Still In My Pajamas, and Exercise Update
While mental conditions for me are gradually improving (I’ve just recently embarked upon some therapy with a Clinical Psychologist/PhD), much of my time is still spent in my pajamas. I thought I’d give a thorough inventory of my pajama capsule as it stands.
There are 8 tops in total: 4 identical “boyfriend tees” from Old Navy in faded blue, and 4 “relaxed fit” tanks, also from Old Navy — 2 white, 1 black, and 1 grey. All of these were chosen for their loose, comfortable fit, but also for the specific 100% slub cotton of which they are made. I’ve found that the slub cotton from Old Navy — it has a slight texture to the weave — wears especially well through wash after wash. Now, not all slub cotton is created equal. My Gap Factory T-shirts are clearly not of the same caliber. But these 8 Old Navy tops are holding up beautifully despite the frequent wear and washing. Maybe other people don’t need 8 pajama tops, but when you’ve been debilitatingly depressed for a stretch of time, your priorities tend to shift, wardrobe-wise.
For bottoms, I have two pairs of sweatpants and three pairs of shorts. One pair of pants is from Two by Vince Camuto; they are wide-leg and a lovely soft pink color. I’ve yet to find an answer to the question of whether or not these are maternity pants — please contact me if you know — but I love them either way. The other pants are drawstring, stretch-terry sweats from Andrea Jovine Woman. I’ve had them for ages and they’re a little ragged, but certainly doing the job. For shorts, I have 2 pairs of Old Navy cotton poplin sleep shorts with a ribbon drawstring waist. Both are crisp white with a print: one pink paisley and one blue geometric. The third pair of shorts is a real oldie but goodie — a men’s pair of XXL jersey pants that have been cut off into shorts. I’ve had them for quite some time — Russell Athletic is made to last — and I don’t see much wear at all aside from a bit of fading. Sometimes I layer a pair of pants over my shorts to hang around the house and then just wear the shorts to sleep in.
Three more items complete the capsule — 16 pieces in all? — a hoodie in black lightweight terry from Cable and Gauge, and a grey textured pullover hoodie from Lou and Grey by LOFT. Both are great for layering as loungewear, especially when you need to answer the door sans bra. And a pair of fleece slippers from Lands’ End.
Speaking of braless activities, my exercise routine has continued to improve and, more importantly, exist. I’m still wearing my pajama tops to the gym with a zip-up fleece over the top, and that little bit of time saved from putting a bra on has proved crucial to my continued progress.
Tagging along with my husband on his gym visits is working well, and I’ve actually increased my weights so it takes more effort to power through. Weight lifting in general has always seemed like a lazy activity compared to running — I mean, you’re sitting down much of the time. But upping the weight does get my heart pounding between sets. When at the gym, we do 3 or 4 machines, 3 sets each, alternating lats-biceps-back-legs or chest-triceps-legs depending on the day. More machines than that would probably be too many for my level of mojo, so we leave it at that and walk on the treadmill for a few minutes. We started out slow, at 2.5 with no incline for 7 minutes, and I’ve worked my way up to 3.0 at an incline of 4 for 10 minutes. On days we don’t go to the gym, I just walk on our treadmill at home, also at 3.0 with an incline of 4 for 20 minutes and call it a day.
The plan is to continue increasing the intensity of my workouts so slowly that I hardly notice a thing. For instance, next will be an incline of 5 or 6, and then maybe an increase of speed to 3.2, making a change each week until I’m walking uphill at a good clip. This is where it’ll get exciting for me: after walking at a steep incline for so long, I’ll start building in a little running on a flat plane. I’ve been agonizing over the idea of running, since it’s always been my go-to for weight loss, but it has felt impossible with my current mood and flagging fitness level. Hopefully, it’ll just work in seamlessly with this strategy (my husband says that after the incline, running flat is a breeze for him), and I’ll be back up to speed in no time. The major hurdle will be wrestling into a sports bra in order to do it.