Here's the skinny: I've been near 300 lbs. for years and need to lose weight. I'm married to a wonderful lady, and we have a family. One of our boys often asks if I'll run with him. I've always had to tell him, "No." In August of '09, my wife learned about a couch-to-5k running program, and I agreed to try it with her. This blog chronicles our progress on that training program. I hope I'll soon be able to surprise my son by telling him, "Yes, I'll go running with you!"

Friday, March 11, 2011

Weigh in

Mrs. F

Last Friday: 157.9 lbs.
Today: 156.7 lbs.
Gain/Loss: - 1.2 lbs.
Goal: 140.0 lbs.
Cumulative: 26.1 lbs.
Pounds to lose: 16.7

Comment: Since I overate on the weekend,I was up to 159 on Monday, so Im pretty pleased with the overall 2.3 down. Especially since its that fun time of the month!!! Im still not settled on the 140 goal weight, i might stop at 145, I*m not sure yet.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

The year I gained the most weight was when my special needs son was born. Can anyone say stress???? I made it thru the days of hospital visits, doctors galore, and many fears that he might not even make it. I would tell myself -- I deserved it, after all look at what im going thru.

It would start with one candy bar, and then another and another. Pretty soon, Id buy two at one shot. Or two bags of mini candy bars and eat them all. Im simply couldnt think about weight, too many other thigns crowding my brain.

It wasnt until after Gideon was more stable and I had my last baby -- that I began thinking bout me. I thought along the way I learned how to eat. Times like this, where Ive gained back 10 lbs, show me that I have a ways to go in that journey.

Gideon was sick this past week, 103 temps and coughing and all kinds of ick. It doesnt take much to take me back into the realm of the first year. My triggered response is to eat -- I cannot tell you how many girl scout cookies I consumed. I need to rewrite that schema in my brain that tells me to eat.

Is the hormones or body chemicals secreted during stress that cause us to reach for the food? How do we combat that?

Another trigger for me is lack of sleep. My willpower goes out the window when im tired. Again is the bodys natural response to try and stay awake by eating? Im not really sure. When all is well , I can do the right things, when things are stressful it becomes much more difficult to make those choices.

Keep on running
Mrs. F

Wednesday, March 9, 2011

My new bike

022 by MJae1974
022 a photo by MJae1974 on Flickr.

I bundled up yesterday and got in a ride of 5.25 miles at 5:35 pace. I loved being able to get out and fly on my new bike. This is what it takes to bike in the winter in minnesota!!!

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Yesterdays run

I really didnt want to run yesterday but a friend encourage me to do so. She was right as usual, I felt less tired after running than I did before.

I knew my two eldest were busy after school, so I elected to do two miles on the treadmill at home. I started out fairly slow and kept upping the speed every couple of minutes. As I needed 9/10ths of a mile, I upped the speed to 7.0 and ran the last tenth. That was hard! I wanted to challenge myself to see if i could do it. Next time I might even be brave enough to try 8.0!`

I did the same for the 2nd mile, although I ran that one faster. After running at the higher speed, the lower speeds felt dreadfully slow. It felt good to push myself!

Today, Im going to go try out my new bike. The thermometer outside just hit 40, so Im going for it. I plan on layering up and borrowing Mr. F's snowmobile gloves and googles. That should help with the wind.

Eating is going much better this week. I stayed within my calories yesterday and only ate a little into my run burn. For the most part, I want to not eat up those exercise calories.

Keep on running folks,
Mrs. F

Monday, March 7, 2011

New

This week seems to be the week of new equipment. Ive had my running shoes for a little under a year. They have 350 miles of running on them plus some biking and the normal wear and tear. I decided it was time to replace them.

I did some research, did the water foot test, from asics, and found out i am neutral -to over pronator. REally pretty solidly stuck in the middle. So armed with the knowledge of some names that suited that style, I headed to Kohls.

I tried on several pairs,ran up and down the aisles, tried on pairs again and again. I finally settled on Gel phoenix 3's in navy blue, silver and white. I havent really gotten to wear them much yet. Walking in them seems very comfortable. The jury is still out on the running. I took one run in them(the one I spent chasing my speed running cross country son) and they felt sorta heavy. Im unsure if IM just not used to the style or if this isnt a good model for me. A little more concerning was some knee pain afterwords. Still unsure about that as it could be related to several factors including my lupus, osteoarthritis or the shoes. I was having some minor pain with it before the new shoes. So im just waiting that out. It seems to go away after a day or two.

I also got a new bike this week! I am beyond excited about this purchase. I ended up with a trek 7100 and I love it! Its a teal colored bike and I bought shiny silver fenders. The weather hasnt been favorable to riding it yet but I cannot wait. The little I rode up and down the sidewalk in front of the bike store has me longing for spring! The bike is yet unnamed, so I have been pondering names for it!

A friend and I have also started a weight loss blog together. We are both trying to lose weight, exercise and maintain healthy habits. Its certainely harder than it looks. Check it out -- its www.mandkweightloss.blogspot.com I plan to continue writing here and there as well.

Not so good of a weekend on the eating front but some success on limiting my coffee consumption. Onword and upward!

Keep on running folks
Mrs. F