Weight Wars # 5

It has been a year since I last wrote about my weight struggle.  I changed my injectable from Victoza, to Trylicity and now Monjauro.  The Monjauro seems to have been a bit more effective as I have lost 8 lbs with it after being stuck at about 223 for some time.  I am now under the 220 mark which was a goal.  Now my goal is to actually get below 200.  At 215 I am still in the obese range (but no longer grossly obese).  At 196 I would no longer be obese but only over weight.  Here is watching that things continue in a positive fashion.  I am exercising more.  I try for 5x a week.  However I still have binge eating episodes.  My sugar is a bit better this wick.  A1C Monday was 6.8.  Under 7 was my goal.

Weight Wars #4. 2/25/25

 My previous weight post was during the middle of Covid, April 2021.  At that time I weighed 240, obese. Now I am hovering around 220.  My eventual goal is to be under190 overweight instead of obese.  My wife blames the weight loss on continued use of Victoza.  I feel this helps but it is more.  I don't eat quite as much.  I could exercise more.  I developed sciatica in 2022 which really limited my exercise.  But to be honest it has resolved enough I could be exercising more.

Weight Wars #3.   4/19/2021

 I have posted twice before, but not for the past two years.  I saw my weight go from 298 in 2003 to 248 in 2019 and 245 in 2019.  My weight has not dropped much more.  Now I weigh about 240.  I am no longer grossly obese but just obese.  However I have been stagnant in any further weight loss.  I was able to take pills to help with weight loss, and then Victoza shot.  Victoza helped me lose about ten pounds but then no more.  However it is going to take something more to get me below the 240 line and continue my trek to 190 which is my ultimate goal.   I was doing better before Covid made everything be work from home.  Then I did not walk near as much as I no longer took the train to work.  I have not gotten into a pattern of exercise since having retired.  I keep thinking something will change.  I guess that something will need to be myself.  I need to lose that last 50 lbs to be as healthy as I can be.  

So I commit to a half hour walk or activity everyday.  I commit to doing exercises to help my frozen shoulder.  I commit to watch my food intake.  I commit to no food after 8 p.m.  

Weight Wars #2. 4/11/2019

I published a previous post about my weight and being half way to not being obese, down from 298 to 248.  I can now say I am down another 5 lbs but still only half way.  The difference is an adjustment in my height.  I guess I am shrinking, which means I have another 10 pounds to lose before escaping the obesity line.  So down 55 pounds with a goal of 55 pounds more.  I hope this sharing will motivate me, as my life is at stake.

Weight Wars. 9/29/2018

I came across something really scary: a record of my weight from 2001 through 2003.  I started at 292 in December of 2001.  However I was down to 285 by mid January; only to blossom back up by the end of the year.  My last recorded weight in 2002, early December, was 292.  Then I became my heaviest.  I started 2003 at 298.  That is just gross.  That is the most I have weighed my entire life.  That is 100 pounds above the obese line.  I recorded that by the end of 2003 I was back to 285.  I have continued a mostly downward spiral, with significance periods of getting stuck.  I am half of the way to the obese line--in other words I am 50 pounds lighter than my heaviest with another 50 to go.
What have been the consequences.  I have diabetes and tinnitus, and sleep apnea and high blood pressure.  Weight is a contributing factor in all these areas.  I hope when I am no longer obese--some of these health issues will be resolved.  I would be grateful if just one or two  would improve and I not have to take so many medications.

Magazine Article Review: The Semi-Complete User's Guide to Your Eyes

The Semi-Complete User's Guide to Your Eyes by Kevin Dupzyk, Men's Health, September/October 2025, pp 20-21.

This short article provides tips for different eye issues and general advise.

1. Tired eyes is usually caused  by too much screen time.  I good idea is the 20-20-20 rule.  Every twenty minutes look 20  feet away for 20 seconds.

2. Chronically dry eyes is caused by dry eye disease is are best treated with over the counter drops such as artificial tears.  A warm compress placed over they eyes can also be helpful.

3. Itchy as Hell eyes are a sign of allergies.  In the allergy section find drops with olopatidine which blocks the release of histamine.  

In terms of general advice for eye health, control blood pressure and blood sugar, blink more (especially if you have lots of screen time), carrots and leafy greens.  Tinted glasses are a mixed bag.  They won'y help eye strain but can help with migrains or brain injury.

Things to avoid are smoking, excessive sun, dirty contacts and "get the red out" drops.  These drops offer temporary relief but can create a vicious cycle.

Book Review: Girl Warrior

 Girl Warrior on Coming of Age by Joy Harjo, W.W. Norton and Company, New York, 2025.

Joy Harjo is a poet among other things.  However I think this book deals mostly with being part of a community and a story.  It includes poetry, but is not a bok of poems.  She uses her dreams and her poetry to talk of how we are interconnected and part of a great weave.  By using her own life experience she teaches how to be more accepting of self and more related with others.  Her goal is to provide a springboard for young people, especially your women.  I think she succeeds in that and the book is a good read.

Network Article: Never Plug these 8 Kitchen Appliances into a Power Strip (It's Dangerous)

 Never Plug these 8 Kitchen Appliances into a Power Strip (It's Dangerous) Bliss Donahue-Power in Home & Design via Man Made DIY.  Sometimes we have to resist the temptation to plug everything into a power strip; especially in the kitchen.  Sometimes apppliances require too much electricity, and power surges to make this practical.  It can result in excessive heat and fire risk, or tripping a breaker which would shut the appliance off.

The appliances mentioned are the refrigerator.  This surges at ties which could trip the breaker and spoilage could b the result.  Microwaves require too mu h power to make a power strip feasible.  Toasters and toaster ovens generate too much heat to use a power cord.  Slow Cookers cook slowly.  It is not wise to use a power strip for that extened period of time as cords will het up.  Another appliance with a heating element is the coffee maker.  Heating water rapidly is not conducive to a power strip.  The blender also needs its own outlet because starting up they use a surge of power which can potentially damage the power strip, or worse the blender's motor.  Air fryers also use heating  coils and fans to cook food quickly.  Heating coils and power strips should not mix.  Electric kettls are also on the list.  They draw too much power and this can quickly melt a power strip.  

Magazine Article Review: Room to Grow, about Decluttering

 Room to Grow by Julia Ubbenga, Kansas City, Kansas, Guideposts Magazine, Dec, Jan 2025, Danbury, CT.

Julia Ubbenga first tells her story of overcome stress and anxiety by turning to minimalism.  She says sometimes less is more.  She says she buried emotions in stuff.  SHe feels she has more room for what matters, husband and kids, by having less.

She ends the article with a page devoted to ideas fo decluttering; Five Tips for Decluttering your Home and your Life.

1. Change your mindset.  This is hard because we invest in stuff.  Her idea is to think of stuff as transient.  We are stewards only.  Stuff is transient like a firework, or a bubble or a wave.

2. The best time to start is now.  Ubbenga suggests starting with a basket, and go through the house and put clutter in the basket, countertops, table tops, drawers, where ever clutter accumulates.  Then take 15 minutes a day to go through the clutter.  You can do this whe doing something fun, listen to a book or podcast.  A little can go a long way.

3. HALTS before you buy.  HALTS stands for hungry, angry, lonely, tired and sad/sick/stressed.  Before buying run through the question would I want to by this if I weren't hungry/angry, lonely etc.  If the answer is no then don't buy.  If yes wait 24 hours and then buy.  Also look for patterns.  When do you scroll or go shopping.

4. Memories are found in you, not your possessions.  She uses the spontaneous combustion method.  How would I feel if this item spontaneously combusted.  If the answer is relief then it can go, if the answer is good but guilty take a picture of it and let it go.  If the answer is devastated then keep the item.

Free yourself from digital clutter.  Media can get in the way of what matters, relationships with God and friend and family.  Maybe turning off media is OK.  We do not need to check social media over and over.

Magazine Article Review: Being Present

 Being Present: The season can evoke strong emotions, especially if you've lost a loved one.  Her are six ways to help someone who's grieving during the holidays, by Kate J. Meyer, Master of Divinity, Guideposts, Inspiration for Life, Danbury, CT, Dec, Jan 2025, pp 30-34.

The author present six ways to be present for someone who is grieving.

1. Offer a safe place.  In think a safe place means providing support without judging.  People respond to death different, so we should be accepting.

2. Say their name.  I first I thought this meant the grievers name, but this is referring to the deceased.  Sometimes it might feel uncomfortable, but the griever needs to hear that their loved one made a difference.

3. Be specific and consistent.  When someone is grieving they may not have much energy, and may say no several times.  However be consistent in asking, also be specific in what you are offering or wanting.  Better to say specific things, can I bring a meal? do you want to go to a movie? than something general, let me know if you need anything.

4. Ask what they need today.  Give a choice.  Ask do you want to talk about the deceased, or do something as a distraction.  Or do you just want quiet?

5. Ir's not about you.  Do not talk about you, this is what I did etc.  Do not preach or even necessarily share bible verses.  However do give space and maybe the individual will bring stuff up.  However even then avoid giving advice or direction.  You can say this is what I did but you experience and journey will be different.

Embrace silence.  Sometimes saying nothing and just being there is the best process.  Remember to take the view of the griever.  What will the griever gain from what I am about to say?  Often the answer is that just being there can be validating.  Let the griever lead.

Magazine Artivle Review: The New-ish Fight Over Flouride

The New-ish Fight Over Fluoride: What to Know about the Controversial Mineral in your Water and Toothpaste by Erica Sweeney and Marty Munson, Men's Health Magazine, Hearst Magazines International, January-February 2025 pp 18-19.

This is an argument in which I have a vested interest.  I was born and lived in an area with natural fluoride until I was six years old.  My older siblings swore it greatly improved their teeth and helped them avoid cavities.  I can't say the same for myself.  My sister passed away of esophogeal cancer tens years ago.  My brother and I have both been treated for skin cancer.  Is there a correlation?  Proba bly not with the skin cancers; we spent lots of time in the sun.  But with my sister maybe.  We also lived close to a nuclear energy site in Richland, Washington.

Anyway to the article.  About 75 percent of us get fluoride through their water supply.  It has been called toxic, Robert F. Kennedy calls it industrial waster that causes many health problems.  While dentists and public health advocates say it is important to your health.   Dentists first noticed that people who lived where fluoride was naturally occurring had less cavities.  Fluoride combines with our teeth to make them stronger.  Cavities and loss of teeth can be a big problem.  Fluoridated water reduces cavities by 25 percent.  Consequently there is less pain in teeth and less need for dental care which can be painful.  

There is worry the fluoride may cause problems in the body elsewhere.  However this does not pan out, except for possible decrease ingtelligence in children.  No significant difference for adults.  However there are holes in the research and more study is needed.  Health risks from fluoride may be at levels way beyond what is normally used.