Fitness Fellowship 2024: Week 16 Check-in

[sylvanwitch]

April showers bring mucky conditions, limit trail hiking. It's not a catchy rhyme, but it gets across the truth of things. We still have standing water in our backyard and no chance of mowing the tall grass put in by the township out front, where they dug up drainage lines last summer. (I wanted to put shrubbery there, but they disregarded my intentions and planted grass. My goal is to get RID of all the monocultural grass in my yard, but alas, I wasn't quick enough to stop them from spraying the green stuff.)

What does this have to do with fitness? Only that we have to stick to paved or gravel walking/biking trails until things dry out some more. That's okay--it means we go places we might not otherwise, having grown too familiar with closer options that we've walked a bunch already.

What limits or expands your fitness choices? (Feel free to ignore or answer as you see fit.)

As usual, please do share how your week's been in terms of progress and/or stumbling blocks to progress.


Weight: 203.8 as of this morning, so down .4 from last week. I'll take it!

Exercise: Every day, yes. Intervals, yes. Incline/hills at least twice, yes. Strength training at least twice, yes!

Fasting: Mostly? I think I had one or two popcorn incidents, but otherwise, it's been a smooth road. Keeping an eye on sodium for T. has definitely helped me as well.

Meditation/breathing: I am enjoying boxing the breath and using it as a way to meditate while walking.

Sleep: I have struggled to get to bed on time (too much reading of good books, so a better problem to have, sleep-wise, than some), and last night, I kept waking up. I've also had some stress dreams. I'm hoping once the consultation regarding my ultrasound results is over, I'll have some relief from these. (The results were good--no growth, specifically to the cyst the doc was most concerned about but also overall.)

Hydration: Yes? I think I've slacked a little because it's been colder lately, but I am picking it back up.

Plans for the week ahead: More of the same, but with better sleep habits.



I'm sending you good vibes for a healthy week ahead!

Comments

[oschun]

I'm glad to hear your results were good, and I hope your sleep improves.

In answer to your question, I always think work is what impedes my ability to get enough exercise, but if I'm being genuinely honest with myself, I don't believe I'd be a lot more active if I had a less stressful job. I'm naturally sedentary and have to try and overcome that. On the other hand, better weather certainly does help my energy levels.

I just listened to the Zoe podcast about their intermittent fasting study, the biggest one ever conducted, and am feeling pretty enthusiastic about it, so my goal is to try and clean fast on weekdays, only drinking black coffee and water up to lunchtime. The link is below if you're interested. No worries if you're not.

https://youtu.be/TKrG7gMzAQY?si=HgvTvlIOkzWpVy8t

[sylvanwitch]

I think I'm also naturally sedentary; while I enjoy walking and hiking very much, when I have all the time in the world, such as over summer break, I often spend half a day reading, playing iPad games, and/or watching something. I will eventually exercise and do chores, etc., but I spend a lot of time working up to it.

Good luck with your clean fasting! I am excited for you and hope it proves a good addition to your habits! Please do let us know how it goes. :-)

[luzula]

Sigh, I did not manage to reply to last week's post. And now I have a sore throat and feel tired/ill, so I guess my main fitness goal this week is to rest, get well, and make sure I get a lot of sleep. I did go running and worked out yesterday though, before the sore throat came on. Also, I do want to keep up my PT for my shoulder, which is very light exercise, and keep watching what I eat.

Good luck with putting down those books in time, and keep up the good work with your exercise! : )

[sylvanwitch]

I'm so sorry that you're sick, and I hope whatever it is, it passes quickly, so you can get back to your usual routine. In the meantime, I'm glad you're adjusting your goals based on your health. Good luck with your PT regimen and with recovering from this bug! :-)

better late than never?

[oldtoadwoman]

I've been slacking on updating. I've kind of lost my motivation for everything. Went for a walk today and was just in a cranky enough mood that by the time I got back home I was still every bit as cranky when I got home and tired to boot. (I can't explain why some days I go for a walk and it lifts my mood and other times I go for a walk and feel like crying.)

Weight-wise, things are actually okay. I'm down slightly from last week so even though I've got a long way to go, I'm moving in the right direction.

But in terms of general well-being, I'm fighting with the voice-of-doom in my head telling me that nothing matters and I should just give up.

Re: better late than never?

[sylvanwitch]

I'm sorry you're struggling and especially sorry that walking doesn't always work to get you out of your head. For me, exercise is almost always an aid to boosting my mood. I mean, it won't turn me giddy when I'm in a dark place, but it will make the voices in my head a little less brutal. I hope you continue to see improvement with your weight loss and that you start feeling better soon. Maybe spring-like weather will help?

Re: better late than never?

[oldtoadwoman]

Unfortunately, for me exercise often makes a bad mood worse. Maybe too many associations with dreaded gym class in school?

I haven't been to the gym for a couple of weeks because I'm just feeling too mentally fragile lately. I did make myself get off my butt and make my bed and do the laundry today, so there's that. (But my trip to the grocery store resulted in an impulse purchase of peanut butter cups at the check out.)