Unbalanced

When I got the Wii, I knew I should also get the Wii Fit. I figured it would make a good Xmas present, so I put it on my wishlist. About a week ago, I realized that that was just a lame excuse to put off exercising until the end of the year.

The Wii Fit wonders why I don't fall down when I walk. I'm not kidding.

It calculates your Wii age based on your actual age, your BMI, and (at least in my case) your score in a couple balance tests. I'm terrible at the balance tests. I can't stop over-correcting when my balance indicator shifts out of the target position the game wants it to be. Yesterday I got lucky, and the random tests didn't ask me to shift my weight: only to stand perfectly still and to walk in place. My Wii age is 25, but I know it will spring back up to the mid-40's when I test it again.

Others have complained that the Fit's principle measurement of success is weight. My weight is pretty good; my BMI score is a click or two above ideal, but still within normal. Fit suggests I drop 15 pounds to get my BMI down to 22. After a couple days of resisting, I started actually trying, cutting out desserts, snacks, extra carbs.

Actual conversation that just happened: Mike walked into the room and said he was going to go pick up some donuts. "Do you want anything?"

"No, thanks. Well, maybe I should eat something."

"I'm going to Donut Kitchen."

"Oh, well, then nothing, thanks."

"Want me to stop at Krogers?"

"No."

"Tim Horton's?"

"No!"

"Dodger," Mike says, addressing the cat who is waiting for his morning dose of butter, "Daddy's being cranky."

Weightloss and domestic tranquility: it's going to be a tough balancing act.

It's like my body is crying

Because I worked a 13-hour day yesterday and have a program tonight, I took this morning off. I decided a little exercise would make me feel better about myself. (I saw myself on TV last week. The camera adds 15 pounds. Being next to Anietra Hamper adds at least another 15). I have a DVD from Netflix of 10-minute fitness ball workouts, so I thought I'd give one of those a try.

Pathetic.

Back at the computer, I ran across today's Penny Arcade cartoon which was funny and timely.

Jog 8, Walk 5, Jog 8

I got stuck on day 14 of the Couch-to-5K Running Plan, which is jog for 8 minutes, walk for 5 minutes, and jog again for 8 minutes. Day 15 is jog for 20 minutes, which is actually my fitness goal.

But I keep repeating day 14. Am I just being a wuss? The difference between 8+5+8 and 20 seems like a lot, especially when I'm really slogging through those last 5 minutes.

So I'm departing from the plan and creating my own week.

Jog 8 minutes Walk 4 minutes Jog 8 minutes

Jog 9 minutes Walk 3 minutes Jog 8 minutes

Jog 10 minutes Walk 2 minutes Jog 8 minutes

Then I might skip directly to week 6.

I may need to explore different routes. Currently, I walk to the end of Mackenzie, then turn and run the length of Mackenzie, back into Concord Village, then up to Henderson Road where I turn and head back home. This puts the walking portion of my workout along the AOL property, and I must look suspicious walking along, checking my watch every 30 seconds to see if it's time to start running again. They probably think I'm a really out-of-shape terrorist or industrial spy, checking on morning security routines.

Back to the Couch

I'm sorry to report that, after a mere 4 training days, my Couch-to-5K exercise plan has faltered and failed. My right ankle began complaining on the second day, and it became clear over the next two runs that this won't simply go away if I just soldier on. I skipped Wednesday's run to give my ankle more time to rest after Monday, bought an ankle stabilizer, and tried it out this morning. Just a few steps was enough to tell me it won't be enough.

You may not believe this, but I'm genuinely disappointed. I was proud of myself for taking this on, and proud of my modest success, considering I haven't seriously exercised regularly in years. I felt inspired to keep with this, and while I know that feeling won't last, it was important to keep me going through the first months.

Maybe I'll get my ankle looked at after my vacation next week, have the doctor tell me what's going on and whether I can try again. I know I should find something low impact which I can do no matter the weather, but nothing else appeals, and it's demoralizing.

*pant* *pant* *pant*

Brisk five-minute warmup walk. Then alternate 60 seconds of jogging and 90 seconds of walking for a total of 20 minutes.

One day down. Now the trick is to stop sweating before I get in the shower.

First day really wasn't bad at all. A minute of running is about 160 steps, so I just count 80 beats of my right foot. The hardest part was keeping track of the 90 seconds of walking.

I promise not to post often the tiresome details of my new commitment to exercise. Just the milestones.

Hey, I think I've stopped sweating!

Couch-to-5K

Because my dad died of a heart attack when he was 42 years and 127 days old, I am now older than he was (by almost 100 days). So it's officially time to get serious about exercise.

I have occasionally exercised. I walked a lot in high school, college, and grad school. I used to have a rowing machine, a Power Rider, and an elliptical apparatus. Occasionally, I've gone running, sometimes doing that every couple days for weeks on end. Inevitably I find an excuse to stop: the weather gets bad, work gets busy, Buffy gets canceled, etc.

When I turned 40, I had a stress test, and everything was great. Blood pressure was high initially, but I pointed out to the nurse that I was about to be shirtless and exercising in front of strangers, so I was under a little stress. BP came down and stayed steady throughout the test.

Somehow I turned that into an excuse not to exercise. I began saying, "My fitness goals as I age are to be able to walk wherever I want and to generally move without pain." But I know that's not good enough. For one, a casual stroll around the neighborhood and a few sets of tai chi aren't remotely aerobic. And also, I'm now on lisinopril because I found my blood pressure was spiking unexpectedly at odd times of the day.

Mel has just started the Couch-to-5K training program, and I'm intrigued. When I've run before, it was because I started slowly and gradually increased my time. This looks like a good program.

Goal for the weekend: buy new running shoes.

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Update:

The Brooks Radius 7, found on sale at Columbus Running Company, a great store with very friendly, helpful staff who didn't make me feel like an intruder.