Freyja

Eee! Your life goal sounds glorious! I'm excited to see pictures when it's done. Good luck with all your (short-term and long-term) goals.

This sounds like the most sensible approach. I've read a lot of literature on running, nutrition and (specifically) running nutrition. While I've found training strategies that work for me in terms of improving my speed and endurance, I have yet to find a diet that works for me. I seem to be ridiculously sensitive to all grains and some vegetables. I am hoping that tracking my daily intake and fitness will allow me to identify the things that work for me and those that don't.

I'll definitely keep that in mind! I will hide it deep in my closet so I'm not tempted to take it out before then. Aw, shucks. *blush* Thank you for the support--and the flowers! Here's hoping I can do this. The journey begins today... with a 4 mile run... /sigh The long term goals are ones that have been hanging out in the back of my mind for a while. My ultimate goal is to run a marathon...but there is so much conflicting information/advice out there concerning nutrition, running style, etc. So I'm starting out with short term goals, and working my way up to the ultimate goal. I have yet to figure out how many points apply to each goal. I guess I suffer from mental laziness. I'm thinking of posting a "before picture" soon... I've never done that before.

I think it's developing 'specific, measurable goals' that I'm having troubles with. More confidence issues than anything else...but if I'm serious about this, I better get my brain (and confidence) in gear. Done! And so it begins...

Hello everyone! I'm not a stranger to NF, but a long time lurker and self-professed nerd. I have a hard time following through with plans, which is why I'm hoping signing up for a challenge will keep me accountable. I also have a hard time being assertive and saying 'no' to obligations imposed on me...or food given to me... I'm not overweight, but I'm uncomfortable with where I am. My goal for this year is to run 365km in 365 days and build strength. Can I have both strength AND endurance AND stick to the paleo lifestyle? We'll see! My short term goals: Go to the gym 4-5 times per week Keep to Paleo diet (80-90% paleo), which I will record on livestrong.com tracking app Do a proper weighted squat Fit into my size 4 cyberpunk dressI'm excited to meet the rest of you and good luck on your respective journeys! :-)

I find I get fewer hypoglycemic episodes now that I'm transitioning to Paleo. I've cut out most processed foods asides from 3/4 c. of whole grains "Heritage Os" cereal in my trail mix in the morning. It's going to be fairly easy to phase out. I've noticed a difference in my energy levels and mood stability. I think cutting out sugar and (refined, processed) carbs out of my diet is sensible. I don't want to use the doctor wildcard for fear that people will dub me a hypochondriac and roll their eyes. I think simply stating my goals, as Brenda suggested, is the best approach. Heck, I might even get some support or convince people to join me if I treat it as a "challenge". I must confess, I did the sensible thing and just ate the damn pumpkin pie last night. It was great and I regret nothing. My abs are still defined, my muscles are still in tact, and I didn't gain 5 pounds. I think giving myself weekly "cheat allowances" is probably the best for me. I don't like the idea of placing food in categories of good/bad or acceptable/non-acceptable, because for me, it conjures up thoughts of guilt or depression. I don't want to go down that road any time soon... I don't know why I haven't encountered chowstalker.com before. Those are some great looking recipes! Thank you JJ for the suggestion.

I'm right there with you. I only go running four days a week, but I hate missing a run. I find the endorphin rush from weightlifting or cycling is nowhere near as good as the one from running. There's probably no real difference, but in my head there is. I developed a little blood blister on my toe that transformed into a much bigger problem last week and I ended up missing my long run. It KILLED me to rest when I could have been running. I almost went out running anyway--but my voice of reason (aka Significant Other) convinced me otherwise. Now that my feet are healed and happy, it will soon be time to beat them up again. Mwahaha...

Oh my. There is a lot to choose from. I certainly can't see myself getting bored any time soon! I guess my follow up question, is how do you politely decline food offers from friends/family/etc. that doesn't fit within the Paleo/Primal lifestyle without being rude? I have a few friends with birthdays coming up, and inevitably there will be cake and other goodies. I'm socially awkward to begin with, so any advice would be great.

Thanks for the suggestions! Perhaps I'll start with one of those three instead of Paleo Comfort Foods. If the recipes take too long to make, it's likely I'll just leave the cookbook sitting on the shelf. The less ingredients and fuss required, the better.

Hello fellow Nerdlings, I'm officially embarking on the Paleo/Primal journey. I've been half-heartedly transitioning for 2 weeks now, but now I'm ready. I'm picking up Robb Wolf's Paleo Solution book and Julia & Charles Mayfield's Paleo Comfort Foods book today. Hopefully it will be smooth sailing from there. I get bored easily, so I'm arming myself with an arsenal of recipes so don't fall off the Paleo-wagon just because I'm tired of the "limited" food choices. I intend to carefully (minus the calorie count) document what foods I'm eating and when. I'm hypoglycemic, so I have oddly dispersed eating times--particularly on days when I lift heavy. Maybe my condition will sort itself out with this new lifestyle. Doctors do suggest hypoglycemics watch their carbohydrate intake, after all. Anyone else suffer from hypoglycemia/hyperglycemia? Does anyone have any other Paleo/Primal cookbooks or cooking blogs/sites to suggest?

Hello! Thank you for the warm welcome! I love your boots...assuming that is you in your profile picture?

Thank you for the suggestions, Tocho. I was aware of these different conjunctions... I think the trouble is that I'm just a terribly lazy editor. I didn't notice I had such a problem until I edited my recent posts. Looks like I have a serious case of the 'Buts'.

Daniel, I'm not fully out of the metaphorical hole yet, but I'm desperately clawing my way out. There are good days and bad days, but I'm attempting to create more of the former than the latter. (I'm also attempting to use the conjunction 'but' less often...) I kept up a blog this summer; however, I closed it down recently when I noticed that it became self-deprecating and self-flagellating in nature rather than inspiring. I may start it up again, but with a different statement of intent (BUT AGAIN! ARGH!). I think it's best to start big project, like a novel, in smaller, digestible chunks. The worst mistakes budding authors make is starting enormous projects and never finishing. I'm afflicted by the same too-much-ambition-too-little-motivation disorder... Thank you for the compliment. I'm glad I gave you some new and different music to listen to! I hope you enjoy the music. I've heard of 2/5 of the bands you have listed, so I'll make sure to check out the ones I haven't heard. I absolutely adore the Dresden Dolls. I normally dub them 'Cabaret Noir' or 'Dark Cabaret'. Mostly because when I listen to their music, it evokes images of creepy old theaters in my mind. Perhaps I'm the only one? That aside, Amanda Palmer is my musical heroine! ...and the fact she is married to the one and only Neil Gaiman makes her even cooler in my books. No pun intended. I'm happy to meet a fellow lover of obscure music...we are few and far between. I don't know anyone who appreciates the Mars Volta. If I ask someone whether or not they've heard of them, I normally get blank stares. Go figure. --- Jeff, I think eccentric is the most appropriate descriptor--and opinionated. I like to think those are positive qualities to have. Maybe I'm wrong. Heh, Z-Gnomes. I like it. I've stopped frequenting running stores on account of the overwhelming snobbery emanating from the employees. I have walked in a number of times looking for help to find running shoes, gels or other running paraphernalia and have been met with condescending attitudes. Not that I haven't experienced good customer service, it's just rare. I also expect to be treated like an equal (you know, a human being) rather than an inexperienced runner who clearly isn't as hardcore as s/he is. [cue eye rolling here] I have a hard time spending hours upon hours doing an activity that's so hard on the joints when I could be doing other, less harmful and more fulfilling activities. Hah, that's fantastic! I would have loved to have been at the height of the goth/post-punk musical movement. The music and fashion styles were so much more innovative back then--mostly because they had to be. You couldn't just walk into your local Hot Topic and get your Starter-Goth or Starter-Punk kit like you can now. Oi. Sorry, my cynicism is showing. I haven't heard of Heartless Bastards or the Detroit Cobras, but I will add them to my growing list of music recommendations. I'm not sure what guild I'd really fit into. Probably one that's not full of extremists. Realistically, I don't desire huge muscles or a six-pack. I'd just like to fit into skinny jeans and feel good about my body. In sum, I'm looking for a good workout-work-life balance. As someone recovering from a severe case of exercise bulimia and anorexia, I don't want to slip back into thinking about nutrition and working out all the time. Unfortunately, I relapse more than I'd like to admit. Any suggestions?

YEAH EDMONTON! (because allcaps are intense) I see there are a few Edmontonians here. *waves*

Hey Daniel, I tend to write a lot of essays for university, and some in my spare time. For fun, I write poetry, lyrics, and short stories. I stopped writing or doing anything creative this summer due to a major depressive episode. NerdFitness inspired me to kick my own butt, and crawl out of my deep, dark hole of depressive thoughts. Recently, I've been listening to Linkin Park's 1000 suns album. Not so obscure, I know, but I love the direction they took with that album. They did a beautiful job of combining musical genres and sonic textures. Here's a shortlist of bands/albums that I like or have been listening to lately: 1. The Stiletto Formal - Fiesta Fiesta Fiesta Fiesta 2. TOOL - Lateralus 3. Cyberpunkers - I Needed to Go [EP] 4. mind.in.a.box - Crossroads 5. Amon Amarth - Surtur Rising 6. ohGr - unDeveloped 7. Siouxsie Sioux and the Banshees - Tinderbox 8. The Mars Volta - De-loused in the Comatorium Favourite genres: industrial, electro-industrial, EBM, (black/melodic black/thrash/progressive/folk) metal, classic rock, classical, and some folk/indie for when I'm feeling particularly soft and girly. I redirect the same question to you...what are your favourite genres/artists/bands? Thank you! It was quite an experience.

Samunwal, Huh, what a coincidence! I guess we have good timing? I was honestly nervous about posting an "I'm here" post. I never know what to write about myself, and I tend to come off as a little eccentric (crazy?). I'm glad it was interesting enough to at least garner two responses! I only consider myself new to running, because I made the mistake of immersing myself in the running culture this past year. Most runners are highly competitive, and set their goals exceedingly high. Most seasoned runners have not only run one 10K or half-marathon, they have run dozens. So relatively speaking, I'm still a running n00b. I measured my distance in mileage, because mentally it makes my runs seem shorter and more bearable somehow. Instead of thinking "Damn, I have to run 19.2K this weekend", I think "Hey, I only have to run 12 miles this weekend." Little mind games like that help tremendously with motivation. I love the lawn gnome zombies, by the way!

Good morning everyone! Though I'm not totally new to the concept of running and lifting weights, I am here to learn how to do it properly. I am also here to meet awesome people with similar fitness goals to my own and build my support team. I wrote a little bit about myself in my profile description, but I suppose I should provide more details here... Stats: Height: 5"5 CW: 126 lbs GW: A weight where I have lots of muscle and a flat tummy, I guess. Waist: 27.5" Bicep: TBA Earlier this year I was training for races, so I was running long distances 3 times a week, with some weightlifting and cycling in between. I can happily say that I completed a 10K and a half-marathon this past summer. I recently starting training with a heart monitor and running shorter distances 4X per week. I have no real ambition to run a full marathon yet, though maybe that's a future challenge for me. I've taken an interest in the Paleo/Primal lifestyle and I have been reading all the free literature I can get my hands on. I hope to become a stronger and leaner version of myself without starving myself or having to run a million miles. I recently joined the Dumbbell Division and I expect to start next week. Off the topic of fitness, I'm incredibly interested in writing, reading, obscure music, archaeology/anthropology, nutrition, and anything Lovecraftian. If you want to chat about any of these things, please send me a message!