getting there is only half the battle
Started off week 3 of the exercise effort with a trip to the gym with mlyn to help me figure out how to work the elliptical machine. I got brave last week and tried it out, but it was excruciating and left my thighs a burning mass of rubber. A bunch of people barked at me this weekend about how I needed less resistance and a lower level, but I hit button after button on the thing that day and made it a whole 7 minutes or so. It never changed. M'lyn volunteered to go with me and show me what to do so we went over there tonight, and I did 20 minutes on the machine with mostly just knee pain, which is something I'm very used to so it doesn't bother me. It's just what you get when you don't have any cartilage left in them.
It definitely wasn't easy (I was watching those minutes tick down like a buzzard waiting for someone to die), but it helped to have someone to talk to, as well, and then we went down and did weight circuit, even though she's feeling a little under the weather. Then we went and got sammiches and talked about diet and maximizing the workout foodwise. I plan to stick with this, even though it tires me out, and now gas is at $3 a gallon and the gym is not at all close by. I figure that if I do this at least a couple times a week, and keep up with the yardwork and the walking everywhere, maybe I can see results by end of summer, but I'm not necessarily looking for them, if that makes any sense. It takes a long time to see results, in the first place, but most importantly, if I judge my health by just the pounds or the clothes size, I'm doing it wrong.
The other thing that will probably help me lose some weight is that next week I go in for the impressions to get my braces. They said they can do the Invisalign ones, which is a load off my mind, though they may in fact use the metal ones at the end. I just don't want metal in my mouth again, ever. My experience was so awful, and I have such bad memories of it, that even though the clear ones have many of their own issues, I'd rather do it this way. It's insanely expensive, but worth it for the peace of mind. The big issue is that you usually have to brush and floss after every meal, and I'm not a meal eater -- I graze in small amounts all day. Since I'd have to be brushing and flossing all the time, and having to take them out for tea and Pepsi and stuff, I'll probably stick to water more often than I already do (which is a lot, but I do love my tea and my cola drinks), and eat a lot less, or eat stuff I can get by with a quick brushing instead of the whole kit & kaboodle.
I'm not looking forward to this at all. Especially not to having them at Vividcon, where my diet goes out the window in favor of convenience. But it's better to do it now than wait until I crack a tooth with my bad bite.
So between starvation (not really, just eating in a different way, less often) and working out, with any luck, I may finally be able to fit into my favorite pants again at some later date. And btw, anyone who wants to check in with my on my progress or to nag me into not giving up, please feel free to do so. It would be good to keep motivating me.
It definitely wasn't easy (I was watching those minutes tick down like a buzzard waiting for someone to die), but it helped to have someone to talk to, as well, and then we went down and did weight circuit, even though she's feeling a little under the weather. Then we went and got sammiches and talked about diet and maximizing the workout foodwise. I plan to stick with this, even though it tires me out, and now gas is at $3 a gallon and the gym is not at all close by. I figure that if I do this at least a couple times a week, and keep up with the yardwork and the walking everywhere, maybe I can see results by end of summer, but I'm not necessarily looking for them, if that makes any sense. It takes a long time to see results, in the first place, but most importantly, if I judge my health by just the pounds or the clothes size, I'm doing it wrong.
The other thing that will probably help me lose some weight is that next week I go in for the impressions to get my braces. They said they can do the Invisalign ones, which is a load off my mind, though they may in fact use the metal ones at the end. I just don't want metal in my mouth again, ever. My experience was so awful, and I have such bad memories of it, that even though the clear ones have many of their own issues, I'd rather do it this way. It's insanely expensive, but worth it for the peace of mind. The big issue is that you usually have to brush and floss after every meal, and I'm not a meal eater -- I graze in small amounts all day. Since I'd have to be brushing and flossing all the time, and having to take them out for tea and Pepsi and stuff, I'll probably stick to water more often than I already do (which is a lot, but I do love my tea and my cola drinks), and eat a lot less, or eat stuff I can get by with a quick brushing instead of the whole kit & kaboodle.
I'm not looking forward to this at all. Especially not to having them at Vividcon, where my diet goes out the window in favor of convenience. But it's better to do it now than wait until I crack a tooth with my bad bite.
So between starvation (not really, just eating in a different way, less often) and working out, with any luck, I may finally be able to fit into my favorite pants again at some later date. And btw, anyone who wants to check in with my on my progress or to nag me into not giving up, please feel free to do so. It would be good to keep motivating me.