Fit For Future Families - April 2011

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  • fitterpam
    fitterpam Posts: 3,086 Member
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    Hiya ladies :)

    Jagri - awesome start!!!!! That's really good. Hopefully some of the changes will help with the sugar control too ....

    Kim - so proud of the water intake - you're doing wayyyyyyyyyy better than me....some days this week I was lucky to get 3 glasses......Hubs just grabbed my foot and it took a good 20 seconds to get back to normal colour (a good sign for me that I'm getting dehydrated)...drinking another 3 as I type. I know what you mean about hearing all the stories.....it's not easy to not dwell on the negative, but we've had 7 or so successes within the group too :) That's what keeps me going.

    Luki - that IS frustrating....at least they're helping to lower the bad chol too though. Even if that's all they do, that's a good thing. I did some searching on the topic (I'm sure none of these are new to you, but they were to me, so in the offchance you haven't read them yet :))

    Lose Weight: If you are overweight, reducing your weight will increase your HDL levels. Excess weight in your belly is a red flag to watch your waist-to-hip ratio. Your waist size to hip size is more important in determining cardiac risks than your weight itself.

    Aerobic Exercise: Daily exercise may be the most effective way to raise HDL levels. Walking, bike riding, and swimming are great exercises to do regularly. 30 minutes a day is recommended to help control cholesterol levels.

    Quit Smoking: The cessation of cigarette smoking will increase HDL cholesterol levels. Giving up tobacco has many other health benefits as well.

    Cut out Trans Fatty Acids: Read your nutrition labels! Trans fatty acids are present in more prepared foods than we think. Watch out for labels that say, “partially hydrogenated oils.” Eliminating these fatty acids from your diet will definitely increase your HDL levels and lower your LDL levels as well.

    Increase the monounsaturated fat intake: Although it has the word “Fat” in it, these monounsaturated fats will help give your HDL levels a boost while not increasing your total cholesterol levels. These fats are in the form of Olive Oil, Canola Oil, Avocado Oil, and even fats found in peanut butter.

    Add soluble fiber to your diet: Getting 2 servings of soluble fiber each day is a great way to increase HDL levels. Soluble fiber can be found in fresh vegetables, fruits, oats, and legumes. So eat up!

    Drink Cranberry Juice: Cranberry juice can help raise HDL levels as well but is not the only way to do it. So drink a glass of cranberry juice but concentrate on exercise as well.

    Increase Omega-3 Fatty-Acids (Fish Oil): Fish and fish oil have been shown to help prevent cardiovascular disease. Fish Oil can help raise “good” cholesterol and counteract LDL cholesterol.


    Andrea - EVERY TIME!!!! LOL I would be so convinced that the mood swings or the cramping or the nausea or a fullness feeling. I've been known to look up very early pregnancy symptoms or early pregnancy symptoms. I can't say that we've ever been successful though. PMS for me, I have found over the years, is very like pregnancy symptoms....that doesn't mean that you aren't and I know I'm not going to believe it when it does happen. Luki's advice is spot on......
  • Mush_L
    Mush_L Posts: 31 Member
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    BUMP :flowerforyou:
  • fitterpam
    fitterpam Posts: 3,086 Member
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    Whoops - forgot the about me.....Since I'm thinking tomorrow's going to be day 1 for me.....it's not going to be an easy one. We have a two year old's birthday party. Think I'm getting away with most of the disappointment missed (we're actually going to be getting to the party late because DH is working until then) so there shouldn't be too many kids around at that point - except of course the beautiful birthday girl.....blah. Means early morning though.

    Also, I had planned to do a 30 minute walk plus 30 minutes of wii fit step tonight and after work I went to my chiropractic appointment and most of that got squashed. Just got in the 30 minutes of strength training I did at the office at 6am....LOL I bring a resistance band in my purse and go to town before anyone else comes in......Frustrated thoguh.....hopefully tomorrow will be better. I might go to the gym with my sister...not sure yet

    Hi Mush_L :)

    Kim (I see you bumped F&F while pregs too to lurk....LOL)
  • lukimakamai
    lukimakamai Posts: 498 Member
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    Pam- thanks for the ideas. I actually posted the question on the main board and I got the post drink more alcohol so I did even more reasearch and it is suggested to drink 1-2 glasses of red wine...obviously that's out :laugh: Some sites also said drink orange juice so I'm going to add that in more often (the down side to that is keeping the DH from drinking it so I might have to keep it at work) and I think I'm going to add in some peanut butter (but I'm going to miss my Nutella:frown:)
  • dragonairis
    dragonairis Posts: 75 Member
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    Luki - I've heard that switching from olive oil to coconut oil will help with LDL levels. Also I think flaxseed is a good way to add fat and fiber to your diet - I just add a spoonful to my smoothie in the morning.
  • jalara
    jalara Posts: 2,622 Member
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    Busy board!

    Luki - it sounds like Pam covered most everything, but the one that I would like to emphasize is the intake of good cholesterol - all the good habits in the world won't help if you're not getting a supply of it. My recommendation would be to add avocado and olive oil to your diet every day. Yes, every day. Use olive oil and vinegar for salad dressing, use it for all your cooking, and put homemade guacamole on your wraps/sandwiches or just cut it up and add it to your meal.
    But yes, you will need an abundance of water to flush your system. Juices are mainly sugar and won't give you enough of a benefit to counteract the negatives.

    So - the royal wedding - I've been obsessed the last few days and I think I've exhausted myself with it today. I was up early, watched, then watched it again, the spent HOURS trolling the internet for any photos I hadn't seen yet. Then I had a nap, met a classmate to study, and watched it again over dinner! Then this evening I went to a friend's 20th birthday and they had it on - so I watched some more :)
    Obsessive? Yes. But I hold the Royal Family in the highest regard (please keep in mind that she is the Queen of Canada, as well as the Queen in Great Britain so Canada has a close relationship with the royal family). I've taken the opportunity to learn much about etiquette, abdication, royal history the last few days and I've loved it :)

    AFM - we caved tonight and ordered in bad food (fries and pizza). I did okay - only 2 pieces of pizza (as well as fries). But still..... not ideal. Oh well - tomorrow is another day!

    Question about greek yogourt - have any of you found that it fills you up REALLY quickly? I've used the plain kind to replace some things lately and I can barely get through my dinner. It's good, but surprising (and a great replacement for a lot of things!).

    Well - off to bed - I'm tired!
  • lukimakamai
    lukimakamai Posts: 498 Member
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    Thanks everyone I knew I could count you for good advise!
  • fitterpam
    fitterpam Posts: 3,086 Member
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    Jalara - sounds like we had a similar day (wedding frenzy and then pizza for dinner). I'm such a monarchist....LOL I am not a huge fan of plain yogurt and the flavoured Greek is too high in sugar for me. What kinds of things do you do with it? I would think it is filling because of all the protein in it....
  • kah78
    kah78 Posts: 391 Member
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    HI all--
    Luki--my cholesterol is always crappy--the lows need to be higher, and the highs need to be lower. I haven't had it checked in about a year though, so maybe all this exercise would be helping. I feel your pain though.

    Andrea--I feel your pain too! Isn't it crazy? I have an intestinal bug right now, and for a brief flitting moment, I was like "maybe I'm pregnant" (even though I've been spotting for a week)--until my son started showing up with the same symptoms. Ugh. Now I'm just sick of being sick...and not pregnant. Haha.

    Jalara--I love greek yogurt. I have to eat the flavored kind, but it's my new bestie. In fact, it's the only thing I felt like eating this morning--so I threw some extra probiotics in there to help deal with this intestinal thing I have. Lovin it! The protein rocks!

    AFM: I've been spotting for over a week now (typical), am expecting AF tomorrow or so. Ugh. This is our "testing" cycle. So we'll be getting bloodwork, SA, and a HSG for me here in a few weeks. Oh joyyyyy. Why is it that knowing that we are going to have to shell out a bunch of money for this stuff make me want to go out and buy a bunch of other things. It's like my brain is going "Well, you better get it now, before all the money goes toward these tests and stuff!" As if that is even logical...or helpful. In the last week I've been fixated on a Kindle, patio furniture, and shoes. I haven't bought any of them, but it's just so intrusive in my mind. I'm normally pretty level-headed about purchases and such, but not right now. Sheesh. I hope my willpower and impulse control can stick. Let's hope my husband doesn't want any of that stuff too. Haha.
  • lukimakamai
    lukimakamai Posts: 498 Member
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    Karen- STAY STRONG!!! You are doing great not giving into the temptation!
  • lukimakamai
    lukimakamai Posts: 498 Member
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    Well there is finally a nice day in Oregon- I hope this means spring is here. Because the sun is out I was able to take my dog for a walk. I found a gravel country road near by my house and went of a walk/jog combo for 45 minutes. I worked out that it was about 3 miles. :bigsmile: I did notice how my more in shape I am and it was funny to see how out of shape my dog is. He was dragging behind me the whole time- he may look like a big outdoor dog but in reality he is just a couch potato. I'm going to whip his *kitten* into shape this summer :laugh:
  • dragonairis
    dragonairis Posts: 75 Member
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    Need your opinion ladies - This morning I did my normal routine: temp, get up, bathroom, weigh in. I weigh in every day but only record here once a week. I'm not really upset by seeing the numbers fluctuate, they are usually pretty steady. But this morning I had to look at the scale for at least a minute before I could realize what I was seeing - 189.4! That would be huge for me! So I was super stoked and ran off to log my temp and what not. Then I decided, I need to see that number again. So I stepped on the scale: 190.0. Well, that's weird.... So I stepped off, cleared it, and got 194.0. Which is about where I expected to be this morning. My MIL says just take the lowest one since I don't really weigh in till Monday, so what difference will it make today? Well, it could set me up for tomorrow. I tell you it was so disheartening! I've made some really bad food choices today too..... Should I take it? Or just skip and pretend it never happened? The morning was going so well too, my temp rose and that could mean I ovulated, a good thing since that means a chance to try again next month..... stupid scale......
  • fitterpam
    fitterpam Posts: 3,086 Member
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    Dragon - I'd take the highest...especially if it was what you were expecting.....same thing happened to DH last week - within a 1 minute span, the scale registered 8lbs difference...
  • lukimakamai
    lukimakamai Posts: 498 Member
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    Dragon- I would just ignore all of todays readings on the scale and pretend it didn't happen. I'm sorry the scale is messing with your emotions today, but try to put it behind you. As far as logging food, I would still log everything for accuracy level. I don't allow myself to omit "bad" information- if I binge, I binge and it is reflected in my diary. As far as the temp today thats exciting time to BD :o)
  • fitterpam
    fitterpam Posts: 3,086 Member
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    Luki - I'm the same way with my diary....

    Which brings me to my conundrum today.....I was just not hungry - not in the least.....my cals today reflect it - It's not a regular thing, so I think I'm just going to leave it and make sure I'm back to speed tomorrow. I feel like I ate plenty though. Today was also DH's cousin's girlfriend's little girls 2nd birthday.....she is turning into such a sweet kid...really and truly. She saw me and my hubs and ran up to give us hugs and kisses and then brought us to her new sandbox and water table and bike (can you tell it was a family party...LOL). Then I got passed her little half brother (on her father's side) who was only 4 months, and he cried the whole time I had him (he seemed to be cramping up and he is apparently colicky...but I don't know). Mom came over and got him and he stopped right away....yup...that cemented my thoguhts on motherhood....LOL Other than that - I got to see some people that I haven't seen since her 1st birthday party and her extended family on her mothers side. I didn't have birthday cake (sugar phobic a little bit now) and I drank water (had 2 baby carrots though - we were only there for about an hour). Then my family and I went to dinner and I still feel stuffed......

    Oh well and this morning my coverline and ovulation disappeared for the cycle. Which is fine, I had thought FF had set it too early and the CL too low anyways - I can see that i ovulated a few days past when it had thought I did, which puts me right at a 17 day LP if it starts on Monday (today would have been day 18 and I'm certainly NOT pg this cycle...with all the infections, timing was completely off). I'm thinking that this will mean that I can't start the fertility meds this cycle since I won't have seen her before Day 1 :frown: but as long as I can start them around day 8 or so, then maybe it's stil in the cards.....we'll have to see.....

    Night all:yawn: