Tag Archives: diet and exercise

April 22, 2022 · 9:48 am

Cooking to Lose Weight

momzdailyscoops.blogspot.com

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 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.

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Flipkart

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

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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 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 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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March 29, 2022 · 10:32 am

Yesterday’s Small Triumphs

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  • I managed to bake some really low-carb dinner rolls for our dinner. (I’m trying to replace the deli/bakery dinner roll we’ve been eating.) They were okay. I will continue to look for a recipe we like better, but this would work. :0)
  • I also cooked a Sausage, Egg and Cheese Bake recipe for a low-carb dinner. It was as good as we remembered. I froze the leftovers into individual containers so we can have two more easy dinners from one cooking session.
  • I got a gold star on my calendar for doing a good session of yoga.
  • I mixed and sprayed two gallons of weed killer under the planter boxes in my raised bed square foot garden. I’ll probably need to spray at least one more time, but I have a good start on it now.
  • My husband mowed our lawn for the first time this season. He had to air up the mower tires first, having to repair a leak on our air compressor in order to DO that, and then get the mower running – always a headache after it sits all winter, but he prevailed and it now looks like someone cares, at least a little, about our yard.

Today I’ll try to weed whack all around the front and back yard to complement the good job my husband did on the lawn. (I have even more motivation than usual because we have a 90% chance of rain tomorrow.)

Happy Tuesday!

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March 19, 2022 · 10:19 am

Thoughts on a Saturday 3-19-2022

Tenor

I’m reading Life Force by Tony Robbins. One of the suggestions is that you drink half your weight (in ounces) of water daily. My eyeballs are already swimming, but I’ll work on it. (He says that coffee actually dehydrates you. Since I’m a coffee-a-holic, this is a sad thing to hear.) So I’ll try to cut back on my coffee and TRY to drink even more water.

Another is to eat a more plant-based diet. My husband tends to dig in his heels, so I just talked to him, telling him I will include more veggies in our meals. Since he told me last night he LIKED the way I cooked the broccoli, I’m encouraged that I can do more of this type thing without riots. Small, gradual changes in a good direction.

I’ll go out later to visit our new early spring garden to see how our new plants made it through the latest rain. I’m hoping that the rain was greedily slurped up and that all are feeling happy. I’m reading about growing cauliflower better, since I’ve only been minimally successful, growing very small heads before having to harvest. Fingers crossed. I’ll take some pics.

Shutterstock

I’ve been neglectful regarding saving stuff on my computer lately. SO neglectful that I actually had to refer to my NOTES on how to make a new system disk and save my data to another. I’m embarrassed, but I got it done. I’ll put it on my calendar now so it doesn’t get lost in the shuffle.

Norman Machine Tool

I told you that our air compressor suddenly quit working. My husband took apart the top of it, finding the part that he thought was causing the problem. He ordered what he HOPED was a replacement part, and it arrived yesterday. So when we got back from Lunch Bunch, he took it out to the shop. He spent a couple of hours, and he FIXED it! He replaced the part, put everything back together and tested it. It worked perfectly. So now we’ll be able to change our snow tires on the truck for the regular tires once we really believe we are finished with snow and ice for awhile. :0) Another wonderful thing was that he fixed the compressor for around $80. If we had had to buy a new one, a much smaller one would have cost around $450 plus tax, plus shipping. He’s a miracle worker.

Giphy

I’m starting to feel a difference in my efforts to move more. I’m feeling less creaky in my afternoon old lady yoga practices, and the working in the garden is definitely getting me moving more. I’m going to see if I can increase this as the weather improves.

Wishing you a happy Saturday.

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August 25, 2021 · 9:05 am

Trampoline Weight

USA Today’s FTW

Still playing with the same 2 pounds. Today I’m down 1.2 pounds. Yesterday I was up. Up and down. Down and up. Trampoline weight. Since my scales are so frustrating, I’m concentrating on trying to do my exercising and hope for the best.

Today is Wednesday, so it’s several short sessions with weights and yoga.

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August 4, 2021 · 12:01 pm

Onward and Downward

Ranker

New Territory!

I finally re-lost some weight and this morning entered new territory – okay, only .2 of a single pound, but we have to take our wins where we find them, right?

I am trying to take one day at a time, rather than looking at the whole of my goal at once. One day at a time, one pound (or less :0) ) at a time.

I’ve done well this week on my exercising, as well. Monday I did 3 short sessions with my weights and then my regular yoga stretching session. Yesterday I did 25 minutes on my elliptical trainer and then my yoga. Today is weights and yoga again.

I’m having trouble drinking all the water I’m supposed to. I am TRYING to drink 4 bottles a day. I’m a coffee-holic, so I’m trying to make myself wait to have another cup until I’ve downed another bottle of water. Sometimes that is successful. (I just got up and got a bottle of water from beside the chair in the living room and will try to sip while I’m typing.) I’m hoping that my body gets used to all this water, rather than feeling as if my eyeballs are floating as I run to the bathroom. (can THAT count as exercise, too?) :0)

I’m feeling more motivated as I move onward and downward on my efforts to lose the lard.

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August 2, 2021 · 12:03 pm

Beginning of a New Week 8-2-2021

Dolceluna

I’ve been using a new face cream. What do you think?

We just got back from doing errands and I’ll fix our lunch in a minute.

The scales are finally beginning to notice my efforts to lose the lard more. I’ve lost 2 pounds in the past 2 days. Re-losing – so no confetti thrown until I’m in new territory.

The new addition to my exercise regimen starts this week, too.

  • Monday – yoga stretching plus exercises with weights
  • Tuesday – yoga stretching plus 15-30 minutes on the elliptical trainer.
  • Wednesday – yoga stretching plus exercises with weights
  • Thursday – yoga stretching plus 15-30 minutes on the elliptical trainer
  • Friday – yoga stretching plus exercises with weights
  • Saturday – yoga stretching plus 15-30 minutes on the elliptical trainer
  • Sunday – yoga stretching

Yesterday I cleaned and started re-painting the “peacock” yard art critter in our shop. The biggest part of the refurb project on this one is gluing new beads on the ‘feathers’ and around his neck. I’ll show you when he goes back outside.

Yesterday I also cleaned off my drafting table in my art room. I gathered my supplies for my “acrylic pour” experimentation. I also watched several YouTube videos on various techniques several really talented people are using. Today I bought some Minwax Pre-Stain Wood Conditioner to add to my supplies. I will find a heat gun or grab my hair dryer. Later this afternoon I hope to gather my intimidation and throw it in the trash.

I hope that you’re having a great day, too.

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July 5, 2021 · 9:32 am

Day 10 – Additions

Rebloggy

Today is DAY 10 of my renewed efforts to lose the lard. My weight loss is not impressing anyone. In fact, my body seems to be staging a real effort to keep every bit of poundage. However, my exercise efforts are going well and I’m feeling better, even though frustrated by the scales.

Starting today I’m making two additions –

  • I’ll drink TWO bottles of water each day, rather than the one. (If nothing else, this will increase my ‘steps’ running to the bathroom :0) )
  • I’m adding some exercises with 5 pound weights Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. I’ll start out slowly, since it’s been essentially forever since I’ve used them. I’m doing well with my yoga practice and am beginning to feel looser after my practice, even though I’m stiff and sore when I start.
taolife.com

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July 2, 2021 · 9:36 am

Lard Accountability

Pin auf Watch-GIFs

I gained 1.5 lbs after eating the delicious Hashbrown Bowl with Sausage, Egg, and Cheese at the new Waffle House in Greenwood. Lesson: NEXT time order ONE bowl and TWO plates, and give most of the hashbrowns to my husband.

That said, it’s the first of July (basically) so I decided to measure and see where I am on my efforts to lose the lard.

From my heaviest, I am down a bit over 27 pounds and 26.2 inches. I am on DAY 7 of my new regimen of doing a session of yoga daily, drinking a bottle of water, and eating a snack (if I need one) of raw veggies and a bit of dip.

PLANS-

  • Keep on keepin’ on
  • Add some work with weights starting next week, MW&F
  • NOT beat myself up for having one splurge meal, even though it will take time to get that added weight off.
  • Try to fine tune my eating so I’m not unconsciously adding calories I don’t need.
  • Measure again August 2nd and record
  • Take one day at a time, making goals for the week to give myself direction

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May 27, 2021 · 10:15 am

Adding Weight to the Argument

boredpanda.com

I’m frustrated that I gained half a pound.

I wouldn’t be upset if I had eaten something I shouldn’t . Hopefully, that half pound and more will have bitten the dust tomorrow.

WiffleGif.gif

Maybe it has to do with the fact I started up my yoga practice again yesterday.

I will just keep on keepin’ on, hoping my efforts will come together.

Isn’t this dog the cutest thing you’ve ever seen? :0)

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January 29, 2021 · 9:47 am

‘Enthusiastic’ Eating

My husband has requested that I cook a roast in the crock pot, so I’ll do that tomorrow. I’m am learning to put any leftovers into individual meal containers for us and put them into the freezer, to be put into the regular rotation.

Mostly, though, we center our eating around two new places in Greenwood that offer healthy frozen individual meals. REAL FOOD and STU’S CLEAN COOKIN’ both offer really delicious meals, and we are thoroughly enjoying them.

We center our eating for the day around our dinner frozen meal. We are usually sharing a homemade tuna fish salad and sugar free jello for lunch. My husband has some sweet pickles and I have green or black olives. I usually add another portion of veggies to our evening meal.

Our biggest problems center around snacking. I am trying to decide what my snack for the day will be and stick to it. I am also trying to drink lots of water. Sometimes I think that all the water-drinking advice is a ploy to get even the most sluggish among us to get some exercise – running to the bathroom! We both really want ‘something’ as we move toward bedtime. I’m trying to work on things for that, too.

We fell off the wagon during the pandemic and should be up for an award or two for creating new excuses for not eating the way we should and exercises. We are back in the saddle now and are seeing some steady progress.

Even though the winter and the pandemic encourage our desire for comfort food, I’m trying to look at this as an opportunity to have MORE control over what we are putting into our mouths and how we are spending our time.

I will try to be a good little girl and get my gold stars for my exercises today. :0)

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January 27, 2021 · 10:05 am

Crunchy

Veterinarian Bend Oregon

I’ve been doing my stretching yoga poses for several days in a row now and I’m definitely feeling looser. The thing I’m NOT is smarter.

I have proven to myself several times now that I hurt less, feel looser, AND feel better about myself when I do 30 minutes or so of yoga stretches (old lady version) every day. I even give myself a gold star on my desk calendar when I do my practice. And, yet, STILL it does not become a habit, where I notice and miss it when I don’t do it. I would really LIKE for that to happen.

Soon I will be another year older – (unless I get hit by a bus or something before then.) I would LIKE to be able to report that I am taking better care of myself – eating healthy food, eating reasonable portions, losing some of my lard, and moving easier with less pain, building a stronger core.

This is not merely a New Year’s Resolution. I am trying for a true lifestyle change. I am trying to take one day at a time, rather than being overwhelmed by the hugeness of the challenge. I have plans for what I’ll eat today. I will go do my 35 minutes on my elliptical as soon as I finish my blog posts here (and my coffee). We have errands to run and then I will do my 30 minutes of yoga this afternoon.

I will try to be better than I was yesterday.

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January 24, 2021 · 8:57 am

Talking to Myself

Askideas.com

I’ve been talking to myself again; sometimes it’s the most intelligent conversation I have all day! :0)

One of the things I’m talking to myself about is NOT stuffing something into my face. I’ve been doing better on that lately, even though I’m a stress eater. I also could eat the entire house when I’m up in the middle of the night, not able to sleep.

The last several days I’ve been slogging my way through tax prep. (I’m hoping to essentially finish that up today). When my brain goes glassy, I get up and move around. I get some water. If the weather is reasonable, I put on a jacket and walk around the yard a bit. If not, I do a few minutes on my elliptical trainer in the garage. In the afternoon my ‘break’ takes the form of stretching yoga.

It is my hope that all of this will come together – resulting in

less lard

less pain

feeling good

In the meantime, I tell myself to take it one day at a time and

taolife.com

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January 20, 2021 · 9:26 am

Thoughts on a Wednesday 1-20-2021

Cheezburger

My diet and exercise effort have been sporadic this past week. Until I can get my act together, I won’t see any progress. At this point, I’m just trying not to fall off completely. I feel stressed, and that brings on ‘stuff-my-mouth’ behavior. There are many things over which I have no control. I will try to concentrate on the things I CAN.

I feel happy this morning because I got to chat with our son before he went to bed. There is a 12-hour time difference between Arkansas and Thailand, so it’s a bit of a challenge to have both of us up at the same time. He sounded happy, and that’s all that matters.

Yesterday I stopped by the booth my friend Carla and I share in Rags & Roses Collective in Greenwood to take a few new things and visit with the owner a bit. She showed me a couple of videos of her son doing all kinds of gymnastics with the cheerleaders for a basketball game at school. WONDERFUL! We sold some things yesterday, covering half our rent. Hopefully, this will continue!

I got a haircut yesterday, and two of my best friends in the world thought it looked good!

I hope that YOUR Wednesday is a safe, happy one.

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January 13, 2021 · 9:08 am

Diet Woes

I learned yesterdaythat, without a doubt. I am an emotional eater. When I’m upset, I can’t seem to stuff in the food fast enough. I’m much too old for this kind of reaction. We didn’t even have anything really upsetting happen – I was just thrown off my new diet and exercise regimen – and I went the other direction with a vengeance.

So – no stars yesterday for exercise and the scales were laughing at me this morning.

I have a nice start to the day. I will do better.

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December 21, 2020 · 10:12 am

Di-et-Attitude

PinonFunny

My husband and I have decided that life is too short to feel guilty all the time. During the holidays, plus the change of weather, plus this awful pandemic, plus – we will finish out 2020 stuffing our faces. Well, not really, but not raking ourselves over the coals, either, when we overindulge.

We got lots of goodies from friends. We are going to enjoy some of them. We are freezing some for later, enjoying some now, and enjoying some comfort foods.

We are now – finally – into a lifestyle of eating good food, watching our portions, foregoing lots of things, such as sugar, bread, starches, excess carbs, etc. I am trying to exercise on a daily basis, and move more in general. We want to lose the lard, become more flexible, improve strength and balance, and improve the numbers on our quarterly or every-six-month routine monitoring blood tests.

BUT – for a little while – we are allowing the kid in us to come out and play, enjoying the ‘season’, smiling as we enjoy the lovely things that aren’t so great for our health, but make life much more worth living for a few days each year.

May we all be much healthier in 2021, eventually free from worry about the virus.

Stay safe and well.

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December 13, 2020 · 10:46 am

Dead Eye

Spic.one

I finally saw some progress on my scales this morning. My husband and I have been eating well, enjoying individual frozen meals from Real Food and Stu’s Clean Cookin‘ in Greenwood.

The problem is that we’ve been enjoying too much OTHER food that isn’t so good for us. The pandemic is our latest excuse, but the real problem is us.

I have decided – once again – to be responsible for my OWN eating, letting my husband stuff his face with ‘sticky buns’ – his latest indulgence, while I drink more water, eat some raw veggies with Ranch dressing as a dip, and hopefully continue to see results on the scales. The fact that HE is also seeing results is maddening – but I’m too old too whine and pout – MUCH…

I will concentrate on doing my elliptical trainer this morning, my yoga this afternoon, eating my raw veggies and drinking water, and looking forward to the scales being impressed with my efforts.

Please wish me luck.

123RF.com

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December 1, 2020 · 9:31 am
November 12, 2020 · 12:02 pm

Good ‘Eats’ Result in Less Lardage

“Caught Red-Pawed” – Audrius P. – Bored Panda

My husband and I really tried with the prepared meals weight loss folks – Nutrisystem, South Beach, and BistroMD – and we lost some weight, but it was grim. They either discontinued the food we really liked, we weren’t happy with the meals, or the food tasted so bad we just couldn’t hack it.

My husband was almost to his goal weight, so I was trying hard to make the keto diet work for us. We really like the recipes by Suzanne Ryan in her cookbook Simply Keto. The biggest problem with that was that we tended to eat more of whatever it was than a ‘portion.’ It was totally a self-discipline problem.

We lucked out when two new companies came to Greenwood AR recently – The Real Food Company, and Stu’s Clean Cookin’ – both offering frozen meals that are individual portions, heat up in the microwave, are good for you and TASTE GOOD!

We are happy as clams now, continuing to lose weight by declaring the frozen meals, individual portions, our main meal of the day, having tuna salad or the equivalent for lunch, and no breakfast. We are trying to limit our snacks, as well, eating healthy things – though my husband uses it as an excuse to splurge. Since HE is at his goal weight and his blood sugar numbers are now better than mine, I should look to HIM for advice…

I am continuing to drink as much water as I can without my eyeballs floating too badly, and I am trying to get in both my elliptical trainer and yoga stretches daily. My weight loss is slow and steady.

We are looking forward to our meals now, instead of gritting our teeth and making do while resenting the fact the food costs so much. Tonight, for example we are looking forward to trying “Teriyaki Chicken Lo Mein” from The Real Food Company.

Bon Appetit!

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October 17, 2020 · 9:15 am

Reading…

CoolFunnyQuotes.com

Our recently adopted eating program of eating a healthy food frozen meal from one of two new local places is working pretty well for us.

We have suffered through the prepared meal programs of Nutrisystem, South Beach, and BistroMD. We lost some weight, but they either didn’t have food we liked or discontinued the items we DID like.

We also tried straight keto, using a wonderful recipe book called Simply Keto by Suzanne Ryan. We really like the recipes, but were having trouble sticking to the suggested portions.

Now we are eating one of the frozen meals from either REAL FOOD or STU’S CLEAN COOKIN’ in Greenwood each day of the work week. That is our main meal of the day. I make a tuna fish salad for our lunch (I eat some green olives and my husband eats some sweet pickles), and that’s our eating day. I cook something from the Simply Keto cookbook for the weekend.

Today I will cook “Bacon-Wrapped Cheesy Chicken Breasts.” We will add a side veggie. Tomorrow we will have leftovers/reruns with a side salad.

I am getting a good amount of exercise with all the yard work that needs to be done this time of the year (today is lopping off hanging branches in the yard plus spraying KillzAll weed killer in various places), plus I’m trying to get a house project done inside. (Today is switching my warm weather clothes for cool weather clothes in my closet.)

We are slowly and steadily losing weight and enjoying our meals – a really nice combination.

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October 11, 2020 · 9:57 am

Inner Fatty

http://www.MerrylainFitness.com

I gained a pound this morning. :0(

I KNOW. I’m probably just retaining water or not holding my mouth right, but it DOES make not eating more difficult.

I ALSO know that some people tell you that you shouldn’t weigh every day. If I don’t, it’s as if I have a ‘pass’ for the day and it doesn’t matter if I eat an ‘extra bite or two.’ If I know I’m going to have to get on the scales the next morning- fingers crossed to see some improvement for my efforts, I have more motivation to NOT eat.

On the good side, my jeans ARE getting looser. I am down 41 – make that 40 this morning – pounds and almost 38 inches since my lardiest.

Our new eating program, where we are eating a HEALTHY frozen food prepared by one of the two new local places in town – REAL FOOD or STU’S CLEAN COOKIN’ – eating tuna fish salad for lunch and a careful snack mid-afternoon – seems to be keeping us on track. On the weekends I am cooking, but combining something we have missed with careful cooking and attention to portions. Yesterday I fixed pork chops and black-eyed peas with onion. We’ll eat the leftovers from that tonight.

For the past week I have been working hard in the garden, trying to get it protected from the winter and mostly prepared for spring planting. This involves about an hour a day of standing on my head in various trash cans filling up buckets for the recipe of Mel’s Mix, a soil alternative for my raised bed square foot garden. I then haul a big plastic yard pail full of Mel’s Mix over to the garden, lift it and dump it in the middle of one of my planter boxes, then spread it around. Because I have been doing this every day, I have not done my ‘regular’ exercise.

Now that the garden project is finished, I will go back to yoga stretching every day and my elliptical trainer at least three times a week, if not daily.

English Lion – ideascuttingagainstthegrain.blogspot.ca

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October 9, 2020 · 8:52 am

Dieting Tip

QuotesGram

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September 30, 2020 · 9:54 am

Progress Report 9-30-2020

“Caught Red-Pawed” – Audrius P. – Bored Panda

I have been trying to get as healthy as I can so that I can continue to do what I love for as long as possible. This means losing as much of my lard as I can and trying to move more.

Since my lardiest, I have lost 40 pounds and there is 34.7 inches less of me than there was at one time. My goal is to lose another 30 lbs. and to continue exercising. As we age, we tend to move more hesitantly. That might not be the best descriptive word, but it’s the one that comes to mind. The feet start to shuffle, the movements become more tentative, as if we’re testing the waters before diving in. I am hoping that my efforts on the elliptical trainer and my yoga stretches will delay that for several more years.

My husband and I are very happy with our new eating plan.  We ate “Pork, Black Beans, Brown Rice, and BBQ Sauce” from Stu’s Clean Cookin’ last night and it was YUMMY! Otherwise, I ate tuna fish salad and  green olives for lunch and some cottage cheese as a snack.  I’m drinking enough water to float a boat. (or at least it SEEMS that much…)

This seems to be working for us. My husband looks forward to his meals again (we were cringing for awhile with the prepared plans we were on). He is basically at his goal weight and is mainly trying to hold the line on sugar and hold the new weight. I can’t get him to exercise, but I will continue to ‘try to set a good example’ and hope he’ll want to do it, too. I can’t really talk very loudly since he was never as overweight as I and can still outlast me on stamina when we’re working on a project together.

I have set my goals for the next month, hoping to be able to report more progress to you at the end of October. In the meantime, I have finished a cup of coffee, so it’s time to replace my cup with a bottle of water…

taolife.com

 

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September 28, 2020 · 9:42 am

Diet Day 1:

My husband is basically at his goal weight now. He is very happy about that, and is determined to keep the weight off. We have been really trying to avoid sugar, and his blood sugar numbers are stellar.  :0)  He really likes the Real Food frozen dinners we have been getting. (We pick up our newest order this afternoon.) He has not been throwing much extra bad stuff into our grocery cart, and is encouraging about MY efforts to lose the lard. He told me this morning he was very happy with our eating plan. :0)  Our main source for food is Real Food in Greenwood. We did get some food from Stu’s Clean Cookin’ this past week and put it in the freezer. Since the weather is cooling off, we try to stock up. Living on the top of a ridge line has taught us that having extra supplies in the winter is a very good thing… We will try some of the newest offerings soon.

I have to admit that I’m a bit teed off that my husband has a so much easier time losing weight than I do. He comes in and nukes our dinner, but I’m the one who keeps up with all of the details, makes lunches and snacks, figures out and cooks a keto meal when indicated, cleans up, etc. He does not exercise and has no inclination to. He eats things he shouldn’t, and yet – he has met his goal!

“I” am eating right and exercising (in one form or another) on a daily basis and still have about 30 pounds of lard to lose. I am drinking so much water my eyeballs float. I am making progress, but V E R R R Y slowly.  Since I am definitely not getting any taller, I will just have to continue my efforts and celebrate each pound that finally leaves.

I feel very lucky that we FINALLY found food that tastes good and have figured out a way to plan our eating for the day around the frozen meal we get from the newest good places in Greenwood.

One of these days I’ll be able to tell you I have finally met my goal!

123RF.com

 

 

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September 24, 2020 · 10:42 am

I Love Fall

PicMix – Tenor

Such a glorious morning!

We have both doors open, encouraging an airing out of the house. My husband is taking a nap, covered with a blanket in his recliner. I had the happy thing of getting a bit TOO chilly while working at my computer, and so got up and turned the ceiling fan OFF!  It’s still too wet to work outside, so I’m still concentrating on INSIDE stuff today.

I’m having an easier time of my exercise time on my elliptical trainer. It’s in the garage, so the outside temperatures are a big factor for me. I don’t have to use the fan on the wall in front of the machine now. The little built-in one on the machine is enough. :0)  Coupled with my old lady yoga stretches, I feel I am getting a reasonable amount of exercise each day.

“Caught Red-Pawed” – Audrius P. – Bored Panda

I can’t express how excited (and relieved) I am to have found the frozen meals at REAL FOOD in Greenwood. (We put our pre-order in on Wednesday afternoons and then pick the order up the following Monday.) We are building our eating day around the frozen meal as the main meal of the day, eating very lightly the rest of the day. Both of us are continuing to lose weight. I’m am still cooking keto on the weekends. We won’t break any records on fast weight loss, but the scales have quit cringing so much when we get on. I’m also encouraged to have finally re-lost most of the weight I gained during the pandemic, now ready to break new ground in my losing-the-lard efforts. 40 pounds off is a nice, round number. My next goal is 45.  I am hopeful that when I measure at the end of the month, my tape measure will be happier, too.

I was dreaming last night of a new group of products to make in my art room. I love quotes, and am really inspired by some, laugh at others – so I’m going to do some paintings on small hard canvas boards, using Unicorn Spit paint, watercolors, acrylics, melted crayons, etc. and then letter good quotes that people might like on them. The ideas are rattling around, so it’ll be fun to get to my art room and see what happens.

I’m still working on cleaning out and getting rid of things – donating the things that others can use, pitching other things, cleaning and reorganizing the rest. I haven’t decided on my project for the day, but I’m leaning toward our master bedroom bath.

Our son lives in Thailand. He said he had been getting some rain lately. Then he sent us a video that he took outside his yard –

The URL is https://youtu.be/cJmdO50_A64 if the video above doesn’t play for you.

I hope that you are safe and well wherever you are today.

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September 23, 2020 · 9:52 am

More Rain!

Stephanie Stamm

It’s quite dark outside right now. Our rain is supposed to finish sometime this afternoon. All our growing things have really gotten good, thorough drinks the past few days.

Since it’s not a good day to continue work in the garden, I’m switching to INSIDE things. Since I’m such a lousy housekeeper, there is a plethora of things from which to choose on things needing to be cleaned. :0/

I am planning to try to get up to my art room today to try to finish the bookmarks I started recently. I have more ideas rattling around in my head that I would like to start when I finish the current project and get things cleared off.

source unknown

I am happy to report that I lost another couple of pounds this morning!  That gets me back to my 40 pounds off from my lardiest!

These sweet bears are from when I lost weight several years ago with Nutrisystem. As with the gold stars I put on my desk calendar for exercise, these were motivating. We stopped this program because they discontinued most of the food my husband liked.  I’m happy to have re-earned the green bear…

So far I am very happy with our new eating regimen of having our main meal of the day a frozen entrée from REAL FOOD in Greenwood. Their food is delicious, and the portion is controlled. We are skipping breakfast and eating something light, such as tuna fish salad, for lunch and then MAYBE a careful snack mid to late afternoon, if we are hungry. The careful eating plus exercise (elliptical trainer and yoga stretches) seem to have me on track again, and for that I’m truly grateful.  (We will pre-order for next week when they list the choices this afternoon. )

I hope that you are having a good day, full of love and free from stress.

Stay safe and well.

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September 18, 2020 · 9:58 am

Eating vs NOT Eating

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I have told you that my husband and I are REALLY enjoying the frozen meals from REAL FOOD in Greenwood. My experiment, since the food is SO good (but has no nutritional information provided) is to monitor the scales, take our blood pressure and blood sugar measurements twice a week (we BOTH are on meds for high blood pressure, and my husband is a Type II Diabetic – although he will deny that, saying only that he has a ‘sugar problem.’) and use these frozen meals as our main meal of the day, skip breakfast, and eat a snacky lunch (such as tuna fish salad) and a CAREFUL snack, otherwise.

We are finishing our first week and will enjoy our last REAL FOOD meal for the week this evening. I will make some keto chili (Suzanne Ryan, Simply Keto) tomorrow for the weekend.

I am continuing to drink water until my eyeballs float, and am conscientiously doing my exercises morning and afternoon (elliptical trainer in our garage in the morning and yoga stretches in the afternoon.)

I lost a pound this morning! 

Life Death Prizes

Fingers crossed that when I measure at the end of the month, the measuring tape will at least smirk at me, if not smile a bit.

I am determined to get as healthy as I can – losing the lard, strengthening my core, and increasing my flexibility – so that I can enjoy life, doing what I would like to, for as long as possible.

 

“Caught Red-Pawed” – Audrius P. – Bored Panda

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