2022: Become a priority in your life - today is your opportunity to build the tomorrow you want.
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I'm glad the work is going well, and I bet they are really grateful to have somebody dependable! You obviously have to put your health first but if your back is coping with it then it's probably nice to have that sense of purpose and to know you are doing such a lot of good. I was talking to a friend recently who has had a year off work for health reasons and is now just starting working again, about whether we would want to give up work entirely, and we weren't very sure. I do feel much better when I have time off work, but I don't think I'd want to be off all the time.
That's a shame that your group isn't more active. And that it's older people. I have been very aware of that issue with my father as he has been lucky enough to live a long life but he doesn't have a lot of social life because his friends have mostly passed on. My friends are older than me by a few years so it does make me think. I'm sure I mentioned I joined the University of the Third Age, when I semi-retired a few years ago, but I found most people were a lot older than me, although the ones I met were very sharp and active. I do see younger people at work, and one of my closer friends is a couple of years younger than me, and of course I see my son and daughter-in-law quite a lot, and it's nice to get a younger view of things as well. Sometimes my views seem to sit better with the young ones!
It does sound like you are having lots of social life, meeting with friends. I think we need that! It's so easy to just not bother, which I think is fine for some, but if you live alone it becomes a habit. Or I find that. You've reminded me to get in touch with some people.
I didn't take the HRT in the end. Well, kind of waiting for the heart investigations to be over, and I will still go for the other test if I get an appointment as I do still have some issues and it would be good to rule things out. But I have a feeling I won't take the HRT. It just doesn't seem very clear what you should do in my position, as it does seem to possibly, slightly increase the risk for people with existing coronary artery disease, and I don't want to take even a small risk. So still considering it, but probably won't.
I'm so pleased with the door guy! He does some building and joinery work, but only works part-time as he and his wife share care of their young child. That's why he was available, as he can't take on full-time jobs, but it's ideal for me. I'm getting him to have a look at some other jobs round the house to see if he can do them.
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Sorry I haven’t been on in ages! I’ve read your messages but have been so busy I didn’t respond.
I’m doing well. Knock on wood, I did not get what my husband had or my granddaughter had. Thank goodness! I’m too busy to be sick right now. Lol.
Snoozie, I always forget how much I love apples until I slice one up for my husband’s lunch and end up eating half of it. It really doesn’t take much effort but for some reason I just don’t do it. Do you think you’ll do the vegetable garden again next year? I may try a small raised bed.
Vail, I’m cautiously elated that your heart issues seem to have been resolved. I just hope it stays that way. Great news on your doors! It’s so hard to find a handyman that can really do the job right. Don’t lose his number!
I’ve been really busy with Christmas things and volunteer work. We went shopping for families that are survivors of domestic violence today. I feel so bad for these women and their children. I’m also joining the board at our little center for the arts. That’s where I took my watercolor class this past spring. Also been going to see my parents.
Unfortunately I’m still not eating well or exercising. Surprisingly, I haven’t gained any weight though. I’m trying not to stress about it right now.
What are your plans for Christmas?0 -
Suzy i'm so glad you managed to escape bug free! What a wonderful thing you did with the shopping for those in need and way cool on joining the board at the centre the arts - sounds like you are starting to build your new routine and settling in well...
I'm working the week before xmas every other day (with the RC) until the 23rd - i think i am going to do myself up a turkey breast and a little stuffing and my fav veg (yep brussel sprouts are in there along with the required mashed turnip/carrot combo and mashed potatos ha... and have tht christmas eve for dinner... my friend has invited me to join her and her family for Christmas dinner on xmas day and they are vegeterians so wont have to have turkey twice - plus they are awesome cooks and i love veg so i think i will accept their invite and join them. i think there will only be the 6 of us there including her son who is home from Thailand for Christmas so it will be nice. and I'll still have leftovers at home for the 26th lol.. If i can't find a small enough turkey breast i'll probably just buy a chicken - with gravy its all pretty much the same hahaha.
Vail i hope your wonderful handyman was able to finish all the doors and that you got the other odd little jobs done you wanted too!! Are you going to be able to join your son for the holidays at all - i know with him being a doctor they are often called upon to work the holidays..1 -
l'm glad you managed to avoid the family illness, Suzy! I hope you stay well the rest of the winter.
Thanks about the heart issues. I'm hoping these issues have gone for good (dizziness with irregular slow pulse), but am almost frustrated that they went just before the monitor appointment as I would love to have known what was going on! I just knew that if I kept the appointment and had no symptoms during the test, it would be put down to anxiety again, and if the symptoms came back I'd have no chance of them being investigated! I have been getting more chest pain, unfortunately, but that's par for the course. I'm still waiting for another test, so will keep that appointment when it comes through.
You sound really busy, Suzy, with volunteering and everything. I hope your parents are OK. That's wonderful that you are helping families who have experienced domestic violence, particularly at this time of year. I hope you enjoy being on the board. You are really getting involved in the local community!
You sound busy too, Snoozie, with your volunteering. So much for retirement! I have had vegetarian Christmas meals in the past and really enjoyed them. Sounds like it will be lovely with somebody else cooking it too! I am going to my son and daughter-in-law's for Christmas and his father (my ex) and his family are going too, so it will be a little bit strange! But we do all get on OK and have had to get together at weddings, graduations, etc. so have had practice. It's strange the way having a child is so permanent and means you will still have some sort of tenuous relationship with the other parent forever!
Funny about the apple slices: I do that as well. It's a bit of an old dieter's trick! I sometimes put some cinnamon on the slices or a little drizzle of honey. It does somehow feel more substantial.
I have been doing soup too. It's so cold here! I don't know if you're in the same situation, but energy prices have skyrocketed here, so everybody is struggling with heating! It's going below freezing outside, thankfully not inside my house but quite chilly, around 6C, which is apparently 42F indoors. I have put on the heating for a short spell this morning for a treat, so have got it up to a balmy 11C / 51F and am sitting here with an electric blanket! I do have a wood burner but am waiting for a delivery of wood so rationing what I've got at the moment. The price of wood has gone up too!
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Oh my gosh, Vail! The southerner in me just shivered thinking about it being 51 much less 42 INSIDE the house!!! We keep our heat set on 67 and that’s chilly to us. It seems the price of everything has just skyrocketed. I’ve been making a real effort to cook just enough for two because I’m not throwing any food away. It’s like throwing money in the garbage bin.
My parents are doing well physically. Dad’s dementia is getting so much worse and they’re both depressed. We’ve started them both on antidepressants and are hoping that will help a bit.
I would love to have dinner where a really good vegetarian cook makes everything. I wish I enjoyed cooking more. Maybe if I had a husband who likes to try new things then I’d try harder. Or maybe I’m just lazy. Lol.
It’s funny you mention your ex will be at Christmas dinner, Vail. My brother in law and his ex have a grown son who has two kids. They all came to Thanksgiving dinner at my brother in law’s son’s house with his second wife. If that makes sense.0 -
I suppose it's the modern way now with so many separated and melded families. That's nice that your brother-in-law is doing something similar, but with grandchildren as well!
I hope the antidepressants work for your parents. The depression and dementia combo for your dad must be particularly challenging, both for him and for you.
I normally would like the house a similar temperature to you, and would still be wearing warm clothing indoors at 67F. I have caved in this morning as was trying to do a washing and the laundry liquid wouldn't come out of the bottle as it was so thick with the cold! I have put the central heating on and am waiting for it to warm up!1 -
Wow! Now that’s cold! When are you getting the firewood delivery? I know firewood is ridiculously expensive here. We now have a propane gas log fireplace. It doesn’t give off as much heat but it helps. Does your central heating run on electricity or natural gas? Our whole house is electric so if the power goes out we have to use our propane gas logs for heat. Hopefully that won’t happen. It’s hard to believe that just a few months ago you were having an unprecedented heat wave. I hope the prices come down soon.
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I'm getting the firewood today! It's difficult to know as there is so much demand at the moment, so I just order it and they email the night before to tell me when it's coming. It's quite expensive but all heating is at the moment. I do have mains gas central heating (radiators) and hot water and that used to be relatively cheap but has gone up in price massively. And my gas boiler is on its last legs! I'm so glad I got the wood burner, even if just to have some backup as my boiler tends to break down if it gets really cold! It was only a few weeks ago that I had it put in, after debating for years over whether I wanted one or not! Good timing!
I know, what a change from too hot too cold!1 -
Hi you two! Wow Vail im glad you got your firewood... especially as you say your gas boiler could have a moment or two over the winter... i cant even imagine those temps inside... because i live in an apartment building, even tho 2 of my walls are floor to ceiling windows its never cold in my place because everyone in the building has their heat blasting... even in the winter i usually have a window open because i'm always too hot... it was not fun during menopause lol. But.. when i go to my sisters in NB.. she keeps her indoor temps quite cool and and because i am so used to it being so hot, i freeze every second i am there no matter how many sweaters or socks i put on! So i can feel for you Vail!
Suzy i hope the new meds make a difference for your parents.. have you started your work with the board yet or is that in the new year?
My package I mailed to my sister back on Dec 4th has gone MIA.. it arrived arrived in her city on Dec 6th but hasn't moved since.. i went to the postal office where i mailed it yesterday and showed them the tracking info which had some stupid message about hte package having been received after cut off (which she agreed made no sense as i mailed it on Dec 4th).. so she told me to call Canada Post.. I'm like.... ok but im here AT CP... anyway i called and ended up with a "virtual" assistance bot and put in a service ticket.. it wasn't a tiny package it was a box about 1 foot long and 8 inches wide so it's not like it could have fallen behind a conveyor belt or something.. sigh.. so at this point i can only hope they find it and she gets it before xmas lol. At least my cousins will be coming up to Fredericton and staying at her place for the week of Xmas as all their kids and grand kids live there, so she will have presents and company.
I'm working a few shifts this upcoming week with the RC - at the moment as far as i know this detail will end on Friday. I must say i am quite enjoying my work with them and learning a lot.
As you both know by now cooking is neither my forte or something i enjoy lol.. i've been making some of the meals from the one dish kitchen site as its cooking for one (altho realistically a lot of it would feed 2 or one plus a leftover meal which works for me as any time i can cook once and eat twice its a good thing. I picked up my little turkey breast to roast up for dinner xmas eve, but i broke into my brussel sprouts i had earmarked for that dinner last nite...they are frozen in a butter sauce... and i was craving them and thought pshawww i can get more for xmas.. i find it quite hysterical i had a craving for a vegetable - but i'm paying the price today for pigging out just a little too much hahaha.
i've also found these very nice little frozen key lime tarts.. they are about 4" wide and take 45 min to thaw in the fridge... they are lovely and tart but creamy and i've been indulging a little too much according to the scale.. i did get a home made cookie stash from some friends which i was very good with.. pacing myself but they are almost gone and i dont know of anyone else i can hit up for home made goodies.. because i would.. i have no pride haha.
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Mmm, frozen puddings! There are some lovely meringue type ones in the shops for Christmas at the moment, pavlovas and so on. And you can get natas, those little Portuguese tarts, that you bake from frozen. I have been indulging for the odd treat now and then!
I hope that parcel turns up, Snoozie.
Change of plan for Christmas, my daughter-in-law's family are visiting as well and staying with me, which will be lovely but also making me a bit nervous! (Due to no cooker, tiny fridge freezer, temperamental cat, etc.) Just going off shopping in a minute for some extra presents and goodies!1 -
omg Vail unexpected company especially at Christmas can be challenging! But honestly i bet they are just so happy to be able to be with all of you they aren't going to worry about anything. My sister is going thru a bit of nerves as my cousins are coming to stay with her for a few days as well but they will all be running around visiting their own friends and of course sis and them will be hitting the family dinner etc so i told her dont worry.. they really just need a place to sleep they truly won't care about anything else.. so i hope you dont worry too much altho i DO get wanting to put your best foot forward so to speak... just hope you dont stress too much cause its all just gonna be about being together in the end! and as long as there is chocolate somewhere in the house.. LOLOL... it's all good! hahaha
My sister did indeed get the pkg finally yesterday .. and shortly after i got an email from canada post saying hmmm it looks like your package was delivered soooo we're not sure why you put in a lost pkg report.... i laughed and laughed cause i was like... well hmm lets see.. it arrived in her town 2 days after i mailed it.. then it disappeared off your tracking for 3 weeks.. so yes i put in a lost pkg and i have no doubt it was THAT which prompted them to start hunting for it lol... but it was just kinda funny having them imply "what's your problem lady?" oh i dunno..maybe because it took almost a month instead of the promised 3-4 days.. and you would never have looked for it if i hadn't? But alls well that ends well LOL..
Another laugh - you know i'm going to my friends for xmas dinner who are vegetarian and to be honest i'm quite looking forward to it as they are excellent cooks and i love veg.. but one of them msgd me the other day and said one of their relatives coming wants turkey so she is making one and bringing one.. so they wanted to let me know there would be turkey as I'm not a vegetarian.. i said hahaha its ok im actually WANTING to stick with the vegetarian menu im quite looking forward to it so i'll pass on the turkey lol!
We're supposed to get a pretty big snowstorm here friday so it looks like it will be a white christmas for us.. but early enough the roads will be good for those travelling to be with their families on sunday so thats good... epecially after covid will be nice that people can get together this year. A lot of people are still wearing masks at indoor settings like grocery stores and malls here and i'm fine with that frankly.. we are still in full PPE and they have added mandatory face shields as well as there is a high incidence of kids with RSV/Flu right now and of course any kid in school is like a mini petri dish.. whatever is going around at school they bring home lol...1 -
Sometimes I think we are the ones that pile the stress on ourselves when we have company in the house. Most people aren’t that picky or hard to please. It really is about the companionship and laughter, not so much the food or lack of dust bunnies. Lol. I hope you enjoy their visit, Vail and that your sister enjoys her company, Snoozie.
Yep, I can take or leave turkey. I really just like it for the leftover sandwiches. Lol. I’m really interested in hearing what the veg dishes are that you’ll get to enjoy.
We having a really cold snap here. Coldest in the past eight years. I think they’re more afraid of ice because it’s supposed to rain just before the temps plunge into the single digits and the wind chill goes into negative numbers. We’re supposed to go out tomorrow and Saturday but that will depend on the roads. Now that we live off of little two lane roads it’s a whole different story when it comes to road conditions.
Vail, are you warmer in your house now? Is the firewood enough to last for awhile?
I’ve got cookies to cut out and bake tonight. Hopefully I’ll be able to take them over and decorate them with my granddaughter tomorrow. We’ll see how the roads look.
On another note. I got on the scale today and it looks like I may be ending the year right around where I started. Considering that I have not put in much effort on the eating healthy front then I should be pretty happy about that.1 -
Hope the weather is OK for you Snoozie. We haven't had any return to masks here, and rather predictably, everybody seems to be getting ill with various things: if it's not covid, it's flu, scarlet fever, etc. I spent quite a bit of time on the bus over the last few days going to meet people for lunch and things and there was so much coughing! And it's the same in the office at work!
That is so true about guests, both of you. In fact, it's the other way round for me if I visit people: I feel on edge if their house is too perfect, worried that I'll get something dirty or break something! It just has been so long for me since I've had people stay over, apart from my son's friends and girlfriends. Not since way before the pandemic even started! And longer since I've had anybody sleeping in my room (I'm moving into my son's old room, so they can have the bigger bedroom). I'm busy trying to move/hide all the "private" things: silly things like old journals and letters, as if anyone is going to bother to read them. I'm also worried about loo queues. I only have one toilet/shower/bathroom, so I hope none of us need anything urgently, lol!
It's a bit warmer here now, well above freezing outside, although apparently another really cold spell is coming. I have been turning up the central heating as there have been warnings about the risk to health of getting too cold with heart disease, and I thought, I maybe just need to see it as a necessary expense, even if it is a huge expense! So I'm now keeping the house at 60F during the day when I'm home, and I've had my firewood delivery. I'll put the temperature up for when the guests come too, as it's miserable visiting a freezing house. I used to visit my brother sometimes at Christmas and back then he lived in a really lovely historical old house, that was really cold and I hated it! I used to go out for a walk to warm up! So I'm determined not to inflict that on my guests!
I hope your weather and roads are OK, Suzy. It's scary driving on the roads when it's icy. In fact, scary walking outside at all! Take care, and I hope you can hole up indoors if it's bad, although will be such a shame to miss bring cookies to your granddaughter!
Good luck with the scales check-in. Massive congratulations on ending the year where you started! As we know, not gaining is quite a big deal, as the tendency is to edge upwards!
So funny about the guest bringing turkey, Snoozie! I suppose some people really want to have it on Christmas Day. I would be like you and jump at the chance of a well-cooked vege alternative! I'm quite envious!
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Suzy I hope the weather holds for you to be able to go where you need to - and yes its def a win ending the year sustaining your weight! Vail i hope you aren't stressing too much and hope you both enjoy the holidays with family and/or friends! Merry Christmas to both of you, and wishing us all a happy and healthy 2023! (i figured i would post this now as it's going to be crazy busy for both of you in the next two days lol.. but i am thankful i had both of you along for the ride on our journeys here at MFP! HUGS and Merry Christmas!0
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I’m also so very thankful for both of you! Your support and encouragement mean so much! It may just be the three of us now but I really appreciate our little group! Merry Christmas to you both!1
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Do we want to come up with a topic and start a new thread for 2023?
2023: Envision where you want to be
2023: Achieving a healthy lifestyle
I don’t know. Snoozie is so much better at this! Lol.
I know I want to work towards just feeling and being healthier. It’s not about the scale so much anymore for me. Although reaching a goal weight would definitely be a bonus and would mean that I was healthier. I absolutely NEED my numbers to improve in my bloodwork and that’s my main goal for 2023. I also NEED to be stronger and more limber because I’m tired of all the aches and pains. If I end up in smaller sized clothes then that’s fantastic, too.
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I hope you both had a lovely Christmas! And I echo the thanks for the support over the past year and previous (wow, it has been years and years!). As I've said before, I often think of you when I'm not on MFP. It means a lot to me to be able to check in here.
I think your goals are great, Suzy. Yes, I think the older we get, the more it becomes about health, and also eventually mobility, etc. rather than an arbitrary number. It has just reminded me of something I've read a couple of times about extra weight affecting people differently and where some people will develop diseases of obesity at a relatively low weight, for some people the weight threshold is much higher. As we don't know our own individual threshold, going by what we're actually doing (eating healthy, exercising) and our test results, maybe makes more sense than focusing on weight.
I like your thread titles, and I'll try to think of some too, but I'm waiting to hear Snoozie's ideas too!
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Hello my friends!
I hope you both had a lovely christmas with family and friends - Vail are you guests still with you?? Suzy were you able to see your grand daughter Christmas morning?
I had a lovely evening Christmas day with my friends.. lots of great conversation which was awesome for me as i spend so much time alone lol.. and very much enjoyed my vegetarian dinner lol.. there was turkey but i passed on that.. did go for the stuffing and cranberry tho! there was a vegetarian tourtiere (which is typically a meat pie traditionally eaten on Christmas Eve).. this one was made with chickpeas and i have no idea what else.. it resembled a tourtiere; didn't taste quite like one LOL.. but it was very nice! loads of other veg including a broccoli casserole, turnip, and squash made with peppers and feta cheese added.. that was different.. i admit i prefer my squash plain.. but was lovely to try something new. Dessert was this amazing cake made up of about 4 layers of meringue with a tart lemon curd in between and some kind of cream then the whole thing was frozen and taken out about 45 min ahead.. so it was creamy and tart and yummy and served with a strawberry coulis. Needless to say there was also a little wine LOLOL.. but as i was driving i just had a glass when i arrived at 3 and didnt leave til 9. Just thot i would give u an idea of the vegetarian offerings.. oh yes there were also lots of appys like brie and cranberry in puff pastry (they make their own) that sort of thing...
I am in TOTAL agreement with both of you about our focus being on an overall health goal rather than weight for next year... focusing on whichever areas we each want to improve but i'm also with you on the mobility and flexibility Suzy being #1 along with building up my strength and endurance and moving much more. I have just started actually looking at figuring out a plan on what i want and how i'm going to implement it.. thats me i need a plan with some steps otherwise i find i just flounder lol... we know as you said the weight will come off anyway if we focus on better eating habits and the physical aspects so for me as well, its now much more about being able to do the things i want to do physically - whether thats getting in and out of the bathtub or carrying heavy groceries or moving furniture or travelling or whatever ..
i love the idea of a new topic thread and maybe combining any ideas we all come up with to join with suzy's ones...?
also i wanted to ask.. if either of you are comfy sharing whatever your plans are to achieve whatever it is you both want for yourselves, please do? I always get great ideas from both of you so i would be very happy to hear any ideas and steps you're planning if you're comfy sharing.. i'll put my thinking cap on for some ideas of a topic as well and once we all get a few perhaps we can come up with some combining them all .. i'm really looking forward to making next year all about me lolol
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ok MFP had kicked me out so i wasnt sure if that posted but it looks like it has lol.. so these are a few potential mottos i came up with.. (in no particular order, just as i came across them) again just ideas if any resonate with you let me know and we can perhaps combine a few from each of us. If none work that's ok too
Focus on health, energy, vitality – not weight.”
By choosing healthy over skinny, you are choosing self-love over self-judgement.
The more we see health as a practice rather than as a problem to fix, the more we encourage the body’s natural potential to be healthy.
Looking after my health today gives me a better hope for tomorrow.
Love yourself enough to live a healthy lifestyle
take care of yourself, be healthy, and always believe you can be successful in anything you truly want.”
Health requires healthy food
Your health is what you make of it. Everything you do and think either adds to the vitality, energy, and spirit you possess or takes away from it.
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The last one I find a bit ominous and stressful, lol! Even if it's true.
I like "The more we see health as a practice rather than as a problem to fix, the more we encourage the body’s natural potential to be healthy.", even though it's a bit long.
To be honest, I haven't thought yet about what I would like to achieve. I think the hip problem has put a spanner in the works with exercise and I've dialled that down, so one of the things is going to be experimenting to see what sort of exercise exacerbates it and what helps it, so I can do more without causing a world of pain!
I would like to lose a little bit more weight, but Suzy's comment really struck a chord, and I'm not actually sure that I need to, healthwise. Recently my eating hasn't been great, so I would like to be healthier. I think I get frustrated because it feels sl ephemeral, it's not like you eat a healthy salad and feel better the next day. You just try to eat healthier day after day in the hope that it's having some sort of an effect, but there's never anything clear. I suppose that's where weight loss is helpful, because it's measurable. So maybe I need to find other things that will tell me I'm on the right track, even if it's just things not getting worse.
Yes, the guests have gone now. It was nice having them actually, although we spent most of the time at my son's house.
The vegetarian meal sounds great, Snoozie! They went to a lot of effort. I would have loved that desert. We had roast lamb: each side of the family had brought lamb as one side had to be halal. The meal ended up being a joint effort. My son's stepmum made a prawn and avocado cocktail. My daughter-in-law did the veg dishes and Yorkshire puddings, and spent the most time of all of us standing over a hot stove! My son's dad did the gravy, and had made the Christmas cake. My daughter-in-law's mother did one of the lambs, and also the whole of the Christmas eve meal which was Sri Lankan. I was on veg chopping duty and also made a pudding, a Danish apple dish, and brought various cheeses. There was alcohol, but most of the familly don't drink, and I was driving anyway. I think my son's half brother was the only one drinking much!
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Morning!!
I think my own particular fav of the ones i found are "Focus on health, energy, vitality – not weight.” but i would drop the not weight part and just stick with the focus on lol... but again just ideas to kick around ..
i did find one i thought might be good for our "title" top... not the topic line but sort of the add on which is
it's about feeling better and being able to maintain your mobility and health
that kinda sums up my own particular plan lol... and again.. just an idea
Vail omg.. talk about a group effort for sure!! That's so cool everyone had a part - i did drool over the yorkshires as they are a particular fav of mine lol.. how did you find the sri lankan dinner? mmmm on the danish apple dish... and i'm one of those that always heads to the cheese board first lol.. sounds like a lovely time was had by all and I'm glad you enjoyed the company ... my cousins were staying at my sisters but like you, everyone spent most of their time out and about at various friends and family visits so it was really just a place for them to crash at night..
I can totally relate to you dialling down the exercise because of the hip.. with my back i'm literally afraid sometimes of doing anything that will set it off... and yet inactivity makes it worse.. i am struggling with my overall plan for what I want for myself.. i definitely know i HAVE to get stronger and more flexible or whatever the word is.. i lost so much muscle from that gut thing and i already know the big muscles have atrophied and shortened even more than they always were.. so I think my #1 priority is going to be finding a stretch program.. probably on line i'll check that seniors site i liked during the pandemic.. and then strength training. the walking is going to be crucial but difficult in the winter.. i may have to suck it up and hit the treadmill in the gym in my building as walking in the underground parking lot is just not enticing... so over the next few days i will try to find some programs and set up a sched - prolly the stretching and walking every day and the ST every other day. i'm also going to try to find more sites with vegetable and plant based meals that dont have pasta in them as most seem to.. i love veggies as sides but i would like to find a few actual mains that i can do with my limited cooking skills lol. I got a new soup recipe from one of my friends im going to try because my goal will be to have a plant based dinner at least 2-3 times a week to start and i am finding soup during the winter makes a nice dinner for me.. so everything is still a bit loosey goosey but im starting to work on it... even if i'm not quite ready for all of it by jan 1, i can make sure the stretching and walking are good to go.
Suzy.. i'm quite liking your line in your post "also NEED to be stronger and more limber because I’m tired of all the aches and pains." Seems to me that pretty much sums up what i want too lol!!0 -
It sounds like we all had a wonderful Christmas! We went over to our daughters house early in the morning and stayed until 7:30 pm. It was a very relaxing and enjoyable day. Mostly we just played with our granddaughter and also played a new board game with our daughter and SIL. We had an easy dinner of ham, mac & cheese and green beans. None of us really wanted to cook much. Lol. We had taken dinner to my parent’s apartment the day before and spent some time with them.
I’ve been discussing with my husband how we need to improve our eating habits. I think I’ve mentioned before that he really doesn’t like vegetables. He said he would eat raw veggies but doesn’t like them cooked. I’m just the opposite. So I guess I’ll be cutting up raw veggies for him and then roasting them for me. I’ve started following a few vegetarian cooks on Instagram and they have some delicious looking recipes. Maybe he would eat those. I kind of had an eye opening moment recently when talking to someone. I don’t have to make an elaborate meal from a recipe every night in order to eat healthier. I can just bake a piece of chicken or fish and steam some broccoli. I don’t know why I try to make it so complicated.
My plan is to make a new recipe (preferably vegetarian or fish) just once a week until I find a good amount of easy quick meals. The other nights will just be simple salads, baked chicken or fish, roasted (& apparently raw) veg, soups. I’m cutting way back on breads, pasta and rice. I think I’m going to cut back to just breakfast and dinner, also.
We’re going to start our Sunday hikes and walking before or after dinner depending upon weather. I want to find a stretching program online, too. Let me know if you find a good one. I’d like to do some stretching and/or
yoga. I don’t know what to do for strength training.
Definitely “focus on health, energy, vitality” and maybe add “happiness” or “joy.”
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one possiblity could be to combine 2... maybe something like
2023: Envision where you want to be: Focus on health, energy, vitality!
we could switch out the words we want for the focus too.. healthy eating, mobility, flexibility, strength, or whatever we want.. ?
I can't figure out how to shorten the long one either Vail lol
I'm so glad you enjoyed your Christmas too Suzy! and that you got to spend time with your folks as well..
I'm on instagram altho i never use it so if you wouldnt mind passing on the names of the vegetarian cooks? i will def share some links when i find the stretching ones that work for me ... i am so stiff tonight because ive been doing too much sitting that its a very good reminder how much i need to do them all.. i've found a few sites but want to check them out more before i decide as im looking for ones that do the whole body kinda thing ...
thats wild that your hubby only likes raw veg and you like them cooked lol.. i have a friend who love veggies but only when they are raw too... tomorrow i'm going to make some vegetable fajitas.. just sautee some onions and peppers and add some black beans and serve them in some small tortillas topped with salsa and sour cream.. im not looking to go vegetarian but like you just trying to add more veg here and there.. if i can do even 2 a week to start i'll be happy...
as for the simple cooking... well you know me and cooking LOLOL.. i'll often just bake a chicken breast or pork chop and then do up some frozen veg on the side.. i don't like a lot of the mixed frozen ones so i usually keep only frozen peas, broccoli, cauliflower and squash on hand.. i buy my carrots fresh and things like peppers but in the winter i admit the frozen are so quick and easy to nuke and toss on the plate with the fish... plus i waste less food with the frozen.
I did a little grocery shop today and stopped to chat with my ladies at the fruit/veggie prep section.. they are the ones who do up special veg trays for me where they skip the carrots lol.. and i always stop and chat with them as they are very good to me.. if i'm looking for a salad or something they always make one up for me if there isnt one in the display.. anyway... they were making these huge fruit trays today.. they looked so good but massive so i happened to ask if they were going to be making any of the smaller ones (which are still big.. but not as big as the ones they were doing) They said yes indeed they would be making the smaller ones too so they told me to go do my shop and come back. when i did, there was my fruit tray with lovely strawberries, pineapple, blueberries, cantelope and melon along with a little container of dip.. but it was already bagged up.. they gave it to me and said it's already paid for the receipt is in the bag.. merry christmas and happy new year from us to you! How sweet was that??? i was so touched.... so i'm bound and determined to eat it all and not waste a piece since it was so kind of them...
ok thats enuf for tonite.. by tomorrow i'm hoping to havce kind of a plan worked out to start the new year and i'll share it if i figure it out lol
oh suzy... this is the site where i found the vegetable fajitas idea..... just passing it on in case its of any use
www.acouplecooks.com
(Shortly after getting married, Sonja and Alex did a 180 from fast and frozen food to eating a home cooked mostly whole food plant based diet. The positive changes they experienced prompted them to start A Couple Cooks in 2010. Today it receives millions of visitors every month and connects people all over the world to their healthy plant forward recipes.)
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What a lovely surprise and gift, Snoozie! That was really sweet of them.
Check out fitgreenmind and plantyou on Instagram. My (soon to be) daughter in law told me about those two. I watch the clips and think it looks delicious but I haven’t worked up the ambition to make any of the recipes yet.
She made these and said they were really good. She used veggie chorizo.
https://www.feastingathome.com/butternut-mole-enchiladas/
It’s hard for me to work up the desire to make these things knowing that my husband won’t like them. I need to just do it and he can eat cereal if he wants. Lol.
I really like the “2023: Envision where you want to be: Focus on health, energy, vitality!”1 -
That's so nice about the fruit tray, Snoozie! That would have made my day!
The Sri Lankan food was really good. It was mainly fine rice noodles with a coconut gravy, and a chicken dish and sambal (spicy coconut dish). Lots of coconut and quite hot and spicy, which I like.
I'm already on board with the simple cooking, Suzy, simply because I find it a real chore to follow recipes (well, not just following the recipes but the shopping, then finding something isn't in stock, and that the recipe calls for a small amount of something that needs to be used up, so it gets wasted, and then after everything it's a bit lacklustre). Some of my "healthy eating" has just been subbing out the starchy stuff in things I like for vegetables. Great idea to do raw veg for your husband and roast veg for yourself. At least then it's not too much extra prep. Would he eat vegetable soups if they were blended? Would he go for things which are more obviously meat substitutes such as vege burgers?
Yoga does cover a bit of strength along with the flexibity. I don't know if you follow Yoga with Adriene on youtube, but she's got a course starting in January. https://do.yogawithadriene.com/center I signed up last year but only did about three days of it, ha ha! But her youtube channel is quite good. She has playlists of short videos if you're busy.
I'm planning on carrying on with the exercise programme for that diet I started a year ago. It has daily videos and I know I'm paying a sub for it when I could find it free, but I have been more consistent with it for a year than with any other programme.
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So is everyone ok with “2023: Envision where you want to be: Focus on health, energy, vitality!” as our topic title for the New Year? whoever wants to can start us up if we agree on the topic.. so any changes we still have 2 days (well Vail has 1.5 since she is a few hours ahead of us lol) to decide..
The Sri Lankan sounds good.. i'm not a big fan of coconut myself but as I love trying new foods i would have definitely dug in lol
Vail i think that's a great idea on continuing with the programme that worked for you being consistent last year.. i am going to try out that yoga link but i am so inflexible and all my muscles have shortened i am not sure i can do yoga... but i'm willing to give it a try... right now the only pose i know i can do is the corpse one LOL.. I am working on stretching my hamstrings right now from my physio.. and i'm continuing to do the 4 stretches for my back every day.. i have a yoga mat on the floor in my living room and while i step over it a lot, it does remind me to get down and do the stretches at least...
and i'm going back to the site i used during the pandemic.. i like the host Lauren and she has videos on everything from full body stretches to yoga and strength training and in 10-20 min sets.. i can commit to that to start ... there is no reason i cannot give myself 30 min in a day for this so i am going to go through the videos today and try a few... and perhaps set up a sched like stretching every day and ST 3x a week. I know if i over reach i will give up... so i am thinking daily stretch and a walk plus ST 3x a week is absolutely doable for me... plus it wil give me an idea where i'm at so to speak.. what i can and can't do at the moment so i can see my progress.. at this point i think i won't set a time frame to increase, i will just work it so when i can master a whole video, i will move on to a more challenging one etc..
this is the site in case of interest
https://www.youtube.com/c/SeniorShapeFitness
Suzy thank you for the names i will definitely look them up... i tend to use my laptop more than my phone (which is where i have my instagram account) but i am definitely going to look at them.. i like the a couple cook site so far because the recipes are simple and have things i always have at home... i'll let you know how the veggie fajitas come out..
its funny suzy you mentioning the other day about being tired of the aches and pains.. i fully admit to being a slug the past 2 days.. i have curled up doing nothing much and indulging in my fav lazy past time of reading.. and boy this morning i am feeling it all over from the lack of movement!
im interested to know if he would eat soup too Suzy?? that skinnytaste broccoli cheddar soup is fab.. and you can puree it to smooth (i leave a few chunks cause that's my preference) so he wouldnt know there are like 4 veggies in there lolol... ALTHO i did get a good laugh out of "let him eat cereal" !!!!0 -
just a footnote.. those vegetable fajitas were awesome and so fast! just sauteed some peppers and onions, threw in a handful of black beans and a 1/2 tsp of fajita seasoning i happened to have and served in mini tortillas topped with salsa and a tsp of sour cream... so good!! I don't know if that was something either of you would eat for lunch Suzy.. but i was thinking if you had some leftover chicken or steak you could just take out 1/2 the mix and add the meat to hubbys serving? I actually have enuf leftovers to have for lunch tomororw and im going to add a bit of shredded chicken i have left to them then myself lol...
now i just have to figure out what to do with the 3/4 of a can of black beans that are left! haha
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I’m definitely good with the new topic title. I’ll let you start it because that’s pretty much our tradition now. Lol.
He will eat soup occasionally. That’s a great idea for winter. He won’t eat black beans but maybe some chicken when I have some leftover for the fajitas. I’m a much more adventurous eater than he is.
I’m going to check out the YouTube videos y’all recommended. I HAVE to make at least 30 minutes for myself each day. I’m just so lazy anymore. The cold wet weather doesn’t help. I need to suck it up and just do it. Keeping a yoga mat in the living room is a great idea.
I laughed out loud at your corpse pose comment and then had to explain to my husband what corpse pose is. He said that’s morbid. Lol.1 -
LOL Suzy.. i'm thinking hubby has never taken a yoga class or he would appreciate the fact the corpse pose is the best ha...
I didnt even notice the black beans with the onions and peppers and salsa all over it.. but then again i probably should have used more... there were maybe 6-8 beans in each one so today i will toss in a few more with the leftovers..
so.. i know stretching for me is gonna be the big "focus" so yesterday i tried both of the 10 min full body stretches by lauren.. one is standing and one is floor..and keeping in mind these are designed for seniors.... omg. i'm just gonna say... it was pathetic.. and i am sore today.. from a simple stretching video... plus i discovered just how tight EVERYTHING is... it was a total wake up call and really reinforced how much i need to do this..
one of the things that totally threw me was a simple stretch - you just stick your arms out straight, and clasp your hands together.. and then just turn the hands down and outwards still clasped.. well, you're supposed to be able to do that with your arms still straight.. and i CAN'T !!!! OMG.. as long as the palms are facing me i can do it but as soon as i flip them outwards.. i can't straighten the arms!! holy hell... another was the reaching down over your back with one hand and up your back with the opposite one.. trying to touch the hands together. Honest to god... i can barely get my left arm higher than my lower back..!!! and even with the hamstring stretches i've been doing for physio.. laying on my back with one knee bent and raising the other leg as high as it can go?? i should be able to put it straight up but i am only able to get it about mid way up....
it was quite humbling but after i got over my horror i realized it was a good thing really because it shows just how much work i need on the flexibility and in turn, mobility. And it's something i can measure with the stretches at least as I'll be able to see when i can reach further or higher or whatever. And i am going to leave that yoga mat right in the living room beside my couch here in front of the TV... because that visual reminder is what actually gets me doing it. So I think for January the first month i will do both stretch sessions every day.. maybe one in the morning and one in the afternoon.. i can add in random ones like calf stretches or hip stretches here and there while doing the dishes or something.. but definitely for me the stretching and walking are the 2 big goals for january for me. i just can't believe i'm a bit sore from just stretching!!
Oh and Suzy.. i'm the queen of lazy... i think i have a crown somewhere... but we can definitely help each other to take that 30 min a day for ourselves.. to invest in ourselves so we can continue to be able to do the things we want to do !! I'm here for ya!
I'm happy to start the thread for us but Vail as you are a few hours ahead, please feel free to start it if you're up before us LOL! AND i bookmarked that Adrienne yoga site on you tube.. she has a morning beginner video there i will try ...
Happy New year my friends... we should call it the Year of Me LOL!0 -
The year of Snoozie?
Lol!!!! I crack myself up! I think I’m going to mirror your January goals. Stretching and walking are good starting points. I’ll let you know how my stretching goes. I think my hips and hamstrings are the worst for me but we’ll see.
Our new year’s day hike weather looks promising. Not too cold and no rain forecasted. It’s been raining all day today though so it may be a muddy one tomorrow.
Happy New Year to you and yours!! Let’s make it a healthy one!
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