IfItPlugsIn's Respawn Rodeo

[IfItPlugsIn]

Respawn Rodeo

Since I ran my half-marathon last spring, I've gained about 15 lbs, let my fitness habits slip, and eaten like crap (hence the respawn).  I need some basic goals to get  myself headed in the right direction again, so my days are less like an 8-second ride and more like a relaxing trail ride.

 

Break the Horse

My fitness habits have been left unattended for too long, and need to be brought under control again.  I need to break some bad habits, and put better ones in their place.  I've been using my bad back as an excuse, and it needs to stop. 

 

Actions:  Work some kind of fitness into every day.  Anything counts.  I've been loving Lift Weights Faster, and their mini-routines should be easy to work into my life.  I'm also getting workouts emailed to me from Metabolic Effect.  Treadmill, Zumba, traditional weights, walking at work, DVDs at home are all options too. 

 

Success: Any day with activity is a success (x/42)

 

Calf Roping

My eating has gotten a little (ok, a lot) out of control.  I need to lasso in my eating, especially sweets and "bad carbs." 

 

Actions:

• Go gluten-free.  I seem to respond ok to other carbs, like rice, corn, and potatoes, so I don't see a need to really restrict them. I do have trouble limiting gluten items once I get started on them, and I think this will be a good gateway to a more paleo way of eating.
• Limit sweets to 3 or fewer treats per week.  Fruit doesn't count, and I'm also not counting the sweetener in my coffee.
• Track daily in MyFitnessPal to keep tabs on myself.  I'm not detracting for going over on calories right now, but it's a factor and needs to be watched.

Success: Any day with no gluten is a success (x/42).  Any week with 3 or fewer sweets is a success (x/6).

 

Get back in the Saddle

When you get thrown, you need to get back up and try again.  I've been a pretty poor excuse for a PT patient.  I don't do my exercises regularly or completely.  I only have a few exercises to do, so they just need to be done.

 

Actions: Do my physical therapy. Every. Day. No excuses.

 

Success: Complete the exercises daily (x/42)

 

Bonus: Do some additional "therapy" once a week - take a relaxing bath, get out of the house by myself, enjoy an alcoholic beverage to take the edge off, get a massage, etc.

 

 

Side Quest: Herd the Cats

Most days are so unorganized that I feel like I'm herding cats.  I need to make a few easy changes to stay sane.

 

Actions: 

• Lay out kids' clothes the previous night.  This makes things go smoothly in the morning
• Make a weekly meal list and have all ingredients on hand.  This makes things go smoothly in the evening.
• Bonus: Do some kind of cleaning or a load of laundry 3 times per week.  This will make for less work on the weekends.

[wildross]

Welcome back...

[Alanna]

I love the rodeo theme. Good luck with your goals (esp. the tricky cat herding)!

 

[msuroo]

!

[Strawberry Squatcake]

WHAAAAA?!?! Welcome back! I've missed you! 

[IfItPlugsIn]

Day1

Activity: None (0/1)

Gluten Free: Yes!  Even managed to avoid the birthday cookies in the lunchroom. (1/1)

Treats: None (0/3)

PT: Nope (0/1)

Organize: Laid out kids clothes.  Made a meal list this past weekend, and cooked supper from said list.  The morning was uneventful, which is a success!

[PrincessHeather]

No time to read, but I am so glad you're back!!!

[Max Power]

Welcome back!  

[IfItPlugsIn]

Thanks, friends!

 

I was intending to post gifs/images with my initial post, but had technical difficulties.  Alanna - that one fits perfectly!

 

 

Day2

Activity: Walked at lunch, about 15 minutes.  It's sad that I'm counting it, but I think baby steps are what I need right now. (1/2)

Gluten Free: Yes!  (2/2)

Treats: None (0/3)

PT: Nope (0/2)

Organize: Didn't lay out clothes, and noticed a major difference in the morning!

[Strawberry Squatcake]

My, "My life will be so much easier if I just start..." thing after my vacation was to lay out my clothes. I did Monday and Tuesday. Forgot last night. You're right, TOTAL difference. I'm back at it tonight! 

 

Also, I think a walk counts. I feel a difference in my mood, and even food choices, if I'm active in any way. I say count the walk! 

 

You've been gluten free and avoided treats. Those are huge celebrations, too! 

[MasterOfCows]

Yay, you're back!

[IfItPlugsIn]

Day3

Activity: Walked at lunch (2/3)

Gluten Free: Yes.  This really isn't too tough, as long as I can keep my family happy with GF suppers. (3/3)

Treats: None.  I really wanted ice cream last night, but went for a half-serving of greek yogurt instead.  Super win! (0/3)

PT: 1 of 3 exercises at home.  I also had a PT appointment today, so that helped  (1/3)

Organize: Laid out kids clothes.  I'm actually pretty impressed at how just this minor change is making the 2 big boys more responsible for their own getting ready in the morning.  The 6-year-old toasted his own bagel with cream cheese and jelly, and 4-year old brushed his teeth without me having to cattle-prod him.  Cooked supper from the meal list.  Washed a load of laundry, but am failing at the folding/putting away part.

 

Logging in MFP is definitely helping.  I'm also doing Sleepytime tea most nights to wind down and help with getting a good night's sleep.

[Strawberry Squatcake]

YAY on the treats choice! That's fantastic! 

 

And that's great you've found something that makes such a difference in your routine. I got my clothes out last night. Didn't iron them. It was nice they were ready to be ironed. Would have been nicer if they had been ironed.

 

Maybe the 6 y/o can start making breakfast for everyone soon!  

 

I HATE folding/putting away laundry,too. 

[PrincessHeather]

Doing great! I should lay out my clothes, hubby does night shifts half the month and I'm sure he'd appreciate me not bothering him trying to find stuff in the closet getting when ready for work.

[IfItPlugsIn]

Day 4

Activity: Lift Weights Faster: Up and Over This is my favorite so far, because it's bodyweight only, and I can do it at work.  It only takes me about 7-8 minutes, but gets my heart rate up. (3/4)

Gluten Free: Yes.  (4/4)

Treats: None. So far, so good.  I really wanted chocolate last night, but I had the willpower to skip it. (0/3)

PT: Since the glute bridge is part of the workout I did, I got some PT in by default, but I did a few more at home as well. (2/4)

Organize: Laid out kids clothes.  Supper from the meal list, and my husband made it - Lucky me!

[Strawberry Squatcake]

You've hit a winning pace! Keep it up, my friend!

[IfItPlugsIn]

Day 5

Activity: Lift Weights Faster (not sure which one it was, but it was bodyweight with 2 kinds of squats). (4/5)

Gluten Free: Yes. Had taco/burrito night, and just made mine in a bowl with rice, instead of a tortilla. (5/5)

Treats: None. (0/3)

PT: Glute bridges at home. (3/5)

Organize: Laid out kids clothes.

 

Day 6

Activity: Plenty of walking - carried laundry up and down steps all day, plus grocery shopping, which doesn't sound like much.  However, my Fitbit tells me I got over 9,000 steps for the day. (5/6)

Gluten Free: Yes. Got my husband to make enchiladas with corn instead of flour tortillas. (6/6)

Treats: None. So far, so good. (0/3)

PT: Not today. (3/6)

Organize: Laid out kids clothes for all next week.  I'm travelling for work, so rather than leave my husband to his own devices, I laid our 15 outfits for him to work with.

 

Day 7

Activity: Airport walking.  I got over 9,500 steps in, so I'm pretty pleased with that. (6/7)

Gluten Free: Yes, even with airport food and eating out once I landed.  It wasn't pretty (bacon cheese french fry tower... gluten free, yes; healthy, no). (4/4)

Treats: Had a few apple ales with my naughty fries, so I think that counts as more than 1 treat, but I only had 3, so I stayed in my limit for the week. (3/3)

PT: I wanted to get some done before I left, but I ran out of time.  I'm definitely paying for it. (3/7)

Organize: Picked out my own clothes and put my shower things in the bathroom, so I was ready to jump in when my alarm went off.

[Alanna]

Your challenge is off to a great start! Nice job getting in the exercise at the airport.

 

I'm a big tea fan, myself--esp. some sort of chamomile or lavender in the evenings.

[Hermione Gainser]

!

 

This. 

[IfItPlugsIn]

Week 1 Summary

Activity: 6/7 - Activites were minor, but I tried to be conscious of getting things done.

Gluten Free: 7/7 - Pretty easy at home.

Treats: 3/3 - I ended up using my 3 treats for adult beverages, but I limited myself to meet this goal.

PT: 3/7 - Not so hot, but making progress.

Organize: Success - Plenty of organizing, and it made a difference in the smoothness of my days.

 

I was traveling for work all week, so I didn't get much chance to update things.  By the end of the week, I was pretty wiped, and some things started to slide.

Week 2 Summary

Activity: 3/7 - I had several days with no activity, and a few days with tons of activity.  One night, a bar near my hotel had "80's Night" where they played music videos on projectors all night... spent 5 hours on the dance floor!  I also ran my first run since my half marathon, which I enjoyed more than I thought I would.  Rounded out the activity with a little Zumba in my hotel room, and a round of Lift Weights Faster.

Gluten Free: 4/7 - Most fail days were minor fails, like a single component of a single meal. 

Treats: FAIL.  I didn't even count the amount of treats I consumed (specifically drinks), and most of my non-gluten-free days coincided with treats.

PT: 3/7 - I struggled a few days because of the travel, and standing to present in meetings, so it emphasized the importance of getting this done.  Still did only a mediocre job.

Organize: Minor opportunity for this, since I was just taking care of myself while traveling, and even then, most of my meals were planned by the conference organizers.  Success, but not through much effort.

 

Overall, I'm learning that I can do this on my schedule, but when I factor unknown circumstances or other people into it, I can get sidetracked.  Time to amp up the conviction and willpower!

[IfItPlugsIn]

Day 15 (1/19)

Activity: 0/1 - Unless you count running around my office like a chicken with my head cut off.  I hate coming back from vacation/traveling. 

Gluten Free: 0/1 - Pasta last night.  I also checked the sauce we used, and it had flour as a thickener.

Treats: 0/3 - No treats yet.

PT: 1/1 - Appointment day.  She worked some muscles right around my spine, and it really made a difference. 

Organize: I was so far behind on stuff at home, that I didn't get things laid out.  I did have to buy groceries, and subsequently made a meal list.

[IfItPlugsIn]

Day 16 (1/20)

Activity: 1/2 - Walked at lunch time

Gluten Free: 0/2 - BLTs... I was tired, and I caved on the bread.  I could have just made it into a salad, but I didn't.

Treats: 0/3

PT: 1/2 - Didn't happen. No excuse. I was still feeling good from my appointment the day before, so I guess I just forgot.

Organize: Got a pork roast ready to throw in the crockpot in the morning.  Trying NomNomPaleo's Kalua Pork recipe for the first time, and I'm pretty excited.  Also did a load of laundry.

[IfItPlugsIn]

Day 17 (1/21)

Activity: 2/3 - Walked at lunch.  This feels like such a cop-out, and I really want to lift.

Gluten Free: 1/3 - Finally stuck to this.  Planned meals helps.  The scale also moved in the right direction after sticking to this, so I'm hoping this is a trend that continues.

Treats: 0/3

PT: 2/3 - Finally got this in.

Organize: Laid out kids' clothes. 

 

A few side notes:

When my back issues started, I got some tests done, including Vitmain D, which I was severely deficient in.  I've been taking supplements, and they seem to make a difference.  My 6 year old has been having some growing pains, and ongoing nighttime wetting issues.  I came across unrelated articles listing Vitamin D as helping both issues, so I'm going to start him on supplements as well, and see what happens.  Up here in the frozen tundra, it's a pretty common deficiency, so I wouldn't be surprised if it helps. Crossing my fingers!

 

Kalua Pork was a hit with everyone!!  Definitely putting this in rotation.

[Alanna]

Kudos for getting back on track after traveling! I have trouble staying on track when my routine is changed, too--esp. when I'm tired from traveling.

 

I'll have to take a look at the Kalua Pork recipe--I'm a fan of NomNom Paleo but haven't made time to follow proper recipes in a while.

 

 

Activity: 2/3 - Walked at lunch.  This feels like such a cop-out, and I really want to lift.

 

Definitely a warrior

[PrincessHeather]

Vitamin D is so vital to so many bodily processes, I'd be surprised if it didn't help the kiddo a least a little bit. I'm out on frozen tundra and like 6 hours of daylight, so I'm keeping my supplements handy until spring!