NeverThatBored gets Better Than Before

[NeverThatBored]

Background: From the differences between my first and last challenge, I realized a lot of important things about what does and doesn’t work for me. There are four things that work for me – strength training, yoga, walking, and eating paleoish. I’m still working on overcoming my shin splints and resuming some light running, so that’s something I’d like to work on as well. But I’m simplifying this challenge down to the most essential pieces of health, battling the urge to list every single thing I want to do.

 

Main Quest: Lose the remaining 15 pounds to reach my happy weight.

 

Motivation: Quite a lot

1. I was really happy and felt really good about myself at my goal weight when I achieved it previously and I want to feel that way again

2. I want to be able to comfortably shop for clothes at most stores

3. I want to feel good and healthy in my body, not stiff and lethargic

4. I want to be able to go out and do things and keep up with people when we do things that require physical fitness

5. I don't want to develop a hunchback when I am older

 

Goal 1: Movement

For this challenge, I plan to walk 100 miles. That comes out to 2.38 per day. I genuinely enjoy walking, and it’s great stress relief, so this number should be achievable.

 

Goal 2: Food

For this challenge I’m going to focus on eating Paleoish, which I’ve had some success with previously. Specifically, I’m going to cut out grains and refined sugar. I think I’ll allow myself a treat when I go to the local farmer’s market, which happens every other week or so - so about 3 times during the challenge. Otherwise, I plan to stay paleoish 100% of the time while home and 50% of the time while away from home, having visitors, or socializing with coworkers (not common).

 

Goal 3: Strength

I’m going to continue with my goal from last challenge of doing the BBWW 3 times per week, or a combination of 1-2 BBWWs and 1 bootcamp class. I’m going to work on increasing the intensity of the workouts by working towards the following 1 at a time:

• 15 push ups per circuit (I’m almost to this one)

• 30 second 1-legged planks

• 20 walking lunges instead of regular lunges

• Mountain climbers

• Add in decline push ups

• 10 jump step-ups (if I can find a way to do this in my apartment)

 

Life Quest: Undecided

 

I’m still considering a few different options here: Edit: I've decided!

• 15 minutes a day reading something career-related

• Read for pleasure every day

• Complete 30-day intro to drawing book

• Start learning to whittle

[NeverThatBored]

I was going to update this section regularly, but nope. Didn't happen.

[Son of Rylos]

Looks like a great setup for success!! Totally subbed in for awesomeness!!

[Luciana Valerosa Culming]

Found you

 

Nice goals. It's good, that you know, what works for you.

[NeverThatBored]

3.66 miles down! So far so good on food too.

[Son of Rylos]

Every little bit counts. Great start so far!!

[NeverThatBored]

Got in some walking and a bootcamp class this evening! I got to PUNCH THINGS in the RAIN. It was a real life training montage. A dream come true~

[Ilham]

You found me and I followed you home

 

Very sane decision, doing the things you know that work for you, and it looks like you're off to a great start.

 

Punching things in the rain sounds awesome. 1- Because it makes me think of Batman 2- because I miss the rain so much

[NeverThatBored]

You found me and I followed you home

 

Very sane decision, doing the things you know that work for you, and it looks like you're off to a great start.

 

Punching things in the rain sounds awesome. 1- Because it makes me think of Batman 2- because I miss the rain so much

 

Is there no rain where you are??

[NeverThatBored]

Today's update: so far so good! I walked about 3 miles and also locked myself out of my apartment....for the second time this week. I stayed on track with food, and still have to get in some reading after I finish posting here.

 

On an unrelated note, I made stock today from scraps I'd saved up in the freezer. I felt pretty cool.

[NeverThatBored]

Another good day! I only got in about 1.75 miles today, but I had my Aikido class tonight, so whatever. My will was tested when they offered me some gatorade at the end of class, since it's so hot lately and I was parched! But I resisted the sugary siren and now I'm home munching on some cucumbers. I feel pretty good about that.

 

I'll have to get in a BBWW tomorrow. 

[Ilham]

Is there no rain where you are??

It hasn't rained since May and probably won't before October or even November. 

 

It's hell.

 

No, no, I'll be okay, I just need a tissue.

[NeverThatBored]

That sounds like where I grew up. Rain was uncommon. I don't mind that so terribly though, since it's what I grew up with.

[NeverThatBored]

So, I got myself to get in the first BBWW of the challenge on the last day of this week. I did 15, 15, and 13 on the pushups and introduced a one-legged plank into the last circuit. Even though I feel like I have to will myself to do these workouts just as much as when I started, I can also tell I've gotten stronger. I don't feel as wobbly when I finish. Today, I was even feeling like I wanted to do more work. For the next one, I'm going to try to do 2 one-legged planks and see if I can push that last set of pushups up to 15. Maybe I'll try to introduce some mountain climbers too.

 

I'm still managing to keep up with the reading and the paleo, though I did buy some veggie chips and go a little heavy on the carbs yesterday. Ah well, my weight's coming down so I'm not going to sweat it. Lately I think I'm finally internalizing the idea that you should just focus on one decision at a time. It's easy for me to taste some food I'm trying to avoid and then go nuts with it because I get desperate when I start thinking that I won't be able to have it again in the future if I'm trying to be healthy. But instead of thinking so far into the future and letting myself get overwhelmed, I've been saying to myself: "I can make the decision not to eat this food/ to choose something paleo instead for today." 

 

I'm also up to 15+ miles of walking so far. I'm a little behind where I would ideally be, but I'm not too worried about making it.  

 

In other news, I rode my bike on a real street for the first time today!

[Luciana Valerosa Culming]

In other news, I rode my bike on a real street for the first time today!

Jay for cycling like a pro

[NeverThatBored]

Things are on track challenge-wise. I did my bootcamp on Tuesday and I'll do a BBWW this evening. Food, walking, and reading are still on track, since I've managed to read at least a couple pages each day. I'll be spending this weekend helping my boyfriend move into his new apartment (we're long distance that just got longer), so that will be the first big food challenge for me this challenge. He doesn't cook and he eats out for every meal, so when I spend time with him I often find that I get derailed and have a hard time getting back on track.

 

But even though this is all going well, I'm feeling pretty discouraged today.

 

I'm so terrible at talking to people. When I look back at my younger self, I can see I've come a long way, but some days I just feel like I'm never really going to overcome it. I don't know what it is about me that's prevented me from learning how to just talk to people naturally. When I try to talk to people (both for work and socially), I seem to have to think for a while before I really have anything to say, but in the time it takes me to think of replies, the conversation has already moved on. So I tend to come across as super quiet, which tends to make people uncomfortable or at least not sure what to think of me.

 

Lately I've been working on just talking more, saying what I'm thinking even if it's fumbling and inelegant. But I feel so awkward when I do it. I had a meeting this morning and I talked more than usual, and even made a good point or two, but everything I said sounded so unpolished and rambly compared to everything everyone else said.

 

And when I try to go beyond just the topic at hand, if I try to compliment people or get excited about something we both like, I feel like I'm just shooting out a bunch of generic statements to try to fit in rather than actually participating in a conversation. Even here on NF, people seem to make friends so quickly, and I feel like I'm just randomly piping in with generic things like "good job!" or "oh man that must be really hard" instead of saying anything worthwhile. I'd like to face this issue as part of a challenge, but I've never really figured out HOW to improve, so I don't know what goal I'd work on. Maybe something like "practice following up a statement with a question to keep the conversation flowing X times / week" or something...

 

tl;dr - life is hard and I probably have some form of social anxiety, and I'd really like to go hit some trees.

[NeverThatBored]

Ok, so a belated update on where things are:

 

BBWW/Bootcamps

Right on track! I've been doing a bootcamp and a BBWW each week without trouble. I finally got up to 15 push ups for each set too! Maybe this week I'll try adding in some burpees for the mini. I've never done a burpee before! 

 

Paleo

Evaluating honestly...I was probably at less than 50% paleo for traveling Saturday-Monday. Though I was able to make a few good decisions, including saying NO to the CHEESECAKE FACTORY, the overall days weren't good enough to call ok. Right after the weight loss had started to kick in too... ah well, it's all small potatoes. I can regroup from here on out.

 

Reading

Pretty good so far! I missed one day of reading, but I planned to make exceptions for traveling, so I think I'm still perfectly on track with this one.

 

Walking

I'm at 38.49 total miles so far. I didn't walk every day this weekend, but I got in a really good long one one day, so it's all good on the balance. Ideally I'd be at 50 miles by the end of this week, which will require an achievable average of 2.8 miles per day for the rest of the week.

[Lag a'mhuilin]

 

I'm so terrible at talking to people. When I look back at my younger self, I can see I've come a long way, but some days I just feel like I'm never really going to overcome it. I don't know what it is about me that's prevented me from learning how to just talk to people naturally. When I try to talk to people (both for work and socially), I seem to have to think for a while before I really have anything to say, but in the time it takes me to think of replies, the conversation has already moved on. So I tend to come across as super quiet, which tends to make people uncomfortable or at least not sure what to think of me.

 

Lately I've been working on just talking more, saying what I'm thinking even if it's fumbling and inelegant. But I feel so awkward when I do it. I had a meeting this morning and I talked more than usual, and even made a good point or two, but everything I said sounded so unpolished and rambly compared to everything everyone else said.

 

And when I try to go beyond just the topic at hand, if I try to compliment people or get excited about something we both like, I feel like I'm just shooting out a bunch of generic statements to try to fit in rather than actually participating in a conversation. Even here on NF, people seem to make friends so quickly, and I feel like I'm just randomly piping in with generic things like "good job!" or "oh man that must be really hard" instead of saying anything worthwhile. I'd like to face this issue as part of a challenge, but I've never really figured out HOW to improve, so I don't know what goal I'd work on. Maybe something like "practice following up a statement with a question to keep the conversation flowing X times / week" or something...

 

tl;dr - life is hard and I probably have some form of social anxiety, and I'd really like to go hit some trees.

 

I was like that... still am in new social situations, such as parties. I hate parties with strangers! Give me a small gathering of really good friends or 1 on 1 instead. You can maybe work your quiet style to your advantage if it makes (new) people think you're mysterious, attentive, and contemplative instead of shy. Then when you do say something it will be perceived as more important or wise because you took your time getting there, and then it's the other people's turns to be attentive. Or at least that's what I tell myself :-) Even among good friends, with whom I'm totally comfortable, sometimes I'm just watching them bounce a conversation back and forth pretty fast, but I'm still paying attention and interjecting randomly when I have something to say.

 

I think you're doing the right thing just talking more. There isn't anything wrong with awkward. Everyone's awkward in some way. It makes things interesting. I'm no expert, but I would say don't try anything as forced or rote as following up everything you say with a question. Seems like that wouldn't lead to natural conversation. Just be a slightly more talkative, confident version of yourself. Fake it 'til you make it.

 

What are you reading for the challenge?

[NeverThatBored]

I just finished reading Love in the time of Cholera (which I didn't love), and now I'm reading a book called You, which seems like it's going to be a mystery story centered around a video game company, which seems pretty interesting!

[NeverThatBored]

Week 3 Update & Regroup

 

I'm doing fairly well, all things considered. My first challenge was so perfect that anything less than that bothers me, but I'm trying to get over that mindset. I'm not doing badly, by a longshot. In addition to the challenge stuff I'm doing, I've been attending my Aikido class, avoiding food after 8pm most days, doing some yoga videos, and occasionally running.

 

Strength Training

My biggest struggle this challenge is the strength training. I do my bootcamp class weekly and I have a lot of fun with that, but having that in there really throws my BBWW schedule off. I'm only doing one BBWW per week in addition to the bootcamp (or 3, if I miss the bootcamp), but I think that only doing the one session is making it harder mentally. I really really drag my feet when I need to do it. This week, I actually did it on Sunday of week 4, though I'm counting it for my week three. 

 

I think I might need to up it to 2 per week, regardless of the bootcamp, so that I'm maintaining it and I'm getting more mental practice at getting myself to work out. I've increased my pushups to 15 per set (still struggling mightily with that last set), 15 dumbbell rows on each side, and 30 second one-legged planks. Per this week's mini, I tried burpees instead of jumping jacks on the last set. I managed a meager 5, but I'm excited to have done my first burpees. The only way to get better at things is to start doing them.

 

Next week, I think I'm going to add in 10 chair dips and hope that my sweat doesn't send me flying off my slippery folding chairs.

 

Scheduling

I think I need to come up with a more consistent schedule for the rest of the challenge. Here's what I'm thinking:

 

Sunday - BBWW

Monday - Aikido 

Tuesday - Bootcamp

Wednesday - rest/yoga (maybe lunchtime running)

Thursday - Aikido

Friday - BBWW

Saturday - rest/yoga 

 

Of course, I did a make up BBWW on Sunday this week, so I should consider squeezing an extra in this Wednesday depending on how I feel post-bootcamp. 

 

Walking

I went to TWO walking meetups this weekend and walked for about 2 hours at each of them. I got to go exploring and get my miles up! I'm right on track at the 50ish mile point for three weeks. I've been having some arch pain in my foot for a while now, which definitley gets worse with walking. I think I need to start using a combo of lacrosse ball massages and icing to try to soothe it. I have flat feet, so I suspect this pain is related to that.

 

Food

I'm doing ok with food too. I get really bad carb flu when I cut out grains - I start getting intensely groggy and brain foggy. I took 4 hours of naps yesterday, and was feeling really out of it, so I had my first of three cheat days and had a cookie bar with a little ice cream. I felt SO much better it was amazing, but then I took it too far and also had a muffin, and felt terrible afterwards. So everything in moderation. I made the mistake of buying ice cream, and knowing it was in the freezer, I ended up eating a few spoonfuls today too. I'm going to throw it out. Clearly I have not leveled up enough that I can handle having it around.

 

My weight had gone down to a new low of 135 (goal is 128), but after the travel last weekend it surged back up again. The battle continues!

 

Reading

I'm doing a good job of reading at least a few pages of something every day. I'm getting into the book I'm reading ("You" by Austin Grossman) so I put in increasingly more reading time this week.  

[Lag a'mhuilin]

You know...you could put a towel over the folding chair :-P

 

When I cave and buy too much dessert, rather than keeping it at home where I'll finish it, I take it to work and leave it in the communal food area. Those piranhas will eat anything!

 

How long have you been practicing Aikido?

[NeverThatBored]

I'm trying to make an effort to post daily about my progress, so feel free to keep me accountable if you happen around.

 

Strength: Nothing today, since it was Aikido night

 

Walking: Did 1.72 at work during lunch but didn't get anything in in between getting home and heading to Aikido. Also, my knees ACHE like crazy. I'm not really sure what it's from...maybe from doing 12 miles over the weekend? I walk every day so I feel like that shouldn't be affecting me, and I never really get knee pain, but walking seems to be the most likely culprit. Unless I did something to it when I was doing my BBWW yesterday? My arch has been hurting a lot too, so I've started to aggressively ice it and massage with a lacrosse ball.

 

Food: On track! I'm already feeling the effects from this weekend's indulgences mostly fade away. I had scrambled eggs with avocado for breakfast. I cooked some beef this morning to throw in a lunch salad, but it tasted off to me so I ended up eating around it. Then I had some leftover paleo chicken enchilada casserole for dinner. 

 

Reading: Read a little bit of the extras at the end of the story I just finished. I think my next book is going to be Egg & Spoon, by Gregory Maguire. 

[NeverThatBored]

You know...you could put a towel over the folding chair :-P

 

When I cave and buy too much dessert, rather than keeping it at home where I'll finish it, I take it to work and leave it in the communal food area. Those piranhas will eat anything!

 

How long have you been practicing Aikido?

 

Whoops! I missed your comment. So clever with your towel techniques.

 

I actually just started taking Aikido classes through the local community college's summer offerings, but it's a dojo that meets regularly, so I decided to stick with it after the community college class ends this week. Soooo, I've had about 6 classes so far.  

 

It's a lot of fun, though I'm frustratingly terrible at footwork so far. 

[NeverThatBored]

Aww man, made it onto a second page. #can'tstopwon'tstop

 

I had another good day today! I signed up for Nerd Fitness Yoga, since I'm a sucker for online yoga classes. I'd already decided that if it came in under $50 I'd go for it, and it actually did! So I plan to try out the first video tomorrow after work.

 

Strength: Tonight was my bootcamp class, and we did strength & conditioning. For the strength portion, we pulled tires up a hill backwards by squatting and thrusting upward to pull the tires back. My quads are sure feeling it! I love most any workout that uses tires though. There are only 2 more weeks of the free summer sessions and then I'll have to decide if I want to pay to keep taking them (early in the morning instead of evenings too, so there are a few factors to consider). I just started Aikido, so signing up for so many new things at once might not agree with my budget.

 

Walking: I did my lunchtime walk, but again I didn't get a post-work walk in before class. It's probably not a terrible idea to let my knees/arch rest, so I'm not too concerned at this point.

 

Food: I made a protein smoothie for breakfast, ate the last of my casserole for lunch, and scavenged some leftover green beans and ground beef ragú for dinner. I don't typically eat after 8pm so evening classes make dinner timing tricky. I do kind of feel wobbly now so I might have some milk or something. 

 

Reading: I finished the last little bit of You this morning and then finished the last of How to Win Friends and Influence People, which I was reading on breaks at work. Then, I realized I had preordered a book that arrived today, so I started that instead of Egg & Spoon! It's Court of Fives, by Kate Elliot, who writes some really great fantasy books. This is YA, which is a new genre from her. It's a fantasy story about an athletic competition, so it was basically made for me.

[Briniel]

You're doing great! I feel flattered that you wrote you're impressed with my energy, but I honestly feel like we're on the same page there. What with Aikido, bootcamp, strenght training, walking, healthy eating, reading and now more yoga... hear who's talking Aikido sounds fun, according to google-images it's a lot of throwing people to the ground.

Did you take a look at NF yoga already? I'm not sure yet how to feel about it. Good luck in the second half of the challenge, keep going strong!