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.

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.