Are you meeting your goal?

[dl]

Have you made a goal? I need help getting back on track. I need to report in. I need an "Atta girl!" when I'm on track and I need someone to say "It's okay, all is not lost, just get back on the horse, so to speak" when I don't meet my goal.

Does anyone else need that?

This is my story... I have always been active, but my exercise was minimal. I started doing T'ai chi in 1997 as a way to bond with my older daughter. I found out that it cured the chronic pain I had in my shoulders and hips/lower back, and it corrected some of my scoliosis. After being in chronic pain most of my life, I was PAIN FREE!!! Yay! So I sort of kept up with that, but maybe spent 15 minutes a day on it.

When the twins were born, I dropped any kind of exercise. Their dad left when they were 7 months old. I tried really hard to keep my store running and be a single mom to three kids, two of them a year old, but I couldn't do it. I used that as an excuse to not exercise, but really, I think I was depressed and just couldn't make myself do it. (Of course exercise helps depression, but you never consider that when you are depressed!) I started gaining weight. About 1/3 of a pound a month. Do you know how easy it is to justify gaining 1/3 of a pound a month? In a year that's 4 pounds. Still, doesn't seem so bad, does it? At least that's what I told myself.

When I had gained about 12 pounds, the combination of not exercising, being stressed out, and working my butt off to keep our house, I got two herniated discs in my back. One morning I woke up and I couldn't walk. The doctor said I needed back surgery, but since I don't have insurance, I was just out of luck. He gave me a bunch of drugs, which didn't do anything for the pain, but did cause me to consider suicide. I was actually planning it when some little voice inside said, "Hey, this isn't you, it's the drugs speaking!" The voice was so faint I almost didn't "hear" it. I stopped taking the drugs and got on the internet and learned about backs. I started doing exercises again.

Since I couldn't walk, the exercises were very limited. Maybe 5 minutes at at time. Slowly, slowly, slowly building up. 7 minutes, 10 minutes, 12 minutes, 15 minutes. I regained the ability to walk. Eventually, I got the feeling back in my lower legs, except for two toes on my left foot that are still mostly numb. But my weight was still going up at about the same rate.

Eventually I had gained 30 pounds. My energy level was so low! My back was harder to keep in shape and out of pain. I started walking. 30 minutes a day... no difference. 40 minutes a day... no difference. 50 minutes a day... no difference. I got really discouraged. Then I started hearing those radio ads that say that older women have to work out an hour a day, just to maintain. So, about a year and a half ago, I started walking an hour and 15 minutes a day. Well, not every day, but a lot of days. The more days I did that, the better I felt. The weight started coming off! If I added an extra 5 minutes, the weight came off faster!

YAY!!!!!!

Now I have lost 18 pounds. Not as fast as Donna, but it's off! I am exactly at the weight I was when my back went out. I started lifting weights last October and it has been SO AWESOME to see some muscle definition popping up where I have never had muscle definition before. But suddenly I am having a hard time. I know there is a psychological component to this. Subconsciously I think all of the physical and emotional pain I was in when I was at this weight before is coming back. On top of that, I had lost the momentum I had built up when we were all sick a couple of months ago. (A couple of MONTHS AGO??? How could I not be back into my routine by now?)

So my goal is to go weight lifting everyday for 28 days. This is how long it takes to form a habit. Yesterday was day 1. Today will be day 2.

I would love to help encourage someone else. If your goal for the day is to walk for 5 minutes, then I would love to say, "GREAT JOB!" because you have to do 5 minutes before you do 7 minutes. If your goal for today is to rest, then you still deserve a "GREAT JOB" for meeting that goal.

Anyone else feel like reporting in regularly?

[Reds]

Wow, what a story! Thanks for sharing it-and I'm so glad you listened to that quiet voice telling you it was the drugs.
18 pounds is a good loss-you should be proud of yourself. Where do you think your subconscious pain is stemming from? What haven't you let heal yet that 'happened' when you were this weight before?



For me, my goals are at a stand still. The weekend ruined me. My goal is to have my chaps fit-and it took both Holly and her mom to zip them for me. My next show is June 10, so if I can get just a couple pounds off, I don't think I'll need to buy chap extenders.

[donna]

Diana, I didn't know all that! How scary to not be able to walk!
My eating habits are helping my weight more than the exercise at this point. I look different. Longer, leaner muscles and my face and tummy are no longer swollen.
Giving up sugar and trying to keep my carbs under 100 have helped me so much.
I think you look great, but understand the feeling of wanting to achieve more. Can you start riding Mason more? It gives me a lot of happiness knowing when I'm riding Sam I'm also losing weight and toning up....same with walking Tumbles...
Maybe try Zumba dance? I bet Rose and Jacob would love it too. I use the Wii but I think you can get videos as well. I know you don't watch tv, but do you have one?
I could come show you the exercises I learned this weekend to stretch and balance on horseback. I don't know how many calories it burns, but it sure works the thigh muscles...
Want to be my friend on Myfitness.com? We could encourage each other that way, and it might make me tighten up my eating some.

[Reds]

Hey, you people can be my friends on Myfitnesspal.com

[donna]

how do we sign up as friends?

[dl]

I did day 2!

I am SO PROUD of myself! I had just dropped off the twins at the bus stop and I was driving back. I was supposed to go two blocks past the turn off to my house, to go to the fitness place. But I automatically turned at the turn off to my house. I could have justified going home, with plans to come back and I had a list of reasons why that would be a good idea. But when I do that, I never make it back. So I turned around and went down to the fitness place.

I don't want to try to add more or different things to what I'm doing, because I like the things I do and they work well for me as long as I DO THEM! My problem is procrastination or excuses or avoidance or self sabotage.

I can't do diets. I already eat really healthy stuff. We don't have any junk food in the house.... no chips or crackers or cookies or granola bars or ice cream or soda or juice or anything like that. I almost never eat fast food, unless we just can't manage anything else. As far as carbs goes, we don't eat a lot of those ESPECIALLY since going gluten free. Instead of replacing the gluten food with a substitute, we just eat something else.

My worst food habit is sitting at the table too long. If you break it down, gaining 1/3 a pound a month means taking in an extra 39 calories a day. That's one or two bites extra. Or eating that one spoonful that's left before you wash the serving dish. I used to sit there and end up taking one or two bites that I wouldn't have eaten, just because it's in front of me. Now I get up from the table. Often I will go to the computer that is just a few feet from the table and talk to my kids about what's going on with our facebook friends, or read some cool stuff about horses from this list. That has helped a lot.

Mostly I just need to report in.

If I do Myfitnesspal, will I have to count calories and stuff like that? None of my bananas or carrots have the calories stamped on them. And having to look that stuff up will keep me from participating.

[MJ]

You motivated me to be sure and do my walking today. I just walked 45 minutes.

[Sheryl]

Thank you for sharing your story!

Man, i way overdid it today. What a dork. I was planning to do 30 minutes of elliptical and then my strength routine. Weelllll... the first "live" show of What Not to Wear came on and i couldn't peel away. I did 70 minutes on that dang elliptical and about killed myself. Then, I didn't have enough energy to do my whole strength routine, so i did lower body and abs. Yesterday, i did a 3 hour hike with the "child" - he is 6' tall and being young, well, lets just say is more atheltic them me. He didn't rush me, but every time he got in the lead I felt like the fat pony trying to keep up.

Right now, I feel like I have run a marathon race carrying a bale of hay. I am tired!

[dl]

MJ: ATTA GIRL!!! Woo Hoo! What's your goal for today?

Sheryl: OOOps! You are going to feel that today! Keep moving and drink LOTS of water so you can flush the painful lactic acid out of your muscles!

I plan to go to the fitness center right after dropping the kids off at the bus stop. I will then go to my ONE appointment for the day, come home and pick up George the tortoise and Bob the snake and go to the all school picnic. Then we will go see Mr. Mason.

[Sheryl]

I took the day off from working out but am shockingly not sore! whew

[dl]

Sheryl ... You must be in better shape than you thought! And thanks for posting!

I worked out yesterday but didn't do any walking. I did, however, carry 12 50lb bags from the car, through the house, through the (very small) backyard and into the aviary. I am going to cont that as my cardio!

Today is day 4. Shouldn't be a problem making it out there. But today is the last day of school. It's going to be a challenge to keep up a routine!

[MJ]

After walking 2 miles yesterday morning, I got a call from a friend inviting me to go ride. 2 of my friends and I went on a 4 hour trail ride. It was a lot of fun and I just got a little sore.

[donna]

I'm very pooped and pulled a little muscle in a very strange place when Sam spooked at the thistle today.
But I get to claim 2.5 hours of riding!
I must remember to stretch before I ride...might help with those strange little muscles that go "twang"!

[Deleted]

My sister's (and now my) trainer at the gym (we get a free once a month meeting w/ a trainer) changed up her routine and I tell you what - it's killing me! LOL I can walk forever on the treadmill, at high speeds for an hour or so. Any longer than that and I get bored. The one elliptical I like I've done 50 minutes on and been fine (dying, but fine).

So he's had her start interval training. I'm a month behind but I started it last week. Basically, get on the elliptical from hell (that would be the one I don't like), warm up, and then go as fast as possible for a minute. Then sloooooow down to get the heart rate down, and then do it all over again. My shirt was SOAKED today. :-P

But I am seeing the benefits already. I do a 5 minute fitness test on the recumbant bike (hate the bike) and it's gone up a point in the last 2 weeks and 2 points in the last month.

Weight wise I'm sort of stuck, but my clothes are fitting baggier and I'm back on track as far as food goes. I have a goal to hit 180 by the end of June. We are going clothes shopping and that'll put me within 20 lbs of my overall goal. :-)

[dl]

MJ... A great walk and then a great ride! That's great!

Donna... LOL! Stretching is good! How many calories is 2.5 hours of riding?

Tee... Did you know that you burn more calories walking a mile than you do running a mile? You might try not killing your self on the elliptical and try going for a longer time???

I did day 4 of weight machines and walked Mason for a good amount of time. Today will be day 5 and the first day of no school... so not a scheduled run by the fitness place (pardon the pun).