Back at it!

Well, it's been almost a year since I've posted anything on this blog, but I'm finally back! I was feeling disappointed when I didn't make my goal of walking a mile by the time we went on our cruise last January, so ending the challenge and the blog felt like the best option. But now that we're living in the city and walking a lot more, I am ready to start again!

I do a lot more walking than I used to now that we've move to Portland. It's partially because driving is a pain, but it's mostly because walking is so easy. We live within walking distance of a lot of great restaurants, cafes and shops that make it possible to walk more places. In fact, I know some people who get by without a car. 

Josh and I live at the top of a hill, and when we first moved into our apartment I was really nervous about being able to and from the bus stop. The blocks running East to West are twice as long as the North to South blocks, and the gradual incline made me really tired. It's really only 3 1/2 blocks from our place to the bus stop, but when I first started walking it, it felt much longer, and I could hardly get home after work. I had to ask Josh to meet me at the top of the hill a few times because I couldn't get up the stairs in our building on my own. I was even more nervous about it when I thought of how much harder it would be in cold weather. After all, who wants to sit and rest on somebody's front porch when it's pouring down rain? Not me!

I shouldn't have worried, because almost three months later, I hardly notice the hill. In fact, I could even walk further if I had to. I know this might not sound like a big deal, but I have a lot of anxiety when it comes to getting to and from places on foot. I don't like to tell a lot of people about my CMS because I am often met with soft eyes of sympathy, and I don't want sympathy. So, whenever I am invited somewhere by someone who doesn't know, I immediately check a map to see how far of a walk it is, if I have to change shoes, or if I have to find public transportation to get there, and then figure out if I want to tell them or not. That might sound like a lot of unnecessary anxiety, but often it's much better than the concerned eyes I am met with.

Anyway, now you know why being able to walk up our hill is so exciting for me. After just three months, my body has adapted to more regular physical activity, which makes me think that if I keep at it, I should have no problem with my challenge. It's exciting because I got these same results after spending a semester in Oaxaca, and that was only four months. Josh and I plan on living in our Portland neighborhood for at least a few years, so imagine how much stronger I'll get after a few years!

The Cruise!

We're back from our cruise! And it dawned on me once we got to Miami that I never blogged about the fact that our cruse, and the reason for this challenge, was here! So I apologize.

Well, after 9 months of walking, biking and exercising, I didn't achieve my goal: to walk one mile without stopping. And while I thought I'd be more disappointed, it's actually OK. I'd said it before, but the challenge sort of morphed into something else and became less and less about the actual distance I walked. It gave me a reason to really focus on why it's important for me to exercise.


So, in the end, the furthest I could walk without stopping was about .6 of a mile. Which, isn't much further than what I started at: .5 of a mile. But that's OK. I like to think that within that .1 of a mile, I got healthier too, so it's not all about the numbers.

You're probably dying to know how the cruise was, right? Well, I'll give all the details in my other blog, but for this blog's sake, I'll fill you in on how the 'exercise' part went.

When we got onto the ship in Miami, we took a tour of the on-board amenities, including the gym. I had every intention of going to the gym and taking advantage of the treadmills that had a great view of the ocean off the ship's AFT. But, sadly, that did not happen. I got too caught up in taking naps, going to shows and reading by the pool to care about exercising.

That's not to say I didn't exercise though! On our first excursion to Samana, Dominican Republic, we went on a mini hike to a beautiful waterfall. We had to walk on this narrow, muddy path to get there, and I have to say, it was a test of my strength and endurance! We had to go down small muddy embankments, cross a stream with some questionable man made stepping stones, and cross big rocks! With the help of some locals, we walked probably half of a mile, and once we got there, boy was it was beautiful and worth the hike! We were basically in this canopy of beautiful, luscious, green trees and the river the waterfall continued into was this clear creek. I loved and wish we had been able to spend more than 15 minutes there.


Our second excursion was snorkeling at St. Thomas, US Virgin Islands. I was excited, but had no idea that just getting to the catamaran was going to be an excursion all on it's own. We had to walk down the pier, past THREE massive cruise ships, just to get to our catamaran, "The Cat." If you've ever seen these ships, you would know how daunting a task it was for me. I thought we'd never get there! But snorkeling was really fun, once I got past the panic of having to breathe in the mouthpiece.
Overall, the week was great. Our ship was huge and it took me a while to get my barrings. And boy, did we walk a lot of stairs! Our room was on the 10th deck, the buffet and pool was on the 12th, the theater on the 6th, the lounge we liked on the 13th, and the customer service desk, the big screen on the 7th, and the gangway on the 4th. We made it a point to take the stairs everywhere we went, no matter how many flights it was, and I am pretty sure were able to burn off all the calories we ate and drank! Neither of us gained an ounce on the trip!

Anyway, now that the cruise is over and my original goal not reached, the question remains: what do I do with the blog? This is where you come in. I could keep the blog going, and chronicle all of my exercise experiences, I could quit the blog, or I could continue on my quest to walking a mile without stopping. Or I could do something entirely different.

So, readers, what do you think? What should I do with "Kelly's One Mile Challenge?"

Thanks, Holly Perkins!

Thanks to Holly Perkins and her awesome 360 workouts on Exercise TV, I have successfully woken up every day for 2 1/2 weeks to exercise! I feel tired, sweaty and invigorated after each workout and it's been good motivation to get up, even when I thought I had a cold.

And thanks to those of you who sent me some advice and encouragement. It really helped a lot. And while I don't know if I'm any closer to my goal (it's been tooo cold, wet and dark to walk outside lately!) I am certainly feeling good about myself.

Only 18 days until we're cruising. CAN'T WAIT!



photo: exercise TV

motivation, where are you?

I'm having a severe lack of motivation to do any sort of exercise lately. I slept in yesterday and practically slept through my ab workout this morning. Any ideas for motivating myself? We're only 38 days away from the cruise and I can't bear to undo all the hard work I've done!

November

This week the sun has really inspired me. So, because of the sun this week I made the goal of getting up every day and exercising, plus going on a walk every day too.

So far so good! Every day this week I have gotten up and done a particularly awesome sweat-inducing work out. I started off the week with some Bootylicious Buns 1 and 2, then moved on to some "Body by Jake" workouts and then today I was introduced to Holly Perkins and her "Fitness 360" workouts. They have left me quite sweaty, and I must say, I've had more energy this week than I have the other weeks when I haven't been so great about working out.

But the best part of the week has been the weather! I have taken a few walks during lunch to the park, and how amazing that I can still do that in NOVEMBER! I realize the forecast calls for rain the next million days, but still.

Yesterday Josh and I took a walk to the post office and it was the most beautiful day by far. I didn't even need a jacket, and coming from a girl who's always cold, that's pretty amazing for November. What I love about walking on Linfield's campus in the fall are the colorful trees. It's really amazing how vibrant the colors are. Here's an example of how beautiful they are. And how pretty the sky is too!

Anyway, here's to continuing my Exercise TV/daily walk routine tomorrow for my fifth straight day :)

P.S. we are now 65 days away from our cruise! Woohoo!