Tag Archives: walking

13 000 More Steps to a Healthier Me

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….after work I treated myself and my good friend L to a manicure and pedicure

I’m going to a wedding tomorrow and I really needed to get my toes done. It was L’s birthday last month so I decide to treat her to a manicure and pedicure after work today. Of course it made no sense to sit and watch her being pampered so I had to treat myself as well. Besides I’ve been wearing sandals to work for a few weeks now and it was a little embarrassing when my kindergarten students pointed out that my nail polish on my toes was chipping.

After about an hour of soaking, filing and applying colour we headed over to Marshall’s to try on some clothes. I chose nine tops to try on and left with two. When I got home my husband had just pulled out one of his homemade pizzas from the oven. Yummy!

After supper Frances was eager to go for her evening walk. Even though I was tired I knew that once I got going I would really feel better for it and I do enjoy it. The rain had stopped and it looked like it would stay away for awhile. I brought along my iPhone to snap a few pictures. Before I left I checked my Jawbone Up to see how far I had walked up to this point. It registered at just over 6000 steps.

Tonight we headed towards Col. Samuel Smith Park. I’ve been letting Frances dictate how far we walk and the direction she wants to go. When we got to the park I thought for sure she’d want to turn back but no she proceeded to head towards the lake and the naturalized area of the park. I kept my eyes open for some interesting shots and I think I managed to catch a few good ones. Here are a few things we saw on our walk tonight.

When we finally got home I checked my Up bracelet and discovered that I had walked almost 13 000 steps. This is the third day in a row that I’ve walked over 10 000 steps. Last week I averaged over 11 000 steps a day. I’m hoping that this increase in movement and watching what I eat will help me lose the pounds that I put back on. Luckily I didn’t put it all back on but more than I should have. I need to learn to get right back on track as soon as the first five pounds return.

Share Your World – 2015 Week 17

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….four more thought provoking questions from Cee

What is your most favorite smell/scent?

I love scents that are citrusy, light and fresh.

Do you prefer long hair or short hair for yourself?

I prefer hair that is shoulder length or just above the shoulder. Anything shorter and I feel older. These photos were taken six years ago, four years ago and last summer. Each year my hair has gotten a little bit longer. I also lost a fair bit of weight between the second and third picture so that might also influence my decision about hair length.

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Do you plan out things usually or do you do them more spontaneous (for example if you are visiting a big city you don’t know)?

My husband and I tend to be spontaneous. We might have an area in mind or a food we’d like to experience but we don’t plan to the nth degree. If something better comes along we’re just as likely to drop our plans and go with our gut feeling.

What is your favorite outdoor activity?

I’d have to say my favourite outdoor activity is walking or riding my bike.

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Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful for a positive visit to my husband’s endocrinologist. We thought we were facing a tour of radioactive iodine treatment in the next month but his thyroglobulin levels were so low that the doctor didn’t think the treatment was necessary at this time. They will check his levels again in 6 months. Now we don’t have to worry about being around our pregnant daughter or having to give the dog away for a month while he’s radioactive.

This week I’m looking forward to more nice weather. The only downside is that the grass and weeds are growing so quickly that I’m going to have to do some heavy duty yard work over the weekend. Our daughter and her husband are also moving this weekend and I’m looking forward to helping them set up their new home in Hamilton.

The Next Wave of Snow is Upon Us

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…..last Monday we saw more snow than predicted but still no ‘Snow Day’ in Toronto

Luckily everyone else stayed off the roads so driving to work on Monday wasn’t as bad as it could have been. About one third of our students stayed home and made their own ‘Snow Day’. All the other school boards around Toronto closed schools for the day. We only cancelled buses. It’s funny how conditions for school buses are too dangerous but it’s okay for teachers and parents to get out in their cars to get to school. Go figure!

Anyway, I didn’t intend to rant about last Monday. Today we’re experiencing more snow but I’m not sure that we’re going to get as much as predicted. I’m trying to get out and walk more so late this afternoon, when the snow started I went out for a walk and on my way home I took a few photos. They’re a little grainy because it started to get dark but some of that graininess is the snow that’s coming down.

I went out again a little while ago to walk the dog but she wouldn’t go further than around the block so I think I’m going to be about a thousand steps shy of my 10 000 step goal. Maybe I’ll go out one more time without her and shovel some of that snow.

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The Summer is Half Over

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…..so much I wanted to do and can’t seem to get to

I’ve been to the cottage three times and the last time it was down right cold. I haven’t been swimming once this summer. Hopefully August will be warmer.

I’m back in the city at the moment. I’ve come home to visit my aunt in the hospital, catch  up on my emails, start on my ‘Summer Camp’ art projects and do a little more gardening. This morning I started my day by going for a walk with my husband and the dog. I actually ran for the first time in about a year when we got to the rugby pitch. I only ran 1k but it’s a start. In total I walked and ran 4.9k.

This weekend is the long weekend in Ontario (civic holiday) and I’m going to avoid the rush to get back to the cottage. I will probably head back up on Sunday when some people start returning to the city. I actually like spending time in the city on weekends. There’s always a lot to see and do. This is the big Caribbean festival in the city that attracts over a million visitors. I’ve never attended this event because I’ve always been at the cottage. Maybe this year I’ll change that.

I can’t believe I forgot the main reason for coming back to the city when I did. I just got a call from a good friend of mine, reminding me that we were suppose to meet at her house so that I could help her clean out years of stuff. In the next year or so she wants to sell her house and move to a smaller place. In the meantime she has to start parting with some of her accumulated treasures.

Well I’ve loaded up my car with some of A’s things that she’s willing to part with. Tomorrow morning I will drop them off at the Goodwill and next week I’ll come back to the city and help her get rid of more things. We also checked out a couple of antique places today that may be interested in some of her belongings. I’ve promised A that I would take photographs of some of her more interesting pieces and send them off to these stores to see if they’re interested in purchasing them.

I didn’t get over to see my aunt today. After tomorrow’s walk I have to drive my husband to our daughter’s place to pick up his bicycle (we were there for dinner tonight) and on my way back I’ll stop off at the hospital to visit with my aunt. Hopefully I can start on some of the art projects that I’ve missed. I’ve read about 100 emails today but I still have 110 to go. As for the gardening maybe I can pull a few weeds tomorrow.

Till tomorrow, cheers!

Waiting in line to get on the ferry to go back to the city.

Waiting in line to get on the ferry to go back to the city.

 

Long Walks on Weekends

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….now if only I could do that every day or at least every other day

I started this long holiday weekend with a long, 8.6k walk. Last Sunday I managed two walks totalling 9.0k but in between I didn’t walk at all. Granted it was a busy week at school and when I was on yard duty I purposely kept walking for the entire 15 minutes. On Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday I was out with the girls for soccer practice and on Wednesday night I went with the junior choir to the baseball game at the Rogers Centre where they sang the national anthems at the beginning of the game. They sang beautifully but the Blue Jays lost miserably against the Cleveland Indians, 15 to 4. It was a very late night and I didn’t get home till 11:30. I was also out on Tuesday night with friends and on Thursday I had one final appointment with the oral surgeon after school. Everything on that front looks good and I’m ready to be fitted for my dental crown next week.

All of this of course is extra over and above my regular teaching day. I also met with the board designer to have the library measured up for some renovations and the assembly that I organized for this year’s Jump Rope for Heart took place Friday morning. It always feels good to be able to check another thing off the ‘To Do List’ this time of year.

This brings me back to walking. Last week I installed a new app onto my iPhone called Strava. It tracks my distances, times, calorie output and maps out the routes that I’ve taken. I just push start at the beginning of my walk and stop when I’m done. It does all the calculations for me. I love it and on Mother’s Day, A and J bought me an armband to put my iPhone into when I’m running so I don’t have to carry the phone in my hand or worry about it falling out of a pocket (if I have one).

Walk on May 17th, 2014

If you click on the link you’ll notice that it calls my walk a run. I haven’t figured out how to change that to walk but I did for the first time in a long time run part of today’s walk. It wasn’t far, maybe 1/2 a kilometre but it’s a start. During the walk I stopped a few times to take some photos of the birds in Sam Smith Park. There’s a bird sanctuary there and it is nesting season so there’s lots of activity there. One of the highlights for me on today’s walk was seeing one of the male swans building up the nest and the female sitting on her eggs. It was a bit cool today so she never got off the eggs but the last count had her sitting on five eggs.

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I have to admit that I got a bit carried away with today’s walk and completely lost track of time. I was gone for over two hours and my husband called me on my phone to make sure I was okay. The nice feature about Strava is that is only records the time you are actually moving.

When I did finally get home it was time for lunch and then I spent about two hours working in the garden. Our beautiful White Pine has died and it is slated to be cut down in the near future. One of the jobs that I tackled today was removing the river rock that surrounds the tree. We’re having the stump removed right away so everything around the bottom of the tree has to be cleared away. It’s a much bigger job than I thought and I’ve only removed about half of the rocks. My husband was building a new raised garden bed today so I volunteered to start tossing rocks (literally tossing them across the path and into the side garden).

Here are a few more photos from my morning walk. Enjoy!

A Beautiful Saturday – Why am I Creating a To Do List?

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….am I crazy or just practical?

I suspect I’m doing this because it needs to be done

To Do List for April 12, 2014

rake front lawn
sprinkle bone meal on garden
take out garden furniture
clean out bird cage
do laundry – started
take out summer clothes and put away winter clothes
clean oven – started
write post – started
go for a walk
dust living room floor and shelves – floors done
vacuum carpets upstairs and down – started
take photographs

As you can see I’ve already started some of these chores. I think I need to fill the gaps with some fun stuff.

My husband must be feeling my energy this morning because he’s started raking the back yard and he’s taken out our bikes and cleaned them off. Maybe we can get out for a ride this afternoon. Well, I’m off to start some work outside as well. Maybe by putting this out there for the world to see I might actually accomplish all of the things on my To Do List or at least get 90% of it done. Wish me luck. I’ll report later today to let you know how I successful I’ve been.

On the fitness and weight loss journey: I’m struggling. Up 3 and down 2. Today’s goal is to get out and move and drink at least 4 large glasses of water. One glass down and 3 to go.

I thought I posted this 2 hours ago. Apparently not. In the meantime I’m down 3 glasses of water, 2 loads of laundry, raked the front and the back yard, finished cleaning the oven, sprinkled bone meal on the garden, and took out the garden furniture. I also took down the Christmas lights, trimmed the yew and bagged 2 bags of yard waste. Now let’s see if I can get this thing posted…..an ongoing problem.

Walking for the First Time in Months

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….all the conditions were perfect this morning

Sunny, clear sidewalks and roads, very little wind and temperatures above -10 degrees celsius. I didn’t even wear my down parka but a hat and mittens were still necessary. 

It felt like ‘old times’ with my husband and I taking Frances for a walk. There’s still a lot of snow in the park and on peoples properties but walkways have been cleared and there are lots of packed down paths in the park. Frances loved running back and forth on the rugby pitch and exploring the creek (luckily it’s completely frozen over). We stopped to get a coffee but the Tim Horton’s on the campus grounds was closed for reading week. 

We decided to take a bit of detour and go to Rabba to pick up a few items for breakfast at home. Good decision. We made a pot of coffee and cooked up some eggs and sausages and served them on a wrap with tomato and avocado slices. Delicious!

A great start to a beautiful day. By the way our walk covered 4 kilometres.

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Share Your World – Week 6

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….this week’s questions definitely have an ‘Olympic’ theme….how fitting

Have you watched or plan to watch any of the 2014 Winter Olympics?

I haven’t watched any of the Olympics. I’ve listened to and watched the results on the news. My husband has no interest in these Olympics. The negative politics around the treatment of the gay community in Russia has put a damper on the Olympics for us. I’m glad that there haven’t been any ‘incidents’ and I’m hoping that there won’t be a terrorist attack while the games are on or for that matter, ever. I’m sure that I will sneak a peak at a few events that I love to watch.

What is your favorite winter Olympic event? Would you ever want to be an expert in that sport?

I love the luge and bobsled runs, all skiing events and speed skating. I don’t think that I could ever be an expert in any of these sports. High speeds scare me too much, especially going downhill.

Have you ever met an Olympic Athlete?

My husband’s cousin, Wendy Weibe, was in the summer Olympics in 1996, for rowing. This is one sport that I could be an expert in. About 10 years ago I took up rowing for two seasons. I loved it. I competed in both 8 man and 4 man boats.

Do you have a favorite athlete? Name sport.

I don’t really identify with athletes. I like some team sports but I’m not a huge fan for any one sport. Consequently I don’t really know the name of athletes. Now if some of our teams actually performed well I might become a fan. I do like soccer and if some of the high profile acquisitions actually work out I might find a favourite athlete.

Toronto FC

What is your favorite exercise or sport? Is there a reason why?

My favourite team sport is volleyball because I used to play and now I coach (well I did). I also coach basketball, soccer and running. My personal favourite exercise is walking and running. I can’t wait for the weather to warm up a bit so that I can get back outside and at least walk. I also like cross country skiing but this winter has been too cold and driving to ski trails has been too treacherous. I’m also looking forward to getting back on my bike as soon as the snow melts.

 

From Zero to Hero – Day 7

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Today’s assignment: create and upload a simple header, or test out a few different backgrounds.

 

Todays post is going to be short. I’m constantly changing my header and I just recently put the present header in place so I’m not changing my header today. I’m just not feeling it. A while back I discovered that I could change my background and I went from a solid colour to a bin of yellow peppers to what I have now which is a piece of my artwork. Not everything you’ll try will work. Simple and bold seems to work best. Anything with a lot of detail just gets lost behind your text box.

Today’s Job

Today I spent a lot of time in the kitchen cleaning  and  putting away the things that tend to get left out on the counter. I also swept up all the pine needles from the Christmas tree that the garbage truck finally picked up today. One box of ornaments has been packed up and the Christmas stockings have all been removed from the living room. It’s a slow process but I’ll do a little bit everyday until it’s done. Hopefully the last of the decorations will be safely packed away by the end of the weekend.

Update on the heating problem at school:

The library was nice and warm today but the custodian did say that it was pretty cold in the morning when he arrived. His solution was to turn off all the fans and that did the trick. The fans seemed to be pulling in the cold air from the outside. The kindergarten rooms now have heat but two of the portables were still without heat early this morning. One of the classes spent half the day in the library again but by the afternoon the problem was fixed.

I was outside for a short spell this morning and I walked through the halls during first recess but my goal to move has been seriously hampered by the weather. The temperatures, however, have been getting warmer everyday so hopefully tomorrow I can resume my walking routine without any fear of getting frostbite.

Till tomorrow, cheers!