Starstuff Wars: Return of the Jedi

[Starstuff]

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away...

 

 

 

Episode VI

 

RETURN OF THE JEDI

 

After many months away, Starstuff has returned to the planet of Challengeooine in an attempt to free herself from the clutches of the vile gangster Melancholia the Butt.

 

Little does Starstuff know that the GALACTIC EMPIRE has secretly begun construction on a new motivation-sapping space station even more powerful than the first dreaded Bleh Star. When completed, this weapon will spell certain doom for the small band of Rebels struggling to restore adventure, happiness, and improvement to the galaxy...

 

This will be my first Challenge in a year. While I've been away from Challenges and the forums, I haven't been idle. I've been doing Rising Heroes missions (for anyone who might be thinking of joining, it's super fun), running virtual races for the Hogwarts Running Club (also super fun), teaching my pup to be a good running buddy (he is the best running buddy) and writing (started editing my novel and added almost 25k words to its sequel!). And, much to my delight and surprise, my husband has started exercising and cleaning up his diet (that setting an example thing? turns out it actually works). But things have been really rough the past month, and I could use some Rebel support to get back on track.

 

Those of you who remember me might also remember that my husband and I have been trying to conceive for a couple years. After much poking and prodding, very few answers (according to all tests, there is nothing wrong with either of us, fertility-wise), and a number of "some studies suggest this might increase your chances" lifestyle changes, I finally got a positive pregnancy test at the beginning of December. And then I miscarried a week later. It sucked, you guys. On top of being physically and emotionally taxing, I wasn't allowed to run or take baths (my go-to stress relievers) for a couple weeks, and my hormones were a mess, putting me on this awful emotional rollercoaster. I was so stressed that I didn't really even enjoy The Last Jedi the first time I saw it (don't worry! this was rectified on repeat viewings). But I'm physically recovered now, my hormones are back to normal and I feel like myself again, and I'm ready to get back to actually, you know, living my life and being awesome.

 

Goal 1: Escape the sail barge

 

 

It's hard to escape a dangerous situation without strength and agility, which means I need to get back into my regular exercise routine, so my goal here is to walk or run every day, and complete a  strength training workout 3x a week.

 

Goal 2: Try a little help from your friends

 

 

Sometimes, our friends have habits that we think are weird, but they turn out to be really effective. My husband has been doing keto for the past several months and having great success with it. I recently read a meta study showing that women eating low-carb diets tend to have an easier time conceiving and another study suggesting that moderate-to-high protein diets encourage increased ova quality in women. And I've read that some ultra-runners have had a lot of luck going low carb, too. That's enough to convince this carb-lover to at least give it a try for a few months, so my goal is to eat less than 40g of net carbs a day and get a minimum of 25% of my calories from protein. I still have some prepped meals that don't fit these guidelines, though, so my goal for the first day is to finish the last of my prepped meals, and then I can start with my new eating guidelines tomorrow.

 

Goal 3: Reject the Dark Side

 

 

With all the stress I've been under, I need to engage in some serious self-care so as not to slip into unhealthy coping habits. My goal is to practice yoga or meditate every day. Length doesn't matter, so long as I'm taking time to relax and center myself on a daily basis.

 

Life Goal: Study the ancient Jedi texts

 

 

That novel I started editing last year? Well, I need to finish it. One of my goals for the year is to edit a chapter a week (with breaks for Camp NaNoWriMo to work on drafting the sequel) until I've got a draft ready to send to beta readers, so my goal for this challenge is to edit five chapters of my novel.

 

And because I like showing off pictures of my dog, here's Finn enjoying the new year at the dog park:

 

[Fonzico]

Awesome looking challenge! I'm excited to have another keto-er for support!

I've heard good things about keto and conception - hopefully it helps!

Very great that your hubby is doing this too - IRL support networks rock.

Good luck!

[karinajean]

omg your challenge set up cracks me up! "melancholia the butt." ha!

 

I'm so sorry about your loss, and I'm glad that you're in a better place now and with your hormoes straight and your eyes looking forward. 

[JediNickD]

I'm sorry to hear about your miscarriage.  My wife and I went through one, too, when first trying to conceive.  Unfortunately, the process of conceiving is far from perfect with very little physical control and your body is learning on the job how to do it.  Luminous beings are we, but we still have to deal with this crude matter. 

 

From my experience, all I can really say is that your husband likely has no idea how much you are going through and will say and do the wrong things all the time (I know I didn't).  Make sure you are open with him about your needs.  He likely wants to be helpful, but has no idea what is going on, what is helpful, and how quickly your needs will change.

 

I'm glad to hear that you are physically recovered and returning to normal life.  Be patient and positive.  A new hope is around the corner for you as you are one with the Force and the Force is with you. 

[Tateman]

Following  From what I have seen on the keto subreddit, there are many people that have had great success. I hope to join then eventually

 

Sorry to hear about the miscarriage. It happened to my wife a few years back 14 weeks into pregnancy. That was very hard on us. 

 

Cute dog  Here is to having a successful first challenge of 2018

[Fonzico]

How's it going so far?

[Starstuff]

Apparently, this episode involves me getting trapped in the Great Pit of Carkoon for a little bit. My company had a round of layoffs at the beginning of last week, and I was one of the casualties. It caught me totally off-guard and sent me into a bit of a tailspin. I'm slowly crawling my way back out, and I have leads on a couple potential jobs, but my challenge goals have definitely taken a hit. I'll have a more detailed update on how I'm doing with my goals tomorrow, but I wanted to give you all a brief update before I head to bed. I don't suppose anyone's got a lightsaber stowed away in their R2 unit that I could borrow?

[otterbyte]

5 hours ago, Starstuff said:

Apparently, this episode involves me getting trapped in the Great Pit of Carkoon for a little bit. My company had a round of layoffs at the beginning of last week, and I was one of the casualties. It caught me totally off-guard and sent me into a bit of a tailspin. I'm slowly crawling my way back out, and I have leads on a couple potential jobs, but my challenge goals have definitely taken a hit. I'll have a more detailed update on how I'm doing with my goals tomorrow, but I wanted to give you all a brief update before I head to bed. I don't suppose anyone's got a lightsaber stowed away in their R2 unit that I could borrow?

 

Oh man, that's gotta be rough. Keeping my fingers crossed for you. I'll look for the lightsaber but I'm afraid the kids took it...

[juliebarkley]

Sorry to hear that. I hope your next job is better than your last one!