My God, I am a lazy human being. I say this because the ever-patient Maddie, my trainer at the gym, gave me a pedometer to wear, just to see how many steps I walk in a day. We decided that my goal should be 3,500 for this first week, because I really am pretty sedentary. Let's look at how I did:
Tuesday: 4,305
Wednesday: 9,356
Thursday: 5,323
Friday: 4,844
Saturday: 3,778
So, if my goal was 3,500, why do I say that I'm lazy? Because everything I've read says you should aim for 10,000 steps a day if you're trying to lose weight. I obviously have some work to do. (Wednesday, the outlier in this week, happened because I went to the gym and did 30 minutes on the elliptical that morning, and then moved everything out of and then back into my office when the new furniture was delivered.)
I have noticed that I look at it frequently throughout the day, and I have started trying to figure out ways to get more steps in. Tonight, B and I went to the grocery store, and I made him walk up and down almost all of the aisles. Hey, it's more steps! I am aiming for 4,500 every day this coming week. Since I made that goal 3 out of the 5 days I've tracked, I think it's realistic. I know walking the dog helps me make that goal, plus it gives him some much-needed exercise, too. I'm going to give it a shot. We'll see how it goes.
I discovered water aerobics this week. I love love love swimming, and have wanted to take water aerobics since I joined the gym, but someone once told me that most of the people taking the class are the same overweight women week in and week out, and that no one ever looks like they've lost any weight. It really deterred me from actually getting into one of the classes, but then Maddie taught Thursday night's class. She wanted me to come take it with her since I have frequently told her how much I loved to swim, so I did it. Oh, my gosh! It was actually a workout--I wasn't really expecting it to be at all! The hour flew by, and before I left the gym, I looked to see when the next class was. It was today at 9 a.m. Now, you know me, and you know how much I LOVE to sleep. It was no small sacrifice to set my alarm clock for 8 a.m. on a Saturday morning so I could make that class. But I did it, and you know what? It was totally worth it.
I came home from today's class and did some reading online about swimming, and how it's so very good for you because it helps build muscle and burn fat. I should have been writing a paper, but instead I decided I was more interested in swimming. And you know what? For the first time in my life, I went back to the gym a second time in one day, and I swam 20 laps. I'm a slow swimmer now (this is the first time I've been lap swimming in years), so that took about 50 minutes. But I felt absolutely amazing when I was done. I'm not going to force myself to go tomorrow because I really do need to finish a paper, do some more homework, and spend some time with B. But if I feel like I can carve out 2 hours from my day, then you'll likely find me at the pool again.
I'm going to take water aerobics 2 more times this week, so I'll have a total of 3 times. I'm also planning on swimming some laps after the class, although it probably won't be 20 again since that would mean I'd be in the pool for 2 straight hours. Although who knows? We'll see how motivated I am when I get there. I'm going to do 3 days of cardio, too, so that's 28 minutes on the elliptical and 2 minutes on the step mill. (Oh, how I hate you, step mill.) That'll be six days of working out this week, and I think I can feel proud of that. I'm looking forward to seeing what kind of results that brings.
So now, for the moment of truth. I have lost 5.6 pounds so far! I am so totally excited about it I can't believe it. I seriously doubt that I'm going to lose 4.4 pounds this week to make my first goal of 10 in July, but it's okay. I'll take whatever I can get. I'm just proud of getting this far in a week.
I'm off to take some measurements so I can see what kind of improvements I make month over month. The Weight Tracker on weightwatchers.com has a place for measurements, and the ones they ask for are: dress size, hips, thighs, waist, bust, and arms. Pretty painless to meaure; pretty painful to see the numbers. Next month they will be better! :)
Till next week--
Mxx
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