The new year progresses relentlessly and I’m already scrambling to keep up. I’ve managed to accomplish a few things. Yesterday was devoted to bookkeeping, which included winnowing down the pile of papers on my desk. I believe I am now ready to file taxes. Go me.
Tomorrow starts a new childbirth series, which means I have to clean my house. I like to make a decent first impression. Besides, I wouldn’t want to be taught natural childbirth in a dirty, cluttered house. Just sayin’. I can only do so much about the clutter (most of it isn’t mine), but I can at least have clean clutter.
Yesterday I started a body sculpting class at the YMCA. It’s sort of an aerobic weightlifting class. Although I’ve been using weight machines for over a year, and free weights of 10 – 15 pounds for bicep/tricep work, I found it necessary to use 2-pound weights during the class. I started with 8 pounds and quickly gave that up. I guess I have to hold them longer than the normal reps require. I’m a bit sore today, but I’m going to keep going. The pace is slow enough for me to keep up, unlike certain aerobic classes like Zumba or Jazzercise. I’ll do the body sculpt class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and my usual weight/stationary bike on M-W-F. It sounds like a lot, but to be honest, I don’t push myself that hard on the bike. Just enough to get some movement into my day. And of course, I will try to continue taking long walks occasionally. We jut haven’t been doing very much walking and I need to make sure I use my body!
Along those lines, my new reduced-calorie lifestyle continues with varying degrees of success. We had a long vacation, then it was the holidays, then we spent a few weeks helping out with my FIL and visiting family, plus I came down with a severe cold. All of that interrupted my normal eating pattern, but I did manage to gain only two pounds. So I’m back to fasting 3 days a week. This is not true fasting – I eat breakfast, usually under 600 calories. I’m also eating more fruit and on my fasting days, I let myself snack on an apple or orange sometime during the day. I’ve decided that fruit calories don’t count.
Except… I’ve been cheating. One reason may just be difficulty in adjusting after all the processed food and holiday desserts. I find myself craving grains of some kind – usually bread or granola. I only eat whole grains, but it’s still addicting and hard to cut back. So I’m working on it. I still need to lose 10 to 15 pounds, and these last pounds are probably the hardest to lose. Not giving up, though.
The one thing I have not been doing, is writing. I’m not happy about this, but I just can’t make myself do it. I open a WIP and stare at it. This has been happening for more than half a year and I am more frustrated than you can imagine. I’m not giving up on this either, but I don’t have any solutions. It’s even hard to write a blog post, which is why most of my recent entries have all been links to some other page. I’m really struggling with it. It’s like slogging through molasses while I’m paralyzed.
On that happy note, tell me how your 2014 is shaping up. What’s happening?
Marlene Dotterer 
You could come over on a cleaning day and watch Abby deal with the vacuum monster. She inspired my blog this week, and my cleaning. I’m hoping she will also inspire me to tackle the writing and art projects.
How about trying quinoa when you crave grains? I like its nuttiness and it satisfies me when I’m looking for grain-foods.
Good idea, Maria! I love quinoa.
Bottom in chair, Marlene. Mozart played scales until he played a riff, then he played riffs on the riff until he whipped up a concerto. A shame he drank the concerto, but we heard it on the way down.
I often open a document and just let my fingers wander around on the keyboard. So far it hasn’t produced a sentence. Perhaps I should type random words. That sounds more like Mozart’s scales.
This year has started off pretty well. I’m working on lowering my caloric intake in a slow manner so it’s more of a lifestyle change and less of a diet. Got to make a difference early or deal with some not-so-pleasant consequences sooner than I want.
Writing is going well. Re-launched my pen name and slowly getting that off the ground. Having fun with it so will see how it goes.
Wishing you well with all of your endeavors 🙂