Jumping In!

[SnowOwl]

It's late, but I just found this site and challenge and I'm jumping in! I started my own "challenge" two weeks ago so I should be right on track.

 

Hi I am SnowOwl and this is my first challenge. I am naturally very thin, but have lately lost a bit of weight and need to gain it back, plus more to get me in the healthy range. I’m 6’ and weighed 124 when this challenge started. I also haven’t been exercising and want to build up my strength. I can’t eat any dairy or too much soy and am vegetarian, so high protein is a challenge for me.

 

Main Quest:

Get my weight into the healthy range and be strong enough to do whatever needs doing around our property.

 

Quest 1:

Gain 6 pounds by increasing to and then maintaining my daily calories at 3,000

 

Quest 2:

Increase my protein intake by 5g per week up to the amount set for me by my nutritionist. (Finding out what that amount is tomorrow!)

 

Quest 3:

Do the beginner body weight workout twice a week and yoga twice a week

 

Motivation: To get to where I feel healthy and my doctor is no longer concerned about my weight and bone health.

[trawlerman]

Welcome, SnowOwl! We saved a spot for you so it's good to finally see you here! ;-)

[SnowOwl]

Updates:

1. Three days in a row of 3,000+ calories!

2. Protein over 100g two days in a row. (The nutritionist set my range at 90-110, so I'm aiming for 100g/day)

3. Workouts are on track too:

Sunday - Bodyweight 

Monday - Relaxing Yoga

Tonight - Workout Yoga

[Macha]

WTG, SnowOwl! Congrats! How did you increase your calories and protein so much?

[SnowOwl]

Thank you Macha!

 

Lots of research on vegan proteins plus adding more fish to my diet.

 

I stuffed myself every second of everyday for a week or two until my body got used to the new food plan. It killed my energy levels, but they are coming back up.

 

Now I have a basic meal plan that feels good and I add in snacks (trail mix or smoothies) depending on my workout level for the day or as needed to account for a lower protein or calorie meal.

 

Breakfast: 8 ounces OJ, 2 eggs, 1/2c black beans, 1T salsa, 1/2 large avocado and 1 piece of high-protein seed bread/toast with smart balance (homemade)

 

(smoothie on strength-training days)

 

Lunch: sandwich (seed bread again) - tuna or peanut butter, popcorn with smart balance, carrots (or sometimes I just have leftover dinner)

 

(trail mix)

 

Dinner: I have a rotation of things that I go through every 2 weeks. (Hopefully this works, I just started it this week!) One of my current favorites is quinoa, black bean, and sweet potato enchilada casserole.

 

I subbed in quinoa for rice in any meal I could (stir-fry, curry, etc.) and that brought my protein up. Also my bread has chia, flax, and hemp seeds in it. I am eating fish 3-4x week (2 lunches, 2 dinners). Peanut butter and chia seeds in smoothies. Nuts for snacks

 

And I eat one piece of homemade dessert every night! It helps with the calories and homemade means I can keep the sugar down.

 

myfitnesspal has been great at showing me the amount of protein in each item and each meal. I check it after dinner each night and then can grab a handful of trail mix or almonds if my calories or protein looks low for the day. It also allows me to make good combinations, so if a lunch has lower protein I can plan a dinner that is higher, or if I had a light lunch I can plan for a high-calorie dinner - once I got all my staple meals in there it was easy.

[SnowOwl]

I'm catching up on the new recruit mini-challenges...

 

Mini-Cahllenge #1

 

1 Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)? Is it reasonable?

Yes it is achievable and reasonable. 

 

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?

My quests are challenging, but reasonable. I don’t think I am taking on too much. The quests each focus on one step.

*After seeing my progress so far, my quest #1 is not quite challenging enough, I just had such poor results in the past that I thought it would be really hard - glad to be wrong and I'll just keep going past it!

 

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?

They are realistic and a good starting place. They may not get me to my overall quest within this challenge, but will put me further along the path.

 

4 Are your goals able to be measured and tracked? What will you use to track them?

Yes! A scale to check my weight once a week, myfitnesspal to track my protein intake, and my log to track workouts.

 

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€?

Ummm… 

I will grade weekly and then average them for my final grade.

A - fully met the quest (6 days out of 7 each week)

B -quest one 5 days out of 7; two 90-100 grams average; three 3 out of 4 workouts;  

C - quest one 4 days out of 7; two 80-90 grams average; three 2 workouts (1 yoga, 1 strength)

 

6 What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured?

If I get sick, I’ll cancel out a day or two, but then I may have to average in a low grade for that week and start going again as soon as I can. For an injury, I will substitute with activities I can do and keep going.

 

 

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?

There are no special occasions for me during this challenge, but I did forget that I will be on vacation for one of the weeks! So, my plan will be to substitute hiking for my regular workouts that week.

 

8 Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another?

Nope they all work cooperatively towards my end goal.

 

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?

Yes I do! But I need to concretely schedule them in so I don’t forget or fall behind (get lazy) on challenging days.

 

10 Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest?

All my energy is focused on my main quest - weight gain. But, there are two habits I’m working on for this, eating more (in a healthy way) and exercising.

[WhiteBeltBrowncoat]

Hi snowowl, looks like you've got some good strategies in place. I keep trying to use my fitness pal, but so far I haven't been able to sustain it. I'll enter stuff fit a week, maybe two and then fall off. The ability so see how much protein is really useful. I can never quite hit my goal though. The quinoa, black bean, sweet potato enchilada casserole sounds delicious. I wish I had a good recipe for that. Wink wink.

[SnowOwl]

I've started tracking most days because of this challenge, but I doubt I will sustain it. Once I know how many calories I get from my regular meals, I can just do check-ins once in awhile or whenever I eat a new meal or have an off kind of day. Once I know that my main meals get me to my calorie and protein goals, I'll just know I hit the mark and not worry about the exact numbers.  

 

I haven't written the recipe down yet, it was a bunch of substitutions using an old recipe and I wan't sure if we would like it or not...but we did so I'll get on that! 

 

I didn't think I would be able to get my protein up there either, I'm rather amazed actually. It took the whole smarter not harder thing to finally make it work.

I tried to take my normal habits and find ways to increase the protein in them. So adding more seeds to my bread, eating two eggs instead of one, having nuts for snack, spreading a little more peanut butter on my sandwich, adding chopped nuts to regular meals - crisp topping, pasta, etc. 

[Lara]

Welcome SnowOwl!

 

Best of luck with your gain-weight efforts! It is tough, but you can do it!

[SnowOwl]

Mini-Challenge 3:

So your challenge for this week has 3 parts:

1. Pinpoint the quest in your journey that is giving you the most uphill (or one that you're struggling to achieve)

My strength-training quest is the most challenging for me - I just would rather sit around. In theory I want to do it and I always feel great afterwards, but the few minutes right beforehand…not so much.

 

2. Search through NF (forums or articles) to find one that is able to offer some assistance

I actually searched for other women who need to gain weight and strength and found a few - it’s hard to find them though. I wish NF had a separate mandatory check box or something for underweight members so we could find each other more easily. I think reading their threads will be the best motivation for me. Then I searched for motivation and found some good pep talks and tips from those working on achieving goals in lots of different areas.

 

3. Apply it to your challenge (no collecting underpants here).

I’ve followed a couple of threads to check in on when I’m needing some encouragement. I’m also using a few of the motivation tips and making a schedule with a set time to exercise along with some rules “No _____ until after I finish _______.†And I’m going to really focus on hitting that next level, maybe I need a sticker chart…

[SnowOwl]

I'm so glad I'm grading 6 days out 7 as a win for the week, because today was a fail. But the week is still a win and I'm ready for a better day tomorrow!

[WhiteBeltBrowncoat]

I'm so glad I'm grading 6 days out 7 as a win for the week, because today was a fail. But the week is still a win and I'm ready for a better day tomorrow!

Days that don't work as planned are part of life (I need to remember this one), but dusting yourself off and getting back to it, that's an awesome attitude to have. 

[SnowOwl]

Mini-Challenge 4:

 

1. Goal allocation:

   Q1: Gain 6 pounds, increase to and maintain daily calories at 3,000 = CHA 2; CON 1

   Q2: Increase protein and maintain at 90-110g/day = CON 2; WIS 2

   Q3: Beginner Bodyweight 2x/week; yoga 2x/week = STR 2; DEX1

 

2. Mid Challenge Summary:

   Q1: A

   Q2: A-

   Q3: A-

 

3. Challenge allocation:

   Q1: A (100%) =2 CHA; 1CON

   Q2: A- (90%) = 1.8 CON; 2 WIS 

   Q3: A- (90%) =  1.8 STR & .9 DEX

 

4. Signature:

   STR 1.8 | STA 0 | DEX .9 | CON 2.8 | WIS 2 | CHA 2

 

Level 1 Recruit

[SnowOwl]

Updates for this week:

I didn't check my weight this week due to PMS - I don't want to think it's increased and find out it was all puffiness and get discouraged, so I'm waiting, impatiently.

 

Quest 1: 3,000 calories/day - hitting this daily and starting to be able to guess my calorie intake better without computer assistance

 

Quest 2: 90-110 grams protein/ day - meeting this daily as well, though I am not good at estimating this yet

 

Quest 3: BBWW 2x/week and yoga 2x/week - my energy levels keep increasing so getting these workouts in is getting easier! I did my second BBWW for the week today, went to yoga class yesterday, and will do some online yoga Friday. I still can't do the full BBWW, but I'm getting better - 8 knee pushups each set this week and 45 seconds on each round of planks!

 

Oh, and I started working towards a pull-up today! (I'm not anywhere close, but I'm going to start intentionally moving in that direction!) 

[WhiteBeltBrowncoat]

Awesome! Sounds like things are going well for you.

[SaffronTurtle]

Congrats on your progress so far SnowOwl! Welcome to our ranks

 

Oh, and I started working towards a pull-up today! (I'm not anywhere close, but I'm going to start intentionally moving in that direction!) 

 

That's great! After I outgrew my kitchen table where I was doing inverted rows I found that investing in a pull-up bar was one of the best things I did when trying to reach my first pull-up. It might take a while but you seem very determined and I believe in you! Keep at it and you will get there before you know it!!

[SnowOwl]

Finished the week! Weekends are still giving me some challenges with protein intake, but I'm managing to meet my goals.

I did my BBWW today! 

 

I am leaving on a trip tomorrow and am concerned about staying on track with protein. It's hard to get vegan protein traveling, but since I'm not really vegan I can eat fish! So, the plan is to eat fish this week, lots of fish, did I mention I'm not a big seafood person?  

 

Often when traveling I increase my soy (which I am supposed to avoid) to make things easier,  but this trip is only 1 week before my thyroid check-in and I don't want to screw anything up, so no soy substitutes either.

 

I am planning on filling in with trial mix and probably a Protein Bar each day to make sure my protein stays up all week. Not the healthiest plan, but I won't have a lot of control over food this week so this is my best plan for now. I do know there is a fabulous breakfast place that has some vegan options in one of the towns we will be visiting. Smoothies, hot cocoa, scones...at least I'll be set for treats! I am also going to try to bake some high-protein sandwich bread before we leave tomorrow so I can make PB&J for lunches - great protein and easier on my tummy after whatever greasy things I eat during dinners out. (fish and chips is about the only way I like fish)

 

Should be a fun trip though with plenty of relaxing and lots of walking, hiking, and running in the sand with my dog! Oregon coast here we come!

[SaffronTurtle]

How exciting!! I've never been to Oregon but I hear the beaches are quite nice. I hope you trip goes splendidly!

[Lara]

Have a nice trip!

[SnowOwl]

I haven't been able to weigh-in for a couple weeks, but today I did and I made it to 130 pounds! I reached my (first) weight goal 1 week early! Now 5 more pounds to hit goal #2.

 

The coast was good, I kept things as close to normal as I could food-wise, ran on the beach with my dog, got a new coloring book, spent a whole afternoon reading the hammock...

[Lara]

Congratulations!! Awesome new numbers!

[SnowOwl]

I haven't been tracking meals since I mostly eat the same things and was on vacation last week with out any devices...sooo I need to do some tracking and make sure everything is still going strong this last week.

 

And I think I'm getting sick  

 

Just one yoga class (tonight) and one BBWW left this week to meet my goal, so I think I will try to do the BBWW tomorrow in case I get too sick before my regular workout day gets here. I'm rarely too sick to eat so I think I'll be ok there, cooking healthy meals will be more challenging as will protein intake, hopefully I just don't get sick!

[Bast]

Hey there, SnowOwl!!  

 

I see that you haven't  been tagged by any guilds, but you've been hanging out on the Assassin Recruits page as well as mentioned an interest in the Assassin Guild.  So on behalf of the Assassins Guild, I'd like to say "Welcome to the Rebellion"!!  It looks like you're already totally rocking the crap out of this 6WC!  Since you're in the home stretch, you know there's quite a bit to absorb about not only navigating, but succeeding in the Rebellion.  And finding a "home" in guild can be a great asset in succeeding!  

 

As you may have already noticed from the Assassin Recruits Forum, we Assassins are a fun-loving bunch who embrace movement and fluidity, thrive off both competition and cooperation, and prize enjoyment of whatever we are doing; but most of all we are determined to be the masters of our own bodies.  We train anywhere, anytime, with anything, in whatever ways we think best (or are just plain fun).  The world is our playground!  So feel free to check out our info/annoucement thread or phonebook to find people of similar goals &/or interests, hang out some more at the Recruit Q/A Hangout thread, or just drop by the Assassin's Den to say hi!  We use the term "focus" a little loosely because we tend to have a lot of shiny goals at once, but that just makes the whole thing that much more fun!

 

Good luck with the rest of your challenge!  I know you're gonna finish strong!!

 

[SnowOwl]

I am sick

 

But I did my last BBWW today, although modified, but still I did it even though I am sick!

 

I am really looking forward to the week break between challenges so that I can just rest and get well, but I'm also excited about the new challenge. It's easy to keep "recuperating" for longer than needed, but the new challenge will get me pushing back into things quickly.

[SaffronTurtle]

Sorry to hear you're sick But! As you said the timing of the break between challenges works out really well for you, it'll give you plenty of time for re-coup before you tackle your next challenge! Get well soon SnowOwl!