Health and Fitness, May, 2019

[RunKitty]

Gray skies today.

Ran 2.5 miles.

16 flights of stairs; 14 to go.

24 checked boxes in Daily Dozen app yesterday. I end up eating more than I need just to get to 24. Need to slow that roll for sure. It's been easy to stay at goal weight unless I get obsessed with checking all those boxes.

[Ramblinrose]

I have an amazing 50 second microwave flaxseed muffin I make all the time. Several of my friends now eat them on a regular basis after I gave them the recipe.

1/4 cup ground flaxseed
1 Tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp coconut oil
1 egg
1 packet of stevia

Spray coffee cup with Pam. Mix dry ingredients in coffee mug. In separate bowl/cup mix egg and oil
Till blended. Add to dry ingredients and mix well. I use a fork to make sure there is no dry ingredients left in the bottom of the cup.

Microwave for 50 seconds. I split mine length wise and lightly butter the muffin and then very lightly drizzle a tad of honey on mine. You can add a few blueberries in the mix, but you’ll need to cook it a bit longer.

Tip: if you find the muffin is a bit dry for your taste you can take a 1/4 cup measuring cup, fill it almost to the top with flaxseed and then add some almond flour to top it off.

Also, you can measure out all the dry ingredients and put them in a snack zip lock bag. I usually make 5 bags at a time and store them in my pantry. That way all I have to do is dump it in my coffee cup, mix my egg and oil and then put them together to microwave and zap it.

The original recipe says to mix all the ingredients in one cup and mix, but I find the muffins don’t cook evenly.

[RunKitty]

Gray skies and cool.

Ran 2.7 miles.

21 flights of stairs; just 9 to go.

[Harmony]

RRose thanks for the recipe. I might try it for me. I read a couple days ago that flaxseed can be problematic for anyone on blood thinners, so may want to check on that first. I usually put a spoonful of flaxseed over my oat bran cereal, but I forgot today.

[Harriet]

Okay, I have furthered my life experience by learning to make a chia "egg". Good for me; I'm sure I can use this knowledge. Had only made flaxseed "eggs" before, usually for cornbread, which works well, btw.

I have a lot of ways, actually, to get flaxseed into my meals. Like the cornbread above, for instance, or other baking. Sprinkled in or over almost any kind of breakfast cereal like Harmony's, especially my oatmeal. Sprinkle over salads along with ground nuts. Also into smoothies, of course.

So I'm not sure I really need a muffin that is expressly a quarter-cup of flaxseed, but your method sounds very efficient, Ramblin'. I wondered how the researchers did it. Their point was to hide the "identity" of the flaxseed or placebo among other ingredients and keep everyone believing these were identical treats, so I think they had the participants eat several muffins through the day to get to the total 1/4-cup.

The Tarahumara (thank you for spelling that, RunKitty!) have been interesting to me for a different reason. Theirs was the study(s) that showed that it was perfectly normal for HDL to become lower as Total cholesterol lowered. Esselstyn mentioned them only briefly in his book but has been pointing them out in papers and lectures ever since. He says it was their lipid panels that took away a lot of worry over low HDL, as long as other lipids show no cause for concern. For someone like me, whose HDL went down as Total went down, I appreciate the info, lol! I don't "need" a higher HDL as I was once told. My body's got this. I'm good.

Our General Practitioner (mostly HRH's) is leaving. Lousy for HRH, who was just learning to relate to this one and trust her. For me, it just puts me further into this time of hardly having a Gen Prac at all. After our last one left, I saw another at this location, ya'll may remember, who said "don't get used to me either, I'm retiring". So this makes 3 gone for me. I don't know why our location here is a revolving door. We'll probably try the newest first-year guy - dd20 liked him. Wonder if he has had time to hang his diplomas yet. (I'm exaggerating, lol!)

[Nancy]

Tues. I did 30 min. On the stat bike and 15 min. In the garden.
Wed. I walked the dog, cloudy but I did not need to wear the flannhel shirt I had on I thought it was colder than it was.

[RunKitty]

Glad the Tarahumara were able to help you out with the HDL infor, Harriet. Wish I could run the way they do.

Ran 3.4 miles.

30 flights of stairs; 10 to go.

[RunKitty]

Blue skies and sunshine. Perfect.

Ran 2.8 miles.

21 flights of stairs; 9 to go.

[Twins' Mom]

I tried adding a little flaxseed to my smoothie and it didn't blend out. This morning's smoothie was with a banana, I'll see tomorrow how it works with frozen berries. Perhaps the seeds in the blackberries will make the flaxseed taste smoother.

[Ramblinrose]

Twins... I use ground flaxseed. It’s like a flour.