Monday, June 08, 2009

pressures of life


Nancy announced yesterday that she is starting an exercise regime.


That reminded me of two pieces of news that I have left hanging.


In
filling the hole in whole, I told you that I saw my doctor to get a baseline for my blood pressure and blood sugar. When she took my blood pressure, she was concerned that the pressure was elevated.


So, off she sent me to a lab to get a blood and urine workup. As you know from
el médico está comiendo el pan, those test results were amazingly good. The only thing I did not feel comfortable about was the elevated blood pressure.


I finally found my doctor in her office this week. She was as thrilled about the lab results as I was. We were both even happier when my blood pressure fell well within the normal zone.


If anyone says that losing weight does not make a difference to health, I am living proof to the contrary. Those 30 pounds lost were highly relevant -- as we used to say in the law biz.


But clouds are forming. I noticed that I am beginning to put on weight.


No surprise why. I am not getting out of the house as much as I have in the past. Instead, I am sitting and reading. And when I read, I eat.


Time to get involved in the little store-front gym in town. I am going to check if they have a stationary bicycle -- my preferred choice of exercise torture.


But eating is also involved with my second piece of news. I have discovered that I like the local zucchini. When small, they are almost as sweet as a cucumber -- and they are a very versatile stir fry ingredient.


I mention zucchini only because I am doing my best to find new vegetables to include in my cooking -- for variety, if nothing else.


So, I'm joining Nancy in my continuing quest -- in my case, to lose at least another 25 pounds.

11 comments:

Julian from SC said...

Hey Steve,

Congratulations on the medical news... that is great!

I still want to loose an additional 10 lbs. but I keep letting things like weekends and anniversaries (our 34th on June 6) get in the way. All I seem to do is eat good and exercise during the week only to gain it back over the weekend. Gosh knows what will happen when I retire and every day is Saturday!!

I'm pulling for you on the next 25 pounds -- if you can do that maybe it will shame me to finally get back to 180 or so.

Good luck,

Julian

Anonymous said...

steve,

i have 10 to go. the hardest part for me is keeping it off because i too love to eat and even though i'm an exercise nut, those lbs. do creep up easily.

working out at the gym will be great not only for your health, but it will also help you meet people. hope you join soon. have fun.

just 4 days till i leave for fl.
teresa

Islagringo said...

Good for you. I wish you much success in all of your endeavors.

GlorV1 said...

Hey that is great Steve! I'm cheering for you to lose those other pounds. Now can you cheer for me to lose the pounds I need to lose.Sheesh! By the way, I have tons of zucchini which I give most away. We are having them every which way we can think of. Have a great week and my hugs to Jiggs.

Steve Cotton said...

Julian -- There are certainly barriers to losing weight. Most of them are the very things that got us where we are. Without retiring, I doubt I would have been able to make the goal.

Teresa -- I doubt I will meet anyone. The "gym" is probably 15 feet by 20 feet. I have never seen another soul there.

Islandgringo -- Thank you, sir.

Gloria -- The nice thing about the zucchini here is that they are about the size of fingers. Just the right size.

john said...

Congratulations on the thirty pounds. A couple of years ago I started eating less and better food, and increasing exercise. I lost a similar amount. I was pleased about how my BMI had moved into the healthy zone. Then I discovered I had lost three inches in height since high school, so I have another ten pounds to go. Sigh.

Steve Cotton said...

John -- I knew something had gone awry with my height when all of my pants were suddenly too long. How on earth can short legs get shorter?

john said...

Steve--I think it's my spine that got shorter. Apparently disks compress...

Steve Cotton said...

John -- I understand how the space between vertebrae can decrease. But legs?

Anonymous said...

Why not a bicycle instead of the gym? Hit that hill over to Cuastecomates a couple times a week and you will shed pounds very fast. You may have to travel to Guadalajara to find a good bike. Nan could point you in the right direction.

I agree the zucchini is great. Have you tried the flowers. Flor de calabaza are used a lot in Mexico.

Steve Cotton said...

Anonymous. Not a bad idea, though after making the drive yesterday, I suspect that the ride would be more dangerous than the health value. There are no shoulders, and the drivers are not cautious.