Posts Tagged ‘gym’
A Shirt Skirt Weigh-In
What the heck is a shirt skirt?
This is a shirt skirt. It’s a women’s skirt made out of a men’s dress shirt.
What does that have to do with me losing weight? I’ll explain below.
August 8, 2011
369.8
Change from Highest = -33 pounds
I don’t even remember the last time I had a normal weigh-in. It HAS been one of those summers. You know the type that are crazy busy? Yeah, but I’ve also been lazy and I’ve been slacking. Because the truth of it is, we make time for what is important to us.
I have moments, periodically, where something triggers, “Oh yeah, this is why it is important to lose weight and not die morbidly obese in my 40s.”
My wife Tina has a pinterest account. She’s been going on and on about how awesome it is, so I signed up, too. It’s cool; I don’t think I’m hooked yet, but while I was going through her pins, I came across one for a skirt shirt.
I asked her about it, and she said that as soon as I’ve lost lots of weight and can no longer wear my current dress shirts, she’s going to turn them into skirts for her to wear.
That simple comment really hit home. My weight loss is incredibly interconnected with everything in my life, especially Tina.
How can I be so selfish to stay obese? I have a loving wife. Aside from the obvious fact that I owe it to myself, I owe it to her, too. She deserves a healthy husband.
Yeah, I could care less about Tina making skirts out of my dress shirts. It’s just the big picture. Every action I make has repercussions. I choose to get up at 5:30 in the morning to go to the gym and run in the morning rather than sleep in. I want to be healthy, fit, and an athlete. I don’t want to be morbidly obese and continually buying larger clothing because I’ve upsized again.
So… I’m going back to the reward system I had LAST year at my blog before the move to this host. Those of you who were reading me back then may remember, but basically, I set myself five goals. Each goal is worth $1. If I make that goal, then that’s $1 that goes into a pleasure account for me. I can do anything I want with it.
If I don’t make that goal, then that $1 goes into a giveaway for you. When I’ve collected enough money to give away something fitness or health related, that’s what I’ll do.
So, my five goals for this week?
1. Get my weight down to below 367.
2. Run five minutes without stopping.
3. Drink a gallon of water on at least four days.
4. Eat a salad full of greens on at least five days.
5. Do yoga before bed at least three times.
Any shirt-skirt moments in your life recently?
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A Paper Crane Weigh-In
July 1, 2011
376.3
Change from Highest = -26.5 pounds
I gained a pound over the course of June. I know why; I ate too poorly and didn’t work out as much as I should. Work was just too hectic, and unfortunately, I did not make my health a priority.
Big mistake.
The year is half over. Not only am I not halfway to my goal for the year, I’m heavier than I was January 1st.
I have two jobs – one of them is in mental health. I work with therapists professionally on a regular basis. From sitting in on my client’s sessions with their therapists, my own coursework, and a lot of professional reading, I feel like I can safely say I know a fair amount about therapy. (Please note – I am not a therapist.)
That being said, I must come to this conclusion.
For some reason, up to now, being fat has worked for me. That isn’t saying I enjoy it or I want it to stay that way, but being obese has been a useful strategy for me in some way.
Protection.
Safety.
Control.
I’m currently reading the book Breaking Free from Emotional Eating by Geneen Roth. On her blog A Merry Life, Mary has mentioned this author a few times, and I thought I would check her out. I’ve been hesitant to read her for some time as she is not a therapist; she is merely a writer, teacher, and former fat person who has been through therapy and was sharing her insights.
I regret putting off reading her for so long. She may not be a therapist, but she knows her stuff. Aside from the fact that it is a very female-centric book, it feels like every chapter is about me. The fact that it is female-centric isn’t off-putting to me, but I would like some type of acknowledgement, even in a footnote, that, “Oh yeah, men can have eating disorders, too.”
I’m keeping a journal, reading this book, and I’m working on my issues. I’ve worked through them before. I have to stay diligent this time and keep working on them. In the past, it was a romantic relationship that imploded that caused me to stray. That also tells me that I clearly was not where I needed to be. However, my romantic life is amazing. My wife, Tina, is my best friend and supports me in everything I do. We grow closer together every day, and knowing that I have her undying support and love will definitely be a powerful asset as I grow into a healthier person, both physically and mentally.
Right now, my goal is to learn to eat when I am hungry and not in anticipation of being hungry. That’s going to be tough; I’ll share my thoughts on this journey to better mental health from time to time.
But anyway, why is this a paper crane weigh-in?
Have you heard the Japanese belief that, if you fold 1,000 paper cranes, you’ll get a wish?
This is crane #1.
My wish isn’t to reach goal weight. That’s the kind of thing I can do myself. I’m not sure what my wish will be. I’ll let you know if I ever decide.
I had Tina take a photo of me this morning for good measure before we went to the gym to work out. I plan to document my appearance regularly; nothing shows weight loss better than photos. (I am also now aware that I need a haircut. And pardon the workout clothes, but I don’t dress up for the gym.)
Fortunately, I have a healthy weekend planned. No BBQs to mess me up this time. What are your plans for the weekend?
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Busy Summer
Have you ever had the best of intentions, and life just gets in the way?
In the past on this blog, I’ve spent some considerable time griping about the utter hell that was my previous job. Now, any time that I mention that work has been hectic, I always feel I need to disclaim, “It’s been busy, but it’s still great!”
Well, here comes that same disclaimer. This has been one of the busiest months of my professional career I have EVER had. However, it has been amazingly awesome.
Until this past weekend, I worked about fifteen days straight, with each workday consisting of, at a minimum, ten hours, and at the maximum end, around eighteen hours. A typical work day for the month of June has been about eight hours. I’ve taken a laptop home and set up a little workstation in my living room so I’m not completely ignoring my wife and pets.
I’ve been working on producing some very research-intensive PD modules. I have read a LOT of research this month. I’ve been dreaming about research. (And if you want to have a sucky dream, dream about research.)
I did a presentation last week at a conference. My presentation title was Buffy, Harry Potter, and Homer Simpson Help Teach Core Content. It was freaking awesome! I absolutely nailed it and got tons of kudos and accolades. Yay me!
Of course, preparing also took up a considerable amount of time.
But again, I absolutely adore my job. I adore everything about it.
I work in education. I should have next summer off with pay. That will be sweet. I did not have this summer off, but I did get paid. I am extremely thankful to have had the opportunity to work this summer with pay, regardless of how tired I’ve been.
That’s why my blog has been languishing for a bit.
That’s also why my weight loss efforts have been languishing. I’ve been hovering around the 370 mark for a while. I have to break through this. I’m setting myself the goal of being below 350 by the time the fall semester starts in late August. Tough but doable. I just have to stop eating so much food and move more. There isn’t really a secret formula; I know this.
I am going to resume weekly weigh-ins. I need that level of accountability. I’ve found myself dreading the scale a few times in the morning because I know that my lack of activity the day before and a few poor food choices are going to make me regret it. That’s not healthy, and it completely defeats my purpose of wanting to weigh in every day. So until I get in a mentally healthier place, I’m not doing that.
So on Friday, I’m going to weigh in. I’ll use my starting June weight of 375.3 as the previous weight.
I’m going to continue my dorkiness. In fact, I am continuing my dorkiness at the gym.
Tina and I finally switched gyms. We just signed up to use the Preston center on WKU’s campus (which is where I now work). In the past, I’ve been taking my portable DVD player to the gym. An amazing thing occurred to me the other day.
This gym is on WKU’s campus.
WKU has wi-fi all over campus.
I have an iPad and a Netflix account.
I can watch Netflix when I’m on the cardio equipment! Right now, I’m making my way through the series Power Rangers Mystic Force, which is the series that was airing when I stopped watching Power Rangers. It’s mega-dorky (of course), but I love it because all of the fight scenes inspires me to push myself even harder when I’m on the elliptical. I just wedge my iPad on the magazine rack, set the time, and enjoy. Obviously I can’t watch Netflix when I’m lifting weights, but I only get bored doing cardio, so it works out pretty well.
I have other good news.
Tina just got her first big girl job! Best yet – she also is coming to WKU to work. With both of us working here, that means we have the top-tier insurance for free. That alone equals a $210 a month savings, because I can now take her off of my insurance.
She also will get free tuition. She’s starting her Master’s degree this fall.
This job is one of the best thing that could have ever happened. This will also help us pay off our debts and get us in a great position to potentially start a family soon.
Things are coming up great. Now I have the rest of the summer to get my weight loss efforts on track, too, and things are golden!
I will be reviewing an episode of the Power Rangers before Friday when I do my next weigh-in.
How has your summer been?
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Power Rangers: High Five
June 8, 2011
369.5 pounds
Change from June 1st = -5.8 pounds
Change from highest = -33.3 pounds
In non-nostalgia related weight loss news, Tina and I went to the gym in the morning before work again. At night, the gym is so crowded, lifting weights is significantly tougher. (Cardio isn’t a problem.) Couple that with the fact that when we get home, it is AWESOME to know that I am done working out.
Given that the gym we’ll soon be using is actually at my working place and has a faculty locker room with nice, private, shower stalls, it all adds up to a simple solution. Work out in the morning before my work day starts.
As for how it went… Amazing! We both felt incredible all day long. And I can shower and go straight to work. Literally, I can walk to my office from this gym. This is definitely the way to go, even if it does require getting up about two hours earlier than I would normally.
I’m now feeling crazy nostalgic and I just spent some time surfing for Salute Your Shorts info. Yeah, I’m not going to be able to go sixteen straight episodes of Power Rangers with delving into some other aspect of my childhood. So I’m going to do three episodes of Power Rangers, hit an episode of Salute Your Shorts, and then back into PR. If you’ve been reading my blog for any length of time, you know I don’t always do everything I say I will, anyway.
“High Five”
Original Airdate September 4, 1993
Plot
The teens are hanging out at the Youth Center. Jason is climbing the rope climb, and while Zack and Kimberly are cheering him on, Trini is watching from a safe distance, due to an extreme fear of heights.
When the gang is attacked by putties, Billy and Trini try to lure the putties away. Billy climbs a tall cliff, where Trini, of course, is afraid to follow him.
However, Trini is the better fighter, and when Billy is dangerously trapped on a cliff by a Puttie that he can’t defend himself from, it is up to Trini to put her fears aside and help Billy. Trini’s friendship is stronger than her fear, and she climbs up the cliffside and helps Billy.
The teens defeat the Putties, using one of the oddest and likely most inefficient style of fighting I have ever seen.
As the episode ends, Trini has truly conquered her fear of heights, even climbing the rope climb after Zack scares her.
Weight Loss Analogy
Oh, Power Rangers, could you make it any easier?
How big of a role does fear play in our lives?
I think a lot of people (and I am putting myself in this camp) are fat because we are afraid. Afraid of being unloved. Afraid of not being good enough. Afraid of (fill in your fear here).
For me, it was a fear of being unloved and alone. If I was fat, then I had an excuse. I had a ready-made excuse for why I was single and never had a girlfriend. “Oh, it’s not because I’m flawed as a person. It’s because I’m fat.” I got over that one and met the love of my life.
“Oh, well, now I’m fat and that’s why I’m not a success at work.”
I got over that one, too, and I know have the greatest job ever. (And I’m freaking awesome at it.)
So, why am I still fat? What am I afraid of now?
Not liking myself when I get to goal weight.
Not liking some aspect of my life when I step on the scale and it says 180 and not being able to blame it on being fat.
Trini climbed the cliff to save Billy.
I’m climbing the cliff to save me.
What are you afraid of?
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My First Walking 5K
Tina has a wonderful guest post lined up and waiting about her wonderful amazing whole wheat pizza dough. However, I’m going to let it wait one more day, because I did something today that I have never consciously done before.
I walked a 5K. Instead of doing an hour on the elliptical at the gym, I picked a treadmill, punched in 5K loop, and set off at the fastest walk I could muster until I was done.
I have a LONG way to go to running a 5K. I am well aware of this. I have seen plenty of people post sub-30 minutes times on running. I’ve seen people post times in the range of 45 minutes for walking. I knew this was nowhere near possible for me.
Going in, I was hoping to not go too far over an hour.
The 5K seems like such a long distance to me, a complete non-runner at the moment, but I realize it’s only 3.10 miles. I’m not up to running it yet, but I can definitely walk it now.
I’m not crippled. I pushed myself hard, but not so hard that I won’t be able to walk tomorrow. So, how did I do?
56:47.
I’ll do even better on Tuesday.
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