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Greta

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Everything posted by Greta

  1. I'm not familiar with the WHO guidelines or how they derived them, so I'm certainly not saying they're politically motivated. And I definitely don't mean to sound like some anti-government conspiracy theorist type (believe me, I'm really not!). But I do think this is one area where the US government has failed the public. That's an interesting question about habituation. I don't honestly know how much that could be a factor. In my childhood, both protein and sugar were plentiful, and sugar was consumed to excess for sure! I have no doubt that the sugar played a HUGE role in my developing hypoglycemia and insulin resistance. It's certainly possible that without the sugar, I wouldn't have developed those problems, even with a low-protein diet. But now that I have those problems, I'm extremely grateful that I live in a situation where protein is widely available, because it (along with fat) is vital for keeping my blood sugar steady. Well, I'm just rambling now, aren't I? Anyway, that was an interesting question, to which I do not have an answer. :)
  2. I think it's because your body initiates a whole cascading chain of responses, including releasing insulin, as soon as you start eating.
  3. From http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/index.php Because it is post-meal blood sugars that most greatly stress your beta cells, the best time to test your blood sugar is the time, after eating, when blood sugars are the highest. For most people this will be somewhere between 1 hour and 90 minutes after they begin to eat their meal. Target numbers explained here: http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/16422495.php
  4. I can barely speak more than two words pre-coffee! (And there's no guarantee that even those two words will make sense!)
  5. It sounds excellent to me! I'm not diabetic (reactive hypoglycemic and insulin resistant, but not diabetic) and even after five years of low-carb, my fasting numbers rarely drop below 90. But my post-prandial numbers never get over 110 now, and they used to go as high as 160, sometimes even 180. So that's pretty good progress, as far as I'm concerned. I don't worry about my fasting numbers so much.
  6. I think Laura meant that the protein recommendation is higher than the standard food pyramid type guidelines - though I could be completely wrong. If that's what you meant, Laura, then I can say that I've found that for me personally, the US guidelines for protein intake are nowhere near enough for me to maintain any kind of functional muscle strength or endurance! The US guidelines are a joke. They are not based on science, but on politics, and they are not even an attempt at optimal but merely the minimum amount needed to avoid nutritional deficiencies. LCHF is not a high-protein diet. But it is higher than the USDA guidelines. (Are the UK's guidelines similar?) And that's part of why I like it! :D
  7. Yes, post-prandial numbers respond to low-carb very quickly. Fasting numbers usually take longer. But that's okay. Organ damage starts at 140, so if you are keeping your blood sugar below 140, you're doing great!
  8. Excellent point! Even if I can't run the entire distance, that's really no reason not to do it. If anyone else wants to look up races for you area, this is where I found it: http://www.active.com
  9. Has this webpage already been mentioned? http://www.phlaunt.com/diabetes/14045621.php
  10. So, is anyone else thinking about signing up for a 5k this fall to really formalize the commitment? Or would that be crazy? Crazy, right? I found out that there's one here in my city on Oct 4 on TRAILS rather than streets. So I'm tempted! Is that nuts? I mean, I was able to do day 1 of week 1 today, but it was hard. And that's only the first of many, MANY days! I know my current enthusiasm won't last. So is this a "strike while the iron is hot" situation? Or is this more of a "she's still on a runner's high and not thinking clearly" situation?
  11. A bench is a nice thing to have on hand, if you have the room to devote to it. Especially the kind that you can either lay flat or incline. Free weights or dumbbells are fine for most of what you will want to do. Then again, I've never owned a barbell so maybe it's better than I realize! Check local garage sales or Craig's List if you want to find some cheaper equipment. There's usually somebody out there who bought something for their New Year's Resolution and then didn't really use or enjoy it. We've gotten some good buys that way.
  12. Catwoman said what I was thinking, only better than I said it. :) (Edited - what is WRONG with my grammar and spelling today??)
  13. I use this: http://sprigs.com/banjees/sport-mesh-banjees/ It fits my phone and my keys. ETA: I just carry my phone for emergencies - it's not a smartphone and I'm not using it for my music or any apps. So if you are wanting to use earbuds or headphones with it, that might not work. The cord would be in the way. Sorry, should have thought of that before I posted.
  14. I do weights, and I've been doing run/walk/runs for awhile now, though just today I officially started the couch to 5K program. I don't seem to have much consistency or symmetry with my flexibility. What I mean is, some joints are very flexible while others are very tight. For example, my hip abductor muscles are super flexible, while my hip adductors are super tight. My knees are so flexible that when I'm just standing in what is for me an ordinary position, they are in a position that most people couldn't even get their knees into if they tried. But the muscles of my neck and shoulders always seem to be uncomfortably tight. I'm a mess! :D
  15. That is a really great point, Diana. Thank you.
  16. I appreciate the encouragement! :) The first time I did the squats with zero weight, I got sore! So thank you for the reminder that even 8 pounds is progress.
  17. I should clarify that it wasn't always with a strap. Sometimes you would just use another part of your body to force one part of your body beyond where it could move. Like in my example of stretching the hamstrings, maybe you would just grab your ankles or feet with your hands and pull. I took quite a lot of ashtanga yoga, and there were no straps or blocks at all, because you're just moving too fast to fiddle with them. But there was still a lot of using your hands and arms to pull yourself beyond your range of motion. In other yoga classes, though, people did use straps to pull. That makes sense! On the contrary, you gave me a lot to look into and think about! (Edited for stupid spelling.)
  18. I do have a foam roller but don't really know what to do with it! Haven't heard of the "melt method" so I will look into that. Don't really know what classical stretch is either, though the name certainly sounds like it should be obvious! :lol: Thanks! My gym offers: Hatha, Vinyasa, and Iyengar yoga. The descriptions on the website are not helpful at all in determining which would be best. Any suggestions as to which one I should try first? In any of those, would I be able to just do the motions as far as I can naturally, without lots of pushing/pulling? Of course I can go and actually talk to the instructors, but if anyone has a suggestion as to which class I should start with, that would be great.
  19. Advantages of having a hubby who loves and prioritizes exercise: a house full of exercise equipment (okay, there are some disadvantages with that) plus a gym membership. We're normally very frugal, but he doesn't mind spending money on anything exercise related! :) So, depending on my mood, sometimes I will do the workout here at home with our bench and our rack of free weights. Sometimes I will do it at the gym using their machines. Honestly, I'm not strong enough yet (yet!) to even lift the 40-pound barbell (without plates on it!) so at this point the free weights work great. I am really hoping to be able to lift that barbell someday! I started out doing the squats with body-weight only. I got up to the point where I was using 17.5 pound dumbells (so 35 pounds total). That was pretty close to the weight of that barbell! Then I got derailed when I started getting migraines 6 days a week, and I became sedentary for 5 or 6 months. Now I've finally found a treatment that seems to be working, so I'm down to only 1 or 2 days of migraines per week. But after being sedentary for that long, I'm basically starting over with my fitness. I'm using 8-pound dumbells this week. Kind of sad compared to the 17.5 that I had gotten up to. But better than the 0-pounds that I started with!
  20. Just to explain the background of my question a bit: years ago I got really into yoga. I mean, really into it. And I got super bendy. And I also was hurting all the time, with muscle cramps and aches and whatnot. I finally figured out that stretching should not be an extreme sport, so I quit and I felt better. I have no desire to ever be that flexible again, but now I'm starting to feel that I'm not flexible enough. I walk a little more stiffly than I used to, and 41 is too young to be shuffling around like an old lady! So, I tried an "Active Isolated Stretching" class last Tuesday at my gym. And my left shoulder and neck have been in agony ever since. :( I thought that since this was "dynamic" rather than "static" stretching it wouldn't hurt me. Apparently I was wrong. So I'm developing this theory that my body strongly objects to me stretching a muscle beyond the point where the opposing muscle can move it. Let me see if I can give an example of what I mean. If I reach down to touch my toes, I suspect that's probably fine. If I wrap a yoga strap around my feet and PULL myself down toward my toes, forcing the muscles to move beyond the point that they are actually capable of moving on their own, that's probably not so fine. It's just a theory. I would like to know what people who are knowledgeable about exercise think of my theory. And I would also like to know how to maintain/improve flexibility without stretching. Any ideas for me? Are there forms/types of yoga that don't have you *pulling* yourself into stretches, but just moving through your natural range of motion? Is there something besides yoga that I should consider? I tried Tai Chi a few times, but it didn't really seem to do much. Maybe I need to give it more of a chance?
  21. It turns out, if you google "how to make fermented sauerkraut" you will get tons of tutorials and information! Also, I should mention that I think you can make it without the whey, but you have to use more salt, and I think it runs a slightly higher risk of going bad. I always used whey, so can't really comment much on the salt-only method.
  22. I believe you even though what you're saying is completely contrary to my experience (don't remember seeing anyone wear them prior to 2000, then early 2000's the stores here were full of them!) because I have the honor of living in one of the ten *least* fashionable cities in the US (http://www.movoto.com/blog/top-ten/worst-dressed/). So my guess is that in 2000, when you say they disappeared, it's because they all got shipped here! Everybody else was sick of them, and Albuquerque was just learning that they exist. :lol:
  23. Good question, and I think everyone's answers will vary. For me personally, I've noticed from much trial and error that I need to exercise 5 or 6 days per week to make progress and to feel my best. So I am going to do weights at least two and maybe three of the other days each week. I'm doing this program: http://stronglifts.com/5x5/ I would love to hear what others are doing!
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