Good morning, beautiful people! I haven't checked in much these last few weeks. Hope everyone is doing well and feeling good!

I am doing ok-- focusing on healthy eating and trying to slip in some activity. Doing better on eating than activity. I had a birthday party yesterday for a 3 yo .. I made the mistake of going there hungry. I had a few pigs in a blanket and a macaron. At least the macaron was perfection-- I'd have been very disappointed if it had been not so good. Otherwise, it has been about keeping healthy foods in the house. I am going to make a pot of acini di pepe soup today-- will add zucchini and red pepper to it to get some extra veggies. I have been really into large navel oranges lately-- they are big enough to stand in for lunch if I can't break away. I also picked up a mini cabbage in this week's grocery order. Not sure what I will do with it-- maybe roast it?

I am trying to really buckle down this week and carve out time for exercise. I am starting to plan my trips for the spring and summer and I want to be ready to walk and hike longer distances without strain. I have confirmed two spring trips to NYC and another trip to NYC with upstate NY and Ct rolled in. Still working on few longer trips for summer and late fall. I am not in prime "wak all day" shape so I need to get my butt (and everything less!) moving!

Hope you all are doing well and making great progress!

Have a great week!

I'm in a good exercise routine, with strength training at my gym 3-4 times/week, and walking and yoga on the other days. I have family visiting in a few weeks, with younger people, and I'm looking forward to being active with them. One challenge I have is that I'm getting a bit of hip pain from the lunges and squats that I'm doing, and I need to focus on lateral moves. My gym has machines for this, but I use very few of those at the gym. They intimidate me. So I'm going to have to ask the owner/trainer to show me how to use them, which will be outside of my comfort zone. I'm usually a show-up-and-keep-to-myself gym go-er.

Funky, I eat a lot of raw cabbage. I just like the flavor and the crunch. I'll also stir fry it with a bit of onion and whatever other vegetables I have on hand, and finish with a bit of mustard and apple cider vinegar. I prepare a larger batch to have extra vegetables on hand for future meals when I don't feel like cooking. Good luck with the walking--you'll be so glad you started preparing now for your trips. Doing so will pay off, for sure.

My kids are over for dinner this evening. I'm marinating pork tenderloin, and I'll roast sweet potatoes and beets alongside. The leftover pork will be for protein in salads this week. I made a large batch of cranberry beans a few weeks ago, and learned over in the cooking forum that I could freeze them. So, I plan on getting those out to have for extra protein and fiber this week, too.

As a sidenote, I made soup with wild boar last week. I don't recall ever having wild boar, but it's promoted as a lean, sustainable protein source. It was actually quite good.

I forgot to mention that I was returning to food tracking today-- and already it has made a big difference. Yup, I know my go-to's for healthy, low calorie meals but what I have forgotten/let fall off is balancing meals through the week -- pairing a very low call or low carb meal with one a little more indulgent. Just tracking my meals today, I was reminded that it serves me well to plan ahead and to load in what I think I am going to eat and then tweak and swap out options to hit a better combination.

I didnt take a starting screen shot-- but after seeing my protein way to small a piece of the pie and carbs way too large. I modified my plan for lunch and landed here .. and I still room to add another large navel orange if I am hungry in the evening. (I set my tracking goal for 1000 calories but the limit I don't want to exceed is 1200)

I don't expect all days to be so close to what I want to target but the exercise of tracking is making me much more aware again. A good thing!

@Kswl, I hope they get to the bottom of your issues quickly... I know it is frustrating but I am glad it isnt celiac disease!

Funky, that's what tracking did for me--it sort of realigned my eyes and expectations! It also made me much more mindful of when I was hungry, and when I was just reaching for food out of boredom. I don't track now, except for protein grams, but I think it's such a strategic tool.

Kswl, glad your tests came back negative. I hope you find more answers, though, at your next appt. I was diagnosed with Hashimoto's nearly 30 years ago. I understand that autoimmune diseases tend to come in pairs or 3's... I'm waiting for my next one to surface.

Yes, exactly. @Feathers11! I started tracking primarily because you all convinced/reminded me that I need increase protein but also, I knew without checking that my calories have been inching up (or jumping on some days!)

I think it will be wise for me to return to tracking for an interval every few months ... or maybe a week every month. Not sure what interval will work best but much as it annoys me, I know there is great value in it.

Well, I am home from my 10 day binge, I mean vacation. Let’s just say there was a big King Cake on DS kitchen counter during our 5 days in NOLA and the four of us picked at it every day until it was gone. And although I did not find the baby, I now own the baby.

We ate whatever we wanted, then we continued to Austin and ate some more. Then I got sick with either food poisoning or a dramatic stomach bug, which (1) sadly, messed up the last two days of our trip and (2) less sadly, took care of that pesky vacay weight gain. So I came home at the same weight I was when I left.

I am still a bit draggy (got home last night) but looking foreward to getting back on track.

Uh, SueB, that sounds like so much fun in NOLA but sorry you got sick in Austin. I got food poisoning in NOLA when my college team was in the national championship there so that was not fun. At least I made the game but I was drinking ginger ale there. I have a regional conference this week so I will be sitting there with a mask on and not touching anything. Too many people sick. I grapple with even going but going anywhere, including just to my regular job, is a risk.

This week is going OK but some sort of miscommunication between the doctors and CVS on medication dose. I should have gone up in dose but they didn’t get that into CVS in time so I have the former dose. I had to pick it up and I used one of the doses. So I feel like I wasted a lot of money on just the intro dose and I have to wait another month to go up in dose.

Yes, tracking is going well and once again our campus is offering a consultation with the student dietetians so I am doing that for two weeks. I will take any free resources I can get.

I had follow up with the GYN from my procedure and all is good! unfortunately polyps can come back. But I should be good for awhile and at least I won’t need something major like a hysterectomy.

I have my private session Pilates this week but no group classes since I’m going to the conference. I did weights and core yesterday after Zumba.

Hope to get in a mani-pedi before the conference! I am very much overdue.

Regarding food poisoning, I think it’s weird that after no one ever getting it in my family forever, two of us got it within about 6 months. DD was much more sick than I was, but symptoms were similar, including the fast and dramatic onset and the feeling afterward of having been kicked in the stomach. Makes me wonder *not in a way to stir up any drama* if restaurants are somehow less careful than they used to be. Or maybe that we just eat at restaurants more than we used to. Or if you travel enough, you’re bound to get sick sometime! I am really just glad the worst of it was past before we had to fly home.

Sue, I also had food poisoning in the last year-- I thought it was twice but it turns out there was a bad stomach bug going around when I got sick the second time. The first time it was most definitely a veggie that got me sick. I had only a large salad -- but one with a large variety of vegetables so hard to nail down what got me sick.

I do wash veggies but can't be sure I did so thoroughly-- I mean, I DID get sick. Ugh. I also note there seem to have been increased recalls of lettuce for a variety of bacterial issues in recent years. All I know is that I was very ill and prefer not to ever experience it again lol.

I have always had a "weak stomach" and get nauseous easily but I also I find my digestive system is just more sensitive lately. Perhaps another gift of aging!

Glad to hear you had a great trip, Sue ... but sorry your illness capped it off!

Yeah it was so weird. My firend and I had the same specials except one of us had chicken gumbo and one had seafood. I don’t remember which one I had probably the seafood but I was the only one sick. It was just a few hours later when I started vomiting. I made it to the game and was OK but the next day we had a 15-hour bus ride home. But I felt much better by then.

It’s amazing it doesn’t happen more than it does. But I guess that’s why there are restaurant inspections.

SueB....glad you are home and feeling better!

gscience....so happy for your good results. Have a good conference!

funky.....I am glad you are better at that tracking than me!! First, they assigned me 1300 cal. I goolgled 24,000 steps per day, and came up with 900 calories burned. Beginner Pilates burnes 200 or so. I would have NO calories for my basic metabolism, and that would shut me down even more, AND my hair would fall out.

I redid it with more activity, and they brought me up to 1700. I have not looked at it since.!!

DH and I took the horses up to Mammoth Cave on Sunday, and did a 6 mile ride. It has been TOO long since I have been out there!! It was a gorgeous day, with crystal clear skies (unusual here; normally we are covered in what I call "artificial clouds", aka contrails that turn into clouds), and a cool breeze.

My new horse, Supers Golden Knight, was spectacular!! I bought him about 2 months ago for a song, and I call him my "Bargain Basement Bucker". LOL.

I go to Pilates today with a visiting instructor from CA. It is just a Flow 1, so I should not die, then the vet comes for some routine stuff on a few of the horses!

Question: have any of you done a meal kit like Blue Apron? I might be a couple thousand miles short for the next tier status on AA and you can get something like 5,000 miles for signing up and keeping it 45 days. Maybe this is more of question for the broader group.

MIL was also sick a couple weeks back which she blamed on food poisoning from cookies she bought, but I think it might have been something like norovirus. She did go to our primary care but by that point she was pretty much at the end of it.

I did sun basket years ago-- it was just a little too much STUFF. Tiny bottles and baggies of spices. I just didnt feel comfortable with the waste when I know how to cook and shop. Also, most of the meal services have higher calorie meals than I would prefer.

I have considered one that my nephew uses though-- Clean Eatz Kitchen -- these are already prepared meals but there were only two meals that looked interesting to me. They seem to target young adult appetites.

They are based near you, I believe, GS and they have some "fast" (vs fast food) restaurants as well. There is one near me and I will give it a try one of these days-- I saw quite a few things on the menu I'd enjoy. I'd be more inclined to consider their meal plans if they offer a wider variety of meals.

kswl- I’m glad your tests came back negative. I hope you can get to the bottom of it. FWIW- I know a couple people whose vitamin d was in the high 20’s and they were recommended 50,000 iu a week for 3 months, to get back to baseline. So maybe ask your dr about a different dosage? It’s also recommended to take vitamin d with a high fat meal for best absorption.

I’m doing ok this week, there’s been some less than ideal food but we have been walking a lot. No other real exercise though. I chickened out on downhill skiing but I did try cross country - and fell about 7 times:) so maybe skiing isn’t for me! I guess I need to work on my balance too:) one Good thing - lots of falls and didn’t hurt myself, so there’s that.

Tracking is always eye opening for me in some manner too. It’s useful for me to do it every once I awhile to see what’s up, usually my calories ;)

Yes, my GP immediately put me on 50k units per week when the results came in. But two and a half years ago I didn’t take any supplements and my levels were normal. A year and a half ago my D was low, so I started taking 6k units a day, and after a year and a half of that supplementsl dose my D had still all but disappeared. Now the endocrinologist is trying to figure out why I have no D or B, why I’m not absorbing it as I should. Fingers crossed for a reasonable explanation!

After watching a bunch of videos thrown my way of people who have lost large amounts in shortish time periods, I realize even with the occasional loss (and that is ALL I have been seeing for the last year), I need to get more serious. I am not looking to do anything extreme for quick weight loss-- it's not healthy or sustainable for me-- but I do need to make some serious adjustments. I too easily let myself veer off path and choose something that is less than healthy because of time constraints or just because I WANT them.

I did track most days this week ... even the day I had nothing but 2 packs of ramen and a snack pack of fig newtons. That hurt :( but it also made me realize that I am too easily swayed and sabotaged by my own self. I can't sit and whine that I am making no progress when I am not putting in the effort. I have been mostly talk and no walk for the last year.

I sat down this morning and recommitted to a healthier lifestyle every single day. It isn't going to happen just because I want it to. I told my team earlier this week, we are not going to successfully hit our targets unless we make changes TODAY. With that in mind, I have identified 3 things that I can easily change starting TODAY:

• Return to and stick to intermittent fasting (this will start tomorrow because I already had a large orange before 10am).
• NO chips, pretzels, pizza or any high calorie/low value indulgences for any reason until my birthday in April.
• get outside and active at least 3x a week - could be a walk, jumping rope or yard work. Must be outside and active. I'd like to increase this # but for now, 3x will require effort to be successful. It's important to me that my changes are easily achievable with effort and without stress/anxiety.

I am fully aware that I have said these words before lol ... but I am committing to them. I have a few trips coming up in April/May and that will be my motivation but in case that is not enough, I am budgeting/earmarking funds I will make available only if I stick to the above from now to mid April. If I do, I will purchase some items for my trips and have extra money to spend on them. It may seem silly lol ... but these are things that motivate me. I gotta go with what works!

Sounds great Funkyart! Recommitting oneself and declaring it to the world is a good thing :-).

I don't know where I read this but I have read that if you stick to a regular menu that doesn't have very many embellishments; like for example two eggs with a piece of toast for breakfast maybe with peanut butter (my favourite), every single day you are less likely to be swayed by calorie-laden stuff. 🤷. In other words ignore all the fancy stuff and go with basics. Keep it to a more narrow menu. With planned and controlled periodic indulgences of course. I do this for the most part but because cheese not all the time and not super well.

It is perhaps too close to an austere diet for people but I guess in a way it is an extension of the control you have over what put in your mouth as opposed to indulging yourself with the food too often. Those very delicious calories creep up fast.

Kswl so glad your test results came back negative! Hope your vit D and B disappearing mystery is solved easily. My sister is chronically low iron which is not totally usual for a post menopausal person. No answers and what she is taking barely keeps her at a low optimal level. This is absolutely years of chronic low iron. It sounds like yours is more recent so hopefully there is an easy answer.

Yeonassky, you are on target -- when I have been more successful in the past, I was sticking to a fairly small list of meals on a rotation. It also helps with shopping/planning for the periods when I work long hours. Thanks for the reminder ... it will definitely help me with the work week days if not all days.

As of this morning I am fully stocked with some of my favorite *easy* items.. butter lettuce, navel oranges, chickpeas and tasty little tomatoes. I'll need to add some more in my next order ... including eggs! I don't eat breakfast but i love eggs and asparagus for dinner!

I found this interesting, especially later in the interview where she talks about post menopause issues.

https://open.spotify.com/episode/1uzxox1RgQcYC26KWEyXvm?si=16lvb3y1TRCBVXTdtnD0wQ

I listened to that, Sue, and thought it explained so well the changes in our bodies, insulin and glucose levels, etc., as related to the estrogen decrease in menopause. It all makes sense the way she explains it, and gave me more reason to focus on building muscle. Muscle is where it's at, imo.

Feathers, my 89 yo dad’s cardiologist mentioned his muscle tone at his last appt., saying it is one of the reasons he’s doing so well after almost dying 4 years ago. He said most people his age just don’t have it any more. My dad didn’t start working out regularly until he was over 50. He still exercises 2x a day and he is not thin — and he moves slowly these days — but he’s strong. Before he had his heart valve replaced, he also had a few falls that he easily recovered from, I’m sure because he had such a good exercise routine.

Now if only his daughter could remember that every day!