13 May 2012
;)
I said I'd try. Yesterday, I went to a "Weird Al" concert, and today was recovery. More tomorrow!
10 May 2012
Body Clutter Chapter 1
Welcome to today, Part 2. :)
There are 14 chapters in Body Clutter, and I will be attempting to work through one chapter a day. Last time I tried this, I only made it to chapter 4, but I have big plans this time! By the way, I was using a hand drawn birthday card from my younger brother as a bookmark, and the poem he wrote on it is just perfect. He said:
May all of your goals and dreams come true
Good health and happiness I wish upon you
Times are tough, work is hard
I hope you find comfort in reading this card!
ANYWHO...To business.
Chapter 1 is titled Food: The Ultimate Weapon of Self-Destruction. The first question it asks is: what is your favorite food, one you can't ever seem to get enough of? For me, that's milk. At the time of my first reading, I could have easily drank a gallon of milk in a sitting, let alone a day. There is just something about that creamy sweetness that is intoxicating for me.
The second question is: Why? Why is your relationship with that particular food so out of balance? I had to really think about it, but I did figure it out. I was a big child, always the most overweight in my already quite large-bodied family. My mother, trying to be kind and save me from the life I am currently living, put strict limits on my food intake. She used to hide the snack cakes and chips so I couldn't find them. This only lead to my sneaking other foods and hiding them in my bedroom, but that is a separate issue.
There were a few foods I could eat as much of as I wanted. Raw broccoli and carrots (with limited amounts of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing), or certain fruits. The one "treat" I was allowed without limitation was milk, and all my mother bought was whole. Like I said, it was creamy and a little sweet, and really felt just decadent. When I craved fat or sugar, I'd ask for milk, and I'd get it. And I would chug it. It became my "legal" escape.
I crave milk now because it feels like a valid comfort, even though I am massively lactose intolerant. You know, I missed several days of school when I was younger because I would wake up feeling sick to my stomach? This went on for YEARS until one fateful week when the hubby and I were living with his parents. They went on a cruise, he had broken his foot and I don't drive, so when we ran out of milk, we stayed out. And guess what? I felt better for the first time since I was about 15.
So, yeah, between that and the realization I had last time I did this chapter, I have mostly brought my milk and dairy consumption under control. (Although, writing about this, I had 2 glasses of Lactaid.)
That's pretty much it. I'm taking my first babysteps towards a healthier attitude and a healthier body. This should be interesting.
There are 14 chapters in Body Clutter, and I will be attempting to work through one chapter a day. Last time I tried this, I only made it to chapter 4, but I have big plans this time! By the way, I was using a hand drawn birthday card from my younger brother as a bookmark, and the poem he wrote on it is just perfect. He said:
May all of your goals and dreams come true
Good health and happiness I wish upon you
Times are tough, work is hard
I hope you find comfort in reading this card!
ANYWHO...To business.
Chapter 1 is titled Food: The Ultimate Weapon of Self-Destruction. The first question it asks is: what is your favorite food, one you can't ever seem to get enough of? For me, that's milk. At the time of my first reading, I could have easily drank a gallon of milk in a sitting, let alone a day. There is just something about that creamy sweetness that is intoxicating for me.
The second question is: Why? Why is your relationship with that particular food so out of balance? I had to really think about it, but I did figure it out. I was a big child, always the most overweight in my already quite large-bodied family. My mother, trying to be kind and save me from the life I am currently living, put strict limits on my food intake. She used to hide the snack cakes and chips so I couldn't find them. This only lead to my sneaking other foods and hiding them in my bedroom, but that is a separate issue.
There were a few foods I could eat as much of as I wanted. Raw broccoli and carrots (with limited amounts of Hidden Valley Ranch dressing), or certain fruits. The one "treat" I was allowed without limitation was milk, and all my mother bought was whole. Like I said, it was creamy and a little sweet, and really felt just decadent. When I craved fat or sugar, I'd ask for milk, and I'd get it. And I would chug it. It became my "legal" escape.
I crave milk now because it feels like a valid comfort, even though I am massively lactose intolerant. You know, I missed several days of school when I was younger because I would wake up feeling sick to my stomach? This went on for YEARS until one fateful week when the hubby and I were living with his parents. They went on a cruise, he had broken his foot and I don't drive, so when we ran out of milk, we stayed out. And guess what? I felt better for the first time since I was about 15.
So, yeah, between that and the realization I had last time I did this chapter, I have mostly brought my milk and dairy consumption under control. (Although, writing about this, I had 2 glasses of Lactaid.)
That's pretty much it. I'm taking my first babysteps towards a healthier attitude and a healthier body. This should be interesting.
Never Give Up
This...this is just terrible. I apologize, really. I can NOT believe that it has been over a year since I last posted. I know, with less than a dozen followers, I'm mostly letting myself down, but dammit, I'm important, too. So, I'm sorry readers. And I'm sorry, me. I'm going to do better. Now to the post.
I, like most of the internet, saw the viral video, linked here. That, if you haven't seen it, is Arthur's story. Seriously, go watch it. I cried. But more importantly, I went looking. I found DDP yoga, created by professional wrestler, Diamond Dallas Page. I looked around his website, and I found another story. Stacey's story. This was a woman who tried everything, even losing 100lbs twice, always coming back to were she had been. And yet, she tried again. For more info, you can read her blog here. After some hemming and hawing about the price with the hubby (I hemmed and hawed, he encouraged), I purchased the DVDs today.
Do not misunderstand me. I am not in this purely for weight-loss. I don't give a damn what I end up looking like. I do care about my health. I care to get off of my blood-pressure medicine. I care to not get winded or achy climbing stars. I care to be the best nurse I can possibly be. And if I choose to have children someday, I care to have a safe pregnancy and a healthy child. So while I EAGERLY await the arrival of my newest obsession, I need to get my mind in the right space to achieve and maintain long-term health. And that means cracking open FlyLady and Dinner Diva's book, Body Clutter.
This is a book geared towards a deeper understanding of why we let our weight spiral out of control in the first place. Knowing our past hurts and letting them go. Understanding our triggers and learning how to over come them. As FlyLady says, Finally Loving Yourself (FLYing). And I'm going to work through it right here on this blog. And when I get my DVDs, I will work through them here, as well. And once I get some on going health issues sorted, I plan to return to my running, to ALSO be chronicled here.
I think I'm ready to be healthy. Wish me luck.
I, like most of the internet, saw the viral video, linked here. That, if you haven't seen it, is Arthur's story. Seriously, go watch it. I cried. But more importantly, I went looking. I found DDP yoga, created by professional wrestler, Diamond Dallas Page. I looked around his website, and I found another story. Stacey's story. This was a woman who tried everything, even losing 100lbs twice, always coming back to were she had been. And yet, she tried again. For more info, you can read her blog here. After some hemming and hawing about the price with the hubby (I hemmed and hawed, he encouraged), I purchased the DVDs today.
Do not misunderstand me. I am not in this purely for weight-loss. I don't give a damn what I end up looking like. I do care about my health. I care to get off of my blood-pressure medicine. I care to not get winded or achy climbing stars. I care to be the best nurse I can possibly be. And if I choose to have children someday, I care to have a safe pregnancy and a healthy child. So while I EAGERLY await the arrival of my newest obsession, I need to get my mind in the right space to achieve and maintain long-term health. And that means cracking open FlyLady and Dinner Diva's book, Body Clutter.
This is a book geared towards a deeper understanding of why we let our weight spiral out of control in the first place. Knowing our past hurts and letting them go. Understanding our triggers and learning how to over come them. As FlyLady says, Finally Loving Yourself (FLYing). And I'm going to work through it right here on this blog. And when I get my DVDs, I will work through them here, as well. And once I get some on going health issues sorted, I plan to return to my running, to ALSO be chronicled here.
I think I'm ready to be healthy. Wish me luck.
24 August 2011
What's in Your Water?
Imagine if I told you that you could reduce or eliminate cavities just by ingesting a small bit of industrial waste every day. You would tell me I was nuts, right? What if I published all sorts of studies that said such a small amount of the toxin was harmless and would only affect your teeth, nothing else? What if there were just as many studies that said the opposite? Would you want to risk it?
Now, suppose I managed to convince the government to force everyone to use it, whether they want to or not. That the people in charge of your well-being took away your right to decide for yourself if you want to medicate with this toxic substance.
This is being done everyday in this country. Fluoride is a toxic compound, a byproduct of the production of fertilizer. And the government puts it in our water, making it the only compound NOT added to increase the safety of the water itself. It is considered to be a medical intervention, which, according to the CDC, is more important than the discovery of the link between cigarettes and cancer. You probably grew up "knowing" how good fluoride was for you.
You see, there is a (very small) benefit to the use of fluoride. Basically, the enamel on your teeth is getting eroded and re-built every day due to acid wear and the normal mechanics of the mouth. When exposed to fluoride during the rebuilding process, the teeth incorporate it into the new enamel, making them marginally more acid resistant. However, this leads to, at most, the prevention of about 20% of possible decay, or less than one cavity, and this is based on studies done at the same time doctors told patients to smoke for their health. Also, there is NO benefit to the ingestion of fluoride, as it needs to be present in the mouth for the teeth to make use of it.
What CAN result from the drinking of fluoridated water? Dental fluoridosis, a discoloration of the teeth. Reduced thyroid function. Bone fracture. Cancer. If fluoridated water is used to make infant formula for babies under one year of age, it can suppress brain development.
Don't believe me? Good! See for yourself:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_fluoridation_controversy
http://www.nofluoride.com/
http://www.fluoridealert.org/faqs.aspx#A8
http://www.fluoridation.com/
http://www.fluoride-history.de/
I'm not saying fluoride is the devil. I'm not suggesting its use be banned. I'm just concerned over our lack of choice in the matter. The choice to use fluoride is one that should be made by the individual, after carefully weighing the pros and the cons, not forced upon us from birth, never being taught more than the propaganda. I don't want to have my right to be informed, and to object, stripped away "for my own good." I don't want the government to decide to medicate me without my consent. It isn't their job.
Now, suppose I managed to convince the government to force everyone to use it, whether they want to or not. That the people in charge of your well-being took away your right to decide for yourself if you want to medicate with this toxic substance.
This is being done everyday in this country. Fluoride is a toxic compound, a byproduct of the production of fertilizer. And the government puts it in our water, making it the only compound NOT added to increase the safety of the water itself. It is considered to be a medical intervention, which, according to the CDC, is more important than the discovery of the link between cigarettes and cancer. You probably grew up "knowing" how good fluoride was for you.
You see, there is a (very small) benefit to the use of fluoride. Basically, the enamel on your teeth is getting eroded and re-built every day due to acid wear and the normal mechanics of the mouth. When exposed to fluoride during the rebuilding process, the teeth incorporate it into the new enamel, making them marginally more acid resistant. However, this leads to, at most, the prevention of about 20% of possible decay, or less than one cavity, and this is based on studies done at the same time doctors told patients to smoke for their health. Also, there is NO benefit to the ingestion of fluoride, as it needs to be present in the mouth for the teeth to make use of it.
What CAN result from the drinking of fluoridated water? Dental fluoridosis, a discoloration of the teeth. Reduced thyroid function. Bone fracture. Cancer. If fluoridated water is used to make infant formula for babies under one year of age, it can suppress brain development.
Don't believe me? Good! See for yourself:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water_fluoridation_controversy
http://www.nofluoride.com/
http://www.fluoridealert.org/faqs.aspx#A8
http://www.fluoridation.com/
http://www.fluoride-history.de/
I'm not saying fluoride is the devil. I'm not suggesting its use be banned. I'm just concerned over our lack of choice in the matter. The choice to use fluoride is one that should be made by the individual, after carefully weighing the pros and the cons, not forced upon us from birth, never being taught more than the propaganda. I don't want to have my right to be informed, and to object, stripped away "for my own good." I don't want the government to decide to medicate me without my consent. It isn't their job.
13 January 2011
Couch to 5k- Ben's Story
Couch to 5k - C25K Running Program
I admit I'm off the wagon. Other than a light jog here and there (read: 5 minutes every month, on average) I haven't been running since the heat waves in July. I've made excuses, and rationalized that I didn't have the right shoes, that it was too hot or too cold, or I was too busy at school.
It's all crap. I didn't have the right shoes because I didn't take the proactive steps to go and buy them. It was too hot to run at noon this summer, but why not go early in the morning? Or at night? It's cold out now, sure, but doesn't exercise make you warm? And school was two and a half days a week- leaving 4 and a half for running, more than enough!
I watched this video and I cried. I'm tired of being sad, too. It isn't about how I look, but how I feel. I am always so tired. I get headaches a lot. I'm on medicine for my blood pressure. My knees ache from the effort of standing for all of ten minutes. I am that person who complains half-way through a trip to Sam's Club about how bad my legs hurt.
I'm sick of it. I'm sick of not being able to do the small amount of work it takes to keep up with my house, let alone put a dent in the clutter. This is my moment. I have a goal: I will be healthy by the time I hit 30. How will I get there? Well, starting on my 27th birthday (two weeks from today!) I will be back to running. I MISS it. I miss the pound of the pavement, the hammering of my heart, the heat, the sweat.... Somewhere in the couple of weeks I was doing C25K, I became a runner. I love that. This is not a New Year's resolution. I think people make them knowing that they often fail, giving themselves an excuse to stop when it gets hard.
This is just me, wanting to be happy again.
I admit I'm off the wagon. Other than a light jog here and there (read: 5 minutes every month, on average) I haven't been running since the heat waves in July. I've made excuses, and rationalized that I didn't have the right shoes, that it was too hot or too cold, or I was too busy at school.
It's all crap. I didn't have the right shoes because I didn't take the proactive steps to go and buy them. It was too hot to run at noon this summer, but why not go early in the morning? Or at night? It's cold out now, sure, but doesn't exercise make you warm? And school was two and a half days a week- leaving 4 and a half for running, more than enough!
I watched this video and I cried. I'm tired of being sad, too. It isn't about how I look, but how I feel. I am always so tired. I get headaches a lot. I'm on medicine for my blood pressure. My knees ache from the effort of standing for all of ten minutes. I am that person who complains half-way through a trip to Sam's Club about how bad my legs hurt.
I'm sick of it. I'm sick of not being able to do the small amount of work it takes to keep up with my house, let alone put a dent in the clutter. This is my moment. I have a goal: I will be healthy by the time I hit 30. How will I get there? Well, starting on my 27th birthday (two weeks from today!) I will be back to running. I MISS it. I miss the pound of the pavement, the hammering of my heart, the heat, the sweat.... Somewhere in the couple of weeks I was doing C25K, I became a runner. I love that. This is not a New Year's resolution. I think people make them knowing that they often fail, giving themselves an excuse to stop when it gets hard.
This is just me, wanting to be happy again.
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