Meerkitten

Sunday - all good - ate around 1700 calories. This morning it was SNOWING (no joke!), so I did 10 minutes of Pilates and yoga exercises. I admit, I haven't tracked my calories exactly today (because I bought a small takeaway thai meal) but I certainly haven't gorged myself, or eaten ANYTHING from of the free chocolate bars staring me down across the other side of the office.... Since the weather is still atrocious, I won't venture out to the circus class tonight, as it involves driving across the other side of town. I will pencil it in for next week. So far, so good....

Sitrep from yesterday, 1st August: Walk to the beach? You betcha. Ate no more than 1700 calories. Sure did! Posture good - I'm working on it? Also started reading through my assessment tasks for my Cert IV, and started taking notes. Yay! This morning I did my walk to the beach, and I'm track with my eating so far...

So I was a little late to the party this time round, but stuff it, today is my Day 1. So how am I tracking so far? Pilates class. Check! Was dreading getting out bed this morning, but I just did it anyway, and it was good. Also did a very gentle workout at the gym at lunchtime cos the wind was bitterly cold, and I didn't feel like going for my normal walk. Bonus points? Yeah, why not! Eating? On track. It's only 2:56pm in the afternoon, but I am feeling good today, and unlikely to fall off the wagon. Posture? Thinking about it riiiiiight now. So, yay for me! Hope everyone else is going great guns!

Hi there Fellow Firefly Fan! I did indeed feel a bit ripped off at the lack of actual Firefly photos at first, but happily you came through with the goods later in your post! Hurrah! Best of luck with your challenge! Thanks for posting the Untrained Beginner Parkour Exercises link - I have long been interested in parkour, so I will certainly check that out. But for now, I'm going to check out the new circus school (YAY!) that just opened in my town - can't wait! Have a stellar 6 weeks! Sarah

Hi there Fellow Firefly Fan! I did indeed feel a bit ripped off at the lack of actual Firefly photos at first, but happily you came through with the goods later in your post! Hurrah! Best of luck with your challenge! Thanks for posting the Untrained Beginner Parkour Exercises link - I have long been interested in parkour, so I will certainly check that out. But for now, I'm going to check out the new circus school (YAY!) that just opened in my town - can't wait! Have a stellar 6 weeks! Sarah

Hey there NotSoNerdyNerd, Just wanted to say I thought your goals were really good, and I love the idea of Mini Wins! I should totally implement that myself, I'm not good at acknowledging my achievements! Just a thought about plantar fasciatus - I suffer from this as well. I use a spiky rubber massage ball on it every morning and that has helped loads! The Netflix thing makes me laugh - my guy and I have a bad habit of binge-watching shows! Best of luck with your challenge! Sarah

Hi Idealistinfire! Best of luck with your goals this challenge! I too was fit and strong not so long ago, but a sprained ankle, old shoulder injury and relapse of my anxiety disorder put paid to that! I am hoping to start circus school this challenge, but not sure if my shoulder/ankle are up to it, so I will go softly.... Pilates has really helped me to rehabilitate my shoulder and ankle, so hopefully I won't re-injure anything! Hope all goes well with your pole-dancing prep! Cheers, Sarah

Hey Pavowski, Great goals! I had to laugh when I read your bit about cartwheels. I can relate - despite being a reasonably fit, flexible, agile person who used to do stuff like rock climbing, capoeria and what-not, I have always been completely useless when it comes to "basic" things like handstands and cartwheels. I just discovered that a new circus school has opened up in my town, and I am soooo excited! Hopefully I too will soon unlock the mysteries of handstands and cartwheels.... Best of luck this challenge! Sarah

Hiya blkhole24601, Great goals, very specific and varied (and fun!) I especially liked this bit, made me giggle: "I need to get better at adulting" Best of luck with your challenge! Sarah

Injuries, the bane of my not-so-young body! Hi all! This is challenge no. 3 for me, although I guess technically I didn't really finish off on number 2. But oh well, saying this is my 3rd challenge makes me feel better! After 7-8 months of eating all kinds of junk, spraining my ankle, re-injuring my shoulder, having a stressful time and just generally dropping the ball on my health, I finally got myself into the right headspace to stop overeating and get serious about my health and fitness again. My ankle and shoulder are still undergoing rehabilitation, so I can't be too ambitious this time around, but here I the things that I am already doing, that I would like to maintain over the next 6 weeks, and beyooooooond! Maintenance task no. 1 Go to my Reformer Pilates class twice a week, no excuses. Yes, it involves getting up at 6am to do the early morning class, but it also means I can just go straight home after work and relax. Maintenance task no. 2 Eat no more than 1500-1700 calories a day. I know that some people say that counting calories isn't the way to go, but I also know from previous experience that counting calories is the only way I have ever successfully reached my ideal weight, and kept it there. And because I already know the calorie content of everything I eat on a regular basis, so I never actually "count" calories - I just say, this is what I'm going to eat today, and stick to it. And because, if you don't want to feel like your stomach is eating itself every day, you HAVE to choose healthy, low calorie, filling food. Maintenance task no. 3 Work improving on my posture. I have an hourly reminder on my calendar at work to make sure I don't start slouching. So, this challenge is mostly about maintenance for me - continuing the good work I started 10 days ago, to make sure that it becomes habit. But, there are a few new things that I like to do in this 6 week block: New task no. 1 Before I sprained my ankle, I used to go for a walk to the beach every morning. Since I was able to walk normally again, I haven't taken this up again. So my task is to walk to the beach every morning that I am not going to Pilates - so that's 5 mornings a week. If it's pouring with rain, I will instead do 10 minutes of bodyweight exercises. New task no. 2 Yesterday I found out that a new Circus School has opened up in my town - and they do adult classes! HOORAY! Given that I am still injured, I may not be up for weekly classes just yet. But I have tasked myself with attending a class at least ONCE in the next 6 weeks - if only to check it out and assess whether I am capable of this level of physical activity yet. New task. no. 3 I finally finished my Certificate III in Fitness a few weeks ago. So now it's time to tackle my Cert IV. I task myself with completing one assessment per week, over the next 6 weeks. I wish everyone the best of luck with their challenges! Sarah

B for calories today. Home sick with the flu.

A on my eating yesterday, and 30 minutes on tge exercise bike and treadmill.

Finally achieved an A on my eating today - hooray!

Okay, B today. I stuffed up my calorie counting

Got a FAIL for my calories yesterday - mostly due to having lunch at a restaurant with a friend - the meal I ordered was twice as big as expected.... Anyways, back on the horse today - I am going to do my best to achieve an A today!