August 21, 2011

GERD Progress Report: One Week Later

It's been about a week since the last day of my GERD Elimination Diet and…

I still feel good.  I have had caffeine on a steady basis in the form of black and green teas and dark chocolate, and did not feel "gerdy" afterwards.   (This was a pleasant surprise; I was expecting problems.)   I am still feeling the FIT (food in throat) feeling, and a few days ago I had more belching than I'd deem "normal."     Overall, I am experiencing less GERD symptoms.  No morning GERD either, which is a relief.

What am I doing differently?  For one thing, I've increased my daily exercise dramatically:
  • More walking!  I'm briskly walking nearly 20 blocks to work each morning.  This is on top of the 20 blocks I walk after work every day.   This routine requires me to leave the house earlier -- which means more organization, and fortitude to stay "on target" in the mornings.  I love seeing the city waking up, my fellow commuters whooshing along, doormen polishing the brass fixtures, smelling the bakeries along the way.  
  • I'm re-committing to climbing stairs (six flights) when possible during the day.  To distract myself from the tedium and challenge, I experimented playing an effective ball-dropping game on my smartphone while hiking up the stairs.  
  • I've added an "abs" workout series to my morning strength routine that I do every other day.  I got the latest one from Real Simple, which has a good "15 minute workout" section online too, so you can just go there and craft a lovely series for yourself.
I've felt less stress throughout the day.  No night guard needed, either!

Can exercise really make this much of a difference?






2 comments:

  1. I find morning exercise to be much more effective in combatting stress than evening exercise, which is why I walk in the morning rather than at night. After work, I'd much rather go home and relax or go out with friends, but I do occasionally walk home when it's nice out and I have no other plans.

    Also, it's more likely to be light out in the AM - important during those winter months when my morning walk is the only time I see daylight.

    If you tried just switching to a morning walk and eliminated/minimized your evening walk, I wonder if you'd notice a difference? It would certainly get you home sooner so you could eat dinner and put a little more space between dinner and bedtime.

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  2. You are right about the morning walk and needed light -- a definite plus! I hate it when the seasons turn and the only light I get is going to work -- I turn into a mole!

    I am hoping to continue both morning and post-work walk, as both are pleasurable and address my need for increased "extreme" amounts of exercise -- one key, I think, to minimizing this GERD. I love my 5:00 PM walk past the huge, fancy apartment buildings, along the river, and through the charming city blocks. Even when dark, it's far from desolate, a benefit of working in a posh part of Manhattan.

    Good thought about trading off the walk for getting home sooner, but it's actually quicker to just walk quickly to my subway transfer station instead of getting to the nearest subway and then dealing with the underground transfers. :)

    How do you manage creating more space in the evening? The ongoing challenge... Making faster meals might be one strategy. I need to work on this.

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