Aquapause
With mixed feelings I’ve suspended my swimming regimen of several sets of 2,500yds or meters per set, usually 4-5 sets per week or more. Two reasons: a lingering flu/cold which makes water workouts difficult (restricted breathing), and wanted to see how 63×63 would go without benefit of that exercise. MediFasting, could I match or exceed the same weight loss I’d previously achieved just by swimming without changing my eating habit significantly?
Answer: looks like a ‘yes’. Haven’t been swimming since the MediFast started January 9th, and my weight today was 221.1. ‘Yes’ will be confirmed when my weight holds under 220 for at least 3 days.
When/if I reach a new low of 215 I’ll probably start swimming again just to make sure ketosis and the new metabolism are optimized. Bear in mind – I haven’t consistently weighed under 220 for at least 5 years. Much of my blubber is as old as my daughter (24).
[Speaking of whom: when she was about 3 or 4, to encourage a diet I was on, my wife put up a picture of a younger me with far more hair, much less weight, and actual lean and mean 6-pack, delts, and pecs - in short, a 30-something's decent swimmer's bod. One day I noticed my daughter intently staring up at that picture on the refrigerator door with a puzzled look. She caught me looking, did a couple of quick double-takes between the pic and me, then said, "Daddy, is that a picture of you when you were a baby?" Today she has a year-old daughter of her own with just as much or more brazen smarts. I'm already loving living out the adventure with them - and it's just getting started!]
But here’s another motivation: previously, I cherished those all-too-few wonderful moments when I’d seize my stroke and glide across the water like a solo scull vs. pushing through it like an overloaded barge. Those moments better, longer, and more frequent as my weight dropped. So I’m eager to test new aquadynamics at a lower weight – hopefully to discover a new and improved version of that rush. I may even wait ’til 210 or better, 200!
Obviously I’m starting to feel better about the MediFast results. Though it’s nonetheless the same cruel gruel.
