Day 2.3
Another day, another walk. G and I drove over to the library so that I could get some books to help me freak out about potential graduate degree programs, and we were very close to our old favorite park near our old apartment, so we walked a couple of laps there.
It’s been getting dark earlier. Summer’s ending. It’s also been very cool in the evenings the last few days. I would start getting ready for fall weather and stocking up on warm sweaters, but in this area, it’s just as likely to be 90 degrees in October.
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Day 2.2
Today, I went to dance class. I haven’t been able to go in several weeks because of G’s holey moley, so it was nice to be back. I didn’t get that much actual dancing in, but the room was hot enough that I sweated like crazy anyway. I’m counting it.
Meanwhile, I forgot to ask G if she got her 30 minutes in. I don’t believe that she did, but she’s snoring away on the couch, so I won’t disturb her slumber for a silly blog post that she will be the only one to read anyway!
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Day 2.1
So today’s the first day of the second week. We’re still sticking with just exercise, and as predicted, for me, it did not pay off yet.
Weigh-in results:
T: 236
G: 261
So I gained a whopping 4 pounds, and G maintained. I suspect that my gain was a combination of several factors. Some of it is probably just a big dinner the night before and therefore not permanent; I’d guess I actually gained one “permanent” pound, because I haven’t yet changed my bad eating habits.
This coming week, we’re going to keep working on developing our new exercise habit. Tomorrow, I’m going to go to dance class and G will take a walk on her own after work. Here’s looking at another uneventful week.
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Day 1.7
Late post today. We spent our 30 minutes and then some by being very busy on errands etc. I’d prefer to have 30 minutes formally devoted to exercise, but it did the trick.
Nothing else to comment on other than that we had a really, really good day.
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Day 1.6
Another walk. This is kind of boring to read, huh? It was nice though. My knee is a little stiff sometimes, which is irritating, but we kept plodding on.
Time magazine’s cover story this week is all about why exercise may not actually help weight loss at all. My first reaction? “Well, shit.” But the gist of the article is what I’ve known all along: The calories burned through exercise aren’t enough to lose weight without changing your diet. They quoted interesting new studies, also, that show that people who work out often compensate unconsciously by moving less at other times in the day or by eating more food.
I’m sticking with exercise for now, though. Even if it does nothing at all for weight loss, it definitely has countless longterm health benefits. It boosts my mood and makes me feel good, and I want to become a more active, athletic person, so exercise is my plan, and so far I’m sticking to it.
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Day 1.5
Woot. Another day, another walk. A solid half-hour today, not 45 minutes like yesterday. The 30 minutes goes by before I know it, just walking and talking. Now I’m flopped on the couch and I can feel little muscle fibers in my butt twitching. Kind of disheartening that a 30-minute walk can do that to my legs, but at least it means I am actually moving my body.
Now G is grilling me some chicken for dinner and I’m sneaking sips of her beer while she’s outside. Shhhh.
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Day 1.4
We did it again! We took a nice long walk after work. I had been planning to stay late, but I ended up not needing to, so G threw some potatoes in the oven for dinner and walked while they cooked. I miscalculated our route a little bit, so we actually walked for more like 45 minutes today.
I’m so enjoying these walks. We just moved to our new neighborhood a few months ago, so we’re still exploring this pleasant little suburb, and the evening sea breezes are so perfect that if you’re reading this from anywhere else you have reason to hate me. When we switch to a more challenging workout, I’ll miss these walks, and I hope that we’ll still find ways to work them in.
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Why exercise first?
My eating habits haven’t changed at all yet; they’re deplorable and I know it. Fast food, fatty snacks, constant munching, overlarge portions, you name it. I have a big problem with food, and I can’t really start shedding pounds until I change my eating habits. But for now, I am deliberately focusing on exercise, not food. Why?
The studies I’ve read about that examined the habits of people who lost significant amounts of weight and kept it off found one habit in common: All of the successful dieters exercised almost every day for at least an hour. I’m convinced that exercise is going to be critical to changing my habits and sustaining long-term weight loss.
Now, exercise alone is not effective in losing weight. It’s simple physics: There’s just no way that exercise can burn enough calories to really lose pounds. Changing my eating is important, and I’m looking forward to starting that part of the project.
The other reason we’re focusing just on exercise first and not on diet change yet is because of our motto: slow, sensible, and sustainable. Since we’ve got one hundred weeks to work with, almost two years, we can afford to start very slowly. I think that taking a few weeks or even a month to entrench one small change at a time will be much more effective than trying to dive in head-first – and ending up in a belly flop.
Finally, exercise is pleasant. We’re taking evening walks around our new neighborhood, enjoying the summer ocean breezes, and talking. We’re enjoying spending the time together. It’s relaxing and calming. We want to work up to more strenuous exercise, like jogging and maybe some weights. It’s really important to me to rediscover the side of myself that loves to work hard and get sweaty.
For all these reasons, we’re starting with exercise first. In a few weeks, when the exercise habit has taken root, we’ll start changing the way we eat, but for now, we’re making this one small change.
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Tags: exercise
Day 1.3
Well, today was a little better. G is patched up and mending, and today we did go on a half-hour walk to fulfill our commitment to 30 minutes of exercise. Whee!
Poor G is having a rough day. She can’t shower until tomorrow so she feels gross and grimy, and for whatever reason she’s super clumsy today–falling off a curb, tripping over the sidewalk, walking into a wall, spilling milk (without crying over it). For the last leg of our walk home I made her take my arm so I could keep her upright (and also because it’s pleasant). Now we’re relaxing after a delicious dinner of carne asada.
Our cute but devilish foster kittens went off to a new adoptive home today, thank God. They wreaked havoc on our rented house, and we’re going to have to pay to fix the damage. They were cute, but we’re really glad they’re off to a permanent home now.
Tomorrow I’m probably going to work late. It’s going to be a challenge to convince myself to take a walk when I get home so late, but I bet I can do it, with G’s help.
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Day 1.2, revised
Well, that didn’t go as planned.
You know how I casually mentioned G had some stitches? Well, after they were removed early yesterday, the incision busted wide open. Ew. She’s going back in to see her doctor today, but it looked sufficiently gnarly that we decided a visit to urgent care was in order.
So instead of going to dance class and exercising, I went to urgent care to get G’s guts tucked back in.
Kidding. Mostly. But this did mean no exercise. I guess life happens like that–the best-laid plans sometimes fall apart, and all you can do is pick them up again.
Just like your guts.
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