Good Morning, Coaches.
I never got in my second walk. Two after-school meetings prevented it. I will try again today. Credit for sitting while I am eating and weighing twice ( once in the morning and once in the evening) along with a few other tweaks.
Working through the 60s and 70s social reform so I had a fun day playing Janis Joplin, San Francisco (Wear flowers in your hair), and Dylan "These Times They are A Changin." We are sweeping through to Reagan on Monday so I can get to Obama and The War on Terrorism before the end of the semester. Sorry Clinton but I didn't hit Rutherford B Hayes, Zachary Taylor, or several others either. Don't take it personally.
This weekend I need to figure out Christmas shopping. I don't feel in the spirit in the least. I have a nice long three weeks to relax. I am very lucky.
Gardenerjoy. I did some stretches while watching my tv and realized how incredibly tight I am. Time to join you with stretches. BBE: DS has not made food a greater challenge. He is a very healthy eater. If he has junk he goes with his father and eats it there He does require an endless supply of fresh fruit and roasted veggies. So I sent him to one store yesterday to get certain things and I promised to go to another to get the balance today. Great that he is willing and able to help out.
The week flew by. Partly because I haven't really been keeping track of days since Thanksgiving. I think there were five Sundays and two Mondays and, then, I'm not sure what happened. And, now, it's Friday. Holidays + COVID make life super-weird.
There's one thing that I want to do before the end of the week, so it's a good thing that I recognized that today is Friday so I can take care of that.
Food was on plan yesterday and so far today. We hiked in the Superstitions this morning. Out the Peralta Trail and then beyond and a little scrambling and back. We ended up with almost 8 miles. It was with a group from a meet-up. It was very enlightening in a good way. It showed me that my weight gain has definitely slowed down my hiking. When I'm just with a friend we kind of go the same pace and it's no big deal. With a group I could see that I was lagging behind. I did not like that at all. My backpacking friend was in the group and we talked about summer plans. I think we've decided the High Sierra Trail is jinxed for us and we're looking at the Tahoe Rim Trail with a group. I need to sign up for the association and do some research. I know it's beautiful and also the elevation is not as high as the John Muir Trail which would be good. Okay, that's what I'm excited about.
GardenerJoy Thank you for the link to the interview. I listened to it yesterday. Good stuff. I need to make myself do more hard things.
Maryann I'm not so much in the Christmas spirit either, but I am enjoying the decorations and music anyway. We do little in the area of gifts and I have started making cashew brittle and will determine other treats I'll make. I know you know all about the Tahoe Rim Trail. What do you think?
Bill I'm not Zoom near as much as some of you so I'm just happy to have it. I'm sure package delivery will be a bear this year. I had better get my few things mailed darned early.
Curlyjax I'm so glad you got your biopsy results back and can now take a big sigh of relief. I'm sure it's a different mind set with food when you are working from home. There definitely is both the good and the bad.
Well, when I'm gone for 7 hours for a hike it doesn't leave much time so I had better get moving and get a few things done.
Happy Friday!
Saturday - Electric car goes 15 miles between charges (1893, Toronto)
Diet Coaches/Buddies - Spent the whole day catching up: course work, volunteer work, organizing my stuff. Seems like I'm always behind, running to catch up. DW bought a Christmas wreath for the front door as she does every year. And, like every year, she took it apart and put it back together to be round and pleasing to behold. Then we had an argument. Her: "We can't put up the wreath while the pumpkins are still out there." Me: "Of course we can; they're only there because we haven't had our first freeze that turns them to mush. Christmas and Autumn can coexist." Alas, I lost; the pumpkins will move to the back yard; their tops cut off so that the squirrels can eat the seeds so that they can go into our compost bin without seeds that would sprout when the compost is spread. My gardener DW has a complex relationship with the squirrels whom she despises, but is willing to employ as cheap labor to remove the seeds from her pumpkins. Me? I say nothing.
Eating was on plan with no daytime snacks, CREDIT moi. Evening snack was an apple - a rather LARGE apple. It has recently dawned on me that I select apples because they look so big and wonderful. It would serve me just as well to select apples that were medium sized or, heaven forbid, a tad smallish.
Joy (gardenerjoy) - Yep, indeed, "Holidays + COVID make life super-weird." Hard to get straight whether coming or going.
maryann - Love that you are playing Janis Joplin for your students. Hard to wrap my head around the notion that the Summer of Love is so long ago that it's being taught in history class. Neat that your DS eats healthy foods around you.
Karen (karenrn) - Ouch that the High Sierra Trail might not happen. Sobering to be reminded that your long hikes eat seven hours out of your day.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 3Get Ready to Lose
Before you start, however, I would like you to do the following 10 essential tasks:
task 9 Build a Sense of Entitlement
She saw the point. Then I asked her to consider how much of a catastrophe it would be to make some changes. She realized that her family might be disappointed once she stopped catering to their every whim, but they would get over it - and pretty soon her new way of doing things would become the status quo.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), Pg 41.
I decided to bring the tree inside because of the forecasted rain/snow and am very glad I did. Even though I haven't finished picking up, I remembered in past years I've just moved a chair a few feet over and limited the "entrance" to the living room, so now the tree is up, yay. DD is due home today at some point so hopefully won't be dumping a lot of stuff anywhere but her room. I do wish we had more common space available, but I suppose we would just fill that up too I need to get groceries in the pouring rain before it snows, and may start doing some cookie baking and freezing today. I need to focus on maintaining at this point, realistically. Getting some cards done would be fun too and non caloric. Maryann- stretching is great. That is the one thing I do every day before eating (but after coffee and shower, otherwise I can't function) and it really helps my hips and back. Karen- how great to have a hiking trip to look forward to! I truly do believe life in general is going to be a lot better by then too. Great to have a concrete goal like that too to motivate you. Gardenerjoy-the days are indeed flying by. Bill- Too funny about pumpkins and wreaths not being allowed to coexist. yay for being able to catch up.
Thank goodness it is Saturday. I was beat yesterday. Tech issues stopped me from thoroughly enjoying Buffalo Springfield's For what is is Worth And CCR's Fortunate Son. Oh well. Next year I will have lots of great audio visuals for my lectures since I have done all the work this year. Reagan is all prepped. He and the conservative tide get two days.
Yesterday's food had great choices. I tried gardenerjoy's trick of big box shopping to add steps and I was still only halfway to the mark of 10,000. That included bleacher walking for 30 minutes. With school walking, shopping, laundry and today's gardening duties, I am choosing lots of activity. Progress not perfection. I am one pound from ticker. Last year at this time I was in an uncomfortable decade. Three cheers for us.
My Granmere lived to be a kick *** 100. She said learn three new things a day. So far this morning, I learned how to bulk delete my past gmail messages ( more than 50 at a time.) So that's one. Two more to go today. Focusing on the positive will be good. Things are pretty grim here in shut down California. I am going to order See's candy to send to all. Does it make me a horrible person to send something I won't eat? I think in light of COVID I'll give myself a pass.
curleyjax: Boy do I wish I had a stretching routine every morning. I am very happy with walking the bleachers. Karen: Tahoe can't be beat. This is a low projected snow fall year. If that is the case, the Tahoe Rim trails is perfect. We actually met a met a man who was apart of the association. Are you planning on doing all 170 mi? If you come out here this summer and I am not in Spain I would love to meet up and have lunch or dinner. BBE: DH has a longstanding war with squirrels. They steal the walnuts from him he says. I won't tell him you feed them with pumpkins.
Yesterday's yoga workout was an introduction to sun salutations. Which I needed because I've never felt very confident with them. I'm so stiff this morning! I really can't imagine ever wanting to do these first thing in the morning, but I would like to get to the point where it would make sense to do them every day. I'm a long way from that goal! Maybe something to work toward in 2021.
Most of my stretching happens in pomodoro breaks. When I do desk work, I set a 25-minute timer. When it goes off, I set a 5-minute timer for a break before going back to work. Anywhere from two to five times a day, I stretch during that time -- often, while watching whatever streaming program that I have going (today it's Netflix's The Great British Baking Show - Holidays).
Food was on plan all day yesterday and plan was made and is being followed today. I woke up at 1 a.m. Yuck. As dh says, I solved the problems of the world, but yet I didn't darn. I did get a bit of a nap before lunch. I was at the computer ready to post a couple of hours ago and I got a phone call and forgot. Now I'm in the kitchen with my laptop doing Christmas cards. I saw the address for a cousin in Watertown, MA, thought of Bill, and am remembering to post. I guess I'll just say at least I remembered.
GardenerJoy I would like to getting a stretching or yoga practice going too. I'll figure it out one of these days. Also need to get back to planks and arm exercises.
Maryann Yes, we do hope to do the entire thing. I read up on it and they really have a great program, but I don't know how difficult it is to get a spot. They require a doctor's okay and past hiking history, but I am okay on that. It does inspire me to work hard which I like. I would love to meet you in person if you are not out of the country.
Curlyjax It looks like it's pretty darned cold back there. Glad you got the tree in. Are there certain cookies that you think freeze the best? I usually just bake a bunch in a hurry and deliver, but it might be nicer not to have to get exhausted baking.
Bill Saying nothing is a a good thing to be able to do. I am still practicing and not very successfully at times. I know my apples are too big also. As for pie, when my Mom was on Weight Watchers she used to call pie a bread and a fruit. She did alright with that. Kept her weight in check pretty well.
Well, back to the Christmas cards now. I burned my hand with 295 degree candy (luckily a very small burn) this morning, so I only made one batch of candy today and will do more cards to make up for it. You all have a great day!
Sunday - Harriet Tubman escapes slavery in Maryland for the 2nd and final time (1849)
Diet Coaches/Buddies - Cold, rain, and snow. As if winter were here already. The snow is melting without need for shoveling. I'll have to clean the windshields of the cars before driving. Would have been a miserable day for an outdoor wedding. UPS delivered a package that was covered in water on the porch before we brought it in. Fortunately, it was in a waterproof bag - good choice. It's a Christmas present for DW - not a surprise present since she picked it out and asked me to get it for her. Loses some of the mystique, but ensures that the present will be wanted.
Eating was on plan with no daytime snacks, CREDIT moi. Dinner was two Trader Joe's frozen single serving Indian dinners with basmati rice. Each was just under 400 calories - a tad smaller than I would have liked. DW made green beans and I made a large green salad. Evening snack was an apple; it was needed to fill me up after a light dinner.
Joy (gardenerjoy) - Such a neat way to set small work intervals to prevent drifting off.
maryann - I'm playing Buffalo Springfield's Bluebird as I type to make up for your tech issues in class. It's so easy to slip back into the '60's. Love your Granmere's advice to learn three new things a day.
Karen (karenrn) - Ouch for not being able to get back to sleep. Congrats for getting a bunch of stuff done in your day.
curlyjax - Smart to get that tree inside before yesterday's weather. Good luck with your cookie baking without too much sampling.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 3Get Ready to Lose
Before you start, however, I would like you to do the following 10 essential tasks:
task 9 Build a Sense of Entitlement
Next, we discussed which activities were truly essential, which she could eliminate for now, and which she could delegate to her family.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), Pg 41.
Food remained on plan all day yesterday and today's plan is made. I'm heading out to hike in less than an hour. We're doing a new hike that is in the preserve where we often hike. It's longer, but I think less elevation gain than we often do. I just want to check it out for something different. Today's list is to make two more bathes of buttery cashew brittle (which will complete that job) and continue working on the Christmas cards. Our friend will come over this afternoon to take our photo in front of the tree with Otis which I will include in the card.
Bill Your weather sounds darned cold. We sure could use some rain, but I like our temps. I love the kind of Christmas gifts that I choose.
Waving to the rest of you and hope you have a great Sunday!
I got the groceries and trash done, and made a healthy dinner, credits for that. Spent a lot of time worrying about DD driving home in the storm and then to her (unnessary retail) job, and then got into a big fight with her later. Did not make the cookie dough; did some emotional eating with the reserved hershey kisses instead that I was saving for a peanut butter blossom cookie. Googled "I don't want to be a mom anymore" and read some stories that made me feel better. Went to bed feeling sorry for myself and wanting my husband so desperately, I'm so tired of dealing with cars, house, young adults by myself.
This morning my laptop is acting odd and won't recognize my password to sign in, so i'm using the guest mode which means I have to try to remember my passwords for email, facebook etc. I'm feeling very crabby already!
Stretching: I realize my morning routine is more ROM (range of motion) and core exercises than yoga-lying down on back, lifting legs up and down, then lying on side doing same thing, then on stomach, but it all does stretch out the hips and back and takes the kinks out. I also do the "dead bugs" exercise for abdominal core, and the "bird dog" one. And stretch the quads and hamstrings. It's about 15 minutes if I stay focused, there are some others in there as well. Gardenerjoy- that is a great idea to set reminders and stretch for 5 minutes periodically.
Yesterday's new experience was a party via Zoom. It was the Thank Goodness It's Over party for NaNoWriMo. Traditionally, for our region, that's an afternoon of games and pot-luck snacks in a church basement or library conference room.
We actually managed the games! There's a website called jackbox.tv that makes it possible to play some creative games together on-line. I'm not sure what it looks like from the host perspective, but from the player perspective -- I was watching the Zoom screen for the prompts and typing my answers in a separate browser window at jackbox.tv. I won the trivia game and completely flubbed the more creative game because I didn't understand the concept until after the first round.
Monday - Emperor Lo-Yang sees supernova MSH15-52 (185 CE, China)
Diet Coaches/Buddies - Walked in the freezing cold, CREDIT moi, to find bananas to solve the crisis that there were no bananas in the house for breakfast this morning. Last Tuesday, the supermarket didn't have bananas with enough green to last until today. Some days the supermarket only has bananas that are solid green; some days only fully ripe that won't last a week. First world problem, I know, but it put me in the position to find a bananaria. "You know they'll freeze before you get home," DW offered as a challenge. She was right. And I HATE mushy bananas. After several alternatives, I remembered that we own insulated lunch bags including one that's big enough and that will fit perfectly in my backpack. So, off I trotted to the local supermarket with an insulated lunch bag in my backpack - but without the standard frozen disk we use to keep its contents cold, rather empty so the bananas could keep themselves warm.
Unfortunately, the bananas were located adjacent to baguettes. (Maybe the whole store is alphabetical?) A baguette came home with me - fit perfectly in my backpack beside the lunch bag. I'll have some for breakfast; DW will serve it later with her planned dahl for dinner. So, tomorrow I can claim that it was planned.
Eating was on plan with no daytime snacks, CREDIT moi. The evening included attending a Zoom birthday party for an 80 year old in another state with a flame wielding belly dancer as the main attraction. Never seem a flaming belly dancer, much less one on Zoom. This Zoom business allows folks from far and wide to gather for a brief period then to continue with their own life. Suspect that it'll be a firm part of our life going forward after the pandemic is resolved.
Joy (gardenerjoy) - Neat to have a party on Zoom that would normally be a gathering with potluck snacks. Congratulations for making that work.
Karen (karenrn) - Smart to arrange a hike with less elevation change when that's what you need. I'm impressed that you can keep making buttery cashew brittle without getting caught up in the whole batch.
curlyjax - That's such a creative way to find supportive stories via google - Kudos for taking care of yourself. Glad that your DD survived driving in the storm.
Readers -
Quote:
chapter 3Get Ready to Lose
Before you start, however, I would like you to do the following 10 essential tasks:
task 9 Build a Sense of Entitlement
Now, when Tina's schedule gets busy, she figures out what she needs to do for herself first before she schedules other activities. She feels entitled - that she has a right - to do what she needs to do.
Judith S. Beck, Ph.D., The Complete Beck Diet for Life (Green book), Pg 42.
Yesterday another exhaustive fight then talk with DD, then we both watched a movie together. Glad it ended up well, and glad that she has an apt she can escape to so we can both have our space. I did make another healthy dinner of grilled turkey cutlets (small indoor grill), spinach and baked sweet potatoes. Indulged in chocolate again.
Today includes nipping out to get winter tires put on one of the cars, and a dentist appt to fix a cracked cavity. I need to remember to take an antibiotic before the appt this time because of my hip repair I'm at risk for infection, which seems odd to me after a year-according to the orthopedic surgeon, not the dentist. Dentists have pulled back on this rec.I'll do it this time but then may skip it for my cleanings in the future, I don't like the idea of taking unncessary antibiotics. Fortunately DS is making dinner tonight so I can come home and relax.
I'm hoping to start doing Christmas cards tonight, I would really like to get them out on time this year. Bill- glad you got the banana dilemma resolved Yes, I think zoom will be part of our life in years to come; it is pretty cool to be able to partake in things happening in other parts of the country. Of course there is no escaping boring committee meetings due to weather anymore, that's the downside!
It was a good Sunday. Diamond ( our walnut coop) sent lots of flavored nut packets for Xmas. I ate too much of one. Oh well. I start the week goi g to school in my Michigan pajamas. It is spirit week. Tomorrow is ugly sweater day.
I have a three fruit day so far planned with breakfast and lunch. One serving of legume and black cumin. A pea protein shake for lunch.
Dinner is baked potato and a chicken apple sausage.
He does require an endless supply of fresh fruit and roasted veggies. So I sent him to one store yesterday to get certain things and I promised to go to another to get the balance today. Great that he is willing and able to help out.
Saturday - Electric car goes 15 miles between charges (1893, Toronto)
