6 Month Fitness Project

Day 6

Yesterday I chose as a day of rest, so today I figure I'd better get back to my movement activities. I thought I'd experiment with how I chose what to do and when to do it, and just see what I managed to accomplish rather than have set amounts of time and activities.

It worked well for me. I rode the airdyne exercise bike for at least 40 minutes, while watching the Oprah show on TV and hanging up clothes from the dryer during commercial breaks. Later I went for a cool walk outdoors of more than 20 minutes.

For some people having a set day and time for specific activities works well. But for others, like me, for example, it may be best to have a general intention of what they want to accomplish, and then allow for a great deal of flexibility and options in when, what, and how we get there.

I think it's particularly important for people to tailor what they do to their own ways, what works for them, in the manner that is most satisfying for them.

Day 5

I think I'll call this a rest day. I'm eating right, drinking plenty of water, but haven't exercised at all.

At first I thought this was not a good idea, that I must keep going, and all that. Then I thought, Wait a minute! I've been exercising for several days, and am making some significant changes in what I ordinarily do. My muscles are a bit sore, I'm tired. Viola! time for a rest day.

I'm in no danger of quitting, it should be obvious, since this blog is dependent on me for its content, and I really mean it when I say this is it, I'm working on getting fit for the next six months.

So, learning yet more about being gentle with myself regarding fitness, I'm letting today be a day of rest.

You might want to build in a rest day each week for yourself too.

Guest Post: How do I stay on course when the luster fades and the goal is still far away?

It's a few days in, and we're finding it hard to keep up with all our wonderful intentions. This is generally what happens with most people, so it's completely normal. What usually happens after that is we become discouraged and feel like failures, then give up. But since I'm a coach, I know better. For me, I'm going to see this as a fun experiment, and play with it, not making too many intentions and holding myself accountable without making myself wrong.

It's so easy to beat ourselves up when we don't follow through with every fitness goal we make for the day.  It's almost a reflex!  We start out by creating 3 or 4 goals for the day.  For a few days we're good as gold, so we start adding more daily goals.  Inevitably, life intrudes and we accomplish perhaps 2 or 3 of seven daily goals, forgetting that we have other personal, business, and family goals every day, too, and that's balancing a lot of spinning plates.  We get out the figurative bullwhip and start flailing at ourselves, criticizing, belittling, whittling away at our confidence, sense of self-control, and long-term focus. 

I still find my mind going there, but I no longer listen to it.  I understand that its function is to help me be better, achieve more of my potential, and protect me from perceived dangers, but that function can limit me unless I repattern the direction of thought to "Okay, these are the facts of today.  What's the next best step toward my long term goal right now?"   Sometimes the next best step is to make simpler, fewer goals for the next day.  Sometimes it's to take a big drink of water, or a walk, or make a commitment to do a more vigorous workout the next morning.  And it's always to remember what I *was* successful at that day.

Kerul Kassel

www.NewLeafSystems.com and www.StopProcrastinatingNow.com .  Helping individuals and groups with productivity, performance, effectiveness, and procrastination.  kerul@newleafsystems.com

Day 4

OK, today' I'm approaching my fitness project actions gently. Not attempting to fit in more than is reasonable. And, since I don't know what may transpire for the day, that means flexibility too. Let's see what fits into today comfortably and pleasantly.

With that in mind, I'm writing my daily post here earlier than the late, late posts that kept me up past my new aimed for bedtime. And, I'm making my intended actions more generic than specific. It's an experiment to see how I succeed best at doing and enjoying the doing that will take me toward fitness.

Today I'm wanting to include:

1. good food

2. movement

3. rest

4. water

Amounts and opportunties may vary.

Day 3

I discovered today why I've gotten discouraged with my previous efforts at fitness. I attempt individual actions I know I can succeed at, that's good. But, then I've added too many of those actions to my day. I've been loading the donkey too heavily. Donkey can't keep up, gets discouraged, feels like a failure, and stops in the road.

I know why I do it, because I love the feeling of accomplishment and adventure that comes from succeeding at a challenge. If it's too easy, the adventure and feeling of success are't there. I want it to be more satisfying than I think it will be if I make it less challenging.

But, maybe I can get my sense of adventure somewhere else, or at least some of it. Tomorrow, I'm going to aim for success rather than adventure when it comes to my fitness project. I don't mind not being able to do everything I intend for the day once in awhile, but if I'm not getting it done on most days, then I'm obviously attempting too much.

This isn't a contest, it's not a race, I'm not going to be graded on it. It's me being kind to me, giving me what I want, not dragging me along by the hair of the head to prove something.

Easy there, girl. Take your time, it's a six months project for a reason.

If At First You Don't Succeed: Chunk Smaller

In Talane Miedaner's excellent book Coach Yourself To Success she shares the story of a client who found herself stuck regarding getting fit. She didn't have time to work out, and she didn't have opportunities to engage in fitness creating activities--or so she thought.

Beth, the client in the story, wanted to get fit and eliminate some of the body padding she'd accumulated--about 25 pounds worth, she reckoned. Diets never seemed to work for her either.

What Beth did, was to make one little change at a time, and keep on until she reached the level of fitness and physical appearance she wanted. The first change she made was to add a simple breakfast of instant oatmeal, a banana, and green tea. She ate this at her desk at work instead of the usual donut and coffee.

Next, after that small change, she decided to walk to work each day. This was an hour long walk, but took only twenty minutes more than if she rode public transportation. So, her hour of exercise only cost her an extra twenty minutes of time each day.

The next small step was to improve her lunch by eating salads and vegetables enhanced with a high protein, low fat addition like tuna or chicken.

After that was an established practice, Beth decided to jog around Central Park's reservoir on weekends.

Then, she upgraded her dinner menu to eliminate fatty fast food in preference to low fat, vegetable rich dishes.

Finally, with much progress toward the fitness level she desired, she decided to walk home from work too.

This was all that was needed for Beth to complete her goal and reach the shape and condition she'd been hoping for back when she felt overwhelmed by the thought of having to find time to devote to getting fit.

It is tempting to believe that one needs to hire a trainer, go to a gym for regular workouts, or devote hours a day to a formal exercise program and adhere to a strict dietary regimen. And to jump in full force, start it all at once, and bravely soldier on.

But, it's not necessary at all. Start small, make the easiest and smallest change. Make it easy, innovate, and then when you've made that an easily accomplished part of your day or week, add another small piece of change. Always make the bite small enough to fit the mouth of the present.

Day 2

I've noticed already, after only two days on the project, that I feel better than I've felt in quite awhile. I'm starting slow with the exercise, avoiding getting sore. Why be sore if you don't have to? Why not do things the easy, comfortable way?

Part of why I feel better probably has to do with drinking more water, and going to bed earlier. Tonight that's not going to happen quite the way I planned. I got a welcomed phone call late in the evening, and it was a kind of longish one, which I enjoyed. It meant that I'll be pushing the bedtime back a bit more than I intended. But, that's OK, because this is a project, not a program. That is, I'm learning how to get fit, how to do it in an ecological and reasonable way that works for me. I'm flexible about it, innovating as I go along.

There are no rigid regimens, no rules, no strain, no pain. I'll go to bed tomorrow at my objective time. Tonight, I had a good time conversing on the phone, and I'll have another snack too, because I want one, and need one.

Tomorrow is another opportunity, and I've done pretty well today anyway.

Fit Is Not About Fat

I think the biggest mistake people make when they decide to improve their appearance and fitness is to think it's about weight, meaning, FAT. They either think they need less fat to weigh less, or that they are too thin, and thus need more fat and more weight.

Throughout most of history nobody knew how much they weighed. Even when scales were invented, they weren't the kind one could weigh oneself on. Bathroom and doctor's office scales are a recent invention. Doctor's offices had scales long before homes were routinely equipped with bathroom scales. It was important for a medical doctor to know if someone was losing or gaining weight precipitously.

When inexpensive home scales became available, increasingly, consumers became focused on how much they weighed. But, what one weighs doesn't tell what one needs to know, it simply makes one fixated on the numbers on the scale and try to make them go up or down by the quickest and easiest means. As in, crash dieting, goofy dieting, and deprivation.

I remember an extended family member who was very pleased with her weight loss. She'd reached her goal of losing X number of pounds. But, she'd short changed her body to get there. She looked really bad, gaunt, dark circles under her eyes. She looked anything but healthy.

You probably do not need to weigh at all, and can ignore or discard your scale. If you want to monitor your rate of becoming more fit, and more the shape and size you want to be, then what you need is not a scale but a tape measure.  For a long time along the fitness trail you'll be replacing fat with muscle, and muscle weighs more than fat. So the scale will be no help at all. But, the tape measure will tell you how you're doing, as will attempting to put on those pants you used to wear but that are too tight now.

I have a pair of pants like that. Several years ago those jeans were kind of loose on me, now they can be buttoned and zipped up, but only by me lying down to put them on. To wear them would be very uncomfortable, never mind how bad I'd look with them on.

When those pants feel right on me, when I look in the mirror in my underwear and I see flat places that are too rounded now, when I can walk longer distances and come back without being tired, when I feel the way I felt when I was in the shape I want to be in, then I'll know. And you will know too, all without a scale.

Set out on your six month journey to fitness, and excess fat will gradually fall away. When you feel right, look right, then you can weigh and see what your weight is when you're just right. Then you'll know.

Day 1

Since I've got this blog up and running, and the email discussion group has five subscribers this morning, I'm officially launching the project by beginning my own six month daily postings.

Today I'm focusing on drinking enough water, normalizing my bedtime, and getting back to regular exercise.

I think my wildly varying bedtimes need to change to a standard time to sleep, that it will be an aid to becoming more fit to go to bed at roughly the same time each night. So, tonight, my objective is to be in bed by 11:30 PM. I may move it back to 11 eventually, or forward to midnight, but for now, 11:30 is it.

It's a nice cozy feeling to think of others accompanying me in my own personal fitness project. Why do it alone if you can share the project?

I'm also starting up my exercises again, having done them off and on all winter, now it's going to be part of the project to do them regularly.

How are you beginning your 6 Month Exercise Project?

About The Project's Email Discussion List

As an additional support and sharing medium the 6 Month Fitness Project has an email discussion list for participants.

What It's For

The email discussion list is for sharing information and getting to know other participants, for posting one's action intention(s) for the day, and reporting back what happened in regard to the action intention, and for enjoying comradeship as we go toward increased fitness for the next six months.

How To Use It

Feel free to participate regularly on the list or only occasionally. You can even "lurk" quietly. Since this is an open subcription list, please avoid giving personal information that could identify you, no phone numbers or addresses, etc. You do not need to provide your own name, and can subscribe anonymously by using an email address that does not contain your name.

You can introduce yourself at any time, giving a bit of background, or none at all.

I request that among any other postings to the email discussion list that you post daily what you intend to do, actionwise, toward fitness that day. And, either the next day or that evening please post the results of your actions, and anything relevant that you want to share and/or think would be helpful to others.

Rules

1. No flaming

2. No obscenities.

3. Kindness and consideration required.

How To Subscribe

Click on the icon below, in the sidebar on this page, or visit the discussion list's home page.

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