WOMEN AGES 50+ FOR JUNE

It's eleven thirty in the evening here and I've just got in from the hospital. Dad had taken a funny turn again and they think he may have an embolism so it's been a bit of a rough day. I nearly made a total fool of myself when I was talking to one of the doctors by my dad's bedside. I suddenly felt hot, dizzy and as though I was about to pass out. The doctor got me a chair and some water, but I was extremely embarassed. I know it was because I hadn't eaten since lunchtime and I just can't do that anymore - I really need to eat regularly and normally carry a little snack in my bag (soya nuts or something similar), but hadn't had time to restock. Also, I had two half litre bottles of water in my bag and managed to finish them off before seven pm. Hospitals are often so dry and hot.

Anyway, I've left him in good hands. I hate leaving him but I need to take care of me sometimes too.

I was really annoyed with my brother. I sent him a text from the hospital to explain what was going on with dad and his response was, For goodness sake, what's he up to now!!

Time for bed now I think, I've got a busy day ahead of me and I have a feeling it's going to be a 'cry myself to sleep' kind of night.

Take care one and all xx

I was really annoyed with my brother. I sent him a text from the hospital to explain what was going on with dad and his response was, For goodness sake, what's he up to now!!

I can so empathize with you - last week when I called my brother to tell him Mom was in the ER, he said "Well, I'm going to go take a nap now." How can they act like that??

SuzyQ - thanks for the info about grilling the squash. Only thing is (right now, anyway) the temp is expected to be in the 90's all week so I have a feeling we won't be grilling. But I did read on the net that you can eat it raw (wonder how that is???). According to MFP, raw it only has 25 calories for a cup. Can't wait for this heat spell to break, I want to grill some veges, eggplant, zucchini, asparagus, now I can add the squash! Also, some chicken breasts. Update: had some of the squash raw. It reminded me of zucchini raw, not a whole whole lot of flavor. But not bad, either. Would probably do well with a dip of some sort.

Oh, and thanks for the link for the recipes. Sorry, I don't remember who posted it, but thanks.

Linda - I just can't believe your father says such things to you. Seriously, maybe he doesn't realize what it is he is saying. ((((real big hug))))

Welcome BC1! Even tho I've been logging my food for quite some time now, I still find that there are times when I'm really surprised at how high (and sometimes low) the calories in certain foods are, also I've become more acutely aware of the sodium in foods

Well, it's Sunday. I did go a bit over on the calories (only by 67), mainly because I had to have a piece of Vince's father's day ice cream cake. But I did give him the chocolate part. Well, it's only one day.

Tomorrow I'm going to do a step DVD at home, then we have a meeting at this gal's house. I understand there is a farm near her so I want to check it out before the meeting. We discuss things like misleading labels, healthy substitutions, coupon websites, vitamins, canned food concerns, toxins in our homes, emergency ingredient substitutions among other things. Really, what I should do is have our dinner all ready to just put in the oven when I get back. I'm going to take these zucchini muffins with me along with some pork/cheese balls that I want to see what everyone thinks for an appetizer if I ever need one.

Linda - I've toyed with the idea of going vegetarian. However, all the vegetarian recipes that I've found just give the recipe, no nutritionals. I really like knowing what I'm putting into my body, there are hidden salts and other stuff in lots of things. Are you able to get recipes with the nutritionals, and if you are, where do you get them? Isn't it a bit of a pain to cook two different meals? I know because so many times I need to cook something different for Vince, or I have to modify what I make for him. He's not on any special diet, he's just a VERY pickey eater, and I do mean pickey. I hate to say this, and I would never say it to him, but I blame his mother for this. She really didn't do much cooking, her idea of spices was salt, pepper, ketchup. I remember once I went out with her and she had chili with this orange stuff on top. I don't like chili so I had something else. Anyway, she commented to me "what's this (the orange stuff), it's good". I just said "I have no idea" because I knew that if I told her it was grated cheddar cheese, she would suddenly not like it.

Now that ds is staying with us for the summer, lucky me gets to make two dinners (or at least modify one), plus have his food in the refrigerator. I can't get over how much food he wastes! I have to admit, he is a very good cook. Very much like my father was -- a good cook, but EXTREMELY messy. I swear, he thinks we have a magic sink where you put the dirty dishes/pots/silverware in and they magically come out clean....lol When he was in college he complained one time that he was the only one in his apt who knew how to take out the garbage....lol

One slight problem I have is that I don't like beans (red, kidney, black, pinto, etc) if they're whole. Now ground up (like chickpeas in hummus), that I like, just not the whole bean. For that I blame my mother. She didn't expose me to beans when I was little. When I was little I didn't eat mushrooms or beets, yet she exposed me to them and today I eat them.

LHNichols - your meal sounds wonderful and tasty!

Faye - Normally, I prefer to make my cakes from scratch. But I knew I was going to be decorating this one special, and at the last minute Jessica told me her bf liked red velet cake, so that's why I got the mix. When I make something from scratch at least this way I know that I'm not getting a lot of preservatives. The downside is that the scratch things don't have the shelf life that something with preservates has. I've gotten around this, tho, by doing things like when I make brownies, I cut them in half and freeze half. By the time Vince finishes the half that's out, I bring out the frozen half and by the time it defosts it's like I just baked it. Say, is there any way you can send me that recipe for the red velvet cake that you said is reliable. My email is exermom@gmail.com. Thanks

SuzyQ - when does that apple cider vinegar start to kick in? After having some of Vince's father's day ice cream cake, I had a few of these double chocolate chip cookies. Ok, not many and I make them SMALL. I only had 3 but that put my calorie count for the day a bit over 100. So....when does that vinegar kick in? I really didn't want the cookies, but I had them. Then, after having them, I wished I hadn't.

I have three of the insulated 24oz water bottles, and I love them. Being here in NC, at least the water doesn't get boiling when I leave it in the car in the summer. I don't mind drinking warm water. But I really do like my water bottles, especially since I can put them in the dishwasher. Also, there is a thingy that you can take out of the stopper so that water flows more freely. Honestly, I find that sometimes I just can't be bothered so I just take the top off. Got it at D*c*'s

Did an hour of step DVD today (Mon). Tomorrow I'll probably do Jari Love's Extremely Ripped DVD.

Welcome to Red Hair Chili Pepper (is that the last word?). It is difficult to get started exercising, but once you get into the habit, it almost becomes where you almost can't do without it. Birdie is so right when she says "if you screw up, just say "oh well" and pick right back up." That's very important. None of us is perfect, this isn't a perfect world, there are going to be times when we have dinners that really do us in. But the important thing is to get right back, not let that be a way of life every day.

You know, Birdie, actually a turkey sub from Subway isn't all that bad. As long as you don't have the cheese and condiments, it's really not that bad. I'm constantly amazed that each time I go to Subway they always say "what cheese would you like" and when I say "none", I get this amazed look.

Went to that farm before my meeting. Even tho the corn was picked yesterday, it was pretty decent. The other corn that I had down here was nasty stuff -- I actually had to throw some out, I couldn't eat it.

Here's something interesting: Researchers have found a link between sugar and unhealthy levels of blood fats. “There’s an association between added sugar intake and what we call dyslipidemia -- higher triglycerides and lower HDL ("good") cholesterol, says Rachel K. Johnson, RD, MPH, PhD, a professor of nutrition at the University of Vermont and a spokeswoman for the American Heart Association (AHA).

from Web MD

tiarapants - ((((hugs))))

Going to bed now.

Michele

Good morning! I've been glancing at the many, many posts. They are all so interesting but I don't have time to read them all! I'm in the throes of finishing up and packing up my room at school, plus still teaching, and trying to get ready to leave for Nova Scotia on Friday.

When I finally get there and have some leisure time, I'm planning to go all the way back to my last post (was it really November???) and catch up on everybody and on all the new folks.

In the meantime, still keeping within my daily goal but not losing right now. I'm planning to take healthy snacks for my 21-hour drive but don't think I will be able to keep a real close watch. I just might have to have a Starbucks "skim, no-whip, extra-hot mocha" or two to help keep me from getting drowsy while driving. I have lots of audiobooks, too.

Have a great day!

Karen

I was really annoyed with my brother. I sent him a text from the hospital to explain what was going on with dad and his response was, For goodness sake, what's he up to now!!

I can so empathize with you - last week when I called my brother to tell him Mom was in the ER, he said "Well, I'm going to go take a nap now." How can they act like that??

I feel you. We were raised by the same parents; its hard to understand how they can be so detached. When Moma fell and broke her hip 5 weeks after my hysterectomy/vaginal suspension my brothers didn't even make an appearance. I ended up back on bed rest from spending so much time on my feet. Come to think of it, they each only came ot see her once that last 16 months of her life. And then when she died on a Tuesday two of them wanted me to postpone her funeral until Monday so they wouldn't have to miss but one day of work! I don't get it either.

What I've learned to do is to not waste my energy on fretting about their bad choices or expecting them to change, and instead focus my attention on people in my life who actually care. Stress will make it virtually impossible to lose weight or sleep well, so its best to find a way to let those feelings go.

Silly food question... how does one log in "Grazing on samples at Costco"?

I decided it was impossible to do an accurate count, so I guestimated 400 calories [probably on the high end, but better that than kidding myself by going low] and counted that as lunch. It may not have been nutritious, except for the whole grain baked tortilla chips with salsa, but it was a fun break from salad and water pack tuna. We bought one of their great rotisserie chickens to use in meals for the next couple of days... minus the skin, of course. I sliced and weighed out 4 oz for supper and had 2 veggies. Yay, me.

I wound up the day pretty much on target.

Today, before breakfast, hubby and I joined a very fit 75 year old friend for an early one hour bike ride.

Let me tell you all a bit about my biking. 3 years ago I tore the meniscus in my knee... pain !!! After appointments with the orthopedist, hobbling around on crutches, he suggested I should get surgery to repair the damage. He also sent me to a physical therapist for a few week's sessions.

My therapist was a wonder... and tough with me. The PT got me on a stationary bike for 10 minutes the very first day, as well as doing other exercises, massage and such. I saw him 3 times a week. After I'd been going to PT sessions for awhile, I told himabout the doctor suggesting surgery. He pointed out that with therapy and biking, I was walking without crutches or cane and the pain was diminished. He suggested, since I was motivated and had stuck with the program, I might ask the doctor if surgery could wait, and continue with therapy and segue into exercise.

To make a long story short, the PT was right. The doctor was probably hoping for a surgical patient, but had to agree that it wouldn't hurt to wait awhile. I never went back, but I keep up with biking to this day.

My hubby and I bike 28 or so miles every week, sometimes more. We've gone on biking vacations where we bike every day. Now that it's getting hot here in Florida, we've had to modify our program a bit, but even today, when it's supposed to reach the low 90's, we got our bike ride in.

We have an extensive bike trip planned for Sept... and while I can ride, it is obviously much easier if one isn't peddling extra weight, and besides, lycra bike pants are not flattering on a big butt, which I seem to have acquired over this past year. Where did that come from? Ah, all that unconscious eating, it's so obvious now that I've finally started to keep track.

So...a reachable goal... I hope to lose 20 pounds by early Sept.

BC1

good morning all,

So many posts that I can't reply to all and that makes me unhappy:sad: but I am a big girl and I will cope.

Father's day was nice. DH heard from both of his sons (one hasn't called for almost a year and he is only 21) And both of my daughters called him which always makes him cry that they love him so much and "they aren't even his" I taught my kids that family is feelings and is not blood. It is a concept that Doug is just now starting to understand since he doesn't speak to his sisters and his Mom is a real jerk. We went to Safeway on father's day to pick up dinner and they had a cakewalk in the bakery. Doug won:drinker: . I made him take the cake to work yesterday.

I ma a daily weigher and there hasn't been any real change lately. I am retaining water because of high sodium meals and going into an even more intense weight training phase in ChaLean Extreme program sO I am not expecting a major loss anytime soon. I have cut down to around 2 and half hours a day instead of 5 last week and this week but I may go back to insane hours next week just to get things moving again.

Mimi - the gym sounds great. I wish I had someplace to swim but then again it just isn't warm enough.

Reb - I was a vegitarian as a teen. I enjoyed the life style and how it made me feel but now I really enjoy my meat. (that sounds kinda nasty:blushing: ) I just do eat alot of vegies and nuts and stuff too.

To all of you dealing with parents I admire you all so much. I wish I could have been with my mother when she was ill and passed but it wasn't in the cards since they lived in So Cal. Now my dad does live close so when the time comes I will be there.

Welcome to the newbies. I love these women and they are all so supportive. Its the best thread on MFP.

I hope that you all have a Tantalizing Tuesday!! :flowerforyou: