Healthy Livin' support group, month of February 2010- the challenge is on!

Walked 45 min today - and let all three kids pile on the double stroller. Added weight made the hills harder. It was a beautiful day for a walk.

I find I am not organized enough for the 6 meals idea, I end up turning it into too much snacking. hmm. . . need to work on that.

Do you find the WATP tapes really work? My Mom offered to send me hers.

mkr

 

Hey mkr-
I've only really been using the tapes for about a week. I've had one forever, and another I found last year at a yard sale. I'll let you know in a month or so. I do like how quickly the workout is done (about 18-22 minutes) for each of the mile ones, and I like the use of the arms too (I use light weights at the moment). That's what I have really been feeling it in- my arms and shoulders. I am usually bored by what the people have to say by about the dozenth time, but if I can hear the music beat enough, I don't necessarily have to listen to the speaker! lol

This week I want to add in a Taebo tape we have, and see how that goes. I REALLY have to WORK to get some time eeked out for a workout, that is my problem!

Talk to you soon- MT3

 

MT3--1 1/2 pounds sound GREAT to me! Great job!

For Valentine's Day, dh got me a thing of Marionberry pie icecream! That's my favorite kind of pie (really boysenberry, but marionberry is what's usually made, and it's a close 2nd), so he got it! He wanted to try to find me maple walnut, which is my absolute favorite, but the freezer guy at our local Safeway said they're not making it anymore! Waaaaahhhhh! All this is relative though---I shouldn't be eating it anyway!

My headaches and neck/shoulder pain has been getting worse and worse. I have headaches all the time. My dd and I were at the mall, and there was a guy giving massages, and offering, for $20, an exam, x-rays, evaluation and a 30-minute massage. I paid him, then called and made the appointments. Come to find out, I have no natural curve in my neck, so my head/skull sits right on the straight spinal area, without the curve for support. It's causing bone spurs and messing things up in there, hence the constant headaches. Even though this chiropractor is not on our HMO's list, he offered to do the adjustments for the co-pay we'd pay for one that is on their list. I've been to a couple chiropractors off and o n, and this guy is DEFINITELY the most thorough! DH saw the x-rays and said we just NEED to do this to help me get better! Yesterday I got the massage and my second treatment. I'm a bit sore today, cuz my muscles are all whacked out. There's a lot to do on me, but on a few months I should be in WAY better shape! This, along with my regular exercising, should help me be in WAY better shape! I can't imagine what it's like without headaches--I'd love to find out if it's possible though!

So, even though we can't afford it, we're doing that, cuz my neck is in bad shape and we don't want calcification to start! I already have some exercises I need to do every day forever, really. All of them don't take more than about 5 minutes twice a day---I can do that!


Hey, has anyone heard from gardenturtle? I'm in and out infrequently, so am not sure...

Best wishes to all of you! One of these days I'm going to be here to report weight loss! Actually, I should check my inches and see if I've lost any!

Going to drink some water now!

 

Hello everybody!!!

I am officially a non-working women. At least I am no longer getting paid.
My last day was Sunday and I am thrilled.

We have been doing well with our eating. Valentines was great because Handsome didn't get me candy! YAY! I requested this from him this year. LOL

The best news I have to share is we just adopted a German Shepherd today. It has been a little over a year since we put Handsome down and we have been wanting to get another Shepherd or Shepherd mix. We looked at other dogs but the price wasn't reasonable. There were a few other breeds we looked at but a Shepherd kept coming back to our minds. Tomorrow he will be altered. Once he heals we are going to start taking him to the city park to walk or POSSIBLY, and thats a big POSSIBLY, jog.
I do not feel safe walking around here without Handsome (husband) and although our other dog is huge, he is a lover through and through. So Ems can walk one and I will walk the other. I can't wait!

Deena, I hope you feel better!!!! My mom has headaches and back problems because she has spine problems too. I know it isn't any fun.

MT3, congratulationd on that 1/2 lb. Those halves add up to wholes and then some!!!

 

German Shepherds are great family dogs! Constant headaches would be no fun! Walks uphill, pushing three kids in a stroller would definitely burn calories! And listening to tapes dozens of times does get boring!

My update is that yesterday I decided to tramp for 1/2 hour before crashing, due mostly to you gals' examples, and I wanted to give a good report also. We had gotten in from a long trip at 4:30 in the morning, and I fought sleep most of the day. Well, after tramping, I didn't even feel weary any more. And, MT3, I am using lemons in the water. It does help. If you're fighting appetite at the same time, add a pinch of cayenne pepper.

 

Cayenne Pepper? I never heard of that. Thanks P.H.! I need to try this!

I was outside most of the morning with the dog. We did some yard work and just walked the dog around the yard on a leash. I want him to get use to walking with all the dogs as a pack since we will take all of them or some of them to the park when we walk.

 

Happy Friday all!

Deena- I'm so glad you found a cause for the headaches and are taking steps to alleviate the symptoms!! Wow, that sounds very painful indeed.

gardenturtle- if you are reading this- please check in! How are you feeling? Take care!

Patty- aw, a new dog sounds like great fun. (Well, better for you than me!!) We have one 95-pound house dog who thinks he's one of the kids- that is plenty for us! Although, last week when the adoption place had a 4-month old Great Dane my son really put on the "please" pleas!

P.H. - good job on the tramp exercise! I'm surprised at how I can be tired but the exercise seems to work better than a catnap! I'm glad the lemon is helping- I'll have to try the cayenne.

I've not done as great on my exercise this week- a couple of extremely busy days, and then a health issue popped up. But I hope to get to something later this afternoon!

Yard work would be some good exercise. But I've got a couple of indoor projects to work on. I'm finally going to be daring enough to strip the wallpaper borders from around the windows in my sons' rooms, AND I want to take down some metal blinds and do some washing (of both windows and blinds). We need a trip to the recycling place, and perhaps even the dump too.

Oops, how boring was that? I hope you all have a great weekend, and can get out and enjoy some sunshine! Drink your water and kiss your kids!

MT3

 

"Diets for you" claims that cayenne is an appetite suppressant & metabolism booster:

"The active ingredient in Cayenne is called capsaicin. The capsaicin temporarily blocks or disables hunger signals which relieves short term pangs... Basically what's happening is capsaicin affects the body's neurotransmitters, which are responsible for sending messages to the brain signaling hunger... There is a scientific belief that two natural substances in the body, epinephrine and norepinephrine are elevated after taking cayenne which are reported to curb hunger... Danish researchers report that capsaicin can effectively promote thermogenesis (speeding the metabolism), reducing hunger, thereby causing you to lose weight."

A friend of mine prefers a derivative of cayenne in liquid form. It is only the colorless phenolic amide obtained from the capsicum irritants in hot peppers. It may be less irritating that way, but I've never tried it. 'Hope that is helpful!

We now have 11 wks left until Mother's Day, and I have 10.5 lbs left to meet our goal of 15 lbs. Have a great week, everyone!

 

So far so good!

We have been walking the dog for about 40 minutes a day. The vet said it is fine as long as he is willing to walk but if he wants to stop, then allow him to. So we stay on the side streets around my house so it is an easy walk home for him. I also took our other dog along for the walk. This is great exercise to be sure. After a few days I plan on taking the two little ones as well. This was they all can burn extra energy and calories. My little Tiki is looking like a sausage on toothpicks. LOL

I am eating a lot less these days but today I was craving a bagle with A LOT of cream cheese so I splurged.

P.H., great job on only having 10.5 left on the 15 goal. I haven't stepped on the scale yet. I am thinking of waiting until we are close to Mother's Day.

 

Yesterday I sampled a taste treat of dried green beans! They crunched and tasted like potato chips! Amazing! I had never heard of such a thing as green bean chips before. The nutritional information listed oil, salt, and beans; so I looked up some recipes. None of them looked liked they would produce what I had eaten, but here's one I hope to try sometime:

Green Bean French Fries

2 lb fresh, uncooked green beans, washed and trimmed. Dry the beans well and arrange in a single layer in large pan.

Mix together:
3 Tablespoons of olive oil or melted butter
2 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon salt & 1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

Drizzle mixture over green beans, turning them by hand to make sure they are evenly coated. Sprinkle a pinch of garlic powder or any seasoned salt over the beans, if you prefer.
Roast in oven at 350* for 20-25 minutes, turning after 15 minutes, until beans are fairly brown in spots and somewhat shriveled (they won't necessarily look pretty.) Serve hot or at room temperature & Enjoy.

I read that this can be done with thin slices of turnips, cauliflower and broccoli, peppers, spinach or even fresh pumpkin. Has anyone ever eaten dried green beans or french fried green beans?

 

Thanks for the recipe! I need to try these.

 

You're very welcome, Patty! If you try them, let me know how they turn out, because it may be a while before I find any green beans.

I may have figured out what type I indulged in yesterday: possibly freeze-dried. They were crunchy, like chips. I think that preparing those may be beyond me. I'll probably have to stick with the french-fried version.