Food and a shopping list

Today was a good day, so I was able to walk to the grocery store to buy what I needed, including stuff from the deli counter, like cole slaw and ham salad.  Another plus is that I got in 4,000 steps by simply going to the store.  I also walked in the halls in my building this afternoon and evening.  That means I have more than doubled that number (8,303 steps), and it's not even bedtime yet.

Exercise books and a poster

Being physically active is one of the most important things you can do each day to maintain and improve your health and keep doing things you enjoy as you age.

National Institute of Health

Monday, I ordered the poster above and some exercise books to use in a class that my friend Shannon and I will lead every Monday afternoon.  The book we once used (on the left) is no longer available, but I have six copies for anyone who doesn't already have one.  When the new books arrive, I'll give everyone a copy of it, too.  Look at these also:  HERE is a total body chair workout.  Six ways to do pushups while standing is HERE.

Weekly roundup ~ at the end of July

International Friendship Day is celebrated on July 30.

I have this small poster of Snoopy lending an ear,

because he's a good friend, of course!

(It's across the room from me, but it's late, so I found the image online.)

Sunday Salon

The Peter Principle ~ by Dr. Laurence J. Peter, 1969, humor, xviii +170 pages

Why is incompetence so maddeningly rampant and so vexingly triumphant?  This book answers that question.  The authors say that everyone in a hierarchy — from the office intern to the CEO, from the low-level civil servant to the president of a nation — will always rise to his or her level of incompetence.

This book explains why incompetence is at the root of everything we endeavor to do:  why utopian plans never generate utopias, why governments condone anarchy, why schools bestow ignorance, why courts dispense injustice, why prosperity causes unhappiness.

This book is older than my blog, which means I read it so long ago that I have never mentioned it here.  I'm sure it will get a high rating when I re-read it, since I remember it from over half a century ago.

Monday Musing

Maybe I've been overthinking this, but few or no comments on things I post during the week with comments only on Sunday seem to indicate that most people read only my Sunday Salon posts.  I've decided to dump a whole week's worth of books and thinking into a weekly post.  This is it, folks, so enjoy!  (Or not.)

TWOsday

My TWO things for TWOsday are at the top, where I've shown TWO Snoopy posters for International Friendship Day today.  See what a good friend he is to Woodstock?

Wednesday Words                       and/or                       Wednesday Workout

I was reading THIS article when I happened across "gonzo journalism," which I've never run across before.  So I looked it up and learned on Wikipedia that it's "a style of journalism that is written without claims of objectivity, often including the reporter as part of the story using a first-person narrative."  The article is about a 24-year-old guy in the Netherlands who is "a cognitively fit and healthy young man [who] has chosen to live on the dementia ward at Verpleeghuis Groenelaan (Green Lanes Nursing Home), ultimately just to see what it’s like."  He has written a bestseller in the Netherlands and says, "I don’t have dementia.  But by living with people with dementia for three years, I know a lot about life in an institute, and I listen to people.  In fact, listening to people is the main thing I do."

I wrote about this "exercise block" this past week, promising myself that I would start attending exercise classes regularly here at the Crown Center.  The next class meets tomorrow, and I plan to be there. 

Thursday Thoughts

Why would the app on my iPhone tell me that the nearest Walgreens is over 11 miles away, when there's literally one across the street from my apartment building?  Google maps says it is 15 minutes away via highway, but I walk to my store and back in less time than that.  I saw it and took photographs of it from my former window.  See?

Long, long ago, I read this online and just came across it again.  Hmm, it's too small (and faint) to read.  Here's what it says:

ATTORNEY:  Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?

WITNESS:  No.

ATTORNEY:  Did you check for breathing?

WITNESS:  No.

ATTORNEY:  So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?

WITNESS:  No.

ATTORNEY:  How can you be so sure, Doctor?

WITNESS:  Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.

ATTORNEY:  But could the patient have still been alive, nevertheless?

WITNESS:  Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law.

Book Beginnings on Fridays

The DASH Diet Mediterranean Solution ~ by Marla Heller, 2018, health, 264 pages

Beginning

The DASH diet (based on the research, Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension) and the Mediterranean diet have both been acclaimed as the best of the best in the world.  Both became famous for their amazing impact on heart health.  Both help reduce inflammation and are associated with lower rates of heart attacks, strokes, heart failure, certain types of cancer, and a reduced risk of developing type 2 diabetes.

Now for the funny part:  I remembered having four DASH Diet books on my shelves before my recent move, but one day I noticed there were only three of them now.  I turned to put down whatever was in my hands and then went to the shelves to gather those three while looking for the fourth book.  But when I got across the room to the bookshelves, there were all FOUR of them together.  I probably blinked, like "what just happened?"  Then I realized there were THREE on a nearby shelf.  Yes, the four together all have my name in them, but the other three do NOT.  My logical conclusion is that those other three must have been my friend Donna's, and her sister gave me those copies to share with someone.  Maybe I was supposed to donate them to the Crown Center library.  I did discover on this blog (HERE) that Donna commented on this book in 2018:  "I will give it a try."

Gilion at Rose City Reader hosts Book Beginnings on Fridays.

Caturday

Clawdia's special day is the last day of every week, though she would say that every day should be Caturday.  She is almost settled into our new apartment.

So is this it for the week?

Maybe, but perhaps I'll add special posts.

Something may come up unexpectedly, something I cannot wait until next Sunday to post. If so, I will post it and mention it in my next weekly roundup.  Otherwise, let's just see how this compilation works out.

Wednesday Workout

I haven't been going to the exercise classes, even though they started up again after the Covid scare.  I HAVE been walking, mostly up and down my hallway with Clawdia, but also walking up and down the sidewalks in my neighborhood.  I read in an article:

...research shows that as we age, the brain shrinks, specifically the hippocampus which is responsible for memory formation.  Exercise can help maintain this portion of the brain, and in some cases, increase the size.  There’s much to be learned about how and why this is, but Erickson says the effects are better the longer you engage in these habits so it’s good to start young. 

Of course you can still reap the benefits if you start later in life, he says. You might find that with time, you can recall memories and information more easily and have better executive function and a longer attention span when your brain is at its best.

I've noticed that my memory recall seems worse, probably because it's been too long since I was doing a regular exercise routine.  Why did I stop?  I don't remember (LOL), but I do recall that I cleared a space to exercise in my own apartment during lockdown.  I would set up my laptop and follow the online classes.  I even taught myself how to Zoom, in order to do that!

So now what?  I don't swim like a whale or run like a rabbit.  But I decided there would be no more procrastinating and I'll start going to the Monday Music and Movement classes downstairs.  That class focuses on cardio and balance exercises.

Stretches for a Wednesday workout

Click on this chart to enlarge it.

Wednesday Workout ~ balance

Balance ~ Feeling stable while you’re standing isn’t enough to prevent falls.  Work on your balance using these strategies from a SilverSneakers trainer.  To avoid falls, do these five things every day:

1.  Practice both static and dynamic moves.  Static balance comes into play when you stand on one leg and don’t move.  Dynamic balance is when we walk, transfer weight from one leg to the other, and propel ourselves forward.

2.  Change up the way you stand.  Try these variations:  feet side by side, one foot in front of the other, and heel to toe.

3.  Exercise in all three planes of motion.  Move forward and back, move side to side, and rotate.

4.  Use your senses.

• Visual:  Stand on one leg,  and close one eye or both. If you’re shaky with this at first, hold on to a counter or a sturdy chair.
• Hearing:  Stand with one foot directly in front of the other, and then turn your head to the side.
• Mental:  Stand on one leg, and hold a ball in one hand.  Tap the ball to your right ear, to your left shoulder, to your right hip.

5. Conquer common tripping hazards.  One reason we fall is because our legs get tangled up, so SilverSneakers suggests ways to practice untangling our legs and lifting our toes, HERE.

All of these things are discussed in greater detail, HERE.  Go for it!

Wednesday Workout

Silver Sneakers is available to us seniors (65+) at no cost.  Since I have no car to get to a gym, I like the YouTube videos to use at home.  Here is one designed to "Unlock Your Flexibility and Mobility."  You'll have to click on the link to go to YouTube.

I also walk every day, including a walk to the other end of my hall and back with Clawdia several times, even on days when I've been out walking in the neighborhood.  Why do that?  Because she's stuck in the apartment all day and wants out.  My other exercising is reading and writing, which is exercise for my brain.  So what are you reading today?

Wednesday Workout

I've decided into get back to exercising more regularly, so I clicked on Silversneakers and chose this "20-Minute Strength Workout With Dumbbells."  Before the pandemic lockdown, I led a group of friends doing exercises on our own in the fitness center every Friday afternoon.  Why?  Because all the scheduled classes met in the mornings, and not all of us are early birds.  After nearly three years without exercising consistently, I wonder how much I'll be able to do now.  I plan to get back into it very S-L-O-W-L-Y.

I was smiling as I started digging through my equipment that we once used in our group.  I checked off who came each week, so I can see that we had 23 people taking part.  Some of us met in early March 2020, and then I have a big X through the rest of March and April.  Lockdown had arrived and exercising together was over.

I gave out copies of this 120-page book on Exercise & Physical Activity (2015), so everyone could study or practice at home.  I got it out to refresh my memory of the routines we used.  Melissa (our leader in the Wednesday classes) had given us copies of this book on January 4, 2017.  (Notice the date!  Amazing coincidence, isn't it?)

Yoga

I could probably do a couple of these, maybe

even five.  But the one circled is my favorite.

Daily dozen for seniors ~ let's exercise

1. Walk ~ If it's a nice day, outside would be good.
2. Extend your leg behind you ~ I can feel the pull.
3. Raise your toes ~ Nice stretch.
4. Raise your heels ~ I like this feeling.
5. Push off the wall ~ I feel like a child playing. 
6. Shrug your shoulders ~ Feels good, ahhhh!
7. Raise your arms to the side ~ Feel it in my shoulders.
8. Stretch your chest ~ Hmm, I was kind of stiff.
9. Straighten your leg behind you ~ Lower back work.
10. Drop your head to your ear ~ Relaxes my neck.
11. Walk a tightrope ~ Good for my balance.
12. Walk ~ Yeah!  Move it, folks!  Let's take a walk!
13. (Plus one) Where's the reaching overhead stretch?!?  Also, touch each finger to our thumbs: 1-2-3-4 and back 4-3-2-1.

Wednesday Workout

Does jumping to conclusions count as exercise?  What if I exercise restraint?  Someone said:  "If you feel the need to exercise, lie down until it goes away."

But seriously, I like SilverSneakers online because I don't have to go anywhere to exercise.  I can do it in my own apartment.

I use this 120-page book on Exercise and Physical Activity, which divides the activities into these categories (p. 13):

• Endurance — aerobic activities increase your breathing and heart rate.
• Strength — resistance training improves your muscle strength.
• Balance — these exercises help prevent falls (important for older adults).
• Flexibility — stretching can help your body stay flexible and limber.

Over the years, I've collected useful equipment to help me exercise.  I have a set of two hand-weight dumbbells (one pound each), workout bands (light, medium, heavy), stretchy resistance bands (medium), and a shoulder pulley (above) that I got to work on my range of motion after I broke my shoulder in December 2012.

Shoved under my desk is also an exercise mini-cycle like this, which can be used with feet or hands.  While healing after breaking that shoulder, I would put this mini-cycle on the desk or a table and use my hands to push the pedals around.  I have  not used it much lately, but — now that I have remembered it again — I think I'll pull it out today, along with my tennis balls and a stiff spongy thing to squeeze to strengthen my grip.

Wednesday Workout ~ yoga

My doctor said, "Exercise."  Walking is good, and I can swim in the pool (now open for the summer).  But when the office sent out a notice that yoga will be offered at the clubhouse every Thursday, I signed up.  I took yoga classes when I was younger, so I know it can be adapted to what each person can accomplish.  I envision doing poses like the one in this photo, though realistically I don't know if I'll ever do it — because I broke my shoulder six months ago and may never be able to get my arm that perfectly straight up again.  Wish me luck — or better, wish me perseverance.  The more I do, the better off I'll be.