March-ing In Like a Lamb

Welcome.

It is one of those March days when the sun shines hot and the wind blows cold: when it is summer in the light, and winter in the shade.  ~Charles Dickens

What a difference a month can make.  Winter is just about behind us and we are looking forward to the beginning of spring.  Some flowers are starting to bloom.  OK – it is snowing today, but it isn’t even adding up in the grassy areas.  And it will be 50 degrees out again in a couple of days.  This is my favorite time of year.  And, it is my birthday month!  Happy birthday me J.

Eat.

I never worry about diets.  The only carrots that interest me are the number you get in a diamond.  ~Mae West

I’ve read a lot of diet/nutrition books in the past few years.  The list of books I have read includes The 17 Day Diet, A Week in the Zone, Food Addiction – The Body Knows, and The 1,500-Calorie-A-Day-Cookbook.  And those are just the books on my Kindle.  I’ve got quite a few more that are at home or have been donated.  These are not fad diet books.  They are supposed to be instructional or at least informative on how to eat a healthy diet.  I’ve watched documentaries, read web pages, read studies, etc.  None of these actually helped me in my desire to eat healthy, lose weight and be happy with the physical part of me.

I tried Weight Watchers for years and lost and gained the same 10 pounds over and over again.  I was hungry all the time while I belittled myself for my lack of “self-control” or “will power”.   After eating whole grain foods, lean meats, low fat everything, plenty of veggies, I was feeling like crap.  I’d go into a WW meeting, get weighed, and feel like I had just spent the whole week of trying but not getting anywhere.  Of course, I gave up.  I figured that there was no point in trying if I wasn’t going to get anywhere.

Not very long ago, I watched the documentary Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead.  This was a well produced movie of a man, Joe Cross, who was 100 pounds overweight, loaded up on steroids and suffering from a debilitating autoimmune disease.  He was at the end of his rope and the end of his hope.  Joe went on a mission to regain his health by turning to the only option he felt he had.  He vowed to only drink fresh fruit and vegetable juice for 60 days.  This extreme form of cleansing did him a world of good.  He was able to lose weight, get off of the many pills he had been required to take, and live a much healthier life.

Although I didn’t need to go to such an extreme, I did dig into information regarding juicing and the health benefits from it.  The website www.jointhereboot.com (Joe Cross is right there on the home page) has several “reboot” programs to choose from.  After my research into the benefits, I decided to try a 10-day reboot.  I bought a very nice Breville juicer, planned out my 10 days and went to the grocery store for tons of fresh, organic fruits & vegetables (which cost a fortune).  Most of what I consumed during this 10 day period was juiced but I was able to eat raw and cooked fruits and vegetables too.  That was a very long 10 days!  I was hungry and not very pleasant.  I had expected to feel wonderful.  I had expected to lose some weight.  In reality, I felt like crap and lost all of one pound.  Two weeks after all of this I ended up 4 pounds heavier than when I started!

I’m pretty stubborn and kept on reading books that I hoped would enlighten me to whatever it was I missing.  There had to be something that I was doing wrong.  Lots of people are skinny, healthy and eat much worse than I do.  So I kept on looking.  The last three books that I've read, I believe, have put all of that behind me.  The books are Dr Atkins’ New Diet Revolution, The New Atkins for a New You, and Why We Get Fat: And What to do About It.

I have to admit that the more I read these, the more I got PO’d.  For most of my life I had been told that if I just ate fewer calories, exercised more, cut out the fat, added more grains, etc, etc, etc,…I’d be lean and healthy.  According to these three books – that’s a load of crappola that we have been fed.  I’m not going to get into it here so you may just want to pick up one of these books – I really suggest Why We Get Fat: And What to do About It even if you aren’t overweight.  Many health issues (high cholesterol, high blood pressure, high blood sugars,etc.) are discussed in this book.

I started following the first phase of Dr. Atkins’ approach, and cut my carbohydrate consumption way, way down to 20 grams a day.  Most people will only stay on such a low carbohydrate diet for the first two weeks.  I plan to remain on it for several weeks since I have so much damage to correct.   Naturally, since the carbs are lowered, and you don’t want too many proteins in your diet (although a good amount is needed) the amount of fats does increase; but not by a ridiculous amount.  I have found that my average caloric intake has dropped down to between 1500 and 1600 a day.  I did give up beer.  And I gave up all breads, rice, potatoes, corn, sweets, anything with sugar & flour.  But, I don’t miss any of it.  I feel alert, energized and generally healthy.  I also know that as time goes by, I will be able to add some of these foods back into my diet and continue to feel just as good as I do today.

Exercise.

Lack of activity destroys the good condition of every human being, while movement and methodical physical exercise save it and preserve it.  ~Plato

Exercise is not a must, in my opinion (and many others) for losing weight.  It is a must, though, for overall well being.  In moderate amounts, it will keep your heart and other muscles strong.  But, while on the first phase of the Atkins diet approach, exercise isn’t something that should be overdone.

I’ve been doing my walking at least a couple of times during the week.  I go out on every nice day and walk for 20 or 30 minutes.  Work has me working out of two different trailers and I’ve been doing a lot of shopping for each.  That has me out moving around and lugging cases of soda/water, etc, too.  I’ve also added a couple of yoga sessions a week to my activity.  YouTube has several 20- or 30-minute yoga classes that are easy to do at home.  I can get in 20 or 30 minutes in the evening when dinner is cooking.  I’ve signed up for a Yoga challenge on line that starts today so that will be at least 3 days a week.

Have Fun.

As long as you're having fun, that's the key.  The moment it becomes a grind, it's over.  ~Barry Gibb

This is the sweater I want to make with my merino wool

I’ve come to a standstill on my jewelry making.  Nothing has really inspired me in the past two weeks.   I’ve got a couple of things in the works but just don’t really feel like working on them.  I’m thinking that it may be beneficial to put the jewelry making tools away for a few weeks.  I’d like to bring out the sewing machine.  I’ve got some clothes to alter and plenty of fabric put aside to play with.  I could also work on my knitting.  I’m 2/3 of the way done with a sweater vest that I was working on earlier in the winter that I’d like to finish.  I’ve also got some gorgeous merino wool and a nice pattern for a sweater.  With this warmer weather we’ve had, my knitting just got put away.  It is hard to work on something for cold weather when it isn’t cold out.  I'm pretty slow at knitting though.  Maybe if I start now, I can have it done for next fall.