I have finally found a way to motivate myself to exercise almost every day...
A few months ago, I decided that I needed to get back on the wagon and arrest the gradual regaining of much of the weight I had lost the prior year.
I had seen an interview with Renee Zellweger in which she was being questioned about her weight gain / loss for Bridget Jones's Diary and its sequel. When asked how she did it, she had a very simple, logical reply: "it's really just simple math. You know, calories in and calories out. If you need to lose X pounds in Y weeks, you just calculate how many net calories per day you need to eliminate, and then adjust your intake and exercise to achieve that amount."
So,
I have endeavored to reduce my daily intake by going back to a eating lifestyle that favors lean meat and minimizes simple carbohydrates.
I have also endeavored to increase the number of calories I am burning each day, in an effort to increase my overall daily calorie deficit.
But, how to accomplish this, especially given the amount that I have to travel for work?
My solution: walking. You can do it pretty much anywhere, at any time, with no special equipment other than a good pair of shoes. But, it can be soooo boring!
My solution: books on tape!
I got myself some books that have fast moving plots that keep you at the edge of your seat. The kind of books that "are hard to put down."
Then, I made a rule for myself: no listening except when I'm walking.
Guess what? When I can't wait to find out what's going to happen next... I get motivated to walk! All of a sudden, rather than dreading exercise, I look forward to my next opportunity to listen to my book. And rather than counting every step and every second, the time just flies by!
So far, I've listened to three Dan Brown books: The Da Vinci Code (quite good), Deception Point (pretty good), and Digital Fortress (okay); one Tom Clancy book - The Bear and the Dragon (okay), and my favorite so far, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (really good, although I found the ending a little abrupt - guess JK wanted to ensure folks would buy HP6).
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Posted by David at January 08, 2005 06:52 PM | Categorized under: A day in the life, Books