One of the side effects of this 50 year journey is that I still suffer from a few ailments. Wont discuss them all at this time but the one that is currently bothering me is gout! Man this thing is so painful I have not been able to run in two days! Ive been forced to sit ups to keep up my aerobic workouts. Ive been keeping the foot elevated and taking ibuprofen. Days like this is exactly why I am so determined to get this weight off of me and keep it off. Just not good to have medications make your body do what its supposed to do naturally. The way things are feeling now I probably wont be able to run again until thursday or friday...but im not giving up this is just more incentive for me to continue.

On a lighter note I did begin week 3 of the C25k on Saturday10-9-11. I began with a 5 min warm up, 1.5 min run 1.5 min walk, then 2 rounds of 2.5 mins of run and walk and ended with another 1.5min run and walk, and finally ended with a 5 min cool down walk. Man it was hard but shout out to my work out partner who was very encouraging and was instrumental in keeping those legs moving. Throughout this process i have discovered two things one to effectively lose weight and become healthy you must "show up to the track,gym, or park consistently" and secondly "you have to keep those legs moving"! No matter how hard it is got to keep pushing even if it means slowing down to a crawl gotta keepem moving!

Will keep you updated on the gout and my workouts!

1K Day Challenge

Well this is somewhat of a special day. When I began the 1k day challenge I sit my initial goal to be 90 day straight days of aerobic exercise. Well I am happy to report that I recorded my 90th day today. I feel about completing this first accomplishment but have already established my next goal of 100 days. Dont know if setting the goal thing is that important to me at this point. The purpose of the challenge is to establish consistency and I dont want this to become about consecutive days and lose track on the real goal which is living a health lifestyle!

I did close to a 3 mile walk today and my training buddy noticed that I wasnt complaining about her pace (typically her pace exceeds mines and i get frustrated) guess I am showing some improvement even if i dont notice it. 

My biggest concern now is doing a better job at monitoring what i eat. Man I have been eating up everything in site and know is based on a little added stress to my  life. As i reported on my last blog i can be somewhat of an emotional eater and lately my stress has spilled over into my eating.  The good news is that i have continued my workouts so atleast i appear to be maintaining.

I have not weighed myself for several weeks now and refused to chase the weight on that scale!!! Been there before and i lived and died based on what the scale said. But i am "DETERMINED" to keep the focus on living healthy and not my weight. Now dont get me wrong the goal is to lose weight but in a healthy long term manner. Man i have had anough of that up and down thing and dont want that to dictate what my mood will be! lol

Guess thats all for now back to my training tomorrow will let you know how it turns out!

My Love Affair With Food

As is the case with many cultures eating is just more than nurishment for the body, it often serves a an opportunity to socialize, discuss business, and unfortuntely a stress reliever. As a child I can remember whenever there was a stressful moment it was all fixed by settling into a good meal. For me food became a quick fix a way of calming my nerves.  Iven today when I am going through tough times I automatically get hungry.

Now I know that my poor eating habits can not be blamed on my upbringing because no one else in my immediately family seems to have this problem.  It is my belief that we all find stress relievers be it drugs, alchohol, sex, overworking, or .....FOOD! I remember being nervous about my freshman year in high school and I couldnt wait for lunch, when my grades were bad in college I would go to the local quick trip near my dorm every night, when I got engaged i ate, when I got fired from a job my mother had a fried chicken dinner waiting on me that evening, when I seperated from my ex I took myself to dinner to relax, the day of my divorce I went to lunch immediately, when it became necessary to change my church home I cozied up to the nearest Olive Garden.

Uneasy times for me is a trigger for eating. It has taken me a long time to realize this and it is a battle that I deal with every day but I have learned and continue to learn how to make adjustments. Because eating out really is a social opportunity for me, I really strive to make better choices when I'm out, I have started stocking my kitchen with better food choices, i keep my refrigerator stocked with bottled water and juices instead of soda pop. I have recently began ""eating clean" , daily exercise has become a huge part of my life, and I try to surround myself with like minded people that keep me motivated! While these changes continue to be a struggle for me I pray every day for the strength to have power over this battle in my life. Will talk about this more later but it is time for my daily walk! See you next time