Random Acts of "Kindness"

Posts tagged ‘Exercise’

EAT TO LIVE

It is no secret — I’m always trying to lose weight. It has every thing to do with my knees hurting and my desire to get some of my weight off of them. I continue to try new things that might help. Since I’m no longer young and eat a healthy diet, it is not as easy as giving up soda and snacks. Because of various body parts, I can’t do the exercises I did was I was younger and more flexible. I’m always looking for a new diet plan or cookbook that will help me attain my goal.

Before we went to the camper the last time, I saw EAT TO LIVE, by Joel Fuhrman at Costco. When I picked the book up, I was impressed by the nutritional information. The recipes were quick to prepare, high on protein and low on sodium. Everything I need in a cookbook.

So far I have made four recipes from the book of 141 — one was a soup, two were salads. The only one that didn’t work to my expectation, was my fault. the soup and the salads were filling. I wasn’t hungry after lunch, looking for other stuff to eat. Did I lose any weight? I’m not sure. When we are at the camper, we eat out regularly and I consume more sodium than I should. The temperature has been in the 80’s. Do I drink enough water? Many questions — no good answers.

I enjoyed everything that I made. I found it helpful to have a salad in the fridge, ready to eat when I came home from the pool. I have planned not only to make the same recipes again, but I have looked through the book looking for more.

I have been going to aquacize on a regular basis. As long as I pay attention to the exercises, make sure I’m not stressing my shoulder or my knee, it seems to be good for my shoulder and for my knee. I’m having an easier time walking.

I tried on a dress I bought in Aruba last year, I couldn’t wear it, my tummy got in the way. I tried it on last night, it is now a possibility. That is PROGRESS!

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THE TUB

We have an old fashioned claw foot tub in our upstairs bathroom. Over the years I have enjoyed many hours soaking in it. Sadly I haven’t been able to get in it for years. How many? I really have no idea. I don’t know if I was able to enjoy a bath when I had the ulcer on my leg. I know since it has healed I haven’t been in it. Then there is my weight, and the inner tube where my tummy used to be. Lets not forget that my knees are now a problem — if I get down on the floor, getting back up is a challenge.

So I’m sure you are wondering why I’m writing a thought ramble on the tub. It was a combination of circumstances. First I was home alone and my knees were hurting. I thought it would be an excellent idea to soak in the tub. Evidently I wasn’t thinking. I decided that I would climb in fully dressed and see if I could get myself back out.

I DIDN’T take our house phone or my cell phone in to the bathroom with me. I knew my husband would probably call and would expect me to answer the phone. OOPS! I had accidentally washed his cell phone and he needed to get the new one connected. He was at the store working on that issue.

I used our grandchildren’s step to help me get into the tub and sat down with a bang. I was VERY comfortable sitting in the DRY TUB. But I had to get out. I tried pushing my body up using my feet. My slipper socks prevented my feet from getting traction. No problem, I took the socks off. But it didn’t help. I slowly raised my back up to the top of the tub but not high enough to help. Next brilliant idea! I threw my leg over the side. Now What? — leg dangling over the side didn’t help. Thankfully I was able to get the leg back into the tub.

I was VERY COMFORTABLE resting with my back against the back of the tub. I could have sat there until someone came home. But if the phone rang, I couldn’t answer it and someone would be worried. I would get a royal bawling out. My next brilliant idea actually worked. I pulled the little step into the tub. Lifted my butt onto it and got out of the tub. I might actually try that again — later. I would like to loose a few more pounds first or get more flexibility into my legs.

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ON THE WIND

I often send up a request for HELP, or PATIENCE or ANSWERS. I don’t want to convey the idea that I ALWAYS receive an answer or a message or the ability to accomplish the task at hand. BUT the reality of the situation is that if I pay ATTENTION, stay open to answers — whatever the query was for is often answered. My recent requests were for HELP — weight loss and a solution to ease the stiffness in my body. All the messages I receive are not answers to my queries, sometimes it is something I have to know.

I recently had deep cleaning done to my teeth. I have to admit that I wasn’t overjoyed when I was told to come back in four weeks for a check up. I thought I was DONE. I wanted to be DONE! The next day I had an email that emphasized the importance of the health of your teeth — how important it was — linked to a healthy heart. I think someone was trying to tell me something. I GOT THE MESSAGE! I will make another appointment, longer out than four weeks because of travel plans but before summer actually starts.

Although the scale finally moved, it didn’t move that far and now it is stuck. The recent dampness and cool weather has made my legs feel like wood — they don’t want to move. I really don’t know if I have received the answers to my queries. BUT walking Robin I ran into a neighbor of mine. She has lost a substantial bit of weight but has also stopped. She remarked that she has to count calories, stay under 3,000 a day.

While I write down the food I have been eating, I haven’t been entering the details into any of the programs that give me a calorie count. Although I continue to exercise, I haven’t been doing any of the programs that are more intense or that raise my heart rate. If I want more results, I have to become more active, enter the details of my diet and increase my exercise.

Recently I shopped at Costco. a person was sampling ECODRINK — a multivitamin in a liquid form. Now I take a combination of vitamins and herbs that seem to help my body. The stiffness in new. Recently I also had an extremely bad cramp in my right leg. The person sampling the product said not only prevented leg cramps, it helped the hair and the nails. Now I take Magnesium on a daily basis but it wasn’t enough on this particular evening. I don’t know if this drink will be better for me than what I am currently doing but I am willing to try. Will it help the stiffness in my body? I don’t know. And I won’t know unless I try it. The drink replaces five of my morning mix of nine pills.

I have a month’s supply. I’ll have to pay ATTENTION and try to keep records to have an idea if it has helped: leg cramps, breaking nails, stiffness in my body. Is this drink an answer?

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CLOSET

When I was younger, if I wanted to lose weight, I would pick a diet, stay on it for a week or two and lose weight. Did you notice? I wrote when I was YOUNGER. Now I look at food, not even eat it and I gain weight. Heaven help me if I smell it. A slow cooker is a gift — prepare the food in the morning, set it to cook and eat it later in the evening when you are tired. Except — if you are home — the fragrance lingers in the rooms, promising good stuff to come. I have tried putting the slow cooker in the basement when Italian spices are included, as long as I stay out of the basement — it helps.

Weekly, monthly magazines always have a new plan, promising weight lose. I have tried a few — the weight loss promised never materializes. I haven’t given up though. Except I might FINALLY have realized what works for me. I wrote a few weeks back that the scale finally moved. It did — DOWN. It has been so long since my weight was down, I’m trying very hard to keep it off. But still live a normal (?) life.

I’m always captivated by a new recipe — especially for soup. Then of course I need to add my own spin. I usually end up with something that has no relationship to the original recipe but at the same time, I might not have liked that either. Since I’m sodium restricted, I eliminate salt and add spice. If I was smart, I would stay with the recipes I REALLY LIKE instead of experimenting with new stuff. Of course, I always say that when I’ve tried something new and missed the mark.

Realizing what works, noticing when weight has gone up and correcting immediately — I’m happy with the numbers I see in the morning. I’ve tried on a two piece bathing suit that I wore ONCE two years ago. Thankfully — this time I didn’t look like a seal AND I COULD GET THE TOP OFF. Last time I wore it, I was afraid I would be wearing it until it either fell off or I cut it off.

I’m still having 2 tablespoons of Braggs apple cider vinegar with honey in the morning and the evening. I’ve tried to increase the amount of water I drink. When I have too much sodium (ate out), I have a cup of dandelion tea — either root or detox. I’m still enjoying my red wine and dark chocolate along with 6 almonds in the morning.

Since I was so happy when I tried on the bathing suit — I tried on blouses that I received at Christmas that didn’t fit. Thankfully now — they DID. Caution to the wind, I tried on a jogging outfit that hung in my closet for too many years to count. IT FIT! I’m not giving up — I still would like to lose another pound or ten.

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BELLY BAND

When we were at our daughter’s house in Central Illinois, I saw an advertisement on TV that caught my attention. The silhouette of a woman was shown who had tummy rolls similar to mine, another silhouette was shown of the same woman without the tummy rolls. At the time I just had caught a glimpse. I didn’t know what product they were advertising but I remembered the silhouettes.

Fast forward a couple of weeks when one of the catalogues had an advertisement for a belly band. When I investigated — seen on TV was mentioned. I thought it was for the commercial that had caught my interest. I learned it was available at Wal-Mart for a low cost. The next day the product was in my hands. On Tuesday the band was on my body. I wore it all day and needed a towel to dry off not only the band but my body. Wednesday I tried again. Only I only wore it half of the day. When I took it off both the band and my belly were drenched. I noticed I had a rash on both sides of my belly that ITCHED. My husband suggested I wear a tee shirt under the band to catch the water. I might try it.

For the time being, I’m going band less. The rash is getting better but I’m not sure if my whole body joined in the rebellion or the stuff I put on to control the itch caused a MAJOR REACTION. Either way I’m drinking plenty of water, avoiding creams, etc — giving time for my body to recover.

I would LOVE to lose what I’m laughing referring to as my inner tube. I don’t want to resort to surgery or other such methods. I would like my inner tube to melt. If I get down on the floor, I have an awful time getting back up. I’m not sure if tummy scrunches would work but I have added a few when I’m laying on the bed at night. That is where I have been doing my leg exercises.

I often share my successes, I thought I would share this pit fall too.

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SCALE FINALLY MOVED

I gave in. I fought the good fight but I had to send up the white flag. For months, or should I say years — I have faithfully logged in my food in a notebook. I don’t measure it but for the most part, I was honest about what I was ingesting. I’m using that word because I can LOOK at food and gain weight — also the smells, oh — the aroma of pizza or popcorn or chocolate. Lets not mention hot dogs, steaks and other assorted invitations to eat.

On New Year’s Eve I vowed that I would exercise EVERY DAY! So far I have kept that resolution. Some days — my exercise is minimal. I’ve switched some exercise to right before bed — leg exercises and the various arm movements I did in the morning. Many nights I’m too tired but I convince myself to move. I seem to sleep better after. The morning I reserve for more strenuous exercises — Tai Chi, Jane Fonda, aerobics. A couple of years ago I did Simons or Belly Dancing — but it was a couple of years ago. I tried Belly Dancing last week, but my knees rebelled.

I was exercising, eating healthy — watching my proportions. Not snacking and THE SCALE REFUSED TO MOVE. Okay, maybe I’m exaggerating, maybe it went down an ounce only to go back up the next day. My knees continued to yell. I was getting upset with my lack of progress. I continued with apple cider vinegar with honey morning and night. I added Ashwagandha to deal with the stress of life and the results of the election. (I won’t comment on that.) And life went on — up one day, down the next. Oh, maybe down for two days, and I started to get excited only to go out to eat — have too much sodium and watch the numbers climb.

Now I know that if I gave up my wine it might help. But there are many advantages to drinking wine unless you over indulge, consume a bottle or more a day. I’m often reminded of the heart benefits of red wine.

So I ran up the white flag. I surrendered. With all my protesting, you would have thought I was doing something really HARD. Actually it is not. It is just time consuming and I have to PLAN! What am I making for supper? What am I eating when we go out? How many samples am I going to allow myself to have at Costco or other food store? In the morning, I’ll plan out my day using the program on MY FITNESS PAL.

I have only begun but my weight has DECREASED. I don’t know what the number is called. It was one those rounding ten numbers. And I’M UNDER IT. FOR THREE DAYS NOW and going lower. I will admit that I’m continuing on with my gratitude journal. I’m looking at cookbooks for recipes that the WHOLE family will enjoy. (Cooking for one, with two other people to cook for gets OLD!) I’ve made some soup for the freezer and it is my go to for lunch if I’m home. I’m also doing yogurt parfait sundaes for BREAKFAST. BUT I HAVEN’T HAD TO GIVE UP MY WINE OR DARK CHOCOLATE.

My knees still complain but it is early days yet. It dawned on me the other day that my weight in the morning is not as important for my knees as the weight in the evening. That is what my body carries around all day.

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HIDE AND SEEK

By now, if you read many of my thought rambles you know that our family loves dogs. I have had quite a few in my lifetime. In fact, Robin numbers #14. We have had many dogs, of many different breeds, so it is easy to say Robin is definitely unique. That description is an understatement. Now her breed is probably also unique. I like to say that her mother was a lady of the night and her father was a traveling salesman — an explanation if any was needed. We have determined that she has some rat terrier, and possibly border collie. A number of people think she has blue heeler also. The rat terrier explains the digging for moles and chasing squirrels. The border collie explains her need to know where her family members are. Her genes do not explain her need that we accompany her to the back yard or take her for walks on three to four times a day basis. Maybe that is explained by her being a rescue. She also won’t eat by herself, needs to be kept company while eating and DON’T give her plain dog food. It must at least have shredded cheese.

I have written that she seems to be a specialty dog. Taking care of our needs — exercise, sleep, companionship. She seems to know when my husband’s sugar is low. She takes it upon herself to interrupt our son when she feels he is working too hard. Needs some exercise — her walk, or needs to play. Our son plays an extremely important part in her life. Since she only likes fresh water out of the downstairs toilet, he is very obliging when he is up on the third floor and she is thirsty.

Robin was LOST when he was gone for a week. She spent many hours perched on a warm radiator cover watching for him out the window. She sat on the landing guarding the stairs. She went out into the yard during the night accompanied by one of us just in case he was coming home. In fact, the night he came home she must have known since she was more nervous than usual. Happy is to small of a word to describe her joy. Crying, trying to melt into his body, running like a crazy dog through the house and of course, making the extreme effort to share his food.

Robin sleeps in the back bedroom, where she has taken many of her toys. Our floors are as littered with toys as when our children or grandchildren where small. When I get up, she likes to join my husband in bed. Sometimes I have a hard time getting her up to go for a walk in the morning. If I’m not successful, she will decide that my exercise time needs to stop. As soon as she gets home, she runs upstairs to keep my husband company again.

Hide and Seek — Robin DID NOT want to get up when I called her. Since I was a pest, she finally gave in. More rest WAS NOT an option. Lovely morning for a walk. Reaching home, she ran upstairs to go back to bed. Something was WRONG! My husband was not in bed, nor was he in the bathroom, nor was he in his office, nor was he in the back bedroom. We heard her running back and forth — WHIMPERING, CRYING! My husband was hiding in the downstairs bathroom. I finally called her downstairs when she didn’t hear his call to her. She finally FOUND HIM! There is no way to describe the joy of that dog.

Wishing you peace and love — a belated Happy Valentines Day.

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HIDDEN TREASURES

I thought the appropriate title for this thought ramble was BURIED TREASURE. Oops, I already have one of that title. This title is just as appropriate. It just dawned on me that the anniversary of the fire is in a week. Both my mother and my brother passed over, I would have also except I guess I needed to stay here for my father.

“My friends in high places” are very good at what they do. A whole day can go by and I don’t become aware of their help. One day this week, I PLANNED to exercise — I changed into exercising clothes and put the dvd on the TV. Robin came downstairs, wanting to go out. I tried to get her up early, so we could go for a walk. She ignored me. I have to admit that she got me up at 5:00 AM, went outside, did her business and returned to the top of the porch. The pond of water on the sidewalk had turned to ICE. At 9:00, the pond of water was covered by snow. The snow seemed to be gritty, I thought if I was careful I could take her for a walk. Exercise plans went on hold. I put on my boots, hoping that their traction would keep me upright. I found a penny on our walk. “In God We Trust” it reminded me.

When we came back, it was too late to do the exercise that I planned. I did a fast Tai Chi and continued with the day. I had planned to make soup. I’ll admit that I didn’t follow the recipe, but the results were delicious. Of course, neither my husband nor my son wanted to try it.

Trying to salvage the day, I examined the contents of the drawer that holds our check books. I had many, many check registers and many, many unused deposit slips. I didn’t want to put the check registers back in the drawer. They moved to the filing cabinet, except there was no room. I had to pull out a handful of assorted paper. Looking at it, I have no idea why it was in the filing cabinet until I came across a couple of gems. I found the notice of a good friend of mine that passed away in 2003 at the age of 97. She is still often in my thoughts. I also found a letter from a friend of mine with a comic strip that gave me a good laugh. The person in the comic strip joined shopping anonymous and when she was tempted to go shopping, she call me and we went out to drink. I have to admit that I phoned my friend and arranged for a shopping trip.

Now I’ll admit that I realized that “helping hands” had influenced the day. I could detail the many things that have occurred this week, but I’ll try to keep this ramble on the short side. I was scammed this morning by a friend on the I-pad — only it wasn’t her. I asked a couple of personal questions that only she would have had the answer too and the person disappeared. I didn’t fall for the promised money. This afternoon, the mail brought prescriptions for my husband that I hadn’t ordered. One he would need in the near future — the rest, I’m puzzled. Knock knock — is anyone home? That is when I realized that an important anniversary is close.

THANKS EVERYONE.

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GRATITUDE JOURNAL

January — grey skies, freezing temperatures, cold wind — it is enough to make anyone depressed. Blue skies, sun, green grass — hiding for days. Various vitamins, teas haven’t helped. Since I’m trying to regain some of my flexibility, I’ve committed to exercising EVERYDAY, except for Sunday. I haven’t seen a decrease in weight, and depending on the day, I’m not seeing a change in flexibility yet. But I have just started — I’m not giving up yet. I will admit that the soreness in my knees isn’t helping.

Recently we were at Wal-Mart and I happened to find a daily planner that had pictures to color. At first I wasn’t going to buy it. I already have two journals that I use on a daily basis. I have an inner reflections calendar that tracks the day of the week. It has lovely photos and inspirational sayings. I use it to write down important happenings of the day. I’ve used a new version of the planner for many years.

I also have a weekly/monthly planner in which I log doctor appointments, planned travel and other important notes. It has facing pages for the month — easy to see when we have plans for a specific period of time. I log the titles of my blog — trying to make sure I have something written. The daily pages I use to note the food I have eaten, how many steps I have walked and how much I have slept. I don’t use calorie counts or measurements on the food. That might explain why my weight is staying the same. This is the third year that I have searched for this particular planner. I’ve discovered that having the month in my face helps, especially since now I log in my husbands sugar numbers. It has allowed me to change doctor’s appointments when we have had a conflict.

Since I have these two books — why do I need another? I put the book back on the shelf and explored other spending opportunities. Checking off items on my shopping list, I remembered something my husband wanted. After I found the item, I found myself back in the aisle that had the planner. No surprise, it was in my hand, and checked out at the cashier. I still didn’t know why I was picking it up.

What to do with the new planner? I’ve decided to try something new. I’ve decided to make this planner my gratitude journal. I log in my exercise for the day and earn the opportunity to color a bit of the picture. The space for writing is very small. Sometimes I can easily fill in all the lines. Sometimes I’m digging for anything to write. I’ll admit that almost each day of my life contains something to be grateful for. Especially if I’m out and about. I might be in the right place, at the right time to help someone. I might hear a bird or meet a neighbor. I don’t always remember. Writing them down helps. If the day has been quite, If nothing else, I can always write down that I woke up. I will also admit that I don’t feel the need to finish coloring the picture.

I haven’t been doing this long enough to know if it helps with depression but it is a start.

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ENERGIZER BUNNY

I hate to admit it! I really hate to admit it but I’ve gotten OLD. Now I know that we have had an extremely busy couple of months. We were home a total of FOUR DAYS after we closed the camper for the winter. During that time I needed to put away all of the food that we didn’t eat during the summer, catch up on the mail, change summer clothes for winter and prepare for our next trip.

We were back home a total of five days before our grandchildren came for the weekend. The weekend was lovely — we took advantage of the good weather and went to the zoo. Next, after the kids went home –taking advantage of the good weather, I went to the Garden. Then we had a couple of back to back doctor visits. No rest for the weary!

Still switching clothes and getting ready for our granddaughter’s and great grand’s visit for Thanksgiving.
And COOKING in advance for the feast. Taking a break, getting off my feet — I watched a cooking show on Thanksgiving. Now I will admit that I have cooked turkey for many, many, many years. BUT I learned something new. The chef I watched recommended taking out the wishbone for easier cutting and removing the breast from the skeleton. I’ve deboned many chicken breasts so I TRIED IT! I couldn’t get the wishbone out BUT filleting the breast, cutting the meat when it was off the bone was EASY! I didn’t have to wrestle with the whole turkey. Hopefully I will remember this trick.

Granddaughter and great grand (3 years old) arrived. The visit was LOVELY — even Robin liked both of them. More family staying at the house — more out and about. I wanted some of the energy from the children. They DIDN’T SHARE! Our granddaughter had a bucket list of things she wanted to do. During the time span that they were in town I got more than 40,000 steps on my Fitbit. My daughter told me I was the energizer bunny — just keep going and going. She is right! I took more than 500 photos on my camera. Every day I prayed for ENERGY. The day that they were leaving we stopped at the Conservatory before heading for the airport. In the room that had a slide, a four year old girl was with her family. The two girls had a lovely time, the adults were able to enjoy their energy from ground level. I had to say “Thank You”. Now I know that many things just naturally occur in life, but I have had many years of receiving “help” from “my friends” and I DON’T TAKE that “help” for granted.

The “Grand’s are safely home and I’m charging my batteries. Oh, did you just say that Christmas is coming?

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