As If I had been Struck by Lighting!

Happy Halloween everyone!

... not so happy for me...

I must say this has been a very scary week! A real awaking for me too!

Why?

On Thursday I received news of getting a new job as project manager at the City of Toronto.. I was real happy! and as a sort of reward to myself.. instead of going to the gym ( as I should have! ) I ended up staying home planning to watch a film and snack on some popcorn!

OMG.. that was such a BAD idea!

Because half way down the bag of popcorn I chomped down .. and CRACK !! .. I heard this terrible sound in my mouth, realizing I just chomped down hard on a popcorn kernel and .. yuup.. I firkin broke my tooth!! AAARRGGGGG!

I broke my "upper right 1st bicuspid" or " First premolar" it broke right down the middle.. split in two.. this was bad !

So I called my dentist (@ 10pm) luckily I had his home phone number.. and he replied.. " well Wendy this doesn't sound good, see you tomorrow morning at 7:30am "

So off to bed I went.. but first throwing out that dam cursed 1/2 bag of popcorn and cursing all the way to the trash!

So next day... 7:30am... my dentist looks at the tooth and with a face of dome and gloom he says.. " sorry, I can't save the tooth , I have to pull it out!"... OMG... shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit !

So in goes the freezing needle... and 1 hour later of prodding and poking and pulling and yanking it was finally removed! with a very difficult extraction I had to have 2 stitches as well.. I have lost my tooth! that tooth has been a part of me for 40 years!

I am soooooo MAD at myself... !!! as you can imagine!

A huge sign has just been really mad clear to me... as if I had been struck by lighting... ' Wendy you can't eat that crap... enough ... is enough... now you really physically can't eat it.. as you well know now.. it will break your teeth! '

So now 24 hours later, I'm on Tylenol 3's and Antibiotics, having to eat only soft food and soup, I have major major major! learned my lesson..

I have to stay on track of my lifestyle change, only eat healthy foods... ( but now I can't even eat nuts... as they will now get stuck in my new gapping hole, and also possibly break other teeth! )

This sucks big time!

Shocking Story!

" Fat Family' Children Taken from Parents" ** See the article below my comments...

If this had happened in Canada, it would have meant that me and my sisters should have been taken away at birth too, as my own mother weighed over 250 pounds when giving birth to us!

The British authorities should keep there f***'ing hands out of private family matters. What the british government should be doing is sending a social worker, dietitian to the home and work with the PARENTS to teach them proper eating habits!

The parents need to set an example...! yes true... but they, the government, should protect the children that are getting sexually abused and or battered... not because they don't know how to eat right!

Arrgh.. so wrong of them to take away their children!

Education is this case in this key!

shocking!

*What do you think about this story? please fill free to add your comments here on my blog...

12:01pm UK, Thursday October 22, 2009

Kirsty Donald, Sky News Online

" Fat Family' Children Taken from Parents" - Seven children, including a newborn baby, have been taken from their overweight parents and put into care because of concerns over their welfare.

Some of the children, who cannot be identified, also have weight problems

The family from Dundee was split up by social workers following a meeting of the Children's Panel.

The youngsters include a girl born earlier this week at the city's Ninewells Hospital and taken from the arms of her 322 pound mother shortly afterwards.

The 40-year-old woman and her 53-year-old husband, who weighs around 252 pounds, have not been named to protect the identity of their children.

Two of their kids, aged three and four, were taken into care earlier this year.

Now the other five, including the newborn and a 13-year-old boy who is said to weighs 224 pounds, have been taken from their parents.

The local authority insisted it was not its policy to remove children from their family home solely on the basis of weight problems.

Councils will always act with the welfare and safety of children in mind and there can be many reasons for action being taken.

Dundee City Council spokesman

But the family's solicitor Kathleen Price has previously claimed obesity was the main reason for the children being taken from their parents.

She said the couple had not been given a fair hearing and had been "victimised".

A spokesman for Dundee City Council said: "Any decision about a child's situation is given full and careful consideration.

"In many cases social workers will have been providing a high level of professional and caring support to a family for many years in a bid to keep them together.

"However, the welfare and safety of a child or children is the over-riding priority and in some cases, despite the strenuous efforts of the agencies providing this support, the best option is for them to be looked after away from their home.

"Councils will always act with the welfare and safety of children in mind and there can be many reasons for action being taken."

You know that Chocolate would make a great door stop!

New Weapons in the War Between Willpower and Willy Wonka

By: Tom Jacobs | October 20, 2009 |

If you pictured these chocolates are doorstops, would that curb your temptation to eat them? New research suggests it might.cacaobug / flickr.com

Research suggests certain mental games may help chocolate lovers resist the temptation to overindulge.

Wilhelm Hofmann, like a lot of us, finds certain varieties of fine chocolate virtually irresistible. But the German psychologist, along with colleagues from the Netherlands and the United States, has discovered a creative way of decreasing the temptation to indulge.

Simply gaze at the delectable confection and think to yourself:

Wouldn't this make an excellent doorstop?

In two studies, "participants instructed to imagine a chocolate in a nonconsummatory manner exhibited significantly less automatic positivity with regard to the product," researchers reportin the European Journal of Social Psychology. This suggests certain self-control strategies can affect the "impulsive, automatic pathways of behavior determination" that too often lead us to give into temptation.

The studies — one conducted in a laboratory, another via the Internet — are part of Hofmann's ongoing research on impulsivity and self-control. In an earlier paper, the University of Wurzberg assistant professor noted that many people "are torn between their long-term goals to restrain behavior and their immediate impulses that promote hedonic fulfillment." His work helps explain these competing forces and describes under what circumstances self-control is more likely to succeed.

For his most recent paper, Hofmann focuses on a popular German chocolate product marketed as "the white temptation." He describes the dessert in mouth-watering detail, noting "the chocolate has a spherical shape and can be described as a delicious composition of almonds and smooth milk crème surrounded by a crispy waffle and a fine white coconut coating."

Who could resist something so scrumptious? That was what he and his colleagues tried to ascertain in their first study. Seventy-one undergraduates from the University of Landau were shown samples of the candy and then assigned to one of three groups.

Those in the first group were asked to spend three minutes imagining how the chocolate would taste and feel in their mouths.

In contrast, those in the second group "were asked to imagine, as clearly and concretely as possible, odd or novel settings or uses for the chocolate." Those in the third group (the control group) read an unrelated text about South America.

Afterwards, an Implicit Association Test was used to measure the participants' automatic, impulsive evaluations of the chocolate. To conclude the study, participants offered their explicit opinions, rating the candy in terms of taste and overall enjoyment.

The results: Both the automatic and conscious evaluations of the chocolate were lower among those who were instructed to come up with creative uses for the product.

The second test, conducted via the Internet, featured 506 people, average age 35. While some participants duplicated the first study, others were instructed to visualize times and places where they would be tempted to indulge and then form a "clear intention on how to avoid eating the chocolate in these particular situations."

Once again, those who "cognitively transformed" the chocolate displayed less automatic positivity toward the palate-pleasing product. But the largest reduction in automatic positivity occurred among those who had visualized themselves saying "No thanks."

The researchers call these results encouraging, noting they suggest two different mental self-control strategies may be useful in fighting temptation. Of course, they only measured the short-term impact of these strategies; it's impossible to say how long they might continue to work.

Nevertheless, before accepting offers of Halloween candy or Christmas cookies during the upcoming holidays, it might be worth taking a moment to think of these sweets in a different way. This research suggests a tempting treat loses some of its allure when you've pondered its usefulness as a garden tool.

And a Gym Rat is born

Back to the grind... the sweat factory... the gym that is.. !!

Since last sunday I have been going to the gym not once, but twice a day! = 4 hours a day!

Yesterday my bodybugg exploded with a whopping 4000 calories burnt!

I couldn't sleep very well though last night... I was tossing and turning all night. I guess my body is not used to all this working out, and well, I was strangely very hot last night... had my window wide open, but that didn't help. Maybe it was hormones?

Any ways... I am going to try to keep this up, going to the gym twice a day keeps me from eating stuff I shouldn't.

keep on truck'ing as they say!

ps: I still don't dare post today's weight.. I am too embarrassed, and sad about it. When I feel I can say it out loud all you blog followers will be the first to know... deal?

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

okay.. bring on the Turkey and Mel's Pumpkin Pie...

so I got on the scale, closed my eyes and prayed...nope.. still not good news! I don't dare post my present weight!

I am disgusted with myself... I had done so well... but you see just like that old habits can creep up on you.. you have to stay on-top of this weight loss, all the time! grrrrh! so frustrating..

my weight today is about the exact same as last year october.. there that's all I'll say!

so... last weekend of food enjoyment.. and back to the gym! promise! I promise myself that is! because, it's all about me! me, me me me me.. I have to do it for ME!

Melinda makes this MOST AMAZING Pumpkin Pie ever! believe me I've tried them all !

I wrote about it on my blog way back in 2004

click on this link to read the recipe!

this picture above, Melinda with her daughter, shows how we love the pie soooo much in our family! ... so tonight is the night.. pumpkin pie for all.. then back to the sweat shop!

I'M BACK!

Pheeew.... thank you...

' BIGGEST LOSER' show!

I watched the first two episodes of the BIGGEST LOSER show last night.. and you know what? I used to compare myself to the biggest contestant in the show, like ... okay she weighs 370 like me, and I can do this too... and now.. I can compare myself to the SMALLEST contender of the show... okay she weighs the least at 245 pounds.. like me... off to races we go!! that itself is great incentive!

So today ... yes... I'm back on track.. this morning I have a private training session with my trainer Sylvie.. I got on the scale.. sad news... but 1 week from now I will post my weight , I promise!

Speaking to some friends and workers at my gym, they all say it's normal that people slack off in the summer months.. August was a dead month.. no one came to the gym and now in the 3rd week of september they are starting to come back again.

I guess with the nicer weather, and being outdoors more, you don't really feel like going to the gym. But like today, it's pouring rain, and feeling like Autumn, and then snow right around the corner, the gym seems and is the perfect place to go to forget about the shitty weather outside!

So to all those of you out there that follow me and my blog... I pledge to now stay on track, with an average of losing at least 2 pounds a week ! promise !

And to those of you that are trying to get started again... watch the BIGGEST LOSER show.. now that's incentive !

Incentive....

A guy calls a company and orders their 5-day, 10 lb. Weight loss program. The next day, there's a knock on the door and there stands before him avoluptuous, athletic, 19 year old babe dressed in nothing but a pair of Nike running shoes and a sign around her neck.

She introduces herself as a representative of the weight loss company. The sign reads,

'If you can catch me, you can have me.'

Without a second thought, he takes off after her. A few miles laterhuffing and puffing, he finally gives up.. The same girl shows up for the next four days and the same thing happens.On the fifth day, he weighs himself and is delighted to find he has lost10 lbs. As promised.

He calls the company and orders their 5-day/20 pound program.

The next day there's a knock at the door and there stands the most stunning, beautiful, sexy woman he has ever seen in his life. She is wearing nothing but Reebok running shoes and a sign around her neck that reads,

'If you catch me you can have me'.

Well, he's out the door after her like a shot. This girl is in excellent shape and he does his best, but no such luck. So for the next four days, the same routine happens with him gradually getting in better and better shape. Much to his delight on the fifth day when he weighs himself, he discovers that he has lost another 20 lbs. As promised.

He decides to go for broke and calls the company to order the 7-day/50 pound program 'Are you sure?' asks the representative on the phone. 'This is our most rigorous program.' 'Absolutely,' he replies, 'I haven't felt this good in years.'

The next day there's a knock at the door; and when he opens it he finds ahuge muscular guy standing there wearing nothing but pink running shoes and a sign around his neck that reads,

'If I catch you, your ass is mine.

' He lost 63 pounds that week!!
**************************************

Not to be ashamed!

Couture's new curves

September 4, 2009

Comments on this story (51)

Dave Feschuk
FEATURE WRITER

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Still grazing after all...

In the photo that has made plus-size model Lizzie Miller momentarily famous, her smile is radiant, her blonde hair elegantly pinned back. But the eyes drift to her midriff, where resides a deposit of fatty tissue that is undeniably foreign to a fashion magazine.

Pick up the September issue ofGlamour magazine and you'll see it: Tucked amongst the familiar images of stick-thin posture queens, there, on page 194, is Miller hunching and laughing in her underwear while forgetting to tuck in a charming little paunch.

"The reaction to that one picture – that one little, three inch by three inch picture – has been incredible," Miller said yesterday, speaking over the phone from her fourth-floor apartment in midtown Manhattan.

Miller's career might never be the same. The 20-year-old from San Jose, Calif. – a size 12 or 14 who stands 5-foot-11 and weighs between 175 and 180 pounds – said this month is shaping up to be the busiest of her seven-year career.

And there are those who are hoping the buzz surrounding Miller's belly might spur the fashion business – long criticized for its seemingly insatiable lust for pencil-limbed models of dubious dietary habits – to change for the better, too. One Glamour reader wrote in to call Miller's signature shot "the most amazing photograph I've ever seen in any women's magazine." Another urged the editors: "Put her on the cover."

"I think it's a sign of the times that women are looking for a little bit more authenticity, a little less artifice, in every part of their lives," Cindi Leive, editor of Glamour, said in an interview with the Today show. "Will (Miller's photo) change our approach (as a fashion magazine)? I think it will."

Miller said she has received emails and Facebook messages from hundreds of people, including a woman who said the picture inspired her to throw away her diet pills and laxatives; and from a man who claimed that only now, after Miller's un-self-conscious image hit newsstands, will his similarly proportioned girlfriend believe him when he tells her she's pretty.

"This whole frenzy has shown that people want to see these kinds of photos – of real women in real situations," she said. "So hopefully (the industry) will take notice and they'll say, `Okay, we should do this, too.'"

It's difficult not to be skeptical about the fashion industry's appetite for reimagining its place in the culture. It was only a few years ago that Brazilian model Ana Carolina Reston died due to complications from anorexia, her 5-foot-8 frame weighing a mere 88 pounds, an event that spurred at least one runway show to institute minimum height-weight ratios for models. And earlier this month the editor of Self magazine defended the retouching of a cover photograph that made singer Kelly Clarkson look decidedly skinnier.

"(Self magazine is) meant to inspire women to want to be their best," Lucy Danziger, the editor, wrote on the magazine's website.

Miller, for her part, said she understands the inspirational aspect of what she calls fashion's "fantasy world."

"But the problem is, a lot of women are trying, but they can't look like a size-two model, and it's a horrible feeling when you don't see anyone else who looks like you (in magazines)," said Miller. "I've been that self-conscious girl."

Miller will not lie: At first, she didn't love her signature photo. And she hasn't always been the picture of plus-sized confidence. In grade school she says her diet veered between stuffings of McDonald's and Ferrero Rocher chocolates. A post-class bag of Doritos – "A big bag," she says – was a daily ritual.

"At the rate I was gaining weight, I was like, `Wow. I am going to be huge by the time I get to high school.' I was like, `I don't want to be the fat girl,'" said Miller.

In Grade 6 she joined Weight Watchers; she dropped 60 pounds. And by the time she was 13, she was 5-foot-11 and existing somewhere in the neighbourhood of her current body weight, which she now maintains playing co-ed softball in Central Park and belly dancing. Even then, she said, she didn't begin to feel good about her body until she saw herself in the silhouettes of entertainers Jennifer Lopez and Beyoncé.

"I'm a pear shape. I'm small at the top, but I'm thick on the bottom. I started seeing J-Lo and Beyoncé and saying, `They're curvy. They're sexy. If I get in shape, I could look like them.' If I can be the person that girls are looking at now and saying, `She's beautiful. I can look like her,' then I'll be doing my job. I think it's just something people have really, really wanted to see. Let's hope they'll see more of it."

Toronto Star

EDITOR'S PICKS

2009 Fitness Guide

Mental health blog

STD maps for Greater Toronto Area

Fitness blog

Funny but a bit embarrassing

Socks... is todays theme...

My niece Caroline, is knitting socks for the first time, using my mom's old circle needles, and is doing great I must add!

This morning like all mornings I once again struggled to get my socks on. You see with being overweight, you have lumps and bumps on your body in places that are just in the way!

Every morning, I have to twist and turn my body to reach my feet, in order to get on my socks. The position I have to take looks like a weird circus act... but believe me there is no other way!

You want a good reason and incentive to stick to a diet? just this is a reminder every frikk'n morning!

aaargh! ...

I look forward to the day when I can just bend down and put on my socks with-out having to let out grunts of effort like some superstar tennis player!!

Julie & Julia

I watched this great movie last weekend.... Julie & Julia... wow.. Meryl's best so far!

What I really like was the Blog idea! ah... duh?... yes a blog is a way to reach out to hundreds or maybe even thousands of total strangers; that are in one way or another sharing your experiences, trials and tribulations... right?

This blog has saved me many times! Saved me from going down the wrong path of Diet hell. Being able to write down my deep and dark secrets, and confessing to all my deadlest sins.

Thank you blog.. and blogspot...

and thank you to all you loyal readers too!

Are you really out there?

...and by the way the Julie/Julia Project blog does exist

click here to view it

My Hit Counter for today reads = 6666

6666...could this be a sign?....The devil is too close..( creeping up old habits) ...

.... but I will beat him at his own game...

I had a good talk with a great friend and neighbour... results= all of us have our own personal struggles... take one day at a time!

now I'm off to the gym...

Tip for the day...

worried about buying a snack at the store while you take your dog out for it's last walk for the evening....leave your Wallet at HOME !

**FLASHBACK** April 2007

A place (=weight) I never ever want to go again!...

I great tool in sticking to your goals... keep on looking at pictures of the ' old ' you .. and look .. take a hard long look at your self in the mirror ever morning! do you like what you see?

I still don't!

Taken in

California April 2007

(click on the picture to enlarge it for better shocking viewing!)

Cottage Life is NOT bad for you!

I just got back from a 4 day mini vacation to the Georgian Bay area of Ontario. I went with some family members to a rented cottage. Of course cottage life equals lots of sitting and relaxing, and reading, but can also include movement and exercise that at first you don't really realize your doing!... like lots of swimming, canoes, long walks, etc... I was surprized, and happy to see the results on my scale this morning that I didn't gain any weight over these 4 days. In fact I lost! Even though I had burgers, and chips and beer and cheese... you know cottage food! But still the sun, water and fresh air is the part that is totally healthy for you... yaaaah!

Coming Clean!

Okay.. Okay.. enough is enough... this summer has been hard on me, with losing my job, and getting off track at the gym... I have gained 20 pounds! yuup.. just like that it can come back on... ( Yo Yo) even though I have been going to the gym 4 - 5 times a week all this time!!! ... The eating part was the killer... I have been BAD! .. getting back to old, over-eating habits, and not being able to stay away from Chocolate.. my demon! So here I am coming clean.. my next big goal is to weigh 200 by Christmas! so lets all pull our will powers together.. and join me in reaching your goals as well! Partnership and buddy system are the most powerful! .... go Wendy GO!

My Story on my Gym website...

This week my gym, Extreme Fitness published my story on their website....

Click here this link to read my story

" The incredible shrinking woman!"

Sorry.. it's been so long.. I needed a break from the blog.. got caught up in summer!

But back to results and news!

Biggest Loser competition at my Gym!

Starting weight : 239

Just this week my Gym - Extreme Fitness ( John and Richmond)

launched it's new BIGGEST LOSER COMPETITION.

So now finally I am officially in a competition with other gym rats at my gym to see who can lose the most weight!

Now this is fun!

Last night I did a photo shoot at the gym with my trainer, Sylvie, for an upcoming Newsletter feature story on my success thus far. It will be out next week, and of course I will post it here on my blog.

So back on track.. with incentive!

See you at the gym!

( Photo credit: Cameron Ogilvie http://www.cameronogilvie.com/)

keeping up appearances....

Oh what web we weave, when we practice to deceive !... 

So time to come clean...time to fess up!

I am in no way near my goal that I had planned for my Birthday. I have a little less then 30 days left, and there is no way I can loss 40 pounds! Yes 40 to the goal of 200... as of today I weigh 240!

There I said it!!!.. I gained about 10 pounds in the last 2 months.. 

Reason:

Well stress mostly!

a.  losing my job! 

b. family problems

c.  stress at the gym, not really having enough money to pay for more private training lessons.

I am going to the gym every night again; but from now on, no trainer, I can't afford it... this takes a new mind set!

Working out with my trainer twice a week:

Up till last December I was seeing my trainer 2x a week. Since January, only once a week, sometimes only once every two weeks. And if you take a look at my weight -loss progress chart, it's really been since January 2009 that my weight-loss has slowed down to a crawl. It really comes down to seeing my personal trainer on a more regular basis! getting into a strict regime ! And by seeing my trainer, my eating habits would be better and in more control. 

Old Habits Die Hard!

Eating is the real problem. I have gotten back  into my old  bad habit of eating stuff I shouldn't late at night. Like ice cream!  or Chocolate.. oh how I just love chocolate... 

I saw an article this week in the National Enquirer about Kirstie Alley, and she too, would start the day off on track, small healthy breakfast, workout with her trainer, but then later at night, alone in the dark, back to old habits... 

CHRIST! 

How many women out there suffer from this same syndrome... starting every day with a fresh, clean slate, and then by 11pm ... some weird sub-conscious action takes over your mind, you end up eating and extra 500- 1000 calories late night snack.. then boom.. all your days action ruined!

oh.. give me strength!....  

HOW TO COPE WITH CHANGE!

This week has been the heaviest, and most difficult week since my parents died... I lost my job of 8 years! I was layed off due to cutbacks and change!... so now what!?

I guess this is a sign that it's time for a change. I have to now look at getting a better paying job, that will take me to my retirement years. I turn 50 this summer, and now I really see and feel that things have to change.


Because of all this bad news this week, my diet went to pot! Ate lots of things I shouldn't have.. but hey! I'm human ! okay?!!


Tonight I went back to the gym. Eat only healthy choice foods today.. so.. ya.. I feel better. I need to keep on track .. but I'm afraid my goal for my birthday will have to wait.


I'm still determined to succeed.. only it will now take a little longer.. as my energie is now focused on sending out a gazzillion job applications right now...


To be continued...

The road to hell is paved with good intentions

Is Oprah Winfrey giving us bad medicine?

CHRIS PIZZELLO/AP FILE PHOTO

Here is "the perfect face to put on the problem that we supporters of science-based medicine face," writes Dr. David Gorski. He says Oprah uses her influence in aid of "what can only be characterized as dubious medical therapies at best and quackery at worst." (Dec. 5, 2008)

 

By giving a platform to disciples of dubious medical practices a well-intentioned Oprah Winfrey has made herself a force for ill, writes a U.S. doctor alarmed by 'the Oprah-fication' of medicine

DAVID GORSKI 
SPECIAL TO THE STAR

We've all speculated about why the anti-scientific emotion-based notion that vaccines somehow must cause autism persists in spite of mountains of evidence to the contrary, but I think the question goes much deeper than that. The anti-vaccine movement is but one of the most visible components of a much deeper problem in our public discourse, a problem that values feelings and personal experience over evidence, compelling stories and anecdotes over science.

I'm referring to the Oprah-fication of medicine. Why Oprah? you may ask. I'm happy to tell you. Oprah Winfrey has been the host of the highest-rated syndicated talk show in television history. She has developed a media empire that few single individuals can match or beat. Clearly, she is a talented and savvy TV host and businesswoman.

Unfortunately, Oprah displays as close to no critical-thinking skills when it comes to science and medicine as I've ever seen, and uses the vast influence her TV show and media empire give her in order to subject the world to her special brand of mystical New Age thinking and belief in various forms of what can only be characterized as dubious medical therapies at best and quackery at worst.

Naturally, Oprah doesn't see it that way, and likely no one could ever convince her of the malign effect she has on the national zeitgeist with respect to science and medicine.

Consequently, whether fair or unfair, she represents the perfect face to put on the problem that we supporters of science-based medicine face when trying to get the message out to the average reader about unscientific medical practices, and that's why I am referring to the pervasiveness of pseudoscience infiltrating medicine as the "Oprah-fication" of medicine.

Over the years, Oprah has promoted a wide variety of pseudoscience and mysticism on her show. Indeed, just last week, Newsweek ran a long article entitled "Live Your Best Life Ever! Wish Away Cancer! Get A Lunchtime Face-Lift! Eradicate Autism! Turn Back The Clock! Thin Your Thighs! Cure Menopause! Harness Positive Energy! Erase Wrinkles! Banish Obesity! Live Your Best Life Ever!" It reveals just how forcefully Oprah and her credulous belief in New Age nonsense are reflected in her show.

It starts with the example of Suzanne Somers, who in January appeared on Oprah to talk about what she does to stay young. As Newsweek (whose story merits quoting) reported, "Each morning, the 62-year-old actress and self-help author rubs a potent estrogen cream into the skin on her arm. She smears progesterone on her other arm two weeks a month. And once a day, she uses a syringe to inject estrogen directly into her vagina."

The article continues, "The idea is to use these unregulated `bio-identical' hormones to restore her levels to what they were when she was in her 30s, thus fooling her body into thinking she's a younger woman." It is noted that Somers claims the hormones, synthesized from plants, are natural and risk free; Newsweek's writer rightly takes issue with the last point. Somers told Oprah that every day she takes some 60 vitamin pills – 40 supplements in the morning, 20 more before going to bed. She begins the day with injections of vitamin B12, the human growth hormone and, Newsweek reports, "wears `nanotechnology patches' to help her sleep, lose weight and promote `overall detoxification.'" After drinking wine she boosts her liver by taking vitamin C intravenously; Somers has chelation therapy to clean her blood if she breathes cigarette smoke.

The actress makes remarkable claims for hormones' ability to aid the human body. "I know I look like some kind of freak and fanatic," she is quoted saying. "But I want to be there until I'm 110, and I'm going to do what I have to do to get there." By Newsweek's account, "That was apparently good enough for Oprah. `Many people write Suzanne off as a quackadoo,' she said. `But she just might be a pioneer... ' "

Oprah's show gave doctors several chances to respond, but they were in the audience while Somers,Newsweek reports, sat onstage with Oprah, who defended her. Oprah is quoted saying "Suzanne swears by bioidenticals and refuses to keep quiet."

I've known for a while that Somers promotes so-called "bioidentical hormones." I've also realized that it is the height of stupidity for a woman who has survived breast cancer to pump herself full of estrogen in the futile and pathetic quest to reclaim her lost youth. It's just begging for a recurrence of her breast cancer. Somers epitomizes the cliché of "I'd rather be lucky than good." Either that, or her cancer was estrogen receptor-negative, but even in that case it's definitely pushing her luck to be bathing in "bioidentical" estrogens.

Oprah, reported Newsweek, "told her audience that she found Somers's bestselling books on bioidentical hormones `fascinating' and said `every woman should read' what she has to say. She didn't stop there. Oprah said that although she has never had a hot flash, after reading Somers she decided to go on bioidenticals herself. `After one day on bioidentical estrogen, I felt the veil lift,' she wrote in O, The Oprah Magazine. `After three days, the sky was bluer, my brain was no longer fuzzy, my memory was sharper. I was literally singing and had a skip in my step.' On the show, Oprah had her own word of warning for the medical establishment: `We have the right to demand a better quality of life for ourselves,' she said. `And that's what doctors have got to learn to start respecting.'"

That statement epitomizes the attitude that infuses The Oprah Winfrey Show when it comes to medical issues and science. Anecdotes trump science, and scientists should "respect" pseudoscience because of feelings and a desire for "quality of life." Indeed, these are exactly the attitudes that permeate the Complementary and Alternative Care movement and the anti-vaccine movement.

But Somers says it's mainstream medicine that doesn't have the facts. "`The problem is that our medical schools do not teach this,'" she is quoting saying in a February interview in Newsweek.

It reported that Somers "believes doctors, scientists and the media are all in the pocket of the pharmaceutical industry," and that "Billions are spent on marketing drugs, and these companies also support academic research." Without such conflicts, "Somers can see things clearly. `I have spent thousands of hours on this. I've written 18 books on health. I know my stuff.'"

No, Somers does not know her stuff. Writing books is no guarantee that she "knows her stuff," particularly given that she clearly does not understand science and cherry-picks references to support her viewpoint, ignoring those that do not. Somers also thinks her self-taught knowledge trumps the understanding of scientists who have dedicated their lives to studying such questions deeply.

The absolute worst of Oprah's protégées is the celebrity spokesmodel for the anti-vaccine movement, Jenny McCarthy. Beginning in the fall of 2007, McCarthy, characterized as having "warrior spirit" and as a "warrior mom," has been a regular guest on Oprah, where she's been given more or less free rein to spread her gospel of vaccines causing autism and her claims that biomedical quackery can "cure" or "recover" autistic children.

McCarthy's promotion of anti-vaccine propaganda and pseudoscience is, quite simply, so egregious and such a threat to public health that even the Oprah-friendly (or Oprah-intimidated) media has become alarmed.

Reporters have tried to get a statement from Oprah. From an article on a recent TV documentary, The Oprah Effect:

"Asked if Oprah or her show endorses McCarthy's views, a representative for Oprah's program said, `We don't take positions on the opinions of our guests. Rather, we offer a platform for guests to share their first-person stories in an effort to inform the audience and put a human face on topics relevant to them.' When McCarthy's views have been discussed on the air, statements from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics saying that there's no scientific evidence of a vaccine-autism link have been read."

And from the Newsweek cover story:

"She declined to be interviewed for this article, but in a statement she said, `The guests we feature often share their first-person stories in an effort to inform the audience and put a human face on topics relevant to them. I've been saying for years that people are responsible for their actions and their own well-being. I believe my viewers understand the medical information presented on the show is just that – information – not an endorsement or prescription. Rather, my intention is for our viewers to take the information and engage in a dialogue with their medical practitioners about what may be right for them.'"In other words, Oprah washes her hands of responsibility for spreading misinformation under the guise of trusting her audience to be able to distinguish good advice from bad advice.

It apparently matters not that McCarthy's claims are based on her belief in autism quackery and anti-vaccine pseudoscience. All that matters is that, by her own narrative, McCarthy has "triumphed" over the odds for the sake of her son. The compelling personal story of "empowerment" thus trumps science, and the only "balance" Oprah feels compelled to provide is a dry statement from the CDC and AAP. Philosopher and ethicist (not to mention blogger) Janet Stemwedel asks:

"Is it acceptable to give any guest you please a soapbox without taking a position on the opinions they voice from that soapbox? Is reading official statements from the CDC and AAP enough `balance' to Jenny McCarthy's views on vaccines ...?

"And, if Oprah and her producers are aware of the Oprah effect (which, really, they have to be, right?), should that awareness of their reach lead them to try to meet a higher ethical standard as far as the foreseeable consequences for giving Jenny McCarthy a soapbox?"

I have two answers to those questions: my answers in an ideal world and my answer in the real world. In an ideal world, my answers would be:

No, simply reading an official statement from the CDC and AAP as "balance" to Jenny McCarthy's idiotic and dangerous views on vaccines, which have led her to a know-nothing activism based on the arrogance of ignorance that is already eroding faith in vaccines. She uses emotion and her son to argue falsely that vaccines cause autism and that various quackery "cured" him (and, by inference, can cure other children with autism, too). Reading a dry statement from the CDC is utterly useless in combating this message. It is nothing more than what I like to call the "token skeptic" who trots out the skeptical viewpoint briefly in a formulaic method.

"Balance," after all, implies that there is enough scientific validity to a view that it is somewhere on the same planet with science. There is no "balance" between Jenny McCarthy and scientists. Jenny McCarthy is, quite simply, completely wrong about vaccines and autism. "Balance" is a sham used by promoters of pseudoscience and quackery to claim a legitimacy that they don't deserve.

In the real world, unfortunately, my answer would be this: If it gets ratings, it interests Oprah. If it fits into her apparent "spiritual" world view, it's all good to her. If it fits in with the "alternative" medical beliefs of her audience, she likes it. If it provides a message of "empowerment" (whether real or not), it is good.

The bottom line is that, when it comes to medicine and science, she is a force for ill. Her intentions may be the best in the world, but that is only why she is the living embodiment of the cliché that the road to hell is paved with good intentions. That's especially true when that same road is also paved with no mental filter of critical thinking to keep out nonsense. With great power comes great responsibility, indeed.

Unfortunately, given the infiltration of quackery into academic medicine, I'm having a hard time determining if Oprah is a symptom or one of the causes of the rise of pseudoscience and quackery over science-based medicine.

David Gorski is a surgical oncologist specializing in breast cancer and an associate professor of surgery at the Wayne State University School of Medicine based at the Barbara Ann Karmanos Cancer Institute.

This story is adapted from a longer piece on sciencebasedmedicine.org.

pushing yourself beyond the box...

Yesterday at the gym my personal trainer pushed me further than we have ever attempted before. I am becoming, I can happily say, day by day more of an athlete ! 

definition:  ath·lete

A person possessing the natural or acquired traits, such as strength, agility, and endurance, that are necessary for physical exercise or sports, especially those performed in competitive context

I am competing with myself... as it turns out. Competing and slowly winning by teaching my body that I can do many more physical things than ever before. Yesterday my trainer had me do lower back exercises, as seen in this picture above. I had no idea I could do this. I thought for sure my body weight would pull or topple me off this thing, head first, but my back strength kept me on it, and, I was able to hold a 15 pound weight disc and pull up my back  3 sets of 15 times as well. 

In the last 15 minutes of my lesson my trainer ( or as I call her my task master.. " yes master!" )  had me do interval running again. This time 15 minutes.. not 7 minutes like last time.. plus she added more speed and more incline!! Dam I was really working hard! my heart rate shot up to 142 ! I had to fast walk at a speed of 2.8 then run at 4.0 at an incline of 3.0, all at intervals of 1 minute on each speed.  My face was beating red for 20 minutes after my work out!! But I did it! and it felt good! .... also those endorphins also helped with the joy that's it's over!! 

I have had a personal trainer now for 15 months now, and I think it's worth every penny!! $$$... For all those out there that are thinking about losing weight, or just getting stronger or better in shape.. I HIGHLY recommend you find a way ($) to get yourself a personal trainer as well.. they will push you very uncomfortably past your limit, or outside your comfort box  .. and that's what you need to really burn those calories!! and build up strenghth and muscule!! 

How to survive all those social dates...

These past 2 weeks have been what I call a real culinary (lifestyle)  challenge. I haven't weighed myself in 2 weeks, fearful of what it was going to tell me ! 

I have been going out for dinner with friends a lot in the past 14 days, and even though I have still been going to the gym, I was really not following the strict diet regime I should have been. 

Even on Saturday night, I was at a friends house, and she offered me a white wine, and that one glass turned into 4 glasses of wine! whoops! shit.. now what? Here I am telling the world I am on a Diet, and wanting to lose still another 30 pounds to reach my goal on July 23... and yet all these culinary distractions keep on creeping up on me! sigh! ...

...but still not bad news on my scale this mornings.. still weighing in at 230.. so I didn't lose any thing... but MORE importantly.. I didn't gain!! 

Thank god! 

thank you Lord for finally getting my metabolism to start working as it should be! 

( this picture of me was taken yesterday at a fundraiser function  that I produced at a local Toronto restaurant, and yes again, surrounded in yummy foods that I took part in as well) 

Still Floating...

Tonight I went swimming with my trainer and did laps for 2 hours. Man it feels so good to swim. I just love swimming!! I do so miss our pool we used to have out in Don Mills...

I didn't realize how lucky we were until we lost it! Swimming laps as it turns out can burn loads of calories too.. I looked it up, as of course I can't wear my bodybugg in the pool.

And last year I bought an essential piece of swimming equipment, which is prescription swimming goggles. Last week I bought a new bathing suit, I now wear a size 20 bathing suit..compared to my old suit, I've come down from size 38 !!

My trainer just moved into her new apartment last week. It's a rental ; This apartment is the bees knees in new modern Toronto living. Not only just she have a stunning 30th floor corner suit with a view of the WHOLE downtown core of Toronto, it comes with a whole list of amenities , that just come with the whole complex.

Main floor consist of rock climbing wall, indoor pool, outdoor tanning deck, whirlpool, massage spa, steam room, yoga/spinning/dance studio, gym, outdoor exercise area, open lounge, outdoor patio and bbq. Second floor includes party room with outdoor terrace, dance floor, open lounge with outdoor terrace, table tennis, billiards, theatre, children's theatre, game room, arts and crafts room, children's play room, karaoke/music room. Montage will also offer guest suites, conference room, media lounge, fire place lounge and spadina lounge. Montage LE additional amenities include private lobby and concierge, two exclusive elevators, upgraded elevator lobby, executive lounge with media centre & wi-fi internet access.

wow !

Click here to read more about this new condo complex in Toronto

http://www.cityplace.ca/montage_le/

The most amazing night of my life!

Last night, here in Toronto’s Air Canada Centre, ( ACC- home of the Toronto Raptors, and the Toronto Maple Leafs) I went to a live concert of Elton John with Billy Joel. I was very fortunate to aquire 7th row seats!

It was the most amazing night of my life!!

I went to the concert with my great friend and dear neighbour, Aaron Hay, we first went out to dinner to
‘ Nota Bene’ classified as one of the best restaurants in Canada!

Then off to Elton and Billy…

Pictures of the evenings concert can be enjoyed by clicking on this link below ....

http://picasaweb.google.com/wlimbertie/EltonJohnBillyJoelConcertACCToronto

Rock that Lifestyle too!

After a really tough  3 day conference last weekend  ( tough meaning being locked up in the middle of nowhere with only the food you could eat , was the delicious , fatty, sugary food served ) I am back on track! Last night I went to the gym for a training session with my trainer. We are going to see each other every day now. She has agreed to train me in private at her home, and she has a swimming pool too, so finally I can do some low impact swimming exercising. I haven't gone swimming since I was 365 pounds, and as you know fat floats, so now with being 135 pounds lighter, less fat to float, it will be an interesting experience!  will I sink?... 

but tonight.. FIRST.. my big concert. 

I am going to see Elton John and Billy Joel live! ...

5 months ago I bought 7th row tickets to see this special once in a lifetime concert! ...I am going with my dear, sweet, very good looking (gay) neighbour! we are both dressing up in hope that at least one of us will maybe attract Elton's' attention!!. LOL... doughty.. but one can always hope!!.. 

... so no gym tonight! 

...tonight Crocodile Rock all the way! 

Sharing thoughts and tips from other blogs....

I recently discovered this new blog.. BODA and i just wanted to share today's entry as it's totally relevant to my struggles and so many others as well... very smart writing !

Over the years... I have learned the practise of accepting failure, not with Dieting, because I really didn't attempt it untill now, but auditioning for horn positions in orchestras.. over and over and over again.. that has what made me stronger, and a better horn player. Every time I learned from my mistakes, and grew and improved in my strategies! this piece written below totally explains the thought process behind it... please read on...

Embracing Failure: The Real Secret of Success
by Jennifer Howard

What do these people have in common: J.K. Rowling, Steve Jobs, Oprah Winfrey, Winston Churchill, Michael Jordan, Walt Disney, and Henry Ford? Besides being household names, these are only a handful of extremely successful people who credit FAILURE with making them achieve greatness. Yep, failure.

So what, you may ask, does this have to do with health and weight loss? Simply this: The theories and practice of accepting failure can actually contain the seeds of success when it comes to transforming your health and body. This is because failure, scientists are learning, seems to be hardwired in the brain to equal learning–the more wrong we are, the quicker we learn. By utilizing this understanding, we can actually temper ourselves to setbacks and get the most out of them. Here are a few things that failure teaches us:

Resiliency: Simply put, the more we fail, the more we understand that we are always a work in progress and nothing about our lives is fixed in stone–this includes our bodies, the way we eat, and the way we look. This gives us incredible freedom to change. Instead of beating ourselves up every time we slip up with our diet or because we didn’t know something about what makes us healthy, we see it as a learning opportunity. And the more we learn about ourselves, the more we know in the future what will and won’t work for us. For our brains, failure is all about making our thinking more efficient. So you will learn that eating every three hours doesn’t work for you and move on, each time getting closer to the real changes that will transform your health.

Opportunity: Successful people are people who have put themselves out there and tried whatever they could get there hands on. They are not more talented, or smarter, or luckier than anybody else–they have simply tried more and different things until something worked. They aren’t afraid of failure, of falling down. They know how to get back up. Apply this to your own life–what would you try if you were not afraid of failing? Just take the example of exercise. We know that it is one of the most important lifestyle choices in being healthy, but it isn’t always easy to find the perfect sport or activity. For those of us who aren’t afraid of failing, trying everything is seen as an opportunity–so get out there and try it–run, bicycle, do aerobics, swim, yoga, rock climb and find what you are passionate about. It’s out there just waiting to transform your life.

Perspective: Finally, becoming fearless in the face of failure gives us perspective, that is, where we are now is tempered by where we have been and that has the amazing ability of putting our fears, our cravings, and our emotions in their proper place. Perspective soothes our anxieties; it calms us. And when we are calm our emotions cease to rule us. We know that if we slip up and eat junk food we are not bad people, we are simply having an off day and we can recommit ourselves the next day. If we go two weeks without exercising we don’t throw in the towel, we shrug, love ourselves, and get out there at the next opportunity. Perspective allows us to understand that our lives are made up of a million small moments, that we will always fall down, and that it is the getting up that is important, the constant getting back up that makes the difference between an average life and one that is extraordinary.

When embracing your own ability and need to fail, think about how children learn. Take running, for example. We are not born with the ability to run, we learn it slowly. First we learn to roll over, then we learn to push ourselves up, then crawl, then stand, then walk, and finally run. Throughout this whole process, we fall down over and over again and over and over again we stand back up and we keep falling now and again throughout our whole lives. So let’s keep the perseverence and innocence of children in everything we do and be willing to put ourselves out there because that is how we learn, always.