I'm baaaaaack!

So... fast forward 4 years. Over these past years I've had some ups and downs in my fitness. More downs than ups. Tweaky knees and hips didn't help. At the end of a multi-day hike in the Alps (Mt. Whitney never happened thanks to the lottery system) I almost didn't make it down the mountain thanks to extreme knee pain. I've also had big issues with hip (SI joint) pain, likely caused or at least exacerbated by my scoliosis and leg length discrepancy.

Physical therapy and massage
Almost a year ago, I gave in and asked for help, spending a couple months in physical therapy. It helped so much! Imagine that! 😏 Since then, I've been using a heel lift to help deal with my leg length discrepancy and I've been going to monthly massages. (Yes, I swear they are therapeutic! Ok, These past four years weren't the best for my mental health, which, in turn, wasn't good for my physical health. Things are on the upswing, however, so, to borrow a line from Mario, "Here we go!!"

Weight
I've been in denial for a while about my weight steadily creeping back up, so I'm going to put my weight right here as a starting point: 180 pounds. I don't recall the exact numbers, but this is in the neighborhood of 40-45 pounds more than when I finished with Weight Watchers and made Lifetime. Well, to be honest, the last I weighed myself was a few days ago and that was 179.4 pounds. My highest recently was 184, but that was brief, so I'm chalking that up to water retention. I'll keep track of my weight here for a while. I know weight isn't a great indicator of health or progress, but it is an easy thing to track. Also, it's obvious that I've been gaining around 10 pounds a year for no healthy reason. That needs to stop. BMI is also a less-than-ideal measure, but at a smidge under 5'-5", my BMI is around 30, which is almost considered obese. Who, me? Yes. That needs to change.

Food
I'm using RealPlans.com to improve my meal prep. They have great planning tools to fit lots of needs and are improving constantly. Support is prompt and helpful. When I have a plan, I do so much better. I'm not in a place where I feel like I could OCD on points or calories or macros or restrictions right now, so I'm going to focus simply planning for and eating real food at home as much as possible. I tend to snack more when I don't have a plan. I also need to cut back on my big weakness: sugar.

Exercise
I'm trying out different workout schemes. When I'm in the groove, I can make up my own workouts or follow a book, but lately just getting changed into my workout clothes has been a challenge. One thing that has helped me in the past was workout videos. So, I'm starting with investigating my options. I have a bunch of great DVDs, but I'm also looking into newer streaming options. When I looked into those a few years ago, the technology and selection just wasn't where it needed to be. To start off, I've signed up for a 30-day free trial of Daily Burn (referral link), since I'm interested in trying their 90-day kettlebell program, DBK. Of course, they have a lot of other programs and workouts. Their unique spin is a live-stream class at 9am ET every day. You can replay the class at any time over the next 24 hours with the basic subscription of $14.95 per month. The premium subscription, $12 more, adds access to all the past daily (DB365) workouts and early access to new content. They also have an option for a personal trainer add-on. The basic subscription looks fine for my needs. I'm not sure if this one program will be enough to keep me past 3 months, though.

This morning, I did the first installment of the DBK program, a kettlebell swing tutorial. It was pretty good. I also did the live DB365 from January 2. It was nice and positive, maybe a little over the top, but I can take that right now. My daughter and I have been going to Tae Kwon Do for over a year now. We've signed up to continue with 2x per week classes when they start back up this Thursday.

Awesomeness even when things aren't perfect
A few awesome physical things I did these past 4 years despite issues:

• 3-day hike in German Alps
• Cabin stay with day hikes in the Austrian Alps
• 3-day section hike on the Appalachian Trail in North Carolina
• 7-day wilderness canoe trip in the Boundary Waters
• 4-day hike below rim in the Grand Canyon
• Strenuous dayhike up/down Big Baldy
• lots of skiing locally and at Keystone and Arapaho Basin in Colorado
• Earned my yellow belt in Tae Kwon Do

Goals
That's where I am right now. Where am I headed? Good question. I hesitate to list a specific weight goal, although I think 150 would be reasonable and attainable. This spring, my son and I signed up for a Junior/Parent Gladiator Challenge. I did the full version once in the past. In order to be ready for that, I'd like to get back into the habit of working out at least 4-5 times a week regularly.