Category Archives: exercise

May 11, 2022 · 10:27 am

It’s Wednesday

Hello!

L. Roche Art-via Karen Miller -Pinterest- The Rose Gallery-“Happy Hoglet”

I hope that Wednesday is being good to you.

Ours is starting off quietly – a thing for which I am very grateful. My husband is still having technical issues with his Kindle going wonky. He is trying to find someone in support he can understand and who might be able to help him get it back on track. Otherwise, we’re waiting for a deposit to show up on a thing we sold so that we can box it up and get it shipped.

Yesterday I finally felt well enough to actually get started re-organizing the meds in our pantry – a project I told you about several days ago, but never actually did. I made a first pass and improved things a lot. We can now easily see what we have, things being divided into labeled trays and open boxes, such as, “cold and flu,” “digestion,” “current meds backup,” “pain,” “supplements”, etc.

Today I’ll continue making my way around the “supplies” half of the pantry, trying to figure out the best place for things, continuing to throw out and re-organize.

We went from “winter”-to-“wild-thunderstorms-spring”- to “full summer” in the space of several days. We’re still kind of in shock, amazed that we need to turn on our a/c. This is the quickest change I can remember. We just got our snow tires off and the regular tires on in the shop the other day! I’ll need to switch to being out either in the morning or late in the afternoon on working outside now. I would like to check on our veggie garden and our tomato plants very soon.

MoreLifeHealth.com/Seniors

Today I’ll plan to do the 3 short exercise videos: ‘warm-up,’ ‘stretches,’ and one of two ‘weights’ videos from Mike at MoreLifeHealth.com plus my yoga stretches this afternoon. I’m happy that I’m feeling well enough to PLAN for that today!

Make this a wonderful Wednesday.

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May 8, 2022 · 11:17 am

“My Weight is Like a See-Saw, Baby”

“Yo’ love is like a see-saw
Love is like a see-saw baby
Your love is like a see-saw
Goin’ up and down, all around
It’s like a see-saw, hmm” ~ “See Saw” ~ Aretha Franklin

Tenor

Since I started my latest push to lose the lard, I’ve lost the 8 lbs I gained during the pandemic, plus another 2, so now I’m down a bit over 32 pounds and 29 inches since my heaviest.

I’m doing a combination of the Keto eating plan, aided by MyFitnessPal.com to make sure I’m eating within the parameters I set, and my exercise is a combination of MoreLifeHealth.com and Mike, an exercise guy who specializes in exercises for ‘seniors,’ my elliptical trainer on alternate days, and a session of gentle yoga stretches everyday. Things are slowly becoming more of a lifestyle change and more routine. Today is the end of Week 6.

My largest difficulty at this point is the need for extra consideration and modification because I don’t have a gallbladder. I found an article today on Hip2Keto.com on what modifications I can make to have the keto diet work best for me. I feel so lucky that knowledge is only a few clicks of the keyboard away!

I’m ‘see-sawing’ less and finally seem to be on my way toward significant progress on my goal to get to a healthy weight plus get, and stay stronger and more flexible as I add to my older-than-dirt status.

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May 5, 2022 · 9:23 am

Hellooooo, Rainy Thursday

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“Scattered to isolated downpours will continue through our Thursday.” – our weather website says. It’s quite dark and rainy outside right now. A GREAT day to stay inside, warm and dry. :0)

Today I’ll concentrate on more ‘recognized’ forms of exercise, since yesterday morning was spent helping my husband change from snow to regular tires on the truck and the only other exercise was yoga. I’ll try to do better today, getting in all my online exercises, plus elliptical and yoga during the day.

I’ll also catch up on cleaning a bit, since the hairballs from Amber are starting to reach out and grab our ankles as we walk by. Hopefully, I can do all the 1st floor tiled areas, and then get the carpeted stuff, too.

No cooking tonight – main meal salad.

I did watch the tomato pruning video again yesterday and went out to see what was what on my plants. I was very conservative, mainly cleaning up the branches that were touching the dirt. I’ll tie the plants to their supports probably this weekend. So far, so good. I didn’t see any clear suckers yet, so I left things alone for now.

I hope you can stay safe, warm, dry, and happy.

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May 4, 2022 · 9:13 am

Beware the Blobs

Today is just supposed to be isolated rain, but tonight the forecast is for red, yellow, and pink blobs to come over us and try to blow and rain us away. (We are just southeast of Fort Smith.) This is supposed to start late-tonight-into-tomorrow. Something to look forward to. :0)

I’m trying to gear up for my husband and I to change our truck tires this morning – taking off the snow tires and putting on the regular tires. All the tires are already on wheels, but it’s still a big job. My husband promises we’ll rest after we get two tires on. This job will be my exercise for the day, although if I’m not TOO pooped, I’ll try to do my yoga this afternoon to stretch things out. Between the weather and my husband – the forces of sloth have conspired to clobber my new regimen. I haven’t been keeping to my exercise goals this week, except for Monday.

I hope that the blobs aren’t after you, too.

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May 1, 2022 · 10:07 am

Happy May Day – 2022!

I’m delighted to welcome the month of May this year. I’m hoping that by mid month, our weather will have calmed down. Today our weather here in Arkansas is stellar. Sunshine-y with a high of 82 and lower humidity today. Wheeeeeeee! I have a lot I’d like to do outside. I’m not sure what I’ll tackle first. Maybe, since the Monday and Tuesday are supposed to be stormy, I’ll check the veggie garden first, weeding and harvesting, and then try to get started with my new “pruning-the-tomato-plants experiment.”

Thanks to my friend, Susy, we can all enjoy the beautiful artwork of Matt Dixon from the U.K. I just love his drawings. The fact that a robot can draw such strong emotions from me still amazes me. Thanks, Susy.

My official ‘monthly report’ on my efforts to lose the lard and get stronger and healthier is –

  • Weight – Down 30.8 pounds since my heaviest.
  • Measurements – there is 29.5 inches less of me than at my heaviest.
  • Exercise – I’m into my regimen of various online videos for seniors in the mornings and yoga and yard work in the afternoons. Videos are from Mike at MoreLifeHealth.com/seniors. The ones I’m doing now are a “warm-up,” “stretches,” one of two exercises with weights videos (alternating)’ and “Workout 1B” every other day. The day I don’t do the ‘workout,’ I spend time on my elliptical trainer. I’ve increased from 10 minutes to 15 minutes per session so far. My daily yoga stretches session is 30 minutes.
Dennis, an aviation rescue fire fighter, also encourages us to embrace May. This is from the Australian Firefighters fund-raising calendar. This is a donation that keeps on giving. :0)

I hope that May will be a wonderful month for us all.

Enjoy!

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April 29, 2022 · 2:20 pm

Hostility vs Maturity – No Contest

123RF.com

This is a fight between my head and my gut feelings and my gut feelings are winning right now. It doesn’t matter that I KNOW I’m being childish/immature/unrealistic/whatever-other-adjective-you-choose. It’s how I FEEL, and that is overriding any chance of my acting like an adult.

And, why am I feeling/acting this way, you ask? (Assuming you’re still reading :0) )

I’m being really, really good on my low-carb diet and exercise program. In fact, I’m finishing a month of low-carb eating and tracking, and am on Week 3 of a really good exercise program created by Mike Kutcher, a Seniors’ Specialist Physiotherapist and Exercise Scientist on the website MoreLifeHealth/Seniors.com.

SOMETHING seems to be happening, because my Keto Stix are turning deep purple now. My scales are yo-yo-ing in results. I don’t care if I don’t LOSE weight every day. I realize there is a lot that goes into what shows on the scales any given day. But I resent GAINING weight. Yesterday, for example, the scales showed I had GAINED 2 lbs. Today I’m down half a pound from that, but I’m varying too much for me to handle like an adult. I’ve been told not to weigh every day, and I see the sense in that. The trouble is, I’ve learned the hard way that if I DON’T check it every day, my mind seems to go into relaxation mode, figuring ‘a little bit of this or a little bite of that shouldn’t matter.’ The scales represent my personal accountability.

SOMETHING ELSE seems to be happening, too, in that my jeans got loose. I ordered the next size down. My husband told me to go ahead and order more in that size. I did, but my NEW jeans are loose again. The MEASURING TAPE isn’t showing ANY progress, though. I’ve also read that measurements can be off from one time to the next and that you need to be really careful with it, but I AM.

So. I’m feeling hostile. I would LIKE to have results on the scales and with the measuring tape that I can point to – at least in the comfort of my own home – giving me positive feedback.

I’m SUPPOSED to be reporting to you today the end of WEEK 4 on my low-carb and the end of WEEK 3 of my much more active exercise program. I have lost the pandemic weight gain of 6.6 pounds and am back to my 30-pounds-off-from-my-heaviest point. I have lost about 28 inches from my heaviest, but no difference except the jeans thing to this point in my new push to get and stay healthier.

Canton Box Company – Etsy.com
123RF.com

I will ‘keep on keepin’ on.” Fingers crossed that my results by the end of May will be more encouraging.

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April 27, 2022 · 9:23 am

Thoughts on a Wednesday 4-27-2022

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We’re having another beautiful day in Arkansas.

Wikimedia Commons

Yesterday evening we took the opportunity of a perfect time to burn a big pile of branches we had collected. (We had a big pile, and then my husband doubled it, cutting down the branches that were tangling up the phone wire that fell down in the storm.) We brought some chairs and sat and talked, enjoying the evening, watching the fire while our dog, Amber, raced back and forth at top speed, like a thing possessed, laughing. We left it to eat dinner, came back and consolidated the pile, left again, and came back twice before leaving it for the night. The absolutely perfect night to do this. No worries, and good clean up.

Today we’ll do errands and shop for supplies. I’m hoping to spend a good amount of time outside when we return. I want to clean out the planters on our deck, getting them ready to plant flowers, and I want to plant the pink geraniums that my friend Kay got me for my birthday.

By the time we finish errands, I work in the yard and then do my exercises, the day will be pretty much gone. A wonderful day in Spring. :0)

Enjoy your day.

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April 25, 2022 · 12:06 pm

Eating, Not Eating…

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I’m word playing off the title of the Demi Lovato song, “Sorry, Not Sorry” in the title of this because I’m “eating, not eating,” a lot of what I used to eat. Some I’m just giving up until further notice, if not forever. I’m substituting ‘acceptable foods’ for other things I don’t want to give up completely in my quest to get and stay healthier.

An example of this is that I now make spaghetti sauce for both of us as usual, the only change being that I look for the one with the lowest carbs I can find. I make macaroni for my husband (he likes that better than actual spaghetti) and make ‘zoodles’ (spaghetti substitute make from zucchini) for mine. This is okay because I really like meals with pasta and will go for a lot of things that are supposed to pass for spaghetti, noodles, and rice. I also use spaghetti squash and plan to make more of the spaghetti squash and zoodles soon and keep individual portions in the freezer. I’m not as fond of ‘cauli-rice,’ (a substitute for rice.) I’m TRYING to convince myself I like it.

Each week my new regimen of low-carb eating and a lot more exercise gets a bit easier. I now write out what exercises I’ll do each day for the week on my desk calendar. I give myself a star for each part. :0) For example, I consider the videos I’m doing daily (warm up, stretches, and one of two weight videos) as one star. A second star is bestowed when I do my elliptical or 30-minute video workout on alternating days. A third is earned when I do my 30 minutes of stretching yoga. It feels good to see all the sparkly stars on my calendar. :0)

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April 24, 2022 · 10:35 am

“Better-ness”

Giphy

If there ISN’T such a word, there SHOULD be. I am experiencing it, so I know. :0)

Progress report at the end of Month # 1 on my low-carb eating plan and end of WEEK 3 on my new exercise regimen. –

The numbers –

  • Down 7.4 lbs since new push. Down 30.8 lbs since my heaviest.
  • Lost an inch from my waist since new push. (With all my gain during the pandemic, inches loss has changed to about 26 and a half inches since my most voluminous. (Even though we have another week of April, I’ve recorded things for the month. I won’t measure again until the end of May. Hoping for some good changes then.)

The feelings –

  • Feeling much more in control of myself now. I’m planning my eating with MyFitnessPal.com. I’m doing daily exercise videos with MoreLifeHealth.com/Seniors. I’m doing yoga stretches daily. Alternate days I’m also doing my elliptical trainer. (My new MP3 player is helping a LOT with this, since I can now listen to some music while I’m on it. I’ll change from 11 minutes to 15 minutes starting tomorrow.) I have a plan. I’m executing it and it is showing modest results.
  • I’m not starving to death all the time or resenting the fact that my husband eats things that are off my list. He is still trying to avoid all sugar, and that’s the most important thing for him, being a Type II Diabetic (although he denies this. He says he has a ‘sugar problem.’)

New Goals –

  • New short-term goal – lose another 5 lbs. (4.2 lbs to go.)
  • New long-term goal – have improved numbers on the blood test I’ll have before our next primary doctor appt May 16. (blood test May 11th)
taolife.com

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April 23, 2022 · 10:42 am

Sunny Saturday

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It’s beautiful here in Arkansas today – a great day to do some work outside. I finished weeding my veggie garden yesterday, and will either cut stuff in the yard down today or choose a planter to clean up. Tomorrow brings “rain and storms” all day, starting early morning and ending late, so it’ll be an inside day.

Here is my garden. I’m still working on trying to get the irrigation system programmed correctly, but with rain all day tomorrow, the pressure isn’t so great. I plan to start harvesting spinach and leaf lettuce next week for some lovely main meal salads.

Our yellow iris are just beginning to bloom now. We have purple ones left, but they are fading.

This is the first bloom on one of our Rio Samba rosebushes. I need to prune them carefully.

I don’t remember the name of these sweet blue flowers. They are perennial and seem to last a long time. Maybe this planter – heavily in need of clean-up, will be the one I work on today.

Pinterest

I feel triumphant today because I have officially broken into ‘new territory’ on my ‘lose-the-lard’ project. A couple of days ago I got back to my pre-pandemic weight which was 30-pounds-down from my heaviest. This morning I lost some more, so HOORAY! I’m setting a goal of another 5 lbs down (which seems more doable with the goal in sight.) Today I’m wearing new jeans which are one size smaller than I was wearing before, so that’s a concrete, satisfying thing I can enjoy while I try to move more and keep my mouth shut. :0)

I hope that you have a safe, happy Saturday.

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April 22, 2022 · 9:48 am

Cooking to Lose Weight

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I now have enough cooked and frozen into individual serving containers that we can happily switch between them without my having to spend a bunch of time in the kitchen. That really helps me avoid too much of my cooking ending up inside me. :0)

Lately, I’ve cooked –

  • “Sausage, Egg and Cheese Breakfast Bake” – Suzanne Ryan, Simply Keto
  • “Bacon-wrapped Cheesy Chicken” – Suzanne Ryan, Simply Keto
  • “Bacon-Wrapped Hamburger Patties” – homemade
  • “Simply Keto Chili” – Suzanne Ryan, Simply Keto
  • “Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo Bowl” – Suzanne Ryan, Simply Keto
  • “Tender and Fluffy Almond Flour Biscuits” – Healthy Recipes

Each time I either doubled the recipes or made as much as the pan would hold so that I had leftovers. Now our freezer is nicely stocked with individual portions I can pull and simply heat in the microwave. This frees me up to spend more time outside, or take time doing whatever I need or want to do without worrying overmuch about dinner and staying on my new regimen.

Since my husband is almost at his goal, we’re also free for him to eat a dinner from Real Food or Stu’s Clean Cookin’, both places which provide good food at reasonable prices. They are both too high in carbs for me right now, but he can eat one of those while I choose from the other homemade dinners. Easy-peesy. :0)

Yesterday I told you I finally got back down to my pre-pandemic weight. Balloons flew, bands played, and confetti was thrown in celebration. I was hoping that I would break through to new territory this morning, but I just held where I was yesterday. That’s okay. It will come.

I’m hoping that the regimen of low carb eating and exercise will result in some good changes by the end of the month. And if not, by the end of May. We’ll see. One day at a time.

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April 22, 2022 · 9:29 am

Thoughts on a Friday 4-22-2022

First Cry Parenting

The sun is shining brightly and it’s due to get to the low 80’s today, so I’m smiling from ear to ear. I’ll plan to weed my veggie garden today. :0) We get today, plus part of the weekend before more storms due Sunday.

I’m looking forward to visiting with my friends at Lunch Bunch in a little over an hour.

We’re still hoping the phone line repairman will come to reattach the phone line that fell in the last storm. We waited all day yesterday, but he didn’t show or call. I got on chat at almost 5 and was asked to give him until 7pm. Still nothing. My husband is staying home this morning in case he comes while I go to lunch and do the errands. If nothing has happened, I’ll get back on chat…

CorvSport.com

I had a dream so realistic last night I’m still reverberating. Short version is that I drove my husbands’ Vette, went over a construction platform into part of a road being reconstructed and covered in thick oil that got all over the tires and into the inside of the car. My husband was ranting about the ‘idiot’ who trashed his car, and I STILL was facing having to tell him it was “I”. I told him about the dream this morning, and then thanked him for being so nice about the fact that I didn’t really trash his car…

The Indian Express

Today’s exercise includes –

  • warm up video
  • stretching video
  • weights video (one of two I alternate)
  • elliptical trainer (10 minutes)
  • yoga stretches (30 minutes)
  • working in the garden (30+ minutes)

Happy Friday.

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April 21, 2022 · 1:29 pm

Pat, Pat, Pat

Tenor

I did three short exercise videos this morning – ‘warm-up,’ ‘stretches,’ and ‘weights.’ (30 minutes total)

I JUST finished doing the week’s ‘2a workout’ from morelifehealth.com – 30 minutes.

So I’m patting myself on the head a bit. :0)

Soon I’ll walk out to the garden to see what needs doing, then back out to the tomato planters and further out to where our greenhouse used to be, then back again. I’m trying to do that several times each day when the weather is cooperative to round out the mix of moving more.

Later I’ll do 30 minutes of ‘senior’ stretching yoga to finish off my exercising for the day.

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April 21, 2022 · 9:17 am

Celebration Mode!

Giphy

I’m in celebration mode this morning. I would love it if you would celebrate with me.

I have finally reached my first goal of losing the pandemic lard I gained. I’m back to my long-time basis of 30-pounds-down from my heaviest, plus an 28.7 inch decrease from my most voluminous. HOOORAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!!!

30 pounds down

This is a huge motivational boost. I was beginning to think that no matter what I did, I would never get control and would continue to yo-yo.

Now I’m breaking into ‘NEW TERRITORY!’

I now know that if I record everything I’m planning to eat for the day on MyFitnessPal.com (and then stick to it) I will stay within my eating parameters. (Tonight we’re having “bacon-wrapped cheesy chicken” – Suzanne Ryan, Simply Keto, plus salad and I will eat a low-carb biscuit and my husband will have a deli dinner roll.)

Though my measuring tape isn’t showing anything yet, I’m hoping it will soon. I’ve mapped out my exercise regimen for the week and am giving myself gold stars on my desk calendar as I do things each day. I am starting to FEEL a difference. My exercise for the day is a part of my ‘to-do’ list now, given 2nd highest priority, right under the ‘have-to’s.’ :0)

Today is –

  • Warm-up video (10 minutes)
  • Stretching Video (10 minutes)
  • Weights video (10 minutes)
  • Workout 2a (30 minutes)
  • Yoga Stretches (30 minutes)
  • Gardening (30 minutes)
taolife.com

ONWARD AND DOWNWARD!

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April 19, 2022 · 3:04 pm

A Real Gem of a Tool

ebaum’sworld.com

I consider MyFitnessPal.com an indispensable tool in my efforts to lose the lard. I’m trying to eat 20 carbs or less per day and stay under a certain calorie count. I’m also trying to watch my salt, sugar, the percentages of my carbs/proteins/fats and more.

I basically eat the same lunch every day except Fridays, when we go to Lunch Bunch, so the only thing I’m having to ‘figure out’ is dinner and snacks.

I still have no real concept of how many carbs things have. For dinner tonight, I was planning in my head to eat a bacon-wrapped hamburger patty, steamed asparagus, and a low-carb biscuit from the bunch I made a couple of days ago. When I typed these in, the asparagus was 7 carbs for a cup, throwing me over my carbs for the day. I substituted spinach, and all smoothed out.

I’ll have the steamed asparagus another evening, but it’s taking me awhile to learn what combinations of food are meeting my goals right now. The MyFitnessPal website is saving me.

I’ve been feeling a bit blah the past two days – not sick, just very little energy. Instead of my list of exercises yesterday, I only managed planting tomatoes and my half hour session of yoga. Today I’m fighting with myself about how much I’ll do.

I’m TRYING to just put my head down and plow through it, but I don’t know if I’ll be successful. I know I’ll do my yoga, but the other things on the list – elliptical trainer and 3 video exercise programs of warm ups, stretches, and weights, are still on the iffy list….

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April 19, 2022 · 9:35 am

Sunny Tuesday!

Walt Whitman – Facebook

The sight of the sun yesterday and today is really bringing up my spirits. I usually enjoy rainy days, but lately it seems we’ve had more of our share. We’re due for storms tonight-into-tomorrow. :0)

Petr Vaclavek – Dubanci.cz

I bought 12 tomato plants yesterday afternoon and got them planted. I’ll take pics in awhile and share them with you. I’ll also check on my garden. My plan is to use each sunny day to clean out ONE planter in the yard. We have 14 of them, so this will take awhile. We’ll see how I do. We have errands to run first, so we’ll get some fresh air and sun while we’re out.

I was feeling a bit off yesterday, so only did the tomato planting and my yoga for exercise. I’ll try to do my full list today. I’m doing a month-long exercise plan by Mike of MoreLifeHealth.com and I’m eager to see what the new workout is for the week. I’m supposed to do this every other day during the week.

Unsplash

I’ve been cooking up a storm (for me) lately, trying to rely on meals I make, rather than only the Real Food and Stu’s Clean Cookin’ meals. They are too high in carbs for me right now. Two days ago I made a bunch of ‘Bacon-Wrapped Cheesy Chicken Breasts” by Suzanne Ryan of Simply Keto. Yesterday I made her “Keto Chili.” Tonight I’m making bacon-wrapped hamburger patties. I’m freezing the leftovers in individual serving (or one meal for two) packages so that I won’t need to spend a lot of time in the kitchen for awhile. This saves me work, plus decreases the temptation to eat something I shouldn’t.

Have a great day. I’ll check back with you when we’re back from errands and I have pics to share.

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April 18, 2022 · 9:20 am

Hello, Monday

Patrick L. Lee-on Twitter

It’s only 50 degrees F. here in Arkansas this morning, but the sun is shining brightly.

Amazon.com

If it warms up some more, I’m planning to go buy and then plant tomato plants today. I’m eager to get them in the ground because sliced ripe tomatoes are one of our very favorite things. I’m researching how to prune the plants because it would be nice if we had more tomatoes and less greenery. Usually they get to the point where they spill over the planters and I’m afraid to do anything except enjoy the tomatoes we get.

Giphy

Today I start WEEK 4 on my low-carb eating and exercise regimen. I’m making “Low-carb Keto Chili” by Suzanne Ryan of Simply Keto. Last week I tried a new recipe, “Tender and Fluffy Keto Almond Flour Biscuits” by heathyrecipesblogs.com. I made a double recipe, so I have plenty for the coming week. My husband is still eating one deli dinner roll per day until he finishes them before switching to low-carb on bread. I’m enjoying these biscuits.

Exercise for today: 1) exercise videos by Mike of MoreLifeHealthSeniors – ‘warm-up,’ ‘stretches,’ ‘weights,’ and exercise workout 2a. Then I’m doing half an hour of yoga and planting tomatoes.

Meanwhile –

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Happy Monday!

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April 17, 2022 · 9:49 am

Week 3 Report

Hannah More Primary School

Today is the end of Week 3 of my new push to get the lard off and exercise more to get and stay healthier, whatever my age.

IndiaMART
  • I lost 1.6 pounds this week.
  • I’ve lost 6 pounds since I started the new push 3 weeks ago.
  • I’m 29.4 pounds down since my heaviest.

_____________________________________________________________________________

Flipkart

I will measure at the end of April, but to date there is 28.7 inches less of me than at my heaviest.

_______________________________________________________________________

Clipart Library

Feelings:

  • I’m pleased that I am taking control of myself. I consciously think and plan what I’ll eat for the day BEFORE I eat or drink something that will sabotage my efforts. A HUGE HELP in this is MyFitness Pal.com. Yesterday I made some low-carb biscuits that had nice texture and tasted good. Today I’ll make bacon-wrapped cheesy chicken from Simply Keto and we’ll have a side salad and biscuit. I’m able to smell the popcorn my husband makes and watch him eat it without kicking the wall. :0)
  • I’m consciously planning what my exercise for the day will be. I’m using a monthly exercise planner by Mike, an Australian who has created MoreLifeHealth.com – a whole series of videos to help seniors get and stay in better health. In addition to his programs, I’m doing yoga stretches daily and my elliptical trainer 3 times a week. Yard work and house work count, too, on moving more on a daily basis.
  • I’m happy to see the scales acknowledging my efforts. The weight is coming off slowly, but steadily. As long as I’m showing some progress each week, it keeps me motivated. I’m researching how to break through any plateaus that will inevitably occur.
  • I’m FEELING a bit more energetic. Even though I still have aches and pains, I now have more arrows in my quiver on how to deal with them. I’m doing the warm-up and stretching videos by Mike daily, plus my yoga helps. A heat pad usually takes care of any residual. If not, some Tylenol.
  • I’m feeling happier. The world is too much with us these days, and I find myself feeling pretty down unless I consciously look for the good things – and there are a lot of them – in the world around us. I’m finding more and more coping mechanisms, and getting healthier, stronger, and more flexible is one of those things. My mantra remains –
taolife.com

Onward to WEEK 4!

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April 16, 2022 · 1:32 pm

Thoughts on a Saturday 4-16-2022

pansyclothing.com

I’m having a busy day and about half of it is already gone!

The sun came out about 10:30 this morning and the rain stopped (for awhile) so I went out and uncovered my veggie plants. They seem to have come through the trauma of the storms, hail, and heavy, wet sheets fine. I wheel-barrowed the wet sheets back to the house and am washing and drying them, 2 at a time. One more load to go in the washer. Then I’ll fold and put them in the trash bag and take them out to the shop for next time.

I just took a new (double) recipe for “Tender and Fluffy Keto Almond Flour Biscuits” out of the oven to serve with dinner later. The recipe is from Healthy Recipes Blog. The author is Vered DeLeeuw. They are gluten free. The serving size is 2 biscuits, but I’m going to try to be happy with one. My husband will weigh in, also. I’ll check out more of the recipes there. Next up will be a recipe for low carb bagels from my friend, Susy.

I’m about to start my exercising for the day – 3 short exercise videos and yoga.

Hope you’re having a nice Saturday.

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April 16, 2022 · 9:51 am

Accuracy

The Arbors

A couple of weeks ago at Lunch Bunch, we were having a discussion about habits. I was saying I wanted to build a habit of exercising every day. Bud, Kay’s husband, said he thought that I should be saying “regimen” instead of ‘habit’ because habit could be good or bad and could be broken, while regimen suggested concentration and motivation.

I went home and looked up the words and have to agree. I want to build a REGIMEN on exercising that becomes so ingrained that it’s automatic in my day. I told him yesterday that he was right, and he was pleased. :0)

My REGIMEN is now made up of –

  • A monthly exercise planner provided by Mike of MoreLifeHealth.com consisting of 4 different ‘workouts’ during the month (1a, 1b, 2a, and 2b) warm-ups, stretches, physical activity (I’m doing 10 minutes on my elliptical trainer) etc. in a pattern.
  • Added to this, I’m doing two different videos of his with weights.
  • And then I’m doing half an hour of ‘senior’ (I hate that word) yoga stretches.
  • When the weather is cooperative, I’m doing some work in the yard and in my garden.

I’m eating low-carb, mainly using recipes from Suzanne Ryan’s Simply Keto. These are delicious recipes not requiring weird or hard-to-find ingredients, and don’t take a lot of preparation. I can make double recipes, freezing the leftovers into individual portions. I’m also experimenting with trying to find some recipes for low carb dinner rolls. (I’m trying a new one today.)

My goals are –

  • to make the REGIMEN and low-carb eating NOT diet and exercise programs, since that sounds temporary, but a lifestyle change. I want it to become my way of life to try to stick to 20 carbs or less daily, watch my macros and calories using MyFitnessPal.com
  • I want to get as healthy as possible for my age (advanced, but not in the ground yet :0) ) . I know that getting the lard off and exercising may help me avoid lots of pitfalls, diseases, and more. I want to increase my strength, flexibility, and balance.

I will finish Week 3 tomorrow. Onward and downward!

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April 14, 2022 · 11:27 am

ALMOST to Pre-Pandemic…

IndiaMART

I have .8 lbs to lose before I reach my pre-pandemic weight! I’m eager to crash through that, and break ‘new territory’ in my efforts to lose the lard.

My low-carb eating plan seems to be getting the attention of the scales. This is WEEK 3 of my serious efforts to eat right and exercise more. I’ve lost almost 6 lbs. (5.8) since I began the latest push, so I’m really pleased that I am making progress finally. I’m planning what I’m going to eat, logging everything on MyFitnessPal.com in the morning, making SURE I’m meeting my carbs, macros, and calories goals for the day. There is also a place to log in how much water I’m drinking, make notes on food, plus add my exercise for the day. If what I’m planning has problems, I can tweak it BEFORE I mess up – a really nice thing, building confidence.

I’m working on WEEK 1 on a month-long online video exercise program by MoreLifeHealthSeniors.com. The instructor is Mike from Australia. He’s very encouraging. The videos are short so I can work them in throughout the day, if I can’t do them all at once. Today’s schedule is a warm-up video and a stretching video, plus 10 minutes of my choice of activity. (Mine will be 10 minutes on my elliptical trainer.) I will also add one of the weights videos, plus a half hour of yoga stretching to the schedule.

I was beginning to despair on ever getting back to my pre-pandemic weight, OR actually breaking through that and moving to my SECOND weight goal, OR getting into a routine I can keep up on exercises, since I truly don’t enjoy exercising. The fact that I’m almost there on two of the three already is really encouraging. My husband is also cooperating. He eats his no-no’s when I’m in the other room, doesn’t bring me ice cream before bed now, or popcorn, or encourage me to eat other things or COOK other things I shouldn’t. That helps a LOT. :0)

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April 11, 2022 · 12:16 pm

‘Seniors’ Exercise

I find I’m developing hostility at the word ‘seniors.’ When they say ‘seniors exercises’ they mean exercises for people over 60. Since I’m 75, I guess I qualify, but I DON’T HAVE TO LIKE IT. :0(

Skimble

Somebody also said, “You’re as old as you feel.” Well, today I’m about 95+ after hauling SIX 40-pound bags of potting soil yesterday from the palettes on which we keep it, wheel-barrowing it over the back yard and up again to the other side of the house where our two brick tomato planters are, and distributing it. I would rather focus on the fact that I got the job done, and before we have three stormy days ahead.

This morning I tried the “1a warm-up and workout videos” from Mike from Australia from his Monthly Exercise Planner. His whole series of videos is for seniors (there’s that word again), but they’re good. “1a” was a nice, short warm up and then a workout geared toward moving most of the body from a seated position, using simple exercises and isometrics. I think both videos together were about 10 minutes or so. I opted to do the ‘seated position’ stuff for this month’s stuff, and will move to the ‘standing’ stuff when I start the routine again. If you’re interested in looking at the program or starting the month-long plan, it’s free, requires little, if any equipment. His website is MoreLifeHealth. You can sign up and he’ll email you the plan.

Since I overdid yesterday and my back and legs are really talking to me, I’m going to forego the yard work today (though I could probably get some work done between storms) and will do one of his weights videos and my yoga session today.

I’m trying to build a routine or regimen where I do the weights/workouts videos in the morning, yard work after lunch, and yoga stretches in the late afternoon.

After lunch today sometime, I’ll use leftover rotisserie chicken to try a new recipe, “Chicken and Broccoli Alfredo Bowl” from Suzanne Ryan’s Simply Keto book. Our Low Carb eating is going well so far.

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April 10, 2022 · 3:59 pm

Whew!

Terri Smith

I just came in from hauling and spreading six 40-lb bags of potting soil, 3 in each of our two brick tomato planters. That’s the end of the soil hauling. The next three days are supposed to be stormy/severe weather, so it’s likely I won’t be outside more than is absolutely necessary until Thursday. I’m hopeful we can get our tomato plants then and I can get them planted.

I did my weights exercise video before I worked outside. I’ll rest awhile, drink a bunch of water, then do my yoga stretches. The dog in this gif could be Amber. She is just larger. :0)

Giphy

All I have to do for dinner is put the rotisserie chicken in the microwave and put salad dressing on the salad. Yea!

I hope you’re enjoying your Sunday.

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April 10, 2022 · 10:33 am

End of Week 2 of New Regimen

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I can’t shout it to the rooftops or anything, but I AM making steady progress in my newest effort at lifestyle change and the goal of being healthier.

This is the end of WEEK 2.

I lost 3.4 lbs last week and 1.6 lbs this week, so I’m 5 lbs down in this latest effort.

Down a total 28.4 lbs since my heaviest. Down 28.7 inches since my heaviest. (I’m HOPING for a change in measurement by the end of the month. We’ll see.)

I found Mike, from More Life Help Seniors online. I’m doing two of his short exercise-with-weights videos, switching from one to the other each day. I like them so much I went to his website and downloaded his 4 week exercise program. It’s free. All you need is a chair, weights, and MAYBE a resistance band. I’ll start it tomorrow, and I’ll report back on how it goes.

Besides the weights exercises, I’m doing a 30 minute or so session daily of stretching yoga. I’m doing this late in the afternoon, after I’ve finished the yard work I’m going to do, the weights exercise, and any other more physically active stuff for the day so I can really relax and stretch. I also have a heat pad in my recliner that I can switch on if I need a bit of extra pampering.

The effort to eat low-carb is going well, too. I’ve finally gotten the scales to stop the laughing – though not the smirking – at me. It is noticing my efforts. :0)

Yesterday I made spaghetti sauce using Rao’s Marinara Sauce. It’s the lowest carb sauce I can find. I paired that with macaroni for my husband. (He prefers that to spaghetti) and I prepared 4 medium zucchini with my spiralizer. (one medium zucchini is a serving.) I used one serving and saved the rest. When we finished eating, I was able to make 3 additional meals for each of us to go in the freezer (labeled “H” and “L”) so we know which has macaroni and which has ‘zoodles’ (zucchini noodles.)

MyFitnessPal.com is a lifesaver for me. Each morning I list what I plan to eat for the day. I can readily see if I’m making a mistake or staying under my goals for carbs, sugar, fat, protein, and calories for the day. I can rethink and adjust or be confident then. I then add the exercise for the day. (This program makes adjustments based on how active you are). Sometimes that causes ME to adjust my eating, but not often. Just nice to know and a good record.

Things are going well so far. My friend Susy sent me a low-carb recipe for keto/gluten free bagels that I’ll try as soon as I get low on the rolls I made for the week.

Onward to WEEK 3

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April 9, 2022 · 9:42 am

Progress Report? – Almost End of Week 2

Giphy

SHORTER ANSWER:

  • No change in measurements yet almost at the end of Week 2. Down 28.7 inches overall since my heaviest. Hopeful to see changes by the end of April.
  • Down 1.6 lbs this week. Down 28.4 lbs since my heaviest – first goal is trying to get down to -30 – where I was pre-pandemic, then on from there.
  • Exercise level is way up. Still fighting sloth. Am doing yoga session each day. Also an online video on exercise with weights for seniors. Also working in the yard each day the weather cooperates.
  • I’ve read that it takes 66 days to build a ‘habit.’ I’m hoping that by the end of May my new way of eating, drinking, and exercising will have become ‘routine,’ ‘habit,’ or ‘regimen,’ – whichever word describes it most accurately. One day at a time.

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April 8, 2022 · 9:44 am

Fun, Freezing Friday

The Humane Society of Greenwood

I just learned we’re supposed to have a freeze tonight. UGH. I’m hard-headed, so after Lunch Bunch, I’m going to check for head lettuce and zucchini plants to put in the garden, anyway. When we get home, if I’m successful finding them, I’ll plant them, weed the raised garden boxes, and then cover them with sheets tonight.

I’m getting to the end of WEEK 2 on my eating low-carb and ‘moving-more’ efforts. I’m gradually changing my eating habits, relying on MyFitnessPal.com to plan what I’ll eat for the day to make sure I’m under my calorie and carb limits.

downshiftology.com

Though I told my husband he can eat what he wants (within reason, since he’s Type II diabetic), he says, “I’ll eat what you eat.” So today at Lunch Bunch, instead of the breaded, fried chicken tenders with honey mustard we have been eating forever, we’ll have a hamburger patty, side salad with blue cheese dressing on the side. Tomorrow I’m making low carb spaghetti. I’ll fix macaroni for my husband and Zucchini ‘noodles’ for me (Zoodles). Please see pic above.

Pinterest

I’m also doing well on my ‘moving-more’ efforts. I’m doing my yoga stretches every afternoon after my other strenuous activities are finished. I’m doing weights exercises with a video for seniors I found online. (I also found several other videos he has done, and hope to incorporate them into my day soon.) Finally, I’m working outside every day the weather is cooperative. Today, for example, when we’re back from Lunch Bunch and errands today, I’ll use the wheelbarrow to move four or five 40-lb bags of potting soil out to the tomato planters I weeded yesterday, prepping them for the coming tomato plants. I’m going to try to find zucchini and head lettuce plants while we’re out today. I’ll plant what I can find, then weed the planters, then plan to cover them up tonight to protect them as much as possible from the freeze.

The Senior Alliance

I wish I could show you a pic of my friends at Lunch Bunch, but I’m respecting their wishes and their privacy. Today is a special Lunch Bunch. It’s our waitress’s birthday, so we’re bringing her gifts to celebrate. She’ll be surprised, and she’ll be reminded how special she is.

Enjoy your Friday.

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April 7, 2022 · 11:43 am

A.M. Weights – P.M. Yoga

Medical News Today

A.M. – I’m doing weights exercises daily now, using a video created for seniors. He is recommending 1 lb weights, but I’m using my 3 lb weights at this point. It’s a short video – about 10 minutes or less – and is easy to follow. At some point, I’ll switch to 5 lbs weights.

crazybonezskeleton.com

P.M. – I’m doing about half an hour or so of senior yoga stretching every day now. After doing the weights in the morning and yard work in the afternoon, the yoga really helps me relax and stretch things out again.

I won’t say I’m looking FORWARD to exercising. I’m a died-in-the-wool sloth. But, I will say I feel better now that I’ve been doing this every day. I think it takes 3 weeks or so to build a ‘habit.’ I’m on week 2…

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April 6, 2022 · 11:26 am

Happy Wednesday

Our wisteria is starting to bloom!

We have vines stretching all the way to the driveway to the left of this picture. My husband has been trying for years to have BLOOMS all the way across. We’re making progress on it each year.

Yesterday I ate right, stayed under my calorie total for the day, stayed under my carb total for the day, exercised with weights, did my yoga, cooked for an hour, cleaned, etc., and guess what – I GAINED .2 lbs. Bummer. This is a character-building exercise for sure. I’ll simply keep on keepin’ on and hope for the best.

aramananatural.es

I’ve been making phone calls most of the morning, following up on things, confirming others, asking questions, etc. The thing I’m coming away with is that you MUST be your own advocate. Everyone is in their own personal world, worried about their own problems, understandably. These DON’T include whatever they told you would happen, wouldn’t happen, shouldn’t happen, etc. Unless you make notes and follow up, it simply DOESN’T happen/or DOES – whichever is worse. You can’t depend on other people. You MUST do it yourself, and KEEP after it until whatever it is is done. Sometimes I would definitely trade my ‘adult’ hat for a happy, carefree ‘child’ hat from my past.

I’ll make sure to get outside for part of the afternoon. It’s going to be in the 60s and there is lots of sunshine to play in. Will you get outside, too?

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April 5, 2022 · 1:50 pm

Thoughts on a Tuesday 4-5-2022

Pinterest

After rain overnight – after it rained off and on all day – we’re having a truly lovely spring day today. It started out chilly, but now it’s 72 degrees F. and sunny. Just beautiful.

We got back a bit ago from errands, ate lunch, and I’ve just gotten a double batch of keto chili in the crock pot. My husband was upset we only got one extra meal from the last batch, so I’m trying to remedy that today.

I got a replacement phone, since when we were at AT&T arranging for my husband’s phone to be added to our account, we noticed that MY phone top was gapping and trying to be blown off the front of my phone. Not a good thing! I ordered another one and we took that one in yesterday to have it registered, the information transferred from the old phone to the new, and to wipe the old phone. We did all but the last because I didn’t have an Apple password that worked.

This morning I arranged for a new password to be used on the new phone. I was going to take the old one back to AT&T to be wiped, but my husband said he could handle that. He took it out to the shop and thoroughly smashed it and the SIM card, so a kind of brutal method accomplished what I needed.

I will try a different recipe for keto rolls this afternoon. I’ll probably try several before I find one that both of us like. If I can’t find one my husband likes, HE can continue to eat the rolls from the bakery.

I didn’t get to start my weight exercise yesterday with the video I found, to it taking so long to upgrade my phone at AT&T. (And they had to wait until that finished before they could transfer my data.) So today I’ll try to schedule 1) cooking the rolls, 2) yoga, and 3) weights video.

I’ll probably wait until tomorrow to get into the yard again. My back will probably thank me… :0)

I hope that you are enjoying gorgeous weather, too.

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April 3, 2022 · 9:38 am

Lard Progress Report – Week 1

DrStrange.co.uk – Pinterest

This is the end of WEEK 1 in my RENEWED ‘getting-serious-about-losing-the-lard-and-exercising.’

I’m trying to eat low carb and do 30 minutes daily yoga stretching. On good weather days, I’m trying to do yard work to add more movement and exercise.

RESULTS – WEEK 1:

WEIGHT: Down 3.4 lbs this week, down 26.8 lbs since my heaviest.

MEASUREMENTS: No change this week.

REACTION: I’m feeling happy that the scales noticed my efforts. This is motivating to redouble my efforts to continue. My weight loss seemed to settle into .2 pounds daily toward the end of the week, and that’s fine with me. I’m hoping to see some change in measurements by the end of April.

I found myself ‘hungry’ a couple of times, having to talk sternly to myself. I drank a bunch of lemon water and the hungry-ness passed. I’m fighting some bad habits, plus my pull toward eating when I’m stressed or angry. My worst times for this are mid-afternoon and when I’m up in the middle of the night. I’ve figured out a good keto snack for me for mid-afternoon, and just drink water if I come downstairs at night.

Figuring out what I will eat for the day using MyFitnessPal.com is really helping me. I add what I’m planning to eat, adjust it if I’m not meeting my macros on low carb, and then stick to it. Sometimes I’m getting big surprises on what we HAD been eating. I’ve crossed off some frozen meal choices from two different sources for me. My husband, who is closer to his goal, will eat those while I stick to what I NEED to be eating.

On to WEEK 2!

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April 1, 2022 · 9:37 am

No Dancing for me Today

Clinical Back Pain Advisor

I spent two hours yesterday weeding our rock beds that run along the front and back of the house. I finished, and even my husband was impressed, saying they look, “Great.”

The only problem is that my back is NOT so pleased with my efforts, even though I sat on my garden stool part of the time, used a padded knee pad part of the time, and stood part of the time, trying to vary my position often to avoid problems.

NEXT time I’ll only do the front OR the back, not both in one day.

Maybe I can do TWO sessions of yoga stretching today….

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