Tuesday 30 December

Yesterday at lunch I walked an hour outside along the river. It was really chilly and windy, but I managed to complete my one hour walk.

Treadmill today- 15 minutes walking at 3.5 mph, 1.5 mile jog at 6.0 mph (10 minute mile) and 30 minutes walking at 3.5 again. The 1.5 mile jog was really difficult, and I remember, not so long ago, when 10 miles was no big deal. I hope I can get there again without injury. A total of 4.15 miles in an hour. An improvement, at least-- however slight, I am going in the right direction.

Joy and Fish, are you noticing this? I'm out there trying.

28 December - A Little More

As I head toward 31 December, and struggle to maintain the same weight I started with, much less drop weight toward my goal, I try to look at it from the viewpoint of "don't give up". I have struggled with weight for a very long time, and have only sporadically had success with maintaining a weight I am proud of. But, rather than quit and just be fat, I will keep trying. I have seen some improvements lately to be pleased about, and if I can focus on small, consistent victories rather than big goals, maybe that will help.

Today I walked 4 miles on the treadmill at a 3.0 mph pace and jogged 1.1 miles at a 10 minute/mile pace. A total of 5.1 miles. The smallest of improvements, but I will take it. I would like to be able to run a 30 minute 5k (3.1 miles) by the end of January. Seems to be a reachable goal. A 60 minute 10k (6.2 miles) by 1 March would be nice, and a 10 mile in 1 hour 40 minutes (10 minute/mile pace) by 1 April would be great.

I think I managed to get into the Cherry Blossom 10 Miler - a difficult Washington, DC race to get into because of its popularity. I have until early April to be able to run a decent 10 mile. No problem.....

26 December - Mejor Que Nada

Walked 15 minutes, jogged 1 mile at a 10 minute/mile pace, and walked another 35 minutes. I hour total. Not earth-shattering, but better than nothing. Tightness in lower legs while walking, but managed to do workout.

25 December - Christmas on the Treadmill

Didn't do much to slow down the Christmas food damage, but at least went to the treadmill for 3.5 miles, 65 minutes. Tried to jog some, but shins didn't like it. Better than sitting on the couch and eating chips while watching cable, which is what I wanted to do.

17 December

Felt lazy, but thanks to Dan's encouragement, went to the treadmill, walked 15 minutes at 3.5 mph pace, jogged 1.5 miles at a 10 minute/mile pace, then walked another hour and 6 minutes at 3.5 mph for a total of a 10k walk/jog. Over time I'll increase the running and decrease walking. Total 96 minute workout today is good progress.

15 December -- Hoo Boy...

Keeping a blog current is challenging. Work, DC traffic and commutes, lots of (bad) excuses interfere with exercise and blogging.

In August, I went to the mountains in Southern Colorado, hiked a lot, took great photos, but didn't post. Stopped exercising, but kept eating out...not a good combo. Periodically walked or jogged since, but haven't posted. My year is almost up, and I am back to my original weight. Very demoralizing. But, rather than stay down, and stay fat, I'm starting over and trying again. Walked an hour a day several times with a friend in Tucson last week. Beautiful weather and nice walking trails.

15 December, went to the treadmill, walked 35 minutes, jogged 1 mile at a 10 minute/mile pace, and walked another 30 minutes. Not earth-shattering, but a new start.

It's hard to eat properly during the holidays, but I can at least try to be moderate-- not exclude nice meals and treats, but cut the portions and frequency down at leat by 1/3, and hang on until 1 January 2009. Calendars, anniversaries, milestones, and new starts are all important and effective motivators for me.

I get gentle encouragement from my sister in law and my boss and others to exercise more. Giving it another try.