Adventures in freakdom.
First off — a few of you have asked about the purpose of the chicks. They’re for eggs, not food.
Unless.
If there’s a reason the flock needs to be culled (personality issues, noise issues, etc), there’s a chance that I’ll try the whole “kill it and eat it” thing. I don’t really want to do that right now (we’ve talked about raising chickens for food at a later time), but it seems a little hypocritical to be willing to eat meat but not be able to do the deed yourself.
Anyway, they’re first and foremost for eggs, which should be here in the late summer or early fall.
As most of you already know, until I was 33 I was pretty fat. Well, “pretty” is an understatement. I was very fat. In 2000, I decided to take care of the problem while I was still young, and over about an 18-month period, got down to a normal size.
I ate less, I worked out, and got really healthy. I reversed type 2 diabetes, sleep apnea, high blood pressure, and a number of other minor things. I became very active, hiking and biking and kayaking regularly, and working out every day.
A few times over the last four years, I hurt my back (lower back) lifting weights improperly. I didn’t think much of it until about seven months ago, when I did it again. About a week after the weightlifting injury, I re-injured my back trying to carry a whole toilet (tank, too) through a doorway. My back never recovered from that. It came back most of the way, but it was still pretty easy to make it sore. I haven’t been able to lift weights since then.
As you know, we’ve been renovating a house in Smallville. What you don’t know (or didn’t until yesterday when I mentioned it) is that over that time, my back’s been getting worse and worse. For the last few weeks, the pain has been constant. Today I finally went to a spine doctor to see if there was anything he could do. Writing about it prompted me to make the call, and I was able to get squeezed in today.
The first thing he told me when he walked through the door was that he’d looked at my x-rays and thought he was looking at the spine of a 65-year-old man, because there was so much degeneration.
I’m two months shy of forty.
The long and short of it is this: being fat for most of my life did some irreparable damage to my skeleton, which I’ve known from previous doctor visits for shoulder, knee, and ankle problems. Now my spine is added to the list of things that are crapping out early.
I don’t like to lecture people, and I try to stay out of discussions about losing weight these days because I believe people are adults and free to make their own decisions. That said, as one who’s going through the long-term repercussions of carrying around extra weight, let me tell you that constant back (and joint) pain sucks. In a big way.
And it was completely preventable.
There’s an upside. With physical therapy, and a short regimen of OTC NSAIDS for the immediate inflammation, he thinks I can get rid of the pain and even resume lifting weights within a few months.
Anyway, it’s food for thought if anyone’s looking for one more reason to commit to getting healthier.
If you want to get notified whenever Fred writes a journal entry, this link will do the trick.
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Fred, I have followed the ‘adventures’ of you and Robyn since you were “0nefatman”. You have both been inspirations. Your “cautionary tale” is one for EVERYBODY to take to heart. I’m glad to see that your prognosis is pretty positive. I think one of the most amazing things you did, which you seldom allude to, is that you quit smoking while still losing weight! That should show anyone who uses weight GAIN as an excuse to keep smoking. Kudos.
I cannot believe you quit smoking while losing weight!!! Unbelievable!!! I got into that whole “Get fit by 40″ mind set and the only thing I managed to do was quit smoking. I gained another 30 pounds while doing it too!!! I am now 41 and trying to find out how to lose all this weight. Your story and Robyn’s are both very inspirational!
They’re for eggs, not food? You intend to eat the eggs I’m sure, thus making them food.
The eggs of course, not the chickens. Now you need to get some fish for the pond. I was going to say some honey bees as well but I better stop there before Robin and you get stung, lol. The house looks great and you did an excellent job.
I didn’t see the smoking thing up there, and I read it many times. I may be fully daft.
Anyways, today is my one-year quitaversary, and the weight is the next to go. I need to lose 110-120.
Thanks for the further inspiration!
must..have…more…chicken…pictures
Ditto on the consequences of carrying extra weight.Both my knees are blown and my hips are on the way out too.
Now,I am barely ambulatory,I rely on my cane heavily,and am unable to become physically active to help myself lose weight. My doc says I can eat seven hundred calories a day or have weight-loss surgery to induce the malnutrition needed.Fun? Nope…
In hindsight,it puts those pints of premium ice cream in proper perspective.
Stephanie - I didn’t mention it there. Don’t worry that you may be daft.
Sasha - don’t you wish touch-sensations could be sent over the internet, so you could feel the soft fuzzy baby chick goodness?
(I had to clean up some pasty butt [dried droppings covering the cloaca] yesterday, so it’s not all sunshine and rainbows)
rundmc - It puts them in perspective, but damn Ben and Jerry for making them so good.
I too have just reversed type II diabetes by losing 20 pounds. It’s tuff but so worth it.
Fred, I have learned so much from you and Robyn over the years. I have lost over 100 lbs. and much of my motivation came from health issues with my parents. My mom is looking at double knee replacement surgery in the near future. I also believe that watching/reading about Robyn and your struggles and successes were integral to my weightloss. Only 10 more lbs. to go now!
Aleve
Is wonderful and doesn’t have the same issues as Ibuprofen.
Fred, I’m so sorry about the back pain. At your age, it seems
just unfair. I was never more than maybe 20 pounds overweight
until the last 6 years — and now I’m packing on 50 pounds that
I don’t need or want. This may not sound like much, but it’s
wreaking havoc on my hips and knees, so I can relate to what
you’re describing.
About those OTC NSAIDS, though: recent research seems to be
showing that heavy use of ibuprofen (more than 400 mg/day) can
be implicated in high blood pressure. The most recent research
was done for men, but back in 2001 there was a paper discussing
a study done on women. In both, heavy use of ibuprofen (and
possibly acetominophen) was linked to the development of high
blood pressure. Aspirin, though, seemed to be OK. I have
switched to coated Bayer’s, and it seems better at relieving the
pain than my old-reliable ibuprofen. (I had been taking up to
800 mg/day.) Just something to think about. You can google it,
to have something to discuss with your doctor.
About those chickens: You said “Americaunas”, I think. I used
to raise Araucanas, the ones that lay green or blue or pink eggs.
Are yours a hybrid of Aracauna and some other breed? They are
absolutely wonderful pets — mine used to follow me around in
the garden, scratching up bugs and clucking at me. They were
good company, and they all eventually died of old age.
Marian
Marian - My understanding is that Ameraucanas are like “mutt” versions of Araucanas; they’ve just been heavily bred and re-bred, but I’m no expert.
Fred - perfect timing! Of course I am so sorry to hear about your back pain, that sounds awful. But, back in the days of your book, I managed to lose about 15kg (went from 176 lb to 143 lb = 80 kg down to 65 kg), and have put all that weight back on since then.
On Friday I signed up to a new gym and tomorrow I am starting a 13-week challenge that they run… I will be giving up the smokes for good and not drinking during that time.
I was already really psyched about getting back into shape, but this post has just cemented my inspiration. I’m only 25 years old and want to be in the best shape possible for the rest of my life!
Speaking of which, I got a copy of your book years ago, but inevitably when I loaned it out to a friend, they loaned it to a friend, and I never saw it again. I don’t suppose you have any spare copies floating around, or know where I can source one? That book was brilliant.
From a long-time fan!!
Ally
Why is Forrest Gump quotes (Bubba) going through my head?
Fried Eggs
Scrambled Eggs
Poached Eggs
Egg Salad
Deviled eggs…
:)