It's an unusually cool, breezy Saturday, and I'm sitting down with a cup of coffee before embarking on my housework today. Here's one sign of how much my habits around the house have changed since November: I bought a tall container of creamer maybe a year ago. You know, the dry, powdery type. Well, it made sense at the time. I couldn't see keeping these big cartons of milk about the house when the only thing I was using milk for was my coffee. On the few occasions I make coffee at home, I would sooner than not find it had already gone bad. Flash forward five months. I haven't touched that creamer in weeks, at least. It sits at the back of a cupboard waiting to be of service again, but I always have fresh milk in the house now. I need it for my breakfasts, I need it for my vintage dinner on the weekends... what a change!
I remembered to pull out the scale yesterday morning and did a rare weigh-in at home. So here's my official starting weight for this new mission: 194. I'm planning to weigh in once a week - on Friday mornings. I dutifully drank my glass of water yesterday morning and walked for 29 minutes during my lunch hour. This morning, another glass of water and I'm planning to walk at the park today for 30 minutes (+ 6 minutes to make up for my short walks on Thursday and Friday). I also cleaned about 2/3 of my kitchen last night, so I need to finish that this morning, go to the park for my workout, then head to the supermarket to do my weekly shopping. Here's the menu I'm planning for my 1945 dinner this weekend:
Stuffed Cabbage Leaves
Tomato Sauce
Buttered Peas
Carrot Sticks
Baked Caramel Custard
The Stuffed Cabbage Leaves recipe sounds very interesting and possibly delicious. We'll see! The whole menu feels very springlike - apropos for a supper on Easter Sunday. I'm even going to shell some fresh sugar peas for the hot vegetable dish...
One of the challenges for me when it comes to walking is definitely going to be timing. If I don't walk as soon as my lunch hour begins, I know that I won't have the willpower to get out there and do it halfway in. Been there, done that. Once I'm sitting comfortably at the table with my feet up in the next chair reading a magazine and eating my lunch --- there's no way I'll get up and go out there to walk! I know myself too well to take that chance, so out I go at 12:00 p.m. This is where those hearty vintage breakfasts are going to come in handiest. I need that long-term energy that's going to last me from 7:00 in the morning 'til I'm finished with that mid-day walk. A growling tummy doesn't make me any happier about postponing lunch for another half hour!
I'm trying to keep a brisk pace. I certainly ought to start stretching my calves beforehand, though, because my shins feel very tight during my workout and that could probably be alleviated with a little stretching. It's much too sunny to be outdoors at high noon without a hat or cap and/or some sunblock, so I need to give some thought to keeping some of these things in my office. I'm really trying to head off some of these minor discomforts that could otherwise end up as excuses for skipping a workout, do you know what I mean?
One of the biggest things I tend to do to sabotage an exercise plan is to start worrying about how I'm going to be able to walk outdoors once we're experiencing full-blown summer here in the desert. (These walks give me way too much time to think!) In about a month, temps will be at the 100-degree mark everyday and there's no relief even in the mornings and evenings. It's relentlessly sunny here, so there's not even the occasional cloudy day to enjoy outdoors. You're trapped inside 24/7 from about the end of May until the first of October. It's not even comfortable outside at midnight. I've been trying to come up with some exercise options for the summer - and I think I've come up with a few possible solutions - but the trick is not to let worrying about what's to come in a month keep me from exercising here and now. No matter what kind of challenges I'm facing come May, I've got to enjoy the privilege of being able to walk outdoors for as long as it lasts.
I'll talk to you later. My kitchen is calling...
8 comments:
Ugh - over 100 each day. Not good for strenuous exercise. Maybe you could find a safe place to walk really, really early in the morning??? I always have an excuse not to walk: it's too cold, there's too much snow and/or ice, the wind is blowing too hard, there are too many mosquitoes... Today it is chilly and raining.
Keep up the good work. Maybe if you keep posting you will inspire some of the rest of us to get up and out.
It is a drag. And the trouble with walking late at night or early in the morning is that I live in such a sketchy area. I'm thinking of getting a membership at one of the city rec centers that has an indoor walking track. AC city!
Those excuses do seem to be ready and waiting for the least moment of non-commitment, don't they?
Oh, your menu sounds like heaven! Wow!
I don't like hot weather, either, but we have cool, refreshing mornings to make up for hot afternoons. I hope some solution appears for you!
Andrea
Getting a membership sounds like a good idea. Not only does it deal with the heat issue, but I find that if I've paid for something it motivates me to use it (although I've heard that isn't that case for a lot of people).
Your menu sounds lovely, wait until you smell the cabbage cooking. I am beginning my morning walks. I found that by adding things each week to my homemaking schedule I can always 'handle' something new. It is a good way to look at it. Although, I live in New England (I know you are originally from here) and cannot even IMAGAINE 100 degree days. Luckily we are coming upon the BEST part of Cape Cod. The spring and summer is like magic here, but come winter, you will certainly be better off with your walking, it must be cooler then,isn't it? Good luck I know I am trying to add dieting to my vintage year. One motivation is how, even though heavy, I feel very good in my vintage clothes. Rather than making me satisfied with my overweight status, it makes me think, 'oh, how adorable will this be when it is the next size down'. While in my 2008 clothes, it was easy to just be lazy and throw some loose things on and ignore the problem, that is such a modern response, too, don't you think?
Good luck and Happy Easter.
I also live where we have the 100+ days and it does put a cramp in outside activities!
Is your workplace big enough that you could walk around inside? If it's more than one story, you could even climb a few stairs! LOL
Maybe you could put the word out at your workplace that you plan to walk at lunch and could get some other people to walk with everyday? Might help with your motivation knowing that you have a little group to exercise with each day!
I feel your summertime pain! Here in Texas, I can't even walk my poor huskies at 5 AM. Summer wreaks havoc on our walking schedules since we start sweating at 5 minutes. I don't know what your work situation is (office or cubicle) but have you thought about lifting some weights or getting a little step machine? When I had my office, I liked to shut the door and do some yoga/pilates with light weights. At home, I have a $50 stair stepper that takes up 2 square feet. Nice, quiet, compact.
Andrea, those cool mornings must be such a blessing. I don't think I'd mind the intense mid-day heat if I knew that I could relax at the end of the day and enjoy being outdoors.
Public Artist, a little extra motivation couldn't hurt! The memberships are quite reasonable, too. Something like $35 for 3 months.
"While in my 2008 clothes, it was easy to just be lazy and throw some loose things on and ignore the problem, that is such a modern response, too, don't you think?"
50sgal, for the record, I think you look absolutely lovely just as you are! But you do have a point. Those comfy track suits, tee shirts, and jeans-with-the-lycra-built-in have certainly let us get away with a lot that our grandmothers wouldn't have been able to 60 years ago!
Hairball, thanks for the great suggestions! I work in a small-ish building, but I did actually take some laps around inside it on Friday when I could see from the clock that my 30 minutes wasn't up yet! There are several people at work who like to get some exercise at lunchtime, so I may see if I can join in with them. They tend to wait until after they've eaten, while I've been trying to get the walk over with before I sit down and relax --- so I don't know if our timing will mesh. Maybe after I've done this successfully for a few weeks and have a little more confidence in my willpower...
Keisha, I don't have an office of my own, but I do have some privacy most days in the breakroom. Thanks for commiserating about the weather!
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