Running program has been very good for me. Must decide whether now is the time to adopt running as principal cardio activity, or has part of the cross-training. If running is Xtraining, then adopt distances to suit that purpose.
INSH8P 3/25/07 7:42 A
It is going to take being a little bit discriminating on time use to sustain the activity gains that I have made. I am at a crossroads in deciding how to pursue an academic goal. Going the HIIT route will make it easier to retain cardio levels, but it will take a toll on motivation for group fitness.
INSH8P 3/4/07 9:19 P
One of the ways that I intend to get out of the "rut" is to boost intensity, without adding time to the overall workout. Under the trainer's guidance, I can push (push really hard). So I might not feel comfortable going that hard by myself, but I certtain need to be working quite hard, and not go back to far in the recovery pace.
Work it out for yourself, and see what changes happen over a six-week period.
INSH8P 1/10/07 8:33 P
After 10 weeks of limited workouts, and 30 weeks away from LMI classes, it feels good to be back at doing the classes and the workout intensity that eliminate pudge. As I said to my personal trainer: I'll try anything, under your personal guidance. If you believe I can do it, the least that I can do is try - and do that at a level of excellence. The experience of pushing on, of persevering, is so important in the building blocks of doing what is necessary - not what is a feel good that is the easy, soft road. I want to follow the rugged path, the way to a lasting, more permanent peace of mind.
INSH8P 12/27/06 4:05 P
To get clear about my "most important" goals would probably benefit me more than some of the self-help reading I am presently doing. But there is nothing wrong, and something right about looking after yourself, albeit in unconventional ways.
INSH8P 12/25/06 8:14 A
One door opens, and another closes. How real is the life we live? Is it right to compare the lifestyle of affluence with one of poverty? The best that I have seen is an example quoted in John C. Maxwell's "Today Matters": I use my capacity to create wealth to fuel my desire to share wealth. So instead of damning oneself for the outputs of wealth, look to what you have accomplished in spite of wealth.
INSH8P 12/15/06 7:32 A
Just a few more sleeps to the end of the super busy season. Unfortunately, my fitness appointment was cancelled. However, I'm going anyway, to take time for me!
INSH8P 12/10/06 5:54 A
I found the article "Dorm Room Workouts" from the Resource Centre - I wish that it was re - titled: "Home Office Workouts" or "Knowledge Worker Workouts" because they seem ideal for someone who is stuck to a computer / telephone to do whatever they need to do to be fulfilled / make money.
INSH8P 10/30/06 5:20 A
I have been waiting a while to take the step of being a community team member, and now the day has come. The days seem a bit frantic, but I have looked at some of the standby activities that don't require a gym membership to get me through this particularly challenging time at work and with the other commitments of life. Best wishes to the maintainers - and to those trying to lose weight (or to effect a lifestyle change) - keep at it - you CAN succeed!
INSH8P 10/2/06 6:57 A
In the month since my last posting, I can certainly understand how it can be very challenging to fit "cardio" into one's schedule when you are on the run. After trying out another web provider's "tracking system" I have to admit that Spark People has a VERY good thing going for it. I had an idea of which tools were working for me, and the "other trial" helped me to confirm my instincts. It didn't matter which system, there were activities I resist tracking, and other activities that come easily. So they say that a change is as good as a rest ... I say that change provides the perspective to examine what is really happening in your "life change" process, another viewpoint of reflection and analysis.
INSH8P 8/31/06 10:19 P
EMOTIONAL QUOTIENT A smile here, and some thoughts that move outside of one's self -- that seems to be the way to have others think more sincerely about you. It helps, too, to pay attention to the first impressions of people whom you trust.
Best wishes, everyone, as we move into September /06.
INSH8P 8/28/06 5:31 A
GET REAL Actions make it; intentions break it. So goes the daily decision of: "Will I follow through on the steps that lead to accomplishing a dream?" Have the clothes ready, check for portions available for lunches, meals, anticipate that "something" will need five more minutes of attention when you are trying to get out of the door in the morning. Hearing about other SparkPeople participants "getting real" is truly inspiring, and tells you that real people are facing real situations with courage, grace and persistence. And I say to myself: "My challenges are worthy of making positive efforts towards change."
INSH8P 8/20/06 8:08 A
SETTING NEW GOALS The supports of action steps helps to approach goals that don't "just happen". I am noticing that some mental shifts are not as quick, and those attitudes need consistent effort in order to move from the present to a new reality.
Wouldn't it be a utopian world to escape from commercial claims on one's time, money, eating habits, dress, and personal priorities? And that is why people go on vacation, to be removed from those influences. When I take courses, I try to take time to say to myself: Even if I could be doing xxx, I choose to do yyy.
INSH8P 8/15/06 5:13 A
HOW MUCH TIME I've decided that I will set a limit of how much time I will devote to the site at one sitting. One advantage is that I usually don't have food / drink around when I am computing. It may be available, but I usually don't consume it simultaneously. It's as though I don't want to replace out of control food / movement with lack of balance in the online world. But I liken it to: if I were taking a university course, would anyone criticize you for spending too much time reading and writing? And that is what happens at SparkPeople. It takes a fair amount of reading and time to consider and be moved by what people are saying. Looking at the boards is not passive - it is very active, and it makes you think: "How does what that person is describing apply to me?" "What is that person feeling?" "Do I have anything that I can say to be supportive of that individual? What if I can see myself in the other? - Am I just as willing to be supportive of myself?"
The issue of time is huge; but I know that when I would sit at the commercial lifestyle provider, I had to make the time to arrive and return home - so SparkPeople is much more convenient, and it has built-in accountability within a group of quality tools.
SparkPeople - a community worth supporting by one's time and one's work within the SparkTeams and other Message Boards.
INSH8P 8/11/06 12:24 P
OTHER SUPPORT COMMUNITIES
What has made the difference for me is the wide range of people who make up SparkPeople. I am still a member of a commercial lifestyle / weight loss program, having achieved a goal weight; but I am not convinced that the online support being provided through that program is what will help me.. or the people who are at it.
It takes time to choose to participate in SparkPeople, and, with other interests, I have to set limits on investing time in Teams and Message Boards. The time I put in needs to have value and some kind of response -- acknowledgement of my contribuition or specific benefit to me. I can certainly reply "YES" when it comes to the benefit of SparkPeople. The time I put into the postings, and journalling is making a difference that I can feel and see.
INSH8P 8/9/06 5:31 A
WORKOUT with Personal Trainer When you have a coach, it is "different" when you bring a program to your teacher, and carry it out, and then get critiqued on it. I did just that, and I felt the satisfaction of having gained enough from the instruction to be able to apply it for myself.
INSH8P 8/5/06 8:36 A
Working to find an activity balance point is challenging. I think about the controversy over % of calories burned from fat. When I workout at a lower intensity, the calories are being burned, but at a much slower rate. Alas, one of the disadvantages of being fit... you actually have to work harder to keep the calorie burning machine stoke for full calorie incineration capacity.
And I find it challenging to start experimenting with speed bursts within a workout. Again, this is like interval training, but raising the bar another level. In my training in spinning classes, I push that cardio bar further than I could ever do in a step class, because of the risk of impact injury. In a spin class, you might have extreme muscle fatigue, but you could feel it coming on, and choose to back off.
These are the new challenges of cross-training, keeping cardio interesting so that you can keep feeling the joy and freedom of reaching a summit, and finding another approach.
INSH8P 8/1/06 2:59 A
THE MAGIC LANTERN "An idea can turn to dust or magic, depending on the talent that rubs against it." -- William Bernbach Finding routines that work FOR you is part of changing your activities. I've found the change process to be messy, indirect, non-linear. The idea(s) can be ethereal, airy, just like magic until the "how do I make it practical?" demands attention. And then the magic dust would all but vanish until the talent of self-confidence and newly-minted skills rescues those fresh ideas. A little fresh air, that's all that they need. And then your own determination will show you "the next step(s)". The combinations of workouts and music for visualization are fascinating reminders of the power of the human spirit to rise to greater heights. Anyone can be presented with a product, a physical entity to promote change -- but the most lasting change is the peace (even an active peace) of renewal from your changed view of what can be achieved, and how much further one can progress. "I didn't know how much I didn't know... so now, it is time to go farther."
INSH8P 8/1/06 2:21 A
Would you like to see a different side of yourself? Consider cross-training. I am re-inventing my legs and appreciating the value of balance training when I feel the pulsing pace of full-circled wheeling in group spinning classes. No mirrors; no worries about "who has the latest fashion attire". Just the mental energy of people who are achieving their personal goals individually; simultaneously as a team. Feeling the effects of strength training and doing housework is also gratifying. Opening jars of homemade preserves is less taxing; cooking for the week has no added sting from moaning, tight hamstrings. Seemingly awkward postures can be maintained while looking for, and finding "that something I knew was on the xxxxx shelf". The over-all poise, confidence that comes from giving "you" time to be your best; and the compassion for others who have their individual trials to meet -- what special gifts to ponder in a world that challenges us to "be strong", to live each day to the fullest.
