Don't let the scale get you down.

This isn't the cleanest looking photo but I'm short on time and don't feel like taking a crash course on blogspot.com. This graph came from my Excel file which I am using to keep track of my weight loss data.

I'm using this graph to photographically show the importance of measuring during a weight loss journey.

I know I stated in my last blog how happy I was to have lost inches despite weight gain, but I just wanted to reiterate by showing this graph. The lower bar represents my total inches. Notice how it has been decreasing steadily. My weight is represented by the top bar. It had been decreasing at a less-steady rate than total inches, but the sharp increase would have been discouraging had I not also been measuring. See it now? It's amazing. I love graphs.

This coming Saturday marks the end of week 4, and I will be posting a newer version of my front view photo, as well as any other comparison shots that I find noteworthy. I cannot wait to update the frontal shot though because I assure you, I am not nearly as rolly as I was back then. It's funny to look back. How the hell did I let myself get that bumpy?!

Thanks for reading! Tonight I'm going to the gym for a power interval workout on the bike and some muscle pumpin'. Love it.

Cheers!

Not a Loser - Still a Winner.

I knew this day would come: the day when the scale was kind of mean. I've seen it time and time again with people across the map trying to lose weight. First few weeks are great, nothing has changed, and a weight gain. It's OK. I'm here to tell you now, it's OK.

This is why we take body measurements. This morning I weighed in at 2.5 pounds heavier than I was last week. Not only did I gain, I also went back over the 150 that I never wanted to see again. It's OK. Really, it is. I lost 4.25 inches off my body. This means, in 3 weeks, I've lost a total of 3.5 pounds and 12.25 inches. This is called change in body composition.

Here's why I presume I 'gained' weight this week. Keep in mind that there's a difference between fat gain and muscle gain. And keep in mind that muscle weighs four times more than fat.

This week was the first week (since the start) that I started exercising. And I exercised every day. I strength-trained twice, swam twice, biked once and ran once. Plus I did my 75 kettlebell swings 4 out of the 7 days. I am trying to put muscle on - that's how an endurance athlete gains power.

So I am not discouraged in the least about the increase in weight on the scale. I like my measurements. I like them a lot. Can you believe I've lost a total of 12.25 inches in just three weeks? If I hadn't been measuring, the scale would have pissed me off today. It would have pissed me off last week too.

I'm here to tell you the importance of taking body measurements. The importance of taking body fat % is great too, but I don't have the money to do that right now. So measurements are doing the work for me.

This coming week I need to focus on a few things:

1. I need to drink a LOT more water. Especially so now that I'm back to my full-time training.
   
2. I am going to start drinking coffee again, and I don't feel the need to eliminate half & half. I've stopped needing sugar for anything. But I am pretty sure coffee has always kept me regular. I'm eating TONS of fiber, and [TMI warning]: I'm so backed up. I can't deal anymore. Coffee, come back to me. Tea, you can stay too. I love you both.
   
3. I need a post-workout snack or meal. I will read the book and figure out what will best serve my needs, but I don't like the feeling of not eating for an hour or two after I workout because it takes me that long to get a hold of food. Any suggestions, please comment below.
   

That's all for now. Thanks for reading. More to come...

Cheers!

Blood Glucose

Ever test your blood glucose? My mom has a few glucose meters lying around because she, like many obese Americans, has Type II diabetes. She rarely tests her blood sugar like her doctor has told her to, and I think I've cracked the code.

Last night I was curious what my blood sugar was, so we both tested ours. This morning I woke up feeling lightheaded and wobbly on my feet. I hadn't really eaten a very big dinner after my 45-min workout the night before, and I went to bed dehydrated and just feeling blah. I woke up with the same headache and I felt like my blood sugar was low. So out of curiosity, I tested it. No sense in wondering when the answer is just a finger prick away.

According to her little user's guide, blood glucose levels should be around 110 (at lowest) before meals. This morning, mine was around 76. Go figure. But now that I've done a little online reading, I've learned that levels are 'supposed' to be lower in the morning .. in a fasted state.

There's so much information out there it's giving me a migraine. I can't think straight. Today hasn't been the best day for me. I am having chili for dinner, so that's a plus.

Speaking of which, I think it's starting to call my name.

Anyone with more experience regularly testing blood sugar, please feel free to comment. I should probably know more about that, but I am not a diabetes expert and I do not have experience measuring my own blood sugar. I will test again tonight before I eat dinner. I suppose I'm in another fasted state. Today was not the best day.. my appetite has kind of bottomed out.

I need a job.

Notes of a Scandal

Having lost 6.6 pounds in just two weeks, I feel successful. Actually, I feel fat. I've never had a perfect body, but I'm also not typically at a weight that would allow for 6.6 pounds of weight loss in just two weeks. But I'll take it. A famous quote of mine goes a little something like this: "accept yourself for you you are, where you are. If you're not happy with what you are, then do something about it. If you're unwilling to do something, then just shut up about it." In other words, I can't stand people who perpetually whine and complain about their weight and then do nothing about it. What' sworse are those who 'try' to do something about it and then give up after two days, and then use that in their ammo for "I've tried everything and nothing works." Get real.

Losing eight inches off my body without doing a single sit up felt more scandalous than successful. But, after two weeks on the slow-carb diet, I'm rearing to go. Time to put on that lean muscle. Time to rebuild my endurance. Time to get my buttocks back into my bike shorts without ripping the seams.

After a couple of remarks from a few people, I feel like there are a few things I want to address today.

The Slow-Carb diet Explained
What am I eating? What am I not eating? Every meal, I include a protein source (lately chicken breast), legumes (lately kidney & garbanzo beans), and as many veggies as I please (lately baby spinach, cucumbers, tomatoes - they're a fruit, I know - but they are allowed on this diet as one of 2 exceptions to the no fruit rule). I top that concoction off with Newman's Own balsamic vinaigrette. Very tasty.

I don't eat white carbohydrates (no sugar, no flour, no grains, no rice, no potatoes, etc). No fruit (with exception of tomatoes & avocadoes). I don't drink my calories (no milk, no juice, no soda, etc).

Once a week I go hog wild and purposefully eat the crapola I've purposefully avoided in the six days prior. This past Sunday, for example, I kid you not, I ate the following: chocolate chip cookies, chocolate milk, string cheese, whoopee pie, french fries, Wendy's 1/4 pounder, a chocolate frosty, 2 Capri sun drinks, sweetened coffee, a breakfast sandwich, a homemade donut, a chocolate cupcake (rather large), 5 chocolate covered cherries, and Stonyfield Farms yogurt. Not lying. I ate that much in one day. Not because I lost willpower, but because I had control.

Weight Loss v. Body Composition Change
Someone recently made a comment about losing water weight and then gaining water weight back due to bloating and the menstrual cycle, and then gaining weight due to muscle gains. I want to address these topics today too.

My main focus on this weight loss quest is to change my body composition. I will lose weight in the process of getting there, but I am driven more by the desire to have lean muscle on my body than I am to weight 112 pounds on the scale. I am an endurance athlete. I am striving to be a decent triathlete. Being lighter will help because I'll have less mass to carry around. But I love muscle and muscle generates power, so I would never sacrifice strong muscles for a happy number on the scale. Will I remain at 148 pounds when my body composition is around 18% body fat? Hell no. I would never want that much muscle. My weight will go down, even as I build muscle. I'm not close enough to my ideal body composition for that kind of a numbers switch.

The menstrual cycle and the age-old monthly excuse that far too many women use: forget about it. I should enlighten you. On January 29, 2011, I weighed 155 pounds. A week later, I was on the 2nd day of my menstrual cycle, when bloating and yuckyness are at their worst. Should I remind you that I weighed in at 4.6 pounds lighter that day? I don't use my menstrual cycle as an excuse to be lazy, to be fat, to overeat. I have run in a lot of very important races (and done well) during that time of the month. I'm not worried about gaining weight during my cycle and 'sabotaging' my diet because I'm driven to succeed and I am filled with discipline. I have the willpower to turn down a social eating event and that chocolate bar stopped staring at me in the face when it realized I wasn't even looking. I want to lose weight more than I want instant gratification that I'll have to pay for later.

Water Weight
When a morbidly obese person loses 18 pounds in a week (as seen on Biggest Loser), people often say, "well half of that is water weight." I just want to point out that an adipocyte (storage cell for fat) is surrounded by water. So when soeone loses that fat storage cell because the fat got taken up for engery (due to caloric deficit), the associated water was also excreted from the body - sweat, urine, tears, saliva, etc. It's OK to count water weight loss as weight loss. Because if someone can lose 18 pounds in a week, it means they have excessive amounts of adipocytes.

Carbohydrates cause water retention. This is what people experience when they stop a healthy diet and start eating their comfort foods - breads, cereals, bagels, pasta, lattes, milk, etc. The carbohydrates cause a huge fluctuation in water weight. Stop acting like you can't survive without sugar, and the water will be flushed from your system again.

I'm looking for a body composition change. I don't feel like I'm missing out on anything in life by not allowing myself to gorge on macaroni & cheese for dinner, bagels for breakfast, etc. I surprisingly don't miss my morning sweetened coffee. I always thought grains were an important part of the diet because the food pyramid told me so. Well, the food pyramid has changed several times since I was first introduced to it. Not to mention, the population of people it was intended for (US population) are in majority VERY obese. We are suffering from a nation-wide epidemic of morbid obesity. So what gives? I think I can live without a daily overdose of refined sugar. I think I can live with lots more proteins and beans and veggies. If I really miss chocolate chip cookies, I'll have them on Sunday. I'll eat the whole bag if I want to. Because I can.

Positive Changes
These are the positive changes I've noticed in my body since following the slow-carb diet: no more heart palpitations, no need for coffee in the morning (I started drinking green tea regularly), I feel energized, I'm less cranky, less tired, I sleep well, digest foods well (unless I've flecked up the chili). I've stopped the incessant need for emotional eating (turns out boredom is technically an emotion). And I rarely get hungry between meals. If I do, I add more beans at the next meal and it stops. Best of all, I feel in control of my life. If I can control my diet, I can control my health and that is enough control for me.

CHECK THIS OUT!!

I originally wasn't planning to update photos other than once a month, so I wouldn't get discouraged, or I don't know. I don't like posing & letting my fat hang out in my underwear I guess. But after this week, I decided to just see what all the hype was.. I mean, according to the tape measure, I lost another 4.75 total inches this week! That's a LOT!!! I also lost another 2 pounds. I thought maybe my measuring tape got broken somehow.

My total losses after the 2nd week are 6.6 pounds and 8 inches! Here's the side angle photo for proof... I couldn't believe it. I look pregnant in the 2-week ago photo!

More to come because this diet is A) actually not boring like Tim says it is and B) very simple and cheap - both of which are comforting right now in times of financial hardship.

WAAAAH-BAAAAM! I feel so encouraged after seeing the 2-week photos. I cannot believe how fat I was allowing myself to get. I'm finally under 150. Never again (unless I'm carrying an actual bun in my oven, not just rolls on my back!)

Should I remind you that I lost 6.6 pounds and 8 inches off my body without exercising?? Not because I hate exercise (I actually love it AND the science behind it - tee hee) - but because I wanted to just see what this slow-carb diet would actually do. It gets too confusing when I'm also exercising. Simplify.

This next week, I will be exercising every day. 75 swing squats to start my day, a cold effing 5 minute shower (I timed myself this morning - it's brutal; not gonna lie). Slow-carb diet and my triathlon training. I must have been taking a speed shower before.

Looking forward to what the next 2 weeks will bring.

Thanks for reading and thank you for being as excited as I was!

What can you do in two weeks?

Week 2 Ends Tomorrow!

Just a reminder to stay tuned to Saturday's blog, where I will post an update to my weight & measurements. It will mark the end of the 2nd week. This week has been a little rough, but I managed to figure out a way to tastefully add more legumes to my diet, and my digestive tract seems to have fully recovered from Monday's fiasco.

Things I plan to include next week:

• drink a glass of ice cold water before breakfast
• 75 kettlebell swing squats before breakfast (I only have a 10 lb kettlebell)
  
• 5 minutes minimum in cold shower every morning (I haven't been timing, and I'm sure I'm overestimating the time I spend under the rush of cold water).
  
• commence my low-volume indoor triathlon training (too cold/snowy/icy outside - hard to swim in a frozen lake).

Continuing with:

• slow-carb diet every meal
• one day of DGW (dieters gone wild) each week
• daily cold shower
• weekly weigh-in/measurements

Results will follow.
This week I ate cottage cheese at a few meals, as Tim Ferriss did mention that the insulin response to cottage cheese is lower than it is to milk, and his mother consumed it with great results. Some meals just needed a little oomph, especially this week with the Monday trots I had.

I need to drink more water. Therefore, the ice water in the morning will serve as a double whammy. Ice to lower internal temperature, water to hydrate. I love multitasking.

Thanks for reading. More tomorrow.

Mid-week Update..

I haven't been in touch much this week but I assure you, I've been staying true to my word and the slow-carb diet.

I'm having my doubts this week. I started Monday not feeling all that great, and by the time my shift was ending at work, I didn't think I'd make the drive home. Turns out that beans must be soaked and cooked thoroughly - otherwise, the result is nothing less than depleting.

I stayed in bed most of Tuesday and I really needed that. It was hard to eat but I knew I needed to eat. I must admit that I went off plan by eating sugar-free jello. I would not have normally put aspartame into my body but for some reason, after being as sick as I was on Monday night, I needed something jello-like. Not sure where the craving came from but the jello did the trick and I'm back on my feet.

I'm having a hard time incorporating beans at every meal. If you have a good (and by good I mean tasty) bean recipe, please share. Post to my blog would be delightful but if you want to you can also FB me or email me at katy.triathlete@gmail.com.

Every meal I eat is supposed to include something from the recommended 'protein' list (egg whites, whole eggs, chicken, grass-fed beef, etc), one thing from the legumes list (lentils, kidney beans, black beans, pinto beans, etc), and as much veggies as my heart desires. Today for lunch I had a chicken salad - grilled chicken salad, I mean. Bed of baby spinach, grilled chicken, tomatoes (they're a fruit, I know - they're allowed), cucumbers and garbanzo beans and kidney beans mixed with Newman's Own balsamic vinaigrette. Tasty. Perhaps I'll have to stick to that and the chili (done right). I need ideas for breakfasts as I have grown entirely done with eggs. Forcing them down never seems to help.

I just don't think I'm going to see weight loss this week. Why? Dunno.. the jello, maybe? Maybe I didn't eat enough? Maybe because I didn't make it to the gym like I had planned to? My body was so hot last week but this week I have been freezing on a daily basis. My cold showers used to kick my internal thermostat on, but now they have been leaving me cold. I'm worried that's a sign that my metabolism has slowed.

Or maybe I just need some encouragement. Only time will tell. I will be happy if I lose 2 pounds and I will be happy if I lose at least one total inch this week. It just wasn't a great week. To start the week off as sick as I was on Monday wasn't a great way to start the week. And by the way, by sick I mean whatever went in the mouth came out the backside in record time. Not fun. I'm not whining over a cold.

Stay tuned for Saturday! We shall see what happens!

Thanks for reading & don't forget to try your cold shower.

DGW-1

Dieters Gone Wild. It's what Tim Ferriss refers to the planned "binge" day as. The DGW is intended to cause a caloric spike, which prevents a regression in your metabolic rate. It also serves as a way to stay on track during the week because any little (or big) cravings you have for something sweet or something raunchy (depending on who you are) can wait till the DGW day.

I woke up in the morning looking forward to pancakes. Then, halfway through my plate, I couldn't take another bite. My sweetened coffee with half & half gave me a headache. My quick nap turned into 3 hours and when the guilt from a lazy day off started to wear at me, I put my ass in gear.

Lots of laundry.. and I decided to plan for dinner. I drove to the Chichester Country Store for yogurt (Stonyfield is the best and I wanted the probiotics). The smell of the homemade donuts got the best of me, and being my first DGW day, I decided to go for it. I was sick within 5 minutes of consuming most of the 2nd donut. But I had to press forward.

For dinner, I made a single serving pizza for myself and for my mom. Broccoli and tomatoes on top, nothing out of the ordinary - just a regular, somewhat healthy homemade pizza. It was OK. For dessert, vegan whacky cake from the Depression era. Normally I can eat the whole pan. Last night I had to force myself to stomach 2 large cupcakes.

I was glad when the night was over. But before I went to bed, I did force myself to put down that yogurt. Otherwise it would have gone to waste.

The other intention of the DGW day is to remind you that the food on the slow-carb diet is really not all that bad - in fact, my body agrees with it quite a lot.

Eating lunch right now - chili made from scratch. This batch is not as good as last week's but it's not bad either. Tonight I start my triathlon training. Glad to be moving again and looking for another loss this Saturday.

Still enjoying my cold showers...

I'm a LOSER!!!

Woke up a bit late this morning but my friend was patiently waiting for me. The third friend was a no-show. Hmm..

This morning I weighed in at 4.6 pounds lighter than last Saturday. That's 4.6 pounds LOST in ONE week!

My total inches decreased by 3.25 inches! Again, the measurements cover hip, waist, right and left arm, and right and left leg.

Tomorrow is my 'off' day, meaning I am not just allowed to, but supposed to eat whatever and however much I want. I am very much looking forward to compiling my list. I'm not really having any cravings, and the diet is not nearly as boring as Tim says it is (either that or my life is really absorbing the simplicity).

That's all folks! Picture will come at the end of February. I'm really looking forward to updating the photo so I feel less like a moof.

Also, I want to point out that I didn't exercise this week. This weight loss and inches lost were solely from diet alone. I'm starting my triathlon training on Monday. We'll see what kind of changes next week shows!

Till then - take a cold shower!

On Cold Therapy

I've been taking cold showers every day this week (except one day, which I spent 2.5 hours of shoveling out my neighbor's car in 15 degree temps).

This morning I did not take a cold shower for personal reasons and I have been sweating my ass off at work all morning.

Here's what I'm thinking:

The point of cold therapy is to cool your body temperature so that your body has to produce heat (and therefore use energy, boosting your metabolism). I have been cooling my body temperature every morning for the last 5 days, except this morning. Since my body has become naturally very efficient at creating body heat, my hot shower this morning actually caused my temp to kick into overdrive.

I'm thinking that when you're warm because you're dressed in a thousand layers, you're actually allowing your metabolism to slow down. It's an interesting theory and I suggest, if you're struggling to stay warm this winter, to experiment with a little cold therapy. Don't give up when you get out of your first cold shower feeling cold (duh). It takes a day or two to kick in. I drive to work without a jacket. I clean off my car without a jacket. It was 10 degrees this morning when I started my car in a t-shirt. It felt like 30 to me. Granted, I wasn't out there long, but I think there's something to this. In fact, I know there is.

Try some cold therapy and get back to me.

Give yourself permission to succeed.

Let me guess: you've tried every diet under the sun and you're still fat, eh?

You're talking to the wrong person.

The one thing you haven't done yet is given yourself permission to succeed. Truth is, no one will succeed if you are looking for ways to fail. No one will succeed if success isn't what you're after.

I owe you an update (if anyone is actually reading this).

Slow-carb diet is going very smoothly. I had to add black beans to my egg white concoction for breakfast because I was getting to hungry. I think I need to now start adding salsa to the breakfast for flavor, but other than that it holds me over and it's 'not bad'. I hate that term. And yes, I know hate is a strong word. It's my blog. Get over it.

Even my cold showers are something I look forward to. I don't stay in long - just long enough till I'm actually cold, not just shocked. At first, it's a shock, then I get used to it for a split second, then my body starts to shiver. When I get out I feel more awake than I do after the world's best cup of coffee. So I like it.

Stay tuned this Saturday for an update on my total inches & weight. Like I said, come hell or high water, there will be a change for the positive (which means a negative difference, otherwise I will have gained).

On tonight's menu: chicken stir fry with broccoli, carrots, peppers, onions.
On deck: stuffed green peppers with quinoa and bison -YUMMMMMM.

Thanks for reading. :)

Day One

This morning marked the official beginning of Katy's 4HB. I had a hard time sleeping last night as if it were the night before the first day of first grade (I was a nerd back then, and still am).

This morning I woke up at 6 AM and took a FIVE MINUTE COLD SHOWER! Invigorating. I am still cold from it but that's a damn good thing because I'm triggering my metabolism to kick into overdrive.

For breakfast, eggs & turkey bacon (although I wish I had remembered the carrots I set aside to juice). The breakfast lacked some legumes and it also lacked veggies. It was better than a bagel though. I also drank my coffee black with cinnamon! Tasty till the last drop. Then when I had a mouthful of crud, I nearly vomited. Life goes on.

Just finished my delicious and nutritious lunch that I prepared yesterday - chili loaded with beans and lentils and grass-fed beef. I would have used bison but I was limited to my shopping locale yesterday so beef it was. Yummy!

I will probably have chicken stir fry for din din tonight and I feel inclined to test out the kettlebell swings Tim keeps going on and on about. I will eventually start training for my triathlon season again but this month I'm focusing on losing body fat and feeling more in control of my body.

I'm looking forward to the first 'weigh-in' on Saturday. Come hell or high water, I will see an improvement in my total inches and weight.

Plus I picked out the prize for the 'winner' of our 4HB trio. The winner of the biggest percentage lost gets a little Moleskine journal - one page dedicated to each day so she can keep track of her progress on a daily basis. It's not a food journal, as we're not journaling. It's just big enough to keep little notes.

Mine looks something like this:

5-min cold shower
black coffee w/cin
need more veggies at breakfast
great lunch

Thanks for reading!

This is the Day

I was at work one morning when the idea hit me to start a research project, where I would read and attempt to follow all of the diet books in the store so I could write one book as a guide for consumers. After I had written down the first 23 titles that came my direction, I was introduced to The 4 Hour Body by Tim Ferriss.

Turns out he's already done that research project.

Thank you Hannah Dale for recommending it, and thank you Borders Rewards +; I bought the book at 40% off the list price.

This man is brilliant.

As an Exercise Physiologist myself, the book was both intellectually stimulating and motivating. It reminded me that not only do I know shit, I know a lot of shit. And it's time that I apply it.

Two of my friends joined me in my efforts to make a solid difference in our bodies, and this morning we gathered at 8 am to take 'before' pictures and measure 5 areas of our bodies to get our 'total inches'.

Every week we'll re-measure, and every month we'll take photos to track our changes. And in the meantime, we'll be working hard to follow Tim's advice to lose fat and gain muscle.

He's got a website: www.fourhourbody.com. And he's also on Facebook. But I'm using my blog to make my efforts conscious. I am taking the bold action of posting this very unflattering photo of myself on my blog for everyone to see. This is the first time I've ever wished for no readers.

Here goes!

Wish me luck. The official diet starts Monday because I'm not prepared to start till then. Have you ever done something you weren't prepared for, knowing that you weren't prepared? It's hard to succeed - and I am determined to succeed.

Starting Monday, I will be eating nothing white (no sugars, nothing with flour, no potatoes, nothing 'enriched').
Starting Monday, I will eat no fruit. (Read the book for the explanation).
Starting Monday, I will eat lots of protein and lots of legumes and LOTS of veggies.
And starting Monday, I will get one day off each week to eat whatever and however much I want (including fruit, sushi, pasta, Nutella, donuts, etc).

I will keep updating my blog and I will update my photo every month. I will update my measurements every week.

Today, my total inches were 148.25 and my weight was 155 lbs. This is the heaviest I've ever been and I feel disgusting. This is part of the process: make it conscious. Here it is!!! Everyone read it and weep! I know I did!

Please post comments to the blog. And stay tuned.....

Thanks for reading and also for not judging.. This was much harder than I thought it would be.

Under the Weather

A lot of die-hard runners and endurance athletes struggle with taking days off when their bodies really need to. It's so hard to miss a crucial training day. I understand. Right now I'm so far from fit that my crucial training days are in the distant future. But I'm here to tell you now that if you're feeling under the weather, you'll be doing more good than harm by taking a rest day - let your body catch up with itself. Training is brutal on your body - that's the whole point of it. While runners are typically healthier than non-runners, it does actually dampen your immune system. Don't push through it. It's more than OK to take a day or two - or sometimes a whole week - depends on how sick you are - to recover.

Today I am feeling very under the weather. I am not sick, and I am also not in denial. I just don't feel well. I know what I need to do to get over it and so I'm working toward it. Today, though, I won't be exercising. I felt the need to write about it because I figured I could also jump on the opportunity to debunk the myth of missing a training day...

But please, I'm curious.. tell me what it is that you did today to get some exercise. Didn't do anything? It's not too late. Walk up and down your stairs for 10 minutes. That will get the heart pumping. Ten minutes is better than nothing. That is, unless you are validly under the weather.

Excusology

Excusology (n.): The study of the reasons or explanations put forward to defend or justify a fault or offense.

1. Too Cold Outside - It is actually 6 degrees outside as I write this blog from the comfort of my own home, which is why it is making #1 on the list. I don't think this is actually the number one excuse people make. As my high school coach would say: "don't matta". While I won't be going out for run in these temps tonight (I'll save my lungs, thank you very much!), I also won't be succumbing to excuse #1. Instead I will crank up my iPod and dance like no one is watching (and hope that no one actually is, because otherwise I have a bigger problem on my hands!).

Did you know that you can actually lose weight and gain fitness without a gym membership? I've worked in the field long enough to understand the benefits of a gym membership, but in my situation right now, it aint happenin'. And frankly, I'm tired of using that as an excuse as well.

This is my plan for tonight's workout (PS - having a plan is a surefire way to achieve success).

20 minutes of dancing to my iPod

2 sets of the following circuit:
30-sec plank
10 standard push-ups
30 mtn climbers
20 reverse lunges - right leg
20 reverse lunges - left leg
20 kettle bell ab twists
15 1-arm row - right arm
15 1-arm row - left arm

15 mins yoga stretching.

And suddenly, the temperature outside don't matta.

Conclusion
As it turns out, I was being watched. Kitty cat does not like the sight of human being "dancing". Oh well. I don't like the smell of her litter box. We're even. I'm writing this conclusion the next evening and I must admit that I am actually very sore today. At the end of the workout, I felt like I didn't do enough. I ended up dancing for closer to 30 minutes and did all the strength workout with bare feet (too lazy to put on shoes maybe?). Today I'm feeling it.. my lats are sore, my abs are very sore, and I was told by a couple of co-workers that I'm walking stiff.. further proof that you do not need a gym membership to get in a good workout!

Go me. Today it's actually been snowing like a banshee out there. Perhaps 'it's snowing' is excuse #2 - but I also had a meeting this morning with a gym owner and it went so well that maybe I will have a platform for my life-changing efforts after all.

Even though I am sore, tired, and won't get home from work till after 11 pm, I will NOT be skipping my workout. I will be doing 30 minutes of yoga before I go to bed. Movement is movement and I cannot tell you how beneficial even the slightest moves are for your longevity, overall health & wellness.

So tell me, what did you do today to move around?

The Pursuit of Readiness

At the risk of sounding pompous, I was born to make a difference in this world. Knowing this, I'm sure you can understand how disappointing it is for me to feel like I have no audience for which to make that difference. I don't have a job [in my field]. There are no lives for me to transform because I don't have any clients. And every day that I spend looking for my platform on which to make a difference, I fall further away from where I want to be.

Suddenly, some famous words come to mind "...be the change you wish to see in the world." Those words finally have meaning.

Let me get one thing clear: I believe that in order to make a difference in this world, I not only need to be the change I wish to see, but I also need to share with the world how I made that change. Otherwise, the only difference I've made is in myself. Makes sense to me. Do you agree? If so, please keep reading.

This blog is now officially dedicated to my pursuit of readiness. What is it that I am getting ready for? A road race. A 5K. A marathon. A triathlon. An Ironman. An open water swim. It doesn't matter what I'm training for. The point is I'll be ready when I finally figure out what it is I want to do. All I know now is I am not ready for anything. Not even for the tiniest, flattest, 3.1-mile race I've done over a hundred times in the past. The not being ready part kills me. It even kills me more than not being able to make a difference in the world. I think I know deep down that if I were to find that job, I wouldn't even be ready to make a difference in your life because I'm not ready in my own.

So here goes: the change I wish to see in the world is fitness and readiness in all humankind - so that one day, if we want to be challenged by something adventurous and new, we can handle it. If someday our bodies are overcome by illness or injury, we will stand a fighting chance. And since that is the change I want to see in the world, it's what I must become: fit and ready.

Read along during the next few weeks, months, years. I have no idea how long it will take me to feel ready. I hope that my efforts will make a difference in your life and that being the change I wish to see in the world somehow morphs into something even more beautiful than its meaning. Thanks for reading - and please enjoy.