GlennM's Journal, 08 January 2008

Oh KFC is a weakness for me too. I sometimes have a chicken breast with green beens. It does slow me down a bit but it is so good and not nearly as bad and having spaghetti or something like that. Don't beat yourself up about it. You are doing great and you will get there. 

I ate A LOT of chicken and can't resist it - one whole bucket Friday night and Saturday after midnight after work until early morning - eating it all night long until it was gone - not one piece - wish I could limit myself to that like you. I can basically limit intake of foods if they aren't carbs - thanks for the encouragement... 

I wonder if you can find a type of exercise you can do. Have you tried water arobics. I think once you have cut out sugar and carbs for a while you might not be in as much pain. I have read studies that indicate that high-carb foods keep our bodies in a chronic inflammatory state and that it sometimes takes months of not eating those foods for inflammation to go away. The good news is that it is possible.  

Thanks for the tip Sararay - I'm taking Glucosamine - I read it has some sugar in it - probably a small amount - but the Glucosamine is helping - today was a super warm day in Massachusetts - in the 60s, so the weather is helpful. The only gym in my town with a pool is the YMCA and it is really expensive to join here. I'm fairly low income and live in an upper income town, and the Y here is overcrowded so they're really expensive to join - I think they want to keep too many people from joining - the other two gyms are overcrowded too I've heard and no pool - I hope to join the YMCA by spring... My arthritis is way better than it was three months ago by the way... 

Some YMCAs let you just pay for one class. If you're just wanting to do a pool class, you might be able to just pay for that. At my YMCA they also let you pay by the day and if you only go once or twice a week to a class or something it is cheaper to pay by the day. Also, see if you can find a glucosamine supplement w/o sugar. I don't know if it exists but it's worth a shot. 

Thanks for the tip about the Y - here it's like ten dollars or more just to walk in the door at the Y and I think you have to go in with another member... glucosamine - is derived from glucose I think hence the name, they don't add sugar I just think it's naturally in there - I read it on some vitamin site and was surprised. But I have been on it since I've started Atkins and am still losing weight so there can't be too much glucose or sugar in it - I'm a former nurse - LVN or LPN - so I know a little about medicine - wish I had the time and patience to figure how to count the calories and carbs of all that I take in though... 

Wow, that is expensive. Here in Oregon it's like 2-3 bucks for a day pass at the Y. At least that's what it was the last time I checked, but I go to a different gym. I'm glad the glucosamine is helping you. It helped my dad too. 

Glucosamine is an amino sugar and not related to glucose per se. It helps to support bone and cartilige tissue and that is why it is so beneficial to those with arthritis. Of course supplements can vary between manufacturers, but the carbohydrate content of a tablet is generally pretty minimal at approx 2 MG per tablet (thats milligrams and not grams). I would say that those carbs are very worth it to someone suffering from arthritis. If I were you I would invest in a pilates tape or dvd and see if you can do that for exercise. Look for one that is geared towards beginners. You can do it right in your own home and need no special equipment. Pilates works on strengthening your core muscles through gentle stretching type exercises. This might be perfect for you.