Wandern

I swear I am like a toddler: I had the opportunity to spend an unexpected few days at a timeshare with my mom last week and that has thrown my schedule for a loop. I feel like I'm just now getting my feet back under me. I've lost track of where I am in the challenge and how many points I should have. I know I'm behind on most everything. Uh - hm. And for what it's worth, Virginia druids and any passing through on I-81: The Frontier Culture Museum in Staunton is well worth a visit. Interesting exhibits, knowledgable interpreters, $10 admission fee. Authentic farm buildings, gardens, livestock. My mom, 13-year-old and I spent over 4 hours exploring and chatting with the volunteers and interpreters. Fun!

Week 3 Day 3 Check in Up at 5:30 and the second workout of the week - Check! But I didn't fit in my walk. The app hasn't been as successful at motivating me as I thought. When I get the reminders to meditate, I'm likely to think "Not now! You're not the boss of me you stupid app!" and then go off and do something entirely different. It's come in handy for some work reminders, though, so I'm not giving up on it yet.

Congratulations on the exam result! Yay! *throws confetti* Onward to the thesis!

Oh, Noes! A double post! Sorry!

Sorry - my feet can't handle burpees

Week 2 Check-in This week went much better, challenge-wise, than last. Huzzah for schedules! Week 2 went mostly according to plan. Mini Goal #1: Complete a weight workout 3 times a week. - All 3 workouts completed. +3 points, +6 points total Mini Goal #2: Defeat the Lazies. Get up at 5:30 am daily. Failed 1 day, but was awake by 6am all 7. +6 points, +10 points total. Mini Goal #3: Walk at least 2 miles every day. I missed one day, so +6 points, +11 points total Plans for Week 3: The schedule looks reasonable again this week - yay. So, I'll hit the gym for weights M,W,F. I'll walk at the gym Tue, and walk to/from the car on M,W,Th. "In the wild" walks on F,Sa,Su. The dietary reset is going well so far - I seem to have lost the binge bloat, at least. Fitting in the meditation, stitching, and thinking time has been trickier than I thought it would be - BUT, since scheduling is apparently crucial to my success; I installed the Timeful app earlier this week and have been playing with it. So far, it's very promising. You can schedule in time for habits you want to cultivate. Syncs with other calendars, including Google, iCloud, and Exchange. It's sort of a merge between a calendar and to-do list, but more flexible. The plan is to use it to schedule out this week and see how it goes.

Just came to your thread - and love it so far! Hope you're enjoying tai chi on the beach and some restorative time away from the screens

Saw this, thought of you, even though I know you're not quite to this point yet:http://xkcd.com/1403/

This is wonderful! Yay on meeting rebels face-to-face!

I wanna test drive a Tesla, too! So jealous. I'm waiting for the X myself. We're already saving our pennies and hoping this will be our next vehicle. My fingers are still crossed for you on the exam results and am thinking that cuddling a demon doesn't sound so great. But if anyone can manage that, you can! Castles, waffles with cherries, and sweet pretzels sounds like a wonderful day to me! I have a hard time choosing what to enjoy on special occasions. Unfortunately, this usually means that special occasions tend to last more than just one day so I can sample several things! When traveling, I look for local specialties; when at home, I love to bake and try new recipes.

*wipes the splashed water from her eyes and paddles her kayak around the swimming hole* Nice day for a paddle. And a swim, too, apparently. *parks the kayak, retrieves the bag, removes towel, and places both under a tree* Is that a sloth? Lovely. Mind if I sit? *sits on towel, takes a deep breath, and meditates for a bit - trying to find center before a busy week*

Week 1 Day 7 Check-In Mini Goal #1: Complete a weight workout 3 times a week. - All 3 workouts completed. +3 points Mini Goal #2: Defeat the Lazies. Get up at 5:30 am daily. Failed 3 days, but did haul my tush out of bed both Saturday and Sunday this weekend, so +4 points. My husband is not very happy with this goal, but he was up before me twice this week, so he'll manage. Mini Goal #3: Walk at least 2 miles every day. Two days with more travel than walk time, so +5 points Plans for Week 2 Week 2 Plans: Back to a "normal" schedule for me, at least. Weight workout on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. The weather looks unpredictable this week, so I'll fit in walks as I can. I'm changing this goal from "walk every day" to "get 30 minutes of some sort of moving exercise every day" so if I have to do this at the gym, I'm not limited to the treadmill, but can count the exercise bike, elliptical, or stepper. In other plans, our children have spent the last few days with grandparents (yay, grandparents!) and my love and I have been indulging in a bit of hedonism and now feel the need to atone for it. Plus, we did a really strict round of low-carb eating a couple of years ago and have been slowly backsliding and need to stop that. So, for the next couple weeks, we're cutting out all grains, alcohol, sugar, artificial sweeteners, and most fruit. I can still have one serving of berries a day, but no other fruit. We'll add back some more fruit in a couple of weeks, but the rest of August will be a sort of dietary reset. Technically not part of the challenge, but challenging nonetheless. It helps so much that he's on board with this. The normal schedule will also allow me to get back to the meditation and idea generation habit building. I kinda let that slide last week, too. And the non-fiction of the month is Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain‎, which I checked out in audio format so I can listen while catching up on the stitching. Which...yeah. Apparently, I need a schedule in order to pay attention to the little things I want just for myself.

I'm off to a weak start myself. Still, a weak challenge is better than no challenge. The goals give me something to steer by when the universe conspires to throw me off track. Deep breath, tod - you'll find the right gear. Sleeping well will certainly help!

Rainy, cloudy day here - perfect for sleeping and stretching!

Week 1 Day 5 Check in Rafting with the kids was a blast, but it did make me replace my phone sooner than planned. Oh, well. Do you ever feel that the universe is plotting against you? I slept in on Tuesday, because the alarm didn't go off. The clock is stuck in this weird state where it'll tell time, but not set the alarm. And because my phone was in a bag of rice for the last few nights, I didn't have that backup. So, I'm really starting off poorly on the defeat the lazies goal. Only made it Monday and today so far this week. New phone, new alarm set - no more excuses. Workout went well today. Did I say that I didn't think I would be overly sore after Monday's workout? My legs were so sore Tuesday and Wednesday that it was hard to sit down. Just as well I didn't plan on gym time Wed. I did kettle bell swings for the first time today and my glutes are talking about it already. I did not fit in the walking Wednesday or Thursday - too much travel. Weak start. Room for improvement.