Beethoven and Me

Happy April 1st

No Fooling!

They were playing Beethoven's #7 Symphony this morning, and I had to get out the vacuum cleaner and hit the floors. I had it on in every room while I went about with the noisy contraption, but in between was able to hear one of the most energetic pieces (once it gets into the later movements it's like a horse galloping), he's ever written, and it does get me jazzed up, and I tend to get the cleaning tools out! Anything that gets your heart rate up is good for you, so you should try and do something as simple as cleaning, and walking.

I've been working out with the help of Danette May, and I think I've mentioned her. I am serious about this. I've gotten to the point where at my age I'd better do something, or I'm going to look like all these fat old women leaning on their shopping carts, who have no energy, not to mention wobbly on their legs because they've got a hanging gut and every other thing going on. I was always energetic when younger. In fact I was under weight in school, until I hit my 20's and began using birth control--and I don't care what doctor denies it, your metabolism is messed with. I never gained a lot of weight before that. and then came menopause, which really screws with a woman's body.

I was working with yoga, but it wasn't giving me the results. I also had to get serious about not eating certain foods. Danette May is also a nutritionist, and I find her ideas interesting, but some of the foods are expensive. Things like Kefir, raw cacao, and coconut oil. But there are things I'm doing now that are showing me results, which are the exercises. I knew I wouldn't see my weight come down over night. But I did take my measurements when I began 2 weeks ago this past Wednesday. I remeasured and found I'd lost 2" around the bust, 1" at the hips, and about a 1/4" at the waist--which is where that naughty fat his hiding.

The workouts aren't difficult, if you're in shape. I'm not. Not starting out, and not now. I knew last summer when I couldn't work very long in the garden without taking a breather I was needing help. So, when I discovered this lady, I was inclined to try, she's not one of those trainers with bulging biceps, and one of those drill Sergeant voices. She's cute, and small and someone I feel I could hang out with. She explains how to do the movements, and even comes back in other videos to make sure you understand exactly what sort of movement you need to do in order to do it correctly.

Starting out two weeks ago, I couldn't even do more than 5 of the 20 reps she wanted. But I'm now up to 10 reps on the most difficult ones. I'm seeing results, and that boosts me further. I'm seeing myself 6 months down the road becoming the thinner, stronger and healthier person I once was. The core muscles are the key, and doing the plank move is part of some of her floor exercises, which I'm getting down little by little.

And let me just touch on probiotics here just a little bit. My husband and I thought he had a problem with gluten. But seemed other foods were giving him problems after he ate, like salads. I kept on thinking he must have IBS. Then there was talk about the "angry gut" and probiotics. So, we talked to our resident nutritionalist at our store and she recommended the probiotic pills in their health area. Dennis has been taking these for 2 weeks and is seeing results in that area. By golly he can eat bread again! Not have to buy that expensive gluten-free bread ($6/loaf). Since he still has problems with milk products, he can't really eat Greek yogurt, which as probiotics in it. However, and this is the interesting part, if you think by eating Greek yogurt you're getting enough probiotics, then you need to read this, which I took from Danette's blog:

Kefir grown from kefir grains has between 30 and 50 different strains and approximately 5 billion cfu (colony forming units) per gram.

Kefir from the store is a probiotic drink made from a mix of 4-10 strains of bacteria and yeast and is approximately 2-3 billion cfu per gram. This usually isn’t true kefir grown from grains.

Greek Yogurt is a single strain and is approximately 1-2 billion cfu per gram.

We were walking around the store with our nutritionalist, and she let me try a small bottle of Kefir. It does have an odd taste you have to get past because it's fermented milk. That's exactly what yogurt is, if you've ever made your own yogurt, it sits out fermenting on your counter over night, and like magic, you've got a bowl of yogurt the next morning. I know you can make kefir as well, but I'm not about to go get the cultures for that. 

I can say that my husband is no longer having trouble in that area, after taking the probiotics after 2 weeks. An angry gut is one that isn't getting these probiotics in the large intestines, where things need to work right. If you are experiencing any of these problems, you might try eating plain Greek yogurt, or taking probiotic in pill form. It might surprise you how something so simple could make your life better.

Okay, I'm off to a meeting at my job, and believe me, if I wasn't paid for it, I wouldn't go.