Gardener's Group discussion

More important than what size we are is being the healthiest we can be at Any size! Post here for support from the group with your lifestyle goals (exercise, weight loss, improved eating habits etc) or ask for advice from other members to help you achieve your goals.

*And remember, what works for one person doesn't mean it's going to work for someone else and that's okay!* Health should be specific to a specific person, not a generic thing based on age, height, gender, etc..

**Of course this thread isn't a substitute for a doctor's medical advice or treatment so if you have concerns about something, please talk to your doctors as well as us.** (And if you don't feel you can talk to your doctors or aren't being listened to, find new doctors! I know this can be a horrendous process but there are good doctors out there).

***Also: We each have our personal preferences when it comes to food, health & exercise and that's okay; we're individuals and that's bound to happen but I don't want anyone to end up feeling uncomfortable about their personal preferences because others don't have the same ones or others don't agree w/them. This thread is about being supportive and positive, not casting judgement or making a diagnosis. Be mindful that food/health/weight are sensitive subjects for some.***

Thanks!

What a great idea! My current challenge is to get rid of my "muffin". I've been exercising more, and eating leaner meats & more veggies. I DO feel better/healthier -- which is great!

That's great Beth! It doesn't always take a huge over-hall to improve things, simple small changes add up to a lot of positive affects!

Planned to get out for a good walk today as the temps were perdicted to be in the 40s. Didn't happen. We also had 20-30 MPH winds and I just didn't feel up to the battle. March is always my grumpy month, sick of being in the house and not really nice enough to be outside.

It was gorgeous out today, fairly warm and I wanted to go for a walk. Decided to put the dishwasher on before leaving; bent down to get a dishwasher tab, straitened up and the nerve in my neck that goes along the base of & up into my skull (behind my left ear) immediately started burning so I knew I aggrivated it. (It's not a pinch nerve though the pain is similar from what my doctor told me; my arthritis is affecting my neck and started aggrivating this nerve the year before last). The domino affect is terrible, sends pain into my jaw, throat & ear. So I took my meds, slathered on the anti-inflammatory gel and took to the couch until it calmed down. I'd rather have a migraine so that must give you an idea of how painful this nerve thing is. It's better now but it's tender, one wrong move and it will flare up all over again. Hubby's going to give me a massage which usually helps with this (and my migraines). Hopefully I'll be okay tomorrow morning and I can go for a walk. I couldn't even walk on the treadmill instead today.

I'm so sorry, I hope you sleep well and wake up better again tomorrow.

Aw, thanks so much Petra! Me too :-)

Cheryl: I hate the wind! Walking in that kind of wind would make you burn about 4x the calories but it's just not worth it in my opinion.

Jo: Sorry to hear about that. Why is it that simple little moves are the ones that do us in? That's how my back discs are. I might simply be brushing my teeth and lean over to rinse out my mouth and WHAM! Something pops and I'm in excruciating pain. Sigh. I feel for you honey. At least you know all the right things to do to help it get better faster.

Must be something in the air--I have the worst all-time sinus infection I've ever had. I've never felt such pain (other than labor). My entire upper jaw feels like someone swung a bat at it over and over. Even my cheekbones hurt. Every single tooth is aching and throbbing. I feel like I have an abcessed tooth--in every single one. Sigh. And the ones that seem to hurt the most are the two teeth that have had root canals and they aren't supposed to have any nerves to feel anything. I've been on antibiotics for three days and now I'm going to have to take a steroid in order to reduce the pressure in my head. (I've already tried 800mg. of motrin and two tylenol sinus tabs every 6 hrs.) I sure hope it gets better soon.

Aw, I hope you feel better soon Terri! From November through the beginning of February, Hubbs and I were passing a sinus infection back & forth and I tell ya each round was worse than the last; I've had sinus problems for years and this was the worst ever pain wise! Not much to do but takes the meds and let it run its course unfortunately. Stay hydrated and rest as much as you can.

Gosh Terri and Jo, you have had a bad go of it! Jo, I know what your pain feels like. You pinched one of the cranial nerves. It may be the trigeminal. That is the one that causes trigeminal neuralgia (TN), which historically has even caused people to commit suicide, the pain is so severe. When I had the cellulitis infection in my jaw last year, I had TN. I was in agony. All better now, but I did loose a tooth to the infection. I have a hard time taking steroids, being bipolar, but did that time. Was moody as all get out, but it did help with the pain. Also makes my porokeratosis look red, so I had small rough red spots all over my arms and legs and face. Very disfiguring.

Terri, I have ongoing problems with sinus infections, too, since I use a CPAP to breathe while I sleep. They can be a bear. Hope you feel better.

I must say that hearing about both of you made the ache in my stomach muscles diminish. I have been trying to find a way to exercise my abdomen while in my hot tub. I think I found it yesterday. Woke up with my abdominal muscles hurting! It is really hard to do any sort of crunches with three dogs in the house. They get in my face, thinking I am on the floor to play with them. Then, if I finally get them away, one of the cats comes to sit on my "lap".

My kitties always come over to sniff my head & face, same with Hubby, when we do crunches lol! And they look @ us like, 'uh, what the heck are you doing down here?!' Makes me laugh every time!

Oh, I thought your hubby was sniffing you head and face. sorry. Yeah, I do Tai Chi, the animals all have to play or lay around under my feet. Tai chi has moves called things like 'high pat on horse' and 'needle on the sea bottom', I also have 'stepping over the dog', it's not always graceful.

Jo wrote: "It was gorgeous out today, fairly warm and I wanted to go for a walk. Decided to put the dishwasher on before leaving; bent down to get a dishwasher tab, straitened up and the nerve in my neck that..."

Nerve pain is so debilitating. I feel for your problem.

Terri wrote: "Cheryl: I hate the wind! Walking in that kind of wind would make you burn about 4x the calories but it's just not worth it in my opinion.

Jo: Sorry to hear about that. Why is it that simple ..."

Gee Terri, how miserable. The pressure from the sinus thing just makes everything else hurt so much. Hope your meds start working.

The sum total of my excersize today consisted of walking from the school to my vehicle about 6 times and sitting on my fanny on the gym floor. Neither activity will probably do much for my waistline.

Cheryl, that was a marathon compared to my little jaunts - to the truck and back and twice around the supermarket!

I don't know Cheryl, you might have benefitted your waistline more than you think. You didn't have a backrest, did you? If not, you were using your muscles all day to sit upright, unless you slouched. One of the reason for all the bellies we are seeing is that we all sit in specially designed office chairs that support our backs for us! A very wise family nurse practitioner, when I was having lots of back problems, told me to ditch that type of chair and sit on a bench or stool. I use a storage cube now for my office chair, or an old, worn out springs wood office chair that I have to work to balance in (otherwise it falls backwards). I can really feel the difference. Our grandmothers, who were taught to sit on the edge of a chair or sofa and to sit up straight were on to something!

Here's some info I thought was worth passing along from the current issue (Feb/Mar) of Health Monitor magazine:

When reading food labels, look for~
Calories- 40 is low, 100 is moderate, 400 or above is high
Total fat- should be 5% or less
Sodium- should be 5% or less (or it's considered high - esp if you have to watch sodium levels for various reasons including renal stones, bloating, migraines, as well as high blood pressure and heart disease -Jo)
Fiber- 10% is good, 20% is excellent

Also, ingredients are listed in order by weight so if wheat or whole grain is the first ingredient, that's good, if sugar is the first listed ingredient, that's Not good and you may want to re-think that choice.

One thing I got caught on was substituting butter/margarine with I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray http://www.icantbelieveitsnotbutter.c... Check out the nutrition.

The thing has an addictive taste. I don't think anyone could stop at 5 sprays (which hardly gives you a taste anyway). My son and I were going through bottles this stuff every week and putting on weight. This is because US laws allow anything with less than x no. of cals per x measure to write 0 on the labelling. The true calories are high - not 0 per bottle as you might believe, but 900! http://www.fatsecret.com/Community.as...

So anything that has 0 cals, carbs, fat, whatever, I now check online to find out the truth!

Yes, if it seems too good to be true, it usually is, so it's good to check into things to be on the safe side.

That's surprising about the I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray - I use the spread and per tablespoon it's labeled 45 calories, 8% fat & 4% sodium though I'm not too partial to the taste and don't use any kind of butter or butter tasting products (or mayo) liberally anyhow - I need a little something sometimes when having it "dry" just isn't appealing.

Oh and often "light" or "reduced fat" or "low fat" or "fat free" often has higher calories, higher fat and higher sodium levels than the regular version so watch out for that as well!!!

Most flavour is carried by either sugar or fat, so low-fat products are often high in sugar and vice-versa!

On Atkins I can use butter, but I prefer Hellman's mayo which I've done without for years.

Sorry, guys, but I use butter. Real butter. I'm a Minnesota farm girl and growing up part of our livlihood depended on milk production which was made into butter. I just try to limit the amount I use and cut calories in other ways.

I use real butter too, for cooking. Unsalted butter only. Normally I have my toast/bread 'dry' (meaning no butter only preserves) but from time to time I like some I Can't Believe It's Not Butter when having it dry isn't very appealing. Butter or substitute it's a matter of personal preferance and both are good!

Cheryl: I use real butter too. I was told by my doctor that butter is actually better for you--but I don't remember why. Sigh. It sure tastes better. The artificial stuff has chemicals in it--nuff said.

Hey everyone, I updated my initial post in this thread; I'd appreciate y'all give it a read so we're all 'on the same page' about the intentions of this thread. Thanks so much! :-)

I use butter too. I try to avoid anything that has a lot of chemicals listed, unless I am on a binge, then I don't care. My regular grocery shopping is surprisingly healthy, it is just my binges that get me!

The no gluten has really been working for me. What a surprise after being told for over thirty years I had "irritable bowel disorder". Wonder if all IBD is really a gluten allergy? Sometimes it seems that the medical profession would rather just keep treating symptoms than to get people healthy. I went over twenty years with undiagnosed sleep apnea, even though I was always telling my doctors I didn't sleep well, woke up with headaches, was tired all the time. "It is your depression, your meds..." never paid any attention until I was so sleep deprived I was falling asleep while talking to people. When tested, I didn't even get asleep before I stopped breathing, so I was basically NOT SLEEPING for twenty years!

Very good initial post, Jo. It is important to put in that disclaimer. When I give talks on mental health subjects, I often have to stick that in. Even though psychiatrists think I am another one! I was asked to review and comment, prior to publishing, on Don Black, MD's book Bad Boys, Bad Men. Great book, by the way. When it came time to write his acknowledgments, he was shocked to find out I only had a BA at that point! He thought I was a psychiatrist! But I read medical journals, texts all the time. I even get mail, and now facebook ads, for "Dr Righter"!!

Thanks Miriam! I've been a part of threads like this one in other groups and wanted to be sure everything is stated clearly from the get-go to try and prevent some of the issues I've seen from arising to begin with by making sure we're all on the same page from the start.

I'm sure IBD could be a gluten allergy for some which has been mis-diagnosed. It's only in recent years that gluten allergy and Celiac's Disease ( http://www.celiac.org/ ) is being taken seriously throughout the medical field & industry though people have had these issues for a long time.

Yes, awareness within the medical field is growing for gluten allergies. As it was about a decade ago for sleep disorders. Now it seems much more common to hear of people who use CPAPs. The assistant director at the library was just telling me about how her cat wakes HER up if her husband sleeps in. He bops her on the face mask, hence her nose!

I'm going to try running today. I've been working out regularly for a few years -- walking, running in place in front of the TV, yoga. It's finally above freezing here now, and I've got a walk-to-run plan that recommends you walk for 6 minutes, jog for 1 minute, and repeat 3 times. That's 3 minutes of running total.

My palms are SWEATING just thinking about running. LOL -- I'm getting a work-out just thinking about it. I don't know why I'm so anxiety-ridden. No, I'm not going to look as good or run as fast as my teenage daughter who can run a mile in under 6 minutes -- I don't care about that. It's more of a mental obstacle for me that I want to overcome.

Good luck Beth! And be careful outside--be aware of bumps, cracks, and moist places. Where I live, it's safer to run in the neighborhood street than on the sidewalk. Easier on the shins too. :) I can't run but I have been known to walk around the neighborhood a few loops. I need to get going on that again.

You guys are making me jealous! I will probably not be able to walk tomorrow, after having spent the afternoon on my feet. But it felt so good to work in the yard again!

I'm going for a walk OUTSIDE tomorrow no matter what. It's supposed to be the nicest day of the week and I want to enjoy it.

It was 78 degrees here today and bee-u-tiful! Unfortunately I had tons of paperwork to do INSIDE. Oh well, it's supposed to be nice tomorrow and then another cold front will be moving in with rain predicted by Saturday. I think I need to pop in my seeds for tomatoes indoors so I can be ready for the nice weather that's coming. Either that or the Milk Jug trick. :)

I have been following the gluten free diet for two weeks now. I have had an interesting craving today, actually started last night. I cannot get enough protein! I pay attention to strong food cravings after my first pregnacy. I was craving meat and tomatoes then. I had low blood pressure, and when I researched the treatment, discovered that it was exactly what my body had been craving! So, since a full can of salmon, and six sausage patties today has not yet satisfied my craving, I decided to do some research. The first article I pulled up, on how long it takes to heal the intestines from damage said it is necessary to increase iron, calcium, and vitamins b6, b12, and d. So by craving protein, I was getting iron, calcium, and b6 and 12! Now, where is that steak...

Miriam, Good Luck! Listening to your body is really smart.
I really hope gluten free helps you. I was gluten free for a year, until just a couple of months ago. I lost 25 pounds, and felt a lot better at first, but in the end it made no difference in my chronic fatigue symptoms. I know it can really help if gluten is your problem. I made it through on fried rice with chicken. Two other things I ate daily were either socca - a thin pancake made with chickpea flour, and dosa - a thin pancake made with mung beans and rice. Both very healthy. Both fried! and tasty. Almost everything I ate during that year was fried, and I still lost the weight.

Dr. Mark Hyman's Ultrametabolism Cookbook is really good for gluten free, the recipes are very tasty.




Miriam wrote: "I have been following the gluten free diet for two weeks now. I have had an interesting craving today, actually started last night. I cannot get enough protein! I pay attention to strong food cravi..."

Sally, thanks for the suggestions! Has anything else helped with your chronic fatigue?

I don't have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, but I have depression with lots of low energy. But years ago I was also diagnosed with Irritable Bowel, but that was evidently gluten sensitivity, since I am having no IBS symptoms now! However, the damage to my intestines may never heal completely, since I am 53 and probablby been damaging my intestines for decades.

Did a really brisk walk today--mostly hurried because the wind was so cold, but then was very naughty and ate Chinese for supper. It's kind of a no no on my diet but I love it, so about twice a year I splurge and I must say it tasted wonderful!!

That is something I am going to have to avoid now, so hard to know if they used flour to thicken sauces. Sad face...

I went grocery shopping and really indulged, stocking the house with the things I CAN eat, so hopefully it won't be so hard. Got things like jalepeno stuffed olives ($7 a jar! ouch!) that are so yummy, pickled beets, lots of good meats to freeze, and potatos and rice and sweet potatos and popcorn. I had given all my flour products to the neighbor right before I left to shop, so there is no gluten in my house now! Nice living alone occasionally.

I've spent the last few days thinking about how to answer your question. I've tried so many things. Lots of things work at first but then after a while the symptoms come back. Here are the best of the things I do:
Tai Chi, learning relaxation, meditatative movement, gentle exercise, and really coming into understanding of the tension in my body.
Omega Three, in high quality, high dosage. I sleep solidly for the first time in 15 years.
Cleaning up my whole life with regards to toxins. I don't think it has actually made me better, but I don't wonder if those things are making me sick any more.
Acupuncture and acupressure, they don't fix the problem but I've met some wonderful healers (and some awful ones, of whom I will not speak here) whose presence is therapeutic to my soul. I am going to California in the spring to learn Jin Shin Do Acupressure, which deals directly with emotions tied up in the tension in our bodies. Maybe one day I will be one of these healers.
Emotional homework like that required by Caroline Myss and other emotional/spiritual teachers.
Most recently I have had great relief of the mental tension and depression I experience by working with the book Unlearn Your Pain, by Howard Schubiner, especially the affirmations and meditations on the included CD. Still have a lot of physical pain and fatigue, but feel a whole lot better about things in general.




Miriam wrote: "Sally, thanks for the suggestions! Has anything else helped with your chronic fatigue?

I don't have Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, but I have depression with lots of low energy. But years ago I was a..."

Miriam wrote: "That is something I am going to have to avoid now, so hard to know if they used flour to thicken sauces. Sad face...

I went grocery shopping and really indulged, stocking the house with the thin..."

LOL! I did the same thing when I first became diabetic. I do hope your new plan continues to work for you.

Didn't go for a walk today as the weather was too crappy as well as creepy. I don't sleep as well when I don't get in a walk, so don't like to miss it.

Walked down and checked out the river yesterday, but so far it's only high, but does not look threatening. Hope it stays that way.

We had thunderstorms all morning, then it got really warm- sixties! The air felt full and heavy, but not wet, a really strange feel to it. But I was able to open up the house all afternoon and evening! I keep the heat/air off and open the house as much as possible, even if it means bundling up some or being hot. I can hear the birds then, and the animals love it.

Sally, I live near Fairfield, Iowa, home to the Maharashi University. They are doing all sorts of research there on meditation. They can show changed brain activity in kids with ADHD even when they are NOT meditating, but do it regularly. This correlates with the reports of improved behavior from parents. It really is a valuable tool, and pairing it with body movements in Tai Chi is a great aide. When I planned a conference for 8 years for folks with mental illnesses, I always tried to include a workshop on meditation and/ or Tai Chi.
(I can't do meditation, except right as I go to sleep. I have obstructive apnea, and when I relax that much I can't breathe! So I have to have my CPAP on!)

Another non-medical tool for some folks with depression is light therapy. I had poo pooed it as being a sham, until I had a blind experiment with it! I started working a night shift position in a hospital, and since I had noticed my moods worsening in fall and winter, expected to have to increase my medication to cope with missing daylight. Instead my mood got better, and I was decreasing my antidepressants until I was on a bare minimum dose! I could not figure it out, then I had a speaker come to the support group I ran, to talk about light therapy. This was in the early days, when the only availability was expensive light banks in clinical settings by prescription. He was making inexpensive boxes for home use, since he had found it so beneficial for himself. He was also a lighting contractor, and when talking about the benefits to shift workers, pointed to the light fixture in the room and said "this entire hospital has full spectrum light bulbs"! Aha! THAT was why my mood got so much better. Eight hours a night of full spectrum light therapy!

Interesting your comments about the wonderful healers you have found in accupuncture. There is psychological research that shows that the biggest predictor of whether someone responds to talk therapy is not the type of talk therapy (Freud, Adler, Skinner, etc.), nor the education of the therapist (MD, PhD, MA, BA, high school), nor the years of experience of the therapist, but the primary predictor of improvement is whether the therapist believes the client will get better. You may have found people who believe you will get better! Our natural healers may just be those people.

I have played around with light therapy too. I find that an hour or so of sitting in my (extremely small) greenhouse in the winter is beneficial. It's bright and humid and green smelling. And since the light therapy info I have read lately says the color blue is important, I always try to have blue lobelia blooming in there in the winter. Unorthodox, I know, but it really helps my mood.

That beats sitting looking at a lightbox by far! I use full spectrum bulbs in all my lamps, take off the shades, and use them very close to where I am working or reading. I have to be careful to switch over to the overhead lights late in the day, or I have trouble sleeping!

I used to have Seasonal Affective Disorder - came on in October and improved about March. I had full-spectrum light bulbs and I don't really know if they helped. I would get better with a winter hol somewhere in the sun. What did cure it was moving to the Caribbean where the day length only varies by an hour, summer and winter. I still have depression but it came on years later and I have no idea what its caused by or dependent on.

Petra, moving to the Caribbean sound like my kind of cure!

Sally wrote: "I have played around with light therapy too. I find that an hour or so of sitting in my (extremely small) greenhouse in the winter is beneficial. It's bright and humid and green smelling. And si..."

I don't suffer from depression but there is just something about blue lobelia that lifts my spirit. I have a difficult time growing it in pots for some reason, but I try it almost every year because I love it.