As a woman, did you ever wonder?

By using Zite on my iPhone, I found the formula for a woman's BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate). It was startling to find out the rather low number of calories (1300+) I could eat to maintain my weight--if I sat around all the time. Still, it gave me a baseline idea of the number calories for a non-active day.

"The National Institutes of Health reports that the best way to lose weight is by taking in fewer calories than you use. That does not mean you shouldn’t watch what you eat. In fact, by not limiting your calorie intake to a number formulated to suit your age, height, activity level and gender, you could sabotage your chances of getting to an appropriate weight.

"Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR)
The Basal Metabolic Rate, or BMR, which is sometimes interchangeable with your resting metabolic rate, is a calculation of the number of calories you burn when using the least amount of energy, such as when you’re asleep. By determining how many calories your body uses when doing nothing, you can establish how many calories you need to take in each day to maintain — not lose — your current weight."

How To Calculating Your BMR:
To calculate your BMR use this formula, which is specifically tailored for women:
655 + ( 4.35 x weight in pounds ) + ( 4.7 x height in inches ) – ( 4.7 x age in years ) = BMR

From here.

Part Time Vegetarianism?

As I ponder better health, I have been urged by my daughters to try Meatless Mondays. That is a serious consideration. And here's a talk about "part time" vegetarianism:

Don't EXCUSE-erize!

My friend Joan nudged me back to a Weight Watchers meeting this morning; I am grateful she accompanied me and got me there! (Unfortunately, she left her car parked in front of my house, and got a parking ticket for it pointing in the wrong directions. UH-OH)

Today's meeting subject was entitled "ON YOUR FEET"--about getting up and sitting less. The observation that we often assume that one period of exercise a day means the rest of the time can be spent sitting at a computer, at a desk, in front of a tv set, reading a book. . . . .hit me squarely, as I think that way.

A young man who had lost 83 pounds in the past year shared how he tells himself not to excuse-erize about exercise!

I was struck by the statistics that Weight Watchers compiled in their little handout:

• "Women who sit for six or more hourse a day have a 37% higher risk for early death (men have a 20% higher risk) than those who sit less, regardless of how often they exercise, according to a study from the American Cancer Society.
  

• "Here's what happens when you hit the seat: Electrical activity in the legs slows; calorie burn drops to one per minute; and enzymes that help dissolve fat drop by 90%.

• "After two hours: Good cholesterol (HDL) drops 20%; insulin resistance drops 24%, and risk of diabetes rises."

For a long time, I mistakenly assumed that I was in better health than my husband, just because I am a woman. Now I see that it is MUCH worse for me to be sitting around than it is for him! What a wake up call!

And from here is more to spur me on to move more than my YWCA swim classes, which I do at least four times a week:

"Exercise is the only real fountain of youth that exists," says Jay Olshansky, a professor of medicine and aging researcher at the University of Illinois at Chicago. "It's like the oil and lube job for your car. You don't have to do it, but your car will definitely run better." Study after study has documented the benefits of exercise to improve your mood, mental acuity, balance, muscle mass, and bones. "And the benefits kick in immediately after your first workout," Olshansky adds. Don't worry if you're not a gym rat. Those who see the biggest payoffs are the ones who go from doing nothing to simply walking around the neighborhood or local mall for about 30 minutes a day.

Couch (or Ipod?) Potato

Though I am lately feeling like a couch potato (who reads rather than watches tv), I am wondering instead if there is an "Ipod potato" or "Words with Friends potato"? That's what I have been doing too much of lately. Choices, choices!

We had a fun day (24 hours) away for a friend's  daughter's beautiful wedding outside. Oldest son DC and his wife AA were there, also, along with long-time friends from Corpus Christi, which is where the bride is from. The setting in the Texas hill country was lovely, but HOT (91 degrees at 9 pm!).

The wedding reception had sumptuous feasts with different serving stations featuring Southern food, including cheese grits with a shrimp sauce and fried green tomatoes;  Chinese food; Mexican food and much more! And then the tall, elegant wedding cake was a carrot cake with multiple layers of cream cheese frosting. At least, I drank many glasses of water and only one Margarita! However, I was not discerning in how much I ate and still feel full, though that is caused more by the wedding brunch today.

There were several heavy thunderstorms as we slept last night, so today's temperatures in the hill country were much more temperate. It was cooler and less humid, so we really enjoyed the brunch, which featured cheese grits again, fried chicken, grilled huge shrimp, and fruit kabobs. The dessert was pecan pie with ice cream.

It is a good thing that I walk every Sunday night with my good friend Katherine, so that will get me moving this evening. That is a good choice!

How to CHANGE

1. Start very small.
2. Do only one change at a time.
3. Be present and enjoy the activity (don’t focus on results).
4. Be grateful for every step you take.

By Leo Babauta

Read his article here.

I need to try this to get back to healthier eating again. . . .

Wish it was true!

What to Eat?

After posting three times yesterday, today I am wondering if anyone wants to know how my health is. . . .I am not sure if many of you ever look at my RA blog, which is mainly where I am questioning RA and sometimes complaining about it. (Sign up for that blog to be emailed to you, if you want regular updates.)

So I am going to copy the post I put there this morning here:
I am still wondering about diet and RA, while being flummoxed by various sites, books, and advertisements. Who to believe? Today I went to Rheumatoid Arthritis Warrior's site, where she addresses "Rheumatoid Arthritis Diet: 3 Key Questions."

"She writes in this post:

As I wrote recently, there is no Rheumatoid Arthritis cure. That includes diet. But that is only the beginning of the discussion of RA and diet. We still want to know 3 things**:

1. Can I eat something to make my Rheumatoid Arthritis symptoms worse?
2. Can I eat anything to make my Rheumatoid Arthritis symptoms better?
3. Despite both of those answers, are there foods or supplements which can fight the effects of the disease?"

Those are definitely the questions I want answered! RA Warrior wrote about this two years ago, and she probably has much more info on her website than I know about yet. A post with lots of info: "Rheumatoid Arthritis Diet: Part 2: Ten Easy Tips."

Going along with these questions is tomorrow's appointment with a naturopath. (Consulting him does not mean I will stop seeing my rheumatologist.) Surprisingly, both my husband and I are having individual appointments. Although Chuck is a PhD. chemist, he has been influenced by an elderly friend whose RA was improved with diet, as described in this fluffy and not-too-scientific book How to Eat Away Arthritis by Lauri M. Aesoph, ND. (I liked The Anti-Inflammation Diet and Recipe Book by Jessica K. Black, ND much better.)

A healthier diet will improve both Chuck's and my health. He has painful knees due to osteoarthritis and we are both overweight. So there is a lot to learn; at least we are looking and asking!

Girl Scout Cookie Time!

It is Girl Scout Cookie Time again. It is a tradition to buy them and eat them, especially when they are frozen, at our house.

The thought of Girl Scout Cookies brings back lots of memories:

• Selling door-to-door, lugging the boxes around with me--back in the 1950's!
  

• When my mother was our Brownie leader in Quantico, VA, she brought some of the girls to stand outside the Mess Hall and sell cookies. We sold a lot, which now seems understandable with those young Marines probably having younger sisters our age! A few years later, we may have done that at Camp Pendleton, too.
  

• When I was the cookie chairperson for AE's Girl Scout Troop in 1989, we had cases and cases of Girl Scout Cookies around our living room. I vividly remember this, because that was the time I found out I was pregnant with our fourth child, MJ. This was unplanned, and I worried so much that she would not be developing well because some days I would eat an entire box of Thin Mints or Peanut Butter Tag-a-longs for lunch! This was before I knew I was pregnant, as one could not learn that as early as women can nowadays. (Fortuitously, MJ is healthy, pretty and smart and did not seem to be adversely affected by all that sugar, or by cans of TAB, which accompanied the cookies.)

• Now we rarely get girls selling at our door, but find groups selling in front of stores or on street corners. I found my cookies at the corner of a busy street where I was turning right; I kept on turning right--into the parking lot!

And now that I am trying to return to healthier eating, the cartoon below really struck me as funny.

Too fat to fit!

Poor Santa! I am feeling this way, as I keep snacking on the few cookies and goodies left around after our children's departure. Some thoughtfully gave me fair trade chocolate bars and now I keep snitching little bits. What won't I fit into?

How many servings in that?

Happy Halloween!

Awhile ago I ordered a book of vintage Halloween postcards from Amazon.com. They quickly arrived and soon I misplaced them. I had intended to send them to friends, but am now reminded of this saying my father used to repeat: "The road to hell is paved with good intentions," as I have not done so.

Happy Halloween!

This is the first Halloween I have not bought any chocolate for trick-or-treaters, because I am committed to buying only Fair Trade Chocolate candy. (Husband CB complained that we don't have any "good" candy, but that's healthier for us, too.)

Whatever Halloween candy you have in your house, Hungry Girl has a handy guide to those treats. She posts the calories and the Weight Watcher points for each "fun size" and other handouts.

Anne has a cheery Halloween reflection at her Reverent Irreverance blog.

Talkeetna, Alaska

We took the train from Fairbanks to Anchorage and stopped at Talkeetna for one night, hoping to see Denali (but didn't).

Jan and CB

What stands out in my memory for Talkeetna is the BEST CINNAMON ROLL I've ever had in my entire life, even better than my mother's!

There are the cinnamon rolls on the bottom shelf.

THIS is where to buy the cinnamon rolls!
The Talkeetna Roadhouse

This is also the place where I stopped counting my Weight Watcher points and ceased to think of dieting, but it was a vacation, right?

A diet aid-->Fair Trade!

Do the supermarkets in your neighborhood have these candy racks right next to the checkout counter? The ones at our local HEB's are much wider and more abundantly supplied.

The last time I was shopping at the store, I was hungry and looked longingly at the candy bars. I rationalized that one would be about 200 calories or maybe 4 Weight Watcher points, which wouldn't be that bed. Then I remembered that none of the candy offered was FAIR TRADE, so I will not buy it. Since I am very aware of the reality of slave labor in the production of cocoa beans, I am trying to be committed in NOT buying such chocolate.

I know I am not completely supporting Fair Trade chocolate, because currently I am still eating desserts and/or ice cream with chocolate components that are most likely not Fair Trade.

I have decided that my small effort to only buy chocolate candy that is Fair Trade chocolate is one little step towards justice. This decision is also helping me to resist the impulse to buy a quick snack of a chocolate bar, which is a healthier choice for me. I feel confident that I will be able to continue on this path, narrow though it may be. (It will definitely alter my Halloween candy buying for this year!)

Will I remember "The Eating Guidelines"?

I hope I am not overwhelmed with food like this on my vacation! Since beginning at Weight Watchers last fall, I have lost over 25 pounds. I am happy about this, but also know from past experience how easily I can over-eat on vacations. I am hoping that I will keep in mind what Geneen Roth wrote in her newest book Women, Food and God: An Unexpected Path to Almost Everything:

THE Eating Guidelines

1. Eat when you are hungry
2. Eat sitting down in a calm environment. This does not include the car.
3. Eat without distractions. Distractions include radio, television, newspapers, books, intense or anxiety-producing conversations or music.
4. Eat what your body wants.
5. Eat until you are satisfied.
6. Eat (with the intention of being) in full view of others.
7. Eat with enjoyment, gusto and pleasure.

Roth, Geneen. Women, Food and God: An Unexpected Path to Almost Everything. NY: Scribner, 2010. 211.

I hope I can live this way.

I am excited!

I am excited about our trip, of course, and today I am excited that I have officially lost 30 pounds at Weight Watchers in the last ten months!




And now I am hoping I will still be aware and conscious during the trip and not follow my usual vacation indulging extravaganza. Instead, enjoy the scenery and the family and friends.

Me Today

Friday Five: Starting out in 2010

I completely forgot that today was FRIDAY until an hour ago! So here is a belated participation in the RevGals Friday Five, which was offered eloquently by Sally:

As I prepare this post I am aware that it will be posted on New Years Day. We stand at the beginning of 2010 looking not only at a New Year, but at a new decade full of promise and possibilities. For some of us this will be exciting, but others will approach it with trepidation and probably most of us stand on this threshold with a mix of emotions and reactions.

It is at this time of year that many (British) Methodist Churches celebrate their Annual Covenant Service, a service that will include this prayer:

I am no longer my own but yours,
Put me to what you will,
rank me with whom you will;
put me to doing,
put me to suffering;
let me be employed for you,
or laid aside for you,
exalted for you,
or brought low for you;
let me be full,
let me be empty,
let me have all things,
let me have nothing:
I freely and wholeheartedly yield all things
to your pleasure and disposal.
And now glorious and blessed God,
Father , Son and Holy Spirit,
you are mine and I am yours.
May it be so forever.
Let this covenant now made on earth
be fulfilled in heaven. AMEN

This prayer is said every year, and offers every member an opportunity to renew their covenant with God. This is no soft or easy prayer, it states in the company of others our willingness to worship God come what may, not that we should become doormats, but that we place God above all else. ( And every year if we are honest we have to acknowledge that we fail).

With this prayer in mind I bring you this Friday Five:


1. What will you gladly leave behind in 2009?
All I can think of right now is 20 pounds that I'm glad to have left behind.

2. What is the biggest challenge of 2010 for you?
The biggest challenge is losing more weight and also completing my scholarly papers for my master's degree in theology before it is too late.

NO, the BIGGEST challenge is training the new puppy, Maisie!

3. Is there anything that you simply need to hand to God and say "all will be well, for you are with me"?
Perhaps this is where I should put those scholarly papers.

I also have to tell myself with my twice daily times of meditation, since I have no idea whether I am doing this "right"--even as I know a value judgment doesn't even apply!

4. If you could only achieve one thing in 2010 what would it be?
See above. Losing 25 pounds.

5. Post a picture, poem or song that sums up your prayer for the year ahead....
Connected to the Covenant Prayer of Wesley's that Sally put above, here is another thought from John Wesley:

O, Begin!

Fix some part of every day for private exercises. . . .

Whether you like it or no, read and pray daily.

It is for your life; there is no other way:

else you will be a trifler all your days. . . .

Do justice to your own soul;

give it time and means to grow.

Do not starve yourself any longer.

~~John Wesley

Friday Five: Do Nothing Christmas

Sally at RevGalBlogPals writes for this Friday Five:

I am reading a wonderful little book for Advent it's title: "Do nothing Christmas is Coming!"

So this weeks Friday Five is simple.

List Five things you won't be doing to prepare for Christmas.

And while you are doing nothing play the bonus, put your feet up and listen to your favourite Advent Carol, and post it or a link to it...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Well, I haven't done a Friday Five for awhile or posted, because I was at a Christ-centered prayer retreat from Monday-Thursday this week, which I will post about later. So I am excited about the prospect of doing nothing/little for Christmas
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1. I am NOT baking as many cookies as usual, because I am eating healthier (and have lost 25 pounds!) with the Weight Watchers plan. I usually go overboard, supposedly to give cookies away, but we end up with way too many in the freezer. (Cookies are delicious when they are frozen!)

2. I am buying much less and so have less stress about presents. Since most have to be mailed away, I will order things online or give gifts to charity online.

3. I will not go shopping at busy shopping malls.

4. I am not worrying about all there is to do to make a "perfect" Christmas. That I am letting go of.

5. I did not buy a gigantic bag of Hershey kisses at Sam's yesterday.

My favorite seasonal song is "Mary, did you know?"

Low Cal Snacks

Well, I am going to Weight Watchers early on Sunday mornings before I go to church. I will not enumerate how many times I've joined WW in my lifetime. I have helped to finance Heinz, which I think owns the Weight Watchers conglomerate. Still, this is helping me to eat more nutritiously with less snacking.

Several items I've found that satisfy my sweet tooth are:
These 90 calorie packets of crunchy little bites that are drizzled with caramel icing help satisfy my sweet tooth, especially as I eat one at a time.

At today's Weight Watcher meeting, I learned about Yoplait yogurt parfaits, called "Delights." I don't usually like yogurt, but I bought a package of the only flavor left (caramel) at the store. I ate one this afternoon and found it to be delicious and only 100 calories.**The lemon ones are so wonderful!!**

Until the above two items were discovered, my one decadent snack each evening was the WW cookies and cream ice cream bar. It is very good.

All three items are approximately 100 calories (or 2 WW points) and probably contain all sorts of artificial ingredients. Fruit is better, but sometimes I just want a DESSERT!

Today is all that matters.

Thanks to Jennifer at An Orientation of Heart, I got another new book about health. And it reminds me of something a therapist told me 14 years ago, "CHOOSE HEALTH." That's what this book is gently pointing to: Fit from Within by Victoria Moran.

What I am hoping is that I will start living with only THREE meals a day. That cuts out a lot of snacking. With Infinity Squared and Jennifer leaving comments about it being healthier to have two snacks a day, I am planning to do that. Plus, that makes a healthier diet more livable!

Moran stresses staying here right now. Here are some quotes:

"It's dangerous to get caught up in 'When I get thin. . . ,' 'When I get this thing licked. . . ,' and other states of future glory. This is the day you've got. No matter how praiseworthy your eating and exercise are today, your weight isn't going to be very different when you go to bed tonight from when you got up this morning. The tiny changes will add up, but don't concern yourself too much with them. Just stay in today." (42)

"Today is it, and what you do today is all that matters. Staying centered in the now keeps you aware of what you're doing. You're far less likely to eat absentmindedly when you're firmly rooted in this day, this meal, this project, this conversation. When you stay focused, you fully experience the day--its events, its sensations, its nuances. Life will become richer and more gratifying. You'll have fewer regrets, because regrets belong to the past. You'll worry less, because worry is about the future, and when the future becomes the present it won't be nearly as frightening. The present almost never is." (42)