Thank you very much, midwife. It's good to hear from you.
The process here is rolling on, and all I can say is that it's good I've got a sense of humour.
Chicken and veg soup for lunch, made quickly by my mum, who's 90, out of some chicken stock made by the SO a few weeks ago and left in the freezer. It was very good. I am going out to various banks now. I'm planning a pot of chamomile tea in a nice cafe but I'm not going to have any of their delicious cakes. Looking at myself in my mother's bathroom mirror is quite alarming and working on food intake is essential.
Didn't I say that I've been naturally waking at 4 AM and just staying in bed for no reason? Didn't I say I'd start getting up and doing exercises when I woke? Well, what on earth happened? Over the three day weekend, I did't get up until 5:30 and then both Tuesday and today I didn't wake up until 4:40 (I usually get up at 4:45). I may have to start setting my alarm again because the darn cat (who usually jumps on me around 4 AM) didn't even show up in the bedroom this morning.
Anyway, I have been good. I love my stability ball and my aching muscles must mean I'm doing something right.
We golfed three days over the weekend and then on Monday after golf I started my exercising. I exercised again after work yesterday and will do so when I get home tonight. Thankfully DH is busy with a project at home so I have "free time" to do the exercising, but I hope to start doing it in the morning instead.
Food is good. But I was thinking that it's a little lopsided. I eat a LOT of vegetables but it seems there is little to no fruit in my diet. I was eating berries with yogurt for breakfast but lately that has changed. I should add that back in. Dinners have been mostly vegetable based with little to no meat just because it doesn't interest me that much. I wonder if I'm getting too little protein. I should start using MFP again to record food.
Glad to see a bit of action on this thread. I've been doing well lately in the unglamorous process of "eating well" (saying no to the food that does not contribute substantially to making me feel better). I haven't weighed for a while; I know that progress will be slow, incremental loss at best so I'm hoping to wait until progress may be detectable.
I also don't eat enough protein per my logging. I bounce from being vegan only to allowing small amounts of eggs or seafood in my diet. It gets pretty difficult to eat either eggs or seafood that is both acceptably humane in animal treatment AND sustainable (or minimally detrimental to the environment in their farming). Fortunately we now get eggs from a friend's pampered chickens so that is very helpful. Several local egg producers are now Certified Humane so that's another good option, especially since so many CA producers refuse to comply with Prop 2. Our animal production systems must seem Neanderthalic (is that a word?) to Europeans.
I've been doing well lately in the unglamorous process of "eating well" (saying no to the food that does not contribute substantially to making me feel better).
Oh well done! It all counts.
Protein - Greek yogurt, cottage cheese?
I am trying to work on the unglamorous subject of getting to sleep at the right time for me. All my experience tells me that this is the lynchpin of successful weight loss for me. But the DB is keen to talk to me at a late hour, just as I am pegging out and need to cram in the recreational reading neurodoc and I were talking about on another thread. One hour before midnight is definitely worth two afterwards for me.
Weights today. I'm really getting this straight again and my SI joint is thanking me for it.
I finally did it. I got up at 4:20 and did my workout before my shower. That is much more satisfying than doing it after work and betting a bit sweaty with no time to shower before fixing dinner. I'll have to remember that and keep it up. Meanwhile adding the weights is definitely helping and I feel it. A lot! But that's good!
Weight is up today for an unknown reason. I really need to work on the diet part to start losing again. At this point I have about 15 pounds to lose.
I've been lurking mostly as well. I haven't made much (any) progress and most days feel lucky to just be holding the line. Better times ahead, however. I have a hard start date of 6/22 for my new job, DS will be out for the summer in two weeks, and the big BBQ headache is behind us. The only major production still ahead is my garage sale the last weekend in June. I am expecting that the harsh decluttering I do in preparation for that will have some good effects that will translate to decluttering in my head. I have an annual physical on Monday that could potentially be a good smack upside the head as well.
Well, no sooner did I say how well I was doing than I blew it last night with stress/late night work eating. And it caused some pretty bad heartburn; I can't get away with eating less than 2 hours before going to bed. So, totally unproductive eating with negative consequences; it's my forte. Back on the straight path today.
Silverbirch - I hope you're doing OK and things are returning to normal now. I completely understand about the sleep thing - I feel cheated and unable to relax if I have to go straight to bed after doing work, without my "unwinding" time of pleasure reading.
Becky - new job, that's exciting (and potentially stressful). Are you worried about it? Do you need to do any preparation or is it quite similar to what you've done before? I apologize if you've explained already on another thread.
Allison - good for you! 4:20 - ugh. Do you go to bed appropriately early? Is it easy to fall asleep?
Allison - good for you! 4:20 - ugh. Do you go to bed appropriately early? Is it easy to fall asleep?
Yup. I rarely stay up past 9:00 or 9:30. My usual get out of bed time is like 4:45 so 4:20 isn't bad. I really could stretch it to 4:30 but then I might be rushing to get ready for work and that is something that I DETEST. I hate being hurried.
And as for falling asleep, I read this thing somewhere recently and if I'm having a hard time relaxing to fall asleep (or even if I wake at some godforsaken time and can't fall back to sleep) it works:
breathe in to the count of five
hold that breath for the count of eight
exhale through your mouth to the count of nine
repeat five to seven times.
It apparently lowers your heart rate which helps relax you. IDK but it works for me.
I'm on a streak. 8 days of my workout. I figured it takes me roughly 20 minutes to complete the workout without rushing anything. Every couple of days I add another component. I started out with 2 sets of 8 reps of each exercise, increased to 12 reps and then 15 reps. Yesterday I upped it to 3 sets of 12. DD says my next step is to increase the weight (currently 8 pounds each on all exercises except abs). If that's the case I need to go shopping (or use my 3 pound wrist weights with the 8 pound bar bell). DD also said she sees how the workout is already defining my upper arms (which is one goal).
Routine:
bent over row, 8 pounds per hand, 3 sets of 12 reps
upright row, 8 pounds per hand, 3 sets of 12 reps
chest press on stability ball, 8 pounds per hand, 3 sets of 12 reps
overhead press on stability ball, 8 pounds per hand, 3 sets of 12 reps
lunges, 8 pounds per hand, 3 sets of 12 reps
squats, 8 pounds per hand, 3 sets of 12 reps
crunches on stability ball 3 sets of 12 reps
components to consider adding:
plank to a count of 30 (with or without stability ball)
side planks, each side to a count of 30
tricep extension or triceps dip with stability ball
lower ab crunch with stability ball
side squat with stability ball
wall squat with stability ball
Thanks for posting your workout. When I saw 'components to consider adding' and 'plank' I thought I should just go for the plank, as I've been putting it off for too long, and my wobbly tummy tells the story.
So this morning, I began. A plank to the count of 14, and not properly on my toes. But it was a plank of some kind. This afternoon, I decided to walk across the suspension bridge as I thought there would be too much traffic the other side. I had forgotten that 40-50 mph winds had been forecast. Anyway, I got across and back (with two bags of shopping) and my abs told me that I had worked against the wind. Thanks, plank!
Food - pretty awful. I'm going to revive that 'abs are made in the kitchen' statement. It used to be everywhere on 3FC but I haven't seen it for ages.
Allison, good job on doing your workout! You definitely need to start adding weight, especially on the bent over row. Have you looked for a set of adjustable dumbbells? I got a used set - goes from 5 pounds each to 20 pounds each, or you can make just one dumbbell with more than 20. If you want to add deadlifts to your routine, you can use a sack of dog food.
Picked my first summer squash last night, but didn't eat it yet. Still working on the overabundance of kale and swiss chard.
It has been shown that higher protein intake helps preserve muscle mass, even in the absence of exercise. So eat that protein! I get mine from eggs, greek yogurt, other dairy, lean meat (esp chicken), egg protein powder, lentils, sometimes beans, and a smaller amount from veggies like broccoli. I eat about 115-125 grams of protein per day.
Birchie, I definitely agree with your abs in the kitchen statement! But a strong core is so central to fitness and avoiding back aches that even if you can't see them, you should work the abs
Last edited by HowlinAtTheMoon; 06-02-2015 at 03:40 PM.
Allison, good job on doing your workout! You definitely need to start adding weight, especially on the bent over row. Have you looked for a set of adjustable dumbbells? I got a used set - goes from 5 pounds each to 20 pounds each, or you can make just one dumbbell with more than 20. If you want to add deadlifts to your routine, you can use a sack of dog food.
Tomorrow I'll add my 3 pound wrist weights to the 8 pound dumbbells for the added weight.
I can't use dog food for anything as I feed a frozen raw concoction that comes in 1 pound bricks. Perhaps kitty litter instead!
And I am going to look at some heavier weights. I'm not sure if I should buy them locally or through Amazon (where I spend my American Express points rather than "real" money).
Hello all! Sorry for my very sporadic check ins. I had a blip of my weight going up to 153, but it's back down to 151 now. I've definitely been slacking off lately on the diet front, and entirely on the exercise front. Exercise just isn't enough of a priority for me at the moment to make time for it.
I am trying to do better about food though, and stick to my plan of no seconds at dinner and exactly one treat per week. (the fact that I forgot to bring a snack to work yesterday and ended up eating a 600cal bag of trail mix belies this claim)
Better times ahead, however. I have a hard start date of 6/22 for my new job, DS will be out for the summer in two weeks, and the big BBQ headache is behind us. The only major production still ahead is my garage sale the last weekend in June. I am expecting that the harsh decluttering I do in preparation for that will have some good effects that will translate to decluttering in my head. I have an annual physical on Monday that could potentially be a good smack upside the head as well.
