I'd say I'm back into the swing of things.
I was hoping my 56 year old Zumba instructor would be in today. She used to have knee problems, but worked through them. Now she bounces around like no tomorrow and without an ounce of flinching. I need her secrets because my knees hate the hell out of me right now.
Raaaah. Next time I go grocery shopping- I'll need a plan for this express purpose. A lot of people have said beans, cheeses, nuts, and peanut butter. I can't complain about not being a bottomless pit, but it does make it difficult in the meantime.
Did you try out the Turbokick thing? I want to make sure you survive once you do!
Sparkpeople threw out two interesting factoids to me today-
1. while resting, lung capacity is reduced to 10-15%.
2. if someone is/becomes obese, a friend of theirs is 57% more likely to become obese.
My new campus is very walking accessable. This is good.
The only reason I'm not walking it right now is because I still feel sick.
I hope you feel better soon! Glad to hear you made it and enjoy the layout of the campus.
Water seems to have revived me for another fifteen minutes.
I think people should just shut up about obesity for a while and see what happens, you know?
It's weird, people always talk about cravings, and the only thing I seem to really want is dairy.
Is "dairy" code word for "ice cream" by any chance? Cuz if so, I understand completely.
Also, I've heard some interesting theories about how the "obesity epidemic" is largely just fear mongering by corporations to feed into the multi-billion dollar health industry. There's probably some truth to it, too. Some of what is considered obese today would have been considered ideal in earlier ages.
If "ice cream" is code for milk with a fat percentage higher than 0, greek yogurt, tea lattes and hot milk chocolate, then yeah, I'm totally into ice cream. I think I learned my dairy tolerance at the Minnesota state fair -- as long as I have fewer than 5 servings a day, I should probably be okay.
It just seems suspect to me how the standards keep moving in one direction -- down. Because of this, many people who would not have been diagnosed with health issues before now are, which makes it seem like an epidemic. Whether the standards are rightfully being moved down is questionable, and it makes it seem that all of the sudden things have suddenly changed and there's a problem, when such a "problem" may have been there before.
ThanksFocus on:
1) Leg and hip stretches.
2) Muscle strength.
3) Proper technique.
Assuming you don't have any major knee issues, those will take you far. You also significantly lower the stress on your knees as you lose weight.
Cheeses have higher saturated fat content. They are perfectly fine, but eat them in moderation. Also, if you are looking at cheese you can look at lowfat cottage cheese and lowfat yogurt.
I don't recommend the non-fat stuff because I have taste buds.
Interesting. If you want to learn more about #2, check out this video from TED on how social networks influence us:
[YOUTUBE="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2U-tOghblfE&feature=player_embedded"]Nicholas Christakis: The hidden influence of social networks [/YOUTUBE]
Unkind - I did the Turbokick workout today. I survived, but it was indeed quite challenging. My punches and kicks near the end of the routine would have had questionable ability to intimidate potential thugs. Overall, I enjoyed it though. Far more fun than 45 minutes of an elliptical machine.
Zumba class isn't available on Saturdays, so I won't be able to try it out this month.
I wish I liked cottage cheese. I probably should give it a second shot, since I tried some whipped version once. It was like Ricotta.. I just wanted to slather it on pasta.
Something interesting, I noticed that I've been the overweight one in my group, but it was always the skinny people being the bad influences. They were the biggest fat kids at heart and now that I've been rid of them, it's easier for me to make better choices. So odd. They may be skinny, but I wouldn't put much stock in their health.
Glad to hear you are alive after it. Is it as high-intensity as youtube clips would lead me to believe? Lots of bouncing and "RAH"ing?
I'll be rooting for a future Zumba adventure for you. I don't think I could ever abandon my favorite cult.
Well, I think I stumbled into the Secret Land of Pregnant Women. 4 of the women there were with child, including the instructor. I had to take a shower to wash the hormones off of me after the class.So it wasn't as high intensity as the demo videos, but it was still pretty high intensity for those that could keep up.
If nothing else, I ROCKED the break portions.
Well, the good news is the only gym I can find here is open until 1am. This is good because I am a night owl and tend to go to gyms late at night. The bad news is... It sucks. Very little equipment, half broken, and it smells like B.O. and has poor ventilation.
It seems the only other option here is a "Curves" though, and I heard they have a weird system that involves group workouts with music playing and some kind of switching machines when the music beeps like its a game of musical chairs.
That Curves thing sounds weird. It sounds circuit-based, with a bit of music and social atmosphere to try and take some of the monotony out of it. Is that a type of workout you'd enjoy?
I've been walking to all my classes, but I'm not sure if this is enough.
Enough for what?
Well, I can't tell easily how it compares to what I was doing before.
Could Google Earth recognize walking paths?
The problem is that if I do gain 15 lbs in the next year or so, people will assume it's the freshman fifteen instead of, well, I lost at least 15 lbs due to illness in the past year and I'm just gaining it back.
I don't think Google recognizes specific walking paths, but you can still use it to get an estimate.
How's the school's food selection? Have you had the chance to see if the school offers any dietary services to help you create a healthy meal plan?