A Three-Hour Tour

Knowing that I need way more cardio to reach my body composition goals (mainly the lower body fat percentage part of that goal), I've been researching treadmills. I chose walking for cardio because it's low-intensity; higher intensity cardio would make me hungry (and eating more would of course make fat loss more difficult) and would interfere with my recovering from my lifting sessions.

I've given up on simply walking around my town because it's so boring that I cannot stick to it. I listened to podcasts and a bit of music during these walks, but those aren't enough, so I've been dreading (and sometimes avoiding) these walks every evening, especially during the colder months. I've forced myself to go out for these walks, but I'm tired of that struggle with motivation, and, knowing that the ninety- to one-hundred-and-twenty-minute walks were a struggle, I'm sure that I could not force myself out for the three-hour walks I recently decided on.

Since I've gotten into fitness videos on Invidious, I'm now capable of watching them for hours. I thought I'd put a treadmill underneath my standing desk and occupy myself with Invidious videos while walking. Treadmills are expensive, however; and, since I have so little money, even the cheaper manual treadmills I'm interested in are too much for me. I might be able to get some financing for a cheap one, but, before I try that, I decided to try out the local high school track. I went this evening for the first time and walked for about two hours on the track (I didn't need to do the full three hours there because walking to the track and back takes about one hour total).

Although my feet ended up a bit more sore than I expected, the track seemed to work out. Walking around in a circle is better for me than walking around town because I can zone out and listen to podcasts (or music) on my smartphone (which has no internet or phone service and is basically just an mp3 player, calculator, and watch). Walking around town, in contrast, requires me to pay attention to my surroundings, particularly since I went out at night, so that I don't trip on sidewalks or walk in front of cars.

I've planned this as an everyday routine. I'm glad that I'm saving the money I might have spent on a treadmill, at least for now (maybe the rainy season will interfere with the track-walking plan...and maybe it won't since I have a nice raincoat, several umbrellas, and an expensive pair of zero-drop rainboots, zero-drop shoes being the only thing I can really walk in anymore).

I can't wait to start seeing results. My body fat level is annoying right now.

I'm glad that I'm the type of person who is intrinsically motivated. Achieving anything could be so much more difficult.

After all the time, money, and anguish I spent trying to fix the damage I did to my skin last year, I finally figured out last month why my skin peels worked wonders before I moved here but gave me hyperpigmentation post-move: the difference in humidity. I administered those first batches of skin peels in a town that has much higher humidity than this town. As soon as this hit me, my hope for decent-looking skin was renewed. The seven-hundred-dollar laser skin treatment I had this past summer didn't do much for me. Such a pity, given how poor I am. So many better things I could have used that money for.

I tried increasing the humidity in my apartment by boiling water from time to time and letting hot water sit in the bathtub with the bathroom door open. That helped with my dry skin and daily booger production (I'd long wondered why my nose produced so much gunk), but did nothing for my skin.

As soon as I got my money on the first of this month, I went to the local hardware store and bought a humidifier. They didn't have anything but a small plastic one that, according to the box, is mainly for people with colds, but the thing was just twenty dollars, so I figured I'd try it and pair it with a second one if it wasn't enough. This has allowed my skin to peel a little after a TCA application, but not nearly enough, not nearly as much as it peeled back in humidity-ville. The more pronounced result is that the TCA no longer gives me horrible hyperpigmentation like it did when the apartment was dryer.

So I need to increase the humidity in here even more. I haven't decided on whether I'll buy another humidifier (which will have to wait until next month anyhow); for now, I guess I'll boil water more to complement the action of the humidifier. I'm also trying direct application of steam to my face. I just did another TCA application this evening; an intense one with two TCA layers. I HAVE to figure this out. I'm sick of hiding my face behind masks. How did I even make it through summer wearing those stuffy cloth masks everyday? I think people suspect me of having the cov. Other people aren't wearing masks when they're out walking, and I must look strange to them.

I've had an itch in the back of my throat for a few days, and it makes me wonder whether I have the cov. It's the itch that's the precursor to a sore throat, but it never progresses to a full-blown sore throat; it's gotten uncomfortable at times but it never really hurts. I'm going to be annoyed if I have or get the cov because I feel like being such a loner should protect me from it.

I drank a shitload of water today, and I'm irritated that I need to go out for more so late, after I've already walked so much. (I get one gallon at a time from the water machines in town because tap water is nasty, literally nauseating, and I don't want to ingest the fluorine that's in it). I increased my workout intensity in the past month or two, and I've been crazy thirsty every day. I reported it to the VA, and I'm thinking that the thirst is the reason my doctor wanted my kidneys tested.