Mir's "Make a plan, execute the plan" Challenge

[Morrigainz]

Howdy nerds! Man, not having internet at home sucks. Thanks AT&T! Hopefully we will have things back up and running soon. Until then, I'm being a typical state employee. Hooray.

 

I have some pretty basic goals this go-round, but it's really gonna be challenging for me.

 

1. Don't eat ALL the things! (+3 STA, +2 CHA)

While I'm not unhappy with how I look most days, I would really like to get a bit leaner. According to some online calculators, I'm hovering between 25-27% bodyfat. I'd like to get that closer to 20. So, here's to the beginning of a cut!

 

Make a plan:

 

1350 kcals M-F, 145 g PRO, 50 g fat, 85 g CHO*

 

2000 kcals S-Su, 145 g PRO, 80 g fat, 170 g CHO (yes, this only adds up to 1960. leaves me room to play)*

 

2. Don't drink ALL the alcohol! (+3 CON, +2 WIS)

So, this could really be considered part of the first goal, because if there's anyone who can have a decent diet on 1350 cals and still drink alcohol is a hero in my book, but I wanted to underscore the importance of it.

 

Make a plan:

 

No alcohol during the week. Yes, that's right, no alcohol. None. Not one drop. And I'd like to limit my alcohol intake on the weekends...I haven't come up with a specific goal for that yet. This challenge is all about fat loss, and those liquid calories are really holding me back.

 

3. DO keep on keeping on! (+2 STR)

So while I'm restricting calories, I want to keep up the same activity level. This should be fun.

 

Make a plan:

 

Keep doing what I'm doing. Weight training during the week when my schedule allows (hoping to get to a consistent 4 days a week here, but we'll see), running 1-2 times a week (including a conditioning/interval run), kickboxing once a week, and maybe some yoga when I feel up to it.

 

4. Get my shit together already. (+3 DEX)

Okay, so maybe this isn't really dexterity, but it's juggling multiple things so it's mental dexterity! That's what I'm saying. I'm tired of rushing around in the morning trying to get everything ready for the day, especially since I'm really not very good with mornings.

 

Make a plan:

 

Get my food (+1), work clothes (+1), and workout clothes (+1) ready the night before work. I can't math right now (morning, remember?) but this will be based on a percentage of total possible points.

 

So. Let's do this.

 

*I may change this to be Su-Th, and then F-S. I don't know yet.

 

P.S. I'm starting tomorrow with the calories. Because today we are celebrating 3 (!) birthdays at work, and there's going to be pizza. I can't resist pizza. But, I will still try to be mindful the rest of the day.

[Rob__]

Howdy nerds! Man, not having internet at home sucks. Thanks AT&T! Hopefully we will have things back up and running soon. Until then, I'm being a typical state employee. Hooray.

 

I have some pretty basic goals this go-round, but it's really gonna be challenging for me.

 

1. Don't eat ALL the things! (+3 STA, +2 CHA)

While I'm not unhappy with how I look most days, I would really like to get a bit leaner. According to some online calculators, I'm hovering between 25-27% bodyfat. I'd like to get that closer to 20. So, here's to the beginning of a cut!

 

Make a plan:

 

1350 kcals M-F, 145 g PRO, 50 g fat, 85 g CHO*

 

2000 kcals S-Su, 145 g PRO, 80 g fat, 170 g CHO (yes, this only adds up to 1960. leaves me room to play)*

 

2. Don't drink ALL the alcohol! (+3 CON, +2 WIS)

So, this could really be considered part of the first goal, because if there's anyone who can have a decent diet on 1350 cals and still drink alcohol is a hero in my book, but I wanted to underscore the importance of it.

 

Make a plan:

 

No alcohol during the week. Yes, that's right, no alcohol. None. Not one drop. And I'd like to limit my alcohol intake on the weekends...I haven't come up with a specific goal for that yet. This challenge is all about fat loss, and those liquid calories are really holding me back.

 

3. DO keep on keeping on! (+2 STR)

So while I'm restricting calories, I want to keep up the same activity level. This should be fun.

 

Make a plan:

 

Keep doing what I'm doing. Weight training during the week when my schedule allows (hoping to get to a consistent 4 days a week here, but we'll see), running 1-2 times a week (including a conditioning/interval run), kickboxing once a week, and maybe some yoga when I feel up to it.

 

4. Get my shit together already. (+3 DEX)

Okay, so maybe this isn't really dexterity, but it's juggling multiple things so it's mental dexterity! That's what I'm saying. I'm tired of rushing around in the morning trying to get everything ready for the day, especially since I'm really not very good with mornings.

 

Make a plan:

 

Get my food (+1), work clothes (+1), and workout clothes (+1) ready the night before work. I can't math right now (morning, remember?) but this will be based on a percentage of total possible points.

 

So. Let's do this.

 

*I may change this to be Su-Th, and then F-S. I don't know yet.

 

P.S. I'm starting tomorrow with the calories. Because today we are celebrating 3 (!) birthdays at work, and there's going to be pizza. I can't resist pizza. But, I will still try to be mindful the rest of the day.

 

It takes more calories to digest a slice of pizza than a slice of pizza actually contains*.

 

I don't really have anything to say at this point other than: "Down with AT&T, up with Mir goals!" Or something.

 

 

*I'm probably actually lying about this. But it sounds about as good as pizza tastes.

[Strawberry Squatcake]

You go girl with those forty calories you are "playing" with! Haha. We'll be cut buddies. My calories aren't restricted as much as yours, but it's still a challenge for me. I like to be full all the time! So, we'll do this together! 

 

Also, here's something weird. I used to drink 3-4X a week. Most of the time AT LEAST to the buzzed point. Many times far beyond that. Now? If I drink I'm all, "Meh, I don't want the hangover." I drink beyond buzzed about once every month or two. I never thought I'd be that girl! But the thing that changed it for me? I gave up drinking for six weeks. And even though I didn't restrict myself once I started drinking again,  I appreciated hangover-free, productive days a lot more than I ever thought I would. Even if I'm lazy, it's a lot more fun being lazy without a hangover. Hey, I'm not saying YOU need to do that, I'm just saying, I can appreciate the challenge of restricting drinking. And for me, the drinking was a huge part of my social life. I DO miss that. I miss hanging out with friends and keeping up to date on everything. But I think it says more that that's all my friends do, and maybe I need to work on finding a more diverse group of friends.  

[Morrigainz]

Yeah it's just a lot of extra calories I don't need. After my food poisoning, I didn't drink for a while and it was awesome. Now, I'm sliding back into my old habits. I'll drink half a bottle of wine instead of an entire bottle, but still....and yeah. A couple - three beers a night. Plus it's so expensive! So. This should be fun. I have lots of tea at home, so I'll probably start drinking that instead.

[mrRed]

I quick drinking and made it 10 weeks. This weekend I had beer and wine with a friend who came over.

 

I like tea but it never hit the spot as a booze replacement. I found a drink that does the trick though (and is a MANLY shade of light pink).

 

1) Cup full of ice.

2) 10 squirts or so of Peychaud's bitters.

3) 1-1.5 Tbl lemon juice

4) Can of seltzer.

 

Stir.

 

It fits the bill for a tasty beverage that doesn't contain tons of sugar or booze (well 10 drops of boozy bitter, but that doesn't really count).

[wildross]

You've got this.  Hope the lack of Internet has lead to more quality time with Mr Mir....

[Morrigainz]

Some...it's also led to more quality time with Assassin's Creed

[weirdquark]

Good luck with the not drinking! I'm one of those people who doesn't really like alcohol so I have no helpful suggestions. I pretty much never drink at all and when I do it's like half a glass of wine or mead when we have a feast and even then I'd rather have (non-alcoholic) sparkling cider.

[This is Seth]

So... what's CHO? Are you tracking cholesterol? 

[Morrigainz]

Carbs...isn't CHO the abbreviation for that, or am I an idiot?

[This is Seth]

CarbOHydrate

 

I don't think so.

 

Guessing this means you're not gonna try keto out with me? We could have been stinky together.

[Morrigainz]

It is! This is what wikipedia says:

 

 

CHO or C.H.O. may refer to:

• The chemical symbol for an aldehyde
• Carbohydrate, referencing the three constituent elements, carbon ©, Hydrogen (H) and Oxygen (O)

 

I was doing some researching on keto, and some of the women I talked to said they didn't have very much success with it. I think I'll try this way, and if it doesn't work, keto for next challenge.

[This is Seth]

[Morrigainz]

The real American HEEEEEEEEEEEEEROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

[IfItPlugsIn]

Awesome!  Getting shit together the night before helped me ridiculous amounts last challenge!  Are you taking measurements or pics to measure your weight loss progress?

[Strawberry Squatcake]

Seth- I'm not doing keto, but I'm doing lower carb. Can I replace stinky with moody? Actually, my sister gave me some homemade deodorant this weekend, and it seemed to work yesterday, but it's possible there was residual commercial deodorant, so it's highly possible I'll be stinky, too.

My sister had huge success with limiting carbs to around 50. Not keto, although sometimes she drops into ketosis for fun/because what she eats puts here there. But I read the same thing, keto's not as much of a magic bullet for women, although I don't really know why (I know i could read, but part of my challenge is to STOP!).  I have also read keto has limited success when you're insulin resistant, which I think I am, so I ultimately set a goal to try to be under 80g for the day, stretch 50g, drop dead 100g. However, my fats are higher than yours, so I think I'm making up my approximately 200 more calories in fat, which so far has been working for me. Many people say the extra fat hinders them, but it's the only thing that's let me survive going from 1800 calories (where I was moderately hungry) to around 1500. So I gotta keep the fat. At least for now! 

[Morrigainz]

Yes! Fat is good! I may try flirting with keto next time around...we'll see what kind of success I have here. A bit nervous about 170g carbs on the weekend...good god, where am I going to find all that in a healthy way? I'm sure I'll figure it out.

 

IfItPlugsIn - yes! I am tracking that stuff! I had posted it all in the PVP forum and forgot to do it here. So here is the starting stuff:

 

 

• Measurements
  • Weight: 142.6 lbs
  • Height: 63"
  • Waist: 29.625"
  • Hip(at widest): 36.375"
  • Wrist: 6"
  • Forearm(at widest): 9.75" (I think)
  • Neck(at narrowest): 13" (I think)
• Stats
  • BMI Body Fat: 25.8%
  • Navy Body Fat: 27%
  • Fat Mass: 38 lbs
  • Lean Mass: 104 lbs
• Photos (sorry I had to stick 'em right in here...ugh!)

 

[RBC]

Hooray for goals! 

 

Not drinking is difficult. As a few other people have pointed out, it's not necessarily the booze itself but what comes with the booze. Parties, post-practice hangouts, destress nights with the SO, everything involved alcohol and it was a little hard to get used to being the one holding a water. I've since switched to club soda with lime which is good for two reasons, 1) it looks like a drink and cuts down on the questions; and 2) it's not terrible. 

 

I'm also a big fan of your goal to get stuff ready the night before. My mornings always go so much smoother when I remember to prep the night before AND I'm less likely to do things like forget a change of clothes for the gym. 

 

I'm looking forward to watching your progress on this one. 

[Morrigainz]

Yeah, I found I was forgetting an extra pair of underwear, or socks, or a shirt...that's no good.

 

I also have a bunch of empty filing cabinets in my office...debating if I should just bring several changes of stuff and rotate out every week. That sounds like a lot of stuff to bring Monday morning though.

 

So, today's workout.

 

Run .42 miles (on a bellyful of pizza) - 4:46 (I thought I would take it nice and easy today, but I was surprised I went this fast!)

Squats:
1x10 bodyweight
1x5 45
3x5 95 (These are feeling extra hard...but I think I'm going way lower than I used to)
4x10 70 (Legs felt like noodles, so I thought I should stop before set 5)
run .42 miles (with squat legs) 4:48

 

I've noticed that since last Wednesday (when I did stairs) I've been getting way, way sweatier during workouts. I'm one of those gals who usually "perspires" but I was literally dripping last Wed...and have been every workout since then. Imma take it as a good sign. Yay sweat!

[Strawberry Squatcake]

It's so much more humid here right now. Is it that way there? The humidity makes me sweat like crazy. And also makes me more thirsty. 

 

Good workout! I don't have a clothes suggestion for you for midday workouts. When I used ot do lunch workouts, I'd bring a bag everyday. It did help to pack it the night before or I'd forget shoes or something absurd.  

[Gainsdalf the Whey]

Yeah, I found I was forgetting an extra pair of underwear, or socks, or a shirt...that's no good.

 

I also have a bunch of empty filing cabinets in my office...debating if I should just bring several changes of stuff and rotate out every week. That sounds like a lot of stuff to bring Monday morning though.

 

So, today's workout.

 

Run .42 miles (on a bellyful of pizza) - 4:46 (I thought I would take it nice and easy today, but I was surprised I went this fast!)

Squats:

1x10 bodyweight

1x5 45

3x5 95 (These are feeling extra hard...but I think I'm going way lower than I used to)

4x10 70 (Legs felt like noodles, so I thought I should stop before set 5)

run .42 miles (with squat legs) 4:48

 

I've noticed that since last Wednesday (when I did stairs) I've been getting way, way sweatier during workouts. I'm one of those gals who usually "perspires" but I was literally dripping last Wed...and have been every workout since then. Imma take it as a good sign. Yay sweat!

 

And those cabinets would not smell very good by week's end.

 

The sweat the warmer weather? I wasn't sweating working out in the garage until the past few weeks, now it's slippery bar time.

[PrincessHeather]

Just want to say that you look leaner in this set of pics than the last time I saw progress pics, though i can't honestly say when that was. But, good job lady

[Morrigainz]

It's so much more humid here right now. Is it that way there? The humidity makes me sweat like crazy. And also makes me more thirsty. 

 

Good workout! I don't have a clothes suggestion for you for midday workouts. When I used ot do lunch workouts, I'd bring a bag everyday. It did help to pack it the night before or I'd forget shoes or something absurd.

 

Today was nicer (low 60s) but other than that, no. Who knows. And yes! I almost forgot shoes this morning, and I packed most of my stuff last night

And those cabinets would not smell very good by week's end.

 

The sweat the warmer weather? I wasn't sweating working out in the garage until the past few weeks, now it's slippery bar time.

 

Hasn't really been warmer here. Still pretty much in the 40s except a few days here and there...like today.

 

And true, cabinets would not smell very good. But if that's all that's in them...? Anyway I think that's too much work.

Just want to say that you look leaner in this set of pics than the last time I saw progress pics, though i can't honestly say when that was. But, good job lady

Thanks PH! I think I put some up at the beginning of last challenge. I thought I looked leaner too, now that my 2-week-long special lady time is over. I'm also starting to notice some muscle definition again, which feels good. It means that I've been doing something right even though I haven't been 100% serious on the diet thing. I can't wait to see what the end of this challenge brings!

[weirdquark]

I may be joining y'all on this running thing after all - one of my roommates wants to start Couch 2 5K and I said I'd do it with him. Unfortunately, it is getting warmer here.

[Morrigainz]

Yay running!

 

So last night was shitballs. I spent most of the afternoon/evening kind of shell-shocked. Ended up skipping dinner.

 

But! I drank water! Not beer or wine!

 

And! I got my shit together!

 

So, counting Sunday night, which I am, I'm 6/6 points so far.