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Daily Exercise Journal


lmgervais

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Good to have you back on board, Liza!

Sunday's hike was a bit of a disaster. The trail guide was open to misinterpretation, which of coarse I did in a big way! I thought that the destination was 1.5 mile with 1000 feet elevation gain. Nope. 1000 feet elevation gain at .9 mile, 3000+ in 2.5 miles. The destination was not the point I thought it was from the description, but was close to the end of the 2.5, which meant I did the majority of the elevation gain.

It was like climbing a stairway, except that stairs are nice and flat to step on and don't try to move. The trail guide described the trail as dirt, except for the last part being rock and dirt. Well those fist sized items sure looked, felt, and behaved in a manner consistent with rocks to me. The 1.5 mile point mentioned in the book turned out to be a stretch through flatter forest where there was dirt, but that didn't last long. People coming down the trail kept telling me that I was almost there, so I kept going. The last person said it was just above the next rise, so I set out, thought I'd been prepared to turn around, thinking I'd reached the point. It was awful, some of it had to be nearly 60 degrees. The steep angle was really making the back of my heel hurt, so, wanting to do as little trauma as possible to my feet, I turned around.

Suddenly, instead of having my heel jammed to the back, the toes were being jammed to the front. I tried to step at an angle as much as possible. I wanted to sit and rest, but I was trying to get down before dark, so I kept pushing on. I eventually did run out of daylight, but by that point I could hear the creek and whooped when I finally spotted headlights! Needless to say, I made it!

All I wanted was a nice hike to burn about 1800 calories and 3 hours, but what I got was 5400 calories and 6 hours! I've crossed that trail off the list of ones I want to do over again.

The biggest problem with the guide was that it was giving information for the peak, and from other descriptions I'd mistakenly gained the impression that the peak was a couple of miles from the basin. Next time I'm going to read the description a lot closer.

And if I have the inclination to turn around in the first 15 minutes, I'm going to do just that!

I already have a new set of hiking boots a full size larger, and the next hike is not going to exceed 500 feet elevation gain! I figured I'd get the boots immediately while the blisters and toes are sore, so I'd know what they'd feel like in reality, not under optimum conditions with not yet swollen feet. I wore my new ankle braces, too, so they wouldn't crowd my feet, either.

Someone mentioned Smart Wool, at least I think that's what it was called, as a superior sock manufacturer, so I'll have to get some of those soon. I think I spotted that Body Glide stuff, does it look like a pack of antiperspirant?

Oh yes, I took Monday off. I was tired for some reason I can't fathom.

Tuesday, one mile in the pool.

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Wednesday - water aerobics, 1 mile swimming

Thursday - Boot Camp

Friday - 1 mile in the pool

Saturday - Boot Camp, .25 mile swimming, 25 minutes of water aerobic exercises

The podiatrist drilled a hole in the toenail so the fluid can drain, but I think it's moot. It looks like the quick is open in one spot to the nail bed, which now has air back there. He says the new nail will take about 9 months to grow in, so I guess I'm expecting a new nail. :) I did get the scalpel blade he used to bore the hole (the attachment for his dremel tool was missing, so he improvised).

Runners get these toe problems all the time, and it doesn't keep them from running. I'll have to follow suit. I'm supposed to tape the nail firmly to the toe when I'm going to wear shoes to keep it from sticking up. At some point the old nail will probably be removed, and I'm wondering if it might be better to go ahead and get it over with. My Dad has no nails on two of his toes after an accident, his brother is the same but with the opposite foot. He's managed without for 50 years.

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Okay!

My right foot feels great..my left foot is still giving me troubles. Not as bad as it has been. I have decided to really be lazy with it. And it is getting better. I just have to let the heel heal. That being said, I need to get some exercise going.

I am thinking of going to the gym and using the bikes. That way I am not stressing my heel out too much. What do you all think?

Or should I just walk in the mornings but not as much (meaning the 2 miles)?

I have not made it to Birkenstocks or to Eastern Mountain sports for an orthotic.

I am with you all in spirit.

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The toe is doing much better now, in fact it almost feels normal. Not as much fluid has been building up, and usually only after I've been walking a lot, like at the state fair Monday, or doing the treadmill, elliptical, etc.. I hope this means that maybe (cross your fingers) I can keep the nail. I've been puting duct tape over the hole in the nail when I swim so water doesn't get in that way, figuring a build up of fluid will only hinder recovery.

I've worked out every day since the last posting, I've just haven't got things posted.

Tonight was water aerobics followed by a 1 mile swim.

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I went for my first hike since the toenail problem. I took a couple of friends this time. The trail I wanted to do had no parking anywhere near. I'd told my friend what to expect from that trail, so we weren't prepared for the trail we did. I would have brought my hat, because it was a sunny location, instead of the shade. But Ruth had exercise sandals with nothing in the way of ankle support, and the trail we did had rocks and was quite a bit steeper. Also Ruth didn't bring any water, which really surprised me. She was on the infamous hike of the West Rim in Zions 21 years ago; I've gone for overkill in being prepared for every contingency, she seems to have gone the other direction.

So the hike wasn't as vigorous as I would have liked, because I didn't want Ruth getting injured. I know people say don't hike/run/swim/etc. alone, but if I didn't, I wouldn't get to do hardly anything. I try to exercise good judgment and try to recruit others to participate, this just wasn't a very successful effort.

I've been going to classes, but it seems to cut back on the actual time I get to work out. I'm trying not to overdo it the day before a Boot Camp, but half the time one of them doesn't take place because of lack of participants. Tomorrow doesn't look promising. When I left after Water Aerobics, no one else had signed up, so I don't hold out much hope for tomorrow night.

I've lost 3.1 pounds since last week's milestone! :wave:

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  • 1 month later...

Goodness, you all must be extra busy. No one has been here since the middle of September. Hope you are all doing well.

Steve and I have become the laziest things. Unfortunately for him he's put 10 pounds back on. Surprisingly I am still @ 158. I have been really good about watching what I eat. I am also the only one still moving boxes into the new house. Climbing 15 stairs up and then back down to carry everything into the house. Then the things that need to go on the 2nd floor get toted up another 18 stairs. Must say that my calf muscles are getting a workout!

I also go for 4 or 5 walks a day now. We got a dog at the end of June. She is part Beagle and loves to go for nice long walks. Especially in the woods behind our house. Sometimes she gets a scent and we jog. It's a great way for me to get a little extra exercise.

lyn

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We got home Monday from a two-week trip that inclucec hiking and kayak paddling, and are leaving after breakfast this AM to join some friends this weekend out in the western Panhandle to paddle some more, and since the Panhandle Trace part of the Florida Scenic Trail passes right through our campground, we'll probably do some of that, too. Then the following weekend we'll be camped on Lake Seminole for a weekend paddle in that area.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I've come out of my annual period of dormancy. I'm not sure why it happens each September, but there it is.

I got feeling a little awkward about posting my activity every day without others doing so, but I've been working out almost every day. Last week I tried a zumba class, which was fun and burned lots of calories. I'll have to give it a miss this week, because I've been doing a Harry Potter marathon with my niece so we will be all caught up when my brother takes us to a large viewing party of his in-laws. Boot Camp may even get a miss, because the film starts 50 minutes after class ends!

I've had a cold, and tonight I went to the clinic to see the doctor. I got a migraine while waiting to go back. The Dr. saw me, prescribed some antibiotics for my baby sinus infection and sent in a nurser to give me a shot of toradol. Then I was left in the room to see if the migraine subsided. The overhead light was out, and I guess I was forgotten, because the cleaner popped in and was very surprised. So the the nurse came in and soon I was discharged. I went to the pharmacy. I was waiting in one of the chairs when it dawned on me: I fit in the waiting room chair without being profoundly discomfitted! :bear: Discovering I've lost weight in subtle ways like this are the big thrills in my life right now. Good thing, because eating better costs more, meaning less money for minis. Well it's not like I don't have a supply on hand to keep me busy.

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I don't work out daily because between normal daily activity, the physically strenuous recreational activities we do and the MD diet we're on our weight stays stable; but I love to read what you've been up to, and your success (and the occasional lapse, which is human & OK), for inspiration; and I'll betcha there's a host of others who do, too.

I love that comment about fitting in the waiting room chair! That's a real milepost on the long, hard journey of weight loss.

Now that we're experiencing cooler weather we've begun hiking again; and since a number of our friends have discovered the neoprene boots and Pepperskins (black knit thermal skivvies) we go kayaking year 'round. I posted elsewhere about our latest trips. It looks like we're off the road for the rest of the year :bear: and can participate in some of the local hikes & paddles coming up.

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Hello Everyone,

Well, the Holidays have come and gone and I didn't even gain an ounce. Don't ask me how that miracle happened. We had Thanksgiving dinner at our house and I cooked everything, except the turkey, days ahead. I even sampled as I was stirring and baking. Somebody somewhere must like me. :)

Hope you all had a nice Thanksgiving, Happy Hanukkah, Merry Christmas or a nice Kwanzaa.

Wishing everyone a peaceful New Year.

lyn

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I'm trying to get back into more intense workouts. I've been fighting a bug since before Christmas. One day last week I went to the gym, but cut it short cause I kept feeling lightheaded.

The holidays were very disruptive of my regular routine, too. Classes canceled, family in town, me out of town. I don't understand why they canceled Boot Camp on Christmas, lol.

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Holly, you and I must have shared the same Holiday Fairy that helped us keep the weight off. Now, if that same Fairy could find a way to help me lose the rest of the pounds that I want to, I'll love her forever!!!! :)

lyn

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  • 2 weeks later...
  • 3 weeks later...

Hi all! I have been away from this thread because I was trying to figure out what to do to help myself lose this weight I have kept on and gained. After about 3 months of contemplating it, an answer came thru the mail via my Reader`s Digest. I read about Gary Taubes and the most recent book he wrote about being overweight, hormones, and carbohydrates. I always knew about how carbs turn to sugar and wreck havoc on a diabetic but he explained it in a way that turned on a lightbulb!

Fred read it and we both decided that this was going to be our way of life. Low carb eating and exercise. We are not calling it a diet. This is going to be forever and there will be times where we will stray from the formula like when we had the birthday cakes.

For the past two months we have been living a modified version of the Atkins diet. We are refraining (for the most part) from potatoes, rice, pasta, bread, and sugar. Sugar free all the way. We are eating a limited amount of beans, lentils, and all legumes.

Otherwise we are eating everything else and we are doing great! It took some adjustment and we were addicted but we are doing well. Fred has lost 14 lbs at last weigh in and I have lost 11lb.

I have more energy, and I have been doing some form of exercise every day.

The best part! My blood sugars are NORMAL! I went out with the girls and had some noodles. I wanted to see the difference in the blood sugar. My sugar shot up to 300. I know now that I am doing what I need to do.

I had a Dr appointment on Friday with my Endo. I told him what we are doing. He was very happy about the weight loss. I told him my concerns about low blood sugars and could this way of eating harm me...some people have voiced that what we are doing is WRONG. That we are going to make ourselves sick if we do not eat pasta and potatoes.

He said I had a good plan in place and as long as we were eating veggies everyday, our carb intake was good. And the best part!!! He took me off one of my diabetes drugs!!! No more Actos! He also said that Actos is one of the ones that make you gain weight so I should start seeing a significant drop in the scale in a month. WooHoo!

This is a long post huh?

I wanted to let you all know that I am still here and I finally figured it all out.

I do 30 mins on treadmill with a 4 grade incline, I do 10-20 minutes on the stairclimber, I do another 20 minutes on all the weight machines that I know how to use..hehehe I do this every other day.

I found out that Netflix has exercise videos that you can instantly watch! Pilates, strength training, Yoga...so I put up about six in my queue to check out today. I may do one day gym, one day netflix, and one day walking (once it stops being so frigid).

I feel good that I have a different mindset now. Lazy is out!

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I'm no longer the heaviest person in Boot Camp! There was a another gal who was there for the second week running, so she didn't get scared away. I've noticed that my mind is having a tough time identifying with the smaller people. I was watching the Biggest Loser, and they weighed in two gals, one close to my starting weight and the other about 10 pounds less than me and I realized my mind was lagging behind. Oh well...

There was a clearance sale at Walmart over the Superbowl weekend and I bought 3 pairs of shorts in a smaller size and a supply of tops, one in my current size, several in the next size down (which I wear sometimes, but they tend to ride up if I'm active), and two in the "large" size 12-14 as inspiration and to try on from time to time to monitor my progress.

Friday I had an outstanding session on the elliptical, burning up to 16.2 calories a minute by the end, but most of the time between 13-16. This blew my mind, because I've never hit hight than the 13 range before, and some days I have a hard time getting higher than 6. Well Saturday my legs were really feeling it :) . That's okay, I stiller burned more calories overall.

My weight went up a few pounds early in February. I bought some items which I thought I could consume responsibly, but quickly learned that they must stay on the contraband list. I've now worked off those pesky pounds and learned my lesson. I'm also back into my routine, so March should be a better month for getting cracking on the next 10%!

Hiking season is getting tantalizingly close! I envy Holly for being able to get out there. The snowline creeps up and down the mountain behind the state capitol building where the first hike will be, being at a lower elevation and in a mostly sunny location. It goes up to some radio towers which my dad would work on when I was a kid and I tagged along when he'd go there on several occasions. Another trail is near the University of Utah and goes to a place with a great view with huge rocks which look like easy chairs and is known as the Living Room. Probably the biggest problem will be mud!

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