Diet/Exercise/Health/Wellness Support Thread

Parent Cafe
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<p>Idad, I can tell you were hot on that trail, so to speak, based on the number of photos that focused on the water :)</p>

<p>Well, today it would appear I’m toting around three extra pounds of what’s hopefully water weight…between the naprosyne and muscle relaxers from the back spasms and a weekend out of town with abundant offerings of white bread and other unfriendly sustenance plus a party day where I really racked up marathon alcoholic calories – all without any physical activity – I’ve managed to undo most of the good I did all month :slight_smile: and of course, I have only myself to blame, as always ;)</p>

<p>Good thing I know what to do next!</p>

<p>Since at home I’ve had quite a few parties without ballooning up, I’m pretty certain the bread has caused some inflammation. When we got to my mom’s house, she’d had sandwiches on kaiser rolls despite knowing damned well that I’m allergic to wheat (though not anaphylactic), rarely ever eat white bread, and presently typically don’t eat bread at all. (She’s diabetic and shouldn’t be eating white bread either but her boyfriend likes it and apparently therefore that’s what gets served for a meal). I was starved and had been on the road all morning so I just let it go and ate the damned thing rather than argue with her boyfriend about it, then suffered seriously through the first half of the party for it.</p>

<p>So the second night I was there, I’d offered to pick up fixings for supper on my way home from a friend’s (thinking I would make something more healthful for dinner) but no, she and my sister had “a meal planned.” Got there, and the duo had made idiot kaisers with pork loin this time, but special for me had used whole wheat kaisers, which I then felt crappy about rejecting, since boyfriend was clearly not happy with the choice…so again I just shut up and ate.</p>

<p>Moral of the story is do not dine with saboteurs if you don’t have the moxy to resist :)</p>

<p>On the bright side, I was told by an old high school friend (male) at the party that I’d “gotten (my) high school a**” back. Apparently I was known for athletic glutes in the day. Who knew?</p>

<p>So today I get to reinvent myself as someone who’s losing weight. Good thing it’s two weeks until the Canadian wedding weekend. But then only another two weeks until a suspected complete debauch in St. John’s, Newfoundland, for a week. On Friday, I was a half pound from my end-of-summer-goal of -40…but I am realizing it might not be as close as I think if there are too many more merry tumbles from the wagon!</p>

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<p>I feel your pain, kmc. I was really bad at dinner last night. After a grueling day of writing a supplemental credit line deed of trust which cross-collateralized something like 40 notes and 25 pieces of property, I succumbed to a really bad dinner which regrettably consisted of a cheesesteak and french fries. Today I have a foreclosure to look forward to but have some fish thawing for dinner. Sabadog, H and I had a really nice post-walk dinner though our neighborhood, however, so hopefully I can get back on track in short order. Stress eating resurfaces. </p>

<p>If it’s any consolation, my mother’s the same way.</p>

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<p>2.1 miles, smith machine, rows, squats, curls.</p>

<p>Smuckers raised their dividend 11% this morning. It appears that there’s a ton of money made on jam.</p>

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<p>KMCMOm - sorry about the saboteurs! </p>

<p>In our WW meetings, I hear about so many people who have saboteurs in their lives. There’s one woman whose husband is stick-thin and he bakes her chocolate chip cookies and brownies. There’s another woman who loves a certain type of pretzel and her boss walks by her desk 4 times a day and gives her these pretzels. These women don’t seem to have a lot of ability to nicely stand up for themselves and say - I appreciate that you think you’re showing love to me, but I really need you to stop doing this.</p>

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<p>My wife is like that. She knows that I’m on a low-carb diet but brings home stuff and cooks stuff that makes it hard. When I come home and am very tired, I generally don’t feel like arguing and just take what is made. If it’s a problem for too long, I buy salads from the local pizza shop.</p>

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<p>I’m coming off the 4 day PA food binge. There is just SO much bad food that I have trouble resisting. Lots of healthy choices, and I eat them, too. Too many items at each meal- I could do with half of what is served. And then the local tasty junk food that I like. Had a hoagie yesterday (only ate half since it was huge) and a Tastykake pie. Weight was only up a pound this morning, which isn’t bad- considering.</p>

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<p>Unless someone’s putting an intravenous tube into you or it’s all you’ve got and you can’t afford to buy something else, you don’t have to eat it. You have a choice, and you don’t get to put it on someone else. Choose what you eat, and choose how much of it you eat.</p>

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<p>Any systems stressed enough break.</p>

<p>If you haven’t had a chance to eat for 15 hours and your choices stink and you have no other options, I suppose that you could not eat or eat bad choices. This can happen in the ome, office, or travel. It’s similar with exercise. The weather may greatly reduce your options. You might forget your laundry one day. You might be in a car accident or have to deal with a health issue or a snowstorm or earthquake or forest fire might mess up your exercise plans.</p>

<p>I can generally deal with nutrition and exercise at a certain level of stress and level of work. When things go above that, then my systems break down.</p>

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<p>I agree, BC, but people often default to “I had no choice” when indeed we do. No control over a situation means no responsibility for what happens. Probably not going to improve anyone’s health to think in terms of having no control over what you do on a regular basis.</p>

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<p>In many cases, there is no control.</p>

<p>If someone is in prison, they may very well have no control over their nutrition other than whether to eat or not. Certain levels of stress can certainly feel like prison.</p>

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<p>If your choice is to reduce your level of stress or be dead which are you going to do?</p>

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<p>It depends on the environment.</p>

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<p>Sure, but I think that part of being successful at this whole journey is to figure out ways around it. For example – I used to not bring my lunch to work. So I’d wind up picking at donuts or bagels left over from meetings, or going hog wild if someone brought in cookies. Now, I bring in my lunch Every.Single.Day, including fruit for snacks, and I have stocked my work cabinets with good emergency foods. So what was an excuse - oh, there’s nothing to eat, and coworker brought in brownies, I guess I just have to eat them, my stomach’s growling – it’s no longer an excuse. </p>

<p>Similarly with what I described with my gym bag being always packed with all toiletries and a fresh workout and fresh “regular” outfit and a lock. That doesn’t mean I don’t have days where I can’t work out as much as I’d like, but I’ve eliminated the on-hand excuse.</p>

<p>I don’t mean to sound like a shill for WW, but they have a concept about Spaces where it’s about “preparing” your spaces – whether it is home, work, traveling, etc. - to support your goals - which I find very helpful. For example, it’s very easy to think - well, I’m traveling, I’m going to have no choice but to eat unhealthy foods, etc. Well, not if you rethink it, and bring protein bars and fruit and nuts on the plane. And every airport DOES have places where you can buy yogurt and fresh fruit and the like. So you don’t HAVE to go to McDonald’s, and you don’t HAVE to order something unhealthful from room service. </p>

<p>We are going to the Paul McCartney concert in Milwaukee tonight (yay!!). So I’m packing a little cooler with dinner and fresh fruit and vegs to eat on the way, so I don’t get to Milwaukee starving and then decide I have “no choice” but to stop for fast food or eat the food served in the stadium. I DO have choices.</p>

<p>BCEagle - you aren’t just “stuck with what wife serves.”</p>

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<p>Sure. I can go out and order something and wait for it and bring it home, all while dead tired. Or I can go into the fridge and cook, again, while dead tired.</p>

<p>I adapt.</p>

<p>It isn’t all that useful getting into an argument when I’m already stressed out though.</p>

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<p>Great hike, idad.
Bromfield, hope that injury heals quickly.</p>

<p>Well, it seems a lot of us had a bit of a bump in the road nutrition-wise.
Add me to the list. Last night’s happy hour outing included 3 (!) cocktails, and nibbling on lots of bar food-- shrimp, tenderloin (those were okay), but also flat bread (which was basically fancy pizza), deep fried (and battered or breaded) calamari, and a teensy bite of bread pudding.
It’s just one meal, so no big deal. But it is interesting how one thing leads to another. I could have made more of an effort to have less sugary drinks and stick to the valid appetizer choices, but when it’s on the table, one nibble leads to another. I think I have pretty good resolve and actually planned for this as kind of a rare “cheat” or splurge. But I have tons of empathy for those who find it almost impossible to resist a saboteur.</p>

<p>Food pushers are very effective, especially if there is an emotional blackmail component. If you are not susceptible or don’t have any of these people in your life, consider yourself lucky.</p>

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<p>PG- the “spaces” concept is so right on. I am huge believer in being prepared in precisely the way you outlined. It makes for a “no excuses” attitude and is very empowering.</p>

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<p>BC, would it be helpful to give your wife a list, on paper, of foods you’d like her to pick up when she’s grocery shopping? Would it be helpful for us to come up with some ideas for you of what to put on that list?</p>

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<p>Have fun at the concert PZ - Paul - how cool!!! </p>

<p>I love the concept of “prepare your spaces” - it is so, so true. I’m gonna have to ask my husband if he has heard that tip at his WW meetings.</p>

<p>I have a friend who I would consider a “typical” slacker on the food/exercise front. She’s mid 50’s, generally out of shape and doesn’t cook much at home and relies on take out or eat out several times a week. “No options” is one thing - is can be true, but these circumstances are less typical in the course of a month lets say. Choices are available for most people, MOST of the time - they just choose to make bad choices!</p>

<p>This friend of mine asked me this morning via text if I might have time to get together later today for “coffee” (I work till mid afternoon, she is off for the summer). It’s a busy week at work and I told her I have to also schedule in exercise so I don’t think meeting will work this week. She responded with “I really need to get a commitment to diet and exercise going again…ugh.” Ugh? Of course you are going to fail at this! I responded with “you have to find something you like to do and are willing to do or the routine won’t last! And then don’t make it a choice, make it a “must”!!” </p>

<p>Even if I am starving and my only option for a meal is hamburgers, fries and brownies at a picnic, I can either dive in (which I might on occasion) or choose to have the hamburger w/out bun, add any veggies condiments to the max that may be available (lettuce, tomato, onion), choose to only have a few fries and just a taste of brownie. Choose water over soda pop. That kind of thing.</p>

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<p>My wife is the type that makes the same mistake over and over and over again. She doesn’t learn from her mistakes. Our kids noticed this a long time ago. I learned long ago that it isn’t worth the effort to try to change her. Basically she sometimes changes when something that she does over and over again get so painful or costly that she stops doing it. For a while.</p>

<p>I play the hand that I’m dealt.</p>

<p>If I want my kind of diet, I have to buy the ingredients and I ask her to cook them. If I forget or don’t feel like shopping, well, I have problems.</p>

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<p>It sounds like it’s going to be a busy summer for you, BC. Maybe plan ahead and write yourself up a shopping list so you can make the most of a trip to the store and stock up for both home and office. I’m trying to remember, do you like the protein shakes? Get some stuff that’ll last a while so if you don’t make it back to the store right away you still have alternatives. Fresh food when you can’t fit in time to run to the store – how about having Safeway deliver?</p>