Changing All The Time

It has been the drink of millions for a long time. For a long time in my life I didn’t drink it, then one day I slowly started to reintroduce it into my world. I sufferred debilitating headaches for years, and coffee was the one thing that would make them go away. I also could take tylenol 3′s and morphine, but somehow I preferred the non-pharmaceutical approach. I LOVE LOVE LOVE my coffee in the morning. There is nothing sweeter than the smell of fresh ground, brewing coffee.

Recently I was told I had high blood pressure. Upon further research I realized the role that coffee plays in this. I re-evaluated my coffee drinking and determined that I was probably drinking too much. So, I immediately cut back to one or two cups a week. I was surprised that I didn’t miss it more than I did.

The discussion came up about this when a co-worker asked me if I stopped drinking it because it is so dehydrating. We have heard this for years that it dehydrated us, but I never really believed it. I figured the only reason I ever got dehydrated was because I didn’t drink enough liquids of any kind.

A study has just been released saying that caffeine is indeed not dehydrating. Lawrence Armstrong, a researcher and professor of exercise physiology wrote a comprehensive review article in 2002 in which he concluded that the regular consumption of caffeinated drinks was no more dehydrating than drinking water. Furthermore, he concluded that the regular consumption of caffeinated drinks makes you even more tolerant of caffeine’s mild diuretic effect. Be warned though, his analysis was based on consumption of “moderate” amounts of coffee (one to four cups per day) and he did not focus on any of the negative side effects of caffeine.

The first thing we hear when we attempt to embark on any kind of health/fitness/weight-loss program is “Drink Water”. I don’t know how many times I have heard that. I don’t mind drinking water, I actually find it quite refreshing sometimes. I can drink it cold or room temperature, I really don’t have a preference. It doesn’t make a big difference to me. My problem is choice. If I can choose something else to drink…I will everytime. I don’t know why that is. I have nothing against water, and the water in the city is actually pretty good (unless it’s rainy season and we’ve had lots of it).

I’m not much of a soda drinker. I drink them from time to time, but I have broken my addiction to Coke Zero. I used to drink it everyday, but a few months ago I was able to convince myself that it really wasn’t good for me, so I stopped. Just like that. Of course, I have drunk it since, but I figure here and there is better than every day.

There are a variety of tricks we can use to make it taste better and seem more appealing:

• Use Juice to add flavour – tart juices are delicious
• Add fresh fruit – citrus fruit is delicious but try adding things like grapes or watermelon
• Drink tea – try drinking decaf teas (herbal, fruit, green, white and red)
• Drink bouillon
• Try flavoured ice cubes – add flavour to the ice cube and then freeze it
• Flavour the water with sugar-free drink mixes (try to find natural ones with no additives)

Doing any of the above makes the water more pallatable if you are really picky. Personally I keep putting off the drinking of it until I’m so thirsty I will drink anything. Drinking tea is one of my favourite tricks to get my liquid intake up.

Remember, it’s important (especially in summer) to stay well hydrated. If you are feeling thirsty, then you are dehydrated. Be sure to drink constantly over the course of the day – and stay away from too much caffeine. I am addicted to caffeine and can easily drink three large coffee’s a day, but since I have cut down on my intake, I find I appreciate water more.

It is almost the end of July.  Seven months after the year began.  This is the reason I don’t make new years resolutions.  If I did, I would be feeling miserable at not updating this blog before now.  I had good intentions…but you know what they say about the road to you know where being paved with them.  So, here it is, the end of July and I’m writing something.

There have been so many changes, so many times I have stumbled, fallen, gotten back up, brushed myself off, stumbled again…but we keep going.  That’s what life is all about.

I originally saw this blog as chronicling my journey to getting my health back.  I lost a LOT (150 lbs) of weight about twelve years ago.  Weight has always been the “major issue” in my life, ever since my mother told me I was fat when I was eight years old, then I had to endure the merciless teasing by my mother for years and years.  I have gained back probably twenty pounds of the weight, but that’s not bad, and that’s what happens when we get old(er).

The last several years have been hard.  I work in a job that I love, but an environment that I hated.  For me it was an environment that was probably the worst one can imagine and I often wondered why I stayed (other than the fact that I needed the paycheck).  Last September I had surgery which ended up being more than I expected it to be, and then was faced with more health issues this year.

None of it is bad, it’s just one of  those “wake-up” calls we get.  I decided to get myself back on the road to health – mentally, physically and emotionally.  They were all a mess, mostly because of my job and my family – but really – because of me and my inability/unwillingness to cope with those things that were driving me crazy.  I’m a firm believer that if you ignore things long enough they will go away.  Ha – I don’t really believe that – oh I wish it were so.  I just didn’t have the strength to deal with any of it.

So – here I am, seven months into the new year, telling you that this is the new beginning (again).  My work situation has changed dramatically and it can only be good.  I feel like I lost a ton of weight this week alone, just in all the pressure that has been lifted from me.

What do I see this web site as?  I think a place for my thoughts; interesting things I come across to do with health, fitness and weight loss, articles and links of interest and a collection of my favourite recipes gathered from various places.

If you like what you see or have any comments, feel free to leave a comment or contact me.  For the next little while this page will have format changes as I get it set up.

Thanks for reading.