//Min

Hi there, is there anyone here who practices foam rolling or any form of self-massage in their overall fitness plan? Would love to hear what/how/when you do it to meet your goals. Or if you have any resources you have found useful about this topic - bout massaging muscles etc. I’m also wondering if there are other self-massage techniques out there. For myself, I have a pretty stiff and creaky body so I’m trying to loosen it up through self massage and also increase the blood flow for better oxygenated muscles to prevent injury. I generally do something like gua sha on my neck and shoulders and recently got introduced to foam rolling which I focus on the lower body mostly. I form roll either after a gentle warm up or after a warm shower (warmed up muscles).

@Hazard Hello there, I have a question. How do I create a signature for my forum posts? Thank you

This made me laugh! Those are some great goals. How's your quest coming along?

Hello! Those are great goals! and yes adding more vegetables and fruit can be hard especially since they are perishables! I spent the whole of January fixing my diet alone which also involved adding veg and fruit portion combined from 1 to 2 serving a day to become 4 to 5 serving a day and that was a struggle, mentally and physically. There was so much tweaking in the first weeks and even now. Also they don't tell you that your body changes like shivering more, presperation got more sticky (toxins?), started getting queasy with too much sugar/grease/caffeine. It's insane! Don't get scared if you get these symptoms though, it just your body righting itself. Your ideas for frozen fruit/veg, veg base soup are all fantastic! You can also try regrowing some of the fresh veg heads (leek, cabbage) or beans for some home grown veg, youtube has lots of tutorials.

Hello! Yay for increasing your weight and getting work outs in! You can do it!

Hello! Fantastic work on hitting 3 out of 4 goals for week 2! *waving pom poms* I totally hear you on the workout being the hardest. I am also trying to build a habit of working out before work so your struggle really relatable. I've found laying out any equipment I need (yoga mat) the night before and progressing towards it in the morning (e.g. my first "exercise" move is done lying in bed, the next one is seated up at the side of my bed, then I walk to the mat and start) pretty helpful in ensuring that I get up to do it. Like I'm starting small of the smallest haha. What kind of workout are you doing?

Please share when it comes and you set it up! Its sounds exciting and would love to see your progression journey And yes! for accomplishing things on Saturday!

Ouch! Nothing feels worse for an athlete then to get an injury... Mental fortitude may be your biggest challenge yet? I don't know any exercises to help but I can help cheer you on!!! You can do it!!! Keep it up!!!

Hello! Your posts are so fun to read, I'm cheering you on! and wow~ those photos look so amazing! You must have worked so hard to get there! I would love to try Aerial one day. Are you going to do Aerial at home then?

Week 1 // 29 Mar - 4 Apr ✅ Dietary: Eat 5 servings of fruit and vegetables combined daily Goal achieved! The week before, I overate and less veg for three days, tried skipping dinner to make up for it and my body went haywire. Consistent three meals a day works best for me. ❌ Exercise: Exercise at least 5 times a week (30 mins) As I was still working out how to incorporate this, I hit this target 3 times this week. Knowing what I wanted from a youtube channel helps making find the right one easier. ❌ Skincare: Do facial regime twice daily Missed out on two evenings, fallacy thinking that face is less dirty if I’m working from home oops. T-zone seems to be getting increasingly oily. Is this hormonal changes? Self-Massage Currently trying to build a foam rolling routine. Why does foam rolling seem like a workout by itself? It is tiring to get into positions… I can’t be the only one thinking this lol. Focussing on the calves, hip flexors and back for now. Thoughts The first week was mostly planning and tweaking the routine, hence not all goals were met. However, I think it’s a great start and feel excited for the weeks to come. The exercise quest will be the most trying one I think.

Thank you Harriet To overcome the inertia, a creaky body and the reduced daily activity due to work from home, I'm starting small with gentle exercises in the morning and increased frequency to daily (previously I gymed twice a week). I'm tweaking the timings and the exercises I do so that hopefully when work from home ends and I go back to work, part of this will still be my daily routine. I have a one and a half hour time slot between waking up to starting work to fit in the following: 20 - 30 min gentle aerobic exercise (daily) 5 - 10 min intense bodyweight exercise (still working out schedule) 10 min massage/foam rolling/stretching (daily, still working out routine) 20 min wash up and facial regime (daily) Breakfast For the aerobic and intense body weight exercises, I am following two youtube channels. One of them sometimes has very fit shirtless Korean men leading... >_> we all need a little motivation you know? XD

Hello there, I’m //Min. I’m late to the challenge but I would still like to try as it looks like fun. I’m new to nerdfitness and joined hoping to find others to journey along and celebrate with. I also created a battle log. Big Picture: Building habits for foundation to healthy life. Challenge goals: Dietary: Eat 5 servings of fruit and vegetables combined daily Exercise: Exercise at least 5 times a week (30 mins) Skincare: Do facial regime twice daily I selected the above as they were habits I started to build recently and am working on keeping them up. Though, #2 is a change from before where I went to the gym at least once a week. Since I have started working from home indefinitely since 1 April, I cannot go to the gym and my daily activity level has gone down, hence I want to try and build something into my daily routine. Additionally for April, I am exploring how to incorporate self massage into my life, so I’ll share my thoughts on that. How I’ll update: Once a week on the above.

Hello Master Blackhawke, I’m //Min, well met. :) I liked your focus of taking better of yourself. Congrats on the things you’ve done successfully so far, it must have taken effort! and yes, it’s strange times to be in, this too shall pass.

Hello, I'm a little late to this as I just found this. I quite like reading through your posts. Well done for having been consistent with your updates! Will you being doing another battle log? I would like to follow your progress through challenges.

How my life feels like daily XD. Battle song... KEEP FIGHTING THE TITANS IN YOUR LIFE!! FREEDOM!!!

Hello there, I’m //Min. I joined the nerdfitness community hoping to find others to journey along and celebrate with. My resolution for 2020 is to improve my physical health. Each month, I focus on one aspect of physical health to explore and build habits that will hopefully become second nature to create the foundation of a healthy lifestyle. It's a pretty organic process with constant tweaks. By the end of 2020, I aim to have routines build that will continue for the long term and help me progress forward. I will end this battle log at the end of 2020. If you’re doing anything similar, or just want to share, give a shout out. (ˆ_ˆ)v //////////////////////////////// 2020 HIGHLIGHTS REEL Jan // Dietary // Change body fuel General rules of eating three meals a day, increase protein (veg and non-veg sources) and reduce carbohydrates. My tastebuds changed and my body started rejecting higher concentrations of sugar. Also bought an Applewatch and weighing scale that measures body fat. Mental struggles in the second week but saw steady fat loss approx 400g per week. Feb // Exercise // Build muscle Hired a personal trainer, gym session once a week. Focussed on bodyweight and free weights exercises to build stronger body to prevent knee injury. Introduced to foam rolling. Fell sick mid-Feb for one week, however still saw same steady fat loss as dietary change going well. Started to drink kefir and increased veg and fruit intake from 3 to 4 servings daily. Mar // Hygiene // Improve external appearance Updated skincare, haircare and teethcare routine. Cut and permed my hair. Gym twice a week, once with trainer, one alone. Veg and fruit intake fluctuate between 4 to 5 servings daily. Weight loss, brighter skin and new hair got noticed by some people. Same steady fat loss and feeling lighter till near end month where I backtracked on dietary due to work stress. Apr // Massage // Increase blood flow I'm still clear as mud on this, so deciding to follow self-massage routines outlined in the book "Deskbound" by Kelly Starrett for "body maintenance" to enhance mobility. Veg and fruit intake maintained at 5 servings daily. Changed gym to daily morning 30 min exercises and evening 20-30 min dog walks. Did my 1st nerdfitness challenge. Working from home is helping my fitness level. Stagnation in fat loss. May // Stretching // Increase flexibility Refinement Fat loss still stubborn and barely moving so decided to refined previous habits of dietary (increased veg and fruit intake to 6-7 servings daily), exercise (changed to harder 30 min morn exercise, experimented HITT on stationary bike) and massage (trying to make this routine). I read up on heart rates - resting heart rate (58), heart rate recovery (30), heart rate training zones - and started some 5 min breathing exercises after workouts. Got better acquainted with Apple's activity app. In the progress of 2nd nerdfitness challenge. Jun // Breath // Increase oxygen flow Finally saw movement in fat loss and broke 70. Begun Tummno breathing exercises (a form of focussed meditation) 5 mins in the morning and evenings. Foam rolling became regular and more focussed. Dog walk became a social event. Stressed with work at the end month which caused some anxiety. Habits created from last few months all on track. In the progress of my 3rd nerdfitness challenge. *update 4/7/2020* //////////////////////////////// 2020 FUTURE REEL Other aspects of physical related activity to work on (in no particular order) that I intend to work on: - Stretch - Flexibility Sleep - Deep rest Medical - Resources Make-up - Image projected Sport - lifeskill (swimming / running / self-defence) Flow