Holding pattern once again.

Maybe if I write about it, it will change, like last time, right?

Just kidding... mostly.

I have been hovering right around where I was eleven days ago, give or take a few ounces. I was actually up a pound or so, but I am generally holding steady, and perhaps shedding a few ounces every day.

Again, not trying to look at the scale everyday, but it's conveniently located in the gym.

It is true that I haven't been doing bike that much recently. I had a really good breakthrough last time I was on it; maybe I'm subconsciously avoiding the bike because I don't think I will do as well this time, but really it's mostly been a combination of available time and various aches and pains that I don't want to make worse by biking as hard as I do.

See, when I get on the bike, I have to go to "10" -- pedal as hard as I can, for as long as I can (or until I hit a certain milestone). I can't let myself 'slow down' unless I physically need to. I feel more uncomfortable going slow than leaving it all on the bike.  However, that might lead to more aches and pains.

In any case, I have still been lifting, and generally eating better. I continue to feel much better and am seeing what I think is significant progress in over all appearance.

We'll have to see what the next week brings. I'm sort of anxious because I keep looking at tattoos and really seeing some neat stuff. Nothing resembling anything I would get, but still amazing artwork, and it makes me want to focus all that much more... so I guess that's good, as far as motivation goes. It's also making me impatient, however.

Progress after all!

Recently I posted about not seeing any progress on the scale, despite clothing fitting better, feeling a lot more in shape, etc.

As it turns out, I spoke too soon!  Got on the scale two days ago, and I'm down seven pounds from my "high water mark" at the gym.  I know you shouldn't torture yourself on the scale every day, but it is interesting to note that the same weight persisted over two days -- in the evening, no less.

So, seven pounds in ~2 months. I can handle that. I don't necessarily expect it to continue at that pace, but it was some nice validation.  Another 20-25 to go, and I think I'll be pretty happy.

In other news, I'm thinking about trying to sketch out some ideas for the tattoo, I've got some thoughts, I will see if I can translate them to paper. Obviously I will let a tattoo artist come up with something better, but perhaps drawing them will also help get me out of the knot I'm trying to unravel as to the finer details of the piece.  If I come up with anything interesting, perhaps I will post them here.

Capsaicin crisis?

Let's talk ink again.

As a reminder:

• I've been thinking about getting a tattoo for quite some time, and
• I've never really known what I've wanted until recently, and
• I have settled on trying to get something hot pepper related.

I've noted before that while, as a general concept, I like the idea of a habanero tattoo, I'm not real impressed with how the ones I've seen look. Take a look for yourself. I just feel like, compared to an iconic chile of some sort, they (habaneros) look misshappen and boring. Furthermore, I don't want to find myself constantly explaining it.

So a more traditional hot pepper it is. But... really? Just that? There are some nice ones out there, but they're small.  For a shoulder piece, I don't want some dinky little thing, and I'm not sure just a plain old hot pepper is the way to go.  Mind you, I don't want one with like a goofy face, or cartoony fire, but if I could incorporate... something into the design, I'd be a lot happier - I just haven't figured out what that could be.

Other things to consider...Someone I know with a lot more experience than me in this realm, someone whose opinions I regard and admire, has said that "arms are for stories".  In other words, the item(s) on your arms should weave together somehow -- at very least in style, if not substance. Whether I ever decide that I'll want more after a first one, I obviously don't know yet, but I do think it is certainly a worthwhile consideration, meaning whatever I do should perhaps also be easily consumable as part of a larger piece.

I guess I'm rambling a bit.  TL;DR - I feel like I need to consider some unique flair to add to the hot pepper, and I haven't been able to figure out what it should be.

The 'Cycle' continues

General Notes...

As noted before, it had been problematic going to the gym for a while. It wasn't out of apathy, and I am squarely back on the path. I have been lifting a fair bit but due to time constraints, among other things, I hadn't been able to get back on the stationary bike.

That changed today, though I wouldn't necessarily say for the better. After almost a month not riding, it was a tough sell to tell my body to keep going. I did, however, and there were some interesting outputs. As I've noted before, I've been tracking this stuff in the spreadsheet. Overall, this workout was pretty mid-range as far as efficiency and over all performance went, maybe even a bit better than that.

For some reason, however, my heart rate was through the roof this workout! I'm usually in the mid-150 BPM range for any given ride. According to the bike, today's average was 168, which seems sort of crazy! To be honest, I'm wondering if the bike's calibration is off, but I will say I felt a bit more strain than I was used to, as well.

Progress...?

While I'm here, I might as well talk about any progress I've made, or feel I've made -- or even lack thereof.

In short, as far as the primary goal stated in the past (lose 30 lb or so), I have not had much success. Maybe, at best, 3 lb. Meh.

That said, I'm definitely seeing progress elsewhere. My jeans are getting dangerously saggy -- jeans which, in the past, I feel I was sort of deluding myself into thinking fit well in the waist. I probably need a new belt soon, or should reuse an old one, because this one isn't going to do the trick much longer.

I'm much happier with how shirts -- t-shirts, at least -- are fitting again. I've regained a bit, just a touch, of upper body definition. Probably related to the jeans above, I feel like I've lost a little fat along my sides/ribs, though the gut is still there. Even it, however, seems to me to be in better shape, or maybe that's just wishful thinking.

To be honest, I think I'm in that "honeymoon" phase for a workout/weight loss program -- that wonderful time where you can simultaneously gain muscle and lose fat.  That might explain some of the failure to lose weight. I will have to keep an eye on this, because as I'd stated, while I don't have to necessarily hit a hard goal of "lose 30 lb" to get my tattoo, I'm still quite certain that barring any miracle, I won't magically put on 30 pounds of muscle while cutting all the flab.

Finally, I quite simply feel a lot better, as well. A lot of those aches and pains have started going away, as I became less sedentary. I don't think I can necessarily thank weight loss for that, but rather just things (e.g., core stability muscles) firming up, getting acquainted with being used again.

In the end, I'm pretty sure I'm a good ways down the 'right path'. I'd just like to see that reflected on the scales a bit.

Do what you can

I didn't think I was going to have anything to write about here anytime soon. Due to myriad reasons, I've been unable to go and really workout at the gym over the last two weeks. A big chunk of this week was because it was back to soccer practice for the kid, a soccer boot camp of sorts.  Three days of practice, three hours each.

It meant I had plenty of time on my hands... which I transferred to my feet.

My phone just alerted me that I broke the 10k step mark today, and I was somewhat surprised, forgetting that I had a long ramble this afternoon for about an hour or so. I was even more (pleasantly) surprised, however, to see that I crossed 10k almost every day this week.

The screenshot above is from the Google Fit app, which I like as far as getting a daily snapshot, but its history mechanism is needlessly complex. I believe the highest was Monday, where I capped at probably close to 16,000 steps, followed by ~15,000 yesterday. 

Rambling here a bit, but I'm torn on getting a Fitbit or what have you. I'd had a variety of Jawbone devices over the years, and the got progressively worse and worse, to the point that when I got my third one (a next gen replacement for one that died under warranty), I pretty much gave up on it and them. Interestingly enough, I just saw they announced liquidation last month.

Anyway, these days, as long as my phone is in my pocket (which it usually is), I get my steps counted. it does not, of course, count "steps" when on the stationary bike, nor does it read vitals.