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Tag Archives: body

#Transformation – Check-in for September 2021 (M21-09 / R21-002)

The PolyBlog
September 30 2021

Time to do my check-in for my efforts to transform my body. The big day is here!

Or is it?

I confess I spent way too much time this week thinking about my check-in, and how I wanted to hold myself accountable. Should I do it on the last day of the month, thus emphasizing the past month’s efforts and results? Or should I wait until the first of the next month so that I cover the WHOLE month and also trigger the start of the new month?

Any day I choose is arbitrary, but I am a great believer that what story I tell myself is as important as how I tell it. Retro results vs. forward planning? In reality, I know it doesn’t matter. I could do the measurements ANY day this week, and post on the last day or the first day, it doesn’t change the outcome, it’s just changing which day I took the snapshot in time. Yet it still bothered me all week. I was wondering, for example, if I would have time on the 1st (Friday) to get up, weigh-in, do all my measurements, take the accountability pics, and have time to run Jacob to school before I started work. I do want to do the stats in the morning, same time every month, but does it matter if it was today (Thursday) vs. tomorrow (Friday), or could I even wait until Saturday when I generally would have more time? Should I aim more for the first Sunday following the end of the month?

Holy squirrels. My brain KNEW it didn’t matter, but part of me was trying to get it “perfect” somehow, like “perfect” was even a thing in this case.

In the end, I decided at least for this month to take advantage of the day off to do all my measurements and posting today. Next month? I’ll see.

A. TL;DR

I have lots of “noise” this month around getting set up and going, which was the primary focus for almost all of the last 2+ weeks. I have a full dashboard to track everything, I’m taking pictures I hate, I have achieved 15 mini-milestones, and for the most part, there aren’t any discernible changes to point to as a success. I’ve increased overall weight per workout, but I feel more like I’ve been right-sizing the workouts so far. This month will be the real test.

After 15 exercise sessions (weightlifting, stretching and walking), I’ve lost 1.2 lbs, which is 7.8 lost in total this year. And I’m feeling pretty good about the workouts and after the workouts. My body isn’t screaming at me to stop.

B. Overall dashboard

I created a Transformation Dashboard to keep track of my stats, and to be honest, I put WAY too much time into it this week. Sure, I won’t have to do that NEXT time, it’ll be a simpler update, but still, it took some time.

The dashboard has a number of components spread across two pages:

  • The “accountability” photos;
  • My physical measurements showing the original high of 350 lbs with my revised baseline in mid-September when I started the big process + last totals, new totals, incremental change from last time, and total change from the original;
  • A pseudo-bar graph to show my progress towards my eventual weight target of 185 lbs, which I aim to reach in 2028;
  • My Bowflex stats in terms of Maximum Weight that I can do 10 reps at, as well as my standard workout totals;
  • My fitness sessions, sense of my body (negative and positive), and psychological; and,
  • General milestones along the road, spread across commitment, measurement, workouts, and differences that I see as time goes on.
  • I’ll also go through each of those areas below.
Dashboard 21-09 Dashboard 21-09

C. Accountability photos

The front, side and back photos are a work-in-progress to figure out how to show enough detail to make it worthwhile to take them for any other reason than to fat-shame myself. I like to delude myself that it is “accountability”, but there is a masochistic component in there somewhere. I struggle to do things like selfies in any situation, as I don’t normally take pics of myself. I could have others take it, but the whole point is personal accountability, so I’m trying to do them all myself.

For this month, there’s not much (hah!) to see in the way of progress, not that I expected to see anything yet. If I was harsh with myself, I’d say they actually look WORSE, not better.

D. Physical measurements

The big one, of course, is my weight, and since mid-September, I basically dropped 1.2 lbs, meaning my weight is 7.8 lbs less than my high of 350 lbs. I have an extra indicator to add for the future on this, a “time reference” so to speak, but I haven’t got to filling that out yet. It was a bit weird choosing my weight total, as there is some differing views out there as to which weight you should record. Here’s a small graph of my weight in the last two weeks showing minor fluctuations (it seems big because the graph is scaled differently):

Weight 21-09

I chose the one right on the prediction line, i.e. from today, but for example, earlier this week, my weight reached a weight that was a full lb even lower. I’d love to use THAT one, of course, and some people advocate taking the lowest measurement of the last week. Others suggest averaging the last two or three readings, depending on how often you record your weight. In the end, precision and perfection is not the goal. It’s a simple snapshot, so I went with the weight I registered this morning.

With such small changes, there is no change in BMI. I had to drop the calculation for the % of body fat as the app doesn’t seem to want to update properly for that heading. I show the first five lbs lost in green (locked in) and the next bit as yellow (pending) in the progress towards target.

For the remaining measurements, there’s no good news yet. My neck seems to have gone down a bit, while three others seem to have gone up, and five are bigger than my original refs. I think I’m doing that a bit wrong, as the “original” should probably be the largest I was at any one of those measurements in the year, as opposed to the measurements I was tied to the weight, but I’ll leave it for now.

E. Weightlifting exercises

Back at the beginning of my routines just over two weeks ago, I was doing 9 exercises, two of which were a bit cumbersome. I did a raw calculation at the time of my maximum weights at all the exercises in the batch, but I kind of messed up.

There are two general philosophies about calculating maximums. The first is the standard weightlifting competition idea, i.e., how much weight can you do on each exercise with only 1 rep (which is what I registered previously). The second view is one that I like more, namely that your maximum should be the weight you feel comfortable with and in control of moving for a set number of reps. For me, ten reps seems like a good control number, and today, I reset all the max rates with Andrea’s help.

If I was to do 10 reps of the 7 remaining exercises, at my maximum, I would move about 7800 lbs of weight. And if I was trying to simply increase muscles, I would do that type of routine once a week while doing other sets of about 80% of max elsewhere in the week.

But I’m actually trying to shed weight and improve overall tone. Which means I do lower weights, more reps and more sets. For the 7 exercises on the list, I’m actually moving 18300 lbs of weight per session. And, to be honest, I can do more. The only real challenge is not adding to the existing ones so much as needing to add three new exercises too (2 are for legs, as replacements for other ones). But as I add those and try to add reps and sets, plus 45s rests between sets? It all adds time to my work-out.

My title in my app was simply a 20-minute full body workout, but if I do what I’ve got planned, allowing for proper form (3s out, 3s in), 45s between sets, and perhaps a minute between exercises, it comes to…78 minutes. And now you see another reason why people do alternate days for some exercises. If I add in my stretching that day, and walking, I’m easily at 2h.

It’s not sustainable, I know.

F. Physical fitness sessions

I managed 8 formal workouts, plus 5 stretching routines, and 2 formal walking outings. The WOs and stretching are likely close, but the walking is off. I forgot to log a bunch of quick walks with Andrea or Jacob, and I’m not really calculating distance yet. I need to get my FitBit going again. But at least I’ve got my MapMyWalk account reset so I can pre-plan distances, and hope my knees hold up.

G. Body sense

I don’t know if that is the right title for this area, but I was trying to capture the idea that there are a series of “negative” or “positive” indicators for how my body is doing or responding, or perhaps just “working”. The two negative ones that stand out in the last month are headaches (they’ve been more persistent in the last month) and my blood pressure (it’s been higher at night, a common problem when my allergies kick in, and contributes to my headaches). I’ve taken more Tylenol in the last month than I would like to be taking. Other than that, I’d say sinuses were next on my list, but overall, nothing noteworthy.

On the “positive” side, I don’t feel there have been any improvements in my movement/flexibility/agility or my sleep, but I have felt better for my energy levels and overall fitness. I can even feel a difference from the last two weeks that the BowFlex exercises are flowing a bit more easily. I haven’t had that “high” from a few years ago (I remember a fall day stepping out into the garage and feeling like I was in the best health I had been in for some time, and my weight wasn’t even down then, but I just felt GREAT for about an hour), but that’s the feeling I want to find again.

H. Psychological

So. This one is harder to quantify. I put in indicators for my overall sense of health, which goes beyond simply fitness. It kind of combines the two “body sense” ones together, I suppose. Social flexibility (willingness to try new things), social confidence (doing physical things in front of other people), and lifestyle confidence (willingness to be more physically “out there”) aren’t really moving the needle, not that I expected them to yet. I would say I’m experiencing a bit of a bump in mood and overall mental health from the exercising, although COVID stuff on the news and in feeds is bringing down my MH a smidge over my mood moving it up.

I. Commitment

I’m showing 8 milestones in the commitment list, although some of them were already mentioned when I launched. I committed to the journey, announced my goal, created the dashboard, set up my workout routine, and set up apps to track. And then did the first workout with the BowFlex plus had my first week with 3 WOs in it and my first week with 3 stretching routines in it. I didn’t count the stretching routine as fully set up yet as I’m still tweaking it.

J. Measurement

I have 6 milestones tracked, but they are very similar to the above elements — set up tracking and photos and did my first weigh-in / measurements / photos. But I also lost my first “new” pound too.

K. Workout changes

I had a whole bunch of initial tweaks this month, but I didn’t really count any of them as actual changes or modifications, they were still just adjustments to drafts. The only REAL milestone I counted was the new list of new maximum weights that I calculated today. We’ll see where that leaves me in a month.

L. Differences

Nada, nil, rien, zilch. I have more energy, sure. I feel a bit of a bump in mood, sure. But actual “visible differences”? Not yet. I didn’t expect to and some of them are not going to show up for quite some time.

M. Conclusion

Noise, planning progress, down a pound, and a bump in mood. I’ll take the small win.

Posted in Health and Spiritualism | Tagged body, check-in, goals, health, personal, transformation | Leave a reply

My plans for 2013: Part 5 of 6 — Body / Red

The PolyBlog
January 17 2013

The “Body” category is one that is represented by the Fiery Red of leadership and action. It is the physical side of me, the action-taker, the pro-active, take charge, kick butt and take names me. Outside of a work environment, not a me you see very often.

In the past, some of my successes in this area have been kayaking, finding new doctors or dentists, going whale watching / hot air ballooning / climbing a mountain, travelling to Nova Scotia / Cape Breton / Quebec City / Sherbrooke / Bahamas / Amsterdam / Gaspe / St. John’s / Hawaii, doing a 5KM walk, learning to golf, and actively going for massages.

Last year,I had six priorities, and separate from some one-off contributions here and there,  I did nothing about any of them in any consistent fashion. All of them will roll forward onto this year’s list. One positive aspect was related to careers — I moved off of the one-off special projects that were EAP / SR / SORO / DRAP and back into my “day-job” elements of audits, performance measurement, and evaluations.

This year, there are several activities that mutually reinforce each other — stretching exercises, more proactive back care (stretch, massage, chiro), and losing weight. On the formalized health front, there are some boxes that I need to tick with my regular doctor and need to find a new dentist and hygienist. In addition to getting organized for giving blood, I also want to improve my management of “sleep” times (i.e. going to bed earlier). And, just cuz I want to increase my frustration perhaps, I want to go golfing more often this year. Once a year is just not enough for an activity I enjoy.

With those goals in mind, here’s my working to do list for the Heart category:

ROCKSGRAVELSANDWATERAIR
Annual Update
Exercises
Proactive back care
Weight
Golfing
Outstanding health issuesSleep times
Dentist
Give blood (#25)
Ongoing Tracking
BP changes
Checkup
Stress mgmt
Meditation
KataMentoring
Coaching
French
Ethics: EX
Ethics: WA
Teaching role
Municipal
Theatre
Bucket List Areas
#23. Meditation
#24. Slide down a firepole
#27. Weigh under 200 lbs
#28. Skate Rideau Canal both ways
#29. Ride a dogsled
#30. Whitewater rafting
#31. Kayak a river
#32. Go fly fishing
#33. Rappel, zipline
#34. Try surfing
#35. Rock climbing
#36. Snowboard
#37. Tree-top sleeping
#38. Cross a rope bridge
#39. Cage diving with sharks
#40. Upgrade scuba certification
#41. Take athletic trip
#42. Horseback riding
#43. Learn to sail
#44. Learn to waterski
#45. Learn to play tennis
#46. Learn a martial art
#47. Learn archery
#48. Learn to fence
#49. Learn how to swim properly
#50. Milk a cow
#82. See free lions, penguins, alligators, pandas, polar bears, dolphins (Hawaii, September 2008)
#84. See Northern (Ottawa, 2008) and Southern lights
#85. Drive convertible
#86. Take trip in RV
#87. Houseboating
#88. Ride in gondola
#91. Ride an airboat
#92. Take a cruise
#93. Ride an elephant
#94. See an iceberg
#95. Haunted house
#96. See a castle
#97. Tall ship
Priority Travel Areas
England
Territories
Grand Canyon
Galapagos
Ortona
Iceland
Scotland, Ireland
Aust / NZFijiEgyptAntarctica
Additional Travel Areas
Canada  
Ottawa sites
Quebec – Northern
BC – Interior and Northern
Alberta, including Waterton Glacial Park
Saskatchewan
Manitoba
Newfoundland – rest of island, Labrador
Yukon
NWT, including Nahanni National Park Reserve
Nunavut
PEI again
New Brunswick again
Cape Breton again
Nova Scotia again
USA
Grand Canyon
Vermont
New Hampshire
New York
New Orleans
San Francisco + San Diego
California – Route 1
Alaska
Boston
Chicago
Latin and South America
Galapagos
Belize
Chile (including Patagonia)
Argentina (including Patagonia)
Peru
Costa Rica
Brazil
Cozumel (sinkhole)
Falkland Islands
Caribbean
St. Lucia
St. Martin
Dominican
Windward / Leeward Islands
San Andreas
Curacao
Cayman Islands
Western Europe
Spain
Greece
Italy – Rome, Ortona, Venice
Portugal
Austria
Germany
Nordics
Iceland
France
UK +
Eastern Europe
Russia (St. Petersburg)
Czech Rep.
Ukraine
Hungary
Western Asia
‘Stans?
Nepal
Eastern Asia
Thailand
Andaman Sea (sharks)
Malaysia
Vietnam
Laos
Japan
China
Mongolia
Tibet
Oceania, South Pacific
Australia
New Zealand
Kiribati (diving)
Diving atoll
Fiji
Polynesia
Middle East, North Africa
Egypt
Nile
Morocco
South Africa
Kenya / Kilimanjaro
South Africa
Victoria Falls
Seychelles
Madagascar
Northern and Southern Poles
Antarctica
Arctic
   

That wraps up the priority-setting in each of the areas. Now I just have to figure out how to pull it all together visually, and set up regular tracking! Oh joy, oh bliss, oh joyful bliss!

Posted in Goals | Tagged 2013, body, goals, personal, red | Leave a reply

Goals 2011 — Body and Soul

The PolyBlog
March 1 2011

This category is mainly about me connecting with myself, my inner and outer self…it combines old categories of body and soul, spiritualism, personal ethics, service to community, health, and (gasp!) fitness. Man, this category sucks. 🙂

In the past, it has mainly been about avoiding catastrophes physically. I go for regular massages, usually when my shoulders or IT bands are screaming at me; I try to take my Prevacid every day to control stomach issues, although a new type of yogourt was keeping me near regular levels even without the Prevacid; I update my eyeglasses, go to the dentist, etc. On the exercise front, though, I’m basically a couch potato these days when I’m not playing with Jacob. My golfing has taken a backseat to just about everything else, and while Andrea and I manage a few active outings here and there, it isn’t consistent. I did manage a slightly more active trip to Hawaii, with kayaking, hiking, swimming, more hiking, etc. On the service side, I have been more focused on the indirect side of things — less about me being active, more about me continuing my charitable giving. I’ve helped with United Way campaigns, etc., but not to a “leadership” level.

On the ethics front, I created my “personal rules” list, but I’m not sure I’m really living them or embodying them. On the spiritual front, there hasn’t been much in my life of late. Leading up to the wedding in 2008, I was a bit nervous about my spiritual beliefs. Having seen or heard of disasters for people with other church services, I felt like a bit of a hypocrite considering a formal “religious” wedding in a church. In fact, I was fully intending to grill any potential minister like a fish to make sure I agreed with their philosophy of faith. Yet, when I met Andrea’s former Minister, Wib, my concerns fell away. I didn’t feel the need to grill him, it was enough that I got to know him as a person and that Andrea knew and trusted him, and liked him. I trust her judgement, I didn’t need to “verify” our choice.

For the coming year, I have a couple of personal ethics goals, small issues that I want to work on…essentially, making more of an effort in a couple of areas of my life where I tend to be harsh. On the health front, I need a new doctor, new dentist, and orthotics. For fitness, I need to start back into some of the martial arts routines and riding the exercise bike. I really want to get us organized this summer for going for bicycle rides around our house too. And I’m determined to go golfing at least three times this year.

On a community front, I don’t feel like I have much free time to get very involved in much this year. I’m involved in a few online communities, mainly as I can timeshift my participation. But I’m intrigued by a proposal that my friend Stephan has developed regarding astronomy! Hope to be able to share more on that in the future…

I do have to come to a decision about my method of charitable giving. I tend to do most of it by giving through the United Way campaign at work, but I’m increasingly disturbed by the administration costs that the local U/W is charging. Since most of my giving is earmarked, rather than a simple contribution to U/W itself, I’m not sure it’s worthwhile to continue to contribute through this means. For example, I could give $$ directly to CHEO (Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario) as a lump sum rather than as part of biweekly paycheque contributions to the U/W. There are pluses and minuses to both approaches, but I need to figure it out rather than continuing to just drift along. This has been on my list for sometime, and I intend to decide by September’s launch of the new campaign at work.

As I noted above, I haven’t been very active on the spiritual front. Andrea and I have been to church a few times but I feel disconnected, an observer rather than a participant. It seems odd to me that, separate from the wedding, I was most affected spiritually by two books. The first is Here If You Need Me by Kate Braestrup. It wasn’t that the writing was amazing, or even that the structure was emotionally moving. Instead, it was more that the issues being dealt with were compelling, and honestly / openly portrayed. Equally, I really liked The Wind-up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami. The book is, umm, odd. Some parts of it are really confusing. And everyone who reads it comes away with a slightly different impression of what was happening. For me, I read it on my honeymoon, and there is a strong sense in the story of things coming together when you are perfectly still — as you achieve total stillness, oneness with your self, the universe begins to open up to you. The book isn’t directly metaphysical, and the main plot makes for a strange story, but that was my main reaction to the story — the challenge of becoming perfectly still, letting the world slip away. So, while I try to figure out my own spiritualism, I think I’m going to reclaim my interest in meditation this year and try to read some interesting tomes rather than following forms of more organized religion.

My bucket list for this category is, oddly enough, huge — I have 38 items on my bucket list that I’m listing under this heading! In there, I have a mix of fitness items, spiritual work, other items that aren’t quite fitness but are generally more “active” in nature, etc. From the long list, I think the ones that I’m likely to work on this year are related to my weight; meditation; martial arts; and giving blood.

Posted in Goals | Tagged 2011, body, goals, personal, planning, soul | Leave a reply

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