I am once again trying to get into better shape, and I'm dragging Peter along with me. We're both getting far too squishy. I get in a little bit of exercise every day just biking back and forth to school, but I need more than just 15 minutes here and there. I keep a detailed calendar on my computer so that I can keep track of my classes, assignments, appointments, and study time. I am also using it now to schedule in time to work out. I'm starting to become one of those people who has to schedule everything. In fact, the other day Peter got onto my calendar and entered in "Spend time with Peter" onto it. I laughed when I came home and found it. He argued that because it was now on my schedule I had to do it. I thought it was really cute. Any ways, I just thought I'd share my new workout schedule in case some of you may be inspired to do something similar.
Monday - Budokon. It's an intense mixture of yoga, eastern martial arts, and meditation. Really gets your blood pumping.
Tuesday - Cardio at the gym and weightlifting. I like to alternate the equipment I use from day to day. One day it's the treadmill, next it's the stairclimber, etc.
Wednesday - Tai Chi. Yeah, I know it's that thing old Asian women do in the park on Sunday afternoons, but it's really beautiful how it flows like a dance, and it's very relaxing. Just perfect for a mid-week workout.
Thursday - Cardio at the gym and weightlifting again.
Friday - Workout on the ball. It's a great total body workout. Not just your abs.
In addition to exercising regularly, I am also trying to eat a little better, too. I recently made the decision to stop drinking caffeine, and I decided to go one step further and make that stop drinking soda entirely. It's nothing but sugar and carbon dioxide. Two things your body does not need. I'm also going to eat more veggies and have fish once a week.
With school, and the craziness of normal life, I don't know how well I will be able to keep up with this, but it's important to keep trying and not give up. I've already noticed some benefits to eating better and working out. 1.) No caffeine crash. I'm not cured of feeling really tired, but it's requiring me to adopt a regular sleeping pattern. School has been throwing off my circadian rhythm and I need to correct it. 2.) I have better focus at school and when I'm studying. I have an attention problem, especially when I'm required to focus on something I don't care about. Regular exercise, for some reason, helps me to better engage my mind into my studies. 3.) I feel happier/better. Exercise releases endorphins, and eating well helps give your body sustained energy. 4.) Better body image. I've only recently begun a regular exercise routine so I have not yet seen any changes in my physical appearance, however I have noticed a correlation between mind and body. When I work out, I feel like I look better, even if all I've lost is half a pound.
Every other week I plan on reporting on my and Peter's progress. My hope is that we will maintain our motivation this way if we can look back and see the changes that have occurred overtime. Today is Thursday, so as soon as Peter gets home from school it's off to the gym! Woo!
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Sunday, October 11, 2009
October
I guess we weren't busy enough with midterms because we've managed to pack in a number of events and projects so far this month. To start with, Peter spent the first weekend in October at the Society of American Foresters convention in Orlando, FL. The main goal was to try and find a permanent job, but unfortunately he hasn't heard back on any of the interviews he did. I guess the market for forestry jobs is tighter than we thought. At least while he was down there he got to visit his uncle Michael and aunt Lisa and their three kids. He came home and told me that that was the best part of his whole trip to Florida. He may not have come back with a job, but he did come back with some fun stories. One worth sharing occurred when he happened to pass the Geico booth at the convention. Geico is one of the big companies that sponsors the SAF convention, and last year they gave the winners of the Quiz Bowl Geico toasters (because toasters are cool, right?). Utah State won last year so Peter came home with a lovely toaster that cooks the outline of the Geico gecko into your toast. Well, when Peter strolled past the Geico booth this year he heard some laughter directed towards him, so he decided to check it out. They explained why they were laughing and held up a bobblehead of a Geico caveman from their commercials. I have to admit...the resemblance is uncanny.
They gave him one for free in exchange for a picture of him holding the bobblehead. I laughed my butt off when he produced the bobblehead and told me the story.
This Saturday Peter and I worked on another fund-raising project for the Forestry Club. We spent the entire day out at Deseret Land and Livestock doing stand exams. We basically looked at trees all day. We broke off into teams and I of course got paired up with Peter. We walked around the woods and recorded data of tree species, diameter, height, etc . The tough part of the project was that our plots were located on the north slope of a mountainside. I spent most of my energy trying to stay upright and not tumble down the mountain. There was also a good 4-6 inches of snow on the ground which made for even more treacherous footing. I'm not well known for my balance or coordination so you can understand how I might have stumbled a time or two...or dozen. It was pretty cold, too. If I wasn't moving, I was freezing. I did have fun learning more about what Peter does at work, although he normally doesn't have snow to contend with. I also enjoyed looking for animal tracks in the snow. I found deer, elk, and moose as well as snowshoe hare, and some canid track that looked too big to be a fox or coyote. Unless some hunter's dog got lost it could have been a wolf. We were relatively close to the Wyoming border and there have been reports of wolf packs crossing the border recently. I'm no expert on animal tracks so I can't say for sure, but the thought is kind of exciting.
So to recap, Peter got to go to Florida and I learned about stand exams...and that I'm married to a caveman, which is something I've suspected for years. :)
They gave him one for free in exchange for a picture of him holding the bobblehead. I laughed my butt off when he produced the bobblehead and told me the story.This Saturday Peter and I worked on another fund-raising project for the Forestry Club. We spent the entire day out at Deseret Land and Livestock doing stand exams. We basically looked at trees all day. We broke off into teams and I of course got paired up with Peter. We walked around the woods and recorded data of tree species, diameter, height, etc . The tough part of the project was that our plots were located on the north slope of a mountainside. I spent most of my energy trying to stay upright and not tumble down the mountain. There was also a good 4-6 inches of snow on the ground which made for even more treacherous footing. I'm not well known for my balance or coordination so you can understand how I might have stumbled a time or two...or dozen. It was pretty cold, too. If I wasn't moving, I was freezing. I did have fun learning more about what Peter does at work, although he normally doesn't have snow to contend with. I also enjoyed looking for animal tracks in the snow. I found deer, elk, and moose as well as snowshoe hare, and some canid track that looked too big to be a fox or coyote. Unless some hunter's dog got lost it could have been a wolf. We were relatively close to the Wyoming border and there have been reports of wolf packs crossing the border recently. I'm no expert on animal tracks so I can't say for sure, but the thought is kind of exciting.
So to recap, Peter got to go to Florida and I learned about stand exams...and that I'm married to a caveman, which is something I've suspected for years. :)
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