The Magic Number

I used to use cardio as a 10 minute warm-up but looking back, I see that it was pretty worthless. Since last August, I've done either 45 or 35 min elliptical workouts paced fast enough to register roughly 4.5 to 5 miles. Now that's a warm up. Sweat is pouring down my face when I step off the cardio area.

If you're reading or chatting, you're not moving fast enough. A few months ago, a woman asked me how I dropped so much weight, I told her that my "magic number" was 5 miles. I saw an Aha! moment on her face although she laughed that her friends would have to rescue her when she fell on her butt trying to run five miles on the treadmill. However, I've seen her recently, and she looks good! She's lost weight! Her skin looks clearer. She smiled that knowing smile at me, and I think she's found her magic number. It might even be five miles.

For a while I was doing five miles five days a week — that's about 25 miles a week. Thank goodness for non-impact elliptical cross-trainers, otherwise my knees would've fallen out ages ago! I do have to credit the free cardio music downloads I've gotten from Shape magazine http://www.shape.com/fitness/playlists. The right music helps my pacing when I'm hauling butt. Shape.com provide a new cardio workout playlist for free every month that can be downloaded to your own MP3 player. I confess that I'm completely anti-social when I'm working out: I've got a hoodie on to keep my hair and sweat to myself, my iPod is plugged in, and I have my eyes closed because I'm bopping to the beat. I also like to check out RunHundred.com. I got his link from Shape.com and I've enjoyed listening to music samples and reading some of his postings: http://www.runhundred.com/five-things/

Yes, there is another magic number. That's the one on the scale. Contrary to what diet experts used to say, it's best to weigh yourself every day, at roughly the same time, wearing the same clothes (or sans clothes). I don't work out on weekends (yes, I do have a life!) and I've already resigned myself to the fact that I will be heavier on Monday than I was last Friday. But it's an incentive to do the week correctly, and if I'm really good, I'll actually manage to drop weight anyway, and either maintain or gain strength. But I can only gauge the latter with how much I can lift, and for how many reps, and how I feel afterwards.

The magic number on the scale is 107. Today I'm 107.2 and my gym rat girlfriend B tells me it's too low. Never mind that she's an inch taller than me and 10 lbs lighter. We have different frames. I'm a bigger girl than she is. If she didn't work out, she'd be scrawny. If I didn't, well, all you have to do is look at that photo from June 2011. I'm thinking maybe 107 isn't the magic number. This is getting into dangerous territory. Again, the dilemma: go for it, or be happy with what's been achieved?