LAST SIX MONTHS
So I moved back downtown. And healed from surgery and was so optimistic about it all. And worked out like I did in the past to lose. And I was losing.2 and then .6 and then a pound for weeks and months. And there is nothing more frustrating than working out and getting nowhere. And forget the scale none of my clothes were any different. And I was perplexed. And more than frustrated and really thought it's the 40s. Something changed around 42 and thought "is this it?". And this all worked five years ago. So WT H?
But no scale loss or size loss did not mean no fitness gain
One day I was in the library and I came across a magazine with sh!t name???? Gilmore Girl now Parenthood. Anyway the headline talked how HR monitoring changed her life. And I read it. She was always an athlete had become very frustrated (and happened to be near our age) and her trainer talked about keeping all her workouts somewhere between 60 and 85% - hers all now between 70 and 85% and never going over. It was a trainer saying this to her.
And I thought "God here we go again - one only loses at the lower end - blah blah blah...."
Whatever.
But I kept reading it over and over and it wouldn't leave me. A synchronicity kind of feeling.
And it had a 30 minute interval workout attached. And it was insanely low. It went something like this 55% recovery minute - 60% on - RECOVERY minute and up and up and up until you reached 85% in ten minutes and then back down the scale and back up until you reached three times over and 30 minutes.
So I thought WT H and bought a new HR monitor. Did my old intervals and realized I spent TONS of time in the 150s, 160s, 170s etc. Not because I was unfit. Because I pushed myself like a maniac and enjoyed that kind of high intensity workout. Some of it was weight based and I would fly up anaerobically and then go nuts on the cardio part. I could take it but now it wasn't giving results.
So we followed the article.
Jean and I tried it and were in WT H hysterics.
It seemed like we weren't even exercising.
We weren't used to slow at all. I think I actually laughed out loud the first time.
I threw out the 55% - can never get back down.
And my numbers are 114 - 123 - 131 - 140 and 148 (for my age of 44 - have to change it in May). My down interval I just say "lower than the up interval and call it a day".
I did it for an hour and for awhile I was in ego mode. This is slow and insane. THe 140 and 148 were okay though. Jean's is even lower numbers b/c she's older.
Jean LOST HUGE size instantly with it. Weight not so much. But she's 172-175 and looks like she's about 130 tops. She's 5'8". She looks skinny and small. And clothes were huge change.
I couldn't tell because just after I started in December I got really sick for three weeks or more. Ended up to be an ear infection and every single time I tried to workout I got worse.
But now I'm on it. I don't even let my weights day go much over my 85% anymore. Which doesn't make sense b/c weights should be anaerobic. Now I just shuffle for a bit to get it out of the 150s - 160s and continue on.
At first I was embarrassed in my gym to do it. And now I don't care. I've lost every week. But even more importantly - size is lowering suddenly. And diet has not changed.
So two people - changes.
My conclusions:
You can't think about the past with this. At 20 85% is 170. THEY/WE had to push ourselves. Now we simply don't.
I never told any of you this - but often with hard workouts I would get muscle how do I put it? NOt normal pain - but a stress in the muscle - heavy feeling (not the good one muscle exhaustion which I ADORE) and it stopped a restful sleep at times - IT HASN'T HAPPENED ONCE since I've kept under 148 . Not once.
We can't let our age bring on ego. I'm getting great workouts with advanced body weight moves but I do now stop and shuffle in between if I've gone too high in HR - before I just pushed and pushed and pushed.
Why did my workouts work for size loss before? Because I was younger so much closer to not going over 85%
I still believe hormones of the 40s makes a difference despite all this.
And many believe high intensity should be a shortened workout or you'll overexert your engine and will pay for it and I believe it.
Or a fruit plate? 
It's so important to properly fuel our bodies so that we are drawing our energy from the appropriate sources (our food we've eaten or our fat stores, not our muscle) or our workouts become counter-productive.
- truly - I'm educated enough to know there are endless passionate debates about all of this in the fitness world.
So sorry to hear that. 
.
And she has the horrific Jacobs Ladder. Torture device that thing. Bleh. 
I hope it's that simple too, Ronda. I'll be thinking of you.
Freaked him out just a little bit. 
