respawn AThousandWords: Project Phoenix

[athousandwords]

Hi. I'm Yvonne. A lifetime ago I was on the NF boards, completed a bunch of fantastic challenges, lost 20lbs, leveled up my life, had an exciting pregnancy announcement, dropped off the boards during the actual pregnancy, briefly came back, dropped off again, and now here I am. I've leveled up in new ways, gained and lost weight, tried other programs to keep me motivated, and somehow keep coming back. NerdFitness, my my happy, get-shit-done home. 

 

A little bit about me:

 

I'm in my mid-30s, use she/her pronouns, happily married in suburbia but not too far from great hiking and a killer bike path. That baby I mentioned is now a wacky 4 year old and has a 1 year old sister. I'm a web application developer and I'm actually starting at a new company next month, which I'm quite excited about. But generally my line of work means that I sit on my butt all day. I walk the kids to daycare almost every morning but otherwise don't do a ton of exercise - that's typically been one of my areas to improve. I've done paleo and Whole30 and was quite successful in losing weight with those plans! But these days I'd rather have the flexibility to eat an ice cream cone with my kiddo or have a beer with the husband than stick to a strict diet plan. I'm learning to find balance.

 

I love mega-themed challenges. I've been around NF long enough to remember the old RPG system and I still like to use it. I've successfully completed 9 challenges and not completed probably half a dozen more. I build huge complicated spreadsheets to track my progress because they make my little nerd heart happy. I use an excessive amount of gifs. And my username is not just an obscure reference to my favorite late 90s band - I tend to write, like, a lot.

 

 

 

Project Phoenix

 

I picked Iron Man for this come-back challenge because, honestly, what better metaphor than the superhero that rebooted the Avengers franchise? And while I'm not a quite the human train-wreck Tony is, I feel like I've got some lessons to learn about self improvement - a challenge that Tony struggled with through the entire franchise. Plus, my son really likes Iron Man and it reminds me of my real motivation - staying healthy so I can be active with my family for a long time. I'm trying out a new bonus structure this time to help keep motivation high and encourage me to keep trying even when I tend to fall off mid-challenge.

 

GOALS:

 

1. Power Your Arc Reactor (2 CON)

Look, Tony Stark probably has a personal chef and a nutritionalist to keep him in Iron Man fighting shape. At the very least Goop is keeping him fed with her 5 budgeted limes. The rest of us gotta find our our time to do this shit. But as Iron Man knows, you need a strong arc reactor to power your body... or your supersuit. For me, this comes in the form of eating nutritious meals. I'm starting out by getting back into the regular habit of eating more vegetables - four times a day.

 

• Goal: 4 servings of vegetables a day
• Total Possible Points: 140 points 
• Grading:  A > 125 points | B > 110 points | C > 95 points | D > 85 points | F < 85 points
• 🌟  Bonus🌟   +5 points for meal planning at the start of the week!

 

2. Less is More (2 CON)

Surviving on less is probably a challenge billionaire Tony never had to face... until he was taken prisoner and forced to rebuild his body in the worst possible conditions. While that's not something I'd wish on my own worst enemy, I do think a little forced economy can have its benefits. I've been playing around with IF for a couple months now and want to really commit for this challenge: no meals (or snacks!) before 12pm or after 8pm (16/8). My one exception is coffee with a little half and half... even superheroes have their indulgences.

 

• Goal: IF (16/8) 6x a Week (with a coffee exception)
• Total Possible Points: 30 points 
• Grading:  A > 27 points | B > 24 points | C > 21 points | D > 18 points | F < 18 points
• 🌟  Bonus🌟   +1 point for fasting all 7 days

 

3. Train like a Superhero (2 STA + 1 STR)

Avengers gotta train - even Tony can be found hitting the bag. Currently I'm walking to daycare 4-5x a week, and for a month or so we were going on family bike rides every weekend. But I'd really like to ramp that up. You can't outrun your fork of course, but I think a regular pattern of exercise helps focus me on the goal and sets a good example for my family. I see this as: walking an extra 30min a day; running for 20 min; a casual bike ride with the kids; hot yoga maybe? I don't know, I want to explore some possibilities. For a bonus: an intense bike ride (like 2+ hours) is worth 3 points because frankly that's a lot of work.

 

 

• Goal: Exercise 3x a week
• Total Possible Points: 30 points 
• Grading:  A > 14 points | B > 13 points | C > 12 points | D > 11 points | F < 11 points
• 🌟  Bonus🌟   + 3 for a 2+ hour bike ride

 

4. Work like Pepper Potts (2 WIS)

Forget Tony Stark for a moment - Pepper's the real #bossbabe (or maybe a less icky version of that phrase). Anyway, I've got three weeks left at my current job and it would be far too easy to waste the time. I want to stay focused and start my new job on the right foot, so I'm going back to Bullet Journaling. It worked great for me in a previous challenge, but I've only used it sparingly since then.

 

• Goal: Complete 5 tasks every business day
• Total Possible Points: 125 points 
• Grading:  A > 110 points | B > 100 points | C > 85 points | D > 70 points | F < 70 points
• 🌟  Bonus🌟   +1 for a creative page per week

 

Reward:

Sure, health is its own reward, plus those sweet sweet imaginary stat points - but I've found that a little extra motivation can go a long way. So for every A, I get a new piece of workout clothing. And I badly need a decent sports bra, so let's hope I succeed in at least one of these challenges!

 

 

I have a lot of ideas for future challenges, but I'm trying to pace myself. A year of isolating has helped me learn me to take things a little slower - the time will pass anyway. I want to build a solid foundation and make smart decisions that will help me long term. Thanks anyone who read this far - I'm excited to be back at NerdFitness, surrounded by people who are trying to make their lives better every day!

 

[fleaball]

yoooooo you're back! hi!

[Sylvaa]

I AM IN SHOCK THAT THE BABY IS NOW 4!

 

Super excited to see you back on the boards!

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

AHHH, welcome back! Loving the theme and the associated artwork!

[athousandwords]

20 hours ago, fleaball said:

yoooooo you're back! hi!

 

HIIIIIIII! I was peeking around yesterday and saw you were still here - I'm excited to catch up!!

 

8 hours ago, Sylvaa said:

I AM IN SHOCK THAT THE BABY IS NOW 4!

 

Super excited to see you back on the boards!

 

Tell. Me. About. It.

Like - how is he a full grown KID already?? It's crazy!

Good to see you too!!

 

7 hours ago, Tanktimus the Encourager said:

AHHH, welcome back! Loving the theme and the associated artwork!

 

Thank you!!  🦸‍♀️

[CourageousKate]

On 6/17/2021 at 9:47 PM, athousandwords said:

I've done paleo and Whole30 and was quite successful in losing weight with those plans! But these days I'd rather have the flexibility to eat an ice cream cone with my kiddo or have a beer with the husband than stick to a strict diet plan. I'm learning to find balance.

Hard SAME! Love your theme and omg 😍 the spreadsheet!! 

[athousandwords]

NerdFitness: The challenge runs Sunday - Saturday, starting on Father's Day

Me:

 

 

So anyway, I'm starting today because I didn't realize this challenge starts on the "actual first day of the week" and I failed to take any of my challenge goals into account yesterday and also got a terrible sunburn (that's unrelated, but it hurts). But I'm starting today strong! I fasted through breakfast and already wrote down 6 tasks in my BuJo (and completed none 2 so far!). Meanwhile, Prime Day is challenging my will to wait until the end of the challenge to buy workout clothes. My brain goes: you want to start working out, but you don't have a sports bra... ergo, buy one while on sale! I might just bite the bullet and figure out a different reward for this challenge. 😬

[sarakingdom]

A lot of us live in (or come from) regions where weeks start on Monday, not Sunday, and exercise personal discretion in running our challenges that way, so this is an entirely legit challenge decision.

 

(I'm 95% sure that Sunday-starting weeks are a relatively modern American thing, where some legislature could not countenance the Lord's day being the last day of the week and officially made it the first. The big tell is in the word "weekend", and that these days are literally the week's end in regions where there wasn't, ahem, such a church-and-state issue. )

 

Buy a sports bra on sale. On sale is good.

[athousandwords]

21 minutes ago, sarakingdom said:

this is an entirely legit challenge decision.

 

22 minutes ago, sarakingdom said:

Buy a sports bra on sale. On sale is good.

 

This right here is the kind of supportive validation I come to NF for 😁

[KB Girl]

Welcome back

Is it bad that I'm delighted that our kids are exactly the same age? 

Love your challenge! 

[Doe]

Welcome back! Such a great theme and I love a good spreadsheet!

[athousandwords]

16 hours ago, KB Girl said:

Is it bad that I'm delighted that our kids are exactly the same age? 

 

Basically me, whenever I meet people who have kids the same age:

 

13 hours ago, Doe said:

Welcome back! Such a great theme and I love a good spreadsheet!

 

Thanks! 😁

[athousandwords]

PROGRESS:

 

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	🌟 Bonus!🌟
Diet	4
IF	✓
Exercise		✓
BuJo	5

 

Let me paint a picture:

 

The year was 2007. I was a college junior, trying to lose weight for the first time over summer break. I decided to learn how to run, and found this Cool Runnings website featuring something called the Couch to 5k program. I was a broke college student, but I saved up to buy an off-brand Zune (that's right, not even an off-brand iPod) and loaded up some music (probably downloaded from Kazaa or Limewire). I timed my intervals on my watch because I didn't even have a stopwatch (let alone a fancy heart rate monitor), and ran around a lake for an entire muggy Illinois summer. I ran 3 times a week, walked all over campus, strictly limited myself to 1200 calories, and went to bed starving every night (thanks Sparkpeople). By the time August rolled around, I'd lost 15lbs and considered myself a runner - over the next five years or so I'd do 5ks (and once an 8k!), buy the trendy Vibram shoes, and then slowly fall off the wagon and convince myself that I hated running and all it represented about the unhealthy way I'd lost weight and been unable to sustain it that summer.

 

A lot of things have changed since then about my relationship with food and exercise - I've gone back and forth on counting calories or lifting weights or cutting carbs or sprinting. And today I'm pretty sure that the best diet and exercise is the one you can stick to. Revolutionary, I know. And all of that led to me downloading a Couch to 5k podcast this morning and going for a run. (A podcast that actually supplies music! and tells you the intervals! - Technology these days, y'all.) And running actually felt good! I was surprised by how strong I felt. I feel like I can make this a habit: walk the kids to daycare and go for a run before my first meeting at work (assuming my hours don't change too much when I start my new job).  The only annoying part is needing to return the stroller after dropping off the kids (Note: if you ever feel awkward or self-conscious while working out, you can picture me running while pushing an empty stroller one handed (to track HR/steps) with a toddler bike balanced on top, because big kid insists on riding to school, on a busy trail trying to act like IDGAF when passing people ...spoiler: I do, in fact, give many fucks). But it only took about 10 min to run/walk back home, drop off the kids stuff, and do the rest of my run in peace. I even did an extra 3 intervals, restarting the podcast, because I had extra time and had to circle back home anyway.

 

In addition to all that, yesterday was a great start to the challenge! It wasn't a perfect day - I never made time to meal plan, I had a slice of cheesecake and a candy bar, and both kids had total meltdowns at different points - but I did make some healthy choices. I reheated a serving of green beans instead of eating a second bowl of pasta. I made a task list for the day and got 5 things done. And I stuck to my fasting intervals. So, pat on the back, I started the challenge strong.

[athousandwords]

PROGRESS:

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	🌟 Bonus!🌟
Diet	4	0	4					✓
IF	✓	✓	✓
Exercise		✓	✓
BuJo	5	2	4

 

Everyone in our house has come down with a cold that baby girl picked up at daycare. I took off work to keep her home yesterday, which was nice and relaxing - we went for a long afternoon walk, too. Today she's doing better, back to daycare, and I have the next two days off work for some downtime before I start transitioning my role over next week. I think I'm overwhelmed about all the things I could do and have no idea what I actually want to do. I probably should rest - I've still got a runny nose and sore throat - but I already went running this morning, so that ship has sailed.

 

BuJo is helping me out though - I'm did write down my 5 things I want to get done (personal things, not work obviously) so even if I blow off the rest of the day watching Legally Blonde 2 (possible), I have a plan to at least get a few things accomplished. I think the main thing is not getting sucked into the Facebook black hole and wasting my whole day on a screen. And on that note.... 👋

[KB Girl]

On 6/22/2021 at 5:44 PM, athousandwords said:

(Note: if you ever feel awkward or self-conscious while working out, you can picture me running while pushing an empty stroller one handed (to track HR/steps) with a toddler bike balanced on top, because big kid insists on riding to school, on a busy trail trying to act like IDGAF when passing people ...spoiler: I do, in fact, give many fucks)

That is pretty bad ass you know. 

 

Hope you get rid of the cold soon! 

[NeverThatBored]

OMG HI!!!!! Welcome back!!! Are we getting the old Adventurer crew back together this challenge??

[athousandwords]

On 6/26/2021 at 2:23 PM, NeverThatBored said:

OMG HI!!!!! Welcome back!!! Are we getting the old Adventurer crew back together this challenge??

 

It feels that way!!

 

[athousandwords]

PROGRESS - WEEK 1:

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	🌟 Bonus!🌟
Veggies	4	0	4	4	4	2	2	✓
IF	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	-	-
Exercise	-	✓	✓	✓	-	✓	-	-
BuJo	5	2	4	4	4	-	-	✓

 

Veggies: This goal was the biggest struggle this week. I definitely learned that I have to make a conscious effort to include vegetables in my diet, or I just won't eat them. Obviously meal planning and getting veg into the house helps a lot. So dinners and lunches were a lot more veggie-focused the week and everyone in the house ate a little healthier as a result (even the kids!) Then the weekend... Yikes. We were hanging out with friends both days and I basically ate and drank everything in sight. With social gatherings happening again and going out to eat more often, it's something that I will need to plan a little better; there's just no reason to go off the rails. But the goal here helped a little: I ordered a salad at dinner on Saturday, and I munched on the veggie tray yesterday when we had friends over. I just know there's room for improvement too.

 

IF: Hit my goal here - decided not to fast through breakfast on Sunday and that was fine. Running while fasted wasn't a problem, that's something I was a little nervous about. And having this goal really curbed my evening snacking, which was a win!

 

Exercise: I went for a run on Saturday morning and little kid came with, riding on his bike. He's always wanting me to 'race' him when we go out, so he had so much fun when I did my running sections and chased him. Totally wore him out too - he was begging me to go home by the end! 😅   I'm really enjoying the C25K this time around; I'm excited to run a little further tomorrow when I start week 2. Oh, and on Friday my husband and I were walking the kids home from daycare when we got a call that we'd forgotten to pick up the baby's diaper bag (dirty cloth diapers) - I actually jogged back to the school to get it and linked back up with everyone in record time. I felt like a rockstar. 😎

 

BuJo: I did relatively well here... only got all 5 tasks done on Monday, but most of the week I did 4. I got a new journal on Prime Day and got it all set up with some monthly pages and future logs like a proper bullet journal. And I thought a little bit about how I'm carrying over tasks from day to day, which I think will make the system a little easier to use. So far, so good.

 

[KB Girl]

On 6/28/2021 at 8:08 PM, athousandwords said:

on Friday my husband and I were walking the kids home from daycare when we got a call that we'd forgotten to pick up the baby's diaper bag (dirty cloth diapers) - I actually jogged back to the school to get it and linked back up with everyone in record time. I felt like a rockstar. 😎

Booya  

 

The social things are ruining my diet too.. it's a bit like making up for lost time or something x)

Any bujo tips to share? which one did you get? mine is almost full so I need to get a new one too. 

[athousandwords]

16 hours ago, KB Girl said:

The social things are ruining my diet too.. it's a bit like making up for lost time or something x)

Any bujo tips to share? which one did you get? mine is almost full so I need to get a new one too. 

 

Here's the one I got. It's a little chonky, but I typically leave it at my desk anyway, so I didn't need something that could fit in my purse or pocket. I'm such a bujo noob I don't think I have any tips that aren't covered on the main site! I pretty much only use mine to write down tasks for the week/month. And I really need a better system to remember to write down things that pop into my head when I'm not at my desk!

[athousandwords]

PROGRESS - WEEK 2:

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	🌟 Bonus!🌟
Veggies	3	4
IF	-	✓
Exercise	-	✓
BuJo	5	4

 

It's so frustrating when you have a whole post written up and then the page refreshes and instead of saving your draft, NF helpfully saves the last post you did... you know, the one that's already been submitted... 😠

[MezzotheLefty]

Following back, cool NF mama.

 

On 6/22/2021 at 10:44 AM, athousandwords said:

The year was 2007. I was a college junior, trying to lose weight for the first time over summer break. I decided to learn how to run, and found this Cool Runnings website featuring something called the Couch to 5k program. I was a broke college student, but I saved up to buy an off-brand Zune (that's right, not even an off-brand iPod) and loaded up some music (probably downloaded from Kazaa or Limewire). I timed my intervals on my watch because I didn't even have a stopwatch (let alone a fancy heart rate monitor), and ran around a lake for an entire muggy Illinois summer. I ran 3 times a week, walked all over campus, strictly limited myself to 1200 calories, and went to bed starving every night (thanks Sparkpeople). By the time August rolled around, I'd lost 15lbs and considered myself a runner - over the next five years or so I'd do 5ks (and once an 8k!), buy the trendy Vibram shoes, and then slowly fall off the wagon and convince myself that I hated running and all it represented about the unhealthy way I'd lost weight and been unable to sustain it that summer.

 

A lot of things have changed since then about my relationship with food and exercise - I've gone back and forth on counting calories or lifting weights or cutting carbs or sprinting. And today I'm pretty sure that the best diet and exercise is the one you can stick to. Revolutionary, I know. And all of that led to me downloading a Couch to 5k podcast this morning and going for a run. (A podcast that actually supplies music! and tells you the intervals! - Technology these days, y'all.) And running actually felt good! I was surprised by how strong I felt.

 

Seriously, are you me? My Zune was my life in 2005 -2010 (RIP Brick the Zune) and you've described my early relationship with running to a tee, complete with counting 1200 calories daily.

 

I also grew out of it and LOVE running now. It makes me feel strong. And I'm not going fast or far (yet) but it's the highlight of my day (and sometimes the only me time I get in a day, so that might influence my perception slightly lol).

 

5 hours ago, athousandwords said:

 

Here's the one I got. It's a little chonky, but I typically leave it at my desk anyway, so I didn't need something that could fit in my purse or pocket. I'm such a bujo noob I don't think I have any tips that aren't covered on the main site! I pretty much only use mine to write down tasks for the week/month. And I really need a better system to remember to write down things that pop into my head when I'm not at my desk!

oh I'm book marking that guy! I love thicker pages because I often use brush tip markers or Stabilos in my journal. I'm currently in a Lechttrum (sp?) and I was disappointed with the pages bleeding. 

My journal actually lives in my purse. I'm getting back in the habit of taking it everywhere and jotting things down when I get in the car waiting to pick up kids or after I do the grocery shopping... in the time before children I was very consistent. Now I'm still trying to find the balance.

 

[KB Girl]

On 6/30/2021 at 3:25 PM, athousandwords said:

Here's the one I got. It's a little chonky, but I typically leave it at my desk anyway, so I didn't need something that could fit in my purse or pocket.

I like that it's a lot of pages and it's a good price too. If I can find it somewhere else I might go for it (I absolutely refuse to buy anything from amazon). 

[athousandwords]

On 6/30/2021 at 3:26 PM, MezzotheLefty said:

Seriously, are you me? My Zune was my life in 2005 -2010 (RIP Brick the Zune) and you've described my early relationship with running to a tee, complete with counting 1200 calories daily.

 

I also grew out of it and LOVE running now. It makes me feel strong. And I'm not going fast or far (yet) but it's the highlight of my day (and sometimes the only me time I get in a day, so that might influence my perception slightly lol).

 

Yup, 2007 was the summer of Zune (well, knockoff  )!

 

I'm really enjoying it right now! I think I'm finally at a point in my life where I'm not comparing myself to others as much. I can just run and feel like I'm doing a positive thing for myself, vs the expected thing if that makes sense? Also I really loved running with my little boy last weekend. He was so happy to get to "go fast" with me!

[athousandwords]

PROGRESS - WEEK 2:

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday	🌟 Bonus!🌟
Veggies	3	4	4	0
IF	-	✓	✓	✓
Exercise	-	✓	-	✓
BuJo	5	4	1	2

 

So far this week is not... great. I'm predictably hitting a slump at work with only 3 days left at my current job and I just can't focus. I've been watching movies and basically not getting anything done. Not even just-for-me stuff like laundry or setting up my new kneeling desk chair.* It's just senioritis, I know; it's hard to be motivated to do much when I have a list of work tasks that I don't really want to do and there will be no consequences (for me anyway) if I don't get them done. 😕 

 

Meanwhile, IF is going well on paper, as in, I'm keeping to my eating intervals. But my actual diet has been crap this last couple days. I've not been motivated to meal plan so it's a bit of a scrounge to get veggies in, plus I'm snacking like crazy. Literally yesterday I was downstairs every hour looking for a snack. It's all the same symptom - I'm bored and restless at work and the kitchen is a brief entertainment. Still, knowing the cause isn't really helping if I'm not changing my behavior. Today was better, if only because I was actually fairly busy with meetings, but I still had pizza for lunch and have no plan for dinner. 😬

 

In better news - running! I've done 2x this week, and it's a lot harder because it's hot and humid this week, even at 9am when I go. But I'm at least getting it done! Planning to take my 4 year old out again tomorrow so we can "race."

 

I should make a plan for the long holiday weekend, or at the very least make a meal plan. I don't want to go completely off the rails, but my sister is inviting us out to a winery on Saturday and I'm sure I'll do beers with the neighbors on Independence Day itself... But DH and I were chatting about taking the kids out for a long bike ride, so that should help. Just need to avoid too much snacking and go grocery shopping so I have some healthy options around!

 

* actually I just did this now after procrastinating on it for like 4 days, and it's pretty awesome. I was only hurting myself by not doing it sooner!