A Week away from the Gym

I was just so tired.  I tweaked my back, though not in gym, and it hurt.  I took off between Saturdays, let myself recover, rest, heal.  I walked and rode my bike, as I generally do anyway.  I stayed out of my car, always liberating.  I anxiously awaited my period, more than two weeks late.  I fought off a UTI with cranberry juice, and worked in my garden.

I have a new man in my life, I have been thoroughly enjoying his company.  I didn’t know they came nice like that, even though it’s going nowhere long term, he is so fun.  He was a fat kid, adopted by Danish parents who fed him heavy and meaty and way too much.  When he started living on his own at 15, he lost it quickly.   One of the things I like most about him, is that he eats whatever I feed him, and loves it.  He doesn’t complain about the lack of pork.  He doesn’t complain about the presence of pork.  He even eats steamed broccoli, and we both eat garlicky hummous, then smooch and giggle.  He tells me about the healthy poops he has after hanging out with me, and I have to laugh.  I don’t know what he eats at home, I asked him once, he mumbled something about Whole Foods takeout.  I think his tattoos are sexy, he thinks my lack of them is sexier.   We ride bikes around, he keeps right up with me, it’s so much fun.  He is intimidated by me, thinks he needs to start lifting weights, he is gardener, bicyclist, but does no upper body stuff.  He’s got a bit of a belly, we’re about equally pudgy.   He likes my “biker body”, even though I tell him it’s from the gym, not bikes.

Last Saturday, and for a week or three before, the scale always read 147.  After a week off, it read 152.  Kinda high, but not unusual for TOM, salt retention.  Monday, Tuesday also said the same thing.  Did I gain 5 pounds in my week off gym?  Realistically, how many calories did I not burn off, probably between 1000 – 2000, between maybe 2-3 days of gym that I skipped?   1/2 pound worth, if you consider this to be mathematically correct?  I didn’t eat more, I actually ate less (glad to know that this hunger stuff works).  My appetite is very sluggish with just my “lifestyle” (transporting myself) exercise.  I panicked anyway, actually bought low-fat cream cheese, low-fat yogurt.  Then I thought about it, decided that no way was it weight, it had to still be water, from two-week late period, and salt.   My diety reaction disturbs, disappoints me.

Whatever it was, instead of being one pound below my BMI = 25 marker (148), I was now 4 pounds above.  The next day, same scale, I was only 1.5 pounds above.   I expect it’ll all be gone by Saturday, hopefully with a pound or two more.   I noticed a huge NSV the other day.  I can carry bicycle, with stuff in panniers, up the Bart steps quite easily.  It used to wipe me out, some of those train stops are 6 flights below ground, and though I’ll take escalator part way if I think they won’t see me and yell, the elevator often smells too much like pee-pee, I won’t use it.  Just the bike alone used to be a problem, if the bike was carrying any weight, or was for some reason off balance, I would have to rest every flight.  Now I just pick it up with one hand, balance it with the other.  Almost effortless, hooray for strength and endurance.

Life is easier at my smaller size, and I like being strong.  It’s hard to know how much of this is from being smaller, and how much from being stronger, but life is better this way.

More random pictures from around town.

Almost spring, Santa Claus season for SF

My Bart station, weekend drummers