notcreative

My new cleaning motto comes from Steve's recent article. Do it now! I have a bad habit of letting things pile up instead of cleaning them right away. It's helping a lot! Now that I'm focusing on it this week, I realize that I easily get enough time with my son, who is almost 3. But my daughter is a little tougher to nail down, mostly because my son is always there and when I try to give her attention he kind of puts himself in the middle of it. I've been trying to squeeze in some quality time with her after he goes to bed. You are right! My plan for now is sweet potatoes, which I just had as part of my lunch. That seems to have done the trick. I'm off to the gym for some running and weight lifting!

The past few days has been crazy busy, so I haven't had any more time to read through posts or anything! Quick update on Monday - Thursday: -Cleaning: I have been cleaning for an hour a day! (+4 pts) (1 point per hour of cleaning) -Kids: I have been able to do the 15 minutes per kid, but no book reading this week. (+8 pts) (1 point per 15 mins with kid, 1 pt per 2 books read) -Strength training (+1) Have only made it to the gym once this week. Was supposed to go yesterday but had an attack of vertigo (room spinning, can't do much of anything when that happens). Should be able to go today and Sunday and still meet my goal for the week. -Eating: Avoid sweets, eat at least 100g of protein/day (+1.5) Have not done well on this goal whatsoever. I ate candy for breakfast on Monday, had a cookie yesterday, and only met my protein goal one day this week. (1 point per day for 90g or more of protein, .5 points for 70-90g. 1 point per day for no sweets)

Ambitious goals! Looking forward to seeing you conquer them.

I always start so strong with the cleaning resolutions. Did well today -- finally got 4 loads of laundry put away!

Today did not go as planned. The kids wouldn't sit still for books at all. :-p Your comment about sugar has made me decide to cut out sweets completely for this challenge. I realized I have the same problem -- one small piece of candy or something and I'm right back to craving it!

Form is important. I'm on my phone right now, but I found a good video on form that I can link for you later. If you think you might be interest in barefoot running, starting earlier in your training is better. I don't do barefoot for various reasons, but it really works for some people, and it affects your form as well.

Good luck with your goals! I have a 3 and 5 year old so I know how it goes with the little ones around.

Pictures can be a huge motivation, and you are brave to share them. Best of luck on your goals!

Good luck with your goals!

Nice goals. I hope to cut down on sugar, too.

Nice goals!

You are strong! I just started barbell work myself. And I'm joining you in the no sugar thing. It's my biggest weakness, too.

You are living up to the Ranger title by doing everything. Rock on!

Good luck with the pull-ups! That was one of my goals for the last challenge, and while I improved dramatically, I didn't quite make it. Sounds like you have a good plan in place.

Nice goals! Can't wait to hear how the 5k goes. Running is my passion.

Awesome goals. I am rooting for you, especially on the no smoking goal.

I would venture to say that sore abs indicates good form because it implies you are engaging your core. Keep it up!

1. Give my kids more one-on-one attention. Spend at least 15 minutes giving each of my children my undivided attention each day. Read them each 2 books a day. More if I can think of it. (+2 WIS +4 CHA) 2. Starting Strength. Do 3 starting strength workouts a week. (+3 STR) 3. Improve my diet - I want to get on the path to eating clean, but don't want to set myself up for failure. More veggies/protein, less sugar. Sugar is the main foe. I will come up with something measurable soon. (+4 CON) 4. I'm resurrecting my old goal of cleaning for an hour a day. (+2 WIS) I decided not to have running as a goal this time, because I don't really have an issue sticking with it. I'll update with more detail later today.

I'm just going to subscribe to this thread now and then go back to cleaning my house. Can't stop giggling. And good luck with your goals! You can do it!

Okay, so here is my belated final assessment of this challenge: 20 pull-ups program: 14/18 ( Run 3x / week: 13/18 ( Eat 70g of protein per day: 35/42 ( Brush/floss/moisturize daily before bed: 40/42 (A) Overall grade: B Every time I give myself a strength training goal, I seem to fall short. I still can't do a pull-up, however, I did go from requiring 70lbs of assistance on the pull-up machine to being able to do a pull-up with only 16lb of assistance. So that is definitely an improvement. I've decided to give Starting Strength a try and might add that as a goal for the next challenge. Yesterday I tried barbell squats for the first time and my legs are screaming today. I am so tired right now that I can't think about what else to say...will update more when my mental state is more focused.

Amazing! Keep it up!

I listen to books on my iPhone to fall asleep at night. I'm so attached to it that I have a horrible time sleeping if I can't listen to a book. I agree with what everyone else said about a bedtime routine. Good luck!

Congrats on a great challenge!

Congrats on the grand baby and on your challenge results!

I can't do Vibrams because I have wonky toes and narrow feet. I tried some on once and it felt like my toes were being pulled on! I do try to make sure I am landing midfoot when I run, instead of on my heels.