Back in the pool, and 3 ounces behind schedule

I got hit by some little viral bug last week -- it didn't hit me nearly as hard as it hit Danny and his Mom, but knocked me back enough that I knew I had better stay out of the pool and conserve my strength. So it was a week of laying low, not much exercise, and purposely backing off the BMGS regimen that has been working for me.

It's all well and good to listen to one's body, and something that I have grudgingly improved at over the years, but I should also admit that I was a little anxious that I would lose all the ground I have gained the past eight weeks. Especially with yesterday being pretty much a day devoted to hanging out and barbecuing on my pal's deck, capped off with two very good cheeseburgers and two Sam Lights while Kip was visiting for dinner last night.

Not to worry.

I won't go into great detail now, but I am pleased, all things considered.

First, I was back in the pool today for 48 laps and I felt great. Nothing special, no sprints, just a good 2/3-mile swim with no rest breaks. And when I arrived home afterward I didn't feel like crashing immediately (as is usually the case on my long days but would not have surprised me today).

Second, Monday's my weekly weigh-in and and I came in at 249.2, down a little bit from last week, and just three ounces above my goal for this week's weigh-in. Got to step it up just a little this week, but all is well.

Embracing the solitude - Originally posted to BMGS 1.0 Saturday, November 10, 2007

Originally posted to BMGS 1.0 Saturday, November 10, 2007

Feeling at least half better today, which I will take. I'm down a pound to 240 even, the lowest I have been, after too many days on a plateau. So I am pleased about that, too.

The fact that the scale registers a pound lower probably has a lot to do with the fact that I've been eating like a sick person the last couple of days, with lots of soup and yogurt.

But that's okay, I'll accept credit for eating healthy, even if I didn't have my usual appetite. Frankly, just between you and me, there have been plenty of times when I have been sick in the past, felt lousy, and used it as an excuse to pig out.

Or, just as easily, I could have gone to one of my all-time favorite ways of coping with a cold, come the evening hours: copious amounts of rum and orange juice, in progressively stronger doses. It really does help one glide through a cold's symptoms, as long as one does not have to drive or take care of small children, etc. I heartily recommend it, and as I was driving home from hanging with Danny a little after 6 yesterday evening I gave serious thought to stopping at the packie.

But the rum and orange juice cure is not generally meant to be taken in moderation. At the very least I would have had 3 stiff drinks, which would have netted me 1200 calories. More likely, I would have finished the rum and the orange juice, and blamed it on the cold.

So taking care of myself, instead, is the right way to go. Being able to do that, and having confidence that I will continue to do it, is all about having this blog to report to each day. It makes a huge difference to know that I am committed to my daily target of about 1750 calories, and likewise to know that I will report here with a truthful summary of the day's calorie events.

In the process, I am also, I think, strengthening my daily routines. Which beings me back to somebody I wanted to write a little bit about today.

Pat B. is one of my favorite people at my Thursday night Gamblers Anonymous meeting. During the 8:30 break this week she came over and sat down next to me. "You know, we should really talk some time about what it is like to be in this program when you live alone," she said.

Now I am going to jump tracks back from gambling to eating and health, and just say that Pat is about as healthy a 78-year-old as I have known. She just exudes good health, and she is an inspiration. She builds her life around healthy daily routines, and gets up every morning to a breakfast of yogurt, nuts and berries every morning between 5:30 and 6 a.m.

There's a beauty that people have, that radiates from the inside out, when they take good care of themselves from the inside out. Pat definitely has it, although she also has plenty of strength: witness the fact that she almost always joins the guys moving tables and chairs back into place after each meeting.

Living alone makes things easy sometimes, and more difficult other times. Right now I am embracing my solitude, and gaining a lot from it. Drawing inspiration from other people who have done very well at living healthy lives while living alone, like Pat B. and my sister Deborah, helps me with these gains.

So, nothing earthshaking here, but to put it very simply, one of the things that I hope to build in myself as I continue with Big Man Getting Smaller is a daily life whose foundation is based on healthy routines like the ones that are the cornerstones of Pat's days. And yesterday I picked up some berries and yogurt, rather than rum and orange juice.

Friday's Soundtrack

When I am back at full strength I'm planning to write a post about an inspiring friend of mine named Pat, but for now I'll just share some music: "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, hoping it will help me kick this scum-of-the-earth virus that has plagued me the past couple of days.

Saturday's Soundtrack

Here's one I'm guessing Pat B. remembers!

1 comments:

thoughtz said...

I try to imagine solitude... living as I do with my son, husband, 3 cats, 2 dogs and a parakeet. I wonder what it would be like to sit at my computer in the living room and write without having to block the loud TV not 10 feet away, or the sound of the snoring hubby in front of said TV...
I fantasize about someday living here alone... or perhaps in New York in a little studio apartment. I wonder what it would be like to never have to come home because someone expected me home... to go to a bar on the way home or to go to a friend's and spend the night without even having to call home to explain...
Donna

November 11, 2007 12:07 PM