Weighing in every day
For the last week or so I've been weighing in every day, trying to eat about 2,000 calories and doing my physical therapy exercises. I am down about 1.8 pounds from last week. This is the most weight I've lost in a while, especially without active exercise. The book that I am listening to (Influencer) talks about the power of frequent and immediate feedback on helping people change their behavior. I don't perceive that I am doing anything different except weighing in every day instead of once a week, but I feel less hungry during the day than I have in the past. I am also not running and weightlifting, so that could account for the decrease in hunger. Obviously I'll have to test out daily weigh-ins for more than a week, but so far it seems to be helping.
I resisted weighing in every day for a long time because in the past I got obsessed with the number. The last time I lost significant weight I probably had a mild form of exercise anorexia. I lost 50 lbs in 5 months and I worked out a lot. I'd bike 20 miles before work, or Rollerblade 10 miles (alternating). Then I'd come home, eat dinner and go to the gym and lift for a couple of hours. I never ate below 1800 calories and I lost 10 pounds a month. I'd agonize if I knew I had to go out to eat for a work function - what would I eat that wouldn't interfere with my weight loss? I was very inflexible, but if anything out of my control came into my orbit, it would derail my "progress". There was no room for life to happen, just my obsession. That cycle came to a crashing halt when Round Hiker came to live with me. He brought Oreos and lots of other things that were not within my strictly constructed plan, and I was unable to maintain my freaky focus. Then we moved to Utah (from Miami) where the cold activated my Belgian genes. They loudly began to demand that I sit on the sofa and drink hot cocoa with pats of butter melted in. The rest, as they say, can be seen on my ass.
If over-concern about the numbers on the scale resurface, I'll have to cut back to once a week weigh-ins. I'd rather loose weight slowly and sanely than quickly and crazily.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Ouch!
Kiss my boo boo
Physical therapy is tough. I guess if it wasn't, my foot would be strong enough to resist injury. I did the set of exercises on Monday morning before work and limped the rest of the day. I decided to do my exercises in the evening on Tuesday, but then never did them. So I sucked it up and did them again this morning. My heel does hurt again, but not as much as on Monday, and not enough to make me limp. So in just two sessions I may already be seeing some progress, which is a hopeful sign.
And in the two weeks that I have already been out of action the weather seems to have turned. It's cooler in the mornings now that it was a few weeks ago. I am already having to start trolling the web for long-sleeved running shirts, and soon enough I'll probably have to find some midget running pants. if that's even possible.
Just because I'm not exercising at the moment doesn't mean that I am not thinking about exercise. A lot. But I am also enjoying the opportunity to snuggle with Little Runner longer in the mornings than usual, and reading some good books. There is always an up side, especially in any situation that does not involve prison or extortion.
Physical therapy is tough. I guess if it wasn't, my foot would be strong enough to resist injury. I did the set of exercises on Monday morning before work and limped the rest of the day. I decided to do my exercises in the evening on Tuesday, but then never did them. So I sucked it up and did them again this morning. My heel does hurt again, but not as much as on Monday, and not enough to make me limp. So in just two sessions I may already be seeing some progress, which is a hopeful sign.
And in the two weeks that I have already been out of action the weather seems to have turned. It's cooler in the mornings now that it was a few weeks ago. I am already having to start trolling the web for long-sleeved running shirts, and soon enough I'll probably have to find some midget running pants. if that's even possible.
Just because I'm not exercising at the moment doesn't mean that I am not thinking about exercise. A lot. But I am also enjoying the opportunity to snuggle with Little Runner longer in the mornings than usual, and reading some good books. There is always an up side, especially in any situation that does not involve prison or extortion.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
The Lost Week
What the hell happened to my plan?
Well my second to last post outlined a plan of attack for the week that totally fell through from start to finish. We did get all ready and go to the pool last Sunday only to find that it closed at 2 pm, rather than 4 pm as I thought. Our 3:15 pm arrival was rather disappointing.
Sunday I stayed up late reading a good book, so I skipped working out on Monday. Tuesday I skipped working out because I had to give my first ever webinar session at a conference (on international statistics and sources) and I had some work to finish on my presentation before 9 am. The rest of the week was a write off because I bought a new netbook and had some issues with the sleep/hibernate function that drove me crazy until I finally got them fixed. Obsession is a useful personality trait when applied to the right issue, and can derail things when it's focused on a tangential issue!
The State of Round Runner Today
In accordance with my new weigh myself every day habit I found out that I am back to 207.8 lbs, which is where I started before I had company and then a conference and then a work retreat. So if I take the last even in the 10 day string of events and count out to today, it took me 9 days to recover from my disrupted schedule even without exercising. I think I am finally getting a handle on the whole eating the right amount of stuff. Now I need to work on improving the stuff that I and Little Runner eat.
Barriers to returning to my regular schedule for this week: My gym closes for a week for repairs and cleaning starting tomorrow. The U starts the fall semester on Monday. So I will continue to eat well and I will spend the week starting my physical therapy exercises and doing some walking sessions. We shall see where my left heel is next week before I make any more plans. Learning to manage my eating and exercising during stressful times and injury takes some thought and effort, but not more than I have to throw at the project.
Well my second to last post outlined a plan of attack for the week that totally fell through from start to finish. We did get all ready and go to the pool last Sunday only to find that it closed at 2 pm, rather than 4 pm as I thought. Our 3:15 pm arrival was rather disappointing.
Sunday I stayed up late reading a good book, so I skipped working out on Monday. Tuesday I skipped working out because I had to give my first ever webinar session at a conference (on international statistics and sources) and I had some work to finish on my presentation before 9 am. The rest of the week was a write off because I bought a new netbook and had some issues with the sleep/hibernate function that drove me crazy until I finally got them fixed. Obsession is a useful personality trait when applied to the right issue, and can derail things when it's focused on a tangential issue!
The State of Round Runner Today
In accordance with my new weigh myself every day habit I found out that I am back to 207.8 lbs, which is where I started before I had company and then a conference and then a work retreat. So if I take the last even in the 10 day string of events and count out to today, it took me 9 days to recover from my disrupted schedule even without exercising. I think I am finally getting a handle on the whole eating the right amount of stuff. Now I need to work on improving the stuff that I and Little Runner eat.
Barriers to returning to my regular schedule for this week: My gym closes for a week for repairs and cleaning starting tomorrow. The U starts the fall semester on Monday. So I will continue to eat well and I will spend the week starting my physical therapy exercises and doing some walking sessions. We shall see where my left heel is next week before I make any more plans. Learning to manage my eating and exercising during stressful times and injury takes some thought and effort, but not more than I have to throw at the project.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Interesting listening
Influencer
I'm listening to Influencer - the Power to Change Anything while I tool around in my car on the weekends and to and from work. Apparently there are 3 behaviors associated with people who lost at least 30 pounds and who kept if off for at least 6 years: eating breakfast, weighing themselves daily, and working out on home equipment.
Breakfast? Check!
Weighing myself daily? I was doing weekly, but decided that I can easily handle doing it daily, so I weighed in this morning and got a pleasant surprise - I'm down .6 of a pound, making my current weight gain for 10 days or whacked out eating and exercise schedule to be exactly 1 pound. Which is a freaking miracle. I must be getting better at eating a reasonable amount if convention travel, a lame foot and company only gifted me with 1 pound!
Working out on home equipment? Not so much, unless running counts as home equipment. I have toyed with the idea of getting a treadmill and maybe some kettle balls, but nothing serious. I will have to cogitate on how to incorporate this behavior into my way of doing things. I think this would work best for me when I am in the maintenance phase of exercising, rather than the active phase of getting fitter and loosing weight. I find that being at the gym greatly improves my focus and ability to work out sans 3.5 year old Little Runner hanging off from me whenever he thinks he can climb on my back.
I'm listening to Influencer - the Power to Change Anything while I tool around in my car on the weekends and to and from work. Apparently there are 3 behaviors associated with people who lost at least 30 pounds and who kept if off for at least 6 years: eating breakfast, weighing themselves daily, and working out on home equipment.
Breakfast? Check!
Weighing myself daily? I was doing weekly, but decided that I can easily handle doing it daily, so I weighed in this morning and got a pleasant surprise - I'm down .6 of a pound, making my current weight gain for 10 days or whacked out eating and exercise schedule to be exactly 1 pound. Which is a freaking miracle. I must be getting better at eating a reasonable amount if convention travel, a lame foot and company only gifted me with 1 pound!
Working out on home equipment? Not so much, unless running counts as home equipment. I have toyed with the idea of getting a treadmill and maybe some kettle balls, but nothing serious. I will have to cogitate on how to incorporate this behavior into my way of doing things. I think this would work best for me when I am in the maintenance phase of exercising, rather than the active phase of getting fitter and loosing weight. I find that being at the gym greatly improves my focus and ability to work out sans 3.5 year old Little Runner hanging off from me whenever he thinks he can climb on my back.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Breathe in, Breathe Out, Whatever You Do, Don't Freak Out!
Updates
Up 1.6 pounds, which is only to be expected. I suspect at least a half pound is water weight from sitting in the car and eating a corn dog and some Cheetos (the puffy kind, natch) while looking at the gorgeous Uinta scenery from Round Hiker's new 3/4 ton 4x4 pickup truck. We had to go try it out.
Plus I had company for a week, and then went to Denver for 3 days for a conference, came home to find out that I have Achilles tendonitis and have basically been a slug for the last week and eaten out a lot. Whew! it's probably a miracle that I am not up more than 1.6 lbs. Company whacks out my schedule, as does travel, illness, and lameness. I had a trifecta the last two weeks, so I'm trying not to freak out about my lack of downward progress. My clothes still fit, and I am hanging on to that.
The Way Forward
Today (Sunday) will be my regroup and recoup day. Grocery shopping, house/life tidying, getting to the pool with Little Runner, and basically getting ready for the week. Monday will be back to the gym. Tuesday will be a long walk barefoot. I want to see how my heel does. It feels really good right now - I almost don't even notice that there is anything wrong with my heel. The Mobic prescription has really impressed me. I've never had an anti-inflammatory knock out my heel pain so quickly. I plan to be cautious and ease back into running. limping around is no fun. Plus pain makes me cranky and terse with Little Runner, which is definitely not cool. Hopefully by the end of the week I'll be running again.
Up 1.6 pounds, which is only to be expected. I suspect at least a half pound is water weight from sitting in the car and eating a corn dog and some Cheetos (the puffy kind, natch) while looking at the gorgeous Uinta scenery from Round Hiker's new 3/4 ton 4x4 pickup truck. We had to go try it out.
Plus I had company for a week, and then went to Denver for 3 days for a conference, came home to find out that I have Achilles tendonitis and have basically been a slug for the last week and eaten out a lot. Whew! it's probably a miracle that I am not up more than 1.6 lbs. Company whacks out my schedule, as does travel, illness, and lameness. I had a trifecta the last two weeks, so I'm trying not to freak out about my lack of downward progress. My clothes still fit, and I am hanging on to that.
The Way Forward
Today (Sunday) will be my regroup and recoup day. Grocery shopping, house/life tidying, getting to the pool with Little Runner, and basically getting ready for the week. Monday will be back to the gym. Tuesday will be a long walk barefoot. I want to see how my heel does. It feels really good right now - I almost don't even notice that there is anything wrong with my heel. The Mobic prescription has really impressed me. I've never had an anti-inflammatory knock out my heel pain so quickly. I plan to be cautious and ease back into running. limping around is no fun. Plus pain makes me cranky and terse with Little Runner, which is definitely not cool. Hopefully by the end of the week I'll be running again.
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Lamest Run Ever!
Lame!
Slept like crap. Ate like crap. Ran like crap. (I originally mistyped this sentence to read ran like carp - I wasn't actually that bad, so I did correct my spelling.) Man am I slow. The two conference folk I ran with frisked off like puppies and I slowly slogged behind. I can already see that if I manage to make my October 5k run my goal had best not be placing well, but merely attending and finishing before the cut-off time. *sigh* And on top of it all my heel was ouchy, which made me feel really lame. I ran 4 out of the 5 sprints because the last 4 minutes 36 seconds of running was going to be uphill. NFW.
The plus side? I tried something new, and sort of confirmed my solitary running bias (at least for the moment). The running area was a bit of a downhill hike all the way from the hotel, but it was a cool urbanish park that I would never had seen if I hadn't gotten up to go running at 6:15 am.
The Diagnosis
I went to the Sugarhouse U of U health clinic today. Apparently I have Achilles tendonitis and not plantar fasciitis. This is the same pain I've had since 2000 or 2001 when my podiatrist diagnosed me with plantar fasciitis. That's why I wanted to see a sports medicine doctor this time. I've become somewhat suspicious of podiatrists in the last few years. At the least the sports med doc didn't tell me to quit running or try to sell me a $600 pair of orthtoics, although she did tell me to lay off while my insertion point was so inflamed. Gah. She gave me a script for Meloxicam (MOBIC) since ibuprofen hasn't been doing much for my heel inflammation. And she gave me a list of 5 or six exercises to do to stretch and strengthen my Achilles tendon to get rid of my tendinitis altogether. And a recommendation to bike or swim until my heel feels better. Grrr.
Slept like crap. Ate like crap. Ran like crap. (I originally mistyped this sentence to read ran like carp - I wasn't actually that bad, so I did correct my spelling.) Man am I slow. The two conference folk I ran with frisked off like puppies and I slowly slogged behind. I can already see that if I manage to make my October 5k run my goal had best not be placing well, but merely attending and finishing before the cut-off time. *sigh* And on top of it all my heel was ouchy, which made me feel really lame. I ran 4 out of the 5 sprints because the last 4 minutes 36 seconds of running was going to be uphill. NFW.
The plus side? I tried something new, and sort of confirmed my solitary running bias (at least for the moment). The running area was a bit of a downhill hike all the way from the hotel, but it was a cool urbanish park that I would never had seen if I hadn't gotten up to go running at 6:15 am.
The Diagnosis
I went to the Sugarhouse U of U health clinic today. Apparently I have Achilles tendonitis and not plantar fasciitis. This is the same pain I've had since 2000 or 2001 when my podiatrist diagnosed me with plantar fasciitis. That's why I wanted to see a sports medicine doctor this time. I've become somewhat suspicious of podiatrists in the last few years. At the least the sports med doc didn't tell me to quit running or try to sell me a $600 pair of orthtoics, although she did tell me to lay off while my insertion point was so inflamed. Gah. She gave me a script for Meloxicam (MOBIC) since ibuprofen hasn't been doing much for my heel inflammation. And she gave me a list of 5 or six exercises to do to stretch and strengthen my Achilles tendon to get rid of my tendinitis altogether. And a recommendation to bike or swim until my heel feels better. Grrr.
Monday, August 9, 2010
Catching Up
The Outdoor Retailer Show / OUCH!
We had company last week for the Outdoor Retailer show. It was lovely to see Stephanie again, and she was a great house guest. Everything went well until Thursday morning. For some reason my left calf was super tight after my run and my plantar fasciitis was killer that day. While my run was fine I spent the next 3 days limping, which is not cool! I did score some Injinji toe socks and some nifty Thermos water bottles at the show, so my limpfest on Friday was not a total loss.
U of U Ropes Course
Thursday morning at work I attended the U of U Ropes Course for a 1/2 day session. I was worried that my left foot would cause a problem, but we did group exercises and no actual ropes work at all. It was an interesting morning, and I was with a great group of people from work. The funniest part of the whole day was the directions to the course. I was confused by them, and muddled my way through. My friend and I mentioned it to the course instructors and noted that the word Ropes was misspelled as well. Three other library employees mentioned the mistakes in the directions. Apparently we were the 7th group that summer to use the directions and the first one to mention the problems. Librarians - we can nit-pick with the best of them!
Saturday
I did not run on Saturday. My left heel was still pretty ouchy and I am trying to learn from my past mistakes and not just bulldoze through pain to a greater injury. In fact, I even made a doctor's appointment for next week with a sports medicine doc to check my heel out and make sure that I know what is going on with my foot. My heel hurt badly enough that I am willing to entertain the idea of getting a cortisone shot in my heel to help kill the inflammation. So Steph and I went to the SLC downtown farmer's market instead. I got some local cheese, local salami, and some amazing roasted tomato and hazelnut pesto and some basil and pistachio pesto. I figured out that the tomato pesto has much much more garlic in it. I may need to cut that pesto with cream cheese or something else so that I'm not breathing garlic fire for the rest of the day when I eat it. I think my motto is "if you can't run, eat".
Denver
Right now I am in Denver for the Reference Renaissance library convention. I like the smaller more tightly focused conventions compared to the histerionic sprawl of ALA annual. I signed up for the local run on Tuesday morning, and my heel is feeling well enough that I assume I will be able to do it. It will be nice to have my second run on location - and at about the same elevation as my run at my dad's house - 5,600 feet. That's about 1,000 feet higher than I live at. I think it will be easier on me than people who came here from sea level. I'll let you know how it goes.
We had company last week for the Outdoor Retailer show. It was lovely to see Stephanie again, and she was a great house guest. Everything went well until Thursday morning. For some reason my left calf was super tight after my run and my plantar fasciitis was killer that day. While my run was fine I spent the next 3 days limping, which is not cool! I did score some Injinji toe socks and some nifty Thermos water bottles at the show, so my limpfest on Friday was not a total loss.
U of U Ropes Course
Thursday morning at work I attended the U of U Ropes Course for a 1/2 day session. I was worried that my left foot would cause a problem, but we did group exercises and no actual ropes work at all. It was an interesting morning, and I was with a great group of people from work. The funniest part of the whole day was the directions to the course. I was confused by them, and muddled my way through. My friend and I mentioned it to the course instructors and noted that the word Ropes was misspelled as well. Three other library employees mentioned the mistakes in the directions. Apparently we were the 7th group that summer to use the directions and the first one to mention the problems. Librarians - we can nit-pick with the best of them!
Saturday
I did not run on Saturday. My left heel was still pretty ouchy and I am trying to learn from my past mistakes and not just bulldoze through pain to a greater injury. In fact, I even made a doctor's appointment for next week with a sports medicine doc to check my heel out and make sure that I know what is going on with my foot. My heel hurt badly enough that I am willing to entertain the idea of getting a cortisone shot in my heel to help kill the inflammation. So Steph and I went to the SLC downtown farmer's market instead. I got some local cheese, local salami, and some amazing roasted tomato and hazelnut pesto and some basil and pistachio pesto. I figured out that the tomato pesto has much much more garlic in it. I may need to cut that pesto with cream cheese or something else so that I'm not breathing garlic fire for the rest of the day when I eat it. I think my motto is "if you can't run, eat".
Denver
Right now I am in Denver for the Reference Renaissance library convention. I like the smaller more tightly focused conventions compared to the histerionic sprawl of ALA annual. I signed up for the local run on Tuesday morning, and my heel is feeling well enough that I assume I will be able to do it. It will be nice to have my second run on location - and at about the same elevation as my run at my dad's house - 5,600 feet. That's about 1,000 feet higher than I live at. I think it will be easier on me than people who came here from sea level. I'll let you know how it goes.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Crushing My Delusions
It's not a bad thing...
Every time I have a good run early in a new interval I have hopes and dreams of moving on like clockwork after 3 sessions, but each time that dream is dashed by reality. However, as my clock-watching during the last two minutes of my last running sprint proved, I will probably have to extend this interval through Saturday, and possibly onto Tuesday. But, that's not a bad thing. It just means that my wimpy lungs need more time to catch up to speed (huh huh) with what I am doing.
Speaking of lungs, have I told you that I have greater than average lung capacity? Apparently I have about 30% more lung capacity than a woman my age, my height should have. But, I have asthma, which busts my ability to move air in and out of my lungs by about 30%. When I get my lungs conditioned to run for 30+ minutes and I use albuteral, I'll be a superhero! Or something like that.
Every time I have a good run early in a new interval I have hopes and dreams of moving on like clockwork after 3 sessions, but each time that dream is dashed by reality. However, as my clock-watching during the last two minutes of my last running sprint proved, I will probably have to extend this interval through Saturday, and possibly onto Tuesday. But, that's not a bad thing. It just means that my wimpy lungs need more time to catch up to speed (huh huh) with what I am doing.
Speaking of lungs, have I told you that I have greater than average lung capacity? Apparently I have about 30% more lung capacity than a woman my age, my height should have. But, I have asthma, which busts my ability to move air in and out of my lungs by about 30%. When I get my lungs conditioned to run for 30+ minutes and I use albuteral, I'll be a superhero! Or something like that.
Monday, August 2, 2010
Keeping the Schedule with Company
Working out while hosting company
Keeping to a reasonable sleep and exercise schedule can be difficult under ideal conditions. Things tend to fall apart for me when we have company. We have a guest for the week (Hi Phoenix Hiker!) for the Outdoor Retailer Show in SLC. I forced myself to go to bed on time last night, even though I wanted to stay up and chat, and I got up and out to exercise before she woke up, so that part was easier. When I am at my goal weight and fitness level it should be easier for me to take a week off for company, but right now it feels like I will just loose my momentum. Besides, Phoenix Hiker leaves on Saturday, and then I leave for a conference in Denver on Sunday. Exercising while away and eating within my goal for those day will be a huge challenge. No need to walk into that one already up on the scale!
Weights today
Today was a weights day. In deference to Round and Phoenix Hikers' schedule, I cut off my workout before I got to walk. I came home and they took off, so I invited Little Runner to walk barefoot with me. He was all into it until he saw someone pass us on a bicycle. The hysterics started "I want to go home! I want my bike!!". If I was certain that he would actually ride his bike the entire way I planned to walk that would have been fine. But he is still a bit wary of his new "special" bike, and he rides about 5 feet and then gets off and walks it for a bit or just sort of stands and stares at it. I didn't want to have to cajole him around the complex, so I said no. And then I bribed him with the promise of a Popsicle when we returned home, which thankfully got him moving. And surprisingly, the walk with LR turned out to be lots of fun. We splashed in a few puddles, and he got excited about identifying conifer trees as we moseyed around the walkway. I got my barefoot steps in for the day and he got to splash, point and yell, and have a Popsicle. It was a win - win.
Keeping to a reasonable sleep and exercise schedule can be difficult under ideal conditions. Things tend to fall apart for me when we have company. We have a guest for the week (Hi Phoenix Hiker!) for the Outdoor Retailer Show in SLC. I forced myself to go to bed on time last night, even though I wanted to stay up and chat, and I got up and out to exercise before she woke up, so that part was easier. When I am at my goal weight and fitness level it should be easier for me to take a week off for company, but right now it feels like I will just loose my momentum. Besides, Phoenix Hiker leaves on Saturday, and then I leave for a conference in Denver on Sunday. Exercising while away and eating within my goal for those day will be a huge challenge. No need to walk into that one already up on the scale!
Weights today
Today was a weights day. In deference to Round and Phoenix Hikers' schedule, I cut off my workout before I got to walk. I came home and they took off, so I invited Little Runner to walk barefoot with me. He was all into it until he saw someone pass us on a bicycle. The hysterics started "I want to go home! I want my bike!!". If I was certain that he would actually ride his bike the entire way I planned to walk that would have been fine. But he is still a bit wary of his new "special" bike, and he rides about 5 feet and then gets off and walks it for a bit or just sort of stands and stares at it. I didn't want to have to cajole him around the complex, so I said no. And then I bribed him with the promise of a Popsicle when we returned home, which thankfully got him moving. And surprisingly, the walk with LR turned out to be lots of fun. We splashed in a few puddles, and he got excited about identifying conifer trees as we moseyed around the walkway. I got my barefoot steps in for the day and he got to splash, point and yell, and have a Popsicle. It was a win - win.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Exercise vs. House Cleaning
I'm convinced that my BodyBugg doesn't give me enough credit for the effort I put in to cleaning the house today. Between cleaning and exercising, I'd far rather exercise. I like the fact that the kitchen and bathroom are clean, but honestly, for me cleaning is a thankless task. I am perhaps the tidiest person in the house (excepting my tendency to use lots of dishes when I cook), but I pick up more than my fair share. Of course I think that's par for the course for any adult who lives with a 3 year-old who has the nickname "Destroyer of Rooms".
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