Walk walk walk walk walk

It's been seven weeks since I've started wearing my pedometer to keep track of how much I am walking. I had a few setbacks, most notably another serious case of bronchitis that developed into pneumonia, condemning me to more than a week of bed rest.

However, I've done alright in keeping up a certain amount of activity and mileage, summarized by week below:

Week	Steps	Moderate	Time Mod.	kcal	Miles
1	64,548	31,795	272	2432	25.59
2	55,302	22,464	189	2032	21.52
3	86,245	39,919	332	3333	35.13
4	71,113	40,186	336	2700	28.21
5	61,530	36,419	301	2536	24.46
6	43,067	24,577	208	1667	17.32
7	38.046	20,157	168	1417	14.7

I've averaged 23.84 miles per week, 4.3 hours at a moderate pace, burning 2302 calories. The total mileage I've walked since the beginning of this semester is about 166.93 miles (obviously this doesn't include the negligible days when I don't wear the pedometer around my apartment).

So I guess I am doing something, even though it's not necessarily the aggressive amount of exercise I'd like (yet).


So what have you got to show for it?

In addition to keeping a spreadsheet of my pedometer data, I've kept one of daily (or at least semi-weekly) weigh-ins. There are a lot of fluctuations, but in January, I was 183.5, and this morning I weighed 180. There have been points where I've dipped down to 179 or lower, but also times where I've jutted up to 184 or 185.

The thing I've noticed, though, is that while the scale may remain stubbornly stuck at 180, there have definitely been improvements to the distribution of fat around my body. My arms are still gigantic and disappointing, but my waist and midsection is definitely slimming down a bit. I've been able to wear a number of fitted blouses, dresses, and jackets that had been getting snug, and they've fit better than when I first got them. The particularly gratifying aspect is that those clothes are all size 12, when I've been wearing a size 14.

I have a lot, and I mean a lot of work to do before I'm going to start feeling like I've lost any weight, but it is good to feel like I am heading in the right direction. I know that I have several boxes of really cute spring and summer clothes in my parents' attic, and it would be splendid to be able to wear them again by the time the weather warms up.

I am optimistic that my lungs will have cleared fully enough that I can try jogging tomorrow, or the next day at the latest, and I'm hoping to really give my metabolism a kick by making running a regular part of my days. I did actually run a few times in February when the sidewalks were clear enough of snow and ice, and it felt terrific. I think that even though all this walking may not have as significant an impact as I might like on losing weight, it's definitely helping my leg muscle strength and cardiovascular fitness.

I'm encouraged that if I can get a big jump on the fat, I'll really get the ball rolling on my goals for the spring and summer. Naturally, I'll keep this blog posted if (should I say when?) I do.