Run, WW, Run 11

Welcome back for yet another installment of Run, WW, Run my virtual cross country trek inspiring me to get fit. When last we met I was heading towards Williamsport, the local Little League team was winning and I was trying to be more consistent.

This week was another “Fitbit only” week. Day 1 was exactly what I was trying to avoid…a <2 mile day. Quiet day at work at dinner out with the kids. It was a nice night but we had a big day planned on Saturday so I was ok with my decision not to do too much. My virtual self continued on the same rod only passing a gun shop. That was fitting base don our Saturday plans.

An earlier installment of Run, WW, Run I said I would use the gun shop I passed (Strange how many of those I have seen along the way) as inspiration to take the boys to play paintball. That was Saturday a long day of trekking through woooded terrain and getting shot in the face in “Apocalypse City” (see the picture. It was a great day with lots of movement.  Virtual me ended at a random spot where I could see a great path to take my mountain bike. I need to get that into my routine but can’t seem to make it happen.

I’m lucky I moved at all on Sunday as we were all exhausted. The only movement was really to clean the house since my wife was returning from her girl’s weekend. I finish the day near a quirky little tavern, probably the only place to go in that small town. The menu for this place was simple but it looked like an interesting place with music and lots of people. (Lots for the rural location). This made me think about simplifying my menu and eating out a little less. Time for another trip to get some of my food.

The next leg was another of my No fit bit legs. I had it but had forgotten to charge it. I stagger a quarter of a mile form the tavern to an interesting little glass shop. My inspiration here is to get my creative juices flowing again. I have not used this blog in a while other than my Run, WW, Run updates. It was a creative outlet for me and I do find when I don’t do this, or some other creative thing I feel in a rut….and here I am.

My actual movement for that day was not a lot. I am realizing more and more that my recovery from active days is brutal. I have actually started to take some action here. I started doing some of my physical therapy exercises again to get my legs stretched out.

Back on the move (kind of) with another light day. The only thing near virtual me is a sporting good store….it is actually just a gun shop when you look closer. I think my shooting on Saturday was enough to capture two gun shops of inspiration. The welts still evident all over my body and the big one on my face remind me.

I finally do some real moving again on Wednesday with my soccer game. It was nasty hot but a great workout and a fun game. Where I end on the map is not what was interesting. What was interesting was the difference in the routes. The directions guided me south through the mountains with beautiful landscapes but not much around. A single house from time to time. Had I picked the northern route it would have brought me to a gated community complete with golf course, beautiful homes and an amazing lake. Split down the middle was the interstate…quick but boring. The philosophical side of me started thinking about choices. I need to make the real choice to be ready for my outdoor soccer season just 37 days away. That is plenty of time to get to a reasonable fitness level.

The choice needs to be to do it in a smarter way. I am tripping over workouts instead of planning them. This week I will plan them here. Tonight nothing..We are off to see Beauty and the Beast at the local playhouse. Tomorrow I will get on my bike. Sunday I already have a tee time to play golf.  I feel like Monday night I have something I am forgetting so I will plan an off day.  Tuesday 10k steps however I can manage. Wed soccer and Th will be another day off. Reading that doesn’t sound so scary.

I end the week with another lesson. I come into a little town that doesn’t look like much. Hidden in a little line of woods are the waterfalls shown. You would never know they were there if you didn’t stop to look. So friends, stop to look once in a while.

If I recap the week I got 2 real workouts in. That is not enough. I want to have 4 and accept 3.  I have a plan. I am still headed to Williamsport but off pace. The Melrose Little League team finally took a loss last night but if they win tonight they play Saturday for the Sectional title. The family will attend if they get there.

Run, WW, Run

Run, WW, Run 10

Welcome back for yet another installment of Run, WW, Run my virtual cross country trek inspiring me to get fit. When last we met I crossed into Pennsylvania and was finally getting some miles logged. Vacation can have that effect.

This week’s progress would all be made on foot and be tracked by fitbit (when I remembered to wear it).

Friday was a tough day. It was supposed to be a morning of golf but was rained out. I managed to go watch some curling (which was great) but my movement was limited. My virtual self ended near a fireworks store which was fitting as just a few days earlier we watched the 4th fireworks in Falmouth.

Saturday was decent movement, not as exercise specifically but overall we were busy having fun. Walking along the beach and a nice walk while we waited for dinner. It was a nice relaxing last full day of vacation. My virtual self saw the long day and ended at motel so I could get some rest. (More on the rest needed another day).

Sunday was travel day. We cleaned up and then spent a while packing and unpacking plus the time in the car. A workout was not in the cards as it was a long day. I would love to say good to be home but Cape Cod is great and I would rather still be there. Virtual me ends in the middle of nowhere which is fitting because the drive view is what I saw that day.

As I returned to work the distance drops. Monday was a catch-up day after 2 weeks off. Locked mostly in my office and conference rooms and quite honestly exhausted from working a full day left minimal movement at night. I end up near a quarry. The only link to this is a bit of exercise I id get over the weekend throwing a javelin ball with my son. He is training for his track team and I went out tossing this heavy ball with him. It was not easy but it was fun.

Sad to report I followed up with a missing fitbit day so I made almost no progress. The day itself was kind of an average work day. This is where I should have recovered with a workout but I didn’t.

Finally back to some real exercise, by way of my weekly soccer game. I got some real movement ending the day near the Shohola falls. A beautiful image makes we want to get out there and see some beautiful sites in person. Time to dust off the mountain bike again.

The final day ended again in the middle of a long road with not much to see. I had set no goal so I didn’t feel all that motivated to get out. The overall distance for the week was weak with only one real workout. There were some very active days but you can’t have a full week where only once do you move on purpose.

And so I must set a real goal. As luck would have it my town’s Little League team keeps winning and I noticed that Williamsport was on my virtual map. It is too far to get to in a week but using my average distance I can make it there with a week to spare before the tournament. My goal is to beat that. Williamsport in 3 weeks gives me a goal of 5.8 mi per day. If I can avoid the <2 mi days and get on the bike a bit I should have no issue. The point of this is to get me moving not track my lousy stats. Let’s hope the local team gets there for real.

Run, WW, Run

 

Run, WW, Run 9

Welcome back for yet another installment of Run, WW, Run my virtual cross country trek inspiring me to get fit. When last we met I was struggling to get moving with my virtual in a rural area of NY state. I am happy to report that this entry logging the second week of my vacation took a turn for the better. I am a bit late on the update but I am back at work today so that should become more consistent again. Ok.. here we go.

The week starts with a light day ending at yet another random residential spot. The messy brush reminds me of the yard work I had to do to start my vacation. The miles there were logged in the last update but it is a firm reminder that movement can come from more than just planned workouts. I need to keep that in mind.

Day 2 is a much longer stretch thanks to some golfing. I am amazed how much you walk even when you take a cart. It was a tough day as I really missed my Dad but fun overall. Virtually I ended nowhere significant but I did pass a water park. We didn’t get that in during our vacation but we did discuss it on the ride home yesterday. We will plan a day at Water Wizz the next time down the Cape. This also reminds me that I need to track my “I need to do this” better. I have a few others from previous weeks I still owe.

Next I find myself after a quiet day of movement at a home. I notice the boat in the background. Although I didn’t specifically ride a boat my sons and I had a great time fishing at the Marina in a spot I went to all the time when I was a kid. It was one of those moments that I hope the boys will remember for a long time.

At this point I finally start to log some mileage on the bike. Falmouth is an amazing town to take an early morning ride. This first one was later in the day and actually came from me needing to blow off some steam. I ended the day at a car dealership. As chance would have it there was a lot of discussion this week about buying my “midlife crisis” car. I have always wanted to buy a 1972 Corvette Stingray. My wife is on board and I have started to do some searching. My big issue is I have a small garage and driveway and no great place to store it. We’ll see but it sure would be fun.

Finally we get to the 4th of July (Happy belated 4th to all my readers). I celebrated the 4th with a triathalon of sorts.  It started with a morning bike ride with my brother to Woods Hole. One of a couple of rides that were truly the highlights of my trip. Spending a few hours alone with my brother who lives in Colorado just chatting and seeing the sights along the bike paths. As the day progressed getting my steps in scrambling for the BBQ later I took some time to head to the beach. I know tough choice…right? Instead of sitting with my toes in the sand I actually swam the length of the beach and back. It took forever but in the end was about a half mile of swimming. So there it was bike, steps and a swim. It made me feel much better about the feasting and drinking that would come. I ended the day near an airport…I did end up at Logan yesterday helping my brother head home so fitting I suppose.

Wednesday was a more quiet day. My virtual self ended at scenic spot along the river but instead I added the Nobska lighthouse from along my Th bike ride. Another long ride with my brother and amazingly having set a 60 mile target for the week I made it. I have now virtually entered into Pennsylvania. The first week in several where I hit my target.

It got me thinking about how I have set my targets. I need to do some analysis of what is realistic. Here I was on vacation with Bike trails and time. As I get home I need to figure out how to target something achievable but not too easy. This needs to be a driver not just a log of where I end up. So for this week I will hold off on setting a new target. I will simply trek West and spend sometime figuring out what is next. The good news is I am moving much more consistently and need to keep up that momentum. Now with restaurant eating halting I can put some more focus back on the food again.

Run, WW, Run

 

Run, WW, Run Update

Welcome back for yet another installment of Run, WW, Run my virtual cross country trek inspiring me to get fit. When last we met I was working my way across CT struggling with short distance days.  Today acts as a bit of a catch up. I am overdue for 2 updates but will keep this one short for a few reasons. During the 2 weeks I was gone I got some workouts in but have struggled to get myself moving. I hope today’s entry will help get me back on track because I assure you I am using the term WW very loosely right now.

 

My hope in this leg was to make it to the Hudson River, in a week and I fell short of that in the two. I also wanted to try to get 10k steps/day but that too was not meant to be. Let’s see what I did get done.

The first week was leading up to my 2 week vacation. There were many nights of playoff youth baseball and other excuses. I was reasonably OK with it since once I got to Cape Cod I would be biking like crazy. Today is day 8 down here and I still haven’t been out.

Along my path I passed a Camp for boys which seems fitting since I do have my boys away fro a 2 week vacation filled with water activity, sports in the yard and wandering around town.  As I mapped my progress through rural CT I passed many golf courses which I did manage to get a round in. I would be finishing up my second 18 right now but I passed because the first trip around the links was a bit too hard on the knee. fun though.

I did finally manage to get to Bull’s bridge and into New York. The road is laced with many farms. We had planned to go to a local farm here to buy a pepper so my son could try one of the hottest peppers in the world. The local place was almost never open and would not have fresh peppers to purchase until later in the fall. For now you could only buy sauces and hot candies. Instead we ordered some Scotch Bonnet dried peppers online and last night each burned our mouths pretty well even only sampling. we will not be going for the full pepper. It was fun though.

I ended the weeks with just a couple of decent numbers logged. A soccer game, a day of gardening. Overall, I was surprised how little I moved in week one of my vacation. I need to fix that because the eating has been terrible. Actually it has been wonderful eating at some amazing restaurants with my brothers and their families in town but as a WW it has been off the rails.

And so I type once again picking myself up. I will try to lower the intake but with the 4th tomorrow that will be a tough way to restart. I will, however, use this entry to re-motivate the movement and see if I can’t log some real miles while I am here.

Run, WW, Run

The WW and “that” photo

“You don’t take a photograph, you make it.” ~Ansel Adams

A flash. A click. A moment in time captured forever. Is it hung on a wall, posted on social media, or lost in the shuffle of thousands of images in your camera roll never to be seen again. My relationships with the camera is a long and complicated one.

If scroll through old folders on my phone or laptop I see countless images through the years. The theme quickly becomes clear. I’m the fat man so I’m not in the photo…I’m behind the camera. Years of avoidance because I don’t want to see myself in that way.  There are times when it can’t be avoided like a team photo or my son’s confirmation. The few images where I show up I shuffle to the back using others as my personal shield.  I can sift through an array or “before” photos hoping there will be an after. Most times they are deleted.

Today’s post comes inspired by a facebook post from my wife. She wished me a Happy Father’s day with a series of three photos.  As I looked at each I realized they all fall into yet another category. They are THAT photo. Ansel Adams also said “A true photograph need not be explained, nor can it be contained in words.” I’ll look at them each individually and try to explain them anyway.

This is “that” photo because it is probably my favorite photo ever. I know it is my wife’s favorite.  A moment of pure joy. My two sons, the little one no more than a day old. I love the look on my older son’s face, a smile I have seen a million times that truly could light up any room. I miss the days when he was little. He is about enter his senior year in high school. I remember the moment because my wife commented on the look on my face as I was simply enjoying one of the great moments in life. and lastly….here it comes….I was thin. Sure the moment would not have been ruined by a heavy me but the enjoyment of the photo would certainly have been tainted. That was the first time I had ever approached goal. It would be followed by years of me at my heaviest (as I said there are not many photos of that)

This is “that” photo for a couple of reasons. Sure it was a great day but it marked an accomplishment. This was my “after” photo. On our yearly apple picking trip, I was easily able to hop into that tree. I can remember the energy. This was 2013 and would hit goal about  6 weeks later. It is “that” photo because, even though at the time it brought me great joy, now it makes me sad because I let it fall so far and gained over 100 lbs.  Here is the one from a year earlier. I look more like this one again now. 

There was one more photo in my wife’s “Happy Father’s Day” collage. Another “that” photo

. 

This is “that” photo because it marks another moment. You may see simply a happy family at my niece’s high school graduation. Let me tell what I see. I see a shirt I “had” to buy because I had no shirts that fit any more. I see myself just an hour or so earlier aiming the car’s air conditioning vents at that same shirt because it was soaked in sweat from little more than standing still. I see the moments before this when my wife wanted a picture of the 3 of us and me trying to talk my way out of it.  I see me hiding behind my son on purpose.  I see the moment that this picture marks….my arrival at “before” again.  I look at this and I see that it has taken me a full year after this photo to even try to do anything about this.

I will add one more photo to this post that she did not include and she has not seen but readers of this blog have.

This is “that” photo for 2 reasons. It is my most recent photo of myself and my current “before” photo. Taken about 4 weeks ago, this may be my least favorite photo ever. I see myself fighting that morning to button those pants. I see the familiar sweat marks that were on that shirt at some point that day and I see the belly hang. Oh, how I hate the belly hang. I struggle to see hope in this photo as I am trying real hard now to stay on plan. What I actually see is a daunting task, a long way to go.

I know they are just pictures. I is amazing how by chance she picked three of the most memorable pictures in my life into a single Facebook post. I will post more pictures here. Some may be “during” and hopefully some will be “after” but I will try to not hide anymore. To use a simple photo not only as inspiration but as a glimpse into my reality.

A flash. A click. A moment in time captured.

Run, WW, Run 6

Welcome back for yet another installment of Run, WW, Run my virtual cross country trek inspiring me to get fit. When last we met I was working my way across CT. I had fallen short of ESPN with a over optimistic hope that I would catch up to that goal and still manage to make it to NY state this week.

The week started off well hitting my daily step target landed me at an insurance company. Since my insurance is all in order I quickly bypass that so I can lose weight for the next time I need to renew. Somehow on a Saturday I managed to put in just over a mile total. That landed me in an industrial area which made me think of work.  I realized that my biggest issue is that I can have days where I barely move, usually when I am at work. It is something I will start working on this week. (Hopefully hitting my step goal daily).

Sunday thanks to my over-the-hill-league soccer game I managed to finally arrive at ESPN. That was one sport in the books for the week. I was still hoping to get many more. I finished the day in front of a shooting range. I have always wanted to try shooting but I opted to twist that a bit and began planning a paintball excursion for me and my boys (That will be 3 weeks out but I did find the place and start gathering a larger group.

As I maneuvered my way through Bristol, I stopped in front of a church. Although I was a long time Catholic school boy I’m not one to attend services any more. Usually weddings and funerals. That made me think of my dad and I did have some catching up to do this week on the estate planning so I used that inspiration to do just that. His house officially went on the market this week and I am not handling it well.

My next stop was in the middle of a construction zone. As luck would have it I found myself in construction on that day. I was slipping off plan and desperately trying to regain my composure before I went off the rails. I decided to get out there and try some more sports (my weekly goal) so my son and I played tennis that day. I am happy to announce that the construction sign made me think enough to reign it back in and I am once again on plan. Coincidentally I passed a Polish deli the same day we had Kielbasa for dinner (that’s mom’s side of the family).

My next stop would be at the Black Rock State Forest campsite. My wife has talked a lot about trying camping this summer. I used to go every year as a boys weekend where some guys from work and I would all take our sons off the grid. That has fizzled as the kids got older. I posed the question to my wife and she is interested. I started asking around for a close campsite that friends have enjoyed. Stay tuned on this one. (I can’t let myself forget).

Along that path, I passed a baseball training site called the HitZone. My son had a game that night so in my “play sports” theme I decided to pitch to him for a while before he left.

My final night it was clear I was WAY short of target. A target I should never have set. ESPN to NY was probably achievable but falling short last week gave me little chance. I need to set better goals. Not wanting to give up I jumped on the mountain bike. I ended up on a path that was way too advanced for my fitness and skill level so I did a fair amount of walking and carrying my bike over rock. It was nice to be out there but it made me remember that you don’t get the mileage in the woods. Anyway cycling is on ESPN sometimes so I count it. My final stop for the week is just past a horse farm. I have long tried to get the family to go horseback riding. I will add it to my to do list for the summer.

That brings me to my final point. This week I did a pretty good job at finding my inspirations from this journey. It is obvious they can’t all be done within the week.  I will do as many as I can during the week but now I will start a list of the longer term items for the summer. (Amusement park, paintball, camping, etc…) If I don’t I feel I will be all talk and that defeats the point. I will update along the way.

Finally, I must set a target for the week. I am one week from vacation where I should be logging tons of miles biking and golfing. The NY border seems short so instead I will try to cross the Hudson river. My sub-goal for the week is to avoid the 1-2 mile days. So this week I will target to actually hit the Fitbit 10,000 daily target every day.

Run, WW, Run

The WW and the Eyes

I hesitate to write these words for fear you’ll think me mad. I bring forth no evidence just a knowledge from within my heart that these words be true. As for most, my day goes on quite simply. No story to be told just caught in the minutia of life…and then it happens. The world seems to slow and I can almost hear the tones build up like out of an old horror movie. I turn quickly to find what I always find…Nothing. I’ve torn apart this room countless times looking for clues…yet find nothing more than my own possessions in their proper place except for the one’s I have strewn about looking for answers. There is nothing there, but I feel it. I can feel the eyes. I can feel them glaring, stalking. I can feel them approaching to judge. What evil will they bring? What horror? I turn again. Once more no proof but ever confident that I am a being watched. Sometimes longing for the padded room with my coat forcing me to embrace myself if only to say everything will be alright. I look not for the healing but for the knowledge that only a single window exists and that the eyes can no longer see me there.

I look not for conspiracy but for truth. Why are these eyes on me? Why do they monitor my every movement? Do they even exist? Have you ever felt the eyes on you….Of course you have. You’re a weight watcher. We are all constantly watched. Every bite comes with a set of eyes judging without knowledge. “Should you be eating that?” “Aren’t you watching your weight?” or my favorite “How did you do this week?” The eyes come with a voice that thinks it is helpful but comes without awareness of our struggle. An ice cream need not be a bloody dagger. A pound gained not reason for the scream queen to erupt. They are just eyes gazing at a moment not seeing the whole story.

Sometimes we find a need to talk to the eyes. Spouting off like a lunatic justifying that which need not be justified. “I have the points. I can eat anything on WW, blah, blah”….I can’t even bring myself to type it all without banging my head against the padded cell.

I have to stop myself and remember that the eyes don’t come from a dark place. There is no reason to lash out to fight our way out of the haunted house. They are just eyes. They come from love. They come from those around us wanting us to succeed. Hoping they aren’t watching us start to fall again. I have to remind myself because I can feel them on my neck. The glance becomes a creature crawling up my spine. They will make me jump again. They will glare. They will judge. But I will emerge at the end of the tale when the tones become the light music of day break, ever cautious that that the villain will jump up once more to attack.

 

 

The WW goes up, up and away

Superman: Easy, miss. I’ve got you.

Lois Lane: You – you’ve got me? Who’s got you?

I wish this superhero weight watcher blog was about leaping over problems in a single bound. I wish it were about an epic battle against super villain foods where the good guy always wins. I wish it was me saying I can finally fit into the suit and the six pack abs were real. Sadly, it is not about any of those things. As superheroes go, I’ve always felt more like the Hulk or the Thing than Superman or Batman. I suppose I could be Batman if I had the bank account. Although, there is only one real Batman (R.I.P Adam West).

Instead I find myself reflecting on a the words of our heroes. “Up, up, and away.” I am not soaring through the sky with my cape in the breeze. I simply watch the scale go up and I watched myself go away.

Next is where I am supposed to draw inspiration from the comic or the movie. To be honest ,I never even saw the movie from the photo above. I did just see the new Wonder Woman movie (Decent movie, Great Wonder Woman). I struggle to find that inspiration today. Sometimes I just wish it could be easy. I wish I could knock fists like the Wonder Twins and take the form of a skinny guy. He had to be made of water so that won’t work.

I guess the only thing I can take today is the thought that even though it seems our heroes always win they never finish. There is always another comic, always another villain around the corner. They never get to be done just like we, as weight watchers, never get to stop being weight watchers. We never get to be full time skinny guy. We will always fight to balance our secret identity with our true selves.  Will we always be Bruce Wayne donning the costume to pretend to be Batman or can we transform to the hero in our natural state like Superman who pretends to be Clark Kent.

Good will continue to fight evil. Some days good will win and some our hero will simply endure to fight another day.  We all have our superpowers and we all have our weaknesses. May your day be filled with more flight than Kryptonite. 

 

Run, WW, Run 5

Welcome back for yet another installment of Run, WW, Run my virtual cross country trek inspiring me to get fit. When last we met I had fallen short of my goal of Six Flags New England but set a target to finally leave the state and end the week at ESPN.

The week started simple with a light day ending at the Big E. Heading towards Six Flags a short stop at yet another amusement park. Hauling a giant pile of mulch on Saturday made it so I could not only pass Six Flags but finally enter my second state. I talked to my wife to plan an amusement park trip but sadly this weekend is already overbooked. We promised to go “soon” but that will require some focus on my part to make it happen. I need school and spring sports to end.  I ended the day in a residential area where I noticed a basketball hoop in the backyard.  I figured that would be an easy one this week since my younger son loves to shoot around in the backyard. The rain would make that difficult.

Sunday is my soccer day so I logged a good number of miles. I play in the morning and volunteer in the afternoon. I passed a golf course and ended the day at the New England Air Museum. There won’t be any air travel soon as our next vacation is a drive away in a few weeks but I did enjoy looking through the website at some of the cool planes. The golf course made me think of my son. This is his last week of school and for the past few years I have taken him golfing the day after his last final. That would normally be happening right now as I type but there is an event at work today. I took him to the see Wonder Woman last night instead. (More on that later)

The theme of the week was emerging but the execution was lacking. I was heading to ESPN, had landed at a basketball court, and passed a golf course. I thought maybe I can see how many sports I can fit in this week. It would be fun and get me moving. It rained most of the week but I would try.

As the work week began I entered a fitbit challenge for inspiration with my sister in law. Monday I ended the day along a country road with nothing in view but a stop sign. I had passed a gym but never made it to mine. Tuesday I found myself busy at work and  tired and only moved a total of 1.7 mi for the day. That would not win the challenge. I ended the day at a Veterinary Hospital which made me think of the dog we got and had to give away because of allergies. I gave him to a coworker so today I will track him down and get an update on how Sanford is doing.

Wednesday  I ended up home from work dealing with some house issues. (termites) I logged some good distance clearing out crawlspaces and the garage. I also played some indoor soccer for a real workout. The only notable site along the map was a Racquet club. Another data point in my week of many sports theory. The only problem was the only sport I had played through Wednesday was soccer.  I had planned for golfing Friday and if I was to make my weekly goal I would have to do some cycling because a couple of real light days left me a bit behind schedule.

So last night was my final chance. I needed 14 total miles on the day. A would go for a long bike ride….was the plan. Then it was clear I would not end up golfing Friday so I wanted to spend some time with my son. So instead of a long ride and making my goal we sat in a movie theater and watched Wonder Woman.  The week ends short of target at a PreCast concrete manufacturing site. I will lose the fitbit challenge as well. To use the end point as my metaphor. The building blocks are there but I need to start laying them down. I thought about the week as a whole. I played soccer twice and took a long walk one night. Not bad but there were a couple of days where I barely moved. That is the thing I need to work on the most.

Since I am still heading to ESPN, I will take the theme into this coming week and see how many sports I can play. Once I make it to Bristol, I will head due west to see if I can make into New York state by the end of the week.

Run, WW, Run

The WW on Alcatraz

“It’s mighty good to get up and leave. This Rock ain’t good for nobody.”
-Frank Weatherman, last con to leave (1963)

When you here the simple mention of the word Alcatraz, you can hear the cell door slamming shut. You get instant visions of Al Capone in the yard or papier-mache heads. You can feel the ice cold water. You wonder if they really drown or got away.  One of my favorite trips a was to Alcatraz. I wandered for hours. I took the guided escape tour. This weekend I found myself confronted with the Rock again but in a very different way.

4 of us played the role of guards in an Escape room. We searched the cell and prison for clues. In the end we emerged victorious with 10 minutes to spare in the fictitious timeline finding not only the escape route but the missing tool. We forever be immortalized (or at least until someone beats our time.)

As is often asked on this blog…What does this have to do with weight loss?

I’ll spare you the long prison cell analogies as I don’t see the program that way at all. I won’t drone on about using my time in the yard to get some exercise. Too predictable. I could plan my day like a well thought out escape plan. Nah!

Instead I will look at the Escape Room rather than it’s contents. It was about mixing it up. Trying something new to see if I liked it. My wife dragged us out of what would have been a boring night in otherwise. The first time for all.  There wasn’t hesitation because it sounded like fun. The only delay was seeing if I was too tired to lift myself off the couch.  The clock was beaten, fun was had and we are already talking about the next room to try out.

And so it goes with WW, whether eating a new food, trying a new restaurant or a new exercise. We can’t sit idly by watching the day pass. Mis it up. Try something, anything. If you hate it so be it you don’t have to try it again. If you like it, it may get you through a tough day later. If you love it, you have found something that can be a staple of your success.

Previous successes for me have been working grapes into my snack routine, testing out the elliptical machine and using a medicine ball. And so this week I vow to try a new food and a new exercise just for the fun of it