[Sylvaa] Music Medley

[Sylvaa]

 

Sylvaa's Back Baby!

So I'm pretty sure my .... lack of enthusiasm.... was stemming from some burnout. I've not had any significant time off from work since Christmas and it's been a full year since my last actual vacation. I needed some time to unplug - and the last week was spent doing just that. I checked Instagram and Facebook in the morning and evening, but didn't even keep my phone with me most of the time (so there are shockingly few pictures of Mexico). The outcome is that I'm so much more focused and ready to get stuff done!

 

 

I've given up CrossFit due to funds (although this might potentially be on the table for later), so right now, I'm doing some online group training. It's significantly cheaper ($29 a month), but since I'm paying for it, I'm more likely to stick with it. There are three workouts a week to do (I can pick the days), so it's both more structured and fewer days than I was doing before. 

 

Goal: 8 / 15 workouts through challenge (includes zero week)

 

Bonus

 

I like running, I'm just not very good at it. I've recently discovered that I prefer running without headphones / music, so it's been difficult to find a good program to improve my running that doesn't need a way to include intervals of some sort, particularly outside (which is also my preference). BUT excuses are just that, so I'll include an extra run day. Probably over the weekend. If I go to OCR training on Sundays OR I have a race, these will count towards the running goal. If I want to do something else, any other day, it will be yoga. 

 

Bonus Goal: 1 / 5 running days

 

 

School has been a monkey on my back (is that even a saying?) for months now. I'm so tired of having classes hanging over me. Finance needs to be completed by the end of September, so my goal is completing 12 topics through the end of the challenge. That gives me four more to finish and then the exam to take by the end of that month. 

 

Goal: 8 / 12 topics completed

 

Bonus Goal

 

 

There are conference calls every single week to help prepare you for the exams, but I never dial into them. The ones for Finance are on Sunday mornings at 11 am, so there is literally no justification as to why I cannot dial in to at least ONE. Also, complete my FAFSA (because timing).

 

Bonus Goal: School Webinar 0 / 1

Bonus Goal: File FAFSA 1 /1

 

 

Food is a pain. I mean that literally and figuratively. Vacation was a welcome change because so many things I was eating were actually made right there (we walked out of our building to a taco truck every morning). Now I'm back and had an unfortunate day of food yesterday. The good news is that I walked so much on vacation that I didn't gain weight. The bad news is that I ate enough I didn't lose any either. I prefer not to track (it is truly too hard on the road, especially when I'm having issues with processed foods), so my goal this challenge is to have half of my daily food intake in vegetables. 

 

Goal: Vegetables for DAYZ 12 / 34

 

Should I introduce myself? I never know and feel weird. Intro in spoilers:

 

Spoiler

Hello! I'm Sylvaa! I've been on the forums for..... (consults my profile) 2.5 years now! I live in Central Pennsylvania (USA) with my husband, 4 kids, 3 cats, 3 fish, and a dog. I am a medical consultant, so I travel 80% - most weeks I am out of my house Monday - Thursday. This has made it difficult to keep up with a number of good habits (like meal prep!). 

 

I started my journey after the birth of my children. I weighed 250 pounds and had just separated from the father of my 2 (we are a blended family). I was able to lose 50 pounds and have kept that off for almost 15 years now! Over the past 5 or so years, I've lost an additional 25 pounds. I found NF because I wanted to gamify my fitness routines, joined the forums, and have never left the Adventurer's! 

 

Two years ago, I did my first Spartan race and had a blast! This year, I will be completing my first Trifecta in WV - during this challenge in fact! I love challenging myself and seeing what my body is capable of. I also have an open invitation to anyone considering an athletic event in the N.E. USA: If I can get there, I will participate! 

 

[Stronkey Kong]

First!

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Second!

[Severine]

I'm definitely here for this. Three cheers for post-vacation enthusiasm   Your goals are impressive as always, but running without music sounds like the fifth level of hell to me!

 

 

[Sylvaa]

Just now, Severine said:

I'm definitely here for this. Three cheers for post-vacation enthusiasm   Your goals are impressive as always, but running without music sounds like the fifth level of hell to me!

 

I definitely feel more energized! I needed a break from real life. Also, all-inclusives are amazing. 

 

I used to exclusively run with headphones, but I've found new enjoyment without. It's helped me work on my breathing and enjoy being out in nature. Granted, I don't think it would work as well on a treadmill. 

[Laghail]

First!

[NeverThatBored]

Following! I used to always run without headphones because I like hearing the sounds around me, but then I started running on a treadmill and switched to using headphones to keep myself focused. Now I have a habit of using them even when I run outside. >.< 

[WolfDreamer]

Following, of course. 

[Sylvaa]

First things first: OHMYGOODNESSGUYS! I apparently got sunburn on my scalp on vacation. It doesn't hurt and isn't too bad, but now MY SCALP IS PEELING and this is hilarious because now it looks like I have ridiculous amounts of dandruff! I am SO GLAD that I am working from home this week!

 

Secondly, cat update: so we are still working on the cat transition in the house. Good news is that I pet Nadia, then went into the other room and pet Pepper and there was no hissing. We are currently working on moving the resident cats' food bowl towards the room that new cat is living in. We are having minimal success (resident cats are eating, but one of them whines about the food bowl being moved). Bad news is that new cat got into the hallway last night and tried to corner one resident cat and hissed at the other resident cat. 

 

 

Got my workout yesterday, but it was raining and required a track for scoring, so I put it off until today (the sun is shining!). No biggie, because it's still possible to get all three workouts in this week. I also got through 2 school topics and filed my FAFSA (but not considering it completed until it's approved).

 

Food was good. Since I'm home this week, we got a veggie tray on Sunday, so I had plenty of fresh veggies for snacks. Also, potatoes with dinner, which I am counting as a veggie because I eat them so rarely that I don't feel they need to be counted anywhere else. 

[Sylvaa]

So many updates that I keep forgetting about!

 

Brother update: so my brother moved in with us last week (yup, he got here the day we left for vacation!). He's been having issues with depression and overall discontent with Florida. He had leads on a few jobs up here, so he packed up his car and came back. (For those of you new to the story, 5 years ago, my parents moved from PA to Florida - taking both of my brothers with them). He started the most promising job yesterday (working for a textbook publisher in the area - this is the most promising job as it not only pays the most, but is also the one most likely to become a "career"). He is liking it so far and has already been moved to a different department where he will be working with a friend of his (who recommended him for the job in the first place) and they are already planning on carpooling. 

 

Step-daughter update: she's driving me crazy!  The good news is that she appears much happier than she was. I believe she is still texting with her mother, but I'm not sure of the frequency. Mom seems to have accepted her decision to not go over there (half sister is now getting her room over there and mom asked her if she wanted to come over and get any of her stuff). Bad news is that mom has some slightly passive aggressive public FB posts that could be upsetting if step-daughter sees them (i.e. posts about having a nice b-day hanging out with her kids when step-daughter only saw her for 5 minutes). As of today, recognizing that it is August, step-daughter is not planning on any holidays with her mother - she is having a complete cut off.

 

OTHER bad news: step-daughter has gone back to playing the parent! She has always been super nosy about adult conversations; it was horrible when she was little, then stopped for a while - I thought she had grown out of it, but now I'm wondering if it was due to the whole family dynamic situation. Now it is back with a vengeance! For example - my daughter has an orthodontist appointment coming up, but we threw away the appointment card (misunderstanding over who was going to put it in their phone calendar). So my step-daughter asked my daughter when her appointment was (please note, my daughter is the older of the two!). The whole situation flips between cracking me up and making me want to strangle her. 

 

Finally: we bought some reusable plastic food containers this week on Amazon. I've been scouring Pinterest for Bento box style lunches for my husband and the kids (for back to school). It's been super fun and I'm trying to figure out if I can make them for myself and take them on the road (although I'm not sure I want to start - just because I can drive to this site doesn't mean I will always be able to!). 

[WolfDreamer]

32 minutes ago, Sylvaa said:

So many updates that I keep forgetting about!

 

That's a lot going on! Because I love metaphors, here goes: Keep your head above water and enjoy the swim...or something like that. Keep that fire burning, even in the pouring rain.

 

[Sylvaa]

Spamming my thread today because the weekend has totally caught up with me today. A body-positivity article showed up on my Facebook feed today and I wanted to share and have a discussion (maybe!). 

 

First of all, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that this article is from Teen Vogue! I know there is a lot of .... lets call it discussion.... around how most fashion mags are horrible about focusing on this ideal standard for beauty, but this is literally under mental health and links other articles on the same vein. 

 

But, I am totally guilty of the article's point - the idea of health as being an almost requirement of body positivity. Well, let me rephrase. I'm all for body-positivity. I don't believe that it does any good to shame, harass, or otherwise talk down to people based on how their body looks. It takes so much courage and self-confidence for people to put themselves out there ESPECIALLY when they aren't a "traditional" size. I don't believe that anyone should feel guilty or ashamed for eating a freaking cheeseburger or cake or ice cream or any one of a number of unhealthy treats. I also don't believe that unhealthy people, regardless of the reason do not deserve respect.

 

However, I do have issues with ANYONE who disregards their health. There are a ton of different health problems, some associated with weight, some with genetics, and some that are just random coincidence. Taking care of ones health should be a priority for everyone and using people who are legitimately sick as an ...almost excuse (in the Instagram post) makes me angry. Granted, that doesn't give me, or anyone else, permission to dismiss them or deny their self worth! 

 

I guess my point is that I feel like the body positivity movement is getting super convoluted and almost militant and it makes me sad because it's so important. 

[DrFeelgood]

2 minutes ago, Sylvaa said:

I guess my point is that I feel like the body positivity movement is getting super convoluted and almost militant and it makes me sad because it's so important. 

 

Like any movement that starts legitimately it will be perverted to unwarranted extremes by those who choose to see it as sanctioning their poor life choices.  Insert any number of -isms, it holds true for all of them.

 

In other words, humans gonna hume.

[Laghail]

[Plazmotic]

1 hour ago, Sylvaa said:

First of all, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that this article is from Teen Vogue!

To be honest, since Trumpo started making news waves Teen Vogue severely stepped up its critical reporting game, it’s quite inspiring.

[WolfDreamer]

2 hours ago, DrFeelgood said:

Insert any number of -isms, it holds true for all of them.

 

I was literally having a similar discussion today about feminism. Most of those -isms at the extreme level are even more restricting than the origins of the movements intended. Extreme feminism, for example, sets so many restricting (and often contradicting) standards on both women and men that it makes it nearly impossible to be who you are anymore. If a guy is too "manly" then he's a jerk. If a girl is supportive and genuinely enjoys serving her husband/boyfriend, then she's "too submissive." It's just a mess. Let men be men and women be women and just respect them as a fellow human being. Let those who struggle with their weight do their best to work through those struggles and support them without shaming them as a person.

 

Think about the expressions people use: "You're fat," "You're big," "You're overweight," etc. They're all used as identifiers. It becomes almost impossible for that person to see who they truly are inside as a person because people keep identifying them by their physical characteristics. Drug addicts and criminals have this problem, as well. It's an identity crisis. The more people say you are something the more you start to believe it and stop fighting to prove it wrong.

 

But I'm not a therapist, so...

[Severine]

3 hours ago, Sylvaa said:

Spamming my thread today because the weekend has totally caught up with me today. A body-positivity article showed up on my Facebook feed today and I wanted to share and have a discussion (maybe!). 

 

First of all, I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that this article is from Teen Vogue! I know there is a lot of .... lets call it discussion.... around how most fashion mags are horrible about focusing on this ideal standard for beauty, but this is literally under mental health and links other articles on the same vein.  

1 hour ago, Plazmotic said:

To be honest, since Trumpo started making news waves Teen Vogue severely stepped up its critical reporting game, it’s quite inspiring.

 

Like Plazmotic said, I've seen a lot of buzz about what good journalism Teen Vogue has been putting out recently. It's such a nice change of pace from the way the teen magazines were when I was a kid...

 

3 hours ago, Sylvaa said:

But, I am totally guilty of the article's point - the idea of health as being an almost requirement of body positivity. Well, let me rephrase. I'm all for body-positivity. I don't believe that it does any good to shame, harass, or otherwise talk down to people based on how their body looks. It takes so much courage and self-confidence for people to put themselves out there ESPECIALLY when they aren't a "traditional" size. I don't believe that anyone should feel guilty or ashamed for eating a freaking cheeseburger or cake or ice cream or any one of a number of unhealthy treats. I also don't believe that unhealthy people, regardless of the reason do not deserve respect.

 

However, I do have issues with ANYONE who disregards their health. There are a ton of different health problems, some associated with weight, some with genetics, and some that are just random coincidence. Taking care of ones health should be a priority for everyone and using people who are legitimately sick as an ...almost excuse (in the Instagram post) makes me angry. Granted, that doesn't give me, or anyone else, permission to dismiss them or deny their self worth! 

 

I guess my point is that I feel like the body positivity movement is getting super convoluted and almost militant and it makes me sad because it's so important.

 

I agree this is a fascinating and complicated topic! I think first off that you hit the #1 most important point right on the nose: the crucial thing is to be respect the fundamental dignity of other human beings no matter whether or not you agree with their choices. Bullying and shaming and judging never helped anything get better. It hurts the people on the receiving end, sullies the character of the people doing it, and drives everyone further apart into entrenched positions.

 

I think the body positivity movement came about because of a real need for it. Compassion and open-mindedness are good! And I think that it needs to extend beyond size: people who are disabled or chronically ill or just on the weaker side should not be made to feel ashamed.

 

Buuuuut...like you say, some people have definitely perverted the good core ideas of the movement and become really militant or just twisted the ideas for their own ends. For example, I've met people who think any attempt to lose weight ever for any reason is an act of body-shaming and conformity. Needless to say, I disagree. I understand what they're reacting against (and I agree that they're right to reject it!) but they end up going too far.

 

I think it's perfectly possible to have frank, science-based discussions about the health impacts of choices and genetic factors without it descending into body shaming or judgement. It takes a lot of work for people to unlearn their inherent biases against fat or otherwise different people, but it's possible. I'd rather work toward that coherent civil discourse than join the people arming themselves for battle on the other extreme.

 

36 minutes ago, Wolfen said:

I was literally having a similar discussion today about feminism. Most of those -isms at the extreme level are even more restricting than the origins of the movements intended. Extreme feminism, for example, sets so many restricting (and often contradicting) standards on both women and men that it makes it nearly impossible to be who you are anymore. If a guy is too "manly" then he's a jerk. If a girl is supportive and genuinely enjoys serving her husband/boyfriend, then she's "too submissive." It's just a mess. Let men be men and women be women and just respect them as a fellow human being. Let those who struggle with their weight do their best to work through those struggles and support them without shaming them as a person.

 

To be fair, I think a lot of this comes down to people having widely different ideas about what feminism even means. I consider myself a feminist and I don't think that anyone who tells a person, regardless of gender, that they're acting the "wrong" way for their gender really understands what feminism means. Feminism is all about dismantling assumptions and obligations and letting people define their own choices and identity. A woman choosing to be a homemaker and raise six kids can be just as much of a feminist decision as becoming a powerful business executive as long as it's made out of real preference and not pressure. The key is to help create a society where people really do have the freedom to make those choices without overt or subtle pressure - from parents, society, church, unspoken norms, etc.

 

And I know you're not imagining it - I've met people who call themselves feminists and then proceed to trash talk women for being bimbos because they wear makeup and care about fashion. Sigh. I'm just saying that's not what it's supposed to be about, and if I'm ever in charge of handing out the feminism badges, those folks are losing theirs.

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

4 hours ago, DrFeelgood said:

In other words, humans gonna hume.

^Don't bring my name into this.

Reference 

[Sylvaa]

11 minutes ago, Severine said:

And I know you're not imagining it - I've met people who call themselves feminists and then proceed to trash talk women for being bimbos because they wear makeup and care about fashion. Sigh. I'm just saying that's not what it's supposed to be about, and if I'm ever in charge of handing out the feminism badges, those folks are losing theirs.

 

I would totally vote for you to be in charge of handing out the feminism badges! 

 

31 minutes ago, Severine said:

The key is to help create a society where people really do have the freedom to make those choices without overt or subtle pressure - from parents, society, church, unspoken norms, etc

 

Time to start a movement based upon this. 

[Severine]

3 minutes ago, Sylvaa said:

I would totally vote for you to be in charge of handing out the feminism badges! 

 

I've always wanted to go mad with power!  

 

[WolfDreamer]

1 hour ago, Sylvaa said:

I would totally vote for you to be in charge of handing out the feminism badges!

 

I would totally take a feminism badge if @Severine was handing them out. 

[WolfDreamer]

1 hour ago, Tanktimus the Encourager said:

 

[Sloth the Enduring]

It looks like I'm late already. Following. 

[Plazmotic]

16 hours ago, Severine said:

To be fair, I think a lot of this comes down to people having widely different ideas about what feminism even means.

I too call myself a feminist and this is such a tricky topic for me. I used to be a lot more extreme in my beliefs, but what I believed as a sociological theory slammed hard against what I actually wanted and needed in my life. I mean, I can intellectually understand why in our current culture, heterosexual marriage is probably not a feminist act. But geez I’ve probably been primed to be a wife since before I was toilet trained, how does one even undo something like that?!

 

*waits patiently for feminist badge*

[WolfDreamer]

16 minutes ago, Plazmotic said:

I too call myself a feminist and this is such a tricky topic for me. I used to be a lot more extreme in my beliefs, but what I believed as a sociological theory slammed hard against what I actually wanted and needed in my life. I mean, I can intellectually understand why in our current culture, heterosexual marriage is probably not a feminist act. But geez I’ve probably been primed to be a wife since before I was toilet trained, how does one even undo something like that?!

 

*waits patiently for feminist badge*