Quote du jour: “If you focus on results, you will never change. If you focus on change, you will get results.” ~Jack Dixon
I didn't post last week, so I lumped that post in with this week's post.
Week 5 - Made it through week 5 of the Eat to Live diet. Lost the four pounds of sodium/ water retention, gained two pounds from swollen legs due to excessive exercising, lost that too. Um, where am I again? It's easy to lose track, but I think I ended up back where I was in week 3.
I think my body's having trouble adjusting. This past week, my old headache has come back repeatedly. This is a hormone-related headache that involves my face swelling up like a balloon. The upper eyelids especially become so swollen that the pressure on the eyes causes the headaches.
Week 6 -- more headaches. For two days, I went back to the non-vegan style of eating, which had three immediate results: the headaches eased off, I gained two pounds, and I got my period. This last is one of those side effects that I should have been aware of. Apparently it is quite common to stop getting your period when you first switch over to a low-fat diet. It's a reminder that what I eat has a direct effect on the hormones coursing through my body. And eating this way makes the cramps much, much, MUCH less painful. I'll take the occasional headache any day compared to that.
I went right back to eating vegan, because I really do like it. I started this six week diet as a way to tie in with Lent, but I don't feel like I'm giving up anything now by eating this way. The only thing I plan to change is to add in some more starchy vegetables or grains sometimes. Maybe meat or fish on special occasions. Dr. Fuhrman suggests using the 90/10 rule as a long-term eating plan: only eat 10% "bad" food. I like that. I've learned it's important for me to not feel restricted; if I think I can never eat a particular food, I'll feel deprived. If I think "well, not today", then I am fine with it. It doesn't matter how much the eyes and the imagination want fried chicken and chocolate-- once I've eaten the beans, greens and strawberries, the stomach is perfectly happy with the substitution. The body doesn't NEED fried chicken.
Summary: after six weeks, I've lost eight pounds and a couple inches. More important, though, is what I've gained. I feel better. I feel healthy. My nails used to be brittle and break easily; now, I've had to buy a nail file because they are growing long without breaking. I'm enjoying eating more than I used to, and I'm much more aware of everything I taste.
Final note: Since I've started eating this way, Damn Back hasn't complained once. Not a peep.I think all that pain was exacerbated by the inflammation, which was itself fueled by the high fat diet.
Exercise du jour: I've decided to go for another 30-day challenge. This month, I'm going to be doing Callanetics in the morning and evening. It's rather like Pilates, but it is supposed to be good for people with bad backs. No, I don't currently have a bad back. I want to keep it that way.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Showing posts with label Damn back. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Damn back. Show all posts
Thursday, April 05, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Re lent
, 
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Update: Done! That was a looooooong 50 minutes. Much longer than 45 minutes.
Quote du jour: Change is inevitable. Except from vending machines.
I know people scoff at New Year's resolutions and things of that ilk, but all the same there is a bit of an energizing momentum feel to the start of something; it can help you get out of a rut. (Keeping going once the momentum fades, that's another story.) I've been mulling over things to do for Lent, and this morning an idea occurred to me. (Even before coffee.) I wrote a review of the Eat to Live diet for Cranky Fitness. The author, Joel Fuhrman, suggests starting this lifestyle off with a six week diet plan. I can do something for six weeks. Hmmmn... That's about how long Lent is, too. Coincidence? Well, yes, okay, so it is a coincidence. But it's also a plan.
Last time I tried eating this way, I loved it with 80% of my body. The innards couldn't handle that much fiber after a lifetime of going carnivore. So I've been gradually switching my diet to eat more greens, beans, fruit. This is not going to be as radical a change as it was before. Let's see what happens.
Note: I'm using the Net Diary app on the iPad to keep track of the nutrients, so yes, I WILL make sure I get enough protein, 'k?
Exercise du jour: 50 minutes elliptical. I know I should mix it up, but until I get all the furniture moved back into my office, the living room is too crowded for me to try exercise DVDs.
see more Very Demotivational
Update: Done! That was a looooooong 50 minutes. Much longer than 45 minutes.
Quote du jour: Change is inevitable. Except from vending machines.
I know people scoff at New Year's resolutions and things of that ilk, but all the same there is a bit of an energizing momentum feel to the start of something; it can help you get out of a rut. (Keeping going once the momentum fades, that's another story.) I've been mulling over things to do for Lent, and this morning an idea occurred to me. (Even before coffee.) I wrote a review of the Eat to Live diet for Cranky Fitness. The author, Joel Fuhrman, suggests starting this lifestyle off with a six week diet plan. I can do something for six weeks. Hmmmn... That's about how long Lent is, too. Coincidence? Well, yes, okay, so it is a coincidence. But it's also a plan.
Last time I tried eating this way, I loved it with 80% of my body. The innards couldn't handle that much fiber after a lifetime of going carnivore. So I've been gradually switching my diet to eat more greens, beans, fruit. This is not going to be as radical a change as it was before. Let's see what happens.
Note: I'm using the Net Diary app on the iPad to keep track of the nutrients, so yes, I WILL make sure I get enough protein, 'k?
Exercise du jour: 50 minutes elliptical. I know I should mix it up, but until I get all the furniture moved back into my office, the living room is too crowded for me to try exercise DVDs.
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Party Gras on Mardi Gras?
Quote du jour: The amount of sleep required by the average person is five minutes more.
- Wilson Mizener
Another reason to take public transportation: it is not a good idea to drive when I'm this sleepy.
Another reason to walk at lunch. I go to work every morning when it's pitch dark outside. I leave work and it's equally dark. If I don't get out for a walk at lunch, it feels like I'm stuck in one eternal night until winter is over. That feeling creeps me out.
Another good reason to keep a blog. It feels like I'm in a rut, but if I look back, I can see progress. Even though damn back gets cranky if I sit too long, it doesn't fuss so much about the elliptical. It got annoyed with me last night, because I had the effrontery to try to pick something up off the floor. (Can I get a doctor's note to excuse me from house cleaning? And would the house elves do it for me?) Once I get the place organized, I need to go in for some ritualized form of stretching and strengthening, like yoga.
Exercise du jour: 45 minutes elliptical. Pushing things a little further.
UPDATE : done!
Posted from DPad on my iPad
- Wilson Mizener
Another reason to take public transportation: it is not a good idea to drive when I'm this sleepy.
Another reason to walk at lunch. I go to work every morning when it's pitch dark outside. I leave work and it's equally dark. If I don't get out for a walk at lunch, it feels like I'm stuck in one eternal night until winter is over. That feeling creeps me out.
Another good reason to keep a blog. It feels like I'm in a rut, but if I look back, I can see progress. Even though damn back gets cranky if I sit too long, it doesn't fuss so much about the elliptical. It got annoyed with me last night, because I had the effrontery to try to pick something up off the floor. (Can I get a doctor's note to excuse me from house cleaning? And would the house elves do it for me?) Once I get the place organized, I need to go in for some ritualized form of stretching and strengthening, like yoga.
Exercise du jour: 45 minutes elliptical. Pushing things a little further.
UPDATE : done!
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Monday, February 20, 2012
The garlic had it coming...
see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!
Update: Done!
Quote du jour: Are you casting asparagus on my cooking?
- Curly Howard
It's not my fault.
Not completely, anyway.
I mean, the recipe said that you're supposed to roast the head of garlic without peeling the cloves. In my joy at that news, I kinda skipped over the part about removing the dried papery skin around the garlic. And everything was going fine...until I heard the high-pitched screaming coming from the oven. I had to pierce the skin with a knife several times before the noise went away. Okay, yes, I stabbed it until it stopped screaming. I felt guilty for assaulting a vegetable.
Who knew cooking could be this violent?
Damn back still hurts, but it's a low level of pain that doesn't seem affected by ellipticaling. (Sitting is another story.)
Exercise du jour: 30 minutes elliptical, respectfully.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Friday, February 17, 2012
Yes!
Quote du jour: I'd like mornings better if they started later.
Stayed up late last night. Went a weeeee bit off the healthy eating path. I'd planned to take the day off, but they asked me to come in and work overtime, which is extraordinary enough that I felt obliged to do it.
The back didn't object to the elliptical! I'll try it again with the resistance up a bit more, see how that feels. It's not back to normal, but it's a LOT better.
Exercise du jour: 30 minutes elliptical, respectfully.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Stayed up late last night. Went a weeeee bit off the healthy eating path. I'd planned to take the day off, but they asked me to come in and work overtime, which is extraordinary enough that I felt obliged to do it.
The back didn't object to the elliptical! I'll try it again with the resistance up a bit more, see how that feels. It's not back to normal, but it's a LOT better.
Exercise du jour: 30 minutes elliptical, respectfully.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Less pain = more exercise
Quote du jour:
Update: Done! Got the Elliptical done before midnight. Admittedly, only two minutes before, but it still counts.
Site du jour: Ever read the sarcastic science comic XKCD? Ever read and then thought "what the hell is he talking about?" There's a blog called XKCD Explained that explains the science (and sometimes the sarcasm) behind the humor.
Exercise du jour: The back pain has descended into minor irritant level, so I'm going to see if I can do 30 minutes on the elliptical. What's the worst that could happen? Wait, don't answer that. Let's see what happens.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: 'If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?' And whenever the answer has been 'No' for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
Steve Jobs
Update: Done! Got the Elliptical done before midnight. Admittedly, only two minutes before, but it still counts.
Site du jour: Ever read the sarcastic science comic XKCD? Ever read and then thought "what the hell is he talking about?" There's a blog called XKCD Explained that explains the science (and sometimes the sarcasm) behind the humor.
Exercise du jour: The back pain has descended into minor irritant level, so I'm going to see if I can do 30 minutes on the elliptical. What's the worst that could happen? Wait, don't answer that. Let's see what happens.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
The many uses of guilt
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Quote du jour: If love is blind, why is lingerie so popular?
-- Anon
Site du jour: The How to Write Badly Well blog created a Random Folktale Generator. No more casting around for something to write about, the plot creates itself! Some assembly required.
UPDATE: Got the walk done!
All the comments yesterday about guilt got me thinking.
(Dang it, I hate it when you guys do things like that to me. Thinking? At this hour of the morning?)
To me, guilt is useful, so long as you don’t linger over it. Accept it, learn from it, and move on. ‘nuff said. If I aim for a goal and miss, I count that as a FAIL. Hopefully one with lessons learned, so I can make different mistakes the next time.
I use guilt as a tool in my fight against my inner slug. It gets me up in the morning, it makes me get on the elliptical or lace up the walking shoes. I use guilt whenever I put up a post about a challenge, something I want to do to extend myself. The difference is that these days, I don't dwell on a FAIL.
When I was young, I used to feel guilty all the time; it was my default position. I was the sort of person who’d say “I’m sorry” whenever people told me I apologize too much. Someone once gave me a copy of “When I say no, I feel guilty.” I just ran across it the other day, and yes, I do feel guilty that I’ve never opened the cover and read a single page. All the same, I’ve mostly learned to deal with guilt, accept that it has a place in my general scheme of things. Just not a very big place. I’ll shake the hand of guilt, but I no longer feel the urge to hug guilt to myself as if it were a best friend. Honestly, we’re not that close any more, and I’m fine with that.
Speaking of FAIL, I spent yesterday's lunchtime working instead of walking. No good reason. Since the back has improved a bit more, I'm falling back into the old standby of ignoring my body and concentrating on work. This is repeating old mistakes, which I do consider a FAIL. Today will be different.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Friday, February 10, 2012
Getting better all the time
Quote du jour: Develop an interest in life as you see it; the people, things, literature, music — the world is so rich, simply throbbing with rich treasures, beautiful souls and interesting people. Forget yourself.
Site du jour: The Perfect in our Imperfections blog wrote a good post on Things that get in the way.
Not my best week, but I suppose it could be worse. Better than last weekend. Managed to go almost completely cold carrot this week. I don't know if it was the smartest move budget-wise, but I bought a big container of pre-washed salad and supplemented it with salad toppings from the deli counter in the cafe. Okay, yes, I did slip in an ounce of grilled chicken once, but that was it. From the point of view of being good, it's much easier if I don't have meat in the house so I am giving myself a pass on buying food from work this time.
I really feel like I'm being obsessive about the diet, but that springs from fear. I do not want to go through pain like that again. Usually I take the absence of pain for granted, but right now I am profoundly grateful for it. I actually managed to sit through a whole meeting - an entire hour sitting down! - without having to get up because it hurt. I am betting that my body will be nicer to me if I avoid inflammatory comfort foods.
It's easier to be good when you feel bad. Since I've started to feel better, the old habits have come slinking back in, acting casual like they've been around the whole time. Last night on the way home it was cold and dark and depressing. I really wanted to stop off and pick up something baaad to eat, something high-fat with no nutritional value. Maybe even get a bottle of wine. My inner child was whining and pouting and throwing a tantrum. (You'd think it would have grown up with the rest of me. Can't wait until it hits adolescence.) Managed to give my inner self a time out, i.e. I told it we'd deal with it when I got home. Then, of course, the inner slug spoke up and pointed out that it was dark and cold and rainy and who wants to go out in that? Thus inertia saved the day.
Still going to go Cold Carrot today.
Exercise du jour: one gentle walk at lunch.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Site du jour: The Perfect in our Imperfections blog wrote a good post on Things that get in the way.
Not my best week, but I suppose it could be worse. Better than last weekend. Managed to go almost completely cold carrot this week. I don't know if it was the smartest move budget-wise, but I bought a big container of pre-washed salad and supplemented it with salad toppings from the deli counter in the cafe. Okay, yes, I did slip in an ounce of grilled chicken once, but that was it. From the point of view of being good, it's much easier if I don't have meat in the house so I am giving myself a pass on buying food from work this time.
I really feel like I'm being obsessive about the diet, but that springs from fear. I do not want to go through pain like that again. Usually I take the absence of pain for granted, but right now I am profoundly grateful for it. I actually managed to sit through a whole meeting - an entire hour sitting down! - without having to get up because it hurt. I am betting that my body will be nicer to me if I avoid inflammatory comfort foods.
It's easier to be good when you feel bad. Since I've started to feel better, the old habits have come slinking back in, acting casual like they've been around the whole time. Last night on the way home it was cold and dark and depressing. I really wanted to stop off and pick up something baaad to eat, something high-fat with no nutritional value. Maybe even get a bottle of wine. My inner child was whining and pouting and throwing a tantrum. (You'd think it would have grown up with the rest of me. Can't wait until it hits adolescence.) Managed to give my inner self a time out, i.e. I told it we'd deal with it when I got home. Then, of course, the inner slug spoke up and pointed out that it was dark and cold and rainy and who wants to go out in that? Thus inertia saved the day.
Still going to go Cold Carrot today.
Exercise du jour: one gentle walk at lunch.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Wednesday, February 08, 2012
Me and Shakespeare
Quote du jour: Our faults, dear Brutus, lie not in our stars, but in our selves.
- Will Baby, Julius Ceasar
Better. Could be worse, anyway. Though I do think that if I'm going to feel like I'm being stabbed in the back, I should be wearing a toga in the ides of March. Interesting to note (well, interesting to me), that beer therapy has no effect. I thought alcohol acted as an analge-, an analg- a thing that made pain go away for a while. But no.
Still going to go Cold Carrot today. No food that has even the slightest inclination to aid the inflammatory response (e.g. anything with saturated fat) shall pass these lips.
Exercise du jour: one gentle walk at lunch.
Another good reason to take public transportation
Quote du jour: Fairy tales are more than true; not because they tell us that dragons exist, but because they tell us that dragons can be beaten.
- G.K. Chesterton
Site du jour: I love studies that agree with what I already think. Turns out business meetings can make you dumb.
Sigh. The back continues to improve, albeit slower than a snail on Valium. And I likewise. Gentle walk again today.
I feel obsessive, minutely chronicling each goal, but it does help. If nothing else, my Stubborn muscle is getting a workout. Semi- fail on the good eating yesterday. I had to eat Bad for social reasons.
The company went through a round of layoffs yesterday. You could see how hard it was for some of the managers, laying off people they'd been close to for years. In an effort to find something positive in the day, one manager brought cupcakes into a meeting to celebrate an employee's 35th anniversary with the company. I could see how stressed the manager was, so when she passed out the cupcakes I felt obliged to take one and nibble at it. Honestly, I didn't want it. Afterward, I felt down, rather depressed. That might have been because of the re-org, I suppose.
The layoffs went on all day. No one knew how many people were let go or from what departments. There were a couple articles in the newspapers; they didn't have the details either. It's understandable that management wouldn't want to go into detail, but the uncertainty does tend to feed the paranoia.
On the shuttle ride back to the train, the bus driver filled me in on all the details of exactly how many people were let go and from what departments.
Still going to go Cold Carrot today. No food that has even the slightest inclination to aid the inflammatory response (e.g. anything with saturated fat) shall pass these lips.
Exercise du jour: one gentle walk at lunch.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
- G.K. Chesterton
Site du jour: I love studies that agree with what I already think. Turns out business meetings can make you dumb.
Sigh. The back continues to improve, albeit slower than a snail on Valium. And I likewise. Gentle walk again today.
I feel obsessive, minutely chronicling each goal, but it does help. If nothing else, my Stubborn muscle is getting a workout. Semi- fail on the good eating yesterday. I had to eat Bad for social reasons.
The company went through a round of layoffs yesterday. You could see how hard it was for some of the managers, laying off people they'd been close to for years. In an effort to find something positive in the day, one manager brought cupcakes into a meeting to celebrate an employee's 35th anniversary with the company. I could see how stressed the manager was, so when she passed out the cupcakes I felt obliged to take one and nibble at it. Honestly, I didn't want it. Afterward, I felt down, rather depressed. That might have been because of the re-org, I suppose.
The layoffs went on all day. No one knew how many people were let go or from what departments. There were a couple articles in the newspapers; they didn't have the details either. It's understandable that management wouldn't want to go into detail, but the uncertainty does tend to feed the paranoia.
On the shuttle ride back to the train, the bus driver filled me in on all the details of exactly how many people were let go and from what departments.
Still going to go Cold Carrot today. No food that has even the slightest inclination to aid the inflammatory response (e.g. anything with saturated fat) shall pass these lips.
Exercise du jour: one gentle walk at lunch.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Tuesday, February 07, 2012
Pain but no gain
Quote du jour: History, despite its wrenching pain, cannot be unlived, but if faced with courage, need not be lived again.
- Maya Angelou
Wow. After four days of increasing back pain, last night the agony suddenly decreased. I'm not free of it, but it's now so moderate that I feel as if I can have a life again. I actually slept last night! (The night before, every time I tried to doze, the pain would wake me up.)
Now I'm trying to figure out what the hell that was all about. What makes a body turn on you like that? I feel like someone who has owned a fat, lazy cat for years, the kind that lounges around waiting to be fed, only to wake up one morning to find that Fluffy has turned into a snarling Sabertooth tiger with a major attitude problem.
Still going to go Cold Carrot today. No food that has even the slightest inclination to aid the inflammatory response (e.g. anything with saturated fat) shall pass these lips. Might try a walk at lunch. I'm going to play it by ear. Back, as it were, to basics. But gently. Nice kitty, niiiiice kitty...
see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!
I also lost another pound last night. Granted, I've gained and lost nine pounds in the last two weeks, so who knows how long this will last, but I am calling it a win.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
- Maya Angelou
Wow. After four days of increasing back pain, last night the agony suddenly decreased. I'm not free of it, but it's now so moderate that I feel as if I can have a life again. I actually slept last night! (The night before, every time I tried to doze, the pain would wake me up.)
Now I'm trying to figure out what the hell that was all about. What makes a body turn on you like that? I feel like someone who has owned a fat, lazy cat for years, the kind that lounges around waiting to be fed, only to wake up one morning to find that Fluffy has turned into a snarling Sabertooth tiger with a major attitude problem.
Still going to go Cold Carrot today. No food that has even the slightest inclination to aid the inflammatory response (e.g. anything with saturated fat) shall pass these lips. Might try a walk at lunch. I'm going to play it by ear. Back, as it were, to basics. But gently. Nice kitty, niiiiice kitty...
see more Lolcats and funny pictures, and check out our Socially Awkward Penguin lolz!
I also lost another pound last night. Granted, I've gained and lost nine pounds in the last two weeks, so who knows how long this will last, but I am calling it a win.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Monday, February 06, 2012
Honest lying
Quote du jour: Pain is temporary. It may last a minute, or an hour, or a day, or a year, but eventually it will subside and something else will take its place. If I quit, however, it lasts forever.
- Lance Armstrong
Okay, change of plan. The back flared up into intense nastiness, so I spent the whole weekend lying on my back either in bed or in a hot bath. I can't sit in a chair, but I can walk and I can lie. Down, that is. So I'm thinking this is the body's way of slapping me upside the head to get my attention. I'm putting exercise on hold and switching my attention to Extreme Diet mode. Going to go Cold Carrot today. No food that has even the slightest inclination to aid the inflammatory response (e.g. anything with saturated fat) shall pass these lips.
see more Lol Celebs
I lost two pounds this weekend while lying around. There's something positive.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
- Lance Armstrong
Okay, change of plan. The back flared up into intense nastiness, so I spent the whole weekend lying on my back either in bed or in a hot bath. I can't sit in a chair, but I can walk and I can lie. Down, that is. So I'm thinking this is the body's way of slapping me upside the head to get my attention. I'm putting exercise on hold and switching my attention to Extreme Diet mode. Going to go Cold Carrot today. No food that has even the slightest inclination to aid the inflammatory response (e.g. anything with saturated fat) shall pass these lips.
see more Lol Celebs
I lost two pounds this weekend while lying around. There's something positive.
Posted from DPad on my iPad
Friday, February 03, 2012
All the good things
Quote du jour: What doesn't destroy me makes me stronger.
-- Nietzche
Site du jour: Scientists are trying to read our thoughts. Mood rings are never going to come back into fashion.
Good things are happening:
- I pulled a muscle in my back. Which is good, because now I can't sit in a chair for more than an hour at a time. I have to get up and move around.
- I missed the connection for my second train this morning. Which is good, because it meant I was stuck at a very cold and windy transit center for half an hour and has to walk around to keep warm. More exercise!
- So all I need now is one more good thing... Oh yeah. It's Friday! All day!
Exercise du jour: Again, the goal is to take a lunch break, back away from the keyboard and walk. No one is forcing me to work through lunch. Four days in a row!
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