I'm back from Arizona. Didn't go to the Grand Canyon, but backpacked two hard days in Saguaro National Park. The first day was 11 miles of up, up and more up (almost 5000 feet up). We camped at 8000 feet at an established campground. We found water (worried about that) and a fire ring stocked with wonderful dry firewood! It was lovely to be able to stay up past dark and sit by a fire. This time of year it gets pretty boring spending 12 or more hours in the tent to keep warm. The second day was 16 miles mostly downhill. We made it just before dark. I was very fatigued by the time we were done. We spent the next day at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum near Tucson. Very impressive, with tons of exhibits both indoors and out.

Michele, I suggest layering your clothes for your Grand Canyon visit. You can get a very lightweight but warm jacket like I take backpacking. Put on a short sleeve shirt first, then a long sleeve, then a fleece, then an outer lightweight insulated jacket that will also break any wind. As you walk you will get warmer and remove some of the layers. A neck gaiter will also make you much warmer. Look on Sierra Trading Post for some good deals on outer wear.

Georgette, have you had any responses to your walking buddy ad? I tend to overeat at night too. My current plan is to save at least 500 calories until I'm just about ready for bed. Then I can eat them if I feel compelled, or go to bed with a decent deficit.

Hope everyone is doing okay!

Alice-no takers on the walking want-ad. I'm thinking of joining a gym and just walking there in the morning. Lame, but I'd do it.

Wow, Alice! That hiking sounds amazing! Thanks for the tips on layering, etc.

Georgette-- my younger daughter lives near Phoenix and my hubby and I are going to visit her for Christmas, as our older daughter will be on her honeymoon in Europe then. She's only a few hours from the Grand Canyon and I've always wanted to see it. We will also go to Antelope Canyon hopefully, which looks incredibly beautiful.

I went to bed with quite a calorie deficit last night-- mostly unintentional. I worked out later than normal and harder than normal, and woke up STARVING! I hope I'm not starving all day!

Georgette - there are a few meetup groups around me for walkers and runners, there might be some near you, too?

Welcome back, Alice!

I am soresoresore today. Yesterday was day 4 of my new workout, with cardio alternating the other days. Whew.

I've started the yearly battle with the cold weather. I'm going to a concert on Saturday so every time I want to head for the cupboard to eat to relieve the extra fatigue the cold brings I think about the event and what I want to wear. I don't want to look lumpy and bloated so I get my healthy yogurt and fruit snack instead.

It's working about 75% of the time.

Dagmar

Dagmar, I can totally relate to the cold being a trigger. Good job having a plan for those tempting times in the kitchen!

Michele, that sounds like a chilly but lovely trip.

Shannon, that's an interesting idea. I don't have a lot of flexibility in my schedule for the morning walks, that makes a meetup a little harder, but it would be fun to do.

I had another rough night with insomnia. Not sure if it was a combination of food and drink that got me, or the antibiotic I'm taking. Probably a combination of the 2. But it wasn't as bad as Sunday. Think I got about 6 hr sleep. I've been in a deficit for quite a few days though. I'm taking vitamins and drinking water to try to offset the risk for more sickness. I'm also fighting a stubborn skin infection (I suspect MRSA, BUMMER...), so I just haven't been feeling awesome.

That said, my eating, while maybe not awesome choices, hasn't been all-consuming. I'm maintaining. Yay!

Shannon,
What's your new workout program that you've started?

I seem to be battling a cold. I'm hoping I win but it doesn't feel like it. Hopefully I can muster up the strength to get through my day and (knock on wood) still exercise after work. I hate missing a day.

Michele - Train to Be Awesome from Nia Shanks. I bought the program back in 2014, but never finished. The workout Monday had skater squats. I HATE skater squats. LOL

Georgette - antibiotics have been known to keep me awake, too. As does sudafed and prednisone. Yick. Hope you feel better soon.

Shannon, I'm going for a revisit with the NP today. Skipped a dose last night as I was scared I wouldn't sleep.

Michele, did you get your workout in? Hope you are feeling better!

I posted a solid overshare on the Whine and Rage thread....LOL...but I'm definitely feeling a little better today.

Not feeling great, but pushing through. I did my workout yesterday but it certainly wasn't my best.
Georgette-- I read your whine and rage thread. My thoughts and prayers are with you. I am a firm nondrinker (it doesn't agree with me at all and I believe I could easily develop a problem if I drank). So, I may not be the best to judge-- but it sounds like it is interfering in your life. My husbands' parents are both alcoholics and will not admit to any issues.

Most the the alcoholics in my family wouldn't call themselves that. I realized I had a problem with drinking and that it was interfering with my life. So I stopped drinking. Took me about 10 years but I did it and it was a change for the better. I don't read the "whine and rage" thread as I do enough of that myself but I hope you can find your solution Georgette.

I heard someone say once:

You don't have to "be an alcoholic" to stop drinking.

And that is very true! People have many reasons for not drinking alcohol. In my case, no one ever diagnosed me. But I found that it's just easier not to drink at all than to try to rein it in, keep it in check, count drinks, etc.

Re You don't have to "be an alcoholic" to stop drinking. Very true! I can now have a couple of beers or a glass of wine if I want. But I find it easier to just not have to make the decision day in day out so I abstain. I'm finding more and more older people are also making the same decision just because having a couple of drinks has such an impact on their sleep and general well being for several days following.

Same goes with pot, which is now legal for us. Much less of an impact than the alcohol but people don't want to sit around baked any more. We all did that in our younger days and, now that we have fewer days left, we want to be totally present for all of them.

Dagmar

Fun reading here, ladies. I don't want to stop drinking altogether now, but it is very healthy and good to have a space to explore it's impact in my life in safe,semi-anonymous environment. I appreciate being able to post both here and on the other thread about these things. I definitely think having a place to just get it all out of my head is helping me make better choices moment by moment, which is what living with food is all about for me. BTW, I have 10 + years experience in another 12 step program, and it worked for me. If I decide that alcohol is enough of a problem that it's more painful to live with it than without it, I know exactly where to go. I would say that right now, I'm in the "data collection" phase of contemplation.

Funny about the pot, isn't it? Maybe more people are using now that it's legal, but it certainly doesn't seem like "everyone is stoned", and I live in a town that has been known for pot since the 60s. It often doesn't agree with me and I fear making a mistake at work and wondering if it was the pot the night before that caused it. I am around it some, and sometimes I wish I did enjoy it, but the reality is that usually I don't, so I pass.

I ended the night in a healthy way. Recognizing the difficulty I have with transitioning from leisure time to bedtime has been really helpful in not acting out with food and drink at that time, at least so far.

Michele, glad you were able to get your workout in! Hope you feel more energetic soon!

My MIL used to hate going to the gym, but it helped her to rate her experience. She would be like "It was a 2 out of 10", but at least she went! As we used to say to our son when he was little "You don't have to want to do it, you just have to do it." This is the outlook I hope to adopt if I join a gym soon, which is likely.

I succumbed and stayed home sick. I probably could have drug myself in but I would have been pretty worthless. Hoping for a quiet day at home. If I feel up to it, I hope to get a workout in at home, but I’ll take it easy for sure.

Hubby comes home from China tomorrow afternoon so I hope I’m feeling much better!

Georgette- have you considered counseling? It might help you work through some of your struggles. If you find the right therapist for you....