Brrr! Cold pool!

This morning I did 50 minutes on the elliptical machine.

George and I had fun working out together at the gym last night. We did some strength training first, then tried getting into the pool to do some water walking, laps, or something. Well, it's an outdoor pool with a bubble over it, but it was really too cold for my tastes. After a few minutes of shivering, we got out. Ah well, it was worth a try.

Gym date

This morning I did 35 minutes on the elliptical. It was another morning where I felt tired and was just going to do 10-15 minutes, but did longer after all.

Tonight, George and I are going to the gym together in what's becoming a weekly gym date! We hope to get outside when the weather gets warmer and the daylight lasts longer.

Last night, Dr. Neelon did a presentation for Grand Rounds at the Endocrinology Clinic, and has asked me a couple weeks ago if he could present my case. Of course I agreed! He invited me to come and sit in for the presentation, and I went for it last night. It was very interested! I always enjoy hearing Dr. Neelon talk. He's very wise and insightful.

Motivation

Saturday afternoon, I went to Barnes & Noble to distract myself from some hunger pangs before supper. I found a couple of diet books with stories and tips to help with motivation, The Biggest Loser (based on the show), and Chicken Soup for the Dieter's Soul. I've been flipping through and reading stories ever since. I've enjoyed them so far, and think I'll enjoy picking them up again and again. I enjoy hearing about others' weight loss journeys. In addition to stories, the Biggest Loser book talks about the eating and exercising regimes from the show. The Chicken Soup book also has some dieting resources.

Extra workout

Yesterday morning I slept in a bit, so I didn't get to the gym until after lunch. I did 60 minutes of cardio on the elliptical, then later George and I went to the gym for some strength training. This morning, I did another hour on the elliptical. I must admit, I'm a little tired today....but it's a good tired.

Outside

I finally got back outside this morning to exercise! It was a beautiful morning, a little brisk but not as bad as it's been lately. I walked the Duke cross country trail, which is 5K, in 65 minutes, and it felt great!

More on the elliptical

Last night I got another 35 minute workout on the elliptical at the gym. I got to sleep a little earlier last night, but still just did a 30 minute workout on the elliptical this morning.

I think part of the time crunch is that I'm finding it hard to get out of the apartment on these bitterly cold mornings! Brrr! I want to cocoon and stay warm, but I need to stay with the exercise routine! It will pay off!

Morning workout

This morning I did 35 minutes on the elliptical. Still doing shorter workouts, but feel okay about keeping the habit going. I'm feeling a bit of a sleep deficit, and need to make getting to bed a priority, I know. With so many other things going on, that's been a challenge lately.

Meanwhile, I had an interesting conversation with a co-worker earlier this week. She's Japanese, and I was telling her about the rice cooker I got for Christmas and how I can't wait to start using it after I finish at the Rice Diet. (Last time I was at her home I noticed she has a rice cooker.) She wasn't aware that I was involved in the RD, so I told her about it and shared with her my total weight loss (both before and since the RD). It turns out I was within 4 lbs of losing as much as she weighs, total! That was encouraging!

This morning at the gym

I got to the gym extra tired this morning, thinking I'd just do 10-15 minutes of exercise to stay in the routine of things, but once I got on the elliptical, I was able to do 30 minutes, and wished I'd had more time to round out an hour on the machine. I'm sure I'll get more exercise today, whether it's walking on breaks at work or another trip to the gym tonight.

Early morning at the gym

I got back on the elliptical this morning and did 55 minutes. The scales were good to me this morning, a nice reward. :) As I left the gym to return home for my get-ready-for-work-and-the-Rice-House routine, I noticed that the morning sky showed just an itsy-bitsy tad of color, a welcome sight!

Shaking things up

This morning I had a short workout on the treadmill, 35 minutes. Needed something different from the elliptical today, but was still feeling a little less than 100% this morning from a GI episode late last night. No fever or anything, so I'm sure it was just a passing thing.

It was nice to spend more time on the treadmill, actually kinda refreshing. It had bored me in the past, but this will probably be a good way to start shaking things up. Only drawback is that I don't burn as many calories on the treadmill.

Back to normal

This morning, I made it back up to an hour on the elliptical machine, felt good to get back to normal. Glad to have the gym to go to, as I'm not much of a cold weather person, and bet I wouldn't be exercising as much during these cold spells if I had to exercise outside on a regular basis.

Balancing act

The past couple of mornings, I've had shorter workouts (25 and 35 minutes on the elliptical) due to time constraints. I see a pattern developing, where most workouts are an hour or so, but every few days I have shorter workouts. Then I return to an hour of exercise again. In the big scheme of things, I think that's okay for now. A short workout is better for me than not exercising at all. Momentum is important, but so are balance and rest.

In Rice Diet news, last night at supper they were out of one of my usual dishes, Mandarin orange slices, so I was "forced" to try something else! I had spaghetti squash with dill instead, and it was yummy! My fasting blood sugar was up a little bit this morning, 107 vs. my usual number in the 90s. Not sure if there's a correlation, but I enjoyed the change of pace. :) We'll see.

Another workout

I did another 60 minutes on the elliptical this morning. I was a little tired heading into the gym, but had a strong workout, burning 611 calories in 60 minutes. (I usually burn 500+ calories in the same timeframe.)

Tomorrow's weather report is calling for a cold rain, possibly with a wintery mix in the morning. Thinking about getting another workout in tonight just in case it's hard to get out from under the warm covers in the morning! Brrr!

Still going strong

I had yesterday off for Martin Luther King Day, but continued my exercise routine all weekend. Yesterday I even got a second workout in, some upper body strength training, in addition to my morning elliptical routine.

I've signed up for Discovery Health's National Body Challenge again. I'm always on the lookout for new tips and tricks, though I hope I don't get burned out over places to record my workouts and weigh-ins. I'll just do what I can in terms of recording. The most important thing is to keep exercising!

I got another 2001 Accord last Friday night! It's navy blue, and in great shape. It does have a few more miles on it than my last one, a little over 77 K, but it should last a long time, just the same. It drives well, and it certainly feels like home to me. :)

Tired this morning

When I got to the gym this morning, I was feeling the effects of a busy week (including car shopping the past couple of nights), so I did a 35 minute workout on the elliptical. Perhaps I'll be able to get back to the gym this evening for another short workout to round out the hour.

Morning workout and car issues

This morning I got to the gym about 5:20 for my 60-minute elliptical workout, since I had to go by the collision center after getting ready for work but before breakfast and work. At the collision center, I finished cleaning out my belongings and got my tag. Here's what my car looks like now (picture taken with cell phone):

A white trash bag is covering the window that broke away.

Last night I looked at a couple of cars at Carmax, a Civic and an Acura.

Latest workouts

Last night I got another workout in, spending 25 minutes on the elliptical. It gave me 65 minutes total on the elliptical for yesterday. Yay! This morning I did another 65 minutes on the elliptical. I got to the gym earlier this morning, around 5:30, so that helped.

With this morning workout, I hit the Presidential Champions Silver award level, and and now 56% of the way to the gold award. That takes a total of 80,ooo points, with points being awarded for exercising.

A little longer

This morning I spent 40 minutes on the elliptical machine at the gym. I felt stronger and a little more awake than yesterday, but am trying to get to work a little earlier. I don't much like my workouts suffering, so I need to find a balance somehow.

Up and down

Had a pretty busy exercise weekend, including a strength training session Friday evening with George at the gym, and a full hour on the elliptical on Saturday. This morning I only lasted 20 minutes on the elliptical, though. Was tired this morning (still am), so I took it a little easy. Tomorrow I'll be back on track, I bet. I did enjoy getting an earlier start on getting ready for work, out the door to the Rice House, and on to work.

The crowd at the gym is a little different, seeing some new faces. I guess those New Year's Resolutions are kicking in.

On a humorous note, I got a chuckle when I received my daily tips email from HungryGirl.com. They were talking about a new tea-drinking mug out that has a little pocket for the tea bag. One can have the mug personalized with your name. There was a picture of the mug in the email, with MY name on it! Since mine is not the usual spelling, this caught me by surprise.

Shorter workout today

I spent 45 minutes on the elliptical machine this morning, a little shorter than usual. I'm still feeling some residual tiredness that I felt yesterday after getting some extra exercise on Wednesday. I need to remember balance!

Meanwhile, I should find another 5K to shoot for soon. I need some fresh motivation! In the mean time, I'm 95% of the way to the President's Challenge Silver Medal! Every little bit helps.

Steppin' it up a bit

Last night I returned to the gym and did 15 minutes of strength training (upper body this time) and 15 minutes on the elliptical machine. My arms a little sore this morning, but not bad. This morning I returned for my early morning workout and did 60 minutes on the elliptical.

Christina Aguilera hits my favorites list on the iPod playlist again today. It surprises me, partly because I don't keep up with the "latest hits." Anyway, I've heard this one song in Spanish several times that the iPod screen said was an Aguilera song. No idea what it was about, but I've liked the beat a lot each time I've heard it. Well, this morning the English version came up, "Come On Over." You know, I think I like the Spanish version better, eventhough I know very little Spanish. :o)

More on the elliptical

This morning I was back up to 65 minutes on the elliptical machine at the gym. I wasn't sure I'd hold out, but was glad I did after it was all over. I've started craving some strength training, so I might start mixing things up soon.

Yesterday afternoon I took a 15-minute walk around the quad. It was a nice afternoon, so it was a welcome break from my desk. Things are still pretty quiet around campus.

Today's workout

Today it was back to my "normal" routine, as I returned to work today after several days off. I woke up at 5 AM, but it was a little hard to get going again! (I didn't get to bed early enough!) When I finally got to the gym, I only lasted 30 minutes. But it was a start. Perhaps I'll get back to the gym or take a walk this evening. I do plan to take a couple of short walks here at work.

I haven't set a new 5K race as a goal yet. I'll check later and see if I can get one in sometime in the next month or so.