Thoughts on food and exercise
So, I ran while at the gym last night for the first time in forever. I had kind of quit running for a while, partially due to laziness and partially because I'd discovered a new love for the stair master. Let's just say I could most definitely tell I hadn't run in a while...I had definitely lost some serious endurance. After about 20 minutes at my normal incline/speed I was sweating and panting away. I guess that just goes to show the importance of cross training--I was still doing cardio even though I wasn't running, it was just a different kind of cardio. But yet when I jumped back on that treadmill, I felt like I hadn't done any sort of cardio in years. Odd.
Regardless, it still felt good to run. It was nice to feel the muscles in my legs engage, to feel my lungs expand and contract, to listen to the steady rythm of my breath (panting). I do believe I'm going to have to take this up again; I'll just have to learn how to mix it up between running and other stuff I enjoy doing.
On another note, my weight is about 4 pounds higher than where I like to see it on the scale. I know, I know, what's 4 pounds. And honestly--I think its only about a pound over where my body likes to be (i.e. where I can maintain easily without kicking my own ass at the gym every day), but I still like to see the other number better. If I were to look back and be completely honest with myself, I haven't been eating as well as I should. I'm not completely pigging out and disregarding all of the rules of sensible eating, but I'm not as careful as I was. I'm eating too quickly, which means I'm eating more than I should--I don't give my body time to tell my brain to tell me that I'm full. I'm eating more and I'm allowing myself to have sweets more than I should. (Ice cream...ice cream...more ice cream...) I guess I'm just going to have to buckle down, start tracking my food again, start listening to my body more, and being more diligent in working out.
I know I'm not fat. I know I'm not even chubby. I know I've come a long way. But all of that is why I'm so afraid of slacking off now and slipping back to where I was.
Consider my resolve strengthened....
Regardless, it still felt good to run. It was nice to feel the muscles in my legs engage, to feel my lungs expand and contract, to listen to the steady rythm of my breath (panting). I do believe I'm going to have to take this up again; I'll just have to learn how to mix it up between running and other stuff I enjoy doing.
On another note, my weight is about 4 pounds higher than where I like to see it on the scale. I know, I know, what's 4 pounds. And honestly--I think its only about a pound over where my body likes to be (i.e. where I can maintain easily without kicking my own ass at the gym every day), but I still like to see the other number better. If I were to look back and be completely honest with myself, I haven't been eating as well as I should. I'm not completely pigging out and disregarding all of the rules of sensible eating, but I'm not as careful as I was. I'm eating too quickly, which means I'm eating more than I should--I don't give my body time to tell my brain to tell me that I'm full. I'm eating more and I'm allowing myself to have sweets more than I should. (Ice cream...ice cream...more ice cream...) I guess I'm just going to have to buckle down, start tracking my food again, start listening to my body more, and being more diligent in working out.
I know I'm not fat. I know I'm not even chubby. I know I've come a long way. But all of that is why I'm so afraid of slacking off now and slipping back to where I was.
Consider my resolve strengthened....