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Mike Wazowski: Nationals Prep


Mike Wazowski

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Hey y'all, it's that time of year again - ballroom dance nationals are only a month away, and I'M PUMPED!!!!!! Still a lot of stuff to do, but rather than doing anything that feels like cramming, I'm going to try and stay the course. I had a reasonably successful challenge:

 

Spoiler

Wins this challenge:

  • Got used to tracking and macros-based meal planning again
  • Been more productive and focused at work and I've been having more fun
  • Got back to workout consistency and made some gains in aerobic and lactic conditioning (and had fun adding handstands, basic tumbling, and rings into my workout)
  • Started doing mobility at the end of workouts and in the evenings to wind down
  • Made a tasty mac n cheese and got a bunch of cool recipes

Room for improvement still:

  • Consistently didn't hit calorie targets on weekends - I need to get myself to a point of being compliant 6 or 7 days a week with a plan. I'm going to keep trying new strategies here in the coming weeks, I have confidence I can get this to work right
  • Need additional tweaking to my bedtime routine - reading fiction has not been working so well
  • Morning routine didn't get as fast as my target, so I wasn't getting to the gym as early as I'd like - will keep trying as the weather gets warmer and eating in the car becomes more palatable.

 

Based on what went well and where I still need to improve, I've got the following goals on tap this time around:

 

  1. Comply with calorie and protein targets, figuring out weekends: I'm cutting, slowly, and aiming to get to a point where I'm at a physique I feel really good about for competitive dance; to that end, I need to actually comply with calorie targets - eating it all back on the weekend isn't a productive way to cut (weekends are when I train with my partner, and I've had a bad habit of going hard in the paint on calories every weekend). I'll be experimenting with some strategies here, including planning for higher calories on Saturdays, at least.
  2. Allocate 8 hours / night for sleep: I'm not yet sure, I may be someone who functions ok on less sleep; but rest is important, and I should at least have the time allocated to get the rest. One of the important pieces of this will be really knowing when I need to turn things off for the night and wind down / get ready for bed (and then actually do it).
  3. Keep working out as scheduled: nothing much to see here - I'm barely doing anything warrior-y but yet I'm still here: it's a mix of gymnastic rings (2x / week), gymnastics floor stuff (2x / week), lower body weights (1x / week), and finished each day with either aerobic or lactic conditioning since I need both for dance comps.
  4. Do scheduled adulting tasks each week: as a way of handling my anxiety about how much I had to do, I put my adulting tasks on a spreadsheet with target dates - goal here is to hit those target dates (I'll post which ones I'm tackling in a given week at some point).
  5. Make another Mac n Cheese recipe: just for shiggles.
  6. Take a walk every work day: It's calming, it breaks up the workday, and it's a sneaky way to up my NEAT during a cut. Win win win.
  • Like 7

 Ballroom dancer, data nerd, calisthenics dabbler

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FIRST!!!! So much easier when I'm right here.... 

 

So, I read an article not that long ago about how self care isn't necessarily all about bon bons and bubble baths, that sometimes it's about doing the thing that prevents the anxiety in the first place, cuts it off at the pass, as it were. I feel like your #4 really nails that concept. Also #5 is, well, it's mac n cheese. I almost want to join you on that. Maybe you should head a MnC PVP someday :D 

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Hmm. You also need a GIF. Here you go:

 

giphy.gif

  • Like 2
  • Haha 2
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8 minutes ago, RedStone said:

FIRST!!!! So much easier when I'm right here.... 

YESSSS - so happy for the easy interaction here!

 

8 minutes ago, RedStone said:

So, I read an article not that long ago about how self care isn't necessarily all about bon bons and bubble baths, that sometimes it's about doing the thing that prevents the anxiety in the first place, cuts it off at the pass, as it were. I feel like your #4 really nails that concept.

Amen to that! I have noticed for me that I need a mix of self care: soothing (to get me back to a productive headspace) and then actually facing the anxiety causes (which is never fun, but helps both the immediate anxiety and usually long-term growth - i.e. getting worked up less about the same category of anxiety in the future).

 

8 minutes ago, RedStone said:

Also #5 is, well, it's mac n cheese. I almost want to join you on that. Maybe you should head a MnC PVP someday :D 

This is the kind of leadership that shows why you're our guild leader!

  • Like 1

 Ballroom dancer, data nerd, calisthenics dabbler

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28 minutes ago, MikeWazowski said:

I have noticed for me that I need a mix of self care

 

This seems right to me. I need to do less than 4 baths a week and maybe run the budget once in awhile instead... or both...

 

Quote

 

This is the kind of leadership that shows why you're our guild leader!

 

BAHAHAHA especially the... you know what YOU should do sometime ;) But seriously how fun would that be -_- SPEAKING OF, I like to keep those mini MNC cups around for macro fillers, and they were out of my typical velveeta cups so I got the fancy Annie's one's instead? YEAH NO. Macros on the velveeta are WAY better and I just don't like the Annie's flavor. #chezwhiz4eva

This has been an MNC PSA. 

 

giphy.gif

  • Haha 4
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7 hours ago, RedStone said:

BAHAHAHA especially the... you know what YOU should do sometime ;) But seriously how fun would that be -_- SPEAKING OF, I like to keep those mini MNC cups around for macro fillers, and they were out of my typical velveeta cups so I got the fancy Annie's one's instead? YEAH NO. Macros on the velveeta are WAY better and I just don't like the Annie's flavor. #chezwhiz4eva

This has been an MNC PSA. 


This is truly the place for information you can't find anywhere else!

Also - here! Following along for the ballroom and pasta, also always happy to see anxiety circumvented. Scheduling has been hugely helpful in controlling my attacks, here's to it working as well for you! 

 

HTTPS9tZWRpYS50ZW5vci5jby9pbWFnZXMvYzhmM

 

 

  • Haha 3

“Then something Tookish woke up inside of him, and he wished to go and see the great mountains, and hear the pine-trees and the waterfalls, and explore the caves, and wear a sword instead of a walking-stick."

-J. R. R. Tolkien


2022 Challenges: Push, Core, SimplePooh, Timebox, NaNoWriMo

2023 Challenges: 20SOC, Travel, Battery, Song n'Dance

                                                                                                                                

 

 

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8 minutes ago, Emerald_Dragonfly said:

 

giphy.gif

 

 

Cannot unsee.

  • Like 1
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2 hours ago, Gemma said:

This is truly the place for information you can't find anywhere else!

Indeed - who'd have thought that the fancy ones were just all-around inferior.

 

Quote

Also - here! Following along for the ballroom and pasta, also always happy to see anxiety circumvented. Scheduling has been hugely helpful in controlling my attacks, here's to it working as well for you! 

 

HTTPS9tZWRpYS50ZW5vci5jby9pbWFnZXMvYzhmM

Welcome!! Here's hoping indeed, glad to have you aboard!

 

2 hours ago, Emerald_Dragonfly said:

Another vote of confidence in your scheduling approach - excellent. 

Thanks - I'm definitely finding it helpful so far for keeping me from making myself batshit cray.

 

Quote

Also...this thread needs this:

giphy.gif

Just because. 

Somebody had to bring the oddball gifs. Welcome!

 

2 hours ago, RedStone said:

Cannot unsee.

Same - just so....odd.

 

Alright, ironed out my adult tasks for the week:

  • Monday: Write out adult tasks, pay bills
  • Tuesday: Call leasing office (rent dispute), DATE NIGHT!!
  • Wednesday: Plan meals for next week (incl weekend lunch / dinner / breakfasts while dance partner is in town), Pick up target order, dance practice
  • Thursday: Pick up groceries, take pants to lululemon for hemming, type up draft ballroom routines, call chase about an old check, dance practice
  • Friday: order dance shirt / accessories, rebook houston travel for nationals for cheaper, partnered dance practice
  • Saturday: book nationals hotel, partnered dance practice
  • Sunday:
    • Partnered dance practice
    • Dance technique class
    • Call parents
    • Prep meals
    • Wash laundry
    • Set out clothes for week (dance, work, workouts)
    • Write out training plans for coming week

 

Alsooooo, I'm gonna add a bonus goal 6: take a walk at work every work day. I find it calming, it helps break up the work day, and it's a sneaky way to up my NEAT slightly. Win win win.

  • Like 4

 Ballroom dancer, data nerd, calisthenics dabbler

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9 hours ago, MikeWazowski said:

take a walk at work every work day. I find it calming, it helps break up the work day, and it's a sneaky way to up my NEAT slightly. Win win win.

 

I so need Spring to come so I can has this toooooo walks are the best!!!

 

giphy.gif

  • Like 3
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4 hours ago, Alanna said:

Following! I might have to steal some of these scheduling suggestions as well... been dealing with a lot of stress lately and it often puts me in a bad headspace. I'd be interested in hearing more about your strategies if you're up for sharing them :).

It's still in its infancy, but I started with an on-paper list of adult tasks I had bouncing around my head, then put them into a google doc and put target dates on them (along with noting which ones recur every so often, so that I can update a new target rather than deleting them totally. It was helpful to do some thinking and realizing that everything I *need* to do still doesn't all need to be done right this instant.

 

2 hours ago, RedStone said:

 

I so need Spring to come so I can has this toooooo walks are the best!!!

 

giphy.gif

Indeed! I think my office complex is notably less pretty than your town, but time outside is still better than no time outside.

 

Week 0, Day 1 (Monday):

  1. Comply with calorie and protein targets, figuring out weekends: Nope - a late-night halo top binge took me over calories here
  2. Allocate 8 hours / night for sleep: Only about 6 hours, got too into a book and just kept reading, whoops
  3. Keep working out as scheduled: Yup - gymnast rings and aerobic circuits with a jump rope
  4. Do scheduled adulting tasks each week: task yesterday was to check in with things / plan out the week - 'twas successful
  5. Make another Mac n Cheese recipe: n/a
  6. Take a walk every work day: Yep.
  • Like 5

 Ballroom dancer, data nerd, calisthenics dabbler

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i love lists. lists are my favorite.

 

17 hours ago, MikeWazowski said:
  • Monday: Write out adult tasks, pay bills
  • Tuesday: Call leasing office (rent dispute), DATE NIGHT!!

AGAIN?!! your leasing office needs a list.

 

i like the planning weekend food goal for tomorrow. might try to do that.

  • Haha 1

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1 hour ago, CourtnieMarie said:

i love lists. lists are my favorite.

Mine too! Unfortunately I tend to lose track of them and need to rewrite crap, so I'm puttin' that ish in the cloud now.

 

1 hour ago, CourtnieMarie said:

AGAIN?!! your leasing office needs a list.

Hahaha you're not wrong. Flagrantly incompetent seems to describe this current property management company.

 

1 hour ago, CourtnieMarie said:

i like the planning weekend food goal for tomorrow. might try to do that.

Yessss. I'm actually planning out both weekend and for next week food - trying to do groceries every Thursday going forward.

  • Like 3

 Ballroom dancer, data nerd, calisthenics dabbler

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On 2/5/2018 at 8:10 PM, RedStone said:

Cannot unsee.

Mission accomplished.  (One day I'm going to count the times that this has been your sole response to one of my gif offerings.  I think we might be getting close to the double digits. 

giphy.gif

 

21 hours ago, MikeWazowski said:

Alsooooo, I'm gonna add a bonus goal 6: take a walk at work every work day. .... Win win win.

giphy.gif

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~Emerald_Dragonfly

Level 13 Warrior

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9 hours ago, MikeWazowski said:

time outside is still better than no time outside.

 

Always. Also come visit. Obvs. 

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16 hours ago, Emerald_Dragonfly said:

Mission accomplished.  (One day I'm going to count the times that this has been your sole response to one of my gif offerings.  I think we might be getting close to the double digits. 

giphy.gif

You and Laghail, man.

 

Quote

giphy.gif

Only slightly different from how I walk, haha.

 

16 hours ago, RedStone said:

Always. Also come visit. Obvs. 

It's in the miasmic, haven't committed to a date yet plans, obvs (in addition to giving you advance warning next time I end up in NYC).

 

Week 0, Day 2 (Tuesday): Pretty eventful Tuesday - work felt extra chaotic and like I was losing my grip on my project, but it feels a lot better in the light of the morning today (being mildly sleep-deprived probably definitely didn't help things). Dance teaching went by pretty quickly, and afterwards had a lovely date night out for sushi (she's in show prep for bodybuilding, so a lot of sushi is in our future).

 

Forgot to add: we had a funny moment at the start of the date where we both pulled out our phones to check approx macros in MFP, and she saw my total calories number and got a little jealous (I'm cutting at ~2,350 cals, so ya, I can understand). #fitnessdating haha.

  1. Comply with calorie and protein targets, figuring out weekends: Yep, even with date night sushi.
  2. Allocate 8 hours / night for sleep: Only 7 hours, came home from date night a little too wound up and needed an extra hour-ish to wind down
  3. Keep working out as scheduled: Yup - lower body weights, see below for writeup
  4. Do scheduled adulting tasks each week: check
  5. Make another Mac n Cheese recipe: n/a
  6. Take a walk every work day: Yep - just the walk to my midday workout, but still counting it

 

Adulting tasks:

  • Monday: Write out adult tasks, pay bills
  • Tuesday: Call leasing office (rent dispute), DATE NIGHT!!
  • Wednesday: Plan meals for next week (incl weekend lunch / dinner / breakfasts while dance partner is in town), Pick up target order, (& ice cream for next week), dance practice, Call leasing office again
  • Thursday: Pick up groceries, take pants to lululemon for hemming, type up draft ballroom routines, call chase about an old check, dance practice
  • Friday: order dance shirt / accessories, rebook houston travel for nationals for cheaper, partnered dance practice
  • Saturday: book nationals hotel, partnered dance practice
  • Sunday:
    • Partnered dance practice
    • Dance technique class
    • Call parents
    • Prep meals
    • Wash laundry
    • Set out clothes for week (dance, work, workouts)
    • Write out training plans for coming week

Yesterday's workout:

Deadlift: warmups, then 300 x 6 (PR!!!!)

Front squat: warmup to 195 x 4 (PR!!!)

Abs: Redstone special - feet off floor, 5 lb plate x 10 reps x 3 sets

Conditioning: 1 simulated dance comp round on the elliptical (5 x 1:30 fast, 0:30 relaxed)

  • Like 5

 Ballroom dancer, data nerd, calisthenics dabbler

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On 2/5/2018 at 8:02 PM, Emerald_Dragonfly said:

Another vote of confidence in your scheduling approach - excellent. 

Also...this thread needs this:

giphy.gif

Just because. 

UM THIS IS A TOTALLY INAPPROPRIATE RABBIT HOLE THOUGHT but you guys have heard that observation about good sex acts sounding like a wood spoon in mac and cheese right? hahahahah.

 

ANYWAY -- where is Nats this year? 

  • Haha 5

Raptron, alot assassin

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16 minutes ago, MikeWazowski said:

Provo, UT. Every year. At least there are mountains to look at since the town's a liiiiiiittle boring.

I obviously had to google that. BUT YOU SHOULD LOOK AT DINO BONES.

 

The BYU Museum of Paleontology houses a collection of dinosaur fossils.

 

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Raptron, alot assassin

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congrats on those PRs!! and getting shit donnnnne!

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Week 0, Day 3 (Wednesday): Wow, I felt tired yesterday. I'm thinking that maxing on front squat and deadlift really took it out of me. Did the things at work at least passably, picked up my target stuff, called my leasing office (wow that was weighing on me), taught dance and did a brief practice and pretty much immediately started winding down with stretching when I got home.

 

Also, one of my "adult" tasks yesterday was to buy ice cream - adulthood is weird, y'all.

  1. Comply with calorie and protein targets, figuring out weekends: Nope - was too eager to break into the cookie dough blue bell, probably ended up 600-700 cals over target
  2. Allocate 8 hours / night for sleep: I think I allocated almost exactly 8 hours here - woke up feeling better rested which is great
  3. Keep working out as scheduled: Yup - handstand drills, front and back scale holds, and aerobic circuits
  4. Do scheduled adulting tasks each week: check
  5. Make another Mac n Cheese recipe: not yet
  6. Take a walk every work day: Yep - it was sunny out all day, not too hard to convince myself.

 

Adulting tasks:

  • Monday: Write out adult tasks, pay bills
  • Tuesday: Call leasing office (rent dispute), DATE NIGHT!!
  • Wednesday: Plan meals for next week (incl weekend lunch / dinner / breakfasts while dance partner is in town),Pick up target order, (& ice cream for next week), dance practice, Call leasing office again
  • Thursday: Pick up groceries, take pants to lululemon for hemming, type up draft ballroom routines, call chase about an old check, dance practice
  • Friday: order dance shirt / accessories, rebook houston travel for nationals for cheaper, partnered dance practice
  • Saturday: book nationals hotel, partnered dance practice
  • Sunday:
    • Partnered dance practice
    • Dance technique class
    • Call parents
    • Prep meals
    • Wash laundry
    • Set out clothes for week (dance, work, workouts)
    • Write out training plans for coming week
  • Like 2

 Ballroom dancer, data nerd, calisthenics dabbler

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well done yesterday!! sounds like a lot. i haven't had blue bell in soooo long, was it delicious?

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