Chanda: Looking After Myself

[Chanda]

Its almost a year since I started on my fitness journey. I've lost 8kg (actually I lost 10kg and gained 2kg back) and went down 1.5 dress sizes. I am stronger and have more endurance than I did before. I am marginally more organized. I've become much more aware of what my priorities are and why I do what I do. This is all great stuff and I am very happy and proud of the progress I have made.

 

Over the past couple of months I have not made any new progress. In fact, I even forgot about the last challenge after the first week. In the past I used to see these times as failure. Over time, I learned that, wether I like it or not, planned or unplanned, for me these times of doing nothing are a necessary part of the improvement process. A time of stability to adjust to my new reality and to re-assess what I want to do next. My main quest is still:

 

 

Reduce!

"The things that matter most should not be at the mercy of the things that matter least" - Goethe

 

In keeping with the principle that Less is More, I intend to reduce my body weight and fat %, clutter in my home, stress in my life and the things I commit myself to do. Having less "stuff" in my life will free up more of my energy and time to spend with my family and to find&focus on the things that matter most. This is clearly not going to happen overnight... it may even be a life long quest. 

 

 

 

The next 6 weeks are not a good time for "reducing" or making progress. My mother in law is visiting for most of this challenge. The focus will be on making sure she spends as much time with my daughters as possible. During this time we will also have a small holiday and a 6 day visit from some friends. Plus, I also have a several big work commitments that will make life very challenging. With all that is going on, it could be very easy to fall back into old habits and loose some the progress I have made. 

 

For this challenge my main quest is to maintain focus on my own health and fitness. 

 

Main Quest Supporting Missions:

 

1. Hit the Sweetspot (+3 STA) - I've signed up for tennis lessons. If you knew me in person you would realize just how crazy this is! I have terrible hand-eye coordination and duck/close my eyes if a ball is thrown in my direction. But since I recently learned that I can actually get a basketball to go through the hoop, I figured why not try tennis... the game I am most likely to suck at! I will be away a few times during the next 6 weeks. For this mission I will aim to attend all the classes that take place when I am not traveling (thats a total of 5). Scoring: attend 5 classes = A, 4 classes = B, 3 = C, 2 = D anything less is an F.

 

2. Be Like Bamboo (+3 STR, +2 DEX) - Bamboo is both strong and flexible. Do strength training 2 times per week and/or yoga 2 times per week (20 to 30min sessions). Scoring: 24 times = A, 20 times = B, 16 times = C, 12 times = D, 8 times = E, anything less is an F. 

 

3. Fuel like a Pro (+3 CON) - Make good food & drink choices more often than not. This means applying what I learned when I was counting calories and doing things like: more vegetables and protein during main meals, less dessert, less fried stuff, more water and less snacking in between meals. Scoring: 32 good days = A, 27 = B, 22 = C, 17 = D, 12 = E anything less is an F. 

 

Side Fitness/Diet and Life Quests:

 

4. Keep the Status Quo (+2 WIS) - Basically I hope to at least maintain the current status of progress made in my home through the next 6 weeks of crazy family and work life. To do this I will apply Do it Now to: keep my Home tidy, follow ZTD method and letting go of unnecessary things when I notice them. Scoring: 32 good days = A, 27 = B, 22 = C, 17 = D, 12 = E anything less is an F. 

 

5. Stay Sane (+2 CHA) - Take time to do something enjoyable most days (read, stitch, drink a good cup of tea, etc) and keep good sleeping habits (go to bed on time to allow for at least 7 hours sleep and get up when alarm clock goes off). Scoring: 32 good days = A, 27 = B, 22 = C, 17 = D, 12 = E anything less is an F. 

 

I do not plan to make progress over the next 6 weeks. My battle plan is to not loose any ground.

 

Now I just need to remember to do these things while the madness of the next 6 weeks goes on around me...

[Jodi V]

Sometimes, "status quo" is a very difficult order to fill.    It sounds like you know exactly how to approach this next six weeks.  I'll follow along as you maintain your balance and enjoy time with your family!

[I am Eve]

Hey Chanda! I missed you!

Funny enough our challenges have many similarities this time as well (as you will see when I post it, which I still have to do)

[Chanda]

Sometimes, "status quo" is a very difficult order to fill.    It sounds like you know exactly how to approach this next six weeks.  I'll follow along as you maintain your balance and enjoy time with your family!

 

For me maintaining "status quo" when stuff is going on all around me is incredibly difficult. So we will see... Priority is enjoying the time with the family anyway. The rest is all a great big bonus.

 

Hey Chanda! I missed you!

Funny enough our challenges have many similarities this time as well (as you will see when I post it, which I still have to do)

 

Me too! Hopefully I will be around more for this challenge. I'll go check yours out as soon as its up.

[I am Eve]

I didn't realise until now that we both have "stay/keep sane". That's spooky!

As always you have a solid plan. Here's to status quo!

[Jodi V]

Just stopping in to say good morning!  Hope your status is still "quo"     Happy first day!

[Chanda]

Day 1: 16.Sep: 

The status quo was kept and possibly improved upon.

 

Quests 1 (tennis) and 2 (move): nothing done.

 

Quest 3 (fueling): a good day. resisted getting a chocolate croissant for breakfast, had a vegetarian lunch (curried tofu and veggies), spaghetti carbonara for dinner (smaller serving than usual), 2 coffees, plenty of water and a glass of milk and ovomaltine as a snack in the evening.

 

Quest 4 (status quo): a good day. house is better now than it was this morning. i remembered to list my most important tasks for the day and even got some done. got the kitchen cleaned after dinner and the past 3 weeks worth of recycling into my car ready for drop off tomorrow.

 

Quest 5 (stay sane): a good day. got up later than I wanted but still in time to get girls to kindergarden. now going to bed by 10:30pm, a huge improvement on past nights. for my me time, I spent time making a list of things I accomplished today that I don't normally do... to make myself feel accomplished. I think I'll make this a habit for this challenge (thanks Evenewbie for the idea!!!)

 

• Figured out how to modify a pair of new/pretty/liked/expensive pair of running shoes to make them wearable for my daughter. They have elastic laces that were too tight for her to be able to put them on herself without assistance, I cut the laces and tied knots with some pretty beads at the ends. My 4 year old can now get the shoes on herself and she can still get them tight using the velcro strap... genius. 
  
• Found empty jam jars at the supermarket so we can finish making jam/jelly from the plums we picked on the weekend (we run out of the ones we had and they had sold out at the stores we tried... seems like everyone had the same idea as us).
  
• Scheduling: Re-scheduled optometrist/dentist/immunisation appointments and made appointment to have my passport renewed and booked my Christmas days off (a whole 4 weeks).
  
• Freed up 20G from my work laptop, backed up all my emails and re-linked mail folders so that my mail program is now running at a normal speed again (not at the snail pace its been running at for the past few weeks) 
  
• Got flowers for our dinning table.
  
• Started a new routine with my daughters for when we get home: snack, chores, play-school, play.
  

[cavemom]

I'm excited to follow along with your challenge!  What is the ZTD method you referred to in your OP? 

 

I like your list of things accomplished for the day.  That's a great idea!  Most days I feel like I got nothing done.  Maybe knowing that I would be making a list at the end of the day would push me to do some things I'd been putting off.  I'm interested in the modified shoes you did for your daughter.  My 7 year old should know how to tie his shoes already, but he doesn't.  I need to either teach him to tie his shoes, or figure out something.  I hate plain velcro shoes though.  The velcro always seems to wear out.

[Chanda]

I'm excited to follow along with your challenge!  What is the ZTD method you referred to in your OP? 

 

I like your list of things accomplished for the day.  That's a great idea!  Most days I feel like I got nothing done.  Maybe knowing that I would be making a list at the end of the day would push me to do some things I'd been putting off.  I'm interested in the modified shoes you did for your daughter.  My 7 year old should know how to tie his shoes already, but he doesn't.  I need to either teach him to tie his shoes, or figure out something.  I hate plain velcro shoes though.  The velcro always seems to wear out.

 

 

ZTD is Zen to Done... its a spin off the GTD (Getting Things Done) method but much more accessible. The simplified ZTD is explained here:

http://zenhabits.net/minimal-ztd-the-simplest-system-possible/

 

About the shoes. I dont think what I did will be helpful to you. I got the shoes online and they had elastic laces that are not for tying up and 1 velcro strap (exactly because my daughter also cant tie shoes but likes to be independent). Unfortunately the laces made the shoe too narrow for her to get her foot in. So I cut the laces at the top end just under the velcro. Then put some beads on the cut ends and tied knots to stop the ends unraveling. That made the shoes just loose enough that she can put them on without assistance.

 

Dont despair with your son, I was in grade 2 or 3 before I learned to tie my shoes. Somehow being left handed made it extra hard. Once I did learn I was so incredibly proud that even today I sometimes get a smile when I am tying my shoes. I am sure there are all kinds of youtube videos that can help teaching your kid to tie his shoelaces.

[Chanda]

Day 2: 17.Sep: 

Once again the status quo was improved upon.

 

Quests 1 (tennis) and 2 (move): nothing done.

 

Quest 3 (fueling): a good day. I was not sure wether to call this a good day since I skipped lunch... but then I took the time to get myself a snack in the late afternoon (resisted getting junk food). also made up for the lack of lunch at dinner. I got enough to drink. so I am calling it a good day anyway. 

 

Quest 4 (status quo): a good day. house is better now than it was this morning. i remembered to do the MIT list and got all the MITs done. kitchen is clean and I dropped off the recycling. 

 

Quest 5 (stay sane): a good day. got up earlier than yesterday and am going to bed by 10:30pm. for my me time, I allowed myself to stop "crisis cleaning" before the arrival of my mother in law and am  going to bed early instead (left to do was tidying up my desk, folding 3 loads of laundry that are currently in the living room and vacuuming the house). its not like I can keep a spotless house for 5 weeks. so she may as well get the "status quo" from the beginning. accomplished today:

 

• Spoke with the kindergarden lady responsible for my oldest daughter about her current development progress. no surprises and we seem to be in agreement about her status, so thats good. 
• Arranged a mega-play-date for Friday for both my daughters, 
• Agreed on time for a visit to the pumpkin festival, that should be fun!

Good night!

[cavemom]

Thank you for that link to the ZTD method.  I'd never heard of it before, but it sounds interesting.  I'll have to explore it more later.  I stay at home, and my kids are both in school all day, so really I have plenty of time to get done what I need to do, especially around the house.  But I do need to implement something to help with my forgetfulness, and just keeping up with the kids school things.

[DoubleOrNothing]

Glad to see that I'm not the only druid with some strength training in their goals love the bamboo analogy!

[Strawberry Squatcake]

4 weeks of for Christmas sounds awesome! I took three weeks last year, but that gave me a taste of the good life, so this whole year I've been taking tons of time off. So I'll look forward to YOUR time off instead! 

 

You've done great on your food. I like how it sounds like you approach it one thing at a time. That's something I struggle with. I have a hard time being in the moment, and instead respond to stress or cravings and think, "Oh who cares it's just one thing." But all the "one things" add up. And I need to take a second, be in the moment, and realize this IS my goal! 

 

Keep up the great work! 

[Panczo]

its sounds like first week you are doing great leo from zenhabits is an amazing dude ... lots of great readings on his blog... I love his minimalistic aproach to life ...

[Me_]

Tennis is great fun if you are as bad at it as I am you have to remember to laugh. It makes it more fun because when the only time you can hit the ball is when you magicaly are beaming your brother it is just to much

[Chanda]

Thank you for that link to the ZTD method.  I'd never heard of it before, but it sounds interesting.  I'll have to explore it more later.  I stay at home, and my kids are both in school all day, so really I have plenty of time to get done what I need to do, especially around the house.  But I do need to implement something to help with my forgetfulness, and just keeping up with the kids school things.

 

Its amazing how difficult it can be to get stuff done while at home. Somehow the day is over too quickly. Keeping up with the kid's stuff is not easy either... Thats where a nice simple system can help. I know I would be lost without it.

 

Glad to see that I'm not the only druid with some strength training in their goals love the bamboo analogy!

 

Thanks. I love bamboo and all the mythology stuff that goes with it.

 

I am always amazed at how many Druids do strength training and running. 

 

4 weeks of for Christmas sounds awesome! I took three weeks last year, but that gave me a taste of the good life, so this whole year I've been taking tons of time off. So I'll look forward to YOUR time off instead! 

 

You've done great on your food. I like how it sounds like you approach it one thing at a time. That's something I struggle with. I have a hard time being in the moment, and instead respond to stress or cravings and think, "Oh who cares it's just one thing." But all the "one things" add up. And I need to take a second, be in the moment, and realize this IS my goal! 

 

Keep up the great work! 

 

Its been ages since I took that long of a holiday. I am not quite sure I will survive the stress I put myself through at work before a holiday... I may just need to start preparing for 4 weeks off as soon as I am done with this challenge. Once I am on holiday though... I know I will enjoy every minute. 

 

Taking time off regularly is a nice way to do things too.

 

The problem with the "Oh who cares its just one thing" is that it turns into "Today is already lost... so another doesnt matter". Mind you I do allow myself the just one thing... life is meant to be fun.

 

its sounds like first week you are doing great leo from zenhabits is an amazing dude ... lots of great readings on his blog... I love his minimalistic aproach to life ...

 

Me too! Big fan of zenhabits. 

 

Tennis is great fun if you are as bad at it as I am you have to remember to laugh. It makes it more fun because when the only time you can hit the ball is when you magicaly are beaming your brother it is just to much

 

I think today I even made the instructor laugh a few times. Apparently the way I move is comical.

 

Had the second lesson today and it is hard keeping track of all my arms & legs, the racket and the ball... and to them move correctly and still hit the ball... and on top of all that get the ball to go where I want it to go? Talk about multitasking!!! I am really enjoying it so I will stick with it for a while longer.

[Chanda]

Day 3: 18.Sep: 

Status quo was hard to keep today.... but it was a big eventful day with the arrival of my mother in law.

 

Quests 1 (tennis) and 2 (move): tennis lesson, so thats 1 of a possible 5.

 

Quest 3 (fueling): another good day (3 so far). Breakfast and lunch were OK (bread, boiled eggs, banana and yogurt - I didnt feel like cooking). Had half a pastry for afternoon tea. Pumpkin soup for dinner and home made plum tart for dessert (plums picked from a tree in our garden). Enough to drink and no coffee.

 

Quest 4 (status quo): a good day (3 so far). house is marginally worse than it was this morning. I had a list of things I wanted to get done... actually I had 2 lists and forgot about one. Things from the list I followed got done. The other I will have to deal with tomorrow. 

 

Quest 5 (stay sane): a good day (3 so far). got up even earlier and am going to bed by 10:30pm again. i didnt really have "me" time... but i had a really good time today with my mother in law and my daughters, somehow that feels like enough. accomplished today:

• Welcomed mother in law into our home.
  
• Taught m-i-l my daughters favourite game so she can play with them.
  
• Facilitated the introduction of m-i-l to our routines with our daughters. It all went smoothly.
  
• Agreed on the activities for the next 4 weeks... verbally. Tomorrow I write it all down in the calendar so everyone knows whats happening when (we stay flexible, but as we only have 4 weeks, I dont want to forget anything).
  
• Got indoor shoes for the tennis hall for both myself and my daughter. Plus snow shoes for my daughter.
  
• Baked a plum tart for dessert with daughter (from plums we picked from the tree in our garden)
  
• Made first draft for next set of mini-quests. 
  
• Plus I worked from home 2 hours which I did not expect to do.
  

Hopefully tomorrow I will have time to visit a few NF threads!

[Chanda]

Day 3: 18.Sep: 

Status quo was improved on in some areas and slipped in others... thus staying overall the same.

 

Quests 1 (tennis) and 2 (move): nothing (1 tennis so far).

 

Quest 3 (fueling): another good day (4 so far). Breakfast, lunch and dinner were good. 3 cookies and half a slice of cheese as a snack. Probably not enough to drink. No coffee.

 

Quest 4 (status quo): a good day (4 so far). house is marginally better than it was this morning. 

 

Quest 5 (stay sane): a neutral day (3 good so far). got up barely on time and am going to bed at midnight. i did have "me" time, I played a card pattern recognition game for awhile and enjoyed it. plus a nice long chat with m-i-l. accomplished today:

• Worked 5 hours.
  
• Took girls to a trial music lesson.
  
• Assisted m-i-l with settling in.
  
• Wrote down the plan for the next 2 weeks.
  
• Went to the town hall to make sure youngest daughter is on the waiting list for a place in the bigger kids group in the kindergarden
  

Tomorrow will be a big day! 

[Chanda]

Day 4: 19.Sep: 

Status quo was improved on in some areas and slipped in others... thus staying overall the same.

 

Quests 1 (tennis) and 2 (move): nothing (1 tennis so far).

 

Quest 3 (fueling): another good day (4 so far). Breakfast, lunch and dinner were good. 3 cookies and half a slice of cheese as a snack. Probably not enough to drink. No coffee.

 

Quest 4 (status quo): a good day (4 so far). house is marginally better than it was this morning. 

 

Quest 5 (stay sane): a neutral day (3 good so far). got up barely on time and am going to bed at midnight. i did have "me" time, I played a card pattern recognition game for awhile and enjoyed it. plus a nice long chat with m-i-l. accomplished today:

• Worked 5 hours.
  
• Took girls to a trial music lesson.
  
• Assisted m-i-l with settling in.
  
• Wrote down the plan for the next 2 weeks.
  
• Went to the town hall to make sure youngest daughter is on the waiting list for a place in the bigger kids group in the kindergarden
  

Tomorrow will be a big day! 

[Chef Neem]

Tennis is a great life sport.

Status qou is a challenge when you have children I know.

Looks like its good so far.

[Jodi V]

Staying the same overall is wonderful.    I'm amazed that you did all that with no coffee!  I've changed a lot of things about my fueling habits, but the morning joe was not negotiable -- although I have started to experiment with vanilla almond milk in it rather than creamer.  It's pretty darn tasty!

 

Happy Friday!  Have a great weekend!

[Chanda]

Tennis is a great life sport.

Status qou is a challenge when you have children I know.

Looks like its good so far.

 

Thanks.

 

Everyone keeps telling me how great tennis is. I decided to do it because I signed up my daughter for it, I figured it would be good for her to develop her eyesight. Then I realised that if she enjoys it, it might be nice to have someone in the family that can play tennis with her. Personally I did not really have any interest in it. Now that I started taking lessons, I am enjoying the challenge.

 

Status quo with little children and a visitor is even more challenging. So for doing OK.

 

 

Staying the same overall is wonderful.    I'm amazed that you did all that with no coffee!  I've changed a lot of things about my fueling habits, but the morning joe was not negotiable -- although I have started to experiment with vanilla almond milk in it rather than creamer.  It's pretty darn tasty!

 

Happy Friday!  Have a great weekend!

 

I do drink large amounts of tea. I dont have a "no coffee" policy... but I did cut back on coffee some challenges back and I now keep an eye on it. My problem was I drink coffee at work, then on weekends I don't... I kept getting withdrawal headaches! By reducing the amount of coffee I drink during the week, I stopped getting headaches on the weekend. Vanilla almond milk does sound yummy!

 

Thanks! Have a great weekend too!

[Chanda]

Day 5: 20.Sep: 

Status quo was improved upon. Pretty happy about that!

 

Quests 1 (tennis) and 2 (move): nothing (1 tennis so far).

 

Quest 3 (fueling): another good day (5 so far). Breakfast and dinner were good. Lunch was pretty average to non-existent. No snacking. Probably not enough to drink. Had a coffee.

 

Quest 4 (status quo): a good day (5 so far). house is much better than it was this morning. kitchen is clean, hotstops are tidy and laundry is folded and put away (except for 1 basket that is meant to go in the girls room but I dont want to wake them up). plus I dealt with a shattered cup efficiently and had to clean up after our dog who sadly ate something that didnt agree with his digestive system. 

 

Quest 5 (stay sane): a neutral day (3 good so far). got up barely on time and am going to bed close to midnight. no me time, although tidying up the house made me feel good since there were some things that were starting to get to me, I guess that could count as me time. accomplished today:

• Worked 2 hours.
• Took girls to an indoor playground (there was so much playing and carrying my toddler up and down things that I feel it should count as a workout).
• Sorted out down payment for holiday in Portugal.

I still havent weighed and measured myself... I guess I'd better do that tomorrow morning.

[I am Eve]

Great start of the week Chanda! You are so wise giving yourself recognition for what you actually do instead of being annoyed over what you don't do.

And you do have a lot going on......

[Chanda]

Day 6: 21.Sep: 

Status quo was maintained. This morning it was great waking up to the results of yesterdays tidying up.

 

Quests 1 (tennis) and 2 (move): went for a 2.7km warm up run then did body weight workout (1 tennis, 1bw so far).

 

Quest 3 (fueling): another good day (6 so far). Breakfast, lunch and dinner were good. Snack: 1 chocolate square, a couple of slices of cold meat and a glass of milk with ovomaltine (post workout). Enough to drink. Had an espresso.

 

Quest 4 (status quo): a good day (5 so far). house is about the same as it was this morning. kitchen is clean. one load of laundry done (currently drying) and onether folded and put away (except for 1 basket that is meant to go in the girls room but I dont want to wake them up). rolled up the air-camping-mattresses and returned the recycling bins to their place. made list of things to get done tomorrow and monday.

 

Quest 5 (stay sane): a good day (4 good so far). got up on time and am going to bed before midnight (i've decided that on friday and saturday staying up later is ok). for me time I had my run and listened to music. accomplished today:

• Learned how to make plum jelly.
• Made pressgurka (a swedish recipe for semi-pickeled sliced cucumber)
• Tried a new bolognese sauce recipe (1 hour of prep/cooking + 4 hours of simmering)
• Did a bit of a tidy up of the movie library
• Enjoyed time with the girls and m-i-l, including heated board games, a walk to go look at chickens and a flock of sheep and watching part of a local football match (in the stands, not on TV!) while blowing soap bubbles
• Ordered birthday present for m-i-l.

Forgot to weigh and measure myself... must remember to do it tomorrow morning.