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Yeah, so this is not looking good.  I thought about hiding, pretending it didn’t happen, posting something brilliant that would distract you, or simply lying, but decided to ‘fess up, clear the air, and start fresh.

So what happened?

Wow. I’ve spent some time pondering this.  Understanding is often the key to success, so I wanted to understand what went wrong here.  In my last post on my weight loss results I talked about the importance of focus.  That still applies for sure, though I can say with confidence that I am now feeling a little more in control of the day-to-day stuff.  I’m settling in to my new job, we’re getting a bit of a schedule here at home, and the general overwhelm is lessening.

This last week, however, was exhausting.  My first week at work where I was basically solo, long days of high energy, next to no walking (that’s a biggie for me) and WAAAAY too much chocolate in the house, which is my biggest downfall.  Because I’ve been so incredibly tired I’ve been looking to food to get an energy “kick” and not only do I not get the kick, the fatigue makes me eat thoughtlessly and unhealthily, so because I’m not nourished properly, I get more tired, and the vicious cycle continues.  I cannot resist simple carbs when I’m tired.

Of course, these are reasons, but not excuses.

Yeah.  So on the weekend I redid my training schedule so it fits in better with my new schedule and lifestyle, got rid of the sweets in the house, and am heading into a MUCH slower week.  The out-of-town trips are over, the crazy training schedule is done, the panic and overwhelm have subsided, the training program is in place, and I had a fairly restful weekend, so I’m thinking we can start fresh, and get a better run at this starting now.

Wish me luck!

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Who is Darlene Hull? Click here: www.darlenehull.com to find out!

I completed level 2 in my training on Saturday by participating in a 10k race for a local church here. Even without the 1˚C (33.8˚F) temperature and brisk winter wind, it was an interesting experience.

I warmed up well, started out by climbing up a reasonably steep but short hill, and proceeded through what was a beautiful, not-terribly-strenuous walk to complete the first 5k loop. I found that although I wasn’t breathing hard or feeling like I was exerting myself beyond my comfort zone (keeping up with about a 7 on the RPE in my estimation), I was pushing myself beyond my ideal heart rate, and my muscles got very tired, very quickly – which is unusual, as I walk a 10k or more almost every week with no issues whatsoever.

I have been training using the Maffetone method which I love, but I’ve not been using it long enough to get a good speed result from a 10k race, so I decided to ignore all his good advice about keeping within your (much lower than conventional) ideal training heart rate level, and just walk as quickly as I could without getting winded. By the end of the first 5k my feet were numb from the cold and felt like bricks, I was demotivated, tired, frustrated, and feeling generally like quitting. I couldn’t believe it. I warm up with a 5k. This was ridiculous.

The second half was better because I hooked up with the woman who owns Distinctive Catering and we got into a great discussion about my funky shoes (they were quite the hit at this walk) and walking in general and I slowed my pace a little to keep together with her and engage in conversation. This moved me back into a better pace within my ideal heart rate. My pace had moved to about a 5.5-6 on the RPE, and with my feet now having some warm blood circulating through them, engaging myself in interesting conversation, and staying within my hear rate, I felt much better on the second lap – but was still feeling quite tired. Much more tired than my long walks (i.e. 21k) feel. This was odd.

The race ended in the middle of a pretty good downfall of snow, so I didn’t want to hang around much outside when it was over (though I did snag a bagel and had a brief chat with some walkers around the coffee urn…) Because of this I didn’t really stretch properly (what is WRONG with me?) and so for the rest of the day I was tired, achy, and quite uncomfortable.

So, lesson learned. I will take longer to prepare for my 21k so that my aerobic level is at place where I can complete it within my proper heart rate level at an 8 minute/kilometer speed (2.8hr finish time – I’m not too far off). And I will take the time to stretch properly when I’m done.

Live and learn….

Happy walking!

Darlene

(PS – sorry I don’t have any pics. My hubby had a meeting on in the morning and couldn’t be there to take pictures of my crossing the finish line in the snow… Too bad)

I just got back from a 7-day cruise to Alaska with my parents and siblings.  My folks are celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary this year, and this was part of that celebration.

What great fun!  Lots of laughs, beautiful scenery, fabulous ship (Holland America’s “Volendam”) and wonderful service.  A great way to travel, to be sure.  Another cruise is definitely in my future somewhere, this time with my hubby and kids.  My parents actually won a 7-day cruise on this cruise, so they’re all geared up to go again as well.  Cool anniversary present!

I was terrified to go on the cruise because I kept hearing about all the food, and I have worked so hard to lose weight that I didn’t want to gain it all back in a 7-day cruise.  Neither did I want to go on a cruise with all that food and eat only lettuce.

I decided to compromise: I’d keep up with my walking, never take the elevator (as we were on the 2nd deck and the food and many activities were usually on the 8th deck, that meant a regular scaling of 120 stairs one direction, several times a day – I was usually over 20,000 steps on my pedometer each day of the cruise), eat only fruit for breakfast, salad for lunch, and then simply enjoy my dinner – all four courses.

I even did a 5k walk for breast cancer while I was on the cruise!  I walked 12 laps of the ship with 65 other people, and finished two laps ahead of the crowd.  We celebrated with glasses of chilled pink lemonade, and were part of Holland America’s raising of over $1,000,000 for the cause.  Pretty cool!

The result?  I still gained 4 pounds.  But ONLY 4 pounds.  I’m quite happy with that.  I also attended a very interesting workshop on weight loss and heard things I’d never heard before that will make future weight loss not only much easier to succeed at, but also even easier to maintain.  I’m doing further research on that to make sure I have the facts straight before I share the info.  Watch for that here.

It’s great to be back, but I sure loved the time away.  I am back refreshed and full of new ideas!  Can’t wait to share them with you!  There will be some exciting things happening here over the next couple of months, so keep your eyes peeled!

Have a great day, and happy walking!

Darlene

I’ve spent months researching training programs for walking.

I’ve spent weeks setting one up and working it into my schedule.

I’ve spent about a month trying it out.

It won’t work.

Currently I’m spending a large chunk of my morning in devotional time – prayer, worship, bible study, etc. Following that, I usually go for my walk. The walking schedule looks like this: Monday-Tuesday: 1.5 hour walk; Wednesday: Off; Thursday-Friday: 2 hour walk; Saturday: 3 hour walk; Sunday: 1 hour walk.

I then come home, post my walk, and my morning is over. The kids (who, bless them, have spent my walking time doing housework and chores) now want to spend time with their mother, so we tend to watch a movie over lunch. Another 2.5 hours gone, minimum, depending on how long the movie is and how long it takes us to get organized with lunch.

After lunch is school, which takes a couple of hours, then it’s already time to get dinner ready, tidy up from the day, and welcome Tom home, which means I get pretty much NOTHING done on my list of things to do (see that list in this blog post). The evenings are either booked, or I spend them with my family, so that’s out, too.

So this morning, drastic cuts were made. Walking is now only one hour during the week. I’ll extend the Saturday one to two hours to make up some of the time. Lunch time movies are now reduced to one episode of a TV show borrowed from the library as opposed to a movie (currently we’re watching “Lost”), and I’ve postponed half of the courses I’m taking in order to have the time I need to get SOMETHING done.

The good news is that I am now much more focused when I am working, so that I can get the maximum amount done.

I just so wish I didn’t have to sleep…

Darlene

On Friday I came across this excellent article that talks about the importance of balance: “Overtraining: A Good Thing Gone Bad”

When I was in training for my marathon last October I learned first hand about the joys of overtraining, and it was during that time that I learned about the “Maffetone Method”. This method of training pretty much guarantees you’re not going to over do things, and it’s the system I’m using this time around. What I like about it is that Dr. Maffetone (a world recognized endurance trainer) says it’s important to listen to your body, and if you’re not up to par, stay home.

This past week I felt stressed, tired and frustrated for no real reason – perhaps the cloudy days, I don’t do well under overcast skies – and so I took a couple of days off of training (I even took the week off of posting my blog). I got back on the road on Friday, but the results shown to me on my heart rate monitor proved that I was still not in a great place for training. After a week of struggling to get my heart rate high enough last week due to very quick improvement, I found myself on Friday barely able to get it below my maximum. Every hill pushed my heart beyond my ideal training point.

Most training programs encourage you to push through those kinds of days, but I know that I have been pushing pretty hard in other areas of my life these past couple of weeks, and so my heart already gets a workout just dealing with that. It’s important to give the body what it needs to be fit AND healthy!

You don’t want to abuse this system with laziness and lack of motivation, but you do have to know your body well enough to know when to say stop.

I did manage a slow 3 hr walk on Saturday with minimal stress, and I also did a one-hour on Sunday and a 1.5 hour walk today.

Darlene

Ok, the subtitle of this blog is “Come Walk With Me” – so that’s what I would like to invite you to do.

Health and fitness is best done by the “Kaizen” method -one small step at a time, so you create habits that last a lifetime. That’s what I want to show you here.

Regardless of what shape you’re currently in, or what you think of health and fitness, I think this program will work for you. Why not give it a try – better yet, why not challenge a friend to try it with you?

Ok, a bit of fun before we get started!

Please fill in your answers to my poll here, and let’s just see where everybody is:

Ok, now here are this week’s assignments. They all start on Monday so you have the weekend to get yourself “kitted out” and “psyched up”:

1. Equipment Needs:

• 500ml water bottle (16 oz)
• Pedometer

2. The Spiritual Challenge: Set up some “Altars” around your home and workplace, etc. to nudge your focus back on God. Each time you see your altar, just turn your thoughts to God. Here are some suggestions:

• Put a rock in your pocket.
• Light a candle in your office
• Put a couple of drops of essential oil on a few tissues and tuck them around your home – under cushions, in pockets, under your computer keyboard, etc. Let the scent bring you to God.
• Put a particular bracelet, necklace or ring on specifically to remind you of God
• Hang up a picture or poster where you will see it often
• Write some favourite Bible verses on cards and put them up in your bathroom, office, car, etc

Just a few ideas – no need to do them all. Choose one or two that appeal to you and use them as a trigger to think of God throughout the day.

3. Nutritional Focus: Water

• Fill your water bottle half way and set it on your bedside table. When you wake up in the morning, drink it all up before you get out of bed.

4. The Exercise Program: Start increasing your daily steps!

And there you have it! Even YOU could keep up with those small, daily assignments. Why not give it a try? If you decided to do it, why not post your commitment below in the comments section? We’d love to be encouraged by your decision!

Darlene

Apparently it’s possible to complete a walking marathon with no training whatsoever, if you’re even moderately fit. The question is not so much that you complete it, it’s what kind of shape you’re in when you’re done.

Walking a marathon with no training will probably cause serious blisters, chafing, seized-up muscles, dehydration, possibly serious injury, and the inability to move with any level of grace for about a week afterward.

The purpose of training is to make sure all the kinks are worked out before the day of the race. You learn about pace, clothing, shoes, posture, nutrition, water, energy – all those important things you need to keep you going strong when “rubber hits the road”, literally. It’s about trying, tweaking, observing, learning, growing, and getting strong – stronger than you’ve ever been in your life. And it’s about finishing with strength, dignity, and enthusiasm!

Many people “try” fitness and nutrition. They wake up January 2, head to the gym and work out for two hours on equipment they’ve never seen before, working up a great sweat, and then they come home and eat lettuce all day. By day three they’re sore, angry, tired, overwhelmed, starving, and eating Ben and Gerry’s with a spoon.

Training takes into consideration who I am, what my lifestyle is, what my personality quirks are, where I am at now, and – hopefully – some good advice from a doctor or fitness professional. With all of that in hand, a training program is set in place that is manageable, enjoyable, and effective. It goes slowly, creating habits instead of hang-ups, and moves you incrementally towards your goal.

The result is fitness, strength, enthusiasm, discipline, and joy. Even the sore muscles or occasional blister don’t deter you from your goals, because they are on a much more manageable scale, and become the wounds of victory, not defeat.

So, stop trying to be fit, and get some good training under your belt! You’ll love the results. Check my “Great Resources“, “Great Books“, and “Links” pages and get inspired!

Happy Walking!

Darlene