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

This is the continuation of my previous post. To summarize that post, I related about my severe bout of depression that left me out of commission for a while. I reverted back to old habits and quickly gained weight. I was put on new medications and they worked just fine. My husband had planned a trip to Puerto Rico for the two of us. He knows how the Chicago weather makes me feel, and he thought a couple of days in sunny Puerto Rico, mi patria , would make me feel better. And so we got on the plane and headed to La Isla del Encanto . For the first time we took a night flight to the Island; we generally fly during the day to get some extra time. The flight itself was weird; it seemed like it lasted forever, more than the 4 1/2 hours that takes to get there. At one point I looked at Andrew, who was sitting in the seat across from me, because the plane felt suspended in the air, as if it were not moving. Shortly after, I remember clearly, I asked him about my mom-in-law, with whom we ...

Blogging about my journey to a healthier me helped me a lot - it kept me honest; it made me accountable, and it allowed me to keep track of my progress in a tangible manner. But somehow I stopped doing it and right now it has been well over a year since I last wrote an entry! A lot has happened since then, both good and bad, although I want to think that everything that has happened has been good in a way or another. I believe that there is good even in the most difficult situations. So today, a day that has been especially difficult for me (what the hell, it has been a very difficult couple of weeks, let's be honest!) for reasons which I will explain in due time, I decided to go back to blogging as a way to regain that accountability, but mostly to do something nice for myself. I have a tendency to be really hard on myself; often times I put my needs aside to take care of those of others...and as you may very well know, there is always something else that needs to be done, some...

Has it really been nine months since I last wrote an entry? Time does go by too fast! Well, here I am again, continuing to chronicle my journey to getting fit and healthy…and all the things that happen in between. Wouldn't it be great if getting fit would happen  as fast as time goes by? I'd be super fit by now! Some updates since the last time I was here: I have lost a good amount of weight! When I started this journey I was at 179 lbs, which I think was almost as heavy as I was when I was pregnant with my second daughter. With the workouts and the changes in my diet, I managed to lose 22 lbs, and wow, how great does that feel! I got rid of a lot of my clothes that did not fit me anymore; I went from sizes 14/12 to a size 10 and finally to a size 8. I remember the day that I tried my 19 year old daughter's pants, which no longer fit her - I was hesitant but tried them on anyway and whoa, what a surprise that they fit me! As I had mentioned in this entry , I had re...

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. ...

It has been a while since I last wrote something. Somehow the end of a year does something to my mood and it takes me a while to recuperate, and I still don't get enough energy to get back into routines, any type of routines. It is hard to believe that another year came to an end. It feels as if I had barely started working on my goals for the year, and then, boom, we welcomed a new year. Why is it that time goes by so fast? I remember being young and thinking that a year lasted, well, a whole year. Now, a year feels like it last about 6 months or less. So, as many people do at this time, I was faced with the issue of setting resolutions for the new year. Ay, qué dilema!  Was I really ready to do this? Was it even necessary? After much thought, I decided that resolutions were not for me. Instead, I would rather continue working on what I had already started. Take for example my desire to go back to school. Approximately a year ago I decided that I wanted to go back to school ...

I wrote this around three years ago, when I first started taking steps to lose weight. It has been a long "eviction" process, and I continue engaged in this battle. I am reposting it as a reminder of this struggle and as motivation to continue working on my goals. "Mmmm, excuse me?" I started hesitantly. "I regret to inform you that your stay in this body has come to an end. You have to move out; your body is no longer wanted." And with that, I gave an eviction notice to the body I no longer wanted. You see, around 14 years ago a new body took a hold of my old body, and it has not let go ever since. From there on, whenever I looked in the mirror, I would not see my body, the one I used to have, but the one that has taken residency without having been invited. The "original" body. This is in 1987, when I first came from Puerto Rico. Oh, don't take me wrong! I was expecting some changes after having my two daughters. In fact, I welcomed...

I did not get to write my blog last week, and this week, I have been struggling for the past hour or so to get to do it. No, it is not that I am lazy; I am just battling with a really bad bout of depression that has given me a good kick in the butt, and that is resisting every attempt I make to shake it up. It all started after my return from vacation. I could not face going back to the work routine after having had such a relaxing and wonderful vacation. But it lingered a bit longer, and things got worse. First were the headaches, then came the anxiety. After this came the lack of energy, not being able to get up in the morning, not wanting to do anything but being a total couch potato, spending hours watching TV, which by itself should have been a sign because those of you that know me personally know that I don't watch TV at all. Then I wanted to sleep all the time, but after a couple of hours of sleep, I would wake up in the middle of the night and not be able to go back to s...

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 ...

Today marks the 15th day since I started the 30 for 30 challenge. I can't believe I am half way there! It has not been an easy journey, but definitively one I'm glad I took it, and also look forward to continue. I am already seeing some results from my efforts and can only imagine what is to come as I keep on going. Yesterday, for example, I was getting ready to go to my daughter Ileana's performance, and when I put on the skirt I was planning to wear, it fit me too big! I was so happy about that, and it got better this morning when I was getting ready for work and I put on my gray skirt (which I actually like a lot) and it fit me big as well. I am putting both of them aside to give them away. I am committed to never go back to that size again. And in order to do that, I need to continue to be disciplined, not only about my workouts, but in my nutrition as well. As I mentioned last week, I know that not preparing my lunch was a sure shortfall for me. Not having lunch an...

We made it public yesterday. My sister, María Elena Martínez, and I decided to do a "30 for 30" challenge. We made a personal and public commitment of exercising at least 30 minutes per day for the next 30 days. No excuses, no "ifs or buts." We will be checking on each other every other day to assess progress, and give encouragement. And I told her that I would be blogging about it too, as another way to increase our accountability. The stage has been set. Day 1 I had not worked out for about a week, and I was a bit intimidated by going back to it. As I was putting on my workout clothes, though, I was happy to see that they fit loosely (well, let me not exaggerate...not loosely, but not as tight as before). So that gave me a boost of confidence to get going. Plus I had downloaded a couple of routines from Shape magazine to work on "problem areas" (read, the whole body at this point). I spent a good amount of time looking at the videos and was pretty com...

You know that feeling of trying on a new piece of clothing, expecting the worse, and then being pleasantly surprised? Well, yeah, it happened to me. One of the first signs of the changes happening to my body. Or better put, of the changes I am creating for my body. And I am loving it. On February 2nd, it was the Thodos Dance Chicago  "21 Club" Gala, and since my daughter Ileana is a dancer with the company's Youth Ensemble, we went to the event. It was a black and white cocktail event, and I wanted to wear something new and nice. So there I go shopping with my ever-supporting and patient husband, who helped me select a good amount of dresses to try on. I was prepared for the worst; I generally come out frustrated when things are too tight (yes, I do buy them my size, and still...), or just don't look altogether. But, oh, what a pleasant surprise when I tried on dress after dress and most of them looked really good! At the end of the try-on session, I had 4 dresses...

...what is important is that you get up and keep on going. Boy, do I know about that! I have been struggling with my weight for several years now (I'm using "several" to be generous). And I have done many things to deal with it, but I have not been consistent, despite having seen results. Take for example 2011, the year Andrew and I got married. I was eating right, I was running several days a week, I was getting physical therapy twice a week. And by the time we got married, I had lost a considerable amount of weight. Not exactly what I had wanted, but hey! I was able to comfortably get on size 10 pants without any problems. But, as usual, something got in the way and I got distracted. Andrew and I on our wedding day 7/17/11 Then I tried again. Last year we added yoga to our exercise routine. It was great, because in addition to Andrew, our daughter Amanda joined us and yoga became a weekly routine for the three of us. Loved it! I felt great, energized and super ...

On Sunday, on my 4th consecutive day going to the 1st floor to workout, I was very proud of myself. I had started working out in December, on and off, but that week, that week I had been consistent and had kept my commitment on working out. I had already started seeing small changes in my body. My legs, which have always responded to exercise pretty fast, were beginning to feel strong again; the flabbiness was beginning to melt! And I had begun to feel muscles in my belly that I did not even remember existed thanks to some abs work that I was doing. And when I hopped into the scale and saw that I had lost 3 lbs. in the two weeks since I had last weighed myself that was all I needed. I was pumped! Yeah! I was going to get this done! It was going to happen! Along with my husband, who has been training me, I drew the plan for the upcoming week:  chest on Tuesday, arms on Wednesday, shoulders on Thursday, all followed by 40 minutes minimum of cardio. 1 mile, 327 calo...