Clueless Noob Here!

[SkullzBKraken]

Hey Nerds!

 

My name is Skullz B Kraken and I'm a crazy cat lady who loves pirates, cheese, Morrowind, Stardew Valley, and all things Halloween. I stumbled across NF last week by googling "Workouts for people who have no idea how to work out." I was the goth kid in high school who hated gym class and the college kid who went to murder mysteries put on by the campus librarian, rather than partying at the frat house. As a kid and all the way into my mid-twenties, I was tiny... size 0, turn sideways and disappear kind of tiny, all without trying. That being said, when it all went down-hill in my late 20s (I'm 30 now), and I had absolutely no idea how to eat healthy and create effective and sustainable workout plans. 

 

After college I moved to our beautiful capitol city and joined the local roller derby league. "But Skullz," you say, "You play a sport. Surely you're fit and healthy!" NOPE. One: I've been on hiatus for a while due to a car accident, followed by a pregnancy, followed by a baby. And two: I've always been the weakling on my team. Once the plague is over (will it ever be over?) I'm hoping to start back up, but first I need to love myself. Cheesy, I know. But I hate who I see when I look in the mirror. 

 

I've read all sorts of stupid so-called fitness blogs with "10 ways to loose 1,270 pounds in 5 seconds" or whatever, but all of these blogs just ended up collecting dust in my Pinterest board. My goal is to make a HABIT of eating nutritious food, cutting back on sugar, and not overeating. I would also like to create easy-to-follow workout routines that include strength training. I struggle with the nutrition part because I'm a vegetarian. "But Skullz," you say, "You're a vegetarian. You just eat vegetables. You must be so healthy!" HA! I live on carbs. Diets that just have you eat veggies and meat don't work for me. Any tips in that area?  

 

Long story short: I'm an exhausted mom of a 14 month old, I work full time, and I have no idea how to work out or eat healthy. (I'm also extremely impulsive and have no self-control. 😬mmm donuts. *drool*)

 

For funziez, here are some of me on wheels, pictures of my cats, and my pirate wedding. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[foxinthenorth]

PIRATE WEDDING!!!!

 

Looks like you'll fit right in.  Habit building is the name of the game and everyone's nerds. A lot of people when starting just try different things out for each 5-week challenge until they start figuring out what works for them. I have, that's for sure. Doing it that way might take a long time to find something that works, but it means you give each thing you try a serious shot, and having people to chat with while you're trying helps a lot. 

 

Almost all of the activity on these boards is in the 5-week challenges, so I highly recommend joining the first-timers challenge! We're, uhhh, two weeks in? Three? I've been living in a time warp recently so I'm not completely sure. But for the next round, Week 0 starts Sunday, Sept. 6 and a lot of people using Week 0 to plan and prepare for the challenge.

 

I found the challenge guide really helpful in setting goals for my first few rounds. I've diverged from it by now, as I've found what work for me and what doesn't, but it's a really great starting point.

 

Welcome to the fun!

[Chesire]

Hi there!  I was the goth kid in high school who loved gym class, or at least the part where we weren't playing basketball....  ugh teachers not teaching the rules then yelling at you. 

 

I'd suggest checking out some of the  beginner's fitness at NF for a strength starting point.  Just as an aside, a lot of people do find just the warm-ups a bit rough going at first.  But you have to start somewhere!

 

As far as veggies go, I find meal planning helps.  Like I know I'm eating zucchini tonight because half of my linguini will be zuke noodles in my scampi.  And I get a lot of my protein from lentils and beans in soups or salads.  Just some ideas. 

 

The easiest thing is choose one, maybe two things to focus on at a time and work your way into the habit.  You don't need to do it all at once.  This is where I second the five week challenges.  There a good place to track yourself and get support from awesome nerds. 

 

Welcome!

[juliebarkley]

What all of these good people said. Welcome.

[Artemis Prime]

Hello!! I love your pirate wedding! I started strength training with the beginner bodyweight workout (in Chesire's link) but the Angry Bird workout is the one that really got me going. Nerd Fitness has a ton of free workouts on the site, so if you poke around some I'm sure you'll find one you like.

 

As far as diet goes, I'm not vegetarian, but Steve did a massive article on healthy plant-based eating.

 

Welcome to the rebellion!

 

[Harriet]

Welcome! Yay for Morrowind and strength training! As for the vegetarian meals, I don't think there's a problem with carbs per se, just refined carbs and over-reliance on wheat and corn. Do you know how to cook legumes, beans, whole grains, tofu, eggs and dairy-based vegetarian meals and have a few easy and successful meals from each category in your repertoire? 

[Navka]

Former Goth Kid / Stardew Valley Stan here.  It's so cool reading through these intros and finding people so relatable! 

[fitnessgurl]

Pirate wedding = awesome! Welcome to the boards!