I am the Virago: Post-CNF Battle Log

Hey guys, it's Simone! After meeting a lot of you at camp and hearing about the great communities you've built on here, I'm going to give the forums another go.

I know my handle is currently a previous nickname (snowfox) but I'm using Virago as my superhero title right now, so I'll be changing that shortly (apparently I need 16 more approved posts before I can do so   ) - so don't get too comfortable with my current NFR identity

Camp gave me a lot of good things to think about, and since as usual I have approximately 293874971 things I want to work on, I spent some time yesterday breaking things down, getting organized, and prioritizing. I still have way too much on my plate, but I'm going to be patient with myself and see how October shakes out to determine where I'm really spending my time. 

For now, I have two main areas of focus: professionally I have goals for my current job, my continuing education, and for my future entrepreneurial aspirations, and personally I have wellness goals (fitness + nutrition), creative goals, and financial goals. 

I'm sure you can imagine how many individual things are piling up in each of those categories...

Currently my professional priority is a scholarship application for a full ride to my upcoming graduate program, which is due on the 17th. I'm also struggling heavily with sales at work and NEED to bring in some new clients (ah, the lovely aggressive sales-based life of a personal trainer in a globo gym!), so that's a close second.

For my own growth, my two top priorities for the rest of the year are to develop positive nutritional habits (meal prep, increasing veggie intake, say no to foods that disagree with me, etc) and to hit my 4 big workouts regularly each week (with 2 extra days of movement/skill work/play) - I have specific strength and movement goals that I hope to reach, but the consistency is key right now. I'm meeting with a nutritional/wellness coach TODAY to help me with the first goal. 

I want to do ALL THE THINGS - sign up for krav maga and dance classes and archery and tactical firearms and SCCA/autocrossing again, add olympic lifting to my powerlifting schedule, get a kettlebell certification so I can teach kettlebell skills as a Camp NF Headmaster in a few years (shhh I didn't just publicly admit that), do more obstacle races, start/finish my masters program and become a freelance coach/trainer, travel to so many countries and so many national parks, learn Spanish- and bluegrass-style guitar, learn Spanish and several other languages, get into leatherwork and cosplay, level up in meditation, pay off my credit cards, make enough to live comfortably, start contributing to my IRA again, have insanely amazing mobility knowledge like Kate Galliet... 

...but for the next three months, I'll settle for consistency in workouts/diet and a little more stability in my career. 

Phew! 

It's time to get out of the planning paralysis of "Phase 1" (no more collecting underpants!) and launch into PHASE 2: ACTION!

It was great to meet many of you at Camp. Let's finish the year out strong!

SIMONE I did not know this was you!!  Hooray hi!!

Haha it's so hard to narrow down goals and start small.  I almost experienced burnout my first go-around but have since tried to be patient with myself and my progress... but I still want to do ALL OF THE THINGS!!!!

You can do it! Crush those goals!

**following  

sub'd!

placeholder till i can comment

About to do my phone consultation with a nutrition/wellness coach - strangely nervous (even after Camp I'm still nervous about talking to strangers!) I'll let you know how it goes!

I decided not to dive back into my powerlifting schedule yesterday - wanted one more day to recover after the powerlifting meet (#TEAMDWARF FO LYFE!)! I was going to row an easy-paced 500m but it felt so good I did 1000 instead, and then a little bit of shoulder mobility (thanks Kate G!). 

Today I jumped back into my powerlifting workouts! I do Wendler 5/3/1 programming and got to recalculate my percentages after my squat PR on Saturday! 

Barbell back squat: Warm up (5x55#, 5x70, 5x80), then 5x100, 5x110, 5x115.

I really struggled to hit parallel on the working sets - I was definitely feeling the increased volume! Only a few short months ago, 115 was my PR. Legs feel like jelly right now.

Angled leg press: 3 rounds with +5# of 6/4 tempo (six count down, hold four count, push, repeat; four count down, immediate push, repeat)

Kettlebell goblet squat: 2 rounds of 10x20kg

Walking lunges: 2 rounds of 8(4e) with 12.5# db

Wall balls: 2 rounds of 10 with a 10# ball (our 12# was MIA )

I'm glad I worked out earlier, because I went straight to a meeting with my boss about how I'm a good trainer but I need to up my sales/get more aggressive about resigning clients, and I'm feeling pretty discouraged about all that.

Time for my nutritional consult - there's a positive step towards leveling up that I can focus on!  

Checking in and subbed!  It is interesting to see who else here knows you.

 

 

(ah, the lovely aggressive sales-based life of a personal trainer in a globo gym!)

Can I ask what gym you work at?

 

 

add olympic lifting to my powerlifting schedule

Hmm.....

**following

I see you have already met Nightlight.  She coaches if I am not mistaken.

Haha it's so hard to narrow down goals and start small.

Agreed.  However, it looks like you laid out the ALL THINGS in the DO ALL THINGS brainstorm-style.  Are you planning to organize all of this into a DO ALL THINGS List?  (Just curious)

Anyway - Great to see you on the Forums.  I assume in a few weeks you will start a Challenge.  The Battle Log threads are not as active as the Challenge threads and the Challenge threads benefit from always having a start.  I maintain both a Challenge Thread and a Battle Log and have a habit of directly copying most of one to the other.  What I have found is some people might follow my Battle Log because it is less active and they just don't have time to keep up with the Challenge thread.

Checking in and subbed!  It is interesting to see who else here knows you.

 

 

Can I ask what gym you work at?

 

I see you have already met Nightlight.  She coaches if I am not mistaken.

 

Agreed.  However, it looks like you laid out the ALL THINGS in the DO ALL THINGS brainstorm-style.  Are you planning to organize all of this into a DO ALL THINGS List?  (Just curious)

 

Anyway - Great to see you on the Forums.  I assume in a few weeks you will start a Challenge.  The Battle Log threads are not as active as the Challenge threads and the Challenge threads benefit from always having a start.  I maintain both a Challenge Thread and a Battle Log and have a habit of directly copying most of one to the other.  What I have found is some people might follow my Battle Log because it is less active and they just don't have time to keep up with the Challenge thread.

Hiya! Great to meet you at camp

I work at a 24 Hour Fitness in Portland, started in April/May. Still pretty new as it's my first trainer job, but it's a good place to get some experience despite the focus on sales, and my coworkers are AMAZING. Learning so much from them already!

I know very few people on the forums, actually - and I suspect there are a few forum people that I know IRL/on facebook and vice versa, but just haven't made the connection to who their alteregos are

I am the Duchess of Lists. There are too many lists in my life. I have lots of lists of big/future/small/current goals, but I haven't set up an "epic quest" yet. I plan to!

I've done a few challenges before, and while I love the idea, I find it hard to keep up with - I'm typically not a big forum user. I spend way too much time reading tons of other threads, getting super excited, and burning out. I'm going to give the battle log format a try for now, but we'll see - maybe I will jump in on the next one again! Right now I'm more focused on wrapping up my 2015 goals, so I'm looking at the rest of the year/a 3-month phase instead of 6 weeks. Like I said, we'll see!

 

 

Hiya! Great to meet you at camp 

Thanks!

 

 

I work at a 24 Hour Fitness in Portland, started in April/May.

Back in 2000 to 2004, I was a member of 24 Hour Fitness when I lived in California.

 

 

I'm glad I worked out earlier, because I went straight to a meeting with my boss about how I'm a good trainer but I need to up my sales/get more aggressive about resigning clients, and I'm feeling pretty discouraged about all that. 

Sorry to hear about this.  The other part of the job is sales.  The main question is how to be aggressive about resigning clients without coming across as too pushy and turning them off.  My buddy in this town is in the same business you are in.  I think usually what he did was find some deal to cut that is conveniently timed when the client has a few sessions or so left.

I was going to type a lot more, but decided to save the discussion for later.

Do they have group classes for you to run?

HEY GIRL HEYYYY

Do they have group classes for you to run?

I'm not doing group classes at the moment, but it might be an option down the road. I'd also like to coach crossfit at some point (I think - this used to be a bigger goal, but I'm not crossfitting very actively right now). 

HOLY COW YOU GUYS MY LEGS ARE SO SORE FROM SQUATS YESTERDAY. In the past few months I really got the hang of activating my glutes, but they were nowhere to be found yesterday. I had an impossible time getting to parallel with anything over 100lbs and today it is ALL QUAD PAIN, ALL'A TIME. Well also glutes and hamstrings, but I can't hear them protesting over the SCREAMING IN MY QUADS. As frustrating as it is it also feels good to be back!

The consult with the nutritionist went awesome! Sometimes even when you know a thing, it's hard to put it to practice until someone else tells you. It's why I'm glad my trainer got the ball rolling on my programming structure despite being a trainer myself - a), she's a veteran trainer and powerlifting coach and therefore WAY (no, like WAY) more experienced than me, and 2) programming for yourself sucks, plus then you avoid all the things you hate doing that are good for you, like banded lateral walking or hanging knee raises. BOO HANGING THINGS YOU ARE SO HARD. Also yes I'm aware that was an a/2 split, deal with it.

Today's a rest day for me, so I walked my neighbor's dog in the rain and re-listened to the Dresden Files for a bit, then I sat in a terribly non-primal position and worked on a scholarship essay for my upcoming masters program. And then got totally lost in the Camp facebook group and the forums, because you guys are awesome and I love you all.

HEY GIRL HEYYYY

HEYYYYY

PS I LIKE YOUR AVATAR ALOT

Saw your link on FB, dropping in to show some love... *waves*

Your costume was badass!!! 

 

Also to avoid confusion, snowfox now = virago It was my superhero name at camp so I figured I'd go with it here, especially since I'm sort of "starting over" on the forums anyway. 

 

I really need to get straight in my head who's who on the forums... I probably met a bunch of people I'm talking to on here and don't even know it!! It's like how Arrow can put on a tiny mask and suddenly no one recognizes him.

From the Wovercasts thread, my daytime name is Steven. I had a bit less facial hair than my avatar shows, with about the same amount of on top of head hair. Pretty much was in jeans and Tshirt anytime I wasn't in class. Have a purple and blue lion head tattoo on my left calf and green/red/yellow dragon tattoo on my right.

I think that's the identifying marks... and that may or may not help you. But I tried...

Oh hey! I saw your post on my thread and didn't know who you were. HI!!! Glad you see you here

I actually really want to add in oly lifting too, just because it was so much fun and I think getting some explosiveness in there would help with my power lifts.  I asked Staci about it at one point during camp and she said some people do one cycle of oly a year for that reason exactly, but avoid doing both at the same time so as to not interefere with your main lifts.  Just some food for thought

 I was going to row an easy-paced 500m but it felt so good I did 1000 instead, and then a little bit of shoulder mobility (thanks Kate G!).

Ooh speaking of rowing, do you use the Ergdata app? All you need is the Android Kit from Concept 2 and you are good to go. I love this setup. It keeps track of my workouts and then uploads it to my Concept 2 Logbook online.

I AM LATE BUT I AM HERE TO CHEER YOU ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It dooooes suck to program for yourself, so I'm glad you have a trainerfriend that will make you do the things you hate. Let the hate run through you.... and activate your damn glutes! Yus. 

Today's a rest day for me, so I walked my neighbor's dog in the rain and re-listened to the Dresden Files for a bit, then I sat in a terribly non-primal position and worked on a scholarship essay for my upcoming masters program. And then got totally lost in the Camp facebook group and the forums, because you guys are awesome and I love you all.

Ooooh, Oooh! I'm starting the first book of the Dresden files!  So far it seems really cool.

I could totally just spend 2 hours on the camp facebook group in a daze of nostalgia and affection

I could totally just spend 2 hours on the camp facebook group in a daze of nostalgia and affection

This.  I can't believe it's been OVER a week since camp now!!!!

OOF YOU GUYS I AM BACK.

So on Thurs last week my car got stolen, which I think most of you saw on facebook. Bandit the trusty 1996 Civic is pretty much the best inanimate friend a girl could have, and besides being a financial blow since I just replaced the catalytic converter/exhaust manifold and got him all registered in a new state (plus I'm a grad student and personal trainer, I have ZERO MONEY), it was emotionally devastating. Bandit's my first car and he's taken me on a few cross-country adventures in the four years we've spent together.

GOOD NEWS, EVERYONE! 

The police arrested someone on Sunday morning driving Bandit, still in tact, with a temporary paper plate on. Apparently there's an active Russian mob in the area that runs a lot of the auto shops and sells stolen cars?? Yikes. I'm extremely paranoid that they're going to come back for him, but for now... Bandit's been returned to me!!!! All of my personal items are more or less gone (flashlight, roadside emergency kit, tire gauge, shitty CDs ) and they had the audacity to smoke in my car - BLECH EW GROSS - but he runs great and he's home safe! I got new plates at the DMV today and they end in "HUR". Haha

I actually really want to add in oly lifting too, just because it was so much fun and I think getting some explosiveness in there would help with my power lifts.  I asked Staci about it at one point during camp and she said some people do one cycle of oly a year for that reason exactly, but avoid doing both at the same time so as to not interefere with your main lifts.  Just some food for thought

That's a great idea! I definitely am trying to "slow my roll" on the "I'M GONNA DO ALL THE THINGS" mentality, so oly lifts are on hold for right now until I make some extra powerlifting progress. Maybe early next year I'll take a break and work on those

Ooh speaking of rowing, do you use the Ergdata app? All you need is the Android Kit from Concept 2 and you are good to go. I love this setup. It keeps track of my workouts and then uploads it to my Concept 2 Logbook online.

I hadn't heard of it, but I'm going to have to look that up!

I AM LATE BUT I AM HERE TO CHEER YOU ON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

WOOOOHOOOO!!! Never too late!!

Ooooh, Oooh! I'm starting the first book of the Dresden files!  So far it seems really cool.

I could totally just spend 2 hours on the camp facebook group in a daze of nostalgia and affection

AAAAH DRESDENNNN!! It's a fun read now, but just wait til books 4 and 5, when he really hits his stride. My favorites are 8 & 10 and the newest one (14? 15?) was SO DAMN GOOD. One of my favorite series. Bonus: James Marsters (Spike from Buffy) reads the audiobooks and does a bang-up job!! I'm re-listening to book 8 on my dog walks right now.

Well I totally fell off the healthy food wagon this weekend - I don't eat very much when I'm depressed, and the thought of my car getting ripped up for parts by strangers who didn't even know his name had me pretty low. The meeting last week with the nutritionist went great, though, and I'm going to meal plan this afternoon and rock the hell out of this week

I had a migraine yesterday from undereating and then trying to do yoga, so I decided to save squats for tomorrow and do bench/upper body today instead, since my bench is mega weak compared to my other two lifts. I took it pretty easy on weights since it's been so long since I've done upper body. My lacrosse ball also came in the mail recently so I got to try a few things from Kate's shoulder mobility class! It wasn't the same without her

WOD:

Bench: 5x5 at 45#, easing back into things. I actually did 10 the first two rounds, 8 the 3rd, and 5 on the last two.

3x:

Incline db bench press, 10 x 12.5#

Incline db flye, 10 x 7.5#

Bent single arm row, 10ea x 22.5#

3x:

Modified handstand push ups, 10

Inverted TRX row, 10

TGU practice, 3ea x 10#KB

Farmer carry, 2 laps (no idea how long in m or ft, sadly) @16kg KB

Squat day is on deck tomorrow, provided I eat enough tonight! Still so low on calories, this is ridiculous. I'm going to conquer this stupid eating nonsense by the end of the year. IT IS KNOWN. 

Hope everyone's having a great Monday!

ugh food is SO HARD.  I feel like I am constantly struggling to eat enough since I started lifting.  I get hangry a lot.

Still so low on calories, this is ridiculous. I'm going to conquer this stupid eating nonsense by the end of the year. IT IS KNOWN.

IT IS KNOWN!

ugh food is SO HARD.  I feel like I am constantly struggling to eat enough since I started lifting.  I get hangry a lot.

My life in a nutshell.

3x:

Modified handstand push ups, 10

Inverted TRX row, 10

TGU practice, 3ea x 10#KB

Farmer carry, 2 laps (no idea how long in m or ft, sadly) @16kg KB

Curious:  How did you modify your hand-stand push-ups?  Mine stink.  I can get maybe one if I put my head on a pillow and practice more.

By laps - Do you mean laps around a basketball court or some area we can identify?