The Scale of Doom
I got home last Wednesday evening. I took my ride home from the airport out to a very good Indian dinner. I viewed it as my last hurrah before getting back to business. Thursday morning I woke up and hopped on the scale full of hope. I hoped that I hadn't gained too much weight. I hoped that what I had gained was mostly water weight. I was expecting a 2-3 lb. gain. I was handed a flaming pile of 6 lbs. GAH!
Don't Panic
I pulled myself together and assured myself that all the salty food I ate plumed me up and that I would quickly loose it again. But I must admit that I had some serious motivation problems getting back to business after that weigh in. It took me until the following Monday to get back to the full weights and then walking workout. However, as of this morning (Monday) I am down 3 lbs. in 4 days, so I guess the water weight guess is accurate to some extent. I just home I'm down another lb. tomorrow morning. *fingers crossed*
Monday, November 22, 2010
Vacations have a way of screwing up the plan
San Antonio
SA was great. The flights were fine, and Little Runner was a real trooper with the whole travel by plane thing. Next time I will definitely just get a direct flight, screw the cost, however. The frantic switching terminals in the Denver Airport I could have done without, although all that walking really helped me get my steps in for the day even though I was traveling.
Round Runner's hotel was right on the SA River Walk, which was fun. Good food (lobster bisque and later a yummy meatball sandwich) and lots to talk about with his Vietnam vet friends. I got up the next morning for an extended walk due to planning to spend much of the day in the car driving to Harlingen, TX. My goal was 7,000 steps, and I think I ended up with 7,500 or so. The Rock n' Roll San Antonio Marathon was going on that morning, so I go to see streams of colorful runners crossing bridges above me on the River Walk. It was a very inspiring sight!
The rest of the vacation included eating a deep-fried avocado stuffed with cheese and fajita meat (tasty!), shrimp stuffed with crab meat covered in Parmesan sauce (also tasty), and lots of cake. And I finally got to eat some Dippin' Dots, which I have longed for ever since I moved to Utah from Miami. Not enough to move back, mind you. Just enough to get a pang every time I see a polka-dot pattern.
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| Image by Dave Stone |
SA was great. The flights were fine, and Little Runner was a real trooper with the whole travel by plane thing. Next time I will definitely just get a direct flight, screw the cost, however. The frantic switching terminals in the Denver Airport I could have done without, although all that walking really helped me get my steps in for the day even though I was traveling.
Round Runner's hotel was right on the SA River Walk, which was fun. Good food (lobster bisque and later a yummy meatball sandwich) and lots to talk about with his Vietnam vet friends. I got up the next morning for an extended walk due to planning to spend much of the day in the car driving to Harlingen, TX. My goal was 7,000 steps, and I think I ended up with 7,500 or so. The Rock n' Roll San Antonio Marathon was going on that morning, so I go to see streams of colorful runners crossing bridges above me on the River Walk. It was a very inspiring sight!
The rest of the vacation included eating a deep-fried avocado stuffed with cheese and fajita meat (tasty!), shrimp stuffed with crab meat covered in Parmesan sauce (also tasty), and lots of cake. And I finally got to eat some Dippin' Dots, which I have longed for ever since I moved to Utah from Miami. Not enough to move back, mind you. Just enough to get a pang every time I see a polka-dot pattern.
Thursday, November 11, 2010
The new workout from home
Kettlebells
Kettlebells look like an iron ball with a handle. When I decided that I wanted to do weight workouts from home I looked into my options. I wanted to be able to do my workouts with a minimum of equipment. Kettlebells seem to fit the bill. All of the exercises I have run into so far involve your body and the weight, and that's it. This definitely seems like something I can get behind - all I have to do it buy the weights.
I doinked around with the Weider Powerbell, which is a sort of select-a-weight kettlebell that goes from 5 lbs to 20 lbs in 2.5 lb increments. This sounded like a good idea in my naivete, but in practice the powerbell didn't work at all for me. The shape is totally wrong for the kettlebell moves. The tall cylinder tower, missing most of the plates really banged the hell out of my forearms. I like the exercises, but I could tell that the powerbell was not for me. So I embarked on my usual obesessive hunt for the perfect set-up that would cost me the least amount of money. I finally came to the conclusion that buying individual weights as needed will probably be the easiest and least crazy-making way to go. I followed my cautious nature and bought a 10 lb. neoprene covered kettlebell from WalMart.
Over time I have found that I don't like having to plot our my workouts - I want some smart and motivated person to do that for me. I love a good weight workout, but I no longer love all the research it takes for me to feel confident in my own workout design. Luckily, there are quite a few kettlebell DVDs on the market at the moment. I went with Kettlebells the Iron Core Way Vol. 1. I'll admit to a bit of female chauvinism in my choice, since this series is one of the few that is done by a woman. As a woman I generally default to female practctioners when possible. If the best qualified person is male, I'll go with him, but in the absence of that knowledge, I'll pick a female. Mercifully I wasn't disappointed. The DVD has a basic introduction to how to handle kettlebells and 6 core moves. Then there is a workout that has a short warm up, and then a circuit of kettlebell moves that repeats 3 times. So far with the 10 lb weight I can get through the warm up and 1 circuit, which takes about 25 minutes. Once I can do all three circuits for a week or two it will be time to buy the second DVD in the series.
I doinked around with the Weider Powerbell, which is a sort of select-a-weight kettlebell that goes from 5 lbs to 20 lbs in 2.5 lb increments. This sounded like a good idea in my naivete, but in practice the powerbell didn't work at all for me. The shape is totally wrong for the kettlebell moves. The tall cylinder tower, missing most of the plates really banged the hell out of my forearms. I like the exercises, but I could tell that the powerbell was not for me. So I embarked on my usual obesessive hunt for the perfect set-up that would cost me the least amount of money. I finally came to the conclusion that buying individual weights as needed will probably be the easiest and least crazy-making way to go. I followed my cautious nature and bought a 10 lb. neoprene covered kettlebell from WalMart.Over time I have found that I don't like having to plot our my workouts - I want some smart and motivated person to do that for me. I love a good weight workout, but I no longer love all the research it takes for me to feel confident in my own workout design. Luckily, there are quite a few kettlebell DVDs on the market at the moment. I went with Kettlebells the Iron Core Way Vol. 1. I'll admit to a bit of female chauvinism in my choice, since this series is one of the few that is done by a woman. As a woman I generally default to female practctioners when possible. If the best qualified person is male, I'll go with him, but in the absence of that knowledge, I'll pick a female. Mercifully I wasn't disappointed. The DVD has a basic introduction to how to handle kettlebells and 6 core moves. Then there is a workout that has a short warm up, and then a circuit of kettlebell moves that repeats 3 times. So far with the 10 lb weight I can get through the warm up and 1 circuit, which takes about 25 minutes. Once I can do all three circuits for a week or two it will be time to buy the second DVD in the series.
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Where do I go from here?
The Plan (as it stands now)
I want to walk my 11,000 goal steps a day barefoot or in minimalist shoes pretty much from now on. This will help in stretching out my uber-tight calf muscles and getting my feet and calves ready for my next shot at running.
My next weight goal is to end November weighing under 200 lbs. If I manage to weigh 199.9 lbs on December 1st it will be a victory. I'm going to San Antonio for 4 days next week, and I plan to enjoy my barbecue, mild tex-mex (is there such a thing?) and shrimp in various fatty preparations. I also plan to walk and workout, so I hope that keeps the bulge in check.
December 2010 - March 2011 I want to go back to loosing about a pound a week, for a total of 16 pounds down before I start back to running outside again. This would put me about 53 lbs lighter than when I started working on my weight and physical activity level last December 3rd, which is not shabby. If my foot feels frisky enough I will begin playing around with the incline and speed on my treadmill. I may even begin running on the treadmill at my horribly slow pace. I've already thought about how to get started - up my pace or incline starting at 30 seconds during commercials and slowly stretch it out until I am doing more and more aerobic work on the treadmill.
I will continue to alternate weight lifting and treadmill/walk/running sessions. If I have to skip a day, I'll skip the treadmill not the weight lifting. This is a shift from my previous position on which to skip, but honestly, that way lied pain.
Ideally, I'd like to shoot for running a barefoot-style 5K next September or October. This is a full year later than I had planned to do it. If my outside running ramps up quickly and comfortably in Spring I may push up my race entry, but I am in no hurry. I just want to actually manage to do it this time. I have self-aggrandizing dreams of running a marathon the year I turn 40 - in 2012. To make that mark I have to go from limping in October of 2010 to running 26.2 miles in about 20 months.
I want to walk my 11,000 goal steps a day barefoot or in minimalist shoes pretty much from now on. This will help in stretching out my uber-tight calf muscles and getting my feet and calves ready for my next shot at running.
My next weight goal is to end November weighing under 200 lbs. If I manage to weigh 199.9 lbs on December 1st it will be a victory. I'm going to San Antonio for 4 days next week, and I plan to enjoy my barbecue, mild tex-mex (is there such a thing?) and shrimp in various fatty preparations. I also plan to walk and workout, so I hope that keeps the bulge in check.
December 2010 - March 2011 I want to go back to loosing about a pound a week, for a total of 16 pounds down before I start back to running outside again. This would put me about 53 lbs lighter than when I started working on my weight and physical activity level last December 3rd, which is not shabby. If my foot feels frisky enough I will begin playing around with the incline and speed on my treadmill. I may even begin running on the treadmill at my horribly slow pace. I've already thought about how to get started - up my pace or incline starting at 30 seconds during commercials and slowly stretch it out until I am doing more and more aerobic work on the treadmill.
I will continue to alternate weight lifting and treadmill/walk/running sessions. If I have to skip a day, I'll skip the treadmill not the weight lifting. This is a shift from my previous position on which to skip, but honestly, that way lied pain.
Ideally, I'd like to shoot for running a barefoot-style 5K next September or October. This is a full year later than I had planned to do it. If my outside running ramps up quickly and comfortably in Spring I may push up my race entry, but I am in no hurry. I just want to actually manage to do it this time. I have self-aggrandizing dreams of running a marathon the year I turn 40 - in 2012. To make that mark I have to go from limping in October of 2010 to running 26.2 miles in about 20 months.
Fashion
The Shoes
Since I am a somewhat suspicious person, I'm not going to leap back into running after being on hiatus since mid-August. I'm going to try a few things that I probably should have been doing all along. During this last week I have found that walking in a zero degree shoe (one with no lift at all in the heel, often called a minimalist shoe) feels better than walking in my new $80 Merrel slides. *sigh* Of course, the only zero degree shoes I have at the moment are my VFFs, which I have begun to wear at work. They are not exactly what I think of as the most business casual of shoes. What do you think?
They are comfy, as long as you don't get all froggy and wear them outside when it is sleeting. I can't believe that I forgot they are WATER shoes, which means that the water just seems to flow into the neoprene uppers and the mesh top. Man my feet were cold on Monday. So while this is working for me on a 'how my feet feel' level, they aren't the footwear I want to routinely wear to work. I did a lot of digging around the net for alternatives that would be more work friendly. I found a pair and then continued to look about because I didn't like the $125.00 price tag. Over $100 gets classified as a significant purchase in my book. But after multiple hours of dithering, I went ahead and purchased a pair of Terra Plana's vivobarefoot Lucy shoes.
Generally speaking I think this shoe is pretty innocuous. I'd have liked them better with a less contrasty line of stitching rather than the red accent, but perhaps that splash of brightness will relieve the shoes of just being dorky. While it may look like they have a regular shoe sole that is 1/2" thick or so, the 4 mm sole material wraps up the side of the shoe. I found an online coupon code from another blog that gave me 25% off, which basically paid for my 2nd day air shipping because I am impatient. They are scheduled to arrive sometime tomorrow, and hopefully will be waiting for me when I get home from work. Yay!
Since I am a somewhat suspicious person, I'm not going to leap back into running after being on hiatus since mid-August. I'm going to try a few things that I probably should have been doing all along. During this last week I have found that walking in a zero degree shoe (one with no lift at all in the heel, often called a minimalist shoe) feels better than walking in my new $80 Merrel slides. *sigh* Of course, the only zero degree shoes I have at the moment are my VFFs, which I have begun to wear at work. They are not exactly what I think of as the most business casual of shoes. What do you think?
Accidental Cure
Oops!
My last post was October 1st - while I intended to lie a bit low until I was able to run again I didn't mean to go completely off the radar. My bad.
And now back to our program, currently in progress...
As you may recall I have been battling some insidious heel pain. Is is plantar fasciitis? Which, incidentally makes me think of agricultural fascists every time I say or read the phrase. Is is Achilles tendinitis? And why on earth is it spelled tendinitis instead of tendonitis? In the end, I don't think it really matters, because after limping for 3 months I accidentally found the cure for my heel pain. I got irritated at the irritated nature of my foot, and I decided Screw It! I began walking barefoot on the treadmill again and weightlifting at home. After my first weightlifting session my heel felt about 50% better. By the end of the week I was lifting every other day, walking on the treadmill barefoot for 30 minutes every day, and doing a yoga tape in the evening sporadically and my heel was at about 80% better. I continue to see daily improvement in normal function and a lack of pain.
As my foot felt better and better I ruminated on how it came to hurt in the first place. In July (I think) I decided to just focus on running and to cut out my alternating day of weight lifting. And from there my heel slowly began to rebel. I don't know exactly why weight lifting seems to be alleviating my heel pain, and in many ways I don't care. Pain sucks, and to find something cheap and easy to do to fix it is amazing.
My last post was October 1st - while I intended to lie a bit low until I was able to run again I didn't mean to go completely off the radar. My bad.
And now back to our program, currently in progress...
As you may recall I have been battling some insidious heel pain. Is is plantar fasciitis? Which, incidentally makes me think of agricultural fascists every time I say or read the phrase. Is is Achilles tendinitis? And why on earth is it spelled tendinitis instead of tendonitis? In the end, I don't think it really matters, because after limping for 3 months I accidentally found the cure for my heel pain. I got irritated at the irritated nature of my foot, and I decided Screw It! I began walking barefoot on the treadmill again and weightlifting at home. After my first weightlifting session my heel felt about 50% better. By the end of the week I was lifting every other day, walking on the treadmill barefoot for 30 minutes every day, and doing a yoga tape in the evening sporadically and my heel was at about 80% better. I continue to see daily improvement in normal function and a lack of pain.
As my foot felt better and better I ruminated on how it came to hurt in the first place. In July (I think) I decided to just focus on running and to cut out my alternating day of weight lifting. And from there my heel slowly began to rebel. I don't know exactly why weight lifting seems to be alleviating my heel pain, and in many ways I don't care. Pain sucks, and to find something cheap and easy to do to fix it is amazing.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Breaking the first barrier
Ta Da!
I got on the scale today and for the second day in a row it read 199.8 lbs. I have broken the 200 lb. barrier! When I started this process last December 3rd (I like to be precise about dates and all) I had several - short, medium, and long term goals.
Upcoming goals
Weight and size are obviously related to each other. At this point I am 199.8 (I love seeing that 1 there!) and a size 18. So within the next 8-10 lbs I will phase into a size 16. For the males who read this that means that shopping for clothes gets exponentially easier. For whatever reason most popular clothing manufacturers only carry up to a size 16 in their stores - even if they sell well into the 1x,2x,3x or more sizes. Those sizes are shunted to the online store, making finding clothes that fit if you are bigger than a size 16 annoying, difficult and expensive because on top of the $5 - $10 premium you pay for the plus sizes you now also have to pay shipping. So getting to a size 16 or less has real-world economic benefits. Or another way to say it is that being over a size 16 has real-world economic detriments.
Clearly I need to think of some goals between getting to a size 16 and losing the 100th pound because that gap is going to be about 50 lbs. Most of my next level goals are activity related - such as start taking Krav Maga classes, and maybe in 30 lbs. or so try to run again.
Why do I want to lose a total of 100 lbs? As Dogbert says, "humans like large round numbers". That would put me at 135 - a mystical weight I haven't seen since I was about 12. Supposedly it is at the upper end of what a 5'3" woman should weigh. It's a nice definitive and impressive number. I'll be seriously impressed with myself if I lose that much weight. In a weird way it's like any other athletic goal - can I do what it takes to make this goal? I can't really evaluate the worth of the goal yet. I'm too far off from it - I've lost 38 lbs, leaving me 62 more to go. I know that I looked and felt pretty good at 150, but I was still chunkier than I'd like to be. I'm not willing to do the massive amounts of cardio and weight-lifting I did the last time I got down to 150, which means that the next time I see that weight I may not be the trim size 8 that I was - muscle is more compact than fat. I'm willing to stop losing weight at any point that I think I look and feel good, and that my health is optimized.
Aside from my vanity (which is a surprisingly powerful driving force) my real goal is improving my current health and my long-term health prospects. Which means that whatever I do has to be sustainable and not make me crazy or too inflexible for a little boy and husband to live with happily.
I got on the scale today and for the second day in a row it read 199.8 lbs. I have broken the 200 lb. barrier! When I started this process last December 3rd (I like to be precise about dates and all) I had several - short, medium, and long term goals.
- Get below 200 lbs.
- Get down to at least a size 16
- Ultimately lose 100 lbs.
Upcoming goals
Weight and size are obviously related to each other. At this point I am 199.8 (I love seeing that 1 there!) and a size 18. So within the next 8-10 lbs I will phase into a size 16. For the males who read this that means that shopping for clothes gets exponentially easier. For whatever reason most popular clothing manufacturers only carry up to a size 16 in their stores - even if they sell well into the 1x,2x,3x or more sizes. Those sizes are shunted to the online store, making finding clothes that fit if you are bigger than a size 16 annoying, difficult and expensive because on top of the $5 - $10 premium you pay for the plus sizes you now also have to pay shipping. So getting to a size 16 or less has real-world economic benefits. Or another way to say it is that being over a size 16 has real-world economic detriments.
Clearly I need to think of some goals between getting to a size 16 and losing the 100th pound because that gap is going to be about 50 lbs. Most of my next level goals are activity related - such as start taking Krav Maga classes, and maybe in 30 lbs. or so try to run again.
Why do I want to lose a total of 100 lbs? As Dogbert says, "humans like large round numbers". That would put me at 135 - a mystical weight I haven't seen since I was about 12. Supposedly it is at the upper end of what a 5'3" woman should weigh. It's a nice definitive and impressive number. I'll be seriously impressed with myself if I lose that much weight. In a weird way it's like any other athletic goal - can I do what it takes to make this goal? I can't really evaluate the worth of the goal yet. I'm too far off from it - I've lost 38 lbs, leaving me 62 more to go. I know that I looked and felt pretty good at 150, but I was still chunkier than I'd like to be. I'm not willing to do the massive amounts of cardio and weight-lifting I did the last time I got down to 150, which means that the next time I see that weight I may not be the trim size 8 that I was - muscle is more compact than fat. I'm willing to stop losing weight at any point that I think I look and feel good, and that my health is optimized.
Aside from my vanity (which is a surprisingly powerful driving force) my real goal is improving my current health and my long-term health prospects. Which means that whatever I do has to be sustainable and not make me crazy or too inflexible for a little boy and husband to live with happily.
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