tea berry-blue

So I decided recently that I desperately need to get more exercise. I’ve been consistently gaining weight, and while I’m not really at an unhealthy weight, I’ve noticed that I’m not nearly as flexible or as physically strong as I once was. And that can be frustrating.

I am very much against dieting. I don’t do it. I think that, when you’re discussing people like me, who have relatively healthy relationships with food, at least (I know it’s different for other people), out bodies tell us what kind of food we want to eat and it’s because those are the foods that have the nutrients we need. I rarely eat fast food or red meat, and most of the food I eat in my home is vegan and raw, but I don’t limit myself to a specific diet. I rarely drink soda and save it for when I have a headache or allergies, and when I drink sugary juice, I drink it half-and-half with seltzer. So my eating habits are already pretty healthy.

But I don’t exercise at all– I mean, other than the ten blocks I walk each way to work every day (that’s about a 12 minute walk for those of you who aren’t familiar with NYC blocks). And my upper body strength is abysmal. So I decided I needed to do something about it. I don’t want to be one of those people who didn’t exercise when she could have and realizes at fifty that I have health problems I could have prevented in my thirties just by taking better care of my self.

I recently turned my Netflix account back on after nearly five years, and discovered that I can get fitness videos on Play Instantly. I also got my Wii set back up for Play Instantly, and that means one of two things:

1) I can play more Wii games, which are more active than some of my other stay-at-home activities
2) I can use fitness videos

So, starting Friday, I have been walking home from work at lunch, doing ten minutes of beginner fitness video workouts (ones that are designed to be short stretches and such), eating lunch at home (cheaper than eating at work!), and walking back. I’ve also been playing more of the more active Wii games I own. This adds close to a half-hour of walking to my daily schedule, plus the exercise in between, and at night.

I don’t know if it will really have an effect, but I’m certainly willing to try. It’s been nearly a year since I stopped using shampoo and that was an excellent personal improvement. It seems like it’s about time to fit in another one!

I’ve decided I’m going to take progress pictures so I can see if there’s any visible progress from my increased exercise. I’m going to take them every Friday. This is sort of my way of holding myself to the self-improvement goal, because while I don’t really have a goal of losing a lot of weight, I do want to see more muscle tone on my body and an overall healthier look. I also feel like this is the kind of thing that people don’t often talk about in real, visual terms. Lots of people feel like they have awkward bits on their bodies no matter what shape their bodies take, and we’re all too used to seeing airbrushed models. I feel like the more we get used to seeing normal bodies, the better off we’ll all be in the long run. I’m a little, I don’t know, apprehensive about this, because part of me feels a little weird putting up pictures of myself in shorts and a sports bra where everyone in the world can see, but hey, it’s more clothes than I would be wearing at the beach. So here’s Week 1:

Tea Gets Fit Week 1--Front

Tea Gets Fit Week 1--Side

And no, this isn’t going to preclude my usual food posts. Like I said, I don’t do dieting. Plus, I just made a quart of Earl Grey ice cream and it’s in the fridge freezing.

Mirrored from Antagonia.net.

So I decided recently that I desperately need to get more exercise. I’ve been consistently gaining weight, and while I’m not really at an unhealthy weight, I’ve noticed that I’m not nearly as flexible or as physically strong as I once was. And that can be frustrating.

I am very much against dieting. I don’t do it. I think that, when you’re discussing people like me, who have relatively healthy relationships with food, at least (I know it’s different for other people), out bodies tell us what kind of food we want to eat and it’s because those are the foods that have the nutrients we need. I rarely eat fast food or red meat, and most of the food I eat in my home is vegan and raw, but I don’t limit myself to a specific diet. I rarely drink soda and save it for when I have a headache or allergies, and when I drink sugary juice, I drink it half-and-half with seltzer. So my eating habits are already pretty healthy.

But I don’t exercise at all– I mean, other than the ten blocks I walk each way to work every day (that’s about a 12 minute walk for those of you who aren’t familiar with NYC blocks). And my upper body strength is abysmal. So I decided I needed to do something about it. I don’t want to be one of those people who didn’t exercise when she could have and realizes at fifty that I have health problems I could have prevented in my thirties just by taking better care of my self.

I recently turned my Netflix account back on after nearly five years, and discovered that I can get fitness videos on Play Instantly. I also got my Wii set back up for Play Instantly, and that means one of two things:

1) I can play more Wii games, which are more active than some of my other stay-at-home activities
2) I can use fitness videos

So, starting Friday, I have been walking home from work at lunch, doing ten minutes of beginner fitness video workouts (ones that are designed to be short stretches and such), eating lunch at home (cheaper than eating at work!), and walking back. I’ve also been playing more of the more active Wii games I own. This adds close to a half-hour of walking to my daily schedule, plus the exercise in between, and at night.

I don’t know if it will really have an effect, but I’m certainly willing to try. It’s been nearly a year since I stopped using shampoo and that was an excellent personal improvement. It seems like it’s about time to fit in another one!

I’ve decided I’m going to take progress pictures so I can see if there’s any visible progress from my increased exercise. I’m going to take them every Friday. This is sort of my way of holding myself to the self-improvement goal, because while I don’t really have a goal of losing a lot of weight, I do want to see more muscle tone on my body and an overall healthier look. I also feel like this is the kind of thing that people don’t often talk about in real, visual terms. Lots of people feel like they have awkward bits on their bodies no matter what shape their bodies take, and we’re all too used to seeing airbrushed models. I feel like the more we get used to seeing normal bodies, the better off we’ll all be in the long run. I’m a little, I don’t know, apprehensive about this, because part of me feels a little weird putting up pictures of myself in shorts and a sports bra where everyone in the world can see, but hey, it’s more clothes than I would be wearing at the beach. So here’s Week 1:

Tea Gets Fit Week 1--Front

Tea Gets Fit Week 1--Side

And no, this isn’t going to preclude my usual food posts. Like I said, I don’t do dieting. Plus, I just made a quart of Earl Grey ice cream and it’s in the fridge freezing.

Mirrored from Antagonia.net.

Mirrored from Antagonia.net.