Another switch - hiking

Sunday, July 27, 2014

I woke up early this morning, all ready to hit the trail on my bike and....it's....raining.  Really?  Ok, I can work with this.  I'll just walk the lakes again.  That's a good 3.5 mile walk.

Wait, then it happened.  My husband decided that he was going to go kayak fishing (he does this all the time, it's his favorite pastime, next to hunting).  And he was going to go to Clopper Lake in Maryland.  It is a very nice lake and it has trails all around the lake.  I win!  I'm going with him.

Clopper Lake

The trail around the lake is more like hiking.  You are in the woods, up and down the sides of the lake and hills, across the dam, and circling back to the boat house and launch.

Here's "the man" getting ready to launch.

 

"the man"

I followed the blue trail

Clopper Lake

Hubby on the lake

So, here are my tracks.  I walked/hiked 3.56 miles in 1:24 hours.  Again, and I keep saying this, I felt awesome.

Clopper Lake tracks

What's that saying?  Oh yeah, keep moving!  And I am following that motto.

Lakes, lakes, and more lakes

Saturday, July 26, 2014

I woke up a little late this morning (8:40am) and because of that, had no desire to ride along with throngs of people on the W&OD.  (I've learned this already, that weekends on the trail are a mess.)

So, in order to keep with my "moving" philosophy, I decided to walk.  I think walking is my absolute favorite pastime.

My house backs to a lake that has a path, but the path doesn't go completely around this lake.  One street over, the path actually goes totally around 3 lakes.  It is a gorgeous place to walk.

I walked 3.46 miles in 1:03 hours.  And my legs felt a different kind of squiggly this time.

Oh yeah, have I mentioned that I also have a Fitbit One.  This little piece of technology is simply perfect.  I bought it about 4 months ago and have worn it every day since then.  My goal, is 5,000 steps a day.  Yes, that's low now, but remember, I have a computer job and sit all day long.  Before 3 and 1/2 weeks ago, it was a stretch to make that goal.  Things have really changed in the last 3+ plus weeks.  This is my Fitbit from today, before noon!  Amazing.  (well it's amazing to me)

Here are my tracks and my friends.  I was going to take pictures of all 4 lakes, but after Lake 2, my camera on my phone stopped working.  I couldn't restart my phone because then My Tracks would be interrupted.  Issues, issues, issues.  It was an awesome walk and an awesome day!



Walking my lakes

Lake 1

Lake 2

A great day for a bike ride

Friday, July 25, 2014

It is a beautiful day.  Sunny, no humidity, and low 80s.  A perfect day for a bike ride.

I "practiced" my same ride that I did yesterday.  (Practice makes perfect)  It is so nice to bike on the trail during the week.  There is no rush hour traffic and it is so peaceful.

Biking

On the bridge overlooking the parkway

I want to know what's around that corner

I biked 5.49 miles (darn, just .01 miles shorter than yesterday - I must have cut a corner somewhere) in 48.55 minutes (how it that longer when I rode a shorter distance?).

Felt terrific, I think I am really getting the hang of this thing they call biking.

Most mileage so far

Thursday, July 24, 2014

Decided yesterday that I would take off today and tomorrow.  I have a ton of use or lose leave so I've been trying to take off every Friday that I am already not off and decided to throw a random Thursday in there.  (I work a 4-5-9 schedule - 9 hours M-Th, Friday off or Friday telecommute)

It was a perfect day to be off.  I got up early and got my ride on.  Went both ways on the W&OD trail and pushed it.

My farthest ride yet!  I went 5.20 miles in 48.49 minutes.  Absolutely felt terrific.

Even though my bike is very road ready, I don't like the shifting.  My shifters are not very easy and they do not shift smoothly at all.  I know my bike is old and it is a mountain bike and it will serve its purpose, but I want a new bike.  I want a road bike or a hybrid.  Any suggestions?  No, I can't spend mega bucks on a professional bike, just a nice, average, NEW, bike.

On days when I am not at work, I don't get any balance ball exercising in and I miss that.  So I tried to compensate by doing regular crunches, push ups, and planks.

Gotta keep moving!

Absolutely nothing (hardly) accomplished

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

Today was a failure.  Okay, not a complete failure, but definitely lacking in the exercise category.

I got to work and only had about 45 minutes before I had to go grab the shuttle and head downtown to HQ.  I work in a satellite office and every now and then my presence is required in DC.

So I got a single balance ball shift in and then headed to DC.  I got back to my office about 1:15pm.  Did another balance ball routine and all of a sudden just died.

I was seriously beaten.  I almost couldn't move.  I was exhausted.

After I thought about it, I believe my body needed a break.  It was saying "What the hell are you doing?  I haven't moved this much in years.  You need to slow down."  Yep, that's what I heard.  My body was probably right.  After being fairly sedentary for years, all of sudden I crammed 4 days of pretty intense newbie exercising into my body, and I think it was rebelling.

So I listened.  It helped that it was another 93 degree scorcher when I got home from work, so I didn't feel so bad.

Listen to your body.  Every now and then you just need a break.

Walking it off

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

Today and tomorrow are supposed to be back in the 90's.  Sunny, hot, and humid.  Uggggh.

Just to make sure I get some exercise in today, I am continuing my morning work walk.

Walking

Based on yesterday's work walk, I know how much further I have to go to at least get a mile in.

Today I walked 1.18 miles in a time of 23.57.  Not too bad for 6:30am at work.

Of course, I exercised my butt off on my balance ball while at work (at least I wish the butt would fall off).

And as I suspected, when I got home from work, it was way to hot and humid to attempt a bike ride.

But that's okay.  I got moving some today and that's what counts.

Back to work

Monday, July 21, 2014

Back to work it is.  Got there at 5:15am (early right?) and hopped right back on the balance ball.  I have a Gaiam Eco Balance Ball 75cm.  You might think this ball is rather large and it is, but when trying to use it as your desk chair, you need it to be that big.  I am not tall at all, but this ball is perfect for me to sit at my desk and work all day, amidst exercising on it also.

Surprisingly, this ball is awesome.  Even after a long hiatus, it held its air great.  No deflation at all.

Since it is a Monday in July, I had my doubts about riding my bike after working 9+ hours.  So I compensated by taking an early morning walk.


After I got the absolute, first thing, necessities done, I took a walk.

Not a long walk, but I was moving!  Isn't that the whole point, keep moving?

So my early morning walk was only 0.74 miles in a time of 13:11.  Something is better than nothing.



Walking 7/21/14

 As it turns out, I ended up biking after work anyhow.  It was cloudy and warm, but I think the clouds made it okay.  If the sun had been out full force, it would have been rather nasty.

Biking

My tracks  today were 3.18 miles in 29.51 minutes.  I'm getting faster.  I do stop at various times for a water break, but this is good!

The reason this ride was a tiny bit longer is that if you pass the Smith Switch bike station, just a few yards further is Smith Switch Road.  I went the little bit further and turned around at the road.  Keep pushing it, go farther, that's the way to do it.


Today, walking, balance ball workouts, and a bike ride.  That's
what I call exercise (and hopefully, losing it)!

What do you think?

Back in the saddle

Sunday, July 20, 2014

Even though yesterday was rush hour on the trail, sometimes its best to stick to what you know.  A little repetition doesn't hurt when you are trying to "learn" something.  So knowing that I could do the 3+ miles from yesterday, I went and did it again today.  Practice makes perfect.

It felt a little easier today and I even added a horseshoe side road on my way home.

So today's stats are 3.48 miles in 35.11.  A little further on the bike and just a little longer time.

That's progress, right?

Step 3 - on the trail

Saturday, July 19, 2014

They say it is just like riding a bike......

Bike is road ready and I am attitude-ready!  (at least I hope my bike is road ready, we won't know until we actually get on it and get moving)

This morning, before I started my biking adventure (?), I took the hated plunge of weighing myself.  Not happy at all, but I sort of expected the number I saw on the scale.  Well, my take on that is that you have to start somewhere.  (No, I'm not quite ready to give you the scale's details, maybe when, not if, when I see some progress.)

W&OD trail rules

Up on the bike and headed toward the trail I went.

I live practically right on the W&OD trail, so it is only right that I ride on the trail.

My first bike ride, probably not the best time to start.  I found out that weekends are like rush hour on the trail.  You have your hoity-toity experts, some of which are extremely rude, and you have your moms that are teaching their 4 year olds to ride a bike, and every other level in between.

Or maybe that was the best time to start, just jump in.

So my trek today, 1st day mind you, was from my house to the W&OD trail to the Smith Switch bike station, and back home.  I went 3.03 miles and it took me 35.09 minutes.

And, my legs felt like wet noodles when I finally got home.  But, DAMN, I felt great.  I followed through with my thinking and actually did what I set out to do.  Yay me! 



My tracks
 





Oh yeah - other changes

Monday, July 14, 2014

So yesterday was the World Cup.  Germany won!  If it couldn't be the US, I was rooting for Germany.

Yesterday, was my last drink.  Okay, not really, but a major cutback.  I decided that I was drinking way too much and it was time to tame that beast.  I'm not an alcoholic, but I know that I was engaging in too much libation.

So, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, no drinking at all.  After the initial dry-out, sort of like stopping caffeine, I felt good.

My husband was leaving for the weekend and talked me into going out Thursday evening.  Not a problem, I had 2 beers.  Did I say I was way over indulging in too much liquor, yeah, that's what I really wanted to get away from.  My favorites are cinnamon vodka and jaeger.



2 beers, that's it.  No shots, no mixed drinks, just beer.

Skip ahead to today and I think in the last 2 weeks, I have had 5 (out of 13) days that I actually went out.  And only drank beer!  I think that is a major improvement.  Just think of all that sugar I cut out of my diet.  I'm patting myself on the back, I deserve it.  Sometimes you need that pat on the back to keep you going.



I think that is an awesome bad habit to cut out of my diet, don't you?

Step back a few weeks

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

It's really just a coincidence that I started this endeavor on the first of July.  Seriously, it is.

I dusted off my balance ball that I had at work.  My co-worker and I bought them last year and used them for a couple of weeks, but, I guess we lost interest.

So, pulled it back out and plopped my butt on it.  The first day, I think I only lasted 3/4 of the day.  If your butt is not used to sitting on these, it starts to ache after a while.

 

Since that first day, I have only used my balance ball to sit on at work.  After the first week of getting used to sitting on it again, I started the exercises.

My exercises included crunches, push ups, planks, and other made up movements.  I did one or a couple of these at least every 2 hours, some times more often.  I really did work at it.

I felt awesome (after the initial aches and pains).

So that's the lead story, now back to my other "losing and getting fit" chronicles.

Step 2 - Road ready

Saturday, July 19, 2014

As it turns out, I didn't really need the bike rack, at least not right now.  My husband came through and pulled out his generator and got my tires full of air and in good shape.  The tread on my tires is in very good shape (thanks to me not utilizing my bike).

He pulled out his allen wrenches and fine tuned my brakes.  I can stop on a dime now!

And that's all it took to get my bike road ready, really?

Thanks hubby!

Step 1 - Purchase a bike rack

Friday, July 18, 2014

The thinking part is over and I am motivated.  I believe that I am going to take this slow, I don't want to burn out before I even get started.

So I took a good look at my bike and realize that it is definitely not road ready.  It is about 5 or 6 years old and hasn't seen the light of day for about 4 or 5 years.

jinxygrrl's mountain bike
 

This is my mountain bike, not the best for road riding, but at the moment, it's all I got, so I will make due.

So, when I went to first pull my bike out of the garage, both tires were flat, not just flat but dead.

My brakes needed some tender loving care.

And it needed a good washing.  Tons of cobwebs.

In order to fix my bike, I needed to haul it at least to the gas station for air.  I went to Walmart and purchased a relatively cheap bike rack.  I have a Jeep, but shoving it in and out of the back is probably not a good idea.

So, here is my purchase.

Foreword

Welcome!  My name is Jinxy and this is my "losing" blog.  I am an older female who was extremely fit and slim all of my life until I started to get older.  Now, life has caught up with me.  I've tolerated it for a while, but now I am ready for a change.

This change will make me feel better, definitely, and hopefully make me look better.

I am hoping that by writing everything down, I will own up to my trials and tribulations during this effort.  They say if it is right in front of you, you can't deny it, and that by opening yourself up, you can only learn and accept.

So, I've been prepping for this, didn't dive right in, and I am ready.

That's an awesome depiction of me!

Thanks for joining me on my journey to a healthier and better fit body.  Comments are definitely welcome!  (helpful hints, criticism, encouragement, etc.)

P.S. I am going to recap the last week, so I'll be adding previous dates to the top.  Just hang in there, I'll catch up to today shortly.