Just rambling about the meaning and power we give to words

Friday, June 18, 2010

It occurred to me the other day that I was falling into a rut in terms of eating. I'm eating well, it's mostly very healthy, it works for me, but there isn't a lot of variety. There are a number of reasons for this, but that's not the point. I was thinking that I ought to incorporate a little more variety in my diet.

Wait, isn't that a four letter word around here?

I've seen folks get blasted for using that word here, but I don't think of it as a restrictive word. To me, it simply means what I'm eating. My diet is what I'm eating, end of story. But I understand that the word diet can conjure up horrible feelings at times. So I decided to check it out online, and the first entry I found was from thefreedictionary.

di·et 1 (dt)
n.
1. The usual food and drink of a person or animal. (All right, I'm on the same page!)
2. A regulated selection of foods, as for medical reasons or cosmetic weight loss. (this is where we start to get the negative vibes.)
3. Something used, enjoyed, or provided regularly: subsisted on a diet of detective novels during his vacation. (This is wonderful!)

Now when you get to the use of the word as an adjective, you really get to the negatives:
1. Of or relating to a food regimen designed to promote weight loss in a person or an animal: the diet industry.
2.
a. Having fewer calories.
b. Sweetened with a noncaloric sugar substitute.
3. Designed to reduce or suppress the appetite: diet pills; diet drugs.
Same thing when you use the word as a verb!

[Middle English diete, from Old French, from Latin diaeta, way of living, diet, from Greek diaita, back-formation from diaitsthai, to live one's life, middle voice of diaitn, to treat.] Ah yes, the lifestyle......

So if you think of it as a way of living, a way to live one's life, I'm of a mind that diet should absolutely be "something used, enjoyed, and provided regularly". I love food, I really do. And I've always preferred quality over quantity. That helps. I don't eat anything I don't like just because it will help me maintain my weight. But as I was writing down what I was eating for others to see, it occurred to me that my diet must look very monotonous. And yet it works for me.

What works for you? Do you find yourself eating pretty much the same thing day after day, or do you thrive on mixing it up?

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Animal husbandry

Wednesday, June 16, 2010

That's what my daughter is doing at school this week, which means she needs to be there at 4:30 am for seven straight days. Then she gets a week off, and does it again for seven days.

Now mind you, this is the daughter who totaled the car and is without transportation other than her parents. And dad, who does nothing (I'm not sure what he's surviving on), would prefer not to get up that early. To give the devil his due, he did take her shopping yesterday for "grab and eat" food since she claims she won't have time to cook for the duration.

So yes, it falls to me to get her there on time. I've always said I'm a morning person, but this is ridiculous. But I set the alarm for 3:40, and raced around getting ready. Of course I forgot MY lunch at home, although I did take the time to pack it.

Now I COULD go into the office at 5 am, but that smacks of desperation. So the fitness center seemed a better alternative. There I sat at 4:45 am, waiting for the place to open. Once I got in, I decided the treadmill was the thing to do. I planned to walk for 45 minutes, since I'm not supposed to run until tomorrow. I've been good about listening to the doctor, really good. He did tell me I wouldn't do any damage if I ran before Thursday, but I might really hurt. Well, I'm glad to say I don't hurt, at least my head doesn't. The hips are a little arthritic at times, but once I walked it out, felt OK. It really felt good to pick up the pace a bit, although it took me the usual ten minutes to warm up.

A quick shower in the locker room, and I still managed to get to work by 6:30 am. That doesn't sound quite so 'I don't have a life' desperate.

It will be interesting to see how I feel later on very little sleep and early AM exercise. If I can balance the sleep equation, I may come to enjoy exercising first thing in the morning, once I get my daughter her own transportation. Let's face it, while the treadmill isn't a lot of fun, at least it isn't 90 degrees in there....

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To be or not to be....

Friday, June 11, 2010

...compliant?

I'm not supposed to exercise for two weeks. It's driving me crazy.

I got the doctor to agree to letting me walk 'gently', but of course the day I planned to walk I was in too much pain to do so.

Tomorrow is my Galloway run, and I won't be there. I want to scream, but I'm too scared to be defiant. My scalp is swollen enough as it is, I don't want to find out what would happen if I try to run.

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.......................
...........................

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Quick update

Tuesday, June 08, 2010

I got through the 11 mile long run on Saturday, but not feeling quite as triumphant as I'd like. I developed pain in my left calf with 4 miles to go, and my right hip started hurting as well - arthritis. I made it through, and without the calf pain I know I could have gone further. That knowledge is comforting, even though it was a rough run. I suspect I was dehydrated, and that's what contributed to the pain. And I developed my first running blister!

The surgery went well yesterday, but it took two passes at it to get it all. Overall the surgery took four hours. When I winced during the second procedure the doctor asked if I'd been a blonde as a baby. Well, my mother had put me down as a blonde on my first passport, but I'd always thought it was just wishful thinking on her part (let's face it, I had no hair!) I asked the doctor why he asked. It turns out that blonds and redheads are more difficult to numb and anesthetize - he told me that when he goes to the dentist, it always takes more to get him to a state where he feels no pain. As he was doing the reconstruction part, I must have winced again because he said 'yes, you were definitely blond as a baby!'

I'm very relieved to be 100% 'clean', as he put it. I had a rough night last night, well, a rough afternoon as well, once the topical anesthetic wore off. Thank goodness for the drugs he prescribed.

As far as my negotiation about exercise, he said I could walk slowly by Wednesday evening if I felt up to it. The jury is still out on that, but it's only Tuesday morning, so there's some hope I'll want to walk tomorrow. And I can't quite envision wanting to run until these staples are out.

As he was yanking my scalp closed, suturing the layers below and stapling the skin on the surface, it felt as I imagined a face lift might feel, everything suddenly feeling much tighter. I've never been interested in having a face lift before, but now it's definitely 'no thanks!'

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This and that

Friday, June 04, 2010

I know it's been a while since I've blogged - I guess there just hasn't been anything monumental, or maybe I'm distracted.

I spent last weekend at a dance camp - my usual Memorial Day Weekend occupation. The weather in Malibu was glorious, and strategically placed naps enabled me to survive the nights of dancing from nine pm to dawn. I thoroughly enjoyed being incommunicado: no cell phone, no Blackberry, nada! Being stuck in a canyon in Malibu has its advantages.

I've continued physical therapy for my neck pain, but switched from the chiropractor's staff to the orthopedist's staff. Yes, it's made a tremendous difference, and I'm experiencing a lessening of pain. I haven't had to stop running, either.

That on the other hand is going to change: the procedure for my scalp problem is on Monday, and I've been told to lay off exercise for two weeks. I'm going to try to negotiate. I know I'm not going to want to do anything for a couple of days, but I'm hoping he'll let me walk instead of running for the remainder of the two weeks. I have to get my miles in!

Tomorrow is the 11 mile long run. I'm just amazed that I can even write that calmly, when I remember the trauma of trying to run 1 mile in January. Persistence and fortitude! I've been focused on noticing how the dancing stamina might help me with the running, but this past weekend I realized that the running has helped with the dancing. My endurance and stamina are much greater now.

I've been lax in my eating; some chocolate has crept back in, and perhaps a little too much wine and cheese. It's time to revisit things, although I have to say that I've done a great job of eating adequate amounts of protein. I dread weighing myself, but guess it's time to do so. I've been going by my clothing which fits just fine, but I have noticed it's not quite so large at the moment. I'm not going to focus on the weight so much, but I will cut back on the extra treats. A little more moderation is in order, particularly since I'm doing a whirlwind trip with a client later in the month: London and New York in two days! There's sure to be good food.

Then at the end of the month I'm off to pick up my mom's car and to pack up some of her belongings. It's also time to meet with the realtor in order to sell the house. I need to face it.

So that's what's going on. That, and a lot of stress from work, family, etc.... Such is life. All things considered, though, life is good.

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