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649848 tn?1534633700

Sunday Weigh In January 5, 2020

Good morning and Happy New Year... It's pretty early and hasn't even begun to get daylight yet so I'm not sure what kind of day we're going to have... I just know that, right now, it's 46° outside and the furnace is cycling off and on every few minutes.  I know that's warm to some of you, but considering that until now, we've, mostly been staying in the 60's at night so our high today is supposed to be about what our lows have been - that will be quite a sudden change for us.  I guess as usual, we'll survive.  :-)

Anyway, there hasn't been a lot going on.  I've got all my inside Christmas decorations down and put away and helped husband take down put away the large outdoor Christmas tree... The holidays are over and it's time to get on with the business of making the most of the new year.

I stopped making resolutions quite a few years ago because, like many people, I tend to let them go by the wayside after a few months, weeks or even a few days.  As you know, I did just have a stress test, which I did well on, but my cardiologist insisted that I go on a statin drug to lower my cholesterol and triglycerides.  I've resisted drugs for this for some years and although I did get the prescription filled, I haven't started taking the medication yet because I'm scared of the side effects.  Aside from that, my cardiologist insists that my cholesterol be dropped to only 50 and I'm in total disagreement that it needs to be that low.  Studies show that the body needs cholesterol for certain processes and if levels drop too low, there's not enough available.

Anyway, I know that eating sugar and other simple carbs, etc contributes to the high cholesterol and triglycerides.  I also know that having too high thyroid levels contributes to higher levels.  I've seen over the years that my cholesterol and triglycerides tend to fluctuate with my thyroid hormone levels and as I've been discussing for months, my thyroid levels are lower than I believe I need them since I have this, as well as other symptoms of hypothyroidism.  

I did find out from the Nurse Practitioner at my pcp's office that there's a new endo in my area and the NP did offer me a referral if I wanted it.  After seeing my cardio and getting the results of my stress test, I did request that referral and am now waiting for a call to set up an appointment.  I'm not sure how a visit with an endo might go... I do worry that it could be as disastrous as the previous endo, but hope it will turn out much better...

Anyway, while waiting to set up the appointment with the endo, the one sort of "resolution" I've made is to cut back on sweets and salty foods.  Notice I said "cut back" not eliminate them... I may do that, at some point, but I know that trying to make drastic changes all at once simply doesn't work for me, so I'll start out cutting back and see how that works out.  

Because of acid reflux, I've also had to cut a few other things out of my diet, such as chocolate (except I drink certain hot chocolate early in the day), most peanuts, etc.  

So far, it's working well.  I'm also still walking most mornings with my neighbor.  Between modifying my diet and walking most days, I have managed to lose... Yay for me... As of yesterday, I was down a pound from last Saturday, which is great for me, although I do fluctuate a lot in between.  

I just looked back at weight tracker... My low weight for 2019 was near the end of April and I stayed pretty stable for several weeks, only fluctuating a couple pounds each week.  The upward spiral began at the end of May when my MIL passed away and it peaked Sept 22, which was shortly after my brother's death.   I attribute most of it to stress/cortisol/adrenaline and poor eating, coupled with low thyroid hormones and little exercise - airport and/or hospital food isn't overly nutritious, nor do very many people bring real healthy food to funeral gatherings nor is flying back and forth very conducive to a lot of exercise. Of course, that doesn't relieve me of responsibility, by any means!!

Anyway, I'm down 1 pound from last week and 4 pounds from my high in September.  I know I can do better, so my ongoing goal continues to be to lose a pound a week - this time, to keep it off, even in adverse conditions such as those I went through in 2019.

I'm off to get ready for my daily walk, even though I have to bundle up (oh woe is me...lol).  I look forward to hearing about your New Year, what, if any resolutions you've made and what progress you've made...

~~Wishing everyone a wonderful, successful week~~
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134578 tn?1693250592
I got serious and read up on anti-inflammatory diets this week, to see what I should add to my diet or change. The most eye-opening part was the loss to the body when one eats refined grains instead of whole grains. Not just that white flour or white rice lose food value by having the husk of the grain removed, which I knew of course, but also how much the body needs what is in those husks. None of the writers were against eating carbs if they were whole grains, and in fact they were very compelling about how much we need them as long as they are from whole grains. Apparently bread and cereal can call themselves "multi grain" even if the grains they use have all had the husks peeled off. (What is left then is just pure starch, whether it came from several different grains or not.) I had been avoiding all breads, now it seems like I should be adding some whole-grain breads. I also eat sushi, usually rolled with white rice. (Fish - good, white rice - not so good.)

What that general view gave me was a lot of very small changes: I added wheat toast, we went to our fave German restaurant and I had salmon, more dark veggies and dark fruits. After a week of this, my weight is down 1.8 pounds today. That is rewarding! I've lost weight before by watching quantities, now it looks like I'm losing more rapidly just by avoiding things that increase inflammation and adding things that decrease it. Thanks to the white rice in sushi, French bread, and Dr. Pepper, I haven't been so much watching my refined carbs as just managing by keeping the quantities low. I never went out of my way to be sure any grain I had was a whole grain. (Gotta say, though, I wish I liked brown rice.)  Anyway, the changes are more tweaks and adjustments to what I already eat instead of major differences, but if this week is not a fluke, it seems like this approach works for me.

We finally got all the dog houses from the online pet company, and the wire pens and wire grid for the top from the farm supply store, and 2x4s cut to the right size and a bolt cutter for the wire and bales of cedar shavings and zip ties and staples and foam to insulate, making today the big day to build the dog enclosure under cover at the farm. I ordered two doghouses for each dog (they are plastic, like heavyweight airline kennels), in sizes that make pairs that nest. I intend to nest them with insulation in between (a Large inside an Extra Large for Delphie, and an Extra Small inside a Small for Coco). We also have two heating pads made for dogs; they are hard plastic but we are sure Delphie will chew hers up, so those will go inside the wall of the nested doghouses. My husband can't quite wrap his head around any of this, but he is going along with it because he's seen me do projects like this before with success.

The only problem we have is the short winter days, giving us limited daylight in which to work. The roofed pavillion we're putting the pens in throws a lot of shade, and it's hard to see much past 4 pm. So, I'm off now to put together the pen that will finally let the doggies live at the farm as comfortably in winter as in summer. We're going to stay at the farm an extra week even once school begins, to have some time all together there.

Have a great week!
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It's true that whole grains are much better for us than refined grains - white flour, rice, pasta, etc.  There is a group that will tell us that going grain free is even better, more anti-inflammatory than even doing whole grain.  You've done great with 1.8 lbs down.

I've tried, both, whole grain and grain free, but haven't had such good luck with either.    I have a cabinet full of various grain/wheat free flours but it's difficult to cook with them because husband won't eat most things I make if they don't have good old refined white flour.  I have eaten brown rice for years though I have to admit it's not nearly as satisfying as white rice and I've pretty much gone back to white rice on the rare occasion I eat rice anymore.  

I'm really happy to hear you've found something that works well for you.  

It sounds like your dog house project is quite involved, but it does sound like it should work quite well, with the nesting dog houses and insulation between them.  The only thing I'd be concerned about would be the heating pads possibly getting a short or something but that's a possibility with anything electrical, not just a dog's heating pad...

I totally understand the difficulty of getting a project like that done with the short winter days; I hope you were able to accomplish it all in one day.  

Our schools started back from the Christmas break today.  Did your son start back as well?  
Yes, he did. Staying an extra week at the farm means getting up a half hour early in to drive to school, but Augie loves the farm, so we said we could stay. Now that the dogs have their winter digs, it's possible. (Even though in the first hour of being there, Delphie dragged my husband's gardening shoes off the porch and chewed up one of the insoles, played tug-of-war with an outdoor extension cord, and seized the (red) blanket out of her doghouse and sped off with it flying behind her like Superman's cape, wanting someone to chase her for it.) The really nice part of being at the farm is she can bark in the night and so what? In the suburbs, I keep expecting an irate neighbor to knock on the door.
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