Keep on Truckin'

I worked out today after taking about 5 days off.  Weekends are hard for getting workouts in, because I try to get out and stir around and do fun things with the family.  I also had some physical issues that caused me to take an extended break.  Nothing major... just girl biology things.  *sigh*  That has finally let up, so back to work I went today.

I haven't really seen much in the way of weight loss.  In fact, I was up 3 pounds from where I started for a bit.  I lost 2 of those, so I am still up a pound, but I'm on the way back down. Most of the differences and changes I've noticed have been internal, but they are changes, and I continue to see gains and changes in my ability and form, and that keeps me pushing forward.

I have a history of start/stop/start stop when it comes to working out.  I will start strong, but something (illness, distraction, depression, busy schedules, what have you) always seems to derail my efforts. This time is different.  There has been a certain amount of start/stop with this round, but this time, I get back to it, and more quickly than I have in the years past.  It's days, not weeks/months/years between workouts. I have been coming back to it as soon as I felt able to do so.

Today I did the full C25K workout going at speeds between 3 for walking and 4 for running, from start to finish.  I finished Week 1.  Well actually I finished Week 2! LOL! When I finished my workout, I went to the website to find out what week 2's workout consisted of and it turns out that's the workout I've been doing this week.  So I just kinda missed/skipped Week 1.  Oops! So rather than going back down and doing week 1, I am moving up to the workout for Week 3, when I do my next treadmill workout.  I may end up spending longer than a week on it to balance things out... or to let my endurance catch up.  I'm not sure how it will work, but I am kinda stoked to see what happens.  :)

I also did my strength dvd today.  The same one I've been doing, at the same level I've been doing it.  Week 1-2.  This is my third week doing this level, but it still takes a lot of work, leaves me sweaty and gross and out of breath.  I am lingering because I want to do all of the exercises without modifications before I move on.  I want to be able to do a chataranga from plank, not from my knees... for example.  I also struggle with form for lunges and squats.  I don't go down very deep, when I bend, and I still am trying to get my balance right.  Today I did better, in that I was able to sink down and not feel knee pain.  I try so hard to focus on the right form, so as not to strain or hurt my knees, but it's difficult to manage.  Today was much better, and I did pretty good until I got to the damn curtsy lunges.  As I was finishing those up, I bent wrong and my knee yelled at me. :(  I am also still working with 5 lb weights, and I haven't started doubling up on the weights yet (that's a goal for some of the exercises).  All in all though, I can't complain.  I "felt the burn" in the places I was supposed to, and I got it done today.  I think yoga will be tomorrow, and maybe a cardio workout that doesn't involve the treadmill or running. I have a ton of dvd's to pick from.  Time to mix it up a little!

My balance kind of continues to suck, and I end up having to put my hands on the treadmill to steady myself when I run, but I try to take my hands off of the treadmill as much as I can.  Maybe I need to start doing some yoga to work on my core more and my balance.  I will continue to work on that.  Maybe as the pounds start to come off, it won't be such a struggle to hold myself up.

I peeked ahead at the next level up and that essentially adds another workout to the one I already do, so I guess as soon as I feel like I can do both, I can move up, and my form will continue to improve as I go, but I'm taking the extra time because I want to do the exercises right and get maximum benefit.  I also think that when I move up to the next level I will have to separate my cardio and my strength days, where I am currently doing both together.  It is all just a huge experiment at this point, and I'm trying to find a way that works for me.  I'm also trying to find a routine and make this a habit before school starts, so I can work exercise into my schedule.

It was a rush, as it always seems to be.  I think I've found that exercise high I always hear about because as hard as it is to get moving, once I'm going, I don't want to stop! I feel like I should be doing more! It's also nice to feel results, even though I don't really see any results as yet.  The changes I'm feeling and writing about keep me motivated to keep going, and to pick my workout back up after a stall.

I went out and bought a fitness watch today.  I got one that tracks calorie burn and heart rate, and also lets me know what zone I'm working out in (cardio fitness vs. fat burn) so I can make adjustments as needed.  I will be strapping that sucker on for my next workout.  :)  I wanted something that is more reliable than the generalized exercise logs like MyFitnessPal, Runkeeper, etc.  I want to see just how much bang I'm getting for my exercise buck.

I'm not sure when it happened or how it happened, but a switch got flipped this time.  I am more motivated than I have ever been, I am more dedicated than in past attempts.  I actually enjoy what I'm doing this time (where before it was torture).  I have worked out 6 times (I think) in the past 2 1/2 weeks, while that may not seem like much...it is a LOT more than I had been working out before; and I'm working on making that number go up even higher.  So I am ok with that, even happy with it.