I can write about diet (recipes are the bread and wine of our foodie religion), exercise (hiking, marathoning, climbing, etc.), and mental health, but if I mention that I'm trying to lose a few pounds or that I'm feel heavy, the critics come out of the woodwork.
So, allow me to offer a few counterpoints in advance: I'm aware that I'm a healthy weight. I'm aware that I don't "need" to change the way I am. I'm aware that I'm lucky to be tall and athletic. I'm aware that I should be happy with myself-- and for the most part I am. But, like most people, I do feel the drive to improve.
I don't exercise for the express purpose of losing weight. I do it to keep fit. However, in a fully ironic twist of fate, I gained weight during both stints of marathon training in the last six months. At first I would have been happy to call it muscle weight, but muscle doesn't sit like a spare tire at waist level and cause a muffin-top. Heh. The fact is that long weekend distance runs wore me out too much to exercise adequately during the week and freaked out my metabolism. The end result was that I ate marathon portions and indulged marathon cravings and ended up, well, fit but flubbier.
A likely contributor, too, is that I switched from hormonal birth control to a copper IUD in October. I may have just been one of the lucky few who slimmed down while on the pill.
So I've got an extra 10 lbs on me and while it ain't the end of the world, I want, as Cosmo puts it, my "bikini body" back. Call it vanity, call it compulsion, call it what you will. It's gotta go, and maybe an extra 5 along the way.
( Cut for length... )I'm gonna gripe for a moment to get it out of my system: Marathon training has destroyed both my left knee and my go-to-the-gym-in-the-morning routine. I'm exhausted when I wake up and I can't get my ass out of the bed. At the end of the day all I want to do is relax. I used to do weight training M-W-F from 7:30 to 8:30 and run on U-H-Su, but that routine's been quashed for a little while. Running anything over two miles is out for the time being until my knee heals.
So I'm trying to do something cardiovascular every day and for the most part succeeding, with little noticeable result. I'm tired of hamster-wheeling about on elliptical machines even though they're refreshingly low-impact. When I ran the NARAL Pro-Choice 5k last weekend I had to gimp a bit in the middle to alleviate the pain.
Here's what I HAVE been doing besides hamster-wheeling:
1) Kickboxing on & off at the gym. While the class IS chock full of bubbly sorostitute-types, it's damn intense, total-body, and an hour long. I enjoy hopping about like a crazy person too much to be bothered by all the fake-tanned girls.
2) Justin and I had a great 3-hour session at the Ballard Vertical World rock-climbing gym this Saturday. He's an avid climber and has a membership... I've had classes but I'm still out of my element on a rock wall. I tagged along on a day pass and my forearms are still sore.
3) I'm still hoping to get a new bike (probably a hybrid road bike with flat handlebars) sometime in the next month so that I can enjoy the trails nearby on long weekend rides.
4) Finally, several coworkers and I have registered for the Sound Mind and Body "boot camp," which bills itself as
...an intensive, outdoor fitness class series, taught by Sgt. Mike Lawson. The 90-minute sessions are designed to give recruits a taste of real military basic training.
That class should get my ass back in shape.
5) I would love, LOVE to take rowing classes and get a membership to the crew house that's a few blocks from both work and home. It's a pricey commitment, so I'll have to think about it more, but it seems worth it.
What I want most out of this is to feel relaxed, energized, and healthy. It's a bit of a catch-22 because to feel that way I have to feel as if I'm making progress toward a concrete goal and at the moment that goal is getting rid of my (small) gut pouch. By making my self-complaint public, I hope at the least to solidify it enough that I can maintain some sort of reality check when it comes to food and exercise. Working in Fremont it's way too easy to write off a trip to the gym rather than pass up an invite to the Red Door.
I certainly don't think it's true that "less is more" when it comes to weight and I hate feeling that way about myself. (The side of me that's an angry feminist is beating up the side of me that wants a 6-pack right now.) But what I dislike even more is the *feeling* that I've somehow let myself get away from my commitment to being fit and healthy. I *know* that putting on a few pounds doesn't make me less fit or less healthy-- but it certainly does make me less sure I won't face a compounding problem as I get older and my metabolism slows down. So it may well be self-absorbed or vain to still maintain a concern about my weight when I know logically that it says nothing about my immediate wellbeing, but so be it! I'd rather get it and flaunt it than not have it and miss out entirely!
It's time to go work up a sweat!
Posted on May 21, 2007 @ 5:00 PM | 16 comments
Comments:
As a guy that has run 14 marathons, I know how much they can take out of you. You and your man have run two, so you should be happy with the accomplishment and think about other distances. How about a tri? Half marathons are what I am concentrating on as the distance is still challenging yet doesn't drain you as a marathon does.
As for exercise, do what you love. Do you love running? then do it. Do you have trails nearby that are easier on your joints?
By 
running42k, at
4:39 AM, May 22, 2007
For some reason I couldn't comment last night. Comments were closed? Well anyway, my comments are on my blog, as you inspired me as well.
Who says you have to have a visible spare tire, or shop in plus size stores, in order to be allowed to want to lose weight? Do what makes you happy. You're already a hot babe... but if you wanna be even hotter, go for it!
By 
LazyLightning, at
6:13 AM, May 22, 2007
Athletic people can finish a marathon in under five hours.
By , at
10:16 AM, May 22, 2007
I'm sure that a very good portion, if not half, of the marathon finishers in any major event would take offense to that statement.
I'm sure even you know if you really believe that you're completely jaded. But I realize that you're probably trying to be provocative. *yawn* How typical.
By Kat, at
10:58 AM, May 22, 2007
anon, (if that *is* your real name)-- I'd guess that depends on your definition of athleticism. Perhaps someone who is a veteran marathon runner, and who dedicates their life to it, or someone who is simply a gifted runner could finish a marathon in under 5 hours. Are these the only people who are considered to be athletes? I personally have never run a marathon, but having followed friends' progress, I know that marathon training requires a great deal of dedication (and I believe a bit of insanity). Through the trials of knee pain, toenails falling off (eew!), ungodly chafing and who knows what else, Kat, Justin and millions of other men and women have devoted themselves to completing this fitness goal. And you come here and tell Kat that by not finishing the marathon in under 5 hours, she is not athletic?
I beg to differ.
I don't consider myself to be athletic. While I am active, I"m not devoted enough to fitness to be considered an athlete (also, I'm not particularly good at any sports). I certainly could not go out tomorrow and run a marathon. Or half of one. Or a quarter of one. I am sure that a lot of athletes out there are with me. They are not runners. Perhaps they are bikers. Or swimmers. Or snowboarders. Who knows. I greatly respect those who have completed a marathon (or multiples, like Kat!), regardless of whether they finished it in 3 hours, 5, or 10. Running a marathon is not about how much weight you can lift or how many hours you put in on the elliptical. It's about perseverance, endurance, and strength, both inner and outer.
What I'd like to know, anon, is whether you've ever run a marathon. And of course the burning question is: what was your time?
By LazyLightning, at
11:26 AM, May 22, 2007
5 hours? C'mon, if you're going to be elitist why not set the cut off a little more aggressively. Personally I like to be personally judgmental towards anyone who doesn't finish in less than 4. With no soreness the next day. Myself included.
I've met athletic people. They run 30 miles as a warm-up. The rest of us are just "in good shape".
Here's the kicker though...if you're an asshole at the start of the marathon...you're still one at the end, regardless of your time.
By Justin, at
11:37 AM, May 22, 2007
p.s. Also, real athletes finish in the top 50% of their division or gender.
By Justin, at
11:46 AM, May 22, 2007
Seriously, Justin. Pish-posh. WHAT was I thinking? I guess it's ridiculous to even try!
By Kat, at
11:49 AM, May 22, 2007
I think you also are required to run a marathon at least 3 times a week to keep your Athlete status.
By LazyLightning, at
11:53 AM, May 22, 2007
"And you come here and tell Kat that by not finishing the marathon in under 5 hours, she is not athletic?"
Yep, that's what I'm saying. You're very astute!
You don't have to be a "veteran marathon runner" or even a "gifted runner" to be able to finish a marathon in under 5 hours. Athletic people can run a marathon while maintaining better than an 11-minute mile pace.
And yes, my mother named me Anonymous when I was born. Thanks for asking.
By , at
12:29 PM, May 22, 2007
You still didn't answer my question though... what was your time when you ran your last marathon?
By LazyLightning, at
1:29 PM, May 22, 2007
Hay I want some attention now! Check this out:
Everyone who hasn't bought a house yet is an irresponsible idiot with money. No matter what. Learn how to save money. So there.
It's easier than I thought to insult people. You know, I should troll blogs for fun and make comments that I know will piss them off. It's not like I have a job or anything to spend my time with. Yes, this will be my new pastime.
By Rachel, at
1:35 PM, May 22, 2007
Now hold on everyone. I'm sure anonymous is citing a very reliable, authoritative source in his/her argument. Amirite?
By , at
1:46 PM, May 22, 2007
Hey yah, let's see that source.
By lazylightning, at
2:20 PM, May 22, 2007
Yes, I've run marathons, and yes, they're faster than 5 hours. I don't feel the need to brag about my accomplishments, so my times are irrelevant.
You're missing the point. I'm arguing that you're not athletic, not that you're not in shape or you're not active. You can be in good shape while at the same time not be good at catching a ball, playing sports or running fast. You seem to like being active, and that's fine. But being "athletic" doesn't equate to riding a bike around, jogging a marathon, and taking a class with "sorority girls" at some gym.
I'm not claiming to be factual in my assertion. I'm just stating my lowly, anonymous opinion. I don't need authoritative sources to have an opinion, do I?
By , at
2:24 PM, May 22, 2007
As long as you realize that it's an opinion, not a fact. There is no definition of athletics that corresponds to skill level. If one were to add "professional" to the word athlete one might be able to attribute some sort of minimum qualifier. However, your *personal opinion* of the qualifiers for athleticism are in no way any more valid than Charles Gariepy's, the pope's or Genghis Kahn's. Check a dictionary, encyclopedia, whatever you like. But save your schpiel for the pulpit, champ.
By Kat, at
2:48 PM, May 22, 2007
