WGOM Fitness

WGOM Fitness: Resolution Month (Six Weeks)

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Hello. I'm back to posting on WGOM Fitness after a little hiatus. Today is also the beginning of the six week Resolution Month.

First, an accounting. I had resolved to (a) work out 20 times and (b) lose six pounds in the last month. Well, not quite. I kind of went through some doldrums and motivation problems when in ND and I ended up with only 14 workouts, including a spin class workout last night. So, that's not terrific, but it's a new month and time to start over. I weighed in this morning at 207.2, down from 215 on January 15th, meaning that I did hit my second goal. I am now just 7.2 pounds from the weight loss goal that I set back in July of 84.5 pounds.

As I mentioned yesterday, I am going to extend this resolution month to six weeks, which will correspond to Lent and also get us to match the calendar. I encourage you to set some goals for the next six weeks to improve your overall fitness with the help of best clean pre workouts. There are 44 days between now and Easter Sunday, March 31, 2013.

Our company employs a management by objective metric and our goals are set at three levels: threshold, target, and cap. The threshold is intended to indicate a baseline performance and should be about 80% of the target. A cap is 120% of the target. With that in mind, I set the following goals. I don't expect that you will get as specific as this.

Sleep: Good, consistent sleep is very important to overall fitness. My target is to get at least 7 hours of sleep a day. My first sleep target is then, to get at least 7 hours of sleep on 40 nights. The threshold will be to get at least 7 hours of sleep for 36 nights, and the cap will be to get at least 7 hours of sleep for all 44 nights.

Diet: In the past month, I had many days where I strayed from the diet. Meaning not that I ate a little more than I should, but that I ate foods that aren't good for me. My goal is to work within the parameters of the diet, meaning that I will not eat crappy stuff, even if I add additional calories within the context of the diet. I do generally have at least one meal out with my family every time I am home. Sometimes, I can reasonably fit that meal within the parameters of the diet, but other times, I can't. That's fine. This last trip to ND wasn't very good in diet control at all. It may seem like I'm a little obsessed with this, but my real goal is to establish good eating habits for a lifetime. Eating a half dozen chocolate chip cookies doesn't mesh with that, even if it was Fat Tuesday. So, the goal is to stick within the parameters of the diet on 40 days, with the threshold being 36 days and the cap being 44 days.

Exercise: I recognize that it is very difficult to workout when I am ND. I get tired and it is just easier not to do it. However, I do want to establish some good habits. My goal, then, would be to workout 30 days, which is a little higher percentage of days than I achieved last month (I will also be home a little more over the next six weeks). The threshold will be 20 days and the cap will be 40 days. I do want to incorporate more strength training, but at least for this month, that will not be a part of this goal.

Last night's workout was a spin class. It was the first workout I had done in ten full days. I anticipated that it would be very difficult. Indeed, my heart rate was up, but I was able to power through it pretty well. I burned 782 calories, so I was pleased. I experienced a little cramping in one of my calves and in a toe on the other foot near the end, which signaled a little dehydration, but it wasn't severe and it went away. I hydrated and ate afterwards and felt fine.

18 thoughts on “WGOM Fitness: Resolution Month (Six Weeks)”

  1. I was originally thinking I'd go for 20 workouts in 28 days, but since we've got 44... I guess I'll say 30. One of the things that has jumped out to me over the past couple weeks is the number of times I get in "quick" work outs - just 15 minutes of running, for example. So I also want half of my workouts to be >30 minutes. And then the whole lenten sacrifice thing too.

  2. This is good stuff. I've backslid a bit since the Fall, mostly due to eating habits. For Lent I'm giving up sweets and man those pink and red m&m's the wife got from one of her students were barking at me last night -- but I held out.

    I've been good with the bike but no so much with the weights, so that's an area to improve but for me I've got to eat better, mainly with the snacking and portions at dinner.

    Going snowshoeing this weekend at Itasca State Park. They have lot of snow, with not a lot of people up there so I should be tramping through areas of deep virgin snow. I'll be burning mega calories Sunday and Monday for sure.

  3. so far for Lent, I've given up dieting. With my cousin in town, I've been out to lunch with her and my parents twice, and grilled ribeyes last night.

      3. "When you fast,
        do not look gloomy like the hypocrites.
        They neglect their appearance,
        so that they may appear to others to be fasting.
        Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
        But when you fast,
        anoint your head and wash your face,
        so that you may not appear to be fasting,
        except to your Father who is hidden.
        And your Father who sees what is hidden will repay you."

      4. Thinking about this at mass this morning, I didn't mean to imply that I disapprove of those who share what their giving up for Lent, as I've rarely come across those who share what it is for their own glory. Those who I usually see sharing what they're giving up are doing so to explain atypical behavior (I won't be on fb, I don't want you to bring me candy, I'm not going to go out for beers, etc.), or, in the case here, for support and accountability.

        But I've rarely shared my own Lenten sacrifices , and with Wednesday's Gospel still fresh in my mind, I wanted to chime in with both allegiance with CoC's position, and also a twisted scriptural support for his treating it like a superstition. I think we're all good here, but just wanted to make sure. No disapproval from me for any of this.

  5. My weight has actually ticked up despite me getting in at least two (and sometimes three spinning classes) in every week except one - a weekend in DC partying and a weekend ice fishing will do that, I suppose. Using the Bossman's method, let's say: threshold: 12 spin classes, target: 16 spin classes, cap: 20 spin classes. I only have one crazy partying weekend on the horizon (a trip to NOLA for St. Patrick's Day), so if I continue to plug away I think those pounds will start to melt off.

  6. Also for the 22nd year in a row, I've informed my wife that I am giving up unprotected sex with prostitutes for Lent. She's actually starting to crack a smile at the joke.

  7. I think I mentioned that I was diagnosed with diabetes in June of last year. I've been managing with medicine and a lot of dietary changes. I've 100% given up sugar soda and juices, started eating smaller portions, and trying to eat from drive throughs less often (and if I do, eating less food). I had to go get blood work done this week to see where I was at, and my A1C has gone from 8.9 when I was diagnosed to 6.3 now. That's still in the diabetic range, but it's on the low end of where they want me to maintain. My cholesterol is good overally, but I am just a hair under what they want for HDL, and a hair over on my triglycerides (though this likely has to do with my glucose still being elevated). I have been concerned about this since my father and everyone in his family has high cholesterol, and my mother does too (along with a litany of other health issues). But overall I was pretty happy with these results.

    I've lost a lot of weight, but I'm not too concerned about a number there. I'm about a quarter way to the one sorta weight goal I have, but I'm mostly concerning myself with how I feel. That has been "better." I am going to try to get myself into the habit of exercising again this week, hopefully that helps a bit since I've been pretty stagnant on this front for a while.

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