Salt!

I have a new fixation: Fancy salt.

This was spurred by a happy trip to Ralph's. Waiting for me on the reduced-to-clear table was a bunch of salt from the Artisan Salt Co.

My penchant for the reduced-to-clear table and bargains in general is actually one way I ended up getting fat. I had a hard time resisting bargains, particularly bargains of luxurious, fattening foods.

On this visit, though, in addition to the salt, I also found Coffe Bean & Tea Leaf coffee and tea leftover from Christmas at great prices -- 67 cents for a gift box of tea that was originally $11.95.

But anyway, my favorite salt is a pink flake salt from Australia. It melts!

And coffee, most tea and salt are totally allowed on the plan. I take my luxuries where I can get them!

Weigh-in today

I'm down six pounds from 28 days ago.

(Of course, I had the little blip up last month!)

The big news is 2.25 inches off my belly (2 inches below the navel) and 1 inch off the waist.

So, what did I do differently?

I ran like crazy.

I also got religious about making sure I got my flax oil and fish oil and green tea and water in every day. I had been a bit irresponsible about it.

Little things

My self-concept still hasn't caught up to the reality. I get little reminders now and again.

The other day, a friend gave me a running shirt she didn't need. It was Size Medium. And it fit, even though I thought it wouldn't. I accept that I'm a Medium on the bottom; the fact that I'm moving into Medium on top is still strange for me.

Today, I took a bath and wrapped a normal-size bath towel around me with nearly a foot of overlap. I'm still surprised when that happens, as I was lucky if I could get the towel to meet around me before.

You'd think I'd be used to these kinds of things by now (I've been able to wrap a towel for at least eight months or so) -- I'm just not.

Boring

My life has gotten boring lately. I don't have any little incidents to report, which is a good sign. I'm mastering the art of being friendly but not too friendly, of not ignoring people -- but not making eye contact in what is perceived to be a flirtatious way, either.

50 minutes today

I ran for 50 minutes today, which is my longest run so far.

My goal is to hit 60 minutes by Feb. 28. And 60 minutes four times a week by March 31.

Resting heart rate

I've been attempting to measure my fitness level by looking at my resting heart rate. I know it was in 80s or higher before. Last month, it was 79. Today, I measured it with the "blood-pressure ministry" at church, and my rate was down to 73. I'm amazed at how quickly it can be lowered.

Races

Everyone I know who runs seems to be into races.

At this point, I am still resisting the idea of doing one, although I'll undoubtedly succumb eventually.

I like running alone. That way, my competitive juices are not stirred in any way at all. I know if I were running with others, I would speed up my pace more than I should.

I met a guy yesterday at a kid's birthday party who was telling me about his marathons. He so didn't look like a marathoner. He's done seven of them, and he probably weighs 250 and is only about 5'6" or 5'7". He might weigh less -- I have trouble estimating men's weights. Let's just say, though, that he had a definite belly on him.

He was very encouraging. I also asked him about the other runners because even though I'm relatively slender now, particularly among 40-something moms, I'm not slender next to the runners I see. He told me that there are people of all sizes in the races, which I find interesting.

At the same time, I need to get my base run up higher, I think, before I even consider any races at all. Now, I can run three miles pretty easily. My goal is to run for an hour straight before Feb. 28. At that point, I might think about doing a 5K.