Other than the mood and anxiety issues, things are getting better. My face has mostly cleared up, I’m sleeping a bit better, and I discovered that spicy foods are a common trigger for night sweats, so I’ve stopped eating anything spicy for dinner to see if that helps.
Since body composition is a much better indicator of overall health than weight or BMI, I splurged on a new scale that measures all that. The at-home scales aren’t as accurate as the professional ones found in some gyms and other places, but they’re much more reasonably priced (a one-time cost versus around $100 each time at the gym) and it doesn’t require me going anywhere or making an appointment.
My first time on the new scale showed me some things I already knew but also showed me a couple of measurements that made me happy (my muscle mass for example). The important thing is now I have solid numbers that I can track over time to see how the changes I’m making in my diet and exercise are affecting my body.
“Building the Book Fort” is a weekly post where I track my bookish life.
Currently Reading:
A Mindful Year by Dr. Aria Campbell-Danesh and Dr. Seth J. Gillihan
The Galveston Diet by May Claire Haver, MD
The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien
Rumo by Walter Moers
Fitness After 40 by Vonda Wright, M.D.
Finished:
The Book of Nordic Self-Care by Elisabeth Carlsson
Total pages read this week: 155
Total books read: 38 of 80
TBR: -23 (Goal is -36)
I’ve gotten back into my normal daily routines, but I’ve been listening to podcasts during my commute instead of audiobooks. My page count will probably continue to be low until I get back to audiobooks.
What are you reading? Let me know in the comments!
Take the first 5 (or 10 if you’re feeling adventurous) books
Read the synopses of the books
Decide: keep it or should it go?
My shelf is up several books to 1096. I finished a book but bought a few ebooks.
This week’s books:
Daughters of the Lake by Wendy Webb – KEEP. I think this might be a good Readers Imbibing Peril book.
The Checklist Manifesto by Atul Gawande – GO. I thought this book was about using checklists to improve productivity or better organize daily life, but I didn’t get that impression from the synopsis. It seems to be more of an ode to the checklist, which I am not interested in.
The River Widow by Ann Howard Creel – GO. I was interested in this historical fiction novel until the last couple of sentences of the synopsis when the main character develops feelings for a man who might lead to her losing her daughter. No, thank you.
The Road Beyond Ruin by Gemma Liviero – KEEP. This historical fiction novel is set just after WWII, and that’s just different enough from the hundreds of WWII stories to interest me.
The Cats of Tanglewood Forest by Charles de Lint – KEEP. A Fantasy story all about cats?! Why have I not read this book yet?!
My want-to-read shelf is down to 1094 books. I’m sure I’ll let go of at least one book in the next post.
I’m not sure what happened, since I had continued sticking to the Belly Fat Blast challenge guidelines as much as possible, but I regained nearly all the weight I had lost. With this, my night sweats, insomnia, acne, and mood swings went through the roof. I guess that my hormone levels went haywire. My symptoms began easing up this past week, but the weight is not going down again yet. This has not done well for my overall mood, and I feel discouraged. I’m not giving up, but I am struggling.
Since I didn’t post last week, I’ve listed the totals for both weeks below.
“Building the Book Fort” is a weekly post where I track my bookish life.
Currently Reading:
A Mindful Year by Dr. Aria Campbell-Danesh and Dr. Seth J. Gillihan
The Galveston Diet by May Claire Haver, MD
The Book of Nordic Self-Care by Elisabeth Carlsson
The Return of the King by J.R.R. Tolkien
Rumo by Walter Moers
Finished:
Ethan Frome and Selected Stories by Edith Wharton
Total pages read this week: 294
Total books read: 37 of 80
TBR: -20 (Goal is -36)
My BFF and her husband were visiting this past week, and I haven’t been reading much at all. Now that they’ve headed back home, my daily life is returning to normal, including my nightly routine of reading for at least a half hour before bed.
What are you reading? Let me know in the comments!
