Back to square 2?

This fall, I totally fell off track on all my fitness plans. Pole, running, yoga, nutrition, sleep, strength training, all of it. I've gained 9 pounds, my blood sugar levels are up, my depression has worsened, and I just generally feel awful.

So, I've been trying to creep back into good habits. For some reason, food logging is always a tough hurdle for me. I've made it to a few Zumba classes in the past couple months, and this weekend, I did a 5-miler. Well, now I have shin splints, so I  have to rethink that. I've also tried a couple of "tv workouts" but that's inconsistent.

So, stay tuned for a nearly complete re-working of the plan.

Move Your Body

In addition to running, pole, and strength training, I've been throwing in other activities here and there.

In particular, I've done a lot of Zumba. So much so, that I'm actually considering becoming a Zumba instructor next year. I really love the high intensity and the music. I still remember going to my first Zumba class; about 10 minutes in I thought maybe I had made a terrible mistake & I was going to die before the hour was over.  For several months, I still got that feeling, but it came later & later into the class. Eventually, I got to the point of being fully functional even after an entire class.

I also tried Bellydance! It was great, and I plan to go back to it. But I have too many different types of workouts going on right now. It was definitely a great core workout though.  After my first class, I was pretty sore.  I think I could feel each individual rib.

I'm planning to delve into cycling a little bit, but I need to acquire a bike first. When I took a spin class a few months ago, my butt hurt for 2 or 3 days, so finding the right fit is fairly important.  Still, I really love the idea of  a bike for quick local errands.

Non-Scale Victories

Since starting my journey to better health & better fitness, I've lost about 20 pounds.  But that's not the point.  Here are a list of things that have happened along the way:

• I can walk up 4 flights of stairs without needing to stop to rest (or thinking I'm going to die.)
• I can button my jeans without looking or feeling like a sausage.
• That would be my old jeans that I couldn't fit into for the 2 years before that.
• I have completed 3 5Ks.
• I can climb on pole (a little bit).
• I can see definition in my biceps.
• I have successfully worked out more days than not for the past 3 months.
• I have lost 2 inches on my waist (which I mostly only care about as it relates to my clothes).

I Pick Things Up & Put Them Down

I've started strength training.

I've resisted strength training for most most of my life, because I find it too cerebral. In a Zumba or Yoga class, I don't have to think too much. I follow an instructor, and I don't need a plan for what to do next. I don't need to remember what weight I'm up to or how many sets & reps I'm doing of anything. Smartphones have helped with some of that, and the Fitocracy ap has especially made following a plan simpler.

A friend introduced me to  The New Rules of Lifting for Women, and I'm really enjoying it so far.

It has 7 stages of progressively harder  routines, each of which you intensify  along the way to help move you along the journey. It's designed to be really efficient.  I haven't read the original New Rules book, but I suspect I would like it better. 

In the short time that I've been doing it (4 weeks) I do see a bit of a difference in my body. visually, but more importantly in my actual strength.  It's definitely showing up in my efforts on pole.

Stay tuned for more about muscle!

Doing the Weight Watchers Thing

April 2, 2013, after deciding I wasn't going to take control of my weight & my health without some help, I went with a friend to a Weight Watchers' meeting. After the meeting, I signed up. 

I really like the WW system. You count points, not calories - because all calories are not created equally.  The primary tool is the tracking of your daily & weekly points. If nothing else, it makes you really aware of what you're eating. It also then causes you to ask questions like, "Is this brownie really worth 14 points?"

I love the bounty of resources, from the in person meetings, to the online tools and the apps on my phone. My regular meeting is incredibly supportive and motivational.  While we do celebrate "non-scale victories (NSV)" are celebrated, the one thing I don't like about WW, is that the ultimate goal is measured in pounds only. So, the NSVs, which may ultimately be more important to your overall health, are treated as bonuses. That simply means that I have to make sure to value those things for myself.

I was really successful at first. I lost nearly 25 pounds through October, but then slowly they started to creep back as I became less diligent. Some of that may be increased muscle, but until I go back to tracking my food every day, I won't know for sure. So, that's a priority for me - however, as it goes, life is getting in the way right now. Until I  get some other things under control, I'll have to try to be more mindful of my decisions without the real-time tracking.

Drink Up

With my additional activity, as well as multiple health concerns (diabetes, depression, weight loss, headaches, etc.) I'm looking into juicing for additional nutrients and holistic solutions.

Here's where I'm starting:
http://juicing-for-health.com/fun-free-recipes/juicing-by-health-conditions.html
http://juicerecipes.com/health/

There are so many options that I've started a separate recipe binder, just for juices. The first one I want to try is apple-carrot-lemon-ginger.  I'll let you know how it goes!

The Diabetes Update

I have a family history of diabetes. So much so, that part of me has always felt that the diagnosis was inevitable (I do know that it wasn't, but that's not the point right now.)

January 19, 2013, my roommate drove me to the ER because my vision had gone blurry. The culprit, it turns out, was blood sugar so high it had caused my lenses to swell. I had just fought off a fairly serious bug, which is apparently a common trigger for people on the border of diabetes to tip over. Of course, I didn't just tip, I plummeted. My blood sugar was so high that we don't actually know how I was still alive, much less perfectly functioning (except for the eyesight).

I was put on quite a bit of medication, and went on about my life for a couple of weeks. I was still pretty exhausted from the virus, as well as the diabetes. I paid a lot of attention to the card counts (especially the sugar counts) in my food.

The quantity of pills I was taking was hard on my stomach. So, I resolved to get weaned off at least some of it. That meant, in part, losing weight. I started walking on a somewhat regular basis. I signed up for a 5K, and I joined Weight Watchers. 

Since joining WW In April 2013, I'm down 19 pounds (I was down 21, but I've gained a couple back). I've started working out much more regularly, and in fact just started a strength training program.

I'm on slightly less medication, but my goal is to get to half where I am now. I can walk up 3 flights of stairs without feeling like I'm going to die, but I'd like to get it to 5.  I've done another 5K, and I have plans for at least 3 more in the next few months. 

All in all, I'm actually healthier than I've been in a while.