Sasee Magazine

Check out my essay "Boomer Exercise / Memory Program" featured in the February issue of Sasee Magazine -- both online and in print. Here's the link: BEMP


~ Sandy Nachlinger

Sweet Saturday Samples - Dec 17

Happy holidays! Welcome to our last Sweet Saturday post for 2011. Today we rejoin our friend Peggy from I.O.U. Sex as she rewards herself for all the hard work required to achieve both better health and weight loss. Tonight she’ll open the envelope containing the private investigator’s report on Mark, her first love. Peg has a unique approach to this momentous occasion.

Peggy had already used the cosmetics lined up on her bathroom counter—everything from moisturizer to mascara—until she looked like she was ready for a night on the town. She had washed her hair too, and styled it with care, even though she'd be the only one to see it. If Kiki and June were here now, she thought, they would say I've lost my mind. Sometimes she wondered if that would be far from the truth. Still, tonight would be a special occasion, and it demanded extraordinary measures. When the voice in her head said "the envelope, please," she wanted everything to be perfect. If that was silly, so what? Nobody else would know.

Peggy stood admiring her image in the full length mirror she had installed on the back of her closet door.

"Geez, Louise. I look pretty damn good, if I do say so myself."

She marveled at her new slender figure, still amazed that her bulging butt had shrunk enough to fit into size 8 jeans. An orange tank top, layered over a hot pink T-shirt, emphasized her curvy shape and perfectly fit her festive mood. She could hardly believe that was really the Peggy Marshall she knew and loved staring back at her.

The twinkle in her deep brown eyes turned into a wink aimed at the figure reflected in the glass. She couldn't resist striking a sexy pose, and that made her burst out laughing. Yep, I'm definitely going bananas, she thought. She turned to search for the silver loop earrings in her jewelry chest and hooked them on, then waved to her own reflection before heading down the stairs. At last, she felt ready.

Peggy's heart beat in time to her footsteps as she marched across the family room to the secretary desk in the corner. She'd felt this same way when waiting to hear if she'd made the Rayette drill team—excited, scared, almost afraid to look at the list posted on the wall of the gym. She knew that whatever she discovered would make a huge difference in her life, both then and now. With a mixture of trepidation and anticipation, she lowered the desk's front panel and reached inside until her hand rested on the oversized envelope she'd hidden there so many months before.

"Come to mama, you little devil," she said aloud.

With trembling hands, Peggy pulled the envelope from its hiding place and walked to the kitchen table, placing it on the wooden surface. She felt like an actress at the Academy Awards, waiting to see what the envelope held. She sat down, pulled it closer, and used a knife to slit one end, drawing the blade under the flap until it gaped open. With a deep breath and a silent prayer, she pulled out the contents.

The details of what was in the P.I.’s report, as well as what Peggy decides to do about her former love, are revealed in the pages of I.O.U. Sex. We’d tell you here, but that would spoil the surprise!

I.O.U. Sex would make a great holiday gift—for yourself or a friend. It’s available in both eBook and paperback formats from:

Amazon.com eBook ($2.99) - available here in paperback too

CreateSpace

Barnes and Noble.com

Smashwords

You'll find more Sweet Saturday Samples here: Sweet List

Sweet Saturday Samples - Nov 19

Those of you who have been Sweet Saturday Sample fans for the past few weeks have followed the weight-loss efforts of Peggy, one of our characters from I.O.U. Sex. As our excerpt below shows, sticking to her healthy weight loss plan not only means exercise, it also involves making good food choices as she goes about her daily life. Here’s a report on her progress.

Peggy now walked at a faster clip. As the days of eating healthy foods and exercising progressed, the pounds seemed to melt off her body like a dripping ice cream cone on a hot summer day. She remained diligent about writing in her food journal and counting all those pesky calories—keeping score, just like June had suggested. Sure, there were days when the scales seemed stuck on a number—days when she awoke with a taste for chicken fried steak and mashed potatoes on her tongue—days when she gave in to her cravings with a yummy taste or two. But thank goodness those days were few and far between.

With the nutrition labels on foods, it became an easy task to quantify each serving, and she found the calorie counts for fresh produce in her food counter paperback. There was even a website where she could look up all kinds of information for any type of fast food, although she didn't often eat at such places. When she did, she always chose healthy items, and even then, she tried to follow her throw-away-half rule—eating half and pitching the rest in the trash.

The ease of sticking to this food and exercise plan amazed her, making her want to kick herself for not doing it sooner. She now thought of this as her permanent way of life. It was healthy living, period. After all, Peg knew that if she returned to her former junk food days, those blubbery pounds would come right back, and they'd probably bring all their friends with them. She certainly didn't want that.

Our friend Peg is hanging in there! She’s learning to be aware of what she’s eating, even if she finds herself in a fast food restaurant. Ideally, she’ll choose a salad or other healthy item, but sometimes nothing but a burger will do. With Peg’s “eat half rule” she can cut 500 calories from her meal by simply choosing a Whopper Junior (340 calories) instead of a regular Whopper (670 calories)—and eating only half the Junior (170 calories). Yes, she hates to throw food away, but it’s much better for the food to go to waste rather than going to her waist, right?

If you’d like to know the calorie and nutrition content of your favorite foods or restaurant items, try the handy-dandy calorie counter at Calorie King. It also offers inspirational stories and advice.

To connect to all the other Sweet Saturday Samples participants, click here: Sweet List

Sweet Saturday Samples - Nov 12

Happy weekend! Welcome back to our little corner of the world where we are following one of the characters from  I.O.U. SEX on her journey to get healthier. Peggy has vowed to make better food choices and begin an exercise program, and she’s just set off on her first early morning walk around her Dallas neighborhood.

I'm taking my first steps toward a healthy life, she thought, smiling as she stepped onto the front driveway.

Barely half a mile later, sweat coated Peggy's body and her breath came in gasps.

"Whew. Walking's harder than it looks." She stopped and held her side.

Remembering what she'd read about starting gradually, and determined to complete her route, she slowed her pace but still forged ahead. Right away she realized why so many walkers and joggers wore headphones. Listening to music would be a welcome distraction, make the time pass faster, and probably lift her spirits too.

She thought back to her days as a Rayette and an Apache Belle.

Dancing and performing to music was so much fun. Of course, I was also a hundred pounds lighter back then.

She made a mental note to buy a portable CD player and some country western music. Ken always hated anything with a country twang, but she could listen to whatever she wanted.

Peggy stopped in her tracks.

That's the first time I've thought about Ken all morning.

That thought gave her a stab of guilt. Then she remembered something else she'd read about physical exercise—it was good for body, mind, and spirit—and she could think for herself now.

Peggy completed her first walk with an ache in her back, a twinge in her knees, and a smile on her face. When she returned home, she went straight to the refrigerator for another bottle of cold water, lifting it high in a toast to herself and her accomplishment. She finished the water and then climbed the stairs to her bedroom, eager to record her feat in her food journal. If what the weight-loss books and articles said was true, limiting her calories to 1,200-1,500 per day, drinking plenty of water, and exercising should result in a one to two pound weight loss each week. She just knew she could do it. In fact, she wrote that on the bottom of the page.

I can do it!

She underlined the sentence with three bold strokes.

Losing all this flab might not be as quick as a hiccup, but by golly, I'll stick with it no matter how long it takes.

Short term, all these things—eating healthy, limiting calories, exercising, keeping a journal—may seem like simple solutions. But the pathway to health is a crooked one with many turns in the road. Most people need an inspirational goal to keep them on the straight and narrow. What will Peggy’s shining light at the end of the road be?

Check out “Walk Off Extra Weight” and other inspirational articles on the Real Age website.  This site is the creation of Doctors Mehmet Oz (Oprah’s diet guru) and Michael Roizen, co-authors of YOU: The Owner’s Manual. Here’s the link: Walk Off Extra Weight 

To connect to all the other Sweet Saturday Samples participants, click here: Sweet List

Photo source: East Kessler Park (Dallas) Neighborhood Association

http://www.eastkessler.org/cgi-bin/photos.pl

Sweet Saturday Samples - Nov 5

“Exercise 101” is a class that should be offered for those of us who haven’t seen the inside of a gym since our school days. Our character Peggy falls into that category. With a plan to limit her calorie intake and get moving, she’s starting a new exercise program. In today’s excerpt, Peg laces up her walking shoes in preparation for hitting the pavement. She’s ready to go!

Peg got up early the next morning and dressed in her new sweats, eager to tackle her first day of exercise. Following an eating plan she'd outlined the night before, she measured out ¾ cup of Total cereal, sliced a banana on top, and added a cup of 2% milk. She read the nutrition information from the cereal box and milk container, then looked up the calories for a banana in her new book while she ate.

Only 320 total calories so far. Not too shabby.

After her healthy breakfast, she grabbed a bottle of water, locked the door behind her, and set her pedometer to zero. She'd already decided early morning would be the best time to walk, before anyone else in the neighborhood was out and about. She'd driven her intended route, measuring the distance to the corner and back with her car's odometer, just to get an idea of how far she wanted to go. She didn't want to bite off more than she could chew, but surely even a two-ton heifer could walk the mile-and-a-half round trip. If—no, when—she mastered that, she planned to gradually increase the distance. Her new pedometer would record how far she was able to go on her first day. Another way to keep score, as June had suggested.

Standing on the porch, she felt like an explorer starting out on a great adventure, full of hope and maybe a little fear. I'm taking my first steps toward a healthy life, she thought, smiling as she stepped onto the front driveway.

As we all know, every journey begins with a first step. If you’d like to learn more about Peggy’s foray into the world of healthy eating and exercising, join us here again next Saturday for another peek. Or you can purchase our book, I.O.U. SEX, from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or Smashwords and read more about Peg’s determination to win this battle once and for all.

Note: For more information on starting a walking program of your own, check out the advice on WebMD’s “Make Your Walk a Workout.” It includes advice for beginners as well as ideas for kicking up the intensity of the exercise. Safety tips are listed too. Here’s the link: Walking

You'll find more Sweet Saturday Samples here: Sweets

YOU KNOW YOU'RE GETTING OLD WHEN...

How do you know when you're getting old? Older than dirt? Out of shape? In deplorable physical condition? When you see your twenty-five year old daughter put on her running gear and leave the house to run the 1.8 mile loop that normally takes you 45 minutes to walk, and she comes back ten minutes later! As evidenced by this photo, she has even run a marathon and made it to the finish line. As for me, I sometimes don't even finish the walk!

~ Miss Pickles (alias Sandra)

WATER AEROBICS

Anyone who thinks water aerobics is for wimps has never taken a class. Last week I spent an evening at a nearby medical center fitness facility with my daughter-in-law. She's expecting our first grandchild in late April (a girl), and the class is designed specifically for expectant mothers. I thought it would be easy. Ha! My DIL left me in the dust (er, well, you know what I mean!)

The instructor had us walk around the perimeter of the pool once, then go  around again -  backwards. That's harder than it sounds. We used Styrofoam weights and "noodles" against the resistance of the water, pushing and pulling until my biceps quivered with exhaustion. We scissored our legs back and forth. We lunged and lifted and loped. By the time I pulled myself up the pool's steps an hour later, my legs felt like wet bags of sand. I staggered to the whirlpool hot tub and collapsed.

The next morning every muscle I possessed reminded me of the night before. Water aerobics may be low impact, but I can testify that it isn't low energy. And it's definitely not as easy as it looks, especially if you're 64 years old and NOT pregnant.

73 Steps

The walk around my suburban Seattle subdivision, in and out of every cul-de-sac and up and down every hill, measures about 1.5 miles (give or take). And I’ve gotten to where I can do it pretty easily without going into cardiac arrest. So, last week, I decided to add the seventy-three steps to the mix.

What are the seventy-three steps? They’re a concrete “ladder” that leads from the area where I live into a small housing development closer to the Green River. I can tell you that it isn’t difficult going down those seventy-three steps—anybody could do it—and walking the ¾ mile loop along the other neighborhood’s sidewalk is a breeze. But, coming back up? Whew. Just thinking about it makes my thighs ache and my lungs squeak. I have to stop twice on the way to the top!

Recently, I was talking on my cell phone with Sandra (in North Texas) while walking—gasping, groaning, grumbling—up those stairs and she said, “I’m not going to hang up this phone until I’m sure you’ve made it to the top.” I wouldn’t have argued with her, even if I’d had the breath to do so. When I told her I’d reached the last step, she cheered.

I wonder what Seattle-area 911 would say to an emergency phone call from North Texas? Maybe that’s something we should research. In the meantime, I’ll take my aerobic exercise one step at a time. 

WALKIE-TALKIE

Talking on a cell phone is a wonderful way to lose weight, but only if you walk while you’re doing it. A couple of years ago, Sandra A. and I discovered we share the same nationwide cell phone service, so we can talk until our batteries die – without it costing us a cent extra. Since then, we’ve walked and talked almost every day.

When there’s freezing rain in North Texas where Sandra lives, she stays indoors but will talk to me while I walk up and down the hills in my neighborhood. When it snowed one December in Washington State (my home), I walked on the treadmill while Sandra trooped up and down her street, telling me about the inflatable Christmas decorations in the yards she passed. Since we’ve both visited in each other’s homes many times, we can describe what we’re passing in our neighborhoods – the flowers blooming at the big house on the corner or the new construction at the top of the hill – and the other person can visualize what we’re seeing.

Just knowing we have a friend who will keep us company while walking has encouraged both of us to get out and get moving, even on days when we’d rather stay inside and watch TV. I’ve learned to walk in drizzly rain (a common occurrence where I live). On some days I not only have a BlueTooth but blue lips as well. Sandra braves the hot Texas sun or blustery Blue Northers, though thunderstorms will keep her safe indoors.

Without our walkie-talkie system I’m sure we’d have all kinds of good excuses for avoiding our daily walks. But with them we’re getting in shape, losing pounds, and keeping in touch. And, of course, it gives us an opportunity to discuss our book.