The Rosa Chronicles: The Ups, the Downs, and the Wardrobe Changes

More than 10 years ago I was diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. I was not surprised - diabetes had been a part of my life ever since I could remember. My brother José, 10 years older than me, was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes when he was 9 years old. As I grew older, I found out that a sister of mine whom I did not get to meet had died of complications related to diabetes at age 3. Years later, my 5 year old niece was also diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes, and my own mother received her Type 2 diagnosis soon after we moved to Chicago. To me, it was just a matter of time until I was diagnosed. My diagnosis came as a result of my inability to lose weight. I had joined a gym, hired a trainer, made some changes to my eating habits, and yet, I was not able to lose much weight. Concerned, I went to my doctor and explained my symptoms. She recommended a battery of tests which came back with a diagnosis of Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome (PCOS) . PCOS, in turn, is associated with diabetes. I had man...

I have always kept journals. It has been a good way for me to reflect back on what I have done, notice patterns, and laugh at youthful silliness. The past couple of days I spent time reading my journal from when I was 18-19, and I cried for, was embarrassed at, and laughed at my younger self. But that is another story. The journal that relates to this entry is my weight loss journal. I have kept it for years, writing on and off and documenting my struggle with weight loss. Appropriately labeled "Morphing Journal," I have been keeping notes in there since 2006. That was truly the beginning of the "Ups and Downs, and Wardrobe Changes." In there I journal my successes and defeats related to this never ending process. Recently, I grabbed the journal again to jot down my new workout routine. It is a rather small notebook, perfect fitting for my gym bag, easy to carry around so that I don't forget that after squats I have to do push ups, and then mountain climbers. ...

Eight months ago I made the decision to commit to my health by exercising and eating healthy. It has not been easy; I have had ups and downs, I have felt like quitting at times. I have tried different exercise routines, some that have been good, some that were not so much. I have felt discouraged because I have not seen results, or at least the results I had wanted so see. I have had to struggle against the lack of support at certain levels, and battle the constant temptations, whether it is food or falling back into old habits. But I have remained constant. And I have seen results. And I have gotten stronger. It has taken me a while, and still have a long way to go, but I love the changes in my body! Take for example, my runs in the park. When I first started, I was walking most of the way. Then I started doing running and walking intervals: running two minutes and walking one. I remember how I wanted to turn around and go back home when I first started doing this! But I k...

Sometimes you seek guidance from others instead of trusting what you are already doing. This was my experience this week when I sought out help from a nutritionist in my fight against diabetes. Here's what happened. As I have mentioned in previous posts, I have been taking a nutrition course online. It has been great; I have learned a lot and as a result have been able to make some changes to my diet. Now I know the balance I must have between carbs, protein and fat, and I have been adjusting my meals to try to keep with that goal. This has meant that I have had to let go of some foods that I liked but that were not contributing anything but empty calories to my diet. I have moved away from refined grains to whole grains, I am looking at foods with a low sodium count, and I am making sure I get my recommended servings of fruits and vegetables. All in all, it has been a great course...until two weeks ago. Constant companions: fresh fruit and a scale to weight my food. The w...

As much as sometimes we hate it, change is a constant in our lives. It is exactly what keeps us renewing ourselves, reinventing ourselves over and over so that we can keep up with...well other changes that are going on around us. That is what I have been going through for the past couple of months, but most focused during the past two weeks. Two weeks ago I started a Nutrition course through Coursera.org . The course, which lasts 6 weeks, covers a variety of issues as they relate to nutrition, such as heart disease, cancer, and obesity and weight management. This week, we are are working on Diabetes, which is of a lot of interest to me as a Type 2 diabetic . So, in the process of completing my weekly readings and assignments, I have learned a lot of of things about my diet (and by my diet I am talking about what I eat on a regular basis; I am not following a specific diet). For example, one of my assignments required me to track my food intake for a period of 24 hours, including w...

And Day 30 got here! It was actually yesterday, and to be totally honest, I do have to make up for some missed days due to life in general and also for being on vacation. But all in all, I was pretty disciplined throughout my 30 for 30 challenge. Once I make up for the lost days, I will be working on a schedule to continue working out consistently at least 4 days a week. Ideally, I would like to continue with the minimum 30 minutes per day, but being realistic, I know that this may not be possible. Whenever I can, I will try to fit it in because, from my point of view, there is something wrong with not being able to dedicate at least 30 minutes per day to myself. But things happen and sometimes it is just impossible, and instead of getting frustrated when I am not able to do so, I would rather work on getting as much time in as possible. I am sure that the discipline I have acquired during the past 30 days will keep me focused. What I have learned One of the most important things...

Today is day 23 of my 30 for 30 challenge. At times it seems unbelievable that I have gotten this far, and yet, I always knew that I could do it. Sure, it has been difficult to adjust to this new thing of making sure that I make time for myself, but it has been worth it. And I am very happy to say that of the 23 days, I have only missed working out 4 days. There are times that doing it is just not possible. And yesterday was one of those days. It was a hard day at work. Knowing I only had 2 working days this week before I leave on vacation elevated my stress to new levels. I had tons of things to do, and that was not counting the ones I had to do at home. Doing my taxes, for example. Yes, I always promise myself that I will do them as soon as I get my W-2 forms, but it never happens, and this year was no exception. The difference is that I need money for my vacation and I had been planning to use my tax return for this purpose. Well, guess what? I waited until the last minute and it ...