I’ve heard the saying “falling off the wagon” associated often with alcoholics as a way of conveying that they were drinking again. Since I eat to feel better rather than drink alcohol, the idea of being on or off the chuckwagon seems a bit more fitting. In late December / early January I was doing pretty good about making meals that were better balanced nutritionally and since the recipes state the serving size, I was more aware of how much I was eating. I’d say I was off the chuckwagon.
Well, the last few weeks, I’ve been back on it.
I knew that would be the case because I run out of steam when it comes to cooking. I also know that our hormones change constantly and that can (and does with me) affect appetites. I also knew that if nothing appeared to be moving on the full-time job hunt that I would become frustrated and that would be a trigger for me to eat. I also think that I’m frustrated with my part-time job and have been missing someone I haven’t seen in a while. All are emotions that make me want to eat. After initially losing about 3-4 pounds, I’ve put it back on due to the excessive amount of ice cream I’ve been chowing down on.
I have been having some success in the exercise area though. I have a small planner I received as a gift and given its nice size, it’s working well as a fitness tracker book for me. I’ve been writing down my workouts and my weight, which I’ve been checking about every 10-14 days. For about 6 weeks, I’ve been able to complete about 30 minutes of cardio 3 times per week with the exception of this past week when I hit a rather low emotional point. I really like the way that I’ve been feeling doing that regular cardio so I don’t want to let it slide too much.
I’ve noticed that my thighs, for the 8” +/- right above my knee, are more toned and appear to be a little slimmer. My cardio has consisted of walking on a treadmill, riding a regular bike that’s set up on a stationary training stand and swimming. More of the first two then the last. With the severe back pain I experienced right around Christmas, I’m also doing some doctor recommended stretches on my back.
I had told myself that I would use January to just get myself to work out and probably keep those workouts easy-ish and I succeeded in doing that. I wanted to up that a little in February by working on some strength and muscle tone. Given the state of my back, it seems obvious that I need to work mostly on my core. I had planned to start incorporating a few ab moves into my week, but with my falling emotional state, I’ve fallen short of that plan. Although I have naturally been increasing the length and difficulty quotient of my cardio workouts. And even though it’s been very sparse, I have included a handful of strength moves here and there. All of that is still better than where I was at in November and early December.
I have a reunion-like event at the beginning of April and I wanted to at least feel better about how I look for that than what I was feeling at the beginning of December. I had hoped to lose a couple more pounds before then and I know that’s possible if I can fall off that darn chuckwagon. I’ve been bouncing between about 153 and 154 pounds this past month but am back up to 155 today. If I can get that to be 150-151 at the beginning of April, I will feel successful, but I also know that will take a lot of focus on my part to pay attention to what I’m eating. I also know that losing about ¼ lb per week is a good, obtainable weight loss goal that can also result in permanently keeping weight off. Losing faster usually means more extreme changes in my life and often times that just doesn’t work for long-term success and I’d like to make meaningful lifestyle changes. I hope that within a few months, I can walk up and down stairs without having to huff and puff the way that I have this past year. I also need to build up some of this strength and endurance as it appears that our move will be happening by the end of April if not sooner and I really have to increase that back and core strength in order to make it through another move without feeling completely wiped out.
I’ve known for a long time that exercise is good for me, but I also have known for a long time that if I want to lose the 20+ pounds I’ve put on, that food is an equal partner in that journey. I can’t continue to eat French fries, ice cream and mini muffins non-stop and expect to workout enough to counteract those calories. Adding in exercise while lowering the amount of food I eat is the successful combination.
