Every time I even look at the stairs, I can hear my quads pleading from within me to "please stay away." But of course, anything I need to do around the house requires either a trip up stairs or down stairs. And going downstairs, oh my goodness, feels like thousands of tiny aliens ripping apart my legs from the inside.
I'm really enjoying my 1/2 Eziekiel Muffin with a teaspoon of peanut butter, so I have that again for breakfast. It goes nicely with my coffee. Just like I won't give up my wine, I will not be giving up my coffee with creamer. I look at it this way - if a "lifestyle" requires sacrifices that make you miserable, then what kind of life are you living?
Since I already know what I'm doing for breakfast, I use the toaster time to fill some of the rest of my containers. Green: fresh cucumber from the garden- sliced, sweet baby bell pepper slices, organic spring mix. Purple: strawberries and mango. Red: Poached chicken in yogurt curry sauce with diced mango and quartered grapes, a turkey burger patty (I'm counting this as 2 because it is a large patty), greek yogurt. Yellow: aforementioned 1/2 english muffin and black beans. Blue: Sargento Balanced Break (This is enough of a match that I'm not too concerned about the white raisins mixed with the cashews - and besides, I love cheese). Orange: Salad Dressing that I later find out is a freebie.
Today's workout is supposed to be Lower Body Fix and I am petrified. I wonder if I should substitute with the yoga or pilates instead. After some online reading, I resign myself to doing just that. Throughout the morning however, I realize that when I am up and about, I want to stay up and about. The walking actually feels good. Pacing back and forth through the living room and kitchen, I consider whether I should go for a walk around the block - or the backyard even. I decide instead to go out to the garden and harvest some of the new beans that have sprouted. There were even some new cucumbers. Yay!
Once inside, I still felt like moving my legs so I moved the furniture and put on the workout DVD - I'm going to try the Lower Fix anyway! Am I nuts? No, I just feel like my legs need to move more. Miraculously, I made it through the workout. If it's possible, it was easier than I anticipated. Don't get me wrong, it was not easy - I was still dripping with sweat afterwards. It just seemed easier. Maybe I can do this.
I was right. Boy did my legs feel good afterwards. Moving around the house didn't feel as stiff. Although they still hurt and my quads still clawed at me, resisting the stair-climbing, I talked them into ascending and descending with the promise of the cool, refreshing waters of the swimming pool. They reluctantly complied and were rewarded handsomely with an hour of gravity-free stretching and relaxation. Getting up and down the ladder was still sheer hell, but certainly not as excruciating as it had been days earlier. I soaked up some Vitamin D on the deck, then went in to eat.
It's about 2pm, so I'm not sure if it would be considered lunch or dinner. I mixed all the greens, the turkey burger, and the black beans into a salad. It was truly a work of art. (I should have snapped a pic, but I was hungry and just wanted to eat it.) It's funny how putting thought and energy into food choices makes you appreciate them when you place them on a plate. It was very satisfying. I grazed the rest of the afternoon and evening, finishing the day with the reward of a balanced break (blue) and a couple glasses of wine.
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