Darkfoxx 9: The 9 Hills of Castamere

[darkfoxx]

Ok, so I have no real idea where I’m going with this analogy business, since Castamere is a ruined castle in Westeros, and not a land with hills - but bear with me. I’ve had a lot of crap to deal with lately and my brain is broken. 



This challenge cycle feels like 1 part autopilot (since my goals haven’t really changed in awhile), 1 part maintenance (since my schedule has gotten all screwed up and life keeps throwing hammers at me), and 1 part open waters (why? dunno - Spring, maybe?). 

The Big Picture Goal

I’m sticking with my overarching goal - Mudderella. This challenge cycle is the last before the big day (May 10) and I really need to stay the course in order to be able to finish without dying. 



Goal 1

As always, fitness, first and foremost. My goal is to continue on with my HasFit Hero 90 program and kick ass at it. I’m hoping against hope that my building’s gym will be completed by the end of this challenge and I’ll have even more facilities at my disposal. For now, my old standby of living room & free weights it is!


 

Goal 2

Stick with my moar metrics agenda

Goals are the usual 100 grams or under of carbs, 70 grams or over of protein and 1500 or so calories. I’m still tracking food with My Fitness Pal and exercise, sleep and water intake with the FitBit Flex. Metrics make me happy.


 

Goal 3

Dump the baggage. Downsizing and moving has let me know in no uncertain terms that we have too much shit. A lot of it is shit we don’t really need. I need to weed through some - a bunch - of it and get rid of stuff. Mementos included. Editing needs to happen.



 

LSQ

Going hand in hand with the previous goal, I also need to tackle some better organization and finish my DVD matrix from the last challenge. Something simple and spreadsheety is fine. It just needs to get done.


 

 

DSQ

My diet is pretty good, but I’d like to carry on the wealth of inspiration I had during Whole30 last challenge on. This goal is to focus on making inspired meals with an eye toward blog worthiness. I would be happy with 2 recipes per week that are good enough to post - I usually hit 1, and really want to work on staying out of a flavor rut. 

Whole30 Recap


 

 

Starting Measurements (taken 02.24.14)

 

Neck at narrowest: 12.5" (up 1/2" from last cycle start)

Bust under breast: 30.5" (down 1/2" from last cycle start)

Waist at narrowest: 26.5" (down 1" from last cycle start)

Hip at widest: 39.5" (down 1/2" from last cycle start)

Thigh at thickest: 21" (up 1/2" from last cycle start)

Arm at widest: 11.25" (up 1.25" from last cycle start)

Weight at wakeup: 118.7 lbs. (down 5.2 lbs. from last cycle start)

Height: 5 ft. 2 3/4 inches (5’2†for measuring purposes)

 

According to the FitBit scale, my BMI is: 21.72  (27.3% fat) - mid normal range (down 1 full point from last cycle start)

According to calipers, my BMI is: 19.6 - lean range (down from 23.4 at last cycle start)

[darkfoxx]

Goal 1: Fitness

 

Week 1 Wrapup

I'm counting this goal as a success, despite giving myself a grace day. I worked hard this week and have the fatigued muscles to show for it. A.

 

Week 2 Wrapup

I'm going for an A here again, despite not doing 2 of my HasFit workouts. I subbed in plenty to keep myself active in place of those workouts. Since what I did didn't work out my muscles as much as HasFit, I'll take off a little - but I'm happy with my week overall. A-.

 

Week 3 Wrapup

I did good here. Got all my workouts in and long walks on my off days. A.

 

Week 4 Wrapup

I did good here. Got all my workouts in and long walks on my off days. A.

 

Week 5 Wrapup

I did good here. Got all my workouts in and long walks on my off days. A.

 

Week 6 Wrapup

I didn't get all my prescribed workouts in and I was unmotivated during the workouts I did this week. C.

 

Goal 2: Metrics and Moar Metrics

 

Week 1 Wrapup

I'm going for a B here, because I had 2 meals in 1 day that weren't what I needed to be eating + I went over a bit on calories 2x & I was under on protein 1 day. B.

 

Week 2 Wrapup

I'm going for an A- here, because even though I was a little chub-a-lub this weekend, I still managed to hit my protein goals every day and my excesses weren't as excessive as last weekend. A-.

 

Week 3 Wrapup

I did fairly well here. A little under/over on Sunday, but good the rest of the week. A-.

 

Week 4 Wrapup

I did great during the week, Saturday was a bit over on carbs, and then life fell apart on Sunday. B.

 

Week 5 Wrapup

I did good this week - back on track! A.

 

Week 6 Wrapup

I'm knocking off points for Friday and Saturday, but not a ton of points -- the mash in my shepherd's pie wasn't compliant with goals - so I ate only enough to fill up (about a third of the amount on the pie) -- my Saturday party snacks were pretty damn compliant (barring the sammitches) - and I ate what I wanted there. With 1 beer. I had a great party and an overall satisfying weekend that hasn't left me feeling bad about my food choices in the slightest, so:  B.

 

 

Goal 3: Dump the Baggage

 

Week 1 Wrapup

I'm going for A here - I got some good work done. A. 

 

Week 2 Wrapup

I'm going for A here - I got some good work done. A. 

 

Week 3 Wrapup

I'm going for A here - I got some good work done. A. 

 

Week 4 Wrapup

I'm going for A here - This goal is pretty much done. A. 

 

Week 5 Wrapup

I'm going for A here - This goal is pretty much done. A. 

 

Week 6 Wrapup

Done. A. 

 

 

LSQ: Organization

 

Week 1 Wrapup

Also going for A here. A. 

 

Week 2 Wrapup

Also going for A here. A. 

 

Week 3 Wrapup

Also going for A here. A. 

 

Week 4 Wrapup

Also going for A here. A. 

 

Week 5 Wrapup

Also going for A here. A.

 

Week 6 Wrapup

Done. A.

 

 

DSQ: Inspiration
 

Week 1 Wrapup

A. Did it. I photographed & wrote up 2 recipes this week - and posted 1. Plus, I did my budget paleo post - I just need to finish. 

 

Week 2 Wrapup

A. Did it. I photographed & wrote up 2 recipes this week - and posted 1. Plus, I did my budget paleo post. 

 

Week 3 Wrapup

A. Did it. I photographed & wrote up 2 recipes this week - and posted 1. Plus, I did my budget paleo post. 

 

Week 4 Wrapup

F. I made nothing inspiring this week, though I'm not too bummed, since I have a glut of recipes I haven't posted yet.  

 

Week 5 Wrapup

B. I got half done ... 

 

Week 6 Wrapup

A. Whoo Whoo! 

[Mikroftt]

I always love the motivational posters like that in the middle of the HASFit workouts!  Great motivation when you think you can't do any more.  Good luck with this challenge and have fun!

[darkfoxx]

duplicate

[darkfoxx]

I've found myself enjoying them too. And using his catchphrases to keep myself going when I'd really rather not.

[kweber05]

Hello love...so glad you talked me into doing this! 

[Fonzico]

FINALLY! I won't pretend I haven't been stalking your profile, hitting refresh on your "posted Topics".

 

No big surprises here, but if it ain't broke, don't fix it! I am absolutely certain that you will crush it, as always.

[darkfoxx]

Lol. You know I take the weekends off - cause I'm a slackass. 

 

And I figured I'd better hurry up and post first thing this morning to avoid the inevitable hurryupandpostdammit message  

[Fonzico]

You avoided it, but barely.

[direrael]

Um, the way you've been going, I definitely  think you'll be ready for that race!

[Mikroftt]

My favorite from last night was "Sweat is fat crying".

[darkfoxx]

@Mikroftt: That one makes me giggle every time  

 

@direrael: Welcome back - haven't seen you in quite awhile! And thanks for the vote of confidence - I think you may be right, but I'm going to go as hard as I can in training to make sure. And hope my balance is good that day - I'm a klutz. 

[darkfoxx]

Week 1 Day 1

 

Goal 1: Fitness
 

Yay. My body was happy to get back to working out after having to take 2 weeks off for the move. I did my Week 5 Day 1 HasFit Hero 90 workout - 20 Minute Push Up Workout + 6 Minute Plank Happy Ab Workout and my arms were all like 'what?!' Ended up doing most of the pushups from my knees, and crapped out and only did 5 of 8 of the last set of walk-outs, but I hung in there. Despite the complaining from the peanut gallery (or the gun show - however you want to term my arms ). The plank workout was fine. What's wrong with me that I actually enjoy dolphin pushups now? 

 

Is it warm yet? I want to zombies.

 

Goal 2: Metrics and Moar Metrics
 

Breakfast: Green Smoothie

Lunch: Broccoli slaw/yellow bell pepper/curry chicken salad with grapeseed oil/apple cider vinegar/garlic/curry/cumin dressing

After Lunch 'Hunger Wolves' Snack: 2 Tbsp. sun butter with 4 pita bite crackers

Dinner: 8 ounces broiled tri-tip steak, brussels sprouts sauteed in ghee & a pomegranate molasses brown butter sauce that wasn't as exciting as I had intended

After Dinner 'I'm Still Hungry' Snack: 1 ounce unsalted almonds

 

Calories: 1,584

Carbs: 92

Fat: 94

Protein: 118

Sugar: 29

 

Calories were a touch high, but I needed them today. I woke up starving. Fat was on the high side - but that's what you get when your dinner is based on butter. And carbs were nearing the upper limit, but I made it under the wire.

 

Calories In vs Calories Out: 1584 in vs 1605 out

Sleep: 7 hours & 58 minutes - awake 0x, restless 5x

Active Minutes: 28 - primarily because I remembered to manually enter my 26 minutes of workouts

Distance: 1.07 miles - in my apartment

Steps: 2,650

Water: over 64 ounces

 

 

Goal 3: Dump the Baggage
 

Nothing done here 

 

LSQ: Organization
 

Very little done here 

 

DSQ: Inspiration
 

Meh. I thought the pomegranate brown butter I made for dinner was going to lead me on a great tangent, but it did not. Lunch was good, but leftover from last week. It's only Tuesday morning as I write this - hopefully lightning will strike later in the week. 

[Fonzico]

Good start to the challenge!

 

You definitely have enough low calorie days that one on the higher side  (which, let's be honest, this barely qualifies) just balances things out - I'm sure your muscles appreciated the extra recovery fuel

[darkfoxx]

Yeah, I'm going for big picture context - not the 'I was over metrics twice this weekend' and the 'I still feel like all I ever eat is garbage because I've been eating out so much' context. 

 

My muscles were happy about the nuts, though. And I just had more as a my lunch was too little snack. 

[darkfoxx]

Week 1 Day 2

 

Goal 1: Fitness
 

I did my Week 5 Day 1 HasFit Hero 90 workout - 20 Minute Cardio Burn Workout - and it was good. Tiring, but good. 

 

Goal 2: Metrics and Moar Metrics
 

Breakfast: Green Smoothie

Lunch: Leftover pollo asada from Trader Joe's

After Lunch 'Hunger Wolves' Snack: 1 ounce unsalted almonds

Dinner: Kale pesto with sweet potato noodles & chicken thighs

After Dinner 'I Want To Shove Things Into My Face' Snack: 2 ounces goat gouda

 

Calories: 1,223

Carbs: 63

Fat: 68

Protein: 92

Sugar: 20

 

Bam. Metrics were bang-on, if a bit low on the calorie side. Good thing I ate that cheese. 

 

Calories In vs Calories Out: 1223 in vs 1637 out

Sleep: 8 hours & 1 minute - awake 0x, restless 9x

Active Minutes: 28 - primarily because I remembered to manually enter my 20 minutes of workouts

Distance: 1.69 miles - in my apartment

Steps: 4,173

Water: over 64 ounces

 

 

Goal 3: Dump the Baggage
 

I did a little here. A very little. Built some drawers for my office desk/shelf area and weeded through a tray of crap that used to live in my desk at the old place. I have waaayyy more little toys and things than any adult could possibly need. More weeding may need to be done here - I don't *need* the silly putty and mini food things I kept, but I put them in the keep drawer anyway. This might be a long process.

 

 

LSQ: Organization
 

Very little done here, but it was something at least. Wrangled a closet a bit. 

 

 

DSQ: Inspiration
 

I got some. Tonight's dinner was good - and with a few tweaks I plan on doing for tonight's dinner, I think it will be blog worthy. 

[Fonzico]

Mmm, glad to hear dinner was a blog post in the making, because I was definitely planning to ask for the recipe! Good protein day, there

[darkfoxx]

Week 1 Day 3

 

Goal 1: Fitness
 

I did my Week 5 Day 3 HasFit Hero 90 workout - 60 Minutes of Aerobic Exercise (Running, Biking, Swimming, Elliptical, etc) + 7 minute flat stomach workout - I was not prepared for the day. I hadn't looked ahead to see what was up for the night, and had to improvise. I wanted to Zombies for this workout, but the hubbs worked last night and I didn't think Zombies-ing in my new neighborhood at night with him an hour or two away was the best idea. So, I did 2 HasFit cardio videos instead - 30 Minute Fat Burning Cardio Kickboxing Workout – HASfit Fat Burning Workouts – Fat Burning Exercises + 30 Min Yoga Cardio Workout – HASfit Yoga Weight Loss Exercises – Yoga Lose Weight – Yoga Aerobic and the abs workout on top of all that. Needless to say, it was a freaking tiring night. 

 

I'm taking tonight (Thursday) off as a rest day, since we have yet another Ikea run, and am seriously considering cutting this week's workouts short and only doing 5 of the 6 I'm supposed to do. The hubbs is pushing for 2 rest days - he's not a fan of me throwing myself back in to working out full tilt after taking 2 weeks off. I kind of agree, but we'll see how I feel this weekend - I like to complete all the things. 

 

Goal 2: Metrics and Moar Metrics
 

Breakfast: Green Smoothie

Lunch: Another salad concoction that just might make it to the blog - kale/cabbage/carrot/bell pepper with a tahini lemon dressing and chicken

Dinner: I re-vamped last night's kale pesto with sweet potato noodles for the blog and ate that with a leftover tri-tip steak

After Dinner 'I Want To Shove Things Into My Face' Snack: 2 ounces goat gouda

 

Calories: 1,291

Carbs: 73

Fat: 77

Protein: 104

Sugar: 18

 

Bam. Metrics were bang-on, if a bit low on the calorie side (again). Good thing I ate that cheese. 

 

Calories In vs Calories Out: 1291 in vs 1861 out 

Sleep: 8 hours & 30 minutes - awake 0x, restless 7x

Active Minutes: 70 - BAMF. And I Earned Every Damn Second.

Distance: 1.42 miles - in my apartment

Steps: 3,512

Water: over 64 ounces

 

 

Goal 3: Dump the Baggage
 

I tackled a box that has heretofore had me balking at even thinking about it. It was a box full of crap that was formerly in our desk. The hubbs asked a few days ago about some key that was supposedly in the jumble and I distinctly remember telling him 'good luck' because I 'wasn't going into that damn box for anything'. Box tackled. Crap thrown out. 

 

 

LSQ: Organization
 

I shuffled some things around on bookshelves and got most of the 'homeless stuff' pile shelved accordingly.

 

 

DSQ: Inspiration
 

I tweaked that recipe for the blog and took crappy photos of it. Crappy, because they were with my phone (I don't quite know where my camera is) + were taken in overhead kitchen lighting. 

[Fonzico]

Two rest days a week is NOT unreasonable. Especially with the amount of walking I know you do on your off days.

 

Good job with getting some crap sorted - I'm sure you feel better now

 

And yeah... kitchen lighting does nothing for food. Which, when you think about it, is a fatal flaw, even if you don't have a food blog!

[darkfoxx]

It isn't - and about half the weeks on the program have 2 rest days built in. This one, however, does not. And since I haven't completed everything on time anyways - I think it might be ok to let myself take an additional day off this week. I'm sure come Sunday morning the absolute last thing I'm going to want to do is work out - I still hate working out on weekends. 

 

At least I got to use one of my new backgrounds for last night's picture ... it's really not a great shot, though. The meal was tasty and that was good. 

[Mikroftt]

If you take an extra break this week, maybe you can just push back all the workouts one day till you hit on of the 2 rest day weeks.  And on of the rest days do the extra workout to get back on schedule.  Does that make sense?  It does in my head but that doesn't mean it does to others...

[darkfoxx]

Logically, that makes perfect sense. To my OCD brain, that's a surefire recipe for serious distress. I think I'll just skip the day if I need to - and the world will keep right on turning.  

[darkfoxx]

Week 1 Day 4

 

Goal 1: Fitness
 

I took today as a rest day, since we went to my new home-away-from-home, Ikea. I ended up doing laps around Ikea, so that was something at least.

 

Goal 2: Metrics and Moar Metrics
 

Breakfast: Green Smoothie

Lunch:  Kale/cabbage/carrot/bell pepper salad with a tahini lemon dressing and hard boiled eggs

Post Lunch 'Not Enough Protein' Snack: 1 ounce plain almonds

Post Post Lunch Nibbling: 1.5 ounces Momofuku pork 

Dinner: Swedish meatballs with lingonberry preserves & steamed veggies at Ikea

 

Calories: 1,415

Carbs: 97

Fat: 89

Protein: 71

Sugar: 31

 

I was about to be superbummed about not hitting protein for the day - and then I remembered the pork I nibbled on as I was putting it all away. Sneaky protein ftw. 

 

Calories In vs Calories Out: 1415 in vs 1668 out 

Sleep: 6 hours & 59 minutes - awake 0x, restless 3x

Active Minutes: 26 - I'll take it.

Distance: 2.76 miles 

Steps: 6,842

Water: over 64 ounces

 

 

Goal 3: Dump the Baggage
 

Went through some space bags and decided to do away with my wedding dress, a duvet cover I've had since before I met my husband, and a couple components of his Navy uniforms (he decided that part). 

 

LSQ: Organization
 

I finished putting away homeless items, found some magical space for a few things in a closet, and generally got most everything at least sort of squared away. Ish. We really need to pick up wall shelves or something for display and I need to finish purging before I can get any further. Right now, there are 2 bookcases full of crap that doesn't really belong on a bookcase. At least it's all contained. 

 

DSQ: Inspiration
 

Bam. Second post photographed - I found my camera! - and written. I just need to edit the photos and decide whether I'm posting two recipes a week as a regular thing. 

 

I know I did during Whole30, but I'll probably eventually go back to once a week eventually. And I'm planning a new blog feature - paleo budgeting. I plan on posting weekly menus + what they actually cost (the goal is to feed both of us for under $100/130 a week - 4-5 meals + lunches for me & smoothies). My father actually came up with the post idea - mostly because he's curious. I know quite a few other people have been curious about the affordability of eating paleo, too, so I think it might be a good help. 

 

So ... POD + 2 recipes + 1 menu/budget recap a week -- too much? Setting the bar too high? 

[Fonzico]

1. Excellent job dealing with the stuff. Sounds like you made some really good progress there.

 

2. I would count the second recipe post as a bonus, not a requirement. That is a lot.

 

3. I am really excited for the budget posts! I've been trying to get our grocery budget under control, as it is way too high at the moment. Granted, I need to be able to do 6 dinners, 10 lunches plus occasional breakfast on that budget, but still, I think it'll be super helpful

[darkfoxx]

Good. So if you're excited and my dad's curious, I'll count that as 'not too far up my own ass' and make it a weekly thing. 

 

What do you think of this as the format? The text in italics would repeat each week - and I'm thinking of a logo or header bar to 'brand' each post. 

 

---

 

A number of people I know are completely flabbergasted when contemplating sticking to a budget while eating a primarily "paleo" diet. I'm hoping to shed a little light on that issue for those of you on the fence about eating healthfully - it *can* be done - and done well - on a budget. All it takes is a little planning. 

A little background: I live in Brooklyn, NY, and the grocery prices here are definitely not the same as what you will find in other areas of the country. If you live in say, Raleigh NC for example - you may very well be able to cut this grocery bill by a third, depending upon where you shop. For where I live, where I shop and what I buy, $100 a week is a doable budget without having to sacrifice quality too much. My DH thinks $130 is probably more realistic with his smoothie supplies, but I want to shoot for $100. I aim to make 4-5 dinners and 5 lunches per week, plus two smoothies per day six days of the week with my budgetary allowance and update you all weekly on what's going on. Let's see if I can make it. 

Week of March 3 - 7

The Proposed Menu

• Bo Ssam with leftover Momofuku pork from last week
• Thai noodle bowl with ground beef, onions, bell peppers and zoodles
• Pulled pork with sauteed pineapple and cauliflower fried rice with leftover Momofuku pork and pineapple from last week
• Braised chicken with parsnips, leeks & cabbage with leftover parsnips, leek & cabbage from last week
• Lunch: Kale salad with beets, citrus and a kicky vinaigrette (2-3 lunches)
• Lunch: Roast squash, pea shoot and shredded hard boiled egg salad with horseradish vinaigrette (2-3 lunches)

This week, we have plans Friday night (the Avett Brothers/Old Crow Medicine Show concert!) so will be eating 4 planned meals at home. We will most likely stop somewhere this weekend to grab some ground beef and sweet potatoes - and have burgers & fries for dinner on Sunday, if history is any indication of likelihood.

Shopping List & Cost Breakout

Grocery Store Key: TJ = Trader Joe's, WF = Whole Foods

Planned Meal Components

Pea shoots - couldn't find these - subbed for snow peas ($2.29 @TJ)
Scallions ($1.29 for 6 ounces @TJ)
Zucchini ($2.29 for 18 ounces @ TJ)
Bell pepper ($0.69 for 1 red pepper @ TJ)
Bibb lettuce
Kale ($2.29 for 10 ounces organic cut kale @TJ)
Thyme ($1.69 for 1 ounce at Trader Joe's)
Chives ($1.79 at Trader Joe's)
Limes ($1.50 for 3 limes @ TJ)
Citrus ($1.99 for 12 ounce bag Meyer Lemons @ TJ)
Squash
Horseradish
Ketchup
Onion powder
Ssamjang
Kochujang
My favorite bottled lime juice
Chicken thighs ($6.81 at Trader Joe's)
Ground beef ($6.99 at Trader Joe's)
Chicken stock

Smoothie Supplies

Zico coconut water ($3.69 x 2 @ TJ)
Cilantro ($1.69 @ TJ)
Organic baby spinach ($1.99 for 6 ounces @ TJ)
Kale ($2.29 x 2 for 10 ounces organic cut kale @ TJ)
Ginger ($1.39 for 4 ounces fresh @ TJ)
Granny Smith apples ($3.45 for 5 @ TJ)
Limes ($2.50 for 5 @ TJ)
Avocados ($2.78 for 2 @ TJ)

Incidentals/Snacks for the Hubbs

Pita crackers ($2.69 @ TJ)
Frozen Mac & Cheese ($2.99 @ TJ)
Old Amsterdam gouda ($5.93 @ TJ)

Total TJ: $66.91