Epic weekend run!

This is the longest I’ve gone in a single session. Not sure if this pace qualifies me for any marathons but I definitely wish I could get out there more often like this.

YES/NO - Can you live without sugar for 30 days? 

Join the FREE Sugar-Free September 2018 challenge. Go to the website 1) sign up 2) print the poster & get workmates to join you. 

A pretty good weekend run while doing light grocery shopping. Except I had to do it twice because one of the ingredients I use to make ice cream went bad (I just bought it!). So, there I go getting more heavy whipping cream — important for the ice cream but critical for my coffee! I also needed salmon and Trader Joe’s only had two filets left…

Anyway, had a couple of good runs despite having to schlep around groceries strapped to my back. I wore my BRIDGES patch and it gave me a solid Sam Porter vibe without the danger of MULEs, BTs or whatever. 😅

Marathon training started this week and it’s going pretty well. It’s only been two days but so far so good. I’m glad I picked the Soldier Field area because the park was more populated than I expected and I’m doing speed training.

As with any athletic endeavor — or just life in general — these things are not without some risk. I scraped up my legs pretty good but I’m just glad it happened at a walking pace over mulch and not running on concrete (there was a section of pavement that was flooded and I had to navigate around it. All that time spent playing the Uncharted series paid off).

The main point is that I got back up and was able to continue. (It’s also a good thing I carry a first aid kit with me).

I was doing so well up until i got sick late December. For a few days I tried to power through it before exhaustion got the best of me and my 335-day move streak (my longest to date) was cut short on December 25, 2021. Then, on Jan 2, I got lazy and couldn’t get myself to exercise for five minutes and killed my streak again.

Getting sick really destroyed my momentum and I’ve been having a really hard time getting back into my exercise habits. Granted, I’ve still made sure I stay active and at least close my rings every day, doing weights has been difficult to get back into. Overall, I’ve been exercising less than usual.

So here’s where I’m at.

I’m still weighing in at about 150 pounds. I haven’t been able to add any weight since starting weightlifting but I’m likely not doing what I should be for adding mass. I did notice that my shoulders look a little better but that’s about it.

My back is so plain and I think I’m slouching. Or maybe the angle sucks or I’m not relaxing. I admit it’s a small improvement over my last progress picture. Little progress is better than none, right?

And this is what I’ve done so far…

I’ve increased reps to try to get closer to failure and I felt it for about a week afterwards. If I could increase my food intake, I should see an improvement.

Today’s workout includes dips. Oh god, dips…

I was ready to stop after the first set but I was able to maintain form and finish all my sets. I followed these up with…

I included this into my routine after having been inspired by @jacqattacq and bought a pull-up bar. I’m also determined to not let it become additional space to hang my clothes. Speaking of which…

What social media do you use and how does it influence your goals?

I abandoned Facebook long ago and only use Messenger when I absolutely have to. I have Twitter and Instagram but neither feed truly “sparks joy” so they’ve been languishing in the bit bucket in recent months as well. I’m not sure how I landed on Tumblr but watching people decide to make a lifestyle change and then witness their journey and the many paths taken to get to their transformation is magic to me. That’s a game I gotta get in on. So I started my own to track and share my own progress in the hopes that it might help and motivate someone else. It took years to get as far as I did. It wasn’t easy and I complain frequently (especially giving up sugar - oof, that was tough), but when I look back on my own progress, I’m reminded of the words of one Steven Rogers:

Day 9 (7/27): how can you tell you are having a good day? Do you do anything differently? Is there a way you can do these things every day?

It’s a good day when I get stuff done! Whether it’s fitness stuff or something to do with home maintenance, it’s an awesome feeling to be able to cross something off the to-do list. And yes there is a way to be able to do this everyday. It’s called unlimited funding. If I can tick that requirement, I would be in an endless home improvement cycle and look like a Calvin Klein model.

That said, I’ve missed two days of workouts. I’ve only done the bare minimum so far. Based on how this week is going, I’ll probably miss a lot more. ☹️

Day 10 (7/28): what actions do you take to get yourself out of a funk?

Day 6 (7/24): Which sphere of self-improvement do you tend to focus on most (mental, spiritual, physical, financial, relationships, etc.)?

I got in a decent yoga session yesterday – not the greatest ever, but still a welcome break from the busy week. It’s also my favorite fitness activity second only to running because it’s a journey versus destination thing compared to making it past the next rep with weights. It sounds weird to say but I just exist in that state.

What aspect do I focus on the most? I never really thought about it, TBH but I can’t say it’s a spiritual thing. At least not at the moment… but it certainly helps with the mental and physical aspects of self improvement. I get a good and necessary stretch in and I get a soft reset in the mental state. It’s good for the finances too because it’s cheap cheap cheap 🐣!

Day 7 (7/25): Fight off those Sunday Scaries! List 3 things you are grateful for.

Family, of course. Work too, despite my tolerance/hate relationship with it. It’s actually not so much the job itself. That’s tedious AF. But the people I work with are good people and that’s gotta count for something. But I’m most grateful for my health. With all the things that can go wrong with our bodies, sometimes I wonder how we can keep it all operating within acceptable parameters. It can also be fleeting. One moment I go to the hospital for a routine diagnostic, next thing I know, I’m dead and come back a cyborg. (My niece - the Jeff Goldblum one - calls me her zombie uncle).