Food for thought: July 2021

~ Chocolaterunsjudy

To keep the body in good health is a duty . . . otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.
— Buddha

I see it all the time: people saying eat what you want because if you don’t you’re going to regret that you didn’t enjoy yourself. I’m not trying to tell anyone how to live their lives, but I know that if I ate what I wanted, it would look something like this: chocolate, cookies, grilled cheese, french toast, brownies, croissants . . .

Do I eat these things? Of course I do. Sometimes. One thing I’ve gotten very clear on, watching my parents age — I don’t want to age like that. There are many things out of our control, but eating is generally not one of them.

The above quote from Buddha really spoke to me. Then there’s Hippocrates: let food be thy medicine.

Just food for thought, is all

Getting in scheduled runs
I had been thinking of taking a week off running when we went on our hiking vacation — because I’d be hiking for a few days, not that I planned any crazy difficult hikes. The vacation didn’t happen, but I did end up taking the week off of running anyway, due to my mom’s fall and subsequent surgery. My Achilles liked that anyway. I will be going back and forth a lot for I don’t know how long, so I’ll be happy with whatever I can get in.

Grade Earned:  A for Effort

Recording my runs
I have veered off course here again . . . seriously, I need to start using my planner again because it helps me to keep focused. It’s a broken record, folks!

Grade Earned: C

Dynamic Warmup
I have a really short dynamic warmup. I’m pretty religious about doing it, too.

Grade Earned: A

Foam Rolling
I take some of my balls with me to my sister’s. There may have been a day here and there where it didn’t get done due to time, but overall I know it makes my body feel good so I just do it.

Grade Earned: A

Sometimes you do need a treat. Enjoy every bite & I sure did! It’s nice to share though (most of the time).

Nutrition
Still struggling with what will help me take off a few pounds. I have tried to limit frozen foods (too high in sodium), and try to make most of my own meals. On the other hand, there have been a lot of days while in the hospital (no cafeteria, no car) or rehab (car, but still can’t eat inside and don’t want to spend $$ on restaurants) where my lunch was a protein bar and that’s about it. Sometimes the dinners weren’t great either, but again, mostly out of my control. I do bring healthy food with me, but I’m just using an insulated backpack so space is limited.

Grade Earned: B+ (for trying)

Not as much hiking as we’d planned; Mr. Judy might be happy about that!

Cross Training
Yoga, a couple of hikes, walking around rehab & hospital, lots of Pahla B (see her YouTube Channel here — my savior!), a bit of swimming when I can.

Grade Earned: A+ again for effort

July 2021  gets  . . . 
. . . an A. Life definitely handed me lemons and I did my best to juggle them.

July Goals:

  • Shorter/Recovery runs after harder runs. Y/N. Sometimes yes, sometimes no. It just depends what’s going on with my week. Or sometimes if my treadmill is running . . . 
  • ST 3 x week. Y/N.  I did the best I could. Luckily my niece keeps a set of weights at my sister’s, because I wasn’t about to drag mine (a multi-weight set) down. I always packed resistance bands, too.
  • A project with a friend. Y/N. We got started but haven’t been able to meet up for follow ups yet.
  • A few Yoga teaching opportunities. Y/N. I still haven’t met with the person who won the free Yoga class — it’s done, but again, it’s a time thing — she’s been incredibly patient, thankfully. Unfortunately I was not able to teach the other class I’d volunteered for.
  • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up.. Y. Weight is somewhat steady, but it needs to go down. I keep playing around with things, trying to figure out what I need to do.

Which leads me to August Goals:

  • Run 3 x week. Some weeks it may not happen. I can run at my sister’s — I have in the past — but right now I just haven’t been feeling it. I do other exercise in the morning  when I’m there.
  • ST 2 x week. I may be able to get in 3 x week sometimes. Better to aim low right now.
  • A project with a friend. I would like to meet with her at least once in August, but I realize it just might not happen right now.
  • A no guilt getaway. I hope, anyway. We have plans to go see some friends in ME at the end of August. Originally I thought we’d stay over somewhere going and coming, but now I’m leaning towards shortening it just a bit — I guess it depends on what sort of progress my mom has made by then. I’m also not quite sure about this as my mom might be going home around that time.
  • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. It’s always a goal, of course. I’ve just been at a plateau at a higher weight than I’d like. I want to continue to try to limit frozen foods (when possible) and maybe it’s time to downsize some portions, too, while I’m not running as much.

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Linking up with Zenaida Arroyo and Kim @ Kookyrunner

This week I am also joining up with the new Runners’ Roundup linkup.

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22 thoughts on “Food for thought: July 2021”

  1. A great July, Judy, despite all the challenges!
    I hope you can do that getaway at the end of this month.

    I like that Buddha quote. And I agree with you, it’s so important to be mindful of what we eat. Just yesterday, a German blogger wrote about the importance of fermented food (probiotics) for good gut health. I hardly ever eat anything fermented (save my Kombucha drink). That is something I will have to change.

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    1. It’s interesting, in Ayurveda, which I try to loosely follow, for some Doshas (constitutions, for want of a better word) — fermented food isn’t a good thing.

      I do like my Yogurt, though — especially in the warmer weather!

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  2. The older I get the more I realize how important our diet is. Like you said, it’s one thing in our lives we can actually control. I’ve seen so many former high school classmates not age well at all because of poor diet and lack of exercise. We’re at the age where things like heart disease are starting to pop up, not to mention so many other aging-related conditions. I also believe that you shouldn’t completely deny yourself of all sweets or whatever it is you crave but just do it in moderation.

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  3. I wish it were all diet and exercise. But unfortunately it’s genetics. My friends were died were thin and active.

    That being said, keeping your mind and body active is what I try to do. Work reading puzzles mah jongg for the mind and running walking and hiking for the body. Of course we can always do more.

    I do eat what I want. Mostly good but desserts are a staple in my meals. And I try to eat a bigger lunch and light dinner with no snacking in between meals. So far good.

    Considering everything you had a good July. Hope you do get that August get away.

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    1. Thin doesn’t always mean a good diet — it can actually mean good genetics. There isn’t really any one thing you can usually point to — although I had two uncles who basically smoked themselves to death. 😦

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  4. You had a great July, especially with the amount of stress you endured this month. I will keep my fingers crossed that you can enjoy a getaway in August. It would be good for you to have some down time to decompress.

    My nutrition continues to be a work in progress, although I somehow lost 3pounds last month. I think I attribute that to doing more strength training vs. cardio workouts.

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    1. Usually when you start focusing more on weights, initially you gain weight due to more muscle, so don’t downplay a 3 lb loss! That’s great, Kim. Congrats!

      I know that’s not why you’re lifting more, but I also know it’s a nice side benefit. 🙂

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  5. You certainly deserve that A for all your efforts last month. We only can do for ourselves what our time allows (or something like that LOL), and you juggled your lemons with grace 😉 Continued prayers to you and your family ❤

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  6. I’ve got exercise covered for now, but my diet could definitely use some work! But it’s a hard balance because good food in my opinion is part of the joy of life..But your point about your parents is very true, especially as we become less active with age and diet becomes so much more important. It sounds like you have some reasonable goals to take some steps to help with this!

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    1. Well, eating well is always a balancing act — but it does get harder as you get older. Until you get REALLY old, and often then you don’t want to eat (unless you were my father, who would eat pretty much anything).

      It’s all part of life, though, so you just have to learn to juggle. 🙂

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  7. Even eating really healthy, I’m getting thick around the middle again. That lack of exercise is not good for my waistline. Hoping to remedy that as I start to feel better. My parents eat so much crap–I don’t know how they stay thin!

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  8. Great job this month! I try to balance enjoying what I eat while focusing on nutritious foods. Some days are better than others, but when I don’t eat well (too much junk) I feel the difference, and then just want to eat better.

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  9. Yes you definitely deserve an A for July! And nice job with the lemons 🙂
    Why is eating well so hard? If I ate what I wanted it would be sugar, sugar and more sugar. When I cut out sugar all I want is salt. Oh well… it’s a work in progress.

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  10. You definitely had lots of challenges this month that were out of your control. Great job at making the best of a tough situation. I sure hope you get that stress free vacation this month. re the eating: I tell my clients that you can eat whatever you want just not all in one day. It’s like putting pieces of a puzzle together to make it work for you.

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  11. July was a stressful month but you did the best you could and that is OK. Eating healthy is always a struggle. Throw in the lack of time and stress and well it isn’t good turnout. Hopefully next month is better!

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