Pureleeawesome: The Lump (aka Try, Try Again)

[pureleeawesome]

The Lump knew she had a long way to go if she ever wanted to be a supermegafoxykickass Halfling Ranger Superhero instead of a slothly Hobbit non-adventurer (non-adventurer, because adventure takes effort and that's much too difficult for The Lump.)

 

To get to the top of the mountain The Lump must make her way to the first checkpoint: FitBit Alley where she will find her first reward, a FitBit Surge!

 

The Road to Get There:

 

1. Track all food intake (and potential food intake) INT

2. No buying lunch - exceptions being my Nan's birthday, if I'm out with friends and when work makes me go to Kalgoorlie. When in Kal I will only buy salads/Subway sandwiches or an actual meal (so, no junk food). CON

3. Exercise three times a week. It can only be a five minute session, but I must exercise. Does not include doing squats after using the bathroom at work. STR

 

And the Life Goal...

 

1. Complete all my Module 2 assignments for my Diploma in Building & Construction (Management) course. INT

 

Potential Pitfalls:

 

1. Well meaning boyfriend who keeps buying me food. Tell him to stop.

2. Parents who are supportive, but in words only.

3. Depression/anxiety/stress.... just keep swimming, just keep swimming.

[ElemHH]

Since I read your post (about 20 minutes ago), I've had Lump by the presidents of the usa stuck in my head.

I read your post before any other because it sounds like we are starting out in the same place, my post is called 112th time is the charm. I think we both know that it doesn't matter how many times we have tried, it just matters that we are still moving forward.

If I can help out in anyway, let me know and I'll do what I can.

Good luck

[WoodNymph]

Welcome aboard!

 

I love your story and your reward!  Just from experience with depression and stress, you might consider setting up a plan with a little bit of "flex" in it so that you don't kick yourself so hard if something comes up...but that's only an opinion from a newbie at the fitness game.  

 

Best of luck to you on your journey!

[pureleeawesome]

@ElemHH - Thanks. I read your post pretty soon after you posted it and it's taken me this long to work up a response. I hadn't heard the song before, so thanks for posting it. It was good :-)

 

@WoodNymph - For me this is pretty slack/flexible. Tracking will be easy, as my exercise can pretty much be anything for any length that should at least get me up and moving. The lunch thing is probably the hardest but I'm going to make some vegetable chilli this weekend and freeze it for lunches.

 

I'm going to edit my original post with my life goal (get all assignments for module 2 complete) and anything else I've missed.

[pureleeawesome]

Day One down...

 

Food:

Breakfast - 1 cup of tea with milk, 2 pieces of toast with butter and vegemite

 

Mid morning snack - 1 Brownes premium mango yoghurt, 1 cup of tea with milk

 

Lunch - Bowl of vegetable chilli

 

Before dinner - 1 Florentine biscuit and a nudie juice

 

Dinner - Chili prawns and salad

 

 

Exercise: None

 

 

Did I buy lunch? No.

[pureleeawesome]

Day Two down:

 

Food:

Breakfast - 120g of beef mince, 1 egg and half a large avocado

Morning Tea - 2 biscuits and a cup of tea w/ milk

Lunch - bowl of vegetable chilli

Afternoon Tea - 1 cup of tea w/ milk

Dinner - Crumbed steak and chow mein and a nudie soda

 

Exercise - Walked to my sisters house to drop off a skirt and walked back. Walked like I was being cast for a supermegafoxykickass role in a Marvel production.

 

Did I buy lunch? Nope nope nope

[Blaidd]

good to see you're back again Purelee.  You're gonna be just fine this time round.  Have you managed to get a hold on the depression that you went through in the beginning of the year?

 

You might notice that someone has added a tag to your post.  This is not to box you into a corner but rather because your goals or lifestyle have links to the guild you've been tagged and we'd like to bring you to the attention of one of their guild ambassadors. These ambassadors will be able to offer you advice, encouragement and support on your goals.  You don't even have to wait around for them to come introduce themselves to you, you are more than welcome to pop into the Adventurers' board and introduce yourself to the guildies there. I am also around to answer any questions that you might have so do not hesitate to PM me.

 

Good Luck with your challenge

AB xx

[pureleeawesome]

Hey

 

For someone who went off her depression meds I'm doing okay I think. I struggle with motivation and anxiety sometimes but I'm getting there.

 

 

The rest of this week I've been pretty shocking with food tracking. I'm now going to keep a notepad open on my phone to type everything in as I eat it. Food is the hardest, because I love it so

 

I seem to have a huge problem with sweets lately. Biscuits particularly. And last night we had nutella pancakes >.>

Overall for this week I'm giving myself an F for Food Tracking. Hehehehehe.

 

I did manage to complete two other (tiny) exercise sessions during the week so an A for Action with regards to exercise.

I only bought lunch one day out of seven and I'm giving myself a B grade for lunches because I dipped a lot into "not being bothered, I should just eat out". I need to put an effort into things.

 

 

This week I would like to make an effort to go for a walk after dinner. And update this more. 

[ElemHH]

The rest of this week I've been pretty shocking with food tracking. I'm now going to keep a notepad open on my phone to type everything in as I eat it. Food is the hardest, because I love it so

 

I seem to have a huge problem with sweets lately. Biscuits particularly. And last night we had nutella pancakes >.>

I use a free calorie tracker called Lose it on my phone. It's handy as once you have added a food it stays logged in a "my food" list, so if you eat the same things often it gives you quick and easy access to log your foods. You can also search through somme supermarket brands. There is also an option to add the exercises you have done and it will then count that in against what you have eaten. If you are using your phone to log your food, it might be worth checking out. Alternatively, My fitness pal is supposed to be good too.

 

Nutella pancakes are very tasty. There was a food truck at the christmas market that I used to go to that did nutella pancakes or waffles, I very rarely resisted.

[WoodNymph]

Sounds like you're making some progress!  

 

I don't know if it would work for you, but one thing I've done when out and about for lunchtime is to grab some of those pre-made salads they sell in the produce section of the grocery store.  Once I find a kind I like, it's really easy to grab one out of the fridge and bring it along, and it makes eating out much less tempting.

[Snarkyfishguts]

Hi! Nice to meet you Purelee! Sounds like you're doing pretty well! 

 

Nutella pancakes? That sounds heavenly! I  can't buy nutella anymore after last time I ended up just eating it out of the jar. I can practice moderation with cheeseburgers, but chocolate and nutty goodness? oh sorry, I think I drooled on your thread! I love food too

 

My favorite fitness app right now is My fitness pal. I like that I can enter in the website with a recipe, and it magically puts it all together and counts for me. I've tried Lose it, fooducate, sparkpeople, and the fitbit app too. They're all nice- you just have to sorta try 'em on and see what you like, but it's SO much better than writing it down.

 

What I do like to have manually is a pocket calendar to track my workouts. I have a smiley faced star stamp. After a really good workout day, I stamp the calendar day, and it's SO satisfying and brings me joy. Have fun experimenting!

[Snarkyfishguts]

oops! double posted! (sheepishly scoots away)

[pureleeawesome]

Hey Snarkyfishguts

 

 

Hmm, I've not though of using premixed salads WoodNymph. I'll have to see if there's some I like. Mostly I just make a batch of chilli each week and eat that. My biggest problem is when I need to go to the shops for something else and I go "ohhh.... may as well buy lunch while I'm there"

My mom works for a food distribution company and some of the things she brings home are these two serving packs of soups so I have those on hand too.

 

I used to use MFP to log but as I'm not logging for calories or anything I've just been typing in a notepad on my phone. My main issue currently seems to be my love of sweet biscuits.

[WoodNymph]

My biggest problem is when I need to go to the shops for something else and I go "ohhh.... may as well buy lunch while I'm there"

I'm quite guilty of this as well, but have learned that I can look for healthier options.  Now, instead of coming out with fried everything and a doughnut on the side, I end up leaving the store with a cart full of cheese, seafood, meat, salads and fruit.  

[pureleeawesome]

End of Week Two Update:

 

15/06/2015

Breakfast: 2 slices of white toast with butter and Vegemite. One cup of tea with full cream milk

Lunch: Bowl of vegetable chilli

Dinner: Steak, mashed potato, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and peas.

 

Exercise: 30+ min Zombies, Run! walk

 

16/06/2015

Breakfast: 2 slices of white toast with butter and Vegemite. One cup of tea with full cream milk

Morning Tea: Butterscotch Latte Mix Drink

Lunch: Bowl of vegetable chilli

Dinner: Curried sausages and vegetables with rice

Dessert: Vanilla icecream with Nutella drizzle

 

Exercise: None

 

17/06/2015

Breakfast: 2 slices of white toast with butter and mince.

Morning Tea: Butterscotch Latte Mix Drink

Lunch: Bowl of vegetable chilli

Afternoon Tea: Hot Milk cake with chocolate icing. A pinch of grated cheese.

Dinner: Tuna Bake

 

Exercise: None

 

18/06/2015

Breakfast: One piece of white toast, barbecue sauce, three pieces of bacon and a fried egg

Morning Tea: 1 cup of tea with full cream milk

Lunch: Tuna Bake

Afternoon Tea: 6 caramelised biscuits and 2 cups of tea with milk

Dinner: Chicken curry

 

Exercise: None

 

19/06/2015

Brunch: 4 churros and a mixture of chocolate dip cups, 3 strawberries and half a Lamington El Grande Hot Chocolate

Dinner: Medium Zinger Burger Meal

Can of Pepsi Max

Glass and a half of coke

 

Exercise: None

 

20/06/2015

Breakfast: Coffee with milk and sugar

Brunch: Tuna Bake

Morning Tea: Cup of tea with milk

Afternoon Tea: Banana and cup of tea with milk and two shortbread biscuits with chocolate backs

Dinner: Chicken Curry

 

Exercise: 10 push ups and 10 sit ups

 

21/06/2015

Breakfast: Tuna Bake and cup of tea with milk

Morning Tea: Piece of crystallised ginger

Lunch: Toasted cheese and onion sandwich

Afternoon Tea: Piece of cake, caramel latte mix, 2 x cups of tea with milk

Dinner: Chops and vegetables

 

Exercise: 10 push ups

 

Total Scoring:

3 x exercise? = A

No lunches bought? = A

Tracked all my food? = A

 

Comments:

It's currently freezing and raining a lot in WA meaning I didn't get to go out for walks when I wanted to. I was going to go rollerskating Sat/Sun but the rain was pouring down pretty horrendously during the session times and I'm not a confident driver in that rain. I think it's also why I've been drinking lots of tea.

I should also mention that I do drink water, it's just not getting tracked as I don't use a water bottle and wait until it's empty. I have an R2-D2 large cup that I use and refill whenever it's opportune.

[ElemHH]

Just checking in since we haven't heard from you in a few days. How is everything going?

[pureleeawesome]

It's going okay. Apart from the cold weather making exercise unpalatable.

Oh, and I got made redundant again. Fun times.

I'm doing good though. Just only updating once a week because otherwise I get stressed out about it.

[ElemHH]

Sorry to hear about your job, I've been there and it sucks. How is the job market in Australia? Hopefully you find something else soon.

 

Posting once a week makes sense if you get stressed out by the process, next time I'll only bug you if it's been 8 or 9 days since your last update. Maybe you would be less stressed during the next challenge if you only pick one goal to work on, keep at that until it becomes a daily habit and then, when you are ready, pick a new one to make a habit. Just slowly build up to where you want to be, one manageable change at a time.

 

All the best.

[WoodNymph]

End of Week Two Update:

 

15/06/2015

Breakfast: 2 slices of white toast with butter and Vegemite. One cup of tea with full cream milk

Lunch: Bowl of vegetable chilli

Dinner: Steak, mashed potato, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots and peas.

 

Exercise: 30+ min Zombies, Run! walk

 

16/06/2015

Breakfast: 2 slices of white toast with butter and Vegemite. One cup of tea with full cream milk

Morning Tea: Butterscotch Latte Mix Drink

Lunch: Bowl of vegetable chilli

Dinner: Curried sausages and vegetables with rice

Dessert: Vanilla icecream with Nutella drizzle

 

Exercise: None

 

17/06/2015

Breakfast: 2 slices of white toast with butter and mince.

Morning Tea: Butterscotch Latte Mix Drink

Lunch: Bowl of vegetable chilli

Afternoon Tea: Hot Milk cake with chocolate icing. A pinch of grated cheese.

Dinner: Tuna Bake

 

Exercise: None

 

18/06/2015

Breakfast: One piece of white toast, barbecue sauce, three pieces of bacon and a fried egg

Morning Tea: 1 cup of tea with full cream milk

Lunch: Tuna Bake

Afternoon Tea: 6 caramelised biscuits and 2 cups of tea with milk

Dinner: Chicken curry

 

Exercise: None

 

19/06/2015

Brunch: 4 churros and a mixture of chocolate dip cups, 3 strawberries and half a Lamington El Grande Hot Chocolate

Dinner: Medium Zinger Burger Meal

Can of Pepsi Max

Glass and a half of coke

 

Exercise: None

 

20/06/2015

Breakfast: Coffee with milk and sugar

Brunch: Tuna Bake

Morning Tea: Cup of tea with milk

Afternoon Tea: Banana and cup of tea with milk and two shortbread biscuits with chocolate backs

Dinner: Chicken Curry

 

Exercise: 10 push ups and 10 sit ups

 

21/06/2015

Breakfast: Tuna Bake and cup of tea with milk

Morning Tea: Piece of crystallised ginger

Lunch: Toasted cheese and onion sandwich

Afternoon Tea: Piece of cake, caramel latte mix, 2 x cups of tea with milk

Dinner: Chops and vegetables

 

Exercise: 10 push ups

 

Total Scoring:

3 x exercise? = A

No lunches bought? = A

Tracked all my food? = A

 

Comments:

It's currently freezing and raining a lot in WA meaning I didn't get to go out for walks when I wanted to. I was going to go rollerskating Sat/Sun but the rain was pouring down pretty horrendously during the session times and I'm not a confident driver in that rain. I think it's also why I've been drinking lots of tea.

I should also mention that I do drink water, it's just not getting tracked as I don't use a water bottle and wait until it's empty. I have an R2-D2 large cup that I use and refill whenever it's opportune.

Good work!  Even just keeping up with what you eat when it's too nasty outdoors to work out can help take the weight off.

[pureleeawesome]

Long time, no update.

I am splitting from keeping track of my food right now. It seems to be the think that upsets me most and I'll revisit it at the next challenge.

 

Have consistently done some mode of exercise of three times a week last week and as I had to spend my last week away from work I'll be doing it Fri-Sun this week. Starting with a walk to the post box to send of the mail for my now ex-job

Last week with eating lunch out was bad, considering it was my last week at the Perth office and I wanted to revisit all the places I'd eaten at before I left. Terrible idea, giving me about a B- for that.

This week I have eaten lunch out only once which is impressive considering I was away from home.

 

@Elem - the job market for my industry (mining/construction) is terrible. Luckily, I applied for a traineeship in aged care/disability services and it looks like I've gotten in, if yesterday's mail is correct.

 

Steve's latest NF post (The State of the NF Rebellion) was inspiring. I started thinking about if I was a game, who would want to play me? (My boyfriend, badum tish!)

Seriously though, who would?

 

Another thing that really stuck with me was improving my bat cave and having fun with fitness.

 

I am at my most happiest when the environment around me is orderly. It doesn't have to be too neat or clean (I can handle a little dust) but orderly is best for my brain. I've made a pretty good effort last week in organising things, but there's a little clutter in my room and at my computer and sewing desk that could with organising.

 

Fun with fitness is another thing. I haven't been having fun. This one is tougher for me to answer because I'm not sure what I find fun that's a physical activity.

I do miss rollerskating. I'm not confident in my rollerskating outside abilities anymore so I would need to go back to a rink. There are two near me, so that's not too difficult but they cost $8-$10 and... and I should put it into my budget and make my health a priority. 

 

I need to go away and think on things for a while and decide how I am going to reach my goals.

[WoodNymph]

It sounds like you are doing a good job thinking about what you need and what's holding you back.  That can be one of the most difficult parts of fitness!

[pureleeawesome]

A's for exercise and food last week. Go Team Supermegafoxykickass!

 

It also looks like I have a new job. I've received notification of my enrolment into a prep course which is the prerequisite of a traineeship I applied for. They don't enrol you into the course unless they're planning to offer you a traineeship (so long as I don't fail the course or the 2 weeks work experience).

 

I even managed to adult and cancel then reapply for my car insurance today, saving myself around $50 a month.

[ElemHH]

Sorry to hear about the job market, but congratulations on the new job, i hope you enjoy it.

 

Trying to find some exercise that is fun is something that I struggle with. At the moment I have had to settle on ejoying seeing the improvements that I'm making in my exercises. I'm hoping that as my weight goes down and my confidence goes up that I'll do more and find somethings that are physical activity and also fun.

You already have a step up on that one though, knowing that you enjoy rollerskating. If you have the cash to spare, then I'd say you should definitely make time for yourself to go. With any luck you might regain your confidence quickly and be skating outside again.

[ElemHH]

You posted while I was writing. I'm glad your job is official, congratulations.

 

And well done on your A's for last week.

[pureleeawesome]

Woo, A's for last week!!!

 

And I didn't even realise that the challenge was over >.> THIS IS THE FIRST TIME I'VE COMPLETED AN NF 6 WEEK CHALLENGE!!!

 

Today is the day I start my new course which will (hopefully) lead to the traineeship. I'm very, very nervous.

 

I also started StrongLifts 5x5 today and immediately realised that I need a power rack and a bench. Nothing like trying to figure out how to get a barbell off your back when you're outside and it's raining.

 

Mom has offered to buy me an Olympic barbell now for my birthday (which is in September) but I may buy it myself and she can buy me weights or something.