FatBlogger

Why does my foot hurt so bad and just what the hell is Plantar fasciitis

Almost a year ago, the day after I walked the Houston Half Marathon, my foot was killing me, in particular my right heal. Now generally this is to be expected given the 13 miles and the extra 60 pounds I am carting around, but the pain lingered for days, and then weeks, and then months. At times it was one of the most painful things I ever experienced, with shooting pain that went deep into the bone of my foot.  Turns out it is called Plantar Fasciitis, and it is often a common ailment among the over-weight and the obese. 

Basically it is an injury to a thick band of fibrous tissue located on the heal of the foot, and extends up to the toes. 

It probably never would have happened to me had I not actually RAN that last mile. I couldn't help it, the crowd was cheering and I did not want to be just a fat guy walking. So I ran And as it turns out I was just a fat guy who thought he was running but in fact was doing a very poor imitation and was injuring my foot in the process. 

Getting up in the morning was a bitch, sometimes my foot was so stiff and sore that I had to drag it along like Egor before I could walk on it. I pretty much tried everything, ice, heat, rest. As I am often standing throughout the day on hard surfaces, it was not getting better. About the best thing I did was get a decent pair of shoes with good support, and wore them even in the house.  

I have read that it takes about 9 months for it to go away on average. In some cases as much as 2 years. I would say that I am about 80% healed up, no pun intended, there are times that it flares up. Since I have entered myself in the race again for another 13 miles, and it is just over 10 weeks away, AND I haven't really done any extensive training or walking yet, this injury is worrisome to me.  I'm going to need a really, really, really... good pair of running or walking shoes....or lose a lot of weight very quickly. 

WebMd

Mayo Clinic

Wikipedia

Google Health

What if you were thin?

Its an interesting concept, one that I have heard and read about in various forms over the years. The thought is that to be a thin person, one should act like a thin person. Of course, that is easier said than done for many, lucky for us that Rachel Young has figured it out. 

Rachel has lost over 80 pounds, thats right...80 pounds! All through a method she learned while growing up in Japan called "kaizen". In her words...

You see, the Japanese use the term “kaizen” to describe small steps that can be taken to achieve

large goals. I used this concept to learn the language (speaking and writing), to try and discover

new local foods, to live and love the country I was being raised in.

It's an easy to read, no nonsense approach, full of good advice, a unique approach to losing weight sensibly and for life, I enjoyed reading it. Those of you who know me well, know I do NOT recommend many diet books, but this is one that I can, whole heartedly! To read more about Rachel and her kaizen approach to weight loss, go to her website...

What If You Were Thin?

The PINK is back baby!

I'm going pink for the month of October to show my support for National Breast Cancer Awareness. And my infamous pig is pink, so.\, it all just kind of made sense. 

This was NOT an easy decision, pink is my least favorite color...except for this month. 

I got an early start today and squeezed in a 3 mile walk in the park. The weather was finally cool here and it was very pleasant. All this month I will be focusing on the exercise, getting that habit going again, doing what I can to keep it going for a life time, instead of intermittently between attempts at weight loss.  There have been more reasons than a lack of motivation for why I have been slacking, seems like everything came at us all at once. And after the half marathon last January, I was really racked up with some serious foot pain for a long, long time (more on that later). So anyway, it felt really good to get out there again, to feel a bit stiff afterward, and to get it done early in the morning too. 

While I was looking over the NBCAM website I came across an article they had on there about how diet can raise or lower a woman's risk of breast cancer. Not surprising information really, has a decent plant based diet EVER been linked to bad health? Not that I have seen so far. It is worth a read though if you need that extra motivation to make a few changes in your diet. 

Prudent diet linked to lower breast cancer risk.

Not sure what I will be doing this weekend, but I won't be posting here. Would like to visit some of you though! I'll be around and have a nice weekend!

FatBlogger Recognizes National Breast Cancer Awareness Month

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month (NBCAM). Since the program began in 1985, mammography rates have more than doubled for women age 50 and older and breast cancer deaths have declined. 

This is exciting progress, but there are still women who do not take advantage of early detection at all and others who do not get screening mammograms and clinical breast exams at regular intervals. 

·          Women age 65 and older are less likely to get mammograms than younger women, even though breast cancer risk increases with age.

·          Hispanic women have fewer mammograms than Caucasian women and African American women.

·          Women below poverty level are less likely than women at higher incomes to have had a mammogram within the past two years.

·          Mammography use has increased for all groups except American Indians and Alaska Natives.

 “If all women age 40 and older took advantage of early detection methods – mammography plus clinical breast exam – breast cancer death rates would drop much further, up to 30 percent,” says 

“The key to mammography screening is that it be done routinely – once is not enough.” 

For more information about NBCAM, please visit www.nbcam.org.  For additional information, please call one of the following toll-free numbers: American Cancer Society,

(800) 227-2345, National Cancer Institute (NCI), (800) 4-CANCER, Y-ME National Breast Cancer Organization, (800) 221-2141.

 The National Breast Cancer Awareness Month program is dedicated to increasing public knowledge about the importance of early detection of breast cancer. Fifteen national public service organizations, professional associations, and government agencies comprise the Board of Sponsors, who work together to ensure that the NBCAM message is heard by thousands of women and their families.

Time to get moving again

OK, I just walked 2 miles. First time in a looooooooong time, and if felt rather good I have to say. October always seems to motivate me to get moving. Its November through the following September I have troubles with!

October always seems to get me exercising, and exercising, or at least moving around more, is always a good place to start getting healthy. 

Healthy is the key word, because that is my main goal now. Yes I need to lose weight, about 60 pounds to be exact, but that is just one part of improving my health.  Believe it or not, there are others as well. 

And even tiny steps will get you there right? Eventually?

OK, there is much to do this October, or should I say...ROCkTOBER !!! 

Much more later