Shukar

Since I seem to do a lot of my best writing when I pull stuff from thin air, that's what I'm gonna do with this challenge post and then do some refining in the next couple days as needed, because a mostly good challenge is better by far than no challenge.

So, without further fluff text, the goals.

1) Run consistently

The constant refrain of recent challenges, run often as I can and things will actually improve. The goal here is 2 a week all challenge. Anything else is just a bonus.

2) Cook some dinner

Less hectic schedule, supposedly, this challenge means the return of the meal plan. Plan the meals, then cook them. Plan meals for 3-4 of the week nights, depending on my work schedule and with a built in night out with the wife, and cook 2-3 of them at least (because I try to be realistic right now). Bonus points if I can start figuring out some good fallback options for when I don't feel like cooking but should so I don't get fast food.

3) Pick stuff up so I can also put stuff down

Haven't been lifting recently and that needs to change. First though I have to stop using my squat rack as a place to store stuff. So step one is get the area cleared up so I can use it, and step two is use it. Get some lifting done by the end of the challenge.

4) Car Repair

My car needs some work done, the headlights are nasty and need replacing, it probably needs a new bumper due to the broken plastic and all, and it needs some other work too. During the challenge I'm gonna get quotes and figure out triage for what needs done and then get it done. Bonus if I end up getting the windshield replaced and price out tint so I can have it done before summer.

So there you have it, some goals I just made up.

Strong gif game already as usual.

Woo running!

Looking forward to the goals.

Hooray not being dead!

Head down to the Winchester, grab a pint and wait for the whole thing to blow over?

Following for the awesome.

Ohai.

Alrighty, talky time.

Been and gone on the trip to Disneyworld, spent most of the week after trying to get caught up on all the things I needed to do for work and home before I had to turn right back around and leave town for the previously hypothetical work trip. Am now on said work trip.

Disneyworld was a ton of fun, had a great time riding things, exploring the differences from Disneyland (which I visit often), and just generally not having to worry about stuff. Went for 2 runs while there, obviously got in lots of walking, kept up my Streak. As for the food I kept things under control, almost no dessert or sweets, minimal snacking, and I kept the fried stuff to a minimum. Also ended up losing a couple pounds on the vacation so I don't think I did too bad.

We buckled down and got the apartment pretty darn clean during the lag week there so all good on that front. Also got the eye appointment scheduled so that's good as well.

This week is going to be mostly sitting around overseeing other people doing work, with the ocassional call to get remote people to do work I'd normally be doing. Going well so far, not going to get a run in other than the race on the weekend most likely, but I've got that and I've been rucking to and from the job site which is better than nothing and gets me some fresh air.

All told, not doing too bad. Somewhat at the mercy of whatever food happens to be freely provided but nothing has been too awful so far.

I suspect some of the folks here might want to know that the US marathon trials are tomorrow and are being televised to my knowledge, so if you wanna watch Scouts on TV, it's a good chance.

Correct as usual, goal one amended: two runs while at disneyworld, keep up the streak, try to get in a run during the week of the other trip if possible.

So how's it going so far?

Staying busy, not the same as staying active but related I suppose. Not doing the best about the food but I've done worse in recent memory. We cleaned up before the trip a bit so it's not awful to come back too. No progress on goal 4 yet, or expected until most of the way through the challenge.

That's funny, you don't look Druish. Good to see you Lobro.

I'm glad I'm not the only one who appreciates that frozen parody video. I will accept chocolate foods if you don't want them around. Just sayin'. 

We're gonna have to use the machine that finds stuff all the way up Kishi's butt then. Obviously.

*sits down to enjoy the snacks*

I was concerned your thread had ended up in the wrong guild when I first saw it, this makes more sense. Glad to have you around.

You have been around quite some time now I suppose, naming things after you probably isn't unreasonable at this point. 

Looking good sir, making the rest of us look lazy with your ultra distances as always.

I didn't end up as active as I'd like to be with my goals, but I did better than I would have without them in mind, and that's a success I'll take. Time to adjust and continue moving upward.

So this challenge will be a little different from the previous one(s), because I'm going to be spending a decent amount of it away from home. 10 days at Disneyworld at the beginning of the challenge and likely a week away for work at the end of the challenge. As a result continuing my prior challenges food goal isn't practical because I won't be home to do the meal planning and cooking; among other complications.

So, on to the goals.

1) Stay active despite the crazy schedule

The plan is to go for a run or two while we are at Disney, and the latter trip, if it happens, will actually be interrupted by a half marathon so that one definitely gets some activity. It's unlikely I'll end up doing any lifting sadly, but there will be *lots* of walking at Disney that's for sure. Success here will be about keeping myself moving even when I don't feel like it, and doing things that are just about whatever I'm already doing. Two runs while at Disneyworld, maintaining my Streak, and endeavor to get in a run during the potential second trip.

2) Don't eat like an asshole

Even if I won't be able to prepare many of my own meals, that doesn't mean I can just go way off the rails and eat like a total asshole. Keep the portion sizes rational, keep the sweets down to a reasonable amount, make sure I'm getting vegetables.

3) Keep your place clean

Both me and the wife have been super busy with work and stuff lately and our apartment isn't the cleanest as a result. While I realize this won't be the easiest thing to balance, the time I do have around the place should include some cleaning so I can feel less like a terrible slob. So pull out a vacuum or throw away some papers or something.

4) Check yourself

At the beginning of the year I like to take the time to get myself checked out, go to the eye doctor, go to the dentist, etc. I've already done the dentist so far this year, so I should schedule a trip to the optometrist so I can get that checked up on, and find the time to get my nose fixed (finally). I'm putting off a physical right now because I've still got some weight I'm trying to get rid of before I go back there. I'm working on that still.

So that's what I have so far, I'll see you guys as often as I can manage.

Ok, so quick summary before I draft a post up for the next challenge. 

1) Didn't go so well on the workouts portion of things, was routinely active but didn't actually get to do any working out besides the race I had. So not a total failure, but not the success I was hoping for.

2) Above half compliance on the meal planning, which is a slight improvement over before which is good. Sadly gonna be some complication with that for next challenge but still a good outcome.

3) Didn't post as much as I should have, but did post more than I had been in recent challenges. 

4) Got the budget setup, and made some adjustments based on reality. The results aren't as spectacular as originally hoped as a result of that pesky reality, but they are still not too bad. I'm happy with that outcome, and I got to do some fun stuff with excel which is always a good outcome.

So that's what I've got for now, more later.

So, Monday.

Monday I got in a whopping 16k steps, a good start to the week. No time for a run but one is scheduled in for Wednesday morning so I have that to look forward to. Didn't stick to the meal plan but off-roading was Thai food rather than fried junk so it could be worse. As for the budget we evaluated some plans and decided that the aggressive payment payoff we had in mind won't work for 2 reasons. First, it would leave us a bit tight on the budget in ways that could go really out of control too easily for our tastes, and second the plan was prefferencing getting rid of fixed payments over getting rid of higher interest debt in a way we didn't feel comfortable with on reflection. As a result, the plan has been updated to better fit our goals and will be readdressed periodically to make sure it still meets our needs. It'll mean slower payoff but it'll be a more sustainable road to the destination.

Listened to This Week in Law, the Tim Ferriss Show, and This Week in Tech, plus watched episodes of The Wire, Primeval, Galavant, and SNL.

Bis Abend!

So I heard a rumor you had obtained a new sleep tracking device, how's that working for you? Sleeping as good as you're eating and lifting?

Not much going on, just struggling a little with getting back in the posting habit. 

So summing up the week: Hit my step goal for the week easily, didn't go for a run due to work and other excuses. Did stick to the dining plan the majority of nights. Obviously didn't do too well with posting regularly. As far as the budget stuff goes things got a little hairy due to some miscommunication but all seem to have been cleared up now. Will be making some adjustment to the payment schedule to account for reality vs theory, but things seem to be going well on that front, there's a clear light at the end of the tunnel, even if it's a long way off.

So that activity goal is the problem, as expected, because my schedule is hectic pretty constantly and getting running the week after a race is harder than normal (because I do almost all my running with the wife who gets bad doms apparently). But I'm gonna make at least *a* run happen next week.

Bis Morgen!

So to sum up Saturday through Monday: Went for a long run over the weekend (hooray race day), didn't eat any planned meals because travelling meant no plan, totally hit the step goal for the week. Didn't lift anything so far this challenge, didn't post as much as I could have but I'm staying with it which is what mattered, and so far I've got the payments for my debt plan scheduled out for 6 months and have migrated a decent amount of my outstanding high interest debt to 0 interest locations to save a good chunk of change while I'm repaying it. I've also got a list of stuff that needs doing this week to catch up from the recent trip and prepare for the next, and am putting some spare processing cycles toward coming up with the advancements of my goals into next challenge. All told, things are going alright so far, just have to keep at it. 

So, Tuesday.

13k steps today, no run because recovering from Sundays run still (mostly back to normal but still getting a bit of soreness in some positions I don't put myself into much throughout the day). Dinner tonight was, according to plan, a thai omelet ala NomNomPaleo, with rice and roasted broccoli. We made a big payment to one of our active credit cards today and worked out what our ongoing strategy will be for that to make sure all the finances stay on the up and up. 

Other things from today, started in on the list for the week and made about what I expected for a days progress, listened to Home Theater Geeks, Tim Ferriss Show, and This Week in Tech on the podcast front, and watched The Simpsons, Galavant, and SNL. So far a good week, just have to keep it that way.

Bis Morgen!