Taking the plunge!

Ok! I’ve done it!  I’ve made the commitment!

No…. I’m not getting married!  I’ve committed to the Nerd Fitness 6 Week Challenge!

What this means is for the next six weeks – starting September 24th – I’ll be working towards four specific fitness and life related goals.  Three will be fitness or health related, and the fourth is a “life goal”.

For example, here’s what I wrote down for my goals (copied from my thread on Nerd Fitness):

Goal 1 – NF’s Beginner Workout x3 a week - Right now I’m sedentary, and really need to get my ass in gear. The beginner workout is probably as good a place to start as any. Hopefully I’ll be able to work myself past it? [ +3 STR, +2 STA ]

Goal 2 – Yoga x2 a week. I was doing Yoga steadily for a while, but fell out of the habit months ago. I felt really good while I was doing it, so I think it’s a practice I need to get back into. [ +2 STA, +1 CON ]

Goal 3 – Learn to eat Paleo up to 80% - That’s really what brought me here. I’m excited to change my eating habits to something that, to me, just the thought of it feels healthier. With a small vacation coming up at the end of September, this will be a difficult starting point, but I’m up for the challenge. [ +3 CON ]

Goal 4 – Life Goal - Start steps towards getting into grad school. First steps would be getting tour of the University, meet with the Advisors about my undergraduate grades (which weren’t so great :/ ) and getting my Transcripts sent. [ +2 WIS, +2 CHA ]

Oh, one thing I forgot to mention – NF treats fitness goals like a role playing game, with stats for your Strength, Charisma, Constitution, Wisdom, Stamina and Dexterity.  You can increase your stats by achieving your goals.  It sounds kinda fun, so why not try it out, right?  Anything that can make fitness that little bit more fun is all good to me.

The first steps on this Challenge are going to be hard, as I’ll be out of state next weekend, so it will be harder to control when I get to work out, or where I get to eat.  I’ll do my best to keep up with things though!  I’m an Advenurer!  GRRR!!

Do I run? Only when chased…

Wow, it’s been a while since I updated and I apologize for that.  I haven’t had much progress fitness-wise – with my diet or with exercise.  Finally, I have something to write about.

Couch to 5K

Vague you say?  Well hear me out.  I follow a lot of blogs.  A LOT of blogs.  Most of them are either food related or fitness blogs.  A good percentage of them also happen to be owned by runners.  I couldn’t understand it.  Why were they all runners?  What was the draw?

Honestly, I have to admit that I was a bit jealous of all these runners.  I felt like they had something I was missing.  Maybe it’s the sense of community.  Maybe it’s the ecstasy of the wind through your hair and the endorphins pumping through your body.  I don’t really know, but honestly, I was taken over by the green-eyed monster.  I was just plain jealous.

Recently, however, I got to thinking.  Sure, I’ve walked a few miles here and there, and didn’t have much problem with it.  Why not add some jogging in here and there?  Why not actually try running?  What’s it going to hurt?

I do worry about a few things.  I worry about the cost, because I can’t afford running shoes, so for now I’m stuck running in skate shoes (which can cause shin splints and other unpleasantness).  I worry I’ll be bored.  I just worry – it’s in my nature.

On to Couch to 5K.

It’s a training program that claims that in nine weeks you can go from a couch potato to running a 5K run (3.1 Miles) or 30 minutes, 3 days a week.  The program has a huge following and is held in high regard, or else I wouldn’t bother trying.  Now, part of what got me thinking hard about this was the fact that my walks were already 2.5 miles, and I didn’t think it was all that far.

It starts you off with some interval running – running faster for a short period of time, then slower for a short period of time.

I think this is a really good opportunity for me to get a bit more fitness into  my life.  I need to decide when I’m going to run – mornings or evenings (the heat is a big deciding factor), and what my route will be.  The roads around my apartment complex are super busy, so I’ll try my best to find something safe.

Wish me luck!

Accursed Sweet Tooth!

This week’s most-likely-far-too-long post is about Sugar and Artificial Sweeteners.  I have a bit of a sweet tooth.  I’m not usually very big into cakes and candy, but sugary drinks are pretty much my downfall.  I love sodas and juices.  I’ve been thinking a bit on this lately.

I’ve read quite a bit on ye olde innerwebs about sugar and why we consume so much of it.  A lot of it has to do with how readily available it is.  I mean, look on the label of nearly anything and you’ll find it’s probably loaded with High Fructose Corn Syrup (HFCS).  You might be lucky enough to find something with Sugar or Cane Sugar in it, but that’s fast becoming a rarity.

It makes me think, though, are our diets training us to crave sweets?  Is it just because of the availability?  Does it have to do with our insulin production?  Are people turning to Artificial Sweeteners (aspartame, sucralose, saccharine) in an effort to shake the habit, but only making themselves worse off in the long run?

There’s a lot of research out there about the negative impact of Artificial Sweeteners on our bodies.  Drinking and eating a science experiment can’t be good for us.  Some studies claim they cause cancer.  Another claims they contribute to obesity and overeating.  All in all, if you’re eating clean, it’s definitely something you want to avoid.  For a sucker with a sweet tooth, however, it usually ends up being the lesser of two evils.  I am one of those suckers.

I started label watching a little over a year ago, after seeing all the negative press regarding HFCS.  I try my best to avoid it in food and drinks.  This week, I went to buy some 100% Whole Wheat Bread, and looking at labels, kept finding ones with HFCS in it.  In the end, the loaf I went with had plain Sugar in it instead.  Again, the lesser of two evils I suppose.  I’ve cut nearly all of the soda out of my diet, but replaced it with flavoured carbonated water or the occasional diet soda.  It’s not just the sweetness I want, but the carbonation.  I really love those bubbles!  I also make a pitcher of Crystal Light to keep in my fridge for the times where bubbles aren’t a high priority.

Here’s the breakdown of Artificial Sweeteners in my diet.  Consider it a confession at the alter of the Internets.  I’m not condoning the comsumption of Artificial Sweeteners.  I’m just saying they’re out there, and sugar junkies like me are still addicted to them.

Aspartame

I consume this more often than any other sweetener.  Crystal Light, Walmart’s Great Value Flavoured Water, Diet Dr. Pepper Cherry – all zero calorie and sweetened with Aspartame.  It took me a while to get accustomed to the aftertaste, and anyone who tells you there isn’t an aftertaste is a liar.  This one seems to be the most common Artificial Sweetener, but I think it’s fast being overtaken by other forms of sweeteners.  Not my favourite.

Sucralose

Another one popular with flavoured waters, like Fruit2O and Sparkling Ice.  At least Sparkling Ice also sweetens with fruit juice, other fruit flavours and green tea.  I prefer this to Aspartame, as it doesn’t have the nasty aftertaste.  It’s a little harder to find though.

Truvia

Not as much of an Artificial Sweetener, as a product of the Stevia plant.  It’s not pure Stevia, it’s mixed with a few other things.  I only use this in my tea.  You only need half as much Truvia as you need regular granulated Sugar.  It’s got a sweet flavour, but in my experience it has what I can only describe as a “cold” taste to it.  It’s something I got used to.

Alternative Natural Sweeteners

Most of these are non-sugarcane sweeteners.  I’ve been dying to try them, but don’t have ready access to them.  Things like Agave Syrup, Pure Maple Syrup (not the pancake kind!), and Brown Rice Sugar.  Sugars like Agave are known to have a lower glycemic index, which means they don’t cause your blood sugar to spike when you eat them.

Well, those are my experiences with Sugar and Artificial sweeteners.  I know my Sugar Tooth battle is far from over, and to reach my fitness and diet goals I’m going to eventually have to beat back this demon.  Mixing juice with water to cut the water’s blandness was one option I’ve considered.  I can’t stand water plain, so some creativity will be in order.  Crossing my fingers that I can come up with something palatable!

I Love Food! I Hate Exercising!

Sorry folks, this one is going to be a long one.

I love food!

This is kind of a recent realization to me.  It never occurred to me until now that this was the case.  In the last few years, I’ve become somewhat of a foodie, and I eat out way too much.  I consider this the result of living a more prosperous lifestyle than I have in the past.  We’re not well-off.  We’re only maybe lower middle class.  But I’m eating much better than I did years ago.

Four and a half years ago, I left my home state of Connecticut to live in more inexpensive pastures.  While I was living in Connecticut, I had no car, so I walked or bussed everywhere I needed to go.  Our budget was extremely tight.  Early on, it was a “ramen three times a day” budget.  Later on, we could afford better than ramen, but not much.  Many days I only ate one meal a day.  I weighed in at about 165lbs on my 5’7″ frame – about twenty pounds higher than my pre-pregnancy weight, which to me, wasn’t bad at all.  I wasn’t terribly unhappy with my weight at the time.  I know it wasn’t the healthiest of situations, but it was what it was.

Fast forward to four and a half years ago.  I moved and ended up in a better financial situation.  Three meals a day!  Wow!  A year later I moved again, and in with Baron, a self-professed butter addict.  There were three meals a day, junk food and dinners out.  My weight shot up from 165 to 205 in just over the first year.  I was floored.

Now I’m trying to make dietary changes, and having such a hard time with it.  Last night I had two and a half bowls of pasta slathered in ricotta cheese.  TWO AND A HALF BOWLS!  It tasted so good I couldn’t stop.  I gave myself a tummyache.  Sadface.  I know I want to eat better, and eat less, I just can’t get myself away from stuff that tastes just so damned good!  I don’t know if this means I have food addiction, or some kind of eating problem or what.

I’m not sure where to go next.  I really need some control in what I eat, and to get over my lack of willpower.  How do I reign in my out of control appetite?

I hate exercising!

I really, REALLY do.  Like I said before, back when I lived in Connecticut, I walked everywhere, and while I had difficulty sometimes (my fibromyalgia sometimes made walking difficult, I’d use a cane when things got too painful), it still got me where I needed to go.  Now, here in Florida, the city I live in is too spacious, and nothing I need is really within walking distance.  I have a car, and the convenience I think has adversely affected my activity level.  I know it has.

I would love to get more exercise into my routine, but I’ve had the damnedest time trying to find something that doesn’t bore me within a week’s time.  I can’t afford a gym membership, I don’t own a bike, and home exercise machines are out of my budget.  I tried doing some at home exercising – like yoga and pilates videos – but again, I got bored.  I was trying to walk every other day – two miles or more – but alas, bored again.

Why can’t I find the right exercise for me?  Is there such a thing?  Am I supposed to just push through it and do it anyways, no matter how bored or unenjoyable it is?  I’m jealous of all the blogs and posts I read about people thrilled about how many miles they’ve done on the treadmill or how many hills they’ve done on the exercise bike.  I want to feel that kind of pride in my accomplishments, too.

I guess that’s where I’m stuck at the moment.  Too much of one thing (food) and not enough of the other (exercise).  I need to figure out how to turn myself around and overcome these obstacles.  Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!  Do any of you out there run into the same problems I do?  Please share!

Pilates Video!

So I’m still trying to do the Yoga Challenge from Yoga Journal, though I’m not doing it every day because it’s making me stiff and painful.  Every other day or so.  Someone recommended to me to mix things up a bit, and throw some Pilates into the mix.  I came across a beginner mat workout – only about eight minutes long – and I’m going to give it a shot today after I do the yoga routine.  I think I’ll be surfing YouTube for more beginner workouts, just to keep things lively.  I’ve already made a playlist for them, and I’ll probably post more about that once I have more workout videos on it.

Here’s the beginner mat workout by Erin Huggins:

Thyroid Follow-up and Yoga Challenge Update!

Today was my follow-up appointment with the Clinic regarding my hypothyroidism and my thyroid hormone levels.  I went and got my bloodwork drawn last week and the results were excellent today.  They went from an 8 to a 1.2, which the doctor said was well within normal range.  I’ve got another follow-up in four weeks to make sure the levels aren’t fluctuating (which she says can happen sometimes).  Crossing my fingers that it’s not an issue.

She asked if I was feeling any better, and I commented that no, I felt the same, and was still having problems with constant headaches and fatigue.  She suggested I go on a multivitamin specifically with B12.  Since I had to go to Walgreen’s to get my prescription filled anyways, I figured I’d kill two birds with one stone and get a multivitamin as well.  Do you know how hard it was to find one that had B12 in it, so I wouldn’t have to buy a separate pill??  I ended up having to buy the generic Centrum Silver, which is typically for people over age 50.  I already have a Calcium supplement here at home, so I can add that to the mix.  I wanted to get a Fish Oil supplement for my Omega-3 and Omega-6 needs, but alas they were far too pricey.  Perhaps next payday?

Update on the Yoga Challenge!  I kind of failed a bit on this one.  Day one and two went by fine.  I was a bit shaky and unbalanced, which I attribute to being a complete and utter noob at yoga, but hey, at least I’m trying, right?  My cat, Gaz, seemed to think that me rolling around on the floor meant it was playtime, so she didn’t help matters any.  By day three, I woke up with stiffness and spasms in my back and shoulders.  I assumed this was because my body was adjusting to all the movement.  On day four, I had to work all day, and didn’t have time to exercise.  Shame on me.  Today is day five of the challenge, and I’m determined to get back on the ball.

I asked around a bit on Fitocracy if this kind of pain is normal and should I push through it, and was given the consensus that it’s to be expected, and I should just work through this transitional period, maybe adjusting my schedule to every other day instead of every day.  I might do that, I’m not sure yet.  I’d like to keep going with the yoga though.  I really like it.  Unfortunately, there’s nowhere in my area that I can find that’s affordable with my budget, especially that I can get to by bus.  There’s a YMCA up the street about twenty minutes from me, but the bus doesn’t go that way.  Sigh.

That’s it for the updates for now.  I’m still mulling over that post about sugar, and I have another post that might be up later today about a cookery surprise that Baron made for me the other day.  Toodle-oo!

Quick Blog: New Beginnings

It’s Monday, and if I’m going to try something new, I try to do it on Mondays.  I don’t know, maybe somewhere in the back of my brain, it’s the first day of… something… so that’s where beginnings should be.

Last night Baron and I did some late evening grocery shopping to try and get some eats to hold us over til we could do more concrete grocery shopping on this upcoming Saturday.  We got a few things that are good for you, a few things that are maybe not so good, and did a ton of label reading.  We’ve been trying to keep an eye on things like fat content, calories, sodium and high fructose corn syrup and other sweeteners.  We’re not always successful, but at least we’re making the attempt.

My first step to Monday wellness was getting up at a reasonable hour, about 8am.  As someone who regularly sleeps until noon or beyond, it’s a bit jarring.  I waited my half an hour after taking my thyroid medication, and had a nice breakfast that consisted of peach yogurt, a banana, 1/4 cup of sunflower seeds and a glass of orange juice.  I even measured out the single serving size of sunflower seeds – go me!  The breakfast seemed healthy-ish, though sugar-heavy-ish.

The other thing I’m trying (after I get my living room cleaned up) is Yoga Journal’s 21-Day Yoga Challenge.  It started today, and (obviously) runs 21 days, with a new video each day.  They also have recommendations for eating at least one vegetarian meal a day, and an audio meditatinon as well.  I’ve needed to get back on the exercise bandwagon for a while now, so I figured this would be a good start.  Hopefully I’ll keep up with it. *crosses fingers*

Just a short blog post this time.  Hopefully I’ll keep up with these “resolutions” this time.  Wish me luck!

Apathy Strikes Back!

My mental health condition hasn’t been good as of late.  I cry all the time, my mood is very depressed and I can’t seem to get anything done.  My psychiatrist has decided to add Lamictal – a bipolar antidepressant – to my medication regimen.  I’ve been on the starter dose for a week now, and I’ve found that while my mood is still depressed, I’ve been struck with an overwhelming sense of apathy.  I honestly don’t care about anything right now.  This includes not caring about being at my computer, playing my new video game, watching tv shows with Baron, or pretty much anything else.  Also, I’m not eating.  I’ve been going the whole day without eating until maybe 1am, and even then I’m still not hungry.

My psychiatrist is concerned that I might have to go inpatient, as she’s not sure if she can manage my symptoms on an outpatient basis.  I thankfully talked her out of it.

I’m not sure if this has anything to do with the new medication or not.  I’ve also found that I’m getting kind of sick of all the medication I have to take.  I’m really hating it.  I know I can’t just stop taking it, and I know how bad a shape I’ll be in if I stop taking everything (seriously, it’ll be a royal mess), but I really don’t want to take everything anymore.  At this point, I’m on 5 medications: 3 for mental health issues, 1 for my fibromyalgia and muscle spasms, and 1 for my hypothyroidism.  That’s a lot.  I’m just sick of it.

Friday I go in to get bloodwork done to check my thyroid hormone levels, and I go back to the doctor to get that checked on the 13th.  So far, I don’t really feel any kind of change from the thyroid meds, so we’ll see if that medication needs to be adjusted or not.  I go back to my psychiatrist in six weeks, and hopefully it’ll be better news.  My new medication gets it’s dosage doubled tomorrow, and I’m worried the apathy will get worse.  Guess we’ll see.  Wish me luck!

Looking forward to the New Year

Well, the Holidays are now behind us, and with it I just celebrated my birthday as well.  Forward lies the New Year, and with it talk of resolutions and life changes.  I know the last few months I haven’t been seeing the success I’ve aimed for in my diet and health goals, so hopefully with a new “starting point”, maybe I’ll be able to refocus and get my butt in gear.

I think right now the hardest thing I’m looking at is trying to make exercise a part of my daily life.  To me, it’s boring and repetitive.  There’s just nothing that I’ve been able to find that’s enjoyable enough for me to want to do it over and over again.  I’ve always been fascinated with Yoga, but my balance has always sucked.  High Intensity Interval Training interests me, but boy does that wipe me out!  It’s hard!  That’s the whole point of it, I guess?  I know exercise is important, both for physical well-being as well as mental health.  It’s something I need as an important part of my life.  I just need to find out what’s the best course of action for me to get the fitness that I need in my life.  Le sigh.

On my personal wishlist I have the Wii and Wii Fit.  Discussing it with Baron, we’ve decided that we’ll pick it up when we can afford it, which will most likely be around income tax time.  I’ve heard good things from friends of mine about the exercises on them, the Yoga options, and the balance board which also doubles as a scale.  I also love some of the other Wii Sports games, like bowling and tennis.  I think it’d be a fun way to get me off the couch or away from my computer, and get a little bit of physical activity into me.

I’ve also signed up for Fitocracy, this really neat site that lets you track not only your fitness goals, but what exercises you’ve done.  It issues you points for the exercises that you’ve done, and you level yourself up based on the points you accrue, kind of like a video game.  You can also unlock achievements for specific sets of fitness goals completed.  There’s also forums and groups.   I’m looking forward to trying out more of the site once I’m exercising regularly and able to post my progress on the site.

Also in the coming year I’ll be focusing more on my diet.  For the Holiday, I was gifted with two vegetarian cook books, so I have plenty of recipes to play with.  I’m looking forward to increasing my fruit and veggie intake on a daily basis, and decreasing my animal proteins substantially.

All in all I’m trying to approach the new year with a positive outlook.  Hopefully I’ll succeed this year where I’ve previously failed.  If I can just change my habits from negative ones to positive ones, I’ll be on the right track.  Happy New Year, everyone.

Thanksgiving And The Post-Holiday Plague!

I consider myself to be very fortunate.  For the second year in a row, my friend Patricia’s mother invited me to their home for Thanksgiving Day dinner with the family.  Since I’m not originally from Florida – I’m from Connecticut – my family lives up north, so the holidays can get kind of lonely at times.

I was really surprised at how much food they had made this year!  I was able to fill myself entirely without resorting to eating meat (except the turkey gravy on my mashed potatoes).  I also had the opportunity to try some new things that I’ve been wanting to taste, like dates and figs (not inside newtons).  After dinner, we had the most amazing apple pie, and I had baked pumpkin spice cookies with cinnamon chips.  They were a little soft (I’m not a terribly good cookie baker) apparently they were well-liked.

Patricia’s mom sent me home with a boat-load of leftovers, and Gabe – a mutual friend who was also there – apparently sent me home with the plague.  He had been sick as a dog the week before the holiday, but didn’t want to miss all the good eats, and decided to come out since his fever broke.  Unfortunately, I caught whatever death-plague he was suffering from, and have been sick since.  I’ve been trying to drown myself in Theraflu since, trying to get over it.  This also meant I missed out on the Star Wars beta test since I was in bed most of the weekend, but that’s a story for another time.

So for now, it’s rest for me, soup, and lots of Food Network.  Here’s hope for a speedy recovery!  Toodles for now.