October Health & Fitness Support

[Gina]

A new month begins. :D

My goals for October are the same as for last month - to concentrate on doing what is necessary for good health, primarily eating well. As in more vegetables http://www.simplelivingforum.net/attachment.php?attachmentid=150&d=1294385638, and eating less things such as saturated fats and salt. :spam:

There are many things on the 'good for you list', and I'm having a difficult time working them all in. I know I don't have to, but I want to. 'Greens', berries, seeds, tea, wine, fish, fiber... Fortunately I enjoy most of what I am trying to consume. But while I am not trying on purpose to lose weight, I am also trying to eat less. (I have to fool myself on that one. :devil: )

If I am half as successful this month as last, I'll be happy. :+1:

What are your goals for this month?

[fidgiegirl]

Hi Gina!

Thanks for the smile. Glad I found this thread - I almost missed it and started one, too.

I think that my focus of September - getting in more workouts and eating less, but also more healthy, was a success in many ways. As always, there are things to improve.

I still want to get away from using the scale. I didn't use it at all in September and have no desire to have a peek. I am happy with my sustained positive attitude toward my health choices. Last night I was starting to beat myself up about having skipped a possibility for a run and with DH's help and my own mental power I was able to overcome it. However, skipping weekly weigh-ins has the disadvantage of letting my mind wander from the goal of improved health choices. I am supposed to take my measurements today (waist, hips, etc.) but probably will not. I don't think my body has changed any externally and so I don't want to risk a disappointment. I can measure in a few weeks or in another month. Internally, I know I am getting stronger at my workouts, so that's encouraging. Mentally, I feel more like I enjoy when I do workout and that it is something I desire to DO, not something I desire to try to GET OUT OF. All good things.

So this month, I am going to try to do some kind of daily check in. That might be here, it might be simply tracking fitness minutes on My Fitness Pal, or maybe even occasionally tracking my food (I have kind of a weird bad taste in my mouth about tracking food because of many many failures at meeting my goal when I was intensively trying to use SparkPeople). But every day I'm going to try to be mindful about my health choices.

I could make a laundry list of health goals but need to avoid that. It fuels my sense of failure around health and fitness. My hope is that mindfulness, a la what YMOYL did for my relationship with money, will naturally bring about the choices I want to make.

Ooh, new thread idea coming on.

[Glo]

I've been bad about eating and exercise in September; in fact, I've gained 5 pounds! So, I'm determined to get those 5 pounds off plus 2 or 3 more. I did have a health scare this month, I'm still waiting for test results so that's been weighing heavily on my mind. Getting back on track is not easy!

[fidgiegirl]

Hi Glo and harmony!! Thinking positive thoughts for both of you in your health goals. Glo, I hope you find out your news soon. It's so hard not to know. Harmony, I would have such a hard time if I had to be up that early.

Went for a run tonight in the beautiful sun, with the gorgeous leaves around a cute little lake in a new park. It was wonderful.

[fidgiegirl]

How is everyone doing?

Here I did fitness testing and body measurements yesterday. No real difference in my body measurements but I improved my crunch test and push up test from six weeks ago. Six weeks ago I did 14 and 15; yesterday I could do 21 and 22. Yippee!!!!

I am also noticing that I am eating less food at each meal. Well, that's anecdotal.

I am not brave enough to get out the scale yet. I am feeling too good about my progress; I got a taste of my old health negativity even when I got out the measuring tapes and had really no difference. So I'm definitely NOT getting out the scale.

Next weekend is a 5K that I'm very much looking forward to! I will try to run twice this week. Maybe tomorrow after work . . .

[Rosemary]

I got off track while my mom was visiting the past few weeks. I find it very difficult to stay caught up with everything all at once when there are any big changes to my routine. I went to 2 of my 3 exercise classes each week, but walked less than usual, although with the nice weather we did go walking at a lot of nice places - just not at my usual exercise pace. I also ate out more than usual, and ate richer food than usual, although there were still daily salads in the mix. So today, I began to catch up again, and ate nothing but whole foods all day... and it felt good.

What would help next time we have visitors? Mainly, sticking to my plan of just not eating flour or sugar. It's not that difficult in theory, even when eating out.
Overall, though, it was good. We had a nice visit with each other and fun exploring different places.

[fidgiegirl]

Glad you are back at it, Rosemary, and that you enjoyed time with your mom.

[lhamo]

I'm also finding it hard to stay on track -- first it was that work event with daily access to delicious German pastries (AAAAGH!) and virtually no time for working out, followed shortly therafter by the local holiday for national day and a trip to the inlaws (also no good workout options and too much food/lazing about). This week is shaping up to be busy and hectic. Blah.

But, on the positive side, my weight is holding steady at 66 kilos. Goal is to get that down to 63 by the end of the year, which will be a challenge as winter is prime hibernation/carb craving season for me. I'm hoping that the reductions in carbs I've already done and better awareness of what triggers binges will help keep me on track.

I can now easily swim 15+ laps without resting between, which is quite an improvement in a little over a month of regular swimming. I feel the muscles improving in my chest, shoulders, arms, and legs from that. I am keeping up with running and planning to up my average speed over the coming month. Also keeping up with weights, though I need to start pushing myself a bit more there.

All in all not doing horribly. But aiming to do better.

lhamo

[fidgiegirl]

I can now easily swim 15+ laps without resting between, which is quite an improvement in a little over a month of regular swimming. I feel the muscles improving in my chest, shoulders, arms, and legs from that. I am keeping up with running and planning to up my average speed over the coming month. Also keeping up with weights, though I need to start pushing myself a bit more there.

This is excellent, lhamo! I love the feeling of noticeable improvements in fitness. At this point, I am holding on similar successes as the push to keep moving me forward.

Maybe I'm wrong, but it seems like after a fall off the wagon (which I am falling off frequently, as well, so no dis here) that you are getting back on stronger, quicker and with more resolve every time. Or maybe since that's my issue, I am reading more into yours . . . but I used to blow it with, say, German pastries and then not do anything healthy for myself for weeks!! Now I'd say I get back in the game a lot more quickly and move on. And it seems you are doing the same.

[lhamo]

Yeah, I think I am getting better at climbing back on that wagon and not wallowing in the mud of my failure to keep to my goals. I ROCKED it at the gym yesterday, too! The meeting I thought was going to take up much of my afternoon ended earlier than expected, so I made it home in time to fit in a workout. I decided to push myself a bit on the treadmill, and bumped up my initial running pace to 8.5km/hour (I had been doing 8.0 on a good day). I was doing ok with that so after five minutes bumped it up again to 9.0 for 10 minutes. then up to 9.5 for four minutes and I pushed it up to 10.0 for the last minute. I was pretty sweaty and a bit shaky at the end, but glad I pushed myself. I also did a good upper body weight workout and pushed myself a bit to increase weight levels I had been stuck at for weeks. Need to make more of an effort to make incremental improvements there, too, and not just get stuck in a rut.


I'd been experimenting with using the JOgtunes indie podcast as the background to my runs, but it was proving kind of counterproductive as most of his mixes top out at about 175-180 beats per minute (which works out to be only about 8.5 km/hr), and WAAAY too much of the mix is much slower, in the 140-170 range (which is way down in the 6-7 km/hour range). I can't quite figure it out, actually -- I feel like I run pretty slow as it is, but that just seems mindbogglingly snaillike to me. It doesn't invigorate me at all. So while I like having music to run to, I need to find something with a higher, sustained pace generally. A friend has recommended podrunner, and they seem to have some mixes in the higher ranges, so I'll probably experiment with that. If anyone has other tips, please let me know.

Oh, one other note about the getting back on the wagon stuff. I think a big part of it has been really making myself more conscious about how horrible I feel when I binge on carbs. I have known all my life I have blood sugar issues, and I know what a cycle of sugar spikes and dips feels like (AWFUL!), but it wasn't until I really cut back on the carbs in a major way and saw that pattern of carb cravings virtually disappear that I was able to get more of a realistic level of control over it. Sugar and refined carbs make me feel awful, basically. I'm much more conscious of it now. So it is easier to resist the temptation to indulge, because I am so much more conscious that while the short-term feeling might be great, every time I let myself go that way I end up with several hours, or sometimes even days, of feeling less than prime at a minimum, and sometimes downright awful.

Good luck with your health goals, everybody! These threads have been incredibly important in keeping me motivated and on track, so anything I can do to encourage everybody else I am glad to do.

lhamo

[fidgiegirl]

Yes, lhamo, they have really helped me, too.

I just went for Week 4, Day 1 of the Couch to 5K program. Disappointingly my tracking app somehow didn't track the whole run, but oh well. I felt good and did two five-minute intervals within my jog (and some shorter ones), but pretty proud of those.

[Rosemary]

re: getting back on the wagon - I, too, have become much more aware of the impact of food choices. I already knew that sugar made me feel bad, but now with a few days that include relatively innocuous small servings of wheat and/or flour, I start to feel that my fingers are swelling and I have a lot less energy. Yesterday and today I had whole foods all day long and I didn't have any energy dip at all in the afternoon, which I had been experiencing for the past couple of weeks - despite getting up before 5am.

[lhamo]

Pushed myself at the gym again today, and made an interesting discovery -- the beats per minute rate on the Podrunner mixes somehow end up being a MUCH faster pace than the JTIP ones. I tried a podrunner session that was supposed to be at 174 BPM, and it had me running at 9.0 km/hr. I swear when I get a song that JTIP says is 174, it only corresponds to about 8.0 km/hour or maybe a little more. Well, the result was I ran a straight 20 minutes at 9.0 today -- thought I was going to conk out after fifteen minutes, but then did the whole "just one more minute" thing repeatedly and kept it going. And didn't slack on my lower body/ab/back weight routine either, even though my legs were pretty wobbly.

I had almost skipped the gym this afternoon with the justification that I would take the kids swimming tonight, but I'm glad I pushed myself not only by going, but then by upping the tempo on my run. There was no excuse not to go, really. And came home to find that DD is already asleep -- she's having a hard time getting used to the more rigorous 1st grade schedule, and had two straight days of after school activities M and Tu and then PE today, so I think she's just wiped. I may go join her :)

lhamo

[lhamo]

Been continuing to push myself at the gym, and I'm liking the results! Yesterday was the Beijing marathon, and I WASN'T running in that, (:)) but decided I'd see how fast I could manage 5 k. Pulled it off in just over 35 minutes, which was 5 minutes faster than I had done it before. Today I decided to punch up my pace even more, so started out with 16 minutes at 9.5, then 3 minutes at 10.0 and the last minute at 10.5. I did 3.2 k in 20 minutes! Next time I'm going to try pushing the earlier part of my run up to 10.0. I guess I was kind of in a rut before, thinking I wasn't ready to up my speed, but there you go -- mind over matter. I also upped the weight amounts on my upper body weight routine.

In addition to continuing to challenge myself more on those things, I am going to make a commitment to do something about my disgusting belly flab. Everything else is getting pretty noticably toned, but the gut just keeps hanging on. It is really annoying. I do crunches every workout, but it doesn't seem to be enough. I have a book on reserve at the library on how to attack belly flab. I'm also going to do more web research. If anyone has things they have done that have worked for them and can share links, etc., I'd be most grateful. I know that after 2 kids and several years of carrying around 30-40 lbs of too much weight I am probably never going to get that chisled ab thing going, but I will be happy if I can whittle down this pooch.

lhamo

[fidgiegirl]

Woohoo, lhamo! My belly bugs me a lot, too, so please pass along any tips!

I need to recommit to veggies and fruits. Am trying to be more mindful about food and especially treats. Went a little hog wild last week. Tonight is beautiful and I want to go for a run but have a headache. Exercise can either really help or really hurt. I don't want to chance hurt tonight.

[fidgiegirl]

Ruh roh. Make that two weeks of hog wild. It's been nearly a week since a workout.

I will NOT let myself get down about it. Just need to start up again.

While the scale thing is keeping me positive, I don't know that I'm really seeing results.

This week: veggies/fruits + at least one Spark People strength or ab video every night.

And you, gals?

[Rosemary]

The scale is showing me the impact of a) eating too many treats during my mom's visit; b) the cooler weather and not being as motivated to be outside moving all day; and c) the annual eating more because it's cold effect (it's happened every fall since I moved here, and never before, that I can recall!). Sigh. I'm trying to keep the focus on soups and salads. Last night I prepped a red lentil daal in the crockpot so that's what I had for breakfast this morning. I'm also trying to plan my exercise into every day so that the day doesn't pass without it happening, as it otherwise does. Today it will be a long walk in the sunny afternoon.

[fidgiegirl]

Hope you enjoyed, Rosemary. Nice and mild today, even if the sun did hide itself away.

I made the mistake (or not) of tracking my food. Am already over, and haven't eaten dinner. Boo.

[fidgiegirl]

Well, it's pretty amazing how just even six minutes of exercise can turn one's attitude around. I literally did six minutes of pilates abs video and then I kind of torqued my shoulder reaching over to cancel out a text that had popped up and interrupted my video. I turned the video off at that point, but felt a lot better even for the six minutes! (Shoulder's fine now, but wasn't sure I should keep going . . . )

We are having a cheesy thing at work where you get points for different fitness activities. As a challenge to myself I am not counting meals at home and breakfast. To me, they are not a challenge, just a way of life. The different points are "miles" for The Amazing Race. Then at each city on the route we will get a little prize. I don't care about the prize (I think it's like a Wrigley gum for Chicago, etc.) but it is pretty affirming to see all the points I have so far even though I feel I haven't been doing my best and am not rolling in the stuff mentioned above. So I will just keep trying! Something is better than nothing!

[fidgiegirl]

How's it going? Watergoddess has proposed a 30 day challenge thread, I see some of us have been posting there, too . . .

Tracking my food. Doing better with fewer snacks.

[lhamo]

Another tough week for me. DH left on a business trip early SUnday, and DS had a huge project due at school that I had to spend most of the day overseeing to make sure it got done, so I didn't go to work out on Sunday which sort of started things off badly. Open day at the middle school on Monday afternoon meant that day was a wash. Parent-teacher conferences on tuesday and Wednesday evenings meant those days were washes as well. Did manage 30 minutes on the treadmill yesterday and today, but didn't do weights or back/abs as I was totally wiped out from a really stressful week at work (multiple crises, too many meetings, just barely feeling back on top of things today).

Resolving to get my butt to the gym for solid workouts the next three days, so that I at least end the month on an up note.

My weight does seem to be holding steady, or even dropping slightly. MIGHT make it to 65 kilos this month. We'll see. Resisting the urge to snack on carby stuff is definitely getting harder as it gets colder and the days get shorter. I think my body must have some bearish-genes in it somewhere that scream "FATTEN UP SO WE CAN HYBERNATE SOON" as soon as fall sets in. Ugh. Sometimes I wish I could sleep for 4-5 months straight and let my body consume all its stored fat...

lhamo

[fidgiegirl]

Sometimes I wish I could sleep for 4-5 months straight and let my body consume all its stored fat...

You might be on to the next weight loss trend!! :D

Seriously, hope the rest of this week and next week is better. I hate those crazy weeks.

[Rosemary]

I find that keeping warm helps to ward off some of that winter eating urge. For me, that means getting regular exercise even when I don't want to and wearing silk longjohns, wool or fleece sweaters, wool socks with sock liners, and sometimes even a hat when inside, nearly every day from November through March.

If I'm feeling warm, I can eat salad even in the winter, but when I'm cold, that is very unappealing, and carb-loaded things covered with melted cheese really appeal instead. Yikes!

On exercise, I've decided to give up the strength training class that I have to drag myself to every week, because I just do not enjoy it, ever, and while I like the instructor, I don't like the subs when she's absent, and I hate the time - right in the middle of the day. I can do some weight work at home while watching a movie or something. In its place I will take an additional Zumba class this winter, because I do enjoy that and it really warms me from head to toe.

[ejchase]

I'm setting a goal for just the next six days - I want to do an informal "detox." It may last longer than six days, but right now, I'm only aiming for that amount of time.

So. For the next six days, I'm going to

Avoid sugar and alcohol.

Have 5-10 servings of fruits and vegetables each day.

Drink at least 32 ounces of water each day.

Do at least twenty minutes of yoga each day.

In addition: I'd like to aim to take a walk through the neighborhood on at least 3 of the next 6 days, and do twenty minutes of TWICE (a.m. and p.m.?) on at least 3 of the next 6 days.

I'll check in and let you know how I'm doing!

[lhamo]

Fall/Winter is definitely a challenging time for fitness goals -- at least it is for me! My weight is pretty much holding steady, but I have NOT been achieveing my goals in the past couple of weeks. Busy at work, plus horrible pollution in Beijing more often than not, and now I've been sick with a bad cold most of this week. Ugh. Back in Seattle for a family visit now, so need to get back on the bandwagon with exercise, at least. Will try to go for a good walk in the fresh air AT LEAST 10 times while I'm here, preferably daily. Might make that a run on some days once I kick this cold (i would end up miserable if I tried to run now, as my sinuses are totally blocked).

the good news is I more than met my initial health goals for 2011 -- aimed to lose 5kgs and lost nearly 10, and I waaaaay surpassed my goals for sessions with a trainer and overall workouts. And hey -- I took up running, which I NEVER imagined as something I would enjoy. Just treated myself to an ipod touch so that I can download the podrunner app that lets you adjust the pace of any music to your running pace.

lhamo

[ejchase]

Congratulations, lahmo, on all your progress in 2011.

I did okay on my "detox" yesterday. I ate enough vegetables and probably drank enough water and did do yoga. I had a couple little cheats: we went to a Christmas party, and the host was very proud of the grog and the cider he had made, so I had a little of both. Otherwise, though, I stayed away from the sweets which felt good.

Going out for a fancy dinner tonight with girlfriends - plan to just have a good salad and bread and avoid the sweets. We'll see.