11.29.2006

#36 - Small Bathroom Stalls

How many of you choose the roomier handicap stalls in a public restroom? Yeah, me too! Don't we all? I always feel guilty going into the handi stalls, but I have to, I don't always fit comfortably into the regular stalls. Being a fat person, you have to worry about squeezing into tight spaces. I hate that I have to worry about this when I'm in public. Clearly, if there is a big line for the restroom, I use what ever stall is available; it's just not as pleasant. When I go into a regular bathroom stall, I pretty much have to straddle the toilet just to shut the door. Maneuvering around in there is pretty difficult when you're portly! Does that make me public bathroom handicapped? Does that give me the right to use the handicap stalls? I don't know. I still feel guilty. Handicapped people don't have a choice. They can't change their condition. I, on the other hand, can lose weight. I hate that I struggle with this dilemma every time I enter a public bathroom. I wish all the stalls were equally big, so there wouldn't be an issue. Strike that. I wish I weren't fat, so that it wouldn't be an issue!

So I finally got to see an endocrinologist this week to help me deal with my hypoglycemia issues I've been having lately. In the past couple months, I've dealt with a lot of fainting spells and dizziness, directly related to when I eat. Well, I got the news I dreaded, he basically told me I was pre-diabetic. Often times, people who are just about to get diabetes go through a period of hypoglycemia. Yikes! All my life I've had doctors tell me how healthy I was except for the fact that I was overweight. But all those doctors told me that eventually my weight would catch up with me and be a problem. I guess it's caught up with me, I guess the problem has finally arrived! So now I have to monitor my blood sugar throughout the day and keep a detailed food journal. Boy, I really love getting stuck with a needle multiple times a day. Not! I don't why, but I always thought I was invincible or something. I guess I never thought my obesity would catch up with me. I guess I always thought I'd lose the weight before I had actual health problems. I guessed wrong!

Eating healthy and losing weight is no longer a cosmetic issue, it's a health issue. Does this mean that this time I'll take it seriously, lose weight and keep it off? I hope so. I'm trying to adopt changes in my eating habits that will be life-long changes. I'll never go on a 'diet' again. Another part of my treatment is exercise. Exercising has been shown to improve blood sugar regulation in pre-diabetes and diabetes. So I have no more excuses! I can't say, "I don't feel well enough to workout right now." The point is, I won't feel well until I workout. Baby steps, though. I can't just jump into a five day a week cardio regimen (my doc doesn't want me to, either). I'm supposed to slowly add a bit here and a bit there to my daily activity. It's hard though, going from a total couch potato, to becoming an active person. I've been doing yoga about two times a week lately, but this isn't enough. I need to add a bit of cardio. But more about the yoga, I found an AWESOME yoga workout for obese people. It's put out under the Just-my-size label. It's a yoga workout specifically designed for fat people, done by a fat yoga instructor. I really love it. It's not intimidating at all. The poses aren't crazy human pretzel poses; they're poses with the fat gal in mind. Clearly we have big tummies and boobs and can't bend in all the same ways as a skinny chick. Anyway, just a tip. I highly recommend the workout (Yoga: Just My Size With Megan Garcia).

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Man oh man, bathroom stalls are the worst! I don't understand why they are so small, even for small people!

Sucks about the diabeties. I'm just waiting to get that one.

I used to do a yoga video that was called Yoga for Weight Loss. Can't remember who did it though, but it was good before I hurt my back.

Unknown said...

I thought I had posted a comment earlier - so please excuse if this ends up on your site twice! I totally understand about the bathrrom stalls - thanks for sharing the smile.

Anonymous said...

I hate it when the toilet paper dispenser is down too low or right next to the toilet and your thighs rub against it when you sit down. Not a pleasant thing. I hear ya!

purplegirl said...

I'm new to your blog, so I'm almost a year behind on this post. :) But I'm ordering this yoga video RIGHT NOW! I love yoga, and I had something called "OM Yoga In A Box" I used to do when I was about forty pounds lighter ... but it was hard even then. Thanks for posting about this!

Catherine said...

I'm new to the blog, as well, and I'm more than a year late with this, but just wanted to chime in on the gradual increase in exercise topic. That's definitely the way to go. When I got my stationary bike a couple of years ago, the first time I got on it, I rode one mile and was too exhausted to continue. The next day, I rode two miles, then three the following day, and so on. I now ride about 12 miles every other day. But don't ever feel like, "Well, it's just not worth it if I can exercise for only three minutes," or whatever. It is worth it, as long as you stick with it and gradually increase your stamina.