MTSS, not TOFTS

I weighed in this past Tuesday and had lost 5.6 pounds the first week back on Weight Watchers.  I'm really glad I got off to a strong start, and it was more of a loss than I expected, but having a good showing the first week wasn't that big of a surprise since I've been on this roller coaster ride a few times now:

     1)  I'm a guy and we can drop a significant number in a hurry when we try,
     2)  I went from zero activity to a bunch of long dog walks and a few jogging/walking solo excursions, and
     3) I tracked everything and stayed within the allowed points.

On that last item, I did pretty much wipe out the additional weekly allowance, but still stayed within the boundaries.  The one thing I love about Weight Watchers is that NOTHING is off limits.  A splurge (high point value) is expected (hence the additional weekly points), but can be easily compensated by going with lower point values on other meals during the day or tacking on some extra activity (which earns you more points).  If you're dealing with a weight issue and don't know about Weight Watchers, check it out.

My first jog/walk was last Friday.  I had plenty to keep me busy over the weekend, bleeding into Monday, so I figured I'd do a Tuesday-Thursday-Saturday schedule this week for the jogging attempts.  I'm still doing the 3.7 mile loop close to the house, but, I was hoping that I could hook up with a couple of the guys on Saturday for a little morale/camaraderie and try out a different terrain where they lived (there's a natural green way there instead of the paved roads and concrete sidewalks where I live which is more like what we'll be running for the Warrior Dash).

Tuesday was good.  I felt good starting out and even better when I finished.  I didn't go on Thursday.  No reason, but plenty of excuses.  Today (Friday), I wanted to compensate and get on the road early, but I got caught up in work stuff and couldn't cut loose until about 1:30.  Working from home full time has its benefits.

I'd had a big breakfast and, while I was a tad peckish, figured I could put in the hour or so before having lunch.  Plenty of coffee during the morning, several glasses of water before starting out, so I thought I was ready to go.

As soon as I went outside, my legs felt a little tight, so I did some stretching.  I started out jogging down hill and kept jogging until my shins started bothering me...for a whole, full, entire four minutes.

FOUR minutes???  C'mon!  The first time out, my worst was five.  And it wasn't my shins, but I'd started out too hard and fast and got winded.  Man!  So, I walked for a while, then started jogging again down hill.  As I started up the next hill, I wanted to push to get to the top (it wasn't that steep or far), but I just couldn't make it.  More walking.  I kept pushing on like that until I was about a mile or so away from the house.  At that point, I felt like someone had taken a pipe to my shins.  Twenty minutes in, and I was done.

Of course, I was a mile away from home, so I just walked the rest of the way.  I was disappointed.  My shins were killing me and I wondered why I hadn't brought my cell phone to call my wife for emergency assistance.  Heck, I don't think I've even told her about the route I'm taking and to come looking for me after 24 hours.  But as I kept walking it hit me:  dude, you've been at this for a single week!

By the time I got home, the shin problem had disappeared.  I mean, I could still feel that I'd pushed myself, but it was to the point where I was able to walk without feeling like a cattle prod was stuck to them with each step.  In fact, since I'd failed to complete my planned activity, I took each of our three dogs for the half-mile loop around our block.

I knew about "shin splints" from my earlier years of running, but, like everything else now, there's a neat and cool new medical term for it.

"Medial tibial stress syndrome (MTSS)" sounds so much better than getting "too old for this stuff (TOFTS)."

Still waiting to hear if the other misfit toys are going to want to come out to play tomorrow....