5BX

When I told Monsieur that I had discovered Helen Mirren's XBX exercise plan, he surprised me by saying that he had heard of the male version, the 5BX plan, from his grandfather. Apparently, Grandpa was in the Royal Canadian Reserve and that's where he learned and did the 5BX. Like the women's XBX plan, the 5BX is a combination of calisthenics and aerobic exercise and the difficulty level increases gradually. Also like XBX, they stress the importance of consistency and continuity.

That's my problem, being consistent. it's like I need Nike here to remind me every single day to Just Do It!.  See, this week, I have already not just done it. We had some minor house emergencies (fridge almost died, mold was found in new shower, that sort of thing) and I've been running around like a chicken with my head cut off. By the time I finally have a chance to catch my breath, it's dark out and the last thing I want to do is exercise. Even just 12 minutes of exercise. Ugh...

Well, today is a new day, you might say. You'd be right, of course. But last night, for reasons that totally escape me, I had insomnia and I couldn't sleep until about 4 a.m. Grrrrr! So, I'm feeling pretty dead. Still, it is only 12 minutes, so perhaps I can do it, after all. Especially since I now have competition from Monsieur. ;)

TGIF

6 p.m. on Friday evening.  Thank God this week is finally over! For some reason I've felt somewhat out of sorts for the past couple of days. Perhaps it's a combination of the recent news (Robin Williams passing away, violence in Iraq, racial tensions in Missouri, etc., etc.,) and feeling overdue for a real vacation.

Luckily, my new Wii dance games arrived today. I ended up ordering both Just Dance 2014 and ABBA You Can Dance and I'm dying to try them out. I will, as soon as I finish this quick post.

Expect a review next week. ;)

I'm hoping that a little aerobic fun, followed by a simple home-cooked meal (roasted chicken, rice, and roasted asparagus--very French, non?) will lift my mood. If that doesn't work, I may have to do something drastic like book a weekend getaway or go for a mani/pedi or buy some shoes! :)

Anyway, I've noticed that I've been snacking a lot today. Seems to happen more when I'm feeling a bit low. Deep down I know that I won't actually feel better, but there's an autonomous part of me that reaches for a bit of chocolate. At least I also ate some fruit, so it wasn't all bad.

Wishing everyone a relaxing weekend.

Just Dance

Yesterday, I decided to pull out an old favorite: the Wii and my Just Dance 4 game.

It's been a few months since I last danced around with my Wii and I could tell I was quite out of shape, but it was so much fun!  I probably spent about 35 minutes with that game before switching to the Michael Jackson The Experience game.

I love, love, love Michael Jackson's music and my favorite thing to do is finish up with Thriller.

After about 45 minutes of total aerobic fun I was dripping sweat and my heart was pumping pretty hard. It was definitely a workout. But the best part is it just felt like fun.

Now I'm thinking about adding to my collection of Wii dance-style games.

Perhaps ABBA You Can Dance or else Just Dance 2014, which has Daft Punk & Pharrell Williams on Get Lucky?  I don't think I can go wrong with either!

Fit for a Queen

Last week I came across an interesting article on Dame Helen Mirren's fitness plan. It caught my attention because I recalled seeing this photo:

That was taken with she was 62 years old. 62!!! She just recently turned 69, and I don't think that she's changed all that much:

Honestly, I would love to look like that now! 

Anyway, apparently Dame Mirren is not a fan of the gym or of working out. (Sounds like someone else I know...) So instead, when she wants to shape up, she does a 12 minute workout designed for the Royal Canadian Air Force back in the 1950s. The workout, called "XBX" or "Ten Basic Exercises" has its own Wikipedia article and a link to a copy of the actual, original workout booklet. 

The exercises themselves seem relatively simple and straightforward. Based on your age, a chart tells you how many repetitions of each exercise you should complete within the allotted time. Once you master one level, you move on to the next one. No special equipment is required and the exercises can be done pretty much anywhere.

After reading about it, I decided to download the booklet and print it out. My plan is to start it this weekend. I can pretty much figure out how to get some aerobic exercise in on my own, but having this guide and some structure is just what I need, I think, to do something for tone and flexibility. 

I'll let you know what I think after I do it for a few days.

So far, so good

Well, this week has been decidedly better than last week! I've been waking up early, exercising almost every day (just missed Wednesday), and generally taking a bit more time to take care of myself and enjoy the summer. I've also felt a bit less stressed out than usual because my papa is back home after his stint in the hospital, and we have had 24h care, so I haven't had to worry about him or my maman hurting themselves.

Starting today, however, our 24h care schedule is changing and we will instead have someone there for most of the day (9-5) and most of the night (9-7). This leaves the early evening hours 'uncovered'. We are going to see if that will work or not, and adjust accordingly. Thank God, though, that papa has taken all of this with the best possible attitude and he seems to be committed to doing his part for his rehabilitation. So, I am hoping that he will continue to get stronger and we will need to rely less on outside help.

Anyway, I was curious about whether anything had changed, weight-wise, since I was so (pleasantly) surprised at my last check in. I wasn't sure if it had been some sort of water weight fluke or some such thing. And I was wondering if the increased exercise had had any measurable effect. So, I decided to step on the scale, even though my general rule it to not weigh myself more than once per week.

164.5

No change since Monday. Actually, this is quite good news since (as I already mentioned) I thought Monday's results might not have reflected my true situation. Or perhaps, Monday's results really didn't, but the increase in discipline this week (both in terms of the French diet and the uptake in exercise) has led me to the same result. Either way, I'll take it.

Have a great weekend!

Le Tour de France...or of your neighborhood

Not only did the World Cup just end, but we are also in the middle of the Tour de France. I will confess, I've never followed the Tour very closely since I have a hard time getting excited about watching cycling on TV. (The World Cup, though, is another matter entirely...)

I used to ride my bike as a kid, but once I got my driver's license my interest in pedaling to get places dropped sharply. Then, in my late 20s I bought a "hybrid" bike and it sat around collecting dust, because every time I rode it I felt like I was thisclose to killing myself. Years passed, and I met Monsieur, and (wouldn't you know it) he wanted us to go biking together.

I agreed to venture back into the cycling world. I thought that my best hope of getting into it was to find a bike that I'd feel comfortable and safe on. After some research, I settled on a "cruiser" style bike--the Townie "Electra". 

To further enhance my bike's appeal, I added a front wicker basket. I pictured myself wearing something cute, pedaling along, perhaps something like this:

Unfortunately, though, my experience riding my Townie was never quite as idyllic as I'd imagined. For one thing, I never looked that cute. For another, I gradually realized that the Townie was only really good if I was going alone completely flat terrain. As soon as I hit even the slightest hill, I had to do a lot of work to keep moving, and as a result, I found myself growing more and more averse to cycling.

Monsieur, however, had not given up on me yet. He suggested I try out a different type of bike. One that might make riding easier and more enjoyable. 

So, I went back to the (research) drawing board and I visited a number of bike shops to go on some test rides. Eventually I found a new bike that I hoped would make cycling more fun: the Cannondale Quick 5 (Women's frame):

Mine is exactly like the one pictured above. The official color name is "Cabernet". Honestly, I found the color was a bit more...grape-y. I christened him "Grimace", after the McDonald's character.

Since I bought Grimace last year towards the end of summer, I got a fantastic deal on him. And, I gave up on the idea of trying to look like a chic European girl while riding in favor of comfort. I purchased some Ibex cycling gear (after discovering that wool is cooler and more comfortable [even in summer] than your traditional synthetic jerseys) and I started riding.

I wouldn't say I've turned into some fantastic cyclist or that I am ready to take any cycling tours. But I am enjoying myself a lot more and I don't dread going out for a quick (no pun intended) ride. Now, I consider it one of the main ways I can get in a little (30-45 minutes) exercise in a day.

I don't regret purchasing my Townie, since I'm not sure I would have been ready to venture out on something like the Cannondale if I hadn't already built up my confidence on the Electra. But, I realize I've outgrown it and I will probably sell it soon.

If you haven't been on a bike in ages but you are considering giving cycling a try, I really recommend that you check out what's available now. There are so many options that I am sure you will be able to find something that appeals to you and will prepare you for your very own Tour.

Weight Math

After yesterday's disappointing weigh-in, I remembered (vaguely) that statistic about how many calories you need to cut to lose 1 lb. So, I turned to my friend The Google and did a little research.

There seems to be some debate over the precise number of calories you'd need to reduce or burn through exercise in order to lose 1 lb of fat in one week, but the general consensus was that 3,500 calories = 1 lb of 'weight'. Breaking that down into more manageable daily pieces, you'd need to cut back about 500 calories per day to lose 1 lb, or 250 calories per day to lose 1/2 a lb. Roughly.

Now, part of the reason the French Diet appeals to me so much is that I have never counted calories. The whole idea is anathema to me. I just hate it! I have enough things I need to juggle in my mind that I really don't want to add calorie counting to the list. First of all, I'd need to memorize the calories in  everything I eat, and then I'd have to try to calculate how much the portion of food X that I just ate contained. I just patently refuse to add this task to my daily to-do's.

Of course, with the advent of the iPhone and all the health/diet related apps that are available, you might say that all I need to do is find the right app and let it do the work. And, that might be true. But I still just don't want to do it.

So instead I asked The Google about exercise and how many calories each type of exercise (roughly) burns. Here's what I found, according to the Mayo Clinic:

For a 160 lb. person:

1 hour of...                    =              calories burned

  aerobics, high impact                          533
  aerobics, low impact                           365
  cycling < 10 mph                                292
  weight training                                    365
  swimming laps                                    423
  walking, 2 mph                                   204
  walking, 3.5 mph                                314

So yesterday, I went for a brisk walk in the morning. My iPhone app WalkTracker (I'm not opposed to using technology to help with health and fitness, it's just calorie counting that I despise) informed me that I had walked approximately 2.7 miles over 50 minutes at an average speed of 3.26 mph. According to my app, that represented 270 calories. Later that same day, I ended up walking another 1.5 miles when I found myself taking the train back home after visiting my parents. So, all in all, I had a pretty good day, exercise-wise.

My goal is to do some moderate amount of aerobic activity for 30-60 minutes each day, I probably would be able to take care of 1/2 a pound a week. The rest (if I want to make 1 lb a week my goal) should come from appropriate application of the French diet, especially from portion control.

Stuck

I've decided to move my weigh-in day to Tuesday because, for some reason, I always seem to have breakfast before realizing it is Monday. Hopefully I will not start messing up on Tuesdays, too!

This past holiday weekend went, I think, reasonably well. I got a lot more exercise in since Monsieur is very keen on it. So, we went for a swim on a couple of days and got in a (for me) long bike ride. Yesterday, we rode for almost 12 miles. Took our bikes down to Whole Foods, picked up picnic supplies, and then rode to a park, where we ate under two huge oak trees that housed some very grumpy squirrels. Then, we looped around before returning home, so by the time I hopped off my bike, I felt I had worked out.

I think that my eating was fairly French, but I did indulge in a few more treats than needed. In retrospect, I realize that I often forget about the French mentality towards food. I just haven't yet made it my own and, truth be told, I'm starting to worry.  I don't know if I ever will.

Of course, the books (Losing It In France--Les Secrets of the French Diet and The French Don't Diet Plan: 10 Simple Steps To Stay Thin For Life) that inspired me to try the French diet are by non-French people who discovered the diet/lifestyle's myriad of benefits. Presumably, they have adopted the French diet as much as possible and continue to adhere to it, even after they have returned home. But I'm wondering if it's possible for someone who hasn't lived in France for an extended period of time to actually start to think like a French person...???

I am starting to think that I may actually be stuck and kidding myself by saying things like "my eating was fairly French". Sure, I may be more French than your average American, since I do like to cook and I have cut out things like sodas and most processed foods. But I was like that even before starting my French experiment. It's the rest of the French diet that seems so hard to make my own: portion control, listening to my body for cues on hunger/satiation, and--perhaps most importantly--feeling enough pride in myself to say "I deserve to be svelte and healthy and fit, and I deserve that a whole heck of a lot more than I need that candy".

Maybe I need to re-read those books and remind myself of what is possible?

All I know is that I haven't made that much progress in the three months and that makes me sad. I don't want my French experiment to be a failure.

Happy 4th of July!

Happy Independence Day! 

I can barely believe it is already the 4th of July and we are in the middle of summer.  The weather where I live has been a bit erratic--super hot some days and then cool and breezy others. 

Yesterday, Monsieur gave me the option to play some tennis pre-dinner or go for a swim. I felt very worn down because I'd been running around most of the day, so I chose the swim over more running around. Our pool was so warm that it felt like getting into a hot tub, and my muscles felt soothed despite swimming around for nearly 30 minutes. They say that exercise is--paradoxically--a good way to re-energize when you're feeling tired, but I've often felt that it depends on the type of exercise you pick and your reasons for feeling tired. I'm glad to say that now I'll know to choose a swim over something more vigorous the next time I feel too tired to move.

Anyway, there isn't much on the agenda for today. Mes parents will probably join us for some sort of BBQ dinner. I would have liked to have baked something special for today, perhaps something like Ina Garten's Flag Cake:

but that will have to wait for next year. Instead, I think I will just serve up some strawberries and whipped cream. Maybe I can add some blueberries, too, and really be patriotic. :)

I wish you and yours a wonderful 4th of July!!

Re-thinking Exercise

Yesterday I wasn't feeling tip top for some reason. I had a lingering headache and ended up taking a long, unplanned nap in the afternoon. I wish I could say that helped me to feel better, but the headache remained. So, I decided to go for a walk to my local library and search for some new mystery novels.

Getting out of the house did help lift my mood and the air felt wonderfully fresh. The walk itself was done at a very leisurely pace, and although I didn't find anything worth bringing home with me, I would rate the whole experience a success.

After I arrived back home, I found that Monsieur had sent me an article from the New York Times about a bodybuilder from Ghana who has opened a gym in lower Manhattan and is helping older adults (mostly women, mostly over 70 years old) establish regular exercise routines. Many of them have suffered falls and this wonderful man, whose name is Mr. Addo, has helped them to recover their strength, balance and flexibility. Often, his clients have recovered so well that they have been able to abandon their walkers or canes.

Luckily, I am not yet in Mr. Addo's target demographic. Well, I am a woman, but not yet over 70. :) Still, I kept wishing there were a local Mr. Addo that would help me. I have definitely made a more concerted effort in the last few months to exercise more regularly, but most of my efforts have been around cardiovascular types of exercise: walking or cycling. Reading about these older people and their falls made me wonder whether my current lifestyle might be putting me on a path to future falls. I never really focus on my balance, and rarely think about flexibility. And I definitely feel that I am getting weaker as years pass.

A few years ago, before my papa became ill and helping my maman take care of him became my somewhat full-time job, I used to go to a local gym for personal training sessions. I did get stronger and a bit leaner (although the truth is that the biggest factor in weight is still eating--what and how much).

Reading about Mr. Addo and his clients has made me wonder if I shouldn't re-look at that gym and maybe even bring my maman with me. The French way of incorporating exercise naturally is definitely still the best overall philosophy (in my ever-so-humble opinion) but adding some type of strength and balance increasing activities can never hurt!

Scheduling exercise?

Over the weekend I was thinking that I should try to establish an exercise schedule to support starting good habits. Mondays and Wednesdays, I mused, I could focus on some sort of aerobic activity. Then, on Tuesdays and Thursdays I could go cycling, since it's definitely harder to go for a ride if you've waited a while since your last rise. Fridays, I figured, I could either do aerobics again or I could focus on stretching or flexibility or calisthenics. Finally, on the weekend I could do something with Monsieur, like go for a swim or play some tennis. 

All these thoughts, however, remain good intentions. Yesterday, I spent the day helping mes parents and I felt way too tired by the time I got home to do anything. 

Today, I've also been busy with my family, accompanying them to some doctor appointments. So, unless I can rally when I get home, it will be another day that I have not exercised. 

The French way, of course, is to incorporate exercise into your everyday routine. I think that's a little easier said than done when you live in an American suburb and everything is at least a mile away. 

So, I am not sure what to do. Perhaps I should approach this as an experiment (like my blog is so aptly named) and I should say, "For the next X number of days I'm going to follow his exercise schedule and then see what happens."

Otherwise, it's not really reasonable to expect things to change magically in their own. 

I'll keep you posted!