Hey ya'll, it's me again. Have you ever wondered what makes us what (notice I didn't say who) we are? Have you ever wondered what has happened in our lives that makes us either think of food as a treat, or something we deserve because we have been through so much.
As you know by now, many of us share the same traits. We are intelligent (we know we are overweight) and we are apparently motivated (weight loss and fitness are never far from our minds). We educate ourselves on solutions to the problems we face, using tools such as the internet and books and magazines. But some of us, (if this doesn't apply to you, don't get all braggy and know-it-all on me) still don't do the things that we need to do to lose weight. I still weigh over 190 pounds and am not quite 5'4". I like the way I feel for the remainder of my day after recovering from a workout. I like not having acid reflux from eating the wrong foods. Shoot, I'm even learning to swim at the ripe old age of 57. All this being said, I still find myself wanting to put 2 teaspoons of sugar and a generous splash (almost 1/4 of a cup if I'm using a big mug) of milk in my coffee and settling down with my latest book and chowing down on 2 English muffins with butter and jam. I do this, knowing that black coffee and one muffin with a piece of fruit would probably be better for me.
At Thursday's swimming class, we practiced motivating through the water using our legs only. We quickly found that I don't move through the water without using my arms. My instructor is stumped by this. At first she thought I needed to kick more from my hips and very patiently helped me improve that technique. Then we thought it was perhaps the kick board that was keeping me stationary, so I kept my arms at my sides and tried to kick my way down the lap lane. She is stumped and at the risk of working me too hard in the pool, she said I was probably one of those swimmers that would have to power myself through the water with my arms. She is being so sweet about this. But I know what is wrong. I have little strength in my legs. My legs are going through the motions, but I'm not achieving my goal of propelling myself forward.
So that is where I am right now, I'm going through the motions but I'm not getting anywhere. Am I ready to actually start doing the work that I need to do to get healthy? I have to be honest with myself, I really don't know if I am.
That's if from me today. Let's go and have some coffee and at least think about it. Love ya!
2 comments:
WoW, no comments to this one. Hmmm. Wonder what that means?
Well, first off: I think one of the reasons your legs are not propelling you has to do with the sort of kick you are using. If you are lying flat down in the water and your kick is on the surface, you will get less forward motion because all the energy is expended in getting the kick above the surface. If you want to actually find out, hang vertically, and bicycle with pointed toes..in other words flatten your foot..you will not go fast but you WILL go forward. It may be the technique as much as the strength consideration.
Additionally, being determined to achieve a goal is less easy when there are temptations around..so, if the English muffins are in the house, logic says they win over the fruit. Possibly better to divide the intake into more smaller balanced meals than deny when one feels hunger...it may be again, technique (not boosting the metabolism enough) versus strength (determination to eat sensibly). Just like in the pool, one may have to ascertain the value of determination against awareness.
Your points are good and I agree with most of them. Question is how much of the actual weight is due to snacking on available goodies rather than having to cook everything you eat...no fair fixing several meals ahead...then it's all available and there is no work to be done to gain the food. Just a thought back at you....
Post a Comment