Operation Get Fit No Excuses: Week 3 Summary

Week 3 has finished and Week 4 has begun! I can’t believe that the time has flown by so fast. I have to say I’m surprised and proud of myself that I’ve continued to walk and exercise every day despite health issues that pop up and crap weather. Some days have been a struggle for me to actually get up and go but I did and I’m extremely happy that I did!

I’ve learned many things about my body that I didn’t know and had to adjust my diet and stretching times to accommodate some weird sore muscles. 

Here are this week’s main points that I think are important to touch on:

1. Stretching. Remember that it’s very important to stretch all your muscles, this includes feet, ankles, and toes. Oftentimes, we forget the importance of stretching parts we think don’t need it but they do. After so many weeks of daily exercise, my toes and the balls of my feet started cramping up and that’s when I realized that I forgot about stretching them. I searched for videos and information and found a great many different techniques that has helped. Look for ones that you are comfortable with doing.
   
2. Weight. I can not emphasize enough the importance of not weighing yourself every day or even once a week. Chasing a number on a scale will discourage even the most dedicated person. Many people don’t realize that while losing weight, you can gain lean muscle mass that will change your weight. If you want to record your journey, measure the same body parts every month on the same day. That should help you stay encouraged without going crazy chasing some magical number.
   
3. Food. You have to eat. It’s that simple. It’s what and how much you eat that you have to be aware of. I don’t eat fruits and vegetables. I have never been able to because my system rejects it. Never figured out why, it just does. For my unusual dietary needs, I have substituted sugar for Stevia, which is a natural sweetner. I have substituted bread for a tortilla, so instead of a Chicken sandwich, I will have a chicken wrap. I also snack on a mixed variety of nuts that are all natural, no salt or preservatives added. I drink water all day. Probably 2 liters per day on average. I also will drink warm tisanes which are all natural, caffeine free teas. So, don’t stop eating to lose weight, just change little things that you do eat and that will make a huge difference.
   
4. Clothes. While I have said in the past that you do not have to go out and buy all new fitness gear, if you are planning to walk/run outside, make sure you have the right clothes for the weather. If it’s raining, invest in a good waterproof jacket. If it’s cold, look into warm but lightweight outwear so you don’t harm your body parts in extreme weather. Mainly, use common sense.
   

Those are all the topics for this week. I want to thank each of you that continue to follow me on my journey to get into better shape. Week 4 Day 1 is officially coming to a close and we’re getting closer to the next set of measurements and pictures of my progress that I will reveal in my blog the week of February 10th. 

#getfitnoexcuses 

Operation Get Fit No Excuses: Week 2 Summary

As the second week of Operation Get Fit No Excuses closes, I have learned many things. The main thing is that I am definitely committed and determined to continue my new healthier lifestyle. As many times as I’ve started and stopped exercising and diets, I completely surprised myself so far. (Even Padrone is surprised but proud of me sticking with it.) I did have a couple of days this week in which my determination was flagging, but I repeated to myself a couple of times and got up and went.

My biggest accomplishment was finishing 6 kilometers in under an hour but then the next day I barely made it 2 kilometers. I have stretched every single day before and after both walks, but it felt like I just couldn’t recover completely.

I started looking for advice and suggestions on time/length/pace for walking beginners and many of their suggestions were completely impossible to obtain. The parts I do agree with is that you try to walk 30 minuets a day. Until you get used to it, don’t worry to much about pace (how fast you walk) or length. Just concentrate on time. If you can’t make it for 30 minutes, break it up into 3 10 minutes intervals. Do what you can while pushing yourself a little but remember to listen to your body.

I have been using the natural sweetener called Stevia and it’s taken some getting used to. But, now after a week, I’m loving it. My blood sugar has been almost textbook perfect between the exercise and watching my sugar and carbohydrate intake.

Now, I haven’t stopped eating mostly what I want to. I’ve cut out sweets, refined sugars and most breads. When I want a sandwich, I use a tortilla to make a chicken and cheese wrap versus 2 pieces of white bread. All of these little changes have made huge differences.

Today, after my walk, I came home and stretched for about 10 minutes then did a 20 minutes Beginners Yoga class. I was thinking I would be doing really weird poses and stretches, but surprisingly, I didn’t. It really was a video for basically anyone that’s mobile, no matter your age or body stiffness. Afterwards, I felt so relaxed and my leg and butt muscles finally stopped hurting! I had heard so many good things about Yoga for many years but haven’t ever gotten off my lazy butt to actually try it. I did today and am so happy. I don’t have the fancy mats or anything. It was just me on my living room rug and my computer watching the Yoga video.

So remember this:

1. Listen to your body and go at your own pace, but do push yourself a little.
2. Keep things fresh by choosing different walking routes and scenery so you don’t get bored.
3. Watch what you eat but don’t go completely crazy on some crash diet. Make small changes in your food choices and stick with those.
4. Take vitamins, especially if you don’t eat enough vegetables or fruits.
5. Try Yoga to help you stretch stiff muscles. I will swear by it now!
6. Don’t let a scale be your guide! Measurements are a better way to judge your progress than numbers on a scale.

If you want to watch me daily, I post videos on my YouTube channel. You can subscribe and watch at https://youtube.com/channel/UCLjTpeHjOIqlsU1S6yxfaJA  . Thank you all for the encouragement and staying with me on this journey!

Week 3, here I come!

Operation Get Fit No Excuses: Week 1 Summary

Well, if you follow me on Facebook or Google+, you have seen that I started a new lifestyle change. And by Lifestyle, I don’t mean BDSM this time. I have been very sedentary for the past several years and have not walked or done basically any form of exercise. My body started to let me know it didn’t like this a few months ago. Here’s the breakdown of what started me on this journey to get in better shape.

First, my sugar level went crazy. Normally I have low blood sugar, but it decided to go from one extreme to another several times a day. I would develop dizzy spells, have trouble balancing, and get headaches. My eyes wouldn’t focus, even with my glasses on. At first, I chalked it up to some weird Epilepsy symptoms because I do tend to get weird side affects, other than seizures, with my type of epilepsy. I then developed cobweb or shadowy lines in my left eye. That scared me. Padrone wanted me to go to the doctor, but being stubborn, I wanted to try to resolve the issue myself. So we’re waiting to see if my eye gets better with the changes I’m making.

I had my gallbladder taken out over 10 years ago, so I don’t eat spicy food or very greasy food. I also try to avoid tons of caffeine and most fried foods. During the past couple of years, my reflux and heartburn would literally activate at all times of the day and night, no matter if I ate anything or not. Water could give me heartburn. We tried prescription medicine and found out that most of them wouldn’t work on me and the ones that did work broke me out in a rash. Talk about aggravating!

A few weeks ago, I developed eczema on my face. I have never had any form of this before in my life, and I’m 44 years old now. I found a treatment to get it under control, but am afraid it will come back.

I’ve dealt with all these things while having to deal with seizures and all the stuff that goes along with them. It hasn’t been fun. I know that there are many people with much worse and more debilitating conditions than I have, but for me, all of it together was the last straw. It felt like I could almost literally see and feel my body crying out to me to start living better. I like to think my body was giving me a preview of what would happen if I didn’t start to make a change.

So, now you know the back story as to why I got motivated to start exercising, here are some rules I’ve set up for myself.

1. Numbers don’t matter! I don’t weigh myself nor do I care if I actually loose weight or not.
2. No more refined sugar. I did a lot of research and found that many sweetners make the body act the same or worse when used. I need my glucose numbers to be somewhat stable. I found out the best and least harmful sweetner to use is called Stevia.
3. No more normal white bread. I am actually using flour tortillas to make sandwich wraps versus a normal bread sandwich. They have less carbs.
4. I really don’t eat fruits or vegetables so I started taking a multivitamin that actually gives me a large amount of the recommended daily allowance. I also take Vitamins C and D in 1000 mg capsules a day. (Note: just because I take these doesn’t mean I’m recommending you do the same. Listen to your own body’s needs and maybe see a doctor or nutritionist.)
5. Do not make any excuses for not going out and walking. If I have a seizure but am able to walk later that day, I will. I even got waterproof shoes and a jacket to ensure I really don’t have excuses now.

So, that’s why first weekly recap. I do a daily video on my YouTube channel also. Please take a look and subscribe!

Thanks for following!

Nature versus Nurture: The Loner in your Family

Did you ever feel like a complete stranger in your own family? Do you sometimes feel like you don't know exactly how to be a part of a family? Do you feel anxious at family gatherings? That's the way I have felt most of my life.

Let me first say that my family is awesome. They love, support, and help each other all the time. They all have great lives and are wonderful people. I love them very much and am proud to be a part of them. This post is in no way a bad reflection on my family or how I was raised.

I had a great childhood. I always had most everything I wanted. I have two parents that worked hard to provide for us. I have a brother and sister that are much older than I am but only a year and a half apart in age to each other. Because of this difference, it really felt like I was an only child most of the time.

If you've read or watched TV about Nature versus Nurture in how humans develop, I can tell you that it totally depends on which is stronger. My family all like the same kind of music, dress in similar ways, have the same morals/values, same type of friends, eat the same kind of foods, and like the same kind of architecture. They love living in Tennessee and being part of a small town community. I never liked any of it. Growing up, I loved southern food, but hated country music. I felt like I was missing so much of the world because I was stuck in a small town in Tennessee. I never had the opportunity to be exposed to world cultures and other civilizations. I was surrounded by country music, pick up trucks, horse riding, and everybody knowing everyone else's business. Not a bad upbringing, but one I felt like an alien in.

I always had a dream to live in a big city. I liked different kinds of music that my parents and siblings just couldn't understand. I had a broader set of friends than was politically correct at those times. I was always different. I never had any long term friendships. I never had one true friend that I could rely on to not tell my secrets too.

My brother and sister were ultra popular in school and afterwards. They had many friends and loved to go out and party. I liked to stay by myself and usually was. Of course, there were times I went out to clubs or with a friend. But those were far and few in between.

I always tried to find a quiet spot during family gatherings and was always uncomfortable being around so many people. Most of my family never understood me and still don't. I know my choices in life probably hurt my parents and to some extent embarrassed them. I always wondered how many times did they ask themselves what they did wrong in raising me or why I am like I am. But it's not their fault. It's just the way I am. The way I'm wired.

I have a much more liberal way of thinking as well as a much broader acceptance for diversity. I am not a republican or a christian and I am very proud of that. I am very vocal in my beliefs and stand by them.

But why am I like I am? If I was raised completely opposite of how I think now, in an environment that tried to teach me a completely different way to live, how did I end up like I am? I blame it on nature.

It's just in my nature to be more of a loner. It's my nature to be more open and accepting of different lifestyles and cultures. It's in my nature to question theology and research the facts of history as we know them versus relying on faith to some mystical being. It's how I'm wired. It's how I was born.

My sister is a clone of my mom in many ways. I'm not saying that's a bad thing. Not at all. They are both wonderful people, wives and mothers. They are always helping people out when needed, they work hard and they love their families very much. But our moral values are way different. My brother and my dad are very different but as my brother became older, he and my dad became closer. That never has happened to me with either one of my parents or siblings. I wish I could say that I had a real relationship with my sister or brother, but I honestly don't. I am envious people that have a close bond with their own brother or sister. You are very blessed if you do.

If you have a family member that you just can't figure out why they are weird or so different that your own family, please believe that it's not you. It's because their nature is stronger than the nurture they received. I'm not a doctor or psychologist, but I do have experience in this area. Love your family even if they are completely different than you. Respect them. Talk with them and encourage them. Never make them feel unwanted or forgotten.

I know that I will never have any type of relationship with my siblings other than the passing greeting or Hey, How are You conversation. I can't tell you how many years I dreamed that could change but I feel it's too late, but who knows? If you are in a similar situation, I urge you to reach out and hang on to your family. Never give up on them. While you may never understand or completely agree with them, remember that true love is unconditional.