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It's been almost a year since I've been on nerdfitness. So where have I been? Incubating a baby. And then birthing a baby. And then keeping said baby alive while going slowly insane. (FYI - the term "Baby Blues" really doesn't do it justice). Now I've come out of the fog and am ready to shed some of this baby weight and start feeling a bit more like myself again. I want to get back into dance and start repairing my body. I've been swing dancing for a number of years and continued to do so until a couple weeks before I gave birth, which kept me in decent shape. However, recovering from birth is much harder than I expected. I will spare everyone the TMI details, but let's just say the postpartum period has been difficult on my body (and mind). Now that I've gotten into a bit of a groove with this whole motherhood thing, I want to focus on my wellbeing again. I am the heaviest I've ever been and not feeling like myself. I've always enjoyed these challenges so I'm hopping aboard. Stats Starting stats: Weight: 230 lbs (I don't currently own a scale, so I'll get back to you on that. The last time I was weighed, I was 230 lbs, but that was before I pushed out at least 8 pounds of baby, fluid, and other... "stuff"). Chest: 44" Waist: 40.5" Hips: 47.5 1/4" Main Goal To focus on my wellbeing, physically and mentally, and return to hobbies that made me feel good. Quests 1) Dance! I used to do 3+ hours of swing dance per week, whether taking class, teaching class, or going to social dances. Now with a baby, that's not possible, but I'd like to commit to 1 hour per week, either in class or just practicing solo moves at home. Goal: 1 hour/week Grading: 15 points per hour +2 STA +1 DEX 2) Get out of the house! I'm house-bound a lot with the baby, so a priority for my mental health will be to leave the house with baby 3 times per week - this could be a quick walk with the stroller, or a visit to the movies (our local cinema has a "Stars and Strollers" program once a week). I'm already registered for baby massage on Mondays, so we're on our way to this goal! Goal: 3 outings/week Grading: 5 points per outing +1 CHA 3) Log my food Food is where I falter. I will be logging my meals in My Fitness Pal every weekday. Goal: Log food every week day Grading: 3 points per log +1 WIS Grading Scheme A = 160+ points B = 140+ points C = 125+ points D = 100+ points F = less than 90 points --- "I want her to be a flapper, because flappers are brave and gay and beautiful." - Zelda Fitzgerald

Last challenge I tried to keep things fairly simple, and that went mostly ok. So I’m trying again. Simple goals. 1) Keep moving run at least 2x a week go to martial arts classes – 2x jujitsu, 1 x kickboxing cycle to work at least 2x a week (with allowances for weather because, scotland) at home technique or bag work 2x a week Dark days option – if the days get too short on me then I’ll switch from cycling to work to hitting to the gym. All depends on daylight and temperature and dampness…….. And I want a life priority music opt out….. If I get a gig, then that wins over training. Sad but true. Unfortunately I’m already missing 2 of this challenge’s kickboxing classes. All the more reason to do at home technique! 2) Food Key guidelines for me = gluten free, dairy light, mostly AIP compliant but with some rice and other gf grain. I gotta keep getting this right, cause I keep getting it wrong at least once per challenge….. Trying really hard to have no diet related illness this challenge. Funnsies = post at least 2 recipes in the monks kitchen! 3) Music Play that bass 6 days a week. Funnsies = jazz session - once a week. Bonus points = have a trio rehearsal. I am super excited about this - we're 2 gigs in and have already been asked for our CD!!! Perhaps its time to actually rehearse...... We had such a blast in those two gigs, if this could turn into something semi-regular, that would be superb. But organising jazz musicians = herding cats, so one rehearsal in 6 weeks sounds about right. Keeping track: Runs: 0/12 Cycle: 2/12 Technique practise: 0/12 Bass: 1/36

My last challenge was mainly about admitting that I felt like rubbish and wanted to feel better. This week, I've felt awesome! It could be a fluke, it could be because I played a stupid amount of music in the weekend and am lacking sleep. Or, it could be that I'm reasonably healthy again. Please please please let it be the last one. So, I want to stay healthy. Mission 1: Stay healthy Components: Good food - for me this is gluten free, dairy light (some butter, maybe some cheese, but most days dairy free), and for this challenge I'm also going to eat at least one meal a day that is grain free. The fun bit is to cook a new recipe every week. Clean kitchen - just like it says on the tin, I cooks, I cleans, I eats, I washes up those peaky dishes. Wash my hands like I'm in the lab. I instituted this last challenge, and I think it helped me avoid cross contamination. So, keep doing it. Rest - if needed, rest takes priority over almost everything else. No guilt, just fess up that I won't be turning up and rest up good. Mission 2: Music Play that bass - 5 days a week (7 is an amazing goal, but lately I haven't managed it, so 5 is more manageable, and means much less guilt, and I can enjoy the days that I can play). Play more jazz! Not sure how I'll manage this - I need to find people to play with and organise meeting up - so a lot of this might be organisation and preparation rather than actual playing, but if I don't organise it, it won't happen. Mission 3: Exercise I need to find a groove with this - its going to be a mixture of jujitsu training, kickboxing training, yoga and gym. When concerts and life don't get in the way, I try to get to jujitsu 2x a week (but this might be changing as there is the possibility of jazz instead of jujitsu on tuesday, and I'm very undecided about which is better for me), kickboxing 1 x a week, yoga 2 x a week, the gym 2-3 x a week, plus possibly a couple of outdoor runs (5k park run on a saturday and a longer one on sunday). Confession time: its ages since I've managed all of that in a week - so I want to ramp up into it, and see how it goes. Complications: The festive season - there will be some extra gigs and some social stuff - I want to enjoy these, and not get all guilty about them. So a certain amount of flexibility is required. I probably won't make jujitsu training the day of the work christmas lunch....... Sigh. Oh, and time for christmas preparation? Family guff - my parents will be staying with me for about 12 days of the challenge - I'm not sure what I'll manage challenge wise during this time...... And my priority has to be having a good time with them - especially as this is them en route to NZ as they move from Sweden. Big life changes. So there is a bit of a free pass on everything for those 12 days - any exercise I manage there is a bonus. Summary: It looks a lot like Lou does all of the things.........

I would like to start a thread dedicated to dance training and BW strength training exercises that compliment a dancer's skill set. I see there are at least a few of us on here, let's have a common meeting area. Topics I'm interested in discussing include, but are not limited to: Introductions: What form of dance do you do? What's your background? Troubleshooting: What challenges do you face during class/practice, and, are you working to improve outside of class? Goals: What movements or techniques do you aspire to do? General: share tips, rant, and ask questions