The Good Kind of Exhausted

Happy Writer’s Day, Modern Philosophers!

As many of you already know, Writer’s Day is the holiday I invented to celebrate the fact that I am a writer, even though I’m not yet able to support myself full time as a member of that profession.

Writer’s Day always falls the day after a taping of The Nite Show, when I’m both exhausted from working both jobs and on a writer’s high from being a part of making an awesome TV show.

If you haven’t already, I hope you will check out the post I wrote about last night’s historic Nite Show taping.

But do that after you finish this one, of course!

I’m extra exhausted today, Modern Philosophers, and it’s not just because I was up until past midnight last night.

Believe it or not, I’ve actually gotten back into my fitness routine.  The Man Who Hates Running is back running wild through the streets, and the only thing stopping him are his lungs, legs, pretty much all the muscles in his body, his lack of fitness, and the team of EMTs assigned to follow him every time he goes for a run.

All kidding aside, it’s time to get serious about my health again.  As always, I packed on the weight over the winter, but this year, I really went bananas.

After Saturday’s run

When I stepped on the scale Sunday, I honestly could not believe how much it said I weighed, and I went into a slight panic.

I purposely avoid the scale all winter because I know I’m gaining, and it’s too cold and snowy for me to want to do anything fitness related.

However, I’ve never weighed this much, and I am not happy with myself.  Or with all those stores that sold me whoopie pies, chocolate, ice cream, and chips when I clearly was not thinking clearly!

It was a hard winter for me, and I turned to comfort food instead of coping with my problems and stress in a healthy way.

Now I’m paying the price for that lapse in judgment.

Luckily, my employer is piloting a new Employee Wellness Program, and I was asked to participate.  I’m hoping I was picked because everyone knows that I do run and try to stay healthy in the non-winter months.

Now I’m wondering if they picked me because they feared I was growing too large to fit safely through the doorways in the office.

Sunday’s run

The plan we’re trying out is through Virgin Pulse.

I’ve never used a fitness tracker before, but I’ve always wanted to try one.  It’s no secret that I’m horrible at making decisions to when it comes to new gadgets, and that’s the only reason I’ve never taken the plunge and bought a Fit Bit.

Instead, I use the stopwatch on my phone to time my runs and estimate the distance from driving the course and checking my car’s odometer.

I’ve had no idea of my total steps for the day, how many calories I’ve burned, my heart rate, etc.

To enroll in the plan, we had to have a tracker.  Virgin has its own low price device known as the Virgin Max (which is odd because I knew a guy with that name in college…), so I decided to go with that to see how I like it.

Since our company gives us $250 a year to spend on fitness products via our current Wellness Program, it didn’t really cost me anything.

My plan is to see how I like the Virgin Max and then decide if I want to invest in a better tracker like the Garmin my coworker has, which I really like.

Tuesday…BRRRRR!

Anyhow, the pilot began on Saturday, and I’ve gone running four days this week.  As you can see from the photos on the post, my attitude towards running hasn’t changed much despite the long winter break.

I haven’t just been running, though.  Having the Max track my every move has inspired me to be much more active.

Over the weekend, I popped outside for walks in between writing and watching TV.  At work, I now get up more, especially when I’m on the phone, and use my headset so I can wander around and get in my steps while I talk.

I’ve started lifting weights again, too, but the biggest change has been in my diet.

Aside from a little piece of the delicious homemade monkey bread my coworker brought to work on Monday, I have not had any sweets.  Yes, Modern Philosophers, I turned my back on free work donuts twice this week!

The other night, I stopped at the grocery store after a trying day at work, but instead of buying something sweet, I bought the makings for a salad.

According to the Virgin Pulse app, I’ve already logged over 65,000 steps since Saturday.  We had a one day challenge on Tuesday among several coworkers doing the pilot, and I won by logging over 15,000 steps!

I already have over 11,000 steps today.  I went for a long run this morning, and then walked to the library at noon.  I plan to go out for a couple of walks later this afternoon.  Even though tomorrow is an off day from running, I’m going to try to get up early and walk a few laps before heading to work.

Today

I’m not quite sure what’s gotten into me, but I welcome it.

According to the scale that broke my heart on Sunday, I’ve already lost a nice amount of weight this week.

I am motivated and competitive, so this pilot program came around at the perfect time.

I know that my self-confidence skyrockets when I feel better about my health, so I’m hoping that this new workout routine might also help me in my attempts to find a new someone special.

Right now, though, I’m the most special someone in my life, and I need to take better care of myself.

I’ve taken great strides this week, Modern Philosophers.  Over 65,000 in fact.  Here’s hoping that this is the first of many regular positive posts on fitness!

If you have any suggestions for easy to make, healthy meals and snacks, I’d love it if you’d share them in the comments section.  Keeping my diet under control is key and my cooking skills are a bit limited at this point…

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