Day 10.5

It has been a terrible week at work & consequently a terrible week for workouts. It was the start of a new term & I'm teaching an extra class, so I only get a prep period every other day. I also had a couple of activities after school this week, so I wasn't able to catch up in the evenings. Saturday was the first day I was able to get to the gym this week. To add to the frustration, the gym was packed & I couldn't find a treadmill to workout on. I tried three ellipticals before I found one that wasn't broken. I was about 10 sec away from giving up and going to run in the rain. Eventually I found a good elliptical & got a good aerobic workout, but I don't want to count it because I didn't officially follow my training program. I also did some arm weights & crunches, and I weigh 232.2 lbs. Hopefully, this week will be better. I also signed up for a 5K training program online, offered through active.com. A friend of mine says active.com is a popular place for runners & races. I found it through the Salt Lake Marathon website. I will start my official 5K training on Feb 23rd (8 weeks before the race), so I have a month to get in shape. I am also going to set a goal to eat out for dinner less this week. I have been doing good with my breakfast & lunches, but dinner still needs some work. So, that is the plan. Wish me luck!

Day Eight, Nine, & Ten

I have been neglectful in my blogging, but not in my workouts! Last Thursday, Jan. 15, I worked out on Day Eight. I had a very good workout, where I was able to keep up the jog 30 sec/walk 30 sec pattern for all but one jog segment. Towards the end of my workout, I had to take a 1 min. walk segment to recover. I walked at 3.6 and jogged at 4.3 speeds. I also did some crunches, but now I can't remember if I did any weights. I don't think I did.

Saturday, Jan. 17, I also went to the gym. It wasn't a great workout however. I had pretty much talked myself out of going to the gym that day, but soon experienced feelings of guilt. I finally managed to get myself there, to find it very crowded and a stupid movie playing in the cardio cinema room. I grabbed the last treadmill with a personal TV, but wasn't able to find anything interesting to watch. I had left my iPod at home. After 10 min. of walking, I had to go to the bathroom. I was afraid to go, thinking someone would take my treadmill. Finally, I couldn't wait any longer. I left my sweater on the machine and hurried as fast as I could. Thankfully, nobody took my machine, but I had a hard time getting back into the workout. I completed the 30 min. but jog/walk segments were chaotic & unimpressive. I finally ended with a few crunches and left. Even though it wasn't a great workout, I still want to count this day because it took a lot of effort to accomplish what I did.

Today's workout went much better. Not only did I complete the workout with all 30sec jog/walk segments, but for the last 1 min. I jogged the entire segment. It felt great. I expected to be more tired then I was, but it was almost like a stroll in the park. I don't know if today was a freak day, or if I have really made good physical improvements. I guess time will tell. I walked at 3.6 and jogged at 4.3 speeds. I also weigh 234.1 lbs.

I suppose the next step will be to increase my speeds, and watch my diet. My diet has been terrible these last couple of days. I have been eating out too much & drinking too much Diet Coke. The only positive eating habit I have been able to fulfill is not drinking Diet Coke in the mornings. I want to make a commitment that I won't eat out this week, but realistically I know that won't happen. But I can try to eat healthier, smaller portions. That is something I can commit to.

Day Seven

Today was an awful day at work, but I was able to put all of that aside for an hour while I was at the gym. The running was good, and the walking was good. I had two intervals where I walked 1 min. instead of 30 sec. I also did arm weights and crunches. I don't really have anything else to say except that it was a good workout & a good stress reliever. I also weigh 233.7 lbs. My eating was good, except I caved and had Cafe Rio for dinner. On a good point, I got caffeine free Diet Coke at dinner again. Hopefully, I'll be able to go to bed at a decent hour.

Day Six

My workout today brings my total to four days at the gym this week! That is a new high! I worked out on the treadmill with the personal TV. The cardio cinema room was busy and they were showing a dumb movie. I only had two walking segments that were one minute long. That is one less than last time. I managed to travel 2 miles in 33 minutes and 48 sec. and my left knee didn't hurt while I ran today. After the treadmill, I did crunches and leg weights. I also got a pretty cool looking bruise on my knee when I tried to get into the hamstring weight machine. It immediately went bright purple, probably because my blood was already pumping pretty good. Its almost gone now, but it was fun to look at.

My eating habits haven't been any better. My friends and I went to Olive Garden last night. I ordered the Chicken Alfredo (I know, lots of fat...) and I consciously ate slowly even though we were starving by the time our food came. I was surprised how little I ate of the meal. I felt like I could have eaten the whole plate, but after a while of slowly savoring every bite, I was full with less than half of my plate cleared. So, I have lots of leftovers! Anyway, I know I can eat less, I just need to be more aware of what I'm putting in my mouth and how fast it goes. I think I will give myself one more week of total gym focus, and then I'll be able to concentrate on food. Hopefully by then, the gym will be more of a habit rather than a duty and I can focus on something else.