by theonehipguy@gmail.com | Jun 2, 2014 | Uncategorized
Almost everyone I have met can tell me a story around almost every scar on their body. How old they were, where they got it, why it happened and so on. Think about it…look at a scar on your body right now and I bet you can remember almost to the day where, why, and how you got it.
Our childhood is full of these stories. Perhaps the scar on your shin came from the fall off a bike or the scar on your finger came from the Swiss army knife you were using to whittle a stick. These scars…battle scars tell a tale. They are a roadmap of sorts in our journey on this planet. Many of us are proud of our scars and reflect favorably on the days of our youth and fearless pursuit of whatever it was we were aspiring to have, be, or do at that particular moment.
I remember one scar over my right eye that I got playing high school hockey. Fighting for the puck in the offensive zone and went down in the process and as the play started to go the other way got stepped on…lost part of the bone along the eye socket and had a heck of a black eye! Great battle scar that I still tell the tale to whoever will listen. Of course the story is much more exaggerated than it really was but it is a fun story none the less.
Whats my point?
This week I came across some people who like me had hip replacement surgery or were about to go in for surgery. There were quite a few people who seemed distraught at the thought of having a scar. Prior to having my surgery I have to admit I was a little concerned about having a scar yet afterwards I saw this as a battle scar and that I won the battle. The war may not be completely over yet at this moment in time I know that I have won. Unfortunately I no longer will be able to wear my speedo on the beach without attracting attention…okay okay wearing a speedo always attracts attention!
The real issue about having a scar is not the physical one but the emotional one. We can see the physical scars yet for many their emotional scars are so much bigger. Some feel that they are going to be looked at differently. I don’t see it that way. I believe those who have had surgery are the ones that look at others differently…looking to see if someone notices or says something hurtful. Protecting ourselves from insensitive comments by not telling people around us. That’s a load of crap! It is time to park the ego and accept that everyone has something going on their life and I mean everyone!
Know this…it is not your fault!
Anyone who reads this blog can attest to the physical and emotional scars in their life. You are who you are today as a result of getting those battle scars. They tell a story, your story, share this story, they are your roadmap and have made you who you are today.
Love who you are and all the scars that go with it!
John One Hip Guy
by theonehipguy@gmail.com | May 28, 2014 | Uncategorized
Almost everyone I have met can tell me a story around almost every scar on their body. How old they were, where they got it, why it happened and so on. Think about it…look at a scar on your body right now and I bet you can remember almost to the day where, why, and how you got it.
Our childhood is full of these stories. Perhaps the scar on your shin came from the fall off a bike or the scar on your finger came from the Swiss army knife you were using to whittle a stick. These scars…battle scars tell a tale. They are a roadmap of sorts in our journey on this planet. Many of us are proud of our scars and reflect favorably on the days of our youth and fearless pursuit of whatever it was we were aspiring to have, be, or do at that particular moment.
I remember one scar over my right eye that I got playing high school hockey. Fighting for the puck in the offensive zone and went down in the process and as the play started to go the other way got stepped on…lost part of the bone along the eye socket and had a heck of a black eye! Great battle scar that I still tell the tale to whoever will listen. Of course the story is much more exaggerated than it really was but it is a fun story none the less.
Whats my point?
This week I came across some people who like me had hip replacement surgery or were about to go in for surgery. There were quite a few people who seemed distraught at the thought of having a scar. Prior to having my surgery I have to admit I was a little concerned about having a scar yet afterwards I saw this as a battle scar and that I won the battle. The war may not be completely over yet at this moment in time I know that I have won. Unfortunately I no longer will be able to wear my speedo on the beach without attracting attention…okay okay wearing a speedo always attracts attention!
The real issue about having a scar is not the physical one but the emotional one. We can see the physical scars yet for many their emotional scars are so much bigger. Some feel that they are going to be looked at differently. I don’t see it that way. I believe those who have had surgery are the ones that look at others differently…looking to see if someone notices or says something hurtful. Protecting ourselves from insensitive comments by not telling people around us. That’s a load of crap! It is time to park the ego and accept that everyone has something going on their life and I mean everyone!
Know this…it is not your fault!
Anyone who reads this blog can attest to the physical and emotional scars in their life. You are who you are today as a result of getting those battle scars. They tell a story, your story, share this story, they are your roadmap and have made you who you are today.
Love who you are and all the scars that go with it!
John One Hip Guy
by theonehipguy@gmail.com | May 21, 2014 | Uncategorized
I am always amazed at how little attention we pay to our bodies.
It seems our bodies talk to us in subtle ways yet most of us are not listening.
Case in point…I met a 40 something lady in the gym awhile back and noticed how hard she went on the elliptical. She was on the elliptical for over 90 minutes and she varied her speeds from easy to the highest intensity. When she got off I commented on how hard she had worked out. I was surprised by her answer.
It turns out that her right hip was giving her a lot of pain and that it was getting progressively worse. Say what?
I was completely caught of guard by her answer simply because I would not have expected anyone dealing with joint pain to overdo the joint! It seemed crazy to me yet when I reflected on this more it started to make sense. No one likes to be faced with the possibility that our health may not be the way it was when we were younger so we still go hard to prove that we can. Admitting that there is a pending problem is difficult to do because it may mean doing things differently in the future.
I told my new friend that she should ice her sore hip and perhaps take it easier on the elliptical to reduce the pain. I recommended that she stretch, get some massage therapy or physiotherapy and to take care of her hip. Most of all to listen to her body!
Do we listen to our bodies when we are tired? Hungry? Thirsty? When we overeat?
Maybe it is time we all took the time to pay attention.
Pay attention today or pay with pain tomorrow. It sounds harsh but the reality is we all need to stop going a million miles an hour and listen. Someone is talking to you…
John-One Hip Guy
by theonehipguy@gmail.com | May 14, 2014 | Uncategorized
I constantly see people talking about being on a diet, just coming off a diet, thinking about going on a diet. I think it is time to talk about why people have so many issues around weight and in particular weight loss.
First if someone is serious about losing weight they must consider a variety of factors. To effectively lose weight and keep it off requires dedication and then moderation. Too many times dieting involves doing without and then when the diet is over there is a sense of relief and old habits come back.
First understand the glycemic index and what foods are good for you and what goods might not be so good. The glycemic index is actually quite easy to follow once you understand it. The image below shows the good, bad, and ugly when it come to the glycemic index.
Once you know you need to eat low glycemic foods then find a chart like the one provided to give you some guidance on what foods you should or shouldn’t eat.
It is actually quite easy to follow the food recommendations in the glycemic index. It is obvious that there are certain foods you should always avoid, however there are surprises in there too. Almost all root vegetables are classified as simple sugars or simple carbohydrates. They convert very quickly to sugar in the body and therefore will spike your blood sugar. If you want to lose weight then keep potatoes out of your diet all the time! Sorry that means french fries too!
The goal when you eat is to remain in the healthy green zone and not go into the yo-yo zone because your blood sugar going up and down is unhealthy and will cause cravings and unhealthy food choices. See the chart below to see what happens when you fall out of the green zone.
Once someone understands the glycemic index then the next step is to understand the glycemic load. The glycemic load (GL) of food is a number that estimates how much the food will raise a person’s blood glucose level after eating it. One unit of glycemic load approximates the effect of consuming one gram of glucose.
You can go to http://www.health.harvard.edu/newsweek/Glycemic_index_and_glycemic_load_for_100_foods.htm to see what the load is for many of the foods you eat.
There are many failed attempts at dieting simply because the person who is on the diet does not understand the triggers that cause cravings and the overwheling desire to eat anything in sight. First and most important step in my view is understanding how our blood sugar goes up and down based on the foods we eat. Once this is understood then it becomes much simpler to maintain a healthy diet and lose weight without starving.
Have a great week!
John–One Hip Guy
by theonehipguy@gmail.com | May 7, 2014 | Uncategorized
There is nothing like driving for 33 hours over 3 days to get someone thinking. I remember a time before my hip replacement that the thought of a trip like that would have been tough to consider let alone do!
My how times have changed!
All of us have experienced the “road trip”.
In my early adult years my road trips consisted of other young adults…(mostly other guys) who could hardly wait to hit the road. Maybe it was a trip to beach or a curling bonspiel, a golf tournament, or maybe it was a long haul trip to the coast. Whatever the event was there was always surprises along the way. There was always the party animal and the party pooper. There was the “driver” and there was the “navigator”. If there were a few along for the road trip there was always the guy who got stuck in the back seat.
So what am I getting at? Well those road trips are a lot like our life.
Everyday we wake up and are faced with a new road, new surprises. It often seems it should be routine…afterall we are only going to the beach with a bunch of buddies (metaphorically speaking) …or should it? The beauty of this life is that there are no guarantees yet if we approach each day with the never ending pursuit of WHY we do what we do the outcomes, the accomplishments, will harmoniously flow in line of our world view of success.
There will be times where you will be the driver, the one in charge who takes up the role of leading. How will you take on this role? Will you lead as a mentor or a tormentor? There will be other times in life where being the navigator is the most crucial asset you can bring to the table. How will you communicate your ideas? Will you engage thoughtful conversation or will you over power those around you and dominate the conversation? There will also be times where you might have to take a back seat. Perhaps it is in an area where you have less ability, knowledge. Will you be able to observe, replicate so that you can someday navigate and then drive? The metaphor is simple. We all play different roles at different times in our lives. Recognizing the situations and how you react to them is a question of how connected you are to your WHY. When we stay connected to our WHY, our purpose, no matter what role or situation we are in we will always excel!
The moral of this story?
Lose your WHY lose you way.
John-One Hip-Guy
