[renmerc446]

Martha: Good luck on the classes. I'm with you regarding doing any sort of exercise in the heat.

I'm hoping to get back to my lunch time walks at work. A big part of not doing it has been all the construction on campus this past year. However, I just realized there's a place I can do my walks so I hope to start up again starting on Monday, now that the heat has receded a bit.

 

[VexedAngel]

I decided to do yardwork today in lieu of the gym. Getting my vitamin d, strength training, and cardio in one fell swoop. Just completed an hour and oooooof. Would like to do more but need a break.

 

[dlrcpa]

Did 8 classes in week 1 of August, 8 classes last week. I did yard work Friday too so no classes on that day.

 

[VexedAngel]

I did another hour and a half Saturday! Hoped to do some today, but won't have time. Going back to work tomorrow, so will be heading to the gym at 5! The weather is supposed to be nice, so looking forward to a short walk at lunch time.

And I'm meal prepping for the week with all those little leftover pieces in the fridge/pantry, so I'm having roast broccoli, baby carrots, peas, red onion, tofu, mushrooms, and tomatoes, with rice cooker risotto, topped with a little low sodium soy sauce and sriracha. It's basically 2 sheet pans of veggies and about 5 cups risotto, should be plenty, and then if DH wants some, he can have some, too.

 

[Contrary Housewife]

Vexed, an hour of yardwork is worth two in the gym.

I'm not dieting, but I have been watching what I eat. Cut back on the chips and candy, and avoiding 2nd helpings and evening snacks. Had the "side" biscuit and gravy for breakfast this morning instead of the full on breakfast plate.

I think I'm starting to feel a little more comfortable in my jeans. I got weighed at the Dr office last month and I'll compare in Oct when I go again.

 

[renmerc446]

CH: I've been doing so-so with my diet. On one hand, haven't been eating the healthiest of items, especially on weekends. On the other, lunch at work is generally ok and I try to eat relatively healthy. Plus, I tend not to get dessert when I'm eating out at a restaurant and only eat enough to where I feel comfortable, rather than 'full' which sometimes feels like too much these days. At one restaurant, I will get the pasta, which ends up being 2-3 meals at home, as well as what I have at the restaurant.

Considering it's now cooled down enough to where I don't feel like I'm melting, I'm thinking of getting out and taking a lunch time walk. I found a place where I can go for a walk without needing to dodge construction.

 

[dlrcpa]

Had annual doctor visit and blood work. I was able to compare this year to last year and many things are the same but I can do better with my diet. I have just been lazy about fruits and vegetables since they require some preparations. I also have plenty of whole grains on hand, need to prepare and grab those for snacks and breakfasts. Hubby is not a fan so not served at dinner.

 

[renmerc446]

dlr: Yeah, I need to do better with my diet as well. One good thing about the grab-n-go lunches at work is I do better going for the veggies or something veggie-based. I just need to do better at home. Although I have picked up more fruit and have been eating more of that lately. It helps that I'm not pushing myself to eat as much. I'm just not eating as well as I should.

I also started doing T'ai Chi again. Well, more to say: I did at least some T'ai Chi last night. I've been antsy recently and wanting to move about a bit more at home. Haven't gotten to the point where I'm getting out and walking or gardening as much as I should, though. But doing the Pilates on a regular, weekly basis is pushing me in the right direction.

 

[VexedAngel]

It is back to school time and I skipped 2 days and skimped on cardio 3 days, and so I'm makin' it all up this weekend! yayyyy But I did 56 minutes cardio and made up my missed arms/back workout day, and will do 49 minutes cardio tomorrow and make up the missed legs/abs work so I'm all reset for Monday, first day of school! And will hopefully do better on sticking to routine since actual school schedules kick in.

 

[dlrcpa]

Reached my goal of 40 classes for August although over half were express (15 minute classes). My goals for September will be different, focus on eating better/less and strength and flexibility. Hoping the weather cools off so yard work gets done, that is very tiring also.

 

[renmerc446]

VexedAngel: congrats on doing the make-up sessions. Hope your schedule settles for you.

dlr: Congrats on reaching your class goal for the month. I hear you about the heat. I need to get back to eating better myself, although I do tend to do better during the week while I'm at work.

Still taking my Pilates class. I'm starting to feel it when I'm carrying my laundry basket up and down the steps (have to use the complex laundromat). My knee is doing better as well but it's not as strong as I would like it to be. I did a pretty good job hiking around this past Saturday at my LARP but I used the cane I keep in my car since I was dealing with uneven ground. At least that's good motivation to keep up with the Pilates class, once the initial membership is up in a few days.

 

[VexedAngel]

VexedAngel: congrats on doing the make-up sessions. Hope your schedule settles for you.

dlr: Congrats on reaching your class goal for the month. I hear you about the heat. I need to get back to eating better myself, although I do tend to do better during the week while I'm at work.

Still taking my Pilates class. I'm starting to feel it when I'm carrying my laundry basket up and down the steps (have to use the complex laundromat). My knee is doing better as well but it's not as strong as I would like it to be. I did a pretty good job hiking around this past Saturday at my LARP but I used the cane I keep in my car since I was dealing with uneven ground. At least that's good motivation to keep up with the Pilates class, once the initial membership is up in a few days.

That's awesome you're feeling your gains!

 

[renmerc446]

I should know by now to take an aspirin before going to bed on the nights I take Pilates class. :lol: I generally end up sore, even after three months. I'm also at the point where I'm mentally whining "I don't wanna go!!" but I'm glad I did. This was the last month of my initial membership but I'm going to continue with it. I've been noticing small improvements, like having less issues carrying the laundry basket up and down the steps. I'm also not huffing and puffing as much as I had been once we started coming back into the office after the pandemic. Especially since the distance between the new parking garage and the building is doubled.

Still not doing well with the diet end of things, although lunch is ok, given it's still grab-n-go. On the other hand, I've gotten used to eating smaller portions because of that. It's just that I need to eat better.

 

[renmerc446]

Went to my Pilates class yesterday. Wasn't sure if I was going to or make it through the class once there. But it turned out ok. One things I've noticed this past week so far is that my pants are fitting a little bit better. They're not loose, so much as less tight. Not bad, considering I've only been going to Pilates for ~4 months.

On the other hand, I have to park in the new parking garage at work, which has basically doubled the distance between the garage and the building where I work. While I don't mind getting the extra steps in, it's probably going to be a realy PITA once winter rolls around.

I'm also getting use to the smaller portion sizes at lunch, since it's mainly grab and go. Word was that the hot food options were supposed to come back at some point but they haven't. Oh well. At least I can get something to eat and not have to worry about forgetting to pack anything.

 

[dlrcpa]

My chiropractor wrote a book! Hubby bought an electronic copy and I read it Thursday night (not very long). He has specific recommendations for health and he is quite healthy himself. I'm going to implement a few things slowly. One is to how much water to drink. I have been terrible about that and I'll try for half his recommendation initially, which for me would be 40 oz daily or 5 glasses. Yesterday I managed 3...
Did yard work 4 days last week and not much this week (rained for 4 days). Leaves just starting to fall.

 

[dlrcpa]

Trying to figure out my fitness plan going forward. The supplemental health insurance I have will be dropping Silver Sneakers next year. Same for hubby's plan. The replacement benefit is free gym membership but I don't want to go to the gym, I want to workout at home. So instead of live online classes I'll be stuck with some on-demand free canned videos or I can possibly start collecting DVDs. Or there are subscription based workouts that are live and have good variety but I would try free ones first. I just really like Silver Sneakers so very much, I am disappointed this is happening.

 

[renmerc446]

Sorry to hear about the loss of the program you like, dlr. Funny thing is, I have access to a small gym at my apartment complex but I never got into going. I tried a couple of times but never kept up with it, despite it being free to residents. The pandemic closing it for a while then making it hard to get into once it opened up again didn't help matters. Then again, I think the fact I'm paying for the Pilates classes is a good incentive to keep going. The fact that it's only once a week and small classes helps.

The kicker is, the complex owners are renovating/updating the gym soon. Not sure what they're going to do with it. I think they had a sauna there when I first moved into the complex years ago, which I kinda miss. I wonder if they're going to just update it with new equipment or fix up the rooms. I think they're trying to attract new tenants by updating the facilities.

 

[marthamfi]

That is too bad Dlrcpa. Hopefully maybe something else will come up that is similar. Ren that is like in laws place great exercise room but we never used it either.

My friend and I haven't gotten back into going yet. I added stretches and my store work is exercise at least. It has been unseasonally warm here still so our plans of walking etc haven't come up.

 

[renmerc446]

The Cafe at work has brought back the salad bar. Yay!! The availability of the small prepackaged salads were a bit hit or miss most days. They regularly had the large salads, but I wasn't interested in the toppings as well as being too large for one sitting for me. I can customize the salad the way I want it at the salad bar. Not sure if or when they'll be bringing back the hot food (other than the soups and grab-n-go/reheat your own). Well, they're supposed to be bringing back the hot food but this cafe looks like it's going to be one of the last ones to get it. Still, I don't have to hike over to another building or remember to pack a lunch.

I've been annoyed with myself for not eating better in recent months so this is a step in the right direction. I've missed having the salad bar (and the hot food options) at work.

 

[renmerc446]

Blah... Turns out my blood pressure's still higher than my Dr. would like and I gained 10 pounds. Then again, it's been over a year since I last got weighed so it could've been worse. Although I do know that I ate badly for a good portion of the year, starting with having limited use of my kitchen due to issues with the sink disposal finally dying which lead to the water slowly draining as well as the cafe at work having limited selection for most of the year until the last month or so. So I ended up picking up junk food for dinner, which also ended up being my main meal of the day. Now that the cafe is back to normal service (meaning hot food and [more importantly] the salad bar), lunch is returning to being my larger meal. I'm also not hitting the candy machine at work any more since I'm not getting hungry around mid-afternoon.

I think the Pilates is also helping a bit. On one hand, it's exercise. On the other, I think there's a certain amount of awareness that comes with getting more exercise and paying attention to how my body feels. On the other hand, there's a certain amount of inertia I still have to deal with, considering I'm still not in the mood to go anywhere much.