Tag: gadgets

Fit Fat Fit

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I’m pretty sure that I fall into that pesky category of fit and fat. While admittedly, I’m on the small side of large, I’m in that annoying grey area where I can sometimes squeeze into the highest number in the Misses category, and the second lowest size of Plus. I’m growing increasingly skeptical that my Mirena IUD is inhibiting my lasting weight loss, either that, or something with the Weight Watchers program (which has changed since I had my resounding success a few years back) has not been helping.

I have been hovering at the same weight for about a year now. What’s different between now and last year is that I go to the gym at least three times a week, and I’m working with a personal trainer. My trusty scale, which calculates my body fat percentage, says that realistically, if I maintain my current muscle mass, I only have to lose 40 lbs of body fat to be just above the minimum body fat percentage for an athlete. (To get to the top of the healthy BMI, I would have to lose 60-65 lbs.)

I realized that I do not do well when I’m not tracking my food intake, and after becoming so frustrated with the newest iteration of Weight Watchers (360), I decided to try My Fitness Pal. It’s free, works with mobile devices, and syncs with my Fitbit Ultra to help calculate what my actual food intake should be with relation to my exercise level. I’m mostly excited about this right now (consider it NRE) because I’ve logged in for two weeks straight, and have tracked reliably, which is more than I can say about WW in the past year. I’ve also realized that along with possible hormonal impacts to my weightloss, I wasn’t eating enough on Weight Watchers. I thought of myself as sedentary, but it turns out that a mother of a toddler in a highly walkable neighborhood/city is HARDLY sedentary.

Fitbit One
Fitbit One
I just upgraded my Fitbit to the Fitbit One , which has the added plus of syncing with my mobile device. I justify that this will come in handy during my vacation.

This has been an educational two weeks. I realized that I’m much more active than I gave myself credit for, and I’ve not felt deprived since I’ve been able to have a daily adjusted food intake based on my actual activity level. I have only lost about two pounds so far, and now it’s about seeing if I can lose more than that, which I have been unable to do with Weight Watchers this past year.

The best part of this experiment? I’m not gaining weight, and I’m not forcing myself to eat a piece of fruit when what I really want is a slice of cheese.

End of Week 4

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http://nikeplus.nike.com/nikeplus/v1/swf/scrapablewidget/rundetail.swf

Getting back to the Seattle chill was refreshing after trying to run in the Chicago heat. I ended the week with being able to jog for 20 min straight, and even better, at a consistent pace. The only reason I was able to do this, though, was thanks to re-reading the first few chapters from Runner’s World Complete Book of Women’s Running and purchasing the Polar F11 Heart Rate Monitor. I’ll still be using my Nike+ SportBand, especially because I like the data I get from it, but I was focusing too much on how fast/far I was going, and not on plain old conditioning, and I was wearing myself out. Thanks to the OwnZone option of the Polar F11, I was able to stay at a slow, steady, consistent pace for a longer period of time, allowing me to ultimately go a greater distance with less strain on my body.

So far, I’m loving the Polar F11, and am glad I purchased it. I had wanted one initially that didn’t require the chest strap, but it looks like that the $80 savings for the non-strap models (of varying brands) don’t do the play-by-play heart rate, nor would they reasonably be able to protest when I’m over or under exerting myself. The strap is comfy, and for the most part, the readout is large enough that I can read it while jogging, with the exception of being the OwnZone details when I start up my exercise.

Today I’m taking a much needed rest day. I did two days in a row, two times last week, and my joints are complaining a bit. I have a natural tendency to push myself too hard (in about all areas), so thanks to my new gadgets, and re-reading the pertinent chapters, I’m learning to take it easy.

I’m also learning to eat a bit differently and remember my vitamins! This is especially important since I was diagnosed with a Vitamin D deficiency.

At some point this week I’ll try to blog about more than my running pursuits. My mini-goal for now is to sign up for a fun 5k sometime in September or early October.

Nike+ Today

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http://nikeplus.nike.com/nikeplus/v1/swf/scrapablewidget/rundetail.swf

This is the third day I’ve done my walk/run with my Nike+ SportBand. The site has a way to post my progress to my blog, so I figured I’d try it out. So far, in my 30 min walk/run, I’ve shaved off over a minute since my first walk/run EVER (which was last Monday.) I took two days off, and wouldn’t ya know, I’m actually at a faster pace for a more sustained period. I’m very excited about this. There are some things that I wish were better about the Nike+ SportBand system and site, but I’ll save that for another post. For now – I’m just still in an endorphin glow just knowing that this is something I can do.