Gardening the Garden

Question:

Roberta 210/121 (LC since 1/96, maintaining since Spring of ‘98, and shopping for a kayak…)

roberta, your numbers are incredible! sporting equipment drops, BIG TIME! rosie

Response:

 I find I lose more weight if I exercise.  And it makes me feel better.  And its fun. I play active tennis about 3-4 times/week.  I know some dont consider this good exercise,  but its fun and I like it.  I also play golf periodically.  And I like to walk.  When I walk,  I dont really care about distance,  but time walking.  I find this easier to monitor since I like walking through neighborhoods looking at peoples plants and gardens.  And,  oh yes,  I like gardening.  And yes,  it is exercise.  I enjoy it so much I can do it for hours and find only my hunger drives me indoors to eat. uselle

Response:

And I like to walk.  When I walk,  I dont really care about distance,  but time walking.  I find this easier to monitor since I like walking through neighborhoods looking at peoples plants and gardens.  And,  oh yes, I like gardening.  And yes,  it is exercise.  I enjoy it so much I can do it for hours and find only my hunger drives me indoors to eat. uselle

A lady after my own heart! Anybody who doesn’t think gardening is exercise can come over to my house– and dig holes 1 foot square and 1.5 foot deep in clay soil– and prune– and weed– and weed– and dig more holes (smaller this time)– and weed– and weed– and rake away dead leaves– and weed– and weed– Boy do I hate Bermuda grass!!!!! In another thread, the poster said she gardened without gloves. My hands would be ripped to shreds in 15 minutes if I tried that. But garden-fresh zucchini, basil and (well, only a few) tomatoes are worth all the pain! DahliaLady (did I mention how much I hate weeding?) 155/143/130 since 3-15-99 DH 234/207/195? alt.support.diet.low-carb FAQ: http://www.grossweb.com/asdlc Blaise Pascal’s excuse for his verbose letters: "I have only made this [letter] longer because I have not had the time to make it shorter."

Response:

: Roberta, WOW!!!! Thanks!  BTW, love your login;  Dogbert is my hero. : You know, I always wanted a simple row boat…. Then go for it!  Rowing is great exercise.  My problem is, I like to see where I’m going , so I used to prefer canoeing.  But that was a couple of decades ago;  dunno if my knees could handle more than a couple of hours of it, now.  Ah, the joys of midlife…FWIW, though, I found kayaking to be a better all-around upper body workout.  Paddling properly, you pull with one arm while pushing with the other, so it works both biceps and triceps (as well as back and shoulders).  Anything that works the triceps is A-Ok with me.  Just MHO, but, if you like rowing, I’d highly recommend at least giving kayaking a try;  you may find yourself hooked, like I did. There are some really nice kayaks that don’t cost much more than rowboats, if I recall my rowboat prices correctly.  And, lucky me, I found a store here in NJ (recommended by the friend who introduced me to the sport) that claims the largest on-hand inventory in the country:  over 1000 boaks (kayaks and canoes).  Their prices are fantastic, well below MSRP… and the ones on sale are lower than most of the prices I’ve seen folks asking for used kayaks.  And, to top it off, they encourage you to "test paddle" them in the pond across the street…Guess what I’ll be doing, first chance I get? ObLowCarb:  FWIW, I didn’t find it necessary to increase my carbs at all, either during or after the 3 hours of kayaking.  (I’m at maintenance weight, but I still eat practically induction level, since that’s what I like. )  It took me a while to get used to prolonged exercise with this WOE, but then, I had no capacity for exercise at all, back in my high-carb days.  The only adjustment I find helpful when I’m doing a long day of strenuous exercise, is to increase my potassium, which I usually accomplish by adding about a quarter tsp of Morton’s NoSalt to a quart of KoolAid or Crystal Light.  I alternate drinking this concoction and plain water (lots and lots of it), and it seems to keep me going forever. : Hugh : 311/broke scale/220  June 20 99 Best wishes to you – I’ll be watching to see you getting to goal.  It may seem like a long way off, but it’ll be here before you know it! Roberta 210/121 (According to the stats on some of the kayaks I was looking at, I’m too *light* to paddle them???  Never thought I’d see that happen!)

Response:

hello everyone,

Hi Laura, love your name.  =) .i’m just a little curious as to the activity levels of those in the group and what exercise do you find most beneficial. <snip.what do you guys enjoy?

Well, as someone who once believed that walking out to the car was plenty of exercise, I’m now weightlifting 3 to 4 times a week.  I started out with the 1, 3 and 5 lb teal dumbbells (I put that in just for Steve’s sake<g).  I’ve progressed since then, although there are still a couple of exercises where I can only manage 10-lb dumbbells (at least they’re a nice metallic gray color). I wouldn’t say I particularly enjoy it, but I do enjoy the results enough that it keeps me really motivated to do it. I’m taking yoga and do that first thing every morning.  My flexibility has really improved, although I’m far from being at the level of a circus performer.   On my non-lifting days, I valiently try to keep up with the cardio workouts on ESPN2 in the mornings.  I originally did cardio after lifting, but my VCR broke when I tried to put a Richard Simmon’s "Sweating to the Oldies" tape in it.  A sign from God perhaps?  At any rate, I thought it would be easier to switch the aerobics to my non-lifting days rather than getting up at 3am to lift before the ESPN2 shows. Every night before bed, I do some basic, gymnastic and ballet type of stretches.  I like to delude myself into thinking that this will help me to become a more graceful person.  I’m hoping my body will catch on to this one of these days. I am actually feeling a lot better, and healthier since I’ve started this regime.  I found a very stupid little trick that helps to motivate me when I don’t feel like exercising.  I put a big ol’ calendar up in my kitchen, and I write in whatever exercise I did that day.  My goal is to not have any white squares other than Sunday.  Believe it or not, I will actually exercise rather than leave the square blank.  That whole gold stars on the chart thing from kindergarten must have really affected me deeply. Okay, I’ve rambled on enough.  I think it’s great that you’re walking!  Keep it up!  =) ~Laurie Knots Landing Website:  http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/Hills/4489/ RR Off Topic Website:  http://www.geocities.com/SouthBeach/Port/1271/

Response:

My exercise is to either walk 3-4 miles or bike everyday-weather permitting or walk the malls if weather is lousy. I do floor exercises every morning and lift weights every other day. Doing some rollerblading too.  ^–^ Cathy {‘ . ‘}    `   My web page: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Cottage/8060/index.html Hope for Cysters: http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Cottage/8060/PCOS.html

Response:

: Sure sounds like a great store!  We got a river here that people love to : kayak in.  What I’d like to do though is just put up my fishing pole, and : row around trolling in one of our lakes:)  Nothing fancy, and all muscle There are kayaks that would be perfect for that, too. : powered he he.  Right now too many obligations coming up though, but I’ll do : it! : Thanks too for all the info:)  Sounds like you really jumped into life : there! I call it my midlife crisis.  About the time I turned 40 (2 years ago), I took up downhill mountain biking and tried skydiving (another thing I’d like to get into on a regular basis).  This year, kayaking (and hopefully skiing this winter);  next year, who knows?  Maybe hang gliding… Just wish I’d done all this 20 years ago! Roberta

Response:

Sure sounds like a great store!  We got a river here that people love to kayak in.  What I’d like to do though is just put up my fishing pole, and row around trolling in one of our lakes:)  Nothing fancy, and all muscle powered he he.  Right now too many obligations coming up though, but I’ll do it! Thanks too for all the info:)  Sounds like you really jumped into life there! Hugh 311/291/220  June 20 99

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – : Roberta, WOW!!!! Thanks!  BTW, love your login;  Dogbert is my hero. : You know, I always wanted a simple row boat…. Then go for it!  Rowing is great exercise.  My problem is, I like to see where I’m going , so I used to prefer canoeing.  But that was a couple of decades ago;  dunno if my knees could handle more than a couple of hours of it, now.  Ah, the joys of midlife…FWIW, though, I found kayaking to be a better all-around upper body workout.  Paddling properly, you pull with one arm while pushing with the other, so it works both biceps and triceps (as well as back and shoulders).  Anything that works the triceps is A-Ok with me.  Just MHO, but, if you like rowing, I’d highly recommend at least giving kayaking a try;  you may find yourself hooked, like I did. There are some really nice kayaks that don’t cost much more than rowboats, if I recall my rowboat prices correctly.  And, lucky me, I found a store here in NJ (recommended by the friend who introduced me to the sport) that claims the largest on-hand inventory in the country:  over 1000 boaks (kayaks and canoes).  Their prices are fantastic, well below MSRP… and the ones on sale are lower than most of the prices I’ve seen folks asking for used kayaks.  And, to top it off, they encourage you to "test paddle" them in the pond across the street…Guess what I’ll be doing, first chance I get? ObLowCarb:  FWIW, I didn’t find it necessary to increase my carbs at all, either during or after the 3 hours of kayaking.  (I’m at maintenance weight, but I still eat practically induction level, since that’s what I like. )  It took me a while to get used to prolonged exercise with this WOE, but then, I had no capacity for exercise at all, back in my high-carb days.  The only adjustment I find helpful when I’m doing a long day of strenuous exercise, is to increase my potassium, which I usually accomplish by adding about a quarter tsp of Morton’s NoSalt to a quart of KoolAid or Crystal Light.  I alternate drinking this concoction and plain water (lots and lots of it), and it seems to keep me going forever. : Hugh : 311/broke scale/220  June 20 99 Best wishes to you – I’ll be watching to see you getting to goal.  It may seem like a long way off, but it’ll be here before you know it! Roberta 210/121 (According to the stats on some of the kayaks I was looking at, I’m too *light* to paddle them???  Never thought I’d see that happen!)

Response:

: Roberta, do you have a before/after picture to share? Sort of…I have a bunch of pics on my website: http://www.gti.net/wombat . Under the section of "pics of me", there’s my nursing class graduation picture (summer of 95, somewhere over 200 lbs);  I’m on the far right, in the back row (sort of looks like I’m third from the right, but the other two are really in the row ahead of me);  later on, there’s a mug shot from the gym (last summer) and last is a shot my cycling/kayaking/ shooting buddy took on a downhill mountain biking outing last month. (I’m about to head down a serious hill, and kind of blurry, but I like that one because it disproves the stereotype of NJ as nothing but cities, refineries and the NJ Turnpike. ) : MarkieZ : 206/194/150 : day 17 : Roberta : 210/121 (LC since 1/96, maintaining since Spring of ‘98, and shopping : for a kayak…)

Response:

Roberta, do you have a before/after picture to share? MarkieZ 206/194/150 day 17 – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -Roberta 210/121 (LC since 1/96, maintaining since Spring of ‘98, and shopping for a kayak…) roberta, your numbers are incredible! sporting equipment drops, BIG TIME! rosie

Response:

Laura asked about exercise . . . I exercise a lot.  I didn’t for a long time on Atkins, but now that I’ve lost 40 pounds and joined the Y I exercise almost every day, particularly since my company is doing a cardiovascular "Exercise Across America" thingy and I’m on a team and our time exercising counts toward miles . . . you get the picture. Months ago, I started out w/NordicTrack, which I have in my basement, and did this for 30 minutes 3 or 4 times a week until I built up my stamina on the low-carb regimen.  Now I do at least 50 minutes every night, or at least 5 nights a week, on anything from NordicTrack, Concept II rower at the Y, jogging, etc.  I have two dogs and walk them three or four times a day.  I have the time to do all this and I realize others don’t, but I am currently stuck at a particular weight and even though I do not go above 20-25 carbs per day, the scale isn’t moving, so I am trying to jump-start my body by burning as much as possible. Share what you know. Learn what you don’t.

Response:

: Roberta, WOW!!!! Thanks!  BTW, love your login;  Dogbert is my hero. : You know, I always wanted a simple row boat…. Then go for it!  Rowing is great exercise.  My problem is, I like to see where I’m going , so I used to prefer canoeing.

A friend of mine has come up with a pedal powered paddle wheel setup for his canoe.  He sits back, as on a recumbent bike and pedals along. The thing has a front mounted rudder for maneuverability and he is loving it.  The thing isn’t completely sorted out yet, but it’s gonna be great.  He gets a LOT of looks and questions.   Great concept.  He’ll probably publish plans. ROn

Response:

hello everyone, well i know for darn sure that just eating low-carb is not gonna do it for me and that i need to get up and get my butt in gear.i’m just a little curious as to the activity levels of those in the group and what exercise do you find most beneficial. i have been walking 2 miles a night for the last week(i’ll increase the length of my walks slowly)and i just started the intro tae-bo video.what do you guys enjoy? laura

Response:

laura, i try to walk or bike one mile daily! not alot, but all i am willing to do right now! — and it keeps your ATTITUDE ADJUSTED! rosie – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – hello everyone, well i know for darn sure that just eating low-carb is not gonna do it for me and that i need to get up and get my butt in gear.i’m just a little curious as to the activity levels of those in the group and what exercise do you find most beneficial. i have been walking 2 miles a night for the last week(i’ll increase the length of my walks slowly)and i just started the intro tae-bo video.what do you guys enjoy? laura

Response:

hello everyone, well i know for darn sure that just eating low-carb is not gonna do it for me and that i need to get up and get my butt in gear.

A wise decision, on that all should follow. i’m just a little curious as to the activity levels of those in the group and what exercise do you find most beneficial.

I lift weights (heavy ones, not the 5# pink ones) 3 times/week. The other days of the week I do 30 minutes on the tredmill. Twice a week I do "stadium stairs" in the stairwell column at work. This involves charging up several flights of stairs, walk briskly back down them, charge back up, repeat until you collapse on the landing.  i have been walking 2 miles a night for the last week(i’ll increase the length of my walks slowly)and i just started the intro tae-bo video.what do you guys enjoy? laura

Share what you know. Learn what you don’t.

Response:

I work out at the gym 5 days a week, usually three on, one off, two on, one off. This way I never take more than one day off.  (unless I have a really busy weekend, but then I always do try anyway!) When I am there, I do 45 minutes of cardio on the Eliptical Trainer (which I couldn’t do before I lost weight) and then I add weight 3 times a week. Sometimes I only get them in twice. I think cardio is very important in losing and maintaining! Victoria 230-148-145 lc since 2-9-96

Response:

The exercise routine that got me where I am today consisted of multiple elbow bends (hand to mouth) with weights (many grams of carbohydrates) followed by a rousing game of bridge. I started this WOE when I decided this had to stop. I am in an intermediate place right now, with my old routine gone (for good, I hope) but nothing to replace it. Right now, I am losing well with no exercise, but I plan to start getting more active as soon as the rain stops (I feel THAT good on this WOE). But, since I still have wrecked knees, and exercise continues to be pretty painful, I think that gentle walking is the place to start for me – specifically birding, since the frequent pauses will be welcome. I’ll let you know how I get on… Tina 304/289/150 Atkins since June 28 – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – hello everyone, well i know for darn sure that just eating low-carb is not gonna do it for me and that i need to get up and get my butt in gear.i’m just a little curious as to the activity levels of those in the group and what exercise do you find most beneficial. i have been walking 2 miles a night for the last week(i’ll increase the length of my walks slowly)and i just started the intro tae-bo video.what do you guys enjoy? laura

Response:

hello everyone, well i know for darn sure that just eating low-carb is not gonna do it for me and that i need to get up and get my butt in gear.i’m just a little curious as to the activity levels of those in the group and what exercise do you find most beneficial. i have been walking 2 miles a night for the last week(i’ll increase the length of my walks slowly)and i just started the intro tae-bo video.what do you guys enjoy? laura

I do weight lifting (high reps, low weights) every other day and swing a 20-pound modified golf club every day for 1 hour. The weight-lifting is a recent addition (for bad back), so it is hard to say if it is doing any good. I also walk ~9 miles a week (golf 3 times). I believe the exercise is helping my LC diet.   — John JB LC 4/10/99 240/213/180 Share what you know. Learn what you don’t.

Response:

: hello everyone, : well i know for darn sure that just eating : low-carb is not gonna do it for me and that i need : to get up and get my butt in gear.i’m just a FWIW, some folks do lose all their weight just from the change in dietary habits.  Dunno if I would have, or if it would have taken a lot longer, or what;  like you, I incorporated exercise into my lifestyle change, and I think it helped.  And the beauty of LC is that the new eating habits helped my energy levels and endurance, enabling me to exercise more than I ever had in my life. : little curious as to the activity levels of those : in the group and what exercise do you find most : beneficial. i have been walking 2 miles a night : for the last week(i’ll increase the length of my : walks slowly)and i just started the intro tae-bo : video.what do you guys enjoy? : laura I started with walking, about 3 miles/day on my lunch hour.  At first, that seemed like *quite* enough!  But before long, I found myself going further and further, getting less tired and enjoying it more.  My standard lunch time walk these days is 5-6 miles, and sometimes I still have to force myself to come back to work instead of just keeping going. For me, the next logical progression was cycling.  I started out doing a little road riding, and, over the course of a year, worked up to where my standard ride is about 40 miles (+/- 20 miles or so depending on who I’m with, how much time I have, etc.)  And, for variety, I do some mountain biking – downhilling as often as possible, though there aren’t too many ski resorts here that run the lifts for bikes. Since all my "fun" exercise was geared toward lower body workouts, I started doing upper-body resistance work.  I love the way it makes me feel, but I find myself getting a tad bored.  However, I think I’ve found my new, super-fun upper body exercise:  kayaking!  I went out with a friend on Tuesday, and spent 3 hours paddling around a nearby reservoir.  It was great, and, at the pace we were going, it was a terrific workout, too.  (And it was *so* much fun to prove wrong his prediction that I wouldn’t last more than an hour or 2; that resistance work was good preparation. ) I think you hit on the key in your last sentence.  I find that the single biggest factor in staying motivated, is doing things I enjoy. (I’ve always hated the phrase "working out";  sounds like such drudgery.  I much prefer to get out and "play".)  The best workout in the world is no good if you can’t bring yourself to stick to it. Try lots of things, and find the ones you enjoy.  Good for the body, and good for the soul. Roberta 210/121 (LC since 1/96, maintaining since Spring of ‘98, and shopping for a kayak…)

Response:

Roberta, WOW!!!! You know, I always wanted a simple row boat…. Hugh 311/broke scale/220  June 20 99

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – : hello everyone, : well i know for darn sure that just eating : low-carb is not gonna do it for me and that i need : to get up and get my butt in gear.i’m just a FWIW, some folks do lose all their weight just from the change in dietary habits.  Dunno if I would have, or if it would have taken a lot longer, or what;  like you, I incorporated exercise into my lifestyle change, and I think it helped.  And the beauty of LC is that the new eating habits helped my energy levels and endurance, enabling me to exercise more than I ever had in my life. : little curious as to the activity levels of those : in the group and what exercise do you find most : beneficial. i have been walking 2 miles a night : for the last week(i’ll increase the length of my : walks slowly)and i just started the intro tae-bo : video.what do you guys enjoy? : laura I started with walking, about 3 miles/day on my lunch hour.  At first, that seemed like *quite* enough!  But before long, I found myself going further and further, getting less tired and enjoying it more.  My standard lunch time walk these days is 5-6 miles, and sometimes I still have to force myself to come back to work instead of just keeping going. For me, the next logical progression was cycling.  I started out doing a little road riding, and, over the course of a year, worked up to where my standard ride is about 40 miles (+/- 20 miles or so depending on who I’m with, how much time I have, etc.)  And, for variety, I do some mountain biking – downhilling as often as possible, though there aren’t too many ski resorts here that run the lifts for bikes. Since all my "fun" exercise was geared toward lower body workouts, I started doing upper-body resistance work.  I love the way it makes me feel, but I find myself getting a tad bored.  However, I think I’ve found my new, super-fun upper body exercise:  kayaking!  I went out with a friend on Tuesday, and spent 3 hours paddling around a nearby reservoir.  It was great, and, at the pace we were going, it was a terrific workout, too.  (And it was *so* much fun to prove wrong his prediction that I wouldn’t last more than an hour or 2; that resistance work was good preparation. ) I think you hit on the key in your last sentence.  I find that the single biggest factor in staying motivated, is doing things I enjoy. (I’ve always hated the phrase "working out";  sounds like such drudgery.  I much prefer to get out and "play".)  The best workout in the world is no good if you can’t bring yourself to stick to it. Try lots of things, and find the ones you enjoy.  Good for the body, and good for the soul. Roberta 210/121 (LC since 1/96, maintaining since Spring of ‘98, and shopping for a kayak…)

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