Inertia and Momentum

As a child I learnt the concepts of inertia and momentum. They always remained concepts of physics in my mind until I read something very recently which helped me apply them in a more abstract way to the idea of me exercising.

Inertia is the resistance of any physical object to a change in its state of motion or rest. That quite accurately characterizes what my attitude to exercise used to be. I loved the idea of exercise, but I could not imagine (and hated) the idea of me exercising. I made excuses - my injured knee, lack of time, lack of flexibility, how deep in my psyche my fear and denial was entrenched, and a variety of other reasons. I remember people saying that if you only just started, it would get easier, how fifteen minutes a day was not much and could easily be accomplished, and so on... I used to smirk at this - that I said, was for them, not me! I could not do it. Did they not see that?

And then I started. Somewhere around mid-December I began what I never imagined I could do. Momentum is the force gained by movement in a certain direction (this is not the physical definition of it). I was inert. And then I made a small movement prompted by something. I think it might have been the idea of meeting new people in a new town - I forced myself to go to a dance that a friend had invited me to. I hate dancing, but I had a wonderful time. And then I returned. And then I joined a dance class. And then I joined another. And now I am thinking of joining an exercise class. The strength of my momentum for exercise is heightening. I hope I keep building momentum and never return to my inert state.

All that being said, I did not exercise today. But I did eat:

Breakfast
Bosc Pear

Whole Wheat English Muffin w. Apricot Preserves, Black Tea

Lunch
Whole Wheat Flatbread, Spinach, Baked Falafel; Cheetos; Apple

Snack
Bite-sized Granola Bar

Tea
I rarely come home in time for tea these days: Tea, Rusk

Rosemary Triscuits, Habanero Cheddar

Dinner
Vegetable Gyoza, Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette; Edamame
I did not eat the orange

Contemplation: Boot Camp

I did something very scary today. I signed on for a month of Boot Camp classes! I think I will start on the first of February. This is really scary for me. I have always had a fear of exercise. Especially in a group setting. Even more so of rigorous exercise. A complexity of factors contribute to this fear - I am worried that I will not be able to do what everyone else is able to. I am afraid that I will whine and give up too easily. I am afraid of how my body looks and moves compared to the lithe and lissome bodies of others in the class. I am afraid I will be holding the others back. Perhaps all of these are excuses.

Today I decided to be somewhat excuse-free. In between sessions today, I checked my email and found a group deal for a month of boot camp classes. I did not give myself time to think. I purchased it right away and decided to worry about what I would do with the membership later. I will probably end up going. One wonderful trait I have developed over years of fiscal difficulties is that when I pay for something, I make sure that I get what I am entitled to from that something. I hope that my zeal to extract full value from my purchases overrides my fear of exercise - especially exercise that is called "boot camp".

Breakfast
Same as yesterday - Fruit, Bagel/Cream Cheese, Coffee

Snack
Starbucks in Seattle!
Drinking decaf at the birthplace of Starbucks. It was foggy!

Lunch
Box Lunch at the conference - Grilled Veg Sandwich, BBQ Chips, Diet Coke.
I only ate a piece of the cupcake and saved the apple for another time.

Dinner
I decided that I did not want to eat train food for dinner. So, I bought this at the hotel:
Vietnamese Salad Rolls w. Soy Dip

Train Snack
Pretzel chips and Roasted Garlic Hummus

Contra-Dancing

My weekend was pretty uneventful food-wise. Both on Saturday and Sunday, I woke up late enough to not have breakfast. Yesterday, I went contra-dancing. Contra dancing is sort of a hybrid partnered folk dance. I have gone once before to this contra dance group and it is great fun. I've mentioned before about how I will never be a good dancer. But the music is fun and fast-paced and since everyone moves so fast, it is not as embarrassing. I danced from 8-11, with a few breaks. I was exhausted at the end, and my body was sore when I woke up this morning. Consequently, despite my 3x/week exercise resolution, I don't feel so bad about exercising only two times this week.

I wish tomorrow was not Monday. It's Weight Watcher's weigh-in day. This is the first week since I began when I did not count points at all. We'll see how it goes. :-)

SATURDAY

Brunch
Piping hot tea - you can see the steam. :-)
French Toast, Toasted Pecans, Honey. Didn't eat the Orange.
I rarely buy eggs - only when I bake. And then I try to use them up as soon as possible. Yesterday's omelette and this French toast is in aid of this.

Snack
Colby-Jack Cheese

Dinner
Cornbread Muffin w. corn, Belgian Truffle

I was famished when I got back from dancing. I started with Popcorn w. Chilli Oil and Root Beer. But I was ravenous, and ended up also eating a Paneer Tikka Pocket and cheese.

SUNDAY

Lunch
Woke up too late for breakfast.
Rice, Yogurt Gravy, Ivy Gourd. I ate the pear, not the orange.
Unphotographed Extra-Sharp Cheddar Cheese

Tea
Tea w. LF Milk

Orange Belgian Truffle

Dinner
Chapatti, Mutter Paneer, Orange

Folk Dancing with Two Left Feet

I have never been a coordinated person. I walk into things, bump into people and am a bit bumbling in real life. When it comes to actually moving my limbs in some form of rhythm, I am what any sane person would consider to be "abnormal". I avoid dances like the scourge because I usually feel intensely embarrassed. So, a few weeks ago when my friend Anne invited me to go contra-dancing, I very very very reluctantly agreed.

It turned out to be great fun. Firstly because I was not the only bumbling one there. And secondly because this dancing involved a set of pre-assigned steps that were to be repeated over and over and over again. I could do that. Sort of... Anyway, I had a lot of fun and it was probably the best workout I have had in years.

So, when Anne invited me to a Folk Dance class, I agreed to sign up. Today was my first class. It was sort of like contra-dancing in that there are repetitive actions. The difference is that rather than move both arms and legs, it involves moving mostly the legs - a challenge for me. I did it - it was not pretty, but I managed to get through the class. I promptly forgot everything they taught on the way home, but it was fun. I think I'll return next week. This was not really exercise at all - I barely got my breath sped up unlike contra dancing where I was out of breath after the first 10 minutes. But it was an hour more of movement than I would have got had I stayed home.

And thus, I did the very first bit of exercise this year. I am going contra-dancing on Saturday. So, all I need is one more day of exercise and I will have met my 3x/week exercise goal for this week. :-)

Breakfast
Sprouted Wheat Toast w. Strawberry Preserves
Cottage Cheese, Pear, Banana

Snacks
Amaretto Cappuccino - a stray packet at the office. It did not taste particularly good, but I wanted something hot to drink (and hold) at an 8am meeting.

Unsweetened Spice Chai. It tastes less like any kind of spice and more like licorice.
I will not be buying this brand (Stash) again.

Lunch
Yummy Cabbage Noodles my friend made for NYE. I will be recreating this.
Jalapeno Cornbread, Apple

Snack
Chocolate-coated Coffee Beans, Peanut Brittle

Dinner
After the Folk-Dancing, I came home to a bowl of Rice, Yogurt Gravy, and Stir-fried Ivy Gourd
Colby Jack Cheese. (I did not eat the Orange)

I have been wanting to try Wholly Guacamole for ages!

Guac and Triscuits. This was good, but I like my homemade version best!