gwennefarrell

Crap, it is hot here. My husband opened the living room windows this morning and the gust of air felt like he had turned on the furnace. It is supposed to stay like this for the rest of this week. No, I am not complaining because this is why we come down here, to get away from the weather at home. I will admit to being disappointed because by the end of the week the weather at home is supposed to be sunny and hot. Really, I enjoy it so much more when we come down here and the weather at home sucks.

We arrived in Mexico Sunday evening. We didn’t even unpack (note, we brought 3 suitcases but they were all filled with stuff we needed for the condo as opposed to clothing) just headed off to our favourite restaurant for dinner. While we could have ordered in doing a brisk 15 minute walk there and back was just what I needed after the long flight. Somehow I still managed to get in 10k steps that day. I also realized I needed to take a day yesterday as we had so much to do including a lot of shopping for groceries and supplies for the next 5 weeks that it wasn’t feasible to find a few hours to work out. I did, however, manage to get in the pool but in all honesty no real swimming was involved just lounging.

But today is a new day which means I was up early for a healthy breakfast. Then I tried my first Zumba class. There are 7 classes in total through my video on demand system and this morning’s was learning the basic steps so it was a little more low keyed than I am used to. Still, managed to burn some calories and learn something new. There’s a few steps I need to work on but this looks like it is going to be fun. Moreover, I like the fact there is going to be a variety so it won’t get repetative.

I gave my self some rest time after Zumba and then it was off for a walk. I have now gotten so used to walking in our complex I don’t even have to look at my watch to know when I have gotten in an hour of walking. I will admit though that even at 7:30am it was already getting quite warm out. Still, I got my walk in and because of the Zumba class by time I was done I had hit my daily goal of 10k steps (seems odd given I am used to doing 25-30k each day that I am satisfied with 10k). Still I wasn’t finished as I then did 30 minutes of strength training focusing on my upper body and then my abs. All in all by 9:30am I had finished my 2.5 hours of working out for the day.

While it may seem premature to be bragging about getting through 1 day of working out while at the condo, I need to publish it to help hold myself accountable. I need it out there for people to see so that in my head it would be embarrassing if I slacked off. So, keep reading my blogs for the next few weeks to help me make my goal of working out at least 6 days each week while I am here. And maybe if I am successful at doing that a few more pounds will be lost before I get home.

Yesterday was my husband’s birthday so I took him out for lunch to the Noodlebox. We had been there once before and he really liked it so I thought it would be a nice treat for him. The problem of course is the noodles that comes with each dish are high calorie and high carbs. So, I opted to have mine with zucchini noodles and was surprised how much I liked them. Just that simple change dropped over 200 calories off my lunch and since I only ate 1/2 of the dish my calories were in line with what I normally have for lunch. But really, it was a nice treat and very enjoyable.

First thing tomorrow morning we fly to Mexico. We will be in Playa del Carmen for 5 weeks and can’t wait to get there. Of course my siblings will take care of the house and pets. But, the trick is going to be keeping myself on track which is even more important because I am 2/3 of the way to my weight goal (I weighed in yesterday and had again lost weight). I am determined that when I come back I will weigh no more than I did yesterday and in a perfect world I will have lost a few pounds. The question is, how am I going to pull that off while still enjoying myself.

First of all, I have worked out an exercise plan with my trainer. It is still going to be every day but will be dropping from 5 hours per day to 2 1/2 hours (note, since I started on this new journey on Jun 6th I have only had 1 day where I didn’t do any exercise). My day will start with an online fitness course followed by an hour walk then 30 minutes of strength training. My challenge is the heaviest weights I have found in Playa are only 6 lbs and I need 10 lbs to help keep me where I am now. The trainer gave me some tips on what to do if I still can’t the heavier weights that will allow me to maintain my strength.

The second issue is going to be meals. I fully intend to continue to log all my food in my fitness app and while I might go over my daily goal, I will be cognizant of it always being less than the average calories that I burn. On top of that, I am going to do everything I can to avoid the trap of eating out. We are fortunate that there is such a variety of fresh fruits and vegetables in Mexico that it should be easy to continue eating healthy when we make our own meals. Don’t get me wrong, there will be eating out but it will be far less frequent than normal for us in Mexico and even then I am going to try to make healthy choices as often as possible.

Finally, alcohol. Ok, I admit we tend to drink more alcohol when we are at the condo. Late almost every afternoon we meet our friends poolside and have a few drinks. However, my plan is to opt for lower calorie alcohol such as light beer or liquor mixed with diet soda or club soda. Yes, there will still be wine involved but I’m trying to make that occasionally.

I know it sounds like I’m taking all the fun out of this trip but really, it is just about making the right choices. I know at every point during the day where I am at calorie wise and that will guide my food decisions. And really, since I have pretty much given up snacking I am confident I can stay away from junk food. I also know there may be a slip or two in this plan but if I can keep it to only a few then I think I will be successful.

This morning was Power Hour with Rebecca. I normally really enjoy these classes as she is an awesome instructor. Today, however, I found it challenging. Rebecca had us do this segment with single leg dead lifts. If you haven’t experienced this, you hold 2 heavier weights, bend down at your hips and while doing so lift 1 leg out behind you. If you do it right you bend over to the point where your back and the lifted leg are parallel with the floor. To say this is a major challenge in balancing is an understatement and it is an exercise I don’t think I will ever get the hang of.

I got home from the lake on Monday and decided to put on my favourite long sleeved t-shirt. I’d avoided wearing it for so long because it was a size small and that size had stopped fitting me. I was thrilled that it fit quite nicely and I was happy to be wearing it again. Then yesterday when I went out for an early morning run I decided I needed to wear long workout pants because it was a bit chilly out. I decided to try a funky looking pair but was hesitant because they were also a size small. I shouldn’t have worried because they fit well.

After those successes I went for the gold ring and pulled out my stack of jeans. I was sure I had kept 1 pair in size 8 but I was wrong. Instead I was looking at half a dozen pairs all in size 6. I assured myself that it would be ok if they didn’t fit but I knew it wouldn’t and would disappoint me after all the hard work I have done these past 3 months. I picked a comfortable fit pair and tried them on and they fit!!! Yes, back to wearing size 6 jeans. Ok, I acknowledge I avoided the skinny jeans, I think I need a few more pounds before going down that road.

Tomorrow I am doing my pre-Mexico weigh in but regardless of what the scale says, I know that I am making progress. Here’s hoping I can keep this up while I am away.

Well that was certainly a change in temperatures. I have actually done my walking today all the while wearing a hoodie. Even this afternoon it was a little chilly walking in shaded areas. I guess fall is definitely on its way but that won’t matter to me much in 5 days time when I get to Mexico.

Today was another of my super volunteer days. It has included my walking group, care giver support group, walking a senior’s dog and tonight an executive meeting for a society for which I am treasurer. On top of all of this I will have put in 5 hours of workout time. The problem is that is how every day this week looks for me and I don’t know how to get it all done.

Our topic today at the care giver support group was dealing with stress. Now I admit it is an entirely different type of stress to be looking after someone pretty much 24/7 as compared to just once again overloading my schedule but the discussion was absolutely valuable. I also admit there was an awful lot of laughter that happened but that is always pretty cathartic.

Ultimately I used the information from today’s session to help try and turn my anxiety around a bit.

I know that walking in particular helps me deal with stress so I decided to use my hour long walk home to evaluate what I have left to do this week and how I can get it accomplished. This included determining which meetings and events I can get out of. I decided the meeting tonight I will give them 1 hour instead of the requested 2 hours. Thursday’s evening meeting is not essential for me in any way so I will give that a miss. I then organized a pretty strict timeline for what I have to do and just have to ensure I adhere to it.

Am I now less overwhelmed? No, but I at least feel I will be able to get all the necessities done by Saturday evening. I don’t think being a bit overwhelmed is the real issue, it is stressing out about it that is the worst. But, I do at least feel somewhat better than I did earlier today.

Last night there was plenty of rain here at the trailer and they were predicting more rain this morning. I had thought ahead and had brought moisture wicking pants as well as a rain resistant running jacket which I donned for my early morning 2 hour walk. I was quite surprised when I started out that there was some blue sky out there. As I was walking back from the highway I all of a sudden heard some noises. At this point I am walking on a road that is between 2 corn fields one of which has a ton of blackberry bushes along one of its edges. Then I saw it, not more than 12 feet in front of me a black bear comes barrelling out of one of the field and scampers across the road. It scared the beejeezus out of me and I froze. However I realized the bear didn’t even know I was there.

Yesterday we drove up to the trailer. Normally this is about an hour drive but due to an accident which led to a detour it took a lot longer. On top of that, there were a number of stops to pick up specific grocery items for the weekend (note the pricey New York strip steaks we got at the butcher were awesome) so it was significant travel time.

I realized I was going to be crunched for time when we got to the trailer and I didn’t want to get all stressed out when I had so been looking forward to a relaxing weekend. As we were driving up here I said to my husband, I think I am going to take a day from working out. He laughed and said you obviously don’t know what that means. I thought for a moment and realized I probably should have made that statement before I had done the hour bootcamp class and 10 km walk earlier yesterday morning.

But you know what, given the fact that for 85 straight days I had done at least 2 workouts each day if I really wanted to I could have taken yesterday off. The problem is I have become so focused on this new journey that just cutting back yesterday to me was taking a day. And, today I was back at in in full force in that by noon I had done 4 hours of walking. I am just going to keep doing as much as I can until I get to Mexico at which time I will drop my workouts back to just 2 1/2 hours a day to keep my motivation going.

Oh, and after my statement to my husband, I still went out for a 1/2 walk to get myself to 20k steps. Sigh, I acknowledge my obsession.

Yesterday a new person joined our seniors’ walking group. Now most of the ladies in the group walk at a pretty good clip and the new lady seemed pretty fit so I thought she would keep up with them. But no, turns out for her socialization is an important aspect of being part of this group. I should note she came out of my caregivers’ support group so obviously is dealing with some issues at home. And so on this walk I hung back with her and let her talk to me about everything she felt she needed to. I assured her she shouldn’t worry about the other ladies walking so far ahead of us. At the end of the walk she thanked me for being so welcoming and for being so willing to spend time with her. I admit, that is why I do this volunteer work, knowing that I made someone feel a bit better.

Got up to head to bootcamp class this morning and there was an awesome thunderstorm that came through. I panicked a bit because my day was pretty jam packed and I had to get 3 hours of walking in this morning before heading off to a luncheon. I hoped desperately that by time the class was over the weather would have cleared but it was not to be.

Now yesterday I managed to do a 3 1/2 hour walk. I was pretty proud of myself because it was no where near as onerous as I had thought. This morning I knew I needed a 3 hour walk to keep me on target for my minimum 30k step goal but the weather didn’t cooperate meaning I had only 1 option, 3 hours on the dreaded treadmill. Seriously, I have not met anyone who says that they love running/walking on their treadmill, it just happens to be the last resort. Don’t get me wrong, I have an awesome TV system in the garage so there are plenty of things for me to watch to try and distract myself. However, walking on that treadmill is the most boring thing that I believe I have ever done (ok, there are probably other things but nothing in recent memory).

And so today I announce without a lot of pride just because I didn’t enjoy it, I walked for 3 hours non-stop on my treadmill. Whoopee for me, not a milestone I ever wanted to accomplish. Fortunately when I got home this afternoon the rain had stopped for a bit and I was able to finish off my walking for the day with an hour long walk outside. Checking the forecast I think I may be able to get away with a 2 hour walk tomorrow morning without the rain. Thank goodness because I don’t think I can handle another session on the treadmill that soon.

Tomorrow I am heading to our trailer for the final weekend of the season. It will be the first time since 2019 that the whole family has been there together so it is kind of special. Having said that, while I am committed to my 30k steps each day, I am not committed to posting my blog. If I get the chance I will do so if not I will get you all caught up next week.

Today was a great bootcamp class. It was once again a circuit (it always is on Saturdays) and at each station you had 2 alternating exercises to repeat in 3 40 second sets. At one of the stations an exercise was holding a glute bridge for 40 seconds. I was quite astounded that after 12 weeks of working so hard those glute bridges were actually easy. Seriously, they held no challenge for me as I kept my core super tight. I guess all of this is really paying off.

So this week has been a bit challenging. Thursday was my brother’s birthday which involved going out for lunch and then for a few drinks. Yesterday we went to a baseball game in Vancouver which of course meant eating out again. Today it is off to a good friend’s BBQ for dinner. Yikes, that’s a lot of eating out over a few days.

But you know what, it’s ok. I made sure I was careful about my calorie intake each day and kept up my exercises. Going out to a restaurant wasn’t a problem, I ordered soup. At the ballpark I had a burger but minimized the fries. Tonight I’ll just watch the snacking and try and keep it to veggies. I then was really cognizant about what I was eating the rest of the day. Yes I had some things I wouldn’t normally eat but you know what, I still hit all my goals.

See, it’s not a bad thing to enjoy yourself every once in a while. Hell, even give yourself permission to go outside your daily calorie goal every once in a while. The important thing is to keep yourself on track the vast majority of time. I know I am seeing the results of all of this which tells me I must be doing something right.

Today is my little brother’s birthday. He has had so many health scares over the past few years that really, we just get to spoil him for a few days (tomorrow is a Canadians’ baseball game which was supposed to be a surprise but he had medical appointments to move around so we had to tell him in advance). I know the next few days are going to be challenging for me so I am trying to keep the calories reasonable. For example lunch at the restaurant today was a light chicken noodle soup. The rest of the day (with the exception of the beer and wine) I will keep it light.

Saturday we helped to host a fabulous neighbourhood block party. One of the organizers arranged for the local fire department to come by (the kids loved climbing in the the fire truck) as well as representatives from our local police department (the RCMP). I spoke to one of them about my concerns as an avid walker and the fact that as a pedestrian I do not feel safe in this city. He asked for examples and I explained the past 24 hours. The night before walking home from a few drinks with my husband and brother I stood clearly in a crosswalk. Not only did the oncoming car not stop it actually blew through the stop sign. Saturday morning out on a walk I stood at the entrance of a crosswalk and a truck, a good 1/2 block away, actually sped up to get through the crosswalk before me.  Perhaps the worst was on that same walk when I was just about home I stood at the crosswalk and again a car a good 1/2 block away not only ran the crosswalk but the driver obviously saw me because he swerved around me.

The RCMP officer asked me if I made sure I was visible.  I assured him that if it is around dusk I have on my reflective running jacket and if it is still really dark I amp it up with a hi-vis running vest.  I also explained that when I approach a crosswalk I step off the curve to ensure it is clear I want to cross.  But I also told him even at controlled crosswalks where the overhead lights start flashing drivers feel speeding up an ignoring the lights is the best thing to do.

I was happy when the officer validated the fact that I do everything right including making sure that I know the driver is going to stop before I start walking through the crosswalk (I also acknowledge those that do stop with a wave).  He then asked me if I wanted to help get the message out about pedestrian safety in our city.  I said, hell yeah, what do I need to do.  Turns out the community liaison officer is working on a campaign to bring awareness to this issue.  He asked if I would come out to the events and do things like wave placards and I gave him the same answer.  Now I just have to find the time to get to the detachment to sign up to do this. This is my call to action.  I don’t get to bitch and not be willing to be part of the solution.  If I want to fix this I need to step up and do whatever I can to keep myself and all other walkers/runners in my community safe.  Hmm, apparently once an activist, always and activist

Today at bootcamp it was supposed to be power hour which is a strength training class. The instructor had decided to set up a circuit with 8 different stations. Once again we had to partner up with someone and this time it was someone that I probably had 35 years on (and she was at least a head taller than me). The instructor said there was no cardio involved but I call BS! Let me assure you when you are doing squats that involve straightening up and throwing a 20 lb medicine ball over your shoulder there will be cardio involved.

Those of you not living in BC may not know that we have once again been going through significant wildfires in our interior. I want to start with the fact my heart goes out to all of the families that have lost there homes/businesses. I cannot image how hard this must be for you. Sadly, this year I actually have a friend who has lost a home and I hope her and her family can recover from this.

When we get these massive wildfires happening often time the smoke will travel several hundred kilometers to the Metro Vancouver area. For example on Sunday when the sun came up it looked like a pink ball in the sky. It can also make it extremely difficult to breath. I for one do not even think of running when the sky is filled with smoke. You actually don’t need to be told the air quality is bad, you go outside and the first thing you smell is the smoke. Still, the authorities are pretty good about blasting out air quality advisories.

One of the seniors in my walking group has severe asthma. It did not surprise me the least yesterday when she sent me a text saying she wouldn’t be doing the walk and I thought that was a wise move on her part. When the air quality gets like this it is important vulnerable people stay inside and that the rest of us limit our outdoor activities as much as possible.

Today was a much improved day for our air quality but they are predicting the advisories may be back in place tomorrow. Here’s hoping for the weather to cooperate and for the wildfires to get under control.

Wow the past 2 days have my early morning walks been different than earlier in the week. Yesterday the temperature had dropped and it was quite breezy especially down at the water. With my first walk I actually had to wear a hoodie because it was cold if you were in the shade. While it had warmed up slightly for my 2nd walk I still wore my hoodie for at least 1/2 of my 10 km walk. Today, well it was just chilly. I went out at 5:15am with just my light running jacket (and of course my mesh reflective vest) and was stunned at how cold I was. This is probably partially due to the fact the morning temperature was 6-7 degrees Celsius less that what it was on previous days.

For some reason yesterday I really decided to push myself well beyond my daily goals. Seriously, I don’t know how it happened but it did. It might have started with my early morning bootcamp class where we did Tabata. This is where you have about 8 sets of exercises with 2 exercises in each set. You do the first exercise for 20 seconds followed by a 10 second rest (really that is just enough time to set up for the next exercise) then the second exercise for 20 seconds with 10 seconds of rest. You repeat this 4 times and move on to the next set of 2 different exercises. On top of that, the exercises get more difficult as you progress through them. It was a very hard class but at the end I felt great.

After class I of course started walking. I got in two 2 hour walks, a 1 hour walk then two 30 minute walks. Now if you start adding all this up it means between my class and walking it totaled 7 hours of working out in a single day. I can’t answer to why I felt I needed to do this, it just seemed as I completed 1 workout I felt I had to do another one (note in between I do rest and make sure I am fully rehydrated). While mentally I did kind of think about some of the food I ate this week but really other than Monday I stayed at my calorie goal for the day.

So where did I end up? To start with I walked 45k steps (Fitbit gave me my snow boot badge for accomplishing that) which is the most I have ever done and is far above my 10k goal for each day. This equates to 30 km or 18.75 miles which astounded me when I looked at that number and seems ridiculous compared to my 5 km per day goal. As for calories, my goal is to burn 2,300 each day (the last day I didn’t reach that goal was 2 months ago). Yesterday I burned an amazing 3,100 calories which is far above my calorie intake.

What I did yesterday is not something I plan to do on a regular basis but it still felt really good to see that kind of accomplishment. Today I have scaled back slightly and as tomorrow is Sunday I tend to just workout enough to make my calories burned goal as I need a day to let my body get back to a 100 readiness score in order to face the week. Still, I am pretty proud of what I did yesterday and it just shows the significant change in my mindset since I started on this renewed journey Jun 5th. I can’t wait to see what I accomplish next week.