Day 30 - Feeling spritely

One third of the way through and my knees are coming back to life!  338 jumps in a row during the workout this evening... and I could actually do the creeps, however cautiously.  I was sure those and the floorjumps would be the end of me, but amazingly I can walk up stairs better than I could in a long time.  Need some work on the V-sits -- those are tough after doubling up. On the diet side, not a very exciting dinner menu this week.  I am looking forward to trying out the ratatouille menu Simon sent, to spice things up.

Day 27 - Day after indulgence

Had a couple of drinks yesterday for indulgence.  Another economic benefit of PCP - now the first drink goes right to your head.  I couldn't possibly drink as much as before without being carted off in a stretcher. I knew I'd be saving money on alcohol during PCP from less consumption, but this was an added surprise. No particular problems with beer bubbles, despite Patrick's warning. Didn't really splurge on the food, only 4 peanuts. Perhaps I'll go for the bacon double cheeseburger on the next indulgence day.

Day 22 - Knees don't fail me now

I know we're eating less food, but it really doesn't feel that way. The high frequency of meals and snacks has made it easier than expected so far. And down over 5kg (from 102.5 to 97.25), after this evening's workout. This morning I even tightened my belt up a notch!

It was very good taking a few days off work last week and making sure to get the full 8hrs sleep.  That will be more difficult now that I'm back in the office. My knees are making a comeback, too. The chronically bad left knee got worse in week 2, but recovered. On the right, my "good" knee has also gone bad but improved with lots of ice in the last few days. I'm cringing at the thought of those new and exotic "creep" and "floorjump" exercises planned later this week. I may need to find a less painful alternative, although the warmup value of the jumprope has been working wonders daily.

Day 16 - In pain, but many good signs

It appears things are going well with exercise and some clear signs that I am shedding some weight (nearly 4 kg, only 98.6kg after evening workout)! ... very motivating :) Some concern with the continuing knee pain, so took it a little lighter on lunges and squats yesterday and today. I have been jumping and doing leg exercises on a very soft, thick rubber surface, but still swelling/ stiffening up and hobbling about during the day. Fortunately, the jumping is a great warmup and I'm remarkably limber after that step in the daily routine.  Diet has not posed any notable trouble yet -- it's still a lot of food. I never ate so much for breakfast! Particularly loving the fruit snack breaks throughout the the day.  Great  variety now available at the closest 100yen convenience store (mangos, watermelon, pineapple, peaches, grapes). I haven't even touched the bananas and kiwis yet...

Day 13 - Only 24hrs in a day

Time commitment for PCP is starting to be a challenge living alone.  Outside of work hours, it's all shopping, cooking, dishes. Getting the 8hours of sleep doesn't fit in very easily.  I'm very curious how to maintain decent condition after 90 day.  On the good side, I'm under 100kg for the first time in probably more than a year... yeah!

Day 9 - No pushups, thank you

Glad for some relief from the pushups today...alternating with standing ovations is a welcome change. Leg stiffness is going away, so the increase in activity this week is going alright... feeling like a pro on the jump ropes now.  Although its taking more time than I'm used to, I am enjoying the chance to get creative in the kitchen with a shorter list of ingredients-- old skills I haven't used much since college.  For lunch tomorrow: Lime chicken, topped with avocado/ tomato salsa ...yum!

Day 5 - No day is the same...

Exercise:
On the good side, jumping rope is easier and non-stop sets are possible! On the bad side, the push-ups are killing me and I am finishing the last two sets kiddy-style on my knees %?#!

Diet:
On the good side, a half diet is still a lot of food :) On the bad side, a half diet is still a lot of food!

Day 3 - Ouch

So far so good with the exercise, although getting in and out of chairs was quite difficult from day-after muscle stiffness.  Ouch, ouch, ouch. Feeling the burn in the legs and chest especially.  These are muscles I haven't been using despite swimming, walking, and biking frequently before.

The half diet feels pretty good so far... taking time to eat more slowly makes things taste better when you think about it. One burrito wrap (instead of two), skipping the bread, leaving some of the rice on the plate, black coffee instead of sweetened caffe latte, water instead of juice, etc. It looks like a piece of cake, compared to the exercise. Day 63 PCPer from the office (Patrick S.) advised that there's no need to overindulge in fruit at lunch just yet... seems like it may be more challenging in the coming weeks. がんばってる！