Hi guys!
I'm here with week three of my fitness journey...which has not been the best week. I had a couple good days, but the rest...the rest was not that great because I was not feeling that great. I had been feeling so good these past few weeks, but I sorta reverted back to feeling tired and low energy and not so great like I used to before my thyroid and anemia were normalized, so I really hope that it's just a fluke and that my health is not backtracking, but I guess we'll just have to see.
At any rate, here are my stats for the week...
Day 15 - Saturday, November 10th, 2018
Fitbit Stats for the Day
Today's Exercise: Hiking/Walking at Whitney Mesa (Upper Trail)
Thoughts: I started the day being lazy...I slept in and didn't get up until it was almost 9AM. Then I lounged around for a bit, so I didn't hit the trails until almost 11AM, but despite it being a nice sunny day, there was still a breeze so it was nice and cool and perfect for a workout. Since it was Saturday and I wasn't on a set schedule, instead of just doing the normal trail, I also ventured out and explored some of the spur trails, so my workout went a bit longer than usual, but I still made good time just like yesterday, so faster than the first 2 weeks. Here's a pick of one of the spur trails...
Anywho, my legs were feeling good today as well. Aside from my calves tightening up on the initial incline, they were perfectly fine the rest of the way...loosey goosey and good to go. I guess my muscles don't really need to warm up anymore, which is nice. Then I came home to eat and then ventured back out again because the Sears near my home is closing and they are having sales, so I decided to go check it out with my mom. We spent like 4 hours wandering around the store and now my feet are killing me. I would've been out of there sooner, but my mom was digging through and shopping for clothes for my dad and she took forever...but thanks to her I achieved my personal best, since I started my workout journey, of clocking over 12K steps today.
Now I'm going to go eat some dinner and rest my feet because tomorrow is going to be a long day...I have to drive to LA to take care of some business. Since I have to hit the road super early, I'm not going to be able to get in a workout, but hopefully I can still get in at least 8K steps.
Anywho, my legs were feeling good today as well. Aside from my calves tightening up on the initial incline, they were perfectly fine the rest of the way...loosey goosey and good to go. I guess my muscles don't really need to warm up anymore, which is nice. Then I came home to eat and then ventured back out again because the Sears near my home is closing and they are having sales, so I decided to go check it out with my mom. We spent like 4 hours wandering around the store and now my feet are killing me. I would've been out of there sooner, but my mom was digging through and shopping for clothes for my dad and she took forever...but thanks to her I achieved my personal best, since I started my workout journey, of clocking over 12K steps today.
Now I'm going to go eat some dinner and rest my feet because tomorrow is going to be a long day...I have to drive to LA to take care of some business. Since I have to hit the road super early, I'm not going to be able to get in a workout, but hopefully I can still get in at least 8K steps.
Day 16 - Sunday, November 11th, 2018
Fitbit Stats for the Day
Today's Exercise: Nothing, nada, absolute zero
Thoughts: Today was a total fail. Didn't get in any exercise, didn't get in my daily step goal of 8K AND I didn't get to bed on time. I mean...I got a lot done today, but in terms of my fitness and health...complete zero. I didn't even eat well today either.
BUT tomorrow, or rather today since it's 1AM already, is a new day so back to the grind. Now I need to go to bed, so I can get up and hit the trails.
BUT tomorrow, or rather today since it's 1AM already, is a new day so back to the grind. Now I need to go to bed, so I can get up and hit the trails.
Day 17 - Monday, November 12th, 2018
Fitbit Stats for the Day
Today's Exercise: Dance Party in my room
Thoughts: So...today did not go as planned. I woke up feeling like I had gotten beaten up by a UFC fighter. My entire body was so stiff and sore. I have so much respect for long haul truck drivers. I don't know how they do it. Me driving for 10 hours yesterday left my body in terrible shape...although I have driven long distance before in the past when I was in college and don't remember being this stiff and sore afterwards. I used to drive back and forth between Atlanta and Tampa a lot as well as between LA and Vegas and I've driven from Atlanta to Houston and from Houston to LA, which is an even longer multi day drive before, but at any rate I was feeling miserable today, so I ended up skipping my workout again.
Instead, I spent the majority of my day stretching and massaging and trying to loosen up my body...particularly my neck/shoulder region. My neck was so stiff this morning...but at the end of the day, after all the stretching and massaging, I was feeling a bit better, so I decided to have a little dance party in my room. I was determined to at least get in my 8K steps for the day, so I turned on some music and got my groove on. I was walking and jogging in place and around my house and dancing up a storm shaking my booty and getting my heart rate up for about 30 minutes or so, which was enough to get me over the 8K step thresh hold, so at least I did that and got in some activity in my day.
The one positive to come out of this though, skipping my workout for two days straight, is that my right heel has had time to rest and recover and is now pretty much back to normal. While it had been feeling a lot better after getting my cushiony house slippers, it was still sore, but now it's not really sore anymore...it's like 90% better. If I'm wearing some thick cushiony socks or my cushiony house slippers my foot/heel feels completely normal. No soreness. If I'm barefoot though, I do still feel a tiny bit of soreness, but it's pretty negligible now, so yeah! Also, my blister has healed as well, so I'm ready to get back out there on the trails tomorrow. No more excuses. I WILL get back out there tomorrow.
Instead, I spent the majority of my day stretching and massaging and trying to loosen up my body...particularly my neck/shoulder region. My neck was so stiff this morning...but at the end of the day, after all the stretching and massaging, I was feeling a bit better, so I decided to have a little dance party in my room. I was determined to at least get in my 8K steps for the day, so I turned on some music and got my groove on. I was walking and jogging in place and around my house and dancing up a storm shaking my booty and getting my heart rate up for about 30 minutes or so, which was enough to get me over the 8K step thresh hold, so at least I did that and got in some activity in my day.
The one positive to come out of this though, skipping my workout for two days straight, is that my right heel has had time to rest and recover and is now pretty much back to normal. While it had been feeling a lot better after getting my cushiony house slippers, it was still sore, but now it's not really sore anymore...it's like 90% better. If I'm wearing some thick cushiony socks or my cushiony house slippers my foot/heel feels completely normal. No soreness. If I'm barefoot though, I do still feel a tiny bit of soreness, but it's pretty negligible now, so yeah! Also, my blister has healed as well, so I'm ready to get back out there on the trails tomorrow. No more excuses. I WILL get back out there tomorrow.
Day 18 - Tuesday, November 13th, 2018
Fitbit Stats for the Day
Today's Exercise: Hiking/Walking at Whitney Mesa (Upper Trail)
Thoughts: Oh my god it felt so good to get back out and about on the trails. It was freezing cold this morning though, so I didn't get my workout in until my lunch break, but my body was just itching to get out there. I was so wound up from not working out the past two days. Who would've thought that I, me, Ahn Kim, would ever feel this way. I used to HATE exercise with a passion. I used to workout because I had to...for health, but I never really enjoyed it and my body certainly never craved it, but I so enjoy my workouts now.
I was afraid my body would've backtracked a bit after not working out for 2 days, but it felt really good to be back at Whitney Mesa working out and I actually made really good time...even better actually. When I first started working out a couple weeks ago it took me like 8.5 min to get up the incline to the top of the mesa, then it took like 8 min 15 sec, then about 8 min and the last time I went it took me like 7 min 50 sec. Today it took me 7 min 40 sec. Also, my pace was a lot faster as well overall.
I didn't start tracking my pace until a week and a half ago, but on November 1st my pace was 23'25"...
then on November 5th it went down to 23'00"...
then on November 9th it went down to 21'57"...
and today was even better at 20'59"!
So I'm definitely making progress. My muscles felt good the entire time from start to finish without needing to warm up...even my calves were fine on the incline as well...no tightness today. I think my body was just really happy to be out and about again because it was just happily zipping along the trail...and I'm still full of energy. I just might have another dance party in my room tonight...but at any rate, a fantastic workout on the books!
I was afraid my body would've backtracked a bit after not working out for 2 days, but it felt really good to be back at Whitney Mesa working out and I actually made really good time...even better actually. When I first started working out a couple weeks ago it took me like 8.5 min to get up the incline to the top of the mesa, then it took like 8 min 15 sec, then about 8 min and the last time I went it took me like 7 min 50 sec. Today it took me 7 min 40 sec. Also, my pace was a lot faster as well overall.
I didn't start tracking my pace until a week and a half ago, but on November 1st my pace was 23'25"...
then on November 5th it went down to 23'00"...
then on November 9th it went down to 21'57"...
and today was even better at 20'59"!
So I'm definitely making progress. My muscles felt good the entire time from start to finish without needing to warm up...even my calves were fine on the incline as well...no tightness today. I think my body was just really happy to be out and about again because it was just happily zipping along the trail...and I'm still full of energy. I just might have another dance party in my room tonight...but at any rate, a fantastic workout on the books!
Day 19 - Wednesday, November 14th, 2018
Fitbit Stats for the Day
Today's Exercise: Walking around the neighborhood
Thoughts: Today is Wednesday, my early start day, so I kept it easy and simple with a jaunt around the neighborhood. The sun was out shining brightly, so while it was still a bit chilly it wasn't too bad. I remember when I was in college, in Boston, there would be people in the dead of winter when it's freezing cold outside running in shorts and a t-shirt and I thought they were crazy. I mean, I know your body warms up when you're active and you exercise, but still...I was layered up with my thick winter coat and gloves and scarf and there they were jogging along in their shorts and t-shirt like it was a nice sunny day.
Anywho, I digress...like always. I don't know if it's because I went to bed later than normal and didn't get my normal amount of sleep, but I felt like I was dragging a little bit this morning. I didn't feel light on my feet and even though I was walking on easier relatively flat cement sidewalks I could feel every slight incline that I came across. My pace was definitely slower today than it was yesterday
even though it was easier terrain, but at any rate I powered through and completed my workout for the day, so mission accomplished.
Anywho, I digress...like always. I don't know if it's because I went to bed later than normal and didn't get my normal amount of sleep, but I felt like I was dragging a little bit this morning. I didn't feel light on my feet and even though I was walking on easier relatively flat cement sidewalks I could feel every slight incline that I came across. My pace was definitely slower today than it was yesterday
even though it was easier terrain, but at any rate I powered through and completed my workout for the day, so mission accomplished.
Day 20 - Thursday, November 15th, 2018
Fitbit Stats for the Day
Today's Exercise: Hiking/Walking at Whitney Mesa (Upper Trail)
Thoughts: I went to bed earlier than I did the previous night, but still later than usual and I don't know if it's me not being on my normal sleep schedule this past week, but I struggled again today as well. I woke up later than normal, and I didn't wake up bright eyed and bushy tailed...I think the lack of sleep is starting to catch up with me. For me personally, my body needs like a solid 8 hours of sleep and I've been getting 6-7 this week, and while that doesn't seem like a huge difference and still a good amount of sleep, I think my body is still sensitive to those slight changes...especially since it hasn't been that long since my thyroid normalized and it's finding it's new normal. I'm guessing...that's what my intuition is telling me.
Even though my thyroid is good now and my bloodwork looks great, I think making sure I go to bed early and get enough sleep and keep with a routine is gonna be really important for me going forward because I feel like I've been dragging a bit since yesterday. I feel like my old self is creeping back a little bit from when I was still struggling with my thyroid issues, so I definitely need to nip that in the butt and get back to my normal sleep routine. I think that's what it is, but at any rate, when I finally got out to Whitney Mesa for my workout, my muscles started off fine enough, but then my calves and arches got tight on the incline up to the top of the mesa. I still made it up the mesa in record time though...it took me 7.5 min today, which is even faster than Tuesday, but that was probably because there was a group of super fit people running up the trail and I felt compelled to book it up that incline because I felt self conscious and didn't want them to think I was out of shape or anything like that.
Have you guys ever felt that way? When you're working out and someone super fit works out next to you, you don't want to lag behind. You want to show that you're just as fit as they are and can keep up? I mean, I'm sure they didn't care as they were just there working out and doing their own thing and I was just in my own head being silly for no reason at all...generally people are super nice and encouraging and I remember when I was struggling on the trails last year, when my anemia was really bad, but I didn't know I had anemia and was trying to hike and people would be like you're doing great, keep going, you're almost there and really nice and motivating and encouraging and I find that people are just super friendly and nice on the trails, so I don't know why I was feeling self conscious, but I'm digressing, surprise, surprise.
Anywho, I powered up that incline as fast as I could despite the arches of my feet starting to cramp and the tightness in my calves, so I made good time there, but as you'll see in my stats, my pace for today was A LOT slower than it was on Tuesday. In fact it's worse than when I first started tracking my pace.
I don't know if it's cause I powered up that incline as fast as I could despite the tightness and cramping and so it took longer for me to recover...for my muscles to loosen up, but I just couldn't walk fast today because my arches were cramping and my calves were tight, so I had to slow it down...way down.
I feel like I took a step back today, but the important thing to focus on is the fact that I got out there. That I went and exercised. I may not have improved my time or stats, but that's not what's important. The most important thing is that I went and got my workout in and that I did the best that my body could do today. I just need to stay the course and make the effort and eventually my numbers will follow and improve at their own pace.
Even though my thyroid is good now and my bloodwork looks great, I think making sure I go to bed early and get enough sleep and keep with a routine is gonna be really important for me going forward because I feel like I've been dragging a bit since yesterday. I feel like my old self is creeping back a little bit from when I was still struggling with my thyroid issues, so I definitely need to nip that in the butt and get back to my normal sleep routine. I think that's what it is, but at any rate, when I finally got out to Whitney Mesa for my workout, my muscles started off fine enough, but then my calves and arches got tight on the incline up to the top of the mesa. I still made it up the mesa in record time though...it took me 7.5 min today, which is even faster than Tuesday, but that was probably because there was a group of super fit people running up the trail and I felt compelled to book it up that incline because I felt self conscious and didn't want them to think I was out of shape or anything like that.
Have you guys ever felt that way? When you're working out and someone super fit works out next to you, you don't want to lag behind. You want to show that you're just as fit as they are and can keep up? I mean, I'm sure they didn't care as they were just there working out and doing their own thing and I was just in my own head being silly for no reason at all...generally people are super nice and encouraging and I remember when I was struggling on the trails last year, when my anemia was really bad, but I didn't know I had anemia and was trying to hike and people would be like you're doing great, keep going, you're almost there and really nice and motivating and encouraging and I find that people are just super friendly and nice on the trails, so I don't know why I was feeling self conscious, but I'm digressing, surprise, surprise.
Anywho, I powered up that incline as fast as I could despite the arches of my feet starting to cramp and the tightness in my calves, so I made good time there, but as you'll see in my stats, my pace for today was A LOT slower than it was on Tuesday. In fact it's worse than when I first started tracking my pace.
I don't know if it's cause I powered up that incline as fast as I could despite the tightness and cramping and so it took longer for me to recover...for my muscles to loosen up, but I just couldn't walk fast today because my arches were cramping and my calves were tight, so I had to slow it down...way down.
I feel like I took a step back today, but the important thing to focus on is the fact that I got out there. That I went and exercised. I may not have improved my time or stats, but that's not what's important. The most important thing is that I went and got my workout in and that I did the best that my body could do today. I just need to stay the course and make the effort and eventually my numbers will follow and improve at their own pace.
Day 21 - Friday, November 16th, 2018
Fitbit Stats for the Day
Today's Exercise: Strolling around a car dealership
Thoughts: Again, not a good day. I woke up feeling like I used to before my thyroid and anemia were normalized. My body was aching and I felt tired and low energy and feeling a little blue. Since I had to take my car in to be serviced, I decided to skip my morning workout and just get my car taken care of, so I drove down to the dealership to do that...but then I felt bad and also I was going to have to wait for my car to get serviced anyways, so I decided to stroll/saunter around the dealership and the block the dealership was on while I waited, so it wasn't really so much a workout workout, but I still got in a solid 34 minutes of activity.
Since I was just wandering around I decided not to log it on my Fitbit as a workout, so I have no pace data or workout stats from the Fitbit, but the Samsung Health App on my phone automatically logs activity on it's own whenever it detects it, so I do have the stats from the Samsung Health app.
After seeing that it had me going at a pace of 19'27" today, I kind of wish I had logged it on my Fitbit because now I'm curious as to what Fitbit would've logged my pace as because I didn't feel like I was walking fast or anything...I was just simply taking a leisurely stroll around the dealership, but the Samsung app had me going at such a quick pace. My fastest pace thus far since starting my fitness journey has been 20'59" from Tuesday and this is even faster...I don't know why my pace is so good today when I felt like absolute crap and like I was being slow.
When comparing the stats between my Fitbit and Samsung from past workouts the stats don't line up, so who knows what my Fitbit would've recorded me going at, but it seems to only deviate anywhere from a few seconds to 1 minute, so even if it were off by a full minute which is the most it ever seems to be off by compared to the Fitbit, that would still put me at a pace of 20'27" which is still better than Tuesday, so I'm a little confused...not that it really matters. I said I wasn't going to get caught up in the numbers, but here I am obsessing over my numbers and stats.
Anywho, I didn't get in my normal workout, but I still got in some activity, so I'm not going to be too hard on myself. The fact that I still got some in despite feeling so terribly...I'm going to count that as a win. I tried going to bed early yesterday, but I couldn't fall asleep so I did not get a lot of sleep. I really hope I'm not backtracking with my health. I was feeling so good the past few weeks...I really hope it's just a fluke because I do not want to go back to how I used to feel.
Since I was just wandering around I decided not to log it on my Fitbit as a workout, so I have no pace data or workout stats from the Fitbit, but the Samsung Health App on my phone automatically logs activity on it's own whenever it detects it, so I do have the stats from the Samsung Health app.
After seeing that it had me going at a pace of 19'27" today, I kind of wish I had logged it on my Fitbit because now I'm curious as to what Fitbit would've logged my pace as because I didn't feel like I was walking fast or anything...I was just simply taking a leisurely stroll around the dealership, but the Samsung app had me going at such a quick pace. My fastest pace thus far since starting my fitness journey has been 20'59" from Tuesday and this is even faster...I don't know why my pace is so good today when I felt like absolute crap and like I was being slow.
When comparing the stats between my Fitbit and Samsung from past workouts the stats don't line up, so who knows what my Fitbit would've recorded me going at, but it seems to only deviate anywhere from a few seconds to 1 minute, so even if it were off by a full minute which is the most it ever seems to be off by compared to the Fitbit, that would still put me at a pace of 20'27" which is still better than Tuesday, so I'm a little confused...not that it really matters. I said I wasn't going to get caught up in the numbers, but here I am obsessing over my numbers and stats.
Anywho, I didn't get in my normal workout, but I still got in some activity, so I'm not going to be too hard on myself. The fact that I still got some in despite feeling so terribly...I'm going to count that as a win. I tried going to bed early yesterday, but I couldn't fall asleep so I did not get a lot of sleep. I really hope I'm not backtracking with my health. I was feeling so good the past few weeks...I really hope it's just a fluke because I do not want to go back to how I used to feel.
0 comments:
Post a Comment