The FitBit Fairy Came to My House June 2, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in exercise, Maintenance.Tags: exercise, FitBit, odometer, pedometer, steps, tracking, walking
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If you’ve followed my FitBit frustrations, you may remember that I purchased a FitBit (pedometer), loved it, wore it a few months, then lost it. Head slaps. After a few weeks I bought another one – and lost that one, this time within days. Harder head slaps. Because they are so helpful as far as monitoring exercise/steps, I really wanted another one, but knew my husband would kill me – he didn’t even know about the second purchase. (They ain’t cheap – $100.)
I poured out my tale of woe (and weight loss journey) to the kind folks at FitBit and with one thing and another, was again the proud owner of a FitBit (see my post, FitBit Frustration to Forever Fan).
What I did NOT post was that, yup, (did you already figure out where I was going?) I lost that one too. Severe head bangings on the wall. At that point I didn’t know if this was FitBit-selective Alzheimers, or if I was putting out anti-FitBit vibes causing the poor FitBit to leap off of me, or whether this was some psychological thing where I was deliberately but unconsciously misplacing or losing it. I searched everywhere – all my pants, pockets, purses, in the car, under my bed, all over the place. Surely I could find one of the three! But no luck.
Then yesterday morning, the miracle! I was in the hall closet where I keep my shoes, a closet I’m in several times every day, and suddenly, there was a FitBit right there on the closet floor in plain sight! (The latest one disappeared over a month ago.) I had to pick it up and study it to convince myself it really was my FitBit, for several reasons:
- I hadn’t seen one for some weeks, so had to take a second look to identify it!
- I couldn’t believe it had materialized and thought maybe it was a hallucination.
- The FitBit was black and pink. Now, I really thought that all three of mine were black and teal blue like the picture above. But, no one else in my house uses a FitBit, so this black and pink one has to be mine, right? Unless it was dropped off by the FitBit fairy, which I am seriously thinking must be the case!
However it showed up, I’m grateful. I charged it last night and am wearing it today, with some FitBit bondage (ribbon, safety pin, etc.) to try and keep it from leaping off of me this time! 😉
Energy and Mood-Enhancing Tips for Dieters (or Anyone Else!) May 22, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in General weight loss, Maintenance.Tags: dieting, energize yourself, energy, exercise, fatigue, happiness, low energy when dieting, magazines, mood boosts, Optifast, sunshine, walking
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In this digital age of e-information, I’m still a print magazine reader, big time, even though I tend to skim most of the magazines rather than reading every word. I skip most of the celebrity articles, and for other articles often don’t get past the first page. But if I find one recipe from the issue, one tip, one article that I can use and that provides some learning, humor or understanding of the world around me, I feel like I got my money’s worth.
One of these articles that I ran across recently, “Find Your Happy Place” by Gretchen Rubin from the June 2012 issue of Good Housekeeping, dealt with energy, mood and happiness. The article started with the statement, “It’s striking how important energy is to happiness.” And that got me thinking about early days on the Optifast diet when my energy was in shorter supply. I recall that in the early weeks of Phase 1, though not exactly tired or hungry, I often felt that I was lacking something, and could definitely have used an energy boost. And that’s true for other diets I’ve been on as well!
In case there are others in the same boat, I’m sharing some ideas from the article. The author mentions the obvious (get enough sleep) and the frequently-advised (exercise – though Optifasters are recommended to limit this in Phase 1). Some of the following ideas may also be well-known, but are still worth remembering when dealing with fatigue and mood dips:
Go outside into the sunlight. This almost always works for me, especially if it is warm outside– I feel like I’m absorbing energy from the sun like a plant photosynthesizing! 😉- Go for a 10-15 minute walk. It’s even better if you can walk in a natural setting, especially around any kind of water (a fountain if no creek is at hand), or just by some flowers and trees. Nature refreshes – it’s a fact. (There’s an article about this in this month’s O magazine as well.)
- Listen to a favorite upbeat song. Whether it’s oldies but goodies from back in the day, show tunes, dance music, or other fast-tempo favorites from any era, music can help us recharge.
- Talk to an energetic friend. Energy can be contagious. I would say also seek out actively happy, upbeat friends. I love being with people who are what I call “easy laughers.” I feel like such a wit when talking with them, and leave with shared laughter and a lighter mood in my heart.
Here are some ideas from the article that aren’t as obvious, but which resonated with me:
- Complete something on your to-do list. Actually the first step is making a to-do list. When you feel too tired or low to actually do anything, it helps to get organized and reduce the chaos at least on paper. Then when you can cross off anything (doing a load of laundry, paying one bill), the weight of all those things needing to be done gets lighter. As the weight of undone tasks lightens, so will your mood. (This suggestion, of crossing off anything, no matter how small, from your to-do list, is also made by therapists to people suffering from depression.) Just don’t make the list too long, as that could backfire and make your mood even worse!
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Cleaning up: This includes a whole range of things small to big, from putting fresh sheets on your bed, to cleaning your keyboard and area around your computer, to organizing a closet. Do something visually satisfying, such as cleaning out that plastic thingy for cutlery in the kitchen drawer or washing the car. (This gets you outside AND around water as well!). If the cleaning up includes gathering up stuff for a garage sale/charitable donation/trash can, I find that my energy and “lightness of being” increases as the clutter disappears from my life! - Doing something fun: In fact I find you don’t even have to do it (yet), just plan it, make a date, get it on the calendar, etc. I think it actually helps to make plans a week or more out, because the anticipation of the fun activity lets you milk the plans for the maximum amount of enjoyment by stretching it out. And while on the topic of fun, I have to put in a shout-out for retail therapy. Once my body started getting smaller, for me there was nothing more energizing and uplifting than trying on clothes, even if I didn’t buy any!
One good thing about the Phase 1 of Optifast is that even if still preparing food for others, for a number of reasons you probably spend less time cooking and shopping for food than you did before. (Or if you are like me, no time at all.) With that extra time you can try some of the ideas above. And whether on Optifast or not, wherever we are on our healthy-living journey, energy and happiness are blessings to be sought after and appreciated!
Cruises and Dieting May 2, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in Maintenance.Tags: alcohol, cruise ship gyms, cruises and dieting, exercise, gaining weight on a cruise, keeping the weight off, overeating, travel, vacation, walking
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Disclaimer: the subtitle of this post should be do what I say, not necessarily what I do or did!
I went on a one-week Mexican cruise (Carnival line) and got back about a week and a half ago. I did some things well, and some things not so well, but in any case will share here some lessons learned.
For one thing, the Optifast Kaiser group that meets right after mine (theirs is still product-only but nearing transition) has someone in the group who is going on a cruise this summer and was asking my advice. So for her and everyone else, read on!
Things I did well:
- I knew there would be a lot of food, so tried to put myself in the mindset that I was NOT going to eat it all, or even most of it, but would concentrate on the high end, the quality or best food available. That meant yes to lobster tail at dinner, for example, and to the fresh pineapple dipped in the chocolate fountain, and no to the 24/7 pizza bar and the hamburger grill.
- Since food is more or less unlimited, and you can order as much as you want off the menu, I decided to never eat something if it wasn’t really good. So the first night, trying to be good, I ordered the diet orange cake. It was a tasteless sponge cake, so after a few bites I left the rest.
- And since you aren’t paying for the food (as you would at a restaurant), it’s fine to order, taste, and then not finish or share with someone else at the table. Yes, it may be wasteful. But these are unusual circumstances. So I ordered the “chocolate melting cake” but only had three bites. I wasn’t hungry, the cake was rich, and three bites was plenty. (It helped that I knew it would be on the menu every night, since it’s a Carnival dessert specialty!)
Things I could have done better:
- I went to the gym the first morning at sea for the 7 am stretching class. And I used some of the machines and the treadmill afterwards. But, that was my last trip to the gym that week. Good intentions, poor follow-through. Be better than me! The gyms have a great ocean view, even if their equipment is usually limited. Ask the staff the best time to come to avoid the crowds, so that you have access to the machines. Don’t forget to pack shoes and an exercise outfit.
- Our ship didn’t really have the nice promenade that most ships have (poor design IMO). There was a very shortish promenade that my friend and I did a few laps around once. But it was on Deck 12, and it can be very breezy on the ship when it is moving. We didn’t do it more than the one time, partly due to wind, partly to laziness. Again, beat my record for walking on the ship!! The view can’t be beat…
Alcohol. Alcohol on the ship is expensive. That made it easy to not buy. BUT, there were opportunities for free champagne (art auction, etc.) which my friend and I took ample advantage of. And then there’s alcohol in port. In fact, we had one shore excursion with unlimited margaritas (though we didn’t know that when we signed up for it) and one that toured two Tequila-making businesses with mucho tasting (well, we did know about that). As we all know, not only does alcohol have calories, but it loosens your inhibitions so you eat more as well. Resist! At least more than I did.
My clothes were tight by the end of the week – the scale was up 6 or 7 pounds when I got home. (There may be a scale in the gym but there was nooooo way I was going to weigh myself on the trip. If you do that, you are definitely a more dedicated dieter than I am!) But the good news is that it has almost all come off. Thank goodness the cruise wasn’t any longer, so that the fat didn’t have time to get settled for good! 😉 If your cruise is longer, try to pace yourself.
Cruises are definitely a challenge when dieting or after losing weight and trying to maintain. But, I think they can be survived with the right attitude and some healthy behavior, even in the presence of all that unlimited food. If you go, have fun while being as healthy as possible, so that the post-vacation, back-to-work depression (that I ALWAYS have) isn’t compounded by a really scary weight gain.
And I’m always available as a travel companion, who will be happy to go to that 7 am stretching class with you, and help keep you motivated!
Subway Satisfaction April 4, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in Maintenance.Tags: calories, carbs, cravings, dieting, fast food, food, keeping the weight off, maintenance, vegetables, walking
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As I’ve blogged about before (such as in Liking What You Eat) I don’t think that a diet or eating plan will work long-term if you feel deprived most of the time. You have to be able to keep your mouth and tummy happy. Short term, yes, we can survive on shakes or “rabbit food” or no carbs, but long term, not so much.
One of the things I do almost every day to keep my mouth and tummy happy, is to have a Subway sandwich. (And no, I don’t own any stock in Subway!) The taste, the volume, and the satiation I feel afterwards, do NOT feel like I’m dieting, which is good. This almost-daily lunch goes a long way towards keeping me from feeling deprived. I can eat “fast food” and still feel good.
First, I almost always walk to the Subway near my work, which is probably a 35-minute walk round-trip. Then I get a sandwich from the healthy list (the whole “Jared’s special” thing) – for me, it’s almost always a six-inch turkey on 9-grain wheat. Usually I take the small extra cost-and-calorie hit of adding cheese – pepper jack. I skip the lettuce (no fan of iceberg) but if they have spinach (some Subway’s do, some don’t) I’ll have that. Then I have all the veggies except jalapeño peppers. And I always ask for extra of at least one of the veggies – onions or tomatoes, or most often the bell peppers. I don’t get any dressing or condiments because 1) I hate mayonnaise, 2) mustard is so strong that when it’s on a sandwich I only taste mustard, not anything else. (Put on mustard and I could be eating flannel or cardboard and not even know it!) And 3) it just adds extra calories, and the sandwich is fine for me with just the meat, cheese and vegetables.
I also get a Diet Coke and with the sandwich, it is filling and feels cheaty, yet is “legal” for my eating plan. And I’m getting lean protein, some veggies, some dairy, and somewhat healthy carbs. (The 9-grain wheat is probably the best of the bread they have, though not 100% whole grain.)
According to the Subway nutrition chart, the total for this particular sandwich with the pepper jack cheese is 330 calories. That’s not too bad, for what I’m getting, I think. (The turkey and cheese protein is only 10 grams, but if you get the black forest ham, the calories are the same and the protein is double, according to the Subway nutrition chart at http://www.subway.com/nutrition/nutritionlist.aspx, with only a smidgeon more sodium and fat.)
My trip to Subway gives me a nice half-hour walk every day at lunch. I look forward to my Subway sandwich in the morning, and when I have it around 1, I’m full for the rest of the work day. (I might have a piece of fruit later in the afternoon for a snack.) And like I said, it keeps me happy, which is the most important thing!
Illness & Injury March 21, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in Maintenance.Tags: dieting obstacles, exercise, getting off track, gym, illness, injury, maintenance, motivation, running, walking, weight loss
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These are rough patches on a fitness journey, but almost everyone runs into one or both at some time. I’ve had a double dose of these two downers lately, and they can really impact one’s progress and motivation.
It started with a serious GI infection a couple of weeks ago that involved a trip to the ER, and then several prescriptions of heavy-duty antibiotics. Too sore and sick to move much at first, then hit with the side affects of the medicine, the cure was almost worse than the disease. When your system isn’t well, it makes you feel drained, weak and spineless, with as much energy and spirit as a sea slug. 
The final blow was that when I finally got off the meds, I sprained my foot running after a four-year-old who was trying to escape the house without her jacket. 😉
It is really hard when you are on a roll, going to the gym, thinking that your body is adjusting to a higher level of activity, trying to increase your time running/jogging on the treadmill, and then whammy – you’re out of commission, activity-wise.
The good thing is I think I’m out of the woods – feeling better in general, and foot mostly back to normal. The bad thing is feeling like I’m starting all over, and have lost whatever I’d gained in endurance, and also somewhat in motivation.
So there’s how we might like things to be, and then there’s real life. In real life, there are problems, setbacks, obstacles, tragedies. We get sick or injured, have car accidents, lose loved ones, get fired, break up with partners, have pets go missing, owe money, have family drama, and just generally find that life has kicked us to the curb once again.
It is often a struggle to be good and vigilant caregivers of ourselves, food and exercise-wise, even when things are going well. It is much harder when things aren’t going well, when things happening to us and around us seem a higher priority than healthy eating or working out. We can feel we don’t have the time, energy, desire or motivation to pay attention to ourselves and our health.
I think all we can do while we’re in the midst of these things is to try to remember to be good to ourselves and to nurture ourselves, which doesn’t mean ice cream and donuts. We may take a break from active weight loss, but shouldn’t take a break from eating food that makes us healthy, and which in fact helps us deal with all these challenges around us. As far as exercise, initially I really felt too ill to do anything, even walk (Fitbit gathering dust), but even with a bad foot I have done a few arm band and other exercises, which helped me feel like I was still doing something fitness-wise.
I am planning to visit the gym and use the treadmill Thursday evening for the first time in weeks. Even if I’m starting over, at least I’m heading in the right direction again, right??
Fitbit Frustration to Forever Fan! March 2, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in exercise, Maintenance.Tags: activity log, exercise, FitBit, food log, pedometer, steps, tracking, walking
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First, if there’s anyone who doesn’t know what a Fitbit is, the short(ish) answer is that it is a pedometer used for counting steps (with LOTS of additional features for tracking sleep/overall activity/floors climbed, plus stopwatch and more) which wirelessly connects to a website to update your stats. The website provides additional online features such as tracking food and anything else, for that matter. It is very small, and can be worn on a waistband or bra. Costs about $100, and comes with charger/computer connector, optional holster, and wristband. See the Fitbit website for more info.
The Fitbit frustration, as I blogged about recently, was due to my having lost my second Fitbit within 6 months, the last one before the packaging had even been picked up by the weekly recycling truck! All my fault, not Fitbit’s, other than that it is small – but that’s a feature not a flaw. In any case, due to a suggestion in a blog comment here (thanks!), I contacted the Fitbit company, which is practically a neighbor, located in the Bay Area of California. And all I’m going to say is, they have fantastic – and sympathetic – customer service, and I’m a forever fan! Now I’m back on track, monitoring my daily steps.
The somewhat funny thing is that in my emails back and forth, I promised (to avoid losing yet another one) that I would wear the Fitbit with the armband rather than on my waist band. So when I got the Fitbit, I tried to put the “armband” around my upper arm, but it no fit. So of course what did I think? It must be my dang fat arms! Everyone else can use it on the arms, but not me! So I ended up wearing it on my wrist all that day. And wow, I had some great step statistics. My Fitbit (the sweetie) even sent me a congratulatory email on how well I had done on my first day!
Here’s the thing – it IS a wristband, not an armband, and it’s not meant to be worn during the day to count steps. It’s for wearing at night, on the wrist, to monitor sleep.
So, I’m trying the on-the-bra location instead of the on-the-waistband location and hope that the upstairs location will work better in terms of it not getting lost. There are two issues though. One is that I have PLENTY of stuff already in my bra, so the Fitbit makes a small, additional but hopefully imperceptible bulge. The other is that, since I’m so paranoid about losing it, I’m constantly running my hand over my chest to check that it’s there. I try to be subtle, but worry that my coworkers will think I’m groping myself…
This picture from my website shows a graph of my overall activity for the current day (historical charts are also always available). This was viewed in the morning, so at first I thought that most of the graph was grey because I was sleeping. But it says sleep is excluded! So I think grey is just the default and most of the day hasn’t happened yet. But the chart was from about 10 am, so some of the day had happened, and I’d only had 27 minutes of non-sedentary activity so far. Ugh! Good motivation to get active, so that at the end of the day there is as little grey as possible!
Like most food tracking sites, when you enter a food item (here, eggs) it comes up with a list to choose from. And you can add more.
There’s definitely a magic to monitoring things, in my opinion, that just naturally makes you want to improve. I find that I’m so much more focused on getting walking/activity in when wearing the Fitbit. And for the first time last night I tried the sleep monitor. It was less than 6 hours, so my new goal is to try to get that over the six-hour hurdle, at least, on a regular basis. I know it should be more, but I’ll start with a goal of 6 hours.
Measuring and monitoring are key to our health and fitness journey. We can’t track our progress towards our goals unless we monitor how we’re doing. Monitoring food intake is important, but takes work. The great thing about the Fitbit is that it makes monitoring activity, also important, almost effortless. Love it!
Couch Potato =>Wannabe Jogger: Thoughts February 28, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in exercise, Maintenance.Tags: 5K race, benefits of exercise, exercise, gym, jogging, keeping the weight off, laps, maintenance, muscle, Optifast, resistance training, run/walk, running, track, training, treadmill, walking, working out after dieting
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In the YMCA gym that I joined last month, I have sometimes snuck envious looks at the runners on nearby treadmills. I want their bodies. It’s not just that they are slim (usually) or young (often) but it’s mostly that they are smooth, compact, and firm – no jiggly parts. When I jog I feel like a galumphing rhino on two legs. So no, this picture here is definitely not me. But, I’m persevering.
Since adulthood my body has rarely been required to move faster than a walk. But I’m finding some benefits in forcing it to move at a faster pace. Not, I should point out, a hecka lot faster – when I jog on the treadmill I set the speed to 3.6 miles (with a 3.5 incline), and when I jog I move it up to 4.4, typically. (Besides being out of shape, I have short legs…)
My routine at the gym has been to jog 2 minutes, then walk a couple of minutes (till I’m not huffing and puffing) and repeat, for about 30 minutes. At the outdoor high school track last weekend, I walked one lap, then for the next five laps I jogged half the lap, walked the other half, then finished with another walking lap.
What is my motivation? What are the discernible benefits? The main one so far, and a significant one to me, has been that it actually makes my allotted exercise time go by faster. Walking for 30 minutes on a treadmill, even with a close captioned news station in front of me, is still boring. But when I’m either in pant mode or recovery mode most of the time, I find it goes by faster!
This weekend, when I used the track on both Saturday and Sunday, I slept LOTS better at night, both nights. So I’m counting that as a benefit too.
Besides these immediate benefits, I’m hoping for some long-term ones. I’m hoping my time-before-I-start-huffing-and-puffing increases. Which means I’m hoping I can increase the percentage of time jogging. And maybe jog at a faster pace? And increase the overall time I’m doing all this, to help get ready for a 5K this coming weekend, and hopefully future, possibly longer, “races.”
I’m also hoping I get less jiggly –though the time for me to aspire to one of the bodies I see on nearby treadmills has passed, I fear. I don’t think jogging can accomplish the de-jiggling – that may need to come from the resistance machines in the room next to the Y treadmill/cardio room. I also use those machines for about 20 minutes when I’m at the gym, in addition to the resistance bands and weeny weights (4 or 5 pounds) I use at times, at home and at work.
I should mention that post-Optifast I think I was MORE jiggly than pre-Optifast. I think it is hard to lose 55 pounds, especially rapidly (16 weeks) and not lose muscle. Hence some of the jiggle. And with spring and summer ahead, I may have to give up my standard jiggle-hiding three-quarter-length sleeves, so in addition to helping with less galumphing, I am motivated to reduce the jiggle, especially for my arms.
While I can’t say that doing cardio or resistance is terribly fun (I haven’t experienced any walker/jogger high yet!), with hopes for a firmer future I plan to keep on truckin’.
Optifast Grads Running Half-Marathons! (Or, Could Disney Magic Make Me a Runner?) February 3, 2012
Posted by Optifast Blogger in exercise, Maintenance.Tags: exercise, half marathon, Optifast group, running, Tinker Bell Half Marathon, walking
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At my last Kaiser Optifast support group meeting, two in the group (a woman from my original “cohort” and a man who was from another group) talked about recent half marathons they had run! I’m not sure which the man ran, but the woman had just run (or more accurately, run/walked) the Disneyland 2012 Tinker Bell Half Marathon on Sunday, January 29th.
Looking this up online, I guess they also have a Never Land Family Fun Run 5K. And there’s a Tinker Bell Half Marathon Expo, a two-day event at the Disneyland Hotel where the packets and numbers are handed out, but where you can also buy Tinker Bell Half Marathon merchandise.
Disneyland AND shopping, two of my favorite things! Seriously, if anything could get me to participate in a half-marathon, I think this could. The most I’ve ever done – and that not recently – is a 5K. And I might have cut some corners. 😉 The woman in my group who attended the Disneyland event had been training for some time. It’s 13 ½ miles, so you wouldn’t want to just show up without any prep, I mean if you don’t normally run, race, etc. And she’s not smaller than 
me, though she is younger. But still, I do think if she could do it, I could. And it did sound like a lot of fun, if that word can ever be used in conjunction with exercise (says the couch potato). But I may need some of Tinker Bell’s fairy dust to actually complete it.
So, maybe thirteen (and a half) miles in 2013? Seems there’s a rumor that next year the race will move to Martin Luther King Day weekend, which would make the next race January 20, 2013. I get that holiday off, so that would work for me.
And apparently there’s an “official trainer” (Jeff Galloway) for Disney races – who knew? And I think my cohort “co-loser” has some app (?) from him that helps you train. This is all new to me. The website says, “Only 3 weekly training days are needed: 30 minutes on Tuesday and Thursday, and a longer session on the weekend. On half of the weekends, most will be running and walking for an hour or less.” Jeff’’s even got groups in certain cities, though none, unfortunately, near me. And not to be all advertise-y, but it looks like he has a book for beginning runners (which I ordered on Amazon) as well as one about half marathons. Here’s a PDF on a 23-week training for beginners who were planning to do the race last weekend:
One thing the other recent half-marathoner in the group said was thought-provoking. In his mind, he gives a large amount of credit to the Optifast products for his weight loss. But he said that the running was something he completely controlled, something he could do on his own to further his fitness and healthy weight. That was interesting, because although it’s true that using the products helped me be successful, I take a lot of credit to myself for sticking with the program and only consuming those products! It’s not really like the products are a magic bullet. But it was an interesting perspective, and I do think it’s good to take complete ownership of your body’s health, weight and fitness.
So even though it’s a year away, I’m kinda interested. Clap if you believe I could do a half marathon! (As in, from Peter Pan, clap if you believe in fairies, to keep Tinker Bell alive?) There is one obstacle to any kind of running (well actually, er, two) but that’s for a future (females-only?) blog post…
Optifast Transition: Fifty Pounds Down & Holding (Plus: Exercise – the Elephant in the Room) September 22, 2011
Posted by Optifast Blogger in transition, weigh-ins.Tags: exercise, gym, keeping the weight off, lost 50 pounds, metabolic rate, metabolism test, Optifast group, optifast success, scale, sleep, transition, walking, weigh-in, weight loss
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Since being on transition the scale has pretty much stayed put, only varying 6 ounces up or down, with my total loss being between 50 and 52 pounds, and hovering a few pounds above my goal weight. I ‘m happy about the total weight loss (of course!) but would prefer to still be losing, since we aren’t on a hecka lot of calories. Does that mean if I eat more than this I’ll gain? The metabolism test (which helps identify how many calories you need a day) won’t be for another month or so.
Of course the missing piece here (the elephant in the room that I’ve been pretty much ignoring) is exercise. One of the program doctors came and talked to our group last night about exercise, and I know it’s something I need to incorporate (or incorporate more of) – just not sure WHEN! I know everyone thinks they are busy, it’s not just me. But I’ve stared at and cogitated over my schedule (multiple jobs, and babysitting whenever I’m not working!) and never can figure out when I have the time to do more than I’m already doing.
I already get up at 5:15 am and don’t get to sleep till 11, so can’t give up any more sleep (should be getting 7 hours, not 6, anyway). I already walk during my breaks once or twice a day, and usually also during my half-hour lunch. And if there’s any daylight left when I get home (usually a few evenings a week, but which will stop soon, after daylight saving) I put the three-year-old in a wagon and walk. But it’s the stretching and resistance training that I need to fit in, and possibly some aerobics.
I just turned down a part-time teaching job at the community college next semester, though I hated to do it, because I thought, “If I can’t fit in exercise, I can’t fit in another job.” I’m trying to prioritize my health over the extra income!
Some possibilities I’ve come up with, towards squeezing in a little more exercise (because as I mentioned in a previous post, long-term weight loss maintainers claim they exercise 60 minutes a day!):
- Joining the Y (realistically, not till January) and hope that the three-year-old will be OK at the childcare program they have (she tends to have separation anxiety with strangers and strange situations), so that I can use the gym a few times a week on the evenings I’m not working
- See if I could use some kind of exercise/dance video at home that the 3-year-old would join me for, in the living room, for when I’m babysitting in the evening (if I get home before the whole bath, pjs, bedtime story, try to get her to sleep part of the evening)
Get one of those mini-trampolines (don’t know where we have room for it though) that you often see at garage sales – they are supposed to provide some kind of aerobic exercise, right?- Consider a treadmill for running at home in bad weather, though again, don’t know where it could possibly fit, and my husband would kill me if I bought any more exercise equipment (so many in the past have been used for hanging clothes on, until being sold/given away at garage sales or dismantled by same husband to put out with the trash or metal recycling…)
- Meet with a trainer, even if only once or twice, about the best exercises I should be doing for my various flabby bits and generally muscle-less body!
- Be firm with myself about getting in some “real” exercise during the weekend (meaning, visit the gym I currently belong to but rarely go to), which is the part of the week that I’m most likely to have a little flexibility (might have to give up some other prized recreational activity – the occasional movie, garage-sale shopping Saturday am, etc.)
I think I’ll work on 2 and 6 at first, while looking for the trampoline in #3. And aim for #1 in a few months…
New Day Coming: An Optifast Blog 