It’s been a bit since my last post – I’ve gotten a lot of running in. I ran 5 miles on Ruston Way on the 24th, 9 miles on Saturday the 26th and I got a manicure/ foot rescue pedicure on Sunday with Elinor… Then last week I ran on Wednesday to the weight watchers meeting with Wendy, 5 miles with the Y-Run-Club on Saturday and I ran 13 miles in Orting on the 3rd. It felt great to get in a long run and enjoy the morning along the river with my updated i-pod playlist.
I have not updated my weight because it has not changed in 3 weeks! Well not really. Week 1, I was up .6 lbs and week 2, I was down .6 lbs and when I weighed in on Monday I did not gain or lose. ARRG! Wendy and I went to a different meeting on Monday with Sonya, another Y-Run-Club member and the lady was very energetic, so I think the class will be good for me. I am frustrated that I have hit a weight loss plateau, (for me I was averaging 1-3 lbs gone per week). I thought that I was doing really well with my eating and running (a hard balance for me). After I ran the 13 miles on Sunday, my Garmin showed that I had burned 1600 calories and I figured that I earned 27 activity points (they recommend 28 in a whole week). So I ate 16 activity points in order to get my energy back and to break even with the 1600 calories burned (which included a Subway turkey sandwich, banana, cinnamon raisin bagel, latte and lots of water). Then I weighed in on Monday and my weight was unchanged….. Sonya did mention that because it was warm I was probably retaining water after my run – that was only 24 hours before. I appreciated the comment, and think that maybe I’ll do my long run on Saturday next weekend to avoid that problem (or at least eliminate it from the equation). So the rest of this week has been a little warmer that I like (in the 80’s, I know I can’t complain when the rest of the country is sooo much hotter and muggier), and I haven’t made it to the gym, running or really doing anything. Sleeping has been tough with the heat also, so I am just in a little bit of a funk. This morning I slept in until it was my usual time to leave the house, so I rushed through my routine and feel slouchy and frumpy today (at least the boss is gone and I can just get my work done). Another thing that has been bugging me is how dirty our house has become – having a lab that sheds constantly and a cat that lives on top of the fridge (don’t ask) will do that to a house. I read Michelle’s cleaning spree and think that I might need to get some of my activity points by cleaning this weekend.
On a brighter note, a news story said that there is going to be a Rock-n-Roll Marathon in Seattle next summer – are you kidding me?!!! So Jane was kind enough to let me know that the registration was half-off on the 4th, so I signed up and I will be doing the first annual Rock-n-Roll Marathon next summer. I can’t wait! We’ll see who else I can snag into running it with me! I looked into doing the San Diego one, but the expense of the weekend was prohibiting me – now I get to go to one in my own back yard!!! Have I mentioned that I can’t wait!
So really, running has kept me sane, but the whole weight loss thing is dragging me down, I guess I knew that the weight loss would slow down sometime. I just don’t know what to do now…. Part of it is probably mental – I have hit the 10% gone mark and now I am entering a weight that I haven’t been in 5 years or more. I really enjoy that my clothes fit and that I am able to be more active than ever before, but I feel a little lost on my weight loss journey – if it weren’t for Wendy attending meetings with me and Sonya starting back, and Michelle’s amazing accomplishments I don’t know if I would have made is this far. So thank you to those who are constantly encouraging me!
Here is my plan to get me out of my funk….
Get some fresh flowers from the Farmer’s Market at lunch time today.
Go for a walk tonight at the track – invite my friend Elinor to join me.
Run on Saturday with the Y-Club – 13-16 miles, run before and after?
Help my parents install Pergo on Saturday and hook up their rain barrels at the farm.
Work on baby names for my mom’s Alpaca that is due soon – I get to name this one!
Make a welcome baby kit for Elinor – she finds out if they are having a boy or girl next week and I can’t wait!
Look at the Marathon in Las Vegas in December again and the possibility of cheap flights.
Sorry for the rant, sometimes you just have to clear your mind and get back into the game. I really want to get to my goal by next May (my long-term goal) – Brian and I are going to Maui with his parents and I want to wear a cute bathing suit (and have fun on the water slide). But for now, small goals – be happy and get through today, this weekend and the next weigh-in!
GO-MACHA RUNNER –GO
Have fun in the sun and wear your sunscreen (even if it makes a weird white gooey paste when you sweat – that reminds me to find some better ‘active’ sunscreen for running).
4 comments:
Hi Jessica, I don't know if this is helpful at all, but I just read something on a running message board about interval training burning more fat than sustained distance running. I am very new at this myself, so I really don't have anything to back it up personally! Perhaps throwing in some interval training might jump start your metabolism again? Also, do you do any weight training at all? That may help too! Sounds like you are doing everything right though, which makes a plateau all the more frustrating! Just hang in there and don't give up!
All I can think of to say is there are times like this. You will not always be super motivated and you will not always be losing fast. The weight loss is such a motivator though it's just really hard when you don't get that weekly kick to keep you moving. I do think you should update your weights regularly no matter what.
Have we talked about eating APs? My leader suggests eating no more than 4 per day unless you are doing really hard core training. Also, I don't trust my Garmin calories burned stats, they seem really high compared to my Polar, which I trust. Finally, it's rougly 1 AP per 100 calories burned, so 1600 calories would be 16 APs in any event. At least that's what I understand. You know some people do really well on Core. I've not done Core but it's something to think about.
Bottom line, you have made incredible progress and you will continue to make incredible progress. Don't lose sight of how far you've come. Think back to before you started running. What was your life like? How did you feel about yourself? Compare that to now. Get some perspective. Gratitude can do wonders for me when I'm feeling disappointed in what's happening now, or what's not happening as the case may be. You said, "I feel a little lost on my weight loss journey." Is that only because you're not losing or are there other things you're not clear on? If it's just the not losing, know that not losing is part of the process. Your body needs to make adjustments sometimes and you have to go with it. How far are you from your goal?
I know I'm going on and on but I struggle with these very same things so I've had plenty of time to ponder these issues and thus have lots of thoughts, and lots of things I've told myself.
Yay about the Rock&Roll Marathon! Goals like that are awesome and it'll be so cool to do something that moves around the country. Fun!!
I think it's great you made a plan to get out of your funk. Making a plan can do wonders to start me feeling better. And I bet you not getting to the gym this week has a lot to do with your mood.
Ok, last thing...or two :) Deadlines for weight loss make me nervous. I worry they are a set up. We lose at different paces and life can throw obstacles in our way that we didn't predict. Goal by May might be totally reasonable though so I don't want to rain on your parade. But I'd hate for your trip to be one iota less fun if you didn't quite get there, ya know? And...don't apologize for ranting. It's good for others (like me) to know that I'm not alone in what is sometimes the misery and confusion of weight loss.
Alright, I'm done. I guess there's no limit on comment length, huh? :)
YOU ROCK!!
hey girlie! =)
Remember, it was a short week too. =)
You are looking fantastic, and I know you feel better too! You have commented on it several times when we run together.
I need to overhaul at the house this weekend too. We should BBQ out one night for a tiny bit of relaxing!
Jessica,
When I run long and take s-caps I can hold water for about four days. Could be that kind of thing too. You'll figure it out and you'll start losing again - just hang in there! See you soon.
Post a Comment