Fitness Fellowship 2024: Week Eight Check-in

[sylvanwitch]

Welcome to another check-in on this fitness journey we're sharing together. I hope the week that was has been gentle with you, and if not, I hope that the week that we're in is already better.

Please share your ups and downs, if you're so inclined. We're here to listen and not to judge or offer unsolicited advice. (Of course, if you want advice, please do share that request as well!)



I was up by 2.4 pounds this morning, and honestly, that was a happy surprise. I figured it would be higher. Despite being active for all but one day of our vacation (and even then, I was on my feet and wandering for most of it, just not at any meaningful pace), I was worried because I consumed the forbidden baked goods and ate well outside my eating window.

That said, I was active--we hiked 3.88 miles in hilly, rocky country on Saturday, for example--and I did make it a point to eat reasonably healthy meals. For example, when we met friends for dinner on Thursday, I had an absolutely amazing roasted veggie salad with their house lemon dressing. SO good, and SO filling! So, you know, I made good choices with the bad, and we had a lovely time and saw many wonderful things.

One thing I didn't always do well was hydrating. We were in museums for two of our vacation days, and of course, we can't have a beverage in those situations, and then we had a commute in traffic each way to and from our hotel to the city, so I worried about getting caught in traffic. Anyway, I did discover that I must be otherwise well-hydrated because I had noticeable symptoms of dehydration on those two days in particular. I made up for it once we were in our room for the evening, but lesson learned about planning hydration breaks into long days of museum-wandering.

For the week ahead, I'm back on the fasting plan, not breaking my fast until after 10:00am and not eating after 8:00pm. I'm also exercising daily, hydrating properly, working on breath/meditation at least twice in the week, and making sure to get to sleep on time.

The hike Saturday made me realize I've been too complacent as someone who mostly walks on flat land. I need to up my elevation game to prepare for Vermont in June, so I'm adding a new fitness goal of using the elliptical on an incline at least twice each week, as well as continuing to get my 10+ staircases a day on workdays. Once the weather is warm/dry enough, I might substitute in climbing our island's only real hill instead--going up and down it multiple times to build stamina for climbing hills and mountains. But for now, elliptical on some degree of incline twice a week.


May the week ahead be a good one, filled with little things that make you feel good.

Comments

[cornerofmadness]

sadly going in the wrong direction 6 weeks on the keto diet I've gained 10 pounds so we'll be abandoning that

[sylvanwitch]

Oh, no! I'm sorry to hear this. I hope you find something that works for you; I can only imagine it's complicated with your diabetes. It sucks that this is so difficult for you. If there's anything you need from us/these posts, let me know.

[cornerofmadness]

technically as a diabetic I shouldn't do keto but I basically wanted to shut a few people up. Now we can move on. Also the hysterectomy/oophrectomy plays a role too. I am also been unable to find gym time

[sylvanwitch]

All of this is understandable, and I hope you're going easy on yourself, though it's got to be frustrating to want to make some changes but be unable to do so. I hope circumstances get better for you soon!

[cornerofmadness]

thanks

[delphi]

That sounds like a great vacation! Best of luck with upping your elevation game.

Last week was better than the week before, and I'm good with that.

Goal #1: Eat breakfast, lunch and dinner every day.
Result: 6/7, improvement over last week.

Goal #2: Take at least a 30-minute walk every day (weather and health permitting).
Result: 7/7. Got in a nice two-hour ramble on Sunday as well.

Goal #3: Turn off electronics and start getting ready for bed by 10:30 every night.
Result: 5/7, so at least an improvement over last week. Writing this very quickly so as to make the cutoff tonight! :P

Goal #4: Cut out caffeinated drinks.
Result: 7/7. A cold snap came and my urge for a iced capp finally retreated.

[sylvanwitch]

Thank you so much! (Also, I see what you did there, re: upping--it made me snort-giggle.)

I'm so glad you've had a better week! YAY for no longer having that particular craving, though BOO! for it having been eradicated by a cold snap, given how that may affect your desire to be outdoors. It's always such a seesaw, isn't it?

[delphi]

It was admittedly very, very blustery on my Sunday walk, but I was cozy in my winter coat and went all the way down to the ocean to be slapped in the face with some proper high winds and sea spray. It was refreshing. :D

[luzula]

Building stamina to be able to climb hills sounds like a good goal!

Last week's goals:
- do PT on four days,
Three.
- work out on three days,
Yes.
- go hiking on one day (not terribly long though, because of the knee)
Yes! I hiked 6 km with some ups and downs, and my knee was mostly fine, which felt good. Then another day I tried running a little, which felt fine in the moment, but I felt it a little bit afterwards.
- keep to my sleep schedule (and hopefully actually sleep),
Mostly fine.
- continue to be mindful of what I eat.
Yes! This is going really well, and I'm down 2 kg from where I started.

For peace of mind:
- reading things which are engaging and/or comforting
K J Charles' The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen, A+ comfort reading.
- talking with friends and family a lot (I'm visiting my sister this weekend)
Yes, I did this as well, and it's helpful.

This week's goals:
- do PT on four days,
- work out on three days,
- go hiking on one day (another 6 km) and go running carefully one day,
- keep to my sleep schedule (and hopefully actually sleep),
- continue to be mindful of what I eat,
- continue to reach out to friends and get social interaction

[sylvanwitch]

I love that the week was such a good one for you and am especially excited that you enjoyed Charles’ novel because I love everything she writes and am always enthused when someone else also likes her stuff. Her work is, for me, the perfect entertainment, with just the right amount of suspense and romance, and I find not only the protags but also the secondary characters engaging.

I hope this week has been so far and continues to be another good one, especially where your peace of mind is concerned.

[luzula]

I totally agree! Romance novels are hit and miss for me, but it's so great to have found an author who just consistently works for me.

[oschun]

It sounds like you had a really nice vacation. I'm envious of your planned trip to Vermont in June. Good luck building your stamina for hill walking.

I got the results from my Zoe tests earlier this week and was happy to find out that my blood sugar and fat control levels are in the good range, but the levels of good bacteria in my gut are low, so my goal now is to adjust my food choices to boost my biome. I feel like I'm learning a lot about nutrition and my own body in a way that's not overwhelming, just fascinating and empowering. The idea of food as medicine is so interesting. Hurrah for Brussels sprouts and pistachio nuts - which are two of my recommended gut boosters. It makes me happy to eat things that are feeding my biome so we can exist harmoniously together as a meta-organism. I LOVE the idea of my body as a meta-organism :)

[sylvanwitch]

This Zoe program sounds really cool! I'm glad your gut biome seems a relatively easy fix and not something more complex and difficult to heal, and I'm also glad it involves Brussels sprouts simply because I love them. ;-)

One of the things that got me on board with Dr. Greger's approach to eating was the idea of preventing and/or healing certain very common illnesses by eating better or consuming something (or somethings) in particular. It feels like I have at least some control over my body and health, and that helps to reduce my anxiety.

I hope you continue to enjoy your participation and all the fantastic food discoveries to come!