Dangerous Early Weigh-ins.

Weighing in early can be, and often is, a dangerous thing to do. It is best to check your weight once a week, or everyday then average out the weights. Weight fluctuates quite a bit day to day, and it can be tough emotionally to suffer set-backs during the week that may not count at all by the end. I try to adhere to the once-a-week rule, but it isn't easy sometimes. It is only Tuesday, but I weighed myself anyway because I felt thinner last night (lol, yes I know that sounds weird, but my wedding ring has gotten rather sloppy. Also, my husband said I looked like I'd lost weight without it being solicited!) and I wanted to see if I really had lost weight or was just going crazy. I got on the scale before my shower this morning, and lo and behold 220.5 lbs! That is down 1.5 lbs in two days, and my weekly goal is 2 lbs.

Not only my weight on the scale, but I could see a difference in the mirror as well. It looked like my breasts were smaller (yes, yes, TMI, I know) and I wasn't imaging it either because my bra that has been overstuffed for months is now visibly getting slightly baggy in the cups. That is really great and bad at the same time. It is nice to be losing so much weight, and being a 34 GG I don't mind losing size there. The bad part of it is that I don't have the money to buy new bras right now, lol Best website (or store period) I've found for buying bras is figleaves.com, however while they have good sales and sell a huge range of sizes, their bras tend to be on the pricey side. The average price for a good bra is around $50 to $60. If you have the money it is really worth it though, as the bras I've bought from them have lasted forever and been far superior in build than what you can find at retail or department stores (this includes Victoria Secret) in my area.

We are having a bit of an issue with finances right now, and that is putting a bit of a cramp on the whole loosing weight thing. We have to cut our food budget down for the next 3 weeks (like in half, which is drastic because our food budget is pretty moderate to begin with). Part of the idea with this low-carb high-fat diet is to not limit your food intake but to eat as much fat and meat as you want. We won't be buying much meat for a couple weeks, probably mostly eggs. I am going to be so sick of eggs, lol

I allow myself to buy some small frivolous thing as a reward for each ten lbs lost, but probably won't have the money for that either. I will most assuredly reach 220 by the end of this week, but won't have much money for a reward. I usually buy pretty small things. Once I bought a pair of pajamas that I wanted that were about $10, other times I've bought manicure supplies, or Nicole by OPI nail polish at Wal-Mart. I try to keep it at or under $10. I have some more expensive items I want for when I reach big goals (e.g. 200 lbs, 175 lbs and at my goal weight of 150 lbs.). The Tria is one, and a Sedu Revolution flat iron is another. When I reach my final goal of 150 lbs, I want to get Lasik, but that involves major cost. If I can scrounge up enough change I will buy myself a new bottle of Sally Hansen Insta-Dri top coat, as that is something I really need and isn't very expensive.

Since I was feeling good about losing a pound and a half, I decided to make myself wear a dress today. I almost never wear dresses (or anything that shows my legs really). I think I need to stop being so hard on myself for the way my legs look. Yeah I'm still gonna try to get rid of as much scarring as I can with a derma roller, but I think it would be good if I stopped hating my legs before then. I am going to try to wear a skirt, dress, or shorts twice a week. This doesn't mean I'll be wearing anything but jeans outside the house though.

I trimmed my bangs today. They were getting pretty long and I was wearing them swept to the side a lot, so I trimmed them up so they look better. They are a tad bit shorter than usual, as I was hoping to get a little more time between trims this time. I am working on growing some out so they aren't quite so thick, but it's gonna take awhile. I need to trim the tips on my hair too, but didn't feel like doing that today. Heck, it's hot enough today that I don't feel like doing much of anything. Good day to get some reading done :)

What It's All About.

This is going to be a place for me to discuss beauty stuff. More accurately, this is where I am going to chronicle my struggles, and hopefully successful, attempts at improving my looks and self-image (lets not forget health!). I hope to post a weekly update on every Sunday; tracking my progress in the four major areas I plan to work on. In order of importance to me, things I struggle with are: 1. Weight, 2. Skin, 3. Hair, 4. Nails.

Number 1. Weight.

Yes I am fat. I have been fat (technically I qualify as obese, though I purposefully forgot my bmi some time ago) for over 6 years now. When I got married at the age of 18, my 5'8" frame carried approximately 160 lbs. By the time I got pregnant 7 months later I had packed on another 20 pounds bringing me up to 180lbs. Then came the pre-Eclampsia which padded on 60 lbs during the course of my pregnancy. By the time I had my second child I had settled into an average weight of around 215 lbs. Since then I've struggled with my weight off and on. I diet, have some success, then spiral into a depression and gain it all back plus some.

Late last year I was tipping the scale way too close to 250 for my comfort. The highest I've ever weighed in at was 248 lbs. My size 18 jeans were no longer fitting me (read; I couldn't even button them up). I was wearing extra-large lounge pants that were quickly becoming too tight. I freaked out and decided this yo-yo dieting had to stop. Dieting was really hard, but I was just gonna have to suck it up and find the willpower somewhere. So I started the Dr. Phil diet, felt terrible and was hungry all the time, but I did lose some weight. By January of this year I was able to fit into my size 18 jeans comfortably again, even if I was irritable and constantly in a blue mood.

By some weird chance I came across the documentary "Fat Head" on Netflix, and curious, I watched it. I had always considered low-carb eating to be a dangerous fad, but that documentary got me really thinking about it. I bought an Atkins book ("New Atkins, for a New You") and started following the diet laid out in it. I lost a good amount of weight rather quickly, but it didn't last. There was a problem in my marriage and the stress levels went through the roof and my depression slammed back with enough force to knock me on my ass. I had lost enough weight I was down to 223 lbs and a size 14 jean, but the depression-fueled eating (cake and anything with large amounts of evil sugar in it) brought me back up to 234 lbs.

On June 5th (4 days before my 27th birthday) I decided to make another attempt at low-carb living. I had read the first half (am done now) of Gary Taubes' "Why We Get Fat: And What To Do About It." It really empowered me to cut out starch and sugar from my diet. I started with a new hope and real faith that it would work for me. That first 4 days I lost 7.5 lbs. I splurged on my birthday and ate two buns (with burgers in them of course) and a couple slices of store bought (sugar-filled) cheesecake. From my birthday I gained back a few pounds and ended out the week with a 5 lbs total loss. Next week was 5 lbs lost again, and this last week I lost 2 lbs. As of yesterday I weigh 222 lbs, and my goal weight is 150 lbs, (so I've got 72 lbs left, and am 26 lbs lighter than my highest weight of 248 lbs). I am still in size 14 jeans, but they fit much better, my bloating is gone, my mood is much more sunny, and I allover feel pretty good.

Currently I am taking a women's multi-vitamin, and 1000 iu vitamin D once daily, and 1000 mg fish oil twice daily. I am keeping my carbs around 20 grams per day, eating mostly fatty meats and vegetables. Broth twice a day for sodium replenishment. I am active when I want to be, but am not exercising.

I hope to add another pill to the mix soon. I want to start taking Biotin, or a "Hair, Skin, and Nails" pill that has Biotin, plus usually gelatin and collagen. Once my weight is down closer to my goal weight (probably around 160 or 170 depending on how I feel) I want to start doing strength training to tone up and gain strength and stamina. I've read the sample of "Good Calories, Bad Calories" by Gary Taubes, but would like to buy and read the entire book.

Number 2. Skin.

Skin is a huge problem for me and is multifaceted. There is the scarring, the sagging loose skin, the acne, and the dryness.

The scarring has been a problem since I was a teen. I had some small injuries as a child that left scars on my leg and my arms. There are the scars from acne on my face, arms, chest and back. There are the horrible stretch marks from my first pregnancy that cover my upper arms, chest, entire abdomen, rear-end, thighs, and the backs of my upper calves. Then lastly there are the scars covering my legs from all the ingrown hairs. After pregnancy I became hyper-prone to ingrown hairs, and no amount of exfoliating seems to discourage them. Every ingrown hair scars of course, and I've had plenty of them over the years. I am so embarrassed of my legs that I never show them in public. If I ever wear a skirt, it is only around the house. I hate for my husband to see my legs even.

The sagging loose skin *sigh* how I wish it would disappear. My tummy area got very stretched with my first pregnancy (the second one wasn't nearly so harsh on my body). My inner thighs are also a lot more jiggly than I'd like, but the main area I don't like is my belly. The boobs are also a problem, seeing as how I've nursed two children and they have migrated southward despite my relative youth.

Acne used to be vicious, but has gotten better recently (I can't help but think it has to do with the increase in fat in my diet, majorly the omega 3). I still get occasional acne on my face, back, chest, and upper arms. I can cover it pretty well with makeup, however I want to avoid more scarring.

I also have problems with dry skin, except for my face with is combination oily. It isn't a huge problem for me, but I would like my skin to feel softer and be healthier in general.

I hope to improve my skin condition using something called a micro-needling using a derma roller. It is basically a wheel on a handle, but the wheel has hundreds of little needles that pierce your skin. The idea is that it forces your skin to repair itself, including collagen regeneration, and thus elasticity. Pictures of it on the internet seem quite promising, and it is relatively inexpensive. I want to use one in conjunction with Bio Oil (a scar treatment oil very popular in the UK and a major competitor to Mederma here in the States) to reduce my scarring and firm up my skin. My husband also wants to use one for balding (correcting it, NOT causing it). I would also like to use different products for moisturizing my skin to find something that works really well. Emu oil is on my list of things I want to try, as I could also use it for my hair.

Like I listed above, I would also like to start taking a Biotin pill (or combination pill) as I've read it is good for skin quality as well as hair.

Number 3. Hair.    

Hair consists of two categories: hair on my head that I want to improve, and hair on my body that I want to eliminate. 

The hair on my head is in better condition than it was a few years ago, but still not quite what I want yet. My hair is quite long (just to the small of my back) and I cut and trim it myself. I try to trim it every couple months to keep split ends at bay. I use Mane and Tail shampoo and conditioner about once every 3 days. I let it air dry, curl sometimes with no heat, and very rarely use a flat iron (if I had a better flat iron, I would straighten my hair much more often). I don't color my hair, though I used to about 5 years ago. I don't have any grey hairs yet, but I will start coloring when I do get them.

I think taking Biotin (the omega 3 fish oil I have been taking seems to be helping some so far) would help the condition of my hair quite a bit. My hair is quite fine, and my biggest problem with my hair now is frizzy flyaways. I had good luck with a mayo and egg treatment once a week, but it was gross enough that I had to stop, lol I think using emu oil once or twice a week would be more manageable and probably give me similar (if not better) results. I would also like to purchase a better flat iron at some point.

Body hair, yuck! I have thick coarse black hair, and my skin is fair; it is not a pretty combination! I have tried many things to get rid of or manage my hair problems. I tried at-home electrolysis, which took forever and did nothing (yes I used it correctly, and tried several treatments). The creams that eat away hair, don't seem to work very well on my coarse leg hair and most of them burn my skin. I've used an electric epilator, which hurts like hell and causes ingrown hairs like crazy. I have waxed, which hurts, leaves weird periods of waiting for hair to regrow to wax again, and didn't seem worth the pain or cost. Shaving leaves my legs smooth for the better part of a day, and that's it. To have smooth legs with shaving, I would have to shave every single day...which causes me to break out.

I have a plan for destroying my body hair, it is a thing called a Tria. The Tria is an at-home hair-removal laser. It seems to work well according to my research (so long as you have dark hair and fair skin, which I do), and while very expensive, it is cheaper than getting professional laser treatments. The Tria has been on the market for a few years now, and it is about half the price it was when it debuted. $400 is still very costly at my family's income level (that's more than our monthly budget for food) and would be the kind of thing I would have to save up for. I doubt I will be able to buy a Tria before the year is up, so in the mean-time I will continue to shave once or twice a week...I don't wear shorts or skirts remember, lol

Number 4. Nails. 

My nails used to be a huge problem for me, and I've long considered investing in a home gel nails kit. I think I've changed my mind though. I've always struggled with thin weak nails that peal and break easily. I guess it's the change in the diet or the omega 3 I've been taking (most likely a combination of both) but my nails have improved significantly. They don't peal anymore and breakage is far less common. My nails are still softer and thinner than I'd like, but I do think they are improving to the point I will not be doing gel nails. I use strengthening base coats, and try to keep my nails covered in a couple layers of polish and a good protective top coat.

To further improve my nails I'd like to start taking more gelatin (I sometimes put dissolved gelatin in blended coffee drinks to thicken it up and help with ice suspension). I also want to to take a supplement. There is a hair, skin, and nails supplement that I saw at Sam's Club that is 240 pills for around $20. Of things that I will do for my beauty regime, buying those pills is at the top of my list (and within reach).

So there is my list of what I'm currently doing and what I plan to do in the future. My weight loss is ongoing, and I will post monthly progress pictures. I am on week 4 currently, so I will find a suitable "before" picture and then post a progress picture on the 3rd of July.   Before I start using a derma roller (or anything major) I will take photos, then post weekly and monthly updates with photos. I may post in addition to my updates. If I find a product I really like, I will most likely write about it. I may on occasion write about my struggles or victories with weight loss (or any of the big 4 really). For example if I discover one day that I fit into a smaller size of jeans, I'm not going to wait until the Sunday update to blog about it!

My husband's balding is fairly rapid and a big issue for him (he is 28, by the way). I cut his hair last evening, and the whole top of his head is showing noticeable thinning. Before he was thin on his crown and his hair had started to recede and thin in the front, so the amount of thinning on top surprised me. I looked at different products and decided the best route would be a .5mm derma roller and a bottle of minoxidil (men's hair growth product). A six month supply (including a new derma roller every six months) would cost us $60. I think $10 each month is pretty affordable. It might be a few weeks until we buy the supplies to start his treatments, but I will take photos and record his success if there is any.