De-Stress for Less

I apologize for sounding like a broken record, but it’s been a rough couple of days. It started on Saturday night, but didn't really didn't hit its peak until early (too early) on Sunday morning.  I mentioned that I had been to the chiropractor for an adjustment on Friday, but I probably didn't mention that I felt worse afterwards.  After STIM (electrical muscle stimulation) and the adjustment, I really had some trouble breathing.  Seeing as that’s an essential activity, you can see the concern.

Don’t know what STIM is? Essentially, it is the elicitation of muscle contraction using electric impulses. The impulses are generated by a device and delivered through electrodes on the skin in direct proximity to the muscles to be stimulated mimicking the action potentials coming from the central nervous system, causing the muscles to contract. See, the trouble with my muscles is that they are always contracted, so contracting the muscles more and in new (not so fun) ways can be problematic.  This is what happened to me. All of the muscles in my chest and abdomen decided to stay contracted at once, which let me tell you is fun, fun, fun!

It started with the intercostal muscles. The intercostal muscles are several groups of muscles that run between the ribs, and help form and move the chest wall. The intercostal muscles are mainly involved in the mechanical aspect of breathing. These muscles help expand and shrink the size of the chest cavity when you breathe. Both the external and internal muscles are innervated by the intercostal nerves, which in my case are causing the trouble.

Next up was my diaphragm. Innervated by the phrenic nerve, the diaphragm also functions in breathing, so you can imagine my dilemma. The fun continues as the diaphragm participates in non-respiratory functions liking helping to expel vomit, feces, and urine from the body and by preventing acid reflux.

What can be done to relieve these issues? Not much actually. I guess I could have taken muscle relaxers, or some pain relievers, but medications just don’t work for me.  As such, I choose to do a stress cleanse to relax naturally.  I will share those tips with you now, so that you can see why I was away for a while.  

12. Unplug Your Tech Distractions

Detach from social media, blogs, and essentially all on-line activity for a full 24 hours; your friends, buddies, pins, whatever can wait one day. If the world ends, I’m sure your local news station will cover it.  Also disconnect your phone except for real person-to-person calls.  You can even set cellphone-free times where you put your phone away, or turn it completely off.  This tip can be really, really hard, but it can be totally worth the benefits.

13. Just Breathe

We all know that stress isn't just in your mind; it can take a toll on your body too. Focus on the key parts of the body (stomach, chest or shoulders) that are most affected by stress and adopt a relaxed breathing pattern. This breathing pattern helps to calm your nervous system almost immediately.  Start by breathing into your belly and inhale deeply. Breathe in.  Breathe out.  Repeat as necessary.  For your chest and shoulders, you can do roughly the same thing. Place your hands on your chest and inhale deeply. While your chest expands, keep your stomach flat.  Next, put your arms above your sternum and as you inhale, you’ll feel your shoulders go up and down. After a few minutes, the tension should dissipate. 

14. Aromatherapy

Combine rosemary and lime, lavender and orange, or whatever you like with water in a bowl or mug. Then, head to the shower or bath and place your concoction on a shelf near your head. The aromas along with the steam from the hot water will help you relax. Don’t have time for a nighttime shower or bath?  You can still enjoy the benefits of aromatherapy by putting the brew on the bedside table as you’re getting ready for bed, or put you mixture in a spray bottle to mist your sheets. Not a DIY person? Aromatherapies can be bought in most retail stores. 

Keep Calm and Eat At Home

Eleven down, 29 more to go! Today’s tip does involve food. At the beginning of the year, I started doing better with this particular tip, but lately I've failed at keeping this diet regime. The super busy and non-patient will probably relate.

11. Eat at home. Meals eaten away from home have an average of 134 more calories. More often than not, when we are in a hurry, we reach for convenience items like fast-food and take-away for our meal options. Not only does this aid in expanding our waistlines, but has the opposite effect on our wallets. Just this week, I ate out on Monday night (Burger King before my night chemistry lab), Wednesday afternoon (Chick-Fil-A after a late afternoon appointment), Thursday night (dinner at Chuy’s), Friday night (game night pot luck), and Saturday morning (breakfast at Cracker Barrel). Over all, I spent about $43.00 and when I weighed, I had gained 2 pounds. Now, that may not seem like much to some, but for strugglers like me in both weight loss and money gain, that is a bit too much!! The take home message—cooking/eating at home can not only save your waistline, but your budget bottom line.   

Exercise report: I was so sore yesterday after my adjustment that I didn't have a proper gym workout, but I did manage to burn lots of calories by laughing and playing broad games with some friends.  Today, I also choose an alternative form of exercise by volunteering to pack dry meal mixes with my church Connect group. We had a great time packing boxes for the NICE foundation (http://nicefoundation.org/) and Kids Against Hunger (http://www.kidsagainsthunger.net/). By the end of our shift, our group of 10 members had packed 16 boxes and in total, the volunteers packed over 5000 meal packages.  We had a great time for a good cause and we able to incorporate lots of fitness moves like squats, lifts, and Russian twists J

No Rest for the Weight-Loss Minded

Today’s tip is one that I struggle with the most. There are times I could sleep all day, then other times when I can’t sleep for days.  If you have similar issues, then this may be one factor that is halting your weight loss progress.

10. Sleep it off.  If you’re feeling sleepy at work, you may be tempted to reach for a cup of coffee and a doughnut for a quick shot of energy. Later you may skip the gym and pick up takeout on your way home as you are too tired to cook. When you finally find yourself back in your bed, you are too wound up to sleep. This is a vicious cycle.

Why is this you may ask? “When you have sleep deprivation and are running on low energy, you automatically go for a bag of potato chips or other comfort foods,” says Susan Zafarlotfi, PhD (clinical director of the Institute for Sleep and Wake Disorders at Hackensack University Medical Center in New Jersey).  These comfort action can ultimately result in unwanted pounds as poor food choices coupled with lack of exercise set the stage for obesity and further sleep loss.

But what exactly are we saying?  “It’s not so much that if you sleep, you will lose weight, but if you are sleep-deprived, meaning that you are not getting enough minutes of sleep or good quality sleep, your metabolism will not function properly,” explains Michael Breus, PhD (clinical director of the sleep division for Arrowhead Health in Glendale, Arizona). A grown adult needs about 7.5 hours of quality sleep per night. “If you are getting this already, another half hour will not help you lose 10 pounds, but if you are a five-hour sleeper and start to sleep for seven hours a night, you will start dropping weight.”

http://www.sixstepstosleep.com/sleep-and-weight-loss/

Can’t wind down after working all day? Here are some tips from the experts to start.

1. Avoid any caffeine in the afternoon because it will keep you in the lighter stages of sleep at night.

2.  Watch what you eat before bedtime—no heavy, rich meals before bed. 

3. Evaluate your sleeping patterns with a sleep specialist. If you think you may have a sleeping condition, ask an expert and take part in a sleep study. 

Fidget Gidget

If you are like me and can’t seem to sit still without moving your hands or legs, then today’s tip will be just right for you.

9. Fidget more.  Fidget is defined as the following:

1. To behave or move nervously or restlessly.

2. To play or fuss; fiddle

Studies show that fidgety types burn significantly more calories than their stationary peers. Researchers at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario, recruited a group of healthy but sedentary and overweight adult men and women and equipped them with a device that would record all of the steps they took over the course of a day, along with most of their other movements. What the researchers found was that the men and women averaged about five hours of movement of any kind during a typical day, and most of it was extremely light activity.

Only very rarely did any of the volunteers speed up enough to bump their incidental activity level into the moderate range. Current fitness guidelines advise us to do at least 30 minutes of moderate physical activity on most days of the week.  Not a single one of the volunteers met those guidelines, but those who moved the most did have significantly higher cardio-respiratory fitness than those who moved the least.  

Long story short--this study found some benefits from fidgeting and unplanned movement. Moreover, in a 2008 study, researchers tracked the daily movements of lean and obese women and found that the leaner group more frequently fidgeted, stood up and walked around.

Can’t meet the daily guidelines either? Then go ahead and fidget!

http://www.michaelhomnick.com/2011/05/15/fruitful-fidgeting/

Exercise report: Hit the weights and treadmill at the gym today for about 45 minutes. I plan on Sweatin’ again after lunch.  My goal is you do at least 2 hours of planned physical activity a day and hopefully accumulate some incidental activity as well J We shall see how that goes. 

Walk Like An Egyptian

This next tip has really helped me a lot, so I hope it will be helpful to you as well.

8. Walk two minutes out of every 30. Short walking breaks add up to weight loss. This is really good if you have a sedentary job like I do. I try to get up at least every 30 minutes for a short walk, a quick stretch, or a few jumping jacks. If you can fit in any exercise any time of day that has to be better than nothing. Your back and booty will also thank you as you give them a break from sitting! Moreover, the exercise accumulates, so you still receive the benefits of longer bouts of activity.

Exercise report: I forgot to update yesterday, so you get 2 reports today. So, I was feeling under motivated to work out, when I just happened upon TLC’s My 600lb Life. Needless to say, I got up and walked for an hour. Today, I played Wii Tennis, Bowling and Baseball for 45 minutes. 

It may not seem like a lot, but my arms are definitely feeling it. I’m going to the chiropractor tomorrow, so hopefully, I will be allowed more strenuous activity afterwards. Fingers crossed. I kind of miss the gym L

Like A Virgin

I will admit this tip doesn't apply to me as I don’t consume alcohol of any variety, but I know many who do, so I thought I would share some knowledge.

7. Be a virgin. Alcoholic beverages are some of the emptiest calories out there.  While researching this topic, I found a great article by Charles Stuart Platkin, a nutrition and public health advocate and founder of www.DietDetective.com that explains it all so well.  Simply having one beer a night adds more than 1,000 calories per week, or an extra 15 pounds per year.  Even a couple of glasses of wine over the course of a meal can easily add as many as 400 calories.  The culprit is the alcohol. So, the lower the alcohol content, the lower the number of calories. Think of it this way, there are 7 calories per gram of alcohol, compared with 4 calories per gram of either carbohydrates or protein, and 9 calories per gram of fat. 

Moreover, alcohol as we know impairs good judgment, which means you may eat and drink more than you normally would. Additionally, alcohol can cause your blood sugar level to drop more rapidly, which can stimulate your appetite and disrupt your ability to tell when you've had enough to eat. This effect can cause fatigue, draining your energy level, and may also interfere with the absorption of certain vitamins and minerals.

I understand that when you are going out, choosing a healthy alcoholic drink can be a difficult task, especially if you don’t know what it is made of.  As such, I found a few options of low calorie alcoholic drinks that you can choose if you want to drink healthier. From light beers, low calorie wine, and spirits (like rum and diet Coke, 64 calories per ounce!), a drinker with any taste can choose a healthier, lower calorie drink that will fit their daily calorie allotment. These drinks typically have lower carbohydrate content or lower alcoholic content, but are still delicious. Researching before you go can help you make informed decisions throughout the night! Also try out the newest line of “Skinny” beverages if you can find them. 

Take Care of Your Teeth

Day #6

6. Brush and floss.  Particularly after you eat a meal as you will be less tempted to snack.  Who wants to ruin their minty-fresh breath after all that time and trouble? Moreover, one of the most important things you can do is to brush and floss your teeth each day as most mouth woes are caused by plaque, the gross layer of bacteria, bits of food and other organic matter that forms on your teeth (www.colgate.com). 

Nasty Critters :)

Brushing removes plaque from the large surfaces of the teeth and from just under the gums. Flossing removes plaque from between your teeth.  You can have too much of a good thing though, so brush no more than three times a day because brushing too often can damage your gums. As for flossing, most dentists recommend flossing at least once a day. If you tend to get food trapped between teeth, you can floss more often. Also, don't skimp on the floss. Use as much floss as you need to clean both sides of every tooth with a fresh section. In fact, you may need to floss one tooth several times (using fresh sections of floss) to remove all the food. Some professionals think that reusing sections of floss may move bacteria from one tooth to another.

Exercise report: Going for a 1 hour walk before class tonight, and then hitting the weights after.  Hopefully, I won’t be too exhausted from grading mid-term exams :)