After the week of the squeak in week 6 of my 75 Hard challenge I vowed to really set it straight and have a good week. No more squeaking through! I was going to charge into the week full force and I was going to slay the beast. No Squeaks. But, well it felt too easy. I felt like I was forgetting something.
Day 43
This was a Sunday and I did great with my exercise. On the weekends I don't do it at 5AM, but still complete it before I shower for the morning. It is such a wonderful treat to not do it so early! We ran a few errands and while I wanted to go walking on a rail trail, it didn't happen. But never fear, I still went out and walked around the neighborhood behind us. Jason and the dog went with me. I went to pull out my phone to take some pictures and video....and oops. It wasn't in my pocket. The last half of the walk I was admittedly a wreck because I had no clue where my phone was! (It was left in the c
ar after our errands). But with that snafu, I didn't get a single solitary picture!
I did fine with my reading and my water. I ended the day with my calorie count at 1356. All in all, it wasn't a bad day!
Day 44
I started out strong with my indoor exercise at 5AM. I have been choosing 'lighter' things. More 'walk away the pounds' type of exercise. I am trying to ease up the knee. The last few weeks have been miserable and I don't like that. So another easier workout. Still 45 minutes. Still sweaty. Still elevated heart rate....just less twisting, squatting and lunges! I headed out with the dog early and we spent a good half hour or so romping around the yard.
I left my house at around 9AM and headed to my brothers house where I met up with my oldest nephew. He was kind enough to indulge me in my new somewhat weird hobby. We went to a graveyard and walked around. My hobby is locating graves and taking pictures of the stones (for people that have requested it on Findagrave.com). So my nephew tagged alone and we had a fun time....well at least I had a fun time! hahahah
The reading was done before I even hit the shower. The water was not a problem. And my calories were at 1342.
Day 45
Exercise started as normal. And then my in-laws called and asked if I wanted help with the mulch pile. Yes, I worked on the never ending mulch pile again. Last week pert near killed me. Ok, that is a bit dramatic, but I was sore...not from achy muscles but from various ailments within my body! (You can read about it here.) So this week I made the statement "only for an hour or so'. I wore a knee brace and we stopped after an hour and a half. I am sooo happy to say that my knee fared so much better this week! But hey, it was good outdoor exercise!
I continued reading the same non fiction book, with dread...it really isn't a fun one to read! My water drinking was in line and my calories were at 1359. Another win!
Day 46
What can I say....it was another good day. I managed everything with grace. My outdoor exercise was the only thing that gave me issues. It was rainy all day and I was dreading it. I did manage to go out at the last minute...I put dinner on the grill.....cranked some music and walked/danced in the backyard while dinner was cooking. 30 minutes barely completed! My calories were at 1314 and everything went well.
Day 47
Indoor exercise completed. Outdoor exercise was at the graveyard...I was there for a LONG time and enjoyed myself even though it was cold! Water was taken care of. Reading done....almost done with the book thank goodness. Calories were at 1476, a little close but still under the goal! Other than the close call with the calories, it seemed easy.
Day 48
I did an indoor exercise with a lady that does zumba and I got brave and did some squats. Not many, but I did some. I thankfully was no worse for the wear! I showered and then promptly fell asleep (even though I had slept really well all night long). So I was late heading out to grocery shop. It was a about 40 but super windy. I made a quick executive decision to head to a graveyard for a walk before shopping. I knew that if I shopped first and then went home that it would be MURDER to go back out! So I got my graveyard walk (an hour and fifteen minutes) in before I did my shopping. WISE decision!
My water was a bit tricky , but I got it in....by the skin of my teeth. I was SURE that I had gone over my calories for the day. I didn't want to, but I do have that free day once a week so I wasn't too upset. So imagine my surprise when I looked at my calorie count after everything was entered and saw that I was at 1491 for the day!
The biggest news of all for the day was that I FINALLY finished the non fiction book I was reading! FINALLY. Part memoir part instructional. It was just really slow reading and well....just not my cup of tea!
Day 49
A lazy weekend day was upon us! I got a nice lazy start and didn't exercise at 5AM. It feels good to relax a bit before starting. HOWEVER,it hangs over my head until I do it! I make it a rule...no shower until the exercise is done! That works because I need my shower! We did one or two things around the house but just took an easy day. We did go out for a walk in the afternoon! A graveyard of course. Graveyards seem to be my thing lately! This one has a Jewish cemetery within it. The fancy arch over the walkway entering it caught my eye today!
I started a new non fiction book. I have high hopes for it, it sounds so interesting! I got my water in.....guzzled it to finish it before dinner. I knew we were going to pick up burgers from 5Guys and I knew that I would want to have a diet soda....they have Fanta Strawberry and Cherry pop! YUM! So my water was done early! As you can guess my calories were a bit higher since we went to 5Guys! Seriously, dinner alone took up my base allotment of calories! But I ended the day at 1888. I wasn't worried though. While my goal and rule to meet the 75 Hard challenge is 1500 calories a day, I built in a once a week cheat day which would allow me to go over that as long as I had earned the calories via exercise! So all is well and I am still on track and meeting my daily goals!
Who know that when I started this challenge back in January that I would still be going strong. I'm not seeing much progress on the scales, but I am TOTALLY seeing progress in my fitness levels. I am able to work outside and /or walk for so much longer than I had been doing. I am also doing it with no muscle aches and pains (boy were those first weeks rough). While I wouldn't say that I am 'fit' I can see that I am making strides in the right direction. But even more importantly, I know believe that I CAN do it!
