Crazy Week

This week was crazy at work and with the weather.

Weather-wise, we started out with snow and ended up with more snow. Thursday evening saw a rapid snowfall of about 3 to 4 inches. Friday's commute to work was on half lane to quarter lane roads. Still, to work I drove and arrived safely (thanks, Lord.)

I got a new pedometer last weekend and wore it at work this week to get a better idea of how much walking my work day entails. Including the 4.5 miles I walked on Monday (Holiday/no work) I walked 27.2 miles this week. I told my wife I had walked a marathon! She told me she didn't think the idea of a marathon was to walk it in one week. I told her that she could walk a marathon her way and I would walk it my way (laughing.)

This mornings weigh-in yielded a total weight loss in 5.5 months of 90 pounds.

90 pounds !!!!

I weigh 260 pounds! The last time I remember weighing in this general area was when I weighed 250 when my youngest daughter was born. She turned 23 in October.

I actually had on a pair of pants recently that were 44 inch waist. The were a bit snug, but not choking my waist. When I started I had a pair of 60 inch waist pants hanging in my closet. For now, I am mostly wearing 46's for the comfort of the loose waist. I am probably in the middle (45) as far as what would fit me just right.

I have adjusted to the increased calories needed since I have returned to work. I am still giving my body enough to work well and function properly, without adding weight.

And, at the end of this crazy, cold, snowy, walking week, I am 90 pounds lighter than when i began.

I like it!

Fair trade

This morning I went for my usual morning walk. I say it is my usual walk except for the fact that my walk changes daily. I try to take different routes each day to keep the walking fresh. I do have several favorite routes that I repeat, but not generally day after day after day. This morning was the Locust St to Queen St, to Camargo Rd, to Locust St at Bank St, to Richmond Ave, turn and come back home route. It covered 2.35 miles and took me 47 minutes.

Then, Tammy had a follow up visit to the doctor to see how surgery helped or didn’t, and to see where to go from here. Afterwards, we went to a consignment shop, and then had lunch at the brand new Waffle House here in town. We had talked about it the day before. It just opened this week.

I had the 5 ounce strip steak, with eggs over medium, hash browns with onions and tomatoes, and toast. I had water to drink. As near as I can tell, by the internet info I gathered and the portions I ate, my lunch was 564 calories. This was in contrast to my usual lunches of 275 to 360 calories. It was somewhere between 200 to 300 calories more than my regular lunch fare.

After lunch, Tammy had to go to the hospital for x-rays. I stayed home and worked on some writing She told me she was going to stop by the library on her way home and wanted to know if I wanted her to come by and get me. I told her I had already planned to walk to the library while she was gone, so I would meet her there.

I decided to walk around the longer way to the library. The direct walk there is a half mile. I put my books to be returned in my backpack and headed out after a while. I walked past the library (truck was not there yet) and on down toward the bypass to a known turning point and back to the library. She was outside when I got there, so my timing was good. I returned my books and checked out a couple more. She was still browsing, so I told her I would walk on home. She pulled into the driveway as I crossed the street to the house.

The entire walk was 1.9 miles and took about 40 minutes of actual walking time. Between the two walk, I covered 4.25 miles and burned 574 calories.

So, I walked off 10 calories more than my lunch added.

Not a bad trade at all.

On the border of CrazyTown

I am not sure I am only on the border anymore.

12° on my morning walk on Tuesday, and I still went for my walk. The wind chill was -6°.

7° on my morning walk on Wednesday, and, once again, I still go for my morning walk. I have no idea what the wind chill was, or even if there was one. It was a fairly calm morning.

12° this morning, and I am bundling up for another morning walk. Today's wind chill, according to the local weatherman is 4°.

I always knew I would go crazy one day, but I never knew I would be crazy about walking. I especially never figured I would be crazy enough to be out walking in this weather.

I have always worked in this weather. For most of my adult life I have worked in the construction industry and that generally required some outside work even in the harshest conditions. I recall working on a scaffold 30 feet in the air with the winds blowing off the river in Canton, Ohio, with the temperature being only -6°, but, that was for money.

This is different. No-one is paying me to be out there this morning.

Well, I guess that isn't exactly true. What drives me (or pays me if you prefer) is stepping on the scales after four months and seeing it read 72 pounds lighter. What pushes me out the door is the feeling of much more energy than I have had in a long long time. What moves me past the pain in my heels (tendonitis) is the near erasure of the constant pain in my back, knees, and ankles. There are as many reasons to go walking in this near zero cold weather as there are days I am adding to my life and the life I am adding to my days.

So, I am off to don the official uniform of a crazytown walker.

two pair of sweats .. check

two long sleeved t-shirts .. check

one pull over wind-breaker type jacket .. check

one pair of jersey cotton gloves .. check

one toboggan .. check

one muffler style scarf .. check

one pair of walking shoes .. check

cell phone for emergency .. check

Ipod for Bible or music listening .. check

crazy idea that this will change my life .. CHECK !

UPDATE ..

Didn't do my walk as intended .. had to run to son's place to fix electric and take his wife to appointment .. walked 2.2 miles in Winchester before working on his place .. Temp was almost up to 20° by then ..

100 miles

August 8th, I was 350 pounds. It was not the heaviest I had been, but it was plenty heavy enough. I decided to change my life.

August 17, one week into my new lifestyle, I decided that walking would be good for me. Later that evening (11ish) I took off for a walk around the block. Firstly, I live in a small town (pop. 5600,) so; it was safe to be out walking around that late at night. Secondly, it was just 1/3 of a mile.

It took me 20 minutes. Yes, I was walking at the blazing speed of one mile per hour. Oh yeah, it wore me out as well.

August 18, I did it again, albeit much earlier. August 19, I did it three times that day and reached my first mile walking day.

By the end of August, I had walked one 1.8 mile day and had walked 9.75 miles for exercise. I only count the walking I do specifically for exercise.

By the end of September, I had walked a personal best day of 3.28 miles and had walked 43.78 miles that month and achieved a 53.53 mile total.

By the end of October, I had walked a personal best day of 3.9 miles and had walked 41.25 miles that month and achieved a 95.05 mile total.

November started out badly for walking. As you may have read in the previous post, I didn’t walk but one day in the first week. Yesterday, I was determined to get back into the flow of walking. I walked 1.4 miles on Wednesday. Today, I walked 2.4 miles. This brought my total miles, in one week shy of three months, to 100.67 miles walked.

Now, my brother is a runner. He runs 5 to 7 miles a day. Some days he runs 10 or more. He is preparing for a marathon. 100 miles is a couple weeks to him. But, for me, it is a major thing. I was not a walker or runner. Now, I did run in high school, but that was decades ago. (35 years to be exact.)

So, just endure me while I celebrate reaching the 100 mile walking milestone.

Yip yip yippeeeeee !

getting back on track

The last seven days have been rather hectic and detrimental to exercising. There have been Doctor visits, hospital stays, surgery, son's wedding planning, daughter's moving, and car selling. Yeah, seems like an average week. In the seven day stretch, I managed to get in one hour of walking.

This morning started out trying to be busy (son-in-law issues) but I was determined. I walked 1.66 miles, including a stop at the courthouse to file the marriage license from last nights wedding.

I hate when I don't get to walk.

I never thought I would be one of those. You know who they are. You see them out all hours of the morning, throughout the day, and even late in the evenings. You see them in their walking suits or jogging suits. You see them walking, oblivious to the weather and other distractions. you see their headphones in as they go along. They are the 'walkers'. I never thought I would be inducted into their tribe.

Yet, there I am, in the morning, putting on my walking pants and tightening up my walking shoes. I am checking the battery in my mp3 player (I listen to the Bible as I walk.) I am checking the time to know how long it took me to walk my walk. I am making sure I have my phone for emergencies. I am checking off the list.

Phone ............... check
MP3 ....................check
Key .....................check
Sunglasses ........check

So far, my longest walks have been in the 3 to 4 mile ranges, which takes me 60 to 80 minutes. No extra hydration needed on my walks. I am, however, on the lookout for the dreaded 'fanny-pack' for the time when my walks grow to longer distances and times that might require some additional H2O.

So, today, determination in hand, I got back to the walks.

My Walk .. Interrupted

Today was going to the the day I broke the 2 mile barrier. I plotted my course. I had it all planned. I was going to actually walk 2.1 miles. The excitement was building. OK, I am kidding about the building excitement, but I was looking forward to the idea of surpassing another milestone (literally.)

As stated, I had plotted out the course. It was a slightly rolling path. There were some up and some downs. There were some small hills and some larger hills. There was nothing like the hill to the cemetery of earlier this week.

Out the door I went. I usually leave right after TJ leaves to take the kids to work. Today, however, I was early. I wanted to give myself some extra time. I was walking the way she goes when she takes the kids to work. I would be seeing her on my way (bonus!)

I walked and walked and walked. I didn't see her. I figured she must have left late or had to go another way because of a need to stop at a store or something. Just after I passed the turn around point of yesterday, my phone rang. I fished it out of my pocket to see "private number." I didn't answer it as I didn't want to try to carry on a conversation and walk. Back in the pocket it went.

Then, moments later, I heard, in the unmistakable voice of a chipmunk, "Oh look, a text message. Thank you Jesus." I fished out the phone again. It read, "911 emergency. Come home now." I called my daughter and she said that TJ was doubled over in pain and I needed to come home now.

Of course, I immediately turned around and headed home.

When I got home, I found that TJ was better, and the kids still needed rides to work. TJ's pain was a digestion issue. So, I took the kids to work, stopped and got her some OTC meds and came home. She is currently laying down allowing the meds to work.

My interrupted walk turned out to be 1.9 miles. It is short of one of my goals, but still meets the goal of walking farther each day.

There is still tomorrow. There will be no kids to take to work. There will be no need for TJ to be up and about.

So, sometime tomorrow morning, before the sun breaks across the tops of the trees, I will be out there, walking, with my MP3 player playing, my house-key and my phone in my pockets, and a barrier waiting to be surpassed.

I'll see ya on the other side of 2 miles.

The Goal I meet and reset most every day

My walking goal each day has been to walk farther than the day before. In the three and a half weeks I have been walking I have progressed from three-tenths of a mile on August 17th, to one and three-quarter miles today, September 9th.

I remember the first day I walked around the block. It was terrible. I hurt all over, mostly. I think the only part that didn’t really hurt were my calves. That was only because they weren’t smart enough to hurt yet. It took me 20 minutes to walk the .33 mile. That is an astounding pace of about one mile per hour.

According to USRoads.com, the average walking pace for elderly adults is 2.8 mph as compared to young adults at 3.4 mph. I am much closer to the elderly group in age and body. Mentally, well, that is a different story.

Today’s walk of 1.75 miles was at a pace of 2.3 mph. So, I haven’t made it to what the walking world considers average, but I am happy with my 26 minute mile, for now. After all, my mile time has increased for walking a mile in 60 minutes to walking one in 26 minutes. Some days it actually gets as fast as one mile in 24 minutes.

I have found that as my distance increases, my time follows suit eventually.

As for now, I will be happy with the goal I meet and reset nearly every day. We will see what tomorrow will bring.

What .. was I insane?

I decided on trying a new route for my morning walk. My walk is up to 1.5 miles. I usually walk through town, one block off of Main street, which happens to be the street upon which I live. From my house to one block past the Library and back, then around the block is 1.5 miles. Today, I decided to do a walk around a cemetery that is about 3-tenths of a mile from the house.

Omigosh ! .. The first leg nearly killed me. It seemed to be straight uphill.

It is nearly at the peak you see in this pic.

But .. I made to the cemetery. Then around was down and up and down and up and then up some more.

This was one of the views. My house is in the clump of trees in the upper left of this pic (which is way downhill from where I was standing.)

another view inside the cemetery..

This is the view from the bridge between the two halves of the cemetery, which overlooks the road I eventually walked back down to get home.

I feel the burn .. or it that just the insanity talking?

Good-bye old friend

This is my cane. I have been using it for most of the walking I have done for a while. It is a great cane and conversation piece. It is an African Chieftain's cane. It is the symbol of his authority. In tribal meetings, it identifies the Chief as the Chief.

It was a gift to a missionary to Nigeria. That missionary was a close friend to our family. I have slept on his floor when I was preaching for his dad when he was pastoring a church in Ohio. His son was married to my sister. He married my wife and I seven years ago.

He gave the cane as a gift to my father. My father pastored a church in Lexington for 39 years. My father passed away three years ago. My friend, the missionary/pastor passed away about two years ago.

I was visiting Mom several months ago and noticed the cane leaning against a wall in the garage collecting dust. I asked Mom what she was going to do with it. She told me to take it. I did. I cleaned it and treated it. I have been using it for walking assistance.

As you may (or may not) have read in my previous posts, I have been walking for exercise. This morning I walked 1.2 miles in my morning walk. I was talking to one of my daughters about it and she asked if I had been using the cane.

As the matter of fact, I have not.

Since I started walking through the pain two weeks ago, I have not used the cane. It will have a place of respect and honor at my home. It is a great reminder.

It is a reminder of a dear friend.

It is a reminder of a mission.

It is a reminder of a calling.

It is a reminder of a day when the pain stopped me from walking.

It is a reminder of the time I took back my walk.

Good-bye old friend.

Unbelievable…

I have never been the kind of person to set goals. Well, at least not the kind to write them down. I’ve always kept my goals in my head. That way if I don’t accomplish them, there’s no glaring reminder of the failure.

When I began this diet and then later began to exercise by walking, I didn’t set any long-term goals or even short term goals. The walk was just a walk. I did plan to increase it, but there were no real preset increments of extension. My first walk was just around the block. That was between .25 and .3 mile and it took me twenty minutes to complete. Yes, I was that out of shape.

Of course, at that time I had an incredible defense. I have arthritis in my back and my weight makes my knees hurt. More importantly, the muscles in my lower back completely fatigued many years ago and I had to go through physical therapy to be able to walk at all without pain. Walking would bring on the tightness quickly. The tightness would bring on the pain. The pain would bring out the wimp.

I began using a cane to help take some of the stress off of my lower back. Even then, five minutes would bring on the tightness, the pain, and the wimp. The term ‘within walking distance’ had a whole different meaning for me. I would go to the store only if I had a cart to lean on. Most of the time, I would be a ‘sit in the truck and wait’ kind of shopper.

That first walk was two weeks ago. The first change was in the amount of time it took to walk around the block. As the time got shorter quickly, I set my sights on going farther. My block included a large hill up and down. The up part stressed my back and the down part increased the pressure on my knees. This was not being a wimp, it was being conscious of the stress I was putting my body under.

I mapped out a slightly longer route on a more even terrain. I would walk down the street I lived on toward town and then turn a walk back. Not every day, but nearly, I would increase it by a landmark or block. It was four tenths. Then it was five tenths; then six, and seven tenths. The seven tenth walk was just last night. It brought my daily walk total to 1.8 miles.

This morning I got up with my back hurting and my ankle feeling a little tender. I figured I wouldn’t walk or if I did it would not be for a long distance. I put my walking clothes on. I had my phone for any emergency that might arise. I had my MP3 player and headphones (I listen to the Bible when I walk.) I was ready. Out the door I went.

I walked a little gingerly on the ankle at first. However, as the walk progressed, the pain subsided, not completely, but enough. I walked past my first previous turning point. I kept going. I walked past my second previous turning point. Still going. I passed the third and fourth points. Then I was at the place where I turned around last night. I still had walking left in me, so I went on. I finally stopped at the library and turned around. It was cool (under 70°) but the sun was right in my face on the return trip.

When I got home, I went to spark and plotted my course. I was somewhat shocked when the total distance read, 1.12 mile.

It was not a goal I had set on paper. It was a goal that was in my head, eventually, somewhere down the road.

In two weeks I had gone from a weak complaining 20 minute three-tenth of a mile walk to a 26 minute, no complaint, 1.1 mile walk.

Unbelievable.