Losing a part of me

Category: Shoes

  • Day 974

    I went for another good walk yesterday that began with a 1km jog. My times for both walking and jogging were not my best, but I still got 9km in. I am starting to think that it is high time for me to invest in a new pair of running shoes though… or possibly two, if I am going to keep at it.

    I nearly went off the rails on eating yesterday… fortunately I was able to rein myself in, and while I did have one more roll than I should have I still did not do terrible.

    My sleep score was up to 81, although somehow my fitness watch says I did not sleep until 12:30am. I suspect I lay in bed thinking for an hour, but I was in bed earlier than that for sure. My Body Battery only recharged to a 48, which is truly abysmal. I think today will be a day to take it easy and try to recover a bit. I might even take a nap.

    Come to think of it, I might just do that now. Have a great day folks.

  • Day 966

    I woke up this morning to see that my sleep score was a 68. This, after two nights in a row of the highest sleep scores I can remember (90 and 94). I don’t know what I did wrong, but I am sure I will feel it throughout the day. My body battery is an abysmal 39 at 9:30am… I have taken Princess Sophie out so I have likely depleted that somewhat, but 39? Yick.

    I did not feel like exercising yesterday. I told Leslie as we sat on the balcony after lunch that I did not want to go out for a walk… and so I did. I jogged the first kilometre (6m46s) and then walked… and while I doubt I broke any personal records, I certainly smashed my best times for this year on a couple of kilometres! Six split kilometres were under 9m32s, and one was even under nine minutes flat! I felt great throughout… but around kilometre number seven I started to feel a blister developing on my right heel. Yes, I wore one of the two pair of running shoes I have that are extremely great for performance… but also cause blisters. By the time I had 9km behind me I was ready to limp home. I didn’t of course… but I did stop at Shopper’s Drug Mart to pick up a bottle of Gatorade and to replenish my water. For the next few days, I will be wearing the other shoes that may not let me perform as well… but they also do not tear up my feet. I will also be bandaging that heel until it is properly healed.

    Here is a tip for all pedestrians: I will gladly give you right of way for a lot of reasons, but not if your eyes are buried in your phone as you walk right at me. Even if I was not 6’2” and 280 pounds, I would still walk like a bulldozer. I am not easy to miss! As I walked up Headon Forest Drive, there were two girls from the Catholic high school who were walking toward me, side by each. One of them was looking up, the other was not. I saw them from 150 feet and assumed that at some point the one girl would look up, or at least her friend would tell her that she should do so. Neither of those happened, so when I was 15 feet from them, I said (in my best Drill Sergeant’s voice) Look Up! This is not something new to me – I remember doing it when I was in Japan a decade ago. The girl freaked out, hiding behind her friend and doing her best to get as far away from me as possible. Am I that scary? I don’t know… but I will not break my stride for you if you do not look up from your phone for that long. In truth, I suspected she might call the police because she was so frightened… but I did not look back at her, and no police cruiser stopped me (From that point I stayed on the same street for over 3km… I was not hiding!) so I guess I’m okay.

    After not wanting to exercise but going out anyways, I was pleased to see another drop on the bathroom scale this morning. I did not get to cross off anything on the chart this morning, but dropping nearly a pound still felt good. I am now at my best weight since June 16! I suspect with what I have planned for today it will be the last day of losing weight… but we will see.

    Yesterday I prepared egg salad sandwiches for lunch. It was my first attempt at egg salad, and while it was not great, it was also not bad. For dinner I made seared tuna with a sesame crust and a side of rice. Leslie and I were joking that with good tuna you just need to show it the pan… but in all seriousness I think I needed to keep them on the heat a little bit longer. Live and learn, right? We had fabulous cigars in the evening, paired with two different Cuban rums that were both smoother than silk. A good time was had by all, but we were both quite inebriated by the time we hit the sack.

    I don’t know if I mentioned it this year, but I know I did last year. One of the apps that I use has a yearly challenge called You Vs. The Year. You have to log 1,024 kilometres of activity to be eligible to win the prizes (which I have no expectation of winning). Considering I was not exercising for a few months I am thrilled that I am currently at 744.89km on the year and am in the top 14.1% of 172,500 participants. Yes, it does log my walks with Sophie, so while I was not exercising at least I was not stagnating. I seem to recall last year hoping that I would complete the challenge by October. If I continue to walk as I have been these last few weeks then that is a real possibility for this year as well.

    I mentioned a few paragraphs ago that I do not expect I will be losing weight today. I am planning on picking up shawarma for a late lunch. More often than not that is a recipe for gaining weight. I will likely not have much for dinner, but it won’t matter… shawarma is both fattening and salty, which means that tomorrow my weight will almost certainly be up. It is also extremely tasty… and a nice occasional treat that my wife and I both love.

    I am not sure if I am going to walk today or not. The only reason why I would not is the blister on my heel. We’ll see.

    Have a great day folks!

  • Day 796

    Yesterday was a wonderful day from beginning to end. IY”H every day should be as good.

    After the ridiculously long, stressful, and expensive two-day span that was Saturday into Sunday, I landed in Cuba only one hour later than I had originally planned for, and was at my apartment by 4:30pm. I did not unpack, but I did go into my suitcase to find a pair of shorts and my sandals (I had changed into a short-sleeve shirt on the plane from Toronto to Houston) and I went out to meet my buddy only a few minutes later than expected. He and I spent the evening together, enjoying a coffee and then dinner… followed by another snack a little later. I was back in my apartment by 11:00pm, and while I was quickly running out of juice, I had to unpack and organize my kit before turning in. I turned on the water heater so that I would be able to shower before getting into bed, which I was finally able to do by 12:30am. I slept like the dead.

    I seldom eat well on travel days, and what with all of the stress and anxiety of the entire ordeal Sunday was no exception. After everything, I should have turned it off… but as we sat in the cafe-bar toward the end of the evening, as Johnny devoured his desert I compounded it by indulging in a plate of French fries. I knew it was wrong… and I did not and do not and will not feel bad or apologize for it. My step count for the day was 14,000, and my stress count was through the roof. I deserved every morsel and every calorie that I ate Sunday.

    Yesterday would have to be better… and it was. I did not eat breakfast, partially because the restaurant I had planned to eat at was not open yet, but also because I met a few guys from Kentucky at my buddy’s cafe and nibbled on a piece of their toast. For lunch I had a plate of pasta (which in Cuba is a reasonable size, and not what one might get in a restaurant in North America). Dinner was a plate of fried plantains and a chicken dish that likely had the nutritional value (or lack thereof) of an order of General Tao’s chicken… but again it was a reasonable size. I walked 17,000 steps throughout the day, enjoyed many cigars and cups of coffee, and the company of a few friends I always see when I’m here. In the balance, yesterday was a weight-plan success.

    After dinner I went back to Johnny’s bistro for another cigar and a video call, and I ran into the guys from Kentucky who joined me for a cigar… and pulled out a bottle of very fine bourbon. I relaxed until closing and then walked with Johnny as far as my apartment, where I picked up another cigar and then went to see my friend Gloria at her work. She and I chatted until nearly 3:00am, at which point I headed back to my place and had a very good (if short) sleep.

    This morning I ordered a plate of fried eggs and toast, and a couple of cups of coffee. Depending on whether or not people I met show up or not, I will either be leading a tour today, or I will just do my own thing in Habana Viella. While it would be great if they do show up, my day will likely be no better or worse if they do or not… it will just be different.

    My goal is to register 15,000 steps or more every day in Havana. That should not be a difficult goal to achieve, and will likely do much more than that some days. The only thing I need to be aware of is the state of my feet, remembering the problems I had with them on my last trip. Those problems started with a lot of steps in a pair of sandals that were probably well past their expected lifespan (measured in steps, not in age). I gave that pair away, and am wearing another pair that I had… which are older, but not nearly as well worn. After a day and a half in them (and over 30,000 steps) my feet seem fine, so I am optimistic. I brought running shoes just in case, but so far so good. If I need to then I will switch out for runners, but if I can manage it then my other goal is to return to Canada without having worn a single pair of socks the whole trip. We’ll see…

    If the group does not show up then I am planning to have a pizza for either lunch or dinner. The other meal will likely be fish or pasta. We’ll see. I did not feel the need to snack yesterday and while I was peckish by about 12:30am, I did nothing about it and went to bed a little hungry. I would have had to be much hungrier to decide to eat after 11pm. If I can make it through today without snacking then it will absolutely be another good food day.

    It has been some time since I wrote about my bowel movements, but this morning was so good that I feel I should mention that my system is working well, and I suspect that it was ridding my body of all the garbage I ate Sunday. As I walked toward my buddy’s bistro for breakfast I felt five pounds lighter.

    On the negative side, I was extremely disappointed with myself yesterday morning when I put on one of my new shirts and it was tight. I could have gotten away with it, but decided against it and changed into something looser. Hopefully within a few days I will try it on again with better results. While I am well aware that hope is not a strategy, I am truly hoping I can make that happen.

    It is now approaching 10:00am and my group is not here. As I said, either they will show up… or they will not. Either way…

    …have a great day!

  • Day 447

    I am not sure why I was not able to jog farther than I did yesterday. I pulled up at a little over 5.5km, opting to powerwalk the rest of the way. The two workouts combined for 12.9km, respectable by any measure. I just do not know why I stopped running. My legs were not bothering me, nor were my lungs. There was just an overall feeling of… something. While the walking did not break any records for me, it was certainly much faster paced than it had been since I started jogging, with my last complete kilometre clocking at 9m16s, which is not too shabby! My jogging pace was quite respectable as well, with three of my 5.6km clocked at 7.16s or faster. This morning I will hit the trails once more and see how much farther I can jog than I did yesterday. I might try to run the same path, only hopefully I will get farther before slowing my pace.

    Jogging

    • Distance: 5.6km (4.09km)
    • Duration: 41:34 (34:22)
    • Average Pace (Min/km): 7m25s (8m24s)
    • Steps: 6,435 (5,200)
    • Calories burned: 576 (450)
    • Average cadence (steps per minute): 155 (151)

    Walking

    • Distance: 7.3km
    • Duration: 1:11:06
    • Average Pace (Min/km): 9m44s
    • Steps: 9,950
    • Calories burned: 689
    • Average cadence (steps per minute): 140

    Leslie and I had a conversation about my running shoes last week. Most experts say that running shoes have a life expectancy, and a quick glance at the studies online shows me that most of my shoes are ready to be retired. There is one pair that is an exception to that, but most of my running shoes are approaching what looks like their golden years. That is before we even consider the fact that every pair of running shoes that I own knew my feet when I was well over 300 lbs., which would be a big factor in further reducing the life expectancy of them. All this to say that I think it is about time I look into ordering a new pair or two… especially if I am going to do a lot of running over the spring and summer.

    I have to drive into Toronto this afternoon for a meeting, which will be a bit of a schmooze-fest, but it is with someone who knows a lot of people in my industry and is going to try to get me interviews with a few companies. Knowing my current situation, I am not sure how I feel about taking a job in Canada… but contracts are always good, and it never hurts to know more people. This person was introduced to me by a former colleague who I respect, and who respects me; he would not knowingly be wasting my time. The only complication with that is the driving to and from the city… mostly from, based on the timing. I will likely stay put until the worst of the rush hour traffic is past, and then drive back to Burlington. To be safe, I will take my Taekwondo kit with me, because I would really like to get to class this evening.

    Okay, so I ran yesterday… and I walked. I also got back on the full-fast program and did not have any issues on that front. I did notice I was a little peckish as I lay in bed, but I am sure that was more mental than physical; I did not lie awake with hunger pangs; it was more of a quick ‘I think I’m a bit hungry’ as I spoke with Leslie… who reminded me that I was probably not hungry at all. She was right! I told her during our conversation that I was expecting my weight to drop dramatically from yesterday (when it rose dramatically). She reminded me that I had been off my program for ten days, and I should not expect to lose it all in one day. I assured her that I expected it would take at least a week to shed all the weight I had gained. After all, I was a whopping nine pounds heavier than my best weight (March 31, eleven days ago). The bathroom scale was very kind to me this morning, giving me back an incredible four pounds of progress, and dropping me, once again, below that dreaded 260 lbs. mark. While I am still five pounds from my best weight ever, I am only three pounds heavier than I was the morning I flew to Dallas eleven days ago… which was the morning after I had a pretty big cheat meal because of the scare with my bowels. I am feeling good, and while my hemorrhoids are still bothering me, the other bowel issues (which came with stomach cramps) seem to be gone. Nonetheless, I will still be speaking with my doctor about the issues tomorrow, and we will discuss if it is safe for me to continue on the full fast program… at least for another six weeks or so.

    Another issue I plan to discuss with my doctor tomorrow is my ADHD medications. The first couple of months on them I felt like a new man, with a renewed energy and focus, while being able to sit still without interrupting people all the time. These last few weeks – possibly since the last dosage increase – I have not felt quite so focused; at first, I thought it was just me, but when Leslie asked about it, I realized that it is real, and that I had better speak with the doctor. That meeting is tomorrow morning, which works out perfectly because tomorrow I will take the last pill in my previous prescription. I had called the pharmacy to renew, but if I do not collect the pills, and I get a new prescription from my doctor tomorrow, then they will simply cancel the old one and give me the new dosage… or new medication, as the case may be. That is not a subject that I am expert in and will listen to what the doctor has to say about it.

    Over the next two hours the temperatures should be jumping from the current 8° to 14° at 10:00am and peaking at 19° from 2-6pm. It is partly cloudy out, and while there was a bit of a breeze as I walked Her Floofness this morning, it was no worse than that. From 2:00pm the forecast calls for high winds, which seem to die down by 7:00pm. It looks like if all goes well, by the time I get home from Taekwondo this evening, the weather will be perfect to enjoy a cigar on the balcony. I finished my book yesterday afternoon, which means I should be giving some thought to my next read. I think I am going to continue with the current trend – I am listening to an audiobook that is fiction and will look for something in non-fiction to read on my e-book reader. An old friend of mine has written several books on cybersecurity, including one on the Dark Web that I have been meaning to read for a couple of years. <ten minutes later> I just reached out to him to ask if he thinks it is still relevant. Hopefully I will get an answer before it is time to read!

    My plans for today, with regard to my weight management program, are to stay on track and stay mindful. I will be going for my jog around 10:00am, after which I will come home, shower, answer any e-mails I may get, and then have my second meal replacement before heading out to Toronto. I will be taking my third meal replacement with me so that I can have it in the car before Taekwondo and will then have my fourth shake after Taekwondo (and before my cigar, should I be able to enjoy one). Staying on track and staying mindful are the best way to guarantee that I get back on track this week. I know that unless I have another tremendous weight drop tomorrow, I will not have lost weight between doctors’ visits for the first time since January. It’s okay though. I made the conscious decision to go off the program for good reason, and I stand by it. The fact that it coincided with a week of not being able to exercise did hurt a little, but I am back on track, and the weight will continue to come off. Mindfulness and focus are how I will ultimately succeed.

    Have a great day folks!

  • Day 418

    Leslie and I spent a lovely day together yesterday, and I picked up some new workout gear at the outlet mall. I really only had one long-sleeve shirt for jogging, as well as one pair of sweatpants… and in Canada I have at least another two and a half months of needing them before the mostly guaranteed warm weather of June. We also walked about 5,000 steps at the mall, which was good because I knew I would not be jogging.

    Before we headed out, we had a similar lunch to the previous day. Veggie burgers on a Canadian roll, with the rest of the salad I had made for dinner Friday. For dinner we had our second planned indulgence – dim sum. Both meals were delicious, planned, and well-deserved. Having read my article from yesterday, Leslie mentioned that she was sorry that I had gained weight since arriving. I told her that I was/am not sorry… I know I have been working so hard to lose weight for so long, and once in a while I deserve to let myself enjoy a little food. I especially enjoy being able to share the meals with her. For this evening I picked up a very nice piece of tuna which I just put into lemon juice to marinate, and which I will prepare with sesame and soy sauce. Leslie will prepare the rice. Dinner will be served after my class (which will end at 8:00pm local time). Weather permitting, we will likely finish the evening with a cigar on the balcony.

    Speaking of the weather… I woke up at about 4:45am this morning and could not fall back asleep. I sat in bed playing on my phone for nearly an hour, then tried, again unsuccessfully, to nod off. Leslie noticed that I was squirming a lot, and I decided rather than disturbing her, I would start my day with a jog… or at least, that was the plan. I decided, once outside (and once I realized that it was 41° outside) to go for a short and very brisk walk. I suppose 2.4km is not really short, but when I set out to exercise it is usually for much longer than that. I will probably go out for a proper jog this afternoon when the temperatures are forecast to rise to the mid-50s, but the morning is cool and rainy, and I am just as happy staying in and getting some paperwork done.

    These last couple of days I had not mentioned anything about my inability to move my bowels, but it was something I was going to write about this morning… especially after I once again sat unproductive on the throne before heading out into the cold. Well as it turns out, shortly after I sat down to write, I got the urge… and was indeed quite productive. I suspect that had I been able to do that earlier, my weight this morning would have been down and not up. Despite my protestations to the contrary, I was a little concerned that it was a lack of fibre in my diet, and that when I finally did, that it would be painful. In the end (no pun intended), it was not painful at all. I suspect that my body simply got confused by my sudden transition back to solid foods these last few days. I did mention to Leslie that I wanted to buy fibre powder while I was here, but that is to bring home to Canada. There is a serious price difference in a lot of things that I simply try to buy in the USA to save money on.

    Leslie and I have decided to stick to our tried-and-true Salad and Go lunch for today. In the afternoon I had planned to pop over to the lounge for an hour or two but knowing that I want to jog and then take a nap in the afternoon will probably put an end to that. I do want to drop in to pick something up, but I will not hang around there. Whether I jog or not is still to be determined; considering what time I woke up this morning, the nap will be non-negotiable.

    I am disappointed that I had to order a new belt in a Size-38. I was all excited that of the eight pair of pants I have in that size, one of them fits, and so I was thinking (wrongly) that meant that I could go down a size on the belt as well. I am not returning the two new belts that I bought, but I did by one more belt in my current size. I also bought a new pair of shoes to match it, and I am looking forward to taking my beautiful bride out for dinner Saturday evening. We dressed up for Mexican food the other night, and we can do it again for whatever we decide to eat this weekend.

    Speaking of clothing, I am frustrated because I know how loose my Size-38 jeans are on me, and yet just a week or two ago when I tried on my Size-36 jeans they were nowhere close to fitting. While it is possible that I have really shrunk down that much since I last tried them on, I doubt it. What is possible is that I was wearing these when they were really tight, and they stretched a little bit. When I am back home next week I will pull out that last bin and see where we are (again), but I am not holding my breath… or at least, I will only hold in my breath while trying to squeeze into the smaller size!

    Have a great day folks!

  • Forty-Niner in Six!

    Today was another day that I just did not feel like walking. Not only did I not have the get-up-and-go; not only was it hot outside; I woke up with pains in my shin, and figured that if I was overdoing it, I should take a rest before I actually get hurt.

    I also knew that when I woke up with my legs feeling the pain, it was a scant twelve hours since I had finished yesterday’s walk, and if I stayed on schedule – that is, walked toward the end of the afternoon/early evening – then my muscles would have another ten hours to recover. In the end, I decided to go for it. Yes, I was tired… but that did not stop me. Indeed, when I hit the road, I decided to walk further out than I had heretofore ventured. I walked up Walker’s Line to Dundas – a 2.5km jaunt – and then Dundas to Guelph Line, which is about 2km. Looking at a map of my walk, it looks like it is nearly a perfect square (Walkers Line – Dundas – Guelph Line – Upper Middle). I expect there is a group of urban planners out there somewhere who are quite proud of that.

    I was ready to stop for a rest several times, and when I got an urgent call just short of the 7km mark, I saw it as a perfect opportunity to sit for a few minutes. The positioning of my stop had the added benefit of being right near a convenience store, which was good because my water bottle was now empty. Forget the hydration, I needed electrolytes! Seeing the large fridge with every flavour Gatorade could have brought a lesser man to tears. A bottle of Cool Blue G-Zero was exactly what the doctor called for to fuel the last two-kilometres of my excursion.

    • Distance: 9.03 km (8.5 km)
    • Duration: 1:36:44 (1:33:00)
    • Average Pace (Min/km): 10:42 (10:56)
    • Best Split-Pace Kilometre: 10m19s
    • Steps: 11.7k (10.8k)
    • Calories burned: 1,073 (991)
    • Elevation gain: 40.0 (34.1)
    • Average cadence (steps per minute): 120 (116)

    My outing today did not break any records, but I am not competing with anyone but myself, and my goal is not to win races, it is to lose weight and to get into shape. As such, this workout was a resounding success, and I am quite proud of it. I am also proud that today was the sixth consecutive day that I went for a fitness walk, ranging in distance from seven to nine kilometres.

    I have been on the fence all day about something. Yesterday I journaled that I was going to try to reach fifty-five kilometres in seven days. Earlier today, I wavered, thinking that if I did go out today, then I might take a break tomorrow… but if I was able to walk ten kilometres today, then that would give me fifty kilometres in six days. While I fell short of that by one kilometre, that does not mean that I have to be done for the week. I can still go out tomorrow, and even if I stop short at 6 kilometres, I will still achieve my original stated goal of fifty-five kilometres on the week. We will see.

    One thing is certain: while I am proud and thrilled that I have walked six days in a row, I do know that at some point I am going to have to take a day off to let my legs recover. Be that tomorrow or Monday, or even later, it is going to happen in the next few days. I love pushing myself, but I learned in the Army (the hard way) the difference between a pain and an injury. I can obviously endure a little pain, but I am nearly thirty years older than I was in unit training, and at my age when you ignore pains they will lead to injuries. I do not want that.

    My left heel did not bother me at all today. I did feel that my right shoe was a little tight, and that the (much less severe) blister on that foot might be a little bothersome – it is not causing pain, but there is definitely some swelling in my foot, which is causing the heel of my right foot to push against the shoe. If I do go out tomorrow, I will wear one of my more forgiving pair of shoes. I will not get the same performance, but I also want to give any swelling the opportunity to go down.

    It is time to hit the showers folks, and then I have a date with an angel! See you tomorrow!

  • Day 191

    I made a huge mistake while preparing for my walk yesterday. I compounded it by not listening to my body. Those mistakes will take time to recover from.

    A year and a half ago, I bought a pair of running shoes that I thought were really cool. I wore them once, and never again. I could go into the reasons behind that, but suffice it to say that they are a very different pair of shoes, and I do not remember them being uncomfortable so much as they were weird.

    I decided to try them again yesterday. I laced them up and headed out. I should mention that I was exhausted, and really wanted to go to sleep, not for a walk. If I am going to do this, if I am going to train my brain to exercise daily, then sometimes I will have to force myself to go out, even when I do not want to. Yesterday was one of those days, and I decided I would do a quick eight kilometres and be done with it. Leslie will attest that when I started, I told her that these nearly-new shoes looked and felt like they were going to be really fast.

    I started my walk, and was trying to figure out if the soles were just tight, or what else was going on. I do not think my feet actually started to hurt until after the first kilometre, but I do remember thinking that if I turned back to change shoes I would likely not go back out. I kept going.

    After two kilometres I sat down for a couple of minutes, mostly to loosen the laces on the shoes. I hoped that would make things better. At the end of the third kilometre I sat down and realized that my heels were blistered and probably worse, and that going further would likely cause an injury. I sat down for a respite before turning back. While I continued to measure progress on my app, I knew that my return journey would not be a fast one… Indeed, I needed to stop a couple of times again.

    This morning my heels are indeed blistered. I will go to Shopper’s Drug Mart on my lunch to pick up larger square bandages that I can hope to heel them with while still walking. Still and all, I might have to take today off my walking routine. If I can protect the heels then great, but if I cannot then I do not want to damage them further, exacerbating whatever time off I need to take.

    It is a beautiful day, and I am excited to have the weekend ahead of me. This evening my wife and I have a date to light the Sabbath candles and then have a drink and a cigar on the patio, and I am looking forward to that. I miss her more than I can say, and if I cannot hold her then at least I can see her and talk to her.

    It is late morning, and I am already looking forward to my lunch. I have prepared the salad, and there are two pieces of chicken that are seasoned and sitting in my air fryer, just waiting for me to turn it on at 12:05. I feel like a goldfish. When I am hungry, it feels like I will always be hungry. I forget that when I have a big lunch, I will be sated until the end of the day’s meal replacements. Instead, I am thinking that I should be planning what to prepare for dinner, because I know I will be hungry again. These are just some of the bad attitudes that I am talking about when I say I need to break my unhealthy relationship with food. Stop thinking to the next meal before you have eaten this meal!

    Have a great day folks!

  • Day 187

    Yesterday was more successful than I had planned… and my weight was still up this morning. I was up more than half a pound from yesterday… but as I have said, it is the trend and not the individual points on the graph that are important.

    I suspect that one of the reasons that my weight was up because this morning I did not have a successful bowel movement today. I know, that is not a pleasant topic of conversation, but it is an important one when discussing weight loss. I hope tomorrow will be more successful.

    How can I be more successful than planned? I had my morning meal replacement, I had my mid-day meal (around 2pm really), and after my nap and fitness walk (which was done by about 8:15pm) I had another meal replacement. I could have had a third one, but I decided not to. One fewer meal replacement makes my weight management program more successful, right? Wrong. The nutrition in that shake, both proteins and others, are important for my weight loss. It would have been a bad idea for me to have two meal replacements between the end of my walk and bedtime. What I should have done was have my second one before the walk. Lesson learned.

    Today has gone well so far… I had my breakfast shake, I had lunch at 1:00pm, and when my class is over (around 5:30pm) I will have my second meal replacement, before taking Princess Sophie for her walk. I expect that once she comes back in, I will be able to go for my fitness walk. It might not be the same 7-9 kilometres I did every day last week, but I will try for at least 6-7km. I am not going to map it out, but I will do what I can without hurting myself.

    I mention hurting myself because I drained two blisters on the bottom of my feet this morning, so both feet were feeling it when I took Sophie for her walk. I am sure that as long I choose the proper footwear, I should be okay.

    I hope to get more sleep tonight than I did last night… I had a lot of trouble falling asleep, and there is no reason that I can think of other than my class. Hopefully this evening will be better.

    Have a great day folks!

  • The First 47.5

    I was not feeling energetic today. I had my support call at 11:00am, and then I went shopping. My intention was to come home from shopping, make lunch, and then after lunch I would get dressed and go for my walk. That is not quite how it worked out, because after lunch I sat around like a lazy slob until I finally lay down for a nap.

    I was not going to let today go to waste, but it is my last day before I start teaching again. I also knew that I had walked my tail off all week, and if I decided to take the day off, it would not be a crime.

    NO! I do not know how my schedule is going to work starting tomorrow. I hope I will be able to do my fitness walking in the evenings, but how can I be sure that after a long day of lecturing that I will have the koach in me? Tomorrow will be telling… but today is today.

    I got out of bed, ready to go for a fitness walk… only to be thwarted by a cute little princess who wanted to go for a walk too… only she does not fitness walk, she saunters, sniffs, and pees. Nevertheless, her walking is much more of a priority than my own, so even though I was dressed to work out, I collected her leash and…

    One of my earbuds was gone. I have written a few times about my Jaybird Vista earbuds, and how I have twice lost one, to have the company replace it for me each time. Aside from the fact that I have had them a year and a half and the warranty is long expired, I suspect I have pushed my luck with them as far as I can get away with. I looked everywhere, but it was nowhere to be found. I must have lost it along my walk with Princess Sophie this morning, or on my way in from shopping… which means that in all likelihood, were I to find it, it would be rain drenched and useless. I sighed, resigned to the fact that I would have to invest in a new pair soon enough.

    We walked down through the lobby and … what was sitting on the floor, inside the dry lobby, but an ear bud!? I was thrilled to find it. I am sure that soon enough I will need to invest in a new pair, but I am glad that is not today.

    I took Her Royal Floofness for her walk, and when we came back in, I gave her a treat, and set out again. I was not sure how far I would comfortably walk today, considering a couple of blisters on my feet, and the fact that there were severe thunderstorm warnings for the next couple of hours. The sun was still blue, so I put on my shoes with the thickest soles, along with my thick gym socks, and I headed out.

    While the shoes that I selected are likely the best for walking with blisters, and are likely the only ones that fit with the thick socks, I have never had a good split-pace time wearing them. Today was no different, with an average pace of 10m52s per kilometre.

    • Distance: 8 km (8.06 km)
    • Duration: 1:27 (1:24:05 minutes)
    • Average Pace (Min/km): 10:52 (10:26)
    • Steps: 10.1k (9.9k)
    • Calories burned: 460 (467)
    • Elevation gain: 36m (23m)
    • Average cadence (steps per minute): 116 (118)

    One thing I should mention is that when I adjust the units of measure on my online apps, I should make sure to reset the apps on my phone. The MayMyWalk app decided to let me know my split pace times at intervals of 625 metres, which was really disconcerting. For those who are curious, the best I could come up with is that there are 6.25 miles in 10 kilometres, so when I switched the app units of measure from Imperial to Metric, something weird happened. I’ll reset it now that I am home.

    So why the title, The First 47.5? It is of course a play on words of the title of the television show The First 48; From Monday to Sunday, I walked 47.5 kilometres.

    • Monday: 9.03 km
    • Wednesday: 8.0 km
    • Thursday: 8.0 km
    • Friday: 6.5 km
    • Saturday: 8.06 km
    • Sunday: 8.0 km

    The drive from my apartment to Toronto Pearson International Airport is 46.5km. In the (for Canada) blistering heat, I could have walked to the airport this week… and right to my gate. I am calling this a very successful week, but likely an anomalous one… I do not suspect that the next four weeks, when if I can walk it will be in the evenings after a long day of work, I will be able to walk nearly as far. Not a problem though… as long as I do not quit!

    Tomorrow morning, I will wake up and do my morning routing, and then after I walk Princess Sophie, I will sit down to teach. I am looking forward to being back in front of a class. I do not know if I will be fitness walking tomorrow, both because of the class but also because of the even more blisters on my feet now than I had earlier today. We will have to see.

    Have a great evening folks!

  • Two Birds, One Stone

    I had two errands that needed to get done today. I had a prescription to pick up from the pharmacy, and I wanted to buy some tomatoes for my salad. I mentioned earlier that I was planning a shorter walk, so I decided to combine the two. I planned out a route that had both my pharmacy and a supermarket along it, and set out.

    One thing I should mention is that I never realized what a difference a pair of socks can make. I put on a pair of gym socks that I dug up (and which looked like they had never been worn), and put them on. I then went to put on my new Adidas running shoes, only to realize that they do not fit! Yes, I have worn them comfortably a couple of times already, so either my feet are very badly swollen, or the socks make that much of a difference. Rather than switching out the socks, I picked a different pair of shoes that I know are a bit looser.

    • Distance: 6.5 km (8.0 km)
    • Duration: 1:10:13 (1:26:40 minutes)
    • Average Pace (Min/km): 10:47 (10:50)
    • Steps: 8k (9.8k)
    • Calories burned: 375 (460)
    • Elevation gain: 19m (29.8)
    • Average cadence (steps per minute): 114 (114)

    I did find the walking/biking trail I was looking for, and it was nice to have a couple of kilometres without the hustle and bustle of traffic around me.

    Okay… now it is time for me to take a really nice shower, and then start preparing my lunch