Let's Do this! - 2019 Challenge - Be the best you can be!

Hello everyone,
I haven't checked in for a while. I found a workout partner and have become consistent with working out 3 days a week. I have been struggling with sweets and gained 2lbs. My friend suggested I try the Keto diet @msarobix @loonyhiker , do you know anyone who tried Keto. My fear is I would gain weight instead of lose weight? Does anyone know if the Keto diet works for quick weight loss?

@msarobix “Today, I am probably just going to do some walking in place for 10-15 minutes every hour or so and not worry about doing structured exercise today.” This is a good idea for me today. I am feeling better and hoping I will get back to work tomorrow. "I had an amazing run today. It was a walk run" I miss the walk/runs I did around a lake here since my doctors told me not to run anymore.

@loonyhiker my husband and I went on a cruise for the 1st time this fall to the Caribbean. My son and daughter-in-law sent us on it. When he graduated from law school with a job lined up he asked me what I really wanted. I told him. My husband wasn’t as keen on the idea. But in the end we both loved it but the best part was the day after visiting our son and seeing his new home. We walked the decks every morning and night and swam during the afternoons. When in port we walked a lot sightseeing and went swimming in the Caribbean. We had big breakfasts and dinners but only small snacks if anything instead of lunches. I didn’t gain anything that way. But afterwards when I was back working and didn’t have as much time to walk and swim I have been struggling. I think we might do an Alaskan cruise living in Seattle but we probably won’t be serial cruisers. However it is a good deal since it includes room and board. Sorry to hear you have plantar facilitis. Well, finding out what is wrong is bad and good. The good part is knowing what is wrong and finding out what to do about it. Hope it goes well and the pain goes away. I wear Brookes running shoes (since they have narrow heels and wider toe area) with slight arch support recommended by PT. I like that they are a Seattle company.

I am home today but feel a bit better. Not well but think I am over the hump. However the last part of these colds is the coughing stage. Although I am coughing it hasn't been bad yet. Wish I could skip that part. I may not be exercising and missing my Aquafit but I am losing. Between 5-9 pounds if you include my spikes in weights. My weight varies alot and that is why I weigh daily and keep my spreadsheet so I can see the bigger trends.

Some progress on the bathroom. The old tub is out. The good news is the floor and wall behind it look really good. The bad news is that maybe we didn't need to get rid of the tub. But now we will have a new tub to go with the new tiling. The framing starts Tuesday. Then the new tub whenever it arrives and then we can get back to the tiling that was what the project was supposed to be. At least the worst part of the plumbing is done and paid for. This has been keeping us from having people over and this is the worst of the deferred maintenance we have from the economic downturn when we didn't have my income to pay for anything over the basics especially considering kids in college. We already did the exterior painting the last few years ourselves. I am hoping this friend of my daughters will help us replace wood on our deck so we can paint it.

I think the related aspect of this is that I avoid going down the stairs at home. I hate them. They are narrow and have thick carpeting and I do not feel secure. There aren't any railings. I never use an elevator at work and our floors are more than normal floor heights. They take 3 long flights between floors. At home I just try not to go down. So having to use the basement bathroom is actually good for me. And our contractor is going to put in rails too. I am starting to get better at them. I have arthritis in my knees so I have some excuse. It flaired up a bit but naproxin took care of that so it's all good. I now have my Versa watch which tracks my stairs too. I plan today to try to listen to my watch when it tells me how many more steps I need for the hour and get up and do something active.

I will try to post more often with smaller posts!

@KeriA Glad you are feeling better.

Excited that I finished the March Challenge and got my award (Apple Watch stuff). Even though I didn't exercise yesterday since it was my rest day, I worked in the yard and by the end of the day I still had over 13,000 steps. Icing my foot in the evenings has really helped the pain. A lady in church told me I should get that athlete's tape and tape for foot and arch because it helped her so I may try to find some today.

@msarobix sorry to hear you had pain in your lung. Sounds like you're taking it easy, just running a little. I hope your back to normal very soon. I know your love the workouts.

It seems like as I've gotten older, I have more and more aches & pains. The pollen has been so bad this year, I scratched my eye it itched so bad and got a blood blister in the right eye. It really looked like there was no white of my eye. Eye doctor examined me and says "eewwww" , said no damage, and gave me some eye drops, and told me to keep my hands away from my eye.

My workouts have been non-existent this month. I have been watching what I eat and logging, trying to move more daily. I've been doing more yard work as Spring is here. But, not looking forward to weight/measure/photo day tomorrow.

I love the accountability each month, filling in the spreadsheet and looking back, making more goals going forward. I think for April I am going to set some weekly goals, see if that can keep the motivation throughout the month. I remember March, in like a lion...out like a lamb.

@msarobix I hope you are feeling better! I hate being sick. Thanks for the info about the rock climbing! It seems like it would be doable for me then.

@KeriA Glad your weight is back on track. I think paying attention is probably helping you.

I think my weight is up because I know I haven't been eating healthy. Plus I'm a little stressed out about our 3 upcoming trips. We leave next weekend for a weeklong camping trip in the Smokies. We do this every year so I hope to get in some good hiking next week. Then on May 1, we leave for northern Europe for a month. We will spend a week in Copenhagen and then a 24-day cruise so that means I will gain weight (the food on the cruise is very salty and rich). We will come home on May 31 and wash clothes, pack up our car and leave for a month long road trip ending up in Minnesota for the Zombie Knitpocalypse knitting retreat. I will be ready to eat healthy by the time we get home in July.