Work Out Wednesdays: Technology

The New Year has gotten off to a good start and it's all due to technology. Seriously, if I'd known it was this easy to motivate myself by upgrade my old stuff to devices actually from this decade (wow, I meant that as a joke, but it sadly is a true statement), I would have done this months or years ago. Let's break it down.

• The New Ipod. Dan got me a Nano for Christmas and, while I already had an Ipod Mini (remember those?), this new one has given me the motivation to actually treat it well. And maybe more importantly, we found a way to get downloads for free (shh!). I went hog-wild! Crazy! I've always had lists going of all the music I wanted to get someday, but it would have cost me hundreds of dollars. With my new Ipod and all my new music, I am excited to hop on the treadmill. I want to listen to my new music and I only let myself do it if I'm working out, so it's become great motivation. Now, if I could only learn how to use it properly. I swear, no exaggeration, I accidentally restart my shuffle at least 3 times each time I run. So. Incredibly. Frustrating. But once I get past that and can keep downloading new music to keep myself excited, this should be easy.
• My new phone. There's a reason they are called smart phones: they are so much smarter than the people that use them. And mine has outsmarted me in two ways: 
1. The calendar. I found this guide online of how to train for a 5K and I committed to it. By committing to it, I marked out time in my phone calendar for each and every workout for 10 weeks. 10 whole weeks. Granted, I'm sure things will have to shift around at some point, but for now, I know which days I work out and what I do on those days. And let me just say, if you plan on trying this workout plan, it is intense. Or maybe I'm just really out of shape, but being on the treadmill for a an hour every other day really takes a toll on your feet quickly. My feet are going to be so ugly by the end of this, but my legs will be awesome!
2. The Calorie Counter. FatSecret (don't you hate that name? I hate it!) makes a great food tracker app. I tried planning my food out. I really did, but it just got to be too hard. So, I'm tracking everything I eat with this app. And it's great because it's got a huge database filled with almost every food you can imagine and its nutritional information, so it does all the totals for you. It sums up the calories and lets you know what percentage of the calories you've eaten that you need to eat that day based on your weight goals. I check it before I eat something so I know the serving size. I record what I eat after I eat it. I note the exercise I did that day. 

I feel like I'm on the right track. For some reason, deep in my bones, this time feels different. I can envision myself in my newer, healthy body at the end of this. I am committed to making a solid run at it. I know I've said that before, but hopefully, I won't have to say it again.