Friday

11 January 2013

So.

Last year I was going to participate in the SF Bay Area Avon Walk, and y'all funded it and I was all set to go...until I wound up in the ER and spent the entire weekend of that walk--and beyond--sicker than I've ever been. I've attempted 3 times, I think, to go to SF and spend a couple of days making up those miles, but either weather or real life has intruded, so it has not yet happened.

But.

Unless something big happens, I'll be walking them on January 23rd and 24th. Since the beginning of the year I've been peeking in at Hotels.com, waiting for a decent room rate, and connected with one tonight, so I grabbed it. Funny enough, last night when I looked, I couldn't find a room for under $250. Tonight...nice hotel right near Union Square.

I love walking around San Francisco. You get to see the most interesting people and tons of funky and funny things.

Like this.

There are some things you just don't do in SF, and a stretch limo in most parts of the city is one of them.

'Course, you're just as liable to see stuff like these guys. An until recently the guy with his pants down wasn't breaking the law.

Public nudity was allowed in San Francisco until late last year, when they decided enough was enough, because a few guys who could control their own freaky little impulses ruined it for those who were going about it quite quietly and mostly tastefully.

But...I digress.

I like walking in the Bay Area, and am looking forward to getting these miles behind me.

I've heard from more than one person that I don't have to do this; it's not like I intentionally bailed on the Avon Walk. It certainly wasn't by choice.

I know I don't have to. I want to. Y'all paid for those miles, the least I can do is walk them.And as long as I'm walking them, it might as well be in my favorite city.

No, this won't be me...I can't ride a unicycle...
Once I've walked them, I won't feel so squirrely about fundraising for 2013*...because I registered for it again. This year the Avon Walk is in September, so I have tons of time to get extra ready for it. I'm ready now--I have no doubt that I can walk the distance, which is why I'm doing it in a couple pf weeks--but I want to be really ready this year.

2013 is the year I get my personal chit in order. I'm tired of feeling a little off all the time, I'm tired of getting sick so often, and I'm tired of doing something fun and then getting sick because of it. Travel is a problem, because I get sick after. And dammit, I want to go places. I need to do whatever I need to do to change that, and a lot of my free time over the last couple of months has been researching and reading about the various illnesses that have kicked me in the asterisk over the last 15 years, and much of it seems to boil down to diet.

Two of the big ones, FMS and all my digestive disturbances, may be connected, and at the very least there have been some major (albeit anecdotal) successes treating them with a diet rid of most processed foods. FMS in particular, I've been reading about people going Paleo and being pain free within a couple of months...it seems to be a problem with gluten, although it's not celiac related. It's certainly worth trying, and I don't have anything to lose (other than some addictions I'm better off without. I really need to break the diet soda addiction...and make no mistake, I am addicted to it.)

I'm still learning about it...but phase one of this is changing my diet slowly (it would be better for the FMS to just do it, but might be too much of a shock to my gut, so I'll start in bits and pieces) and seeing where it takes me.

To that, I'm hitting the training again; I have the walking thing down pretty well, but I'm getting back on the bicycle--the Spouse Thingy has fit it with nifty baskets so I can take it shopping, even--and the Street Strider, and the Trikke, and working on my cardio.

In March I'm doing a 10K.

In April the Boy turns 30, and we're taking him back to Vegas, where I will walk my asterisk off. [And where he intends to jump out of a plane; this alone will be good cardio for me, since I'll be on the ground with my heart rate at nearly 200 until he hits the ground safely (he has wanted to do this for years, so I will support it. I just don't have the cojones to do it myself...) ]

In May DKM and I are doing a half marathon to benefit the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association, which means a lot to me since my mom has had both heart attacks and strokes.

In June DKM and I are crewing for the SGK 3 Day again, chasing walkers around with a van. I might scare them a little, but I promise to not run any over. On purpose.

And in September, the Avon Walk.

By September my goal is to be fit. Losing weight would be nice, but more than anything, I want to be fit.

Well, more than anything I want to win the lottery, but being fit is a much more realistic goal.



*Can't help it, I won't feel right raising funds again until I fulfill my personal obligation to last years' walk.


11 comments:

Gemini and Ichiro said...

The book Wheat Belly (available at your library) had some interesting historical perspectives on wheat and the changes that have happened in the last century. I do better without it. I've given up doing pure paleo/primal. One thing I think that's advantageous of the paleo/primal (they have some slight differences) is that they both, like GAPS (Gut and Psychology Syndrome diet, which is based on the specific carbohydrate diet), get rid of gluten (wheat) and casein (dairy) which are two of the more difficult digest foods that we ingest. If your digestion is not up to snuff, it's not surprise that these cause problems. The book on GAPS by Dr. Campbell-McBride has a very good explanation of this which is a little better than the typical "it causes inflamation" stuff that you see.

While GAPS is important and there are a few things that GAPS gets rid of that Paleo/Primal don't, they all have some underlying similarities. I personally like Mark Sisson's approach (Primal at the Daily Apple website) because he's all about MOST of the time--like 80 or 90% and there's a real focus on living life and realizing that sometimes you'll mess up the diet...

Oh and good luck on the diet soda thing.

Thumper said...

I'm starting with Paleo--or as close as I can come to it--on the recommendation of my endocrinologist. She had me start reading about it last April...I've been slow to come this far.

Mostly I'm starting with cutting processed crap as much as possible. We'll see where I go from there.

Gemini and Ichiro said...

How cool is it that endrocinologists are starting to see stuff like that?! Mostly you hear about vegan/vegetarian stuff from folks. Really, none of those are different only in the details and they all have the potential to help, largely due to the lack of "processed crap" as you call it and the two big difficult to digest things--gluten and casein...:). The lack of sugar is good to.

Um and Diet Coke--"processed crap"... just saying. You and Dennis can get together and bemoan the fact that something that tastes so good is supposed to be so bad for you...

Thumper said...

I'm finishing my box of Cap'n Crunch first... ;)

Just Ducky said...

Yeah, we all would be better off if we ate more real food and less processed stuff. I bought a jar of what I thought was European brand of peanut butter. Found out what it really was....ground up ginger cookies, made into a paste. It was so sugary. I finished the jar and won't buy it again. Back to Skippy Super Crunch.

Diet soda? Max of 2 cans per day, usually only 1. Doc says can also affect bone density.

And exactly what is FMS?

Thumper said...

FMS = Fibromyalgia

Just Ducky said...

OK, mum knows that as Financal Management Systems!

Thumper said...

Ha...I can see where that would be confusing...

Stacie said...

There is a popular bumper sticker in Portland that says "Keep Portland weird". Maybe I've said this before, but Portland, on its weirdest day, could never be as weird as SF on a mild day. Oh Portlandia. You are quaint, but you do not know weird!

Here's to a healthier, feelin' good, kind of 2013!

Vicat said...

And now I want Cap'n Crunch - my secret love

Anonymous said...

If you get the books Eat Great and Lose Weight by Suzanne Somers, or any of her many books, it is absolutely the best you can do for yourself! I have been on it and it is a way of life! Diets only last so long and tend to make you crave what isn't the best....also giving guilt trips. Somers' books are one way to be able to lose weight, enjoy what you like, and keep it off! Hope this helps!