Bataan Death March to Mt. Lassen

Mt. Lassen by Smack / Wikimedia Commons

Alright, I know it's not that hard by any stretch, but "training" for a relatively mild hike when you're essentially sedentary kinda sucks. But I'm doing it, so I should get a little credit, right? Coincidentally, the most recent BatFit challenge from Le Professeur Gothique was to "get outside," & while I'm not outside right now (this is Northern California's rainy season), I'm planning to go outside, & again, I should get some points for trying.

See, my husband & I are planning to hike at Mt. Lassen as part of a little roadtrip in July. We're driving up the coast to Oregon, making stops at NorCal breweries, visiting friends, & going to one of California's biggest mountains in between. He hiked Lassen as a kid, but I've never been.

To get in shape, I figured I should increase how much I walk, & the easiest (if most tediously boring) way is the treadmill at the gym in my office complex. I can do it during lunch for 20 minutes, set a steep hill pattern on the machine, & just go.

I hate it, but I hate all forms of exercise, so that's not new. I used to run, for about 3 years, even did a few 10k races, but I got bored. I've tried various dance classes & yoga & weights & Wii Fit, but I got bored. I had a ton of exercise tapes/DVDs, but I got bored -- although back then, there weren't anything like these spooky workout DVDs recommended by Stripy Tights & Dark Delights -- I'm kind of tempted.

I haven't been able to stick with an exercise routine in ages. They either make me feel like a hamster in a wheel or simply frustrate me & they ultimately bore me to tears. Unlike my hubbi, who loves the hell out of inline hockey & plays as much as he can. He's ready to take on that mountain; I need to catch up to him by July!

Well, I managed to hit that treadmill hard twice this week, & I got in over a mile of serious walking around the neighborhood doing errands (with a little rain, even). Let's hope I can keep this up.

Another Short Week

January is weird. It usually starts out with a short week, due to a New Year's Day holiday, not to mention a 12th Night celebration that makes me all distracted from work. Then, nary two weeks later, we have a holiday for Martin Luther King Jr. I'm not complaining, just pointing out how odd it is & how the confluence of holidays makes for a difficult readjustment after all the "big" holidays of December.

Add to that my continued head cold *and* the fact that my department moved to a different building today, & I'm all sorts of discombobulated. So the rather blah outfits continue. Sorry...

What I'm wearing:
Purple ribbed turtleneck top, unknown brand
Black jeans, Levi's
Black crochet duster, Coldwater Creek
Purple & gunmetal tiered necklace, NY & Company
Gunmetal hoop earrings, random accessory store
Black buckle ankle boots, Aldo

Also, I'm taking on LPG's latest BatFit challenge: Give up one bad habit & replace it with one good habit. This is specifically inspired by my office move, because the new cubicle is on the fourth floor of the building, whereas the last few cubes have been on the second floors.

My bad habit is that I'm extremely sedentary. I despise exercise! I'm a supreme couch potato, & I pretty much hate all forms of movement other than walking to actually go somewhere (aimless "walking around the block" bores me silly).

Some years ago, I did Weight Watchers & forced myself to take up running. I did stuck with it for a while, even ran a local 10k race a few times in a row. But I never enjoyed it & always resented the time it took away from things I'd prefer to be doing, which is, oh, anything else. I've tried dance-as-exercise classes of various types, I've tried yoga & tai chi, I've tried Wii Fit, & I cannot stick with any of them.

However, I can walk up the stairs. Not all the time. But at least once a day. Four flights of stairs. Just once a day means I don't have to force myself to do it when I'm carrying my coffee (the espresso bar is on the first floor), & it won't be a huge travail on days when I wear high heels (because I love my fancy shoes & I'm not going to switch shoes just for this). I already walked up the stairs once today!

BatFit 2021 - Joining the Bandwagon

I'm not, historically, a joiner (I'm a splitter), but Le Professeur Gothique had a good idea with this one. BatFit is a goth healthy living challenge for the new year, & how can I resist such a cute name?

First off, no, it's not a diet, & second off, no, it's not a New Year's resolution. Both are doomed to failure. But how about a restarting of some wise movements towards health that I know I should be doing anyway, with prodding from a like-minded group? Nothing wrong with that.

I'm not going to obsess about it, & most of my posting will probably be on the BatFit Facebook group. But some may sneak into this blog, thus, an introductory post now.
LPG has a weekly challenge for BatFit, & I may or may not post about that. For example, the first one was to create & write in a paper journal, & while part of me finds that idea charming, realistically, I know I won't keep it up. So I'm skipping that (see? splitter!).

However, I figured I'd share some of my personal goals for the project...

More Mindfulness -- In the yogic traditions, mindfulness is key to living a centered, less stressful, & more aware life. Being mindful & in the moment helps you enjoy what you have & who you are. There are three categories I specifically plan to be more mindful of this year: money, eating, & time.

Mindful money: Think twice before spending money & spend only on what matters. My husband & I have a lot of house repairs & maintenance to do this year, so our money must be spent more carefully & everything that we pay for should be in mind of these long-term goals.

Mindful eating: Eat with care, eat things that nourish & that feel good without overloading. Drink consciously & thoughtfully, sip slowly. Sensually savor each taste. Be mindful of quantity & quality.

Mindful time: Plan ahead & follow thru. Get things done that are important to me. Spend time with those I love, not those I merely tolerate. Schedule so I don't feel rushed.

Two To-Dos -- I have a couple specific things I want to get done this year which don't fall into any particular category, but they feel like cleansing, clarifying tasks & kind of fit into this post...

Reorganize my sewing room: First, get Kendra's old cutting table, & give my old cutting table to Sarah. Then go thru every box, bin, & shelf to sort out stuff & re-sort. Throw out things I don't use & won't ever use (ehem, patterns, fabric scraps!). Relabel all the boxes & bins, plus reorganize my fabric stash iPhone app to coordinate. Only then will I be set for a year of creative pursuits!

Upgrade my work-from-home wardrobe: Stop wearing PJs & at least switch to yoga pants or leggings & nice tunics. Yes, this will require some shopping (start by thrifting for tops at least). Get dressed to work at the home office, not a full outfit with tights & lipstick, but just something less slovenly than a freebie tech T-shirt. An outfit worth blogging about once in a while.