weightlessness

The Weightlessness Seesaw

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I’m not gaining weight! Hooray! But I’m not losing it, either. I’ve reached a dreaded plateau which I can’t seem to escape. No matter what I eat or don’t eat, every day the bathroom scale deprives me of the wonderful feeling of losing weight. And although I’m disappointed in myself, I persist. I have consulted the experts.

An article by the Mayo Clinic, “Getting past a weight-loss plateau” describes the dreaded plateau as a consequence of cutting calories over time as the body is using more glycogen than usual. Muscles are lost as fat is lost which affects a person’s metabolism by slowing it down. To get past the plateau, I have to re-think how I have been eating and exercising.

I looked back at my calorie counting and realized that I had vaguely entered my calorie counts in my head instead of my calorie count book. That’s one way to NOT get past the plateau. Being complacent and not paying attention can be a Weightlessness killer. Another problem was my desire to expedite my Weightlessness and so I decreased my available calories. Then I recognized another problem: I was more hungry than usual. Being in a hurry to lose weight did NOT help me to cultivate weightlessness. Neither did the decision to adjust the tension on my Weightlessness Machine when I was only consuming 1200 calories. I hadn’t been on 1200 calories for very long, and I should have waited until I was accustomed to consuming fewer calories.

There’s more to calorie counting and exercise when dieting. Sleep is a crucial element to Weightlessness. The article, “Is too little sleep a cause of weight gain?” from the Mayo Clinic website suggests that lack of sleep affects metabolism, particularly when a person eats a lot of carbs. Therefore, a dearth of sleep can cause fatigue and sluggishness. Something to think about.

When I started this blog, I weighed 183 pounds and needed to lose 43. Since then, I lost 21 pounds and gained 3. I celebrated mightily every time I lost a little weight. Gaining back the 3 pounds was not a big deal. My weight has always fluctuated. I have been at 165 pounds for a month, and I’m bound and determined to reach my new goal of 25 pounds, plateau be damned.

Wish me luck!

What is Weightlessness?

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When I think of Weightlessness, I think of outer space. I conjure up an image of an astronaut on the Space Station, floating outside on a cable while repairing something or other. I think of buoyancy, the way in which we can float in saltwater better than we can on a pond or a pool or a lake. A sensory deprivation chamber might do the trick since the purveyors of such things use salt for buoyancy. They are also closed in, in the dark, with no sound which is the point, of course. On the other hand, the article by Allison P. Davis, “I Survived My Terrifying Hour in a Sensory-Deprivation Tank,” might change your mind.

I’ve considered trying sensory deprivation more than once, but I chickened out every time. Still, I love the idea of weightlessness, of buoyancy, like freedom or a cool breeze on a hot day. Flotation locations seem to be everywhere, and I literally found a website by that name, as well as their sponsor, dreampods. Apparently, people have these pods in their homes. The pods look like shiny, gleaming, blobs, and with the lids lifted up, just enough, it seems sort of like a smile. They come in a wide variety of colors and sizes, and that’s not all! Dreampods also offer add-ons from DreamScape, which offers programs designed with “landscapes for the mind.” That I could do, but without the pod.

One of these products, Ocean Float Rooms, aren’t like other pods. They are entire rooms, designed to prevent that claustrophobic feeling. I couldn’t believe it until I saw the video. I can understand why a surprising number of celebrities have used sensory deprivation: Ohio State football players, Joe Rogan, John Lennon, Carl Lewis, Jeff Bridges, Elle Macpherson, to name a few.

I must admit I’m envious of those who have the courage to spend an hour in a dark tank of saltwater, whether it’s a large room or a small tank or anything in between. But maybe, just maybe, I’ll try it someday, if only because I’m so into weightlessness.

Until then, I’ll just watch Float Nation:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHnbKjQGhHw