1. Wow, thanks to everyone who chimed in with some awesome righteous indignation on my behalf as well as some excellent ideas to get me to incorporate 30 minutes of daily exercise for the Bottom Line Challenge at work. Lots and lots of good ideas, and you all definitely nudged me out of my foul mood about it.
Especially my sister, who responded with a cheery, "Suck it up, buttercup!"
Nice, right? ;-D
2. Since it is going to have to be every day, I think using a flexible combination of exercise types will work best; I can adjust depending on my time and stress levels of the day. Some of the ones I will be doing are:
-Wii yoga in the morning, either 15 or 30 minute increments
-Wii dancing in the morning, either 15 or 30 minute increments
-walking with Hubby in the early evening
-walking on breaks with co-workers
-walking on my own, with my "cans" on and zoning out to my music
-possibly swimming on the weekend mornings. I have to check if the park district pool has morning lap time on the weekends, or I might look into joining another gym with more pools.
-10-minute increments with the weights and heehee the Shakeweight I bought and never used while watching TV
-make sure my membership at the Chicago Botanic Garden is renewed and do some weekend morning walks there. (Where all the photos in this post were taken over the years. You can thank my mom and dad for buying me a membership for Christmas for many years.)
I'll be starting this weekend.
3. Weirdly, the one suggestion that I won't be doing right away is buying new exercise clothes. I have drawers full of them already; buying cute workout clothes has been my usual default preparation step when I think I am going to start working out, and honestly, those drawers of barely-worn clothes have been just another reminder of my repeated failure to actually implement those plans. So I don't really need them, and I don't want them. I don't want to do this the same way I've done it before; clearly that hasn't worked. So I am just jumping in and wearing what I already have. Maybe later as a reward I'll buy something cute. :)
4. I am so, so glad you guys are enjoying the "They Walk Among Us" series. I am absolutely loving it; while everyone is so different, there are certain themes that echo among all of them, and have already taught me a lot about my own journey.
- Losing significant weight stretches out over a long period of time. Patience and persistence over the ups and downs is necessary; just don't give up.
- There isn't one particular diet that works for everyone, and many of them used a variety of them along the way.
- Eating whole, healthy food is how you take it off and keep it off.
- Exercise in some form is required.
6. This week has been so strange: my husband has been in London for work, I've had a training class onsite for most of the week so there have been new people roaming the office and I've been working late, and of course the weather has been so amazing the windows are wide open at home all day long. The cats are completely befuddled; all of their routines are disturbed and there is a person missing in the house. They are not pleased.
Hubby comes home this afternoon, and next week will be our first week of having a full staff on my team. I am sure the first few weeks will be just as busy as the last ones, since the two new people need to get up to speed, but I am beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel. Hurray!
Have a lovely weekend, everyone.
1. African Daisies, 2. Purple echinacea, 3. Field in wider perspective, 4. Orange and Purple coneflowers in a field, 5. Gargoyle Fountain, Spring, 6. Irises around the pond, 7. Faces to the sun, 8. A welcoming entrance, 9. Baby Blue Eyes, 10. Inverted Baby Blue Eyes, 11. Like, wow. Totally., 12. Lilies of the Valley, 13. Bleeding Heart, 14. Allium, 15. Colombine, 16. African Daisy
Gorgeous photos! I was wondering who told you to suck it up lol! As I read the comment I thought well at least they tempered it by noting that she's already great at cooking. Gotta love a sister! And I think you've made yourself a plan. Way to go Kristen.
ReplyDeleteGood for you!! You can do this!
ReplyDeleteMy diet tip: do NOT take white bean extract. Despite the fact that a certain TV doctor said it would be helpful in losing weight. He neglected to mention the side effects are that your insides turn outside and wring you out. Yeah, that's a good way to lose weight. HA! I'm learning this lesson the hard way...and I only took ONE dose!
Eating real food, getting a little exercise and reducing stress...that's the healthy way to shed the pounds. One of these days, I'm gonna remember that and give up the "quick fixes".
Thanks SO much for the Among Us features! I've been enjoying the inspiration. And one day, you'll have to interview yourself! :)
Yay!! So glad you're feeling better! They call it a challenge for a reason, but it sounds like you have a great plan to get started! You have some fun options too - Wii yoga and dancing, and trips to the Botanic Garden (although what's with all the rain and gray today? where did all our nice weather go?)
ReplyDeleteYour points in #4 are so important to realize, yet I wonder why it takes us all so long to figure that out?
Amazingly beautiful flowers. Good luck with your efforts to exercise and move more.
ReplyDeleteHoly moly, your flower pictures are incredibly beautiful! Thank you for the eye candy this morning!
ReplyDeleteThat first flower, the big one, is amazing. The center shows each little part in such detail!
ReplyDeletecount me in the camp of those who love your "they walk among us" series! im not a maintainer -- YET! -- and still have about 15 or so pounds left to lose to hit my goal weight, but i have lost almost 50 pounds in the last 9 months, and i LOVE getting motivation from others who have already been down the same path successfully. picking their brains and getting those tips + tricks is great!
ReplyDeleteI have to say I love your photography! In fact one of the first things I "pinned" to Pinterest was a couple of your photos from the Botanical Gardens.
ReplyDeleteI like your workout plan. I've been thinking of trying a more incremental approach to excercise too. In the beginning I go all gung ho and then can't sustain it and just quit. Maybe this will get me in the habit. Good luck in the challenge.
I really did mean "suck it up, buttercup" in a nice way. I hate to see you whiny and down on yourself. 30 minutes a day is totally doable for you, squeeze it into the schedule somewhere. But when you are doing zero exercise and someone says you have to complete 1400 minutes, a moment of panic and fear is totally understandable. It might as well be 10,000 minutes.
ReplyDeleteThink of it this way: 20 years ago if I'd told you that you'd be experimenting with recipes, making up your own and sharing them with others on a lifestyle blog, you would have laughed out loud. Slowly, but surely, you've made big changes.
Apply yourself to exercise the same way you apply yourself to other difficult tasks. Make a plan, create a spreadsheet, adjust your schedule, research, organize, and go!
BTW, I adore the botanical garden shots. I can't wait to see this year's!
Spectacular set of pictures. I had not seen MOST of the flowers you photograph - EVER - these were totally eye opening.... nature never ceases to surprise us.
ReplyDelete