Physical Fitness Month 2

In Month #2 here’s what I did:

I played “The Longevity Game” to get a measure of how healthy my lifestyle was. It took 5 minutes.

I added 1 hr on the treadmill as an alternative to 45 minutes on the elliptical and went 6-7 days per week, an increase from 3-5 days of the previous week. The goal was to stay consistent.  I also added strength training gradually, 2-3 times a week (splitting up upper-body, mid, and lower body / legs each week). The Treadmill is much lower-impact than the Elliptical but is much more sustainable over long periods of time.

Changed from ‘ground beef’ to ‘ground turkey’, enjoying ground turkey taco salads, chicken breasts, brown rice, etc as alternatives along with cous cous. I looked at daily water-intake guidelines  as well.

I set a “SMART” Goal, which stands for specific, measurable, achievable, results-focused, and time- bound.  My SMART goal was to consistently hit 40 minutes of elliptical time or 60 minutes of treadmill brisk pace for 5 days of this week, then increase to 45 minutes next week (elliptical), where I’ve been advised to then maintain.

It is “specific” as I am starting this week, “measurable” since I can keep a log of the time, “attainable” as long as I eat properly, I’ve been working up to this the last 6 weeks incrementally,  “realistic” since it’s only adding 5 more minutes to the current regimen, and “targeted / timely” in terms of being able to be accomplished inside of this week.

I also took the 23 1/2 hour challenge.

The 23 1/2 hour challenge is based on the idea of all other activities like sleeping, TV, eating, etc be restrained to 23 1/2 hours per day and carving out that other half hour in a 24 hour day towards activity.

I journaled this back in September 2014: “3 specific real-life suggestions how I can carve out 30 minutes per day for physical activity are as follows: 1) I can take something I already enjoy such as watching “The Price is Right” which I always find the time to do, and do it while I am on the elliptical. So I’m not just watching a TV show, I am being active as I do it. 2) I can take 30 minutes I would normally make family time and make it ‘family gym time’. 3) I can do small things like park away from the WalMart, take the stairs at the Cool Springs Mall, or walk from one end of the shopping plaza to the other and back again instead of moving the car.”