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End of Summer Vacation

2 Sep
This summer, I could have been doing more of this...

This summer, I could have been doing more of this…

The worst season of all is upon us, but don’t let that get you down. If you’re in New York, you’re experiencing the long-awaited heatwave that was promised at the end of May. Let’s use it to our advantage.

Yes, Labor Day is over. Though the wretched fall season won’t begin until Sept. 23, its’ Back to School and Back to Work for the rest of us. We took the summer off to lay about on the beach, in the grass, by the grill, etc. It was too nice outside to stay in the gym. Working out seemed like a good idea, but there were sooooo many concerts to go attend. Sure, we all ate lots of fresh fruits and veggies this summer, but those bottomless mimosas couldn’t be left alone on the table, could they?

We just have to come to grips with the work that’s ahead of us. So how do you turn off summer brain to prepare the grunt work of fall?

1. Deal. If the first step toward recovery is acceptance, the first step toward getting back on track is admitting you got off track. It happens to all of us. And you. Will. Deal! Don’t beat yourself up about it, just accept you’re at a new starting point.

But this seemed like more fun.

But this seemed like more fun.

2. How’d you get here? Summer days almost require laziness. From brunch to the day party to the concert in the park later that night, you’ve found yourself doing things you wouldn’t make time for in the fall or winter. For me, it wasn’t so much the lack of activity (though I didn’t grind as hard as I usually do during the year) as it was the alcohol. Between the vacations and brunches, I emptied a few cups. Alcohol causes your body to burn its calories faster, leaving the food you eat stored as fat. So, a lot of those omelettes went to my waist line.

3. Remember the fun times. Working out and monitoring your diet can be a drag. It’s no fun being the responsible one. But there had to have been a point in the journey where you not only enjoyed the fruits of your labor, you also enjoyed some of the laborious acts. Is there a dish you really enjoy making? Is there a class you haven’t been to in a while? When was the last time you saw your friends at the gym? One of the easy ways to stay off track is focusing on the negative. This is your journey, and having a negative attitude about it will keep you from doing good work.

4. The never-ending journey. The weight-loss process and healthy lifestyle aren’t just things you’re doing for a little while. Full commitment means understanding this is a life change. And in life you will stumble while trying to make yourself better. You didn’t fall off your diet. You didn’t stop your workout program. You didn’t pay much attention to what you were doing. We’re in the season now of getting it back together. Do that with the knowledge that your focus shifted for a short while on your lifetime journey.

I don’t know about you, but this summer was a fun one, even if it felt a little short. I got to see friends and family I hadn’t seen in a while. I took some awesome trips and met some really great people. I can incorporate this summer’s lessons into my lifetime journey, just as you can. Let’s do it, people!

How was your summer? Did you enjoy it so much you feel you may have gotten off the fitness track? What are your plans for fall?

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Weight-Loss Draft

18 Aug
You see me struggling, but the woman reflected in the mirror is part of my O-line. That's Willa.

You see me struggling, but the woman reflected in the mirror is part of my O-line. That’s Willa.

Skinny People, my favorite time of year is fast approaching. In 17 days, the Packers will face the Seahawks in the first game of the NFL season.

I. Can’t. WAIT!

I’ve made my love of football abundantly clear on this blog. It’s a fun game to watch. Over the years I’ve been able to garner an understanding of the rules (even if they do change season to season).

What I haven’t been able to do is get into pre-season football. I understand it’s necessity. Teams need to weed out the players that aren’t going to work throughout the season. It’s a good way to get fans excited about the upcoming season. And it’s a good way to get superfans started on their fantasy drafts.

Fantasy drafts are where people, from superfans to the indifferent gambler, draft players from various teams. Trades can be made throughout the season and some leagues offer winners bragging rights or even money. But to be a good general manager, you have to know what skills are key to a great team. You can pick a marquee player because you like him and he’ll get more minutes. You also have to keep in mind what kind of injuries this player has had, and what kind of team he plays with.

Cicely, how the hell does this relate to weight loss? you’re asking.

Well, many times on this blog, I’ve said that your weight-loss journey is an individual sport, and it is. You will lose the weight on your own. You will do the work and you will monitor your eating habits as an individual. But somewhere along the way, you’re going to need support. You’re going to need someone to put a bug in your ear (or up your butt) to encourage you to do better.

Getting yourself ready to take the journey is like drafting for your fantasy team. You’ll need to have a good defense ready, but also have a squad of support that will help you get a win. Just remember, you’re the quarterback on this team, so you call the plays.

If you’re totally on your own (without any groups or classes to attend), then your running back may very well be your trainer. A good trainer is hard to find. So when you find him/her, grab hold with both hands. Like the relationship between a quarterback and running back, you want someone who understands your rhythms and goals and works with you to help you achieve them. Your trainer cannot and will not do the work for you. But he will be the first to notice when you’re doing better and when you’re slacking off. A good trainer is not only someone who prepares you physically for the challenges ahead, but is also like a therapist who will listen. The beginning of your weight-loss journey is a shock to the system, and a trainer knows when you’re body is trying to psych your mind out. He will listen to you complain, and then show you that you can do more.

After you’ve picked your running back you’ve got to have your O-line (offensive line). These people are close family and friends. I don’t always advise letting people in on your journey, because it’s personal. But close family and friends whom you know will be nothing but supportive  should be clued in on what’s going on with you. They will be the ones who will compliment you when you’re doing well. They’ll join you on morning walks or runs for you to have some company. For me, the best person on my O-line was my grandmother. When I began my journey while living in Atlanta, I had to let her know that all of her Sunday dinner usuals weren’t going to work for me. So she would make sure to have some sliced cucumbers (my favorite) set aside for me. Or ff she was frying chicken that day, she’d bake a couple pieces for me to have with my meal.

The defensive end really relies on you. If you have a lot of junk food in your house, and you’re committed to starting your journey, then that stuff has to go. If you’re planning to start running, you’re going to need good shoes. Head to the store now and get sized for the right shoes that will work with the surface you’re running on. You know whether you’re an early riser. Don’t schedule training sessions or classes at times you know you’re not going to be up for. Don’ t set yourself up to fail.

 

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Forever an STL Girl

14 Aug
photo: The Associated Press

photo: The Associated Press

Editor’s note: This will be brief because it’s off topic. But I have to share.

One night, many, many moons ago, my boyfriend at the time was driving me home from night at the movies. My boyfriend had a Ford Taurus, which at the time was the isht car to have.

It was about 12, 12:30 in the morning when we were pulled over less than a mile from my house. The officer asked him to step outside the vehicle without asking for license and insurance. They talked for what seemed like 15 minutes, then I had to pass the insurance info out the window. When my boyfriend got back into the car, he was seething.

One thing you’ve got to know about this guy is that he was and is one of the most easygoing people you’d ever meet. Sure, he’s he’s an enormous human being, but it takes a lot to get him to grit his teeth in anger. The officer pulled us over not because he was driving recklessly, not because he was speeding, not even because of some citywide curfew for teenagers that didn’t exist. It was because my young, black, teenage boyfriend was driving near the speed limit. That’s right: boo had the audacity to drive 34 in a 35 mile-per-hour zone in a nice car.

I tell this story because this light form of police harassment happened almost 16 years ago less than two miles from where an 18 year old, not unlike my ex in stature, was killed by a police officer working in North County St. Louis.

Not all police officers choose to be antagonistic toward the black citizens of North County. But I grew up not far from where the turmoil from last weekend started. I know the anger and frustration that the people there feel. I still have family living in that community. My cousin owns a business in that community. And my heart breaks every day that I see new stories come out.

I’ve met some of the journalists covering this story, one of whom was arrested, and I commend them for going after what appear to be war-zone stories. I have to watch from afar, relying on MSNBC, Twitter and the occasional family phone call to keep me updated.

What I can tell you is North County is not Iraq nor Afghanistan nor the Ukraine. It is my home, and it is hurting. I want justice for Mike Brown. I want peace in the home that I love so much. And I want a resolution that causes no more pain to a grieving public.

I’ll leave you with a song that has been on heavy rotation on my iPhone since my cousin suggested it the other day. I hope it eases you as it did me.

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A Taste of Home

28 Jul
Home of many tasty things.

Home of many tasty things.

Right now I’m in the middle of what I’m calling a three-city tour. It started with Chicago and hanging out with the Carters and a few of my Chi-town friends. Now I’m back in my hometown of St. Louis (STL, dog!) to visit friends and family before going to Boston for a conference.

Going on vacation means taking a break from your routine. My routine is work-gym-home. Sometimes it’s run-work-grocery store-home. It keeps me focused on maintaining my fitness level and not getting too distracted in a city full of distractions. Vacation throws all of that out of the window.

When I go to Chicago, I always get Garett Popcorn. I prefer the mix of caramel and cheddar popcorn, but others just like plain butter. Doesn’t matter because is good old corn sullied by sodium and corn syrup. And it’s delicious. An entire bag is probably my daily allotment of calories, but when I have it, I’m in heaven.

Next comes home. Let me explain to you a few things about St. Louis food: my dad makes the best smoked barbecue ever, you’ve never had good Chinese food until you’ve had it at ahometown hole in the wall, the best White Castle on the planet is smack dab in the middle of the hood, and no one makes a thin-crust pizza like Imo’s.

None of this is good for me: we coat our barbecue in sauce in St. Louis, filling ourselves with overprocessed tomato sauce; the Chinese food is full of MSG and sodium; and the White Castle is…White Castle.

I hadn’t been home in almost a year, so I have to get my fill of the good stuff while I’m here. But I’m going to have to work even harder to maintain some modicum of restraint around my hometown comfort foods.

I learned this lesson in Rio. We were eating all the wrong things and laying out on the beach everyday. One day we were out for lunch and found a spot with a salad bar. We thought we were in heaven. Leafy greens, tomatoes, beets, carrots, balsamic vinegar. It was like an angel chorus was singing to us as we filled our plates.

That’s what’s probably going to happen as I begin the third leg of my tour in Boston. I’ll have to cleanse myself with steamed vegetables, baked fish and snackable cashews. But in the meantime, I’ll have my running shoes with me. A lot of my folks back home have started working out again. I’ll be surrounded by people who are taking active care of their health, so I won’t be led too far astray.

Ten years ago, not many of us were taking good care of ourselves. Sure, there were a few who’d maintained their high-school athleticism. But a lot of us let our slovenly ways take over. I’m glad that I’ve stayed in contact with such hard-working people who want to do better for themselves.

If you live away from your hometown, what’s your go-to comfort food? How do you reconcile your desire for a taste of home with your need to maintain a healthy lifestyle?

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Dating on the Run

14 Jul

My weight-loss journey began out of a need to make productive use of my time after a break up. I didn’t want to become the cliche of the girl who gorged herself on brownie sundaes to dull the pain of a failed relationship. While a brownie sundae sounds good even now, practicality is my thing.

When you’re in beast mode, time management is key to life. You have to work a workout into your schedule. You have to plan times for your meals. You need to have a steady sleep schedule to recover from the changes you’re making to your body. Add the daily activities of your actual job and extracurriculars and you realize that your social life can take a nosedive.

If you’re single like I am, dating can be difficult at the best of times even when you’re not on a fitness track. You want to meet up with that guy from OkCupid for after-work drinks, but your workout schedule already has you penned in for an hour at the gym. The guy from a couple weeks ago texts you for a movie in the park—he brings the treats, you bring the wine. But if he’s bringing treats, will he remember to bring you peppers and hummus because you’re not eating pita chips right now?

It can be all so nerve wracking. You don’t want your social schedule to ruin your good works, but you don’t want your good works to keep you from enjoying life. So how do you compromise the two in hopes of meeting the bae of your dreams?

1. Prioritize. You have to know what’s important to you. Understand where you are on your journey and what you’re willing to do to achieve your goals.

2. Let your freak flag fly. You know what you have to do to maintain or achieve your goals. Letting future bae in on where you are in your journey can only help. If he wants to grab snacks for a picnic in the park, give him suggestions. If you’re in training for a race, ask him if he wants to go with you for a run. You had a life before you met him, now just let him in on some of the things you like.

3. Cheating isn’t always bad. Say you have a rest day coming up where you’re allowed a few more cookies and a little extra syrup on your waffles. Sounds like the perfect day for a date. You’re not worried about how this slight divergence from the plan is going to affect you because you’ve already planned for a few extra calories on your plate.

 4. Lackadaisical can kick rocks. Sometimes you’ll meet a great guy where you two will hit it off. You’re both bottomless pits of useless information. He likes the same obcure BBC show that you like. But he’s a bit of a couch potato. That’s as big a deal as his need  to question your routine. If he pooh-poohs your goals and plans, he’s not worth it. Don’t settle for someone who can’t support your fitness regimen.

5. Just have fun. Dating is supposed to be fun. You’re meeting new people, learning about other interests and exploring new things. Don’t take it so seriously. Your next date may not be your husband, but he might be the guy to introduce you to a really great trainer. Or he could be the person that takes you to your new favorite restaurant, even if he wasn’t the best dinner partner.

You’ve made room in your life for fitness, now you’ve got to squeeze in more room for a social life. It’s a lot to take on, but you can do it. Look at all the progress you made just to shed a few pounds. Think of all the good you’ll do on the social scene.

How do you balance your dating life with your fitness life? What are some of the things you like to do to incorporate both?

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