I like my doctor but...

OK, so i told you about the doctor wanting me to eat gluten free and sugar free. I also went the extra step and decided to give up meat except for fish. It is going well, I have lost weight and feel a lot better. So I went back to my doctor recently for an enlarged lymph node and some neck pain. It is nothing serious but while I was there she said that I needed to give up dairy.  I think she may be crazy or at least expecting way too much of me. She told me that some people have enlarged lymph nodes because of diary and dairy can cause a lot of skin issues. I switched to lactose free milk about a year ago because I found myself to be lactose intolerant but I love milk. I know I love bread too and I gave that up, but seriously I think it will be impossible to eat if I have to give up milk products as well. Additionally, there is the issue of no ice cream, sour cream, cheese or lots of other things. I know there are soy replacements for all of these items but I really just don't want to do this. I am considering switching my milk to soy since that is the dairy product I consume most often but I only really like one soy brand and have not found it here yet. I want to be able to eat in a restaurant and at this point I am already limited to fish, vegetables, potatoes and rice. If I give up dairy even the gluten free, meat free foods I can find on a menu will be off limits to me. I know I can do the same thing with dairy that I do with the rest, allow myself the cheat day and eliminate it at home. I also know that in the animal kingdom we are the only ones who consume milk as adults but still... Seriously, I already eat basically beans, rice, fruit, veggies, chex cereal, occasional rice crispy treats, fruit roll ups, yogurt and cheese. You do the math if I eliminate the cheese and milk on the cereal. So to dairy or not is the question.

Gluten Free, Sugar Free, Vegetarian mostly...

Well, I have been eating gluten free, mostly sugar free (I won't say I have been perfect at that) and vegetarian ( I have eaten some fish) for about a month now. I have discovered that when I take away all the candy, sweet tea and soda it is a lot easier to think of fruit as really good, I never really ate a lot of candy but the drinks were getting me. I have never really liked fruit in the past but now I am finding it a lot easier to eat. I still don't like certain fruits but I like more than I did. I always loved vegetables and still do. Don't worry I have been eating plenty of black beans and almonds to make sure I take in adequate protein. Here is the really exciting news, I feel better, but also I have lost almost 13lbs in the last month. I guess this is what my body needs to be healthy. I feel I must have some sort of gluten intolerance because I do still allow a cheat day and my cheat is usually some kind of breakfast and the last couple of times the bread has made me a little sick. Crazy huh? I guess as much as I did not want to agree with the doctor, because I really like bread and pasta, I have to admit she is right. I will keep everyone posted as I continue on.

Slim in six and other adventures

Hello. I just realized it has been a really long time since I posted anything. I have been pretty busy with my sick puppy (actual dog not a euphemism) and my class. I have been working out though not as regularly as I would like but I have lost 5lbs. Yeah. Some success other than inches. I have lost a few inches as well.
My biggest news and what I am trying to deal with other than my poor dog, is that I have to start an entirely new lifestyle as far as eating is concerned. I went to see a new doctor here because I needed to establish a doctor and have my thyroid tested. She is an MD but also specializes in natural medicine and nutrition. In short she is the doctor I want to be when I grow up except I will be a DO. Anyway, she was wonderful and took her time talking with me. When she told me she also specialized in natural medicine she said it almost apologetically, not sure if it is viewed as wonderful in TX. So, she told me she thinks I need to quit all sugar and go on a gluten free diet. I know you are thinking that this is just another crazy doctor preaching the latest eating fad. I did too until she gave me the reasons, then I found I could not argue with her.
First, the gluten free is because she believes I may have this thing called Celiac Disease. Not as tragic as it sounds it is just an intolerance to gluten. For those of you who are wondering what the heck gluten is, it is in all the good stuff bread, pasta and basically anything made with wheat. I am already familiar as my stepfather and one of my favorite honorary nephews eat gluten free.
I should mention that in addition to this I had already decided to give up meat for the most part. I will make exceptions because I can't see myself not having ham on Christmas. Overall though I will eat only fish. Mainly because I already gave up red meat and I just don't really care if my meals have meat in them or not. I have decided to eat only what I really want not just what I think I am supposed to. It has been working too, I have actually started to crave fruit, which I did not even like before.
Back to the gluten free and sugar free living of my future. The doctor said I may have this intolerance to gluten based on a number of symptoms I get weekly, many of them are gastrointestinal, similar to lactose intolerance or irritable bowel. Also she told me it is likely that I am not lactose intolerant as I thought, my inability to digest milk is being caused by my flare ups from the gluten. The reason she wants me to quit sugar ( and this is the one that may kill me cause she means all simple carbohydrate) is due to the rapid blood sugar changes I experience some days and the resulting cortisol that they produce.
Cortisol is a stress hormone, when we were hunters and gatherers we used cortisol as one of our "fight or flight" hormones, now that we no longer have to protect ourselves from the woolly mammoth our body secretes cortisol when we are stressed. Our body also secretes insulin along with the cortisol, which in turn makes us crave carbohydrate ( our quick energy source to help us in flight) and we eat sugars, then our body secretes more insulin to digest the sugar and the cortisol makes us store the "energy" we have just taken in and we get fatter because we eat more and more carbohydrate. I am sure I am explaining that whole process badly but it made a lot of sense when the doctor said it because I experience blood sugar highs and lows sometimes that leave me sweating and shaking and with the feeling that I have to eat something with sugar in it now. This is I guess the overproduction of insulin and by eating sugar I am perpetuating this cycle.
So, the bottom line is no sugar and no gluten, oh and no meat by choice. So what will I eat and am I actually going to try to eat this crazy way? I will try anything once, I have been fighting my body for years and if this allows me to be the weight I want and feel good that is what is important not pasta. Right? Don't think I won't be finding some ways to have gluten free bread and pasta. I am also allowing myself one cheat meal a week because I like to eat in restaurants and gluten free, sugar free and meat free in a restaurant will not happen. Plus I just don't want to be the person who makes the dining out all about what I can't eat. I have several friends who are vegetarians in varying degrees ( some eat fish, some don't) and they don't make a big deal out of it, they just order what they can on a menu. I am going cold turkey on all these things because I know that if I don't I will not quit them. Once I do we will see how crazy and cranky I become.

Hiking with the husband

I went hiking with my husband today. We went to a park we have gone to before, I think I wrote about it the last time because I remember wanting to cry like a small child when we got lost. This time we did not get lost, but we were apparently in a hurry that I was not aware of. I am short so for every step he takes I have to take two. I am clumsy so I try to make sure I don't faceplant by going a little slower. I tried to explain this to my husband but I don't think he believes it, he thinks I am just making excuses for the fact that I am panting and sweating profusely. Maybe I am a little. It does not slow his pace one bit. At least it is a quick workout right? We have improved too because we can find our way back out of the park now, without the compass. Did the slim in 6 twice last week as well. I think I wrote about it. It is still going well and I think I may be getting stronger. I can even complete some push ups now, and not like a girl. That is an improvement.

Slim in Six

So, I am continuing to work out with the Slim in six. I have found out that Debbie Siebers, does sweat. She also mispronounces the word behind. It does not have a T in it. She is very proud of her in studio workout companions, they are doing their exercises perfect... not perfectly but just perfect. I know that picking on her grammar is really making me a dork but I focus on strange things when I am trying to exercise.
I have decided to hate Debbie a little because she tells you how many reps you have left in the strength exercise, she tells you to hold the last rep, then lower it slowly and then says 8 more reps. For that 8 more reps I hate her, even though I know it is coming. However, hate and all, I have lost additional inches on my waist, hips and thighs. From the when I began I have lost 4 inches on my waist, 2 on my hips, 1 on my thighs and 1 on my arms. This is all in the course of about three weeks. So even though I hate her, I have to say her workout works so far. I have not lost any weight though which is frustrating, I mean I know that the loss of inches is good but I really would like the scale to back it up.

Slin in 6 Challenge

Ok, so I am trying to run or do some sort of cardio every day. I am also trying to do the slim in six every night. I say trying because I do not always succeed with both. I always get at least one in but sometimes when I get home from work at 11pm I just don't feel like doing the other half of the workout. I have to get over that since I really want to do this. No excuses, just get over it right?
I had not been running in a while until recently. Boy if you don't use it you lose it as far as running is concerned. I was trying to run outside, I can not survive, I had to take it to the air conditioned comfort of the gym. I was surviving the run outside but I don't always have the two hours of recovery time required to return me back to a normal color from the lobster red I am when I finish. The gym is better. I can complete a couple of miles and be on my way back home for some minimal cooling off time before I get ready for work.
Today I think I may do the slim in six during the day and then head over the gym for a quick two miles. I do love the strength training. I want to see if my arms are capable of looking anything other than flabby. I wonder if the wave that keeps on waving will ever go away. Also, I want to know if this is the permanent position of my butt without surgical intervention. I am ok with it but if it could be higher, tighter and look a little less like it just survived a vicious hail storm that would be a good thing. One day during my life I would like to put on a bathing suit and feel good about it. I know, not possible no matter how small you are, but a woman can dream right.

Slim in six challenge

OK, I have not posted in a couple of days. I have been working out but not necessarily with the Slim in six. I went running a couple of days this week and boy was it hot. I guess that is what I get for running at 3pm in a Texas summer.
I have been measuring myself and weighing myself. Though I have only lost one pound, I lost an inch on my arms, two on my waist, and a half an inch on my hips and thighs. I think that is pretty good for just a couple of weeks doing the strength training in the Slim in Six program. I have to say it does get repetitive, but it seems to work. I had to measure myself twice just to make sure that I was not imagining the change, especially since I have not lost very much weight.

Slim in 6

OK, I have completed the new level. I am happy to see the addition of resistance bands. I feel like the workout is really good. The instructor is still giggling but mentally plotting ways to get even with her an her in studio flunkies for this torture makes it a lot easier to live with. Of course I have nothing against Debbie Siebers personally but I wish she looked a little more winded during her video. She does sweat at this level rather than glisten so I dislike it a little less.
I did not do the video over the weekend. I went with my husband to the zoo on Saturday and walked around for 2 and a half hours, so I decided to call it exercise. I think any movement done outside in 95+ degree heat should count as exercise even if it is walking slowly.
Sunday we decided to ride our bikes on a trail we had previously hiked. The part of the trail we walked originally was about six miles but we were ambitious on our bikes and took the long way making it about nine. The we went the wrong way, which seems to always happen to us on these outdoor exercise adventures, and added another mile or so. So all told 10 miles. I think I deserved to skip the video on a day I completed that. My behind really hurts from the seat of the bike. I have a lot of soreness in that area, you would think I would have enough cushion to avoid that but I guess not. There were hills, really high hills, I was gasping for air and peddling with all my might to get up those hills. I made it, I survived.
Today I ran. I don't usually run outside. I really usually prefer to do my exercise in a controlled air conditioned environment, but I did not have time to head to the gym so I ran about a mile and a half around my neighborhood. The best I can say is I finished. I was not graceful or speedy but I made it back home. I was wheezing like an old smoker and red faced. I had to take a cold shower to return my skin to a less iridescent color. After the shower and a nap in front of the fan to recover I was OK. I think it was a successful exercise session.

Slim in 6

I admit it I skipped yesterday. I felt like crap and dosed myself with Sudafed instead of working out. I am back on it again today so I completed my last workout at this level. I think I am happy to move on to a new level because I am beginning to hate the instructor due to the repeating of the same thing over and over ( of course it is recorded so she can't help it but let's not be rational). I find the video is a lot better is if I plot the eventual destruction of the over perky trainer and her two in studio prop people. The little giggle she has when she is telling them they are doing well is reason enough to hate her. Who can giggle when they are gasping for air and why isn't she gasping for air, I know I am. As an aside why don't these people sweat? I am dripping and they are not even glistening. I would not feel like such a lard ass if they would sweat with me a little. Other than that the video is going fine. I will move up to the next level tomorrow. No appreciable difference yet but it is only one week.

Slim in 6

I have been doing the video but yesterday was my off day. You are supposed to take one day out of every six off, I have to say I needed it. I was sore. I completed my workout tonight and it was a lot easier. I will complete one more day at this level and will then move on to the next level. This one is only 25 minutes and the next one is 58. I am only somewhat surviving the 25 minutes, the 58 may kill me but I guess if it doesn't I will get stronger right? I will measure myself next week and let you know if this is doing anything other than making me sore and bringing me in touch with my lack of coordination. I will not let anyone see me do the video because I look like a retard so I actually closed my husband in another room while I did it tonight. Silly I know but really, this is hard enough without all the laughter that would happen with witnesses. I will check back in soon.

Slim in 6

OK, so I completed my daily workout.I am embarrassed to say I am officially sore. My ass hurts from all the squats. My arms hurt because, lets face it, I have no upper body strength. Obviously two days in I can't see any measurable results but if soreness is anything to go by then maybe this is doing something.
The DVD itself is repetitive, but for someone as uncoordinated as me that is not necessarily a bad thing. I could do with some music that did not sound like a cross between elevator music and techno, however you get the choice to turn off the music so there is no need to really worry about it. I will check in tomorrow.

Slim in 6 Challenge

So, I just completed the first day. I did the "Start it Up" video. It was harder than I thought. I remember why I do not do group exercise programs in public other than spinning. I am so uncoordinated, it is good there were no witnesses. I look like a retarded chicken. I think this might be why I chose to be in band in high school instead of some sort of sport. The video is difficult with your varying strength training exercises. Well, we shall see how it goes. I do this video for the next six days and then it is on to the next one. I have chosen to follow Weight Watchers as an eating plan because I feel that the plan that came with the Slim in Six is a little lacking in food. I am not looking to starve myself, if I were I just wouldn't bother with the exercise I would just stop eating. I will get back to you tomorrow and tell you how it goes.

Slim in Six Challenge

OK, so I own a lot of workout aids for in my home. If only buying them would make you skinny but like the gym membership you have to actually use them. Well, I was watching TV pretty late the other night and I saw an infomercial for the Slim in 6 program. I was drawn in, I mean I can commit to anything for six short weeks right? Not to mention that all of the people on Losing it With Jillian Michael's have six weeks and lose tons of weight. If they can do it so can I, I mean I already work out and eat pretty healthy (well with the exception of lapses mentioned in my recent post). I realized as I was watching the Slim in 6 infomercial I already own it. I bought it a while ago and I am ashamed to say I have not really tried it the way it was intended. Since I already own it I think I will go ahead and challenge myself to complete the six weeks.
So the challenge is to stick to this program and complete it for six weeks. I will do the DVD at least  6 times a week and I will watch what I eat. I will continue the Alli and weigh myself every Wednesday (truth be told I will probably weigh more often but I will try to limit to once a week). I will then report my results to all of you. I will not be telling you the start weight because some things don't need to be out there but I will record it and tell you the pounds and inches lost over the six week period. Let's see if these infomercials are really all that or just something to draw in the insomniacs who need to lose a few pounds (like me).  OK so tomorrow will be Day 1. I will write a little something every day. Lets see if I am coordinated enough to actually do this without breaking anything in my house or on my body. Wish me luck! Anybody else who wants to do a six week fitness challenge is welcome to try their own version and comment here to tell me how you are doing. I hope to hear from you.

No witnesses and too much junk food

So, I have had some time to myself and with that there are no witnesses to the junk food I have been eating. I admit it I have had Swiss Cake Rolls and washed them down with Coca Cola. Why is it if there is nobody to catch me eating and drinking the wrong things I instantly want to binge. It is not like anyone can stop me from having these things but its like if there are no witnesses to the event of me eating a package of Swiss Cake Rolls in under two minutes and then washing it down with Coke it never happened. Unfortunately, it did and my butt can prove it.

On another note, I have started to use the over the counter weight loss medication Alli.Yes I do know it will not work if I continue my destructive behavior listed above. I think that is why I needed to confess to all of you who actually read this. Well, Alli is interesting. I am not sure if it will work or not. If you have read the literature on it you may be afraid of the so called "treatment effects". I was afraid of them too which is why I have not tried it up to now. For those of you who are unfamiliar, "treatment effects" happen with Alli when you eat too much fat with your meal. Alli works by blocking fat absorption in your body so if your meal contains a lot of fat you may have some unpleasant gastrointestinal side effects. I have not seen this. True, most of the time (with the exception of my recent lapse listed above) I do try to keep to a low fat diet. So perhaps my fat content has been low enough to avoid the worst of these effects. Not sure. I will let you guys know if it actually helps lose weight, well once I get back on the wagon from the Coke and Swiss Cake Rolls anyway.

Note to anyone trying to lose weight or just not gain, DO NOT BRING YOUR ADDICTIVE FOOD AND BEVERAGES IN THE HOUSE. You will just Binge. Even if you think you can eat just one, you can't. Not if they are the foods you are truly addicted to as is evident by my battles with Coca Cola addiction and my newly confessed Swiss Cake Roll obsession.

Spare time and what to do with it....

Well,I finally started to work but since I am teaching at night and only three days a week I still have a lot of time. Why haven't I written in a while since I have all this time? Well unfortunately having spare time and using it in interesting ways are entirely different things. I did not think anyone wanted to hear about all the sleeping and laundry I have been doing.
I have found that there are very few people in the gym at 3:00pm. However, even though nobody is there the ones who are there are still unable to understand a small concept I like to call treadmill space. "Treadmill space" is my phrase for the room between you and the person next to you on the treadmill or whatever equipment you happen to be on. If there is more than one piece of the same type of equipment, then you should leave a space. There is no reason to cozy up to the only other person on the same equipment. It is like when you go to a movie theater that is nearly empty and everyone is sitting in the same two rows, why?
Anyway, I have no real excuse to not find something useful to do with my days but I really just like sleeping. I want to join a spin class but they don't offer classes at my gym so I will have to sign up for an outside class. The only problem is that the only classes I seem to be able to find are the kind where some loud instructor is yelling in front of a screen with a show of fake trees and telling you to visualize the uphill climb. If I wanted to pretend to really ride a bike then I would ride a bike outside. I want to go to a class like I used to where the instructor is a lot of fun the music is loud and the lights are low so nobody can see how stupid I look as I am trying to learn the moves. Hopefully I will find one soon or I may have to follow my husband's advice and learn to teach it. Nothing better than getting paid to exercise, that would decrease my laziness I think.

Hiking!!! Must learn to read a map.

So my husband and have been hiking various trails at some of the local parks. We got a book of hikes in our area. We go one day every weekend. It is nice and a good way for us to spend some time together. Inevitably though what happens is the 2 mile hike listed in the book is turning into 4 due to a wrong turn or a misread map or my husband just wanting to "check out" another trail.
I admit I can not read a map unless it is at the mall and I count on my husband to navigate on these hikes. I have come to believe that this may be a mistake as he tends to take these little detours that seem to add mileage to our hikes. There was one day where I swear we were supposed to hike three or four miles and I know we did like 10. Crazy.
He says I exaggerate the mileage so I wanted to prove him wrong. I told him I would wear my pedometer and then we would see who was right. Darn thing doesn't work right. It measured less than the mileage on the map. Stupid thing, how am I supposed to prove he is adding mileage to the hikes when the pedometer doesn't work. Our hike yesterday was supposed to be 2.3 miles. Then we added all the alternate trails which should have turned it into 3 or so. Nobody mentioned the majority of this would be straight up. Then the stupid trails were not labeled. There was a point where I pictured throwing a fit like a two year old. I just did not want to climb those hills any more. I survived.
Today my butt and some muscles I did not know existed in my legs hurt. I feel sore and I guess a little accomplished since I survived but I could have lived without the accomplishment I think.
I leave you with these questions. If a person achieves a hike straight up in the forest but there are few there to witness it did it really happen?  If they then scream in frustration and throw a hissy fit like a small child is it acceptable due to lack of witnesses? If you hike three miles but they are all up hill shouldn't that count for more than three miles? Is nature really so different in different areas that we need to see it all up close?
All kidding aside,  I think hiking is great exercise and it is a nice way to get outside. I don't think it needs to be more than like three miles but apparently what constitutes three miles is debatable.

Working for my husband sucks, I have to find a real job.

So my husband has this little saying it starts "I pay you good money" and you can just about get the gist of the rest. Anyway, it was a joke before when I was working but since the move it is really starting to get less funny. I have to get all my money from him as I am not working and have no paycheck of my own, it is infuriating. I am not used to not having my own money coming in. Most people are probably thinking I am insane, stay home have your husband work and have the money you need. What's not to like right? Well, I have many friends who are stay at home moms and many friends who work from home, all of these women have something in common, although they are at home they definitely have a job. Stay at home moms the job is obvious they are responsible for the care, education and upbringing of a little person. Those who work form home have actual employers. Me, I am not a stay at home mom unless you count the dogs, which most won't. I am trying to work from home or from anywhere really but since I am looking for part time which does not include the words "do you want fries with that" I am having difficulty.
What does this all have to do with exercise? I have nothing to do so I can exercise at home, I can go to the gym and I do. I am working out to avoid bashing my husband in the head next time he makes a joke about me not having a job or maybe to be strong enough to make it really hurt. I am also working out to have something to do that does not make me feel like the 50's idea of a housewife with the martini and dinner ready when her husband comes home.
 To be fair he has been fine with me not working but I wish it didn't give him no end of comic relief to see how frustrated I am with it. Who would have thought I would be complaining about not having a job? I guess you always think things are better on the other side until you get there. Ahhh unemployment without pressure like the desert mirage to the thirsty, when you are in a job that sucks it seems like an oasis but all your drinking in the end is handfuls of sand.

Death to the Glisteners

Okay, so I have a lot of time on my hands due to the new location and continued unemployment while I look for the right job. No excuse not to go to the gym. I have been going though not as much as I should. My husband and I found a small gym near our house. It is available to us 24 hours so we have been going rather late at night. Well, it still does not save me from the glisteners. Definition of a glistener- girl who while working out a bit slowly on an elliptical or a treadmill does not even sweat, she just glistens slightly. I just wonder why they are even at the gym taking up space and oxygen. They are usually already thin and in pretty good shape so they don't need to try as hard I guess. She may be talking on her cell phone or with another glistener she has brought with her. Usually you will see them in the meat market gyms at popular times with the purpose of being seen. I do not understand why I have one in my 24 hour gym at 10:00 at night.
Glisteners stay in your allotted time spot and location there is not enough equipment or air conditioning in my small gym for you to take up space and cool air.
I guess I feel especially antagonistic toward the glisteners because I will never be one. I look like I am melting from beginning to end of my workout. I sweat...a lot. I think that if you don't sweat you are not working hard enough and you are just wasting time and occupying space. I know that there are people who work out hard but just don't sweat and I have no problem with them. If you are one of those, which some of my friends are, I do not mean you when I am talking about a glistener.
However, if you have enough energy and breath to carry on a conversation on your cell phone and you are not sweating,  go home you are taking up space come back when you are out of shape and have to suffer like the rest of us!

Moving adjustments, Please don't let the adjustments include my butt size...

Well, we have been in Texas for almost a month now. I like it but I am definitely running in to some problems. First, what I like. The people here are so nice. I mean in stores and everything. They hold doors for you, ask if you need any help and just wait for the answer and when they say "have a nice day' there is no sarcasm! Crazy I know.
What I like but what doesn't like me. The restaurants, Mexican food and BBQ are the prevailing food types. I grew up in AZ so Mexican food is like home to me. I love it, can't get enough. However, my butt loves the food too. It never wants to let it go, so in order to avoid a Texas sized butt I will have to be really strict with my workout and eating out. I mean it this place is dangerous to my waist size and single chin. There is actually a restaurant here that sell food by the pound, the pound like I will have a pound of so and so.
Additionally the grocery stores don't carry a lot of the foods I am used to. I can't get fat free ice cream. I can't really find a lot of whole grain pasta. It is really hard to be healthy when you are surrounded by really excellent unhealthy food. I am currently running from Texas sized butt. I will let you know how it goes.

Joining the gym isn't enough, you have to actually go

So, I have been sick for the last two weeks. I need to go to the gym but I just have not felt like it. This is not a good thing because I have learned that no matter how many issues I can solve by taking that hour to myself, and no matter how much I understand that it is good for me once I fall out of the habit of going to the gym it is twice as hard to get back in to it.
I have had a gym membership almost continuously for the past five years. Have probably only used it for two. I have learned from this that good thoughts and creative visualization about exercise does not yield many results. I need to be exercising now more ever. Have you ever heard that saying that everything is bigger in Texas, I can not have that include me.
I am making a promise to myself that I will go to the gym by Monday and I will have something new and interesting for you to read.

I Am Addicted to Coke ......Coca Cola that is

It has been a while since I posted. I have recently moved to Texas. Prior to moving I had a period of two months where my husband was traveling on business and I was sitting in mostly empty house with very little to do. We were supposed to actually leave Florida quite a bit sooner than we did so I had already quit my job.
In that time I fell back on my comfort foods or in my case comfort beverage, Coca cola. Some people get a beer gut from excessive alcohol and I have gotten some tummy bulge that has soda written all over it. I love soda.Hi my name is ....(not gonna tell you that)...and I am addicted to Coca Cola. I crave it and when I go out to eat or to the grocery store I have to have one. When I am stressed in only gets worse. When my mother in law was living with us last year I nearly gave myself an ulcer with all the soda I drank. I will sneak it like real addicts hiding their drugs . I am defensive when caught. "What Coke, this isn't a Coke. I was holding it for a friend who was thirsty. I only had a little sip."
This is a real addiction folks only there are no interventions, support groups or fundraisers for my addiction. People just laugh at me. I have found that for me I have to just quit it cold turkey or it is a slippery slope. One leads to two and before I know it I have binged on a whole two liter in just two days. I can drink a 20 0z soda on the way home from the grocery store which is under a mile away. Some people think that a cold beer is great, some people like wine, for me that first icy sip of a Coca Cola is just about perfect. My husband laughs because very often I make the Ahhh sound after I drink it.
I know this seems ridiculous with all of the stuff people are really addicted to but this is truly my addiction. Why is this a problem, all of the behavior I talked about above and the calories!!!

So how does this tie in to the whole idea of exercise? Obviously all that soda makes me fatter and thus I need to exercise. Less obvious is the idea that when I am craving a soda if I go to the gym and run three miles the soda becomes less appealing. Three miles is a lot to run. I hate it but in the end I have burned just over 300 calories ( yes that is all you burn in three miles of running) and I don't feel like adding calories with soda. Two cans of soda is 300 calories. Imagine how many miles I would have to go to burn off the two liter I binged on. I fight my soda addiction one day at a time but it is a constant battle.
I know a lot of you are thinking just switch to diet or Coke zero but that is not going to work. It just does not taste the same. Wish me luck, it is not like they have AA for me.

Exercise as a hangover cure?

I mentioned exercising to escape a hangover in my introduction. I felt I should clarify this a little and maybe tell you how I discovered it works. It is painful but it works. A couple years ago I went out for the evening with my husband and some friends. We went to dinner and then met the rest of the group at a poolside bar. I am a light weight and do not drink very often so my friends have no end of fun trying to get me to drink. That night it was shots, the largest shots I have ever seen. It seemed every shot was a double and I lost count at five. There were drinks too. I really don't remember how many. As a matter of fact the rest of the night only comes in flashes. I see myself in the bathroom, still at the poolside bar mind you, praying to die as I got sick. I see a friend of mine climbing up the side of a bathroom stall and kicking it open from the top. Apparently I wanted to die in privacy but they decided they knew better so they broke in to my stall. The next thing I remember is waking up in my bed in nothing but underwear and asking my husband why I am naked and why I felt like my head was bruised. My husband could answer the first question, I was apparently too uncooperative for him (he was also drunk) to get me in to my pajamas but he thought I should get out of the clothes I threw up on.
I had to wait to see my friends for the rest of the story. As I said one of my friends kicked open the bathroom stall and when I came out I apparently also threw up in the sink, I guess I banged my head against the faucet before my friend could catch it. Apparently there was a very delayed ouch. Finally, as an additional humiliation, while we were waiting for one of our sober friends to bring the car around I threw up on the bushes in front of the club. Oh well the bushes and my pants apparently.
So I told you all this to tell you that at this time in my life I was heavily in to spinning. I found a home in spin class. Initially I hated it. I watched the clock for the first 45 minutes just praying to live through it. For those of you who have not tried spin class I have two pieces of advice, the first is try it more than once- you won't love it the first time. My husband never went back because after the first class he said he felt like his calves were being ripped from his legs. Second it is all about the shoes, if you decide you like spinning invest in the bicycle shoes.
So being as crazy as I was I went to spin class most Sunday mornings early, like 7:00am. Well, if there ever was a Sunday to skip spin class the one that was the morning after I had puked on my own pants in public should have been it....But I went.
Once again for those of you who have not been to spin class you have no idea how loud they can be. I went to a spin class where the instructor played hip hop and popular music and it felt more like a dance club than an exercise class. Well, pounding base with a hangover is painful!!!! Also, interestingly did you know that when you sweat out Vodka it still smells like you are still drinking? Do this when you are already nauseous and it is quite unpleasant. So why would I have stayed for the whole class that day, more importantly why did I even go in the first place. I plead insanity. I plead embarrassment, I was not leaving in the middle once I got there. I plead a shear will to simply survive, that is what I did that day.
So when I got home I felt worse right? Amazingly NO. I still smelled like alcohol because it was oozing out of my pores, seriously it is a good thing I did not get pulled over. The rest of me amazingly did not feel like I had spent the previous night puking. I even had people over for football that afternoon.
Exercise as a hangover cure- DEFINITELY.
Don't torture yourself unnecessarily though, avoid the loud classes, just find something at the gym to work up a nice quiet sweat. Maybe yoga. The alcohol will go out of your system though the sweat and you will feel better. You may need to apologize to the others in the class for making it smell like a bar.

Introduction

I hate to exercise. I am not a 115lb skinny and perky woman who thinks that exercise is just super. I do it because I don't want my butt to get any bigger and actually I would like to reduce the size of that particular portion of my anatomy.
At least that is why I started exercising. I found as time went on that I was using the gym as an escape. I would go when I had a bad day, had a fight with my husband, had something particularly trying happening in my life, had a big test, had a hangover and for many other reasons. What I discovered that my problem that existed when I entered the gym was still there when I left ( with the exception of the hangover) but I felt more equipped to deal with it. I felt more centered. I know that may sound a little bit like that perky woman I described above talking but I swear it is not. I am not touting exercise as the path to the enlightenment and a problem free life, I am just saying that it can help manage the stress. It is really hard to think about anything other than survival when you are in a spin class, or running three miles on a treadmill or are trying not to trip over your feet and fall on your face in a step class.
The purpose of this blog is to talk about what I have literally run away from with a trip to the gym and to explore the different exercises you can try to lose yourself if only for an hour. I will candidly discuss my day, my issues, and I will tell you about the experiences I have at the gym. I am very clumsy so I can promise that the different classes and exercises I try will result in hilarious situation. For instance how many people can say they have fallen flat on their face at the gym because their pant leg caught on a weight machine. I can, sometimes you just have to get up and limp on even if you feel like the biggest idiot on earth. I will also introduce you to the varied cast of characters in my life that may cause me to speed toward the gym.
Please take the time to read and tell me about some of your experiences and the underlying causes for the trip to the gym. I want to know I am not the only person out there who can only stomach exercise as a means to escape everyday life if only while trying to survive the workout.