Did 6 kilometers on my elliptical. Program #4, which is a hill program, Level 3 difficulty. I am adding a kilometer a week, or rather 7 workouts then add 1 kilometer and start the count over again, over and over. How far am I going to take it? I actually have not decided yet. Perhaps the distance it takes me to do 60 minutes or 45 minutes at a time. I would like to work it up to be able to complete a marathon distance. Obviously that will take some time…lol.
It amazes me how different it is working out on the elliptical, with the arm levers; than walking the roads/hills here with my trekking poles. The elliptical makes me think of walking in water; except my feet generally do not go to sleep in the water.
Yes they go to sleep on the elliptical, same thing on the tread-mill or walking long distances. I’m not sure they actually go to sleep, but they tingle like they are. That’s one of the reasons I use the trekking poles when I walk distances. Between the extra weight, some back injuries, and the nerve damage from west Nile virus it makes it very easy to stumble after I’ve been walking for a while. Go to take a step and the foot doesn’t go quite where you thought it was going to go…lol. So, adapt, use trekking poles and keep from landing on your face…lol.
It’s better than it was. I believe it will continue to improve as I continue to build the muscle girdle around my core. Guess I could have said strengthen core muscles. By core I not only mean abdominal muscles, but back muscles as well.
This core strength is imperative to keep me off the surgeon’s table. There has been some lower spine damage. The doc told me several years ago I was going to have to have surgery to fuse some vertebrae. I will not have that surgery unless I absolutely have too. So far so good, building up the core muscles, one day at a time, is working.
If I expect this body to continue to function removing the extra fat I’ve self-destructively packed on my frame is a necessity as well.
The mechanics of my body works pretty well as far as fat loss goes. However; dealing with the mental/emotional/spiritual issues that triggers the behavior that packs on the pounds has been quite the adventure.
This bit is why you see so many people gain the fat back, usually plus some, after losing weight. Or yo-yo diet their entire lives. It is necessary to deal with the issues behind the weight gain/or loss. (loss in anorexics – gain in the case of over fat or obesity)
As much as we might like it to be; obesity is not just diet and exercise. Or perhaps I should say nutrition and movement.
The total person is involved. This is one of the reasons journaling is so useful. The journal is a safe place to explore, or simply express thoughts and emotions. Put your journal In a safe place. If you want to share it that’s fine; but if you are not ready to, put it somewhere where no one else can access it; until you are ready to share it. Some posts may be for your eyes only.
One of my challenges is learning how to live in the present. Rather than rehashing the past over and over. Doing the shoulda/woulda/coulda bit or waiting to live until I do this or that. Projecting my life into the future. Doing either or both can and will steal your life if you allow it.
In moving on, allowing myself to live in the present rather than rehashing the past I have been able to let go of some very hurtful events.
I had been struggling with the concept of forgiveness. Forgiving myself for not being “perfect”, and forgiving others for their hurtful words and actions. Forgiving does not mean that what they said or did was “ok” by any means. What it does do is release you from their grasp. Their word or actions, no longer have the ability to hurt you emotionally.
Forgiving your self means; ok I acknowledge my past, I deal with the consequences of my decisions/actions/words, it is what it is. Acknowledge and learn from the mistakes you have made, and then move on. This equals growth. Live now.
I read a great article in
O magazine this morning. “The Beauty of Today” by Eckhart Tolle. I found it in the May 2010 issue of O.
It is as follows:
Most of us would agree that O’s tenth anniversary is cause for celebration. And yet some people feel ambivalent about anniversaries, birthdays, and the like. Some even feel a little guilty when they think about the past, tough the memories may be pleasant. “Am I avoiding the present moment?” they ask. They belong to a growing number of people who are “practicing presence”—endeavoring to let go of an excessive and unhealthy preoccupation with past and future, and embrace the place where life happens.
There is a fine balance between honoring the past and losing yourself in it. For example, you can acknowledge and learn from mistakes you made, and then move on and refocus on the now. It is called forgiving your self. Or you can carry a burden of guild (self-identification with mistakes) for many years. You may occasionally fondly remember eve3nts, places, or people from the past and while doing so be accepting of the impermanence of all things. Or you may wallowing nostalgia and see the past as more precious than the preset.
Be vigilant, so that you don’t allow a burden of negative past to accumulate in your mind. In the form of guilt, regret, resentment, grievances, anger, and so on. Forgiveness happens naturally as soon as you realize that the past cannot prevail against the power of Presence.
The future, too, needs to be honored, without making it more important in your mind than the present. Of course, you can make plans, and you can hold an intention in your mind of something that you wish to manifest in your life, and then take appropriate action. But the power of creating a better future is contained in the present moment: You create a good future by creating a good present. How do you do that? By recognizing the goodness that is already inherent in the present moment, even in the midst of challenges. Discontent, blaming, complain, self-pity cannot serve as a foundation for a good future, no matter how much effort you make.
Where to find that goodness when recession hits, when you lose your job, your home, when things seem to fall apart around you? In all things that we tend to overlook: feeling the gentle breeze on your skin, the sunlight filtering through the clouds, the sound of the rain, the waging tail of a dog, the shiny apple you are about to bite into. You notice the in-and-out flow of your breath, the feeling of aliveness inside your body. And then there is the beautiful stillness behind it all, which is deep within you. It is through gratitude for the present moment that the spiritual dimension of life opens up.
So let’s celebrate our anniversaries as they arise. What we are really celebrating, though, is the present moment, the door way into Spirit, and all there ever is.
*****end of article*****
I appreciated what Eckhart Tolle had to say in this article. I hope it was a blessing to you as well.
Life is a journey, each moment to be appreciated.
Mary E. Robbins
Robbins Run Ranch307.788.0202
I did something this morning that I haven’t done in ages. I worked a crossword puzzle. Usually I suck so badly at those, but I did pretty well on this one. It was in the Enquirer; yes that is one of my guilty pleasures; puzzles and the gossip rags. I love looking at the clothes people wear. Cup of coffee and the crossword, or Sudoku and I am a happy camper.
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