Miles update

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 291

Day 26 of 9#

Today is W/M day, although there will be disappointment on one of those fronts. I have not been walking this week, because I am grumpy and it has been raining. Not excuses, just letting you know.

Starting W/M
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today:
W: inconclusive. My scale would not give me a consistent reading today--it is between 156 and 158. Weighing went a little like: 156, 158, 157, 158, 156, 158, 157. I usually weigh myself 3 times in a row, just to make sure that the analog scale isn't too wacky. No help today.

M: 40.5-33.5-40.5

Last week:
W: 156
M: 40-33.5-40.5

There's some creep in the boobage! Haha. I need to get out of this funk and start walking again. Strangely enough, walking again would probably help me get out of this funk and the only thing I have control over. I can't say how long I will feel yucky, but I can make myself put my walking clothes on and download a podcast.

Day 21 of 9#

Just an update that I did actually get up this morning and go for a walk. I've missed my walks!


BMR: 343.5
FMR: 293

Day 20 of 9#

We had a great afternoon walk at a park associated with the university. The trail description that led us there said it would be 1.2 miles, but I'm pretty sure we walked more than that. The trails weren't really marked all that well, so it was a bit rambly. It was a nice stroll, and I'm going to give myself the extra .07 of a mile--but no more!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 295

Day 19 of 9#

Ok, so I have not tracked my calories or done any official exercise this week. This has to do with the fact that we were running out of food here at home, and I knew I wouldn't be as well-balanced. So I gave up! Also, I wanted to give my leg a rest and that just snowballed into sluggishness the rest of the week.

I am going to give myself two miles for all the walking we did at the fair--we walked pretty much the whole time we were at the state fair this week--from 4:45-9:45 pm. Ok, so we sat down while we ate and when we had a snack, but that was less than an hour. The rest of the time, we were on our feet. It was a blast--I love fairs, especially ones with all the animals and 4-H entries and different varieties of veggies.

As a result, when I did my W/M this morning this is what I got:

Beginning:
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today
W: 156
M: 40-33.5-40.5

Obviously, the lesson is that I should sit around on my rear all the time and eat pizza or fried egg sandwiches. I think that the weight/inches loss is just residual from the work I did in the previous weeks, and that a rest week is not going to set me back all that much. Next week, I will go back to my 14 mile goal and work on it.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 296.27

Day 14 of 9#

Well, I did my final two miles of my 14-mile weekly goal! The bad news is that the muscle on the outside of my left knee has been a bit achy this week, so I need to be sure to stretch more. Right now, I'm not stretching anything but my back--it just feels so good when I'm all warmed up! That's not enough, though, so I will look up some good stretches and get to it.

On the eating front, I basically threw any and all healthy guidelines out the window. Three sodas. Yes, three. I should be awake until 5 am. Ha! Two packs of crackers. But, we had a pretty healthy soup for dinner and breakfast wasn't horrendous. I just didn't like what I made for lunch, and it wasn't enough. Tomorrow is another day, though. We'll see how that works out, I guess.

It's time for me to set another weekly exercise goal. I'm glad that I increased my walking mileage without any problem this week (the knee is not a problem, it will fix itself). This coming week, I want to increase from 14 miles to. . . .17. That will give me three days of 3 miles and the rest of them are two miles. Since I can get a leisurely and flat mile in at the park nearby with no problem most days, it shouldn't be all that taxing to add a third mile every other day. It doesn't have to be all in one piece.

I find that when I listen to my podcast, I walk much faster. Unfortunately, I've recently picked shows that are more opinion-oriented and found myself exclaiming OUT LOUD at random points. Or throwing my hands up in the air and making faces. So far, I seem to have been unobserved when shrieking What!? and Oh, PLEASE, but that can't last long.

And, I've finally walked my first 100 miles of my 1000 mile journey. No, it doesn't look like I will make it this year, but I'll keep it up until the end of the year. Just see how far it goes. I might try again next year.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 298.27

Well, today I thought I would get a bike ride in. . .but I was lazy and played on the internet. I also didn't walk this morning, which probably has something to do with the internets, too. Grr! Haha.

And although I did finally eat something that was a veggie, mostly I ate donuts and had a fried egg and bacon sandwich for lunch. Stellar!

Other than that, my day has been excellent! I organized our outdoor storage, went to the farmer's market, walked (woohoo!) and watched some football. Nothing much, but a good day with beautiful weather. That stupid 14 mile goal this week has really gotten me moving, because I didn't want to blow it with only one day left. I'm sure I could have gotten four miles in tomorrow, but I would like to be able to get the bike out some, too. It's bad enough that I basically need to walk 4 miles every day until the end of the year to meet my foot miles! Hah!

Anywho!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 300.27

Day 12 of 9#

Well, I did make it to the park yesterday to walk. But. . .because it has decided to be fall (finally) I only walked one mile because I got chilly! I'm going back this afternoon for my make-up mile, though, so no worries. Working toward a short-term goal has really been a good thing for me. Usually my goals are huge (like the 1000 mile project) and they stretch out for so long, I tend not to think about them too much any given day.

I also got up this morning and walked/ran my usual two miles. Instead of feeling hungry and grumpy the whole way, I ate breakfast first and puttered around a bit before getting out the door. I don't have to be tied down to a routine (although it helps)! I also ran one more section between intersections than I usually do, which is progress. I like that I am just running when I feel like it, and still making some progress. It would be wonderful if I could become a runner who runs for the fun of it! Maybe I can let that happen and not plan it to death.

Oh yes, and it is weight and measures day.

Beginning:
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today
W: 158
M: 40-34-40.5

I am getting smaller--it's not all in my head! The strange thing is that I don't feel any increased desire to stick to my plan because I'm seeing some results. Meh. Hah! I'm happier that I felt good running this morning. I do like the fact that my clothes are fitting a bit smoother, but it is not like a REWARD for hard work. Oh well, I'm going to keep working at it. The fact that technically I gained a pound and lost more in the measurement just highlights that the 9# weight goal is completely arbitrary. What if I smoothed my lumpy tummy out and never lost the weight?


BMR: 343.5
FMR: 302.27

Day 11 of 9#

Well, I felt all my motivation leave yesterday. I'm not sure exactly why--I think part of it is because I felt so yucky yesterday. My head hurt most of the day, which I usually associate with not eating well. So I ate more and more until I just gave up and took some pain medicine. That is what I should have done in the first place because my blood sugar wasn't screwed up yesterday, it is just TTOM and I have a minor headache.

Arg. Maybe I was experiencing a little bit of perfectionism there, expressed in all-or-nothing thoughts. Whatever, I'm over that now! Sort of. I did not get outside this morning because I felt as if I just needed a rest. Don't worry, I'm still going to get my two miles in today! It will just be at a leisurely pace in a nearby park in another hour or two.

The weather is perfect for bike riding! It has finally cooled off--I was pleasantly surprised this afternoon when I ran some errands.

Tomorrow is W/M, and I am looking forward to seeing how this week affected those stats. I feel as if my clothes are already fitting a bit better, but I always feel better about myself when I am moving more, so I'm not sure that is an accurate feeling.

Also, my fitday will not be as accurate today. I made banana nut muffins to use up two overripe bananas, and had one for a snack. I might have another in about an hour, too! Besides the bananas and nuts, I also added oats to increase the goodness. I'm thinking of it as a decently healthy snack--not like a piece of fruit, but more nutritious than a soda and a pack of crackers. It makes me feel good to eat things that I've made. I'm keeping out a couple (for me and Dr. MM), but the rest are going in the freezer! That will give me almost a week of snacks or breakfast options.

ETA: I am interested in making these banana nut muffins even more full of yummy goodness. I guess I could change to whole-wheat flour and maybe add more banana and less oil. Hmm, I will have to look into that.

I'll update again later when I've gone to the park.

Day 10 of 9#

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 305.27

I did not increase my distance today because I was starving! I just wanted to come home and eat my breakfast--probably because I slept later than usual. 14.5 minutes/mile because I ran part of it.

Day 9 of 9#

It seems that I am always surprised that actual planning means something more than resolving to do something. Resolving to walk/run 14 miles this week just means that I pledge to do it, I think about it. Planning is more than just thinking about that, it means that I make sure that I have clean clothes to wear to do those things, that I eat enough to make it pleasant, that I set the alarm early enough to get out when I like to walk, that I write the email to my running partner, etc. I have to do something more than just put my clothes on and get out the door.

That is probably a common theme of all my entries here, and maybe that is what this blogging experience is supposed to teach me: in order to make a change in your life, you have to be willing to take action to support that change. It isn't enough to say that I will eat more green veggies. I have to actually go to the store and buy green veggies that I enjoy eating. That sounds simple, and it is for little things. The hard part is breaking the big things (I will live a healthy lifestyle) down into the little things that you can do.

This morning, I didn't have any clean workout clothes. None. It's laundry time, and I hadn't bothered to do it yet. So I didn't get up and walk today, which meant that it was pretty likely that I wouldn't do it at all. I almost didn't. But, after I got the first load that contained workout clothes out of the dryer, I thought--why not walk this evening? I want to meet my walking goal, and I want to get rid of these 9 pounds (7 remaining). So, I got ready and went. There were more bugs, people, and dogs than I usually see, but it was a good walk. I stupidly recorded a podcast that I had already heard part of yesterday, which was slightly annoying, but it wasn't the end of the world. Soon I may add more mileage to my route because I was just starting to feel really good at the end. Maybe tomorrow I will make a loop instead of just out and back!

Also, I think that the food has evened out some. I'm no longer ravenous, but still getting hungry around meal times and in the afternoon (snacktime). That is acceptable, and I'm still eating regular amounts of food. In other words, I don't feel as if 1700 calories is restrictive. Of course, I'm still planning my food out ahead of time, so when I get hungry I know what I can have. That helps so much. I am thinking about looking at weekly averages for my nutrition to give me a bigger picture, and because I think that might be more meaningful in the long run.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 307.27

Day 8 of 9#

Well, this weekend was sort of a bust when it came to eating healthy--lots of snacking on the road and several restaurant meals. One of the restaurant meals was a "healthy" option--but it tasted way too sweet and the food was all overcooked. The rest were just the regular stuff I would eat at a restaurant normally--one fast food burger/fries/shake, one salad with lasagne, one general buffet meal (probably pretty healthy, actually, because it was real food prepared simply). We had cokes on the road and snacks--which isn't horrible, since otherwise I would have been drinking coffees. The bad thing is that I have had really bad indigestion most of the weekend, which I'm sure says something about the healthiness of the things I ate.

Anyway, the bikes weren't up for riding when I got there so I didn't get my 10 miles in. Oh, well. I will try to ride some this week, since the weather is so beautiful. Having a short term goal for walking/running really helped motivate me to get out the door, so I am going to set another one for this week. If I want to finish my 1000 mile walking/running goal by the end of the year, then I need to walk about 3.7 miles each day in order to make my goal. So if I wanted my weekly miles to reflect that, I would need to walk 26 miles this week. That's a pretty tall order, and I tried to give myself a little bit of a baby step last week by only requiring 10 miles. Ten miles is very do-able. Fourteen miles is probably very do-able. Well, I'm just going to set an attainable goal (very unlike me) and try for 14 miles at the minimum for this week. And a bike ride of any length. What matters is that I am working toward these goals

And, perhaps unsurprisingly, just like the food this weekend made my stomach hurt, the lack of exercising had some negative effects. I felt stiffer than I usually do during our long car rides and my sleep was definitely not as deep. I'm hoping that as I get back into my groove I will start sleeping better also.

On the healthy goals front, I have only progressed to number 11. I've been much better recently about dressing in things other than a free t-shirt and jeans, so I've been thinking about 11 for a while now. Most of my nice clothes are in the fall/winter season of my wardrobe, so I won't have as much trouble as I do in the summer. I'm looking forward to sweaters! I think I'm just going to scale down from adding something new everyday to adding something new from this list every week. This week, we focus on keeping old habits and adding nice clothes.

1. Floss every night.
2. 15 minutes of moving every day.
3. Eat a cup of green.
4. Use a moisturizer with sunscreen every day.
5. Say no to soda. (I've been sucked in again.)
6. Have a cup or piece of fruit.
7. Read your devotions.
8. Plan for 8 hours of sleep every night.
9. 15 minutes of upkeep so I can pass for a charming Southern belle.
10. Pick out some great earrings to wear.
11. Dress as if you are special.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 309.27

Day 5 of 9#

Starting
W: 159
M: 41-34.5-41

Today
W: 157
M: 40.5-34.5-41

Well, I did get to see some progress today with both weights and measures. Woohoo! I'm sure getting out the door and doing some good work for myself is a big part of that. I'm already experiencing the usual side effects of exercising more, though: I'm getting to bed earlier and feeling better about how I look.

Today is a road trip for us, and we'll be away all weekend from the computer. I will try to keep track of my food, but there is not a lot I can do ahead of time. On the other hand, I will be able to exercise and hopefully get my bike miles in to meet my goal.

Yesterday was my first day this week of eating more than I planned by a decent amount--I ate a little bit of leftover potatoes and two pieces of cubed steak (instead of one). On the positive side, I got almost all my nutrients and the only real sticky points besides calories were fat % and fiber was a little low. I can live with that.

I've met my walking/running miles for this week, and I hope to get my bike miles in over the next two days (and maybe some walking, too!). Good for me!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 311.27

Day 4 of 9#

Yes, I am still working on the fitness list--I haven't forgotten it! But I am stalled a bit, until I come back from the weekend. My mind gets stuck sometimes, and it's helpful to just start over again at some point. (And hope that I'm not too far from the starting point.)

I'm tracking the days of the 9# challenge because I want to see how long it takes to get to my goal, even though the deadline is the end of the year. Perhaps I will lose the weight before then, and I would like to know how long it took.

Also, I started out thinking that I wasn't very hungry on my new reduced-calorie diet--isn't that nice! Yeah, well that lasted about a day. I am hungry often, which is probably because I am exercising more regularly and eating less. On one hand, it is slightly annoying to have to figure out what I can eat in my plan. On the other, I don't mind feeling hungry--it bothers me MUCH more when it is time to eat and I'm not. Not that I eat on a strict schedule, but what I mean is that when I haven't burned off my breakfast enough to want lunch when I need to eat it (or I get grouchy/headachy). Being hungry should just be a natural and recurring part of the day, in my mind. It tells you when you need to eat and drink. Gah, but when you eat a snack, it should GO AWAY! Haha. If I am still very hungry every afternoon after this weekend, I may have to increase my calories so I have more fuel to do more things!

I have a running date tonight, so I haven't gotten my miles in for today yet.

ETA: Why is running + talking so much harder? I have got to work on my running so my partner doesn't feel like she is barely working. Only two more miles left--I should get those in tomorrow morning to meet my goal! Also, I wasn't so hungry today after my Cl!f bar with lunch. Planning out my day ahead of time is working out pretty well, because I know what my options are. For instance, I really wanted a glass of milk after eating my pre-run banana, so I juggled my calories around and did it. Of course, I think I am changing what we are having for dinner tonight, so I may not end up with what I started. Oh well. Tomorrow is W/M, and I'm really interested to see if there is any change yet.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 313.27

Day 3 of 9#

Well, yesterday was a pretty decent day when it came to eating. I'm always surprised at how easily our regular food can fit into lower calories and higher nutrition--we had turkey chili last night, and I had multigrain crackers with it. Later, I wanted to munch on something--just not the small handful of salad that I had planned. We made a pot of green tea instead and enjoyed that with a little bit of honey. I ended up about 15 calories over 1700 in fitday, which is fine with me.

The only thing I need to be careful about is portion size--I measured out my chili serving--although usually I wouldn't eat that much more anyway. I forgot that I was only getting a half cup of yogurt in my plan yesterday, and thought I had a whole cup of yogurt--when I measured that out, I thought there would be no way I could eat it all. I did, of course, but it was really twice as much yogurt as I would eat normally.

Really, most of the time I don't eat horribly or even too much. I just get slack about eating leafy green veggies and give myself too many treats. And sit at the computer all day. What I've been doing is adding in all my food for the day after breakfast, to make sure that I am getting a good mix of nutrients and not going overboard on fat. Then, when I am hungry I know what I have planned and don't get off track. It is working out pretty well, so far.

This morning, I changed out my battery in my mp3 player and downloaded the latest podcast of the news show I listen to. I used to think that this just took too long to do in the morning, and so if it wasn't ready, I wouldn't walk. It takes about 5 minutes. It's not as if I have somewhere to be, so what is five more minutes? Only four miles left this week to meet my goal!

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 315.27

Maybe it won't be that hard after all.. . .

Well, yesterday I ate less than 1700 calories, and I'm on track to do it again today. Maybe it won't be such a burden after all--or at least as long as I keep my flavor of ice cream out of the house and stay stocked up on salad greens and fruit. Yesterday, I was very, very full after dinner and moaned about that forever--right now, I'm starving so I think I will have my snack now instead of after dinner.

On the other hand, I'm dead tired today--but I think that is the allergy medicine I took. Either my cats are really getting to me, or there is something in the air at this time of year that does not agree with me. Of course, because it's been reformulated, the medicine doesn't really work as well--my eyes are dry and the runny nose/sneezing has probably only decreased about 80%. Which isn't good enough, when coupled with the fact that I could probably sleep for a couple of hours. Next time, I will only take one of them.

I've just returned from my two mile walk this afternoon, which was nice--although my mp3 player's battery died a half mile into the walk. Grr. I even considered bringing along another battery as back-up, but didn't, which practically guaranteed that it would die.

Well, I am going to take a nap/watch tv until Dr. MM comes home for dinner.

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 317.27

9 pounds to lose. . .

My first step forward on weight loss: running/walking 2 miles at 14.5 min/mile.

My first step backward: eating a brownie for breakfast.

Hah! We don't have any food in the house, so a brownie is what it is. But, I made a huge list last night and as soon as I get a shower and write some emails I will be off to the grocery store. Woohoo!

This week, I want to walk/run 10 miles and ride my bike 10 miles. That is the minimum. Only 8 miles left to go, on the walk/run side. (Ideally, I would be able to do 25 so that I could keep up with my FMR and 27 for BMR--but we are just going to focus on getting out there. Yes, I still think that it is possible to meet my 1000 mile goal!)

BMR: 343.5
FMR: 319.27