Hitting the Pavement


Image result for avocadoI'm at an age where if I don't use it, I will start to lose it. I mean this in regards to my physical health. Almost a year ago, my husband and I started on the Keto diet. If you're not familiar with it, you cut out sugar and any carb that is not a vegetable or berry, and you eat a large proportion of healthy fat. For example, avocados are a staple in this diet. You're supposed to calculate your calorie percentages and macros and blah, blah, blah, you get the idea. This is the Keto diet in a nutshell. Sounds delightful, doesn't it?






The truth is, eating this way does make me feel amazing. When I stick to it, I have lots of energy and mental clarity, which is perfect since my writing time is scheduled for after lunch. (the key phrase here is 'when I stick to it')

My husband has stuck to the Keto diet and has the amazing results and good health to show for it. After several months, I downgraded to, what I like to call, a Keto-esque diet. I can only eat eggs for breakfast a few days in a row before I spiral into a depression. So, I worked in a few of the foods I like and committed to cutting down the unhealthy carbs and sugar.
Drinking unlimited ice tea at
Panera, my favorite writing spot!

Cutting out sugar was like saying good-bye to a dear, old friend. I'm serious. I would longingly recall the good times I had sitting at Panera, writing my book and devouring a chocolate chipper cookie (51 carbs, btw. You start to learn stuff like this when you're on a Keto-esque diet).

Then, in early November (actually, a day after I submitted the final revisions for my first book!) I came down with a terrible virus. It was the sickest I've been in my life. It lasted for 10 solid days, and I couldn't get out of bed OR eat. I was hurting.

As I moved from my bed to the couch and back again, I had a few thoughts:

1. Elizabeth, you really do take your health for granted. Stop it.
2. Please, oh, please, oh, please don't let my kids get this virus.
3. Is anyone going to load the dishwasher?
4. I hope I'm well by Thanksgiving because...stuffing and gravy.
5. You need to take better care of yourself.
6. If you never get better, you're going to regret not eating your favorite foods.
7. Seriously, guys...the dishwasher?

When I returned to the land of the living, I decided my new health mantra was "Everything in moderation".

I would...
Image result for oscar wilde everything in moderation including moderation
Exercise,

eat healthy,

cut down on my sugar,

but enjoy the cookie sometimes too (okay, and the baguette with extra butter).

Didn't Oscar Wilde say, "Everything in moderation, including moderation?" Oscar gets me.

This moderation diet is working for me, and I feel great. So great in fact, I decided this spring to finally begin exercising. (Insert heavy sigh) It was time.

I decided to start out small like...buying new sneakers as motivation! I went through a Marie Kondo phase over the winter and mariekondoed all my sneakers out the door and to Goodwill.


Certainly, I will stick to my exercise goals in these fabulous sneakers. Amiright?


Next, I decided to find a few times in my week to go for a brisk walk. (the motivation being that I had to break in my new sneakers, obviously😄)

I frequently tell myself that I'm a work in progress and that covers a multitude of areas in my life, lol. I try to start small but make it stick. 💪

Here's where I walk. It'll look better once the sun decides to return to NE Ohio.

Does anyone exercise before writing or tackling a project? I'm experimenting with how I feel afterwards. My new routine is walk, then write.

So what are you doing this spring to stay healthy? What have you thought about doing but haven't begun yet?


Here's my first book, A Promise Remembered, out this past March.





He’s finally back… 

but time doesn’t heal all wounds

William Kauffman is back in his Michigan hometown, but not for long. When he runs into his high school sweetheart, Annie Curtis, she’s a reminder of everything and everyone he left behind, without an explanation, years ago. Are a sick mother, a failing diner, two adorable children and the woman he’s never stopped loving enough to make him right past wrongs and stay?


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Comments

  1. Love the new sneakers. The moderation diet sounds like a great plan to me. And for the record, did anyone load the dishwasher?

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    1. I'm feeling concern for the loading of that dishwasher, too! ;)

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    2. Thanks, Beth! As for the dishwasher...eventually:-)

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  2. I love the "ketoesque" phrase...I've done lots of diets and other types of "self-improvement" programs where I ended up "esquing" it! These days, cleaning my house tends to be "cleaningesque." I love reunion stories--all the best with yours.

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    1. Virginia, I can relate to a cleaningesque lifestyle!

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  3. I write first, and then I take a nice long walk in the evenings. It's my me-time. :) For me, my best writing time is in the morning, and if I do anything else first, I don't start. So exercise is for early evening, after supper. It seems to work!

    Your story sounds fantastic! Makes me want to find out his brooding secret.

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    1. Patty, I would love to write in the morning if my schedule allowed. It's so great that you know what works best for you. Finding the right routine is key.

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  4. I usually exercise in the afternoon, breaking up my writing time. Congrats on your first book!

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  5. Here's a subject I love. I exercise everyday. I do it all day long. A few years ago, we had a workshop called "book in a week." I didn't write a book in a week, but the foreplay to the writing is to get ready to write. One of the suggestions is to buy on healthy snacks. The second, most important to me, is when you are writing, get up every hour and do 5 minutes of physical exercise. So I walk around my house. I do figure 8's through my downstairs. In that time, you can walk 1,000 steps. While I walk, I talk to my characters or let them talk to me. I DO NOT EAT.

    When I couple this with my tennis games, I'm doing about 20,000 steps a day (about 8 miles). In the winter, it's about 5 miles, since there is little or no tennis. If I go to the grocery store or mall (haven't been there in months), I make sure I walk at least the 250 steps my fitbit wants.

    And to be extremely accurate, my fitbit is on my ankle, not my wrist. So every step counts. The only thing you need to remember is to take off the fitbit when you're getting in the shower. I usually take my charger and let it charge for those few minutes. It ensures I remember to take it off.

    Thanks for the diet info. I don't do the Keto, but I'm on a low carb diet-esque.

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    1. Those steps really do add up. Yes, for Keto I had to find healthy snacks and foods I was happy to eat on a regular basis. I ate a lot of the same foods/meals over and over again before eating healthy so I had to change up a lot. I've thought about getting a fitbit. Maybe it would motivate me to walk a lot more. Hmm...my birthday is coming up. Perhaps I'll put my husband on the case!

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  6. Wow, hearing about your virus makes me hurt after the fact. I know someone right now who's been sick for over 9 days with the flu and still feels barely human. I wonder if it's the same virus. Sounds like you're well over it and hope the months since then have been good. I don't follow a specific dietary regime, just try to eat lots of fruits & veggies, and walk a lot.

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    1. It wasn't the flu. My doctor diagnosed me, but I can't remember what it was called and I was too sick at the time to care. She told me I would feel like death warmed over for 10 solid days and by goodness she was right. Day 10 felt just as awful as day 3. But on day 11, it was like coming up for a breath of fresh air. I spent the day scrubbing and disinfecting my house, lol. I hope your friend feels better soon.

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  7. Hi Elizabeth! I'm sorry I'm so late. I can no longer comment or get on the blog during my work day and I always forget when I get home. I've been doing Keto for a few months now and I love it! I really need to start adding more exercise to the list and I would probably feel fabulous. We need to exchange keto recipes sometime!

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  8. Of course, now I'm worried about the dishwasher... I love your plan, though, and I think moderation IS the key. Mastering it...well, that's the other key. Sorry to be so late commenting, but I loved your post!

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  9. I had a virus that sounds really similar. It was a beast! In fact, another Heartwarming author, Anna J. Stewart, had something similar too and named it The Terminator, because it was so hard to get rid of! LOL! I also am on a moderation diet. If I try too extreme of a diet, I can't stick to it for long. So now I am low carb-ish and trying to incorporate more exercise into every day. I walk a lot and am starting to run again. I also take exercise breaks when I write - jumping jacks, yoga, etc. I just keep my yoga mat right by my computer!

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