Page 4 - MidWeek - Oct 26, 2022

4 MIDWEEK OCTOBER 26, 2022
Do you prefer a vacation or staycation?
‘Rocky’ XXII
Imagine in your head that we cue up my column this week to the iconic training music of the Sylvester Stal- lone Rocky movies. The reason is I’ve been trying to get in shape for a recent epic event.
No, I wasn’t fighting Apollo Creed, Hulk Hogan, Mr. T or Dolph Lundgren. I was getting ready for my in-person appointment with my primary care doctor. I guess the word “heavyweight” does come to mind, but after the last few years of remote doctor visits, I finally had to make an ap- pearance in my actual body.
ANITA SOLMIRIN GANON
Resident Services Coordinator, Mililani
“Vacation for me. Sometimes you gotta leave the islands and experience other places and people to unwind from everyday life and appreciate our island home.”
KYLE HARADA
Marketer, Pearl City
“Vacation to explore new places and revisit favorites; staycation for pure relaxation.”
KELSEA SHIOSAKI
Medical Assistant, Pearl City
“Staycation — it’s easier cutting the travel time with two kids while still feeling like we are on a getaway from home!”
EVAN TAKEMOTO
Senior Human Resources Generalist, ‘Ewa Beach “Vacation because although Hawai‘i is a vacation destination, I take vacations and go to as many places as I can. You can always make money, but you can’t always make memories.”
But instead of looking like Rocky, I had become more like his brother-in-law, Paulie. Since my doctor’s office had scheduled my appointment months ago, as usual, I procras- tinated on getting in presentable shape until just a couple of weeks before that big day. That being the dreadful weigh-in.
However, a week before my appointment, I had to have a full blood work-up. That meant fasting and figuring out how to rid my blood of all the cholesterol I’ve accumulated during the pandemic, eating every comfort food known to man.
But it is what it is, and so my blood and urine test would just have to yield whatever results I had subjected my body to over the last 30 months. I did start to watch what I was eating, practiced portion control and even gave up alcohol. Not that I was a big drinker, but it was time.
Ron Nagasawa
Director of Content / Supplement Products
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ATurn! Turn! Turn!
big part of feeling better about yourself and your life is to practice “turning away” from situations, circumstances and people before
they have a chance to negatively impact you and bring you down.
Turn away from arguments that you know will go nowhere. Turn away from people-pleasing and resist subordinating to those that do not appreciate your val- ue. Turn away from people who judge you, as they have no idea what you have been through. Turn away from getting down on yourself for your past mistakes, and instead see how you’ve grown from them.
In all situations, you have the power to decide the direction you move in. Start by turning away from anything and everything that doesn’t fuel your spirit.
alice@yourhappinessu.com
For my appointment, I was also required to bring a record of daily blood pressure checks. It was kind of like the current stock market: up and down and unpredictable. On the morn- ing of my checkup, I actually had to decide what I was going to wear, not because of appearance but because I wanted to wear the lightest clothing possible. If I could go barefoot I would have, as my shoes must be at least 2 pounds!
I ditched my belt, took off the extra keys on my keyring and removed rarely used credit cards from my wallet. It was like I was trying to make weight for the wrestling team. I even skipped my morning coffee before heading in for my appointment.
My doctor’s office is still following strict protocols so I masked up, took my temperature and checked in. The waiting room chairs were alternately taped off with yellow “police” tape. My doctor’s medical assistant called me in and led me directly to the digital scale. Gone are the balance beam scales, which you can usually tip in your favor by half a pound.
I’m happy to report that I had lost weight since my last visit. But the relief was short-lived as the blood pressure cuff was slowly wrapped around my arm and likely to reveal the salty popcorn I had the night before.
rnagasawa@midweek.com