Double Digit Challenge
And so two months have gone by since the New Year and no real progress. Mind you, it would be good to have goals and by goals I mean S.M.A.R.T goals.
So to do this, I have adapted the “Groundhog’s Day” which requires goal setting and reporting on each same digit month and day. This should have started on 1/1 and then had the first milestone on 2/2 but better late then never.
By 4/4, I plan to meet the following goals.
- Write a non-whining, non-complaining post to Livejournal, at least twice a week.
- Write down all the food I eat and attempt to keep it below or at 1,600 calories
- Do karate, twice a week, so long as work does not conflict (but only work)
- Do some other exercise, twice a week, preferably something outside once it gets warm.
- Start reading the anxiety book.
Fitness – Areas for Improvement
Considering how pathetically weak I realized I am at Physical Therapy, I know what I have to improve.
1. I need to do more cardio. If I don’t get my heart rate up at least 30 minutes a day, I’m not improving my health and more so, I’m not going to help my mental state either.
2. I need to improve my core muscles. My neck and shoulders are shot from the joys of being a programmer. I need to concentrate on increasing my muscles.
3. I need to not sit at my desk all day. The best way to do this is with the pedometer. I need to hit 10,000 steps a day.
4. I need to get back into yoga. It is the only thing that improved my flexibility. There are also the other benefits to mental health that comes with it.
5. I need to go to the gym. It should be part of my daily regime. To do that, I need to make exercise a priority and schedule it.
Filed under Exercise, Fitness | Comment (0)Fitness - Examination
Ah exercise. Exercise is the solution to most of my problems. It is, however, the one thing that I have the most trouble with. It’s not that I dislike it or that I’m in pain while doing it. It’s just… extremely difficult to actually get started.
This year, I tried a few new things. Jogging was a pain until I got an inhaler and suddenly I could breath. Karate is karate… mostly I feel like I’m not going anywhere with it. And tennis and paddle are great especially with the gorgefest afterwards.
And the gym, oh the gym. What a deal we got! $10 a month for a gym that has everything you could need. Too bad we never go.
So, what’s the worse the could happen? I mean exercising is great but not doing it shouldn’t be the end of the world. Well, it is if you had ACL reconstruction a decade plus back. I went to the orthopedic doctor and diagnosed me with “Insufficient ACL”. Essentially, it means my ACL is weakening. The only solution is to improve the muscles around the knee.
But more important is the source of my shoulder pain. It’s not the shoulder, its my neck which is supposed to curve but instead it’s ramrod straight. “Cervical spasm” was the diagnosis for that.
It’s not a surprise, I’m a stressed out techie. I spend my entire day sitting and glaring at a screen. I come home and I sit on a couch glaring at screen. Is it any surprise my physical fitness is so poor?
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