Time for a Swimming Update

Update.
Proud to say after 58.78 miles in the pool over the course of nearly 10 weeks I am down 8 lbs.

I haven't lost weight in years. And I mean, years. The last time the scale was going downward was right after Liberty was born. I dropped a decent amount of weight. Did Weight Watchers. Counted calories. Exercised whenever I could.

Then I went back to work. And it all piled on again. That was 6 years ago.

So it feels good to be down 8lbs.

I need to tighten up my diet though. I should be down about 12-15 at this point. It's eerie I have lost exactly what my dailymile.com journal says I have burned. So I am burning off enough to lose but not restricting my diet enough to lose more.

That's my next challenge. To eat less..more healthfully (although give me kudos for my lunch today..homemade minstrone soup! Fiber! Anti-oxidants! Veggies!). I will check in again at the end of May...the summer jumping off point. I want to be down 20lbs total by then.

Can I do it?

Yes I can.

Swimming, swimming in the swimming pool...

Well, after three weeks of resuming swimming workouts I feel I must report how it's going.

• It took no time at all to get back to where I was when I stopped in 2009. Your body remembers so fast. When I hit the pool for the first time in late 2008, it really took me a LONG time since I hadn't been in the pool in about 22 years.
• My right shoulder acted up again. I never had shoulder issues when I was a kid but then, well, I was a kid then. I am much older now and my body isn't what it used to be.  A few physical therapy exercises got me back on track. Quick.
• I have myself a new suit (my old one is only fit for a drag suit), new goggles and a couple of long hair swim caps (regular caps barely stay on my head).
• I missed my first workout all month because I have a pretty bad cold today. I am hoping to make it up this week. We'll see how it goes. I have to remember this is a marathon, not a sprint.
• I don't plan on weighing myself until maybe mid-Feb to see my progress. I must state here--emphatically--that I don't buy the malarkey that swimming doesn't enable you to lose weight. It's based on a lot of myth, bad research studies and general stupidity. I am burning about 600 cals a session.

Can I just add that I LOVE how I feel after a good 2000-2300 yards in the pool? I mean, I feel so much less stress, I have energy, I sleep better. I have been working out at lunch for the better of 5 1/2 years but never had enough time or enough gumption to really burn it at lunch. Sure, we have showers but no one wants to come back to their desk sweating.

So onward with my goal...to drop 20lbs by summer. Sure I could possibly drop more than that but I want something realistic. I am still going to eat mac and cheese from time to time and have a piece of cake. I want to live, dammit. Right now it's exercise, laying off the sugar and moderation in eating.

I'll let you know where I stand in Mid-Feb. Stay tuned.

Thanks to God for making this swimming possible. He is so good to me!