Losing weight in Northern Minnesota

A link to show my training progress

Ehren — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 11:27:47 +0000

I don’t know where this is going….

Ehren — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 01:29:45 +0000

Earlier today I was ready to end this blog. The original title was “An End”. But now I’m not so sure. I had detached myself from this community to quiet some voices and find my track. As you can see below this, this is what I originally wrote.

“I think I’m done with this blog. Maybe I’ll come back to provide updates about where I’m at but anyone can ask me at ehrenh@gmail.com. The last month or so there has been no motivation to use this forum anymore. I’m not reading other weight loss blogs and my interest in the Biggest Loser has wained. I think it’s because I don’t see myself as someone who is trying to lose weight, I’m someone who is trying to be healthy and more physically in shape. Running is my motivation. More so, the 1/2 marathon in May. I have a schedule set up all the way up to the race and love improving my times. Eating right is really important for that so it’s got me really focused. And I’m not alone. A cousin I grew up with has just gotten back in touch with me for the last two months and we’re working together (although we live 3 hours apart) towards the same race in May as well as a triathlon at the end of June. She’s great for keeping me challenged and we’re talking daily on progress and struggles. It’s great to have that accountability at the ready.”

But now seeing what Steve and Rob have been going through, I’m not ready to say this is the end. I’m comfortable with the support system I have around me know and it is actually family that is that support. But maybe I need to support others. I know not many read this and that’s fine. Maybe I’ll just go back to what it was originally intended for. Just a place to write down my thoughts.

Good day.

Sick house

Ehren — Sat, 30 Jan 2010 02:54:28 +0000

It figures. As soon as I get the treadmill fixed, I get sick. It started with our little guy getting pink eye, then a cold, then a lot of big teeth coming in. In an effort to calm him down and soothe him, as a parent you have to hold them and take whatever comes with them. Lot’s of snot and gunk. If you don’t keep your hands clean at every moment, well, I got sick. Had a hard time falling asleep last night and knew I had to sleep in this morning. Cold hit me worse today so I took another day off. I’m hoping to get a good night’s rest and then have a good run but not so intense in the morning.

When will life just be more consistent, more easily to read for what’s going to happen?

Pink eye and P90X

Ehren — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 01:03:50 +0000

This morning I tried a P90X DVD to mix it up and that was a good change. Great workout. I did the plyometrics which has a lot of squats and jumping. My legs are a bit sore. It was a much harder workout than what I have been doing, much more sweat and it gets a bit into the cardio range. I don’t want to go full core into it. Just to have it supplement my running training as I’m getting ready for the 1/2 marathon. I think I will still run in the morning and then have this at night ALTHOUGH it’s great to have this available if I don’t feel like running in the morning and then I could do a different circuit training in the evening and mix in sprints then. Speaking of running…..

The mylar liner came today!!! I have to wait until Friday to run. Tonight I have a rehearsal at church at 8 and tomorrow is my off day. That will give me the chance to tear that thing apart and put the liner in properly. So excited to get back on it and I hope it will be Friday. Problem is right now I’m not feeling too hot. My son has pink eye in both eyes and it feels like I have it in one of my eyes. Not much pus but it’s watering and irritated. When I put his medicine in my eye this afternoon it felt so much better, dried it up and didn’t think about it at work. But I think it’s coming with a cold or something. Just the way my eye was last night gave me a headache and therefore didn’t get a good night’s sleep. Hoping to get that tonight and looking forward to tomorrow’s day of rest.

A long day.

Ehren — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 03:04:02 +0000

Good day but it’s been a long one. I started out with Jillian again. The workout is just so good, not getting the cardio for sure but I can feel it in my arms, chest and legs. Still miss the treadmill but feel much better that I haven’t lost momentum with it being out of commission.

There was opportunity for more activity today. My car got stuck in a huge drift on a gravel road. Fortunately it was right in front of the neighbor’s house. I ran up their driveway, asked for help, went back to the car, cleared out the snow to hook up a rope to it and we pulled it out. That was followed by a phone call tonight from another neighbor whose van was in the ditch at their house. Another opportunity for activity. This time it was a push, pure man-power. Two guys pushing and his wife driving. It took about 10 minutes but it was a good feeling to see it pop out.

Today I was thinking about control. It seems like I have a lot of snacks for the day. Healthy stuff. Carrots, apple, orange, nuts. Good stuff. But I have lately felt that I don’t have control over my hunger, that I can’t live with it. I want to be more in control with my intake of food. It still feels like food is in control of me. I want to be able to live while being hungry. To not dwell on it and just live with it. Today I had a good day but a lot of that is because of busyness at work. Tonight I didn’t compensate at all. I had one yogurt with granola and then a small 1/2 cup of frozen yogurt. It was really good feeling to sit here a little bit lighter. Not that I’ve lost weight from the choices I made today but I know that it will impact me and how much I weigh in the future. I need to remember this feeling, hold on to it and never let go.

Snow workout

Ehren — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 01:21:25 +0000

It seems the chill of defeat of our cherished Vikings has brought out the worst of our weather. The winds were howling near the end of the game and they haven’t stopped. Woke up this morning and did a great Jillian workout and once finished, heard that school buses were 2 hours late. Fixed my lunch, took a shower and then heard that school is cancelled. Cancelled? They never cancel. So curiosity took over and I went to check the weather online. Blizzard Warning. Super. I figured that I had to try to get to work and was undaunted by the snow drift waiting for me as I opened up the garage door behind my car. Did I mention I have a car? In this land of pickups and SUV’s we have a van and a car. Fine for 98% of our weather but doesn’t inspire confidence in this kind of weather. I plowed through the drift and survived our turn-around. Good. There had been some traffic on the half mile of gravel road we take to get to the highway so that helped getting me through. Great. It kinda hit how bad it was as an oncoming car’s lights would disappear for moments before it would pass. I love white-out conditions. We were about 75% staff which wasn’t too bad. I left an hour early to shovel out and on the way back on the gravel road I got stuck. ON THE ROAD!! I actually was able to rock out of it and get into our driveway but unable to drive up to the garage. Shovel time!! So I got a pretty good workout from that. Still no mylar. I want mylar. I want to fix my treadmill. But I’m keeping going, working out to the DVD’s and sticking to the diet. It feels so good to be back in the groove.

Wedding and a snow storm

Ehren — Sun, 24 Jan 2010 04:47:43 +0000

I miss my treadmill. I know where to find it, it’s down in the basement. But it doesn’t work. I wanted to go over to my brother’s house earlier this morning to get a workout in but I should have known they might sleep in a little bit. I should have got a workout video in. I love exercising early in the morning to wake up and get it out of the way. But I didn’t. I did computer stuff, played with the kids, kinda relaxed. At 2 I got over to my brother’s place and did a 54 minute workout on the exercise and tried to make up for the day. But I miss my treadmill. It’s such a good friend. It works out my whole body. It goes at the pace that I want to go, gives me resistance at slower speeds or just lets me go fast. It’s easier to tell when I’m sprinting on my treadmill than it is on a bike and although I may sweat more on the exercise bike, I just feel like I’ve worked out more when I’m on my treadmill. Thursday the part comes in and I may stay up all night to get that puppy back into working order so I can run Friday morning.

We’ve got a wet snow storm. Not normal for this time of the year but at least it’s not an ice storm. The wedding was fun and about the fastest wedding I’ve ever seen, maybe 25 minutes. Cute couple and it was very sincere. But I’m kinda worn out with weddings. Don’t know what it is. Maybe it’s that people put so much ‘production’ value into it, turning it into a show. I wonder if we might go back to a time of say 100 years ago when it was small, in a house and just family and close friends. The problem is that there seems to be no more close friends, only acquaintances. People you know but don’t really know. In this social age of twitter and facebook, we’re becoming a society of comments instead of conversations. I’m good at comments but I want conversation. It’s probably why Northern Exposure is my favorite show of all time. Not just because it’s of a frozen north. I’m jealous of the conversations that take place. There’s thought put into the context or sometimes it’s a brainstorm of what might be best to do in a certain situation. You never see shows like that anymore and definitely not in life. Where has the conversation gone to? Germany?

This might be why weddings are not my favorite places anymore. The conversations are just comments strung together in an unconnected pattern. It drains me. I ran into a friend while shopping at Wal-Mart last night that I haven’t seen in almost 20 years. How is he still a friend? We were able to strike up a 20 minute conversation just like that. We’re actually friends on facebook but never said anything to each other on there. It doesn’t mean squat to me compared to that 20 minutes I spent with him last night. Agh! I got to stop thinking about this and just try to do something about it. I’m happy where I’m at. Of course I want more but at least I’m looking. I’m feel better that it feels like I’m getting to know myself a little bit more.

Off day

Ehren — Fri, 22 Jan 2010 03:50:45 +0000

Enjoyed a day off from the exercise. Had temptations but ate really good. Just kept busy and drank my water. Tomorrow is going to be interesting. We’re at the beginning of a 3-day snowstorm. I really want to run in the morning but I might have to do a circuit training. Just realizing as I’m typing this that I could use my brother’s exercise bike. It’s the same one I used last summer but he has it now. He only lives a half mile away so maybe it’s something I can do in the evening tomorrow night to compliment my circuit training in the morning. And then if I can’t get a good run in on Saturday I can ask to use it again.

I did finally get the part for the treadmill ordered tonight after they emailed me back today. However long it takes it’s going to be too long. It’s nice to have a treadmill up here in the frozen tundra.

I really loved today. Feeling the clothes are more relaxed. I’m more relaxed, more rested because I’m sleeping better at night. It’s just a good day all around. I’m glad I’m back to this point of being in the groove and looking forward to what the next few months will bring. I was talking to a manager, not one I work under but someone I know, at work today and he has said that there is a saying he hears over and over for the last 5 years. The next few months should be very interesting……

Ready for a break

Ehren — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 02:18:45 +0000

Finally finished for the first half of the week and ready for my hump day tomorrow. I love having Thursday as a rest day along with Sunday, especially when I’m doing 2 a days 4 days of the week. Ready to sleep in a little bit and just focus on some walking and keeping my food intake down.

I did some research this morning about if running out in the cold burns more calories. Not likely and if so, not much. The consensus is that the body burns more calories when it gets hot and is trying to cool the body down. I did get a good sweat in and I know it’s still a good workout but I’m more resolved to fix the treadmill. Unfortunately the treadmilldoctor.com’s website does not show me the info that I need. I emailed them tonight hoping to hear more tomorrow. I’d like to pay them for something.

Tonight I came home and did a little yoga with Bob. I first had to set up the one laptop to watch a DVD on it and then worked out in our bedroom. I love working out when I get home after a stressful day just to work things out of my head but when the kids are running around and screaming, I can’t get into it. Our bedroom is a good size and pretty well insulated so it was a good beginner workout. It’s all I could do tonight. Just so tired. Ready for bed and then rest tomorrow to hit it hard on Friday and Saturday. I’m starting to see and feel results. It feels great but the bed is going to feel better.

Not so cold.

Ehren — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 12:38:07 +0000

I just got back from my 3 mile run in the cold. I dressed pretty good: long underwear, running pants, long socks, 2 t-shirts, 1 long sleeved shirts and then a light fleece jacket and of course a hat and gloves. It was 16 degrees with a 14mph so it felt like 1 degrees out there but it didn’t bother me too bad. The only thing I really feel a struggle with is how the cold along with my older running shoes affect my joints. Even though I had to stop and walk 3 times to stretch things out I did a pretty good time.

It was beautiful out there. Complete darkness except for the light from my head lamp. No cars, just me and the stars. On the way back I was running towards the town and it’s just nice to see the glow against the night sky. I’m really glad I went and did that this morning.