Becoming a Superhero

[imjustarogue]

Good evening all. Name’s Black Daiquiri and there are so many things I want to be able to do, but often overwhelm myself with too many options or I fall off the “wagon†and don’t follow through.
 
I often feel like my body fights me whenever I try to get fit or healthy - hello trigger point in my abs that made it so difficult to tie my shoes without crying and took months to diagnose (and too many visits to the drs making me think it was all in my head), hello knee injury that took 6 months to even get figured out (and then the resulting surgery and months of recovery), hello pinched occipital nerve that made me feel like I was dying out of nowhere.
 
I’m in my just-past-mid 30s and am a Satyr with a sweettooth. My innerself sees me as someone strong, someone fit, someone who can kick butt. I want my outerself to match my innerself.

 

Meet my inner superhero. She doesn't mess around.

 

MAIN QUEST
Ever since City of Heroes, I have felt like there was a superhero within me that wanted to be let out. Unfortunately, I played the game more than I attempted to transform my body, so that inner hero of mine is still “inner.â€
 
As such, my main quest is to become my inner superhero: fit, strong, and capable.
 

QUEST #1: Balance
After much discussion with my sister (@tourennatrix), I’ve figured out  something about myself that I hadn’t put together. I have this fear in the back of my head that I didn’t use to have. It has hampered me in feeling “free†to walk on the edges of walls or even low parking spot risers.
 
A number of years ago, I fell down our inside stairs (8 of the 13), bruised myself up pretty bad and gave myself a pretty bad anxiety trigger every time someone stomped down the stairs after that. Follow that up with a slip down our outside stairs (only 4 that time) that were covered in ice. I think that was my turning point.
 
I stopped doing anything that required special balancing. I kept both feet firmly planted. I walk deliberately. (I’m also terrified in the back of my brain to try to do a pull-up - something else I used to be able/attempt to do).
 
So, my first quest is to focus on relearning balance. In addition to fighting back this fear, this will help with my running (in quest 3).
 
I will practice single leg stands on my foam pad. I have a baseline for the time I can stand on each leg, but this quest will focus more on forming the habit.
 
(baseline rt leg 1:25; lt leg 2:05)
Practice 5x week, 1 point per set

A: 25.5+

B: 22.5-25

C: 19.5-22
 
Reward: 2 STR | 2 DEX

 
QUEST #2: Hydration
My nemesis is probably lack of water. Too often, I reach for the diet soda (diet cherry dr pepper to be precise) and as a result, I’m sure I’m somewhat regularly dehydrated which probably leads to me being less energetic and tired, plus it probably contributes to some digestive issues.
 
This quest will focus on tracking and increasing my water intake.

 

Mid-quest edit: While I am focusing on increasing my water intake, it is not strictly to DRINK ALL THE WATER, but more to begin weaning myself away from diet soda. As such, my quest scoring will change slightly to count times where I drink a soda as .5 points because I am still hydrating, it's just not as healthy. Juice will also be allowed as 1 point because it is a healthy alternative to water. The max number I have stated for the 6-week period has not changed, but my grading is slightly. Rather than grading starting with the max number, I am allowing myself a day of soda a week which will bring the max score down to 330. A (90%) will still be graded off of the 336pts, but B & C are graded off of the 330 points so as to not punish myself too harshly for drinking soda.
 
1 point per 8oz cup of water or juice; .5 points per 8oz cup of soda.

A: 302+

B: 247-301

C: 215-246
 
Reward: 2 CON | 1 STA

 
QUEST #3: Exercise
How else will my inner superhero become truth without exercise? I have a lot of options and, after talking with my sis again (she helps me sort through all sorts of stuff because she’s the best), she helped me come up with a plan. Last year, she introduced me to Zombies, Run! I previously hated running with a passion, and now I love it (though I fight shin issues from time to time - hence the balance training above).
 
In addition to running, I have some exercises from physical therapy that I have to do to help avoid the shin pain and keep the muscles that pinch my occipital nerve from pinching, so that’s in there. But, I also need some strength training. My plan is to use a Neila Rey (Darebee, now) workout, one set, to complement the PT exercises.
 
Run 2x week
Strength training/PT exercises 3x week
1 point per workout

A: 25.5+

B: 22.5-25

C: 19.5-22

 
Reward: 2 STR | 2 STA


 
LIFE QUEST: Stick with it and follow through
I tend to start things off with a bang and barely make it to the end of whatever I’m trying to do, so this quest will focus on habit forming. I want to start off strong and finish. Finishing strong is bonus.
Pass/Fail
 
Reward: 2 CHA | 2 WIS

 
MOTIVATION: I run because I really like cookies (junk food).
I will get to the point where I have a quest that’s diet/food related, but I know it will never be “cut out all junk†because I don’t think I can ever do that. What I am doing now is using that sweet tooth to motivate me to get moving more often so the junk food will be less of a detraction from my goals. Eventually, and possibly even during this challenge, I will cut back on the junk food.

 

 

***

 

Recruit Mini Quests

Week 1: SMART Choices (+1 WIS)

Week 2: Making Friends (+1 CHA)

Week 3: The Library (+1 CON)

Week 4: Checking Your Starting Credits

Week 5: The Cafeteria (+1 CON)

[ElemHH]

Good luck unleashing your inner hero.

I suffer from a few of the behaviours you've described. Mainly starting strong but not seeing it through to the end, or trying to do too much and overwhelming myself.

Let me know if there's anything I can do to help.

Good luck.

[tourennatrix]

You can do it Sister! I'll be cheering you on

[imjustarogue]

Good luck unleashing your inner hero.

I suffer from a few of the behaviours you've described. Mainly starting strong but not seeing it through to the end, or trying to do too much and overwhelming myself.

Let me know if there's anything I can do to help.

Good luck.

Ohmigosh - I hear you on the "trying to do too much and overwhelming myself" part! Even starting this first post, I kept telling my sister that I was surrounded by too many whelms.

 

Right now, I'm just trying to focus on one step at a time.

[imjustarogue]

Mini Quest #1 - Let's Get SMART

1. Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)?  Is it reasonable?
   The only thing my overall quest needs in order to be achieved is for me to do it. It's not difficult, it's not complicated, it just needs me to push through the excuses and get up and do things.
    

2. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on?
   Each quest is a small, meant to help build habits and, in their own way, push my towards Superhero-dom.
    

3. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them?
   My main quest of becoming a Superhero is a long-term goal, but by completing the little steps, I will be working toward the main quest.
    

4. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked?  What will you use to track them?
   Yes - I have 3 apps that I will use to help measure my quests: MyFitnessPal for water, Fitbit for exercises, and Zombies Run! for running.
    

5. How are you grading your goals?  Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)?  Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€?
   Each quest is on a single point per quest item with an A/B/C scale with the exception of the Life Quest which is pass/fail. Since this is supposed to help with habit forming, if I don't follow through on the Life Quest, then I haven't formed any habits and therefore wouldn't have passed.
    

6. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured?
   Quest 2, Hydration, should not have any issues due to illness or injury (in fact, in those cases, I should likely be drinking more water than normal). With the other two quests, I don't foresee an issue with balancing, however if I were to injure or become sick, I would replace these activities with lower impact yoga. I'm not sure how I would grade in these cases.
    

7. Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge?  What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those?
   Again, Quest 2 should be easier to maintain. One challenge I have that's upcoming is a mini-vacation to visit my brother. I will be getting in a lot of walking during one of the days up there, however, I will have to time the rest of my Quest 3 around the weekend since strength training or running will be more difficult. For Quest 1, I plan to bring my balance foam pad with me and spend some time doing single-leg stands while up there.
    

8. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another?
   All of my goals work toward becoming my inner superhero.
    

9. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set?  If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them?
   Since I work at home, I can often arrange my schedule to fit what needs to be done - including my quests. My main concern is with rising temperatures - I will need to do some major adjusting a couple times this week to be able to get my runs in before it gets hot.
    

10. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest?
    My main, over-arcing goal is to build some healthy habits. Some habits involve grabbing the water instead of the soda, some involve getting up and moving, but they are all pushing me toward my main quest. 

[tourennatrix]

Tell us about day one! 

[imjustarogue]

Ok, fine.

 

 

Day One

Yesterday was difficult… I’m fighting some physical unpleasantries that I think are related to that fun monthly thing that happens for most women and as a result, motivation for anything yesterday was severely lacking.

 

But, I managed to do some things from my quest, so yay!

 

Quest #1: Balance  +1

I balanced! I figured it would be less than 5 minutes so I got off my butt and did my single leg stands.

 

Quest #2: Hydration +8

This was also difficult, but I drank all 8 cups of water yesterday. Shh about one of them being at midnight. I wasn’t drinking it that late just to count it, but because I was still up, still had some water in my cup, and didn’t want the cats to knock it over if I left it there.

 

Quest #3: Exercise 0

Did not do. Did not get enough sleep the night before for a run first thing in the morning, it was unpleasantly warm/hot later in the day, and then bloating and miserableness took over. I am considering it a “rest†day - which is not the best way to start off a new routine, but I’ve already done better on day 2.

 

 

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#1:1  |  #2:8  |  #3:0

[tourennatrix]

How are  things going sister?

[imjustarogue]

Day Two & Three
Since my sister asked nagged... (And apologies if this is rambly… Been fighting a migraine this morning. )
 
Quest #1: Balance +2
I managed to fit it into my schedule whenever both days.
 
Quest #2 - Hydration +8
Yeah… My water consumption has not been the best… going to focus on that today.
 
Quest #3: Exercise +2
Tuesday, I went for a run. I only recorded about ½ the distance as a run since it was pretty hot, super humid, and my calves were cramping, but I walked the other half, so it still counts.
 
Wednesday, I did my PT exercises and a few complementing exercises from Darebee’s Wonder Woman (previously known as Neila Rey exercises). I also stole an idea from the Assassin’s mini-challenge and am going to work on improving four specific exercises (bench dips, door pulls, lateral lunges, and elbow plank). These are a non-scored mini-challenge that I will fit in probably on my strength training days.
 
Today, I’m heading up to my brother’s in the evening and my day is full of appointments and a migraine, so I’m hoping to at least get in my balance and definitely water. If I don’t get in any exercising today, I will have to make sure to do something each day I’m visiting him to keep on track.
 
 

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#1:3  |  #2:16  |  #3: 2

[tourennatrix]

woohoo!

[Chris-Tien Jinn]

I like your motivation.  I definitely run .... in part .... because I like to eat. 

 

Given your interest in improving balance, you might ultimately be a really good Assassin. 

 

For more information about the guild, stop by the Info & Announcements thread and check out the Assassin's Phonebook, which lists the names of people who are working on various aspects of fitness and life changes.  This is a great place to connect with someone who is working on goals similar to yours.  Don't be shy about following them or sending a message if you have questions!!!

 

The assassins are a friendly and supportive guild.  Stop by the Assassin's Den – a general chat thread in the guild forum – and introduce yourself.  You can always ask questions there!!

 

If you ever have any questions or need help with anything, let me know.  You can grab my attention by using the quote button at the bottom right corner of any of my posts.  I have the forum setting turned on to alert me when somebody quotes me using that button, so it's a quick easy way to let me know you're talking to me. You can also get in touch with me by posting on my own challenge topic or by using the forum private messenger system (the envelope button at the very top right of the screen).

 

Someone from the Assassin's Guild will stop by every week to check on your progress, but don't be a stranger!!  The most successful people around here reach out and get support from others - novices and veterans alike!  A great place to meet up with other (new) Assassins is in the Assassin Initiates Accountabilities Group - stop by when you have a chance!!

[imjustarogue]

Catching up

 

Well, the last few days have been a bit of a whirlwind. Went on a mini vacation to visit my brother. We did things! One of the things involved walking back and forth across a theme and waterpark which included many trips up the hill of doom (which was also the only way to leave the park…) and up many flights of stairs. While this is not technically running or strength training, it was exercising, so I’m giving myself a point for the day. /cheers

 

As for the rest - I did some single-leg balancing, mostly while standing in lines, but I was absolutely horrible at following my hydration goal. I drink things... just not water… And it was really bad in the park because of park prices of bottled water and I only saw one, single water fountain at the end of the day. So, that stinks.

 

I’ve been thinking about how I’m tracking all of this stuff and originally, I was using my Fitbit for walking/running/exercise logging, plus MyFitnessPal (I was only going to be using for the water - which is silly since Fitbit has water logging as well), but, while I may still use Fitbit for in depth tracking of activities, for the purposes of completing my quests, it was a little too much, and with using other apps and such, plus activities that aren’t super easy to track within said apps, I decided to make myself a point-tracking spreadsheet that I’ll fill out at the end of each day for the next six five weeks.

 

You can follow along here: Superhero Quest Challenge 1

 

 

 

I like your motivation.  I definitely run .... in part .... because I like to eat.

 

Given your interest in improving balance, you might ultimately be a really good Assassin.

 

For more information about the guild, stop by the Info & Announcements thread and check out the Assassin's Phonebook, which lists the names of people who are working on various aspects of fitness and life changes.  This is a great place to connect with someone who is working on goals similar to yours.  Don't be shy about following them or sending a message if you have questions!!!

 

The assassins are a friendly and supportive guild.  Stop by the Assassin's Den – a general chat thread in the guild forum – and introduce yourself.  You can always ask questions there!!

 

If you ever have any questions or need help with anything, let me know.  You can grab my attention by using the quote button at the bottom right corner of any of my posts.  I have the forum setting turned on to alert me when somebody quotes me using that button, so it's a quick easy way to let me know you're talking to me. You can also get in touch with me by posting on my own challenge topic or by using the forum private messenger system (the envelope button at the very top right of the screen).

 

Someone from the Assassin's Guild will stop by every week to check on your progress, but don't be a stranger!!  The most successful people around here reach out and get support from others - novices and veterans alike!  A great place to meet up with other (new) Assassins is in the Assassin Initiates Accountabilities Group - stop by when you have a chance!!

 

 

Thanks for the welcome! I had already been considering the Assassin’s Guild (as a suggestion from my sister, tourennatrix) as the one to join after I finished my first 6 weeks, so I’ll definitely take a look around. She had also suggested I take a look at your guys’ current mini-challenge and I have to say I’m a bit jealous that I missed this one because it looks like you guys are having a blast. I did kind of steal it a bit for myself to just play around with a bit during these next few weeks. You can see my numbers (albeit not nearly as fancy as your spreadsheets!). I figure I’ll just keep track of how well I do at these additional four exercises - when I do them - and see if I improve. I’m not doing them for any additional questing points, though. They’re just for fun!

 

 

#1:7  |  #2:28  |  #3:3

[tourennatrix]

Yay progress! I'm sure that since you're back home you'll be drinking aaaall the water Keep it up and you can be an awesome assassin like you're little sister

[imjustarogue]

Trying to get my sister to sign up with me for this crazy thing: http://insaneinflatable5k.com/ My brother (who's not really active) and my daughter both think it looks fun, so if I can swing the pricey-for-me registration fee, we might be doing this next month. That's some crazy assassin training right there!  

 

Edit: Ohmigosh - it looks so fun!

 

[starsapart]

Nice work so far!  Also.....

 

Trying to get my sister to sign up with me for this crazy thing: http://insaneinflatable5k.com/My brother (who's not really active) and my daughter both think it looks fun, so if I can swing the pricey-for-me registration fee, we might be doing this next month. That's some crazy assassin training right there!  

 

Edit: Ohmigosh - it looks so fun!

 

 

I did this last Saturday in Denver, CO and it was hilarious and lots of fun!  Go for it!!!!

 

......But don't wear shorts.  The friction on the slides is not kind to bare thighs.

[imjustarogue]

Hice work so far!  Also.....

 

 

I did this last Saturday in Denver, CO and it was hilarious and lots of fun!  Go for it!!!!

 

......But don't wear shorts.  The friction on the slides is not kind to bare thighs.

Good to know about the shorts! Being summer in Iowa and sliding down the inflatables with all the humidity sounds like a really bad idea.

[starsapart]

Good to know about the shorts! Being summer in Iowa and sliding down the inflatables with all the humidity sounds like a really bad idea.

 

Yes, in retrospect, I didn't think this through.

[tourennatrix]

Man you know I want to go... I have to convince the husband though. Firstly because dollars and Secondly because I think he secretly wants to come too but wouldn't be able to because of work. As far as dollars are concerned, I can maybe forego my prize for my boss battle this weekend and put that towards this instead, but the second half... that's the tough bit :/

[imjustarogue]

Too bad they don't have one for the next Sunday.

[Inky]

That thing looks like so much fun. The next ones in my area aren't for awhile, but that just means more time to train for them.

 

I like that you worked in your balancing exercises while in line. The water availability might have been out of your control, but you did take the initiative where you could. Also as a note they are obligated, I think legally, to provide water if you ask. At the very least they can provide a glass of water at the food stands. They don't want people passing out in the parks due to dehydration or heat problems, it's bad for business.

[imjustarogue]

That thing looks like so much fun. The next ones in my area aren't for awhile, but that just means more time to train for them.

 

I like that you worked in your balancing exercises while in line. The water availability might have been out of your control, but you did take the initiative where you could. Also as a note they are obligated, I think legally, to provide water if you ask. At the very least they can provide a glass of water at the food stands. They don't want people passing out in the parks due to dehydration or heat problems, it's bad for business.

Thanks Inky! Yesterday, while at the tail end of a family reunion (where I ended up missing pretty much all of it), I was waiting for a few family members and decided to stand on the parking space curb and do my balances there. It was a good thing!

 

With the water thing, I honestly didn't think about asking for just a cup of water because I was stunned at the bottle prices. I wasn't super thirsty while we were there, and it was in the 60s all day (and rainy in the morning), so I wasn't in jeopardy of overheating - thank goodness!

[imjustarogue]

Today’s update with things!

My daughter needed to get to her cheerleading and dance and drill meeting this morning and since it was only a few blocks away, I walked with her over there. Afterwards, I went for a Zombies Run-run. My first mile was pretty awesome: 14:30. Second mile was slower (as usual). By the time I got home, my average pace was 15:35 for the 2.4 miles. I think this is a good sign for the upcoming color run 5k this Saturday. We’ll see how it goes with the 4:00pm start time and it being the start of summer and all.

I got a bit of a dizzy/nausea spell while taking my cool shower afterwards, which I think was a combo of the heat and dehydration, so I’m going to make sure I have some electrolyte drinks available after the run this weekend. (This is why I have hydration as one of my quests…)

So, I got my run in. I’m working on the water. And some balance work is done. Tonight I added some “pick up jacks with toes†exercise while balancing on the foam pad. That’s one I got from PT to help work on the balancing muscles on the outside of my thighs, as well as my arches and the muscles along the front of my shins. And, man, is it tricky to hold your balance while picking up jacks with your toes and dropping them into a cup. I did two rounds - one with the jacks on the same side as the foot picking them up and the cup on the opposite side and the second round the opposite. With both of them, I have to reach across in front of my balancing leg to either pick up or drop the jack, so there was a lot of wobbling going on.

In exciting news, my sis decided she can join me for the insane inflatable 5k next month. That makes me, her, our brother, and my daughter participating, with my husband cheering us on. Super excited! I’ve decided that I’m going to yell “Parkour!†(a la Harry Dresden) every time I jump and bounce and do fun things throughout the course.

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#1:9 | #2:40 | #3:5

[imjustarogue]

Oh, forgot to add that I can touch my toes while standing today, for some reason. I could even reach the ground while standing on the 3" foam pad. So, since I sank into it just a bit, I was still probably reaching an inch or two past my feet. This is weird because normally my calves are so tight that I can barely reach my ankles, but I aside from a small stretch after running earlier today, I haven't done anything to increase my flexibility recently.

 

I'll take it, though.

[ElemHH]

I love the "Parkour" battle cry.

 

Congrats on the flexibility gains.

[tourennatrix]

I'll have to be all "FOR HUFFLEPUFF!" or something equally as dorky <3