39.3 before Goofy - motivators welcome

[disappearing otter]

Hi all -

I've been a lurker on the DIS for a long time now, but I've been feeling weirdly down for the past few weeks, and have taken a lot of inspiration from the WISH boards.

I'm a runner -- not a fast one, mind you -- but I am of the belief that if you run, at all, you're a runner. (You are too, I promise!) I even work for a running shoe company at a job I love probably 90% of the time.

I'm also one of the luckiest people in the world -- I met someone magical way back in 1994, lost touch for 11 years, then randomly found him again in 2005... and married him half a world away! He's my favorite person, my best friend, and my running buddy. He inspired me to start running back in October 2007, and I remember how hard that first C25K workout was. I also remember just how elated I was when we crossed the finish line together at our first marathon -- Disney World, of course, in 2009.

I've run a lot since then, but have still somehow lost my way -- my eating habits are terrible, and I don't make the time to run or do any other exercise as often as I should. As such, I find the scale this morning tells me I'm 186.0 pounds -- quite possibly the highest number I've ever seen.

That gives me a BMI of 29.1 -- wow -- so I've decided to start this journal so I can have a bit of public (if, let's face it, slightly anonymous!) accountability.

I'm registered for the Goofy in 2013 -- my first since 2010 -- so because I like symbolism, I'd like to lose 39.3 pounds before then. It seems a little lofty -- I mean, I'd be happy losing 25 pounds -- but it's works in my head to have the numbers match up. Losing 39.3 pounds in 33 weeks is ambitious, but not unhealthy... I just hope I don't set myself up to fail by choosing this goal.

Today's task was simple -- brave the scale and start this journal. Start journaling what I eat. And come back and do it again tomorrow.

 

[Terapin]

Welcome! I look forward to your journal. And congrats on making some good goals!

 

[disappearing otter]

Thanks Terapin!

Yesterday was "Day 1" -- so it went pretty easily, as first days seem to do. I downloaded the myfitnesspal app to my phone and journaled all day, finishing just over my calorie "allotment". I always felt that the journaling function -- the accountability -- is what makes Weight Watchers work. (That and the fact that you learn how to eat and how to make choices, rather than eating a really limited diet...)

I didn't get enough exercise... I hit my "goal" on my Fuelband (more on this later), but I feel like I can be relatively sedentary and hit the goal.

Today's goals: journal, drink my water... and get 45 minutes of exercise today. Also -- and these aren't fitness goals, but have been causing me stress -- I need to PICK UP THE PHONE and make the appointment I have been putting off. (Why do I do this? It's taken me TWO MONTHS to make a 5-minute phone call!?!?)

Keep moving forward...

 

[::Snow_White::]

Congrats on your decision and goals!

I totally agree with your statement about runners. If you move faster than walking, you are a runner!

Good luck, I will be reading!

 

[disappearing otter]

Thanks Snow White! It's nice not to just be typing into the ether...

About today... People usually don't believe this, but I'm pretty shy. And at some point I seem to have developed a fear of looking stupid. I didn't always have this fear -- I mean, I was a teenage goth in a very conservative suburban high school.

But a few life upheavals several years back seem to have taken some of the courage out of me. So I get absurdly nervous about trying new things sometimes -- because I worry people will laugh at me.

Now, now, I know this is stupid. I mean, in life, I suspect most of us are too busy just trying to keep ourselves on track to waste our time watching for other people to mess up... at least I would hope so.

So... today I went to my first Zumba class. And I was really nervous. But it was really really fun! It reminded me of the Brazilian samba dancing I used to do years and years ago... and while it was definitely a workout, I also had a blast. Already trying to figure out when I can go back for another class.

On the less positive side, I had a pretty unhealthy dinner. But I only ended up 44 calories over my target, so it could have been much worse.

But back to positivity -- I made the stupid phone call to make the appointment... and because they had had a cancellation, I can go on Friday. Yep, two months and two minutes to fix that. :roll eyes: Still, it's progress!

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

I think you have a great goal for the Goofy!
DH and I are torn between the 1/2 and the full. I want to do the full because it's the 20th anniversary of the race and our 20th anniversary, but DH isn't so confident. LOL

Good job on the phone call! I can do that too. Drag my feet and then after it's done, I'm like Really, it wasn't that bad!

 

[disappearing otter]

Thanks BernardandMissBianca! My first marathon was at WDW back in 2009 -- my 40th birthday was December 31, 2008 and I really wanted to run a marathon before then. (It's funny to have a birthday on NYE -- I only get one "new year" to make goals!)

We had just bought our first house in 2007 and had been invited to a New Year's Eve party with our new neighbors... we were doing the usual "what do you resolve to do in 2008?" chit chat and I said, "I'd like to run a marathon this year." Amusingly, several of our neighbors are runners, and we talked about which one to do. We had assumed the Seattle Marathon (run the local race, right?) but were talked out of it when someone reminded us that the Sunday after Thanksgiving is often TERRIBLE weather in Seattle. Um, yeah, late November might not be ideal... We then set our sights on Portland, which is run in mid October, but then our best friends got engaged and set their wedding date for that weekend.

So one night, sitting in bed and reading Runner's World, I saw an ad for the WDW Marathon. I got a little thrill, but then thought, wow, Florida is a looooong way away. Besides, the race is in January 2009, not 2008. DH said that it was close enough, and wouldn't it be nice to get a little winter sun?

I am really, really happy that I chose WDW for my first marathon -- tons of course support, plus lots of friendly people running alongside you. And though there is the occasional bit of crowding or bunching, at the end of the day, Disney is really good at moving large numbers of people.

As I've seen on some other thread recently, jumping from half to full is really about making a decision. I guess it's like making the decision to go from couch to 5k, right? But, yeah, if you are thinking of a marathon, WDW is a great one. Plus, heck, think of the amazing medal!

In other news... yesterday got a little off kilter with a last-minute invitation to see Roger Waters' The Wall show. I'm no Pink Floyd fan, and only saw the film the other day b/c DH knew he was going to the show and was as excited as a little boy. But the show was surprisingly moving, fantastically theatric, and I had a fantastic time. However, I drank three beers over the course of the evening. Guess how much I was over on my target? Oh, about three beers' worth of calories... Ha! Going to the show also meant missing my yoga class... but sometimes life gets in the way -- luckily this was in a good way.

But today is a new day -- I have a blissfully meeting-free day at work, which should mean clearing off some tasks that have piled up this week. Then leaving early for an appointment (yay!) and then a lovely long weekend where I am going to put in the raised bed, plant some flowers, go for a long run, go for a long walk, and also go to the Folklife Festival in town.

A couple of random goals for the day:

1. Plot out my workouts for next week
2. Submit that silly expense report
3. Send the Dillon email...
4. Journal!
5. Go for a walk or a run tonight with DH


I hope everyone has a great day!

 

[PrincessRhi]

I'm also in the same position-- was more of a dedicated marathoner a six years ago and despite being overweight and somewhat out of shape, decided to take the plunge and pull the trigger for the Goofy in 2013. I'm glad you decided to do it as well!

Good luck with your goals for the day!

 

[BernardandMissBianca]

Yeah you skipped yoga and had 3 beers but you also got to spend time with DH and that's really important too. As long as you kick it up a notch the rest of the week the beers and a day off are worth it.

I love Disney for races. My very first race was the Everest Challenge (5K) last year. I loved it!!! It was fun but not hard core. I am seriously out of shape but all my kids are runners and DH has added an ultra to his bucket list, so I run. What else can I do?!? If you can't beat em', join em'!
My 40th is in 2013 too, so with all the big milestones I really wanted to do something cool and challenging and a bigger Disney race was just the thing.

Enjoy the gardening! I will be doing the same this weekend. It's a good workout!

 

[disappearing otter]

It's been a busy couple of days, but I'm now taking a break after putting in the raised bed in the garden....

Had a pretty decent Friday -- though I didn't get that darn expense report submitted. Ah, well, there's always Tuesday! I did, however, plot out the route for our loooooong walk on Saturday, plan my workouts for next week, journal faithfully, and send the awkward email to Dillon. All that, and had a great, impromptu team-building lunch with my work pals. I work with pretty cool people, so it's nice to celebrate that. (And I had salad and a cup of black bean chili, which seemed like a good, healthy choice!)

Saturday we went for our long walk -- 13.11 miles from our house, along a converted railway line, around an urban lake, through our gorgeous arboretum, and up Capitol Hill to a funny little place called the Highline. (A punk rock, vegan, dive bar that does amazing brunch...) After 3.5 brisk hours of walking, my breakfast burrito and pint of hard cider were well earned. Plus it meant several hours of quality time with my DH. Oh, and we used up a Groupon!

After brunch we strolled a couple of miles to the Seattle Center, where the Folklife Festival is being held this weekend -- but the gorgeous weather had really brought out the crowds, so we walked through as quickly as we could and just headed home for a relaxing afternoon in the back garden.

Today I worked on putting in the raised bed in front of the house, went out to get more of the edging stones, and then came home and put the rest in . It's funny how something as simple as edging stones make a garden look so neat and tidy. (Even if the plants behind them are, well, a little past their prime...)

I've been using MyFitnessPal pretty religiously -- it's such a simple app, and has such an amazing database. I've been able to keep pretty close to my calorie target -- though I used a lot of extra calories yesterday (offset by the epic walk).

I also went out to get some fresh fruits and vegetables. If I plan ahead of time, I can make sure and have healthy snacks to bring to work. Which keeps me from eating Cheetos.

Here's my exercise plan for the week:
Monday: long run (hooray for having Memorial Day off!)
Tuesday: boot camp with Dillon (scary!)
Wednesday: Zumba
Thursday am: boot camp with Dillon (last one for a while)
Thursday pm: yoga (missed this for the last couple of weeks, and it always makes me happy, so...)
Friday: rest!
Saturday: trail run (Rainier to Ruston 1/2 Marathon)

busy, busy -- though the only weird things are the boot camp days. I just have to remember to pace myself.

Other goals for the week:
- expense report!
- journal every day
- drink my water
- try making a smoothie with kale
- weigh in on Tuesday
- book hotel for WDW Marathon weekend!!!!!
- blog
- work on my needlepoint

And, potentially... go to a WW meeting?!?

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!!!!

 

[mackeysmom]

You'll have to let me know how that smoothie made with kale tastes - I'm not adventurous enough to try it myself.

- Laura

 

[LSU25]

Great job so far!

 

[C_leen]

Hi Disappearing Otter! Love your name! it is so apt since you are in Seattle!

Good luck with your weight loss goals! What is fuel band?

thanks for reading my journal and keeping me accountable!

Colleen from Spin Cycle

 

[disappearing otter]

Had a great weekend! Got the big chore done (hooray for the edging in the garden!), spend some great time with DH, and had an impromptu "craftacular" visit from a girlfriend, which meant I sat down for two hours and worked on my needlepoint. Spectacular!

Sure, I didn't run yesterday, but sometimes a girlfriend in need -- with a knitting project that simply must get done -- trumps a run.

Started the day with quite a surprise... stepped on the scale to find that I have somehow managed to lose 6.2 pounds in the past week. This seems like too high a number... but I suspect that I was feeling a bit, um, hefty last week, which may have prompted the start of this thread! Next week is smack dab in the middle of "my cycle", so I suspect I'll be right back up. But a loss is a loss, right? (That said, it seems like a bit much to lose in a week, but I suspect I overestimated my portion size to make sure I didn't underestimate...

Then went to Body Revolution with Dillon, who is a fierce little tiger of a woman. She's amazing and I always get an incredible, tough workout with her. I haven't been in... SEVERAL weeks, but I had a couple of workouts left on my account so I figured I should schedule them in for this week. I'll explain why I am taking a break in a later post.

Then work, which was meeting-filled and a little frustrating. But I also know how lucky I am to have a job -- especially one that I love most of the time! So I like to keep that in mind. AND I submitted my expense report -- great to finally get that done.

In Disney news -- I booked a room for the WDW Marathon in January. It's just the two of us, and we're not all that fussed about the room itself... so we decided to try Art of Animation. Though I would have loved a Lion King or Finding Nemo room, the only non-suites are Little Mermaid. Still, looking forward to it!

Now some thank yous and replies:

I'm also in the same position-- was more of a dedicated marathoner a six years ago and despite being overweight and somewhat out of shape, decided to take the plunge and pull the trigger for the Goofy in 2013. I'm glad you decided to do it as well!

Rhi - I read through your blog -- it's great! Love seeing the pictures of where you run. Makes me want to run on a beach!!! We can keep each other motivated to keep going with the training.

Enjoy the gardening! I will be doing the same this weekend. It's a good workout!

Thanks BaMB! To be honest, it was mainly shifting concrete bricks rather than the pretty part of gardening, but my arms and shoulders can really tell I was busy!

Good luck with your weight loss goals! What is fuel band?

Thanks Colleen! The FuelBand is a new gadget from Nike -- I like to think of it as Nike+ for non-runners... It tracks your movement and you earn "FuelPoints" throughout the day. So whether you are walking, running, dancing, gardening, it's monitoring your activity. It's kinda cool, but to be honest I got one because I (weirdly) won a $100 Nike gift card... and they're one of our big competitors so I can't exactly wear their shoes or gear! I tend to like techy gadgets, so I thought it would be fun to try. I already use Nike+ for my running, so this seemed like a nice add-on for the other stuff I do. But at the end of the day, it's kind-of a glorified pedometer. It does mean that if it's getting to evening and I haven't hit my "goal" for the day, I go for a little walk, so I guess it's doing its job!

thanks for reading my journal and keeping me accountable!

Likewise, Colleen!!!

You'll have to let me know how that smoothie made with kale tastes - I'm not adventurous enough to try it myself.

Laura, I still haven't gotten around to it... but maybe I'll make them for breakfast tomorrow. I'll be sure to let you know!!!

Great job so far!

Thanks! And congratulations on your news! I predict a lot of miles training for Goofy 2014 pushing a jogging stroller!


Phew! Now, let's see how the goals are coming along...

- expense report! -- DONE!
- journal every day -- so far, so good
- drink my water -- ditto
- try making a smoothie with kale
- weigh in on Tuesday -- yes!!!
- book hotel for WDW Marathon weekend!!!!! -- yes!!!
- blog
- work on my needlepoint -- yes!!!

I feel super positive today -- hope everyone is having a great week as well!

 

[redlight]

Good luck!

 

[disappearing otter]

A: When it is taught by someone who isn't a Zumba instructor...

Went to my second Zumba class today... or tried do. Got there to find a different teacher than last week. Okay, no big deal. She was cute and perky and very sweet.

Two other women arrived, including one who had been in class last week as well. It seemed a little weird that the music the teacher was playing before class started was so different to last week -- but I figured that instructors make their own mix of music.

She started off by telling us that she was going to do more of a hip-hop feel.... with some isolations to really feel the movements. I thought, well, okay, maybe this is normal.

After 10 minutes of feeling like an idiot, it was with some relief that one of the women walked out. I mean, the moves were sort-of interesting, but they were super slow and yet weirdly complicated. The second woman kept stopping, getting a drink of water, and then trying to get back into it. I just tried to move my feet when the instructor did, missing most of the actual upper-body movement. And let's just say that I was only using my arms for balance...

The instructor stopped after 15 minutes and the other woman said that she really wasn't getting it -- that she doesn't have any dance training, so she gets really frustrated by trying to do the moves... that she likes Zumba because it's a lot more free and loose and she can just keep moving. She looked somewhere between upset and angry, but was trying to stay friendly. The instructor said, "Oh, yeah. That's really great feedback" in that voice that calm, connected, right-on people use. I piped up that it's only my second ever Zumba class, so I was just trying to get my feet in the right place.

The instructor said, "Okay, then, let's just move a bit more." Then for a few songs she did simpler -- albeit weirdly slow at times -- moves, and I got a bit of cardio in. Then she went off on another idea -- what we should "disconnect from the mirror" and "focus on percussive movements" and "imagine we're in tubes, where we keep bouncing off all the surfaces". The other woman and I gamely tried to move around, but she and I made eye contact and it was all we could do not to laugh.

I fear the instructor noticed our desultory "percussion" and said, "Ummm, okay, let's get back to these movements." And from then on, she kept things simple and we were moving around again. Every time we got through a song she would clap her hands and say, "Yay!"

I was surprised to have her shift to what felt like a cool-down with 15 minutes to go. We did spinal stretches, then a series of yoga moves, planks, and then even some floor work. Umm, how did this happen? With 10 minutes to go people started coming in for the 6:30 class and stared at us as if they, too, knew something had gone very wrong.

I was super relieved at 6:30 when she announced class was over and thanked us for all of our work. I smiled, said, thanks, and then tried to get out of there as quickly as possible -- though the other woman was faster. I walked up to her outside -- where she was chatting with a friend -- and said, "Umm, sorry to interrupt, but... was that normal?"

She laughed and assured me that it was not -- that tonight's instructor was a substitute who usually teaches hip-hop or NIA. Her friend said, "I got the time messed up and walked in at 6:20 and couldn't figure out why you were all on the floor...."

Apparently all of the other Zumba instructors are great -- that sometimes you just get unlucky. After all, as Wil pointed out, what would have been more frustrating for me: that I had a weird instructor, or that class was cancelled?

Anyway, I did get a bit of a workout (though not the killer workout from last week). But I'll be back next week!

Also -- I tried my hand at a kale smoothie today. I had seen a bunch of different recipes, and they all seemed to say cup of water, cup of frozen fruit, a banana, a cup of kale. So I threw all of that into the blender along with some flax seeds and a bit of spirulina powder. A couple of minutes blending and...

kale smoothie​

I don't think it really looked this weird in real life -- I blame my phone's camera. But it was a dark, purplish blue from the blackberries and blueberries... and, I suppose, the dark green kale. It also happened to taste fantastic, though I think I could have skipped the flax seeds (made it too gritty). I think I might also use less water -- I thought the smoothie was a bit runny, but perhaps I either blended it too long or didn't drink it fast enough.

As a bonus, I couldn't find a large enough cup with a lid ... and I didn't feel up to trying and balance a dark purple smoothie in my lap while driving... so I was rooting around in the basement and stumbled across an old refillable resort mug. Perfect! (And, as DH said, now I've really got my money's worth...)

 

[C_leen]

Hi there! Thanks for checking in on my spin cycle! The smoothie does look intriguing! I have stuck to fruit, almond or soy milk, and protein powders. I should try some more green stuff too!

Hope it is a great day and you stay on task!

'Leen

 

[disappearing otter]

Today had its ups and downs...

UP: I made smoothie #2 this morning, which was delicious. I decided to leave the flax seeds out, which made the texture a lot nicer. I also reduced the amount of water, which made it thicker and tastier. I also found my lidded cup, so I wasn't driving along swigging out of a resort mug as I drove...

UP: Had a good day at work -- not the most productive day, but a good "bonding" day with my team. Sometimes that's more important than checking things off lists.

UP: Went to yoga after work... we had a substitute, who was a lot more mellow, and the class had a lot less action. Lots of breathing and stretching.

DOWN: I forgot my lunch, so I had to get lunch at work. Of course -- remember how I said I was really lucky? -- we have a chef who comes in to the office four days a week. The meals she makes are usually healthy, but I'm a vegetarian so I tend to bring in my own meals. Anyway, today's lunch was salad bar... but just having a small salad wasn't enough, so I was still hungry. So I ate a bag of chips. Bad choice.

Came home from yoga to find this amazing awesomeness:


Breaded Baked Tofu & Avocado Mashed Potato (and a bit of tired broccoli)

DH had made an amazing dinner. None of it was healthy... well, except the steamed broccoli, right? But it sure was delicious! So what if I went WAY over my calorie goal for the day. Tomorrow is a new day.

Oh! It also occurred to me that I've got a race on Saturday, so maybe I can just put this down to carbo-loading? HA!

 

[mackeysmom]

Also -- I tried my hand at a kale smoothie today. I had seen a bunch of different recipes, and they all seemed to say cup of water, cup of frozen fruit, a banana, a cup of kale. So I threw all of that into the blender along with some flax seeds and a bit of spirulina powder. A couple of minutes blending and...

kale smoothie​

I don't think it really looked this weird in real life -- I blame my phone's camera. But it was a dark, purplish blue from the blackberries and blueberries... and, I suppose, the dark green kale. It also happened to taste fantastic, though I think I could have skipped the flax seeds (made it too gritty). I think I might also use less water -- I thought the smoothie was a bit runny, but perhaps I either blended it too long or didn't drink it fast enough.

Very interesting. Were you able to taste the kale, though? I'm always skeptical when people say that the fruit taste masks the taste of the greens. Sure, I like spinach - but don't want a my smoothie to taste like spinach. YKWIM?

- Laura

 

[disappearing otter]

Very interesting. Were you able to taste the kale, though? I'm always skeptical when people say that the fruit taste masks the taste of the greens. Sure, I like spinach - but don't want a my smoothie to taste like spinach. YKWIM?
- Laura

The smoothie doesn't taste bitter, and sometimes I think kale is a bit bitter... I honestly think the frozen fruit masked it. That said, I've never tried a spinach smoothie. I'm a big fan of Odwalla Superfood -- which must have a lot of apple in it, because that seems to me like the predominant flavor.

I feel like I've been slacking with this journal, so I'm going to try and get a bit caught up.

Friday was a bad day, food-wise. We ended up going out for drinks after I had a meeting downtown... had one more than I would have liked, and then had a giant burrito on the way home. So 200 calories over goal. Oops.

Saturday was better -- we ran a half marathon in the morning, so I actually had the calories to "spend" on a splurge -- a veggie burger at Red Robin. Mmmmm. Still managed to stay under calorie target for the day (phew!).

Today I'm a little sore, and my toes hurt because I stupidly didn't do my usual pre-race preparation. I'm not one to go out and get pedicures, but the night before I go on my long runs I trim my toenails and (if it's a special event), paint them in some theme color. So... for a chocolate themed race, I painted them brown; for a Christmas race, I painted them red and green...

So no toenail trimming combined with very wet feet from a ridiculously muddy stretch of trail meant that my feet swelled up more than usual and my toenails were bumping the ends of my shoes. Let's just say I'm gonna lose at least one nail, if not several. Stupid stupid me!

DH made a delicious brunch of roast broccoli and mushrooms on french bread -- plenty of calories (from the bread), but also filling enough to tide me over until dinner time. Later this afternoon we're going for a walk to get some exercise (and keep our legs loose).

Now, I have a confession to make -- I think I might have a Groupon problem. I'm just better than I was a year or so ago, when I bought way too many Groupons. Now I only buy them for experiences -- half off race registrations, half off fitness classes, etc. But I suddenly realized I have 5 different exercise-related "Groupons" (LivingSocial, Tippr, AmazonLocal, etc.) that have to be used between now and January. Oops! And that doesn't count the one I started using for Zumba two weeks ago. So I sat down, registered for different things, and plotted everything on my calendar. Tomorrow I start 4 weeks of boot camp. If I am still able to use my arms tomorrow night, I'll let you know how it goes.

Happy Sunday, everyone!