Seven hours of solid sleep with no wide awake episodes despite a late afternoon cup of orange spice tea. Morning plank. Eight minutes on the Air Walk Trainer first thing in the morning to burn off glycogen.
Today is an up day on the Alternate-Day/4:3 diet. Friday and Saturday will be down days (500 calories). Sunday is a cheat day. Today is another day in the whole body conditioning dumbbell program. Headed for a high of 91 and stickier today. Summer refuses to relinquish its grip: another block of 90+ days headed our way.
Twelve minutes of stretching in bed. Forty-five minutes of the whole body conditioning dumbbell program, three sets of 10 reps each with the five-pound dumbbell bars with Fat Gripz. I'm still having problems gripping the Fat Gripz - partly because of small hands, partly because my left thumb can't flex as much as my right - causing me to consider switching to a similar product with a two-inch diameter instead of 2.5. I don't know what I will do with the extra Fat Gripz. I hope I will eventually get another exercise machine such as the Air Walk Trainer - maybe an elliptical or a climber - I can use them with.
Relaxation: two 15 minute sessions with the Miracle Ball Method. These go pretty quickly whereas with the 24-minute guided meditations I'm all "are we there yet?" I'm focussing on the neck right now because the book says it's better to start with one area rather than hopscotch around to different parts of the body.
Another supposedly "good for you" product has let me down. I got ambushed by high sodium levels in Mom's Best Naturals Crispy Cocoa Rice - as much as in two tablespoons of Hidden Valley garlic parmesan spread. I expect that from Hidden Valley, but not from a brand that claims to be nutritious. Yet another reason to make my own granola. You know I'm eating too much salty, processed foods when I hit my sodium limit before I hit my calorie limit/RDI. I don't usually reach my RDI on my up days. However, I don't feel hungry and I'm not losing weight that rapidly. I'm not going to stuff myself just for the sake of hitting the RDI. I want to get away from canned vegetables as another way to lower sodium. I'm also thinking about making my own nut butters.
This article makes it look pretty easy. I want to step up to the plate - pun intended - when it comes to cleaner eating.
I ordered a Striiv smart pedometer last night. The Smart Health watch slash pedometer mostly seems accurate but occasionally it has wild swings. Also, it goes for long periods without recording steps, which can be demotivating. I have to wonder at the end of the day if more steps would show up if I kept going. The Striiv on Woot was about half what it sells for on Amazon. I like the fact that it doesn't have to be linked to a phone or computer and tracks stairs climbed. I also like the display and the gamification features.
My bunion was acting up earlier this summer so I'm grateful I haven't experienced any pain this month.
Android for Nook has cured whatever ailed my Nook HD+. It hasn't crashed since I installed it, which was a relief because otherwise I was looking at a $179 glass-and-plastic door stop, not to mention the outlay for the AFN card.