post is all over the place.

 

Let's start with data

 

I had my blood work done and they ran a few extra tests based on my feeling tired all the time. I also did an at home sleep study. I have been reading 2 books on hormones and feel like I am learning so much and the way I feel and "symptoms" I just thought were normal are all making more sense.

 

First the sleep study: 

• Fortunately, I do not have sleep apnea and no need for a CPAP. I have been told for those that use them they are life changing but I can't sleep with things on my face, so I was really nervous if that was my destiny. I do snore. Sorry Pete. 

• When I look at my Fitbit data (which the sleep study specialist told me of what she has seen it tends to one of the more accurate sleep trackers on the market) I think I average 6 1/2 to 7 hours of sleep. My target is 7-8 but I think with a few other lifestyle tweaks I will see this improve over time.

 

Blood Tests:

• For the most part my lab results were all within normal ranges. This is a bit of a relief. Wasn't sure how my recent weight gain would affect my results. The last time I did blood work was in 2021 when I was around 200 pounds vs 2 weeks ago and I weighed 229.

• I found my lab results from 2021 and thought it would be interesting to compare

• No doubt I have lots more work to do and I will be redoing my lab work in another 4-6 weeks so I hope to see things improve.

• In 2021 they didn't check anything related to iron or Anemia. This time, that was a prime area of focus, and they ran several different tests to look at it from various angles. The summary is that I am significantly iron deficient, have anemia and chronic fatigue syndrome. (It sounds very dramatic)

• The good news (in green) is that they tested to see how likely I am to absorb iron if I consume it and my number there was very strong. So there is hope.

As I was reading about anemia here were some symptoms I had no idea related and again the ones I had I assumed were normal for my age, weight, life and something I would just have to live with:

 

                    ✔︎ Tiredness

                        Weakness

                    ✔︎ Shortness of breath (especially when exercising)

                    ✔︎ Pale/yellowish skin (I live in the arctic, so I am always pale)

                        Irregular heartbeat

                    ✔︎ Dizziness or lightheadedness (can't do a full leg day)

                        Chest pain

                    ✔︎ Cold hands and feet

                    ✔︎ Headaches (not debilitating but sure)

 

As I am reading about hormones, when you have things out of whack many of these same symptoms will show as well. I have not gone down the path of a hormone test and instead in addition to the multivitamins I have taken for years, I have begun taking iron, magnesium, Vitamin D (my multi had some but I am adding to get to the recommended daily amount), and Vitamin C to help absorb the iron.

 

My multi also has some Vitamin B's but they are on my radar and may get added but I am terrible about daily doses of anything so want to make sure I follow through with these before adding on.

 

I have been at this for about a week. I read it takes 2-3 weeks of taking iron to see results. I also only took 1/2 the iron recommended because it has side effects so yesterday was my first day at the full dosage. Wish me luck. Iron is known to cause constipation. Magnesium can make you have softer stools. I also found Iron Ease which is a plant-based iron, but it seems to cause (for me) borderline diarrhea. I am switching between regular iron and the Iron Ease to try to find a good digestive balance.

 

I plan to give it about a month and assuming some of my symptoms reduce/go away I will just keep focusing on my nutrition and may not go on the hormone investigation unless other things pop up (you know, like hot flashes or mood swings or something).

 

Speaking of nutrition (I knew this post was going to be long), on May 7th I began tracking my macros, updated my caloric intake goals and began exploring food again. Using the basic/free version of the Carb Manager app, today is my 33rd consecutive day of tracking every bite. This time I am leveraging the food scale I have had for years but I learned a new trick (I assume was in the instructions I am sure I never read) and it has been a total game changer.

 

I always complained that it was so hard to track things I make, especially a salad or things with mixed fresh veggies. I have never been a meal prepper, but I am an ingredient prepper. If I am cooking onions, I will cook 2-3x's what I need and save the rest so I can quickly add them to other dishes.

 

I learned that this scale makes measuring these so much easier than how I had been trying. I can put the plate on the scale, turn it on and it will be at 0. Then say I add 4 oz of spinach. I hit the on/off button again, it goes back to 0. Then I add 4 or whatever oz of protein, hit the button and back to 0. I can keep doing this with each ingredient, so I do know exactly how much of each I am eating and build the meal on the plate as I go. When it comes to sauces, many have serving sizes in tbsp or cups, but they also typically have it in grams. With this scale I can hit the unit button and change it to grams then, starting at 0 pour the sauce to the # of grams in a serving right on top. No dirtying measuring spoons and cups or eyeballing it. I really think this has gotten me to 33 days vs 3-7 when I would fall off in the past.

 

33 days ago, I started this chapter at 235.4 lbs. Today after no changes in exercise but religiously tracking my macros I am seeing 225.7 lbs on the scale. A few years ago, I would have been disappointed with this progress because I am impatient and honestly tracking is more work than I want it to be. 

This time I am letting the math and the science take the wheel. I will take and embrace each lost ounce as they come. I've set up my macros to lose 1-2 lbs a week based on my activity level. As my energy hopefully returns and my knees hopefully hate me less, I will add more exercise and add back in strength training and maybe those ounces will come off a little faster.

 

I'd like to share some of my new favorite finds, food goals and a few recipes but I will save that for my next post.