Lazy people (me)

Lawrence Toppman

Lazy people, whose standard-bearer I will be until the end of my days, look for reasons not to exercise. When the power went out at my house Tuesday night -- and stayed out for 21 hours -- I considered the negative and positive results.

Negative: Bedroom temperature would soon reach the 80s. No light, except for small portable power sources. No way to cook. Food spoiling in refrigerator. (Or is that a plus, if you're losing weight?) Extreme boredom, with no way to read, play music or watch TV.

Positive: The treadmill wouldn't work, and the weather was too bad to walk outside.

To a lazy guy, that works out about even.

Alas, the top third of the box elder in my back yard ended up on the ground, as if some celestial chef had sheared the florets from an enormous broccoli. So I will be spending three afternoons over Independence Day weekend breaking up the branches with a manual saw -- not a chainsaw, as I am not supposed to use appliances that might result in the loss of an appendage.

Fate works in mysterious ways when it wants you to burn calories.

Summer salads make some wacky combinations

Ellyn Ritterskamp

Salads are just so right for summer. Not too heavy and not too hot. I love that we can put all kinds of fruits in them to jazz up the old standby ingredients.

Not a big fan of nuts, though. I like that they work well in salads, but I just mostly don't want to eat them. Some are too salty, and some just leave a funny taste behind, like walnuts. Those little sunflower seeds are nice, though.

It's the lettuce itself that wastes time. It's filling, like water, but iceberg lettuce has very little nutritional value. but there are all those other neat greens to start with instead!

Some other favorites: corn, a little guacamole, strawberries (maybe not all those together, though) and those mild cheeses like Monterrey jack, provolone and Muenster.

What are your favorite salad ingredients? Which ones haven't you tried together? Maybe we should do some experiments!

Onward.

Adding 'metcons' to my workout plan

Elizabeth Templin McCamic

The last few weeks I've been feeling a little stalled in my progress. I expected to see some changes in my body during my half marathon training, and I did shed about five pounds. But since I'm not in training mode right now, I decided it was time to step it up again.

Over the last couple of weeks, I've tried to add "metcons" or metabolic conditioning to my workout schedule. Metabolic conditioning is a type of workout touted by CrossFit that combines cardio and strength building.

My husband and I have rolled our burpee challenge into metcon workouts a couple times a week, so a metcon workout for us might include sprints and burpees.

One of the first metcon workouts we did was three rounds that included three sets each of wall balls (throwing a weighted ball as you pop up from a squat), burpees and box jumps (literally jumping from a standing position to the top of a box that is about 18-20 inches high).

These workouts are really tiring and intense, even though they can last for as few as 15 minutes. When you're done (or even just halfway through), you feel worn out in a good way. During the second round of box jumps, my legs were so tired I missed the top of the box and did a very ungraceful fall across the box instead of neatly landing atop the box. Clearly, I'm still learning.

I'm interested to see how adding these workouts helps my progress. I'm hoping to get through this little plateau and keep chipping away toward better fitness.

And yes, we're still doing the 100-day burpee challenge. Yesterday was day 66. It's getting really tough. I have to break my burpees into afternoon and evening sets on days that I run because otherwise it's too much. I've missed a couple days here and there, but I'm trying to stick with it for these last few weeks. Can't wait till we hit day 100!

Don't worry, be skinny

Lawrence Toppman

You needn't be a genius to know that you're likelier to succeed at anything -- weight loss included -- if you're in a happier frame of mind. But I wonder whether improvements in my psyche may have affected my waistline.

Over the last eight months, I've tried to change a lot of things. I've become less of a control freak. I've approached life more spontaneously, with less planning. I've tried not to let my mild OCD feelings swamp me. I still hate the song "Don't Worry, Be Happy," but I probably live by it a little more.

No longer do I obsess about a bad weight week or the stuffed feeling I have after indulging in one night of peanut butter cheesecake. (But I limit the indulgence to one night.) I don't kick myself if I oversleep and bag my morning exercise routine. (Though I get back to it the next day.)

And when I weighed myself this morning, I came in at an even 183, 11.5 pounds less than I weighed half a year ago. Maybe my state of mind is affecting my state of flab.

As Bugs Bunny said....

Lawrence Toppman

..."I've seen better heads on a glass of root beer." I refer to the nitwits who paid for a study, reported yesterday in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, that says eating too many potato chips can make you fat. (www.ajc.com/health/potato-chips-are-piling-984759.html).

"They're very tasty, and they have a very good texture. People generally don't take one or two chips. They have a whole bag," said obesity expert Dr. F. Xavier Pi-Sunyer of the St. Luke's-Roosevelt Hospital Center in New York. In other news, eating thermometers gives you mercury poisoning, and swallowing bullets gives you overexposure to lead.

Did anyone NOT know that we tend to gorge on potato chips, and that cramming down food containing lots of fat and salt can't be good for us? Did we really need a study by Harvard University scientists to tell us that, or even to tell us that what we eat affects weight loss more than better habits and exercise?

In the 40 years I've been overweight, I've always known why, just as smokers know they're likelier to get lung cancer or emphysema. I realized potato chips are pudge pills; I just liked them, so I didn't care. The problem wasn't ignorance but will power.

Water weight counts, too

Ellyn Ritterskamp

Amazing. The past few months I have been gaining weight for several reasons. Not a lot of weight, but it's supposed to be going in the other direction.

So these past few days, I've gotten outside in the worst of the heat, and walked just 30 minutes each day and sweated a bunch. For real: four pounds in two days.

I know that is not a healthy rate over time. The goal is 2-3 lbs. a week, slow and steady. And this won't continue - it's just water weight, and not so much a legitimate number. But it sure does feel good to see that number dipping.

I've also been drinking gobs of water, so maybe I am for real sweating out some toxins. We'll see how it looks in a few weeks. It will be nice to get back to my Jan. 1 weight, at least, and then keep going.

Onward.

Take an evening summer walk

Elizabeth Templin McCamic

This time of year, one of my favorite ways to get in a little extra exercise is by taking evening walks.

There's nothing nicer than spending a few minutes wandering outside on a warm summer evening. You can hear bugs chirping and quiet evening birdsongs. The sweet smells of honeysuckle, wisteria and freshly cut grass will inevitably be in the air.

But what I really like about taking walks in summer is the soothing effect they have on my psyche. If I am worked up about something and feeling stressed, nothing clears my mind and calms me down like taking a walk. Just 20 minutes of fresh air and quiet can make even the biggest problems feel a little bit better.

And evening walks have become a time I can catch up with my husband or chat with a friend. Those conversations are healing, too.

I'd like to welcome summer today and encourage you to go for a walk one evening this week. Every step counts in your journey to better fitness.

Sit-ups

Lawrence Toppman:

I did a sit-up today. I didn't like it. I did 10, actually, just to get the rhythm. Not for me.

Once upon a time, sit-ups were my thing. I did 100 at one clip every year in elementary school, when we took the test administered by the President's Council for Physical Fitness. On the first day, I was in the top percentile for America. After we got around to pull-ups and running, I dropped into the Pudgepots With One Physical Skill group.

I still walked my 2.5 miles on an inclined treadmill this morning and burned 350 calories. And if you could watch old Jean Harlow-Clark Gable movies while doing sit-ups, I might be willing to assume the position. But unless I can exercise while devoting most of my brain cells to entertainment, I have no chance of breaking a sweat.

Weigh-in today left me at 10 pounds below my starting girth, so I've slipped back a bit. Salad for lunch made a spinach stromboli possible for dinner. I'm going to do better this week.

Pleasure or pain?

Lawrence Toppman

As I was eating a piece of red velvet cake last night, I wondered whether positive reinforcement or negative reinforcement works better for dieters. Do we respond more to encouragement or to horrifying images of what we could become if we lost every iota of self-discipline?

I thought about that because a right-sized friend showed me "Muffin Top," a parody video to the tune of "Rocky Top" that he'd uploaded to YouTube. I asked where he'd found the bone-chilling material and was told I merely had to search online for "fat belly images," and I'd see a horror show of vast proportions. (Here's the link: www.youtube.com/watch?v=H2Pz9bjFlyY&feature=email.)

My guess is that positive reinforcement succeeds if we hear it constantly, but those of us with a lifetime of unhappy feelings about our bodies may not take compliments to heart. (I'm doing better now that I'm losing weight, but there's still a feeling of "Me? Really?") And negative reinforcement works only if we can identify with the guy in the picture; it's too easy to say, "Nah, that could never be me" while chugging a sack of M&Ms.

Most of us don't know how we come across physically, anyhow. The most insecure woman I've ever dated was a model in New Jersey who thought every tiny wrinkle was as wide as Bryce Canyon and every extra half-pound stuck out like the tail fins on a '57 Cadillac. No amount of positive reinforcement could make her think otherwise, once she set her mind to fretting.

Working for others

Ellyn Ritterskamp

I love projects that benefit others and also burn calories. On days I don't work, I'm looking for one of these each day. They have been rewarding in the soul-filling way and also in helping break a sweat.

If you can think of ideas on this, please send them along. Thanks.

Halfway through burpee challenge

Elizabeth Templin McCamic

Over the weekend, I hit day 50 of the 100-day burpee challenge, and I feel like I'm finally starting to see some results.

As the number of burpees I'm doing each day increases, this challenge has definitely become more difficult. The first few weeks, doing my daily burpees wasn't something I had to plan for. Now, it is like adding another workout to my day.

Not that adding a workout is a bad thing. I am seeing some results. My arms feel stronger now than they did when I started (thank you, pushups), and I can do larger sets of burpees than I could before.

It does take time to do 50 plus burpees and if you're already tired from a long run, it's even harder.

But my daily burpees give me a form of workout I wasn't already getting. It's that concentrated mix of strength training and cardio that really makes you break a sweat. It's taken a while for me to see the benefits, but they are definitely there. I'm becoming much more appreciative of this daily routine.

As I was looking at my calendar last week, I realized that day 100 of the challenge falls on my birthday. I'll be turning 30 this year, and somehow knowing that I'll be able to do 100 burpees by then makes me feel pretty good as I say goodbye to my 20s.

Pong hits

Lawrence Toppman:

I'm feeling like a little white plastic ball these days, getting whacked back and forth by Destiny between weight loss and unloss (as a dieting friend likes to say when she puts back a couple of pounds).

The process no longer seems logical to me. I slacked off for most of a week, and I've gone down to 183 pounds as of this morning, the least I've weighed since VCRs were the preferred form of video playback.

Whether my scale is accurate is beside the point: If it was wrong when I weighed 194.5 pounds on January 1, it's wrong in the same way now. I'm still 11.5 pounds lighter, either way. But why?

Exercise has SOMETHING to do with it, but I did only two sessions last week. I'm told it's easier to lose weight if you maintain a regular sleep pattern, but I got less sleep than normal last week (and in an erratic way). I ate less bread, but I also had three dinners where the main course was a vegetable and pasta salad.

Was I carrying around water weight until the weekend? Was I eating more fruit and filling up on that? I'm thrilled and bewildered and drawing no conclusions.

Something is fishy here

Ellyn Ritterskamp

I wonder if I'm turning into a summer vegetarian.

I grew up not eating certain meats anyway, and right now, I just don't want any of it, except sometimes tuna or chicken salad. A server at a restaurant we frequent says it's just too hot, which kind of clicked into place for me. I always crave fruit anyway, and right now when it's hot, it seems like I could just live on it.

Ever since I started teaching ethics, and reading about how some animals are raised, it's been easy to edge toward real vegetarianism. But it will be a long while before I have any issues eating fish - I just can't imagine that they are self-aware.

So, next up is learning how to cook fish at home. I've tried it a time or two, but seems like now is a good time to make a project out of it. Please send me recipes if you have them.

Abstinence makes the heart grow fonder

Lawrence Toppman

And I'm not referring to sex, though I suppose that's also the case for most of us. I was thinking instead about muffins.

I haven't had one in weeks, so I bought a morning glory muffin today at Julia's Coffee. My conscience took satisfaction in the idea that Habitat for Humanity would get a half-dollar or so, and my stomach will get a more immediate thrill tonight.

When I started cutting back on sweets, I thought my body would adjust and begin to want them less. I've never been a donut-gorger, and I haven't shown a propensity for alcohol, nicotine, gambling or any other kind of addictive indulgence.

I've also tried to satisfy myself with sweet things in nature, such as raisins and figs. I've tried to convince myself that peanut butter on whole wheat bread qualifies as a dessert. (It does not, but it'll put an extra millimeter on your thighs.) I can't justify a coconut muffin with vanilla icing until I drop another few pounds, but the body has to get a reward once in a while that isn't too sinful.

Warming up

Ellyn Ritterskamp

Loving this warm weather - I've been walking at 8 p.m., when it's still sticky but not soul-sucking hot. That will end when I get back to work, but a few more days of it will be great!

There is something meditative about getting past the first few laps, and into a groove, where the joints loosen up and the speed picks up and you almost have to go faster to keep up with your own mojo.

I have met several nice neighbor cats, and seen tons of dogs who are just thrilled to be alive. Even the bugs seem friskier when it's warm, chirpingwise.

I know real runners like the cool better than the hot, but I am just faking it.

Onward.

Does the universe make sense to you?

Lawrence Toppman:

So I go a week without exercise, except for one indifferent treadmill session. I eat a big plate of ravioli in cream sauce Saturday night at Sweet Meadow Cafe in Salisbury, accompanied by lots of fresh bread for sopping. I sneak cookies. And somehow, I lose a pound and get down to 185.5, so I'm nine to the good.

That's the frustrating thing about watching your weight. You do the wrong things, and you get happy results. You go the carrots-and-blueberries route, maybe sneaking in a little biscotti, and the scale gives you the Bronx cheer. A pattern does not manifest itself, though I think it should.

Nonetheless, I climbed onto the treadmill today for my usual two and a half miles up an incline, watching the immortal Clark Gable-Jean Harlow film "Red Dust." I ate a healthy Indian lunch, having just a little rice pudding for dessert, and came back to the office to treat myself to raisins.

And by next Monday, when I weigh myself again after a week of virtuous endeavor, I'll probably bemoan the painful result. Sometimes, life doesn't make a blasted bit of sense to me.

Duh!

Lawrence Toppman

I was in the supermarket buying locally grown blueberries yesterday -- those always taste better to me -- and I noticed that every one of the advice-oriented magazines mentioned a weight-loss story on its cover.

Not most of them. ALL of them, and I counted eight.

Now, this is lunacy. All of us know that the three things needed to lose weight are proper portion size, intelligent choice of foods and regular, fat-burning exercise. Anyone who thinks there's a magical key no one has found before might as well search for it in the land where unicorns roam.

That's why I don't post discourses on my menus and exercise schedules on this blog. Instead, I try to meditate on what it means to be overweight, to be tempted, to be valiant in the struggle or to backslide into shame (but not too deeply).

Of course, it's also true that men and women have been attracted to each other for the same reasons since leopard-skin loincloths were the rage, yet these magazines run monthly stories about luring the ideal mates. So I guess P.T. Barnum's dictum about suckers remains as true today as when he said it.