On Sunday morning I could hear my phone chime from far beneath the covers. It was 8 a.m. and my friend Katie was letting me know that she and her husband John were en route to the start of the St. Luke's Half-Marathon, in which John would be running. The start line was a block from my house, and for the past 30 minutes I had been trying to ignore the bubbly voices streaming past my bedroom window. I agreed to meet Katie - after a big cup of coffee - at the finish line.
Once upon a time, I ran my first 5k at this very race. After taking a "Beginning Running" class (yes, we all have to start somewhere) I signed up. I tackled a few more, but never hit my stride, excuse the pun. The races provided good motivation for me, not because I wanted to break a PR, but because I simply wanted to cross the finish line, and to do so I had to log the hours in training.
A few years ago I was even inspired to walk a full marathon. I coaxed my friend Leah into joining me and the two of us trained by walking hours on end. We finished the Hartford Marathon in just over 7 hours and it's safe to say I will never, ever walk (nor run) another marathon in this lifetime. I was frustrated that I didn't lose weight during the training process, but I did gain strength and endurance. It also gave me the chance to get to know Leah much better. Walking 10 or 15 miles at a stretch gives you the time to talk that you can never quite do over the occasional lunch or happy hour. I'm sure she was cursing me under her breath on more than one occasion though!
Inspired by seeing John cross the finish line on Sunday, and hearing my friend Michelle recount her first-ever 5k, I began thinking about what comes next. Having a big goal helps motivate me and distract me from weight-loss tunnel vision. It's easier to think about a race than a scale. I started looking online for women's triathlons last night. This morning I checked my email and saw a message from Leah:
Subject: My Two Bucket List Goals for Fitness - Complete a Triathlon and Backpack a Section of the Appalachian trail - Want to join!
What are the chances? So now I'm thinking, can I complete a triathlon?
Tuesday, April 27, 2010
Saturday, April 24, 2010
My Frenemy the Scale
I got on the scale at the gym on Tuesday morning and I was down two pounds. Two pounds! Psychologically it gave me the mental boost I needed to bang out a good workout. Thursday morning I returned to the gym, got on the scale, and I gained five pounds. Five pounds?? WTF.
I couldn't help but feel deflated. When women get their period (as I had that Thursday) their body doesn't cooperate in more ways than one. According to Weight Watchers, the biggest culprit of weight gain during a menstrual cycle is water retention. Read "Menstrual Cycle and Weight Gain." But they assure me that it's minor and temporary. I don't really consider five pounds minor when I'm knocking off a mere one to two pounds a week. Two things will help offset the water retention: lower your sodium intake and drink more fluids. I'll keep that in mind for next time.
This actually raises a bigger issue for me though. How often is too often to get on the scale? I struggle to resist the call of the scale when I walk into the gym. I want to know at any given time just how much weight I (hopefully) lost. But our bodies can fluctuate as much as three pounds a day. So, daily weigh-ins are a sure saboteur to any progress. I'm going to try to get on the scale once a week - the same day, the same time. And maybe next month at this time I avoid the scale altogether before it ends up mangled in the locker room trash.
I couldn't help but feel deflated. When women get their period (as I had that Thursday) their body doesn't cooperate in more ways than one. According to Weight Watchers, the biggest culprit of weight gain during a menstrual cycle is water retention. Read "Menstrual Cycle and Weight Gain." But they assure me that it's minor and temporary. I don't really consider five pounds minor when I'm knocking off a mere one to two pounds a week. Two things will help offset the water retention: lower your sodium intake and drink more fluids. I'll keep that in mind for next time.
This actually raises a bigger issue for me though. How often is too often to get on the scale? I struggle to resist the call of the scale when I walk into the gym. I want to know at any given time just how much weight I (hopefully) lost. But our bodies can fluctuate as much as three pounds a day. So, daily weigh-ins are a sure saboteur to any progress. I'm going to try to get on the scale once a week - the same day, the same time. And maybe next month at this time I avoid the scale altogether before it ends up mangled in the locker room trash.
Thursday, April 22, 2010
The Losing Streak Starts Here
So this is what it's come to. I have been battling with weight issues since I landed in middle school, and now I'm resorting to some good old-fashion public humiliation to get myself on track. The truth is, I'm like so many other women who think about their body as many times a day as men think about sex. But at 34, I've reached a point in my life where it's no longer just about how I look, it's about how I feel (although I'd be lying if I said I didn't want the kick-ass body to go with the optimal health.)
Like countless other women, I've tried all the diets - with little to no success. Ok, no success. Weight Watchers, Atkins, The South Beach Diet, The Abs Diet - you name the food, I've either eaten it or given it up. This time, it's all me. It's my diet. I'm owning this weight loss and I'm not paying to have someone publicly weigh me or another book that collects dust on a shelf. And my hope is that others will help keep me on my toes.
I know what to do. No, honestly I do, I can prove it. Read Get on a Losing Streak and you'll wonder why the hell I can't practice what I preach. But I can, or at least I've convinced myself I can. And it all starts now. I don't plan on chronicling the ins and outs of my day. No one wants to read that. Instead, I'm going to cull all the information and recipes I pore through day after day in an effort to learn how to slowly, steadily, healthily lose the weight that's kept me from skinny jeans and a bikini for years.
Like countless other women, I've tried all the diets - with little to no success. Ok, no success. Weight Watchers, Atkins, The South Beach Diet, The Abs Diet - you name the food, I've either eaten it or given it up. This time, it's all me. It's my diet. I'm owning this weight loss and I'm not paying to have someone publicly weigh me or another book that collects dust on a shelf. And my hope is that others will help keep me on my toes.
I know what to do. No, honestly I do, I can prove it. Read Get on a Losing Streak and you'll wonder why the hell I can't practice what I preach. But I can, or at least I've convinced myself I can. And it all starts now. I don't plan on chronicling the ins and outs of my day. No one wants to read that. Instead, I'm going to cull all the information and recipes I pore through day after day in an effort to learn how to slowly, steadily, healthily lose the weight that's kept me from skinny jeans and a bikini for years.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
