On joining a gym and how salad saved my evening

I don’t get into exercise that much here, mostly because it’s not something that’s been a big focus lately. I enjoy being active, so I’m usually involved in some sort of regularly scheduled exercise. For several years, I trained capoeira 3-4 times a week. In the past couple of years, the class scheduled changed and I started to find it harder to get to class. I’m not naturally skilled at it, so if I can only train 2 times a week, I stagnate quickly. My frustrations with that led me to running and last spring I ran a 1/2 marathon. Over the summer, it was approximately 1000 degrees here, so I stuck to ultimate frisbee in the evenings and the occasional capoeira class. The point is, I’ve not been someone who goes to a gym and gets on an elliptical machine since approximately 2006. At the end of last year, I was getting back into Capoeira and then I broke my ankle.

Hey guys, did I mention I broke my ankle? Oh, I did? Several times? Sorry for complaining so much, but it really is awful.

Anyway, I’m off crutches but I still am not supposed to run for at least a month and I’m definitely not supposed to jump around or kick at people. I’m allowed to ride a bike, to walk slowly, and maybe to swim, though I have to check on that one. It’s snowy and icy here and biking outside is not appealing in sleet. So, I’m looking into a gym membership. $50 a month to ride a stationary bike seems absurd, but I need to get doing something. I can barely sleep at night because I don’t DO anything all day.

The other thing about being mobile is that I now have access to whatever I want to eat whenever I want to eat it. Last night, driving home from checking out one gym, I was famished. I worked late so by the time I got around to dinner, it was close to 9, which is very late for me. I was thinking about pizza or burgers or chicken fingers. I realized that the only reason I wanted those things was because I could eat them right away with no prep work, but I didn’t want to eat in my car anyway. So, I stopped at the grocery store. I got fresh lettuce, mushrooms and avocado and some babybel cheeses. I ate some of the cheese on the way home because it won’t stank up my car and then by the time I got home, I was not so desperate to eat.

I sauteed the mushrooms in some healthy oil while I made and ate my fresh salad. The mushrooms were the perfect finish. I went to bed feeling satisfied and not all bogged down by carbs. It was a good day.

I know this isn’t the most riveting story. Basically, I have to make a decision about a gym and I passed up fast food. I need to start engaging more, though, and making a bigger deal of little things. If I don’t dwell on how great I felt last night, I might make a run for the border tonight. (Did I ever mention that the end of my block has a Taco Bell and within 2 blocks I can find McDonald’s, Burger King, Arby’s, and a local by-the-slice pizza place? Every night the drive home is like a gauntlet unless I have something delicious waiting for me.)

So there it is. What are your small victories this week? What could you pay more attention to?

 

I want to hug the world

Today is my first day off crutches. I can drive and walk with both hands free for the first time in 6 weeks. Hallelujah! My first trip in my car was to Whole Foods. As I was looking for my keys, I was thinking about what to get for dinner. Pizza, a burger, a sub? They all sounded good. But I went to Whole Foods and got some chicken and olives instead, because as I was thinking about eating those other foods, I started to think about how crap I’d feel after. Not only did I think it wasn’t worth it, it was downright unappealing.

So, I can walk again. My right leg is smaller than my left and oddly shaped after the weeks of misuse, but it will come back to me. I feel so good moving around quickly and walking up and down stairs. Friends, I am in a fantastic mood today.

Tomorrow, I’ll go to the grocery store again to get fresh produce and good meat. I can cook foods that sound good to me without worrying about whether I planned ahead 7 days ago when I got groceries delivered. I can take myself out for coffee in the morning if I want to. Most importantly, I can walk.

Going into this new beginning, I’m 181 pounds, which is not to shabby given my last few weeks. I had a small tortilla at lunch today, so tomorrow will be day 1 of no carbs, and I’m OK with that, too.

 

Progress happens while I watch Doctor Who

I’ve been rendered fairly immobile by the broken ankle, and when I’m not at work I can’t be bothered to do much. I barely manage a bath/shower every other day because it’s painful and inconvenient. I wash and wear the same couple of shirts with large pockets and pants that fit over my boot. When my friends take pity and pick me up, I go out. Otherwise, I’ve mostly been reading (Memoirs of a Geisha, currently) and watching Doctor Who (season 4 right now). Thank goodness for Netflix!
I have managed to convince myself not to medicate with food. I made some excellent chicken and a really juicy pork roast yesterday, both of which I feel comfortable praising, even though they were my own creations. I’m hydrating like it’s going out of style, partially because it helps with the swelling and partially because I have a cold.
I’m feeling slothy simply because I don’t DO anything – it’s an ordeal just to walk out to check the mail. Every time my foot starts to feel better, I start to get itchy to get up and move around. So far, attempts to walk without crutches have not been met with a great response. I have the most mundane dreams where I just walk across the room.
However, today I hobbled myself onto the scale and found that I seem to still be losing weight, which is good. The holiday pounds are coming away, even though I’m not leading an active lifestyle. I had really worried by the time I got this thing off that I’d have gained 5-10 pounds.
It’s a little thing, but it’s a bright spot in an otherwise dim week.
Current weight: 179
Days without restricted carbs: 2