The Mouse

Quick and Dirty update. UNWRAP DAY: THIRTEEN (I think I'm counting wrong?) DIET Total "cheat" day - have no clue what I ate regarding calories thanks to two family functions. The first one was a total bust, but I thankfully didn't eat too much. Not a single vegetable in that place, I swear. I have no clue how they can eat all that canned stuff - I mean, refried beans is hella easy and cheaper to make (and the family in question needs to be frugal) from scratch, as is the dough for a quick roll out pastry. It all tasted terrible, and to boot it was the first thing I found to eat. However, dinner and snack were much better (though my Auntie's cookies did me in, she at least had cantaloupe there to fill up on first and her cookies are tiny!). Tried Quest Protein for the first time - very satisfying and quite filling with a really great taste. Not the highest in protein, but I think it's among the highest for caloric load with a great taste so far. Estimates: 1680cal WORKOUT Rest day REST 8 hours~! >w< Definitely not getting my rest for today, though. SCORES DIET 11/40 WORKOUT 7/24, +3 REST 11/36 Also, I will be upping my caloric intake to 1590cal again, as doing some research into how injuries affect BMR has revealed that soft tissue injuries typically raise BMR by 15-20%. Thus, eating less, as is always my wont, will not serve me to recover any faster. Hopefully eating more protein (which is also in higher demand once injured) and eating more period will help my knee along. Also, by me not doing joint kicks with my left, which results in torque on my right (affected) knee. ... I wish to be able to run come spring. or at least summer.

Thanks! I've done it once or twice before, earlier in my keto days and I found they helped me a lot. However, I usually did it with fruits or bread - I read that it's actually better to have something like gummy bears or sport chews or something to get a more immediate boost. So, it sounds like basically cyclical ketogenic that starts the night before and drops you back in after a fasted work out the next morning. Am I getting that right? Yeah, I've read about that too - I figure it may be why my lifts are stalling out so early and why I have a hard time progressing in them. Oooh, I'll have to look at Morgan's stuff - that's my question exactly with re-incorporating carbs into my diet. I've no clue what my macros ought to really look like. Ha ha, hey - if it works for you, it works for you, nothin' selfish about it! :3 Thank you for the list of names! I'll definitely take a look at them all. *dances* Yay, reading~! (Oh, why can't I be this excited for school readings?!) UNWRAP DAY: TWELVE DIET 1518cal (approx, I may be over - I didn't finish all my food and I didn't eat all that Pinkberry - I split it with The Boy), 65g fat, 128g net carbs, 90g protein Not keto, but still below my caloric threshold of 1590cal. I've lowered it on MFP to 1500cal because I don't feel I'm at "Moderate" activity, but I'm definitely not "Light". WORKOUT Karate today~! Did some sparring, finally! Things are still way too fast for me to follow, and I need to work on pivoting when my opponent moves out of the way, but I scored some points in unlikely scenarios and got in some lovely kicks! Finally able to use kicks! And set up some moves, but I can only really do it on green belts. I take too long to do it on brown - except for on maybe two of my classmates. REST About 7 hours of sleep! >w< And tonight I can get 8! SCORES DIET 11/40 (+1) WORKOUT 7/24, +3 (+1 bonus) REST 10/36 (+1)

Agreed - I'm lucky to come from a Filipino family. I was taught how to cook all sorts of rice since I was little, ha ha! Got a bit too good at it, as my early non-diet days will attest, ha ha! Thanks, Pheonix. It's hard to do, but it helps (I think). I see, I see. That makes sense. I did read through reddit's /r/ketogains and I want to try TKD for the reason that I may be able to get more out of it and help myself perform better. I will probably have to ask whether or not I have to eat carbs before each workout, or just the ones I feel like death in. Ergh, muscle cannibalism doesn't sound fun - especially since the muscles least used right now are my legs (damn you, Runner's Knee!) and I don't want to lose my squat-butt! ;A; Thank you for explaining the reasoning to me, Kishi. :3 It does make a lot of sense, and I probably should've switched over much before this. I'm going to try a few weeks at TKD and see how I do (though I haven't been in ketosis, so it's not really gonna be TKD, but it will be low-carb). But I will switch after this challenge, or at the very latest after April 15th (my NF anniversary). As for keto cycling, that's more or less like the Leangains carb-fat macro cycling, right? Is it popularized in any other diets out there, or is it just kinda general fitness knowledge? I've only read about it in Leangains terms and some articles (which I haven't had the chance to fully digest) from Lyle McDonald, but are there other resources out there that talk about it? I'm interested in pursuing that - and if not that, then at the very least one to three days a week which are low-carb or veggie and lean meats as a majority rule, with maybe some complex carbs thrown in at breakfast. UNWRAP DAY: TWELVE DIET This is an approximation, as I'm not sure the counts on the salad I had tonight. It did have croutons, though. 1568cal, 86g fat, 69g net carbs (again, likely lower due to the screwy count from the Chocolite bar), 97g protein. WORKOUT I took it light today, doing 10mins of steady biking (no display on my bike, so I don't know how fast or how far I biked), some light arm work, and a lot of planking, sit ups and stretching. REST FAIL! ;A; I got about 5.5hrs of sleep. SCORES DIET 10/40 (+1) WORKOUT 7/24 (+1), +2 REST 10/36 (+1)

Really? Why's that - the sooner rather than later, bit, I mean. No offence taken, I'm just curious. :3 Also, I missed your post on the leptin reset - thank you for explaining it! It definitely does go hand-in-hand with some experiences I've had earlier in my weight loss when I went from an extremely low amount of calories to back up to a higher number. My progress made a really quick leap forward. Thanks for your input. I've been toying with the idea, but recently for sure I've been thinking that I won't be able to sustain a ketogenic diet for life. UNWRAP DAY: ELEVEN DIET Not a keto day today, but within caloric limits. 1569cal, 89g fat, 65g carbs, 90g protein WORKOUT Rest Day today, thankfully. The knee is doing a bit better after icing last night, but it is still really really painful. I'm nervous at this point. Hopefully it'll be okay enough tomorrow for some cardio, but now I know I'm definitely not doing any kicks that involve torquing that right leg for a good long while. It saddens me that I'm taking so long to recover and I can't help but wonder if not eating carbs is affecting that. I'm researching that now. REST 6 hours obtained yesterday! I miscalculated my commute time, so I didn't get that extra half hour, but I'm definitely consistently getting that 6 hours. It makes me really happy! Especially considering I'm going to have a lot of work ahead of me until reading week in one of my classes. ;A; I've made myself the main decision maker for a group simulation project - on one hand, I'm proud of the fact that I've actually got something to contribute and I seem to have a relatively high amount of business acumen among my classmates; on the other hand, I'm terrified of the responsibility. Ah well, we learn, right? SCORES DIET 9/40 (+1) WORKOUT 6/24 +2 REST 9/36 (+1)

...I use spices from my spice drawer like a madwoman... I'm not sure if there's one I haven't used yet... Though maybe I'll try making a pizza sauce from scratch? With garlic powder, onion flakes, italian seasoning, some thyme and adding some red pepper flakes on top of the toppings? OH! And I can top it with mozzarella cheese on a piece of my low-carb flatbread! >w< Yes, sir, this is happening. It may need to be on Friday or Saturday, but it is happening.

On a bit of an unrelated note, I am likely going to do away with keto after this challenge and stick to a protein macro and caloric deficit. I feel keto has done its job (I originally set my goal weight for a diet at 125lbs) and that I've accomplished the "lifestyle" change I was after with it - to view food more as fuel. Now, however, I feel that the restriction and the analysis that I put into it are going to make me dependent on taking a lot of time during the day to plan out the meals I eat. While I feel meal-planning will always be a part of my health habits, I also feel the need to learn to eat more intuitively and mindfully. I need to train myself to feel when I'm full, instead of looking at an app and seeing a number and saying to myself that I ought to be full. Plus, I also want to run an experiment on eating "frugally" as in /r/frugal while maintaining a protein macro. That experiment will require breaking of keto, but still an eye on calories, though I suspect it will be fairly low due to the fact of having to stretch meals quite a far way away. I am also planning on taking a break from NF Challenges, though that may look more like a starting post, hanging around the forums occasionally, and an ending post. While I love the community, I feel that I want to take my health journey on a bit of a solo path for a tad. :3 Also, writing on this thing usually means I stay up late - not the best thing when I'm approaching the last of my finals ever. (ohh, wow, can't wait!) But fear not! This Mouse ain't goin' anywhere for this challenge.

SLEEP IS GOTTEN. UNWRAP DAY: TEN DIET A definite cheat day today - kinda unplanned, but definitely inevitable. A friend of mine wanted to treat my boy and I to gelato and she is a definite hell-raiser for not letting us get away with saying no to her. Plus, she's more than poor, and if she wanted to treat us, we wanted her to be able to - it's kinda something she saves up for every now and again and saying no would mean to her the same thing as us throwing her money away. Screw the macro count for today: 1696cal (approx, not sure of the gelato stats or the size of my banana). WORKOUT The quickest Bench day ever. Did RPT Bench with 6R@80#, 8R@75#, 10R@70#. It's getting a bit easier - last time I did this, I could barely balance the bar. Now, I only had that problem after trying to bust through the last ten as fast as I could. ... I had a lunch date with a friend I rescheduled, like, twice in a row. Don't judge me. ;3 Must ice the knee - both my legs feel over-worked. Definitely glad I didn't push cardio into today. REST 6hrs and change gotten last night. SCORES DIET 8/40 WORKOUT 6/24, +2 (+1 regular) DIET REST 8/36 (+1)

Yikes. I do understand what you mean about foam rollers, though. My quads and IT band are my constant target for that. UNWRAP DAY: NINE DIET Got a bit over my caloric limit today (I think, I had a few bites of treats throughout the day - I know, I know), but I think with a more standard breakfast of boiled eggs and my turkey bacon, I'll have the opposite problem. And more money in my pocket. 1593cal, 91g fat, 37g net carbs (may be lower, as the Chocolite carb count is different on MFP than it is on the bar's label due to sugar alcohols [yay, erythritol!]), 77g protein. Definitely next time, I'm opting out of treats and for the cream+water+Isopure mix to make sure I get enough protein. Also, started BCAAs today. Not sure if my nausea was due to playing a game in the car or that, so we'll see. Also, unsure of any actual change in recovery time so far. WORKOUT Karate today~! And hella DOMS from kickboxing yesterday. Like, oh my fudgesicle. Also, torquing my knee slightly doing joint kicks didn't help at all. Currently icing it like a madwoman. REST 6 hours last night. Not having Fjord in my room is a definite difference. Really strong sleep. As I have a later morning tomorrow, I'm going to try for 8 hours tonight. SCORES DIET 8/40 (+1) WORKOUT 5/24, +2 (+1 bonus pt) REST 7/36 (+1)

Ha ha, today's gonna be a bad day, I think, though! XD But thank you - and hey, you do what works for you, right? In all honesty, I'm looking at increasing my limit to 50g and maybe doing away with keto after this challenge, depending on how much I weigh by the end. I feel like to get the calories I need while feeling like I'm getting a balanced diet, I'll have to do that. Oh, neato! Didn't know that. :3 Thanks for the lesson! I'll know better - and appreciate it more - now. >w<

Phoenix, Tkal - I'll get back to you soon! UNWRAP DAY: EIGHT DIET No picture today - sorry! I'll update with one tomorrow. Changed my dietary requirements now to 1590cal to reflect increased activity. 1422cal, 98g fat, 44g net carbs (high, but due to new diet changes under cal limit), 94g protein. Best discovery - 8g and 9g flatbreads which make for amazing wraps and really great pizzas! WORKOUT Kickboxing, done! 1hr of warm ups and drills. Followed by 95lbs DLs and 20mins on the bike at lvl 5 (~7 miles). Deadening workout. Definitely taking BCAAs starting tomorrow. and next week I will do TKD using Margarita Clif Shot Bloks for the spot-on macros (though I honestly might do with gummy bears sometimes for some indulgence) and extra sodium to help with muscle cramps. Knee is feeling it. Definitely a bit spooked. Icing it tonight. REST Last night I didn't get 6 hours at all. Figured out it was my mini-fridge which was causing me to not get a good night's rest despite hours in bed, which is likely what made me feel so tired last week and caused the emotional breakdowns this weekend. The fridge (Fjord) is now in the living room and my room is blessedly quiet. SCORES DIET 7/40 (+1pt) WORKOUT 5/24 (+2pts!) REST 6/36

B'aw, that gif is awesome. Thanks, Leonine! >w< And thank you for the encouragement. I really appreciate it. I've been thinking about the diet quite a bit and I feel that next challenge, I may change it up and do a strict calorie count versus a keto diet. Will also get blood work done, though, because I want to know if it's keto or weight loss that's helped most with my non-alcoholic fatty liver. Ha ha, 9 hours does do wonders. I may only get it a few days a week, though. UNWRAP DAY: SEVEN DIET Did well today, if a bit under. I probably ate more than that, as I snacked a bit on cheese and (guilty) a few chips from the boy while cooking dinner. Eating <400cal and then waiting until dinner? Not the best idea. But company does distract me from my stomach, ha ha! ~1382cal, 82g fat, 24g net carbs, 114g protein WORKOUT Rest day~! So needed, once more. Tomorrow is the first kickboxing class, so I'm quite excited. REST 9 hours of sleep, I think! Could've been ten. I forgot to press the "sleep" button on SleepBot. SCORES DIET 6/40 (-2 from the total because I forgot that I have two free meals planned for - will edit the front post to reflect this) WORKOUT 3/24 REST 6/36

Leptin reset? Tell me more - that sounds interesting! Thanks, Kishi. I am getting concerned with how I'm beginning to treat food - I do have a bit of a naturally obsessive mindset, and I want to avoid building unhealthy habits. I'm not sure if tonight's insecurities were due to the beginnings of bad mindsets to food, or because I was already really emotionally messed up from other issues, but cutting loose was a good call. Although the dinner choice I made wasn't exactly what I had in mind - I ordered mussles gorgonzola, which I thought was mussles siciliana... Didn't like that at all. Gorgonzola came out in a cream sauce. I'm used to "gorgonzola" meaning a clear broth-like soup with tomatoes and a whole whack of awesome tasting spices, but that's what it's called at a different restaurant (which went by the same name, strangely). So... basically mussles in alfredo. Really didn't like it and I felt it was something of karmic justice for not ordering a salad - probably not a healthy way to view that mix up. But got home and had some berries and that feels cleaner on my stomach and palette. UNWRAP DAY: FIVE DIET As outlined above, definitely a break today. Unplanned, but necessary. 1840cal (still below my "maintenance" levels if I estimated my calories right), unknown macro breakdown. Defs not enough protein. WORKOUT Rest day, karate was cancelled. Did a walking date with the boy at the mall, including playing some video games which were namely stand-up shooters at the arcade plus some air hockey. Not a workout, but not a sedentary date either. REST Slept, like, 9 hours. Lovely. >w< Had a nice and restful day, too. SCORES DIET 5/42 (0pts today) WORKOUT 3/24, +1 (0pts today) REST 5/36

So, got the rest Kishi was talking about. But at the same time, I broke my keto/1410cal diet rules today. I still ate under or at maintenance (can't be sure of the exact nutritional values of stuff, but I think I estimated higher than they are). I don't have too many good reasons for breaking my diet, but I've been having the worst day in a while with two breakdowns and some definite physical tiredness. However, I broke the diet with a treat (Pinkberry frozen yogurt) with the boy while on a date namely because even thinking about it, the idea scared me. And I don't think it serves me to be scared of carbs or of treating myself - especially when I'm not eating above my maintenance calories in any case. Also, having some mussles Gorgonzola at a friend's birthday party - counting this as a bit of a "free" meal namely because of the small amount of bread it comes with and the fact that I've no clue about the actual nutrition for it.

UNWRAP DAY: FIVE DIET 1487cal+ (had some snacks - bites of some protein bars, and bites of some treats which I didn't count), 104g fat, 26g net carbs, 102g protein WORKOUT I felt super tired today, damn. Like, fall asleep on a recumbent bike kind of tired. Despite a cup of coffee this morning. I also cut my workout a bit short today - half because of time constraints (hating how cardio is packed) and half because of my knee not used to using an elliptical. I figure, better safe than sorry. I did 20mins on the elliptical, 1:30 of planks (3x30s), 3x10 regular sit ups, 3x10 weighted Russian Twists, 3x10 reverse sit ups and a butt-load of stretching and foam rollering. My forearms are still sore from climbing... REST I didn't sleep 6 hours - I came in at 4.4 hours, but I added a 1.7 hour nap to that, bringing the total to 6.1 hours over the day. I'll count this as a success, I guess, as I usually don't nap. SCORES DIET 5/42 (added an extra point 'cause I think I forgot Monday) WORKOUT 3/24, +1 REST 4/36

I'd say it would be transition, yeah. It's similar in feeling to when I first tried the keto diet. Monday, kickboxing starts, as well as the Friday karate classes, so I figure I'll try two weeks at that. If the Standard Keto Diet doesn't work, I'll try Targeted Keto (basically have some quick carbs - easily digested, like gummies or Shot Blox) just before working out. We'll see how everything works. Awright, gonna upload my food diary and write up my daily summary.