Sunday, August 09, 2009

Low Key Blogging

It's going to be low-key around this blog for the next few weeks. I don't have another race on tap till The Grande Ass on September 6th, though I do have the excitement of crewing for Jenny at the CCC 100 coming up later this month. I also signed up for the Portland Marathon in October. No other hard and fast plans for fall, though that is when races seem to start popping up on my schedule, so I'm sure I'll be adding more.

The next few weeks I'll be putting in a bit of time working at the local campus of our college as an academic advisor. I've already put some time in this summer and find it a lot of fun. I'm really looking forward to my new assignment working in the lab school this fall. It will mean an adjustment to my running schedule , and I haven't quite figured out how it's all going to work.

With that in mind, I thought it was time to bring some discipline to my life. I've been having trouble getting my Pilates work outs in since I quit teaching Pilates last December, usually managing to do it only once per week, which is really not doing me much good. Somehow, I also got whacked out on my nutritional health - eating more junk food than normal, consuming more wine than normal, eating larger portions, in general, just being lax. I suspect it was the stressful spring that led me off into the land of comfort food and lots of it. Fortunately, I wasn't gaining weight because my running was holding steady, but still...at the rate I was putting it away, it was bound to start creeping up, and more importantly that five pounds of winter padding I packed on over the holidays wasn't coming off.

So. What to do? Here's my plan for the next six weeks (because I've read it takes six weeks to build a habit).

  • Pilates three times a week, no excuses.
  • Weekly running mileage between 40 - 50 miles, every third week drop to 25.
  • Eating 95% healthy - meaning appropriate quantities, less junk, but still allowing room for a nightly ice cream or the occasional french-fry splurge - after all, a girl's gotta have some fun! I will stay away from the chocolate chips though - those babies just lead me right down the road to temptation.
That's it! Should be eminently do-able. In fact Week One was already successful. Mileage hit right at 45 miles (okay Rick, 44.96 miles, I rounded!) Pilates successfully completed and enjoyed three times. Eating was really good. I'm on my way! I'm hoping if it's all established by the time I start fall quarter, it will simply mean a few adjustments and easier adaptation to my new work schedule and commute. Seems like a good plan to me!

11 comments:

Joe said...

Michelle, you are awesome!! Nice self assessment and self adjustment discussion!! And, as an Official Engineer Person, I concur with your rounding up to 45 miles!!!!

Yeah, the school year is rolling again and you can dial in.

You'll love crewing for Jenny!!

Good plan...stay with it!!

Olga said...

I am into eating healthy these days too! I even got a book at the library "Flexitarian", as in vegetarian with allowing yourself to eat meat. First step - exclude meat twice a week. I've done it before, 3 times for 6 months, and always lost weight on it. Good luck to all at CCC!

justrun said...

Good for you! Downtime is a great time for reassessment. And really, your down time is still not really down time, to most people. :)

Thomas said...

Olga, flexitarian, now that is a strange concept. Basically a meat-eating vegetarian. Doesn't feel quite right to me.

Anyway, Michelle, did you really have to go on about all that healthy food and then mention both ice cream and chocolate chips in your post? I've got cravings now!

Donald said...

Wait - you have to do races to be an active blogger? Uh oh ... I'm in trouble.

Kidding. Good luck with shifting gears, especially with the dietary discipline. Wish I had some advice for you there, but I'm as bad as they come.

Jenny, Maniac #401 said...

6 weeks to form a habit? Seems long and hard. :) I know you are a disciplined person and will manage just fine. Maybe some of it will rub off on me!
Jenny

Scott McMurtrey said...

not the chocolate chips!!!

Anne said...

Hey, it's a good busy that is keeping you off-schedule, so it's not such a bad thing. And you'll find the right balance soon enough. Stay the course. And stay away from the chocolate.

Annie Crow said...

Thanks for the fall plan! Very sensible. Good luck following through!

Sarah said...

Good luck with the new habits! Sounds like a great plan.

Darrell said...

Adaptation is always trying.

It's not fair is that it takes 6 weeks to develop a habit and only 2 off days to lose it.

The academic advising sounds like a great fit for you.