Recovery journal: The Final Entry

Day 123: Physical Therapy, no more. Orthopedic doctor, no more. Today, marks the end of a long recovery journey. When I was first sidelined with this injury, I honestly had to dig down and find every ounce of internal strength and motivation to get through. I knew the ONLY way I could recover was with a positive attitude. Such as life, I had days where I let negativity in, but mostly I was able to stay focused and not hang my head too much. Okay, enough with all that here's what happened today:


I had a physical therapy appointment and after some range of motion and strength exams - I have been released from physical therapy. No more PT. Happy dance. Heeeeeeeeey. 


After PT I had my four-month post-op appointment with Orthopedic doctor and ... I have been cleared to return to all my pre-injury workouts. Yes, NO restrictions. Oh yeah, he did say he'd prefer that I didn't play basketball - too much jumping - especially with my wicked crossover. I'm able to:

• Squat
• Lunge
• Deadlift
• Jumping Jack
• Push-up
• Yoga
• Zumba
• Etc.

So as long as I feel comfortable with the exercise I am free to do it. Both PT and doctor say that my slight limp will eventually just fade away once my muscles become stronger. PT recommends I start Yoga again, it will be a great way for me to strengthening my leg and also help with balance. Ironically, I saw one of my favorite Yoga instructors a couple hours after my appointment - too funny. Anyway, the doctor feels the only real limits I will have now are the limits I place on myself. With that said, I see a kick-butt full body cardio workout beginning with a dynamic warm-up in the near future, like tomorrow.  Oh yeah, and I'm sure there will be a sighting of me at my fave reggae club getting my groove on. Watch out. It's official -- I'm back!

300 lb. Graduate

Yesterday, while visiting my mom she whipped out some old photos. I was mortified when she started revealing my high school graduation pictures. 17 years old and 300 lbs. And what's worse is I would continue on until I reached a whopping 388 lbs. SMH. There is something so wrong with that. I know, I shouldn't dwell. It's water under the bridge. All that matters is that I am making a conscious effort now to change my life. Before I drop the subject though I have to share these photos (excuse the quality) with y'all.

Class of 1990

Eating Ourselves to Death

Last weekend, at a family gathering I watched on as my aunt piled up plate after plate of food. I thought, my goodness she would have to be full by now. I mean, seriously she had eaten enough for a full day's worth of calories. At one point, she even declared she was full. Stuffed. Just a little while later though I found her eating a cupcake. Huh? I'm confused. Didn't she just say out loud that she was full? Stuffed, even? Sadly, I know all to well about this type of behavior. Unfortunately, too many Americans know about over consumption of food. We are a country rich with resources, the land of the plentiful. Food is so easily accessible. We no longer are conscious of why we're eating. Or what we're eating. We just eat.

Watching my aunt overeat brought back bad memories of my days of abusing food. I use to eat just to eat. The food tasted so good - I just could not stop until I was so full I would feel ill. Yuck. That is so gross. I'm so glad to say, however, I NEVER overeat anymore. Now, don't get me wrong I still eat for enjoyment, but I'm always mindful of my food combinations - I am eating to live. Also, I never overindulge. No longer will I eat more than the recommending serving. One of the things I tell myself when I'm eating is I get to have more later. There's no need in me stuffing myself. If I'm hungry later, there'll be more. That type of self talk really helps me to appreciate food more. When I eat just until satisfied, the food is actually more enjoyable. 

Last summer, my daughter and I went to a French bakery where we enjoyed the BEST Almond Crossiants and Espresso. We both become full, but we had a few bites left and a swig or two of coffee. That experience was a huge turning point for me, I looked to her and said "If I eat these last bites, it will ruin the whole experience." We both left the few bites on our plates and coffee in our cup. We made a conscious effort to just stop. Realizing that we could have more later. It may not be later today, or this week, but someday we would get to eat another Almond Crossiant. 

Although, it's a rather simple philosophy, I realize it still may be hard to grasp for those who have an overeating problem. There's probably a lot of issues that have led to the abuse of food. Trust me (remember I use to weigh 388 lbs.) -- you really can eat more later. So next time you're about to eat one bite too many. Stop. Remember, eat to live. That doesn't mean you can't enjoy food. After all, it was written: "Eat, drink, and be merry." Let us not be gluttonous.


This article may be a helpful start: http://www.webmd.com/diet/features/overcoming-overeating

Fish Taco Fiesta

Wow! Tonight I made Fish Tacos for the first time and it certainly won't be the last. For obvious reasons, I opted to sautée the fish instead of the traditional bread and fry method. The results: Light, delicate tasting tacos. 

Prep work - Left: Red cabbage, cilantro, Whole Foods Chile Lime Marinated Cod

Recovery journal

Day 123: For the first time since the accident...I laced up my tennis shoes and hit the pavement walking on my surgically repaired leg. I walked about a mile and I felt pretty good. I started to limp a little on the way home -- pretty typical when I start to fatigue. Soon enough I'll be, dare I say, jogging.