Oct 15, 2013

I had a rough couple of days. The kind of rough where you say "this isn't worth the effort anymore".

I woke up early 2 days ago ready to take on the world. Rain. No walking outside. Good thing I have a treadmill available. I started my work out and had my phone with me. Big mistake. I was well into my walk, sweating hard but not keeping track of how far I had gone. I find I do much better if I don't watch the numbers. I got a text message and bumped the reset button on the treadmill when I grabbed the phone. I have no idea how far I had gone or amount of time I had spent. I was so upset! Logically, I know the workout wasn't wasted but it felt like it. I got off the treadmill and decided to work out later in the day. I had a really hard time getting back to it. I forced myself back on it after dinner and did 2 miles. I was really disappointed. 

Yesterday was a nice enough day to walk in the park. I woke up looking forward to a fresh start. I decided on the way to the park that I would swing by the clinic for a weigh in. I was sure the weight loss would show on the scale and give me an extra boost. Not so much. I gained 1/3 of a pound. I wanted to sit down and cry right there. I'm just not losing weight and I can't figure out why! I decided to walk off my frustration in the park. I got there to find a gym class from the local high school smacking golf balls everywhere. My options were go home to the treadmill or risk a getting a golf ball embedded in my skull. Treadmill option won. I went back to the house and had the good cry I needed while doing 3 miles. 

So that's 5 more miles added to the trip. That puts me at 42.1 miles. Just 6 miles from the WI Dells. 

Oct 12, 2013

Today was an absolutely beautiful day for a walk. It started out being overcast, chilly and really windy. After a few laps, the sun came out, it warmed up and the wind died down to a steady breeze.

I had two real victories during my walk today. The first will seem very minor to most people. For the first time in 22 years I was able to touch my toes. Okay, so it might seem like a silly goal but I was so excited! When I told my 21 year old daughter (who is in rock star physical condition) she said "I can't touch my toes, can't remember the last time I could touch my toes. Good for you!" Thanks for the encouragement Kayla! I needed that!

The second victory was my distance. I pushed myself really hard yesterday to see how far I could run. Today, I wanted to go for distance. I've been wanting to do a five mile walk. I almost made it the other day when I went eleven laps so the only thing to do was walk twelve laps! So that was today's walk. twelve laps for a total of 5.4 miles! 

I seem to bounce around a lot with walking, jogging, both in the same session. It seems to be working though. My exercise stays interesting and fun because I'm not doing the exact same thing everyday and I can reach small goals frequently. Not sure what tomorrow's goal will be but I'm looking forward to it!

Oct 11, 2013

Hey everyone!

It's been a few days and a few miles since my last post. Here's the latest updates...

I changed my schedule a little this week. I decided Thursday would be my normal day off but I changed it to Wednesday this week. Wednesday morning before my normal walk I stopped into the clinic for a weigh in. I needed a little boost. I was pretty sure I had lost a couple of pounds so I wanted to see it so I could grab some motivation from it. Well, it didn't work out quite like I planned. I got on the scale to discover I lost a half pound. Not going to lie, I was disappointed. I've been working really hard at exercising and eating better and not seeing the result I expected was a blow. I know a lot of people would say "quit whining. You lost instead of gaining. Even a small loss is a victory." And those people would be exactly right. But when you work really hard and see minimal result, it feels like a defeat. I decided to take Wednesday off because I knew my heart wouldn't be in it and I would do a half way job of exercising and then take Thursday off. By taking Wednesday off and having one day to feel sorry for myself, I came back Thursday with a better attitude and attack the walk with gusto.

So yesterday I went back to the park and walked 10 laps for a total of 4.5 miles. I didn't do any jogging. The bursitis in my hip was acting up so walking was enough. I spent the time clearing my head, getting rid of negativity and reminding myself how far I've come. When I started walking in August, I was walking 3 laps. Now I'm routinely doing 7 or more. My stamina has improved. My motivation has improved. My attitude and outlook have improved. The scale doesn't show any of that. The scale doesn't have the final word on success. 

Today was amazing. I did something  I wouldn't have believed possible a month ago. I decided to do 7 laps today by walking odd numbered laps and jogging even numbered laps. I started with a warm up walk. Lap 2 I started jogging. And I kept jogging. I jogged 5 straight laps! The surprising part was that when I slowed down to a walk for the last lap (I needed a cool down), I still felt pretty good. My legs felt like jelly but my heart wasn't pounding. My breathing wasn't out of control. No cramping or pain anywhere. Nothing like jogging over 2 miles straight to wipe out the disappointment and feeling of failure that I had Wednesday! So I got my 3.15 miles in for the day. And I did it in a serious way. So proud of myself. My small goals are happening. Other goals are within sight. Texas, here I come!

My total miles so far are 31.7 miles. That puts me past Volk Field and well on my way to the Wisconsin Dells. I'll definitely make it to the Dells before I go on vacation next week. That was my first short term goal. I can't wait to check it off the list!

Oct 8, 2013

Two days worth of walking.

Yesterday went really well. I was super motivated yesterday. I got out of bed ready to go for miles. The weather was beautiful so walking outside was a no brainer. I decided to try 10 laps. Feeling all this motivation, and being a little short on time, I decided I was going to try running some of the laps too. I started with a walking lap for a warm up. I decided to walk odd numbered laps and jog even numbered laps. It worked out great! I jogged 5 laps! I ended up doing 11 laps instead of 10. After my 10th lap, I needed a cool down lap so I walked one more. That gave me a total of 4.95 miles for the day!

I wish I could say I had the same motivation today. I had an important appointment that would take most of the day so I decided before bed last night that I would get up early, do 7 laps and jog at least a couple of them. I got up early, as planned. I had zero will to go walking but I dragged my butt out of the house anyway. I figured once I got to the park I would get that spark and find my motivation. It didn't happen. I did the same as yesterday, walked odd numbered laps and jogged even numbered laps. I spent all 7 laps feeling like my legs were dragging a bag of lead around the park. The highlight of my day was seeing River, a golden retriever puppy who comes to the park with his owner sometimes when I'm walking. I got my 3.15 miles in for the day but it was tough.

I'm already feeling motivated for tomorrow. Hoping I can talk my sister into walking with me!

Oct 6, 2013

It was nice enough today to walk outside again today. I waited until late in the afternoon to walk so my sister went with me. I did 3.15 miles today.

I checked mapquest today. I discovered I have walked past Mill Bluff State Park and I'm almost to Volk Field! Woo hoo! Getting closer to the Wisconsin Dells every day!

I did well nutritionally speaking today too. I had fruit and cereal for breakfast. I had fruit and yogurt for lunch and fish and vegetables for dinner. I didn't drink enough water today though. I really have to work on that. Tomorrow will be chicken taco salads. I'm going to do a fresh spinich and lettuce mix instead of plain lettuce. Baked taco shell bowls instead of deep fried will help keep the fat down. Fat free refried beans to keep fiber up. Yummy. Can't wait!

Looking for more healthy recipes. Feel free to leave them in the comments!

Oct 5, 2013

It's been a few days since my last post. I haven't been completely idle, just really busy. Today is some down time.

I skipped my walk on Thursday. I work really late most nights. My week starts Tuesday so by Thursday morning I'm pretty wiped out all day. I realized this was the third Thursday in a row that I didn't have it in me to walk so I've decided to give myself a break and take Thursdays off as a regular thing until I get farther along in my exercise program.

It's been raining so walking outside isn't happening right now. My sister has been kind enough to let me stay with her while I'm trying to find my own place and she has a treadmill. I've made use of it the past two days. It's actually a much harder workout even though I'm just walking. The treadmill is inclined, unlike the flat ground I walk on in the park. I walked 3.25 miles yesterday and today. That adds 6.5 miles to my journey. I have about 35 miles to go to hit the Wisconsin Dells!

I ate like crap yesterday. I don't know what got into my brain but I neglected eating most of the day. I had a piece of toast with jam for breakfast and then grabbed a McDonald's double cheeseburger and med fries for a quick bite on my way to work. I didn't even finish the burger before my stomach started feeling like crap from the grease so I didn't even finish it. Bleah. I felt icky for the rest of the night. I stopped on my way home from work and bought a bunch of fruit. It quells my cravings for sweets better than anything, including sweets.

So it's probably the treadmill again for me tomorrow, judging from the weather forecast. I just have to keep knocking down the miles.

Oct 2, 2013

Day 2 of the walking program. I discovered today that I have been taking time for exercise for the past month but I haven't been MAKING time for it. Today I had to make time for it. 

This morning when I got up I had to do some other things during my normal exercise time. It really tossed my whole schedule off. I have a lot of things going on right now from house hunting to trying to figure out how I'm going to get my daughter's pets and mine from TX to WI next month. I had a dozen phone calls to make, emails to send, problems to solve. Instead, I decided my walk was priority and put everything else aside for that. I thought I would feel good about that decision. I'm not sure I do because I accomplished none of the other tasks but I got my exercise in. So I walked my 3.15 miles today. That means just over 41 miles to my first stop in the Dells. 

I'll be trying it all again tomorrow.