75 Hard Week Four Days 22 to 28

 I have actually made it 4 weeks in my 75 hard challenge.   It's crazy because some days I think it's the hardest thing I have ever done, but others I think it's the easiest thing in the world!   The outdoor workouts remain my nemesis.  I dread them......it's cold out there!  But that wasn't my biggest issue this week.  My biggest issue was that the arthritis in my knee has come out to play!  It's been quite painful and honestly no fun!  But I know it's not doing damage, so I am just pushing through!  But without further ado, lets look at each day!

 Day 22

Weekend days are a flip flop for me. Normally indoor exercise is the easy one and I dread the outdoor exercise. But with Jason home and different routines in place, it is the opposite.   I still got my 45 minutes of indoor exercise completed though!    The outdoor was so much nicer to complete since we went out together with the dog and walked the neighborhood.  There were only two things to note about the walk.  Number one, it was cold!   Number two, the dog has developed some irrational fear of storm grates.   It is the oddest thing, out of nowhere she cowers and tries to get as far away as possible!  

I was able to nail all of my other requirements for this day.  My water was easy and my calories were at 1372.   This is the day that I turned my eating around and really started to limit my carb intake!

Day 23

This was just one heck of a difficult day!  I woke up and felt HORRIBLE!  My stomach was hurting and I just wanted to curl in a ball and ignore the world.  I did just that in the morning.  I didn't exercise at 5AM like normal.  I pretty much curled up on the couch under a blanket and read.   But I knew that I had made it 22 days in this 75 hard challenge and I didn't want to throw away that success.  So in the afternoon I headed to the TV in the family room.  I choose a light workout to follow.  I did Body Groove, which is more flowy and easy, but can still get me moving.  45 minutes indoor exercise was done.  I went out with the dog in the afternoon and we had a nice leisurely walk.   Then I went inside and retreated to my comfy blankets on the couch.   It wasn't hard core workouts, but they were completed.   My calories were a bit lower due to not feeling well.....I finished the day at 974 calories.

 I completed everything I needed to for the day and didn't let feeling sick derail me! 

 Day 24

This day required planning.  I headed out at about 9AM and that meant that I needed to get my stuff done and planned early!  I had a headache but I was back at the 5AM exercise!  My reading was done by 6:30.   I was outside roaming around and walking with the dog by 8AM and I was out the door for my day by 9! 

I carried my water with me and drank religiously all day and I managed to end the day with only 1324 Calories consumed.  All in all a great day!

Day 25

You know, the outdoor exercise is so much easier to obtain when it's a snowy day!  Even though I knew that it was going to be in the upper 40's the next day, I still took some time to clear off our deck and our walkways (exercise), Zoe and I did our normal walks and of course we played.   Outdoor exercise done.  Of course my indoor exercise was completed at 5AM, like normal!

 My calories ended up a bit high for the day, but still under my goal of 1500.  Let me tell you, it was close at 1473!   Even while my calories were a bit high, I still limited my carbs and did really good with my eating.    Water and reading posed no issues.

Day 26

This was one of those days where it was just easy.  I got the exercise completed early.  I dreaded the outdoor time but I managed it.   I spent most of the day in the office working on my computer and looking for jobs.  (Ok, and maybe a few YouTube videos interspersed!)

I did great with my water and I did fabulously with my calories at 1299. 

My reading got really boring as I was reading the book  You Will Find Your People.    This book was just odd.  It was part 'look at me and all my friends" and part "this is what good friendship looks like".  I don't know really what they were trying to get across, but I can say this.  The book was a drag to read.

 Day 27

Valentines day!   I had a super busy day planned so there was no slacking.   Exercise inside at 5AM, Reading done by 6:30 and outdoor exercise started  at 7:15.   I was out the door for my days activities by 8:20 and I was on the go the rest of the day!   I was honestly too busy to think about food and even with my indulgence of two chocolate covered strawberries, I ended the day at 1236 calories. 

I thought that my water was going to be an issue, but at the end of the day I realized that quite naturally I had finished my water! (What had messed me up was the fact that my water container still had water in it so I thought I had failed....until I remembered that I had filled it up an extra time!  GO me!

It was a good day...busy but good as I got to spend time with all of my favorite people.  Jason of course as I woke up next to him and ended the day with him  but also my brother and his family! I even got to see my niece when we went to see her Gymkana troup perform!

While I was at Gymkana, I was talking with my nephew about core strength (which we apparently both need to work on) and I suddenly thought about yoga for the first time in ages!  I even talked to my nephew about it and talked about how I had been having problems with a pinched nerve and how yoga helped. (You can read about that here.)  A while later I brought up yoga again with my sister in law.  So you know the concept of yoga was stuck in my head. 

 Day 28 

Snow again!   It was a Saturday so we just relaxed at home most of the day and watched the snow.  I did make a tactical error with my outdoor exercise.  It was snowing in the morning but I was so comfy under my blanky that I stayed inside.  By the time I ventured outside the temperature was 33 degrees and it was no longer snow.  Instead, I spent 30 minutes outside in a really cold rain!   (yeah, I utilized the 30 minute minimum adjustment).  

For this day, I split my indoor exercise between yoga and cardio.   I never made any specific rule about exactly what my indoor exercise must entail, but I have pretty much stuck to cardio each day.   After remembering yoga I realized that yoga would be a fabulous addition to my repertoire of exercise during this 75 Hard challenge.  Not as a replacement for the cardio though because I still want to keep cardio as my main exercise, but as an addition.  In this way yoga can allow my body to rest on occasion.   I'm not going to make any promises, but I am also toying with adding yoga a few times a week above and beyond the 45 minutes of cardio.

We had a lazy day and that means that I read a good portion of the day, and I did read my non fiction book during this time.   I am now reading Educated, a memoir.  But thus far it is really just not holding my interest. 

Surprisingly, my water consumption was barely there.  I squeaked a success out for the day, but it was close.  We went out and picked up dinner and I almost stopped to get a soda.  But two things.   Number one, I knew that it was going to be close as it was for me to get my water in for the day.  But secondly, I am really wondering if the diet soda is somehow skewing my weight loss efforts.  (You can read about my thoughts on that here.) I am currently on a downward trend and I am kind of afraid to drink any for fear of messing up my downward trend! So I passed and stuck with water.

I did indulge in a piece of the cake that I made for Jason for Valentines day.  For the first time in a long time I actually had cake in the house and didn't feel like I NEEDED to have a piece.  I honestly went back and forth and waited for quite a while before I actually decided that a piece of cake would be a fun indulgence.  So with the cake my calories were a bit higher at 1468.  But that is ok!

 Reflections

That day that I woke up feeling sick was so difficult.   Exercise was a total test of simple willpower and determination. Being honest, if I had only been 2  or even up to 5 days into the 75 Hard I probably would have thrown up my hands and given up and restarted the 75 hard the next day.   But I wasn't going to fail....and the hard work of the previous 20-some days was a really good motivator!

While the muscle aches and pains that pervaded every waking minute for  the first week or two have mostly dissipated.   This week another pain emerged, or should I say re-emerged.   The arthritis in my knee really came out to play!   Not just the twinges and the random aches and pains that have been part of my life as I have regained weight.  No, this week the old constant pain of arthritis kicked into play.  I started to wear a knee brace again.  I didn't let it stop me.  I know that exercise helps, so I continue!  (I wrote a fun 'letter' to my old friend 'arthur=itus' a while back which you can read here.) I have been more mindful of exercises that have a lot of squats and I only completed one step aerobic workout (early in the week before the knee really started to scream).  

As more time passes I am feeling more and more confident that I not only can finish this but that I will finish this!  Carrying through things has been a difficult thing for me in recent years, especially in terms of weight loss.  But I am felling really confident that I can do it this time!   That confidence is seeping into other things too.   I have had moments in the 365/Picture a day project where I have felt and said to myself "yeah, why are you even trying because you are going to fail such a long term challenge".  But just this week when I was organizing pictures and placing my picture a day pictures in a file folder  and I stopped myself and literally said out loud."I CAN finish this challenge too."    So the success and confidence is growing now just in for the 75 Hard, but also in life in general. 

Bring it on!  I am ready to smash this next week too!

 

 

A Picture a Day Day: Days 102 to 109

A 365 challenge is a neat one.  It is a long term challenge.  One that takes perserverence to complete.  Something that I frequently have issues with. But I started in mid October and here I am. I started the challenge for a few reasons.  One of the main reasons I started this challenge is because photography forces one to look at the world in a different way.  I started this challenge because I wanted to challenge my photography skills.  I started this challenge as a way to document my year.   So far I haven't done anything spectacular with my photography, although I have had some really good shots.  I plan on working on that....I still have lots of time left in this year!   But I have maintained a picture a day and I have done a fabulous job of documenting my year thus far.   

I'm not sure what I will do with the pictures at the end of this year.  Will I put them into a scrapbook to commemorate the year?   Will I make a video montage?  I'm not sure.  But right now it is just one day at a time!  So here we go with the a few more days of my life in pictures.

 Day 103 (2.8.25)

    Zoey just loves her car rides!  I can't confirm, but I think Jason makes up 'outings' so that the dog can go with us places.   She was intently watching her 'daddy' while he was out of the car!

 Day 104 (2.9.25)

It was Sunday so Jason was home.  It was cold though! It didn't stop us though.  We gout out and took a nice walk.  Weirdly enough, the dog has developed a fear of storm grates.   Last weekend she was fine, but this weekend walks she was petrified of them.   That dog is a weirdo!

Day 105 (2.10.25)

Nothing special about this Monday.  Jason was working and I was at home looking for jobs!  But of course I had to get outside and walk a bit!

Day 106 (2.11.25)

I went to Hagerstown to spend some time with my nephews.  First I went out with Alex (my youngest nephew) and he drove around a bit in my car.  Since I have the only manual transmission car, I have offered to teach my cousins (they declined) and my niece and nephew how to drive stick.  I think hooked up with Riley my oldest nephew and we went out searching for answers about our ancestry.  We are struggling to find a name for my Great Great Grandfather (Rileys 3rd great).   We know his name was Mclain but was that his first or his middle name and  but some references indicate his name as Joseph and some as Samuel.     We headed to a graveyard to identify some graves of family and hope that McClain's wife would have something on her grave stone indicating her husbands name.  Nope, she didn't actually even have a stone.  But we did visit a bunch of graves of people we are related to.  It was a good day.  Still cold, but good!

Day 107 (2.12.25)

Wednesday brought a small snow storm.   We ended up with about 2 inches of snow.  It was my favorite kind of snow.  It was gorgeous while it lasted.  But the next day we had temps in the upper 40's and the snow was gone! 

Day 108 (2.13.25)

The snow is melting fast!   I don't know why I took this picture, but I'm sure glad that I did because it was my only picture of the day! I spent a lot of time looking for jobs but also knocked one or two things off of my master list of things to do around the house! 

Day 109 (2.14.25)

I had a busy day!  I went grocery shopping, I cleaned at mom's house, I went out for a long drive with my nephew (yup, more practice with manual transmission) and I went to the Gymkana show to see my niece a perform.  It was a busy  but fun day!

 Another week of fun and excitement.......still unemployed but trying to make the most of it!

I was surprised

 Part of the 75 Hard challenge is to set up a diet plan for yourself and follow it religiously.   The term diet does not mean a diet in the negative weight loss connotation.  The rule to set up a diet plan is just saying to set up an eating plan for the time frame.   It does not have to be a plan that will encourage your body to lose weight.  It could be something as simple as limiting how much soda a person drinks, or cutting alcohol or going sugar free.  Anything!  I have one follower on my youtube channel that decided to do the 75 hard along with me and for her diet plan she simply made the rule that she has to track her food each and every day.  It doesn't matter WHAT she eats, she just has to track it. Sure she is trying to keep it under a certain caloric goal, but her plan is to TRACK.    For me though, I decided to set up a diet plan that would 'encourage' my body to lose weight.

I decided that my goal would be to stay under 1500 calories!   I could do that, no problem right?    Well let me tell you, at the beginning it was tight!  But I quickly settled down and got used to eating the fewer calories.  And the first week or so I lost big....I lost 5.5 pounds!   And then I hit a week where I actually gained! I gained 1.5 pounds!  What in the world?   I was working out, religiously.  I was drinking my water, religiously.   I was keeping my calories under 1500, religiously!  There should NOT have been a gain!  Yet, I was staring at the scales and seeing a gain!

I knew that something was dreadfully wrong so I looked deep and here is what I found.

1. I remembered that I typically do not lose at the 1500 calorie mark.   I tend to lose at 1400 and below but my calorie count that week was always JUST below the 1500 mark!  Yes, that seems low.  HOWEVER, I do not weigh my food all the time.  I do it here and there to 'recalibrate' my portion sizes.  But I don't do it all the time.  So I look at it as the lower caloric goal is my trade off for not having to be anal and weigh everything!  Plus, I share my food with pets.   Just this morning I had a banana and some peanut butter.   The dog ate a bite or two of banana and some of the peanut butter and the bird got a slice of banana and some peanut butter!    So my figures would be all skewed should I be weighing my food.  So I just figured out through trial and error where my calories need to be for my non weighed and animal shared meals.   (And man, now I feel guilty because I didn't give the crabs anything!) 

2.  Carbs.  I love them!  OH my word to I love my carbs!   However, I have long known that my body does not love carbs....or rather maybe my body loves carbs a little too much and those carbs stick with me! I have found that I can handle one serving of a complex carb each day.  That means ONE serving of a bread or potato.   Not two...not three.    In that week where I gained 1.5 pounds I was eating an undue amount of carbs.   Ok, maybe undue amount was a bit overdramatic, but I was eating  more than the one serving that my body 'allows.'    

So I was totally able to identify what the problem was that had led me to gaining weight that week and I vowed to make the changes for the upcoming week.  However.......

Yeah, the changes didn't happen.  I was drawn to the kitchen where I made homemade bread.  Then I made homemade English muffins.   And if that wasn't enough I then made homemade pretzels!  Of course I ate some of my baked goods!  Of course I did!   I was out of control!   Until I realized what was happening.  I was drowning in grief.   I was coming up on the first  anniversary of my mom's  death and subconsciously I had sought out comfort.  (You can read how I managed the week after her death and see a picture of my mama here.)  Comfort for me is baking.  Comfort for me is carbs.  In my grief as the anniversary approached, I was drowning myself in both.

I am proud to say that as soon as I realized what I was doing that I was able to turn it around.  The baking and carb-fests ended and I got back to the basics.    I weigh myself daily and I had seen the scales slide upward during those few days of grief laden indulgence.   I HOPED to turn it around enough to show a maintain on the scales for my official weigh in day (which is currently set at Wednesday).

I was SO surprised to step on the scale on Wednesday morning.  I didn't maintain.    But I didn't gain!   I actually LOST weight!   I lost 3.1 pounds!  I lost enough weight that I recouped my 1.5 pound gain from my official weigh in the week before AND added another 1.6 pounds to that loss!   GO me.

So a few things that I learned from this:

1.   The calorie thing that I talked about earlier in this post really does hold true.

2.  Carbs are the devil....for my body.  But thank heavens I CAN indulge once a day!

3.  Diet soda.........I'm not sure if this is a coincidence or not....BUT, when I turned things I accidentally stopped drinking my diet soda in the evenings.   My plan has been to drink water during the day...and if I am done with my required amount of water at the end of the day then I can indulge in a glass of diet soda.  When I turned the ship around in terms of my eating, I somehow just stopped getting my glass of soda.  IT was accidental really.  I was just not finishing my required (for the 75 Hard challenge) water early enough to allow myself that glass of diet soda.  Could the diet soda be part of that amazing weight loss (because seriously....  I officially lost 3.1 pounds, but in reality I had gained an extra pound before I turned it around....a pound that never was counted in an official weigh in.   WE are talking substantial weight loss in just a few days.  Coincidental?   I am not sure....but stay tuned, I will be keeping an eye of it!  

75 Hard Week Three: The week of dread

 I have managed to make it through the third week of the 75 Hard.  It wasn't an easy week though!  I actually dreaded completing some (ok most) of my workouts!  I dreaded going outside.  I dreaded the early morning workouts.  I just was filled with dread.  But I pushed through and did what I needed to do!

75 Hard Day 15 

I had been super sore for a good portion of the previous week and had been choosing my indoor exercise carefully to allow my body to heal while still pushing forward.   But this day I decided that I would jump it up to a step aerobics workout.   My legs were tired when I was done, but I didn't have any of the pain that I had felt the week before.  That was a huge victory!   Jason and I went out with the dog and walked for about an hour and with that I was easily able to knock off my outdoor exercise. 

I got my reading in and drank my water with no problem.   I managed to end the day with 1393 Calories, so I was within my caloric goal range!  It was another successful day!

 75 Hard Day 16

On Monday, the 16th day of my 75 Hard Challenge I struggled with exercise.  It wasn't so much any pain but just an overwhelming sense of dread about completing it.  I was tired.  I was feeling lazy.  I just didn't want to do it.  My indoor exercise was a hodgepodge of things.  I literally started one exercise and then felt so dissatisfied that I swapped to something else.....and then swapped again!  I was so proud of completing my 45 minutes that I snapped a picture of my watch/tracker......but I even messed that up!  HAHAHA  But, blurry you can see I made it to 45 minutes and one second!  I'm telling you, it was rough indoor workout!

The outdoor workout came much later in the afternoon. I went out and worked in the yard sawing up wood (with a hand saw) and dragging limbs.  My heart rate was up and it was a gorgeous day.

The water was no problem.  My reading was done early in the morning.  I finished the book Estrogen Matters. (Amazon Affiliate Link)  It was a pretty decent read.  It was a bit dry at times with scads of data, but it got the point across!   However, the doctor still said "weigh the risks and the benefits' and then you can decide if hormone replacement therapy is right for you!  Good advice and one that I have followed pretty much all my adult life (which is why I don't take the medication for my Acid Reflux/GERD....it didn't really help me all that much and well, that made the risks outweigh the benefits...and yes when I talked to the doctor I have his blessing and support of that decision.)

 

 My calories were at 1486.  I was close to the top of my range, but managed to stay under the 1500 limit!

 75 Hard Day 17

I felt a little bit better with my indoor workout on this day.  I wasn't so wishy washy and chose one thing (Zumba) and completed my 45 minutes without becoming dissatisfied and having to switch.  At about 12:30 PM, I headed outside and went up to the bonfire pit where I had piles of down trees.  Some was stuff we cut late last fall and others were stuff that has come down this winter. (Like the wind storm from last week that brought a huge limb down right against our house.)  My in-laws came over and together we clipped, we cut, we saw and we stacked that wood!   I still have a pile brush that needs to be cut (it was too windy that day).  We finished about 3 hours later.  I wasn't cold while I was outside, even though I was only in a sweatshirt.  But when I came in I immediately felt cold, so I curled up under a blanket and read for a bit!    I was happy though....all my exercise was done for the day!

 The reading posed no problem, which is not surprising as lately I have been averaging about 4 books read a week.   The water was also no issue!  64 ounces done and dusted!  My calories were also in line with my grand total being 1383.  I checked each item off the 75 Hard challenge list and became eligible to move on to day 18 (if you mess up you have to restart at day 1).

75 Hard Day 18

I had to do a bit more planning today as I knew that I would be up and out the door by about 8:45.  The indoor exercise was no problem as I do that every morning at 5AM.   By 7:45 I was outside traipsing around with the dog to get my outdoor workout in. Ohhh, and my reading was done between the indoor workout and the outdoor workout.

Why I left the house was so that I could give my nephew a lesson in driving stick shift.  He did really well. (my aching neck...hahaha not really.  He listened to the car and was starting to get the hang of it pretty quickly!)  After that, my brother and my other nephew worked at my mom's house to get it ready to sell.  We have two bedrooms totally cleaned, emptied and the doors are closed.   We also scrubbed out all three bathrooms and they are ready to go also!  I did really good with my water through the day, sipping as the day went and drinking water while we ate lunch.  I was on a roll!   I had no problem finishing my water for the day.  The issue came into play with my food.  I had done well throughout the day but when it came time for dinner I just didn't have time to make our planned dinner that was on the menu!  I was way short on time.  So I pulled out my emergency frozen pizzas.  They were delicious, but I used way too many calories! I ended the day at 1755 calories.   That is sadly over my daily goal of 1500 calories.  BUT, all is not lost.  IF you remember the post where I talked about my personal 75 hard challenge I talked about my diet plan, which was to keep my calories under 1500 and NOT eat my earned calories, with one exception. I decided to allow myself the right to eat those earned calories once a week to allow myself to 'live'.     With my 45 minute indoor workout along with my 30 minute doggie walk time I was perfectly fine!  YAY!  
 

75 Hard Day 19

I seriously think I'm a bad ass!  I have to be!   This challenge has thrown snow at me, it's thrown wind at me, it's thrown single digit temps at me and it has thrown rain at me (and of course not a delightful warm summer rain...a cold winter rain).   But after day 18 of this 75 Hard challenge I can add another weather to my list or torture.  I was outside walking in an ice storm on this day.  Yes, it was precipitating and it was ice!  It was quite pretty, that's for sure!  Yeah, I'm a bad ass!

The water, the reading and the exercise was completed and I was at 1271 for my daily calories.  Therefore day 19 was a win and I was doing great!

 75 Hard Day 20

This was another day where I checked off all the boxes of my 75 Challenge requirements easily. Notice I said that I checked them all off easily.  Some of the things were still quite dreadful.  I just wasn't feeling the workouts!   But I did them.

As always, reading was easy and so was the water!   My calorie count came in at 1278.  So a day full of wins!

 75 Hard Day 21

It was Saturday and the last thing I wanted to do was exercise. I don't exercise at 5 AM on the weekends.  Typically I am awake before Jason and I mosey my way to the living room and relax while he sleeps in.  I don't exercise until after Jason AND the bird are awake.  I wouldn't dare interrupt the birds sleep by exercising in the next room!  But I had made it almost 3 complete weeks of the 75 hard challenge and I wasn't going to mess it up, so off I went!   45 minutes of step aerobics completed!

After a nap that lasted all morning and a whole lot of grogginess that followed; I got myself moving.  I folded some laundry, straightened the kitchen and of course fed Fred (my sourdough starter).   Then we headed out and walked for 45 minutes in the neighborhood behind us.   Zoey has developed a weird fear of storm drain/grates.  I don't recall any issues on previous walks by today she was petrified of them.  Weird!   But, that is off subject.  What is important is that my outdoor exercise is DONE!

I spent some time reading and finished my third non-fiction book of this challenge.  This book was To The Gorge . (Amazon Affiliate Link)  It is the story of a long distance runner whose mother dies of cancer. This runner decides to run the across Oregon on the PCT and try to set a record and do it in honor of her mother.   This book tells the story of this run and the mental fortitude needed for such a challenge, something that always interests me.   The book also walks the reader through the cancer diagnosis and and the whole way to the eventual death through 'flash back' memories interspersed in the running story.   It was a good read.  It was  a good reminder to live your life joyfully. (Like the mother, even though the daughter/runner was wracked with grief and was not joyful.)   It was a good book, but maybe a little hard to read considering I finished reading this book on  February 8th and February 9th would mark the 1 year anniversary of my mom's death.

 I was a little worried about my water considering I took a shower after exercising and was back on the recliner by 9AM and I then slept until Noon.  What does that mean?  Well I don't know about you, but I don't naturally drink water whilst asleep.  Ha.    But I  did remarkably well and my water was done by dinner time!   This was a Saturday and we go out to eat on Saturdays, but I planned my food well in advance and I ended the day with 1291 calories!  WIN WIN WIN all around.   And with that, I managed to complete week three of the 75 Hard Challenge!  

 

Reflections of 75 Hard To Date

After only 3 weeks I am finding the water so much easier to complete.  I am pretty impressed with that! I kid you not, before this challenge I was always trying to get my water consumption up to 64 ounces and I was lucky to make it to 30 ounces a day, and that was a struggle.   But I am doing it now!  I went from drinking pretty much nothing to consistently and easily drinking 64 ounces. 

Outdoor exercises are sometimes lame.  I sometimes go for a formal walk, but much of the time I find myself traipsing around outside with the dog....walking in place while she sniffs....or walking in place while I play fetch with her. I feel as if I am cheating.  Even though I am outside.  Even though I am moving.  I feel like I'm cheating because it's something I have been doing (maybe just not as long) and I feel as if I should be doing something 'new'.   I have to give this some food for thought!

The selfie a day?   I am doing it, maybe not a full body shot, but I am taking a selfie a day.  This is actually the one that I haven't felt particularly in love with.  I am not really seeing a need or purpose, but I am doing it regardless.  I think maybe the reason I don't feel the need and see the importance is that I am looking at myself on youtube all the time.  Afterall, I film almost daily for my weight loss and lifestyle youtube channel so I am seeing myself and have a record of my self through that.  Who knows.   And yes, I am filming and talking about my 75 hard challenge there too!  You can check it out the complete playlist here.    And  I will post the first video in the serious below.  (And if you don't want to check it out, no worries.  I don't blame you, I like a good blog post myself!)

 

 

 

365 Pictures: A picture a day // Day 97 to 102

I have been doing well with my picture a day venture.  It is neat to look back and see my pictures of what I have been doing.  I still want and plan to actually play with my photography skills and really better myself terms of my photography, but for the most part, they are still just simple snaps of my day!   This past week I actually had multiple pictures to choose from....so much fun!

Day 97 (2.2.25)

We got outside with the dog and took a nice long walk.  It was great for the dog as she REALLY needs to learn to calm down and practice makes perfect.  It was good for Jason and I because walks have always been our favorite place to really talk with no distractions.  And it was important for me to get in my 45 minutes of outdoor exercise for my 75 Hard Challenge! 

Day 98 (2.3.25)

If I am outside when it is about time for Jason to get home the dog will sit as close to the driveway  as her tether will allow her  and then she stares at the driveway willing Jason to get home.  Since it is winter and we are not outside waiting, she sits at the sliding glass door and stares at the driveway.  Just stares and waits!   Jason has gotten wiley and sometimes turns off his headlights when he pulls in so that he can sneak up on her in the dark and see her response to his arrival.

Day 99 (2.4.25)

I spent all afternoon outside working on all the branches and downed limbs that have been carted up to the burn pile.  It was too windy to burn, but I worked on cutting up the wood into 'manageable' pieces that can be used in our indoor fireplace as well as the bonfire pit.   It was cold and windy outside and I was only wearing a sweatshirt.  I was ok and felt warm as long as I was moving, but when I came inside the cold hit!  I curled up under a blanket and read a bit until it was time to make dinner!

Day 100 (2.5.25)

There is nothing better than a dog that curls up with you on the couch!  

Day 101 (2.6.25)

We had a small ice storm.   It was nasty outside.  When I opened the door for Zoey to go outside at 5AM she stopped dead and just watched the sleet and ice fall from the sky!  Eventually she picked her way outside to do her business.....but then she skedaddled right back inside.  (Big WIMP!)    It may have been cold and wet (still precipitating) when we went out at 7:30 for our morning walk, but it was sure beautiful!

Day 102 (2.7.25)

I had a busy day planned for the day.  I got up at 5AM and got my exercise done and then sat on the couch reading until Jason left for work.   The dog is so unlady like and fell asleep beside me....of course showing all her lady parts to the world!

What can I say, the dog is stealing the show!

The Hunt for A Job

 Job hunting kinda sucks!

Searching for a job is not for the faint at heart!  Seriously, it's disheartening and demoralizing.  And I've only been at it for a little over a month!  I probably have averaged 2 applications per each day that I have been unemployed.  I have had one phone interview and nothing else other than reject letters.  Yet I keep applying.  I keep tweaking my resume.  I write new cover letters and different follow up letters.  I continue to promote myself.  I spend a few hours a day on this.

Yet, I am filled with panic.  I know I shouldn't be.  I am receiving unemployment wages.  I'm not in any financial straits....yet.  Yet the panic is there.  

I am working to not give into the panic and stress.   I keep myself busy.   I have worked in the yard gathering all the downed limbs from thus far this winter and dragging them to the fire pit area.  I have then processed all of those along with what we cut in the fall.  By processing, I mean that I have cut them into small logs and stacked them.  I am waiting for a none windy day to actually light a fire to burn some of the brush and pine.  I have gone to my mom's house and worked alongside my brother to paint my mom's house.   Just yesterday we totally cleaned the bathrooms and two bedrooms....readying it to be put up for sale.    

I know I will get through this stage in life....but my word it's not fun!

 

Week Two, the Week of the Ouch

I can not believe it!  Seriously, I am in shock!   What is so shocking is the fact that I have actually successfully completed two weeks of the 75 hard challenge!  I know, you would have thought that I would have been confident in my ability when I started it, but I have failed so many times that I was a bit skeptical.  But I am 2 weeks down and my confidence in myself grows each and every day!  

Week two was not without it's own brand of difficulties!  It was a week where I was hurting.  It was a week where I was quite concerned that my body was not going to allow me to finish.   It was a week of perseverance.  But, instead of describing my week in a few words, let me just share it!

Day 8

Sunday marked the first day of week two of the 75 Hard challenge, officially Day 8!   I started the day off right with heading into the family room and completing a 45 minute indoor workout.  For this workout I chose to follow one of the Biggest Loser Workout DVD's that I had in my collection from years ago.   I know the controversy over that show, but seriously, the workouts are pretty solid!  (Amazon link for the DVD Here.)

 It was after this early morning workout that I had my first inkling of a problem.   I took a load of laundry to the basement and my knees were hurting (of late this is normal) on the way back up the steps my knee just gave out.  This hasn't happened in quite a few years.  Luckily I caught myself and when I sat down and rested, the pain subsided.  However, I was concerned!  

I didn't let my knee derail me though.  I counted my calories.  I read my book.  I did what I needed to do and later that afternoon I headed out with Jason and the dog in tow and we completed a nice long walk!

Day 9

My memory must be rather short because I didn't take my knee into consideration when I chose my indoor workout.  In my infinite un-wisdom, I chose a step aerobic workout!   In my defense it was listed as 'basic' but when the instructor was introducing it she gave the disclaimer that while it was basic it was FAST.   She was right.  But I completed it anyway!  My legs were toast afterward!

For my outdoor workout I decided to take a nice long walk!  I was out over an hour!  The sky was a brilliant blue and I actually had to unzip my coat AND my hoodie because the weather wasn't frigid cold! (Although that could be relative considering it was in the single digits less than a week earlier!)

The rest of the day was easy peasy and I was able to complete everything with no issues.

Day 10

This is the day that the pain was real.  I knew it as soon as I got out of bed.  My calves.  My Shins.  My oh my, I ached!  It was 5AM and I was so tempted to not do that indoor workout at my normal time and instead wait until later in the day.  But I did that once in the first week and it was just something I dreaded all day long and that day I did it at the final hour.  I didn't want a repeat of that!   So I choose a lighter workout.  I stayed away from the step aerobic workouts and I also chose something that had fewer squats and lunges.  For the outdoor workout I walked the dog and played with the dog in the yard.   I luckily didn't feel TERRIBLE, but my legs certainly didn't feel good!

Day 11

My legs were still feeling quite icky, but I didn't let it stop me.   While Jason was in the shower at 5AM I was stomping and gyrating around in the family room to get my indoor workout done.    For my outdoor workout I worked in the yard.  We had a slight ice rink appear.  It was about 5 in diameter.   Apparently a slight dip in the ground accumulated the melting snow.  It would melt during the day and freeze solid at night.....It was treacherous and I didn't want myself or Jason to slip NOR do I want Zoey to get hurt (seriously, no vet bills please!) I vowed to try to take care of the issue. (temporarily at least)  So, my outdoor exercise was after the sun warmed it enough to melt it and I went out and bailed the water from that pond.   I would fill a 5 gallon of bucket of water (using a shovel or a dust pan one scoop at a time) and then I carted the bucket to the field to dump it.....over and over.   I estimate that I bailed about 75-100 gallons of water (I stopped counting/lost count of  how many buckets I filled  at around 13 or 14).  But it worked!   The yard is still muddy but I don't have an ice rink anymore!  I am calling it an outdoor workout because I was moving the whole time and my heart rate while not super high was elevated.  The thing to note about this outdoor workout is that it was SUPER windy!

 The first picture shows the ice rink...it doesn't look big but it had more water than I expected.  The second picture is when I was done bailing!

I was craving a grilled cheese for lunch on this day.   I pulled everything out to make it and luckily stopped myself before I started preparing it.  I actually stopped so that I could look at my calories.   I was able to fiddle with my calories.....it required me to forego the second piece of cheese on my sandwich, and I had to count my grapes carefully, but I was able to adjust a few things (a few less grapes, a smaller serving at dinner, etc) to work it into my food budget.  I was super proud of myself!

 This was the day of my official weigh in!  I lost 5.5 pounds!  It felt good to post a great weigh in!  I won't go into details about it because I wrote about it in a previous post. (You can read about it here.) 

Day 12

My legs were still feeling it this day, but I could see a bit of improvement.  I nailed my morning workout and I had felt so good physically and mentally after being productive outside work from the day before that I decided to again combine my outdoor exercise with some yard work again.   Zoey and I took a 15 minute walk and then I decided to clean up some large tree branches that had come down the previous day in the wind storm.  They were big enough that when Jason came home and saw them moved he was like "how did you move them yourself".  We were super lucky that these branches  didn't do damage to the house.  They were literally laying against the house in some places!  We also had a lot of smaller limbs down in the yard so I went around gathering them. 

The interesting thing to note from this outdoor workout was the fact that I had gone out with hair that was still damp from my shower.  This alone is not abnormal.  I frequently do this, and I just make sure that my hoodie is pulled up over my head and all is well.  But with dragging this branches I got hot!  So without thinking my hood got pushed off of my head.   A bit later I went to push my hair back behind my ears and met with a unique situation.  My hair was HARD!   Yes hard!  It only took me a few seconds of confusion before I realized that my hair had frozen!!!!

I went out to lunch with my in-laws.   I tried to choose very carefully and I did not eat the potato chips that came with the meal.  I felt good with my choices, however I still wasn't very hungry when it came time for dinner.  Dinner was 'breakfast at dinner'.  I lowered my food intake drastically...two slices of bacon, one egg and a slice of toast.   I was satisfied and proud of my choices!

Day 13

There are two things to note about this day.  This was the first day of the week that my legs were not screaming at me!  YAY!   It was also the day where I made two tactical errors!

 I got my indoor workout done early.... 45 minutes of Zumba.   I went out with the dog but I didn't stay out long in the morning and therefore my outdoor workout was not completed in the morning.    I skedaddled inside to do my job hunt and then headed out to run some errands and do my grocery shopping.  

The first tactical error was in that I left too late and I was in the middle of my errands and it was lunch and I was HUNGRY!  I did really good.  I WANTED high calories/high fat foods. And I even pulled into the parking lot of one restaurant...but I then decided to pick up a 6 inch turkey sub from Subway instead (280 calories).  THAT was a victory.  It was the drink that  was the tactical error.  I had originally planned on simply drinking from my water that I was carrying around with me.  But when I made the decision to go to Subway I decided to get a drink.   I had been to that Subway a few weeks prior and they had Vitamin Water 'on tap'.  Delicious and even better is that  I WILL count vitamin water toward my water consumption.  I was all cocky while walking in thinking that "with the vitamin water I have the water consumption in the bag for today".  I ordered the large drink and paid for my order and then went to fill up my cup.  Only to find that they no longer had Vitamin Water.   I literally stood there for a long second debating.  Throw out the cup or go ahead and get a diet soda.   I opted for the diet soda.  But it was a tactical error because that meant that the rest of my errands I drank NO water from my cup.......and that is how I found myself getting home at 2PM having only about 16 ounces of water under my belt!

I am however proud to say that I was able to get my water done for the day! I kept drinking (WATER) steadily all afternoon and I finished my required water at about 7:30PM!  Go me!  But yeah, that goes to show me that I CAN drink a lot more water/liquid than I think I am capable of!

The second tactical error?   Well, while I was out and about the rain rolled in!   Yes, if I would have just done the outdoor exercise while I was with the dog it would have been damp but no rain!  But no, in my infinite wisdom I decided to wait until after my errands and ended up having to go out in the rain in the afternoon.    For my workout, I chose another outdoor yard activity.  I took a hand saw up to the burn pit where I drug those trees (and where we had other stuff that we drug for 'processing' and burning) and I started to cut them down....by hand!  Sure I could have taken up power equipment, but a hand saw is more exercise!  My heart rate was elevated....so I'm counting it as exercise!  I have a lot more wood to cut up and stack so I foresee more days with a hand saw!

Day 14

How has it been 2 weeks already????    I have found that I struggle more with keeping up my exercise on the weekend.  Jason is home and our schedule is all over the place with no routine whatsoever. But, that is not a valid excuse!  So I was there knocking out my indoor exercise at 7AM (I did wait until Jason was awake so that I didn't interrupt his sleep!)  After a good 45 minutes of kickboxing, I cooled down and then headed to the shower.   We had some banking to do in the morning and I swung by my brothers house to drop off birthday cards for my niece and nephew who were celebrating. I got to wish my nephew (18)  happy birthday in person while I was there but had to text my niece (22) her greeting as she is finishing her last year of college and was not there.  (Dang, they make me feel old!)  In the afternoon we headed out to Ice Fest.....a yearly event in the town we live in.   And I am counting that as my exercise as we didn't want to fight the crowded streets to find parking close to the downtown event and just parked quite a ways away and walked there, and then of course all the walking around at the event!   

It was the day of forgetting things.   I literally forgot to eat breakfast.....and just had a quick snack for lunch.  See what happens when I get busy?     I almost forgot to read out of my non-fiction book.  I was steadily reading from my current fiction book and luckily remembered before it was too late.

So I had a strong finish to my second week of my 75 hard!  Go me!  It wasn't an easy week. But lets talk about what I learned and discovered this week!

* I was really hurting at the beginning of the week!  The arthritis in my knees was bad and the aches and pains (calves and shins) were the pits.  But I kept pushing.  I didn't give up.  I pushed through the pain and made it work and midway through the week I started to feel better!  

*I am capable of drinking a whole lot more than I give myself credit for.  I made that tactical error with my water consumption on day 13 but my motivation pushed me and I still managed all of my water on top of that large soda! (Which I drank half of in the store and then refilled and drank the whole thing throughout the rest of the day......a large sized to boot.)  I wasn't sloshing or running to the bathroom constantly.  It was actually easy!    

*Last fall I finally came clean and talked about "the elephant in the room", which was the fact that I was struggling to walk anything over 5K steps without feeling quite a bit of pain for the rest of the day amongst some other issues (you can read about it here).   It wasn't until I got home from the ice fest on Saturday, day 14 that I realized that I had walked a lot with absolutely no issue.   On a week that started with a bunch of pain, I ended with a high note.  I ended with the realization that I had been on my feet walking for hours and my legs didn't feel horrible while I was walking.  My back didn't ache so much that I just wanted to lean on something and/or have the need to press my palms into my back.  I didn't get home and sit on the couch while my legs throbbed in pain.   I felt......absolutely fine after a day with a ton of steps and a ton of movement!  After just two short weeks of 75 hard I can see a difference in my stamina!   

As I write this I have officially begun week three.   I am feeling pretty confident that I can actually do this!  It blows my mind that I might actually complete 75 Hard!   Two weeks down.  It seems like it is going fast!  But I know that I still have a long way to go!  But I am ready and raring to go.   Bring it on!