Sunday Posted January 19, 2015 Report Share Posted January 19, 2015 A couple of weeks ago I was doing a google for "walking to Mordor", and Nerd Fitness popped up in the results. Never one to let an interesting-looking link go unexplored, I found myself reading Steve's blog. I took a look into the forums, and quickly backed out. I've attempted to participate in fitness forums before, only to find myself intimidated and overwhelmed -- not doing that again, nope! Plus I'm not a gamer, although some of the best hours of my life have been spent on journeys through Middle Earth, Narnia, The Land, various earthlike and non-earthlike planets, and many other worlds. But the idea of a Quest to shape up my life stayed with me, and eventually I got over the forumphobia and logged on to NF for real. So perhaps an introduction is in order. I've always been overweight. I've lost weight many times before and always gained it back. Exercise always carried with it that last-kid-chosen-in-gym-class feeling. But I'm tired of the joint aches and pains of overweight and of the heath threats lurking in my path. They're really dragons and chimeras and Grendels, right? They're slayable or tamable, right? Maybe the IRL-me has a hard time with them, but Sunday the hero in training can do this! A few years ago I lost a lot of weight, and while I wasn't at my goal weight, I felt pretty good about things. I did Weight Watchers, I worked out regularly, I walked a lot. I decided to try running. I was following a walk-run-walk program and had gotten up to about 5k three times a week when a bad fall threw me off my game. I stopped running and eased off the gym to heal it. Several weeks later, when I tried to take up running again, I promptly developed bad knee pain and aggravated an old heel spur. When I asked my doctor what to do about it, he shrugged and said, "Knock off the running." Not very encouraging. Couldn't get myself back into the habit of going to the gym, and when last winter hit, with the permanent snow and ice and frigid temps, even walking fell by the wayside. I had given up. And allll that weight came back -- and brought friends with it. So here I sit at 321, cranky and disappointed in myself and achy in my joints. All the good habits I learned seem so far away. I need to get back those skills, to really earn them and make them my own, and to be sure I use them every day. What I need is a good Quest! Running will probably be right out, at least for a long time yet. Weights may come back, but not for a while yet. I want to begin by staying on-plan with Weight Watchers (real food only, not the packaged stuff), getting my walking back, beginning to bicycle in the spring, and getting back to the yoga I had just begun to enjoy. I think I'm more inclined to the Druid path, with some Scout thrown in, but that's down the road a bit. I know I belong as a Recruit in Adventurers to get my feet under me. I've posted my first Challenge with some very low-key quests and will be keeping up with those. I'm looking forward to meeting people and making friends here, and learning what I can learn. And I'm still looking for that Walk to Mordor group! 2 Quote SundayRing the bell that still can ring/ Forget your perfect offering/ There is a crack in everything/ That's how the light gets in. - Leonard Cohen Level 0, Human Recruit; Adventurer-in-training; Druid at heart1st Challenge 2015 Goal: Lose 50 lbs. 36.4%36.4% Link to comment
TMedina Posted January 19, 2015 Report Share Posted January 19, 2015 Welcome! Although I've been following along on your other post. Be patient, and be forgiving of yourself. Life happens and you're doing the best you can with what you have. 2 Quote Imaginary Human Male Dilettante Trainer, Level 1 Spoiler How to: Add the status bar to my signature How to: Spruce up your profile Where to start: General Fitness questions How to: Declutter your life, a minimalism thread How to: Slay your budgeting woes (or at least, start the quest) Link to comment
Sunday Posted January 19, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 19, 2015 Hopefully you won't hear me repeat myself too many times! I have a tendency not to publicly admit to trying new things, because if I fail/screw up I'll have to admit it publicly -- so I just don't say anything in the first place. I'm putting all of this out there so that I can keep track of progress, get help when I need it, and prove to myself that a path doesn't have to be perfect to be the right one. 2 Quote SundayRing the bell that still can ring/ Forget your perfect offering/ There is a crack in everything/ That's how the light gets in. - Leonard Cohen Level 0, Human Recruit; Adventurer-in-training; Druid at heart1st Challenge 2015 Goal: Lose 50 lbs. 36.4%36.4% Link to comment
hybrid756 Posted January 19, 2015 Report Share Posted January 19, 2015 The perfect path is the one you're on. And you're on it already, no matter what happens I'm on my first big challenge now, and the amount of times I've changed the plan or tweaked something or asked for help or switched out something I thought would work but didn't is getting silly.It's all one awesome experiment, it's not about being perfect. So if you need to ask for advice, or you just want to rant, then please do! So many groovy people on here to celebrate / commiserate / discuss / bounce ideas around with. And to start, congratulations on a stonking start to your first challenge. Mordor waits for no one, despite the crappy weather! 2 Quote Half-Orc / Level 4 / AssassinSTR - 3 DEX - 1 STA - 4 CON - 13.5 WIS - 3 CHA - 6Twitter: @hybrid756 CURRENT CHALLENGEChallenge wrap up! April 12 - May 24 2015!Challenge 1 Bf% - from 50% to 20% 21%21% Link to comment
halixius Posted January 19, 2015 Report Share Posted January 19, 2015 Welcome around and congrats on pushing past the fear. It's all about taking the steps at your own pace around here, so hopefully it won't get overwhelming! There are plenty of non-fitness social/fun threads, too, to set a good balance and build the community feeling. 3 Quote Level 0 Vampire Battle Log :: MFP :: Tumblr Link to comment
EE_Bubba Posted January 20, 2015 Report Share Posted January 20, 2015 Welcome aboard Sunday. I will admit that I have some of the same fears as you. I hate to say I was wrong or that I failed. HATE it! What you have here is a group on Nerds, not all alike, but all interested in becoming a healthier Nerd. Also realize that this crew is great about encouraging people, and never getting down on folks for a failure. Remember that a failure means you put in effort, you may not walk as many miles as you wanted, but to fail you had to try, right? Keep your head up, and give your self as much slack as you give others. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk 1 Quote NerdFitness Avatar It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled, or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena; whose face is marred by the dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming; who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions and spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who, at worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly; so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory or defeat. - T. RooseveltThere is world that should be, and the world that is. We live in one. And must create the other, if it is ever to be. - J. Butcher Link to comment
Sunday Posted January 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2015 Welcome around and congrats on pushing past the fear. It's all about taking the steps at your own pace around here, so hopefully it won't get overwhelming! There are plenty of non-fitness social/fun threads, too, to set a good balance and build the community feeling.Thanks, Halixius! I've been cruising around, investigating all kinds of threads, and I'm looking forward to meeting folks. And your dog is really beautiful -- what a great face! Quote SundayRing the bell that still can ring/ Forget your perfect offering/ There is a crack in everything/ That's how the light gets in. - Leonard Cohen Level 0, Human Recruit; Adventurer-in-training; Druid at heart1st Challenge 2015 Goal: Lose 50 lbs. 36.4%36.4% Link to comment
Sunday Posted January 20, 2015 Author Report Share Posted January 20, 2015 I will admit that I have some of the same fears as you. I hate to say I was wrong or that I failed. HATE it! What you have here is a group on Nerds, not all alike, but all interested in becoming a healthier Nerd. Also realize that this crew is great about encouraging people, and never getting down on folks for a failure. Remember that a failure means you put in effort, you may not walk as many miles as you wanted, but to fail you had to try, right? Keep your head up, and give your self as much slack as you give others. Yeah, that whole gotta-be-right thing really is the worst. I do believe that more self-improvement efforts are derailed by perfectionism than by chocolate. I'm going to try and just work on healthy and flexible, and hopefully the rest will fall into line. 2 Quote SundayRing the bell that still can ring/ Forget your perfect offering/ There is a crack in everything/ That's how the light gets in. - Leonard Cohen Level 0, Human Recruit; Adventurer-in-training; Druid at heart1st Challenge 2015 Goal: Lose 50 lbs. 36.4%36.4% Link to comment
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