There is no "reset", but there is "continue".

[WillToPower]

You can(not) redo. You can(not) move forward.

 

Okay, for those of you who actually want to read my story, here's my introduction thread and my first and only six-week challenge thread; these will definitely give you a good idea of what I was going through at the time:

 

http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/48246-introduction/

http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/49096-willtopower-so-youve-been-bitten-by-a-werewolf/

 

 

For those of you who don't want to do a lot of reading - yes, there are a lot of words in those threads, mostly mine - here are the things that made me go on hiatus from NF for a while, as well as some commentary on how these things might have changed since then:

 

There are only so many hours in a day.

I think that my biggest problem was that I was trying to do too much at once; I had a lot of things on my plate already, because I worked at 5:30am most weekdays at a swimming pool in the basement of a sports complex, followed by 3-hour shifts in the research labs on some of those days that often involved sitting by myself in a windowless room and doing tedious and repetitive data work. I can see why I didn't want to do anything when I got home, considering that I'd done 5:30am-4:30pm days at least 3 times per week for at least a month or two. 

 

Nowadays, I'm a full-time student, which means that I still have plenty on my plate when you think about homework and the like. However, I'm not working anymore - I stopped in December, mostly because I got tired of doing the same job that I'd been doing for 3-4 years - and I cut down the number of research labs that I'm volunteering in from 3 to 1, although I'm currently in talks to volunteer in another. Add a social life and being a member of a sports team to an equation and you have an interesting mess.

 

Error 404 - deadline not found

Another major problem, which unfortunately continues to this day, is the fact that I don't actually have any deadlines or obligations for anything. All of my classes use tests/midterms instead of assignments, which makes procrastinating frighteningly easy, although I managed to pull my pants up and get to work when I notice one on the horizon; I have three next week. As for my photography aspirations, I have a large number of photos from some regular live events that I photograph, but I've been putting them off to focus on school.

 

I also find that I make "To-Do" lists, only to never actually do some of the long-term items on them: two examples of this are doing research about my post-undergrad options, which is really important, and getting a Facebook account, if only for networking as a photographer. I still haven't done them, even though I can very easily and logically explain to myself why I should do them.

 

"So tell me what you want, what you really really want?" "Um..."

One of the best ways to summarize this came from #1 in this Cracked article:
http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-ways-youre-sabotaging-your-own-life-without-knowing-it/

 

Depending on the context, "want" can be:
A) A statement of intended action ("I want to mow the lawn before it rains.")
B )A statement of general preference ("I want everyone to live a long and happy life.")

Another difficult thing that I was dealing with was the fact that I had no clue what I wanted out of NF, out of the six-week challenge, out of the summer, etc. I had vague goals, mostly thinking to myself "I would like to be this" - with "this" being some vague ideal that I didn't really know how to achieve and probably wasn't actually willing to put the effort into achieving. I'm still that way.

 

I need to learn how to walk before I can run.

Habit-building was, and continues to be, another issue of mine. I honestly don't know what I was thinking, trying to build so many different habits at once. I was going to set my sleep schedule, brush my teeth/floss/use mouthwash twice a day, make all of my meals instead of using microwaveables/frozen food/subway, manage my finances, and try to go to the gym. All on top of my rather hectic schedule (see above).

 

Unfortunately, I haven't actually rebuilt any of these habits since then. 

 

 

Ouch, I'm just realizing how little I've actually managed to change since I went on hiatus last summer.

I guess that's why I'm here again - I want to try and make lasting changes, instead of staying the same.

One problem might be that what I'm doing now must be doing something for me, because I'm letting it happen.

Anyways, I'm back, if only back to the old drawing board. Wish me luck, I'm going to need it.

[weakogre]

hello dude/dudette,

 

i am in your shoes of bouncing around with habits/working out, and am on the upswing on both. good timing for the both of us. i spend a a few hours over the weekend cooking a whole bunch of meat for meals and have bags of frozen vegetables to go with them. i no longer drink soda (2 weeks+), i go to the gym every other day and do a full body routine, and i just started a couch to 5k program 4 days a week.

 

i'm not bragging, i'm telling you i did this and so can you. and i need you to, because i need to keep this up to. we can do this together, no excuses, no self pity, no fear.

 

the food: buy meat in bulk (frozen is cheaper) and get friendly with a crockpot and/or the oven. 4 chicken breasts at 450F on the middle rack will be juicy and stay in your fridge for a week. montreal chicken seasoning is good, but i like some sirachi or hot sauce after i reheat them. cheap cuts like pork shoulder/butt, lean ground beef, etc. all taste good in a crockpot with veggies and reheat really well. frozen veggies or steam bags are great.

 

the finances: set a budget of needs. groceries, gas, bills, mortgage/rent. do not include eating out/entertainment/voluntary spending. give yourself $xx.xx a week in cash to spend on frivolous things. if you want something big then save your cash. if you want to eat out, it's coming out of that cash. those fast food meals don't look as appetizing when you're throwing a $10 bill at it and not feeling great afterwards. make sure you're actively saving money, even if it's $25 a week or something. it adds up and it'll help you out in a pinch. any money you come into, tax return/birthday money/overtime, throw the majority into your savings. get yourself a little something with a fraction of it, but this will really get your savings to fill up.

 

the gym: just go. have a plan before you step in the door, don't dilly dally, don't take a long time in between sets. if you had no time clock on your job would you go in and screw around all day? no, you would get in, bust it out, and get out as quick as you can. i can't make you go, but i will use the addict analogy from the cracked article you brought up. just go one day. you are going to be sore, wiped out, it's going to feel like you pulled a bunch of muscles, it's going to feel like every stair you take is conspiring against you, and you might not be able to wash your hair because your arms don't go up that high afterwards. but you know what? you'll sleep great. the quickest way to get over the sore muscles? go back and do it again! (please make sure to stretch after working out, eat protein, and other things you can find around the website)

 

i have a 2 month old, travel for work, work odd hours, and have a wife that works full time as well. i don't have all the time in the world, but here's the reality of the situation: my lifting days range from 30-45 minutes of gym time. the couch to 5k is 30 minutes a day right now. i also take family walks for 30 minutes when we're all home, but i don't count that as me time.

 

so there it is, i spend a grand total of 30-90 minutes a day working out. the majority of days it's closer to 30.

 

the article says you have to give up your friends/family/hobbies to do something, and maybe he's right if i was competing, but i'm not. and those 30-90 minutes aren't selfish minutes, they're minutes hopefully adding days to my life. 

 

and you know what i was doing with those minutes before? sportscenter, reruns, aimless internet crap. i think that's worth the sacrifice.

 

i have a daily thread, feel free to jump on mine or make your own and message me a link.

 

we're in this together and we can do this.

 

(if my rant is a little intense and you want to go it alone, feel free to message me that as well. i started typing and got really fired up, thus the wall of text)