Loving… my new goal of walking 10,000 steps every day. I officially sent in my cancellation notice to my gym, which meant I needed to figure out what I was going to do for exercise. Okay, that’s a lie because I haven’t even been using the gym, but making that decision to quit the gym prompted me to think about what I wanted to do for exercise. And I decided to dust off my FitBit and commit to walking 10,000 steps every day. It is a HARD goal and requires getting in a 30-45 minute walk every day. And also, it forces me to get up from my desk and take short walks outside throughout the day. But I am really enjoying this new challenge. It’s great for my mental health (fresh air! exercise! vitamin d!) and great for sleep because my body is so ready to rest after being in motion all day.
Loathing… SI joint pain. The unpleasant side effect of moving my body to the tune of 10,000 steps a day is that I’m experiencing some soreness and pain in my tailbone. I think it might be my SI joint (that’s what Dr. Google tells me), so I’m trying to do some light stretching after I take a long walk. It seems to be helping, but I also think it may be time for me to visit a chiropractor. I’ve wanted to visit a chiropractor for a really long time because I’m pretty sure my spine is all sorts of jacked up after spending almost a decade at a desk job, even though I’m kinda terrified it will be super painful. But this SI joint pain is also pretty damn painful, so if a chiro can figure it out for me and allow me to friggin walk without pain, it’s worth it.
Watching… the last season of The Office. Y’all. It’s been a struggle to get through this season. The writing is just not at the level I expect from this show, and I kinda hate all of the plotlines. I even stopped it around episode 8 or 9 to watch four seasons of Friends back to back. But I am determined to finish this series at long last! Only a few more episodes to go, and I’m pretty sure I’ll cry like a baby at the series finale. I’m also slowwwwly making my way through season 3 of Mad Men. There’s just something about this show that doesn’t have me on the edge of my seat to watch the next episode, but I also enjoy it when I’m watching it. It’s weird.
Listening to… Dirty John. I know, I know. I’m wayyyy behind on this true crime podcast, but I was a little wary to listen to it because true crime can be a little too much for me. As I suspected, this podcast has been a bit triggering for me, but in a way I didn’t expect. It’s not triggering because of the scary content, but because Dirty John is eerily reminiscent of my dad, right down to the threatening phone messages, blaming his failures on everyone else, and manipulating women. At this point, I’m over halfway done so I think I’ll power through and finish it, but ugh. Why are men so terrible?!
Anticipating… the start of football season. I am so ready for the new NFL season and to spend my Sundays at my mom’s watching the games with my brother. There’s truly nothing better than that!
Grateful… to be feeling the best I’ve felt in a really long time. I would say that this is probably the best I’ve felt in maybe a year? Life has just been hard in a lot of different ways since October, which is when my vet told me it was time to start seriously monitoring Dutch for quality of life. From October – February, I was in a constant state of stress because taking care of a geriatric, blind, deaf dog who had dementia was a lot of work, especially for one person. Not to mention, I was constantly worried about Dutch and trying to make every day as comfortable and happy for him as possible. Then, I had to let Dutch go, and, well, my grief process has been very well documented on this blog. It’s been rough learning to live without him, but I feel like I’m finally beginning to see the light and find my way out. It feels really good.
Needing… to put a ban on Amazon. It’s actually gotten worse and not better since canceling Prime because now I just buy enough to qualify for free shipping (which usually means I add a book to my cart because why not?) and then order. I’ve placed five separate orders in August alone (totaling at least $30 each time…), so I think it’s time for me to tackle a shopping ban in September. My credit card needs a break.
What are you watching and anticipating?
Girrrrl, get yourself a chiropractor appointment! Overall, it shouldn’t hurt at all and you’ll feel incredible after. My gal uses a technique called Active Release Therapy, which is like a tough massage coupled with stretching out your joints, so I suggest looking for someone who DOESN’T use that technique if you’ve never been before. But chiropractic treatments are my go-to when everything is out of sorts.
I’ve never watched The Office! It just doesn’t really seem to appeal to me, other than the memes that are created out of various screenshots 😉
That’s good to know! I ended up getting a massage, which helped somewhat but I’m still having tailbone pain when I walk so I think it’s time to get over my fear and see a chiropractor. I’m glad to hear it’s been such a positive experience for you!
Definitely go to the chiropractor. I’ve had to see one at various points of my life and it’s been a life saver! They can be miracle workers!!
I pretty much only watch the news these days, which is pretty depressing! Phil will sometimes watch things in the evening but I read a book instead usually. My early bedtime makes it so hard for us to watch things together but maybe when I’m done pumping we will get back to finding a show to watch? I pump at 7:30 and head upstairs to read after that so I can turn my lights out at 9pm. Good times… If I have some downtime, we will sometimes watch an episode or 2 of Comedians in Cars getting Coffee. Phil has seen all of them so he hand picks the ones he knows I will like.
I’m anticipating being done with pumping in the next 2-3 months. It is such a time suck and I honestly just hate it! I’m proud of how long I’ve done it but I’m just ready to be done so I can get some time back – and get my body back. By that I mean that I don’t mean that I will get my pre-baby body back, I just want more ‘ownership’ of my body. Right now I don’t feel like my body is mine since I spend so much time hooked up to a pump to produced milk for Paul. But once he starts eating solids I’m going to start the weaning process so I can be done pumping by the end of the year. I think. (I feel so much guilt about this decision but I will get more sleep and have better quality of life.)
I’m sorry you are feeling guilt for your decision to wean Paul when he starts solids. I can imagine that’s such a common feeling for mothers, especially those who just aren’t having a positive breastfeeding experience. Your needs matter, too, and Paul will be getting the nutrients he need, no matter what. <3 I know it's a hard decision, but I applaud you and am supporting you 100%.
I am so glad you are feeling GOOD!
And I love your 10K steps a day goal. I think that is such a great goal. And I personally love listening to podcasts while I walk, and having some downtime. It’s the best!
Ugh, the last few seasons of The Office. I didn’t care for the plot lines either. Especially what they do to Jim and Pam. The show kind of goes downhill imo after Michael Scott leaves (if I am remembering right). We are currently in season 6 of Mad Men. Not sure what we’ll watch next!
Yeah, these last two seasons of The Office just aren’t very good. It lost its magic when Michael Scott leaves! He was the glue that held that show together.
I am so slow on my Mad Men watching – I probably only watch an episode a week, haha. It’s going to take me YEARS to finish that show at this point.
That’s awesome about the 10k steps a day! I did that last summer and it was such a great motivator to move my body regularly!! I tried listening to Dirty John last year but had to give up on it. I just didn’t find it that interesting and was annoyed by John and didn’t really care to learn about his life. Ha.
Totally understand! It’s a frustrating podcast to listen to, but it was also SOOOO interesting to learn how easy it is for a woman to get caught up in a terrible relationship and how hard it is to leave, even when you know it’s the best decision. It was amazing how it all turned out, too. But it definitely was a difficult podcast to listen to with all my baggage.
I love, love, love your 10k step goal and love seeing your updates. Way to go! Getting those steps in definitely takes commitment (I am doing a challenge right now and on the days when I don’t run, 10k steps are hard to come by!)
I am so happy to hear you’re feeling better.
It definitely takes commitment to getting those 10k steps every day. It’s just not something I can do easily without working in a 30-45 minute walk on a daily basis. But it’s worth it – especially with the way it’s been improving my mental health.