I just had to share this with everyone - Zumba is truly a new way to look at fitness.... Besides which, Beto takes his shirt off (for a split second)...and I forget then what a great teacher he is. Luckily, he puts it back on.... Watch:
2008 Zumba Convention from Zumba Fitness on Vimeo.
I also wrote an article on eHow for those who are interested in learning how to Zumba. It's both a noun and a verb: It's what we do! Anyway, it can seem intimidating to someone who is fascinated by zumba but not sure they should get into a class, try it out at home alone or whether they are even ready for a class. My article helps you know what you need and don't need to be ready to take a zumba class, then how to approach it so you get the most out of it. Write and let me know how you like it, and if there's anything I left out that I should have put it...or anything else for that matter.
My laptop still won't let me post to this blog (bummer!) and I got my cholesterol numbers done, so need to post that here. The good kind were up but so was the bad. I am not sure how it compares to the last ones I'd had done, but I think it was at least comparable to the ones I first had done, so I am not worse - just not sure if I am better or slightly worse than I was.
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Showing posts with label health. Show all posts
Friday, April 24, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Tues Day 2 Week 2 Induction - Jan 20, 2009
"To Thine Own Self be True, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
Inspiration for Tuesday of Week 2 Induction: What's it gonna be? Yes? or No???
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
It snowed last night. After warm temps in the 40s, the ground not frozen, it snowed several inches and is sticking.
...
Dentist's receptionist just called from her home - closed for the day. Smart move.
...
Fiance called; he's heading home, early. It's 1:30. Time to get my zumba in gear if I'm gonna get any done today.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Snow: closing roads, traffic that may/may not know how to drive in snow (traffic hazards), closed facilities...lack of snow plows and presence of hills around here...need to check on where the salt is laid down before I try to head out of here. Have dental cleaning at noon, nearby; need to get to the pharmacy. Not too far. The gym is on the busiest road in town, tho.
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Did it. The follow-up checkup is already scheduled for March.
READ THE BOOK: Did what I needed, still referring to as I "work the system."
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction continues: Food, Water, Exercise!!
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Plan the menus, work the plan. 30 minutes of zumba daily.
Vitals:
BP -
Weight: 185.5 (after coffee and lebanon bologne) - surprisingly no change from yesterday
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching 5 min
Cardio 50 min
Strength 10 min
Water: 96 oz
Food:
Breakfast: 2 mugs of coffee, 2 slices of thinly sliced Lebanon Bologne.
Lunch: 6 slices of bacon, another mug of coffee with S/L and milk.
Dinner: 2-1/2 servings (of 8 portions in a 13x9 casserole dish) of Moussaka, a greek eggplant dish, altered to be low carb. Surprisingly my ground beef goulash stuff I make is almost the same recipe, although when making the meat by itself, I add a few other optional ingredients and change the amount of herbs and spices, and tomatoes/paste. I will find a place to check the entire recipe to determine the nutrional value of one portion. I used ground almond flour (from a health food store, or some health food sections in grocery stores) instead of regular flour, milk as the recipe called for (tho perhaps cream would have added fewer carbs). I'll post the recipe - and the alterations and their effects - on another post (and add a link to it from here).
Snack:
Dessert:
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: glad to see it hasn't risen more already...
BP:
Ketones: skipping since I was already getting "out" of ketosis and yesterday was sure to blow it - will check again in a few days
Inspiration for Tuesday of Week 2 Induction: What's it gonna be? Yes? or No???
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
It snowed last night. After warm temps in the 40s, the ground not frozen, it snowed several inches and is sticking.
I look out the window and Bailey is lying in the snow, licking something, maybe the snow off his paws. I need to take him some fresh water and food. He loves this weather, and tho the wind may blow a bit today, he's well-insulated. My last old english would put his nose in the snow and run like a plow whenever he got out in the snow. This baby went for a "walk-about" down the street one Saturday blizzard back in Ohio. I had to search to find the street so I could walk in just a foot of snow. He bounced back thru the yards, happy as a lark, then abruptly sat down, exhausted. It's tough running through 3 feet of snow! I won't try it today, even in 4 inches. At my age, I could slip easily.
I need to find my boots....
Dentist's receptionist just called from her home - closed for the day. Smart move.
...
Fiance called; he's heading home, early. It's 1:30. Time to get my zumba in gear if I'm gonna get any done today.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Snow: closing roads, traffic that may/may not know how to drive in snow (traffic hazards), closed facilities...lack of snow plows and presence of hills around here...need to check on where the salt is laid down before I try to head out of here. Have dental cleaning at noon, nearby; need to get to the pharmacy. Not too far. The gym is on the busiest road in town, tho.
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Did it. The follow-up checkup is already scheduled for March.
READ THE BOOK: Did what I needed, still referring to as I "work the system."
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction continues: Food, Water, Exercise!!
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Plan the menus, work the plan. 30 minutes of zumba daily.
Vitals:
BP -
Weight: 185.5 (after coffee and lebanon bologne) - surprisingly no change from yesterday
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching 5 min
Cardio 50 min
Strength 10 min
Water: 96 oz
Food:
Breakfast: 2 mugs of coffee, 2 slices of thinly sliced Lebanon Bologne.
Lunch: 6 slices of bacon, another mug of coffee with S/L and milk.
Dinner: 2-1/2 servings (of 8 portions in a 13x9 casserole dish) of Moussaka, a greek eggplant dish, altered to be low carb. Surprisingly my ground beef goulash stuff I make is almost the same recipe, although when making the meat by itself, I add a few other optional ingredients and change the amount of herbs and spices, and tomatoes/paste. I will find a place to check the entire recipe to determine the nutrional value of one portion. I used ground almond flour (from a health food store, or some health food sections in grocery stores) instead of regular flour, milk as the recipe called for (tho perhaps cream would have added fewer carbs). I'll post the recipe - and the alterations and their effects - on another post (and add a link to it from here).
Snack:
Dessert:
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: glad to see it hasn't risen more already...
BP:
Ketones: skipping since I was already getting "out" of ketosis and yesterday was sure to blow it - will check again in a few days
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Sun Day 7 Week 1 Induction
"To Thine Own Self be True, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
Inspiration for Weekend of Week 1 Induction: To Thine Own Self BE TRUE!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
Today was a day when I should keep my thoughts to myself. You know what kind of day that is. I holed up in my bed with a book and avoided making any other mistakes (like leaving the room except to eat). It's hard to remember what I ate, in retrospect, but I know I didn't pig out and order pizza. I had to recreate the menu (below) by comparing the day before's and the day after...I tend to make more than one serving so I have more. Not being able to follow my menu because I was missing an ingredient, then having ennui and malaise (boredom, not caring, those kinds of attitudes, you know?) meant I didn't even want to go to the grocery store to fix the problem, just grabbing whatever I thought was OP. By the end of the day, I had not had my lettuce at all, so I was NOT "OP" or "On Program" - I'm not giving up yet. Would you?
Just one of those days we forget about later, or wish we could. Tho the book was good.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Stress, Irritation at others (can work for and against me at various times - how about you?), Not having ingredients ready to make planned meals (not having an eggplant to make moussaka), not caring (big problem for me at times - anger works better, but when I "don't care" I tend to make bigger mistakes in my life)
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Did it.
READ THE BOOK: Did what I needed, still referring to the book as I "work the system."
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP -
Weight: 185.0 (up 1/2 pound - first real change in wrong direction)
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise: skipped again...not good...
Stretching
Cardio
Strength
Water: 96 oz
Food:
Breakfast: leftover beef goulash- ground beef browned with cinnamon, splenda, cayenne pepper, salt, tomatoes and tomatoe paste, parsley - also 2 mugs coffee w/ S/L and milk
Lunch: 6 chicken wings, celery, and ranch dressing
Dinner: 6 strips of bacon and 2 oz of cheddar cheese
Snack:
Dessert: made a cheesecake - kinda - by adding egg beaters and vanilla to my cream cheese with splenda and cinnamon, then cooking a la NY style cheesecake: 15 min at 500 degrees, then down to 200 degrees (only 35 minutes since I only used 8 oz of cream cheese) and let cool in the oven. I sprinkled splenda and cinnamon over the top before I cooked it, and ate it as soon as I could. As a dessert, on Atkins, it was a good change. I stopped at eating all of it - left about 1/2-1/3 for breakfast (after chilling) to see if it was more like a cheesecake later. As a cheesecake, it would fail the test. But, that just means no one else will want any, so there is more for me! Then again, a lot more work when all I did was add eggs to the cream cheese mix I make quickly already. An alternative would be to add cream cheese to the omelet mix I have. What is it with me and cinnamon? Not sure, but seems I can use a lot less salt. And I like it.
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: 185.0 - up 1/2 pound...wrong direction.
BP: Way up after stress-event; normal otherwise, so no issues.
Ketones: Seem to be between a Trace and Small, but not sure. These strips are tinted differently it seems; all I know for sure is it has dropped from "Small"
Inspiration for Weekend of Week 1 Induction: To Thine Own Self BE TRUE!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
Today was a day when I should keep my thoughts to myself. You know what kind of day that is. I holed up in my bed with a book and avoided making any other mistakes (like leaving the room except to eat). It's hard to remember what I ate, in retrospect, but I know I didn't pig out and order pizza. I had to recreate the menu (below) by comparing the day before's and the day after...I tend to make more than one serving so I have more. Not being able to follow my menu because I was missing an ingredient, then having ennui and malaise (boredom, not caring, those kinds of attitudes, you know?) meant I didn't even want to go to the grocery store to fix the problem, just grabbing whatever I thought was OP. By the end of the day, I had not had my lettuce at all, so I was NOT "OP" or "On Program" - I'm not giving up yet. Would you?
Just one of those days we forget about later, or wish we could. Tho the book was good.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Stress, Irritation at others (can work for and against me at various times - how about you?), Not having ingredients ready to make planned meals (not having an eggplant to make moussaka), not caring (big problem for me at times - anger works better, but when I "don't care" I tend to make bigger mistakes in my life)
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Did it.
READ THE BOOK: Did what I needed, still referring to the book as I "work the system."
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP -
Weight: 185.0 (up 1/2 pound - first real change in wrong direction)
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise: skipped again...not good...
Stretching
Cardio
Strength
Water: 96 oz
Food:
Breakfast: leftover beef goulash- ground beef browned with cinnamon, splenda, cayenne pepper, salt, tomatoes and tomatoe paste, parsley - also 2 mugs coffee w/ S/L and milk
Lunch: 6 chicken wings, celery, and ranch dressing
Dinner: 6 strips of bacon and 2 oz of cheddar cheese
Snack:
Dessert: made a cheesecake - kinda - by adding egg beaters and vanilla to my cream cheese with splenda and cinnamon, then cooking a la NY style cheesecake: 15 min at 500 degrees, then down to 200 degrees (only 35 minutes since I only used 8 oz of cream cheese) and let cool in the oven. I sprinkled splenda and cinnamon over the top before I cooked it, and ate it as soon as I could. As a dessert, on Atkins, it was a good change. I stopped at eating all of it - left about 1/2-1/3 for breakfast (after chilling) to see if it was more like a cheesecake later. As a cheesecake, it would fail the test. But, that just means no one else will want any, so there is more for me! Then again, a lot more work when all I did was add eggs to the cream cheese mix I make quickly already. An alternative would be to add cream cheese to the omelet mix I have. What is it with me and cinnamon? Not sure, but seems I can use a lot less salt. And I like it.
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: 185.0 - up 1/2 pound...wrong direction.
BP: Way up after stress-event; normal otherwise, so no issues.
Ketones: Seem to be between a Trace and Small, but not sure. These strips are tinted differently it seems; all I know for sure is it has dropped from "Small"
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Sat Day 6 Week 1 Induction - Jan 17, 2009
"To Thine Own Self be True, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
Inspiration for Weekend of Week 1 Induction: To Thine Own Self BE TRUE!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
It's one of the coldest days in NC...at least this morning. Maybe traffic won't be so bad. I don't really feel like going to the grocery store afterwards myself. Will do that later.
Fiance has a headache today; not sure if he feels up to going to a concealed weapons class tonight. Yes? No? Answers affect dinner plans. We stay home in the end; napping too late to really feel like going. Dinner plans turn into "grab" and I look for something OP. I grab chicken wings, then force some lettuce down later.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Not being alone (other's schedules and wants come into play), the RE Investor's seminar scheduled Sat morn, not Thurs morn (same hazards, more traffic to deal with perhaps)
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Did it.
READ THE BOOK: Did what I needed, still referring to book as I "work the system," seems I need to figure out portions with tomatoes - part of the beef dish I love to make.
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP -
Weight: 184.5 - N/C from yesterday, again.
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching 2 mins
Cardio zero
Strength zero
Water: 96 oz - managed to get that in, even if everything else was off a bit. Easier in a hot, dry, seminar room (drank 32 oz then).
Food:
Breakfast: egg beaters with cinnamon, onion powder and splenda, as an omelet; 3 precooked maple sausage links, microwaved for 30 sec., 2 mugs coffee w/ S/L and milk
Lunch: chicken wings with ranch dressing - a lot of them...noticed they have 2 carbs per 5? need to count how many a bit closer; probably had 18? was feeling hungry or irritable
Dinner: made my "beef goulash" with cinnamon, parsley, salt, cayenne, diced tomatoes/paste and browned beef, plus a sprinkling of splenda. Sometimes add chunky mushrooms to it, not tonight. Had 2 leaves of romaine later to finish off the lettuce veggies for the day.
Snack:
Dessert:
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: No change in weight; may not mean anything other than not exercising. May be a reaction to having the avocado yesterday (the book warns that avocadoes and olives may affects some people's weight loss), or could be the jello. The box says there's no carbs. Not sure that could really be true.
BP: Not taking it regularly anymore, but still checking. It's always up after I'm stressed over something, otherwise it's pretty good (118/76 and a pulse of around 60) so I'm not going to stress over it.
Ketones: Didn't check today.
Inspiration for Weekend of Week 1 Induction: To Thine Own Self BE TRUE!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
It's one of the coldest days in NC...at least this morning. Maybe traffic won't be so bad. I don't really feel like going to the grocery store afterwards myself. Will do that later.
Fiance has a headache today; not sure if he feels up to going to a concealed weapons class tonight. Yes? No? Answers affect dinner plans. We stay home in the end; napping too late to really feel like going. Dinner plans turn into "grab" and I look for something OP. I grab chicken wings, then force some lettuce down later.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Not being alone (other's schedules and wants come into play), the RE Investor's seminar scheduled Sat morn, not Thurs morn (same hazards, more traffic to deal with perhaps)
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Did it.
READ THE BOOK: Did what I needed, still referring to book as I "work the system," seems I need to figure out portions with tomatoes - part of the beef dish I love to make.
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP -
Weight: 184.5 - N/C from yesterday, again.
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching 2 mins
Cardio zero
Strength zero
Water: 96 oz - managed to get that in, even if everything else was off a bit. Easier in a hot, dry, seminar room (drank 32 oz then).
Food:
Breakfast: egg beaters with cinnamon, onion powder and splenda, as an omelet; 3 precooked maple sausage links, microwaved for 30 sec., 2 mugs coffee w/ S/L and milk
Lunch: chicken wings with ranch dressing - a lot of them...noticed they have 2 carbs per 5? need to count how many a bit closer; probably had 18? was feeling hungry or irritable
Dinner: made my "beef goulash" with cinnamon, parsley, salt, cayenne, diced tomatoes/paste and browned beef, plus a sprinkling of splenda. Sometimes add chunky mushrooms to it, not tonight. Had 2 leaves of romaine later to finish off the lettuce veggies for the day.
Snack:
Dessert:
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: No change in weight; may not mean anything other than not exercising. May be a reaction to having the avocado yesterday (the book warns that avocadoes and olives may affects some people's weight loss), or could be the jello. The box says there's no carbs. Not sure that could really be true.
BP: Not taking it regularly anymore, but still checking. It's always up after I'm stressed over something, otherwise it's pretty good (118/76 and a pulse of around 60) so I'm not going to stress over it.
Ketones: Didn't check today.
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
Wed Day 3 Week 1 Induction, Jan 14, 2009
"To Thine Own Self be True, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
Inspiration for Day Three of Week 1 Induction: Just one day, just a few more hours - Eat, Drink, Exercise - You Can Do it!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
Exercising yesterday seems to have paid off; plus I am definitely in ketosis (low end, but it's still the right place to be!).
Running around all day with my dog (in the car), then getting the car checked out, it didn't seem I"d find time to do exercises. Later, fiance took me shopping for a new dress for a ball at the end of this month. After not sleeping well the night before (had to pee one time, then the dog, who was in the garage for the night, wanted to go out about 40 min later, and that just really broke up a good sleep).
So, by the end of shopping, I'm ready to sleep in the car on the way home. I even started justifying how I had walked the dog for 20 min and could just skip exercising (the strength stuff) because I was tired and would make it up tomorrow. Then I remembered that I wanted to do them every other day and I needed to finish 3 of them this week to be on track with that, and that 30 minutes is a lot faster than an hour.
Set the kitchen timer for 5 minutes, turned on the radio (great dance music, great for exercising to) and stretched the whole time (5 minutes can seem sooooo long), then reset it for 10 and started doing crunches to 200...30 in one position, change the legs to one side and then the other, trying for each being 30, that kind of thing...legs straight up in the air, ankles crossed one way then another, and also the pelvic tilts to work the back, anything to kill the pure boredom...
Finally set it for 20 minutes and just worked thru arm exercise using my wine bottles and then some of the butt-kicking exercises...much better than the machine at the gym. I really should keep them in the mix, even when I get back to a gym...
...which I did visit today to check out the facilities...there's a basketball court and a boxing ring and training center - no pool or spa - does that tell you anything? But there was an exercise room with a CD player and speakers. I talked to a couple of women who were there and got their takes on the gym, too. Have to see it at a busy time I think.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Forgetfulness - getting distracted easily and not liking strength exercises all by their lonesome.
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Massage yesterday really seemed to help my shoulder. She did deep tissue and was aware of my condition. I still have a popping sound there every once in a while....will keep an eye on this for a week and see how I do with stretching and exercising.
READ THE BOOK: Refering to it constantly whenever I want to know how many carbs are in a food (quick list in the back) or which veggies are on list 1 (2 cups) and which are on list 2 (only 1 cup, but usually the ones Ilike most, doh!).
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP - 118/68 p 64, 8:30 am
Weight: 185.5 - down 1 and 1/2 lb WOO HOO - very good AND unexpected! Exercising and sticking to my less than 20carb menu paid off!
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching 5 min before strength
Cardio 20 min, walking Bailey (Old English Sheepdog) before his vet appt.
Strength 30 min
Water: 96 oz, plus the soup
Food:
Breakfast: 2 egg beaters with cinnamon, onion powder and splenda, as an omelet; 2 precooked maple sausage links, microwaved for 30 sec.
Lunch: - Grilled flank steak salad - measured 2 cups lettuce for the salad - dressing
Dinner: Chicken soup (broth with chicken and celery today)
Snack: 2 oz cream cheese with cinnamon and splenda, 3 T of orange jello
Dessert: nothing
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: Wt down 1 and 1/2 lb. - very unexpected!!
BP: Looks normal for when I am not at the doctor's office. Guess stress raises it the most?
Ketones: Checked again this morning. Definitely in ketosis.
Inspiration for Day Three of Week 1 Induction: Just one day, just a few more hours - Eat, Drink, Exercise - You Can Do it!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts:
Exercising yesterday seems to have paid off; plus I am definitely in ketosis (low end, but it's still the right place to be!).
Running around all day with my dog (in the car), then getting the car checked out, it didn't seem I"d find time to do exercises. Later, fiance took me shopping for a new dress for a ball at the end of this month. After not sleeping well the night before (had to pee one time, then the dog, who was in the garage for the night, wanted to go out about 40 min later, and that just really broke up a good sleep).
So, by the end of shopping, I'm ready to sleep in the car on the way home. I even started justifying how I had walked the dog for 20 min and could just skip exercising (the strength stuff) because I was tired and would make it up tomorrow. Then I remembered that I wanted to do them every other day and I needed to finish 3 of them this week to be on track with that, and that 30 minutes is a lot faster than an hour.
Set the kitchen timer for 5 minutes, turned on the radio (great dance music, great for exercising to) and stretched the whole time (5 minutes can seem sooooo long), then reset it for 10 and started doing crunches to 200...30 in one position, change the legs to one side and then the other, trying for each being 30, that kind of thing...legs straight up in the air, ankles crossed one way then another, and also the pelvic tilts to work the back, anything to kill the pure boredom...
Finally set it for 20 minutes and just worked thru arm exercise using my wine bottles and then some of the butt-kicking exercises...much better than the machine at the gym. I really should keep them in the mix, even when I get back to a gym...
...which I did visit today to check out the facilities...there's a basketball court and a boxing ring and training center - no pool or spa - does that tell you anything? But there was an exercise room with a CD player and speakers. I talked to a couple of women who were there and got their takes on the gym, too. Have to see it at a busy time I think.
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Forgetfulness - getting distracted easily and not liking strength exercises all by their lonesome.
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Massage yesterday really seemed to help my shoulder. She did deep tissue and was aware of my condition. I still have a popping sound there every once in a while....will keep an eye on this for a week and see how I do with stretching and exercising.
READ THE BOOK: Refering to it constantly whenever I want to know how many carbs are in a food (quick list in the back) or which veggies are on list 1 (2 cups) and which are on list 2 (only 1 cup, but usually the ones Ilike most, doh!).
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP - 118/68 p 64, 8:30 am
Weight: 185.5 - down 1 and 1/2 lb WOO HOO - very good AND unexpected! Exercising and sticking to my less than 20carb menu paid off!
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching 5 min before strength
Cardio 20 min, walking Bailey (Old English Sheepdog) before his vet appt.
Strength 30 min
Water: 96 oz, plus the soup
Food:
Breakfast: 2 egg beaters with cinnamon, onion powder and splenda, as an omelet; 2 precooked maple sausage links, microwaved for 30 sec.
Lunch: - Grilled flank steak salad - measured 2 cups lettuce for the salad - dressing
Dinner: Chicken soup (broth with chicken and celery today)
Snack: 2 oz cream cheese with cinnamon and splenda, 3 T of orange jello
Dessert: nothing
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: Wt down 1 and 1/2 lb. - very unexpected!!
BP: Looks normal for when I am not at the doctor's office. Guess stress raises it the most?
Ketones: Checked again this morning. Definitely in ketosis.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
Tues Day 2 Week 1 Induction, Jan 13, 2009
"To Thine Own Self be True, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
Inspiration for Day Two of Week 1 Induction: Just one day, just a few more hours - Eat, Drink, Exercise - You Can Do it!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts: With my schedule today (court appearance via telephone at 10 am), I need to be prepared for both today and tomorrow's menu. I think I am, but will go over both day's menus to make sure I have everything I need thawed, and prepped if necessary.
Gatorade is on sale, so bought two new bottles for $1 and fiance is drinking them so I don't even have to waste the gatorade to get my bottles! Lot cheaper than the $3-4 bottles folks sell with their logos on it, and I do like to switch out the plastic since they say now we shouldn't keep refilling them. Not sure how long it takes before it becomes carcinogenic or whatever it is, and how much is concern we will buy less water (I rarely buy water as it is hard to find it at room temperature and I don't drink cold water easily.)
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Busy schedule, uncertainties, have to be prepared.
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Numbers are below; made appt to get "gifted" massage; need to find physical therapist still for shoulder, tho exercising seems to be helping as well.
READ THE BOOK: Everytime I glance in the book looking for something (a recipe, my index cards (on which I scheduled my meals this week, as well as my grocery list), I see other stuff I could stand reading again.
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP - was very low this morning (94/64 p 51, if I remember correctly - I wasn't really awake yet) - later, at 10 pm, they were 113/72, p 64
Weight: 187.0 - down 1/2 lb WOO HOO - that's good, esp. without having exercised yesterday (the scale actually kept bouncing to 186.5 but ended on 187.0, YES!!)
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching A little this morning (2 min?) - 10 minutes after zumba
Cardio 50 min zumba (included strength in the cardio, but only counting minutes as cardio)
Strength
Water: 96 oz, plus cups of pure chicken broth, taken when I ran some errands (took a cup of broth and my bottle of water (32 oz).
Food:
Breakfast: Salmon rolls (lox) with cream cheese; 1 cup of coffee w/ milk, S/L
Lunch: - chicken soup (broth with chicken today)
Dinner: Grilled flank steak, sauteed spinach, a salad - measured 2 cups lettuce for the salad (mixed lettuces), added blue cheese dressing, and measured 1 cup raw spinach, then sauteed it. Doesn't make a lot of spinach, bummer that!
Snack: 1/2 avocado right before dinner - 14 carbs in a whole one, so this was 7 - I checked both the book and my menu - each item - to make sure I could do this, I really REALLY wanted the avocado. Unfortunately, NC doesn't seem to sell good avocados. Again, this avocado was bland and more watery-tasting than I am used to getting in OH. Will need to find yet another source.
Dessert: 3 T of orange jello - checked and this SF jello has zero (0) carbs... Hip hip hooray. Maybe the hospital was onto something?
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: Wt down 1/2 lb.
BP: Way down this morning on waking - will try to take this afternoon, then again at 6 pm. Looked normal around 10 pm.
Ketones: Looks like I might be getting into ketosis.
Inspiration for Day Two of Week 1 Induction: Just one day, just a few more hours - Eat, Drink, Exercise - You Can Do it!
*******************************************
Random Thoughts: With my schedule today (court appearance via telephone at 10 am), I need to be prepared for both today and tomorrow's menu. I think I am, but will go over both day's menus to make sure I have everything I need thawed, and prepped if necessary.
Gatorade is on sale, so bought two new bottles for $1 and fiance is drinking them so I don't even have to waste the gatorade to get my bottles! Lot cheaper than the $3-4 bottles folks sell with their logos on it, and I do like to switch out the plastic since they say now we shouldn't keep refilling them. Not sure how long it takes before it becomes carcinogenic or whatever it is, and how much is concern we will buy less water (I rarely buy water as it is hard to find it at room temperature and I don't drink cold water easily.)
PERSONAL HAZARD (S)- Busy schedule, uncertainties, have to be prepared.
******************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: Numbers are below; made appt to get "gifted" massage; need to find physical therapist still for shoulder, tho exercising seems to be helping as well.
READ THE BOOK: Everytime I glance in the book looking for something (a recipe, my index cards (on which I scheduled my meals this week, as well as my grocery list), I see other stuff I could stand reading again.
ONGOING ASSIGNMENT: Induction Week - all systems go! (Food, Water, Exercise)
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Look ahead each day to the next day's menu; make sure it's ready to go.
Vitals:
BP - was very low this morning (94/64 p 51, if I remember correctly - I wasn't really awake yet) - later, at 10 pm, they were 113/72, p 64
Weight: 187.0 - down 1/2 lb WOO HOO - that's good, esp. without having exercised yesterday (the scale actually kept bouncing to 186.5 but ended on 187.0, YES!!)
Cholesterol: Numbers from 30 May 08 (Doctor's office):
Total: 250
Trig: 56
HDL: 93
LDL: 146
Vitals that day: Wt: 171 BP: 126/82 Pulse: 72
Exercise:
Stretching A little this morning (2 min?) - 10 minutes after zumba
Cardio 50 min zumba (included strength in the cardio, but only counting minutes as cardio)
Strength
Water: 96 oz, plus cups of pure chicken broth, taken when I ran some errands (took a cup of broth and my bottle of water (32 oz).
Food:
Breakfast: Salmon rolls (lox) with cream cheese; 1 cup of coffee w/ milk, S/L
Lunch: - chicken soup (broth with chicken today)
Dinner: Grilled flank steak, sauteed spinach, a salad - measured 2 cups lettuce for the salad (mixed lettuces), added blue cheese dressing, and measured 1 cup raw spinach, then sauteed it. Doesn't make a lot of spinach, bummer that!
Snack: 1/2 avocado right before dinner - 14 carbs in a whole one, so this was 7 - I checked both the book and my menu - each item - to make sure I could do this, I really REALLY wanted the avocado. Unfortunately, NC doesn't seem to sell good avocados. Again, this avocado was bland and more watery-tasting than I am used to getting in OH. Will need to find yet another source.
Dessert: 3 T of orange jello - checked and this SF jello has zero (0) carbs... Hip hip hooray. Maybe the hospital was onto something?
________________________________
NOTES:
Wt: Wt down 1/2 lb.
BP: Way down this morning on waking - will try to take this afternoon, then again at 6 pm. Looked normal around 10 pm.
Ketones: Looks like I might be getting into ketosis.
Friday, January 9, 2009
Commitment or Dedication: You Decide
Last February, I wrote about the most important thing a person can do to make changes in their life. As Ricky Martin's song The Cup of Life says: Do you really want it? Reread that post to see if you have made the biggest decision yet, and even if you should (are you ready to).
Setting ourselves up for failure is easy to do if we have not actually prepared ourselves to accept the burden of our commitments and of our dedication.
Until writing about going out to lunch today with my fiance, I thought dedication and commitment were the same act. I saw that today, I only needed dedication to my goals in order to make me stick to low-carbs: chicken wings, bleu cheese dressing, celery, a caesar's salad (no croutons), and diet soda.
Every day is not like that. Some days in the past, it has been a real battle with myself. Those are the days when my commitment came into the fray.
Without that commitment to myself ("To thine own self be true"), I might have let the short-term pleasure of something overcome my long-term need to not eat that thing OR exercise OR drink my water (cause I'm tired of peeing or some other reason).
Those are the times when I look back to why I am doing this, and those reasons must be firm in your head. Gosh, there must be dozens that easily come to mind (some maybe you can't print in a family magazine), and may seem like millions. All you need are the ones that will help you walk away from whatever is tempting you now.
For more on commitments, check out that earlier post here: Making the big decision: Do you really want it?
Setting ourselves up for failure is easy to do if we have not actually prepared ourselves to accept the burden of our commitments and of our dedication.
Until writing about going out to lunch today with my fiance, I thought dedication and commitment were the same act. I saw that today, I only needed dedication to my goals in order to make me stick to low-carbs: chicken wings, bleu cheese dressing, celery, a caesar's salad (no croutons), and diet soda.
Every day is not like that. Some days in the past, it has been a real battle with myself. Those are the days when my commitment came into the fray.
Without that commitment to myself ("To thine own self be true"), I might have let the short-term pleasure of something overcome my long-term need to not eat that thing OR exercise OR drink my water (cause I'm tired of peeing or some other reason).
Those are the times when I look back to why I am doing this, and those reasons must be firm in your head. Gosh, there must be dozens that easily come to mind (some maybe you can't print in a family magazine), and may seem like millions. All you need are the ones that will help you walk away from whatever is tempting you now.
For more on commitments, check out that earlier post here: Making the big decision: Do you really want it?
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Tues 6 Jan 09 11:30 am-EOD
Updated below for the end of yesterday
Vitals:
BP - not taken today - took it around 6 pm and had 144/85 with pulse of 72.....a bit higher on the first number
Weight: 190.5 - woo-hoo! down 2 lbs from yesterday!!
Cholesterol: HDL, LDL, Tri: ???
************************************************
Exercise:
Stretching this morning: minimal, it's a late late start today, not fully awake yet even - got several of these in during the day (still working with tendinitis in shoulder, arthritis in hands, too (mostly in the morning)- end of day: 15 min stretching
Dancing in the kitchen: hmmm, with fiance at home today not likely if he works (tho I think he called in for a personal day, not a work-at-home day) - still, I'll need to deal with someone around and who will need personal attention - probably what most of you deal with constantly, too, especially if your children are still at home. By end of day, did 15 minutes zumba!
Walking - the two of us took Bailey for a while, slow at first, but we did 20 min and I feel a bit warmed up now. I could feel the work in my muscles on the rises (hills), too. So, better than I thought after the first 8 minutes :) Total: 20 min
Water: None yet - about 1/2 a bottle now - or 16 oz. in addition to the coffee and a cup of decaf tea, but I want to count water only. Stayed up after 9:30 when fiance turned in for the night and finished water while playing text twist, hearts, mah jong, free cell, and spider solitaire - went to bed at 11 pm. Total for the day: 96 oz (plus all the coffee and some decaf tea)
Food:
Breakfast: 6 slices crispy bacon(microwave), 3-egg omelet with 2 T of the sauteed mushroom/onion mix made the other day. I'm trying my fiance's egg-beaters this time. We bought them in bulk at Sam's the other day. I also always microwave bacon, but this stuff is pre-cooked (bought in bulk also) and cooks very quickly. I made him some scrambled eggs, too. Always some coffee (:)) on my second cup now: 2 mugs of coffee w/1 T of milk & sweet'n'low (S/L)
Lunch: Pretty much breakfast is lunch today - we both got up late, after staying up late for the game last night (Texas beat Ohio State, boo hoo, tho my niece's husband went to Texas, so half of the family was against me) then Bailey got caught in the rain this morning about 5:30, so we rescued him and went back to sleep. Slept til 10:30. About to eat breakfast now at 11:30 am.
Dinner: Had the other half of the dinner from last night - Michael Angelo's Chicken something - delicious! - has artichokes and capers in it, some tomatoes, too - plus some leftover veggies (picked out the carrots - it was a Green Giant Infusion Steam-in-bag (for 2) mix I found at Walmart or Target or some-such).
Snack: 1/2 oz of melted cheddar
Dessert: 4 oz of creamed cheese with cinnamon and splenda, heated in the microwave til it gets fluffy - my fiance tasted it and turned his nose up, but for me, it satisfies the sweet tooth cravings for a while (and I'm one who likes a small piece of chocolate after a meal...) Discovered this raiding a work fridge in a conference room - we had a whipped cream cheese by Philly in the fridge, it had cinnamon in it. I was allowed cream cheese (Atkins), so I took some of that one day. Note - this was our public fridge for guests, not co-worker's stashes - I also did not take a lot, but learned I liked the flavor of cinnamon with the cream cheese. So, don't be afraid to try something new. As I told me son who had to eat meals with me - it's only one meal (which you can always spit out), and since it won't kill you to eat it one time (think of the depression-era folks, folks!), think of it as fuel and go on. Just don't make it again if you don't like it. Adventures in food! Let the games begin, hee hee....
************************************************
NOTES:
Cholesterol numbers may be called into me today; awaiting another call from doctor in Ohio's office;
Wt: happy with 2 lbs down from yesterday's weight, which was up a bunch from my last weigh-in before that (like about 5 lbs!) Maybe it was no sugar yesterday, maybe it was releasing water since I hadn't drank all my water on Sunday and I did on both Saturday and Monday. *************************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: I called the doctor's office in Ohio; they couldn't find my file but will get someone to find it and the numbers and call me back (at least that's their plan; I suspect the file may be hiding now.)
READ THE BOOK: I read a few of the chapters yesterday - they are hard to get thru at times, but there is so much information giving reasons why and how this diet works, that it's pretty vital that we understand. I know it helped me whenever I had to adjust the diet on the run, shooting from the hip, flying by the seat of my pants....you get all these cliches? Most diets allow no deviation, but life is not like that - stuff happens. Reading this book prepares you to deal with unexpected circumstances on your own. You will know what to do, or at least have a clue. Then you go back and read that part again, so you understand the information even better. When you get hungry, you'll know what to eat and why. You'll know why eating low-fat is not going to help you and will probably really throw off your ability to burn fat in the beginning, plus knowing how to read labels and know "low fat" usually means higher sodium (salt) and/or higher sugars.
****New assignment: Learn how to read labels! ****
Still need to read the chapter on Induction then create a menu for a week.
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Prepare menu for 1 week, using book and lists of foods (induction chapter), then create shopping list. Also, learn how to read labels.
**********************************************
I still need to buy some new Ketone strips at CVS.
If you're reading this, chime in and let me know by leaving a comment (anonymous or otherwise, I don't track) letting me know if you've chosen a food plan yet and what it is. Have you made a commitment yet? Have you chosen a food plan? Where are your areas of most difficulty? Is anyone doing low carb? If so, which one did you choose?
Inspiration for the Day: NO SUGAR * NO SUGAR * NO SUGAR...It's Day TWO!
*********************************************
Random Thoughts: My breakfast is getting cold, but it can be zapped in the microwave if too cold, just about 20 seconds would reheat it well without overcooking it.
12:30 pm - ate it cold, tasted great. I think I ate it quicker tho. I'm feeling cold again, and so reheated the rest of my coffee. Feeling hungry again, but know that I should not eat again yet - I had enough to eat (mentally know this), so what are these feelings that make me want to eat?
Psychological - could be because my tummy is used to being bigger, pressing against my clothes, after I eat? So, psychologically I feel I can't be done eating? Also, eating it cold and so quickly, I've eaten it but it hasn't registered yet.
Cold - it really makes me want to eat.
Not feeling full - makes me want to keep eating stuff that tasted good.
4:10 pm - not a lot of progress today. Someone online mentioned deviled eggs today; fiance morphed that into egg salad. Boiled some eggs (cover with water, boil water, then turn off and let sit for 20 minutes, simple). Added a low-fat mayo to his with salt and peppah; used regular mayo for mine, it had zero carbs (his had 1) per serving. His on high-fiber bread, mine plain. I added some dill to mine as well, then thought shredded parmesan might be good. Not so sure on that; maybe it should have been melted or room-temp first? Making some decaf tea with splenda - family size tea bag in a pitcher 5 min in the microwave, add splenda to taste (about 1/2 the amount of sugar I used to use for sweet tea - which was 1 cup before - this southern gal loves sweet tea and this is no substitute, but it does stave off cravings....hope it doesn't cause any today. --- I do need to get out and get some exercise somehow today or tonight. He slept all day by the tv (which I turned off).
PERSONAL HAZARD - fiance had bag of cookies out, some on-sale xmas hard candies. I put those in the pantry so I wouldn't have to look at them, then teased him about putting out hazards for my diet. After yesterday, I know I can do this (hey, there's plenty of cheese in the house and i have eggs, bacon, and sausage, so I should be able to find something warm and filling and full of protein if I get cravings to eat. I'll focus on those for my emergency foods.)
************************************************
"To Thine Own Self be True, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
************************************************
Vitals:
BP - not taken today - took it around 6 pm and had 144/85 with pulse of 72.....a bit higher on the first number
Weight: 190.5 - woo-hoo! down 2 lbs from yesterday!!
Cholesterol: HDL, LDL, Tri: ???
************************************************
Exercise:
Stretching this morning: minimal, it's a late late start today, not fully awake yet even - got several of these in during the day (still working with tendinitis in shoulder, arthritis in hands, too (mostly in the morning)- end of day: 15 min stretching
Dancing in the kitchen: hmmm, with fiance at home today not likely if he works (tho I think he called in for a personal day, not a work-at-home day) - still, I'll need to deal with someone around and who will need personal attention - probably what most of you deal with constantly, too, especially if your children are still at home. By end of day, did 15 minutes zumba!
Walking - the two of us took Bailey for a while, slow at first, but we did 20 min and I feel a bit warmed up now. I could feel the work in my muscles on the rises (hills), too. So, better than I thought after the first 8 minutes :) Total: 20 min
Water: None yet - about 1/2 a bottle now - or 16 oz. in addition to the coffee and a cup of decaf tea, but I want to count water only. Stayed up after 9:30 when fiance turned in for the night and finished water while playing text twist, hearts, mah jong, free cell, and spider solitaire - went to bed at 11 pm. Total for the day: 96 oz (plus all the coffee and some decaf tea)
Food:
Breakfast: 6 slices crispy bacon(microwave), 3-egg omelet with 2 T of the sauteed mushroom/onion mix made the other day. I'm trying my fiance's egg-beaters this time. We bought them in bulk at Sam's the other day. I also always microwave bacon, but this stuff is pre-cooked (bought in bulk also) and cooks very quickly. I made him some scrambled eggs, too. Always some coffee (:)) on my second cup now: 2 mugs of coffee w/1 T of milk & sweet'n'low (S/L)
Lunch: Pretty much breakfast is lunch today - we both got up late, after staying up late for the game last night (Texas beat Ohio State, boo hoo, tho my niece's husband went to Texas, so half of the family was against me) then Bailey got caught in the rain this morning about 5:30, so we rescued him and went back to sleep. Slept til 10:30. About to eat breakfast now at 11:30 am.
Dinner: Had the other half of the dinner from last night - Michael Angelo's Chicken something - delicious! - has artichokes and capers in it, some tomatoes, too - plus some leftover veggies (picked out the carrots - it was a Green Giant Infusion Steam-in-bag (for 2) mix I found at Walmart or Target or some-such).
Snack: 1/2 oz of melted cheddar
Dessert: 4 oz of creamed cheese with cinnamon and splenda, heated in the microwave til it gets fluffy - my fiance tasted it and turned his nose up, but for me, it satisfies the sweet tooth cravings for a while (and I'm one who likes a small piece of chocolate after a meal...) Discovered this raiding a work fridge in a conference room - we had a whipped cream cheese by Philly in the fridge, it had cinnamon in it. I was allowed cream cheese (Atkins), so I took some of that one day. Note - this was our public fridge for guests, not co-worker's stashes - I also did not take a lot, but learned I liked the flavor of cinnamon with the cream cheese. So, don't be afraid to try something new. As I told me son who had to eat meals with me - it's only one meal (which you can always spit out), and since it won't kill you to eat it one time (think of the depression-era folks, folks!), think of it as fuel and go on. Just don't make it again if you don't like it. Adventures in food! Let the games begin, hee hee....
************************************************
NOTES:
Cholesterol numbers may be called into me today; awaiting another call from doctor in Ohio's office;
Wt: happy with 2 lbs down from yesterday's weight, which was up a bunch from my last weigh-in before that (like about 5 lbs!) Maybe it was no sugar yesterday, maybe it was releasing water since I hadn't drank all my water on Sunday and I did on both Saturday and Monday. *************************************************
Assignment:
Progress so far:
Doctor Appt: I called the doctor's office in Ohio; they couldn't find my file but will get someone to find it and the numbers and call me back (at least that's their plan; I suspect the file may be hiding now.)
READ THE BOOK: I read a few of the chapters yesterday - they are hard to get thru at times, but there is so much information giving reasons why and how this diet works, that it's pretty vital that we understand. I know it helped me whenever I had to adjust the diet on the run, shooting from the hip, flying by the seat of my pants....you get all these cliches? Most diets allow no deviation, but life is not like that - stuff happens. Reading this book prepares you to deal with unexpected circumstances on your own. You will know what to do, or at least have a clue. Then you go back and read that part again, so you understand the information even better. When you get hungry, you'll know what to eat and why. You'll know why eating low-fat is not going to help you and will probably really throw off your ability to burn fat in the beginning, plus knowing how to read labels and know "low fat" usually means higher sodium (salt) and/or higher sugars.
****New assignment: Learn how to read labels! ****
Still need to read the chapter on Induction then create a menu for a week.
NEW ASSIGNMENT: Prepare menu for 1 week, using book and lists of foods (induction chapter), then create shopping list. Also, learn how to read labels.
**********************************************
I still need to buy some new Ketone strips at CVS.
If you're reading this, chime in and let me know by leaving a comment (anonymous or otherwise, I don't track) letting me know if you've chosen a food plan yet and what it is. Have you made a commitment yet? Have you chosen a food plan? Where are your areas of most difficulty? Is anyone doing low carb? If so, which one did you choose?
Inspiration for the Day: NO SUGAR * NO SUGAR * NO SUGAR...It's Day TWO!
*********************************************
Random Thoughts: My breakfast is getting cold, but it can be zapped in the microwave if too cold, just about 20 seconds would reheat it well without overcooking it.
12:30 pm - ate it cold, tasted great. I think I ate it quicker tho. I'm feeling cold again, and so reheated the rest of my coffee. Feeling hungry again, but know that I should not eat again yet - I had enough to eat (mentally know this), so what are these feelings that make me want to eat?
Psychological - could be because my tummy is used to being bigger, pressing against my clothes, after I eat? So, psychologically I feel I can't be done eating? Also, eating it cold and so quickly, I've eaten it but it hasn't registered yet.
Cold - it really makes me want to eat.
Not feeling full - makes me want to keep eating stuff that tasted good.
4:10 pm - not a lot of progress today. Someone online mentioned deviled eggs today; fiance morphed that into egg salad. Boiled some eggs (cover with water, boil water, then turn off and let sit for 20 minutes, simple). Added a low-fat mayo to his with salt and peppah; used regular mayo for mine, it had zero carbs (his had 1) per serving. His on high-fiber bread, mine plain. I added some dill to mine as well, then thought shredded parmesan might be good. Not so sure on that; maybe it should have been melted or room-temp first? Making some decaf tea with splenda - family size tea bag in a pitcher 5 min in the microwave, add splenda to taste (about 1/2 the amount of sugar I used to use for sweet tea - which was 1 cup before - this southern gal loves sweet tea and this is no substitute, but it does stave off cravings....hope it doesn't cause any today. --- I do need to get out and get some exercise somehow today or tonight. He slept all day by the tv (which I turned off).
PERSONAL HAZARD - fiance had bag of cookies out, some on-sale xmas hard candies. I put those in the pantry so I wouldn't have to look at them, then teased him about putting out hazards for my diet. After yesterday, I know I can do this (hey, there's plenty of cheese in the house and i have eggs, bacon, and sausage, so I should be able to find something warm and filling and full of protein if I get cravings to eat. I'll focus on those for my emergency foods.)
************************************************
"To Thine Own Self be True, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man."
************************************************
Sunday, January 4, 2009
From 2008 to 2009 - Going Ahead
SHARE THE JOURNEY
I wrote a long post and won't repeat it here, but please read it if you get the time. It looks back on 2008 and forward to 2009.
In 2008, I wanted to help others struggling to lose weight by giving them my secrets and tips - things I learned from many other people who went before me and helped me, because I found that traditional wisdom (eat right and exercise) was not enough.
Granted, you still need to exercise and find the right eating program for you, as well as drink plenty - and I mean plenty! - of water, and I'm going to help you figure those things out, too. However, what I saw from my interactions with LOTS of other people, through the eDiets.com website, was that you would not succeed unless you had "the eye of the tiger" - that dedication - that COMMITMENT - to making it work.
Because of my experience at working in making change happen, and later studying change management in a top business school, I was able to see that if that particular element was there, the person could do it and would, if they could figure out their "hazards" and build a plan to work around those hazards. If they didn't have that commitment and dedication, it was not going to happen, no matter how much they wanted it. As Anne Sexton once wrote, "Need is not quite belief."
Change management begins with the need for someone willing to fall on their sword for something , for someone who believes that strongly in making that "something" happen. Otherwise, something will always come up.
Today, I have recommitted to being healthy, having let things (an engagement, a move, etc.) come up this past year. Last year, I talked about commitment to those of you who read here. To those new - please review the earliest posts. I hope to organize these in an easy-to-find fashion in the next month and move to an easier-to-navigate website, taking everything with us (losing none of the archives).
What I am going to do now, this year, is go from this - a public confession of my commitment, -not only to being back in shape but to sharing the entire journey with you so you can go with me or follow along, hopefully taking what helps you and adapting other tips so that you reach your own personal health goals this year.
The last part is what reaches down and helps someone else along this path because it is when you touch on the psychology of what we are going to face - not just the tactics.
During this change, we will have to face ourselves and buttons that push us and people and situations that push those buttons, and each of us will have to develop our own plan for how to handle each situation. We will each run into different things at different times, but having gone through this before, I am here to answer any questions and provide tips that have helped many others before. There is no one shoe to fit every foot; there are a variety of shoes for every occasion and you must select the one that works best for you. I will only help you see all the shoes.
Friday, July 25, 2008
5 Ways to Get Back On Track
"I've paid twice for this already" has another great blog up, this one good for those working toward a goal, any goal, particularly those with personal endeavor and a need to change personal habits.
She writes about 5 ways to get back on track when your finances go astray and you wonder, "How did this happen?"
This is how I have felt before regarding food and eating. I pretty much knew the answers, as do most of you, about why we just ate what we ate. It's multi-layered, and like Shrek say, "I'm like an onion" and like an onion, we need to pull back the layers and look at each.
For us, we need to look at the emotional layers of WHY we did something, but sometimes we also need to take a deep breath.
I'll bet each of you can come up with a dozen rationalizations. How about these I came up with: My boss didn't see me when he walked down the hall; my MIL is a B----; I have to be on this stupid diet while everyone else is eating pizza...yadda yadda yadda... You get the drift. On some days, it's easy to complain about everything and easy to find reasons to eat.
Even with legitimate complaints and the need for self-soothing talk, we often allow food to be our primary method of self-soothing. For this, we must find other ways, other personal ways. What works for me might not work for Sue or Joe or Chelsea or Elbert.
The five ways laid out by "Paid Twice" help you get a grip when you just had an emotional binge and used food to soothe yourself.
The five given were:
1. "Keep records."
2. "Reassess your goals."
3. "Remind yourself that a set-back is not a cause for failure."
4. "Take small positive steps in the right direction."
5. "When all else fails, institute a 5-day spending freeze."
Succinct. Good money advice.
I'd like to expand on those by tailoring them to weight loss goals.
#1 - This should help you see that maybe things are not as bad as you think. Maybe, yeah, you ate too much, but you also forgot to drink water, or you could have exercised more, or you exercised a lot yesterday, so you're probably okay today.
#2 - Do you see the whole elephant whenever you think about your "diet"? Do you have a huge goal of 40 or more pounds to lose? Does it just seem impossible to do all the things people keep saying you need to do? Cut that elephant down to bite size pieces then.
Focus on something smaller and shorter, and reassessing it later perhaps? That's another way to reassess your goal. Maybe you say - I'll lose 10 lbs and then see where I am. If that takes 3 months instead of 4 weeks, but you reach that goal in 3 months, would you be happier? Or would you like to keep saying every month, "10 lbs off THIS month" and repeat it monthly?
Whatever works for you is all that matters, but it never NEVER hurts to rethink of what it is that you are ultimately trying to achieve. EVERY project, to be successful, must keep revisiting its goal in order to ensure that success can be achieved! That includes yours as well.
#3 - This is simply the truth. Set-back is not failure. Not even a bunch of 'em!
#4 - This is back to finding the right bite size for whatever elephant you are trying to eat.
#5 - "Institute a 5-day spending freeze!" For most of us dieting, this is going back to what the Atkins Diet calls induction, but on a short-term easy-to-commit-to basis. Usually if we get to 5 days of being strict with ourselves, we can see progress and be remotivated to keep that momentum going.
Don't let the set-back upset your commitment, and let this short intense re-commitment get your momentum going again. If nothing else, it may purge our system of the extra pounds or simply stop our gaining more, both of which are good!!
Using these 5 ways can help you get back on track with not only your personal finance goals, but also your weight loss goals. What else can we apply them to?
She writes about 5 ways to get back on track when your finances go astray and you wonder, "How did this happen?"
This is how I have felt before regarding food and eating. I pretty much knew the answers, as do most of you, about why we just ate what we ate. It's multi-layered, and like Shrek say, "I'm like an onion" and like an onion, we need to pull back the layers and look at each.
For us, we need to look at the emotional layers of WHY we did something, but sometimes we also need to take a deep breath.
I'll bet each of you can come up with a dozen rationalizations. How about these I came up with: My boss didn't see me when he walked down the hall; my MIL is a B----; I have to be on this stupid diet while everyone else is eating pizza...yadda yadda yadda... You get the drift. On some days, it's easy to complain about everything and easy to find reasons to eat.
Even with legitimate complaints and the need for self-soothing talk, we often allow food to be our primary method of self-soothing. For this, we must find other ways, other personal ways. What works for me might not work for Sue or Joe or Chelsea or Elbert.
The five ways laid out by "Paid Twice" help you get a grip when you just had an emotional binge and used food to soothe yourself.
The five given were:
1. "Keep records."
2. "Reassess your goals."
3. "Remind yourself that a set-back is not a cause for failure."
4. "Take small positive steps in the right direction."
5. "When all else fails, institute a 5-day spending freeze."
Succinct. Good money advice.
I'd like to expand on those by tailoring them to weight loss goals.
#1 - This should help you see that maybe things are not as bad as you think. Maybe, yeah, you ate too much, but you also forgot to drink water, or you could have exercised more, or you exercised a lot yesterday, so you're probably okay today.
#2 - Do you see the whole elephant whenever you think about your "diet"? Do you have a huge goal of 40 or more pounds to lose? Does it just seem impossible to do all the things people keep saying you need to do? Cut that elephant down to bite size pieces then.
Focus on something smaller and shorter, and reassessing it later perhaps? That's another way to reassess your goal. Maybe you say - I'll lose 10 lbs and then see where I am. If that takes 3 months instead of 4 weeks, but you reach that goal in 3 months, would you be happier? Or would you like to keep saying every month, "10 lbs off THIS month" and repeat it monthly?
Whatever works for you is all that matters, but it never NEVER hurts to rethink of what it is that you are ultimately trying to achieve. EVERY project, to be successful, must keep revisiting its goal in order to ensure that success can be achieved! That includes yours as well.
#3 - This is simply the truth. Set-back is not failure. Not even a bunch of 'em!
#4 - This is back to finding the right bite size for whatever elephant you are trying to eat.
#5 - "Institute a 5-day spending freeze!" For most of us dieting, this is going back to what the Atkins Diet calls induction, but on a short-term easy-to-commit-to basis. Usually if we get to 5 days of being strict with ourselves, we can see progress and be remotivated to keep that momentum going.
Don't let the set-back upset your commitment, and let this short intense re-commitment get your momentum going again. If nothing else, it may purge our system of the extra pounds or simply stop our gaining more, both of which are good!!
Using these 5 ways can help you get back on track with not only your personal finance goals, but also your weight loss goals. What else can we apply them to?
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Planning Vacations
Recently someone on E*Diets reported she was on Day 3 of Atkins and doing well, then mentioned her upcoming vacation in August where "everyone (would be) eating pasta and drinking wine" and wondered how she'd deal with that. Here's a reply I wrote to help her, having gone through that myself - in more ways than one - during my own journey to drop 40 pounds; perhaps it can help you plan for your upcoming vacation, too!
"Hi Jazzee*,
You are right to think about the trip and vacation with everyone else eating pasta and drinking wine. Now is the time to develop a plan that works for you and that will deal with that. If you are very strict with the induction and continue til vacation time, including increasing your exercise a little bit each day (and taking a rest day or two per week so you don't feel you are killing yourself), plus drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces of water, you will have more leeway in what you can do while on vacation.
I would suggest the following:
1. Make a plan to ensure you get enough water per day THAT YOU CAN DRINK and work on a plan that will ensure you DO just that.
For example, if the tap water is not drinkable, can you buy bottled water for each day or the entire week or so that you are gone and label them for each day so you can keep track without having to think about it while on vacation?
If you CAN drink the tap water, do you have a system in place for vacation-time that helps you keep track of how much you drink without having to work too hard at it during vacation? I find - must be the golfer in me :) - that I cannot count past 3-4 and remember. With things that "look the same" in my memory (like the same bottle or glass), this holds true anyway.
So, I buy 32-oz gatorade bottles and either save the gatorade in a pitcher for my son or others, or empty it, so that I have a good wide-mouthed container which fits in MY van's cupholders (not my fiance's SUV unfortunately) easily.
I started needing to drink 3 per day and am down to 2-1/2, tho I am trying to up that to 3 since I am trying to lose weight (10 lbs I regained falling in love and the effects on all three areas with time constraints mostly).
2. Food - do you like chicken or steak Caesar salads? These, and those with meat/cheese primarily and caesar, blue cheese, ranch, and some italian dressings are easily found at italian restaurants (tho I can't speak for Italy itself if you're going there!). Chicken wings, meats, eggplant parmigiana, etc, can work well ESPECIALLY if you can FORGO the pasta itself.
Italian restaurants did me in back in January, starting at New Year's Eve and going to 3 such places within a month. The first one I did pretty good at, but then I gave in to the pasta.
3. Find a way to exercise daily - 10 min of stretching in the morning, racing (for you) up and down flights of stairs for 3-5 minutes at some point during the day (or just walk an extra one til your heart or breath feel it, then maybe one more if you can), and then 15 min of stretching at night.
If you can turn on a song and dance like it's 1999 thru the whole thing (i.e., full gusto of joie de vivre involved, no matter which beat you choose), try that once a day too.
If you can go dancing, do that and choose water to drink instead of alcohol.
4. Try to limit your wine to 6 oz of red wine per day, enjoying it thoroughly while you do. There are heart benefits to this, even tho it's verboten during induction. Only 4 carbs for red wine - more for the others.
5. Game plan alternatives to staying OP (cause we all know you won't, the above are ways to LESSEN the effects):
a. goal is to maintain weight loss (no gain)
b. goal is to say the heck with it, and start over when you return (remember day 3 of Atkins is the hardest, but you will eventually beat the cravings).
Remember, we do this so we can enjoy the things that matter the most to us. Weigh each bite against the enjoyment obtained with the work it will take to get that off again, assuming you want to work it off, too. Some things are worth it; some are not.
Have a great time! When do you leave?"
*Name changed.
Another thing I did not mention in my reply to her - because she had not mentioned it in her own post - was dealing with car trips, where boredom on the road can lead to road munchies and crunchies (my favorite are Carb-heavenly Combos and Gummy Bears). I learned that I needed NEW MUSIC to keep me entertained. With a child in the car, that means (s)he might need headphones so the adult(s) can play their own music without listening to whining, too. Always have back-up water sources in the car, too, in case of highway stalemates that come up in the middle of nowhere and lead to road/block parties for 1-2 hours or more. Plan for potty breaks as well.
"Hi Jazzee*,
You are right to think about the trip and vacation with everyone else eating pasta and drinking wine. Now is the time to develop a plan that works for you and that will deal with that. If you are very strict with the induction and continue til vacation time, including increasing your exercise a little bit each day (and taking a rest day or two per week so you don't feel you are killing yourself), plus drink 1/2 your body weight in ounces of water, you will have more leeway in what you can do while on vacation.
I would suggest the following:
1. Make a plan to ensure you get enough water per day THAT YOU CAN DRINK and work on a plan that will ensure you DO just that.
For example, if the tap water is not drinkable, can you buy bottled water for each day or the entire week or so that you are gone and label them for each day so you can keep track without having to think about it while on vacation?
If you CAN drink the tap water, do you have a system in place for vacation-time that helps you keep track of how much you drink without having to work too hard at it during vacation? I find - must be the golfer in me :) - that I cannot count past 3-4 and remember. With things that "look the same" in my memory (like the same bottle or glass), this holds true anyway.
So, I buy 32-oz gatorade bottles and either save the gatorade in a pitcher for my son or others, or empty it, so that I have a good wide-mouthed container which fits in MY van's cupholders (not my fiance's SUV unfortunately) easily.
I started needing to drink 3 per day and am down to 2-1/2, tho I am trying to up that to 3 since I am trying to lose weight (10 lbs I regained falling in love and the effects on all three areas with time constraints mostly).
2. Food - do you like chicken or steak Caesar salads? These, and those with meat/cheese primarily and caesar, blue cheese, ranch, and some italian dressings are easily found at italian restaurants (tho I can't speak for Italy itself if you're going there!). Chicken wings, meats, eggplant parmigiana, etc, can work well ESPECIALLY if you can FORGO the pasta itself.
Italian restaurants did me in back in January, starting at New Year's Eve and going to 3 such places within a month. The first one I did pretty good at, but then I gave in to the pasta.
3. Find a way to exercise daily - 10 min of stretching in the morning, racing (for you) up and down flights of stairs for 3-5 minutes at some point during the day (or just walk an extra one til your heart or breath feel it, then maybe one more if you can), and then 15 min of stretching at night.
If you can turn on a song and dance like it's 1999 thru the whole thing (i.e., full gusto of joie de vivre involved, no matter which beat you choose), try that once a day too.
If you can go dancing, do that and choose water to drink instead of alcohol.
4. Try to limit your wine to 6 oz of red wine per day, enjoying it thoroughly while you do. There are heart benefits to this, even tho it's verboten during induction. Only 4 carbs for red wine - more for the others.
5. Game plan alternatives to staying OP (cause we all know you won't, the above are ways to LESSEN the effects):
a. goal is to maintain weight loss (no gain)
b. goal is to say the heck with it, and start over when you return (remember day 3 of Atkins is the hardest, but you will eventually beat the cravings).
Remember, we do this so we can enjoy the things that matter the most to us. Weigh each bite against the enjoyment obtained with the work it will take to get that off again, assuming you want to work it off, too. Some things are worth it; some are not.
Have a great time! When do you leave?"
*Name changed.
Another thing I did not mention in my reply to her - because she had not mentioned it in her own post - was dealing with car trips, where boredom on the road can lead to road munchies and crunchies (my favorite are Carb-heavenly Combos and Gummy Bears). I learned that I needed NEW MUSIC to keep me entertained. With a child in the car, that means (s)he might need headphones so the adult(s) can play their own music without listening to whining, too. Always have back-up water sources in the car, too, in case of highway stalemates that come up in the middle of nowhere and lead to road/block parties for 1-2 hours or more. Plan for potty breaks as well.
Sunday, March 30, 2008
New Low Carb Recipes Found
I love to cook, and I love to play around with various seasonings and spices in my cooking.
What I don't like are low-carb recipes that taste yucky! Having traveled a lot in my life (not as much as some, but more than most), I have a low tolerance for some of the substitutes we make in the low-carb dieting area. For instance, I have a lot of difficulty with the chocolate recipes in the Atkins book.
I was browsing some of the blogs that Cleo (see sidebar) has listed on her blog and came across this one on recipes. Not a blog, but a website with a bunch of recipes, sorted and with pictures, that have that yum-yum appeal to good eating! Atkins should be good eating. We just need to remember that as we come off of weight loss and go into maintenance that we need to also move farther toward healthy choices and reducing some of our easier choices which might be higher in cholesterol and fat.
Wherever you are - induction, weight loss, on-going weight loss (OWL), or maintenance, you are sure to find something here to keep you going, happy, smiling, and losing!!
For myself, I see that I can learn something about almond flour use for baking!
Happy eating!
What I don't like are low-carb recipes that taste yucky! Having traveled a lot in my life (not as much as some, but more than most), I have a low tolerance for some of the substitutes we make in the low-carb dieting area. For instance, I have a lot of difficulty with the chocolate recipes in the Atkins book.
I was browsing some of the blogs that Cleo (see sidebar) has listed on her blog and came across this one on recipes. Not a blog, but a website with a bunch of recipes, sorted and with pictures, that have that yum-yum appeal to good eating! Atkins should be good eating. We just need to remember that as we come off of weight loss and go into maintenance that we need to also move farther toward healthy choices and reducing some of our easier choices which might be higher in cholesterol and fat.
Wherever you are - induction, weight loss, on-going weight loss (OWL), or maintenance, you are sure to find something here to keep you going, happy, smiling, and losing!!
For myself, I see that I can learn something about almond flour use for baking!
Happy eating!
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Loves to Exercise: Zumba Zumba
For all that my blog is titled "Luvs2Zumba," I haven't much discussed it here.
The point about zumba for me is that it is something that resonates with me, speaks to my soul, and makes me want to get up and move.
I think exercise should be something that we like to do. I also think that we need to make those things we enjoy and which get our heart racing more a part of our life!
Too often we are tired and out of time and energy to devote one more second to something we don't need to do. I mean, we have to do the taxes right? And we have to do the laundry and the dishes eventually. But if we skip exercising, no one's gonna notice or mind. I mean, we might mind - a little - and then after a while, we are w-a-a-a-y too tired to mind.
So what if you chose something you would LUV 2 DO???
Here are some of the things I LUV 2 DO:
The point about zumba for me is that it is something that resonates with me, speaks to my soul, and makes me want to get up and move.
I think exercise should be something that we like to do. I also think that we need to make those things we enjoy and which get our heart racing more a part of our life!
Too often we are tired and out of time and energy to devote one more second to something we don't need to do. I mean, we have to do the taxes right? And we have to do the laundry and the dishes eventually. But if we skip exercising, no one's gonna notice or mind. I mean, we might mind - a little - and then after a while, we are w-a-a-a-y too tired to mind.
So what if you chose something you would LUV 2 DO???
Here are some of the things I LUV 2 DO:
- Bicycle
- Rollerblade (had to learn)
- Whitewater rafting - looking to do whitewater kayaking now, and take my sons along with me as they've been with me on the other two.
- Hiking in the woods - much more interesting to me than walking through my neighborhood. But don't discount what good a short 15 min walk outside can do for your mental and physical health! It will get you started on doing more. The more you do, the more you want to do because the MORE you ENJOY it, IF you pick something YOU LOVE!
I've added a
You Tube clip of Zumba
The first and the third songs are very familiar zumba songs, as is most of the choreography the instructor uses for these songs. The middle song is very representative of a lot of other salsa/merengue songs used in zumba, but is not familiar to me.
Notice how much fun those trying this "demo" class are having (one guy REALLY gets into it ~ it cracks me up!).
Enjoy!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
The Lighter Side of Low-Carb: Better-Than-Ever-Best-Yet Revoloopsie Rolls!
Some ladies on my e*Diets Atkins support group - one of several support groups I had to help me through trials and tribulations in the past year - had found this website, which I want to share with you. With a sense of humor, and a tremendous weight loss just in 2008, this blogger shares with us all her OOPS-I-goofed-the-recipe-but-yum!-aren't-these-better? low-carb rolls.
I'll also add her to the sidebar for easy finding later!
The Lighter Side of Low-Carb: Better-Than-Ever-Best-Yet Revoloopsie Rolls!
I'll also add her to the sidebar for easy finding later!
The Lighter Side of Low-Carb: Better-Than-Ever-Best-Yet Revoloopsie Rolls!
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Keep It Keepin' On
It's been a few days since my last blog. Last year, when I first had the notion that I was going to finally do something about losing the weight I'd gained back, it went like this as well.
I didn't have time sometimes this week - I'm pretty busy during the week now, exercising. I have a son who likes to see me from time to time, but he also had injured his arm last week and couldn't exercise, so I exercised at home. I don't work out at home as well as at the gym, tho I did work up a sweat!
Excuses you're familiar with? These are why I didn't sit down and write a blog. PLUS - and I hate to admit this - I was a little intimidated by you guys. What if I didn't write something that made sense, or I let my thoughts just scatter across the board? I surely don't want to be laughed at, up here at the "front of the class" talking about how I lost weight!
Have any of you ever tried (or even seen) a Zumba class? I didn't see one until March - late March - 2007. So, in January, I at least didn't have that intimidation. But I did have the knowledge that I was out of shape. No way could I exercise for an hour.
To be honest, I had ridden a bike for 20-30 minutes before, but no one I rode with rode very fast, so that was hardly exercise if I had company. I could get 20 minutes of rollerblading with the boys in IF I sat down after the first 5 minutes. I have weak ankles and that hurt! But after the 5 minutes, then I could go for another song. And sit down. And drink some water. And then after awhile, do another 5 minutes. Eventually, I could get in 20 minutes of exercising this way, and lots of good water.
If you're not drinking water, start now - find a temp you like and a way of tracking how much you drink. Back then, I was going with the common admonition to drink 8 glasses a day. I wasn't always doing it, but I knew I should drink more than I was. I like the 32 oz Gatorade bottles. Even then, I'd already discovered this from buying them for the boys. Now I buy them and empty out the Gatorade if I lose mine. The wide mouth is great for guzzling; the size fits in my minivan's cup holders, and I don't have to count past 2 to get 8 cups in. Drink one; refill it once. Drink it. I can manage to keep track of that during the day - usually.
But exercising. It's like this blog. I'm starting slow. I'm learning. And one thing I knew about me and exercising - even last January! - was that I will not do anything for long if I don't love it. So, no jogging for me. Same for walking - I just get bored. I get bored easily, too.
So, I made a list of things I like to do, and that is why I had started bicycling and rollerblading. I like ice skating and am not very good at it, but my oldest son had nixed it completely early on. So, he has "quads" for rollerskates, while I and his brother have rollerblades. We just don't get out anymore (their choice, not mine). I also don't get much exercise bicycling with the younger one who has smaller tires which require a lot more work to pedal. That takes about as much energy as walking, tho it is a bit less boring.
So, what else made the list? Dancing! I've always liked dancing, but I realize this might not be your cup of tea. Find what works for you!!!
What did I do for dancing? First, and this was when the boys were babes, I requested (and was gifted from my Mom) a clock-radio for the kitchen so I could "dance" while I cooked and spent time in there. (Also keeps me from wandering away when I'm bored and letting something burn - oops!)
In January 2007, I used my love for dancing while I was out of town on a business trip. I played a song on my computer (but could have been the radio in the room) and tried to dance to it - joy de vivre and all - for the entire song. Guess what? I didn't quite make it! I thought it was 5 minutes long; turned out to be 3-1/2, but I'll round up and say 5 minutes, who cares?
But it was fun! And a bit of a point to me to say - Hey! Despite all the fun in your love life, you need to get back in shape for other things, too!
Yep, was not having trouble attracting men with the extra 30 pounds on, nor any of those bedroom activities which at our age goes on for hours, but couldn't go full-steam on a dance song for 5 minutes. I knew I had some blood pressure problems with stress the year before (my doctor had wanted me to come in and get it regularly checked, but I was nixing the idea of any BP meds. I knew how it affected men's sexual "abilities" and did not want the same effect on my own libido. (There are some aspects to blood pressure that I enjoy!)
I also knew both my Dad and my sister have diabetes and have sleep apnea. My Dad had also had a heart attack within the past three years, tho minor. His Dad had had triple-bypass surgery (no heart attack) in his later years, and one of my grandmothers had had a lot of strokes, particularly in the year before she passed away. These are the things I knew I was in danger of succumbing to, if I didn't get my health back.
How many of us have NOT seen a relative (usually male) who is out-of-shape then gets a visit in his 50s or 60s or even 70s from the death-doctor - a big scare that usually does something to cause him to finally lose weight and become thin again? I decided I didn't want to wait and do it later. I wanted to do it now.
But for now, I just decided that I would try another day to try and dance to the song and maybe not try to do it like a teenager next time.
And so, I am writing a blog a week later, and perhaps the next one will be in another week, or maybe I'll write tomorrow. I'll try not to let you readers intimidate me. Maybe I'll tell my family I'm writing a blog, but probably not yet. I won't tell til I really feel like I'm doing it. For now, it's my secret, shared with those who lose weight with me (and are my support network) and with those other zumba enthusiasts who understand how doing something we love really helps make it a lot easier! (As Beto says, "Ditch the workout, join the party")
For me, it is finding whatever YOU like to do so that you know you enjoy these things that help you get into the healthy shape and state you want to be in....and that too is personal for you. And then, don't give up just because you weren't successful the first time you tried, or even if you waited a week and you're tired and don't feel like doing it, just go try it a little bit. Do half a commitment. See if it makes you feel better. See if it makes you smile.
If you ever did this before, or if you give it a try now and it works for you (maybe it takes a month to see that it worked), please post a comment (where it says "comment" below, it is really a link to how you can post a comment to this particular blog post) and let me and the other readers know about it!
I didn't have time sometimes this week - I'm pretty busy during the week now, exercising. I have a son who likes to see me from time to time, but he also had injured his arm last week and couldn't exercise, so I exercised at home. I don't work out at home as well as at the gym, tho I did work up a sweat!
Excuses you're familiar with? These are why I didn't sit down and write a blog. PLUS - and I hate to admit this - I was a little intimidated by you guys. What if I didn't write something that made sense, or I let my thoughts just scatter across the board? I surely don't want to be laughed at, up here at the "front of the class" talking about how I lost weight!
Have any of you ever tried (or even seen) a Zumba class? I didn't see one until March - late March - 2007. So, in January, I at least didn't have that intimidation. But I did have the knowledge that I was out of shape. No way could I exercise for an hour.
To be honest, I had ridden a bike for 20-30 minutes before, but no one I rode with rode very fast, so that was hardly exercise if I had company. I could get 20 minutes of rollerblading with the boys in IF I sat down after the first 5 minutes. I have weak ankles and that hurt! But after the 5 minutes, then I could go for another song. And sit down. And drink some water. And then after awhile, do another 5 minutes. Eventually, I could get in 20 minutes of exercising this way, and lots of good water.
If you're not drinking water, start now - find a temp you like and a way of tracking how much you drink. Back then, I was going with the common admonition to drink 8 glasses a day. I wasn't always doing it, but I knew I should drink more than I was. I like the 32 oz Gatorade bottles. Even then, I'd already discovered this from buying them for the boys. Now I buy them and empty out the Gatorade if I lose mine. The wide mouth is great for guzzling; the size fits in my minivan's cup holders, and I don't have to count past 2 to get 8 cups in. Drink one; refill it once. Drink it. I can manage to keep track of that during the day - usually.
But exercising. It's like this blog. I'm starting slow. I'm learning. And one thing I knew about me and exercising - even last January! - was that I will not do anything for long if I don't love it. So, no jogging for me. Same for walking - I just get bored. I get bored easily, too.
So, I made a list of things I like to do, and that is why I had started bicycling and rollerblading. I like ice skating and am not very good at it, but my oldest son had nixed it completely early on. So, he has "quads" for rollerskates, while I and his brother have rollerblades. We just don't get out anymore (their choice, not mine). I also don't get much exercise bicycling with the younger one who has smaller tires which require a lot more work to pedal. That takes about as much energy as walking, tho it is a bit less boring.
So, what else made the list? Dancing! I've always liked dancing, but I realize this might not be your cup of tea. Find what works for you!!!
What did I do for dancing? First, and this was when the boys were babes, I requested (and was gifted from my Mom) a clock-radio for the kitchen so I could "dance" while I cooked and spent time in there. (Also keeps me from wandering away when I'm bored and letting something burn - oops!)
In January 2007, I used my love for dancing while I was out of town on a business trip. I played a song on my computer (but could have been the radio in the room) and tried to dance to it - joy de vivre and all - for the entire song. Guess what? I didn't quite make it! I thought it was 5 minutes long; turned out to be 3-1/2, but I'll round up and say 5 minutes, who cares?
But it was fun! And a bit of a point to me to say - Hey! Despite all the fun in your love life, you need to get back in shape for other things, too!
Yep, was not having trouble attracting men with the extra 30 pounds on, nor any of those bedroom activities which at our age goes on for hours, but couldn't go full-steam on a dance song for 5 minutes. I knew I had some blood pressure problems with stress the year before (my doctor had wanted me to come in and get it regularly checked, but I was nixing the idea of any BP meds. I knew how it affected men's sexual "abilities" and did not want the same effect on my own libido. (There are some aspects to blood pressure that I enjoy!)
I also knew both my Dad and my sister have diabetes and have sleep apnea. My Dad had also had a heart attack within the past three years, tho minor. His Dad had had triple-bypass surgery (no heart attack) in his later years, and one of my grandmothers had had a lot of strokes, particularly in the year before she passed away. These are the things I knew I was in danger of succumbing to, if I didn't get my health back.
How many of us have NOT seen a relative (usually male) who is out-of-shape then gets a visit in his 50s or 60s or even 70s from the death-doctor - a big scare that usually does something to cause him to finally lose weight and become thin again? I decided I didn't want to wait and do it later. I wanted to do it now.
But for now, I just decided that I would try another day to try and dance to the song and maybe not try to do it like a teenager next time.
And so, I am writing a blog a week later, and perhaps the next one will be in another week, or maybe I'll write tomorrow. I'll try not to let you readers intimidate me. Maybe I'll tell my family I'm writing a blog, but probably not yet. I won't tell til I really feel like I'm doing it. For now, it's my secret, shared with those who lose weight with me (and are my support network) and with those other zumba enthusiasts who understand how doing something we love really helps make it a lot easier! (As Beto says, "Ditch the workout, join the party")
For me, it is finding whatever YOU like to do so that you know you enjoy these things that help you get into the healthy shape and state you want to be in....and that too is personal for you. And then, don't give up just because you weren't successful the first time you tried, or even if you waited a week and you're tired and don't feel like doing it, just go try it a little bit. Do half a commitment. See if it makes you feel better. See if it makes you smile.
If you ever did this before, or if you give it a try now and it works for you (maybe it takes a month to see that it worked), please post a comment (where it says "comment" below, it is really a link to how you can post a comment to this particular blog post) and let me and the other readers know about it!
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