My Health

 I think I have to make my health a priority over the next few months!

I've let things slide, I'm eating too much junk (just had a couple of small donuts!), not exercising, and not sleeping properly. I'm stressed and frustrated about our money situation. I want to do a lot in this house, but there is no money at all. I know it doesn't help, but stress makes me eat, I find comfort in food!

At the beginning of June, I had my yearly check-up. I was pleasantly surprised to find that my A1c number was good, which is the test for diabetes. I was told that the number should be between 4.5 and 6.00. When I was diagnosed, my number was 7.2; the last test I was at 6.00. Which is good, but I need to get it lower. I know what to do, but doing it seems so hard.

For me, dieting, eating healthy, and being proactive about my health is more about my mind, my thinking! I know that it would be a lot better to have a salad with some low-fat protein for dinner, but I'll have a sandwich or noodles instead. If the bread was a good whole wheat bread, it might be alright, but the bread in Japan is white and has very little nutrition! Another excuse for my bad eating is the price of food, especially anything that is healthy! As summer starts, the price of vegetables goes up. The other day I was shopping and came across a bunch of grapes for 5,000yen, that's about £25!!

Expensive grapes

Fortunately, that isn't normal, but food prices are going up. The things that are cheap are the more unhealthy choices: snack breads (my big weakness), snacks, and cup noodles. They aren't bad as a treat or if you are too busy to cook, but eating those kinds of foods every day will add inches to your waistline and make you unhealthy in the long run. Japan actually has a problem with diabetes, even though obesity is low! I was surprised when the doctor told me that my mother-in-law had diabetes, even though she only weighed 48kg, about 100lbs!  

I also have to start exercising more! I thought that living here, I would be outside in the garden or walking to the other fields. I did it a few times, but not consistently! Now, it's too hot to be outside. I get up early, between 5 and 6am, to get chores done and start lunch. I think I might be able to do a few things outside at that time, I should try!  By 8am, it's already 30C! I should go back to doing the chair exercises; they are gentle and do help. At the moment my lower back hurts if I'm standing for more than 20 minutes, I know it's because my weight has gone up a bit. There's a certain weight that once I go over it, my back is very painful! I've noticed over the past few weeks that it has started to hurt again, so I checked my weight and sure enough, I've put on about a kilo! That doesn't sound like a lot, but I know that one kilo will lead to another and another if I don't make changes now!  Again, I know what to do, but doing it seems difficult! 

Another area that I'm struggling with is my sleep patterns! I sleep too much during the day and then spend most of the night tossing and turning! I have sleeping tablets from the doctor, but the few nights I've taken them, I've had bad dreams! Maybe I should just take them for a couple of weeks to get my sleep pattern in order!

I really need a lot more energy to get things done! I also have to stop thinking that my life is over, that being in my sixties means that there is nothing new for me, nothing to look forward to except old age. I have a friend who is 70, and she is talking about saving money to start a new business!  I need to change my mindset, get my health sorted, and start living, doing things that make me happy and make the people around me happy.

I will try to update on any progress I make! My first goal is to drop about 7kgs before my next appointment in September. Also, I need to be able to walk more by then, as Hannah and I have tickets to see Les Misérables at the end of September!

Wish me luck!!