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I'm dizzy, light-headed, over-heated and just plain worn out after my workout this morning. Why? Because I overdid it.
I've been so focused on running from cancer by eating right and strenuously exercising -- research says it take five hours of vigorous exercise per week to keep breast cancer away -- that I drove myself to depletion this morning. It hit me when a wave of dizziness came over me in the midst of my outdoor workout. My body felt heavy, my strength disappeared, and it took every ounce of energy I could muster to put one foot in front of the other so I could get home. I suspect it was a combination of dehydration -- I didn't take water with me -- and heat -- it's really hot here in Florida -- and pushing myself too hard. The fact that I feel a bit under the weather didn't help either, I'm sure.
My body spoke to me today. And it's got my attention.
Let's face it, there is no "secret" to losing weight. It's simple -- bank less calories than you spend and the weight will come off. You don't need to take pills or buy into the latest diet craze. Common sense is all you need.
I spoke with my oncologist the other day about my own weight loss -- I have lost nearly 14 pounds since the beginning of May, thanks to a no-sweets, low-sugar, low-fat, water-only diet with an emphasis on high fruit and veggie intake. Now this is no temporary diet. This is for life. My goal was never to lose a bunch of weight and then go back to eating junk -- I just wanted to shed a few cancer treatment-induced pounds while embracing a brand new healthy lifestyle.
My doctor was proud of my progress and shared his too -- he's lost eight pounds by cutting 500 calories from his diet each day. It sounds like a lot but this can be accomplished by cutting down on portions, giving up soda, and ditching high-calorie snacks. Observing the physical changes we both had made, he announced to the medical students in the room with us at the time that weight loss is not so hard -- well, maybe mentally hard, but not physically. He talked with his students about how to advise overweight patients -- surely a large percentage of people they see -- and reminded them of this formula: take in less than you spend. They nodded in agreement. And we moved on to other topics. There really was nothing more to say. Simple, I tell you. Give it a try.
Back in 2002, photographs of a somewhat plump Jamie Lee Curtis appeared in many popular magazines. At the time, Curtis was just two years into pursuing sobriety and had gained upwards of 20 pounds. It appeared Curtis was flaunting her new look, perhaps even giving the public permission to be happy in their own skin. Not a bad thing, right?
It was a bad idea, says Curtis who now regrets communicating to the masses that letting yourself go is OK. Because it's not. Now fit and trim -- not skinny, just trim -- Curtis says in the July 2007 issue of Ladies Home Journal, "So I think what some people took from those photos was: Love yourself, no matter what. And the problem with this is: What if what you're doing is unhealthy?"
"And the problem is that how many of us are killing ourselves every day? Who here has high blood pressure and is still eating salt and French fries? Who has been told that her liver is enlarged and unless she stops drinking she's gonna end up with liver disease and/or need a liver transplant? We create senseless acts of violence against ourselves every day. And we live in this amnesia that we're not."
Today, my oldest child begins first grade. I can't tell you how sad and happy this makes me. I'm sad because I realize my first baby boy is truly on his way to growing up. School has him now; I don't. I can't help but predict he will need me less and less as he takes on the world in his own independent way. This makes me happy too. I am eager to see how he fares on his own, how he develops, grows, and soars. And I must admit, I am pretty thrilled about having five mornings per week all to myself -- my youngest little boy begins school today too.
On Friday, we went to six-year-old Joey's elementary school for a meet-the-teacher event. Joey was right at home. He sat at his assigned desk, did a little drawing, and snuggled up in a pile of pillows in the reading corner. I felt right at home too, after reading a parent memo about public school physical education.
Fitness has become an everyday ritual for me. Along with eating right, it's my weapon for staying healthy and keeping cancer far away. I want this same ritual for my boys. It looks like Joey will get to embrace this way of life not only at home but while in the care of his teacher too.
A new government report on cancer addresses not only the tobacco industry, but also the food industry and the federal government. The report calls on the federal government to "cease being a purveyor of unhealthy foods."
According to the report, federal, state and local policies have made healthful food more expensive and less available while cutting back on physical education classes in schools.
The report recommends encouraging doctors and insurance companies to offer more programs regarding nutrition, smoking cessation and exercise. The report also urged Congress to authorize the FDA to regulate tobacco and to increase the cigarette tax. President Bush currently opposes such an increase in the cigarette tax.
There are countless methods we can use for optimizing our health. Each of us can surely rattle off a bunch right now. Give it a try. Quick. Name three actions you can take to improve your body, your mind, your soul. Good. Now remember what you picked -- and make each one happen.
In a recent newspaper article, one journalist listed 25 ways to live a healthy life. They're all super ideas. But I only have space today for seven. Here they are. Stop back in two weeks, and I'll give you another seven. Keep your weight in check
Make sure your weight is appropriate for your height, age, sex, and body frame. The American Institute for Cancer Research reports that having an ideal body mass, eating properly, and exercising can reduce the risk of cancer by 30 to 40 percent.
It was all about the bike for Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards this past Wednesday. Decked out in spandex bike shorts, he pedaled with champion cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong on the Register's Annual Great Bike Race Across Iowa (RAGBRAI). Riding at an easy pace of 10 to 12 mph from Hampton to Cedar Falls, Edwards chatted with riders about their pressing issues, including their concern for his wife Elizabeth who was diagnosed with a recurrence of breast cancer this year.
About his bike trek, Edwards commented, "This is an accident waiting to happen."
Why did he take on the challenge? "Lance has become a friend," Edwards said. " Proud of what he's doing, particularly on the cancer issue. It's obviously very important to us personally. And I've heard about this race -- err, race -- this ride, ever since I'd been coming to Iowa so I wanted to see what it looked like."
Who knows which pieces of cancer information floating around out there are actually true? I don't. Do cell phones cause cancer? Some say yes, some say no, I say I'm confused! Luckily, I happened upon this Discovery Health article that highlights a variety of myths and then offers the lowdown on each one. Here are seven of them:
Myth #1. There is currently a cure for cancer, but the medical industry won't tell the public about it because they make too much money treating cancer patients.
Chalk this up to urban legend. And consider this: doctors, laboratory scientists, and their families and friends die of cancer at the same rate as everyone else in the United States. How about this: medical breakthroughs happen all the time and are quickly applied. Think about antibiotics and vaccines -- like the polio vaccine -- that have transformed health care. How about this? Not too long ago, less than one in 10 kids with leukemia survived 10 years. Now, the cure rate is nearly 80 percent. Seems like progress to me.
In this Worthy Wisdom series, I have been spouting off all sorts of grand ideas about health and healing, diet and nutrition, exercise and fitness. What I share all comes from Canyon Ranch in Tucson, Arizona. I spent four days there. I plan to spend a lifetime practicing what their experts preach.
Canyon Ranch worked for me. I bought into every one of their healthy living approaches and for the two months since I've departed this desert destination, I've done just about everything right -- the eating, the exercising, the de-stressing. And as I sit here eating a bowl of red raspberries instead of a bag of chips and handfuls of M&Ms, I think it's only fair I make a confession.
I've made many attempts at changing my lifestyle. I've gone without sweets several times in my life, only to later reintroduce them into my daily routine and inevitably go way overboard on my consumption. The same goes for soda. There have been times when I've obsessed about exercise. And times when I've let it go altogether. My stress levels have been up and down and all around. I've searched long and hard for the motivation to change, to do better, be better, feel better. It took cancer to push me over the edge, toward positive and long-lasting change.
More than 90 Penn State football players will compete on July 13 in an event where they plan to tackle kidney cancer. Well, maybe they won't literally tackle kidney cancer -- wouldn't that be nice -- but by raising awareness and funding, they'll surely make a difference.
The strength and conditioning event, called Lift For Life, will benefit the Kidney Cancer Association for the fifth year in a row. In past years, it's generated more than $148,000. In the 2005-06 year alone, $60,000 was raised for this rare disease. Lift For Life challenges the mental and physical endurance of student-athletes and consists of 11 exercises. Think traditional bench and leg presses and the less conventional giant tire flip and iron cross and you've got an idea of what will take place in just one week.
It's my boys who distract me most from exercise. That's just the way it is. They're kids. They have needs and wishes and demands that keep me busy from sun-up to sun-down. It's hard to find time for fitness. I don't go to a gym. I prefer to use my own treadmill, walk the seven hills in my neighborhood, run outdoors, and conduct my scrunching, pushing, lunging, squatting, and resisting in the privacy of my own home. I don't have a gym membership with free childcare offerings or a list of babysitters who will come to my rescue when I need to huff and puff. I have me, my kids, and the hours in the day, though. And I am trying desperately at fitting fitness in.
Today, after enduring what seemed like endless little-boy fighting and tormenting, I determined my guys needed a workout just as much as I did. I threw them in the car. I threw their scooters, a big wheel, and a football in the car too. We drove to a nearby community college track, unloaded ourselves and our gear, and got to work. I ran two miles. And six-year-old Joey and four-year-old Danny scooted, pedaled, walked, ran, climbed a pile of dirt, and threw their football until their faces were splotchy from the heat, their little bodies zapped with fatigue.
Our whole fitness feat took no more than one hour and ended as we guzzled water and poured our sweaty selves back into the car. Back home, I felt so much better about my day. And I was better equipped for the fighting that continued as soon as we walked in the door.
It was a Canyon Ranch nutritionist, not a fitness trainer, who shared with me these words of wisdom regarding exercise. I consider this more evidence backing the fact that diet and exercise go hand in hand, that each one cannot fully and successfully operate in isolation from the other.
So here it is, this Saturday's Worthy Wisdom:
After we exercise, we should eat something within 15 minutes of completing our physical challenge. Why? Because we've taxed our bodies, depleted them, and it's important to put something back in after taking so much out. Consider a banana, a handful of nuts, something nutritious and energizing, and allow your body to recover. And don't forget about water -- drink plenty to re-hydrate yourself.
I'm writing today to share with you a victory -- a diet and exercise victory. Let me begin with a little background.
I've always been in the normal weight range for my height. I am about 5'7" and prior to each of my two pregnancies, I weighed 142. For me, that translates into size eight clothing, size six for some oddly made-garments. I've always been generally happy with my weight, and I've never obsessed about the numbers on the scale. Yet there's been one area that's bothered me ever since my first baby was born -- my tummy. Now I like to use the excuse that my babies were big -- 10 pounds, nine ounces and 10 pounds, two ounces -- but clinging to this explanation did nothing to remove the loose skin from my middle. And for years, I guess I wasn't ready to work at whittling it away.
Enter cancer. Research shows many breast cancer patients gain weight during treatment -- sometimes up to 30 pounds. And while I never did gain this much, my weight has increased over the past almost three years. Perhaps it was hormones, the chemotherapy drugs, the anti-depressant I just stopped taking. Regardless, I didn't like the extra weight. So I tried to do something about it -- and about that pesky tummy too. And herein lies the victory.
If you have (or have had) cancer, did you still attempt to get in that regular exercise when it was possible? The Mayo Clinic says that cancer should not spell the end of exercise and activity, which is a good thing in my eyes. The traditional treatment of the disease would almost suggest that activity and exercise are needed then more than ever.
The side effects of cancer treatment can be partially (or even, completely) controlled by exercise while your body maintains strong muscles and physical stamina -- something that is definitely needed when battling cancer.
Though cancer and its treatments can be extremely physically and emotionally draining, the most common form of exercise -- walking -- is a great way to get some regular exercise. So, don't lose sight of helping your body battle with the best energy levels if you can.
If you're dealing with (or have dealt with) cancer, how do you fit exercise into your life?
Blogger Martha Edwards wrote about it on June 4 -- the fact that cancer cases are soon to explode in Asia, despite the obvious health benefits of Asian-based diets.
It's not the Asian diet influencing rising cancer rates, though. It's the bad Western habits Asians are adopting that will inevitably lead these folks down a dangerous road.
Smoking, drinking, and consumption of unhealthy foods -- all contributors to various cancers -- will drive Asian cancer rates up by 60 percent by the year 2020. Larger aging populations and lack of prevention and treatment in developing countries will also drive this trend.
I'm dizzy, light-headed, over-heated and just plain worn out after my workout this morning. Why? Because I overdid it. 
Let's face it, there is no "secret" to losing weight. It's simple -- bank less calories than you spend and the weight will come off. You don't need to take pills or buy into the latest diet craze. Common sense is all you need.
Back in 2002, photographs of a somewhat plump Jamie Lee Curtis appeared in many popular magazines. At the time, Curtis was just two years into pursuing sobriety and had gained upwards of 20 pounds. It appeared Curtis was flaunting her new look, perhaps even giving the public permission to be happy in their own skin. Not a bad thing, right? 
Today, my oldest child begins first grade. I can't tell you how sad and happy this makes me. I'm sad because I realize my first baby boy is truly on his way to growing up. School has him now; I don't. I can't help but predict he will need me less and less as he takes on the world in his own independent way. This makes me happy too. I am eager to see how he fares on his own, how he develops, grows, and soars. And I must admit, I am pretty thrilled about having five mornings per week all to myself -- my youngest little boy begins school today too.
A new government 
There are countless methods we can use for optimizing our health. Each of us can surely rattle off a bunch right now. Give it a try. Quick. Name three actions you can take to improve your body, your mind, your soul. Good. Now remember what you picked -- and make each one happen.
It was all about the bike for Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards this past Wednesday. Decked out in spandex bike shorts, he pedaled with champion cyclist and cancer survivor Lance Armstrong on the Register's Annual Great Bike Race Across Iowa (RAGBRAI). Riding at an easy pace of 10 to 12 mph from Hampton to Cedar Falls, Edwards chatted with riders about their pressing issues, including their concern for his wife Elizabeth who was diagnosed with a recurrence of breast cancer this year.
Who knows which pieces of cancer information floating around out there are actually true? I don't. Do cell phones cause cancer? Some say yes, some say no, I say I'm confused! Luckily, I happened upon this 
In this 
More than 90 Penn State football players will compete on July 13 in an event where they plan to tackle kidney cancer. Well, maybe they won't literally tackle kidney cancer -- wouldn't that be nice -- but by raising awareness and funding, they'll surely make a difference.
It's my boys who distract me most from exercise. That's just the way it is. They're kids. They have needs and wishes and demands that keep me busy from sun-up to sun-down. It's hard to find time for fitness. I don't go to a gym. I prefer to use my own treadmill, walk the seven hills in my neighborhood, run outdoors, and conduct my scrunching, pushing, lunging, squatting, and resisting in the privacy of my own home. I don't have a gym membership with free childcare offerings or a list of babysitters who will come to my rescue when I need to huff and puff. I have me, my kids, and the hours in the day, though. And I am trying desperately at fitting fitness in.
It was a 
I'm writing today to share with you a victory -- a diet and exercise victory. Let me begin with a little background.
If you have (or have had) cancer, did you still attempt to get in that regular exercise when it was possible? The Mayo Clinic says that cancer 
Blogger Martha Edwards wrote about it on 
