Health and Fitness, June, 2015

[Lady Maverick]

There are so many Low carb diets available that it seems overwhelming to choose one to follow. I have to be realistic and know I can't/won't prepare 12 meal/snacks a day (6 low carb & 6 regular for LO & DGD4). While sorting through the information, I am taking my existing menu planning system and modifying it to keep the protein:carb ratio around 1:2. I may have to adjust the ratio up to 1:3 because I've lost 2 lbs in the last 2 days. I don't want to lose it THAT fast. Yesterday I ate over 1600 calories and still lost 1.6 lbs!!

I did purchase the premium of MFP. I wanted the access to more information of macro & nutrients. I am using that information to help me maintain the protein/carb ratio.

[Harriet]

LadyM it is best that you are not here with me because you don't want to get hugged that hard while you are so busy.

Thanks for that very informative link. Ds30 has often mentioned his great learned respect for vagal events ("the common or vasovagal faint") while on emergency calls. I believe I witnessed this happen to my mother twice. The first time she was taken to the hospital afterward since the ultimate reason had been dehydration during a long power outage. The second time she was in the hospital and was asked to do too much walking after an operation, and she fainted upon returning to the room and sitting down.

About your diet planning, it will be the reduction of simple (sugar and flour) carbs and the increase of complex (veggie and fruit) carbs that will be "what the doctor ordered". And you are such an excellent planner, you will handle that well. Not to worry!

I wish there was a catchy fast way to say that, rather than "low-carb", because eating less carbs in general is not the point. "High protein" isn't the point, either.

Lynlee, that is interesting about iodine - thanks - and that's just one element. The potential story for the whole spectrum of nutrition improvement possibilities ... ... if we only knew!... ... might be so encouraging.

Allergy has given me a one-two punch, with a lack of sleep hurting other areas of health. Getting over it.

[Nancy]

Clasical stretch is on marinda esmand white is her name.
Is ln here at six thirty in the morning. She is 64.

I have a friend the does one of these uses u tube on her schedule. Love that idea! I have been out to the chicken & took a stroll around the tne yd.

Headi g to the mtns today so I will walk there.
Later in the week will get put the ski poles to use on my walks my walking buddy friend is having surgery.

I can bend over and touch the floor with my palms while standing. Last night my stretch was picking up cherries off the ground fir the chickens next doir the said I could have them they lost a tree branch from their cherry tree.

My friend at spinning said she varies her walking route and expands the route as she can. My other friend is opening a yarn shop in an upstairs locatipn. I said I do stairs 3 tims extra as part of my ex routine.

Cutting back on pm coffee thought it might help hubby.

[RunKitty]

Finally had a chance to run this morning.

Wishing Lady M all the best, and agreeing with Harriet about the meal planning.

[Harmony]

LadyM, I am very sorry to read of your recent troubles. I do hope it isn't very serious and ongoing, and I'm very grateful they caught it so quickly.

The list Kathryn posted was so scary to me because all but 1 or 2 of those things I experienced last year almost constantly. However, those things are so universal, one can explain them away with other things, for instance the pain in the jaw (which I get from acid reflux) or indigestion (which I get from my vitamins occasionally). It's all a scary subject for us ladies, don't ya think?

Anyway, I'm also trying to figure out diet, which works for me and which doesn't. This time around I began just cutting out higher fat things but I find I'm getting more carbs than I normally did. Instead of a piece of cheese I'm reaching for a plain half english muffin. So that seems counter to losing weight...however since I've been doing this, less than 2 weeks, I've lost 3 pounds! I've never ever lost weight that fast, even counting calories and staying to 1000 or 1200 at most. Low carb and atkins-type diets were both very very hard for me to stick to over the long haul and weight loss was very very slow. Weight watchers, in my opinion, is all about portion control. And that is the basics of any diet, mostly, right?

I'm getting more fruit than I ever did before...and that goes counter to what people say because of the sugar in it. So, none of it makes much sense to me. If it was easy, we'd all be thin, right? If you think about it, naturally thin people don't routinely go around counting steps, posting on websites their menus etc., filling in charts, reading books, etc. They just have a good routine for them that works to keep them where they'd like to be. I was like that when I was thinner, for years.

Just a lot to think about.

[Twins' Mom]

I've always wondered why I didn't seem to get many steps in when I go the local Sunday Market. I think it's what Kathryn posted earlier in the week:

Sunny: my fitbit doesn't count under 10 steps.

This market is in a very large open building and I walk quite a bit there - from the car to the market, and around the market several times deciding what to buy and what vendors. It has seemed to me that I've never gotten many steps there, considering how big it is, but I bet it's that I stop often - either from crowds or to look at things.

So far have 4700 for the day.

[Ramblinrose]

Twins I wonder abt the way Fitbit counts my steps as well. When my gazelle counter shows I've gone 3 miles my Fitbit only counts 1.6 steps and I am moving constantly. Also my gazelle shows my time and it's is always twice more than my Fitbit, which is a Flex

I have dropped out of my fitness group for the next few months simply because they do early morning Saturday workout outside. My body can not handle that. That means I need to pick up
my training here at home. I see push ups and burpees in my future.

Also want to focus on my eating... Already had my skinny muffin for my breakfast... I get to eat one every other day and I love them. I can also eat chocolate once a day as well.

[Twins' Mom]

Recorded my weight on MFP this morning, down 2 lbs since I weighed last Monday. Did not eat well Friday-Saturday, did a little better yesterday (but endulged in peach cobbler w ice cream last night - a bigger serving than I should have.) Last Monday was the high point since I started keeping a spreadsheet with a.m. weight last September.

Getting back on program today.

[Kathryn-in-Canada]

Fitbits only count steps, not others forms of exercise (ski machines, gazelle, exercise or real bike.) I'm not sure how it does on a step machine but my guess would be poor since you are aren't actually putting your foot to the floor, which is the movement it is looking for - the strike of the foot as it hits the floor, more than the up and down of the leg. So anything that saves your knees will also register a lower step count.

On the other hand, on my bike I get about roughly number of steps I could walk in the time that I bike. So, if I walk at 3 mph (which, according to something I just read, is slow but currently is the very fastest I can manage), and bike at 8 mph (which is also very slow, but again the fastest I can manage on a sustained ride), if I bike for an hour, I get credit for about 2 - 3 miles of steps. Or a real life example, yesterday I biked for 50 minutes, 7 miles and got credit for 2 miles of steps (including walking the bike up a steep hill!)

I've decided I can live with the number of steps that I don't feel represent the effort I gave out but this is where a tracker other than a fitbit is better. There are many trackers that handle biking or swimming for instance since they are tracking more than just foot-falls, they are tracking heart rate and motion in a different way.

[Lady Maverick]

My fitbit steps have dropped in half of normal the last couple of days. Normally I get 8 - 12K steps a day without any exercise. However the last couple of days, I've been sitting frequency and the fitbit steps are reflecting that reduction in activity. Also we are spending about an hour a day in the swimming pool which isn't shown on FitBit steps (I don't manually enter the swim activity).

I arrived at the hospital this morning at 5:40am to do fasting blood work. I was hoping to get it done and back home before L0 & DGD4 woke up. I made it back home at 7:00am and they were still snoozing (DH was home with them).

I've contacted my family doctor office this morning and confirmed the cardiologist appt & doppler test are in process of being scheduled.