oh wow.
no, i mean Oh Wow.
you are super woman. aside from the advises that the smart people above have given you, i think you are doing marvelous. staying sane and handling all that deserves lots of kudos. dealing with sudden dilemmas throw curve balls left and right and you are managing all of them wonderfully. a week of non healthy eating BECAUSE you were managing hospital trips is OK BECAUSE you are aware of it. and then God and everything else (your body conditioning itself, your metabolism accomodating the food by processing it faster since you’ve been exercising already, etc) are working with you to achieve your goal. i’m glad you have a goal, but your improvement is showing already physically and mentally.

i am extremely proud of you.

more positive thoughts and prayers going your (and your family’s) way!

xoxo

Cutting calories can be very effective. For example just the milk in a nonfat tall iced latte is substancial calories and it’s just a drink. Drink calories are the devil (unless you have the discipline to not eat something else).

Here’s what I eat when I’m in a rush (lunch):

Quizno’s – They have a lot of < 500 calorie meals with not a ton of fat. Their turkey chili is 140cal/cup, get that instead of chips.

Subway – Similar to Quiznos, a foot long Subway Club with no cheese and no mayo is 670cal, will fill you up on veggies for sure.

Sushi – This is good especially if you can get it with whole grain rice. Otherwise I will mix in sashimi. Stay away from rolls with mayonnaise.

Baja Fresh – Their Burrito Mexicano can be ordered "in a bowl" or "bare style" meaning no tortilla. The chicken version is 570 cal and < 30% fat calories.

Pho – The Vietnamese soup is low in calories and high in flavor (and salt), sorry I compensate by eating a lot of salt but my blood pressure is still OK and I sweat like a pig when I work out.

Salad – Places with salad bars rule whether it's a cafeteria, the grocery store, etc… I normally don't use any dressing, instead I use soy sauce (low sodium) and sriracha hot sauce. Don't put cheese on it.

I have 2 bits of advice:

1) Don’t cut calories! You are correct that you need to raise your metabolism, but do not worry about cutting calories. Your body will go into starvation mode and actually store more fat than before as it is wondering where your next meal is coming from. Besides, it’s not that healthy to cut cals either. You need a certain amount to simply run your system!

Instead, I suggest that you eat healthy, often, stop when full.

2) Always be hydrated! I know this doesn’t explain why you were previously getting results and now they have slowed since you say you’ve always been dehydrated, but it is soooo crucial that you drink enough water.

Take your body weight in pounds and drink half that amount in ounces of good quality water each day. You will feel so much better!

I hope this all helps and if you need any help let me know!