Fitness Update: Summer 2017

Last summer, after a year of exercise, I bought waist 36 shorts because my old size 38s were too big. Going into this summer, I thought my shorts were sagging because I was wearing the old 38s … but they were actually the new 36s. It was time to buy new shorts, only this time I’m wearing 34s … and I don’t think I’ve done that since college.

I also discovered that my ill-fitting underwear were ill-fitting because hey, they are too big too. After months of listening to Weezer sing about “working out at the gym to fit my underwear” as part of “Troublemaker” on my Geek Fitness playlist, I’d actually done it. Hell, I’d done better than that without ever realizing it.

Weight-wise, I’m bouncing between 205-210 lbs., which I haven’t been since 2007. My target weight of 200 remains ellusive but I know what it’ll take to cross that threshold: less beer and more exercise. In the waning days of the summer started working on the former, limiting myself to a beer or two a week. Exercise, aside from my morning walks and round-trips to work, has been tougher.

My exercise benchmark for the summer — as measured by my Apple Watch — was 1,000 active calories a day, but more often than not I was hitting 900. Hitting the 1,000 active calorie threshold requires that I walk 2 miles or run 1 mile in the morning, walk to and from work, and then get in another walk or short exercise routine in the evening (coaching fall baseball is usually qualifies as that evening exercise routine).

What I really need to do is push myself to the 1,200 mark. Based on prior experience, that requires a 30-minute intense work out — running 3 miles, spending time in the gym on the elliptical or rower, or otherwise pushing myself to sweat (and sweat a lot). I should note that I’m not overly concerned with the accuracy of the calorie counting that the Apple Watch offers; I treat it as more of an abstract measurement of how active I’ve been. My primary concern is to keep moving; exactly how many calories I burn is less important.

For that matter, getting to 200 lbs. is also less important. As I’ve written before, it’s really more about the journey — about being fit — then it is about a certain weight milestone. Given a choice between being able to run 5 miles without stopping and weighing 195 lbs., I’ll take the five-mile run every time.

Looking ahead to September, I’m looking to set my daily #keepmoving goal at 1,100 active calories. I’d love to make it 1,200 … but I don’t think I can maintain that pace for a full month with all of my family and work commitments. I’m also looking to run three miles at least twice a week as part of the build up to running in a 5K or two this fall. The one I’ve got my eye on is BaconFest’s Racin’ Bacon 5K in November (assuming they have one in 2017).

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