A Couple of Firsts

First things first. (Damn, is that ever the stupidest saying, and for the life of me, I can't seem to stop saying it... first things first. Well, no duH, really? Like, who ever puts the third things first? Doesn't that just make them first things? ANYWAY!!!)

Yesterday I finished my 30 minute workout DVD from beginning to end for the first time.

I didn't do all the steps - there are a few things that the instructor does that I can't quite figure out what she's doing, so rather than do them, I watch the DVD and do v-steps or step-touches with swim arms. My feeling here is that it's not really what moves I do, so long as I'm moving that's really important. As I get better at the steps, I can do better steps, but for right now, just getting up and doing movement is the most important thing. Also, I don't 'walk it' with the video. There's a really limited space I have to work with in the living room and even moving three steps left and four steps forward, I'm going to bump into something. So, I stay in place. But I march in place when everyone else is walking, so that's ok too.

When I started doing the video - that'd be the 25th (only a week ago?? astonishing) - I only did Warm up and most of the first Circuit. The program is divided into 5 segments: Warm Up, First, Second, Third, and Cool Down. Warm up is about 5 minutes, the circuits are about 7 minutes each, and cool down is three. So, despite the fact that I counted it as a 20 minute workout, I probably only did 12 minutes the first time. That's ok, too. I haven't been eating those APs, just listing them. The second time I did it, I got Warm Up, First, and part of Second. The third time, I did Warm Up, First, all of Second, and thought about Third. Yesterday was only the fourth time I actually worked out; and when the Intensity Check came up, I thought I was doing ok. Still sweating like crazy, but I sweat when I'm just sitting around, so I didn't worry about it too much. I was breathing hard, but not out of breath. So I thought I'd go ahead and do a few minutes into Third. Oddly enough, I didn't think about it again until we got to Cool Down. At which point, I was like "Jeez, may as well finish it at this point."

So I did.

I didn't feel bad when I finished it either - well, mentally I felt great! But I mean, physically. The first time I worked out, I went and collapsed in my computer chair afterwards and asked a friend of mine on line if I had her permission to die. (I figure if I ever actually get someone's permission to die, I can take it...) This time, same friend, she asked me how I was feeling:

Lynn-worki whew!
Lynn-worki whole workout!
Jeanne YES!!! You go! All 5 (6?) parts?
Lynn-worki all five. warm up 3 circuits, and cool down
Jeanne Ah,, okay. I was thinking it was 5 and cooldown, my bad. Go you! How do you feel?
Lynn-worki is now known as Lynn
Lynn ok... wish it wasn't raining
Lynn we're probably not going to do our walk tonight because of the rain, but I'd like to anyway.
Jeanne Ditto. Although at least it looks like it's not icing anymore. (Listen to me: icing. It sounds like there should be sugary pink stuff dropping from the sky)
Lynn pretty good, actually... I'm a little warm. I wish the cooldown was just a smidge longer. I can feel the muscles relaxing, but they didn't get quite there. I did a bit more grapevine after the dvd was done

I think that's a big improvement over "Can I die now?"

We did, actually, end up walking later. It was a very funny sort of non-argument with me and Thomas.

Me, "You want to skip the walk tonight, so we don't get rained on?"
Thomas, "No, but you did your workout. You can stay here."
Me, "Nah, that's ok... but if it rains on me, I'm going to be mad."
Thomas, "Fair enough."

Most of the way home, Darcy jumped in a mud-puddle and got cold, muddy water all over her pants, my leg and down into my shoe.

Thomas, "You know, you didn't have to come with."
Me, "Bah, I can't slack off if you're not."
Thomas, "Spouse, you're not slacking off. You did your workout. I stood around all day and yelled at some electricians."
Me, "I think I'll stick with my workout, thanks."
Thomas, "Yeah. Me, too."

I do have some smallish complaints about the workout DVD, but hey, it was included in the Getting Started kit, so it's not like I picked it out. First thing is, it's quite obvious that this is not the first workout in the series, because the instructor says a few things that make me think she expects me to know what a few of the steps are by name (No, I can't figure out what a rock-step is... and it took me a while to figure out what a grapevine was...). Secondly, while all the women in the video are supposed to be "Afters", I'd really love to see someone doing the workout who was a "During." For me, it's a bit discouraging to look at all those toned bodies (especially that blonde girl with her perky smile and pointedly perfect boobs) and NO ONE is breaking a sweat (I know, I know, they were filming it, so someone's going around and moping up everyone's forehead regularly because sweat doesn't look good on film...) Eventually, I think I'll want to pick out my own workout, but that'll be a while.

After our walk, our friend Portia came over. (She was my bridesmaid in our wedding) Now, understanding Portia would be an exercise in futility. I had, actually, decided that she's not a very good friend. In fact, she may very well be the worst friend I still have. Remember I talked about people who walked all over me? Well, she's definitely one of them. She fell out of our lives a few years back when Thomas and I were undergoing some serious finance problems and couldn't treat her to dinner every time she came over. She showed back up about 18 months ago or so, when she and her illegal alien boyfriend got pregnant and she was broke as all hell.

I tried to overlook it really, but it did eventually become undeniable. She comes over right around the times in the month that her paycheck is overloaded, and she's hungry. I could accept this without too much quibble if I got something in return out of the relationship. But she never listens to a word I'm saying; she's just waiting for her turn to talk again. She makes terrible work and personal decisions, bemoans about her fate to everyone, and refuses to change it, or to make better decisions.

Fortunately, she's moving away. Not far, really, but far enough that we probably won't see her regularly anymore. I'm just going to let the distance be the distance, rather than sit down with her and explain that I think this friendship isn't one, and maybe it would be better if she not expect so much from us anymore.

Which is all beside the point: the second first. (Wow, that sounds even stupider than first things first....)

Usually when we go out with Portia, we go to an all-you-can-eat place. It is the most economical way to fill her up... because I do FEEL BAD for her that she lives well below the poverty line and that she's hungry a lot. I do know what it's like to be hungry - I used to be dirt poor and living on $11,000 a year (before taxes). I vividly remember days of playing "which bill gets paid this month?" Juggling phone and electric and gas just enough so that they maintain the delusion that I'll ever actually pay the bill off and they won't cut the power. I did live without a phone for several months because I couldn't afford one.

Thomas decided he wasn't up to that level of challenge. I'd done my research ahead of time, and knew at the Golden Corral what I would get, and I saved points for a buttered roll (5 points each!). But for naught. We tried the Applebee's again, but the parkinglot was packed, so we ended up at TGIFridays.

We hadn't been there in a while, but I was pleased with their menu options. They'd made some big changes to their offerings, and there were a few Low Fat items on the menu that promised 500 calories and 10g of fat (what's low fat about 10 grams????). Thomas got the mahi mahi and I got a cobb salad (which wasn't listed as low fat, but hey, I'd already looked that up before, and it's 10 points without dressing, which is the same as 500 cals... ) We split an appetizer four ways (Darcy had one, me, Thomas, and Portia helped herself to one as well...) which was ok, since a quesadilla lists at like 6 points for one...

I'm guessing that I spent ~15 points, broken out this way: 1/4 of a quesadilla for ~3 points, 1/2 the cobb salad for ~5 points, ~3 points for 2 tablespoons of cilantro lime dressing (that was listed as low fat in the options, but the only thing I could find that came close was pretty high in calorie content...) and 1/3 of the angel food cake/chocolate roll for ~4 points.

I ended my day with 2 points to spare, but I figured they'd make up the fudge factor if I counted my dinner incorrectly.

So, to reiterate: I completed my aerobic workout for the first time. And I faced the challenge of eating out without any trouble.

(Now, damnit, scale, you'd better give me something back!)