Walking with Walker Lady (and Abby)

Learning how to live my new healthier lifestyle: The more I test the waters, both negatively and positively, I am learning. I am trusting myself more and trusting my judgement more, on what I eat or what I do for exercise as well as what I don't eat or what I don't do for exercise. Remember, this is all new territory for me. I have never been this way before. I am still learning how to live as a semi-normal healthy woman...and I LIKE IT! Summer: Summertime is here with a vengeance in central Arkansas. Yesterday it was over 100º with the humidity around 50% and no rain for days. Yuk. My 12 year old son and I are still hitting the local swimming pool to exercise and cool off. I love the water! Plus I scored those water-dumbbells at that rummage sale last fall and can do a real proper exercise session, in the pool. Playing catch or water-shooting each other has been fun too. Gardening: Something new I discovered is that you can grow your own lettuce from what normally you

Now that my son is out of school for the summer, it is swimming season! The ninety-plus heat sent he and I to the pool last week. As predicted, no one seemed to take note of my saggy skin when I went to the pool. Of course, I did take note of others!  I saw several rather large women there. I could have made two or three swimsuits for myself out of their suits. Were they there so they could soak in the water to keep cool? (Fat adds a layer of insulation as I well know!) They certainly weren’t there to exercise. If they were not laying in a lounge chair they were laying on a air-mattress and hanging on to the edge of the pool so they didn’t move around when the breezes blew. I wanted to go up to each one and say “I used to be like you.” Then I would offer help and ‘save’ them from themselves. What gives ME that right? No one ever said such things to me, except for my parents as they were trying to save me from being overweight. Instead of saving the world, I exercised

I read a post on Roni's Weigh blog that talked about trigger foods. It was quite thought provoking to me. Here is her posting: Trigger Foods . It gave me pause to think about my trigger foods. If wine can be considered a trigger food, that would probably be my biggest temptation. I can leave candy alone but if there is a bottle of wine and a weekend involved, I find it hard to resist a bottle of my favorite wine. Another trigger food would be ice cream drumsticks. Yum. Sometimes it can be cookies...they have to be ooey, gooey ones though! Roni talks about why she thinks certain foods are trigger foods for herself. That got me to thinking about why mine are trigger foods. The wine? I think it is because I like the buzz. I like the way it mellows the mood and relaxes me. How do I handle this trigger? Avoidance. I just don't buy it unless it is a special occasion. The ice cream is a combination of childhood memories of trips to DQ. Ice cream was a treat and a special occasio