Losing a part of me

The weather has to play a big factor in my walking performance. Frankly, so does how well rested I am between walks. I have had eight days of rest since my last outing, and with a very light drizzle, the temperature was hovering around 20° Celsius… and I broke the record for the three most important stats that I track: Best overall average pace, best split-pace kilometre, and best overall average cadence. I happen to know, from having looked down at my watch at exactly the right moment, that my best per-mile was also shattered, at 14m49s.

• Distance: 9.2 km (7 km)
• Duration: 1:27:44 (1:09:46)
• Average Pace (Min/km): 9:29 (9:58)
• Best Split-Pace Kilometre: 9m10s (9m40s)
• Steps: 11.4k (8.5k)
• Calories burned: 1,127 (832)
• Elevation gain: 27.8 (31)
• Average cadence (steps per minute): 128 (122)

I was noticing a few things about myself as I walked. My belly does not appear to be jiggling like it did. While I know it is slightly smaller, I suspect that I am holding it firmer than I used to. As well, when I am walking, I keep my jaw very clenched. I am going to have to figure out what to do about that… although I suspect it is not the worst thing in the world.

My first eight kilometres all registered under 10m00… and while my best (and record-breaking) split-pace kilometre was actually kilometre six, I actually broke my previous best on four of them and tied it on one more.

I was really pushing myself today, to be sure… but there is another factor that I cannot discount the importance of. I am simply carrying less weight than I was. The more weight that I lose, the less weight that I am carrying, the better walking performances I register. It is as simple as that, so I expect that over the next eight weeks or so – before the first snows come – I will be breaking even more records.

This morning Leslie was talking to me about the pace of my weight loss. She is truly amazed by my progress, and that I have stuck with it. She noted that if I keep it up, I should be under the 300-pound mark by New Years Eve. I told her that if I keep up my current pace, I will hit that mark sometime in the next nine weeks. My logic: From July 6 to August 24, a seven-week period, I lost 13lbs on the doctor’s scale. I am less than sixteen pounds from that mark now, so nine weeks is a fair estimate. If it is ten weeks, then that’s life… but I would like to do it by November 22^nd if I can… and I would really like to be able to wear my blue suit on that day, for reasons I will discuss later.

As long as I do not fall off the wagon, it looks like I will be able to call the year 2022 The Year I Lost 100-Pounds. Wouldn’t that be something?

As I mentioned earlier, I am going to Montreal for a few days tomorrow. It has been a few years since I have done this, but I have to remember to schedule fitness walking into my daily routine there. I will bring the appropriate outfits (including training pants, a windbreaker, and a hat of some sort), but I have to force myself to do it. Whether that is around the outskirts of the city where I am staying, or if I drive up to Mount Royal, park my car there, and walk on the mountain… I have to keep exercising. It is bad enough that this trip will interfere with my Taekwondo plans, I cannot let it break my fitness regimen, which has already been broken these last couple of weeks. I am not going to push myself to my limits, but I do want to get my walking in… especially since I will likely have a couple of not-entirely-healthy meals while I am there.

It is time to hit the showers, and then make myself a meal replacement. The weather is not the greatest, but it is still nice enough that I can put on a sweatshirt and sit out on the balcony with a cigar. That is how I will spend my evening. Make sure you enjoy yours!