Phase 2 / Workout 4 - Beginning to appreciate my progress

I let a big gap develop between workouts. Physical therapy did happen last Thursday (and I do not record the details of those results). However, I can say my ankle is improving despite some continued but diminishing pain. My knee is definitely the more compliant patient.

My reading in the Complete Idiot's Guide: Glycemic Index Weight Loss has confirmed and clarified what I suspected about my progress. My doctor also alluded to it during my last visit with her. My metabolism has increased or become elevated... oh, it's just better. 


Although I didn't lose much weight in the first months of this project, my exercise did count for something. Muscle mass, more dense than fat, increased in my body. I am certain I lost fat and got somewhat smaller visually, the change on the weight scale was marginal because muscle is heavier per unit of volume (if you had a marble made of fat and a same-sized marble made of muscle, the latter would weigh more). All this to say, I lost some of my marbles and gained some better ones.


This also explains how I could be away from exercising with no change in my eating throughout the majority of December, and not gain weight during the entire holiday season.


I have finished reading through chapter 7 of my book and I've found some potentially helpful supplementary resources in line with my winter goals. One, I will mention here. On Facebook, the Glycemic Index page contains discussion and resources for people who are pursuing healthier eating habits using Glycemic Index/Load. 


My experiences at the University of Phoenix. where students are required to write and post substantive answers to instructor questions and responses of fellow students in the on-line classrooms, motivated me to look for a place where I could participate in constructive discussions on this topic. Although I joined the group a few days ago and the most recent posts were many days earlier at the time, when I checked in today, I found two fresh posts there. Both were questions, to which I knew a good answer from yesterday's readings. 


I initially returned to the page to see how vibrant the discussion was because I wanted to question a paradox I found in my reading concerning pH balance (I will explain in a future post). I didn't want my post to just sit out there unanswered. I observed that many people have been posting to this page but few recent posts had responses. So, I decided not to post my question there at this time. But...


Since the best way to prove that you know something is to share it with someone else, I wrote responses to two of the questions. This was easy, especially since I would not be  graded by a professor. Still I wanted to give it my best as if a professor was reading. In this forum, one or more probably will. With book in hand, I dove in and attempted to respond to the two questions posed. After all, these would not be my answers but what I learned from my studies. You already have enough information to find the page on Facebook. I am interested to see if you agree with what I wrote there.


My results for January 19th (Phase 2 / Workout 4) are:

Time: 20 min. 
Average Speed 15.2 
Distance 4.9
Calories 135
Average Heart Rate 126
Watts: 77
Level: 4 (Program: Manual)

Do something beautiful for your heart today.

~ Cheryl ~

Phase 2 / Post 2: My "Goals Post" for Winter and beyond

My short-term goals for winter are to:


1. Lose 5 lbs by Valentine's Day and another 5 by the first day of spring.
2. Do 5 workouts per week either walking 30 minutes or biking 20 minutes minimum.
3. Finish the Complete Idiots Guide: Glycemic Index Weight Loss book in the seven weeks beginning on January 10th and ending by March 1st.
4. Lower my somewhat elevated bad (LDL) cholesterol.
5. Increase my vitamin D levels and stabilize them within targeted limits (initiated and supervised by my doctor).
6. Take my measurements with my weight and track both as I progress.
7. Research and secure complementary and supplementary resources in print, on-line, audio, video, etc.


Do something beautiful for your heart today.


~ Cheryl ~

Phase 2 / Workout 3 - Weigh-in day (the first for the new year)

Originally I set out to bike and listen to the Daily Audio Bible on the iPod today but I ended up listening to music instead. 


My brother stuffed my cell phone's mp3 player with music from his collection that he thought I would like. When I couldn't get it to play on the phone, I transferred it to the iPod. He gave me so much, it will probably take me a few months to listen to it all and at least a couple more months to create playlists for my workouts according to each song's tempo so I can listen to them during my walks, rides and other types of exercise I may choose in the future.


Certain songs I picked helped me keep my pedaling at a targeted speed and motivated me to push when I felt like slowing down (regardless of the tempo). I am going into iTunes tonight to create "Bike Ride" playlist. Every time I hear a song I can pedal to, I'll add it. In a month or so I'll have accumulated a diverse collection from which I can mix and match to keep things interesting. I'll have to do my DAB (www.dailyaudiobible.com) at another time while multitasking with something else or in solitude.


Trusted Friend and I went back to the scale for the first time in months this afternoon and I am very happy to say that my starting weight for 2010 is my lowest recorded weight since I began this journey on Sept. 1st. So, I am picking up where I left off somewhere between September and November at my maximum net loss of 4 lbs.


Why am I so happy about this? Hello!? Look at the calendar! Two and a half weeks ago was Christmas. Nearly a month before that was Thanksgiving. In between, before and after were social events with lots of... you know... food and I didn't gain weight over the holidays (cue the Halleluia Chorus) despite the fact that I was limping to physical therapy and not doing much else with respect to exercise. Do you get it now?

I am still uncomfortable writing my weight for others to see. That is why I have a designated Trusted Friend who can look at the scale and verify the current weight and subtract it from the starting weight which she saw back in September to make sure I did my math correctly.

My results for January 12th (Phase 2 / Workout 3) are:

Time: 20 min. 
Average Speed 14.3 
Distance 4.6
Calories 125
Average Heart Rate 120
Watts: 66
Level: 4 (Program: Manual)

Do something beautiful for your heart today.


~ Cheryl ~

Phase 2 / Workout 2 - I am excited to move forward into this new year

So, it is day two and I'm wondering why if I set my biking level lower, somehow I sweat harder? Is that really so? Or is it that I have been away from it for a while and my body is adjusting. Last fall, I was working out at level 5, 6 and 7 and sometimes I didn't sweat as much. This could also be related to how much water I was consuming on any given day. What else could it be? For the next week or two, I am going to keep it at 20 minutes of pedaling at level 4.

I wasn't sore today but I have to be so careful with my ankle. If I catch my heel on something even just a small "bump" impact that I'd barely notice if it happened elsewhere on my body, I have sudden pain as the angle of my foot suddenly increases and my toe points. I am not complaining. My writing this prepares me to discuss with my physical therapist.

I am grateful and hopeful. I remember where I was last summer before I started this. I hoped I would have lost more weight but I did benefit in ways I can't take for granted. I could not have achieved these things without my exercise regimen. If my ankle keeps me from running, that's OK. I've never been a runner. I would like to run but it is totally optional if I never do. I just see it as the ultimate exercise. Honestly, I prefer dancing and I already know a bit about how to do that while protecting my ankle (low impact).

My results for January 11th (Phase 2 / Workout 2) are:

Time: 20 min. 
Average Speed 14.5 
Distance 4.7
Calories 127
Average Heart Rate 120
Watts: 68
Level: 4 (Program: Manual)

Do something beautiful for your heart today.


~ Cheryl ~

Phase 2 / Workout 1 - My (late) mom's birthday & a breath-taking story from childhood

I felt it was necessary to honor the memory of my mother, who battled back successfully from heart disease, by starting back doing my workouts on her birthday. If I hadn't done it today, I would have found it easy to procrastinate tomorrow.

Yes, I have been going to physical therapy and I did walk for 40 minutes in my neighborhood just after Christmas but I didn't log any distance or step measurements. Tonight was my first official night back doing what I had been doing apparently rather well in 2009. I imagine I can only improve upon my previous work - keeping it humble of course - by finally embracing an eating budget and losing some weight!


I expect that my feet, which had started to swell slightly in recent days, will begin to look normal as early as tomorrow morning. Over the holidays, I discovered another way I had improved that was previously untested.


Here is the background: Our family was on the way to New York for a funeral. My 100 year-old aunt Evelyn passed away the day after Christmas and her funeral was two days before New Year's Day. Anyway, the drive north took us through the Baltimore Harbor Tunnel, which I have ridden through countless times since I was too small to notice.


As children, my brother and I were always in learning mode with our mother, the conscientious teacher. I think she decided that if she was teaching children (as excellent as she was at teaching), her own children would get the best from her - the most - her all. Everything she could find to teach to us, anywhere at any time, we were learning. And it was fun. So, we were learning about tunnels (waterways, fish, boats, bridges, etc.) as we went through the tunnel on vacation trips to New Jersey or to visit relatives or see Broadway Shows in New York.


I was fascinated by the fact that we were driving under water but not getting wet. Although I couldn't see the water, I knew we were under water. And I wanted those bricks to be clear so I could look at the fish. I got it into my elementary-aged head that I should hold my breath always when I am under water. 


From then on, nearly every trip we took through that tunnel I held my breath (even a few years ago when I was driving to Philadelphia alone). Back then, I didn't always tell anyone, I just held my breath. Sometimes, the rest of the family noticed I was no longer participating in the conversation and I would have to explain once I started breathing again. From the moment our car was underneath the first part of the structure to when we cleared the other side, I was holding my breath (or trying). No air went in or out. I didn't always make it. Sometimes traffic was heavy and slow but often I would still be holding my breath seconds after we were under the sky again.


On this most recent trip, I held my breath through the tunnel without telling anyone as we traveled northbound. I failed miserably. On the return trip south the next day, I introduced my nephew, who is 12 and appropriately competitive [he's a boy], to my breath-holding practice. It was not hard to challenge him to a contest.


I remember my personal record from years ago was 1 minute 35 seconds. I didn't expect to do any better or even come close (maybe a minute or a minute 5 seconds). My nephew didn't last for 60 seconds. Well, I broke my own record and held my breath for 1 minute 45 seconds!  I attribute this to the work I did in the fall (presented in previous blogs below) and am sufficiently motivated to continue through the winter. 


My nephew is probably practicing holding his breath right now.


My results for January 10th (Phase 2 / Workout 1) are:

Time: 20 min. 
Average Speed 13.2
Distance 4.2
Calories 110
Average Heart Rate 117
Watts: 54
Level: 4 (Program: Manual)


Do something beautiful for your heart today.


~ Cheryl ~

Phase 2 / Post 1 - How will I change my eating?

I have finally decided on an eating plan: the Glycemic Index method for weight loss. One reason for this choice is that diabetes is present in my family. I don't have it and I don't want to get it. I already cut out granulated sugar from my diet long ago. I do continue to eat things that have sugar in them but my original problem many years ago was the huge amount of granulated sugar I was adding to things.


One day about 7 years ago my doctor at the time wanted to diagnose me with diabetes because she said I was headed there. I guess she had seen it so many times and didn't expect me to make any changes. But I did immediately. Since then I can count on one finger the number of sugar sacks I have purchased.


Another reason I chose the Glycemic Index method is that it is sensible. It is not so much about deprivation as it is about balance. Many eating plans minimize consumption of important nutritional components of a balanced diet. The glycemic index approach encourages eating and cuts out nothing. That seems more realistic. This method seems to have no controversy associated with it and the medical community apparently approves of it overwhelmingly.


Last weekend, I found the Complete Idiot's Guide: Glycemic Index Weight Loss at a decent price on amazon.com and ordered it. Tonight, I started reading it and feel assured I made a good choice. A quick look at the table of contents reveals the book has 29 chapters organized into seven parts that I will read over the next seven weeks. I will research additional resources as I go. Of course I will blog about what I learn and report changes I am motivated to make.


Do something beautiful for your heart today.


~ Cheryl ~

Day 75 (and following): Heart Walk Recap

After being sick and becoming a little inconsistent in the days before the big day, I rode the bus to the Heart Walk. It was a wet, muddy morning but I made it to the finish-line and beyond. The 2.9 mile walk was only a part of the distance I walked on foot. With lots of walking before and after the event back to public transportation and from the subway station to home, I think I walked more than 4 miles net that day.


I arrived to see CACI's CEO, Paul Cofoni, talking at the microphone as the walkers started out on their course. He later lapped me. I met strangers who were so friendly. A friend from a church we used to attend recognized me but I was confused because she was wearing a shirt from my employer. She happened to be a friend of another employee. The three in her group and I walked together for most of the walk.


The first lap was so much fun. I could not keep up with the super fast walkers but I wasn't the slowest either. One coworker wore this giant heart costume and his friend carried a boom box with the perfect playlist for the occaision. People kept coming up to take photos with him. My church friend started dance steps to popular songs as we walked and many others who were close enough to hear the boom box joined in. That was my favorite part of the walk. 


The second lap was a surprise at first because I thought there was only one lap and that people were leaving. We moved ahead of the giant heart and the boom box so we could no longer hear the music. The sound system near the start/finish line played music loud enough that people could hear it on about a third of the course.


About a quarter mile or so before the finish line, just after I managed to catch up with my CEO and speak/walk with him for a minute, my ankle began to hurt and I struggled to walk normally for many weeks to come.


The training of biking 5 - 6 miles added to the 1.5 miles I had been walking at home a few days each week should have been enough to prepare me for 2.9 miles but I didn't factor the mud which made unforseen demands on my feet and legs. I thought I had done enough on the first lap on the mall and could have gone home but I felt good and believed that I would not have done justice to my hard work if I left at the halfway mark. Many others left after the first lap but I kept going. In retrospect, I've learned my lesson. Plenty others kept walking just like me but I could have sat down and/or gone home.


I stayed after crossing the finish line and visited the tents where free food was being prepared for the walkers. I sampled some healthy, hot greens and okra/tomatoes. I picked up a fresh apple and banana. They hit the spot! I almost forgot about my hurting ankle. I saw more people I knew from work and stopped to talk before we all departed from the mall.


After resting at home most of the remainder of that day, I walked with a cane in the days that followed. It occurred to me to make an appointment with my physical therapist, so I did. As I began writing this entry, my pain had diminished and I had begun to walk much better. On my first physical therapy visit after the walk, I hurt so badly that they put ice on my ankle foot and leg and sent me home without any exercises. I was still in bad pain when I had my second visit after the walk. They stopped my exercises early and sent me home.


Mr. Lee told me that I would improve and be back to normal much sooner than I thought. That's how badly it hurt. But, I did start walking for exercise again over the Christmas holiday and feel much better. Maybe two or more visits with Mr. Lee will be enough, if my Doctor approves them. I also need to get into the habit of doing the exercises independently and consistently.


The new year marks the beginning of my next phase of making paces.


Do something beautiful for your heart today.


~ Cheryl ~