“Walk, Walk, Walk!”

If you’ve used Leslie Sansone’s walking programs, you will know this.  We jokingly pretend to be chickens sometimes, but my 18 month old grandson has it down pat!  And this morning all three of them joined me for the warm up!

This has been a wise decision – variety, choice and being at home – all have me doing at least half an hour of fitness walking 6 days a week.

I’ve also been pretty good at getting over 10000 steps in, at least 5 days a week. Tracking them may be a problem now because my tracker flipped out of the band.  This is sad.  And I’m not sure what to do about it – except to keep looking for it!

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I lucked out at Value Village and got one of her books which I have been using to journal my walk. Because I have her monthly walks on the iPad, I don’t follow the walking program but I do appreciate her reminder to take my vitamins!  If you can find it at a reasonable price, I’d say grab one!

The other thing I did last week was to take a waist measurement – 44 inches.  Hopefully I’ll remember to check that once a month!  But the best encouragement of all is that my daughter can notice a difference.

Keep on keeping on!

Marcia

Catch Up Time!

One of the joys of walking with my dogs and grandchildren is the changing scope of nature.  Sadly I often leave my phone and its handy camera at home and I miss capturing their wonder.  But we were so excited to get so close to this  mallard hen on one walk, and to be able to observe the Great Blue Heron (aka Wild blue flamingo!) on several occassions.

My weightloss numbers are horrible – and rising higher ( not the plan at all!)  My graph reminds me that life is not linear and even though the line is nice and neat, the reality of it isn’t.  Then my daughter reminds me that this is a journey, and I know from experience that journeys never go quite as planned, but I always reach my destination.

I can’t remember which day I started this post, but I’m planning to end it today!  It’s June 5, 2017 and I have lost exactly ONE pound since I started this Walking App.  However… that’s not the whole story – so here is a quick summary!

• I’m not bored by the program but grateful for the variety it gives, in addition to the daily dog and grandchildren walks.
• I’m brisker when I think about being brisk – especially on those days I’m only with the dogs.  It’s hard to be brisk with an toddler – unless they’re bent on escaping!
• I do stairs more fluidly, especially first thing in the morning.

If I could locate my phone – I would have better numbers, but I do know that I am getting over 10000 steps in most days.  This is also encouraging for me!

When the journey is long, it is best to be slow and steady – to make small changes and persist in maintaining those changes over the long haul.  Here’s to June and further adventures with the flora and fauna in our neighbourhood.

Cheers, and walk well.

Maric

 

 

 

Mixing Things Up…

It’s been a few days – what with a deluge of rain, emergencies and a final assignment, but I am still keeping on!

I’m sad to report that our mama goose has lost her nest.  I thought she might be okay after the first set of rainy days but the last two did her in.  On Sunday the sun came out and has been shining gloriously (until this evening).  We were pretty sad to see her gone.  The mushroom has survived but it is much smaller – more like a saucer.

I’m still on pace for the pound a week, which is a positive.  The weekend craziness meant NOT doing my Daily walk, but I still got out to do some dog and grandchild walks.  They are always great and we are becoming very alert to the changes in nature.

Today was pretty war-like as the geese along the creek are still defending territory.  THe girls were quite startled by the four of them zipping under the bridge!  And a squirrel learnt quite emphatically not to mess with nesting robins.  No pictures of those events, but you can see our lost nest, the shrinking mushroom, a redwinged blackbird and a downy woodpecker – all of which I was able to spot again this evening.

I hope you enjoy the pictures and the update.  Let me know if it helps keep you on your path as well!

Good night.

Marcia

6800 Steps and Counting!

I currently am feeding three blogs – this one, Healthy, Wealthy and Wiser, and another more thoughtful, life journey blog, A Journey of Ten Years.  Each of them chronicles a different interest over the years, and I want to keep these plants growing.  However, this is the one that needs feeding the most!

Meeting goals is important – and good health should be high on our priority list! I don’t know what kinds of challenges I will face, but I know that health is vital to facing them well!  So as long as I stay focused… I will be here at least 4 times a week, chronicling this rendition of the “Getting Healthy” March!

It’s just after 10 am, and I’ve walked the dog, drank my smoothie, and done the WALK.  It was another 3 miler, so my steps are already over 6800.

But those long workouts take a toll – especially when you are on the obese end of the BMI.  My feet and knees are complaining!

What I’m going to try for the rest of May is to alternate the long walks with shorter walks.  I’m also going to stay with a three mile limit for the first month or so.  What I want to achieve is “a fitness walk a day” and an average of 10000 steps per day for the month of May.

Thanks for the encouragement…every visit does that for me!  And here’s hoping you are encouraged to keep moving towards a healthier life!

Walk well!

Marcia

 

 

Week One Update

I’m not on my phone for this one, so possibly another picture from my walking adventures in Beijing or Korea…those are on my computer.

My focus this week was on the walking steps, not on what I was eating.  I did all or part of a Leslie Sansone workout every day.  I have to say again that I like the variety and choice available in the app.  Right now the walks have cost me $10 each ($70 divided by 7 walks = $10 per walk).

I have enjoyed walking with our dogs and my grandchildren.  Seeing nature change every day is something that we can give ourselves and our families, simply by walking the same route every day or so.

Because I was so focused on the 10000 steps, I did some crazy antics to get there, but there is a great deal of satisfaction to be had when the goal is met.  And this morning I did weigh myself – after coffee – and found that I did indeed lose a pound this week!

Happy for that too!

At the top onf the mountain

THe locks that make the climb necessary

Near the geocache.

A vew of Seoul.

These photos are of a climb I did in Seoul, South Korea.  This is Nansam Mountain and I blogged about it at A Journey of Ten Years.  Suffice it to say that walking does get you places and seeing interesting things.

Have a great week, and I hope  you are encouraged by my journey!

Marcia

Mushroom Surprise!

Yesterday I did not make my step goal but we managed some walks between a massive rain storm and grandmotherly tasks such as childcare, cooking, and cleaning up.  

Even though we walk here almost every day, we were blown away by the mushroom that is about the size of a dinner plate!!!

I love this combination of indoor and outdoor walking.  Today is day 7 since I bought the Walking app.  I have to say that so far I’m very happy.

Adjustments

Yesterday was a bit of a weird day.  Short walks, long walks and going round and round while the kids played at the park.  And then being too tired in the day to post my results.  I am so determined to reach that 10000 step mark that I will just step, step, step until I get the number.

What I’m really enjoying with my daily walks is the observations that I see as sprin unfolds.  Today Miss T. and I visited our nesting goose.  She is still at her post, and we were nice and quiet on the way back as she was sleeping.

The Leslie Sansone workout scheduled for today was 4 miles.  I was too tired after being up with little ones.  I opted for a lighter workout.  Coupled with the rain that has arrived this afternoon, I may not reach my step goal for the day – but I could do another walk instead.

Because I’m not blogging from my phone or iPad today, (and I’ve been forgetting my phone on my walks) here’s a picture from my walking adventures in Beijing last April.  I just can’t exactly remember where I was!

Walking last year in Beijing

Keeping myself honest here is helpful.  It makes me want to do my workouts and get in those steps.

Thanks for joining me!

Marcia

Keeping On!

This is a screenshot from my Mi-fit app that I started usng in China.  It hasn’t changed to pounds but i can do the conversions online to keep it updated.  And it keeps me on track.

Last night I needed to do some i house walking to get over my goal.  Thankfully I have the routine I used during bad air days to get me through.  Watching Sherlock helped too.

Mama Goose nesting.

One of the highlights of walking the dogs with the girls is saying hello to this mama.  And observing spring as it unfolds.

Day Four of workouts complete.  Getting ready for the rest of my day.

Have a good one!

Marcia

Trying Again.

If  at first you don’t succeed – try, try again.  I have not been succeeding.  As it stands I may even weigh a bit more than when I optimistically started this blog.  I mean, how difficult can it be to lose one pound in one week?

Well it is difficult!  And here’s why:

• Life happens.
• Stress happens.
• Change happens.
• Chocolate happens.
• Dessert happens.

That sounds so discouraging.  As if I have so little control over my body and my mind.  I feel that incredibly.  And yet, here I am again.  I will not give up and I will not give in.

Yesterday I weighed myself – 247.5 pounds.  Yesterday I walked just over 10000 steps.  On Saturday I walked over 10000 steps too!  Today I took the dogs for a walk and did my Leslie Sansone workout. I did one on Saturday too!

I may not lose a pound this week, but I will try my hardest to get those 10000 steps into my day.  That is the goal for the rest of this month!  And Leslie Sansone’s Walk at Home will be a part of that journey.

It’s my birthday next week, and this was my birthday present for myself.  The fun thing will be to whittle down the cost per walk.  A year’s subscription cost me about $70 Canadian.  So the cost per walk is now $35.  We’ll see how that is at the end of the week.

I will try to keep these posts, short, honest and encouragine to anyone who has a lot of weight to lose!

Marcia

What’s with these 10000 steps?

On my left wrist I wear a band.  It serves as a watch and a step counter and I like it.  I like knowing how many steps I take.  I liked reaching the 10000 step mark and going a little over for those 12 days in a row.  But while my brain is happy, my self esteem is pretty stoked…my feet are very unhappy right now.

So I wondered why the number 10,000 as the “recommended Daily minimum!”  Really?  Who came up with that number?

Turns out it was the Japanese in the 1960’s.  It sounds pretty good in Japanese and thats what they called their pedometers.  This according to Lara Rosenbaum of the Fitbit Blog.

It’s a nice easy number, I think, and it is doable.  But to say it’s the minimum?  My feet beg to differ.

One thing to consider is your size.  I am obese (still) and 5 miles of walking is hard.  8600 is where I’m at right now, at the end of a work day.  Going for a walk after writing this blog post will get me over the mark.  But what do my feet say?  What do your feet say?  Listen to them.

I’ve lowered my goal just a bit.  My new minimum is 8500.  I have to make some effort to get there, and that’s important.  Moving towards a healthy weight requires some work and sacrifice.   If I can maintain a monthly average of over 9000 steps per day I will be happy.  And if for 3 or 4 days I can get over 10,000 steps – that my friends is icing on the cake!

And now that I’ve gotten that off my chest, I’m going to enjoy some air (not the greatest air today in Beijing – but okay)

Walking is great, dancing is great – enjoy the journey!

I wrote a little bit about my goals here, so you can check that out too if you’d like!

I’m off!

Marcia