Outdoors again

I didn't get a blog in last night......don't think I ever sat down at the computer. But I did do my exercise :-) As I was leaving work I realized the temperature had dropped a great deal thanks to the storms we had coming in, so instead of hitting the track, I decided to go home and use the original two mile trek I started walking on all those months ago. By time I got home it had already rained enough to put puddles all around. And then when I started out, it was sprinkling, which was actually kinda cool. Here in Arizona, we don't get much opportunity for anything like that. Since the route I go is a mile out and a mile back, I started out walking for 1 - 2 minutes, and then starting running, knowing I needed to make it all the way down without stopping in order to be sure I had done a minimum of three quarters of a mile at one time. It certainly wasn't fast, but I did it! There is a sign 1000 feet before the dead in, and I remember when I use to try to run from the sign to the end without stopping and couldn't do it. And now I ran almost the whole way. Did notice a difference in my ankles because the track is level and here I was going up and down small hills.....but it was just so cool to do it.

Anyway, off to weigh in and exercise with the biggest loser class in a few minutes. When I got on the scale this morning, it had me at 179.6. But that was first thing in the morning and undressed. Now it's evening and I'll be dressed as well as have on shoes, so I know it will be more. But it certainly was nice to see a number in the 170's. I can't wait until my official weigh-in number is there! It WILL happen!

Some accountability

I need to be more accountable for my actions.....exercise and food. So, I will try to check in more often just for confessional if nothing else.

Saturday I blogged that I had accomplished a non-walk 3/4 mile. Well, after that we went to a movie and lunch with friends. Hmmm.....lunch. Chile cheese fries.....split between us. And a scoop of ice cream. How's that for a happy choice lunch? Happy?....YES. Okay, so I said I would relax a bit on weekends because I want to be able to make decisions I can live with long term. Short term would be easy, but also easy for pounds to come back when I run out of drive. So, thinking I can be better all week if I know I am allowed to relax a bit on weekends. That night we went to friends to play cards, and I had a thin slice of cake with a spoon of ice cream. Uh oh.....ice cream twice in one day? And the problem is??? I know...just kidding. I should have said no to the cake and ice cream instead of asking for small portions. Sunday was better.

Exercise.........Well, Friday and Sundays are usually my days off from exercise, so didn't do any on Sunday. Suppose to hit the track on Monday. Well, I got to the parking lot, changed my shoes, but my stomach had been bothering me and I suddenly felt a need to get home to the bathroom, so never made it into the gym. But I did get there tonight......and I did manage another 3/4 mile on the first session of running. Then one walk lap, two run, one walk, three run, one walk, three run, then cool down two laps. I will definitely have to be there again tomorrow night.

Beyond the half mile

Another new milestone! I hit the track yesterday morning, and instead of making the first session of running half a mile, I managed to make it three quarters of a mile! At that point I walked a lap and did 2 1/2 to 3 laps between walking laps to hit my two miles. The most exciting thing about this, though, is that now I know when the next breast cancer run/walk comes in April, I will be able to sign up for the one mile and do it as a run. I have walked the 5 km versions before and wished that I could run them. Well, there's still plenty of time between now and April, so who knows. But for this moment, I am dwelling on the fact that I can run the one mile version. R..U..N. I know others do that in a blink, but for me using that word in such a way is an amazing thing. I know I can commit to it and do it, a very new way of thinking.

I paid attention and have an official number

Weigh-in last night. Down 1.2 pounds. I paid attention this time and my official weight at biggest loser this week is 183.2. Yeah....that means I get to keep up my 35 pounds lost sign. It's funny. I work for a school district, and I work 12 months. But most of the people I work with work 9.5 months, so just got back to work last week. I am getting so many people asking me if I have lost weight. It amazes me because I haven't lost any really over the summer, it was mostly between January and June, while they were still here. I appreciate the compliments but feel a bit like a phony because I haven't done any real loss in months now. So, just have to make sure each week has a loss so I can catch up to the compliments already received.

Another half mile

Okay, not so many days between blogs this time. So, let's see. Since my blog last Saturday, what have I done? Since Friday and Sundays are usually my days off from exercising, didn't do any of that. My guy wanted to make spaghetti Sunday, so yes, I had pasta. I figure if I am in this for the long haul, then I will relax a bit on weekends with the diet. If I want something, I'll have it, I'll just keep it in control portion-wise. Monday I didn't make it to the track.....let myself think something else was more important...turned out it definitely was not....lesson learned. Yesterday I was literally on my way out the door, half way through the front door actually, when my phone rang and it was someone wanting to come pick up something they had bought from me. Well, they live far enough away that I couldn't put them off till later, but they were going to be there a bit too soon for me to have time to get to the track and do my thing and get home. So, since I couldn't go, I decided to get out and do some yardwork instead. Not as intense, but at least I was doing something instead of sitting while I was waiting on them to show up. Today I finally made it back to the track. And, yeah!, I did a half mile again. I walked my two laps, ran my 6 laps (1/2 mile), and then upped the number of laps I ran between walking a lap for the rest of the two miles. I am feeling the progress and it inspires me. I can see being able to run the whole mile without stopping to walk just around the corner. I WILL get there!

Tomorrow is my biggest loser class. I will try to pay better attention at weigh-in and get a definite number so I can update my stats here.

A Personal Best......So Far

Here it is two and a half weeks since my last blog. Shame on me!

Well, my next session of biggest loser is underway. I cannot share the exact numbers from weigh-ins as I don't remember them. What I can say is that the first weigh-in was less than two pounds more than my final weigh-in last session (which was first week in June). Considering the travels and hit-and-miss with my diet and exercise, not too shabby. I know that the second week I was down....I think just a little less than two pounds. Last week I was down, but was chatting and didn't pay attention to the numbers to get an exact number, but Vera made the comment that I was down two pounds....so about that. So...I am losing again. The problem with the numbers is I now have a good scale at home and get on it often and then get the numbers mixed with the one at my official weigh-in. It seems their scale is almost two pounds more than mine. Anyway....downward progress is always good. I just need to pay better attention next time to get a real number to start working with.

Meanwhile, I acheived a personal best this weekend. Anyone that has read my blogs knows I hit the indoor track and walk/run. I am now up to doing 2 laps of running for every one lap of walking. However, I try to do more than two the first time around. I have done as many as four laps at one time on my first round. But getting back on track this week I was doing three laps for my first round. Well, Saturday morning I don't know what possessed me, but once I started my first round, I kept going and made six laps.....that is half a mile. Now I know for everyone else that is running, half a mile is nothing. But for me, running half a mile without stopping to walk is a personal best since I was 25 years old (23 years ago). It definitely helped in the motivation department! When I first started adding running to my walks, my thought was would I ever be able to run a mile without stopping to walk. Well.....I am half way there! Now I don't expect to necessarily be able to do it again tomorrow, but we'll see. Some days just seem to work better than others, while some days it takes everything I have to make it around the next corner of that darn track.

Okay, new start. Tomorrow starts the next session of Biggest Loser at the fitness center. Tomorrow night I weigh in for my starting weight and then have our first class. So I will report my weight according to their scale and use it as my springboard to get back at it all.