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Walk the Walks and Drop the Pounds

Posted on: Saturday, 6 May 2006, 06:02 CDT

By Lisa Gutierrez, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

May 6--I knew I needed to pick up my pace in Sunday's Trolley Run when the woman pushing a young man in a wheelchair passed me.

And giggly little kids ran and skipped past me.

And, as my husband told me later, 70- and 80-year-old women finished the 4-mile course ahead of me.

But I did finish.

So did Team Lisa members Julia Chanay, Dana Cutler, Scharlene Garrett and Margo Ramirez, and our team's physical trainer, Jill Cornine, who pushed me to walk the last 2 miles at a pace I haven't walked in a long time. (Thank you, Jill.)

Margo's husband, Bernardo, and their three children walked, too. And yes, the Ramirez children crossed the finish line before me.

But I did finish, in a sweaty mess, in one hour and 11 minutes, averaging 18-minute miles.

And then the next day brought even bigger news when I weighed in at Weight Watchers: I've lost 28 pounds since early February.

How am I doing it? Well, I'm still not eating as many veggies and fruits as I should; this I intend to correct. But I am eating way less and have drastically cut my sugar intake, including candy and desserts. No more 3 p.m. Snickers bars for me.

Understand, I've been far from perfect. A couple of times, consumed by the desire for something cold, creamy and chocolate, I cruised through the McDonald's drive-through and ordered a chocolate ice cream cone. (I hid the little paper wrappers in the trash cans in the garage.)

Then again, when that same craving struck on Saturday while my sister and I shopped in Topeka, we first tried, in vain, to find a TCBY. Then we hit a grocery store and bought a box of Weight Watchers Giant Fudge Bars. (Go get some. Now.)

The other big difference for me: exercise. In that department I feel like I've gone from zero to 60 in the blink of an eye. My routine now includes water aerobics three days a week, kickboxing every Wednesday evening and lunchtime walks at least twice a week.

That's a lot of moving around for someone who adores her couch. And it's probably what kept me from passing out before I finished walking the Trolley Run.

It was only my second walking event ever. My first, in Rochester, N.Y., with two newspaper colleagues there, followed a much tougher, hillier course, and I remember vowing never to do that again.

But after Sunday I've had a change of heart, and already my Team Lisa colleagues are talking of walking the Trolley Run next year.

What an energizing, addictive atmosphere to exercise in. The course took us along shady neighborhood streets where people stood in their front yards waving and cheering us on, like we were real athletes.

The route wasn't as flat and downhill as I'd been told -- make a note of that for next year -- but it was doable, even for novices like us. And those big smiles that swept across our faces at the finish line? That was unabashed pride.

So now I'm looking for more of these events where I can walk off some calories.

Because I may be nearly 30 pounds lighter, but I still have 70 pounds to go -- and wheelchairs and old ladies to out-walk.

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On the Web

To read previous "Losing It With Lisa" stories and talk to others trying to lose weight, go to KansasCity.com. Click on FYI/Living.

To reach Lisa Gutierrez, call (816) 234-4987 or send e-mail to lgutierrez@kcstar.com .

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Kansas City Star, Mo.

Distributed by Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News.

For information on republishing this content, contact us at (800) 661-2511 (U.S.), (213) 237-4914 (worldwide), fax (213) 237-6515, or e-mail reprints@krtinfo.com.

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Source: The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Missouri)

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