I Finally Get It

[carolm]

Lisa, that was my response too-- How do you reach the 108th%ile?. I deal with statistics all the time in my work and at the time I thought I didn't hear them correctly on the phone. But when I got the print out that's what it said.

It makes more sense to say that you compare well with people much younger than you-- so the bone density I had at 51 was comparable to women aged 35 at the 97th%ile. That is a more reasonable way to say it. I'm sure they somehow extrapolate %iles then based on their norms, for persons my age.

I guess the bottomline for me was that all that resistance training did make a difference. I agree with Leah-- for women it is essential.

Carol

[Leah]

Gloria, Walking with ankle weights is not such a good idea. It's too much stress on the knee joints. You are better off with either a weight belt/vest or just holding some small hand weights.

Leah

[tex]

A good backpack (a real backpack -- one with a good waist belt) is another safe way to carry weight, and at least part of the weight can be something useful, such as water, snacks, etc.

Tex

[Sheila]

Hi Gloria,
None of us wants to have surgery but there is a big difference between hernia surgery years ago and today. Years ago it was an open incision, invasive and a pretty tough recovery time. Today most are done laparoscopically using several small incisions and creating a lot less collateral damage to the body. It is minimally invasive and a lot less painful. Sure, things do go wrong and I don't blame you for being cautious. When something like a hernia starts to effect your way of life, it's time to get a doctor's opinion and an overview of what the surgery would entail. Do you think the hernia you have now will in time strangulate?

I fought off having my gallbladder out even though I had persistent symptoms. When I finally hit the wall with a major gallstone attack, I had it out. There were a few small holes, not a lot of pain and a pretty quick recovery. I was about 65 when I had it done and had no problems.

Sheila W

[Gloria]

Leah,

I hadn't considered the impact of ankle weights on my knees. I do have arthritis in both knees, but I keep the pain in check with glucosamine. I probably need to look into a weight belt or vest.

Tex,
I'll have to look at back packs. I have a couple, but they aren't real expensive ones.

Sheila,
You've made me rethink the hernia surgery. So far it's not causing too many problems, but I have had some discomfort similar to when I had the strangulation. I wasn't diagnosed with my first hernia for about 15 years; DH actually figured it out. I probably should talk to my PCP about it to see what his opinion is. I have the same surface veins that my father had; perhaps that's what concerns me.

Gloria

[brandy]

Jean---How are you keeping hunger at bay being 100% paleo? I find I'm having to eat every 2-1/2 hours and yet am never satiated.

Sheila--I'm with you on not being crazy about protein. My WAG theory on why women get this disease more than men is that I believe that over the decades women eat more grains as a percent of body weight than men do. Men can polish of a large steak with gusto but women--at least me--not so much. How is the weight holding up? I'm maintaining at 137 5'7" and have pretty much been that since January. Realistically I've been 100% paleo twice per week and then probably have 2 servings grains/sweet potatoes on the other days mostly due to hunger. In book 2 Cordain seems to be okay with sweet potatos but I'm not in compliance with rice on the days I have it. Dinner tonight was salmon (large portion) topped with olive oil and rapini pesto. A memorable dinner was pulled pork (2 portions) with a small side salad of butter lettuce and 2 yellow tomatoes chopped small drizzled with olive oil and small squeeze lemon. This was memorable because I ate it in the car on the way to the movies and I could see the boyfriend looking longingly at my pulled pork. I doubled up on my pork portions as the movie/buttered popcorn is tough for me to resist. Sheila how are things going overall?

Tex-- I really like the water/snacks in the backpack idea.

Brandy

[JFR]

Jean---How are you keeping hunger at bay being 100% paleo? I find I'm having to eat every 2-1/2 hours and yet am never satiated.


Brandy

Brandy,

I happen to like meat and I eat about 4 ounces with each meal, mostly high quality ground meats (lamb, turkey, pork). Also I put coconut oil or olive oil on all my well cooked veggies. Plus I eat a little nut butter. I have been doing this paleo thing for many years, except that I used to eat dairy although just cheese and homemade yogurt. so not strictly paleo I guess. For me carbs trigger hunger. Any time I have decided to add back some carbs like rice I would find myself binging on them out of hunger. It is only by keeping my carb count very low that I can control my hunger. You can't be low carb, low fat and low protein. That's called starvation. MC makes everything harder because there are so many foods that have to be restricted. My diet may have a higher fat content then some people may be able to tolerate but it works for me. I am not a thin person, once was a fat person, but paleo solved that problem. Adding carbs back in would cause my weight to increase, so unlike most people here I am not struggling to maintain enough weight. My concern goes in the opposite direction, although not when everything I eat goes straight through me. The paleo diet seems to be a perfect fit for me.

Jean

[Sheila]

Brandy, I'm doing the paleo sort of the way you are. The first 6 days I lost 3 lbs. and was hungry, longing for "something", probably sugar. ;-) I am 5'5" and 124 lbs and I can't afford to lose 2-3 lbs a week. Once I hit 120-121, I start looking emaciated. I did at least 3 days totally paleo and wasn't especially hungry but I sure wasn't happy.

I added rice for one meal and put some quinoa in chicken/leek soup. Risotto is something I love and I can add veggies and shrimp to it and be really, really happy. Pulled pork is a favorite of mine too but how the heck do you eat it without either a bun or rice? I have never had a big appetite and I can't eat enough meat, veggies and fruit to maintain my weight. I just can't eat meat for 3 meals every day, it becomes repellent and I can't stomach any more of it. On the plus side, I am feeling better, even though I added the rice and some quinoa. I'm keeping a journal of everything I eat and now have strong suspicions about which foods were the ones making me sick. Too much sugar from those sinful brownies were a culprit for sure. I cut out wine and stopped taking Celebrex.

You are probably right about women and grains. It isn't a satisfying meal to me without bread, pasta, white potatoes and/or a sauce or gravy. I was on my way to almost eliminating meat from most meals or making it a small part of a meal when I got the MC. I will stick with a modified paleo diet because I'm feeling better and have a lot less gas, thank God.

Thanks for letting me know how you are doing with the paleo and what you are eating. I know we all have different food issues but tips from someone else doing the diet is helpful. I'm going to try the slow weight training and went to the gym yesterday to use the treadmill. Once my life gets back to normal and I can get on a regular schedule, it will be easier to do this.

MRT testing is next.

Sheila W

[Deanna in CO]

Sheila,

If you don't care for meat and you want to limit carbs, you have to increase your fats in order to maintain weight. Avocados (one of my favorites); coconut; specialty oils such as coconut, olive, walnut, and sesame; nuts and nut butters - anything that has a good amount of fats you can tolerate. And make your meats count by eating some that are higher in fat; uncured bacon has been a lifesaver for me as I only need two slices to get lots of calories.

Also, you might try signing up for MyFitnessPal.com or some other calorie-tracking website or app. It was very helpful for me to actually see how many calories I was getting each day, so I'd know how much more I needed. I am beginning to gain a bit now, and will have to cut my fats and/or carbs back some when I get to my goal weight again - it's kind of amazing to think about, but since I'm tracking it, I'll be able to tell what I have and what I need.

Best wishes,

Deanna

[Sheila]

Thanks, Deanna.

Back in simpler times, I knew the calorie count of the foods I ate. These days it is a lot harder. I will definitely go to a calorie counting site to help manage my diet. I like avocados and don't eat them much because they are so high calorie, I don't even think of buying them. I've been eating a fair amount of sausage and bacon but I guess just not enough to make a difference.

Years ago I went on the "Air Force diet" to lose weight after I quit smoking. It was very similar to the Atkins diet, very high protein and high fat. You were supposed to measure the ketones you excreted in your urine. I was really excreting ketones and was so exhausted I couldn't get off the couch. Not only that, I didn't lose a pound. I finally gave up on it and went back to calorie counting, so I am really leary of diets that are high protein and high fat.

Knowing how many calories I'm eating will make it simpler to manage this paleo diet. Thanks so much for telling me about the website. I will be careful not to go overboard with fats because I know the combination of high protein and high fat is really bad for me.

I just love you guys!! Thanks.

Sheila W

[Lesley]

Gloria, it's called theraband.

I do resistance in the pool by using equipment that adds it in the water. It's amazing how much it adds.

Remind me which are the best paleo books please.

[Sheila]

The only books I've read are by Loren Cordain. They will teach you the basics. Then read the experiences of people here about how they are using the paleo diet by adapting it to their needs.

I went to Barnes and Noble and looked at both Body for Life and The 10-Minute books. I got Body for Life because the other is so dependent on using machines found only in a gym. I think the weight lifting can be adapted to a slower movement and I liked the author's approach to older women. For a person who loves working out at the gym, the other book would be great.

Sheila W

[brandy]

Hi Jean,

Thanks for the tip on nut butter. I have 3 jars in the house but forget to eat it so I moved one jar to the front of the fridge. I think tonight after dinner I'll cut up and apple and smooth nut butter on it. I'm missing the "crunch."

Sheila, I put the pulled pork on my plate and 2 or 3 servings of veggies. It is pretty colorful.

Deanna, I don't think I've ever eaten an avacado so I'm going to have to try some. The funny thing about this disease is that I've actually tried a lot of new foods that I've never had before.

I bought frozen shrimp from Publix thinking it would be easier to manage and a better value but I think that the fresh Gulf shrimp from my seafood store is the better value. I pound of fresh shrimp seems to be about 25 % larger than a pound of the frozen shrimp. I think with the frozen I was paying for frozen water.

What are you all eating? I'm cooking a crock pot of chicken soup then I think I'll pick up 2-1/2 pounds of shrimp for the weekend. A pound seemed like a snack particularly the frozen version which was a lot of water.

Brandy

[Deb]

Brandy, if you can tolerate it, Trader Joes has an almond butter with flax seeds that is divine on apples.

As I child, I despised avocado. Now I love them so it might be kind of an acquired taste.

We go to Alabama in the winter and the local seafood there is always a better value than I can buy at Public. I brought back 45 lbs. this year. Yum! I used to think that "fresh" was the way to go but most places these days seem to thaw the shrimp out and make you think you're getting fresh. Most shrimp boats (at least in our area) flash freeze them on the boat. Deb

[Sheila]

Hey Brandi,
I didn't eat avocado much in the past because it is pretty high calorie. Since I want to stop losing weight while on the paleo diet I've added avocado and rice. I put avocado in chicken salad along with apple, almond and onion. My stepson made a snapper filet for me with a passionfruit beurre blanc with mango and avocado on the side. I could have died and gone to heaven after eating it. That "kid" can cook.

Yesterday I tried making my own kielbasa and it tasted okay but nothing like commercial keilbasa. I'll have it for breakfast but won't make it again. I also made a big pot of chicken soup with carrots, onions and rice. I like to make it so thick a spoon can stand up in it. After defrosting I just add a little more chicken broth.

I am so happy!! After stopping Celebrex the last time I was in so much pain, I went back on it after 10 days. I stopped taking it again a week ago and noticed that the pain isn't nearly as bad. Apparently removing nightshades from my diet made all the difference. I will not go back to eating two of my favorite foods, potatoes and tomatoes, because I feel so much better. I've had Normans for the past 3 days without having to go 5-6 times in the a.m. Even was C one day. Hallelujah!!! I'm going to be very careful about adding foods back into my diet. I'm feeling so well I think I just cruise with what I'm eating right now for another week before adding anything. I wish I had done this sooner but I just didn't want to give up the foods I love. I guess I had to get to the point of feeling so lousy, anything that works is okay.

Sheila W