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Year Four, Day 305: ADF Fasting, Creating Space, and Finding Freedom!

 


Hello Again My Friends!

What a glorious day it is here in Portland, Oregon. There is a bit of a chill in the air, but I am fine with that.  The skies are blue and sun is brilliant!  A good day for a walk! A good day to breathe and just appreciate life!

A good day for just about anything. I woke up this morning feeling free of my Sisyphus stone.  Maybe it was my venting yesterday on this here blog?  Maybe it was the fact that I confronted all the issues that were nagging me.

It couldn't be that I got a good night's sleep.  I got a few hours of deep sleep. But then I woke up in the wee hours with a plan!  I decided to tackle my eating situation. Which has really deteriorated lately.

I would hate to gain back all the weight I lost. And now that I am a regular at my neighborhood gym, I would hate all that hard work, sweat and sore muscles be wasted!

I pretty much just want to be free from this weight.  Maybe that is the stone I've been pushing uphill. Like Sisyphus that I mentioned yesterday. But my stone is about 50 pounds of body fat! Eeeeyeeww!

I have decided to jump on the ADF fasting wagon. ADF = Alternate Day Fasting.  Heck, I survived intermittent fasting. At my best, I was not eating before 10 am and after 4 pm. 

In my current situation, this is not so feasible. I work everyday from about 3 until 8 pmish. At which point, no matter how much I ate during the day, I feel the need for some comfort. Of the food sort.

Did I mention I am spending way too much money eating out?  I am.  

So I did a bit of research in the wee hours of this morning and then I designed my new eating plan.  Here, I will share it with you, if you are interested:

Monday, Wednesday and Friday:  Fast. On the plan I'm doing, I can eat up to 500 calories on my fast days.  I plan on stocking up on celery sticks, peanut butter, tuna, hard boiled eggs, apples, oranges, Lean Cuisine or similar low calorie frozen meals, Greek yogurt, Slim Fast drinks, bottled water, tea...I teach about 4 hours each of my fasting days. So I will calculate the calories before I pack up my lunches for the day. Then I will only eat what I pack! No meals out on my fasting days. 

Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday:  Eat Normally.  Not dieting. But I'd like to focus on healthy, whole foods on my normal eating days.  Maybe allow a few treats, just to enjoy my life.

And of course, continue with my workouts. I aim for 5 days a week at the gym. I am on Day 26 today!  I usually do weights, Qi Gong and hooping when I'm at my neighborhood gym, which is a small, older gym that I love. There is a large room upstairs where they often hold classes. But in the morning and late evening, it is empty. I do a nice workout and stretch and enjoy me time while doing something really good for myself!

On days when I go to the newer clubs, I do a lot of cardio - especially the elliptical, which I love!

One daily routine I am enjoying is my morning tea and computer time at the neighborhood coffee shop. I have finally gotten caught up with scheduling new students and the initial work of setting up spring piano recitals. In addition, I redid my spring term schedule to allow myself breathing room. I think my out-of-sortedness had a lot to do with not having any space in my life.  

Soooo...I created space! I feel free!  Maybe this is all tied into breathing and feeling free? As an asthmatic, I am uber aware of my breath.  Aha! I just had an aha moment!  The mask mandate expires on 03/12/2022 here in Oregon. We will all be free again! But, as I told my sweet barista friend this morning, we are adults. We can decide when to mask up. Personally, I think I will wear my mask on the bus.  

Freedom! Space! Breath! I am connecting dots here as I type - I told you blogging is therapeutic!  I used to journal quite a bit. I have boxes of old journals I am a little anxious about peering into. 

The beauty of blogging for me, is I feel like I am having a conversation. One-sided albeit, but as my boyfriend pointed out, I do like to hear myself talk!  I think it helps to know that people are out there reading my struggles, my victories, my aha! moments...I do not feel so alone in this world!

Even though I pushed my stone through Hades, I am finally seeing results. By putting one foot in front of the other, I finally have made progress! And this stone I am rolling up the hill has gotten much smaller. Now that I have created space, I am finding time to blog, work on my Avon orders, knit, read for pleasure, daydream and just breathe!

And for the icing on the cake - I even feel closer to my mate.  He is a sensitive soul like me, but I'm not sure he realizes it.  When I am tense and out of sorts, he responds similarly. And hence the tension rises.  

But today? No tension. Only freedom and joy!

I think I will leave it here.  

Have a joyful day! 


Talk soon.


Love,


Zita








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