Dr. Grimes' Bottom Line

Monday, March 27, 2017

If the SHOE Fits...20-1-7 Challenge Week #13

Dr. Grimes' 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

If the SHOE Fits...20-1-7 Challenge Week #13

While the saying goes "If the shoe fits, WEAR it," this week's challenge is almost the opposite, because we are talking about your athletic shoes. Call them sneakers, tennis shoes, running shoes, whatever- here is the important challenge. Look at the bottom of your shoes. If the tread is obviously worn smooth in any part, it's time for NEW shoes. My mantra is "yes, new shoes may be expensive, but NEW SHOES are cheaper than NEW KNEES (or hips)."

Over and over in my twenty years of practicing family medicine, I see injuries/aches/pains that can be prevented by proper footwear. If you are walking or jogging regularly for exercise, odds are good that you should be replacing your shoes every six months...even though the "shoe still fits"- meaning you have no foot pain, and the tops may even look "practically brand new".

Look closely at the picture above, and notice the circle pattern...and lack thereof, in an unequal fashion on the two shoes. When these shoes were new, every section had that circle and line pattern. Now you can clearly see I have worn through the tread, and I am overdue for new shoes.

BOTTOM LINE: Look deep into your "soles" to see if it is time for new shoes! While this is not my typical "daily" 20-1-7 Challenge, I will commit to getting new shoes TODAY that I will wear in my daily 2-4 mile dog-walks.

PS. I strongly encourage you to head to a local running shoe store with experienced and knowledgable sales people to be properly fitted for shoes. They should not only measure your foot, but watch you walk/run/jog to help advise you on your shoes. Locally here in Austin, I recommend Ready to Run.

20-1-7 Challenge Week #1: COLOR

20-1-7 Challenge Week #2: Veggie Spiralizer

20-1-7 Challenge Week #3: Medication Dispenser

20-1-7 Challenge Week #4: Meditation

20-1-7 Challenge Week #5: WATER

20-1-7 Challenge Week #6: Exercise BOOST

20-1-7 Challenge Week #7: FLOSS

20-1-7 Challenge Week #8: ZZZ

20-1-7 Challenge Week #9: RESIST

20-1-7 Challenge Week #10: No W(h)ining

20-1-7 Challenge Week #11: YOGA

20-1-7 Challenge Week #12: CLUTTER CONTROL- in 10 minute daily organizational attacks. FEEDBACK: Wow, I should have started this decades ago! At least for my personality, this technique worked wonderfully. I am amazed how much I was able to get done in a short burst of cleansing, one drawer at a time. By picking the areas I spend the most time (like bathroom/kitchen drawers and laundry room), I am reaping the mental benefits of feeling more calm and simply by removing visual clutter.

As for my YOGA do-over...less success there. Perhaps I need to try an actual class some time- for me, the less interactive apps were a bit of a hassle to use (to look at the small screen, figure out the pose, etc.) I also had achy wrists (from computer overuse on a photoshop project) that contributed to sapping my motivation for yoga poses.

Monday, March 20, 2017

CLUTTER CONTROL: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #12

*"AFTER" Pic of my Closet *Roll up Magazines for Boots

Dr. Grimes' 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

CLUTTER CONTROL: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #12:

My family is NOT inherently neat and tidy. Paper clutter engulfs our kitchen counters, home office and dining room table ten times faster than I can sort, record, and recycle. Scientific studies have well documented that visual clutter ADDS significantly to stress/anxiety, and that LACK of clutter does the reverse. I tend to be an all or nothing person, so when I start to spring clean, I obsessively purge one closet or room, taking the entire day. Point in case- in January, I literally took every single thing out of my walk-in bedroom closet (which had not been emptied since we moved in 20 years ago!), and then re-filled starting from scratch. It took NINE HOURS...but I am happy to report it has stayed beautifully neat with relative ease, especially since I donated an SUV carload to charity, considerably thinning out my wardrobe. Every morning, my clean closet makes me smile, and even motivated me to clean the adjoining bathroom drawers and linen closet- but I never reached beyond the master bath.

So- this week's challenge canNOT be to clean a room every day, because like the rest of you, I can't spend a ton of hours on this! Since I have an "ahem" SLIGHTLY competitive nature, I decided to go with a ten minute, stopwatch (phone timer) controlled cleaning/organizing spree per day, racing the clock to see how much I can accomplish. I realize I have drawers that can't be touched in ten minutes, but I'm betting I can find at least 7 areas in my home that concentrated 10 minute purging can make a significant impact.

What method should you use? Right now, the Marie Kondo method is certainly sweeping my Facebook pages, and I'll admit though I laughed at the "does this item spark joy" approach initially, I actually have found it to be very liberating, allowing me to "release" many things- especially clothing- to new owners, rather than tucking that old beloved shirt back into my stuffed drawer. I will confess that I now have three boxes set aside to mail off to create t-shirt quilts for our girls (yes, there's a groupon for that! I will no longer save this in the garage for that day that I take up this new craft.) As I cleaned, I ironically unearthed The Clutter Diet from my clothing shelves- and found useful tips there as well, like using a rolled-up magazine to make your boots stand up (great use for my journals!) Whatever works for you!

BOTTOM LINE: This week I will challenge myself to daily 10-minute cleaning attacks on my clutter clusters, in the hope of decreasing visual clutter to decrease stress! (*and I will actually DO last week's YOGA challenge. Typing this to hold myself accountable!)

Well, once I started vacation, I completely dropped the ball on this one. No point in lying, right? LOL! Good news is I am making the rules, so...I am actually adding the yoga challenge to this week's challenge, doubling up. Sometimes we all need "do-overs!"

Monday, March 13, 2017

A Bit O' Yoga: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #11

Dr. Grimes' 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

Bit O' YOGA: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #11

YOGA...As a family physician, I have recommended yoga for many of my patients. Honestly, I'm hard-pressed to think of anyone who might NOT benefit from yoga. For myself, however, yoga falls into the flossing teeth category- I KNOW I should do it, I know that "older me" is going to be mad at current me for not doing it, but I haven't been able to find a way to make it stick. So, here I go again- it's well worth another shot! Full confession- I have never actually attended a yoga class, partly because I am not blessed with the "flexible" gene, and have always been embarrassed when stretching in other aerobics classes. I have, however, purchased and used multiple yoga tapes and DVDs, so I am familiar with the basic poses and truly have found yoga beneficial...but have not managed to keep it an ongoing priority. For this week's challenge, I am shooting low and going to download a few different apps that target a brief yoga daily stretch.

BOTTOM LINE: This week I will bring back a "bit 'o yoga" in my life by adding in daily guided yoga stretches through using 5 Minute Yoga & Daily Yoga Apps.

Monday, March 6, 2017

No W(h)ining! 20-1-7 Challenge Week #10

Dr. Grimes' 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

NO W(h)ining! 20-1-7 Challenge Week #10

Do you enjoy a glass or two of wine with your dinner? Me too! Wine in small amounts is happily shown to be medically beneficial. However, many of us do not limit ourselves to the "up to one 4-oz glass of wine for women, and up to two 4-oz glasses of wine for men." How much wine is too much? If you stop at 2 glasses every night with dinner, and have no hangover or other obvious ill affects, is that okay? Well...

Medically, the evidence shows us what I already stated above- women should not exceed one 4-oz glass, and men should not exceed two. (Grab a measuring cup next time you pour wine at home, because odds are good that your "one glass" is actually two servings.) During my training, when a fellow medical student asked "how much is really too much", a wise older attending physician taught us a helpful rule of thumb. What's "too much"? If your doctor told you today that you MUST completely give up (insert substance or activity of choice here) for a month, and your first reaction is a small sense of panic...then you are drinking/eating/doing too much of that item. As such, throughout the year I periodically do a self-check and give myself at least a week long break from whichever food/drink/activity has crept up to "need" levels. [Note to self...social media check-ins during the day are likely next on my list.]

BOTTOM LINE: This week, no wine! (If you are playing along, please note that this means no alcohol of any kind...I simply do not drink beer or hard liquor, outside the occasional margarita.)

Monday, February 27, 2017

RESIST: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #9

Dr. Grimes' 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

RESIST: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #9
Resistance training should be included at some level for all adults, regardless of fitness level. Increasing lean muscle mass through resistance exercise has been shown to have numerous benefits, including increasing your resting metabolic rate, reducing fat (and related, reducing risk of developing type 2 diabetes), improving mobility and decreasing falls, enhancing cardiac health (through improved lipid profiles), improving bone density and even improving self-image. So why don't we all make time for it?

Many people equate resistance training with mandatory GYM attendance, and when that habit falls off, the weights disappear. However, small free weights (3-20 pounds) easily fit into our homes, stored under a bed or in a corner. I admit to having a small collection with various covers...pictured above is my favorite 5 pound set. Don't have any? Head to your favorite super-store and add them to your shopping list, because this is NOT a big ticket item- you can easily find some for less than $10.

How often should you use weights? The good news here is that 2-3 times per week is plenty, as you should not lift weights with the same muscle groups two days in a row.

Do NOT jump in to resistance training by seeing how much weight you can lift- that's a recipe for injury. Note that MY weights start at 3 pounds (for triceps) and 5 pounds (for biceps and other upper body work). I max out on home weights at 10 pounds- which is plenty for my small frame. Please talk to your doctor if you have any chronic medical challenges (from diabetes, to seizure disorders, to hypertension, to arthritis, etc) before you launch in to a new strength training program, and if a personal trainer or physical therapist is an option- go for it! If you are like me, and have had plenty of instruction on proper technique but have simply fallen off the weight lifting wagon, simply "START LOW & GO SLOW".

BOTTOM LINE: This week I will re-introduce some basic low level resistance training into my exercise routine, starting with 3 and 5 pound weights for upper body toning.

Monday, February 20, 2017

ZZZZ: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #8

[Photo credit: L. Lampert & her precious puppy, Tucker]

Dr. Grimes' 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

ZZZZ: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #8

How many hours do adults need to sleep at night? The throw down answer is eight hours, though it varies from 6-10 hours on an individual basis. However, with the introduction of electronic screens into our bedrooms, many of us are using screen time to wind down...which is at least a double whammy on our sleep. Social media sites can suck us in to story after story, and fully advertised "addictive" games like Candy Crush can easily steal an hour of precious sleep time. Meanwhile, staring at that blue-lit screen in the last hour or two before sleep is tearing down the quality of our sleep. SO- 20-1-7 challenge for week #8 is all about the Z's and improving both quality and quantity of sleep.

First- I will use an app to make it easy to keep track of the actual time I am spending in bed (both awake and asleep). Fitbits work well for this, too
Second- I will cover my clock so I don't check the time when I wake up (which I typically do several times/night).
Third- I will turn the figurative clock back and read an actual, real-life book for 15-30 minutes before I head to sleep (and commit to no electronic screen in the hour before bed).

BOTTOM LINE: SLEEP restores our brains and our bodies, so this week will focus on assessing and improving my own "sleep hygiene".

Monday, February 13, 2017

FLOSS: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #7

Dr. Grimes' 20-1-7 CHALLENGE:

For the first TWENTY weeks of this year,
Pick ONE healthy change every Sunday, and
Commit to that change for SEVEN days.

FLOSS: 20-1-7 Challenge Week #7

This week is a straight-forward nod to both our future "older" us and our dentistry colleagues: FLOSS!!

When I think about flossing, I remember a commercial from years ago with a spunky elderly woman munching on a carrot, saying "you don't have to floss ALL your teeth- just the ones you want to keep!" And then I think of my 94 year old mother-in-law, who kept all her teeth beautifully functional by doing just that...and then I wonder why the heck I cannot seem to maintain this simple habit.

Logic has it that if we brush our teeth twice a day, every single day, then we should be able to add flossing to the routine, but my experience is that most people do not. I find plenty of motivation to floss the month (or at least couple of weeks) before each routine dental appointment, but then I seem to fall off the wagon. However, I'm ready to give it another go...so I'm trying a new technique this week.

Using a medication dispenser has me back on track taking my prescription medication and my doctor-recommended vitamin supplements, so I am going to try to mentally LINK flossing with taking my medication by putting a note in my pill box.

Use whatever reminder works for you. I'm grossed out by yucky teeth, so sticking a picture of that on my bathroom sink would only turn me away, but I know other people who have used this for motivation. Conversely, a picture of a GORGEOUS toothy smile might motivate others. PS. With Valentine's Day tomorrow, perhaps thinking of kissing someone special- and how much nicer that image is with healthy teeth and gums- will spur us on this week! Also, if your Valentine treats include chocolate or other sweets...extra dental care is another "valentine" we can give ourselves.

BOTTOM LINE: We all KNOW flossing helps our teeth and gums, but most of us need some extra reminder/motivation/nudge to make this a daily habit. Figure out your nudge, and DO IT!