Running > Losing Weight

In the grand scheme of things, in my little world, running will always be greater than losing weight. But, in all actuality I want both and am striving to obtain both and this post is about the attempt to have both.

I found a pin on Pinterest that brought me to Active.com to an article titled "Running to Lose Weight." I started reading it and really enjoyed the 6 tips that it provided:

Tip #1: Give yourself time to adapt

Tip #2: Become a consistent runner

Tip #3: Follow a run/walk program to get started

Tip #4: Add strength and intensity gradually

Tip #5: How to continue losing weight

Tip #6: Be smart about progression

My Googling skills brought me to another article at Runner's World titled "The Golden Rules of Weight Loss." This article gives not only 8 rules for runners who are trying to lose weigh, but also ways to make it work along with a variety of examples since everyone is different and not everything will work for everyone. The rules:

Rule #1: Take really good notes

Make it work: A notebook, an Excel sheet, iPhone, etc.

Rule #2: Measure what you eat

Make it work: Keep equipment handy, think convenience, snack smart, make your mark

Rule #3: Beef up your protein intake

Make it work: It's not just how much protein you consume, but when you consume it that's important

Rule #4: Add color to every meal

Make it work: Frozen, canned, dried, jarred or fresh, fill at least 1/3 of your plate with vegetables

Rule #5: Stop Grazing!

Make it work: Divide your calories around three meals and one or two snacks, going at least three hours and up to four or five hours without eating, the goal is to eat when you're hungry but not starving to avoid overeating

Rule #6: Always have a plan

Make it work: Map out your meal planning for the week (the article provides examples of healthy dinners for a week)

Rule #7: Slow down!

Make it work: Sit down, avoid family-style, don't eat alone, be wary of the tv, eat in like you're eating out, don't drive hungry

Rule #8: Do not rush weight loss

Make it work: Make your food taste good, keep fine-tuning your plan, don't give up

These are two really good articles that I really enjoyed reading and took a lot from and I would highly recommend reading them if you are also having difficulty or are interested in losing weight while running.

It's not something that is going to be easy to do, but if I continue to read good articles like these and actually follow the tips they provide then maybe I can find more success at having both then choosing just one or the other.

Monday June 3rd

Day one of My Fitness Pal is done and I would call it a success. I ate within my calorie goal, earned extra calories by walking 2 miles and running 1 and I was more conscious about what I was eating.

Often times when tracking points or calories I will continue to eat what I want while staying within those suggested numbers. Although this works for a while because I am cutting down on portions, it does not work for long because my food choices are still unhealthy.

So this time around I am making more of an effort in picking healthier choices. More fruits and veggies, less packaged foods. Less candy and sweets, more dairy. Less soda, more water. You get the idea.

I cannot begin to express just how much I want to make this change. Although I'm learning to love the body I'm in, I don't want to keep this body the way it is. My body has not reached its full potential, and it won't until I make the necessary changes. And that's what I'm trying to do.

My eating is obviously not going to change completely over night, and I'm not putting my pressure on myself to do that. I can only hope that these changes I am making will stick.

I signed up this morning, putting in my new starting weight of 184.4 which calculated my daily calorie goal to be 1,540. My Fitness Pal encourages you to eat the calories that you burn as well to bring your daily net calories as close to your daily goal as possible.

Monday June 3rd:
Goal: 1540
Food: 1793
Exercise: -307
Net: 1486

Breakfast:
Whole wheat English muffin, 1 Tbsp creamy peanut butter, 1 Tbsp honey
Calories: 255

Snack:
Apple
Calories: 80

Lunch:
Brent's Deli Grilled Chicken, Pita and Hummus, Veggies
Calories: 547

Snack:
Apple, Dreyers Fruit Bar
Calories: 150

Dinner:
Homemade chicken tacos
Calories: 614

Dessert:
6 Hershey kisses
Calories: 147 

Exercise:
1 mile walk, 1 mile run, 1 mile walk
Calories: -307

Positive: I tracked everything all day and stayed within my calorie goal.

I would say I made a good start and I think that will help me in the next few days if (when) things get to be more difficult. It's kind of like with this running streak. I've had a few days where I really didn't want to go and/or didn't want to run the full mile straight but I felt like if I could do it that first day then I could continue the streak and continue to run the full mile straight. I think that's how I need to look at this.

Obviously some days are going to be easier then others and there will be days that I go over my calorie goal for a variety of reasons, but if I'm conscious about what I'm eating and if I track everything every day then I really can't fail no matter what the scale says.

In other news, I received a phone call today from the surrogacy agency that I'm going through. They received my application and want to proceed. I have a lot of paperwork to fill out, doctors to call to get records and a background check to pass, but as of now the ball is rolling. Once everything is filled out and the background check is done it's only a matter of time. The paperwork I have to fill out will help potential parents decide if I'm a right fit for them. I can't believe it's all happening all ready and I'm really excited!

Weigh In #3 and 7 Positives

Last weeks weight: 181.8

This weeks weight: 184.4

+/-: +2.6

Total +/-: +2.6
Thoughts: I'm disappointed but resetting so that I can have a fresh start on My Fitness Pal and I feel good about the reset and about trying something that will hopefully work before I gain any more weight.

I've reset my weight and my measurements, but I wanted to share all of that information with you, so here are my updated measurements with any differences between now and two weeks ago.

Measurements:
Arm (L)- 13" (+.25)
Thigh (L)- 26.25" (+.25)
Bust- 40" (0)
Waist- 36" (0)
Hips- 44.5" (+.25)

BMI- 27.2= overweight (+0.4)

I think I was doing something wrong... But I'm not dwelling on it. Instead I'm using it as motivations to make some serious changes.

I decided to work on my self appreciation by writing one positive about myself a day. It makes me think of the good things at the end of each day and then I can see the list at the end of the week to boost my self-esteem.

I chose to list them with my weigh in because I know that there will be times that the weigh-in does not go the way I had hoped. I would like to say honestly that the number won't affect me, but it does, so listing my positives will make me focus on that instead of what the scale says. 

Positives:

1. I ran a mile straight without stopping!

2. I had no motivation to workout tonight so I sought out motivation and an extra kick in the butt and it worked.

3. I felt satisfied today, never full, and I allowed myself a treat without going overboard.

4. I listened to my body tonight and didn't push myself too hard to workout and more importantly I didn't mentally beat myself up for not doing the dvd.

5. I have not only gone out to run a mile for 5 days in a row, but I have successfully run a mile straight for 5 days in a row!

6. I found myself genuinely happy today because I feel like our small apartment is finally becoming a home.

7. I have made it a full week with my running streak and don't see myself stopping any time soon. I feel like even though my calves and shins are tight that I can keep going, so I do. Who knows, maybe soon I will start increasing the mileage of running and can make it two miles without stopping.

Sunday June 2nd

I'm joining My Fitness Pal tomorrow.

I thought I could lose weight on my own. And I thought that I was doing a better job with eating better. But the scale keeps going up and clearly I need help.

So I'm asking for help. Because I can't do this alone.

I'm hoping that I won't get too obsessed with the numbers and with calories. And I'm hoping that if I'm careful with how I use my calories that this will work and I will start seeing the scale go the way I want it to.

I'm actually mentally okay, surprisingly. I'm increasing my highest adult weight weekly, but I know that I'm making improvements, no matter how small and no matter if the results are evident. If you think about it, there are things that can be measured. Like running. I've successfully completed 7 days of streaking! Even when I didn't want to go. Even when I skipped other parts of my workout. Even when I could think of a hundred thirty-seven reasons why I can't go. Seven days... A whole week.

So, I set up an account on My Fitness Pal and I plan on tracking my starting weight tomorrow. I also downloaded the app to my phone, so that will make it that much easier to track and to stay on plan.

Fingers crossed.

Week Three Change Up

I like lists and I like making goals for myself. I find that it's one of many ways to track my progress and a way to push myself a little more than I normally would. But last week I came to the conclusion that by making goals I was putting too much pressure on myself to be perfect and was getting upset when I wasn't following through.

I think goals can serve a good purpose if used correctly and I do intend on working them into my weekly journey later on (and maybe not trying to do so many at once). For now I'm going to stick with 5 easy monthly goals so that I can see how that goes first.

I want to keep up with my walking and running, especially running a mile daily. For now that's what I can commit to as a weekly schedule. No minimum miles per day other than the one mile run. I'm thinking the Monday, Wednesday and Friday walk and the Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday or Sunday run is working. I don't feel too much pressure with that.

I decided that the workout DVDs are just too much physically right now. Not physically as in I can't get through the workout, because I can (drenched in sweat and out of breath, but I make it through). My wrist is just not strong enough to make it through and the workouts that involve my wrist are too often for me to use that time as a break.

So back on the shelf they go. At least until I can make the full commitment and make it through the workout without stopping. I am really hoping to start physical therapy next week. I still have not received the go ahead from workers' comp, so who knows when the healing and strengthening process will begin.

I'm still going to put my workout schedule out there. Maybe it will help hold me accountable.

Monday May 27th: Walk and 1 mile run

Tuesday May 28st: Run intervals and 1 mile run

Wednesday May 29th: Walk and 1 mile run

Thursday May 30th: Run intervals and 1 mile run

Friday May 31st: Walk and 1 mile run

Saturday June 1st: Long Run and 1 mile run

Sunday June 2nd: Rest and 1 mile run

 

Walk: (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) 2 miles

Run: (Tuesday and Thursday) 2 miles

Long Run: 5 miles

Saturday June 1st

I cannot believe another month is over. This year is just flying by!

May was a good month that brought my niece's 9th birthday and Patrick's and my 4 year anniversary. I didn't really make the most out of the month like I could have, but there's no use thinking about the coulda, shoulda, woulda. Instead I turn to the month of June with high hopes. June is going to be my month!

This month starts with my mom's birthday celebration tomorrow. My parent's will also be celebrating their 35th wedding anniversary in the middle of the month. And at the end of the month the family will be heading on a family vacation up the coast of California to San Francisco for the 4th of July.

But before I go into what I hope to accomplish in June, let's take a look at what happened today.

I continued my streak tonight, running a mile for the 6th night in a row. I planned on running 5 miles today, but that was before I knew what Patrick's schedule was. He had to open this morning so my only option was to run this afternoon when he got home (when it was in the high 80's) or later in the evening (pushing back dinner, again...)

So I pushed my 5 mile run a day and will complete it tomorrow morning bright and early while it's still cool. I'm thinking I'll run intervals for 3 miles to let my legs warm up, run a mile straight and then run a mile using intervals for the last mile to cool down. My legs have been feeling a little tight, what with running a mile straight every day, so I think three miles will be a good amount to get my legs going.

Today was a very successful day in home décor. I found a dresser a few weeks ago at a thrift store. The drawers inside were broken and the price tag was $40. It was just a little too much for me to pay for something that I'd have to put more money into to fix. I couldn't be happier with my decision to not buy that piece of furniture, especially today.

Today I found a dresser sitting in front of the dumpster at our apartment complex. So I got Patrick and our neighbor and they carried it upstairs for me. It's missing a few drawers, but that's not an issue (especially with Pinterest and all the ideas I can get off of there..)



Finding the dresser.



The dresser has found a new home.

The left side has games, covered by frames and the right side has puzzles, covered by frames. Not sure what we're putting in the middle yet, but we'll think of something.

Then tonight, after having such a kick of motivation to work on decorating our apartment I decided it was time to fill my two bulletin boards so that Patrick can hang them (as well as a few other things tomorrow). One will go in the dining room above the new dresser (which will be pushed over to be centered), and the other will go in our bathroom as my motivation wall. I don't have much space in our bedroom to put the bulletin board and I want it to be someplace that I will see it every day.

My racing bibs and metals. They're kind of overlaying one another, so it's difficult to see them all.

My motivation wall. Most of it is running quotes, photos and inspirations.

And now for the month ahead of me...

I don't want to keep making weekly goals, so I will make a few monthly goals.

1. End the month lighter than my weigh in on Monday.
2. Continue my running streak.
3. Find and maintain healthy eating habits.
4. Continue to read Love Your Body, Love Your Life.
5. Continue to find one positive/day.

I feel like I'm getting really close to being where I need to be to make this lifestyle change. I am getting to the point where it's not something I desperately want for the wrong reasons. It's something I want because I deserve to be healthy, I deserve to be physically fit, I deserve to love my body and I deserve to reach my goals- both with weight loss and exercise.

I plan on signing up for My Fitness Pal either tomorrow or Monday. Although tracking what I am eating on a day to day basis has been helpful, I am still eating whatever I want, just with the added task of writing it down, So I will now be tracking calories as a way to reign in my out of control eating.

I feel good today. Happy. Possibly because of my awesome find that makes our small apartment feel just a little bit more like a home. Maybe because running a mile is getting a little easier. Or it could be that things are just aligning themselves up nicely because I'm getting into a place that's more positive all around.

Whatever the reasons, I'm enjoying this feeling and I hope it sticks around for a while.

Sleep- Or Lack Thereof

For the past few months I have been having some difficulty sleeping. There are many factors attributing to this, but I cannot remember the last time I've slept through the night.

I have been having trouble falling asleep and when I do I wake up with wrist pain, or because the cat is chewing on plastic, or Isabel wakes up crying with a nightmare, or Patrick is snoring... These are just a few of the nightly annoyances keeping me awake. I can honestly say that a huge issue with my sleep patterns is pretty simple. I have no schedule for the day as I did when I was working.

I had started the habit of going to bed early in order to get up early. I was eating better because I could limit what I ate throughout the day by not keeping food at work and only bringing what I was planning on eating that day. I was also working out more often throughout the day and would be tired for the right reasons at night.

Without that schedule I have been allowing myself to stay up later than necessary and when possible I lay in bed later than necessary as well. I've been getting better about getting up and being productive, but I'm not where I want to be quite yet.

Pinterest has become a friend of mine. An obsession would be more accurate. But it's been beneficial because I've found a lot of recipes, a lot of motivation for running and weight loss, and a lot of great articles to read.

I enjoyed this article about 27 Easy Ways to Sleep Better because it's what I need right now. I know that sleeping better will help in so many other areas of my life including weight, energy and being more patient to name a few.

I really connected the most with the following tips and am planning on incorporating them in the near future to hopefully sleep through the night.

1. Establish a bedtime routine. This lets the body know it's time to unwind from the day's stress and chill. Figure out a schedule and stick to it every night of the week - even weekends!
2. Exercise regularly. Studies suggest some aerobic exercise can reduce anxiety and improve quality of sleep in people who suffer from insomnia.
3. Work out earlier in the day. While exercise can help improve sleep quality, it's important to schedule workouts that end at least two hours before hitting the hay so that post-workout adrenaline boost doesn't keep you up.
4. Bedroom activities only, please. Reserve the bed for bedtime-only activities so the mind associates the bedroom with relaxation. Sleep and sex, yes. Work and bills, not so much.
5. Create a comfortable environment. Whether that means picking the perfect mattress, splurging on 800-thread-count sheets, getting heavy-duty curtains to block out light, or keeping a fan in the room for background noise, make sure it's comfy before climbing into bed. Share a bed? Work with your partner to make any changes necessary so everyone sleeps well.
6. Take a hot shower or bath before bed. This can help the mind relax, while the rise and fall of body temperature induces sleepiness.
7. Set a daily wake up time. Just like it's best to go to bed at the same time every day, it's a good idea to keep a consistent wake up time - even on the weekends. Irregular bedtime and wake-up hours can lead to poor sleep patterns.

There are so many more great suggestions, but those 7 are the ones that I can easily change and are the ones that hit home to me. I plan on working on these things in order to improve my sleep. I think that the more I work on my sleeping habits the more other things in my life will improve, including exercise and eating habits.