Well-Trained Bodies January 2019!

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

@soror, @OlgaLA, @wintermom, @Carrie12345, @hshibley, @DawnM, @HollyDay, @gardenmom5, @Monica_in_Switzerland

This thread is open to ANYONE who has an interest in improving their health and fitness!  It doesn't matter where you are in your journey!

Hi ladies,

I'm sorry @soror , I was too excited to wait for you to start the thread.  😄 

Ladies, I got the program that I wanted for Christmas!  It's the Physical Autonomy Curriculum from GMB!  I'm sooooo excited!  

 

[DawnM]

Oh, tell me more, what the Physical Autonomy Curriculum and what do you like about it?  Is it for you or the kids?  

Bad News:  I am stressed and not sleeping enough over other peoples' problems.

Good News:  I am stressed and not eating much over other peoples' problems, so. I have dropped some weight.

😜🙄

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

1 hour ago, DawnM said:

Oh, tell me more, what the Physical Autonomy Curriculum and what do you like about it?  Is it for you or the kids?  

Bad News:  I am stressed and not sleeping enough over other peoples' problems.

Good News:  I am stressed and not eating much over other peoples' problems, so. I have dropped some weight.

😜🙄

It's for me, but I'll bet the kids try to join in.  It's a combination of a number of programs from a website I really like (their free stuff is great!).  Here is the link , I'm in no way affiliated with them.  I've been getting their email newsletters for well over a year and I really like the company's philosophy and all of their free tutorials.  

My biggest focus lately has been trying to age-proof myself.  I'm not afraid to die, but I'm afraid to get old and lose autonomy.  I like the concept of the physical autonomy curriculum because I think it will really help me develop a physical routine to maintain health long-term.  

Glad you found a silver lining, but sorry about the stress load! I saw your other thread, yikes.

 

I'm hoping to have more reasonable running goals this year than last year.  I'm going to be more realistic about the time I have and try to stick to goals in the 5-10k range instead of half-marathon.  I'm hoping to become more mindful of what foods make me feel good.  And I'm going to wear sunscreen on my face/neck while still trying to get some vitamin D through sun exposure on arms/legs at reasonable levels.  

What are everyone's health/fitness goals for the year?  

 

 

[HollyDay]

Good news, I'm back working with my trainer.  We are only scheduled to workout twice a week and I'm faithful to do independent workouts the other days. While sick, I missed 2 workouts with him and a boatload of independent workouts. Still dealing with fatigue and reduced endurance.  Cough comes back if I do too much. 

I went to the gym for personal workout yesterday, but trainer's next client cancelled and we got to workout together.  Really tough!  Raised the bar for sure. and I'm feeling it today.  We are supposed to workout on Thursday but the forecast is for lingering ice and mixed precipitation that starts tonight.  Not going to go if it is bad.  I've not done twice a week workouts with him before.  Partly it is a financial thing.  But also I need to really own it as mine.  I've got to hold myself accountable to maintain good fitness and wellness.  He challenges me to get stronger and more flexible.  He keeps me safe while teaching me new weights and exercises.  But, in the end, it is my body and my responsibility

[Carrie12345]

Happy 2019!

Tomorrow is supposed to be my first day back to the gym.  I think it's going to be okay... even though there is still a great big bump on my butt!!! I almost wish I were willing to share pictures, it's that weird! I'm going to avoid lower body work.

I have not gained weight over this hiatus from the gym or the holidays. Sadly, logic tells me that's because I've lost muscle. I'm still calling it a win. I'm down 10lbs in the past 2 months. The scale isn't what I'm trying to win, but I'll take it, given the circumstances.

[Soror]

4 hours ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

@soror, @OlgaLA, @wintermom, @Carrie12345, @hshibley, @DawnM, @HollyDay, @gardenmom5, @Monica_in_Switzerland

This thread is open to ANYONE who has an interest in improving their health and fitness!  It doesn't matter where you are in your journey!

Hi ladies,

I'm sorry @soror , I was too excited to wait for you to start the thread.  😄 

Ladies, I got the program that I wanted for Christmas!  It's the Physical Autonomy Curriculum from GMB!  I'm sooooo excited!  

 

I totally blanked on starting a thread, I thought about it a bit ago but then got busy doing this and that.

2 hours ago, HollyDay said:

Good news, I'm back working with my trainer.  We are only scheduled to workout twice a week and I'm faithful to do independent workouts the other days. While sick, I missed 2 workouts with him and a boatload of independent workouts. Still dealing with fatigue and reduced endurance.  Cough comes back if I do too much. 

I went to the gym for personal workout yesterday, but trainer's next client cancelled and we got to workout together.  Really tough!  Raised the bar for sure. and I'm feeling it today.  We are supposed to workout on Thursday but the forecast is for lingering ice and mixed precipitation that starts tonight.  Not going to go if it is bad.  I've not done twice a week workouts with him before.  Partly it is a financial thing.  But also I need to really own it as mine.  I've got to hold myself accountable to maintain good fitness and wellness.  He challenges me to get stronger and more flexible.  He keeps me safe while teaching me new weights and exercises.  But, in the end, it is my body and my responsibility

 

Ya for being back at the gym, I hoep all goes well and no more injuries.

22 minutes ago, Carrie12345 said:

Happy 2019!

Tomorrow is supposed to be my first day back to the gym.  I think it's going to be okay... even though there is still a great big bump on my butt!!! I almost wish I were willing to share pictures, it's that weird! I'm going to avoid lower body work.

I have not gained weight over this hiatus from the gym or the holidays. Sadly, logic tells me that's because I've lost muscle. I'm still calling it a win. I'm down 10lbs in the past 2 months. The scale isn't what I'm trying to win, but I'll take it, given the circumstances.

 

Goood luck at the gym tomorrow! 

2 hours ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

It's for me, but I'll bet the kids try to join in.  It's a combination of a number of programs from a website I really like (their free stuff is great!).  Here is the link , I'm in no way affiliated with them.  I've been getting their email newsletters for well over a year and I really like the company's philosophy and all of their free tutorials.  

My biggest focus lately has been trying to age-proof myself.  I'm not afraid to die, but I'm afraid to get old and lose autonomy.  I like the concept of the physical autonomy curriculum because I think it will really help me develop a physical routine to maintain health long-term.  

Glad you found a silver lining, but sorry about the stress load! I saw your other thread, yikes.

 

I'm hoping to have more reasonable running goals this year than last year.  I'm going to be more realistic about the time I have and try to stick to goals in the 5-10k range instead of half-marathon.  I'm hoping to become more mindful of what foods make me feel good.  And I'm going to wear sunscreen on my face/neck while still trying to get some vitamin D through sun exposure on arms/legs at reasonable levels.  

What are everyone's health/fitness goals for the year?  

 

 

1

I've done some GMB workouts before- I did the Floor Plan and Strength and have thought about adding some of them back in but then again some of the things they work on are things I just don't care to do. I think they have some good stuff, I'll have to check that out. 

I'm not sure my goals, I just don't know, I've just got too much on my brian, trying to get the house back in order while continuing to adjust to working and dh in college and ds in PS. I'd love to set some really awesome goals but I just can't figure out what is reasonable and attainable right now and what do I really want to do b/c if it is not something I really want to do it is not going to happen. Sigh.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

@soror I'm listening to Atomic Habits right now and a line I noted was: Trajectory is more important than goals.  He gave the example of a millionaire who is spending more than he makes each month, vs a poorer person who is saving a bit each month.  Different trajectories will lead to very different outcomes.  So maybe with everything going on, you can just focus on trajectory, and leave the goals for another year.  

[readinmom]

Starting small with this and this

Hope to throw in some other stuff, try to join a gym close to the new house

[OlgaLA]

Well, thanks to a very late New Year party, I am up 4 lbs in the last week. Shouldn't have weighed myself today 🙂

I am still thinking about goals for this year. I definitely want to do at least 30 minutes of exercise at least 5 days a week, with possible exception of travel weeks, which are usually pretty walking intensive anyway. I also want to go to at least 2 national-level fencing competitions. A national medal would be great, as would a new rating, but those are too unpredictable to write down as actual goals.

Fencing is out this week till Friday, so I'll have to stick with the bike. I upped my time from 40 to 45 a few days ago. Not sure if I want to get it up to an hour eventually or not.

After going to bed after 3 am, it was hard to do anything today, but I managed those 45 minutes on the bike, so here is to the good start. And I was not feeling hungry most of the day, so the food was also under maintenance.

[Soror]

11 hours ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

@soror I'm listening to Atomic Habits right now and a line I noted was: Trajectory is more important than goals.  He gave the example of a millionaire who is spending more than he makes each month, vs a poorer person who is saving a bit each month.  Different trajectories will lead to very different outcomes.  So maybe with everything going on, you can just focus on trajectory, and leave the goals for another year.  

Coincidentally after I posted I was giving this some thought and came to the same conclusion. Last year I spent A LOT of energy focusing on health and wellness and really for the last 5 yrs since my diagnosis that has been a focal point for me. But last year I finally had the turning point I've been working towards- I've found a maintenance dose of medication and have my weight fairly stabilized, my maintenance is a still a few pounds up from my preference but I did not pack on the weight (10-15 lbs) like I have been doing in the fall. I've established a routine of going to the gym and rarely missed. I would like more exercise but more than that I'd like more daily activity, going to the gym  5-7x a week is not so great if the rest of my day I'm pretty much sedentary.   Our time and energy are finite and something has to give with adding in part-time job (which starts my day off with 3 hrs of sitting) I'll have to make some adjustments and prioritization.

So- after that long preamble I've figured out my BIG goal for the New Year- 10,000 steps a day.

Smaller Goals:

-Continue 2x a week lifting while kids do TKD

-shift my weight down to hit my preferred maintenance level- last year I made it to the top end of that range but of course your weight goes up and down- so that is 3-5 lbs- I'd love to hit that in 3 months, we'll see 🙂

The steps were once easy for me but life changes, and I've done enough whining about that, so daily activity will be my major focus. I might add in some lifting goals later but I've got to think about that more.

3 hours ago, OlgaLA said:

Well, thanks to a very late New Year party, I am up 4 lbs in the last week. Shouldn't have weighed myself today 🙂

I am still thinking about goals for this year. I definitely want to do at least 30 minutes of exercise at least 5 days a week, with possible exception of travel weeks, which are usually pretty walking intensive anyway. I also want to go to at least 2 national-level fencing competitions. A national medal would be great, as would a new rating, but those are too unpredictable to write down as actual goals.

Fencing is out this week till Friday, so I'll have to stick with the bike. I upped my time from 40 to 45 a few days ago. Not sure if I want to get it up to an hour eventually or not.

After going to bed after 3 am, it was hard to do anything today, but I managed those 45 minutes on the bike, so here is to the good start. And I was not feeling hungry most of the day, so the food was also under maintenance.

3

Tomorrow is another day, I'm sure much of it is bloating! I hope for lots of success for you in the New Year!

[DawnM]

I have my Fitbit Versa now!  I ordered it for Christmas, it came two days ago.  I had decided to give it to my son, but he has decided he won't use it for much more than a watch, so I am going to get him a watch and take the Fitbit back!  It was an $89 special deal before Christmas.  And I had a $25 Amazon gift card, so, SCORE!  I am excite3d to use it.

It is on the charger right now and I am going to play with it when it finishes downloading and charging.

[wintermom]

Thanks for starting out the Jan 2019 thread, Monica! 

I've been thinking about realistic, yet still interesting fitness goals for the upcoming winter. I'm taking a graduate course at the local university, and I may be hired for a part-time job, so I'm not sure how busy I'll be. This is my plan for now:

- Tennis league twice every 2 weeks. Perhaps an additional practice when there is time .

- Walk daily at least 30 minutes

- Ski, skate or snowshoe once a week 

- Add in some weight training either at home or at a gym. Start with once a week.

[wintermom]

@Fifiruth  The lady in that video is so sweet. I went to watch it expecting a Danish woman, but she's Scottish! I haven't watch it all yet. I'm trying not to get distracted by her awesome accent. 

 

 

[Carrie12345]

I dragged myself to the gym today. Inside, I was kicking and screaming. I stayed in a mood the whole way there.  But I got in and got it done, despite the New Year crowd forcing me to do thing out of order, lol.

It wasn't too bad after a long break. I lowered my weights a bit just to be careful. There was sweat. It got done!

[OlgaLA]

On 1/2/2019 at 2:17 AM, soror said:

Coincidentally after I posted I was giving this some thought and came to the same conclusion. Last year I spent A LOT of energy focusing on health and wellness and really for the last 5 yrs since my diagnosis that has been a focal point for me. But last year I finally had the turning point I've been working towards- I've found a maintenance dose of medication and have my weight fairly stabilized, my maintenance is a still a few pounds up from my preference but I did not pack on the weight (10-15 lbs) like I have been doing in the fall. I've established a routine of going to the gym and rarely missed. I would like more exercise but more than that I'd like more daily activity, going to the gym  5-7x a week is not so great if the rest of my day I'm pretty much sedentary.   Our time and energy are finite and something has to give with adding in part-time job (which starts my day off with 3 hrs of sitting) I'll have to make some adjustments and prioritization.

So- after that long preamble I've figured out my BIG goal for the New Year- 10,000 steps a day.

Smaller Goals:

-Continue 2x a week lifting while kids do TKD

-shift my weight down to hit my preferred maintenance level- last year I made it to the top end of that range but of course your weight goes up and down- so that is 3-5 lbs- I'd love to hit that in 3 months, we'll see 🙂

The steps were once easy for me but life changes, and I've done enough whining about that, so daily activity will be my major focus. I might add in some lifting goals later but I've got to think about that more.

Tomorrow is another day, I'm sure much of it is bloating! I hope for lots of success for you in the New Year!

That sounds like a great plan! Now that I have the tracker, I can see how little I actually move. I get close to 10K when I fence, but without it, it's hard to get above 6k. I do try to get up and get bare minimum of steps every hour though. It turns out to be good for the house, too, as I don't have anything else remotely physical to do but clean the house, so those 10-15 minutes an hour are actually visible.

On 1/2/2019 at 5:48 AM, DawnM said:

I have my Fitbit Versa now!  I ordered it for Christmas, it came two days ago.  I had decided to give it to my son, but he has decided he won't use it for much more than a watch, so I am going to get him a watch and take the Fitbit back!  It was an $89 special deal before Christmas.  And I had a $25 Amazon gift card, so, SCORE!  I am excite3d to use it.

It is on the charger right now and I am going to play with it when it finishes downloading and charging.

Fitbit is fun! Versa is what my DH has, but he refused to give it to me. I got myself Charge 3. I love their app, too!  I hope you have as much fun with it as I do!

On 1/2/2019 at 6:20 AM, wintermom said:

Thanks for starting out the Jan 2019 thread, Monica! 

I've been thinking about realistic, yet still interesting fitness goals for the upcoming winter. I'm taking a graduate course at the local university, and I may be hired for a part-time job, so I'm not sure how busy I'll be. This is my plan for now:

- Tennis league twice every 2 weeks. Perhaps an additional practice when there is time .

- Walk daily at least 30 minutes

- Ski, skate or snowshoe once a week 

- Add in some weight training either at home or at a gym. Start with once a week.

 Your exercise always sounds like so much fun!

On 1/2/2019 at 6:49 AM, Fifiruth said:

I’m posting this very encouraging video on the board threads having to do with goals and such. It’s very uplifting.

 

 Thanks for posting it! It was really inspiring!

21 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

I dragged myself to the gym today. Inside, I was kicking and screaming. I stayed in a mood the whole way there.  But I got in and got it done, despite the New Year crowd forcing me to do thing out of order, lol.

It wasn't too bad after a long break. I lowered my weights a bit just to be careful. There was sweat. It got done!

 That is great! My workout on Tuesday was a drag, too, but it felt so good to have it done!

43 minutes ago, Margaret in CO said:

Meeting up with a friend in a few hours to walk, but it's still -10!

 Enjoy!

 

So far I did 2 days of exercise this week. Still on track 🙂 I do miss fencing though, and it seems that even though it is not particularly taxing by itself, it really makes a difference in my TDEE. I am still 2 lbs up from the last week. So 2 lbs were water/bloat, but the other two want to stay. The fencing club is open on Friday. I just hope it won't be another case of the last Friday, when nobody showed up and it was just a wasted trip.

[wintermom]

We finally got some gorgeous powder snow on top of a hard base, so I got in a 45 min skate ski this afternoon through the park. It was so much fun!  Winter is a lot more fun when the freezing rain stops and you can actually skate or ski, or even walk without falling all over the ice. 😉

[Epicurean]

I’m starting 30 minutes of Ballet Beautiful everyday (I bought some streaming videos). She makes it look easy, but it’s so hard!

[hshibley]

I've been on track this week. I've been running 3.2 Sun, Tues, Thurs and today. Sunday's time was around 37 min. Today's time was 35 min 50 secs. The confidence knowing I've covered the distance before is a huge factor for me. I've been able to get back to spin, yoga and strength classes at my newly renovated gym this week. It was great to get back to strength training. They have new elliptical machines at the gym so I need to find a new programmed workout that I like. Tomorrow will be a rest day just yoga.    

Does anyone use an app to keep a log of their workouts?  I don't have a fitbit or anything. I'm just looking for something on my phone where I can keep a manual log.

 

[Soror]

re: hshibley= I just write things down in a bullet journal

__________________________________

Wednesday- step count 4k (sad!)

Thursday- 15,500- and lifting at the gym (happy) 🙂

[OlgaLA]

I did my bike yesterday (added another 5 min, so up to 50min now). 3 days out of 5 for this week down. Hopefully, I'll get to fence tonight.

@hshibley I keep track in MFP for just minutes done/calories burned (although I don't really trust those numbers). It's OK for something uniform, like cardio. For strength training or when I wrote down more details, I also used a bullet journal. I do think there are some apps for weightlifting and other sports though.

 

 

[lynn]

I've been having trouble when running outside so until I get to my Dr and see what I can do i am sticking with beach body in demand inside.  I completed insanity and now working through 80 day obsession and loving the challenge of it.

[wintermom]

We got more fresh snow and mild temps, so I went for a skate ski (sort of). It was hard going as the snow was heavy and kind of deep. It was a great work out, though. I sweated a ton!

[OlgaLA]

On 1/4/2019 at 12:47 PM, lynn said:

I've been having trouble when running outside so until I get to my Dr and see what I can do i am sticking with beach body in demand inside.  I completed insanity and now working through 80 day obsession and loving the challenge of it. 

I hope the Dr. will help getting you back to running soon!

On 1/4/2019 at 2:18 PM, wintermom said:

We got more fresh snow and mild temps, so I went for a skate ski (sort of). It was hard going as the snow was heavy and kind of deep. It was a great work out, though. I sweated a ton!

 Sweat is always good! And so is fresh snow!

I went fencing yesterday and after 8 days of break I felt like I completely forgot how to fence. Today I did an hour of bike. I lowered the intensity of my bike workout and it is unbelievable what difference lowering HR by 30 bpm makes. I am 5 out 5 days for this week! 1 week down, 51 to go 🙂 

[Soror]

10k steps Friday

9k steps Saturday

Today's plan is to bodyweight work- I keep planning and failing on this lately, I'm not in the headspace for it right now so I'm changing my goal. 1 set of exercises, whatever I can manage in one go. 

I've been doing great on steps but I've been doing lots of work around the house. We'll see if I can keep it up, I've been feeling good and that really helps.

[wintermom]

Dh and I played 2 hours of challenging doubles tennis yesterday with our friends. It was fun and tiring. My legs were really feeling it after the skiing. I'm feeling a lot better today, though. The muscle is already starting to build up! It's a lovely feeling, though getting through that initial pain isn't exactly fun.

I'm heading out for a ski this morning before it warms up too much. I really have to keep the momentum going while the snow and time are both available!

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

Great job this week, ladies!  

I can't quite say the same for myself- 2x1.5hrs of ice skating, but not enough to break a sweat, and one 5k run.  

I have been doing a lot of thinking...listened to Atomic Habits over the break and enjoyed that, trying to think of how to implement in my life!  I hope next week to have gotten some of that planning and executing done!  

[wintermom]

I went for a skate ski this morning with ds, and then a walk this afternoon with a friend. It was pretty windy out there, but otherwise beautiful with snow and sun. I'm so happy that my legs are recovering faster with each bit of exercise! 

[Soror]

22 hours ago, wintermom said:

Dh and I played 2 hours of challenging doubles tennis yesterday with our friends. It was fun and tiring. My legs were really feeling it after the skiing. I'm feeling a lot better today, though. The muscle is already starting to build up! It's a lovely feeling, though getting through that initial pain isn't exactly fun.

I'm heading out for a ski this morning before it warms up too much. I really have to keep the momentum going while the snow and time are both available!

Glad you got some tennis in, I know you love it!

20 hours ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

Great job this week, ladies!  

I can't quite say the same for myself- 2x1.5hrs of ice skating, but not enough to break a sweat, and one 5k run.  

I have been doing a lot of thinking...listened to Atomic Habits over the break and enjoyed that, trying to think of how to implement in my life!  I hope next week to have gotten some of that planning and executing done!  

 

Yes, making goals can be a challenge. I'm still working on it. What I keep coming up with is to relax more, I've been pushing and pushing myself physically towards different goals (I could name the litany but I feel too tired to even do that), year after year. I just don't want to right now. I want to focus on natural movement, moving in ways I enjoy just because, not trying to hit any particular goal except be active throughout the day.

Yesterday was 8,500 steps. My average has def been better this week but I anticipate a lazy day today. I woke up at 1:50 this morning. I have a ton to do today and I'm already tired, big goal for today just make it through the to-dos and get a nap if I can.

ETA- 1 set of push-ups and squats at 7:50 (right before my bed time but I squeezed in my minimum goal 🙂 )

Edited January 7, 2019 by soror

[wintermom]

22 hours ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

I can't quite say the same for myself- 2x1.5hrs of ice skating, but not enough to break a sweat, and one 5k run.  

I don't usually sweat while skating, but then again the temperature is colder. You're working a bunch of different muscles with skating, and if you up the pace you should get a great work-out without the pounding on the joints that running does.

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

1 hour ago, wintermom said:

I don't usually sweat while skating, but then again the temperature is colder. You're working a bunch of different muscles with skating, and if you up the pace you should get a great work-out without the pounding on the joints that running does.

 

You are so right!  I am not a regular skater, and I am definitely feeling muscles today that I didn't even know I had!  LOL

[wintermom]

1 hour ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

You are so right!  I am not a regular skater, and I am definitely feeling muscles today that I didn't even know I had!  LOL

That's exactly what happened to me the first time back with skating!  

I just went for a 50 min skate. It's a very similar motion to skate skiing, though, so in theory my muscles shouldn't get too sore. 😉

[OlgaLA]

I really should have stuck  to my goals of 5 workouts a week, but no, I decided to try running. 30 minutes. Slow, with some walking. Felt pretty happy, but since I returned home my hips are killing me every time I sit down and then try to do something. The muscles are sore, too, but I think the main problem is tendons (IT band around the hips, according to Dr. Google). Not fun at all. I hope if I sufficiently warm up, fencing will be possible tonight.

[Soror]

On 1/7/2019 at 7:26 PM, OlgaLA said:

I really should have stuck  to my goals of 5 workouts a week, but no, I decided to try running. 30 minutes. Slow, with some walking. Felt pretty happy, but since I returned home my hips are killing me every time I sit down and then try to do something. The muscles are sore, too, but I think the main problem is tendons (IT band around the hips, according to Dr. Google). Not fun at all. I hope if I sufficiently warm up, fencing will be possible tonight.

Sorry you are sore, hope it is better soon 😞

_______________________

Monday- 8.5 k steps

Tuesday- 11.5 k steps + lifting at the gym- much smoother than Thursday. I switched back to higher reps, lower weights just b/c that is what I wanted to do, at least for now. I also taught a yoga class for kids at the library (and practiced it at home w/ my kids)- about 40 minutes total but nothing too intense- obviously. I decided to start working on this MOVNAT progression, except I couldn't do it all, well not all and my lifting too, I guess I'm rusty on my crawling!

If my steps are 10k today then my last 7 day average will be 10k... Will I make it??? I've got nowhere to go today and would LOVE a lazy day w/ this busy week so I'll have to work for it today 🙂

I've only taken a couple of small walks with that too, mostly that is working around the house and yard and when you walk that much around the house and yard everything stays pretty clean because I'm looking for things to do to keep busy instead of randomly walking- that's a win-win! 

Edited January 9, 2019 by soror

[OlgaLA]

6 hours ago, soror said:

Sorry you are sore, hope it is better soon 😞

_______________________

Monday- 8.5 k steps

Tuesday- 11.5 k steps + lifting at the gym- much smoother than Thursday. I switched back to higher reps, lower weights just b/c that is what I wanted to do, at least for now. I also taught a yoga class for kids at the library (and practiced it at home w/ my kids)- about 40 minutes total but nothing too intense- obviously. I decided to start working on this MOVNAT progression, except I couldn't do it all, well not all and my lifting too, I guess I'm rusty on my crawling!

If my steps are 10k today then my last 7 day average will be 10k... Will I make it??? I've got nowhere to go today and would LOVE a lazy day w/ this busy week so I'll have to work for it today 🙂

I've only taken a couple of small walks with that too, mostly that is working around the house and yard and when you walk that much around the house and yard everything stays pretty clean because I'm looking for things to do to keep busy instead of randomly walking- that's a win-win! 

ThanksI I am feeling better 🙂

You can do it! Although I know it can be hard. A few days ago I had something like 9456 steps just before bedtime. Those 500 steps are not a lot, and can be done at home. I spent a bit of time how crazy it was just to walk around the house for 10 minutes. I ended up not doing it, but I kind of regret it. So, do it!

And cleaner house is one of the things I enjoy about my fitbit. In addition to steps it has "active hours", so every hour I try to get up and do something to get that dot. Got 9 out of 9 yesterday 🙂

I did about an hour of fencing on Monday. Yesterday I started the day with a 30-minute walk. I did jog a small part of it, just to get my heart rate up, but I was a bit afraid to hurt myself, so I was super slow and careful. I do like how it makes me feel after, so I want to continue. Hopefully, I'll be able to run soon, but even just walking is great. I do feel like it makes me more hungry though. Then I took a private lesson, and finished it off with an intense 30-minute bike session. I noticed that bike is the only thing that really gets my heart rate up.

I am afraid I am getting a bit addicted to all the cool apps though.

  OK, off to finish my coffee and head out for a walk.

[Soror]

18 hours ago, OlgaLA said:

ThanksI I am feeling better 🙂

You can do it! Although I know it can be hard. A few days ago I had something like 9456 steps just before bedtime. Those 500 steps are not a lot, and can be done at home. I spent a bit of time how crazy it was just to walk around the house for 10 minutes. I ended up not doing it, but I kind of regret it. So, do it!

And cleaner house is one of the things I enjoy about my fitbit. In addition to steps it has "active hours", so every hour I try to get up and do something to get that dot. Got 9 out of 9 yesterday 🙂

I did about an hour of fencing on Monday. Yesterday I started the day with a 30-minute walk. I did jog a small part of it, just to get my heart rate up, but I was a bit afraid to hurt myself, so I was super slow and careful. I do like how it makes me feel after, so I want to continue. Hopefully, I'll be able to run soon, but even just walking is great. I do feel like it makes me more hungry though. Then I took a private lesson, and finished it off with an intense 30-minute bike session. I noticed that bike is the only thing that really gets my heart rate up.

I am afraid I am getting a bit addicted to all the cool apps though.

  OK, off to finish my coffee and head out for a walk.

When I crawled in bed I was at 9756, so I got back up and cleaned and paced some more and I made it 🙂 7 days average of 10k, lets see how the next 7 days go.

Hope the hips are ok, I like how running made me feel but ended up being too much stress for my body.

My hunger has been crazy the last couple of days, thank you hormones!!!

[Ravin]

I have decided to accelerate my step count increases. I have been increasing 300 steps/week as long as I reached the goal 3 days that week. I haven't missed a weekly increase in quite some time. So, I'm going to start increasing my goal 300 steps every time I hit three days at the current goal. This should still result in increases at least weekly, but could also go faster than that. Once I hit 12000 steps/day, I'm going to start adding additional exercises besides walking.

[lynn]

It looks like everyone is off to a good start this year.  Today concludes phase 1 of 80 day obsession.  I lost 4 lbs but gained some core strength and good toning.  At 51 I'll take those results.  I have discovered and am a little discouraged that I can only go up to 15lbs dumbbells or i aggravate my back issue.    Thats only 30lbs for most leg exercise I am hoping if I continue working on my core i could eventually go up to 20lb dumbells.  Any suggestions to stay where I'm at or keep working on it.  

[OlgaLA]

11 hours ago, soror said:

When I crawled in bed I was at 9756, so I got back up and cleaned and paced some more and I made it 🙂 7 days average of 10k, lets see how the next 7 days go.

Hope the hips are ok, I like how running made me feel but ended up being too much stress for my body.

My hunger has been crazy the last couple of days, thank you hormones!!!

 Yay! You did it! And I hear you about hunger. I feel like I eat something, and 30 minutes later I am starving again. I upped my calories and I am still hungry. I don't think it's hormones in my case, though. Or maybe it is. This cycle is crazy for me.

I still feel my hips, but they are getting much better. I can walk and run, but when I stand up, I walk funny for a few seconds. I still went out to run, as it makes me feel so much better energy-wise.

8 hours ago, Ravin said:

I have decided to accelerate my step count increases. I have been increasing 300 steps/week as long as I reached the goal 3 days that week. I haven't missed a weekly increase in quite some time. So, I'm going to start increasing my goal 300 steps every time I hit three days at the current goal. This should still result in increases at least weekly, but could also go faster than that. Once I hit 12000 steps/day, I'm going to start adding additional exercises besides walking.

Sounds like a great plan!

6 hours ago, lynn said:

It looks like everyone is off to a good start this year.  Today concludes phase 1 of 80 day obsession.  I lost 4 lbs but gained some core strength and good toning.  At 51 I'll take those results.  I have discovered and am a little discouraged that I can only go up to 15lbs dumbbells or i aggravate my back issue.    Thats only 30lbs for most leg exercise I am hoping if I continue working on my core i could eventually go up to 20lb dumbells.  Any suggestions to stay where I'm at or keep working on it.  

It's hard to say what would be better. I can only suggest listening to your body and thread carefully if something aggravates anything in your body. With improved core strength you are likely to be able to handle more weight, but don't rush. 

4 hours ago, Margaret in CO said:

The treadmill arrived yesterday, and bless dd's soul, she spent 2 hours putting it together. It made it SO much easier to get that last mile in last night. Did 10 yesterday. And I'm down another lb.  

 Nice! Having equipment at home does make using it easier! And congrats on another pound!

 

Yesterday my run/walk turned out to be the only exercise for the day. DD needed to go to orthodontist, and since it was an emergency visit, it was only available at the time when I could have taken a private lesson.  No fencing today, so I did another run in the morning. I pushed it a little to hit exactly 5K. Of course, now 2 of my apps disagree as to how much I ran and how fast, and they managed to update each other in a circle, so now I need to sit down and figure out which one out of 4 runs I need to keep 🙂 That aside, they promise rain for 6 out of the next 9 days my weather app shows 😞 I guess I'll be back on my bike next week.

[wintermom]

I got in a walk with friends this afternoon in the woods. It felt good to get outside, but the weather was really cold and windy. I would love to get out and ski tomorrow morning as the snow looks good, but if it's -20 I may not want to take the plunge. It's the wind-chill that makes things very unpleasant.  

[KathyBC]

It's been about a month since the Christmas feasting began, and finally today the scale says I am back where I was a month ago, hurrah!
Now to begin again towards actual goal weight, lol.

[Soror]

Lifting last night and 8500 steps

[HollyDay]

I am unfortunately in a pain flare. 2 workouts ago, the trainer decided to "up our game plan" and see if we could move on faster.  After all the goal is to get me independent.  I agreed as things have been going so well.  Well......not so much.  I've had pain ever since.  Yes, I have chronic pain and one of the goals of working with a trainer is to reduce the chronic pain...and we have had success..until 2 sessions ago.  We talked a lot and evaluated a lot last session and I think we just agitated things that didn't want to be agitated.  We both agreed I've taken a step (or 2) backwards.

January is always a more painful month for me anyway.  I made huge changes in holiday eating hoping to avoid increased pain.  And honestly, I think it would have worked had we not agitated things.  But, in any event, the pain this January is much less than 2 years ago, and on par with last Jan.  Resting and icing, increasing tumeric, hoping to get back on track this coming week.  I did go to the gym yesterday but did mostly upper body (my pain flare is always lower back, right hip, right leg), stretching, mat work.

[Soror]

I'm sorry Holly, I hope you are better soon 😞

________________

Yesterday was a lazy day, I did not feel the best. 5k steps but I'm calling that a victory, my last "lazy day" 9 days ago I only had 4k steps and the one prior was 3k, that's victory. I'm going to have fluctuations in my day because my energy varies so much but I'm generally trending upwards.

[OlgaLA]

15 hours ago, HollyDay said:

I am unfortunately in a pain flare. 2 workouts ago, the trainer decided to "up our game plan" and see if we could move on faster.  After all the goal is to get me independent.  I agreed as things have been going so well.  Well......not so much.  I've had pain ever since.  Yes, I have chronic pain and one of the goals of working with a trainer is to reduce the chronic pain...and we have had success..until 2 sessions ago.  We talked a lot and evaluated a lot last session and I think we just agitated things that didn't want to be agitated.  We both agreed I've taken a step (or 2) backwards.

January is always a more painful month for me anyway.  I made huge changes in holiday eating hoping to avoid increased pain.  And honestly, I think it would have worked had we not agitated things.  But, in any event, the pain this January is much less than 2 years ago, and on par with last Jan.  Resting and icing, increasing tumeric, hoping to get back on track this coming week.  I did go to the gym yesterday but did mostly upper body (my pain flare is always lower back, right hip, right leg), stretching, mat work.

So sorry about that! Feel better soon!

6 hours ago, soror said:

I'm sorry Holly, I hope you are better soon 😞

________________

Yesterday was a lazy day, I did not feel the best. 5k steps but I'm calling that a victory, my last "lazy day" 9 days ago I only had 4k steps and the one prior was 3k, that's victory. I'm going to have fluctuations in my day because my energy varies so much but I'm generally trending upwards.

We do need our rest days. And 5K is great. I looked through my records, and my lazy days are 3K give or take 200.

 

My body also really wanted a rest day yesterday, but it was a fencing day, so I dragged myself there. I managed OK, but today I am taking a day off completely. I might go for a walk, but just a walk. I'll wear jeans to make sure it is a proper leisurely walk, and nothing that requires any real effort or gets me even slightly out of breath. 

[Soror]

3 hours ago, OlgaLA said:

So sorry about that! Feel better soon!

We do need our rest days. And 5K is great. I looked through my records, and my lazy days are 3K give or take 200.

 

My body also really wanted a rest day yesterday, but it was a fencing day, so I dragged myself there. I managed OK, but today I am taking a day off completely. I might go for a walk, but just a walk. I'll wear jeans to make sure it is a proper leisurely walk, and nothing that requires any real effort or gets me even slightly out of breath. 

Enjoy your rest day!!!

I'm not being all that active today either, my energy has been rather meh the last 2 days. I did go to the gym today. I finally settled on a workout (for now anyway- subject to change). I'm back to doing phase 1 of strong but subbing in some of the more advanced versions of some exercises and plugging in some MovNat pull-up progression work for the pull work. Phase 1 has higher reps and push-ups every day. I felt like working the push-ups translated into some gains in bench press but gains in the bench didn't seem to help the push-ups so much and that is a skill I enjoy having. I know I made crazy gains last time I did this phase and I'm starting out this time considerably stronger. I'm trying to go slow and steady w/ chin-ups--maybe I'll get one from a full dead hang this year, who knows. Right now I can't complete the full 1st week progression that I have without it totally scorching me so I'll have to work up to that.

Wk 1: max hold dead hang; max hold forearm hang, 5 negatives, 1 min hand foot crawl, 2 min push-pull crawl, and hand-foot crawl on a 2x4 (which I've not figured out how to do at the gym yet)- I'm evidently out of practice on crawling b/c the 1 min hand/foot crawl is a good effort and I can feel EVERYTHING working;

This week I did the hand/foot crawl and max hang, today added in the negatives. Next week maybe I can add the push/pull crawl and maybe forearm hang, we'll see- it's max hang so I that just might not be very much and I'm not doing any other upper body except push-ups and I think I might give up the other core work for now until I adjust to this 

Edited January 12, 2019 by soror

[Soror]

Only managed 4,500 steps yesterday. Got to the gym and not much beyond that just didn't feel very well. Here's hoping today is a better one. I did get 8 hrs of sleep (which hasn't happened in months). All of my upper body is very SORE!!

[Monica_in_Switzerland]

This week has been brutal, headaches or migraines every day.  I have no idea what's going on.  Sigh.  About half-way through the week, I did move back into keto... it totally eliminated my regular headaches last time, so I decided to stop hemming and hawing and just get started.  Today I feel slightly better, but still not headache free.  Grrr.

[IvyInFlorida]

Hi everybody!  I used to post a little on these threads last year, but I'm looking forward to following everybody's efforts more diligently from here on out.  Y'all are inspiring!

So I used this online tool where you measure your wrist to determine your body frame type and use that as a factor to determine ideal weight, BMI, etc.  I thought that was neat.  I hate scales because even though I'm average-ish height (5'5), I have thick, heavy bones that make the simpler weight gauges not really applicable to me.  It confirmed what I thought--about 10 lbs to go and then it's maintain, maintain, maintain.

So that's my goal, plus lower body toning and enough cardiovascular fitness to make it through my black belt test next year (3 hour test, which includes 3 straight minutes of punching bag work, AAAAAHHHH) with ease.

I did pretty well through the holidays, mostly because I was consistent with exercise and the fact that I don't have a sweet tooth.  Food-wise, I'm going to tweak my diet a little, skewing more toward salad/veggies and less bread for each meal, even breakfast.  I can't skimp on meat, cheese, or fats or I end up being absolutely starving all day.  I would like to figure out a way to not snack during the 3-4pm window without feeling like I might die before supper...  Also how to make it through PMS without wallowing in gin and tonic or cheese toast!  PMS makes me completely irrational and I can justify any bad decision, LOL.

Exercise...still doing martial arts 3x per week.  Then 2x per week something additional.  In a couple months it will be swimming, but in the meantime, I'd like to switch from running to bodyweight exercises.  I enjoy the running since it's a guaranteed kid-free activity, but I ended up with pretty serious heel pain a couple weeks ago after I did 4 miles trail running.  I got new shoes.  Still, I think I'm going to rest from running a bit.  I dread the bodyweight stuff a little because it makes me a little achy, but I know I need to do it.

Anybody with words on wisdom on my goals/plan, please chime in!

[OlgaLA]

18 hours ago, soror said:

Only managed 4,500 steps yesterday. Got to the gym and not much beyond that just didn't feel very well. Here's hoping today is a better one. I did get 8 hrs of sleep (which hasn't happened in months). All of my upper body is very SORE!!

I hope today really was a great day for you!

17 hours ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

This week has been brutal, headaches or migraines every day.  I have no idea what's going on.  Sigh.  About half-way through the week, I did move back into keto... it totally eliminated my regular headaches last time, so I decided to stop hemming and hawing and just get started.  Today I feel slightly better, but still not headache free.  Grrr.

So sorry about that 😞 Hopefully, you will find a way to eliminate them soon!

14 hours ago, IvyInFlorida said:

Hi everybody!  I used to post a little on these threads last year, but I'm looking forward to following everybody's efforts more diligently from here on out.  Y'all are inspiring!

So I used this online tool where you measure your wrist to determine your body frame type and use that as a factor to determine ideal weight, BMI, etc.  I thought that was neat.  I hate scales because even though I'm average-ish height (5'5), I have thick, heavy bones that make the simpler weight gauges not really applicable to me.  It confirmed what I thought--about 10 lbs to go and then it's maintain, maintain, maintain.

So that's my goal, plus lower body toning and enough cardiovascular fitness to make it through my black belt test next year (3 hour test, which includes 3 straight minutes of punching bag work, AAAAAHHHH) with ease.

I did pretty well through the holidays, mostly because I was consistent with exercise and the fact that I don't have a sweet tooth.  Food-wise, I'm going to tweak my diet a little, skewing more toward salad/veggies and less bread for each meal, even breakfast.  I can't skimp on meat, cheese, or fats or I end up being absolutely starving all day.  I would like to figure out a way to not snack during the 3-4pm window without feeling like I might die before supper...  Also how to make it through PMS without wallowing in gin and tonic or cheese toast!  PMS makes me completely irrational and I can justify any bad decision, LOL.

Exercise...still doing martial arts 3x per week.  Then 2x per week something additional.  In a couple months it will be swimming, but in the meantime, I'd like to switch from running to bodyweight exercises.  I enjoy the running since it's a guaranteed kid-free activity, but I ended up with pretty serious heel pain a couple weeks ago after I did 4 miles trail running.  I got new shoes.  Still, I think I'm going to rest from running a bit.  I dread the bodyweight stuff a little because it makes me a little achy, but I know I need to do it.

Anybody with words on wisdom on my goals/plan, please chime in!

Welcome back!

No real words of wisdom, but I am sure you can lose the weight and get ready for that black belt test! From what I remember 30 seconds of bag punching were pretty brutal. I don't even want to think about 3 minutes 🙂  Do you know what else the test includes? See if there are things like crazy number of pushups, etc, which won't be really trained during classes but you can do at home during those bodyweight sessions. Once you make/find a plan, and get used to it a little, it's not that bad 🙂 I actually think I need to add them back, as my upper body is not getting enough work lately.

I actually followed the plan yesterday, and only did a 35 minute walk in the neighborhood. Still, lots of steps, and some of the streets had a decent incline. And this morning I actually ran 5K! I was really surprised, but at about 1K I realized that I could do it. I guess I hit that spot where I felt I could run forever. I did run very slowly, slower than my last run/walk, but I didn't switch at all. I felt my hips were a little tight while I was running, but after a cool down and a nice soak in a tub, it feels fine. Due to our weather, my next run might be  on Friday, but I am looking forward to it! I just wish my family stopped being all excited about it. When I said I ran 5k, DS asked if I was going to run 10k tomorrow. And when DH decided to brag to his parents about me running, FIL asked I was running along a particular street that is really steep. Yes, of course I am going to run 10K uphill tomorrow. It is not like I need my feet and joints for anything else. DH redeemed himself by konmariing his part of the closet today though 🙂 And I found a couple of dresses from college I could fit into. I know they didn't fit last fall 🙂

As for weight, as much as I want to lose a few more pounds, I decided that with added running and accompanying stress on muscles, I should be eating at least at maintenance. If my body decides to recomp, I am fine with that, but I feel like actively trying to lose weight is not a right thing right now. I am also watching my protein levels, as I tend to go carb/fat heavy.  I did lose the 4 lbs I gained during Christmas/NY week though.

[Soror]

22 hours ago, Monica_in_Switzerland said:

This week has been brutal, headaches or migraines every day.  I have no idea what's going on.  Sigh.  About half-way through the week, I did move back into keto... it totally eliminated my regular headaches last time, so I decided to stop hemming and hawing and just get started.  Today I feel slightly better, but still not headache free.  Grrr.

I'm sorry, I hope you get relief soon.

19 hours ago, IvyInFlorida said:

Hi everybody!  I used to post a little on these threads last year, but I'm looking forward to following everybody's efforts more diligently from here on out.  Y'all are inspiring!

So I used this online tool where you measure your wrist to determine your body frame type and use that as a factor to determine ideal weight, BMI, etc.  I thought that was neat.  I hate scales because even though I'm average-ish height (5'5), I have thick, heavy bones that make the simpler weight gauges not really applicable to me.  It confirmed what I thought--about 10 lbs to go and then it's maintain, maintain, maintain.

So that's my goal, plus lower body toning and enough cardiovascular fitness to make it through my black belt test next year (3 hour test, which includes 3 straight minutes of punching bag work, AAAAAHHHH) with ease.

I did pretty well through the holidays, mostly because I was consistent with exercise and the fact that I don't have a sweet tooth.  Food-wise, I'm going to tweak my diet a little, skewing more toward salad/veggies and less bread for each meal, even breakfast.  I can't skimp on meat, cheese, or fats or I end up being absolutely starving all day.  I would like to figure out a way to not snack during the 3-4pm window without feeling like I might die before supper...  Also how to make it through PMS without wallowing in gin and tonic or cheese toast!  PMS makes me completely irrational and I can justify any bad decision, LOL.

Exercise...still doing martial arts 3x per week.  Then 2x per week something additional.  In a couple months it will be swimming, but in the meantime, I'd like to switch from running to bodyweight exercises.  I enjoy the running since it's a guaranteed kid-free activity, but I ended up with pretty serious heel pain a couple weeks ago after I did 4 miles trail running.  I got new shoes.  Still, I think I'm going to rest from running a bit.  I dread the bodyweight stuff a little because it makes me a little achy, but I know I need to do it.

Anybody with words on wisdom on my goals/plan, please chime in!

Sounds like a good plan to me, I agree with Olga, I think it would be good to figure out what is on your test and practice that. I would think bodyweight work would be a definite help, just start nice and slow.

4 hours ago, OlgaLA said:

I actually followed the plan yesterday, and only did a 35 minute walk in the neighborhood. Still, lots of steps, and some of the streets had a decent incline. And this morning I actually ran 5K! I was really surprised, but at about 1K I realized that I could do it. I guess I hit that spot where I felt I could run forever. I did run very slowly, slower than my last run/walk, but I didn't switch at all. I felt my hips were a little tight while I was running, but after a cool down and a nice soak in a tub, it feels fine. Due to our weather, my next run might be  on Friday, but I am looking forward to it! I just wish my family stopped being all excited about it. When I said I ran 5k, DS asked if I was going to run 10k tomorrow. And when DH decided to brag to his parents about me running, FIL asked I was running along a particular street that is really steep. Yes, of course I am going to run 10K uphill tomorrow. It is not like I need my feet and joints for anything else. DH redeemed himself by konmariing his part of the closet today though 🙂 And I found a couple of dresses from college I could fit into. I know they didn't fit last fall 🙂

As for weight, as much as I want to lose a few more pounds, I decided that with added running and accompanying stress on muscles, I should be eating at least at maintenance. If my body decides to recomp, I am fine with that, but I feel like actively trying to lose weight is not a right thing right now. I am also watching my protein levels, as I tend to go carb/fat heavy.  I did lose the 4 lbs I gained during Christmas/NY week though.

7

Good for you getting a good run in and enjoying it, wtg listening to your body (poo poo on the family for being all pushy!). I think your plan to change directions is a good one, I think it is good to have those periods where we change focus and put on muscle and sometimes we are in different places, that is what I felt I did this fall and summer, my body wanted to be there so I went with it, now I'm working on leaning out some.

I felt MUCH better yesterday and I got in 11k steps. I don't know if I can make a 10k average this week w/ those 2 low days, we'll see. Nothing planned today except school and work this morning, which gives me less time to be active but I'm hoping we get a walk in at some point today.

Edited January 14, 2019 by soror