Naturally Curvy

Yawning and probably flirting heavily with the thought, “Maybe I could just skip today…” Having successfully gotten yourself out of bed, now it’s time to get dressed even though the bed seems to be calling your name… You are finally outside or at the gym, and now it’s tempting to just do a short workout instead of a regular one… Time to get exercising…

It’s often quite hard in itself to get yourself exercising, let alone sticking to a routine. Because of this, an injury might be a relief to you mentally, but it can be devastating to you workout routine. Any injury sees you with the possibility of not getting back into exercising after you have healed. One of the most frustrating things I have been dealing with after my surgery is the ‘six weeks no strenuous activity’ rule that I have to obey.

The best way to keep yourself from giving in to giving up is to stay as active as you can even when you are injured. Doing that is easier said than done…

Here are a few ways you can exercise even if you have injured a part of your body:

*Do stretches. Stretching is a great form of exercise that often feels so, so good.

*Concentrate on what you can move. If you have injured your upper body, do exercises with your lower body, and vice versa.

*Try new small exercises. There are foot and hand exercises, neck exercises, ankle exercises… Start doing some investigating to see just how much you can do.

*Remember that everything counts. From tapping your toes to tightening and then loosening your muscles repeatedly, every little bit can help – even if you are keeping up the mental aspects of exercising regularly.

Of all the areas on the body people want to tone up, you hear about people wanting to shape up their stomach area the most. It never fails. And why not when we’re in The Age of the Beer Gut?

I am the same, by the way. I would happily not eat for a month if it meant I could lose my belly bulge.

As you will probably begin to realize as time passes on this site, I’m someone who likes to try new (and old) things. I’m not someone who obeys the dietician at all costs and shudders at considering herbal remedies and alternative therapies.

Thus when I found Chinese Holistic Health Exercises, I was quite interested. http://www.chinese-holistic-health-exercises.com/exercise-to-lose-belly-fat.html

This site not only gives you ab exercises, but it lists deep breathing exercises and massages to help your abdomen. (Massages. Drool.)

They also have a discussion forum where you can relax and have a bit of a chat while learning about other people’s experiences with these exercises.

Do I know if it works? No.

What I do know is that they emphasize checking with your health professional before trying any of it. While it may just cover legalities, it’s also a sign to me that they don’t believe they are gods among dieters and they don’t think their exercises are a cure all.

If you explore this site and find you’re interested in giving it a go, let me know. I’m happy to be any of my readers’ exercise partner.

Jenera asked some exercise questions on her blog, and I decided to answer here. Because I can. And I’m like that.

* What is your favorite exercise/routine/activity?

It’s funny you ask, because I’ve only just realized that dance is my favourite exercise. I do it all the time without even thinking about it. I’m currently trying to find dance DVDs that look like fun and won’t cost me a pay check (or two).

Gentle yoga (because I have a wonky hip) is a close second.

* What do you normally wear to workout?

Sports bra, big t-shirt and trackie-dakks (as they are called here). Just kind of loose pants with an elastic band. I’ve been known to switch to shorts on hot days and do it in my PJs on lazy days.

* Do you exercise in the morning/afternoon/evening?

Morning, but I don’t get up early for it. Wake up, exercise time is the only routine I have really been able to stick with. I’m usually too tired or have something to do in the evening. I’ve been known to do a lunchtime workout, but I’ve never stuck with it for long.

* For those that do it in the morning, do you eat breakfast before or after?

Definitely after, and a half hour after at that. I don’t want my body to be distracted by digestion when I’m working out. Plus, it makes me feel ill.

* How long should I be holding yoga poses for?

Slow count of five?

* Any other tips to staying on routine?

They say it takes 21 days to establish a habit. I reckon, give yourself a gift – a nice one – every 21 days, not just after the first block. Make it something really good that you’ll want to work for (hiring a sitter for the day and going off wandering?).

With Australia Day said and done, and with the husband back at work…

…I meant to consider today my new Monday for the week.

…I meant to get out of bed at 9am.

…I meant to start the day with my yoga DVD (thanks again, Jenera! I love it.)

…I meant to prepare a nice breakfast to start the day with.

Instead? I overslept for some reason, despite the fact that I went to bed early last night. My ideas for yoga and a nice brekkie flew out the door when I started ambling around the house with moderate pains and a bit of a sick stomach – signs that I overdid it yesterday.

It’s so easy – too easy – to forget that it has only been about a week and a half since I had surgery. The surface scars are healing nicely, but the incisions underneath mean I still need to take it easy. It seems even walking the normal distances I used to walk takes it out of me something fierce.

As the weight I lost after surgery is piling up, I hate to sit back and ‘take it easy’ on myself, despite knowing that’s what I have to do to heal properly. But I can’t really afford uncomfortable, sleepy mornings like this very often, either, so I guess I will do what I must.

Bleh.

Lately I have been thinking about my body, where I’ve come from on my journey to health and where I am going.

In all my thinking, I have come to hypothesize that there are two kinds of fats:

1. Idle fats
2. Work fats

Idle fats are the fats you lose by eating less. No, I’m not talking about fasting or anything like that. I’m talking if you count calories and stay in a healthier range or if you go on meal replacement like I did. These are the fats that leave you when you have less calorie consumption and little to no additional exercise or movement.

Sure, when I was on meal replacements, I did exercise. But, it wasn’t all that strenuous, nor was anything I did kept up for very long. But I still lost idle fat.

Now I have come to a new place in my journey to health. I’ve done meal replacements, lost weight and now that has stalled. Why? Well, there could be many reasons. My thought? I have now hit the work fat.

Work fat is like its name; you have to work it off. You can’t lead your usual life with the usual motions and expect for this stuff to drop off. This is the stuff that requires exercise and hard work. This is the true fat, not sugar fat, that is the essence of burning fat to be able to work and survive.

I have lost 46 pounds so far, and I’m not ashamed to admit, that was pretty much all idle fat. I just plain didn’t do a lot of exercise.

Appropriately, I’m now halfway to my goal weight, and idle fat loss isn’t enough. Now it’s time to buck up the exercise and get to it.

This is going to be a heck of an interesting 45 pounds to lose.