Trying something new...

I've been contemplating getting some sort of bio-logging device for a while now. I have one of those nike gizmos that you stick in your shoe and it tells your ipod your distance traveled, but I haven't really used it much. You have to have your ipod with you, and it has to be specific time that you are saying "I'm exercising now" rather than incorporating it throughout your day.

I looked at getting a fitbit or maybe a heart rate monitor many months ago, but I've been not getting by financially, and couldn't justify the purchase. This month, after making headway in my finances due to a 2nd job, and deciding to take a break from my YMCA membership, I finally settled on buying a fitbit. They have just recently come out with a new one, that tracks stair cases climbed, as well as steps and distance.

I've worn it every day since it came in the mail, and have found it really motivating so far. Each day I've taken more steps. I broke the 10,000 steps goal today, as well as the 10 staircases goal. You earn badges for intervals like that when you accomplish them. There's also a leaderboard where you can compare your stats to your friends or people in a group you belong to, that can be motivating through competition.

It's easy to conceal by clipping it to my bra (I hated those old pedometers that you had to clip to your pocket...they always fell off). I can check it discretely throughout the day, say when I use the restroom. And it updates wirelessly to my online account when I am using my laptop. So far, so good.

I was torn at first about what to do with food logging. I have been using the loseit system for the last yaer...and fitbit *will* update to my loseit, but only if I go over a certain calorie burn, and then it's as a "fitbit adjustment". For now, I've been logging all my foods into fitbit, but I log my weight updates in both places. I like that loseit allows you to export reports (like the last several weeks of my weight logs) where fitbit at this point doesn't. It makes it easier for me to update my records.

I have lost 2.8 pounds since Nov 2nd when I started wearing my fitbit. Yay!

I also went for a walk with my girlfriends today for the first time in months. We walked on a path that runs alongside the railroad track in town. It was chilly, but the sun was out.

I haven't been feeling great this weekend. I had to nebulize for the first time in months (for my asthma). But it was good to get outside.

Overdid it by a longshot. Ouch!

Today after I got home from a 6 hour on-my feet a lot volunteer shift, I saw that a group I sometimes go hiking with was doing a walk on a favorite local trail. It was a beautiful day, I was feeling energetic and had been inside all day... So I went for it. We started at 5 and were at the end of the trail by 6:45, and had dinner there, but afterward the only way to get back to our cars was to do the whole thing again.

We thought there might be a trolley to take us the other way. We were going even faster on the way back because it was getting dark. My friend went ahead a ways because she needed to stay close to her 6 year old son, who was on a scooter and very grumpy by that point (can't blame him).

When I finally made it home again and took a shower, the skin along my underwear line in front was rubbed raw to the point it burned to have the water there in the shower. My feet ache, my back aches, my hips are sore. And perhaps TMI, I have a blister larger than a quarter on the inside of my left butt cheek. How am I supposed to protect that while it heals?!

I should have called a cab for the ride back. I knew I was already pushed well beyond my curent fitness limitations. I hope I haven't put myself back to square one with my plantar fascists.

I think I have sciatica. At 31. Ugh.

Yesterday was my first day of volunteer work at a local hospital. It included a lot of walking. I feel like my plantar fascitis is much improved after physical therapy and still using anti-inflammatories, etc, but with 6 hours of on and off walking (much less than I hope to be doing in my future career), I have this sharp stabbing pain at the back of my right hip.

I am taking it easy today. I know I will be doing some walking tomorrow at work when I walk around the building to do resident checks; and there will be some stair climbing too.

I really hope that all of these aches and pains go away with the extra weight. I will do my usual weekly check in tomorrow.

There is a woman I'm friends with on loseit who is close to her goal weight (150 or 200 pounds down, like I'm hoping to be) and recently has been doing plastic surgeries to remove extra skin. She had lap band surgery, so the weight probably came off more quickly than mine will. I hope my skin isn't that bad at the end of my journey; it would bring a whole extra set of self esteem issues. But we'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Went to see the last Harry Potter movie in the theater today. I am enchanted with the whole series again; I had lost it a little bit after reading the last book, but during parts of the movie I wanted to stand up and cheer when a favorite character had an awesome line.

I had some movie popcorn (bought by a friend) yesterday and some caramel corn (made by me) today and felt somewhat sick after eating both. I think my body is starting to reject things that aren't very good for it.

I plan on posting my weekly update tomorrow.

Couch 2 5 K Update, Aches and Pains

The morning after my first try at Couch 2 5 K, I had the worst plantar fascitis pain I've had in a long time, and also was having some sharp pain in my right knee with just walking. So, for the time being, I'm won't be trying to run anymore. I am going to wait until I get down to a more reasonable weight... what would that be? Maybe below 300 lbs? Below 250 lbs? I'm not sure. It is probably something I should try again at intervals of weight loss and see how I do, how my body responds. But right now it is sending me a pretty clear message that I should walk instead of run!

Plantar fascitis has been a frustrating thing for me to deal with. I think I experienced my first symptoms about 5 years ago. It has gotten worse and worse since then, and the more active I am on a given day the more pain I can count on the next morning. I have talked to my doctor about it. He gave me some stretching exercises to do, and suggested I buy some orthotic shoe inserts.

I bought the shoe inserts (something like this), and also bought a special pair of "orthoheel" shoes (something like this). I try to remember to stretch out my feet with the exercises he gave me at the end of the day but I admit I have been slacking a bit there lately.

I understand that the next step is to go to a podiatrist and get an injection of cortisone in the bottom of my foot, which I have heard is pretty painful but would pretty much take care of the problem as long as they get it (guided by myself) in the right place.

If that doesn't work there is also a surgery to consider. Rather not go there!

I've also seen various products online...foot exercisers that are supposed to strengthen your foot muscles and in so doing lessen the pain, and splints that are designed to stretch your foot while you sleep. My doctor didn't mention these things, but I sometimes wonder if they would help. I also hope that once I get down to a more reasonable weight, maybe that will ease some of the strain on my foot, but I know that even very slim athletes get plantar fascitis, so that's not the entire root of the issue.

Couch 2 5k

I started the couch 2 5k program today. I'm using a free one put out by the NHS available on itunes. today's assignment was 20 minutes of walking with 5 or 6 60-second bursts of running thrown in throughout. My "running" looked more like slow jogging, and I only "ran" three of the bursts that the voice told me to, but it felt like I got a good workout. I also ended up walking longer than planned.

I am still pretty big (~340 lbs) to be running so I don't want to endanger any joints or what not by pushing myself too hard. But I did work up a good sweat and felt like I was pushing myself. That is the first time I've tried to run in at least 3 years, and the last time I tried I ended up getting a *bad* sprained ankle. So I was trying to be very cautious.

Even if I end up spending several weeks on the "week 1" workout I think this will help me move more than I have been and add variety to my workouts.

Quiznos: A Disaster of a Meal (2011 Week 2 Update)

In the last week, I've lost another 3.8 pounds, which I am really excited about. My current weight is 344.6.

This week I again did not make it to the gym. I did a half hour walk on a work break one day and an hour walk today after my weigh in, but otherwise no work-outs. However, it was my second week working my new job that has me on my feet and running around all the time, so essentially I am getting 8+ hours of cardio and occasional weight lifting every day. I'm not logging that exercise to my loseit account, so I expected some additional weight loss surprises beyond what I was budgeting for, and 3.8 pounds down in one week is a pretty good surprise.

I was good on food; brought my lunch to work every day but one. I did by a couple of snacks at a convenience store but I stuck to things like juice and power bars, and didn't go over my calorie limit. My one lunch out was at Quiznos, and when I logged it at the end of the day I found out their regular tuna melt sub has over 1200 calories, plus I had a regular dr. pepper, so that was a disaster of a meal but didn't end up setting me back too much in the end.

I have been seriously stressed out this week, mostly due to stuff going on at work. My body doesn't respond well to stress, in very obvious ways; during my last year of grad school I had chronic unexplained vomiting issues (not intentional purging), and I often get migraines or other GI issues that come up when I am super stressed out. This month although I'm on b.c. pills which usually regulate my cycles pretty well, my period was 8 days late. I am hoping that the various sources of work stress will calm down over the next couple of weeks but in the mean time I need to be really conscious of taking care of myself and getting enough sleep to get through it.

I've updated my weight graph at the bottom of the screen. Feeling good, felt a little stronger when I went for a walk with my friend this morning (though I really need to remember to bring water!). I'm considering canceling my gym membership if I continue to feel like I'm getting all the cardio I need at work. I feel like the weight training aspect is something I'm more likely to do at home with just pushups, crunches, etc. I am going to give it a while before I make that decision though and see how it goes once I feel more in control of things with the new job, new semester starting, etc.

So I'm 37.6 total pounds down from my highest weight. I think when I hit 50 I'll take another comparison picture.

New Job has fitness benefits!

So, I knew in taking this new job that I was going to be spending more time on my feet than I have in the past, but it turns out there is more to it than that in terms of fitness benefits. The company I am working for has a "START!" program in place, designed by the American Heart Association.

During a normal 8 hour shift, I get 2 government-mandated 10 minute breaks, one for each 4 hour time period I work. But with the start program (and the okay from my supervisor & provided it doesn't cause problems with workflow), if I use those breaks to get outside and walk, they will give me 2x the paid break time, ie instead of 20 minutes of paid break time per day I get 40.

And there's more: if I do this program, keep track of the miles I walk, and turn them in to my HR manager, at regular intervals depending on number of miles I've walked I will get prizes; a free pedometer, gift certificates for coffee or smoothies, etc. Once the miles get higher, the prizes get bigger, as much as $50 or so in a gift certificate to local businesses.

I will have to see if this routine works out with the way things run at work, but I think this program could be a great addition to my fitness routine! I am pretty sure this is a nation-wide program that several companies put in practice, but if yours doesn't, maybe you could talk to your management/HR and have them implement it too.

It was a nice surprise for my first day at a new job.