Health and Fitness July, 2015

[Harmony]

In case anyone is interested: Dr. Sears (Zone) diet sells pasta that is 20 gr (is it grams?) whatever - protein. I looked it up and it is really pricey. But checking around, I find Barilla Plus, a high protein pasta which has 17 and it has chickpeas and some other stuff in it for fiber. Dr. on a radio program today said it's very filling. I might check it out. This Dr. tops it with roasted vegetables and a little light italian dressing.

I need some other foods to eat as I'm getting very bored.

Right now I'm out of the 160's and halfway down the 150's - last time I was on a big diet I got down to 146 or so. I have a ways to go. My clothes are fitting better.

[Harriet]

HRH and I bought dd a new bike today. Although we looked at the gorgeous ones at the bike shop, the sticker shock of $480 sent us to choose between Schwinn and Huffy at $140.

We chose the Schwinn Fairhaven in the same two-tone beige/teal coloration as the photo. She came close to choosing the Huffy, which was a value because it came with a front basket and a cup/phone holder for the same price. But the Schwinn's true woman's frame with the low curving dip for getting on and off sold us. I've always considered this frame style much safer and when I saw that it was one of the features of the high priced models, I knew I wanted to look for it. I may ride it some, too, although it's not my favorite exercise.

Fats - every time I have my whole foods shake I think about the good fats in there and feel grateful for an easy way to get them. Avocado, either walnuts or Brazil nuts, seeds with healthy fat (hemp and pumpkin) are in there. We use the coconut oil for frying, although I also use butter for omelets sometimes. Every day a fish oil capsule. (I believe it's Dr. Sears who says this should be one in a.m. and one in p.m., but I don't always get that done.)

Harmony and helia, great reports!

Loved reading Ramblin's first post of the month. So optimistic and encouraging - so happy for you!

Dee, I know you will be so happy to start feeling better and get more active. What a bummer to take that spill!

[Nancy]

I did 10 mi on exercise bike and some weeding for my exercise today.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Harriet: my next bike will be a proper women's frame. I may still do a full mount like I do with my bike but I'll have that option. Dismount is still hard for me, I have yet to do one while still in motion because I do that with my left foot still on the pedal and that leg can't support & balance me well enough. I could do it last year, since it was my right foot that couldn't bear weight but left foot/knee were ok.

I will need a new bike sooner rather than later. I may have derailers for 21 speeds but can only use 7 with reliability. The top 7 gears are too hard for me to push the pedals and the bottom 7 won't work if the bike is under stress (i.e. going up hill which is exactly when you need low gears!)

My current bike has me leaning forward at a strange angle (half up, half down) which makes long rides hard - today my left hand was going to sleep because of the angle my wrist is at. I need to lean forward or else the saddle hits me in the wrong spot. The bike has never fit properly - some frame designs simply don't work with certain body types and I never should have bought the bike (my old one fit perfectly.)

My new bike will likely be a lighter frame as well.

As for price - mine is 10 years old and I paid $680 for it then so even $500 at a specialty shop looks great to me. I might start shopping in the US and bring it back across the border if I'm out for 48 hours. A hotel will only cost $200 so I should be able to save several hundred.

[Nancy]

I did ten miles on the exercise bike today for my exercise .

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Probably down another pound today but will wait until I have 2 more confirmations before recording it on MFP.

Am not stiff or sore this morning after the long bike ride. On the other hand, I was restless all night so think I was either stiff and squirming, or dh was stiff and squirmy which affects me.

He leaves in less than 2 weeks so I'll be able to figure out how much he affects my sleep once he's gone for 13 nights.

[LadyMaverick]

A couple months ago I bought 2 bikes at a garage sale. One was man frame and the other was woman frame. I paid something like $20 for the both of them. Both bikes have non-standard improvements - especially the seats are awesome. The couple that was selling the bikes had customized them and they said they used them for awhile but their interest has switched to kayaking. The bikes had been hanging in their garage so they decided to sell them. The tires are flat so we will probably need to replace those. Need to drag them out of our shop and do it!

A very wise and dear friend recently gave me a much needed nudge to get my priorities straight. It has been one month since I was sitting in the doctor office and received the news that I had heart damage and needed to lose weight NOW. In the past month, I have not kept my priorities in the right order and let taking care of myself slip down the list. I know how to do it. I have all the basic tools and information required. The missing piece is maintaining my focus.

So, I am starting again.

Yesterday -
** 1710 calories
** 13,633 steps plus in swim pool for 30 minutes
** weight loss trend was down 0.3 lbs this morning so the trend is now headed in the right direction.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Years ago, I heard the adage: God First, Family Second, Me Last. I'm not sure who is spreading that lousy logic but now that I've been smacked down three times (hepatitis, gall bladder, foot/knees) I'm learning:

1. When I'm desperately ill, I'll cling to God but that's as a lifeline. I can't fully serve God unless I'm reasonably healthy and able to do more than breathe in and breathe out. We get times in our lives when breathing is all we are expected to do and during that time we are allowing others to live out their calling to serve us. But to fully answer our call to God we have to have a handle on our health and we can't stay healthy if we don't put ourselves first quite often.

2. When I'm sick, I can't take care of my family. It gives them a chance to step up and learn to take care of me, but, as with God, I can't fully care for them to the best of my ability if I'm not able to care for myself (at no time was that more apparent to me than when I was unable to toilet myself.) I think we forget that modeling self-care and self-respect, is an important way of teaching others become better people. They learn it is a good thing to care and respect themselves and it will help them make better choices when a parent isn't there to make the choices for them.

3. So putting myself last doesn't work. There are times each day I will happily do so, but I need to keep an eye on me, and caring for me and make sure that at the end of the day I made good choices for me. I am the only person in the world that I have full control over and the only person who will have to live with me all my life. If I'm to honour that gift of a body and soul, then I need to care for that body and soul.

I'm blessed these past 2 months with an open enough schedule to put myself fully first. It has made a huge difference. But it was a conscious effort to put things aside and me first because if I didn't, I could see the downward spiral I was on.

After having to put everything aside for the months with hepatitis, I've been focusing on trying to get caught up. The same happened with the gall bladder hospitalizations and then the move. I never got back to full health from those setbacks since they led to the knee/foot issues. I kept thinking "Once the move is over, then I can focus on me." But I didn't because then I was busy with other things that had been put aside during the move.

So now is the time to truly put me first. It is all about me right now!

And interestingly, since I'm feeling healthier and moving more, I'm finding I'm able to keep up with a lot of the other stuff more easily.

[Nancy]

Today for my ex. I got some weeding done, cleaned the coop and nest boxes.

[LadyMaverick]

Focus on my health continues. Yesterday -
** 1596 calories
** 6844 steps. My step count is low because of Sabbath rest, but they do included working up a good sweat late in the day.
** Weight loss trend continues in right direction with 0.6 lb loss this morning

I was frustrated when I logged my lunch into MFP and saw the numbers. I THOUGHT I was making a healthy choice by ordering a Caesar Salad when eating lunch out yesterday. They gave me 2 packets of dressing, but I only used one. If I had checked the numbers on the packet BEFORE i ate it, I wouldn't have eaten it! It was a good reminder to remain aware of what I am eating.