318JimmyNow

Repost from my thread. Mission 1 gets an A-. I will admit this one was not that difficult. I gave up soda a few years back and have never really been sugary drink person. I have, however, had a few missteps with bottled iced tea. It really does hit the spot on a hot day. It would usually be one and that will be it for some time. I will also add that I had a few kombuchas along the way as well. I made sure to pick ones that didn't have sugar so I don't really count these againt my health but there were not listed on my mission. I will make sure to ammend that for next time. Solid B on mission 2. I did venture out as often as I could on what I ate. Had a few weeks were I only ate 1 thing off my normal menu but I still looked at that as being a mini accomplishment. I think next time I will focus more on types of food rather than single items. I do have a CSA so I got various veggies to eat that I had never had before, or prepare things in a different way, but it might be more engaging for me to pick a type of food, like morocan or chineese, to use. C- for mission 3. I would go really strong for several days then have a misstep and binge for a day or two. In terms of my overall health it proboaly didn't hurt me any but it still happened. My biggest problem was always preparation. Being hungry, and not prepared, was always what lead me to eat something I should not have. Overall I would say it was a win for me. I didn't do as well as I wanted to on my missions but I think I learned a lot about myself and what I will need to do in the fiture. I also know what I need to continue to do to stay the course of improving myself. A good experience and something I can build off.

Mission 1 gets an A-. I will admit this one was not that difficult. I gave up soda a few years back and have never really been sugary drink person. I have, however, had a few missteps with bottled iced tea. It really does hit the spot on a hot day. It would usually be one and that will be it for some time. I will also add that I had a few kombuchas along the way as well. I made sure to pick ones that didn't have sugar so I don't really count these againt my health but there were not listed on my mission. I will make sure to ammend that for next time. Solid B on mission 2. I did venture out as often as I could on what I ate. Had a few weeks were I only ate 1 thing off my normal menu but I still looked at that as being a mini accomplishment. I think next time I will focus more on types of food rather than single items. I do have a CSA so I got various veggies to eat that I had never had before, or prepare things in a different way, but it might be more engaging for me to pick a type of food, like morocan or chineese, to use. C- for mission 3. I would go really strong for several days then have a misstep and binge for a day or two. In terms of my overall health it proboaly didn't hurt me any but it still happened. My biggest problem was always preparation. Being hungry, and not prepared, was always what lead me to eat something I should not have. Overall I would say it was a win for me. I didn't do as well as I wanted to on my missions but I think I learned a lot about myself and what I will need to do in the fiture. I also know what I need to continue to do to stay the course of improving myself. A good experience and something I can build off.

The reccomendation I got when I first started sled work was to make it simple. I performed 1 minutes interval pulls with the rope tied arround my waist. I would weight the sled so it took me 50 seconds to pull 50 yards. I would do a 1 minute pull, then rest for a minute, then pull, then rest, back and forth. I did that until I was no longer able to make the 50 yards in 1 minute, which on my first day was 4 pulls. When I was able to make 10 pulls, all under 1 minute, I added weight and did the same process. Once I got up to what I thought was a good weight, based on my sled and surface I was dragging on, I started to add in different types of pulls. That is when I started to add in backwards and sideways stuff. I would also, depending on how I felt, use a lighter load and do other things like face pulls, rows, flys, etc.... These were mainly to deal with soreness issues. Like most anything it's a great tool but it is also super easy to overdo it so start slow and see how it goes. Anyone who has ever used one will have an opion but you really need to just play around and see what you like. Someone looking to get in shape for a specific sport will most likely use it differently than someone, like myself, who was just looking for some GPP and and extra work to improve my deadlift.

Yes, good luck. Just for some background how would you physically rate yourself now? You can use any comparison you like but it would be helpfull to get a sense of your starting point relative to your main quest and other goals.

Seems like the subtitle for this challenge could be "Soda Busters" as that is a common thread among many of the challengers. Good luck and let us know if you need any help. While not completely sugar free I did manage to beat my sugar habit and will help in any way I can.

It's a bit "New Age" and some people don't buy that it works but I had good sucess with NLP when I was really struggling. I would use the NLP to convert the sugar craving to something else like for fruit. Still a sugar but it got me off the soda. One other thing I would suggest, and I am just learning this myself, is to be prepared. Most of us have cravings as a result of outside stimulus. Something we do, or hear, or smell can trigger the cravings as well. Figure out what they are and be prepared with an alternate plan. When the soda craving got real bad I would drink a kombucha. Now I have a kombucha habit but I rationalize it's better than soda and junk food. This, however, doesn't work if you don't have anything with you. My worst time of day was always driving home from work. I passed a number of convenience stores and could spend a few minutes, and a few dollars, and get some soda and snacks very easily. I prepared by always eating something right before I left work. This is not fool proof but it has helped, but again it only helps if I am prepared with something to eat. It always seemed like when I figured out one way to beat the cravings I found a new way to start them. A never ending process but the end results will be worth it.

I only had one goal and have been doing OK with it. Eating clean is a lot harder than I thought it would be. I have learned alot from this challenge, and interacting with others, so I think I am starting to get it dialed in. Better preparation and planning seems to be what is missing now. I can a few days of very clean food then have a few days of bad eating. This back and forth is what I need to stop. I will need to redouble my efforts and really focus now to finish strong and get ready for the fall eating season.

It's amazing how simple that is, yet I still struggle. Preparation has been the real issue with me many times. I am not really looking to loose weight so I don't have a problem with eating when I'm hungry, the problem is being hungry with nothing good to eat. That seems to really be my downfall. I think this week I will work more at preparing food ahead of time so I don't get so hungry and binge.

I don't have the book so I won't say it's truly Primal but it's very close. I don't eat Primal/Paleo because of food alergies or anything I just like the concept of natural foods. I don't shy away from peanuts, corn, or milk but I just look to avoid processed foods. I really like the old Jack Lalane saying "If a man made it, then don't eat it."

First week is in the books. 1. Drink only water or coffee This one was pretty good. Not great as I had a few iced teas but overall it went well. Last year I kicked the soda habit and was able to keep with it so this one was not that difficult but it's still something I need to think about. 2. Three times a week eat something I have never had before This one went well. Not only did I eat some things I have never had before, like paty pan squash and orange tomatoes, I was the one who prepared them. I still have a long way to go, and will hope to get more adventurous as this continues, but for now adding in some veggies is a good start. 3. Using the 80/20 rule make sure that %80 of my meals are made with no processed ingredients. I had a few good days but also some bad ones. I know from my own personal experience that I am not good when I can allow myself to cheat. A single meal can turn into a three day binge for me so I need to work harder to limit the cheats and stay on task with my goals.

Looks like the soda quest is going well. It does take some time but eventually the cravings go away. Just keep an eye out for any triggers. I would always drink soda when I was eating pizza. I had been soda free for some time but the smell of pizza would also get me thinking about it again. It's weird how that works. Understanding myself and learning what things tripped me up along the way helped so much more than will power or knowledge. We all know what we are not supposed to eat but man it's hard not to.

I mentioned this to someone who was trying to cut their soda intake. Sugar is something that for many people, myself included, is extremely difficult to have in small doses. There are lots of people who can have it in moderation but I am not one. Sugar, in either food or drinks like soda, is a gateway to bad eating for me and I can not have any without it casuing all kinds of problems. You may be one of those people who can eat a little every few days and be fine but it's just something to think about if you really start to struggle with this.

While I can certainly appreciate the goal of 100 pounds I would suggest you pick a goal for the 6 week challenge. Loosing 100 pounds is a real big goal. But committing to dropping 15 pounds of fat in 6 weeks can make this a little easier to envision. I would avoid setting weekly weight goals because most people don't loose in a linear fashion but setting goals of 4 pounds every two weeks will get you there. Good luck however you choose to proceed.

If I can offer a suggestion I would just drop the soda completely. Don't switch to diet, just go cold turkey. I can only speak for myself but whenever I have tried to remove a food, or drink, but just cutting down I found out that that a single drink was a gateway. I could never stop at just one, or limit myself. Especially with soda once you get the super sweet taste it's hard to stop. You also start to obsess about when you will get your next one. For me atleast it was just easier to tell myself I won't drink it anymore. I still have other gateway foods that casue me to make bad decisions but I did this last year for soda and have been clean ever since.

It would help, to keep track of your progress, and for everyone else to see what you are doing if you could post some of your info on your running. I know you mentioned intervals but realistically what can you run now. Just looking for times and distances to see where you are now and to see how you plan works to get that mile in.