Despite my continuing, daily IBS moments, I had a great time visiting the French Quarter of New Orleans last week! This was my third trip to the Quarter, my last one in May of 2005, before Hurricane Katrina hit. Luckily, things are pretty much the same again, though we noticed some of the smaller one-off businesses were replaced by those owned by one or more other businesses. Anyway, the food was delicious and there was plenty to drink as well. We are older now, so we had to cut back to just two meals per day. (I don't know how we used to do it eating all day long!) There was a lot of walking to do as well, and though Don worried I wouldn't be up to it, I made an extra effort to prove him wrong. I needed breaks, of course, but I still had a fun time! We took the train this time, too - a new experience for both of us. It was more fun than driving and less annoying than going through security at the airport. (We're boycotting the airlines until they stop being ridiculous to the passengers about all this TSA bullshit.) It was a long ride and both ways we traveled through the night. Sleeping on a train - let me rephrase that - TRYING to sleep on a train is not as much fun, but we survived and enjoyed the new experience.
Now the party's over and it's back to work and back on track with the healthy diet. I feel fatter then when I left, but hey, I was on vacation. Lack of stress is worth a weight-loss setback in my book.
I'm back in Calorie Count's Calorie Camp and logging my foods and studying my nutritional intake. Today, I started my day with a fun yogurt mix. At my house,
we like to minimize waste and buy the large yogurt containers and get
either plain or vanilla flavor. When it comes time to have some, we
dress up dinners with plain wherever sour cream might be called for, or
mix in some fruit or preserves for a sweet snack. I cut up a peach into
a bowl, added some French Vanilla Stonyfield Farm yogurt, and sprinkled
in some generic Grape Nuts for a fun breakfast. I'm still dealing with
this darn IBS flare-up (no break during vacation either, unfortunately) so I'm hoping the probiotics and occasional
yogurt will help calm things down eventually. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to what causes my symptoms to flare-up or calm down. I'm speculating something slower or cumulative, multiple triggers are doing something, but it's so hard to pin it all down.
In addition to healthy diet efforts, I started my very first yoga session today, at lunchtime. (Note: my fibromyalgia doctor has recommended that I try some yoga and start slowly.) My employer has coordinated with a yoga instructor to come visit our building every Wednesday (starting last week, so I missed that first session) and welcome us to an hour-long session during our lunch hour. I had done yoga at home years before I developed Fibromyalgia, Chronic Myofascial Pain, or IBS, or any of my other current health issues, but this was my first yoga class. It was good. I felt the work in muscles that aren't used to doing that much work. I shook and did some sweating. (Unfortunately, there are no shower facilities so I did my best with a change of clothes, a wet wipee "wash" and some deodorant.) I kept up with most of the poses and even opted for some of the extra challenge poses, but I did have to fall back on others here and there. I had the most trouble with my wrists after all the push-ups and hand support, but hopefully, I'll build up some strength over time. Overall, I'm happy with the convenience of the class and being able to enjoy it with my coworkers as well. The cost is $10 per session, which seems reasonable to me for the convenient scheduling. Our instructor was also nice and helpful in correcting posture when necessary. I'm looking forward to the next one.
I didn't have my traditional Whole Foods buffet salad today because of yoga today, but I planned ahead yesterday while there, and bought some self-mixed trail mix and a few nut/fruit bars I'd been meaning to try. I also brought a banana to work today. They all helped to keep me full and give me good nutrition with some fun flavors, while allowing me to graze while working.
I did, however, make the mistake of eating before the yoga session, though, which I did because I was hungry and wasn't thinking, but... NOTE TO SELF: when you have IBS that seems to act up whenever eating anything, be mindful of the timing of any activities that may keep you from a toilet. I managed to finish things up in time, but it was kind of close, and I felt a little off on the way to class. Next time I'll work out hungry and eat later. See? Learning. It's all good. I like progress, even slow progress. Anything's better than that downward spiral that can suck you down. I'm working hard to avoid that.
