Milestones, Walking, Weight Loss, and Vitamin D

Feature Entry: Milestones, Walking, Weight Loss, and Vitamin D

The MoneyWalker started his blog on January 5th of this year. This week he posted his 150th blog. The purpose of the blog then, and still remains, is to provide science-based encouragement and techniques for those attempting to lose weight or maintain weight loss all through the medium of walking. Since reduced motivation has been repeatedly reported as one of the leading causes of sedentary recidivism, the MoneyWalker has proposed the bizarre but highly effective technique of searching for lost or abandoned money as a method for sustaining the motivation for a daily walking workout.

Today’s post is to lament the fact that Ms. MoneyWalker now insists that we both take a calcium supplement that contains Vitamin D. She knows that I won’t take the horse pill sized supplement without massive doses of reinforcement, both negative and positive. But it is my own fault. I am the one that subscribed to Consumer Reports monthly newsletter “On Health.” After 150 posts, my aging brain finds it increasingly difficult to self-generate feature topics.

She and I both read this month’s headline article, “The ABCs of vitamin D: How much do you really need, and what’s the best way to get it?” They claim that Vitamin D is “shaping up to be the nutrient of the year—if not the decade.” With data from a host of sources, scientists are convinced that vitamin D plays an important role in reducing the risk of osteoporosis, certain cancers, autoimmune infections, and cardiovascular diseases. Moreover, 77 percent of Americans have insufficient amounts, a dramatically new increase.

Why the increase? There are many theories, but being dark-skinned, live in an high latitude area with less sun, being middle-aged, overweight, and/or taking medications are suspected reasons, among others. And then the bad news for the MoneyWalker, not even the sun gained from a daily exercise walk provides enough Vitamin D according to data from the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. And not even eating a balanced diet seems to be enough.

While not all experts agree that adults should take Vitamin D supplements, most do, and that is enough for Ms MoneyWalker. “What was that?” “Yes, dear, I took my Os-Cal 600 + D calcium supplement last night and this morning.” “Yes, yes, I am fully aware that it contains 50% of my recommended daily allowance of vitamin D, and that their laboratory uses Dз rather than the less potent D₂.” “Uh huh, I know that it takes effort on your part to place the supplement on my nightstand with a glass of water…” “Yes, I could have at least said Thank You!”

Journal Entry: Recent weigh-in = 174.6 lbs.; Coinage finds last two days = $.69 and $.67 respectively; Total glass bottles retrieved = 10; Ground scores = 6; Best coinage finds = 2 wheats, one each day; and a quarter in one of the USA Newspaper vending machines, always a great feeling to feel the unambiguous feel of a quarter in the coin return slot.

MoneyWalker

P.S. to the Numismatatist, Ms MoneyWalker and I appreciated reading about the role of exercise in your family's remarkable history. Readers of this post will want to read her comments from the second from last previous post.