My Journey With Weight Loss – Making Time For Recovery

Yesterday I went for coffee with a group of retirees that I used to work with. Pre-pandemic we would meet monthly but of course over the past 2 years it has been sporadic so some of the people that were there yesterday I haven’t seen for a long time. One of the attendees commented on how he follows my blog (yes, my followers are few but mighty and come from across the globe) and wanted to know how I had made the changes to my lifestyle. He also told me how I am almost unrecognizable compared to how I looked when we worked together. It sure made me feel good.

My husband asked what I did to track my recovery time. Specifically, he wanted to know if I was getting enough sleep and if my body was getting some down time. Yes I told him, my Fitbit tells me everyday what level of activity to do and how long I should be working out.

My Fitbit tracks 3 things to determine the day’s required activity. First, recent activity. This component looks at my heart rate activity over the week and determines the level of activity I should do each day. My activity level for most days is moderate (though I think when I run 16k it should be at the intense level) so the amount of ‘zone minutes’ (heart rate in fatburn/cardio/peak) that it suggests is pretty much the same each day. Second is recent sleep which, for those of you who haven’t read my previous posts, is a struggle for me. However, sleep is important as that is when the body is getting its maximum recovery. While my Fitbit tells me I get enough sleep it also tells me I need to prioritize my sleep more (short of going back on sleeping pills I don’t know how I can do this). Finally is heart rate variability (HRV) which is the variation in the time between heart beats. A drop in HRV can indicate the body is experiencing stress, strain or illness and that you need a break. My HRV is pretty consistent so no worries there.

Overall my Fitbit usually tells me on Sundays that it is time for a break. That works for me as I usually do take Sundays off from working out as it is my day just for myself. According to my Fitbit my body is happy with what I am making it do in terms of exercise and since I know I am pretty healthy I guess it is right.

As for my husband, he jokingly asked if my Fitbit’s name is Kelly (my coach) though he is happy that I do take recovery and sleep into consideration.