<p>No $3.99 lobsters to be found anywhere in this neck of the woods, only $19.99 crab legs. :(</p>
<p>A beer would be nice right now, after my 5 mile sprint. :)</p>
<p>^^Isn’t that why we exercise, bunsen? It’s for the beer. Or wine. And the chips.</p>
<p>Absolutely, busdriver! ;)</p>
<p>Idad, re your 40lb experience…I know what you mean. That’s kind of where I am at too impulse-wise…except I’ve not quite figured out what my weight routine will be exactly and I think I need that 10 pound buffer to shift my focus. </p>
<p>I need to get reading McGill. I have his big back book sitting there but I’m such a habituated kindle reader now I don’t seem to go at it often. It’s really not the kind of text you can skim…you have to be in the mood for a deeper study 
What he has to say about it all really resonates with me, though, so I should just dedicate some time to delve into it further. It’s hard to explain but there was something really reinforcing about his comment of how misguided prescriptive “instructions” are for someone with the kind of facet issue I have. Few folks seem to know this for some reason. I’ve had therapists utter the same nonsense to me and then be mystified when I get a lock. So I am clear that I am probably the only person who can figure out my “safest” weight resistance moves…but I’d kind of like a McGill clone to work with me…call me lazy :)</p>
<p>So, in terms of goal setting and accountability, I plan the following goal by Jan 2014:
A) finish and absorb mcgills book
B) through trial and error work out a 40 min weight resistance routing to be added 3x weekly to my base hill/treadmill/airdyne a.m.s (but at night)
C) continue to plod via slow caloric budget toward -50
D) stock in on heavier kettlebells or weight set and paraphenalia for a “winter” poolhouse gym
E) specific goal is to flatten stomach and drop another pant size or two while maintaining my baseline am activity, maintaining food journal and maintaining increased active leisure time.</p>
<p>And
F) enjoy beer :)</p>
<p>^correction. See, I just needed to say it to make myself do it :)</p>
<p>Sub goal: add planks and bird dog to daily am routine, graduate to stir the pot…</p>
<p>Speaking of beer and lobster. Indulged in both yesterday. No running, core, kettles or parachute sprinting on the beach.</p>
<p>busdriver…getting in walking shape for my fall Europe trip is my mini goal. The major goal is to get in shape for D2’s wedding next summer. I would love to be able to wear a sleeveless dress! Lost 40 pounds 2 years ago for D1’s wedding and still felt my arms were too big to go sleeveless! I want to try to reach that goal this time… and to lose more weight! :)</p>
<p>I may have shared this when we first started the thread, but the CC community is largely responsible for my return to competitive long distance running.</p>
<p>I “met” a woman here on CC whose daughter was a recruited athlete applying to colleges, as was my son. We messaged quite a bit, and continued that through the early years of college as we faced “issues” of one sort or another with the kids. Her name on CC was Golfingmom (she doesn’t post anymore) and she lives in the Minneapolis area. At one point (before we met) she told her husband she wanted a bicycle. She was a former cross country ski racer- some 100 pounds ago. He laughed and laughed- said she would never ride it. Well, she did and she lost 90 pounds (shades of iDad)! </p>
<p>As she and I continued to chat, she indicated that she wanted to start distance running, and I convinced her that a marathon was possible. She built up, and did complete a marathon. She convinced me to join her in 2009 at Grandma’s in Duluth. I had not run a marathon in 7 or 8 years! I resisted, and then agreed. I did a “practice” race at Country Music Marathon in April before the June Grandma’s Marathon and did well. So- GolfingMom and me and our spouses met up in MSP in June and went to Duluth. I had met her once when I was in town on business. We had SO much fun- stayed in Two Harbors, drank beer, ate good food etc. It was a brutally hot day for the race, and all the Minnesota folks dropped like flies since this was the first hot day all year, practically.</p>
<p>I had a strong race and qualified for Boston- even with the heat. I didn’t stop! I owe it all to Golfingmom and CC! She went on to do a 50 miler for her 50th birthday a couple of years later, got back into serious cross country skiing and did a lot of road and mountain biking.</p>
<p>What a great story - for both of you!</p>
<p>We of course are thrilled to have you here to mentor,humor,commiserate, and challenge us.</p>
<p>As for Golfingmom’s H…who’s laughing now!!! :)</p>
<p>That is an awesome story, MOWC! Who would know what a conversation online could lead to? I’ll bet she really started biking hard to show up her husband, and you both talked each other into the marathon. It’s fascinating, the things that end up motivating us, the reasons people start exercising so much. NM wanting to go sleeveless at her D’s wedding? Most people would just say forget it, too much trouble, and wear the sleeves.</p>
<p>Just finished my three sets of bicep/tricep, chest, shoulder weight routine. Walking on tap for later this evening when H comes home. I have had him out walking three times this week! Yay! As an ex-hockey player he isn’t really overweight…6’ 4" and about 225… but he could lose some in his stomach. He exercises in spurts and has never really dieted. Has a pretty stressful career. I just want him to be more mindful of what he eats and exercise to relieve his stress.</p>
<p>I love that story, MOWC!</p>
<p>I think the arms goal sounds very reasonable. NMinn, have you tried the 3 pt rows iDad has mentioned?</p>
<p><a href=“DB Row - YouTube”>DB Row - YouTube;
<p>I’m doing the 3-pt rows in my workouts right now. The great thing about that version is that the back is completely protected by the arm on the bench.</p>
<hr>
<p>The weatherman is predicting an extended stretch of nice weather for next week. Called the campground and they had an opening for two nights in a brookside tent site. So, I’m off to take advantage of summer weather one more time. Now, all I have to do is pick out three days of hiking.</p>
<p>Yep…I am doing the 3 pt rows! :)</p>
<p>I think one thing I’ve really learned about is portion control. Today in our break room at work, there are tons of cakes, cookies, brownies, etc. Honestly - I could go to town on all of it and not think twice. But instead, I had a very small piece of a cake that looked particularly good, and once I bit into it - I decided I really only cared for the icing, so I ate that and didn’t bother with the actual cake. So, it might be a few WW points but I’m totally fine in the context of my entire day. I come from a family where we ate out all the time, so my sense of “what’s a portion” is completely skewed. Things like Cheesecake Factory desserts? Yeah, I could have eaten a whole one. Or a sleeve of Oreos. But now it feels like way too much, and a few bites is satisfying enough.</p>
<p>My goal is to try to do 2 different activities a day. I did Pilates this morning, and sometime tonight I’ll either run, do weights, or do hot yoga. Whatever. One day at a time. Though it is frustrating that weight loss is slower than it was at the beginning – the last 10 - 15 pounds are going to take a long time to come off, I think. </p>
<p>My reward to myself for the first part was seventh-row seats to Paul McCartney, which I loved. My reward to myself once I get down to the final goal is going to be a clothing splurge!</p>
<p>Pizza, eating the frosting off the cake is SO something I would do - that’s the part I really want, so if the cake part itself is not too special, yep, just eat the frosting!! I applaud your realistic thinking and making your choice work for you!</p>
<p>Planning for a run tonight. However H has also dumped me on a staining the deck project we were suppose to be working on later this afternoon together - hoping my knees and arms are still up for a jog later.</p>
<p>Rest day for me today. Lower body is fine after yesterday, but I am feeling the three (unsuccessful) attempts at a pullup…</p>
<p>Higher bar than the one I tried before – I jumped and still wasn’t able to do it!</p>
<p>6 x .5 mile intervals with 1 min walk in between. I feel really old today.</p>
<p>That’s because you’re used to being athletic and have high expectations of yourself. For some of us, any accomplishment on this front feels like a real coup. ;)</p>
<p>25 minutes of beach running. Hour of beach cruiser bike. 3 pi</p>