Making Progress on My Journey

I did something this morning that I haven't done in ages. No, not that - you perverts. I worked out on a Saturday morning.

Even back when I was the Cardio Queen, I NEVER went to the gym on a Saturday morning. I would go in the afternoon, but never in the morning. I've always enjoyed sleeping in on the weekends and, more often than not, I was drinking on Friday evening and didn't have the energy to work up a sweat come sunrise.

Since I'm not drinking at all this month, I decided that I had no reason not to squeeze in some activity before my little tater tot woke up. Besides, I was attending an Easter Egg Hunt/Potluck in the afternoon and I knew that I'd have an easier time facing temptation if my appetite was dulled from some aerobic activity. I was aiming for 30 minutes, but I ultimately rode the LifeCycle for 45 minutes before I called it quits.

I'm fairly critical when it comes to exercise because I know how hard I used to work my body. In some ways, I feel that I shouldn't be too proud over doing 45 minutes because I used to do 90 minutes of cardio and I never did less than 60 minutes.

But that was then and this is now. I had trouble doing just 20 minutes on Tuesday (on Level 1 and Level 2) and I made it through 45 minutes (30 on Level 2 and 15 on Level 3) today. That is progress and that does make me feel proud.

Best of all, I remembered why I used to love exercise. At about minute 19, I felt it. That high-flying feeling you can only get by doing some moderate-to-intense aerobic activity. It's exhilarating and it's a big reason why I enjoyed working out. I began to smile and punched the air for a few minutes before raising them over my head in some sort of mental victory. My face was flushed and my eyes were lively. My skin glowed and I tingled from my head to my toes. It was almost as good as an orgasm except my panties weren't soaked from anything besides my sweat. That warm feeling remained long after I showered.

I used to feel a real joy of movement and I suppose I had missed moving my body. Once I experienced that awesome and long-forgotten feeling, I knew that I will be able to embrace activity once again. Sure, it will take some time to work up to 60 minutes and even longer to work up to 90 minutes. But I can do 45 minutes today and I will do 45 minutes tomorrow.

Thanks to the aerobic appetite suppression, I was able to resist unhealthy choices that would have tripped me up at the potluck this afternoon. Macaroni & cheese, cocktail meatballs, and potato dishes surely would have been my downfall. Instead, I chose to enjoy a hamburger patty, a lot of raw veggies (that was my contribution!), and some fresh fruit. I did decide to have a sliver of homemade chocolate cake and a 1/2 cup serving of homemade banana pudding. I reasoned that I would use my dinner points on dessert at the potluck because I knew that I wouldn't eat supper tonight since the potluck was in the late afternoon.

I've faced quite a bit of temptation in the last two days. I went to John's Incredible Pizza for lunch yesterday and I had the potluck today. I feel that I handled both situations very well. I budgeted my points with these events in mind and I made great choices along the way. Add in the activity and I think I'm definitely making solid progress on my weight loss journey.