"I'm sittin' on top of the world..."

Lawrence Toppman:

Wait, was I cheering for myself just now? Sorry, couldn't help it. The digital scale wavered at 189 this morning and then went to 189.5 to be mean. Now, assuming my wife didn't recalibrate it last night to make me feel better, that means I lost four pounds in the past week.

I have learned two valuable lessons from this endeavor. The first is that I must be careful all the time: I can eat one of those mini-Haagen-Dasz containers but can't have two cookies, even little ones, in the same day. And the second lesson is that BWAAAAAAH-HAH-HAH-HAH! I LOST FOUR POUNDS IN A WEEK! ONE WEEK!

Sorry, my brain flooded with endorphins. The second thing is that this is an up-and-down process. I'll eat healthily for a week with hardly any positive result, then eat a bit more casually and be happily surprised. My body is doing unpredictable things, and I need to look long-term at the results, not get upset or exhilarated by one weigh-in.

OK, that's the official philosophy of this blog. The unofficial philosophy is FOUR POUNDS THIS WEEK! WHOOOOOOO!

What's in that box on dry ice, anyway?

Ellyn Ritterskamp

I have bit the bullet. Bitten the bullet. Like that.

I ordered a week's worth of food from a company that cooks it and ships it on dry ice. The box arrives next Wednesday. I got only the lunch and dinner, for 5 days (they have plans for 2 or 3 meals a day, for 5 or 7 days). They said to make sure the breakfast I made was around 500 calories; the meals they ship will add up to 1600 with that.

I have been legitimately enjoying oatmeal lately, and will add 2 scrambled eggs and coffee.

I know a guy who lost a ton of weight on one of these plans, though he was on it for months, and it cost him a wad. I won't be doing that. This is just to get a better grip on what nutritionist types count as a portion.

Now I have to go look up how they keep ice dry.

Onward.

Sometimes running is a pick-me-up

Elizabeth Templin McCamic

For a lot of reasons, this week has been a tough week. When I came from work on Wednesday, I knew I was supposed to run three miles, but instead I spent my first hour at home vegging out, watching TV instead of running. I needed that.

Then my husband came home and we chatted about the day, and he encouraged me to go for that run. I needed that encouragement too.

Once I got moving, my run ended up feeling really good. In fact, it cleared up everything inside me that was previously saying "you don't want to run; you're too tired, don't do it."

I must remember this for the next time I'm feeling too tired/overworked/sorry for myself. Once I get moving, running makes me feel good. Not only am I doing something good for my body, but it truly lifts my mood.

I think we all need that some days.

Cornering the cake market

Lawrence Toppman

Yesterday morning brought the company-wide bake sale for the Arts and Science Council. As a sugar addict with a conscience, I let Fate decide whether I was supposed to buy anything. I would purchase desserts only if items were still there when I went home at 8 p.m.

Either Observer kitchen elves were insanely busy the night before, or many of my co-workers have sworn off sugar, because I climbed a mountain of leftover baklava, pound cake, brownies and the like. So I had a choice: Think selfishly about my own waistline, or empty my wallet in support of the umbrella group that backs dozens of local cultural organizations.

I bought 22 pieces.

But ate...none! They were all packed into a plastic bag and shoved to the bottom of my freezer, where they will be brought out over the coming weeks to satisfy intense cravings for sweets and (SPOILER ALERT TO MY WIFE) surprise my spouse on happy occasions. Culture wins, my palate wins and my beloved partner wins. And my scale can't reprimand me -- yet.

Fixing the wagon

Ellyn Ritterskamp

It is not going all that well. There have been mini-victories, but the overall pattern is backward-sliding.

It is the not-sleeping enough issue, and the cat waking me up over and over. I will fix his wagon somehow, and get this thing back on track.

Do cats have wagons?

Onward.

I'm halfway to 13.1

Elizabeth Templin McCamic

Over the weekend, I ran seven miles. That's the farthest I've ever run at one time.

The past couple of weeks, I've had a hard time on my long days and hadn't been enjoying those runs one bit.

This week, I decided to change things up. I added a rest day to my running schedule right before the long run. Without that extra rest day, I had been going into those long runs with tired and sore legs, so I thought a little extra rest might help. I also tried to think about the long run in blocks of miles instead of thinking of it as one long run - it's just a three- and a four-mile run, was my new rationale.

These strategies seemed to pay off because I had a pretty painless run. I cruised through the first three miles without any trouble then I reminded myself I just had a short four-mile run to go. I also found that all this practicing I'm doing during the week is starting to pay off. My form seems much more comfortable and natural now. My legs are moving a little more easily and I feel more loose and relaxed when I run.

I felt tired by the end of the run and spent much of Sunday evening sitting and resting my legs, but it felt great to know I can run half the distance I'll have to go on race day. After my six-mile run the week before, I really wasn't sure I could make it. I counted every minute during that run and felt like I had to will my feet to keep moving. Now I'm feeling slightly more confident I can tackle these long distances.

Where are the fat presidents?

Lawrence Toppman

Today we conveniently (if inaccurately) celebrate the births of two fit presidents. One is Abraham Lincoln, slender in his youth as the rails he reportedly split for exercise. The other is George Washington, an active and vigorous man who took the noun in "gentleman farmer" more seriously than the adjective.

Do we celebrate pudgepot presidents? We do not. Who commemorates rotundities such as Benjamin Harrison or Herbert Hoover? Who praises William Howard Taft, who weighed a seventh of a ton while living in the White House? (He once had his secretary send a telegraph that said "Expect big party." When Taft arrived alone, someone asked where the "big party" was. "I'm it," he cheerfully replied.)

In our age of telegenic politicians, an obese man couldn't get elected to high public office, even if he had the economic sense of John Maynard Keynes and the humanitarian instincts of Albert Schweitzer. People just won't place their trust in a guy who enjoys himself too much at the table and doesn't care who knows it.

This tirade was brought on by the realization that, after seven weeks of what I thought was portion control and weekday exercise, I weigh exactly one pound less than when I started. So I walked three miles up an incline this morning instead of two-and-a-half. Hey, I might want to run for president someday.

Progress - yes!!!!!

Ellyn Ritterskamp

I had been in a holding pattern with my 2-mile runs/walks. Stuck still close to 40 minutes, and wanting to speed that up by July for a triathlon, to 30 minutes.

Today, my mom went with me, and we knocked it out in 35 minutes!

2 keys to victory: we walked several minutes before arriving at the track, so we were warmed up. Also, we sang marching-appropriate songs - Mom is working on "Be Our Guest" for a school production of Beauty and the Beast, and we also did "If Ya Don't Mind My Sayin'" from The Music Man. We needed oxygen after that one...

Awesome.

Don't forget to drink your water

Elizabeth Templin McCamic:

One of the things I sometimes struggle with is remembering to drink enough water each day.

I’m not sure why this is such a challenge for me. I don’t dislike drinking water and I am often thirsty. But somehow I never seem to get enough.

When I was dieting a few years ago, water was a key to my success. Drinking three to four glasses of water a day helped me feel full and kept me from snacking when I wasn’t really hungry.

I’ve tried to keep up the habit of drinking water throughout the day and carry a reusable water bottle with me most of the time.

Still, it is a struggle to actually take the time to take a sip. I get busy or decide to drink something more appealing with meals. Now that I am doing so much running, I’m finding I really need that water, so this is something I want to work on.

In the meantime, I am looking forward to the warm weather forecasted for the weekend. Should be great conditions for Sunday’s seven mile run. Have fun out there!

My four-footed conscience

Lawrence Toppman:

I know I have little hope of reaching my weight goal, unless I exercise virtually every weekday for 45 minutes. But as one of the great rationalizers of the western world, I have an infinite supply of reasons why I should skip a session on any given day: I overslept, I'm late for work, my feet hurt, my back aches, on and on and on.

Each time I'm choosing from this list of excuses, my kitten comes along, sits down in front of the treadmill and stares at me implacably, until I get my walking shoes. I realize she's merely hoping I'll leave them unguarded for a second, so she can achieve her dream of chewing through every shoelace in the house. But she watches, unblinking and unmoving, until I tie them up and get on the machine.

One day, I set the machine going while I was adjusting the TV in front of it. She climbed onto the moving belt and shot off the back end. She did this once more, like a kid testing a boring new ride at Carowinds, then trotted away with a "What's the point of THIS?" look. I understood her reaction -- but I did my 45 minutes anyway.

This stuff still tastes like oatmeal

Ellyn Ritterskamp

Those diabetes nutritionists - they want to show how many choices there are within a responsible diabetes diet (keep an eye on those carbs). I want to say, "Just tell me exactly what to eat at every meal. This having options thing is too freeing." But they think they're helping, and probably that is a great strategy for folks newly diagnosed. But I've had this diagnosis for a few years now, and it's not really working all that well for me.

Most of my life, I want to make choices. Not with this. For a while, at least, it would be great if I could just follow a meal plan that didn't have gobs of choices. I have just enough of those pesky Asperger's traits that it is sometimes nice just to be told what to do.

I will start with oatmeal today, which, no matter what you do to it, still tastes like oatmeal. My friend did convince me to not go the instant route with it, but at least do the 9-minute steel-cut oats. And I put a little butter and cinnamon in it.

But it still tastes like oatmeal.

Kitchen confession: I'm adding fat to my diet

Elizabeth Templin McCamic: 

I have a confession to make. I love to cook, almost as much as I love to eat. That's not something I have talked about in this blog, but it's time to tell the truth.

Not only do I love to cook, but I love the planning and research that goes into cooking. I love hunting down interesting recipes and learning new techniques. I like thinking about ingredients, looking at my pantry and coming up with a meal plan that will use that last little bit of something that's been hanging around for a few weeks.

I love mixing and chopping, the whiz of my food processor and the sound of water boiling on the stove.

This makes the whole diet thing tricky. It's hard to find recipes that are both interesting AND good for me. When the ingredient list starts with butter, I have to take a breath and move on.

This past week, however, I tried an experiment. I added a little fat to my diet.

Last week, each meal I ate included some form of monounsaturated fat, like nuts, avocado, olives and certain oils.

I didn't eat a lot of these fats, just a little at each meal. And I ate a little bit more each day than I had been, making sure to get in one good snack plus my normal breakfast, lunch and dinner.

And the result? I felt more energized throughout the week and still lost a little weight. I'm not sure that all the credit should go to the added fats because I also did quite a bit of running, but it still counts as progress in my book.

It seems like there's been a lot of discussion in this blog about what we should and shouldn't eat. There are a lot of different opinions out there. I'd like to know what has worked for you.

"Gloom, despair and agony on me..."

Lawrence Toppman

"...deep, dark depression, excessive misery." I went backwards! (Yes, I am quoting a song from "Hee-Haw." Luckily, I do not yet look like Junior Samples.)

Despite exercising every weekday and being careful about sweets and pasta, I have gained half a pound since last Monday. Could my wife be dropping Chee-Tos into my open mouth while I snore? Are the cats sprinkling cereal on my kashi on Saturday mornings? (They watch me with unreadable expressions when I sit down to breakfast, but I think they're laughing.)

I also think, frankly, that I didn't eat enough. I fasted a couple of afternoons; this did my body no favors, because my system began to slow down. I took in less and put out even less than that. Small meals, sensible meals, spaced-out meals -- those make sense. Skipping meals did not.

The odd thing was, my pants fit better. My wife says I look better. I FEEL better. Maybe all the walking has redistributed the avoirdupois without significantly lessening it yet. Garrumph.

Faster, faster!

Ellyn Ritterskamp

I would like to try a one-day fast, and work up to doing it once every few weeks.

We had a co-worker who fasted one day a week, on her day off, and she said it was better than any diet plan. There is no counting (of calories, fat grams, carbs, anything), only abstinence. I like the simplicity of that.

My biggest obstacle is diabetes, which means I shouldn't let my blood sugar drop too low. But surely there is a juice fast that would take care of that.

Please comment or email if you know of a safe plan. Thanks.

I think my clothes are lying to me

Lawrence Toppman:

I am getting that false encouragement dieters have when they've made a little burst of progress. Belts that used to fit in the third hole now seem to land somewhere between the third and fourth. Khaki pants that were always too tight now fit only a bit too snugly. My expandable pajamas -- yes, you will wear those in your late 50s -- expand less than they used to. But I have a feeling that, come weigh-in time Monday, I will find that I have crept rather than leapt ahead.

The great temptation is to celebrate by...eating. If you didn't grow up in a culture or a family where food was used as a reward and a comfort, that may not be true for you. Memories of my childhood are rife with happy occasions marked by extra cookies, though I did finally talk my folks into giving me $1 per "A" on my report card instead. (Life was less expensive then.)

Now I am trying to congratulate myself without a culinary pay-off. (Maybe a handful of Life Savers, which have 10 calories per piece, will do in a pinch.) People like to say virtue is its own reward, but who fills his belly with praise?

Breathe Right strips ... ouch!

Ellyn Ritterskamp:

Report: OK, these new Breathe Right strips are way cool, but they hurt a lot to take off. Like, a lot. Hot needles in my fingernails would be easier.

I've been using them to help hold my nose open a little better so I can breathe better on runs. This newer design has four points instead of two, and costs a ton more, also.

I had a coupon.

Two more runs this week, then next week we are supposed to get some nice weather, so maybe four or five runs then. That way I'll get through this box of strips faster.

Onward.

How do you push through those bad runs?

Elizabeth Templin McCamic

Over the weekend, I had a big assignment: three half marathon training sessions. Four miles to run Friday, two miles to run Saturday and five miles to run Sunday, my long run day each week.

By the time I got out there Sunday, I was tired. I ran the five miles, but it was an act of pure will. From the moment I started running, I knew it was going to be tough. Sometimes when I run, the first couple of miles go by like nothing. My legs are just ready to move and being outside feels so energizing. Before I know it, I've covered two or three miles and it's almost time to head back inside.

Then there are those other days, and Sunday was one of them, when it is a struggle every time I lift my feet and I'm aware of every minute I'm running. My legs feel heavy. I'm achy. My nose is running. On these days, the whole time I'm out there I'm giving myself a pep talk, trying to block out thoughts like "I can't believe I've only gone half a mile. How much longer do I have to run?"

My Mom is famous in times of crisis for saying "You can do anything for x amount of time." Somehow x is always equal to the time required by the task at hand. On Sunday, I found myself using this phrase as a mantra: I can do anything for 30 minutes...20 minutes...15 minutes and on until the end of the run.

I think what kept me going Sunday was the desire to stick with my training schedule. I committed to running this race, so I have to stick with it, even though it's hard some days. I also know this is just the beginning of my half marathon training and it's going to be even harder if I let myself skip out now.

Runners out there, do you ever have bad running days? What do you do about it? How do you push through?

(I Hate) Portion Control

Lawrence Toppman:

That title sounds like a rock song, doesn't it? It's my new theme.

I have reluctantly accepted the idea that I need to cut down not only on the things I eat but the SIZE of the things I eat. I got a little reinforcement today, when the scale slipped back and forth from 192 to 192.5 and finally flopped in my favor. (Another half-pound gone -- alert the media!) But it's tough.

I brought tiramisu home for dessert last night. Now, I love me some tiramisu. I once had a cat named Tiramisu, because she was sweet, and her colors were brown, gray and white. (Really.) After a burst of fat-person thinking -- "If my wife never saw this, I wouldn't have to share it!" -- I split the piece with my spouse. My portion was the size of a Brillo pad. I ate it with a miniature fork to make it last longer.

This is the norm now. When I want half-and-half in my coffee, I use half as much as I used to. (Hmmm...does that make it guarter-and-quarter?) I am allowed to eat all the Brussels sprouts I can stand, which would be none, but I should eat half a PB&J sandwich instead of a whole one.

I know I need to make good habits last a lifetime. But sometimes good habits are bad news.

Half a loaf... loafing... something like that

Ellyn Ritterskamp

It's not going so well, this pounding away. I schedule three walks/runs a week, and haven't made all three but once. I am doing better about my yoga and weightlifting, because I don't have to go out in the cold for those.

I have this craving to finish what I start, and do everything well or not do it. But that kind of wish for perfection won't work here. I'm glad y'all are here to remind me it's better to do some than none.

There's a new picture coming soon - one of the photo editors here took a new headshot, and it made me feel pretty. And a friend said it made me look like I had a secret.

Onward.

Y'all are helping...I guess

Lawrence Toppman:

So I'm getting coffee at Dean & DeLuca after a morning movie screening at Phillips Place, and someone I don't know says, "Hope you're not putting cream in that! Cream makes you fat." I notice he is eating a chocolate muffin the size of a softball, but I don't say anything unkind.

Another day, I'm getting a bagel sandwich at lunch -- egg, swiss cheese and mushrooms on pumpernickel -- and somebody behind me in line says, "That cheese isn't going to help your calorie count." He is smiling in a friendly way, so I don't point out that he looks as if he last helped HIS calorie count when Clinton was president.

I've been recognized for a long time as a critic, so I'm used to folks coming up and chatting as if they knew me. (Usually, they don't even ask if I AM me.) I like it, too. But with this weight-loss blog, passers-by often end up sounding like disapproving aunts watching a nephew sneak behind the house for a smoke.

I always tell myself they mean well, and they're trying to offer encouragement. In the end, it redoubles my desire to stick with this steady but gradual program -- if only so I can eat a chocolate muffin the size of a softball myself someday, free of guilt and free of commentary. But not any time soon, I fear.

My roller derby workout

Elizabeth Templin McCamic

Last night, I worked out with the Charlotte Speed Demons, a local women’s flat track roller derby team. I know it was a good training session because it was hard to get out of bed this morning and my muscles are aching, including a few muscles I didn't know I had.

The Speed Demons train about three days a week on and off skates. I worked out with them for 30 minutes yesterday and then watched the team skate. During the off-skate workout, we rotated through six stations, spending a minute at each. We did exercises like jump rope, lunges, tricep dips and crunches.

Then we divided into two groups. One of the coaches put down two cloth ladders on the gym floor. We did drills that, like hopscotch, required stepping precisely in each square at a running pace.



This was when my lack of coordination became apparent (that's me in the red T-shirt). The players ran through the squares quickly, one after another, stepping into each one. I went through slowly at first, then realized it’s actually easier the faster you go - though I’m not sure I ever did the exercises exactly right.

We ended the workout by running sprints across the length of the gym. By then I felt worn out but in a good, I just worked it, way.

The coolest part of the night was when the team skated. A coach had them skate 25 laps in five minutes (or less). The goal was to stick together and move as a unit. As the skaters in the back of the pack got tired, some of the faster skaters dropped back and pushed them forward so they could stay with the group. No one was left behind and they finished in 4 minutes, 39 seconds, breaking their last record by two seconds.

The Speed Demons are preparing for their next bout, 6 p.m. Feb. 26 at First Ward Recreation Center. I am looking forward to seeing them in action.

Meanwhile, I must have done OK last night because they encouraged me to come back. We'll see how it goes next time.

Tonight, I'll train roller derby-style

Elizabeth Templin McCamic:

Tonight, I am going to do something a little different during my work out. I've been invited to train with the Charlotte Speed Demons, a local flat track women's roller derby team that is part of Charlotte's Race City Roller Derby.

Thankfully, tonight is an off-skate work out for the team because I'm pretty sure I'd be a disaster on wheels. I'm excited to see how they stay in shape and hoping I can keep up with them - these women are serious about what they do.

I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow. Wish me luck.

This is not what they mean by cat-napping

Ellyn Ritterskamp

This cat will spoil it all.

I work at night, so I sleep from 4 a.m. to noon. I've done it for 23 years.

But around 8:30, the cat hears the downstairs neighbors moving around, and sees the sun, and thinks it's time to get up. He doesn't need anything, just reassurance that someone is alive.

I use wonderful silicone earplugs, but when he is ON me and howling, no earplugs can save that.

Good sleep is important for a successful weight-loss program. I've read that we have some hormonal changes that happen then, that help keep fat-burning on track.

Maybe some day he will sleep when I sleep. But after nearly 17 years, I don't think I am changing his mind. He sleeps like a rock from noon to 10 p.m., though. Maybe I should change jobs.....

Onward.

Small milestones keep me going

Elizabeth Templin McCamic:

Running has been going pretty well the last couple of weeks. To keep myself accountable, I promised myself I would stick to my training schedule for the first three weeks and that has worked so far. I want to take this half marathon seriously, and I know if I don’t start out right it will just get harder.

As I’ve been running, I have started to notice small changes. Even though I haven’t lost much weight this month, my body is a little sleeker than it was before I started training. When I went on a 4-mile run yesterday afternoon, I could tell that my legs were a little bit stronger than they were two weeks ago. Instead of feeling tired during that last mile, I actually quickened my pace a bit.

I think I’ve also hit another small milestone. I’m less hungry than I was when I first started being careful about what I eat. I am also a lot less tempted by sweets. After dinner, I’m thinking less about having a treat and more about resting for my next run. I'd definitely call that progress.

How are your fitness resolutions going?