Thursday, June 26, 2008

Lazy Blog Entry

I get periodic posts from the website of the guy who wrote UltraMetabolism (one of my many diet books - but one I actually like...). Generally I don't bother reading the emails - but this one I did and thought I would pass on. He neglected to mention that the cavemen rarely lived past 30... but his theory would explain WHY the 10 minute exercise videos were doing the trick. They are pretty high intensity - albeit short.

What did our caveman ancestors know about exercise that we didn't? After all, they didn't spend hours in the gym doing painfully long aerobic sessions. But they did have incredible strength, speed and stamina. If they saw a threatening animal like a saber- toothed tiger or even a hungry dinosaur coming at them...you guessed it, it was time to run, and fast. So what did our cavemen ancestors know that we don't? It's something I've talked about repeatedly in my books and blogs and it's the same principle that underlies my dietary recommendations. What they did was do what their genes had evolved to do -- exert tremendous amounts of energy in a short period of time. They didn't run for hours on end, starve themselves with ridiculous diets or lift boulders over their heads to build bigger muscles. Cavemen followed natural cycles of work and rest, or what I call periods of exertion and recovery. This helped them to build their reserve capacity -- their ability to exert tremendous amounts of energy in a short period of time. Reserve capacity means your heart has the ability to pump more blood, faster in times of stress. Reserve capacity for your lungs allows them to deal with high exertion like lifting, carrying, running or going up stairs. And not only did this help caveman build incredibly strong hearts and lungs, but it also made them lean, fat burning machines, which I'll explain why in a second.

The big takeaway here is that if eating like our ancestors did leads to health and vitality, then it makes sense that we should exercise like our ancestors as well...just as our bodies were designed to do. And thankfully, by exercising the way our ancestors did, we can not only spend less time exercising -- as little as 12 - 20 minutes per day -- but we can strengthen our hearts and lungs and reduce the risk of heart attacks or developing breathing problems. You've actually heard of this type of exercise before -- it's called interval training and can have powerful effects in a very short period of time.

A few years ago, Harvard researchers published the Harvard Health Professionals Study. After studying over 7,000 people they found that the key to preventing heart disease is intensity - NOT long-duration exercise. What's more interesting is that in another study, researchers found that by doing the right type of interval training, people continued to burn fat for up to 24 hours after the interval training session.

Now, while I do know a lot about interval training and exercise, up until now I haven't had an opportunity to provide you with a detailed program. But fortunately, I recently came across a special program developed by a doctor down in Florida that, through a few simple yet powerful modifications, takes interval training to the next level. He has developed a step-by-step program that shows you exactly how to exercise smarter, not harder, by using the principles of interval training. If you are like me and hate to go the gym, then you'll find the link below very interesting: ==> http://www.ultrawellness.com/interval1 Please ignore the marketing hype at the top and read the entire page to understand the science behind this program and why it works. This unique program is something I highly recommend for those of you who are physically ready to exercise. However, if are extremely overweight or are in very poor health and are physically immobile, I highly suggest that you pursue a healthy eating plan first and then give exercise a try only when you are ready.

To your good health, Mark Hyman, MD

PS - One thing that I found fascinating was the "Jim Fixx Phenomenon", which showed that the new science from the 1960s about exercising for long durations was a big mistake. You can read more by going to the website below: ==> http://www.ultrawellness.com/interval1 UltraWellness LLC 45 Walker Street Lenox, MA 01240 http://www.ultrawellness.com

Midlife crisis

I've been looking at sexy, sleek, fast new bikes online this week. Pretty and expensive aerodynamic things--lightweight road bikes in bright orange and yellow. And gorgeous, solid classics with leather seats and fenders but updated with high tech disc brakes. And touring bikes, of course, to satisfy my wanderlust. Since I can't actually exercise regularly right now, I can at least dream of it, right? And I was thinking that with my 40th birthday coming up I could justify buying one of these to celebrate. The Target POS I'm riding around right now isn't worth the scrap metal it's made of. It's clunky and slow and doesn't fit me well and the gears jump around while I'm riding it.

And then I began thinking about my old bike, shoved under the porch and covered with dust and cobwebs and dead bugs and leaves. I did some research and found out that Maggie Miyata is still considered one of the best touring bikes ever made. Not as good as the Miyata 1000, but apparently the frame on the Miyata 600 is every bit as good. Sightly stiffer, meaning it can haul more stuff, but with cheaper components. But they served me well 18 years ago. Except for a couple of flat tires, I never had a problem with this bike. I didn't even break a spoke. And OK, the handlebars got stolen, but that wasn't the bike's fault. I was like a guy in the throes of a midlife crisis, having my head turned by the hot new young things and not noticing the old reliable first love of my life. Well, second, I guess, since I met Brian before I got my bike.

So I called Race Pace Bicycles and told them I had an old touring bike I wanted to get back on the road and they said "good for you." So I'm taking it in tomorrow and depending on how much work it needs and if the parts are hard to find, I'll have Maggie up and running within a couple of weeks. I don't even care that much what it costs--replacing that bike with something similar would cost $1300, and any repairs I make will last years, so it's worth it.

Wednesday, June 25, 2008

I think I stink

Why isn't one day of good solid exercise enough for the week? I love my Wednesday routine... Walk to church and back, followed immediately by a 90 minute yoga class, come home and weed and clean until I am bored with that. (Today I had a conference call meeting - better than wasting gas to go in for this meeting - so I was doing my cleaning one handed.) By the end of the day I am nicely tired and (today) stinky (another good reason not to have gone IN for my meeting!).

Having Wednesdays off is GREAT for a day like this - but the downside of it is the long work days otherwise. Since Katie is now out of school, her being home in the evenings to cook dinner for us is more hit or miss. So, I am less inclined to actually LEAVE work at 7 - so frequently I am getting home 8:30pm or later - and that is NOT conducive to doing anything other than sitting and staring. Lately I am too tired at night to even read. It takes me several days to read a book that would previously have only taken one or two nights. Maybe, is it possible? I am getting old. I was thinking this morning however, of digging out my 10-minute wonder exercise videos. That is what I was doing daily when I was losing weight in the beginning. I know 10 minutes isn't much - but it is better than nothing.

Today I signed up for the next session of yoga. It works in 4 sessions during the year. The past one that I just completed was 13 weeks I think - but I only joined for the last 5 weeks. This coming one is just 10 weeks since there is the 4th of July holiday and the instructor is on vacation the week after that. I am really looking forward to doing the session from the beginning to see how he builds it up. I am hoping that Katie joins up with me for this session. So, it doesn't start for two weeks. I have to come up with something else to do on Wednesdays for the next two weeks. Maybe I will actually GO to the GYM and USE the POOL!!


My food has been bad. Not what I am eating - but more the NOT eating anything. Sunday I didn't eat at all until late in the afternoon. I have managed to eat breakfast most mornings since Katie hasn't been cooking for me - but it is hard. It is so easy to just skip eating and figure I will grab something later (which I never do). Sigh.

Yesterday was all about exercise

Yesterday we needed to go to the grocery store, so I walked there and walked back pushing a stroller full of a 3-year-old and about a thousand pounds of groceries -- groceries weigh a lot on small plastic wheels!  I also had made a gym appointment (five, actually, over the upcoming week) so I decided the kids and I could try biking there, about three miles each way -- Alexander had absolutely no problem with the ride!  He's getting so much stronger at the biking.  He didn't even have to walk his bike up the steep hill on campus on the way back.  So biking to the gym is a viable option from now on.  Then, at the gym, I did 30 minutes on the elliptical (seemed silly to do more than that when I'd already been walking and biking all day) and my usual push-ups and crunches (better than usual on the push-ups -- since I'd had a monthlong break I was well rested, I guess).  And, finally, last night I had a coffee date downtown so I rode there and back as well.  The ride back was after dark (mostly -- you could still see a faint light tinge to the edge of the sky) so I made good use of my headlight and taillight.  I took the trail home but that was a little scary, as it's not at all well-lit except in the parts that are close to streets.  So if this happens again I'm going to go surface streets -- I'm at more risk from traffic (what little there is at that hour) but I won't feel like I'm flying through a dark tunnel with no end in sight.

I was pretty darn proud of myself at the end of the day!  My legs were exhausted and I slept hard last night.  This morning my arms are tired but my legs are fine -- so I'm getting stronger, too.  I have a gym appointment today but it's after piano lessons, so we'll drive there on the way home instead of biking there.  Tomorrow we'll ride bikes there again.

I am an EXCELLENT planner...

And a TERRIBLE executer!

So yesterday I had all sorts of plans for my time after work. I needed to run some errands, do laundry, EXERCISE...and I guess I did ok overall. I ran the errands right after work, and when I got home I started into the house work. I got carried away with that though. I had only intended to get through the laundry, but instead I changed the sheets, vacuumed the bedspread (dog hair), repaired the bottom dresser drawer that's been having issues, put away all of the laundry that has been piling up for 2 weeks since the dresser drawer broke (because ONE drawer means you don't have to put ANYTHING away EVER), gathered all the dirty clothes, cleaned the kitchen, put away the dishes and reloaded the dish washer, made dinner, and got in 3 loads of laundry. Living with a fire fighter means there's all sorts of nasty filthy laundry to do that needs segregated from other laundry. So long story short, no exercise, but I am slightly closer to an organized life.

Some of you may gasp when I write this, as I'm also getting rid of a lot of my scrapbook/stamping supplies. Amy Mantay came over last night and took a ton of it for herself and her friend Candy, but there's a good deal left. I probably gave her upwards of $600 worth of stamps, paper and embellishments, but it just takes up space in my apartment and really has no value when no one uses it. I'm not sure that I am done forever, but if I do get back into keeping an album I am going to purchase what I need, when I need it instead of accumulating so much stuff again. I put together my 2007 "scrapbook" using iPhoto and I am really pleased with it overall. I have India started in iPhoto and in a traditional album. I'm not sure which avenue I am going to continue with at this point. I don't like the fact that it is over a year since my trip and it isn't done. Same with the Canada/New England cruise, although that one is really close to being finished.

I'm full of randomness today...my sister called to tell me my 21 year old nephew is getting married to his 22 year old girlfriend July 5 so he can be married 6 months before he goes to Iraq because he'll get married pay instead fo single pay. Hello????? Does she not see a problem with this? I think it is a ridiculous reason to get married.

ANYWAYS, today I plan to go home and exercise first, and then use any leftover energy to continue cleaning the house. I'll le tyou know how it goes :^)

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Frustratin' times

So it sounds like everyone is struggling a bit with exercise and diet. Get on board. 

For the past three weekends I have gone to Shenandoah National Park and done some good hikes. I've also been running around the Capitol building enough to even have a few sore muscles (marble staircases). But with Congress running on speed or crack or some other kind of accelerant my routine is get up, go to work, come home and try to salvage a couple of hours for mostly errands or chores but rarely exercise. And I don't have any kids! 

My food hasn't been horrible. During the week it's pretty healthy but I usually go off track a bit on the weekends. 
 
I mostly seem to be maintaining but I'd like to get back to a mental point where I'm ready to run the gauntlet, so to speak, and really push myself again. The hikes are great but I want to add more. The rainy weather hasn't helped much as far as being outdoors to bike ride or walk. Yesterday, two batches of storms went through, including one late in the day. 

I'm headed to Hilton Head for the weekend and know I will be walking the beach at least once a day so I'm looking forward to that exercise. 

But I commend "Mom" and "Dad" for walking to Mass. You do that for a week or so and you'll wonder what was so hard about it. You'll probably even start waking up because you "need" to do it. Maybe saying the Rosary would help with those hills. :-)

As far as potty training goes -- do you remember "Look Who's Talking" when the kid looks at the toilet and it's a hairyish monster who tells him to "pee pee" in him. I've got several friends in potty training mode and they've been finding that a beer or two or three (ha) helps ... you in the aftermath. 

Hmmm ... so well, maybe we should all focus on one thing to get back in the groove -- like trying to eat right. Generally I find I can control that because, well, I have to eat. 

Until next time gals. Keep up the good work!! 

Walking, walking----

I tried to post a comment the other night and I was using the wrong user name. I finally worked it out!

I was down to 153 yesterday--the lowest I have been for a while. But today I was back up to 154, despite the fact that we had walked 4 1/2 miles yesterday. We decided Sunday we would walk to weekday Mass instead of driving. Dad had suggested this a couple of times, but I hated the idea of getting up earlier--I get my best sleep in the mornings! But yesterday I changed my alarm from 7:45 to 7:00 and dressed in a hurry. We didn't actually leave until around 7:35. The walk to church isn't bad after you get to the top of Lakespring, where it levels off. It then gradually goes downhill most of the way. We got to church about 8:20 and went inside, where the air conditioning felt great! After Mass, Dad said, "I haven't recovered yet", but we had to leave. He had a 10:30 dentist's appointment. Of course the walk home, up Cranbrook, was mostly uphill, but we made it home by 9:55.

Today we started off faster but made it to church about the same time--maybe a little earlier. But the way home was hard--our legs were still tired from yesterday and it was a slog. But we made it. Now we have to fight the tendency to fall asleep over the morning paper!

I think tonight we will go to bed a little earlier. I have fought that because it often takes me a couple of hours to go to sleep, as it did last night, but tonight I am sleepier. Hopefully we can get on an earlier schedule.

Tomorrow we will babysit with Connor, so there will be no morning walk. Maybe our legs deserve a rest anyway!

139.6

Not too happy with that, but not too surprised either. I've been living largely on a diet consisting of the potty training treats we got for Connor (heck, he isn't getting them!)--Pringles and Hershey's kisses. And no exercise, of course, unless you count walking him back and forth to the bathroom and cleaning up accidents all over the house. I'm glad we put off getting a new sofa.

And now the summer schedule starts, with every lunch break spent driving Claire home from Kids on Campus and NOT going to the gym. I've only been to the gym twice in the past three weeks, have only walked the dog once each of those weeks, and have been doing no exercise at home. When I get home, Brian goes to bed so he can get a few hours of sleep before heading off to work. I hate summer. But I do need to figure out some way to get some exercise around this schedule or I'll end up another five or ten pounds up by the time school starts again!

140.0

Other than that surprising dip to 138.5 last week, my weight has hovered around or just above 140.  I haven't been getting any real exercise, and yesterday my step count on my pedometer was the lowest I've seen in a month or more.  It was so bad that even though the house was approaching 80 degrees I was cold.  I finally went outside and walked around a bit, filled up the birdfeeder, and helped Mary learn how to do cartwheels (not that I could ever do them).  So I tacked on 1000 steps that way, but my count still wound up dangerously low.  Now I am FINALLY going to call the gym -- I haven't been there since before Tuscaloosa, which was over a month ago.  I've had other exercise, of course, but nothing really rigorous.  I only wish I could figure out a way to get the kids and me there on our bikes -- maybe we'll just try it one day and see how they do.

Thursday, June 19, 2008

My Tuesday Post

I went to do it on Tuesday and was having issues signing in. I DID finally get in - but only posted a comment.


My weight, surprisingly, only went up two pounds for my period this week - and I have dropped them both back down. I am not sure why. I am pretty sure it wasn't the gross tea that did it - or the yoga - but maybe the combination didn't hurt. Now if I can only figure out a way to keep staying level at my period, maybe I can figure out a way to start going backwards. I am officially 20 pounds heavier than when we started this blog. However, in that time I also quit smoking - so as long as I don't keep gaining weight forever, I will be happy to take the extra 20 pounds and NOT smoke.


It was so beautiful yesterday. I walked to church again, and really enjoyed it. I would have been happy to walk to other places, had the need arose - or if we had anywhere else within walking distance. But the whole day was full up anyway. I had yoga again yesterday morning - and then Katie and I cooked dinner for Dad - which didn't actually take all day - but I had to stop at Wegman's after yoga to get strawberries, and then the cooking was actually kind of time consuming - and we had to get to Mom and Dad's soon enought that it could all finish cooking (which took longer than we expected...). Then we got home from there at around 9:30, so - it really was kind of an all day thing. I did do one scrapbook page - and make one card yesterday also. And did one load of laundry. But that was it. No other walking. Oh well.

Today is pretty too - but I am at work. I suppose I could take a walk - but I really like the going somewhere thing. I can't think of anywhere to go from here. I will have to look at a map. Maybe there is a coffee shop over by VVF.

Tuesday, June 17, 2008

Where is everybody?

Here I am, checking in at five minutes to midnight on a Tuesday, and I'm the first Tuesday poster.  Terrible.  Anyway, I weighed 138.5 this morning -- so I was really right about being bloated last week.  I've been absurdly busy the past few days working around the house so I've barely eaten and I've had a high activity level (without actually exercising, though), which has resulted in a bit of a weight drop.  Now, if I can only find household projects to last me the whole summer so my weight keeps going down...

Monday, June 16, 2008

Gross Tea

OK - Rebecca made a tea for me that is supposed to help me retain iron during my period. It is shepherds purse, ladies mantle, cinnamon, licorice, and tienchi onseng. It smells SO GROSS!! I mean gross enough that I threw in a red tea bag to help kill the smell (didn't work). I finally got up the nerve to taste it - and it doesn't taste too bad... but the smell is SO GROSS. I have managed to take three sips and am now thinking I just need to chug the whole cup. I am supposed to drink this 2-4 times per day. Ugh.

Friday, June 13, 2008

Good thing I am not Japanese

Did anyone else read this article? OK - I know the US has a weight problem as a whole - but if we ever tried to do this... I can't even imagine the outcry! Is it just because I work in HR, or does this strike anyone else as government sponsored discrimination. Maybe this will inspire the end of the annoying anamae craze... Get the kids out playing instead of watching their silly cartoons!!!

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

Light rail without AC--Boooooooo

I thought I was going to melt yesterday afternoon. I had walked about 2 miles in the 95+ degree heat (with my laptop) and as I was hoping for at least some relief when I got on the train there was NO air conditioning. So a train chock full of people and it was absolutely stifling. then the train stopped for the far inspector, which felt like it took an eternity, and then we stopped again to be transferred to another train because of the AC issue. My shirt felt like I had taken it right out of the washer and put it on without drying it first. It was nuts.

I didn't exercise yesterday because I went to Let's Dish and didn't get home until late because the thunderstorm knocked trees down and the trip home was an obstacle course. I drove to work today because of a meeting out at JMT later, and tonight we are going to some fancy (non walkable) place over by JHU for a friend's birthday. Tomorrow we get up and head to the beach, so my formal exercise and car avoidance are over until we get back Friday, when I am certain we will take the train to the baseball game.

Tuesday, June 10, 2008

138.8

My weight is also up this week, but I'm not sure how much of that is from not exercising/eating too much and how much is retaining water. My toes look like vienna sausages.

I haven't been to the gym in over a week now because there's always something getting in the way--sick days (Connor again--big surprise), leaving midday for school stuff (school play today, volunteer tea last week), and just leaving early (for Encampment). On the other hand, I wish I'd had a pedometer over the weekend for Encampment. The troop leader ended up having to leave at noon on Saturday so I took over for her and had a trial by fire for next year's Junior troop. I lived through the experience, but I don't think I sat down the whole time. I had 18 first-through-third grade girls and had to get them all going in the same direction at the same time every half hour or so. I measured the distance from the parking area to our camp (.44 miles) and I know I did that route five times when we were arriving, then the equivalent at least 14 times on Saturday, then again seven times on Sunday. So I did a lot of walking, but all at an eight year old's pace. It was fun, but hot as blue blazes. We had one girl drop from heat exhaustion (o.k. she didn't literally drop, but she did have to be treated for heat exhaustion) and Claire managed to lose her water bottle by 10 a.m. on Saturday. She was lucky I was around with mine or else she might have passed out too.

142

My weight went up from last week.  But I've been bloated and otherwise miserable for the past couple of days -- I saw a four-pound surge over two days and now it's on its way back down.  I still feel gross, though.  Bleah.

The cool thing I can report is that on Sunday night Daniel and I went to a movie and dinner.  We rode our bikes to the movie theater at the mall, about six miles, enjoyed the movie, then rode all the way back into the heart of Blacksburg, ate dinner, then rode back home again.  We covered about fourteen miles total!  The ride out to the mall went a lot faster than either of us anticipated and neither of us was significantly tired or uncomfortable after the ride.  And I woke up yesterday and didn't have any soreness or tiredness from it.  So I'm definitely in better condition than I've been on past attempts at riding the length of the Huckleberry Trail.  The ride was surprisingly pleasant -- we enjoyed just hanging out together on our bikes.  We've never done something like that before.

I also discovered that my bike is much faster than Daniel's.  I ride a road/racing bike and he rides a mountain-style bike.  I knew his bike was heavier than mine and that mine ought to be faster in principle, but we hadn't ever tested it out, and I figured he's bigger and stronger than I am so it would even out.  His strength allowed him to get up steep hills almost as fast as me, but on downhills he'd be pedaling, I'd be coasting, and I'd still either have to brake or go flying by him!  It was kind of fun, though probably a bit frustrating for him.  I didn't really break a sweat the whole way to the mall, but he was melting when we got there.

Yesterday I walked to Kroger instead of riding my bike -- I figured I would get more exercise that way and Cecilia really prefers the stroller to the trailer.  But it's a big nuisance to get home with a heavy load in the stroller, and I was dripping with sweat by the time we got there.  (It's even more annoying since the closer entrance to the shopping center is blocked off by construction -- you have to go up and down an extra set of hills.)  So I may end up biking there more than walking.

We did drive to church on Sunday, of course, and yesterday I had to drive to take dinner to a friend of mine who recently had a baby (six miles, the last two of which are straight uphill, which the kids could never handle and I'm not sure I could manage, especially with the trailer), so on the way back I stopped by Daniel's office (it really was on the way) and ended up giving him a ride home.  That was the first time he'd taken a car to or from work in over a week (yay, Daniel!).  Today he drove again because he had some errands to do from work.  But we're doing very well so far at car avoidance!

Two days in a row!

I rode the train again today! And that will be the end of my streak for this week. Tomorrow I have a 1:30 meeting at JMT, and then I am off Thursday and Friday to go to the beach.

I did the same program on the treadmill last night that nearly killed me Sunday and it was already SO much better. Even though I have too much extra weight, my cardio-pulmonary situation recovers quickly when I exercise regularly. My heart rate was way down yesterday from what it was Sunday too.

Monday, June 09, 2008

A nice long hike

I had a great hike Saturday in Shenandoah National Park for a hike -- went on my own because I couldn't gather up anyone else to tag along -- and it was great.

It was about 85 degrees with cool breezes at most of the vistas. It was a 7-mile hike all on the Appalachian Trail to a place called Mary's Rock. There was plenty of shady canopy that protected me from the sun and, later in the day, a pretty good thunderstorm. The views were spectacular despite a thick haze from the heat descending on the area.

I met a cool couple, with their dog, who were thru hikers. They had some very interesting stories about their journey.

The hardest part of the hike was a 1.5 mile segment that was pretty much uphill at a decent enough grade that my lungs felt it. I drank almost a gallon of water without needing a pee break so I obviously was working hard. The trail also was a bit rockier than I liked so my ankles and knees took a bit of a beating.

Oh, I also saw a black bear run across Skyline Drive. Very cool.

Overall it was great. It was a good test of my fitness level and I was happy it wasn't dismal. I will be back there for sure in two weeks and I hope to get down there again this weekend. It's just so nice to be out of the fray ... oh and there's my beer and ice cream reward, too. Can't forget about that. There's a little store in the park that sells individual bottled beers and a custard place in Front Royal. It's all good.

This week I hope to continue my exercise plan -- most likely on the bike on the trainer in my house -- and maybe some treadmill work at the gym.

My diet is overall pretty good (outside of the occasional beer and custard) so I hope to reap the benefits of a good routine on all front.

Zucchini Casserole sans zucchini

Last night I had a craving for zucchini casserole. I don't know why, because I was never a huge fan of it when mom made it. Actually, I liked all of it except the zucchini, which was just mushy and seedy - but that was enough to ruin the whole dish. Anyway - I had ground beef and cottage cheese in the fridge and I had to go to the grocery store anyway for milk and orange juice - so while I was there I got the rest of the ingredients for zucchini casserole. Except the zucchini. I ended up making it with asparagus and cherry tomatoes instead. I also used low fat/sodium cream of celery soup instead of cream of mushroom and a clove of garlic in place of the garlic salt. I used brown rice instead of white - I just prefer brown rice. It turned out AWESOME! I really like the tomatoes in it - They added a little bit of tanginess. Now, if you are all pulling out your Angerer Family Cookbooks to whip this up for dinner tonight (the recipe is on page 4) I would say that the only thing I would do differently next time is reduce the soup by about half. I think the condensed soup is needed to give it a little bit of squishiness, but the whole can made the flavor a little too dominate. Half would have been enough probably. The best thing about this casserole (and my miniature family) is that there is plenty for lunch leftovers for the rest of the week. Yay!

I weeded this weekend. I got home from Sarah's at about 8:10 on Saturday monring - and since that was the coolest it was going to be for the day I actually decided to attack my garden. Please understand what this entails. Aside from the poison ivy (which it doesn't look like I am going to get) we had weeds that were taller than me. We had bindweed (or so we took to calling it because these 1/4" fat vines were wrapped around each other and the bushes, pulling them over). We had these weird pseudo wild rose vines that are enormous - (grow up to great heights in weeks) but don't produce any flowers. They really are weird because they have the thorns and leaves of any rose bush - but they are just fast growing vines. I am sure they are what covered Sleeping Beauty's castle. I WISH I had taken pictures before I waded in with my machete - because I am not exagerating - NOBODY has weeds that big! So I worked for about 40 minutes on Saturday and another 20 on Sunday and made vast progress. I have narrowed the trauma portion to just an island in the middle. A lot of the weeds are baby bradford pear trees - which just don't pull up. You have to clip them close to the ground - which probably doesn't kill them and they are just building up these enormous root balls under the ground. Anyway - that was the extent of my exercise for the weekend. I intended to walk to the PO at some point - but it was too stinkin' hot.

Victory!

I FINALLY managed to ride the train today. It takes a lot longer than driving, but I did enjoy the walk even though it is 82 degrees and it isn't even 9 am. Why doesn't body fat melt like other kinds of fat???? That would be an ingenious invention. It would just have to get it all out from under your skin before it resolidified in one spot or something. I just had a mental picture of myself with all my fat in my feet. Haha.

I used the treadmill yesterday too. 25 minutes of walking and some jogging, and WOW I am horribly out of shape. I could really tell with my breathing and my heart rate. I plan to do the same program again today when I get home.

Biking would be a good way for me to get from home to the train, but I am not a very confident biker. I also don't have a bike anymore (minor detail.) Maybe once I get comfortable with the train schedule I'll think about that as an option.

Friday, June 06, 2008

Golly DAY, bikes are expensive!!

And I'm not even talking about purchasing a whole bike -- just the accessories are horrendous!  I rode my bike to the new church and back for choir practice last night, about 5 miles each way.  I had Cecilia in the trailer on the way out but, fortunately, not on the way home.  (Daniel picked her and the trailer up on his way back from Mary's baseball game.)  Less than 2 miles from home, on campus, at 8:45 pm (so it was rapidly getting dark), my front tire went flat.  I toyed with the idea of riding it that way -- thinking it might be just a bit low -- but that lasted about three seconds, because then the bike was skidding every which way.  Sigh.  So I had to walk the last stretch, gently rolling a bike that was dead.  It was pretty much all dark when I got home.

Meanwhile, I've been nervous about not having a bike lock for me or the kids, so I already had a trip planned to the bike shop for those.  And Daniel needed a leg clip to keep his jeans from getting caught in the chain.  And I've been worrying about us being caught out late -- Daniel from work, me after choir, for example -- so I'd been thinking headlights would be a good idea.  And after last night I swore I wouldn't be caught out without a spare tube and my pump (need to figure out how to mount that on the bike...) which would also entail getting the tools to pry the tire off the rim.  So today I went to the bike shop (by car -- what else could I do?  At least I combined it with a trip to the Y store to drop off TONS of stuff -- I couldn't pull a filing cabinet on my bike anyway) and bought all of the aforementioned stuff, plus a new tire because mine was dry-rotting, which was part of the reason it went flat so cheerfully last night.  Now I am TWO HUNDRED DOLLARS poorer!!!  I told the guy at the bike shop that for that I could get a new bike.  I have to keep in mind that this was supplies for FOUR bikes, but Daniel and I will have to ride a combined 900 miles to make up that amount in gas expenditures.  Just the tire, tube, and spare tube were a tank of gas.  Oh, and this was after having replaced the other tire a couple of weeks ago.  Sigh.

I felt like I really earned my stripes as an alternative-transportation-taker yesterday.  I biked ten+ miles (including the trip to the eye doctor) and walked about two.  After dark.  Good thing this is a safe town.

Foiled again!

So I declared on Tuesday I was going to take the train and walk, blah, blah, blah...well, EVERY DAY since something as messed that up for me. I forgot Wednesday that I had a drs appt in Towson at 4 pm, so that meant needing a car since I would have to have left for the train at like 2:30 to get back to my car and over to Towson by the appt, then yesterday I was ALL SET--I mean I even had the right cash for the ticket machine--and I had to attend a meeting at 8 am in Hunt Valley at the last minute. I left that and drove towards the MT Washington & Falls Rd stations figuring one of them had to have parking at 10 am, but then 83 was a disaster and I tried to take Falls and that was closed with trees down. So I gave up yesterday. Then today I've been sucked into another meeting that I have to drive to.

So next week...I have yet to look at my schedule to see where I have to be on which days, but I seem to recall at least 2 meetings that require driving. I may try to get those on the same day because I don't think they are right now.

I have been walking so much more, and even though my weight doesn't reflect it yet, my clothes already fit better. That is a huge relief because I REFUSED to buy a bigger size. I'm also getting ready to cancel my gym membership because we are getting a treadmill at home. I do so much better when the options are in my house. Once I am home it really takes a lot fo rme to go back out, and with the dog, I hate running a ton of errands right after work because I know he needs to pee. Oh--and Sarah--I totally agree wet dog has got to be one of the grossest smells out there. That and maybe when you can smell the stagnant water in a storm drain when you walk over the grate. That happens all the time downtown--there is a huge drain outside my building and when the weather gets really hot coupled with the fact that there is a steam pipe right next to it heating things up, I've discovered I can hold my breath for the light cycle to get across Pratt St.

Thursday, June 05, 2008

So ... I've been meaning to write

Hello all,

I was out of town over Memorial Day weekend (Chicago) and since then have gotten sucked back into work, life and stuff.

But I'm all caught up with reading the blog and have really enjoyed some of the recent posts.

I started writing yesterday and got distracted ... figures. My cable and internet at home have been out for 24 hours but luckily I have my work computer and a wonderful little magical wireless card. So, here I am and let's get on with it.

1. I was in the Capitol yesterday when that storm hit. Capitol police actually came over the PA system and told us to stay away from windows etc. In my little Capitol work space we have no windows but about 20 reporters went bounding down to the press gallery office (at their invitation) to watch the storm roll up the Mall. It was amazing to watch. My commute home was a bear and, like I said earlier, I have no cable. So, instead, I'm writing blog posts. ha
The night before I went to see School for Scandal (Sheridan) at the Folger and got soaked on the hike back to my parking garage. The play was hysterical. There is a really good exhibit starting there featuring suits of armor ... for those who like armor. :-)

2. I love the idea of cycling and walking more. I wish I were in an area where I could do that. I could get on a bike trail that takes me all the way to work but it's more than 20 miles and there aren't showers in my office or the Capitol. But I am trying to drive off rush hour. Granted, I'm still driving but I'm trying to save some gas. Nothing else for me is really walking distance. I do have a shopping center across the street from me but I rarely go there. The Safeway is horrible and there aren't any other really appealing stores. Well, there is a Dairy Queen and with temps in the 90s this weekend I may have to stop by. :-)

3. I have gotten back into an exercise routine. I'm still trying to improve it so I'm doing something every day. But it's clear my running around the Capitol is beneficial. My cardio level on the bike isn't bad and I'm not sore from a wide array of bendy, stretchy and lifty exercises. So I guess that means I need more reps, weight and frequency My diet is good and my water consumption is back up at good levels. I'm hoping to head down to Shenandoah National Park this weekend to hike. I'm sure I can find a shady hike so I won't broil.

Keep up the good work ladies!!

Let me tell you about dripping wet after a walk!

I took Davey out for his walk last night. About a third of the way into the walk I saw a storm off to the west, but it looked like it was heading mostly north so I figured I'd keep walking, and Davey wanted to keep going that direction anyway, so we did. And we did fine for another mile, at which point the wind really picked up. So we started jogging. If I had just cut a couple of corners on the route to shorten it, I would have been fine. Instead the rain hit when we were around Claire's school. Fortunately, that's just a few blocks away. Unfortunately, the rain was so heavy that I was soaked through to the skin by the time we got home. And is there any worse smell in the world than wet dog? Ugh.

That was all of my exercise yesterday. I took a sick day from work so I could sleep--the night before I went to bed at 1 a.m. after staying up cleaning off the computer desk, and then Connor woke up at 1:30. He went back to sleep at 6:30, so I figured that not only would it be impossible to wake him up for school, but that I needed sleep or I'd be no good at all at work. But this meant I missed the gym yesterday. I planned to go today, but my shoes were still soaking wet this morning. If they're still damp this evening I'll throw them in the dryer.

So instead of going to the gym today, I went to Target and got a lock, handlebar bag and water bottle cage for my bike. The handlebar bag is big enough for lunch and my wallet and phone, but not big enough to hold work clothes, so I'll have to bring some in to work to keep here on the days I plan to cycle. I need to get on the waiting list for a locker at the gym and then I could keep shower things and some clothes there.

Joining the Walking Revolution

Yesterday I walked to and from church in the morning and then to and from the eye doctor's in the afternoon. It was so humid that I was DRIPPING sweat when I arrived where I wanted to be. All told the four trips combined to make about five miles. Then I also did a 90 minute yoga class. I WISH that exercise was like church - once a week is all you need... Oh well.

I did all of my walking wearing my flip flops. The thought process behind that was that my feet get so darn hot walking in tennis shoes - and Sarah and I took a three mile walk in my flip flops on Sunday and it didn't bother me. Well - it didn't bother me yesterday either - but the bottom of one foot has the start of some blisters. So - I think I want to get some tennis shoe sandals. I need new tennis shoes anyway - so I might as well make it sandals as well as anything else.

I missed the HUGE car washer storm yesterday afternoon by about 3 minutes. It was raining when I got home (and I had my umbrella luckily) but it was minutes later that the sky turned black and emptied out. Whew!

Tuesday, June 03, 2008

140.5

I have not stuck to my calorie limitations (except when I've been too busy to remember to snack) and I haven't exercised properly all week (though I've been on my bike and on foot several days).  I spent the past two days cleaning out the basement (and it's nowhere near done, but I'm making real progress -- this is a project that's needed doing for YEARS) so that counted as my exercise.  Today I've been paying bills and working on the budget (another project that's over a year overdue) so I've been totally sedentary.  I drove the kids to their eye appointment (after much soul-searching I concluded it would NOT be fair to make them bike home with their eyes dilated, ouch, though I'll probably make myself do it on Thursday, but I'm a grownup and considerably more used to a bicycle than they are) and baseball practice is rained out (so that kills the two miles I would have had).  Phooey.

My weight did drop this morning but it's in the ballpark of where it's been all week -- so not really a significant loss.  But I'd like to get back below 140 by next week -- one pound isn't too much to ask, is it?

Wow.

I almost didn't weigh myself this morning--I was rushing to get dressed to take mom and dad to the airport, and I was happy enough with yesterday's weight (137.8) that I was just going to report that. But I did get on the scale, and today I was down to 136.8. No idea how I dropped a pound in one day. And since I hadn't weighed myself at all since last week, I have no idea if yesterday's weight is about right or is a post-weekend high (which happens often) or if today's weight is about right or an inexplicable low.

The other thing I can't explain is why my back is killing me. Killing me like it does in late pregnancy or during labor--all over pain from my lower back down my legs and around my hips. It started late yesterday afternoon, then got worse while I was walking Davey last night, then was a bit better when I woke up this morning and now is back to being bad. I ran on the treadmill yesterday, but didn't do anything that would injure my back (plus it doesn't feel like an injury the way it's all over). I might just need new shoes--I guess I could get all over pain like this from running in worn out shoes, although it came up pretty suddenly if that's the case. In any event, I hope it stops soon because I can't imagine camping this weekend with my back feeling this way. Sleeping on the ground each night and walking all day each day--not fun!

Not driving is a good idea

I like the idea of not driving this summer. I won't be able to totally avoid it, but I am going to give it a shot. I also like the idea of shifting at least my own focus from every bite I eat and every pound I know I need to shed to something else for a little while. My first step towards driving less will be to take the light rail to work. I can walk to the train station and back. Although it is a hellish walk back up the huge, long hill of Smith Ave. I am sure that will hurt the first few times. It's about 1 mile to the train, and then a little over a 1/2 mile from the convention center stop to the trade center once I get downtown. This is going to require me to get up a little earlier, which may kill me, but I am going to see how it can work out. I have no idea how I used to live in PA and commute downtown. I'd be at my desk by 7 am, which meant I left home by 6 am, and got up at like 5 am. Now I drag myself out of bed at 6:30 and it is seriously painful. Haha. Once I get this established, I will try to add walks to the grocery store. Although we seldom go out just to the grocery store; generally that is the last stop after a number of errands.

Everyone else is complaining so much about gas prices, but I think this is a great opportunity to realign our thinking towards a lot of things. For me it is going to be about incorporating actitivies into my daily life that make me more active. I am looking forward to it. I've already started taking walks at lunch now that I am downtown again, but more can be done.