Who comes after the babyboomers?

"Gen X is 1961-1981, so currently 28-48 year olds’s are Xers. Please for the love of god don’t lump them into the baby boomers!! 1941-1961, so 48-68 year olds, are more rightly defined by the BB term (using Strauss & Howe “Generations” methodology)."

I hardly ever hear anything from this group. LOL...guess the babyboomers have been making too much noise (er...news). I wonder how many there are? This was a response to a post about "Menopause the Musical" and the person who wrote the review made a boo-boo when she lumped the Gen Xr's with the Boomers. I was pleased to see someone stand up for their group, but why be so angry? ("for the love of god"?) hahaha...well, I guess they don't want to be defined by the qualifications to be a boomer.

Even some of the boomers don't want to be recognized as such! That means someone might know they have a AARP card! Even worse, someone might see them using it! I've had mine for over 10 years and I've actually used it once. Got $10 off for a motel room one time. I actually never think of pulling it out or asking a merchant if they give a discount!

I kind of understand the Gen X person because I don't want to be called a SENIOR just yet! The official age is 65 and I'm only 61 (on Monday), so for the love of god don't lump ME in with THEM!

Homemade chicken salad.....Ummmm!

I just finished making a batch of chicken salad. Another effort to stay away from all the stuff that makes me fat! And even though I used real mayonaisse (not the low fat stuff), it's still so much better than a bag of chips or a bowl of ice cream, right?

I find that I'm kind of anal about making chicken salad. I bought a bag of frozen chicken tenders, baked them in the oven with a little celery salt and pepper for flavor, then.....here comes the anal part....I minced the chicken, celery, onion and hard boiled egg by hand. I'm not talking about chopped into small pieces, I mean MINCED! :) I didn't want to do the chicken in the little chopper I have because some of it gets too mushy and then the other stays in bigger chunks. This way I get it all the same. To finish it off, I put the mayonaisse (not too much) and a little more celery salt and pepper.

It was so good! I've been munching on it all day. I put a forkful on a couple of crackers and that way I don't end up eating two pieces of bread. I also like to just eat it by the spoonful.

Then I went to get my hair cut and told Gina (who's been doing my hair for 13 years) to do something different. I'm tired of always ending up with what I call an "old lady haircut"! So today she did pretty good, but it's hard to take a picture of myself...LOL. What do you think?

It doesn't really show the shape in this picture, but it's shorter in the back and then comes down to my cheeks on the front. Kind of cute, even if I do say so myself. And since I'll be 61 on Monday, I definitely want to be cute!

Losing weight is NOT easy at 61!

Back in 2002 when I was 52, I decided to go on the Atkins program to lose weight for the Minnie Pauz Meltdown Cruise. I lost 55 lbs. in about 3 months and felt wonderful! I managed to keep the weight off for about 2 years and then gradually started bringing more carbs into my diet and by 2005 I had gained back about 30 lbs.

Then I quit smoking (on March 1, 2005) and decided it was too hard to try to watch my weight until I was a committed NON-smoker. Well...to make a long story short, the last 4 years have brought me to the point where I know if I don't do something now, I will never get it under control again.

I did manage to cut out sugar and bread for all of March, but I find myself slipping again and having things I shouldn't, because I lost about 2 lbs in the entire month! I have a machine that I use about 3 times a day to get my heart rate up, but what I really need to do is walk, walk, walk!

By the way....the woman in this cartoon is NOT MINNIE! hehehe.....it's one of her friends. No one, not even myself, have ever seen Minnie's face

Since I don't have the self-discipline to do it right, I've decided to sign up for a ZUMBA class. They actually have them for us older gals who may not have done anything strenuous for quite awhile! That's me!! I'm going to blame it on all of you because for 10 years I've been sitting at this computer working on the website and trying to get you all laughing!

The other thing I'm going to try is NutriSystem. Those ads on TV and seeing Marie Osmond looking SO good now has inspired me to give it another try! My son and DIL both lost weight on it and honestly, the pictures of the food (read "ice cream sandwich") has finally gotten to me! :)

If any of you have tried this or any other program, (my final effort will be Weight Watchers) let me know by posting. Everyone is different and I know it's my own fault for letting things slide the last 4 years, but as always, hearing about someone else close to my age who turned it around will inspire me!!

A few years ago I said I was going to be super healthy when I turned 60...hmmm, I'm not there yet! Ihave psoriasis, sleep apnea and psoriatic arthritis, plus I'm overweight and totally out of hormones so I have quite a challenge in front of me to be "the best me I can be"!! But, as I said, I'm not ready to give up. The women in my family live to their mid-nineties so I don't want to be sitting around for the next 30 years and not be able to enjoy it! Wish me luck and give me some encouragement!

Should you be taking iron supplements?

I was reading the March 30 issue of First for Women and came across the article about the "tiredness mineral". Come to find out, the symptoms of iron overload are very similar to some of the menopause symptoms, such as fatigue, blah moods and foggy thinking. Even a minor build up of iron can prevent every organ from performing at its best and cause the body to feel extremely run-down. Iron overload can lead to headaches, joint aches, abdominal aches and chest pains, according to Dr. Teitelbaum. More possible difficulties: trouble concentrating and remembering details, premature aging of the skin, hair loss and high cholesterol.

THE HEALTH-SAPPING EFFECTS OF EXCESS IRON

"When iron isn't used by the body (either because of a genetic condition or because more is consume than the body needs), it gets stored in the brain, skin, joints, intestinal lining, ovaries, liver, pancreas and heart." Jacob Teitelbaum, MD author of From Fatigued to Fantastic. (btw, as much as I like Dr. Weil, I think I've found another very reliable guy to go to!)

WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU HAVE IRON OVERLOAD

Sufferers of iron overload should stay away from the synthetic nonheme form of iron. Check the labels of supplements, multivitamins and fortified processed foods (cereal, bread, enriched pasta) to avoid ferrous gluconate, ferrous sulfate and ferrous fumarate. The article says if you do this for 4 weeks it will ease the symptoms.

THE CRITICAL TEST THAT DOCTORS AREN'T GIVING

The basic test to check iron levels is a serum iron test, which determines how much iron is in the blood. Dr. Teitelbaum recommends a full set of iron panel tests (which includes serum iron, serum ferritin, transferrin saturation and total iron binding capacity to determine if surplus iron is being stored in organs. The cost, $200 to $500, is generally covered by insurance.

If you're in your 30's...you should have iron panel tests done once or twice a year to ensure you aren't storing excess iron.

If you're in your 40's...have panel done once or twice annually, plus limit intake of nonheme iron (as mentioned above), since this form is most likely to be stored.

If you're in your 50's+...since menopausal women no longer menstruate, 74% suffer from iron overload. Dr. Teitelbaum says it's crucial to stop intake of all suplemental iron (unless otherwise advised by your doctor). This also applies to women who have had a hysterectomy. Two to four daily servings of whole foods like beans, shrimp, salmon and beef will deliver the 8mg of iron that is recommended for this age group.