Dear Reader,
I have been thinking a lot about weight and arthritis, about weight loss and how challenging it is to begin and maintain a healthier relationship to food. In my last post, I talked about the study that found our hypothalamus may be running the show. If this regulating organ has been damaged by a long term diet of too rich food, is it possible to ever heal it and establish a new normal for ourselves?
Perhaps you saw this article in the New York Times on January 1, written by Tana Parker Pope. I recommend it to you. She has struggled with extra weight for years and takes heart and hope from the understanding she has about the hypothalamus and the possibility of actually changing its messaging system.
I am going to leave you with this long article from the NYTimes. I would love to hear your reaction to it. Please share.
Are you engaging in any winter sport? I enjoyed my first day on cross country skis this past Wednesday and managed a pain free day with 2 Aleve at breakfast. Thursday morning wasn’t bad either, maybe because I took a protein sports recovery drink with me and drank it on the bus coming home and again before bed. The one I use is called Physique and is made by Shaklee. It repairs torn muscle with the proteins, vitamins and minerals in it. Thursday night I could feel a stiffening up and did some of my Pilates floor exercises before hottub and bed and this morning did a big routine of Feldenkrais, Pilates, weight lifting and other stretching and then took a long walk including a stair case with 190 treads. All this helped keep me from arthritis pain.
What is your routine after a work out? BTW when you climb stairs try walking up sideways, facing the railing, right shoulder toward to top. Lift the left leg and place it on the step above crossing the right. Then, weight on the left foot, step up with the right still facing the railing. Next step with the left foot, swing it behind and up. You are going up the stairs with the left foot traveling in front and then in back and then in front. Then turn to face the left shoulder to the top and do the weave with the right leg. This strengthens the sides of the knees. We girls hurt our knees by always walking straight up the stairs because we are just slightly (sometimes more than slightly) knock kneed. This stair climbing (and descending) greatly strengthens the muscles and tendons along the sides. Do this slowly, planting your foot solidly and lifting with the thigh engaged instead of heaving the body up with the shoulders. Make the legs and side knees work for you. I may have described this in an earlier blog when I was talking about my training program for climbing Mt. Shasta. If you try this, let me know how it goes.
Good luck and keep moving.
Betsy
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