Last week I was pretty upset because I gained a pound after having gained almost 4 pounds a week before, which put me up almost 5 pounds over a span of two weeks. The first week was not a surprise, since I ate pretty enthusiastically over Easter. The second week was a disappointment, because I had been much better about my eating.
Last Friday, I came to realize that I had been tracking calories for 200 days, and for the heck of it, I jumped on the scale on a non-traditional weigh-in day to see what it said. I was thrilled to discover that it had me down to 119.8, which was nearly 4 pounds lighter than Monday’s weight, and, even better, below my goal weight of 120. So, yay for that. I figured Monday’s wait must have been a fluke. Sure, I knew that I probably wouldn’t be that low on Monday, after a weekend of eating, but I was confident that I was on the right track.
Saturday morning, I got up and ran 8 miles. I decided to try the heart-rate training again, and I was rather astonished to discover that the first 3 miles went really well. Although I’ve had extreme difficulty getting my heart rate below 141 for a normal run (usually having to walk for extremely excruciating periods of time to get in anywhere close), I was able to keep it in the mid 140s while maintaining a 12-13 minute pace. Not exactly speedy, but way better than the 21-24 minute pace I was doing a couple of weeks ago for a similar heart rate. Although it was a chilly 28°, the sun was out, and it was actually a beautiful morning. I had the wind at my back for most of that first 3 miles, and I was relaxed and actually enjoying the run!
But then, right after I took those pictures, I turned north west, and the bottom fell out. The winds were now straight in my face at around 15-20 mph. As if that wasn’t bad enough, it also started snowing, sometimes pretty heavily.
Um, hello? Is this April 9 or January 9?
My fingers were positively numb by about mile 5, even though I had been smart enough to wear my thick gloves for the run. My heart rate of the 140s turned into more like the 170s-190s in those conditions. Sigh. And I thought I was doing so well.
When I got home, I was able to warm up and started feeling better. However, I still had the scale on my mind. Because my fragile psyche was so disturbed by the 123.4 figure from Monday, I decided to once again break my own rule and weigh myself on Saturday. I was delighted to see 119.8 again! Granted, that was after running 8 miles, but I figured I was doing pretty good.
On Monday morning, I decided to skip the heart rate training and do a speed day. I had the wind in my face on the way out, but on the way back I had a decent tailwind. It was also incredibly warm compared to the prior week, when I had been freezing to death on nearly every run. I started out wearing my jacket as I had been for several weeks, but by the one mile mark, I was so hot I had to rip it off and tie it around my waist. Who knew 50° was so warm? I ended up with a solid 9:40 overall pace, and it felt good to exert the effort. When I was done, I mean. When I was actually doing it, it didn’t feel good at all. :p
I was dreading my weigh-in, even though I’d had such a good one on Friday and Saturday, just because I always get a bit panicky on Monday mornings. Which is really ridiculous, because it’s just a scale, right? After I took my shower and did my hair, I jumped on the scale.
Seriously. That wasn’t what I was hoping for it all. Yes, I know it was down from my “official” weigh in the previous week, but it was 2 1/2 pounds more than what I weighed on Friday and Saturday. So then I decided that I just was having a bad day, and I would just ignore that reading, and I would do it again tomorrow. I decide Mondays just aren’t good for me. So I got up this morning, and did it again.
And THAT is why I never weigh myself more than once a week!! Sigh. No more scale hopping for me. One day a week, Monday. Good, bad, or ugly.
I hope you have a better week on the scale than I did! But hey, let’s not end the post on a downer. How about we end it with a picture of JJ after his first baseball practice?
The field was a little muddy, ya think? 😉 Thank goodness for one of the moms who happens to work in an OR and had an extra surgical drape in her trunk to save my seats, ha ha!
Gotta love a Michigan spring. 😉 Thanks for reading!
Oh man, I cannot weigh daily or I would lose my mind!
Glad the heart rate stuff is starting to work for you.
You know you want to run the Flying Pig… 😉
LOVE the muddy pictures!
LOL, I don’t think I want to run the Flying Pig, but thanks. 😉 I will cheer you from afar, though!
I weigh daily because I like seeing the fluctuations. I get used to it so they don’t bother me. But, one thing I really like is I got an app called Happy Scale. My Withings scale talks to it when I weigh on it (you can also put in weights manually). Anyway, it displays weight as a moving average. You can see the individual recorded weights but the emphasis in on the moving average. For example, my moving average today is exactly what it was one week ago. But, my recorded weight today is 2.2 pounds higher (I ate out for the last 3 days). And, wow, that is a lot of mud….
I really like the idea of a moving average. I have been thinking about it quite a bit, actually. I love that the scale talks to the app–technology is amazing!
Just found your blog and totally agree on daily weigh-in crazies – no part of my mental health can handle that! I can change 5ish pounds in one day.
Wow, that’s a LOT!! I agree, that would make me insane, lol!