Wow. This summer has been incredible up here in the Pacific Northwest. We’ve had lovely, rainless summery days since around May. Only a few days of rain and gray skies have interrupted this glorious summer. If you know me, you know I’m a sun worshipper. I’ll cross the street to walk in the sun, even if it’s out of my way. I get some of this from my late father who used to always believe in the philosophy of “walking on the sunny side of the street.” I also take that literally, as did he.
Normally my house is very cool, even when the sun is out. However, this last week we’ve had a heat wave that’s been just brutal. By heat wave, we’ve had temperatures comparable to what you’d find in Kansas in July or August, or what you’d expect to find in El Paso and other locales. In my mom’s town, the news reported temperatures of up to 112 degrees. In my town, temps reached 108 or so. The problem with temperatures like these here is that we are not equipped for them. We don’t have air conditioners, attic fans, or swimming pools (for the most part.) This has meant that my house, inside, reached temperatures of 90 degrees, and only would cool down to about 80 overnight. This makes for a miserable time sleeping – and working. Since I work from home, it was nearly unbearable. No matter where I sat, it wasn’t cool enough. I was also on a deadline for work so it wasn’t like I could afford the time to pack up my things and head into an air-conditioned corporate office.
But I dealt. I managed through it, met my deadline, and now temps have cooled to a “moderate” 90 degrees outside during the day.
Staying cool in more ways than one
Staying cool in this heat isn’t only about keeping your core body temperature down and your house cool. It’s also important to keep your attitude cool. When it’s hot, it’s easy to get cranky and tired. It’s also hard to focus on eating right because it’s too darn hot to cook or even think about cooking anything, let alone what to eat. So it’s easier to just eat what’s handy. When it’s too darn hot to get in the car and the grocery store and stay stocked up on healthy foods, eating what’s handy becomes an even poorer option in the weight-loss program.
A few years ago when I went to Hawaii, it was hot and humid. My feet and ankles swelled up like the Goodyear Blimp. After I started losing weight and looking back, I thought that was because I was just plain fat. Yes, in part, it was. However this last week, I now know that part of that was just the heat and humidity because last week, my ankles and feet swelled up again (not nearly as bad though) and I had to constantly put ice packs on them for relief. This tends to be hard to do when you’re stuck at a desk and can’t properly elevate your feet. This causes further crankiness. 
Finally, the heat makes it really hard to do any exercise. Heat stroke is a serious concern when it’s hot. Either I was still sleeping when it was cool in the morning, catching up on much needed rest, or by the time it cooled down at night, I was just plain exhausted to even think of walking a mile or three.
So, what did I do to stay cool?
- To keep my attitude in check, I reminded myself often that this too shall pass. This heat wave was only temporary. After all, I live in the Seattle area, not New Mexico.
- To ease the swelling in my feet, I elevated them as much as possible, applied ice packs, and took frequent breaks.
- To stay on plan with my weight loss, I accepted the fact that this week I wouldn’t get much activity in and if that means a gain at the scale, or breaking even, that’s fine by me. After all, this is a lifestyle change, not a race to the finish. I snacked on watermelon, fruit, salads, as much as possible, although I did find that sweating makes me crave salty foods. I also drank LOTS of water.
- To break up the long work days due to my deadline, I added doses of grandchildren and family into my week. I’m so grateful they live nearby!
Now, if I was only little enough to fit in a Rubbermaid bin like these two, surviving the heat wave would have been so much easier.
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