Tag Archives: health

Eating right

Since dipping into the Halloween candy a bit too early, I really haven’t eaten well. It’s like my body got used to the sugar buzz and now I feel the craving for sweeter, less healthy food. It’s interesting how our gut biome can influence our minds. Through the enteric nervous system, our gut sends messages to our brain. ‘More sugar’ seems to be the message my brain has been getting recently, and I’ve been complacently acquiescing.

It’s time for me to take control again. To plan my meals better and to avoid unnecessary sugar. That doesn’t mean that I have to go on some strict diet, it just means I should eat intentionally, rather than listening to my sugar-craving gut. 

Cavity

I went to the dentist after work yesterday and got a couple small fillings. Two weird things about me and the dentist. First, I often fall asleep on the chair. With my mouth numb, I don’t feel anything, so I relax and I nod off. I work up on the chair twice snort/snoring yesterday because my breathing was a bit off with my mouth wide open.

Secondly, the numbing injection stays with me a long time. My appointment was at 5pm and my cheek and chin were still numb at 9:30. As annoying as this is, aren’t we lucky to have dentists. Imagine what it was like to have a painful bad tooth a couple hundred years ago and your only options were to pull the tooth out or suffer.

My fillings were not needed because I was in pain, but rather my dentist was preventing my teeth from getting to that point. I didn’t have to wait for the hole to reach my root and cause me agony before trying to fix it. Many people equate going to the dentist with pain. For me a trip to the dentist often involves a nap and the comfort in knowing that I would probably have experienced a lot more future pain had I not gone for my cleanings/regular checkups and taken care of my teach before they caused too much grief. Think about that the next time you are in the dentist’s chair.

4th poke

When I look around at the people I know in my community, very few other than my wife and I have not had covid-19 yet. I don’t attribute it to anything more than luck. I know people that have been equally as cautious and more cautious than us that have had it. We both work in schools and have greater exposure than an office worker who spent most of the last couple years working from home. We’ve been lucky.

Yesterday I got the Moderna Omicron-Containing Bivalent Booster shot. It was an easy decision for me. The variant most prevalent right now is Omicron, and I’m happy to increase the odds that I don’t catch this virus. A number of people I know have felt the lingering effects of covid for several months, and having been someone who has previously dealt with 6+ months of chronic fatigue (a vitamin D deficiency about 4-5 years ago) I’d rather not deal with something like that again if it can be avoided.

This is why I decided to to get a 4th shot:

I work in a school and if I can avoid getting and/or spreading a virus, then that’s good for my whole community. I take the flu shot each year for the same reason. Does that stop me from getting the occasional flu? No. But it probably stops me from getting sick more often than I do. Viruses are tricky things and flu shots are not a perfect science. The purpose of a flu shot is to prevent some of the more likely flus that are going around, not all flus. I see this Omicron-Containing Bivalent Booster in the same way I do a flu shot… it’s a vaccine focusing on preventing contraction of the more likely variants. I’m not 100% preventing covid, I’m reducing the likelihood of contracting common variants that are currently circulating.

We might be in endemic rather than pandemic times, but there are still people catching covid variants in our community… and unless I had a non-symptomatic case, I’m still one of those people with no natural immunity. I like the idea of decreasing my odds of catching covid. Just like I decrease the odds of getting a flu with my yearly flu vaccine.

Pain tolerance

I’ve always been told I have a high pain tolerance. It stems from years of chronic back pain. Today my back aches. I say ‘aches’ because I break my discomfort into two levels: ache means it’s uncomfortable, and dull; pain means something more sharp and debilitating. Pain means the noise level of the discomfort hinders my thought processes, while I can get numb to the awareness of an ache, even if it is ever-present.

Years ago I was in a moped accident. I was taking a corner at about 55km and hit some gravel. My moped slipped from underneath me and I body surfed across gravel for about 25 to 30 feet, (yes, I’m Canadian and measure speed in km’s and short distances in feet). I’m glad it was an outside curb sending me into the gravel rather than an inside curb launching me into oncoming traffic, but it still sucked.

I needed a bunch of stitches on one knee and a couple more on the other elbow. I also spent over 2 hours having tiny pebbles being removed from my elbows and knees, which took the brunt of my skid. About one and a half hours into this process the head nurse said to me, “You are doing great! We get guys in here twice the size of you that are crying like babies by now.”

My response: “Oh, don’t be mistaken, this %#^*ing hurts!”

And that was the moment that I realized that just like I have my ache/pain scale there are two kinds of pain tolerance, another 2-pronged scale of pain tolerance: There is pain tolerance whereby some people just don’t feel pain like others, versus pain tolerance whereby the person feels pain but is not controlled by the pain despite it hurting a lot/as much as others would feel it. I think this latter variety is where my pain tolerance sits.

Waking up with a back ache isn’t fun. Having to end a conversation with a friend because I can’t sit anymore isn’t fun. Spending time stretching in the morning just so that I can function normally for the rest of the day isn’t fun. But the alternative is pain, and pain really, really isn’t fun… no matter how good my tolerance is.

A little too sore

A couple days ago I did an 8-minute leg workout that I haven’t done in a while. I pushed hard like I’ve been doing this regularly. By mid day I knew that I’d overdone it. My hips and upper butt were sore. I also did a hard tricep workout that day. Then yesterday I worked my chest and biceps, but chest re-worked my triceps again too.

Today I’m just sore. My hips and legs are sore, my arms are sore, my chest is sore. I’m full body sore. It has been a long time since I did this to myself. This morning I’m going to do a walk on the treadmill, not a run, not a fast walk, a nice slow walk to get my body moving, then stretch. Long slow stretches, and full motion exercises with a 5lb weight, not 15, not 25, just 5 pounds, to go through the motions and activate my sore muscles.

I used to get sore like this a lot when I worked out, then I’d do more to ‘get the lactic acid out’ but end up pushing myself a bit too hard and staying sore longer. Then I’d hurt myself, and need to stop working out. Often my back would seize up and I’d be in pain for days or even weeks. I can feel the fatigue in my back, muscles stiff and inflexible. My hips are already letting me know that I’ll be standing at my desk all day… no sitting for me today. So I need to listen to my body.

No weights today. Tomorrow I’ll do my walk with my buddy and nothing else. I know the two hot tub visits over the last couple days helped, so I’ll squeeze in a couple more soaks this weekend. The point is that I’m too bloody old to walk around with a full body sore from working out.

I’ve made some great progress in the last 9 months, actually in the last 3 and a half years since I started my healthy living journey. But I can’t get stuck in a pattern of pushing myself too hard. I’ll hurt myself to the point of having to slow down significantly. I’m not training for anything other than feeling healthy and good… and a full body ache doesn’t feel good. I’m going to take it really easy the next few days. If I don’t, my back just might force me to take a break. I’d rather slow down on my own terms, and this soreness is a good hint that I’ve got to slow down a bit.

Younger me would have muscled through. Dumber me would have kept going and hurt myself. I guess I’m a little wiser now, but not too wise or I wouldn’t be sore all over right now. 🙃

Master the art of showing up

The biggest change I’ve made to taking care of myself in the past few years is this:

“When determining the size or complexity of a new habit ask yourself, “What can I stick to—even on my worst day?”

Start there. Master the art of showing up. Then advance.” ~ James Clear

I’m not in the mood to work out today, but I’ll go get on my row machine for 10 minutes. That would be it, but I’m also going to run the weight club this morning and I’ll do a bit of weights. Then one of our students ends the session leading us through 15 minutes of yoga.

I could skip the row machine, I’ve got an excuse, I’m doing weight club. But how hard is it to do 10 minutes on the row machine listening to my audiobook? It’s faster than 20 minutes on the bicycle or treadmill. These are the minimums I allow myself. I know I can do these things even when I don’t want to. I know that I don’t have to go all out, I just have to put in the time. That’s what I can do on my worst day… I can go through the motions for 10 or 20 minutes.

Sometimes that’s all I really do… go through the motions. But more often than not, after planning to do just the minimum, I end up pushing myself just a little harder than expected. The plan is to show up, but I do more. That’s what happens when you master the art of showing up.

So just show up, and maybe you’ll do more. You just need to commit to showing up and doing the minimum, and being ok with when that’s all you do. Be happy with this low bar on your low days… and you’ll be amazed how often you achieve more.

Just do it… just show up!

Got my gym back

Last night was the first time that I was able to use my home gym since the middle of November. Our main floor home renovation is almost completely done, and we are no longer using the basement as our kitchen, and living room, as well as for storage. The room is reconfigured, and since my wife wants the treadmill outside the room, so she can easily watch tv while on it, the room is even roomier!

I’m excited about this change. I’ve had a tiny spot with my exercise bike and weights for the past few months, but now I have treadmill and row machine access again, and a nice place to stretch and use my incline bench.

Despite not having my full functioning home gym the past few months, it has been a very good few months for me with respect to exercise. I have an extremely knowledgeable teacher that is running weight club with me for our students 3 days a week – once before school, once after, and once at lunch. And under this teachers supervision, and inspiration, I’ve been adding new exercises and longer sessions than I do at home. As a result, I’m the heaviest I’ve ever been when fit.

I was heavier than this in 2018, but that was unhealthy weight. Now, I’m a solid 5-7 pounds heavier than I’ve ever been due to working out. And it feels great!

I’m not overdoing it. I’m not hurting myself trying to lift too heavy. I’m focusing on muscle groups, working then well, and giving them time to recover while I work different areas. I’ve added protein shakes and creatine (which helps with recovery), and I’m still not eating snacks after dinner, although I’m not as strict as I used to be about time restricted eating (or intermittent fasting), I still pay attention to this.

So I’m already on a good path, and now I’ve got my gym space back. I am confident that I’ll be able to stick to my routines even as the end of the school year gets crazy, and continue to make gains in 2022.

This isn’t a race. I have a few long term goals, but the longest one is to stay healthy for another 30+ years. Now I just have to focus on my diet and my too high bad cholesterol… but I’ll save talking about that for another day.

Crash and burn

It’s the last school day before the March break. My ‘to do’ list at work will require a bit of focus to accomplish, but it is achievable… at least if the general day-to-day interruptions are manageable, that’s an unknown that is just part of the job. The good news is that beyond an email home to students and parents before the break, I don’t have anything pressing, that can’t wait until after the break.

All that said, something that often happens when I reach this point in the year, or at the winter break, is that the first couple days of the break I just crash and burn. I fall into a mode where I sleep more than I usually do, and I feel extremely lazy. And sometimes I literally get sick. It’s like my body holds out for the break, then says ‘You made it! OK, you can let go now’, and I get sick.

However, in previous years, I would usually not be sticking to my healthy living routine right now. I’d have the mentality of, ‘ I’ll get back into shape over the break.’ But this year I’ve done some form of exercise 19 out of the last 20 days. Usually I am metaphorically burning my candle at both ends, but I’ve been intentionally getting to bed for an average of about 7 hours of sleep (I usually get 6 to six-and-a-half). And I’m of the mindset that I’m looking forward to the break, not ‘I need a break’.

While saying this all out loud doesn’t mean that my body still won’t crash to some level, it didn’t this past winter vacation, and I feel like I’ve been able to break the crash and burn routine to start my holidays. The next couple days will tell the tale. Now it’s time for my morning meditation and then on to my exercise bike… I’ve got to maintain the positive patterns that are helping break this cycle.

The boost

I finally got my notification and am booked for my 3rd, booster, Covid-19 shot. I still have to wait a couple weeks to get it, but at least I have a date on the calendar.

Our bodies are amazing things, and the idea that we can train our blood cells to fight off a virus before it can affect us adversely is incredible. That we now have the science to do so without even giving us a less harmful version of the virus is even more astonishing.

I’ve been big on pushing Vitamin D as a great way to boost our immune systems. It’s a cheap, easy to access, almost impossible to overdose, vitamin that is also a hormone which helps our immune system. It can’t and won’t prevent covid, but it can drastically reduce how covid and other ailments affect you, if you get sick. And, about 70-85% of people in the northern hemisphere are deficient in Vitamin D, due to a lack of sunlight, (especially in the winter).

I’m also a huge advocate for the vaccine. I had measles, mumps, and chicken pox in the same school year as a kid. I missed 40+ days of school that year. My kids didn’t have to go through that. My mother-in-law had polio, my wife and I didn’t have to go through that.

MNRA vaccines, and the science behind them, could potentially prevent a far worse (more fatal) virus in the future from ravaging the human race. And how could it do this? By giving our immune system a timely and needed boost.

Politics aside, profits to big pharma aside, possible covid treatments, after getting sick, aside. What we have here is a chance to reduce the likelihood of having a bad covid experience. Go to any social media site you like and search the hashtag #longcovid, TikTok, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram… regular people of all ages and many in good health pre-covid.

Will a booster guarantee anything? No. But I am happy to give my immune system a boost, and hopefully you will too.

Healthy living goals reflection 2021

It’s that time of year again when I look back at my healthy living goals sticker chart, and also plan for next year.

This was the post at the end of 2020. And this was for 2019, the year I started this.

2021 in review:

Workouts: 287days or 78.6%

Writing: Daily blog 100%

Meditation: 346 days or 94.8%

Archery: 129 days or 35.3% (Goal was 100 days so actually 129%.)

This was an awesome year for fitness. I am about 6-8 pounds heavier, with a fair bit of increase in size in my upper body and small but noticeable increases in my quads. I feel fit and strong, and I think I only had a couple minor slow downs from back pain, with minimal recovery time. I still need to stretch more, and I still rely a bit too much on deep massage therapy to keep the pain away, but I know that slow, careful strength progress, and more time using my standing desk at work, has significantly reduced the amount of regular pain I’ve had to deal with in my lower back.

Last year I did one more workout in the year… but it was a leap year so I’m going to call it even. I hope to maintain this next year too. Working out slightly more than 3 out of every 4 days for a full year is an excellent goal.

My daily blog has been going strong since July 2019… and while I could probably stop tracking this, I want to keep it as a goal for next year. The chart is a good motivator, and there is nothing wrong with having one of my goals be something that I commit to every single day.

Meditation: I missed 13 days from January to November, and 6 more in December. It has not been a good month for meditation. My goal this year was supposed to be tracking days when I meditate more than once to increase my time. I did this 6 times in January and didn’t continue. It did not become a habit. This year I want to increase the total time by going longer than 10 minutes on weekends, and doing more self-guided meditations mid week, so that mini lessons on the Calm App are not part of my meditation time. This is a more realistic way to take my daily meditation to the next level.

Archery was a new goal this year and I hoped to shoot a total of 100 days. I’m thrilled that I hit 129 days, and my goal next year will be 120.

So, no new goals next year, just a couple adjustments on my current goals. I do plan to write more, but I’m going to calendar that, rather than chart it. So 2022 will be about keeping the good habits going… if you have a few goals you’d like to track, buy yourself a year long calendar and make it happen! (Here are my tips.)

May your 2022 be amazing!