ktravtothemax

Late to the game on this one. My stress has been crazy high this week, and between my hip bugging me and the craziness I have been in super high self care mode. Basically, it means that I have missed the gym a lot this week and been hibernating and trying to keep on top of my work and interview life. So not my best week... Week 5 Summary: 1. Strength Train 4x a week Grade: D (1x) This week was rough. I did upper body on Monday, and then passed on the rest of the week since I had to go to a company in person for two days, and then it snowed and I was homebound. I had many moments of sheer laziness this weekend where I could have worked out and didn't, but I need to move on and look forward... 2. Cardio for 120 minutes per week Grading: C = 65 min/week In line with taking it easy on my hip this week, I had to dial back the cardio and pick some less intense options. I managed to make it 65 minutes this week, and hopefully once things are healed I can give it my all. 3. Make 4 Paleo Dinners and 4 Paleo Lunches each week (8 meals total) Grading: C = 5 meals/week This was not great this week. Stress makes me forget to eat, so I forgot to eat lunch 3 times, and had unhealthy options twice. I made 2 paleo lunches. I really need to institute timers for my days at home. Dinner wise I had 3 paleo meals: crockpot pesto chicken, salmon with veggies and sweet potatoes, and a salad with chicken. I had a couple of bad meals in terms of pizza and gf chicken tenders. I would say I was remorseful about the chicken tenders, but some days a girl just needs hot, fried food. It is rare for me, so once won't kill me. Life Goal - Pay of $2000 of my CC debtNo payments this week, been so focused on interviews that I have not had a chance to reevaluate. I get paid Friday, so hopefully I can make a last payment this week! I found out I did not get one of the jobs I applied for, and I should find out about the other job, one that I really really want, this week. Never fun to We shall see... So far this week I have hit the gym twice and had good food. My goal is to get to the gym Friday (post snow storm) and Saturday and I have a fridge full of good veggies for me to eat healthy lunches and dinner. I start 16 weeks of online personal training next week with a nutrition plan, so excited to have a little more direction starting then!

Coloring is awesome, got a "Unicorns are Jerks" one online and the pages are now all over my house

This mini challenge was actually perfect timing. I've been stressing out like crazy all week because I've had intense interviews the last two weeks. I've been doing some deep breathing exercises that I learned in Restorative Yoga (3-part breath, etc) everyday since my anxiety has been out of control. Finally done, and managed not to freak out, so all in all a win Hope everyone had a relaxing week!

Things have been a bit crazy the last week, so I have been struggling to keep up and missed my mid week update. Basically, I have had a bunch of interviews for some awesome job opportunities, and I have been working to prepare a presentation for this week. Between that, my office moving, and a hip injury that has been bothering me, I dialed back my intensity to do some self healing and stress relief activities. That being said, here is my summary for the week: Week 4 Summary: 1. Strength Train 4x a week Grade: B (3x) This week was rough with lifting. I had two awesome upper body work outs and one ok lower body work out. I think I strained my right hip area and it keeps popping, so the plan has been to ice it and give myself a break to let it heal. I did sign up for some online personal training this week so I can have form checks and get help with a personalized program since mine has been a little all over the place recently. I almost want to add a half workout since I helped move boxes at the office on Friday. 2. Cardio for 120 minutes per week Grading: C = 60 min/week In line with taking it easy on my hip this week, I had to dial back the cardio and pick some lower-impact options. I managed to make it 60 minutes this week, and hopefully once things are healed I can give it my all. 3. Make 4 Paleo Dinners and 4 Paleo Lunches each week (8 meals total) Grading: B = 6 meals/week This was ok this week. I made 3 paleo lunches and ate out twice for lunch. My biggest problem when I work from home is that I get so involved in what I am doing that I forget to eat. Dinner wise I had 3 paleo meals: one thai pork marinade, one breakfast for dinner, and one spaghetti squash bake with broccoli, sausage, and tomatoes. Life Goal - Pay of $2000 of my CC debt No payments this week, been so focused on interviews that I have not had a chance to reevaluate. I did manage to pay an extra $100 to my student loans, so feeling good. Things are exciting right now, whether it is the new office space or the potential of a new job altogether. When I get stressed I make poor food choices, so my goal is to still be healthy with what I eat even during times of transition and stress. Fingers crossed all goes well!

One of my coworkers recommended this Thai Meatball recipe, and said she used pork chops and the sauce as a marinade. Tried it last night and it was DELICIOUS. Not sure where fish sauce is on the list of Paleo vs not Paleo, but it was sooo good. I switched out the veg oil for olive oil as well. Happy eating!

Looks like you are rocking your goals, and amen to wanting to rant at misuse of the squat rack. Job applications are the worst. I'm sorry to hear they did not hire you, clearly they aren't so awesome after all if they could not handle your awesomeness. I'll keep sending good thoughts your way on the job front!

Week 3 Summary: 1. Strength Train 4x a week Grade: A This week was pretty awesome in terms of lifting. I got some good upper and lower body workouts in, and I am really enjoying the soreness after. Basically means I did hard work! I took advantage of a free guest weekend at the Y to lift with my fiance and use the squat rack and trap bar for heavier squats and deadlifts. Typically I am doing front squats or widowmakers with lighter weight to get the same effect. 2. Cardio for 120 minutes per week Grading: D = 45 min/week Ouch. I made it to the gym but I got sidetracked focusing on my weight training. I was hoping to make it up over the weekend, but that got sidetracked as all the best plans do. Goal for next week is to make it to at least 90 minutes. Doesn't help that I am not a big cardio fan, but I need to get back in the habit. 3. Make 4 Paleo Dinners and 4 Paleo Lunches each week (8 meals total) Grading: B = 7 meals/week This was good dinner wise, but not so good lunch wise. My company is moving, so all of my coworkers are making the last rounds of all of the lunch spots we accumulated over the years. That being said, I made three paleo lunches this week and four paleo dinners. Both lunches were salads with a ton of veggies and homemade vinaigrettes. My dinners were a honey mustard pork tenderloin with veggies and sweet potato fries, turkey leftovers (including soup) and salads. The goal for this week is to make my lunch at least 3 days and plan out my dinners. I also need to make more of the mini egg frittatas, they were so good! Life Goal - Pay of $2000 of my CC debt Grand total in payments so far is $1360.... now I just need to keep chipping away and I will reach my goal. My impulse spending has been a little out of control recently, so I need to keep focused and ignore the temptation of midwinter sales... Halfway! Other than the derailment of my cardio goal, things are looking good. I am trying really hard to push forward with my cardio goal and to keep my workouts intense and my diet in check. Too much of a good thing is still too much food wise, so I just want to track and keep an eye on it.

I hear you on the cookies! My coworkers are the culprits in my case. Hang in there, any little bit of progress still adds up in the end! Your juggling sounds really cool, I like that it is an alternative workout from a lot of what everyone else logs.

Finished my glute bridges on Saturday! Man those are tough, did 3x10 with 95lbs. Got some strange looks at the Y hahah

Your side quest is awesome, and so are your goals. How goes your challenge so far? I always have trouble with water goals. Good luck!

Sweet goals! How goes your challenge so far?

How goes your challenge?

How goes your challenge?

How goes your challenge?

Wow, you have some impressive workouts, and your cold running is crazy awesome! There is no way in the world I will run if it is that cold out, so the giant treadmill hamster wheel it is! I can't wait for it to thaw so I can hit the trails in the spring. I'm definitely following your progress, sounds like you are making big steps

Wow, sounds like things have been crazy! My office is relocating next week, but thankfully it seems less involved than your move since we only have about 20 people to move. Have things calmed down a bit this week? Keep up the awesome work, hopefully the stress will be less once things settle in!

I agree with ytterbium, the rowing machine is evil. Totally and epic workout though, just started using it for warm ups myself! Keep it up!

Third Midweek update - Woot! Had a good few days in some respects, and in others, not so much... 1. Strength Train 4x a week I made it to the gym MTuTh. I did an upper body workout Monday and was back up to my pre-shoulder tweak weights. Woohoo! I did an intense lower body workout Tuesday, rested Weds, and had a hard arm workout today (Thurs). Feeling really good, and enjoying doing some work with my old crew workouts (with some modifications) and trying to push myself. I am going to the Y's gym with my SO this weekend so we can work out together, and looking forward to being able to use the squat rack for a hard lower body workout. That and deadlifts 2. Cardio for 120 minutes per week So far not so good... I have been doing some 5 minute rowing warm ups this week (2x) and I got in a 15 minute stationary cycle. I ran 18 minutes today which felt pretty good too. Grand total so far is 43 minutes so far. Definitely not where I would like to be halfway through the week, but hopefully I can at least make the 90 minute mark. On the flip side, I have made it to work on time this week by keeping my workouts a bit shorter and working to get up 5 minutes earlier each day this week so I can eventually fit cardio and strength in the same workout. 3. Make 4 Paleo Dinners and 4 Paleo Lunches each week (8 meals total) So far so good on this goal. I have made two paleo lunches (salads with the leftover turkey I made in the weekend). Dinner has also been a lot of leftovers from the turkey and soup (3 days this week including tonight). I will admit I was bad and ordered pizza - there were only so many days i a row I can eat turkey, you know? However, back on track and very excited to cook a honey mustard pork tenderloin I marinated myself on Friday. I am getting more consistent with my routine, which has been helping. I met my new goal of waking up and getting to work by 9:30 every day so far this week, which has had some impact on my other goals. Overall I am pretty happy so far, and I think continuing to work on my timing in the morning will help bring everything else together. I must say that Steve's Plateau article definitely helped this week since I have not seen any inch changes over the last couple of weeks. Switching up my routine and getting back to my pre-injury intensity is already making a difference in how I feel, so hoping to see some good things on the back end of this challenge, especially if I keep my diet cleaned up!

Thanks! I may not have left that class with a love of chemistry, but it did leave me a love of subscripts haha. And Hitchhiker's Guide is the best

I'm super stoked about this since I have been dying to mix up my routine. For this week I will be working on split squats with dumbbells and barbell glute bridges. I did 3x10 on the split squats this morning and my quads feel it like whoa. I like being sore, so it is a nice feeling after a couple weeks of stagnation. I have been dying to try glute bridges, so this is a great excuse! I'll be hitting these Saturday morning!

That company sounds awesome! Fingers crossed for you!

You should, they were soooo good! I was very happily surprised

I totally missed this one, sorry for the delay! I typically do exercises like these whenever I am feeling sore. I actually got this mini-roller as a christmas gift for when I travel, but it has been amazing for my typically stiff back. It is hard enough to keep its shape, but soft enough to not be super painful. Happy rolling!

1. Strength Train 4x a week Grade: A As much as last week was a rough one for strength training, this week was awesome! I made it to the gym 5 days this week for strength sessions (including one awesome mini challenge #2), so bonus? I busted out some of my old crew workouts since I needed a change, and man was I sore on Sunday! Feeling great, and I even made friends with one of the fittest/strongest women in the gym who offered to show me some of the weight lifting circuits she does. A little intimidating, but super awesome to have someone to show me new lifts variations! 2. Cardio for 120 minutes per week Grading: B = 110 min/week Close but no cigar. I worked 35 minutes of treadmill intervals, 25 minutes of elliptical, and 25 minutes of rowing over the week. Combine that with my warm up rows and 20 minutes of walking this weekend and I am just shy of my goal. So close, and gives me some more things to work on this week. The erg was awesome since I have not been on one since college... I thought I was going to die for the first 10 minutes, but I managed to get a 5k done, and I am super excited about including it in my workouts going forward! 3. Make 4 Paleo Dinners and 4 Paleo Lunches each week (8 meals total) Grading: B = 6 meals/week (7 if you include some dairy) This one is still tough. I definitely feel like I am eating a lot healthier and choosing veggies and protein more frequently than I used to. I had some feta cheese in my fridge that needed to be used, and some greek yogurt that I used for a tzatziki sauce for spinach and feta turkey burgers. I made a balsamic glazed turkey breast on Saturday with cauliflower and carrots, and it made an awesome soup with sweet potatoes and parsnips that didn't need any cream the next day. All of that turkey will make some excellent paleo leftovers this week, and the veggies in the glaze were to die for. My one non-pure paleo meals were korean bulgogi in lettuce wraps and the subsequent leftovers (gf soy sauce, while no wheat, still has soy). Also discovering that I am not a huge fan of cauliflower "rice". Still rocking the paleo breakfasts, and loving them. Made some awesome mini banana "pancakes" from two eggs, 1 banana, and a tablespoon of coconut flour. Sooo good, even my SO was eating them! Life Goal - Pay of $2000 of my CC debt Made $250 in payments, total so far is $1000 down, $1000 to go So far so good, and I am ready to kill it the last 4 weeks of the challenge! My other mini goal that has come up this week is trying to get to work earlier, which means getting up earlier. I work for a company with flexible hours, and I really want to get in by 9:30am at the latest, so need to be leaving the gym by 9 at the absolute latest. Starting with waking up 10 minutes earlier this week and seeing how it goes.

That sounds amazing... I know what I am doing when I get home tonight!!!