Health and Fitness

[Tremayne]

Best of luck with Biggest Loser, Rahne! I think it's so cool that you're getting an additional reward for losing weight--and a sword (cutting calories  ) seems wonderfully symbolic.

Which brings up the whole idea of rewards. I do like to reward myself with sweets and wish I could come up with a good cheap replacement that "feels" right. Rewarding myself with sweet food while trying to generally improve my health is obviously counterproductive. I don't do it chronically or excessively but it's still an erosive element that I'd like to eliminate.

[Rahne]

Tremayne,  An occasional treat is not a bad thing.  It can actually help you to maintain control.  I know if I am really wanting something I am better off to eat a little of it and be done.  Otherwise I keep trying to fill that spot with other things and nothing else works. then I've eaten everything else, plus in the end usually the thing I was trying to avoid in the first place.  All things in moderation.

On a low cal note though  the kudos 100 calorie snickers granola bars, an the M-n-M ones are great and sometimes enough to get the fix I need. 

another great treat is seedless grapes.  take 1 cup of seedless grapes and 1 TBS of sugar free jello powder any flavor you like.  put them in a baggier and mix it up good then freeze them.  It is a sweet treat, and great in the hot weather.  I really like the green grapes with the kiwi strawberry jello

My mother in law also makes a great pie

use 1 tub of cool whip, or lite cool whip
1pack of sugar free jello  any flavor
whip it togeather in a bowl with an electric mixer then fill a Gram cracker crust and freeze it. Its a nice light desert for the summer

[Rahne]

HUZZAH!!!!  I won.  thats $140 total money won towards a sword that costs $210.

[Tremayne]

I'm a fruit lover and have no qualms about chowing down on grapes, blueberries, strawberries, peaches, etc--it's the junkier food (usually some cakish thing filled with cream) that I'd rather eat less of. If it were a physiological thing (true sweets craving) I was responding to, it wouldn't bother me much--that being the body communicating a need. But when I'm using sweets as a psychological balm or reward, I think there's something amiss that needs addressing. Perhaps a bigger lifestyle issue. I'll let you know if I ever get it figured out. That said, the coolwhip/jello pie sounds interesting and pretty cheap.  I may give it a try.

I should say that back when I was ill with lyme disease and was on antibiotics all the time, I had no problem eliminating almost all carbohydrates from my diet--to the point of being dangerous--because I was essentially fighting for my life. However, now that I'm able to eat a more normal diet, I find old negative habits creeping in--like a sweets as reward mentality--that I would like to permanently alter.

[CatAshtrophy]

Could you try rewarding yourself in a different way instead of using sweet treats? Like getting yourself a used book or something? I don't know what would be motivating to you, but it is something to think about. It doesn't even matter if it is silly. If giving yourself a sticker for a job well done will help reward you, go for it instead of reaching for a sweet to munch on.

[Tremayne]

Yes, that's the sort of thing I need to come up with. Just at a loss. Can't afford to buy myself flowers on a regular basis. Goodness knows I'd love to have a massage any time I feel deprived or needing a "treat"  But you can be sure I can't afford that either. Used books are not a bad idea except that I've got too many at the moment--shelves overflowing. I agree that the trick is finding he right thing and I'm at a loss for what it is. Maybe I need an "I resisted temptation" board for those stickers you suggested (like a true future teacher  ). Every time I resist temptation I put a sticker on the board and when I've got so many stickers I can buy myself an ??. Something to mull anyway.

[CatAshtrophy]

I like your idea for a board to keep track of your sticker progress. They actually tell us to not give kids stickers anymore because it lessens their internal motivation. (I however still like stickers cause they are fun to give They recommend that instead we do something more social like draw a smiley face on the students paper instead of giving them something. So maybe you could make yourself an "I'm awesome" notebook or something and you could give yourself happy faces or silly drawings or something. I have no idea if it would be helpful or not, but I figured another idea couldn't hurt.

[Tremayne]

Brainstorming never hurts--I'll let y'all know when I come up with something successful.

I'd earlier gotten some advice from a staff member at the gym that I'm finding useful. I was having a hard time making much progress strength-wise, especially with my biceps. He recommended that instead of always going through the full range of motion that I stop and hold for 10 seconds at the most difficult (and thus muscle tense) point of that motion, then finish out. I've embraced that notion both with my biceps and when working on the leg machines and really prefer it to lots of repetitive movement. I feel like it warms up my muscles faster. Too early to say whether it will result in a quicker or smoother gain in strength but I simply like it better--and anything that makes me like my gym time better is a good thing 

[Rahne]

Tremayne
You could try keeping a jug or a jar and as a reward put a dollar, or a quarter, what ever you can afford into it and when you get enough money in the jar go get that massage, or what ever it is you want as a treat.  Keep it so mewher you can see it so it is a visual motivator.  That way you can get what you want without having to come up with a big chunk of money all at once.

[Elennare]

How's everyone doing?     This thread has been quiet for a bit.

I'm managing to stay right about the 10lb loss mark.  Haven't been able to go lower than that yet.

Haven't been able to add more exercise to my schedule yet, either.  In fact, I've actually been getting less exercise last week and this week than normal, because I have play rehearsal during my gymnastics class.  It's going to be a horrible play, too.

I'm just too busy for the rest of this month.  Have a bunch of wedding planning stuff I need to get done NOW, have the stupid play that opens in a week, I need to either find a bra or sew a corset by Saturday because I have the fitting for my wedding dress, and I have to get my entire apartment cleaned and packed up because I'm moving at the end of the month.  eep!

Guess I'll just have to watch what I eat much more carefully for the rest of the month.

[Tremayne]

Um, you sound kind of busy Elennare 

I've sort of stagnated myself. My intention to go to the gym every day has resulted in my going about 3 times a week    I'm headed in the right direction anyway.

My stomach problem is slowly fading away but I am taking it very easy in that regard. I'm waiting til my body says "hey, let's jog!" before I do that. And then I'm going to be very conscious of how much water I drink afterward. I think I haven't been drinking enough even after my walks. Even when I walk after dark, I sweat quite a bit because of heat and humidity. My thirst mechanism doesn't seem to work right so I have to think about drinking instead of relying on my body to cue me. Or it cues my by creating a bladder infection post haste  .  Seems more like revenge than a cue.

I'm still being too snacky. I had this brilliant idea that I'd sing something uplifting (to quell feelings of deprivation and keeps my mouth busy) whenever I was feeling an attack of the munchies. Can't say it's worked well for anti-snacking but I'm not giving up on it yet. I haven't properly memorized a set of songs to distract myself. What singing and humming I have done makes me feel generally better about life so I might as well continue whether it helps with the munchies or not 

[CatAshtrophy]

I'm still doing good even though I'm not loosing anything. I'm maintaining by eating more than my weight loss diet. I've also just started work, so I'm more stressed, but I've been really good about not going too overboard. During training, they have all sorts of free snacks available like chips, cookies, and muffins and it's so temping. I only let myself eat them when I account for it and can justify it. It seems to take all of my will power for the day though, and I'm not as good when I get home as usual. But I know I'll revert to my good habits now that I have them.

[Will Gamwell]

I've been doing pretty good myself.  Very busy with all that I have been doing to get ready for the run, so actually going into the workout room at work has only happened about once a week.  But I have supplemented that with at least 2-3 at home workouts.  Weight has stayed about the same, but becoming more defined in certain areas.

[Escarlata]

Getting back to it this week after having been sick with a summer cold last week. Since I basically slept straight through four days, I missed my exercise routine completely. Have worked back in to it this week and been able to add my floor stretches back in finally. Weight is remaining essentially the same, down a bit then leveling off. I want the extra off NOW, but my lesson in this life is patience and I guess this is one way to test the learning *heavy sigh*

[Tremayne]

Got out and jogged a bit this afternoon--second time for the summer. Good to be able to go faster than a walk in the running shoes I bought at the beginning of summer.    I jogged a hundred paces then walked, jog then walk. It's the way I've slooowly built up fitness before. While hurricane weather is destructive in some parts, it created a couple of cloudy, breezy, temperate afternoons here that made getting out during my lunch hour tolerable. I'm currently drinking a glass of cold water (my innards seem to go into dehydration more easily than in the past) and hoping this bit of jiggly exercise has not enraged my ulcerous stomach. The last time I was feeling spirited and jogged, I had a resurgence of ulcer symptoms.