In some ways this week has been a better week. I pulled out the weights on Monday and Thursday, while Warren was in pre-school. That 2 hour period is a good time to walk or workout. I did a full body workout and did 3 sets of 15 reps. Thursday, I was up to 200 crunches. I feel good about that.
I've walked some, but there have been gorgeous days in which I didn't want to push it. On 2 days the ladybugs were swarming and if they get in your shirt they pinch. Ladybugs live in the soybean fields and eat the bugs. When the soybeans are harvested they swarm.
After the rain last weekend, the mosquitoes were out as well. That was another thing that kept me from walking.
Thursday was a beautiful day, but after all the rain, the fields are finally dry enough for harvest to begin in earnest. The road has been busy. I've lost track of the combines, carts, pickups and trucks that have gone by. Even Warren couldn't get to sleep because he'd hear them coming and get up to look out his window. I figured if I ventured out, I'd be lost in a cloud of dust and decided it was safer to stay home.
So much for walking.
My visit is almost over. I will be leaving on Saturday. I've noticed I have a different outlook towards getting home. I am really looking forward to resuming my workouts, my walks, and my diet. I truly feel that it is a result of this blog. Normally, I would think when I get home I'll get into a better routine, but I wouldn't have any real plan on how I would do that. Now I do.
When I started this, I hoped it would be the motivator I needed and would help keep me focused. It has done exactly that. The fact that no one reads it but me is fine. Maybe I would push harder if I had 50 followers urging me on or sharing their woes, but I don't think so. It actually works better than a friend or family member. I guess it's just my weird way. Which is fine. As long as it works I'll keep it up.
About that picture in the last post. I had been feelings as if I had made great progress. Friends had noticed my efforts. The pounds were coming off. Surely I must look great! And then that picture pointed out--Not So Much!! I'm down to where I was a 18 months ago and I didn't like how I looked then!
That picture only said: Well done so far, but you've got a long way to go Baby. Don't get ahead of yourself and don't slow down now!!!!
That's it for today. When I get home I'll check the scales and get back into my old routine. I'm ready.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Nasty Words!
I just saw a photo of me in my jeans (that still fit me well). HA! Maybe they fit me well, but I don't like how I look in them.
This is a good one for the refrigerator. Overall, it will make me smile because I will remember the fun my grandson and I had making muffins. But everytime I look at ME, I will be reminded I have a ways to go. I hate my gut. I know I'm not thinking of posture while I'm interacting with him. And that's fine. I shouldn't be. I should be thinking only of the moment. But the picture brings back the reality of what I want to accomplish.
I want to be that skinny girl I used to be. I will probably never be happy with losing the pounds. I want to get the figure back. I wonder if that is even possible at my age? Probably not. Which means, if nothing else, along with the diet, and exercise, we may have to add in Wardrobe Awareness!!!!!!
If I care how I look in pictures, I have to care how I look everyday.
Hmmm,
Did I just add another element? I'm not sure.
Once you start, it seems you get beyond just wanting to be fit. Eventually you want to look good. And at some point, even if you are 60, you want to look really good! Somehow that has to be balanced between looking really good at 25 and looking really good at 60. Where is the reality?
This is an ongoing work in progress. But for now... I'm NOT there yet. This picture has to be improved!
There is work to be done.
This is a good one for the refrigerator. Overall, it will make me smile because I will remember the fun my grandson and I had making muffins. But everytime I look at ME, I will be reminded I have a ways to go. I hate my gut. I know I'm not thinking of posture while I'm interacting with him. And that's fine. I shouldn't be. I should be thinking only of the moment. But the picture brings back the reality of what I want to accomplish.
I want to be that skinny girl I used to be. I will probably never be happy with losing the pounds. I want to get the figure back. I wonder if that is even possible at my age? Probably not. Which means, if nothing else, along with the diet, and exercise, we may have to add in Wardrobe Awareness!!!!!!
If I care how I look in pictures, I have to care how I look everyday.
Hmmm,
Did I just add another element? I'm not sure.
Once you start, it seems you get beyond just wanting to be fit. Eventually you want to look good. And at some point, even if you are 60, you want to look really good! Somehow that has to be balanced between looking really good at 25 and looking really good at 60. Where is the reality?
This is an ongoing work in progress. But for now... I'm NOT there yet. This picture has to be improved!
There is work to be done.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Results day in Iowa
10 days in Iowa now. Time to do a status update. I don't have my scales available but I brought my measurement tape. My jeans help keep me honest as well. After they were washed the fit was still good. I can't have put too much weight back on. This morning when I measured myself I did see a little change. My butt's the same, (YEA!) and the rest of me shows the normal weekly shifts. Hmmm
On the positive side, I have kept snacking to a minimum. I've stuck with my normal breakfast. Dinners have been very healthy, low-fat, and made with natural ingredients. Janice did a great job of pre-planning meals for us and they were in the freezer. All we had to do was pull them out and heat them up. They consist of fresh veggies from the summer, and low-fat meat. The portions are excellent, so I'm not guilty of overeating.
Exercise has been sporadic, but I've kept my pedometer on so I know what I've done. Actually, that just means I know what I haven't been doing! I've only achieved 10,000 steps one day since I've been here and that was the day I managed 2 walks! I've managed to walk 3 days and I've managed to do a weight's workout 3 days as well! Those are the pluses.
I'm ok with 'pluses'. Why look too deeply, you know? But then there's that truth factor.
So here are the negatives.
I've only used the weights 3 times. There is no excuse for that. On any given day I can find time for that part. I don't want to do it everyday, but I should have been able to do it every other day, or 3 times a week, at least. I have only myself to blame. My excuse is simple. I don't like to do it in front of other people. I get self-conscious. So if no one is here, I do it. Otherwise, I should just go off to my room and get it done, but I don't.
Dinners always have carbs, either as a side dish or as part of the main dish. The garlic mashed smelled awfully yummy, so I had a scoop. Sometimes a double scoop. So much for willpower! This is the problem of eating out. I can control what I fix, but it is hard to ignore what is offered to me.
I have reverted to bad habits and caved in when someone offered me sweets. Last night it was 2 large, fresh chocolate chip cookies totalling 44 carbs. (I mean, who would have said no. Certainly not me! FRESH and WARM!) Today it was 2 hotdogs when 1 would have been enough.
I will be here at least 1 week more. I will try to get my weights workout where it should be.
I can say I have met expectations. I knew I would exercise less, and I did. I knew I would eat more carbs, and I did. And if there is one thing I am REALLY good at it is losing all sense of willpower around sweets.
If there was one thing I would like to change about me, it would be my sweet tooth.
If there is one thing I don't do actively enough it is to visualize positive results. I can avoid making pancakes, but if someone is serving them I can't seem to walk away. So I am.....
Still working at it!
On the positive side, I have kept snacking to a minimum. I've stuck with my normal breakfast. Dinners have been very healthy, low-fat, and made with natural ingredients. Janice did a great job of pre-planning meals for us and they were in the freezer. All we had to do was pull them out and heat them up. They consist of fresh veggies from the summer, and low-fat meat. The portions are excellent, so I'm not guilty of overeating.
Exercise has been sporadic, but I've kept my pedometer on so I know what I've done. Actually, that just means I know what I haven't been doing! I've only achieved 10,000 steps one day since I've been here and that was the day I managed 2 walks! I've managed to walk 3 days and I've managed to do a weight's workout 3 days as well! Those are the pluses.
I'm ok with 'pluses'. Why look too deeply, you know? But then there's that truth factor.
So here are the negatives.
I've only used the weights 3 times. There is no excuse for that. On any given day I can find time for that part. I don't want to do it everyday, but I should have been able to do it every other day, or 3 times a week, at least. I have only myself to blame. My excuse is simple. I don't like to do it in front of other people. I get self-conscious. So if no one is here, I do it. Otherwise, I should just go off to my room and get it done, but I don't.
Dinners always have carbs, either as a side dish or as part of the main dish. The garlic mashed smelled awfully yummy, so I had a scoop. Sometimes a double scoop. So much for willpower! This is the problem of eating out. I can control what I fix, but it is hard to ignore what is offered to me.
I have reverted to bad habits and caved in when someone offered me sweets. Last night it was 2 large, fresh chocolate chip cookies totalling 44 carbs. (I mean, who would have said no. Certainly not me! FRESH and WARM!) Today it was 2 hotdogs when 1 would have been enough.
I will be here at least 1 week more. I will try to get my weights workout where it should be.
I can say I have met expectations. I knew I would exercise less, and I did. I knew I would eat more carbs, and I did. And if there is one thing I am REALLY good at it is losing all sense of willpower around sweets.
If there was one thing I would like to change about me, it would be my sweet tooth.
If there is one thing I don't do actively enough it is to visualize positive results. I can avoid making pancakes, but if someone is serving them I can't seem to walk away. So I am.....
Still working at it!
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Success and Failure
Today is definitely going to be an OFF day. It started when my husband walked in with chocolate donuts. But while I may have gotten away without trying one, it was all over when Mike offered to do his Sunday Morning Special....pancakes. Add to the fact that the weather is cold, wet, and windy and there is a houseful of people, it was pretty easy to see that there would be no workout, no walk, and plenty of carbs.
In the beginning of this blog I promised to record the failures as much as the successes, but you've probably noticed that I avoid talking about failures. It isn't intentional, but it is indicative of how I face things.
Diets and weight-loss programs are inherently full of pitfalls. In our everyday life it is difficult to change every bad fault we've had and replace them only with good choices. We will have good days and we will have bad days. That is a truth I recognize and embrace.
I am a 'rosy-world' person. I tend to see the glass as half-full rather than half-empty, even if it is half-full of hot air. While nothing is all good, neither is anything all bad. The trick is to keep your eye on the thing that keeps you focused. People work better when they identify where they made their mistakes and then strive to avoid them. I recognize that truth. But beyond that, I don't work well if I focus on the goofs, the blunders, the mistakes. Instead of helping me re-focus my efforts, it tends to give me the excuse to quit, at least temporarily. My attitude becomes "Oh well, it's over now". Kind of like today. Just look at how I started this post. By the end of the paragraph I had convinced myself there was no use fighting it. I'd lost the battle.
Well I've lost the battle for today, but tomorrow the weather promises to be good and I have a couple of hours where I will be able to get out for a walk. So the war will continue. I will re-group and set reachable goals. I will continue to look at what worked. My posts will be mostly positive.
But today, I surrender.
In the beginning of this blog I promised to record the failures as much as the successes, but you've probably noticed that I avoid talking about failures. It isn't intentional, but it is indicative of how I face things.
Diets and weight-loss programs are inherently full of pitfalls. In our everyday life it is difficult to change every bad fault we've had and replace them only with good choices. We will have good days and we will have bad days. That is a truth I recognize and embrace.
I am a 'rosy-world' person. I tend to see the glass as half-full rather than half-empty, even if it is half-full of hot air. While nothing is all good, neither is anything all bad. The trick is to keep your eye on the thing that keeps you focused. People work better when they identify where they made their mistakes and then strive to avoid them. I recognize that truth. But beyond that, I don't work well if I focus on the goofs, the blunders, the mistakes. Instead of helping me re-focus my efforts, it tends to give me the excuse to quit, at least temporarily. My attitude becomes "Oh well, it's over now". Kind of like today. Just look at how I started this post. By the end of the paragraph I had convinced myself there was no use fighting it. I'd lost the battle.
Well I've lost the battle for today, but tomorrow the weather promises to be good and I have a couple of hours where I will be able to get out for a walk. So the war will continue. I will re-group and set reachable goals. I will continue to look at what worked. My posts will be mostly positive.
But today, I surrender.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
The next Challenge
The next month is going to present quite a challenge. As of now, I am in Iowa for the birth of my 3rd grandchild. This is a very exciting time and yet, for a person on a quest it presents 3 big challenges to deal with.
Challenge 1: The drive
When I visit my kids I take the dog and I drive--900 miles! For those who know me that means 'munchy time'. Whenever I drive, I nibble. Finding suitable foods to nibble on are difficult. I like finger foods. My normal fall-backs are gummy worms, raisinets, french fries, you get the idea. Anything but healthy. When I started making these long distance trips to see my kids I drank McDonald's ice tea constantly while I snacked. By the time I arrived you could have lit up a Christmas Tree with the 'energy', if that's what you could call it. I was wired. I was buzzed. Of course, that kind of energy is really 'faux energy'--a trendy term, but rather appropriate. Nobody can harness it. It just sends you flying in all directions. Ask any 5 year old who has had a soda, some cookies, and a piece of cake. Since then I have learned how to temper the caffeine. I still guzzle TEA until early afternoon, but then I settle down. I drink more water and have only 2 sugar and caffeine free sodas total for the whole trip.
Now with another goal in mind--losing the inches--I was able to make some healthy changes to my constant munching. I added carrot and celery sticks, cherries, grapes and watermelon chunks since I was cleaning out the refrigerator. I did succomb to fries mid-afternoon, but I never touched the chips or raisinets. Chocolate covered raisins are particularly evil for me because of the sugar in the chocolate and the raisins.
All in all, I did better yesterday than I expected, but my carb, fat, calorie intake (whatever you would have been concerned with) was still over the top.
Challenge 2--The daily walk
Now that I am here I won't be able to keep up my 2 mile power walks as much. For one thing the road is flat. No hills!! Yea!! part of me says, but the motivated part knows I need those hills to keep my metabolism going. But the bigger problem may be the road itself. It is gravel, sometimes kind of soft, so I'm not sure how I'll do developing a fast gait. Another aspect of the road is the weather and the time of year. It may be gravel, but it is a main road, traveled by cars and trucks daily, all going about 40 miles an hour. 18 wheel semis barrel past on their way to the grain elevators. If the wind is up I actually don't hear them coming until they are almost upon me. I have to constantly look ahead and behind me to be sure I know when something is coming. When a combine is coming, I head for the weeds by the side of the road to make sure I don't get scooped into the chute and have my wheat separated from my chaff. I have plenty of chaff, but I'll hold onto it and lose it my own way, thanks!
Challenge 3--Routine
The third challenge is developing a routine that makes sure I work out each day. I'm here to help my daughter with the new baby, watch my 3 year old grandson, and do what's needed. My routine is second to hers. Getting out to walk each day may be difficult.
Challenge 4--I know I said there were 3, but I can tell this one will be a big a problem as walking.--The Diet.
Her meals are different from mine and will proably add a lot of carbs back in. When a new baby is in the house, ease is the new priority. Casseroles that can be put together when we have time and heated when we're ready to eat, and the baby is too, will be on the menu. They will be healthy and low-fat, but carbs are not my best friend. However, this time is too special to dwell on some things. I'm already in trouble. There were two pans on the counter when I arrived. I have avoided the Red Velvet cake with the cream cheese frosting, but the frosted brownies were to die for!!
So we'll see how it goes. We all know we can't grow without challenge. I only hope I 'grow' in the way I want to, not the way I have been.
Challenge 1: The drive
When I visit my kids I take the dog and I drive--900 miles! For those who know me that means 'munchy time'. Whenever I drive, I nibble. Finding suitable foods to nibble on are difficult. I like finger foods. My normal fall-backs are gummy worms, raisinets, french fries, you get the idea. Anything but healthy. When I started making these long distance trips to see my kids I drank McDonald's ice tea constantly while I snacked. By the time I arrived you could have lit up a Christmas Tree with the 'energy', if that's what you could call it. I was wired. I was buzzed. Of course, that kind of energy is really 'faux energy'--a trendy term, but rather appropriate. Nobody can harness it. It just sends you flying in all directions. Ask any 5 year old who has had a soda, some cookies, and a piece of cake. Since then I have learned how to temper the caffeine. I still guzzle TEA until early afternoon, but then I settle down. I drink more water and have only 2 sugar and caffeine free sodas total for the whole trip.
Now with another goal in mind--losing the inches--I was able to make some healthy changes to my constant munching. I added carrot and celery sticks, cherries, grapes and watermelon chunks since I was cleaning out the refrigerator. I did succomb to fries mid-afternoon, but I never touched the chips or raisinets. Chocolate covered raisins are particularly evil for me because of the sugar in the chocolate and the raisins.
All in all, I did better yesterday than I expected, but my carb, fat, calorie intake (whatever you would have been concerned with) was still over the top.
Challenge 2--The daily walk
Now that I am here I won't be able to keep up my 2 mile power walks as much. For one thing the road is flat. No hills!! Yea!! part of me says, but the motivated part knows I need those hills to keep my metabolism going. But the bigger problem may be the road itself. It is gravel, sometimes kind of soft, so I'm not sure how I'll do developing a fast gait. Another aspect of the road is the weather and the time of year. It may be gravel, but it is a main road, traveled by cars and trucks daily, all going about 40 miles an hour. 18 wheel semis barrel past on their way to the grain elevators. If the wind is up I actually don't hear them coming until they are almost upon me. I have to constantly look ahead and behind me to be sure I know when something is coming. When a combine is coming, I head for the weeds by the side of the road to make sure I don't get scooped into the chute and have my wheat separated from my chaff. I have plenty of chaff, but I'll hold onto it and lose it my own way, thanks!
Challenge 3--Routine
The third challenge is developing a routine that makes sure I work out each day. I'm here to help my daughter with the new baby, watch my 3 year old grandson, and do what's needed. My routine is second to hers. Getting out to walk each day may be difficult.
Challenge 4--I know I said there were 3, but I can tell this one will be a big a problem as walking.--The Diet.
Her meals are different from mine and will proably add a lot of carbs back in. When a new baby is in the house, ease is the new priority. Casseroles that can be put together when we have time and heated when we're ready to eat, and the baby is too, will be on the menu. They will be healthy and low-fat, but carbs are not my best friend. However, this time is too special to dwell on some things. I'm already in trouble. There were two pans on the counter when I arrived. I have avoided the Red Velvet cake with the cream cheese frosting, but the frosted brownies were to die for!!
So we'll see how it goes. We all know we can't grow without challenge. I only hope I 'grow' in the way I want to, not the way I have been.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Another week, Another Pound
Weigh in Day was last Saturday, and I kept to my 1 pound a week average. I'm always glad to see the next lower number, even if I wish I saw it a little faster. When I measured myself that morning, I was also rewarded by noticing a 1 1/2" loss overall. This week my butt has earned my gratitude. It is only down an inch and a half over the whole 8 weeks, but it has shown the most steady decline. I've noticed in the past, when people notice I've lost weight it is the butt area that they comment on.
While the butt sticks to the plan, other areas are up one week and down another. I've wondered about the shift in other areas, especially the midriff and belly sections, and I think perhaps it is a fluctuation in bloating, water or air, that causes the shift more than anything. One thing that has always bugged me is that I can look almost svelte (for a chunky person) first thing in the morning, but when I'm ready to go out at night my middle has ballooned out again.
Oh well, if I can't have everything, I'll have to learn to appreciate what I've got. For now... it's that I've lost 8 pounds and almost 12 inches. The' middle' will come....I hope.
While the butt sticks to the plan, other areas are up one week and down another. I've wondered about the shift in other areas, especially the midriff and belly sections, and I think perhaps it is a fluctuation in bloating, water or air, that causes the shift more than anything. One thing that has always bugged me is that I can look almost svelte (for a chunky person) first thing in the morning, but when I'm ready to go out at night my middle has ballooned out again.
Oh well, if I can't have everything, I'll have to learn to appreciate what I've got. For now... it's that I've lost 8 pounds and almost 12 inches. The' middle' will come....I hope.
Thursday, September 9, 2010
Conquering Killer Hill
I am a little stunned. I am really getting stronger. I didn't want to walk this morning, but I knew I had to. Yesterday I barely made 3,000 steps between a doctor's appointment that took hours and errands I needed to do. Today I had to pick up the pace again.
I left the house and started out, but as I walked I realized it was the perfect time to take the dog. The air was still relatively cool and by afternoon it would be back in the 80's. I went ahead and walked the half-mile loop and picked up the dog on my way past the house.
Maggie was just what I needed. She started out almost at a trot. I had to hurry to keep up with her. My route today was the mile and half route that involves the steep hills. I've come to recognize them as Killer Hill and Canyon Hill. I should add here, that I was a Floridian for almost 30 years. FLAT terrain is what I consider normal. So while the local residents may see these hills as just hills, to me, they are really big. The road I was on ends in a turnaround at the top of Canyon Hill. Killer Hill is fine starting out. The first time I encounter it I am going down. I like down! Down is fun. Down isn't stressful. And I have a fantastic view of the hills in the distance.
But once I get down, I have a short level area before the hill begins to climb up to the turnaround. It is the only way out of the canyon, thus the name. Once I'm at the top of Canyon Hill the process reverses itself...down Canyon Hill and up Killer Hill, named because, by now, I'm dead!
I don't understand how it happened, but today I ran! Maggie and I started down Killer Hill at a fast walk. About half way down I started to jog. Maggie trotted. I looked ahead to the level area and where the road begins a gradual incline. (This is like a foothill to Canyon Hill.) There was a bull dozer about half way up the incline. "Maybe I can make it to the bulldozer... don't even think it... you know how you are on running. You'll get to the bottom and quit... just run till you stop". This is how I encourage (?) myself. I continued to jog. Head down, seeing only my feet, pant, pant.... huff, huff, one foot in front of the other... pant, pant, ...."wait... Did I just pass 2 pickups? There weren't any pickups near the bull dozer.... where is the bull dozer?"
I glanced up and saw the trucks. I looked around. The bull dozer was 30 feet behind me! Holy COW!!!! How did that happen?
At the top of the foot hill, I stopped and let the dog off the leash. We were past the construction and it was open road from here. Maggie loped off and I kept walking. Head down...seeing only my feet... climbing Canyon Hill. My mind kept thinking about stuff as my feet kept moving, one step in front of the other. When I looked up again, I was at the top of Canyon Hill. I am always excited when I make it up without stopping. My heart was pounding, water was running off my face, but I was still moving.
After doing a few laps around the turnaround to catch my breath, I started back down. Once again, I started to jog and kept jogging after I reached the bottom. Maggie caught up with me and I put her leash back on as we began Killer Hill. We weren't moving very fast by now, but we were moving and we never stopped. The last stretch up to our house is the perfect cool down. Neither of us are moving very fast. In fact, I'm always walking ahead of the dog on the last part, but we keep going.
I looked at the clock when I walked in. 50 minutes, 2 miles, 5,000 steps, and I had run much more than I've ever done before.
Could I ever get like the Biggest Loser contestants? Imagine me, a runner. It's still a pipe dream, but for the first time I see a little light at the end of that pipe.
I left the house and started out, but as I walked I realized it was the perfect time to take the dog. The air was still relatively cool and by afternoon it would be back in the 80's. I went ahead and walked the half-mile loop and picked up the dog on my way past the house.
Maggie was just what I needed. She started out almost at a trot. I had to hurry to keep up with her. My route today was the mile and half route that involves the steep hills. I've come to recognize them as Killer Hill and Canyon Hill. I should add here, that I was a Floridian for almost 30 years. FLAT terrain is what I consider normal. So while the local residents may see these hills as just hills, to me, they are really big. The road I was on ends in a turnaround at the top of Canyon Hill. Killer Hill is fine starting out. The first time I encounter it I am going down. I like down! Down is fun. Down isn't stressful. And I have a fantastic view of the hills in the distance.
But once I get down, I have a short level area before the hill begins to climb up to the turnaround. It is the only way out of the canyon, thus the name. Once I'm at the top of Canyon Hill the process reverses itself...down Canyon Hill and up Killer Hill, named because, by now, I'm dead!
I don't understand how it happened, but today I ran! Maggie and I started down Killer Hill at a fast walk. About half way down I started to jog. Maggie trotted. I looked ahead to the level area and where the road begins a gradual incline. (This is like a foothill to Canyon Hill.) There was a bull dozer about half way up the incline. "Maybe I can make it to the bulldozer... don't even think it... you know how you are on running. You'll get to the bottom and quit... just run till you stop". This is how I encourage (?) myself. I continued to jog. Head down, seeing only my feet, pant, pant.... huff, huff, one foot in front of the other... pant, pant, ...."wait... Did I just pass 2 pickups? There weren't any pickups near the bull dozer.... where is the bull dozer?"
I glanced up and saw the trucks. I looked around. The bull dozer was 30 feet behind me! Holy COW!!!! How did that happen?
At the top of the foot hill, I stopped and let the dog off the leash. We were past the construction and it was open road from here. Maggie loped off and I kept walking. Head down...seeing only my feet... climbing Canyon Hill. My mind kept thinking about stuff as my feet kept moving, one step in front of the other. When I looked up again, I was at the top of Canyon Hill. I am always excited when I make it up without stopping. My heart was pounding, water was running off my face, but I was still moving.
After doing a few laps around the turnaround to catch my breath, I started back down. Once again, I started to jog and kept jogging after I reached the bottom. Maggie caught up with me and I put her leash back on as we began Killer Hill. We weren't moving very fast by now, but we were moving and we never stopped. The last stretch up to our house is the perfect cool down. Neither of us are moving very fast. In fact, I'm always walking ahead of the dog on the last part, but we keep going.
I looked at the clock when I walked in. 50 minutes, 2 miles, 5,000 steps, and I had run much more than I've ever done before.
Could I ever get like the Biggest Loser contestants? Imagine me, a runner. It's still a pipe dream, but for the first time I see a little light at the end of that pipe.
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Ouch
I hate my middle. This is the body image area that I long to correct the most. My mother and I share that feeling. She didn't like her middle either. The battle of the Bulge for us was between the "under bust" to the waistline. (I'm currently not nuts about the waist and hip area either, but that area actually is easier for me to control.)
So I did it! I dragged out my weights, checked my exercise cards, put on the music and gave myself a good old fashioned workout like my favorite Florida trainer used to do!
Actually, it was about half as long and half as fast as my favorite Florida trainer used to do.
Doesn't matter. It hurts. All over. It especially hurts to cough.
Darned abs.
So I did it! I dragged out my weights, checked my exercise cards, put on the music and gave myself a good old fashioned workout like my favorite Florida trainer used to do!
Actually, it was about half as long and half as fast as my favorite Florida trainer used to do.
Doesn't matter. It hurts. All over. It especially hurts to cough.
Darned abs.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Exercise? Puh-leze!
I'm starting to get nudges. Nudges from my conscience, nudges from Dr. Oz, nudges from my doctor. Go away. Leave me alone. I'm walking already, what more do you want?
Dr. Oz says muscle mass burns more calories. My conscience reminds me of trainers from my past...muscle burns more calories than fat...muscle pounds are good pounds, fat pounds are bad pounds, muscle improves your BMI...yadda, yadda, yadda.
My doctor says weight bearing exercises will build stronger bones and help prevent osteoporosis. Shhhh, no one wants to hear they are a candidate for osteoporosis. Can't I just swallow a calcium pill and eat more yogurt? "My gym closed," I tell her. I liked it. It was a small gym, just for women. I don't like those big gyms with 100 machines and kids in their 20's bopping around on them. "Maybe you can try Curves," she suggests.
Nudges.
The truth is there are plenty of opportunities around here, but the gym I really liked closed. I thought I could exercise on my own, but it is really hard motivating myself. I find I balk at the time constraints. If I walk and then exercise and then shower, the morning is gone. (So what's so important about the afternoon," my conscience asks? "You're retired.")
Nudges.
7 pounds in 7 weeks? If you want that to change, you have to exercise.
Hmmm, somehow I have to motivate myself into this. The truth is, after all the outside sources nag at me, my doctor is right. Osteoporosis runs in my family. I need to add exercise to this program.
Really? Puh-leze! (Oh okay... quit nudging me!)
Dr. Oz says muscle mass burns more calories. My conscience reminds me of trainers from my past...muscle burns more calories than fat...muscle pounds are good pounds, fat pounds are bad pounds, muscle improves your BMI...yadda, yadda, yadda.
My doctor says weight bearing exercises will build stronger bones and help prevent osteoporosis. Shhhh, no one wants to hear they are a candidate for osteoporosis. Can't I just swallow a calcium pill and eat more yogurt? "My gym closed," I tell her. I liked it. It was a small gym, just for women. I don't like those big gyms with 100 machines and kids in their 20's bopping around on them. "Maybe you can try Curves," she suggests.
Nudges.
The truth is there are plenty of opportunities around here, but the gym I really liked closed. I thought I could exercise on my own, but it is really hard motivating myself. I find I balk at the time constraints. If I walk and then exercise and then shower, the morning is gone. (So what's so important about the afternoon," my conscience asks? "You're retired.")
Nudges.
7 pounds in 7 weeks? If you want that to change, you have to exercise.
Hmmm, somehow I have to motivate myself into this. The truth is, after all the outside sources nag at me, my doctor is right. Osteoporosis runs in my family. I need to add exercise to this program.
Really? Puh-leze! (Oh okay... quit nudging me!)
Life as a Tortoise
In the beginning of all this I said the main goal was to pick up the pace and become a healthier me and I wanted to lose 20-30 pounds. The goal is still the same. Nothing has changed. In another post, I think I acknowledged that I don't lose weight fast on Atkins but I do lose it steadily. I don't yo-yo like some people. This is good. Losing it steadily gives me time to develop the habits that I need to incorporate if I want to make permanent changes.
Its great being mindful and intellectual and spiritual but sometimes it seems like watching sap drop from a tree in February. Hooow sloooooooowwww caaannn youuuuuuu gooooooo? (that's go, not goo)When I finally weighed myself a few days ago after last week's debacle, the news was ok. No loss, but no gain. Good news!
Well, today was weigh in and measurement day. I do this once a week (with the exception of last week which was a lost week). I track it on a little yellow pad. I note the pounds and see if it has gone up or down, and then I measure each little area and write in the good or bad news. At the end I write down the change in pounds from the previous week, a number preceded by a (-) is much nicer than a number preceded by a (+). Then I compare all the measurements and total them up. If my butt went from a 38 to a 37.5 that means I'm down a half inch and I'm happy. If my waist went from a 32 to a 33.25 that means I'm up 1 and a quarter inches and you can probably figure my thoughts about that. I total all the pluses and minuses and write the total for the week. THEN... I add up the totals since I started the whole process.
Well, it's been 2 weeks since my last weigh in. I was actually surprised to see I was down a pound. I felt like I had been looking at the same numbers every day. I was happy but not real excited. But then I did my totals since I started 7 weeks ago and I realized I am down 7 pounds, and 10.5 inches! That feels better.
If slow and steady wins the race, then I guess I am a winner. I seem to be right on track.
But geez, it sure is slow!
Its great being mindful and intellectual and spiritual but sometimes it seems like watching sap drop from a tree in February. Hooow sloooooooowwww caaannn youuuuuuu gooooooo? (that's go, not goo)When I finally weighed myself a few days ago after last week's debacle, the news was ok. No loss, but no gain. Good news!
Well, today was weigh in and measurement day. I do this once a week (with the exception of last week which was a lost week). I track it on a little yellow pad. I note the pounds and see if it has gone up or down, and then I measure each little area and write in the good or bad news. At the end I write down the change in pounds from the previous week, a number preceded by a (-) is much nicer than a number preceded by a (+). Then I compare all the measurements and total them up. If my butt went from a 38 to a 37.5 that means I'm down a half inch and I'm happy. If my waist went from a 32 to a 33.25 that means I'm up 1 and a quarter inches and you can probably figure my thoughts about that. I total all the pluses and minuses and write the total for the week. THEN... I add up the totals since I started the whole process.
Well, it's been 2 weeks since my last weigh in. I was actually surprised to see I was down a pound. I felt like I had been looking at the same numbers every day. I was happy but not real excited. But then I did my totals since I started 7 weeks ago and I realized I am down 7 pounds, and 10.5 inches! That feels better.
If slow and steady wins the race, then I guess I am a winner. I seem to be right on track.
But geez, it sure is slow!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
I Hate to Run!
I hate to run! I hate to run! I hate to run!
Ok, I've said it. I've tried to do it, but it is not for me. In Florida, where the road ahead is flat, I would try to jog as I walked around the block. I would jog past 3 houses and then walk. After a while I'd try it again. This time, I'd get past 2 houses before stopping. That was it. I could walk 3 miles, but I couldn't run past 5 houses.
Why do I care? I don't know. Running would boost my metabolism, I think. They run on Biggest Loser all the time. Most of them barely make it down to my current weight after they've completed a very successful weight loss program, but they can run. Why can't I? Why do I care? Maybe it's just pride or envy. All I know is I hate to run. I've tried it on my walks and I'll do an easy down hill jog, but that's it.
I could never make it on the Biggest Loser. I'd be the biggest whiner on the treadmill, and Jillian would make my life miserable.
Of course, that's why I am 'Losing it WITHOUT Jillian'. She scares me. And I hate to run.
Ok, I've said it. I've tried to do it, but it is not for me. In Florida, where the road ahead is flat, I would try to jog as I walked around the block. I would jog past 3 houses and then walk. After a while I'd try it again. This time, I'd get past 2 houses before stopping. That was it. I could walk 3 miles, but I couldn't run past 5 houses.
Why do I care? I don't know. Running would boost my metabolism, I think. They run on Biggest Loser all the time. Most of them barely make it down to my current weight after they've completed a very successful weight loss program, but they can run. Why can't I? Why do I care? Maybe it's just pride or envy. All I know is I hate to run. I've tried it on my walks and I'll do an easy down hill jog, but that's it.
I could never make it on the Biggest Loser. I'd be the biggest whiner on the treadmill, and Jillian would make my life miserable.
Of course, that's why I am 'Losing it WITHOUT Jillian'. She scares me. And I hate to run.
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