Health and Fitness December, 2013

[Ivy]

I didn't eat any sweets today. I did yoga and stretches, walk-talked on the cell for 20 minutes, have been doing light housekeeping, laundry, and emptied the DW, so it's 9:12 p.m. and the last loads of laundry are drying and washing. I have an empty laundry basket. This way, I can concentrate on getting in a morning walk on Christmas before DD comes to visit and have dinner.

[Nancy]

I did my ex. Bike miles and gazelle time today.

[Ivy]

I ate 1 slice of cherry pie with 1 scoop of vanilla ice cream on it.

I didn't exercise today. I'll begin anew tomorrow.

Congrats for exercising on Christmas, Nancy. WTG! I'm proud of you and you should be very pleased with yourself for not being a slacker today, like I was.

I've told DH in the past, "Tomorrow, I'm turning over a new leaf!" And DH says, "You've turned that old leaf over so many times, through our entire marriage (since 1970) that the leaf's worn out and is gone by now."

I made some calendar reminders, to remind myself to stick to eating healthy, do yoga and walks, too. I also have been very busy this evening, going from a current letter I'm writing, back to the office to "Google" various answers to questions. So this is keeping me from getting stiff from sitting too long in one spot, I feel very limber and less pain this evening. So by moving, it's helped my pain level. I heard on the news how studies show that elderly women, especially post-menopausal women, sit 30-minutes at a time or longer. On "some" days, that's me. I think getting up and moving every 15 - 30 minutes is a good thing, too. I want to be healthier in the New Year and lose weight and not just .8 Lbs. over an 11-week period. I've written my food down, daily weight, take the weekly average and then subtract from my starting weight. I've yo-yo'ed a lot, and now I've only lost .8 Lbs. in 11 weeks. I've been very lax on my walking program, but DO the yoga and stretches.

[Nancy]

Thanks Ivy!

Bs was up today so I HAVE to get moving. Hen pen chores first and 2nd rounds done for got to take out water so I had to go out again.

Yestersay H. Was watching some thing I considered stupid and wanted to see what CNN had on the royals so took my tablet and headedmto the basement and got on the gazelle whilemI watched time went by pretty quickly so I need to do that again today.

Have not been able to ignore sweetes in house but the ch. Cream pie is gone now.

[Harmony]

I got on the scale the day I left on Christmas trip. I tried to do the very best I could up there, and it was a challenge with so many goodies around. I didn't take seconds of the yummy sweet potato casserole, or eat the cinnamon bun, or the toast, or the lemonade, or much of the sweet tea. I did however have a very small sliver of apple pie (without the whip cream) and did sample all the Christmas cookies.

So, as many good choices as I could possibly force myself to do. With my breath held, I got on the scale this morning...and I was the exact same weight I was when I went up there! YAY, no set-back!

I heard on the tv last week most people gain an average of 5 lbs between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I'm so glad I didn't!

[Ivy]

I woke with an earache, bad headache, and stiff neck. And cold symptoms, too. I took Children's Elixir for the cold and headache, an OTC med for the painful ear, and then did some neck stretches and circles. Now my neck's fine, my headache's gone, and my ear aches a bit, but not as bad as this morning.

I was on hold, on a business call, walking, and after the call was over, I continued to walk, for a total of 25 minutes. Then I did some leg/calf stretches, and I plan on doing yoga and more stretching once or twice, before the day's over.

I gained about 3.5 Lbs. over the holidays, which isn't as bad as 5 Lbs., but in the New Year I want to bring the weight down. I've been at 183 - 198 Lbs. since 9/15/13 and Thanksgiving Day 2012, I was 168.8 Lbs. I can really feel that weight gain, even though it went on slowly, because the extra weight on the joints and muscles feel more painful. So losing to have less pain is a good incentive for a goal for the New Year.

Also, I'm thinking about going to Word, to make myself a poster for my office wall. I'll add clip art, write i large letters, goals for losing, and reasons for them, such as:
1- To eat an eye healthy diet,
2- To have more strength and energy,
3- Have less pain,
4- More muscle tone and to build more muscles,
5- To have more stamina to do container gardening and hike in the woods this summer with my grandsons,
6- To get back down into my size 16 (without the "W" on the size) jeans,
7- To walk for longer periods, try Zumba, and do my Pilates/yoga DVD's again.

And stuff like that. I've got a spot on the right of my laptop, above my desk, perfect for the poster, underneath a picture of a Hawaii beach. My theme is "Hawaiian" in my office, along with a bark wall-hanging with a pink fake orchid flowers on it. It's uplifting and nice, with 2 long florescent lights, to brighten my work space well, so it's like fake sunshine.

Does anyone else have 2014 health and fitness goals? I want to post something daily, here, for 2014, once the topics are picked and get going, too.

[Harmony]

I have goals, Ivy! Some of them are the same as I had the beginning of 2013 but my bad health and lack of energy sidetracked all that. Only this fall did I start to make progress. But I want to continue and add more and go forward. I don't think at my age it is impossible to get more fit; it may be harder, but not impossible.

[Nancy]

I am on the ex. Bike now. X
Earlier I raked up some leaves and got them in the trash.
Walked & shopped also.

[Ivy]

I walked 20 min., will walk more later along with stretching and yoga.

I have a dump cake & bake recipe w/ingredients to bake, but decided to NOT do it today, but wait until closer to my Jan. 15th b-day so we'll be eating 1 cake, rather than 2. I want to eat less cake, but it's fine for special occasions.

I'm very happy with my QVAR inhaled steroid and peak flow meter readings. It's nice to be healthier-feeling and able to breathe better.

When I start a muscle-building program in the New Year, I believe I'll begin with hand-held soup cans and will use my stretchy power bands with handles on them, which come with a Richard Simmons' video tape. When I get stronger, I'll start to use my 3-Lbs. hand-held weights. I don't need ankle weights, I don't think, because my legs are very strong. It's my upper body I'm concerned about, which needs building. I'll do the shoulder PT exercises and ankle PT exercises, too. I enjoy the exercises where you put your back against the wall, make yourself into a "chair" and hold the squat for awhile. I also like the sit down T-Tapp hoe downs. I have a T-Tapp DVD with some moves in it. I have PIlates/Yoga 20-min. W.W. workout, some Pilates DVD's, too, and a Zumba DVD.

One goal for the New Year is to do what my podiatrist and PT suggested:
1- warm up, ride stationary recumbent bike five minutes one day a week for 7 days.
2- warm up, add 5 minutes, weekly, to the recumbent bike riding.
3- try working up to 30 minutes daily, over the weeks, building slowly.
4- listening to my ankles (my problem area as far as strength and balance are concerned)
5- to never go really-really fast on my bike, because of my ankle problems.
6- to do the ankle PT exercises once or twice a day or every other day.

My main goal is to be more limber, stronger, feel healthier, even though lab work shows I'm VERY healthy, but my body lacks muscle tone. Do all 62 year old women get flabby at that age? Or is it just me?

[Ivy]

The Jan. 2014 issue of "Prevention," has some good things in it, concerning health, fitness, goals, and getting a healthier new you in the New Year. They had the article on 4 or 5 people who changed their lives. It was very good. I love this issue, will keep it, to re-read because it's full of some exceptionally good things, I thought.