A Woman & Her Dire Shih Tzu, Playing the Game of Bones

[milkteafling]

Greetings from the Philippines!

 

I'm a 30 y/o physician, hoping to get into an orthopaedic surgery residency this year (hence the bones part). My job is actually one of the main reasons why I want to lose weight and be more physically fit: (1) how can I advise patients to do this & that when I can't do it myself; (2) there are plenty of surgeries that take a lot out of me, physically. Lifting limbs, providing counter traction, pressing against joints to open them up, holding up legs of 150kg, 200kg patients & staying in the same position lest the wrath of the attending fall down upon me etc- I'm tired of feeling like I've been beat up every time I leave the operating room!

 

My other primary motivator is my dog, who has been dubbed Dire Shih Tzu by my friends because apparently he's the biggest damn shih tzu they've ever seen. He's 6.5 kg, which is actually not the maximum weight for shih tzus but most full grown shih tzus around here are ~5kg. Anyway, he was starting to be a little overweight and I put him on a strict diet, only bought him quality dog food which I alternated with feeding raw meaty bones etc. Friends commented on the ingredients list of my dog's food- "Damn, he eats healthier than all of us!" That remark plus thinking it unfair that my dog has a strict diet but I won't control my own portions got me to fixing my own eating habits as well. Also, he's a very active, hyper dog (a shih tzu who thinks he's a Border Collie, apparently) and needed more exercise and play than I was physically capable of giving him. So I started exercising more and now his vet has cleared him to do Pooch25k with me!

 

Right now I'm 160lb, from an all-time high of 180 lb. (I'm 5'5" in height.) I used to be 170lb in high school, joined cheerdancing and got down to 103lb by the time I started college, then I started ballooning again in medical school. (It's sad that medical school/clerkship/internship really set me up for terrible, terrible eating habits. Eating to stay awake, snacking during studying, stress eating, eating so damn much every time I get a chance because one literally never knew when one could eat again, especially if you had draconian residents in charge of you.) It got much worse because I have congenital genu valgus (knock knees), had both my patellae dislocate and had to undergo an operation that left me unable to walk for 6 weeks, then intense PT for 6 months. L knee never got back to normal, and I was still afraid to exercise and do all the other things I used to do pre-op. That operation was 3 years ago, and it's about time I stopped using that as an excuse not to be the best person and dog owner I can be. Also, if the zombiepocalypse happens I would have been the WORST person to have around because up until a month ago, I literally did NOT run. AT ALL. At first I used the aforesaid operation as an excuse as to why I hadn't run for almost 3 years, but seriously, I should have been able to get back on track by now.

 

My other fitness goals aside from weight loss (hoping to get down to 120lb) are:

(1) run a 5k with my dog

(2) build up my VMOs (they've atrophied, especially the L)

(3) work on my flexibility (contractures & such have developed)

 

As for nerdy/geeky things, I love playing tabletop RPGs (DnD 4e, Shadowrun, and Game of Thrones Tri-stat), board games (especially Game of Thrones), & I guess it's obvious that I'm a big fan of Game of Thrones & A Song of Ice & Fire. I used to write a lot of fanfic back in the day, now I'm just a reader of it. I'm also pretty nerdy about the works of Jane Austen, Haruki Murakami, Ian McEwan, Douglas Adams, a whole bunch of other writers. Right now I'm playing Bioshock Infinite; it's taking me so damn long to finish because I made a deal with myself that I'm not allowed to play that or other non-fitness videogames unless I've done 30min-1hr first of Dance Central or Just Dance. Unfortunately once I start dancing it is pretty damn hard for me to stop!

 

Okay, this has been a pretty long Wall O' Text. I'm hoping to meet more like-minded people, get more advice about fitness etc, & be inspired reading all your motivational stories! Thanks for reading!

[Adi]

Hey !

 

I'm new here as well..I just wanted to say you've got a good motivation going . I have a Shih Tzu too and it was nice to find something in common with somebody here ! 

[milkteafling]

Yes, shih tzus are awesome! (And also inadvertent workout helpers because when a shih tzu decides under your tummy is the best hangout spot, you gotta prolong your plank.)