Okay, there are actually a number of things going on. I was going to start on a kind of negative/frustrated note, but something unexpected happened so I'm going to start with that.
The Unexpected Surprise
I had no plan for the gym today. I normally do Body Balance on Wednesday mornings, but because Marko is on vacation I won't be doing the class for a while. Since I was in a funky mood (more on that later) I told myself, just workout for an hour - regardless of what type of workout/how intense.
I got on the treadmill set out to walk for half an hour. After warming up for 5 minutes I felt like I was ready to jog. So I started jogging --- ten minutes later I was still jogging ... 15 minutes later I was still jogging! Seriously?! I haven't done this in a months! At that point, I knew what I had to do - finish Day 1 of Week 7 of C25K! I wasn't listening to the program, but I knew what the day involved - 5 min warm-up, 20 minute run; 3 min walk; 5 min run; cool down with a 5 minute walk.
So I did it. The only thing I did differently was walk for 1 min between the 2 run groups and cooled down with a 4 minute walk.
The important thing is that I did the run. I felt good during the run. It wasn't fast, but it was a steady pace. My heart rate stayed at just about 162 (it used to go up to 178!!) so I was pleased with that. When I was done I didn't feel breathless. I felt really good.
What a relief.
The Frustration
When I weighed myself this morning (yes, I weigh myself every morning - not to be obsessive, just to keep myself on track). My weight seems to fluctuate so much throughout the month/week. After my Saturday weigh-in, I was up a pound. Today I'm down half a pound.
I know the daily weigh-in shouldn't (doesn't) mean a lot, but seeing the numbers fluctuate this way does make it frustrating.
Again, the reason that I weigh myself daily is so that I can be alert of how my habits are affecting my weight and then modify things as needed.
I think I need to modify something a bit more - I wonder if it's because I've reduced my workouts over the past week (no evening kickboxing/core workout classes). However, my eating is really clean, and I'm still exercising daily -- perhaps it's just not enough for me.
I know I need to be patient, but I also don't want to kinda sit by the sidelines and wait for something to happen. Something inside me is telling me that further change is needed, so that's what I'm going to try to do.
Cleaner than Clean
I leave for the States next Thursday morning. I'll be gone for a week. I'm looking forward to my trip, but I'm absolutely dreading what it's going to do to my routine - workouts, food, sleep, stress. Quadruple whammy in my eyes.
This upcoming week is going to be really busy, just like this one. So, I've got to manage my time carefully. I need to make sure that the time I spend at the gym in the mornings (because I think I'll only be able to fit in one workout a day) has be be very effective.
In terms of food, I'm going to try to eat cleaner than clean for this next week. By that I mean the snacking on raw nuts, dates, and peanut butter has to either stop or be drastically cut down. I need to make sure that I'm eating good protein for every meal (and I need to make sure not to skip any meals) and that I increase my intake of greens, particularly raw greens.
This may seem like me being impatient - perhaps I am being impatient -- all I know is that I don't want to be stuck at a plateau. I want to keep seeing consistent progress.
I feel like I'm working really hard and doing things as they were meant to be done. Part of me wonders if the changes of the Whole Life Challenge aren't as effective this time because I was kinda eating that way 85-90% of the time anyway. Is that, plus the combination of my recent stresses, plus my reduced workouts all coming catching up to me?
In any case, something inside me feels like what I'm doing isn't working just right, so I'm trying to modify the plan. We'll see how it goes.
For updates on what I've been eating recently as well as my workouts & progress with the Whole Life Challenge, please follow this link.
The Unexpected Surprise
I had no plan for the gym today. I normally do Body Balance on Wednesday mornings, but because Marko is on vacation I won't be doing the class for a while. Since I was in a funky mood (more on that later) I told myself, just workout for an hour - regardless of what type of workout/how intense.
I got on the treadmill set out to walk for half an hour. After warming up for 5 minutes I felt like I was ready to jog. So I started jogging --- ten minutes later I was still jogging ... 15 minutes later I was still jogging! Seriously?! I haven't done this in a months! At that point, I knew what I had to do - finish Day 1 of Week 7 of C25K! I wasn't listening to the program, but I knew what the day involved - 5 min warm-up, 20 minute run; 3 min walk; 5 min run; cool down with a 5 minute walk.
So I did it. The only thing I did differently was walk for 1 min between the 2 run groups and cooled down with a 4 minute walk.
The important thing is that I did the run. I felt good during the run. It wasn't fast, but it was a steady pace. My heart rate stayed at just about 162 (it used to go up to 178!!) so I was pleased with that. When I was done I didn't feel breathless. I felt really good.
What a relief.
The Frustration
When I weighed myself this morning (yes, I weigh myself every morning - not to be obsessive, just to keep myself on track). My weight seems to fluctuate so much throughout the month/week. After my Saturday weigh-in, I was up a pound. Today I'm down half a pound.
I know the daily weigh-in shouldn't (doesn't) mean a lot, but seeing the numbers fluctuate this way does make it frustrating.
Again, the reason that I weigh myself daily is so that I can be alert of how my habits are affecting my weight and then modify things as needed.
I think I need to modify something a bit more - I wonder if it's because I've reduced my workouts over the past week (no evening kickboxing/core workout classes). However, my eating is really clean, and I'm still exercising daily -- perhaps it's just not enough for me.
I know I need to be patient, but I also don't want to kinda sit by the sidelines and wait for something to happen. Something inside me is telling me that further change is needed, so that's what I'm going to try to do.
Cleaner than Clean
I leave for the States next Thursday morning. I'll be gone for a week. I'm looking forward to my trip, but I'm absolutely dreading what it's going to do to my routine - workouts, food, sleep, stress. Quadruple whammy in my eyes.
This upcoming week is going to be really busy, just like this one. So, I've got to manage my time carefully. I need to make sure that the time I spend at the gym in the mornings (because I think I'll only be able to fit in one workout a day) has be be very effective.
In terms of food, I'm going to try to eat cleaner than clean for this next week. By that I mean the snacking on raw nuts, dates, and peanut butter has to either stop or be drastically cut down. I need to make sure that I'm eating good protein for every meal (and I need to make sure not to skip any meals) and that I increase my intake of greens, particularly raw greens.
This may seem like me being impatient - perhaps I am being impatient -- all I know is that I don't want to be stuck at a plateau. I want to keep seeing consistent progress.
I feel like I'm working really hard and doing things as they were meant to be done. Part of me wonders if the changes of the Whole Life Challenge aren't as effective this time because I was kinda eating that way 85-90% of the time anyway. Is that, plus the combination of my recent stresses, plus my reduced workouts all coming catching up to me?
In any case, something inside me feels like what I'm doing isn't working just right, so I'm trying to modify the plan. We'll see how it goes.
For updates on what I've been eating recently as well as my workouts & progress with the Whole Life Challenge, please follow this link.
Why does the messenger look like a blunt?
ReplyDeleteHahaha - coz' her weight was too 'high'? ;)
DeleteHi PlumPetals! Well, have fun in the U.S.! Eat a little bit of American food, but under no circumstances eat like an American. OMG! Americans eat a lot. Our restaurants serve meals that *should* be shared by two customers. Almost every dessert our restaurants serve could treat 3 people. But I would try a special treat--and just take a tiny dessert portion.
ReplyDeleteYou could make a post about what U.S. people think you should try for foods when you're here...
Believe it or not, I run around the track a few times on most Sundays. It's not serious, but I appreciate the fact that I could run pretty fast if I needed to run. So I do. I'm never going to be big into running because I'm pretty old to be putting extra stress on my knee joints. But runs around a little gym are quite fun. :D
:-) Marion
I will definitely be tracking how things go with my eating while I'm in the States.
DeleteI don't know if I'll ever be a runner, but I do have some running goals that I hope to hit :)
Im a daily weigher too and I also know I shouldn't but I need it to keep honest. Don't worry, you are doing all the right things and the results will show.
ReplyDeleteP.S. That cartoon is me on many days :-)
The cartoon was definitely me this morning! :)
DeleteI weigh daily as well - and honestly, I think it does help me stay on track. It also allowed me to go see my doctor this week and be confident when I told him I was up almost 6 pounds without having eaten enough extra calories to legitimately have gained 6 pounds - he's running blood tests based on that.
ReplyDeleteWhen I know my eating is off track, the daily weigh helps me reel myself back in before I'm off the rails... good luck, and have a fun trip!
I totally agree!
DeleteThanks Kris :)
Hi,I think it's very normal for the scale to fluctuate a little, sometimes for me I gain a little and suddenly in the next day or two my weight goes down more...(I just think my body is weird...so usually when my scale goes up and if I have maintained my eating,workouts I know in a day or two I would lose more pounds than expected for sure)
ReplyDeleteSometimes a plateau could mean a good thing, maybe you are closer to your ideal weight so you are losing slowly,or maybe your body has become more fit so it's used to your exercise routine...If I'm stuck I usually make a new plan like you and take it up more like a challenge to move the scale...who is going to win the plateau or me :)
Wow congrats jog!! I need that to happen to me wahoo!!
ReplyDeleteGood job with the running!
ReplyDeleteI am kind of in the same place with food as you are! Did you modify anything yet?