Health Quest

Pax, originally uploaded by Blue I'x.

I mentioned in my last post that I am attempting to make my health a very serious priority. This is not an attempt to lose weight, but it is an attempt not to gain weight. Unless it's muscle-weight, which is fine.

Part of this is dietary. No meat at the moment, which was meant to force me into "high fibre, low fat". However, I seem to be replacing meat with dairy. Too much of it. Which is not much better for me. So now I am also focusing on cutting down on the dairy. I want vegetables, grains, fruits to be the focus of what I eat... I'm working on it day by day, some days are better than others.

The other part of this quest is activity. I've rarely been as active as I should be, with a few exceptions.

In '98 and '99, I had a summer job which had me on my bicycle 40 hours a week. Needless to say, that whipped me into shape fairly quickly. But my activity always dropped back to very-low as soon as school started again.

In January of 2003, I took up yoga and loved it. I started with 2 classes a week, but a few months later I was up to 5-6 classes a week. I believe that was the best shape I've ever been in. But in late August, my mother died and I quit yoga. I gained about 40 pounds in 6-9 months, and kept it for a couple years. Once every month or two I could convince myself to go for a jog or something, but I never stuck with any sort of routine. Apart from walking a few blocks to and from the bus stop every day, I pretty much just sat and did nothing.

In summer/fall 2006 I lost about 30-40 lbs without meaning to, and without even realizing it. I was not being any more active, I was just eating less. To the point where my friends became worried and had to point out to me that I wasn't getting enough calories in a day. It sounds strange to say, but I really hadn't known it until they said it out loud. And then it was SO obvious to me. I was eating practically nothing - I constantly felt sick and dizzy, and my clothes were all too big, but everything else in my life kept me from paying attention to it.

So then I was on a mission to make myself eat more. For a while I tried to make myself eat as much as I could in a day, just to get my daily recommended calories. But then, all of a sudden, I realized I was eating too much again. My portions were too big. I was gaining too much weight back.

So for the past year or so, I have been working on eating the right amount of the right foods. But it's not all about food. So I've been working on being more active as well. In the past year, I've worked out on average 1.6 times per week. This includes either 20-30 minutes of cardio plus stretching and strength training at the gym, a yoga class, or a full day of hiking or snowboarding. I have been tracking these things since February '07.

In November I noticed that my activity level was dwindling rapidly, so again I tried to ramp-it-up again. At this point I also started tracking my exact activity, and weight. Again, I'm not trying to lose weight. But the more I can track, the more motivated I tend to feel. In the past 4 months, I've worked out on average 2.4 times per week. This is pretty good, considering I was on Christmas vacation for 2 weeks in there (and did nothing during that time), plus a very lazy week in Mexico in January. If we take those 3 weeks out of the calculation, it's 3.1 times per week on average. Again - Not bad.

However, I've not been feeling any different. My body doesn't seem to notice the change in activity level. In the past, that type of change would have been SO apparent, in every other aspect of my life - but at the moment I still just feel like I'm not doing enough somehow. My weight has bounced around within a 5 pound range since September - up and down and up and down. Perhaps the fact that it's always the same TYPE of activity is to blame?

So Brian and I are planning to start taking yoga classes again in March, Monday and Thursday nights. I remember noticing a HUGE difference in my body with yoga in the past, so perhaps it'll give me the motivation I need to keep on this quest.

Also, my friend Heather has convinced me to give belly dancing a try. According to her it is an INCREDIBLE core workout, and it sounds fun besides. I'm waiting to see if I can start late in a class that began last week, but all signs point to yes.

So - Continuing to go to the gym on my lunchhours, plus yoga on Monday and Thursday nights, plus a bellydancing class on Tuesdays or Wednesdays - If this doesn't help me to get and stay in shape, I don't know what will.

And now, it is time to act on all this rambling, and go to the gym.