The Ab Exercises are back in play

I backed off on my ab exercises in the past month. Was a bit worried about doing them because of surgery two years ago on ruptured disc at waistline level. It seemed a shame to give up the ab stuff because it really was working. Not quite a 6-pack, but looking good!

That's when I decided to contact the neurosurgeon and question him about what exercises I could do. Big question in my mind, does the fact that I've gotten rid of almost fifty pounds make a difference in he'll recommend? He sent word for me to make an appointment so we could talk. I did. We did. Yesterday. I'm pleased.

The ab exercises are back in play, just don't use medicine ball (I didn't) when twisting my upper body side to side. And no exercises that extend my back. So, no touching-the-toes type exercises nor arching back on an exercise ball. Walking, the stationary bike, swimming -- all okay, except no "butterfly" swim stroke which arches the back.

Also told him that RealAge.com test told me I exercise too much. He indicated I should pay attention to my body and notice how it reacts to exercising. Does it hurt? That's not good, so don't do that exercise. Okay, that goes along with my thinking and that's what I've done in the past and will continue to do.

Oh yes, the doctor says the weight loss does make a difference.

Kate Sholonski's Diary of Addiction

My friend Kate Sholonski has her own blog and posts almost daily. Her entry today, July 25 - Diary of Addictions - is a barrel of laughs and full of insight for those addicted to food, or anything else.

Musings on a rainy summer day

Black Eyed Susans and all other daisy-like flowers are favorites of mine. Years ago my ex-husband enjoyed slow truck drives on rutted, woodsy roads and I went along for the ride. Found wild berries, fields blanketed with yellow dandelions (then "sheeted" with the dandelions turned white), and wild flowers. One day spotted lots of BES and yelled for him to stop and carefully dig up just one! Took it home, added it to our yard and it bloomed for years!

Another supposed excellent drawing card for hummingbirds is huechera (coral bell). a great shade plant -- many varieties. We had a couple with geranium-type leaves, long flower stems and tiny pink flowers--maybe Heuchera 'Bressingham Mix'.

Never had hummingbirds, but that could be because of the cat population in our area at the time. Now I'm looking for huechera for my current garden. Found one similar in the planter in front of the nearby Senior Center... should I sneak over some night??? It's similar to the variety I want :)

My favorite flowers from the florist - football mums and creamsicle-colored roses. I once dated a guy who drove daily on country roads to his job. Passed by fields of wild flowers and brought me huge, hand-picked, mixed bouquets several times weekly.

If you planted the lettuce varieties I have, it's called Mesclun. This site gives good info on growing and using these greens and suggests pairing them with a vinaigrette and edible flowers. I'm growing nasturtiums this year and both flower and leaves are edible. Beautiful plants but tend to hog garden space with their numerous tendrils which will creep over every inch of space until they have something to climb. Bet they'd do great with a fencing, trellis, or string supports.

Amazing retirement moment yesterday. I decided to crawl under the sheets and snooze mid-afternoon. Bit muggy so turned on living room A/C. As soon as I laid down, it started raining. I closed my bedroom door and opened the window wide (thankfully there is a protective overhang). Laid there, listening to and watching the downpour, backgrounded by huge evergreens. Several huge sighs of contentment.

Body image and perception

I feel like a slender pregnant woman who's only gained 10-15 pounds, all in the belly, of course. You know, the way it looks once the baby has "dropped".

What's perception got to do with it? Swam at the "Y" this morning and met a fellow Weight Watcher in the locker room. I understand when people feel huge and want to lose more weight, I told her. It's all in how we see ourselves compared to others, I suppose. I even pointed out my bulging belly, and she smiled and shook her head in disbelief.

My perception is that my belly needs to go, aesthetically speaking and health-wise. Her perception seemed to be that I had no problem, and I'm guessing that would be based on her view of herself and her own body image because I have had the same conversation/reaction in the past when talking with slimmer women than me.

We all have to work with what we have in body image, belly size, and perception. We all do the best we can and that's pretty darn good!

Belly Bulge

My belly appears to be growing, but it's actually the rest of my body shrinking and my belly not keeping up. That "bulging belly" scares me. I think, oh god, I must look fat, therefore I must have gained weight!

Last week I bought two pairs of jeans, still size 12 but much better fit around the waist and in the back. Put them on last night preparing for a Weight Watchers meeting and decided to tuck in my shirt, which action calls for a belt.

My belt has five holes and with the previous pair of jeans I could buckle them at the 3rd or 4th hole. Last night, new jeans, belt in and hooked up--omigosh, I'm into the 5th hole. There it is, more proof of weight loss and body changes, that little something I'm always looking for to keep me going.

Since I can't afford belly reduction surgery, I guess I'll scope out local stores for girdles. Only they don't call them girdles anymore, do they? Shapewear maybe? I'll have to check it out. I need belly support not only for masking the belly bulge but also to lesson the strain on my back.


Note: I decided to check my waistline/ Last time was 36". This morning: 34.5". Yay for me!

Less about what you do wrong and more about what you do right!

I went to the grocery store this afternoon. Walked, in spite of the fact that I'd ridden my stationery bike 30 minutes this morning and intended to do it again after supper. Heading through the store parking lot and nearing the entrance, I realized that I was berating myself for eating too much this week. Really giving myself a talking to...

What is going on with my mind, I wondered. It was just this past Monday evening that I went to a Weight Watchers weigh-in and found that I'd taken off three more pounds. Here I am, only four days later, obsessing about my eating habits and figuring out how many pounds I might have gained and would I have to pay the weekly weigh-in fee* at the next WW meeting.

Oh, good grief, I'm doing it again. Instead of "relishing my accomplishment" -- my three-pound loss -- all I thought of was the many pounds I must have gained. Well, excuse me, Self, I'd have to do a lot more eating to put on pounds and pounds in only four days. So, get off that destructive course and focus on what you're doing right!

Along the same line of thinking is Suzanne Beecher's "Dear Reader" column for July 15. Well worth reading, as are all her columns..

*Note: Lifetime members have to pay for attending any week that they weigh-in at more than two pounds over their goal weight.

Birthday cheesecake for a 25-year-old

Every year my daughter wants a chocolate chip & peanut butter cheesecake for her birthday cake. I can't remember how many years I've made it. This year I took it one step further and decorated the top with white and yellow icing flowers with peanut butter-chocolate chips for centers. So-o-o tasty. Happy birthday, Sam! I love you. xoxoxo Mom

Women who inspire me

I think it's time to start a written list of people who have inspired me in some way during my lifetime.

Top of the list is my newest inspiration, Facebook friend Beth Cardinal. Beth has taken good care of herself throughout her life, then when she retired she got serious about bodybuilding. Click here and scroll through the page to see several pictures of Beth at the Canadian Natural National Championships 2008.

Miss Beth Parker was my typing teacher in high school. A funny looking woman and a diehard Yankee fan, she inspired me to love typing and use it throughout my life in my work and personal writings. She also taught us finger-limbering exercises that I continue to use these many decades later, not to facilitate easier typing but to loosen up slightly arthritic fingers.

Melissa Murray inspired me even before tragedy struck her family. Her gentleness and determination have remained constant. When things get tough, I think of Melissa and realize I have no idea what tough is. Melissa and her husband Rich also have set the bar for love and caring even after many years of marriage.

Mary Lu Walker never ceases to amaze me. As if raising eight children wasn't enough, when she reached her fifties she began writing songs for kids. She's sung for and with children around the world and still brings her guitar and her music into the local library as a volunteer during children's storyhours. In 2008 Mary Lu was inducted into the Steuben County NY Hall of Fame.

Grace Rosettie walks every day. A retired kindergarten teacher with five children, Grace has been known to hike in the mountains (such as the Austrian, Swiss and Italian Alps). She's tiny and the biggest part of her is her contagious smile. If one of her many grandchildren is in a sporting event, she's there to cheer him or her on. Volunteering is also a big part of her life.

Great-Aunt Alice was about 50 years old when I was born in 1945. Except for a few wrinkles, she never changed. I swear! Always the shirtwaist dresses, always the clip-on earrings and pearl-like necklaces, always the same, every-hair-in-place 'do. Aunt Alice did everything on today's "No-list" and lived to the age of 108. The No's? White bread, white sugar, red meats, no exercise beyond walking here and there. No, she never walked... she sprinted! As a teenager, I decided to live till I'm 103, to live well, and Aunt Alice has always been my inspiration to hang on to that aspiration.

The living women on this list range from late 40s (or is it early 50s) to over 80. We're definitely not only getting older, we're getting a whole lot better.

Latest weight loss accomplishment

I have to admit: I bought 1.5-quarts of Turkey Hill ice cream, then I ate too much of it that same day. Bad girl... bad girl... whatcha gonna do... whatcha gonna do when the pounds come after you??? Woke in the middle of the night, knowing that I would, without a doubt, eat the rest of it the next day. So, I did something I've never done before. I got out of bed, took the ice cream container out of the freezer and set it in the sink. In the morning, I opened the container, and the melted mess didn't look the least bit appetizing. Threw that out!

IT WAS WORTH IT! Down three pounds at Weight Watchers weigh-in last night. WW Leader invited me to lower my goal, since I'm now ten pounds under goal. That gives me too many pounds to "play with", she reminded me. She's right. It's time to step up and make a new commitment to myself. My old goal of 164-pounds has been changed to 156-pounds. That leaves me only two pounds leeway. (As a Weight Watchers Lifetime Member, as long as I stay at least two pounds under goal, I attend meetings for free. Go more than two pounds over, and I have to pay for that week.)

Where do I want to go from here? Down, of course. I still have the slightly bulging belly, not for lack of ab exercises! As a point of interest, I really thought I would show a gain this week because my belly seemed bigger. What I'm assuming is the weight is coming off in other areas which makes the belly more noticeable. I hate that, not the weight coming off in other areas, but rather that the belly is always lagging behind.

I do want to relish my accomplishments in this saga of weight loss:
*I've gotten rid of 48.8 pounds (Some of them several times, LOL!)
*Even in the weeks I gained, I've never given up.
*I've not hit a plateau (Which tells me my body agrees that the weight needs to come off, it's happening at a reasonable rate, and I'm not depriving myself of too many calories or nutrients.)
*25% of my original (October 2008) body weight is gone. That's TWENTY-FIVE percent!

Just thinking about NOT carrying around 25% of my body weight leaves me almost speechless. That's some accomplishment for anyone. As long as my body doesn't protest and as long as there is still the belly (and fatty deposits in other areas of the body), I'll continue to think less. A long-term goal is 135.9 pounds which would be at the bottom of the weight range for my height and age. That would equal an overall loss of ONE-THIRD of my original body weight. Meanwhile, it's five pounds at a time. Or one pound at a time.

Changing exercise routines and eating habits

Thursday, after swimming at the "Y", I took a look at the machines in the workout room. Spent 15-minutes on the Precor bike. Love that it has back support. Also asked for and got a demo with the Nustep TRS 4000 Recumbent Cross trainer. This, too, allows you to sit and has back support.

Friday I went back for 15-min. on the bike, 15 on the cross trainer, and then 15 more on the bike. Today I did 15 each and added 15-min. on a treadmill at 3.3 mph and a 2% incline. I never did good with inclines, but that was in the overweight days, so I'm going to work more on that. Worked up a slight sweat on the treadmill. That's good, I suppose, because I rarely sweat, except in response to the humidity.

In September 2007 I had surgery for a ruptured disc (L3-4) and afterwards the surgeon said no to running and no to certain exercises. I emailed his office last week explaining my weight loss and exercise regime. Would, I ask, my new weight and fitness make a difference in what exercises and activities I can engage in? His assistant called and said the surgeon suggested I make an appointment and come talk with him in person. That's hopeful--at least he didn't give me a flatout 'No'. I have an appointment at the end of the month.

I seem to be more on track with my food intake. Weigh myself each morning when I got to daughter's to feed the fish (and to tempt the garden slugs with beer!). 154.4# this AM. Good, that's down a bit. Had gone up almost two pounds in the last month, but this gets me back in step. When I gain, it goes to my belly. When my weight drops, I don't know where it comes from -- not the belly, at least not from my point of view. One actions that's helped me with the eating is getting back in the habit of sitting at the table (place setting waiting between meals) for all meals. Also, putting down utensils between bites. What I've done is to simply notice.

What have I noticed? ...that I was rushing through my food. Forking in more when my mouth is not completely empty. Waiting, patiently, for every bit to be swallowed stretches out the eating process and slows me down. So good to have the trick in my pocket waiting to be engaged when I need a reminder.

Farm Sanctuary, garden slugs, and getting healthy

In order to conserve gas and to stay fit, I decided to walk to and from my daughter's, instead of driving, to feed the fish, etc. Level ground the first half mile; uphill climb the second half. Going back down works the leg muscles, too. I was pleased that I didn't need to stop to catch my breath. So, by 8:30 A.M. I already had a 2-mile walk under my belt!
The slugs? Set a "beer trap" in the ground yesterday and this morning there were 6-7 slugs in it! Fewer chewed-on flowers this morning. Yay! Dorothy the fish is still looking good this morning. I think this "diet" is working - she's much more active and seemed thinner today.

I did attend the 4th of July Pignic at Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen, NY. Loved the wide open spaces, the tranquility, the animals and the free food. Farm Sanctuary now has bed and breakfast cabins available.


I walked out behind my place to the river and watched the fireworks upstream. Better view, less sound and much smaller crowd. Happy 4th, America!

4th of July, garden slugs and life in general

Today we celebrate America's independence. I'm seriously considering (if I can get past the thought of using the gas!) driving the 22 miles to Farm Sanctuary in Watkins Glen for their 4th of July Pignic. Free tours on the hour, 11 AM to 3 PM, and free vegan snacks. If I pack a lunch, gotta remember not to include meat. (As you can see from the photo above, I did choose to go to the "Pignic". Great fun.

Plant and pet sitting for my daughter's family while they're vacationing in Florida. I used to housesit quite regularly, staying 24/7 in people's houses and caring for plants, dogs, mail, etc. The only pets at Sam's are the garden slugs which I've been dispatching with regularity -- actually, by plucking them off plants and the ground and throwing them onto the street; plus, today I set them up with a beer bath, and goldfish. A large, fat goldfish named Dorothy, a tiny, unnamed goldfish, and one of those scum suckers that help clean the aquarium. Dorothy is a girl fish, my grandson says, because her name is Dorothy. I've put Dorothy and her buddies on a diet. They were being fed twice daily and seemed quite sluggish. I only go over once a day and they're enthusiasm is evident when I show up!

Having my daughter's car for three weeks is good. I prefer not to own a car, but enjoy the change that comes with temporarily having one. I worry I'll get lazy and fat, of course! Wegmans Supermarket is just across the river and I walk there all the time. But, now I drive to Sam's, tend the critters, and stop at Wegmans on the way back home. However, I park at the farthest end of the lot from the entrance. My daughter tells me that there is a special parking place in the southeast corner, signage included, for those who prefer to walk the longer distance.