Getting Healthy

My dh says that keeping a record of my progress and program might be motivating for me, so I thought I'd do that here.

My goal is to improve my overall fitness. That ought to be easy to attain since it's such a broad goal.

So far I've been walking every day (but not Sunday) and have done an aerobics video every day. The first 4 days I did Richard Simmons videos in this order: Sweatin' to the Oldies 1, 2 and 3, and Sweat and Shout. The Richard Simmons videos seemed to get a bit more strenuous through the series, but I may just have been wearing out. The first one is the only one to use floor exercises. The 2nd one is the only one to use weights and a chair. I'll be rotating these with other videos. I've heard that most people who start with videos quit when they tire of the few they have. I'm taking steps to avoid that temptation. I've been doing some research, I've made a list, and now I'm picking up DVD's to rotate.

Today I walked 2 miles at the park in 40 minutes and did the Kathy Smith Moving Through Menopause video. I really like this video. There are 3 sections: the first is an aerobics workout, the second is an easy weight routine, and the last is a yoga session. It's easy enough for me to be able to make it through the entire routine, while providing options for ramping up when I'm more experienced and easing off when I tire. She's cheerful and motivating without being "perky" or silly. I felt comfortable doing the activities and wouldn't have been embarrassed for someone to walk in on me -not always true of the Richard Simmons programs. She provides intros with helpful health information which can be skipped to move straight from one exercise segment to the other. The DVD includes information on menopause, symptom relief, general diet and supplement information for menopausal and peri-menopausal women and encouragement to visit Kathy Smith's web presence at ivillage.com. That site at www.ivillage.com/kathysmith is no longer active.

I'm also going to track my diet here. I'm not overweight and not in a weight-loss program, but part of healthy living is a healthy diet. If I write it out I'm sure I'll be better able to see ways to improve it. I had 2 pieces of wheat toast with butter and a cup of Constant Comment tea for breakfast. For lunch I had pita bread with dipping oil, cheddar cheese, blueberries and a coke. Supper was the church fellowship meal. Tonight was chicken from Sam's, which I never eat, so I had the mashed potatoes, green peas, apples cooked with cinnamon, and ice cream. Not a healthy meal. If I've figured right my total calorie intake for today was 1413.25. That seems about right, and it's a typical food day for me (except for the supper). I've seen so many estimates for how many calories I should eat to maintain my current weight -from 1126 to 1734) that I won't be counting the calories as a general rule.

(photo from Flickr)