Workout Dump: Did I break the plateau?

I need to get back to posting workouts when I do them instead of a random day when I think, “Hey, I haven’t done that in a while. I should do that.” But anyway, with the washer and dryer back up and connected, I don’t feel anxiety about producing any extra dirty clothes than absolutely necessary, and I’m back to my regular workouts. I’m still running with the weights on my arms and incorporating more body weight stuff. I think it’s working because my weight FINALLY dipped under 205. Perhaps I shouldn’t be all excited for losing one pound, but I was stuck for so long; I will take any victory I can.

The random tomato plant in my yard is producing a bunch of fantastic little fruits, and I have been throwing them into whatever or just eating them straight up. Given that I repeat a lot of meals, I limited the pictures. There’s no point in posting the same thing over and over. One hard lesson I learned is that not every food will tolerate my 3-day limit. The cute little hot dog, rice, and egg will work if I prep it on Sunday and eat it Monday and Tuesday. If I stretch it to Wednesday, I get sick. I think it’s the egg, to be honest. That’s fine. I’m good with bringing in some other meal. To save money, I have been using some frozen vegetables. I’m sure I’m violating some kind of rice commandment by putting seasoning and beans right in the rice maker along with the rice (that I did wash, of course). I’ve also limited my alcohol to weekends, and I miss my little nightcaps so much. But I can’t have them; it’s not good for me, it’s a bad coping mechanism, and it’s empty calories. Drinks should be a sometimes treat, not a nightly event. I hope this finally broke the plateau. Let’s see how the next week goes.

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Quick workout dump – 50 days to go

Since NYCC is fast approaching and I picked a formfitting dress cosplay, I am feeling the crunch. Since the repairs are mostly done and I’ve released two short stories to hopefully get some sales (the smutty pen name), I’m moving back into running. The sessions are short for now but they are more intense. I upped the speed to 4mph and put 1lb weights on my wrists for that run today. And I’m just happy to be back on Zombies Run! I missed it.

There are clearly some missing meals and that’s just because I didn’t take pictures. I mostly ate well save for hitting up a pizza place and gelato with my son at Flame Con (I had the little cup). And I cleared 10k steps, it’s fine. Anytime I go to a con or head into the city, I log a ton of steps. The only workouts I do on days like that are stretching and squats. Maybe a hundred crunches if I’m feeling feisty. But, I think I’m not doing too bad! I think with all the stress I’ve been under, the running will do me good.

 

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Workout Dump: Still peddlin!

I’m still using the Wirk desk bike or the peddler as I’m working on other things. I like to think it’s paying off as I’m down to 205. I’d creeped up close to 210 for a minute there. As long I keep up my activity, those 5 pounds should slowly fall away.

I’ve been experimenting with some different meals and out of the bunch, my favorite is that sandwich. It’s some prosciutto, cherry tomato, parmesan, a drizzle of garlic olive oil, and spicy garlic seasoning. I could have done without the chips, it was SO good. And since I have four feral cherry tomato plants in my front yard (seriously, every seed or seedling I deliberately planted died but the cherry tomatoes that withered in the fridge and I tossed outside took root) I will probably repeat this sandwich a bunch of times once those tomatoes are ripe. And the hot dogs are cut into cute shapes because the world sucks and I want some damn whimsy.

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Workout Dump: Weekend Warrior

Since I’m trying to get these side gigs to make enough money to dig me out of the hole I’m in, I’ve been sticking to shorter workouts during the week and longer ones on the weekends. I’m also back to the desk peddler. It was amazing to make it through that long run even if I had to powerwalk for the last interval. It reminds me that I can physically do these workouts; it’s just hard to find the time.

I’ve been leaving out the ramen noodles from my daily lunches. And it’s really easy to batch cook rice and portion it out for meals for the rest of the week. I did get takeout once, but it lasted me 3 meals. Not bad considering how much it is to order out these days. Most of the time, I’ve been making do with whatever is in the house, which explains meals that are simply rice and a protein. I don’t mind it much. It makes things easy when I’m exhausted and don’t want to cook when I get home. I can tell this is making some good changes. I’m not as hungry, things are timed well around what I need to do every day, and I use fewer dishes! Wins all around.

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Workout Dump: I feel good! Mostly…

Even though I’ve had to scale back a little on some days to walking because I’m sore from the running days, I still feel amazing. I’m working out more often than not, my pace is decent, and my endurance is getting better every day! Even with the heat, I’m noticing a difference. The scale hasn’t moved, but my clothes are getting loose. I still need to take more time to do strength training, but I still do 60 squats every morning and night while I’m brushing my teeth.

I am trying to eat smaller portions when it’s not a meal of mostly vegetables. I’m certain I’m getting enough nutrients since almost all of my fingernails have grown back properly. I do need to worry about my blood pressure. I don’t think it’s the salt I’m eating, since I’ve been lowering that in most meals. Stress is a factor, I’m certain of it. That’s partly why I’m working on more frequent workouts, lowering my salt even more, and solving the source of 90% of my stress: my finances. I’m budgeting wherever I can for now and looking into some gig or part-time work. I know I’ll feel better once I pay down some debt.

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Workout Dump: I need more!

I already miss the new missions… I do wonder if they’re going to continue right from where season 11 left off now that they’ve done these ‘we’re back’ missions. Either way, I gotta say again how glad I am for this app to be back in its normal state. As for me, running is getting easier, despite how horrid I perform in the heat. My stamina is increasing, and according to my scale, my body fat percentage is trending down. My actual weight hasn’t moved, but I’ll take more muscle. I don’t want to be skinny, I want to maintain my mobility as I age. I’m 45. It’s all downhill from here.

 

I have been trying to eat more fruit. That pear looks so damn funny in that picture. Just this random fucking ball on the screen. I did end up having takeout for lunch one day and tried another one of those microwave meals from Trader Joe’s. I gotta say, I think I spoiled myself by having the Itaki and having food that so fresh or that I cooked myself. Microwave meals just aren’t for me. Plus, I don’t feel so good after eating them. Not as bad as when I eat fast food, but I can tell my body isn’t happy with it.

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Today’s Workout: Game on

Does posting the notes count as spoilers? I sure hope not…

I love how shamelessly nerdy this app is. I was never a tabletop gaming person but this was still really fun. And the intervals are getting longer. I was able to get through them like a champ. I felt AMAZING after this run, even though I was really tired after work. I’m glad I did it anyway.

I am back to my signature lunches. Since they’re around 500 calories, I wasn’t very hungry after my run. I just made some popcorn. It’s also cheap. I think it was a good day! I feel pretty energized considering PMS is kicking in. We’ll see how the rest of the week goes.

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Workout Dump: Busy, busy!!

This isn’t all my workouts since I’m in the process of getting things ready for my son’s surgery. It was very sudden; someone apparently cancelled, and they offered him the spot! I am very nervous and excited for him. I know he’s been waiting for this for years, and it means a lot of preparation for the post-surgery recovery and running around to pre-surgery appointments. I’m still doing the desk peddler whenever I can, and I’m counting moving furniture as a workout.

Those pickled red onions are still a fun addition, but now, they’re joined by some garlic scape chimichuri. I had some pork chops to throw in the air fryer, which was a great dinner. I usually end up with a dry, inedible mess when I try to make pork chops. I dunno how my Gramma did it… Either way, it was a success. I didn’t want to use heavy sauce and didn’t want to waste garlic scapes, that’s where the chimichuri came in. It has a kick to it (it’s garlic scapes, yellow onion, and garlic in olive oil and red wine vinegar). Whatever I’m doing is working because I am down to 206! I honestly don’t think it’s the food. I think it’s getting back into being active.

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Workout Roundup: It’s good to be back (mostly)

As I’m easing back into things, I did push myself a bit and ran at a really easy pace when I hit the treadmill. I’m pairing that with the desk peddler. I do just enough to get my heart rate up, and by the end of it, I can tell it’s working because I am so sore. It’s gonna be a while before this is easy again.

When I say I wanted more veggies, I mean I was desperate for them. I’m back to eating solid foods. I still have to be careful and only chew on one side of my mouth. I’m also watching my portions because I lost weight when I couldn’t eat anything more solid than mashed potatoes and oatmeal and I don’t want to gain it back. And as you can see, I’m big into those pickled res onions now. I make them really fast in the fridge and even put them on sandwiches (pics at another time). I feel so much better getting back to a normal routine. 

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Today’s Workout: I am such a nerd

We’re switching things up today and starting with what I ate:

Yes, I fell for the K-Pop Demon Hunters meals. I left for work early for the Saja Boys breakfast and stopped on the way home for the Huntrix ‘dinner’ meal. I… Okay, I don’t eat fast food very often. Contrary to my waistline, I eat McD’s once or twice a YEAR. Wendy’s can be quarterly, I haven’t been to Taco Bell in like… 5 years, I think? So, on the rare occasions when I do eat it, my system feels like this:

(Image Source)

Most of my meals are my own cooked food, leftovers of that food, or takeout from local places that I eat for three days. I am NOT used to 600 calorie breakfasts and 800 calorie dinners. I average 900 a DAY because of the Saxenda. It may seem boring to you, but I don’t even drink soda. I have water, seltzer water, or unsweetened teas (if not a cocktail or beer). Yeah, the meals were kinda cool, I satisfied my FOMO, and now I can go back to never eating this stuff because I feel SO SICK. I can see how this stuff makes you fat even if you workout, because I feel so sluggish and bloated. It was kinda worth it because I don’t have to do it again. I doubt they’ll do another promotion with a property that I made my entire personality for a few months.

I’m supposed to take a running day off, but when I was putting my food into MyFitnessPal, I knew I was gonna at least take a long walk. I propped up my iPad and ignored the timer until I hit 40 minutes. It helped the guilt of eating so much fast food in one day, but I still feel like crap. I’m gonna eat so light tomorrow… Why the fuck did I do this…

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