I mentioned in a previous post that I was facing foot surgery, which took place on March 11. So it’s been about 2 ½ weeks since then, and I didn’t feel that I could stand on the scale without my surgical boot or shoe until the 2-week mark. Guess what? I was four pounds up. FOUR POUNDS.
Why did this happen? Well, my activity levels had gone way, way down. I went nowhere at all for about the first week except for my doctor’s appointment, and I spent a lot of time lying on the couch with my foot up on pillows. I have taken no walks and done no floor exercises. My first shopping expedition was last Saturday when Jim took me to the grocery store, and I did quite a bit of work in the kitchen on Sunday, preparing a birthday dinner for my brother-in-law. (But I gave out before I got to the chocolate lava cakes, which was probably just as well. I promised Ed that I’d make them this coming Sunday, which is, coincidentally, my birthday.) I will say that I tried to be very conscious of how much I was eating, and I was quite aware of the temptation to snack when I got bored with lying around. For the most part I avoided doing that, but it was interesting to realize that if I didn’t make deliberate choices about food intake I’d just eat as much at meals as I would normally. I wouldn’t necessarily be hungry at those meals, but it was time to eat, it was a break in the day, and the food had been prepared by someone else. (These are also the roles food plays when you’re in the hospital.)
This morning I was back down to a more normal weight; I think part of the uptick above was from water retention/inflammation, but probably not all of it. I’ve been a little more active over the past few days, and today or tomorrow I’m going to attempt driving to the grocery store with my surgical shoe on. My toes are still too swollen to fit into a normal shoe. I won’t be able to get back into my walks for at least another week, but I’m getting back to my floor exercises today.
All this is to make a couple of very obvious points—that we do a lot of eating out of habit, not hunger, and that activity levels do matter. As many very sensible sources point out, exercise isn’t much of a weight loss tool, but it’s a great weight management tool. The more we move, the more we can/need to eat. There’s always a balance that needs to be found.
This whole process has been very educational, a good reminder of my principle that the laws of physics have not been repealed. Input and outgo need to match. In my case, a big motive for having the surgery in the first place was to enable me to be active without the pain in my foot from the neuroma. (Not sure if I’ve explained about what this is, so I mention it here as an informational item. You can get an inflammation of one of the nerves running between your toes, usually the third and fourth ones. If the condition continues, the nerve can develop scar tissue, at which time surgery is pretty much your only option. The problem is usually caused by wearing shoes that compress the toes. I wonder now if my own personal little blob, which was the size of a small marble, got its start back in the days when I stood up and taught for six hours a day in three-inch heels.) I’m so looking forward to being able to get out on my usual walks and not worry that I’m aggravating my foot by doing so. Also to having a normal-looking foot! Never underestimate the power of vanity.
How about you? Have you ever been in a situation where you’ve been forced into inactivity? How did you deal with it?