I keep losing the same pound over and over. I bounce up a pound or two, then bounce back down. MyFitnessPal, the weight and calorie tracker I'm using, proudly announces to the world, "Nan has lost 1.2 pounds since her last weigh-in and 0 pounds so far!" Then it falls silent for those days it is bouncing back up.
But I keep plugging away. There is no magic bullet. Just a series of small choices over and over again.
I've added a new trick to the toolbox, over the last couple of unseasonably warm weeks. On several mornings when I haven't had early gym appointments, I've kept the alarm at the same 5 am time and head in to work early. As I drive in the sun rises, and as a bonus the time enroute is nearly 10 minutes less. When I get to the garage (in the basement of my building), I leave everything in the car and head out for a walk. I work on the National Mall, a place tourists come from all over the world to see. I have my choice of looping towards the Capitol or the Washington Monument. Just a half hour or so, but it does so much for my spirits. Most people out are runners, and I long to join them but I'm in my work clothes. It helps absorb some of the continuing stress in the office, to get the fresh air. I don't so this every opportunity I have but sometimes.
A few evenings I've walked on the treadmill while watching tv on my iPad. Once I walked in the morning while reading the paper, but I like outside just after dawn better.
Tonight I pulled an older tool from the box and walked between my house and the kids. Crisp and clear and better than nothing.
Food has been good this week. I've found a new dedication to trying to make decent dinners for the family. I'm wanting to have them eat the way I want to eat, rather than my cooking what I think they want to eat. More vegetables. Less rice pasta or potatoes. Cauliflower braised in beef broth instead of mashed potatoes. That's another old trick pulled out for the occasion. Actual cooking, not just hearing something up.
An apple every day before dinner. Keeps the portions down and resists the kids junk food lying about. I brushed my teeth early tonight to make sure I was done with the snacks.
Small tricks. Keep plugging away.
- iPhone uPdate
3 comments:
Love the early-morning walk. And, yes, role modeling a powerful motivator, as we recently disussed on my blog. I find, btw, that winter is actually my very favorite time to walk. Brisk and quiet and the sky's morning color is enchanting.
this month, small tricks are all any of us have
as to the use of energy which doesn't have to go to work or kids or holiday prep, i vote for the exercise over planned eating every time
I think you double down with physical and mental benefits even if there isn't a weight loss benefit
love the image of you walking the mall before work, N
Liz
Thanks, ladies. Many mornings as I struggle to get up and get going, I remember Liz with her pre-dawn swims. It's an inspiration, as is KCF with her walks.
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