Getting Sick and Losing Weight

This is a train of thought from my own little mind today, there is no medical basis or research that I have pursued to support it whatsoever.  It has to do with dieting during cold and flu season.

It’s a common joke people make. “I lost 6 pounds since I had the flu. Yay! I need to get sick more often!”  I have made that comment myself, and maybe AFTERWARD there is some truth to my words, but I know that DURING the illness, especially the miserable sick feeling that accompanies the never ending vomiting, my mind set is more like, “Please make it stop! I’ll absorb 20 pounds straight to my ass if you will just please for the love of God make. it. stop.”

I don’t think I have ever heard the topic flip flopped though. I have heard people say they feel like they get sick more often when dieting, but not so much, “Dieting gave me the flu.”  No, that doesn’t even make sense, right? Or does it?

First of all, “Diet” is a weird word. It has a bad connotation.  A lot of times people don’t want to admit they are on a diet. You may want your kids to be more active and trim some fat but you don’t want it to be said that you put them on a “diet”.  But diet really just means whatever it is that you eat.  A diet can consist of salad and cottage cheese or it could consist of pizza and beer. It does not necessarily go hand in hand with an attempt at weight loss.

How this relates to my cold/flu & weight loss ramblings today is although it may not immediately occur to you that trying to lose weight could increase your risk of getting sick during cold and flu season, it is actually health 101.  So basic we kind of forget about it.  Here’s what I’m thinking.

You are very likely to come into contact with contagious sick germs, right?  And the stronger and healthier your body is to begin with dictates your likelihood of getting sick.  So naturally if you are practicing some sort of starvation diet, your body, although it may be getting skinnier, is not going to be at its peak health to fight those germ bugs off.  You already know that starvation diets are unhealthy and ultimately result in weight gain.  Well also by not eating a balanced diet, or not eating at all, you are robbing your body of antioxidants and vitamins that good fresh food provides. This poor nutritional quality of diet will make your body very weak, increasing your susceptibility to all the bugs you come into contact with during the cold and flu season.

Now this is not to say that you cannot attempt to improve your level of health and fitness, and lose weight during the winter months. Increase your activity and decrease your food intake! Go for it! But make sure you are eating ENOUGH and that you are loading up good healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, and lean meats. With this “diet” you can lose some weight, get healthy, AND build a stronger body to carry you through to Spring.

In summary, I declare there is truth to the notion that trying to lose weight during the cold and flu season can make you sick.  What do you think?

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It’s time to bring in the patio cushions, cover the grill, and empty the flower pots.  What a bummer. Winter itself can be so pretty when the snow covered trees and landscape sparkle like a winter wonderland.  But day to day, until the lights go up, my house looks kind of ugly.

I often laugh at how early people put their Christmas lights and decorations up but suddenly I think I get it.  It’s because they are thinking ahead how bad the back deck and yard looks once the frigid cold hits and all the leaves and flowers are gone.  They are being proactive because they know that once it gets to that ugly point where you want to hang lights and plant blinking deer… it’s too late! It’s so cold your little fingers feel like they’re going to break right off while wrapping the garland around the mailbox.

Suddenly, instead of making fun of the early  decorators, I think they are geniuses.  What I misread as overly enthusiastic holiday cheer is actually advanced planning and strategy.  I still plan to put the Christmas tree up the day after Thanksgiving, but I think I’ll start planning my outdoor holiday decorating so I’ll be prepared whenever that one or two nice days hit after Halloween.

When do you put up your holiday decs?  Better yet… When do you take them down? There’s a whole other topic!

At the beginning of the 2008  school year I got more aggressive on behalf of my Son who struggles with severe ADHD and was having a tough time in school.  At the time he was entering 7th grade and I knew we were running out of time to find successful strategies for him before he heads to the high school.  6th grade was terrible. 7th was stressful but a huge improvement.  So far 8th grade is even better.

What is responsible for the improvements? Finally finding the right ADHD treatment for us, and the change from a 504 to an IEP at school.

With regards to treatment we have been experimenting with medications and dosages for years. We finally found the one that allows him to best focus at school but still allows him to have an appetite and sleep at night.

Despite our struggles in school, all the school would do for my son is qualify him for a 504.  Basically a 504 mandates the removal of potential barriers in the student’s education but, unlike the IEP,  does not provide any special tools or assistance.  In addition to even light amounts of homework taking hours to do after school, Andrew struggled inside the classroom.  After staying up all night doing his homework, he would get nervous and distracted and either forget to pull it out of his backpack for each class, or stuff it in his desk while the other kids were passing forward or dropping on the teacher’s desk.  During timed tests he would drift off.  Classroom distractions prevented him from hearing much of the teacher’s instruction. 6th grade resulted in many D’s, E’s, tears, confrontation, and eventually a mama meltdown at school.

In 7th grade I started off much more firm and prepared, and demanded a meeting and walked in with my list of demands.  I could tell the new team of teachers and support had already drawn their conclusions about me, based on communications with the previous team. Regardless, I was able to convince them that the 504 wasn’t working and the IEP is what we needed.  There was still a lot of struggle at home at homework time and on behalf of the teachers to help him remember to turn things in and stay focused during class, but his grades soared. And the teachers slowly came around and understood that Andrew was facing challenges, not being a slacker.

As the first marking period of 8th grade comes to an end, our biggest struggle seems to be getting him to sit still long enough to do his homework after school, since his medication is wearing off. During school, however, thanks to just a few strategies put in place in the classroom and Andrew’s new found confidence in his abilities and relationships with teachers, he has made improvements beyond my expectations.

Age and maturity has a lot to do with this I am sure. “He will grow out of some of it” is something I have heard a lot over the last five years but had a hard time believing and counting on because we had no control over when or if that would happen.  What we did have control over is working with his doctor to make sure he was taking the right medication and working with the school until we found the strategies that worked for him.

Did you get a chance to see Extreme Home Makeover this weekend? I think this week, The Hill Family, might have been my favorite house. I always love the stories and the families, and the Hill Family was no exception. But the appearance really appealed to me this week.

We have watched some magnificent houses being built on this show, haven’t we? I am mostly drawn to the sprawling ranches with the peaks and stone and huge windows. You know, the progressive stuff. But this week a little calm washed over me when the bus pulled away and revealed the grand two story waiting to be toured. The house, for me, was the perfect blend of old style and contemporary. I could see their big ol’ family gathering and welcoming friends and family into their home, creating new memories and continuing to give back and enrich the lives of others.

The inside was a little more modern than the outside, but still very warm and inviting. The colors outside and in are so tranquil and that dining room table was really special. The lower level, dedicated to the teenage boys was amazing but a little flashy for me. I will say that I loved that flashy wall game. There always has to be something breath taking and one of a kind, doesn’t there?

I would love to have my house redone, who wouldn’t, right? Someone needs to produce a show to help home owners who are not quite in as desperate situations as the Extreme Home Makeover people. People whose maintenance is BECOMING overwhelming but they haven’t quite lost it yet. Those would require smaller budgets and would maybe save a lot of people from going into those dire straits. Or maybe folks with special needs that don’t need a whole rebuild, maybe just some specializing to meet their wants/needs, like walk in tubs, finished basement with playroom and privacy for growing family, new windows and a roof… whatever the case may be. Think something in scale between QUEER EYE FOR THE STRAIGHT GUY and EXTREME HOME MAKE OVER. That’d be cool.

For my make over I don’t think I want anything elaborate. Maybe some more windows put in where the builder skimped, um… finished basement with laundry room, office & play area. OH! And a fancy multi head shower! That would be my luxury splurge. How about you?

Here’s a tour of the Hill House if you would like to see it.

You might think by my obsession over my recent discovery of these fine lines around my face, that I don’t have enough to do.  Not true.  I have so MUCH to do that I choose to dwell on small, less significant things to keep my mind off the potpourri of priorities dancing inside my head.

Like most everyone else I suppose, before you even get into your to-dos, to-donts, and priorities for the day, there is an underlying stress related to personal finances, struggles, job security, the economy, health, etc., that wakes up with you every morning and tries to set the tone for the day.  From there, it’s all worries and dwelling over everything big and small, usually resulting in the loss of perspective as even the tiniest things become monsters in your mind.

In order to tame those monsters I try to remember to smile as soon as I wake up. Notice I say “TRY”.  Because I do not always succeed! Even if I can’t get my eyes open and even if I don’t feel like smiling I force myself to do it because it gets my face moving. Energy flowing. Mind working.  Most times I end up feeling like laughing because I think about how I must look laying there with my eyes glued shut trying to talk myself into smiling. I really do say “Good morning! It’s going to be a super day” when I wake up to the Universe.  Which also makes me laugh because I say “SSSUPER” with a bit of a lisp which makes me think of Elle from “Legally Blonde” which always makes me smile.  Do you see how this is coming together?

There is nothing mystical about it. I am not speaking to the Universe so that it will speak back or deliver something magical to me.  I am simply responding to myself and have figured out what changes my mood and keeps the underlying stress and worry from hitting me hard and heavy first thing in the morning.  If you have a hard time waking up in the morning, figure out what you can do to make yourself laugh when you’re laying there grumbling under the covers.

Once I’m up and have made my list, I follow it.  I do what it says, cross it off the list,  and move on to the next thing.  I don’t think beyond the task at hand.  What I think about is the silly stuff.  Researching the best wrinkle creams. What I am going to make for dinner. I really need a haircut.  How much I miss Adam Lambert since Idol has been over.

What gets you going for the day?  What sneaks in and distracts you? My latest addition to the underlying stress is the realization that the holidays are fast approaching and I haven’t even bought school clothes yet! Oh no.  Breathe. “It’s going to be a SSSUPER day. laundry is all caught up. Maybe I’ll make fajitas for dinner.  I wonder what Adam Lambert’s up to.”

Here is a fun distraction for you speaking of Adam Lambert. He recorded the theme song to the upcoming movie “2012.”  It’s about the world coming to an end. Hm. Maybe I could have come up with a better distraction