innkeeper LadyShello Makes a Plan and Sticks to it

[Shello]

Backstory

Spoiler

 

 

I found NF in the summer of 2014.  I was very overweight and found most day to day tasks difficult.  I spent the rest of 2014 going back it time as a Time Lord companion, losing 80 pounds along the way. I never quite made it back all the way to my goal but the point of the journey was to find the real me and take my life back.  Little did I know at the time that I was really Wonder Woman, under a spell that turned me into an ogre.  I’m still in the process of breaking the spell by defeating villains that I confront on my new journey.  Since then I’ve gotten stronger and more active.  I started by just walking 1 mile a day and have since run a 5K, taken up rucking, lifting, and Shovelglove and just plain old trying to be as awesome as possible.  

 

 

I have not been seeing the progress I’d like.  As far as fat lost, I’ve gone a little backwards.  Overall I am making better food choices but I am just not consistent with it.  My variances have been too frequent and too large.  I keep undoing any progress I have made.  I’ve got a solid workout schedule in place but diet is 80% of the success.  And I am not succeeding in that area.  So this challenge will focus on diet.  I’m not giving up on the workouts.  I still have 3 planned events for this year that I need to train for.  But it’s still early enough in the year that I can focus on specific training for those events next challenge.  Though running will start to make an appearance during this challenge.  

 

Eat right. Lift. Ruck. Run. Sleep. Fight Villains. Repeat.

 

 

 

Bulletproof Bracelets

Eat Right. I just recently bought these new containers for batch cooked meals.  I absolutely love them.  I’ve been batch cooking for quite a few challenges now but we usually just store each item separately in larger containers and then for dinners everyone serves up their own plates and we eat.  But I’ve found that we either run out of food too early in the week and then scramble to come up with something mid-week or we overcompensate and make too much food.  Part of the problem is there is no governing the portion sizes.  I log my recipe on MFP and then say it makes 6 servings.  But there isn’t a reliable way to know that my plate is 1 / 6 of the whole.  So now I will plan each week’s meals ahead of time on the weekend.  Sunday is batch cooking day, and then all meals will be pre-portioned in the new containers.  I’ll know exactly how many I need for me and the rest of the family.  It may not be glamorous, but it’s effective.  

The Plan. Each weekend I will prepare the menu for the week and batch cook all the meals and plan the macros for the week. This should make it really easy to stick to it and allow little room for excuses.  And my portions and food logging will be more accurate, allowing me to make better decisions. My current macro goals are 1600 calories on most days, 1700 on recovery days.  Protein should be at least 100g but preferably in the 120’s.  I don’t have a specific carb goal but it should be lower than the protein for any given day. Macros are subject to change but only as part of the weekly plan. Variances are allowed but with restriction.  Variances must be planned ahead when I make the weekly menu. 1 spontaneous variance allowed for the entire challenge.  

 

Another tweak: The menu will consist of 3 meals and 1 snack per day.  This still leaves room in the macros for more.  I don’t have to use them but I suspect using them will alleviate cravings down the road.  I will prepare a list of pre-approved snacks that can be added, on the fly, on any given day to accommodate hunger or energy levels.  Each snack has the macros predetermined so I can easily select one that fits the day.  And everything must be measured.  

 

Amazonian Strength

Lift. 3 days a week.  I have a trainer for the time being and he gives me 2 new workouts each month to move into my rotation.  Currently I am on a nice schedule with 1 upper body day, 1 lower body day, and 1 full body day.  But this is subject to change.  I am also working on accessory work for a combination of personal projects - Best Ass of the Midwest (P:BAM), pullup, and shoulder rehab.  At the moment the shoulder rehab is the top priority.  

 

Lasso of Truth

Ruck. or Run. The plan is to ruck or run three days a week.  I am thinking the best combination now is to run twice during the weekdays and then a ruck on the weekend.  But I will fiddle with this ratio a bit I’m sure.  Bonus Points: 1 Ruck WOD during the challenge, 1 Ruck with coupon during the challenge, 1 Long Ruck (4 hours?) during the challenge.  

 

Tiara

Sleep and a Few Other Things. This is where I focus on all the other aspects of my 2016 Roadmap and just trying to be a better adult, have more fun, and be happy with myself.  I’m still working on being more productive.  The format from the last challenge was a good start but it didn’t really work for me. I’m still planning on making a list each week but I need to make a distinction between adulting things that need to get done and things that I would like to get done as part of my roadmap.  The latter are typically enrichment activities that I need to make a priority in order for it to become a habit, but they aren’t necessarily To-Dos for the week.  

 

I’ll continue with the pomodoro method but rather than dedicate 1 pomodoro to each task category, I’ll just pick 2 or 3 things each day from the weekly task list that need to get done and work on all them for a tomato.  I’ll keep working with the goal of 5 for this challenge until I find out what works best.  I’ll also track pomodoros for enrichment activities (reading, duolingo, music, art, etc).  Perhaps a goal of 2 a week would round this off nicely for a total of 7 pomodoro’s a week. The evil monkey and the Dark Playground metaphor from this article is still helpful. If you haven’t read it (including part II) I think you should.  Plus I’ll refer to it and it will only make sense if you do.

Konmari. I have most of the books and movies done.  I still need to do my Philosophy books and some of the cookbooks in the basement.  Then I’ll be starting on the kids’ clothes.     

 

Villain Face-Off Battle

This is where the magic happens.  If you are new to this, other NF rebels sign up to represent a villain.  Each week I randomly roll for a new villain who brings with them a particular skill set that I must defeat.  When a new villain is selected, each of us set our own goals in the given categories and compete for the week.  The closest to reaching their goal at 100% wins the week.  I get 1 stat point for each villain I defeat or that ends in a draw.  I really dug the new format for last challenge where you guys get to pick your own villains (or in some cases good guys or somewhere in the middle) and then select the goal category as you see fit.  Afterall, each villain brings a unique battle and Wonder Woman is prepared for them all!  

 

If you are interested, please sign up here.  Try and stick to DC villains, though exceptions have been made. Then select two of the goal categories to be your specialty.  I am being pretty strict on food already so you will notice that food is not one of the categories.  I’ve tried to spread things out a bit to replace it with a different category so there is more variety.  

 

 

 

[Shello]

Reserved for Villain Face-Off results

 

Week 1

vs Poison Ivy (RES); Defeated: +1 CHA

 

Week 2

vs Scarecrow (Deftona); Victorious: +0

 

Week 3

vs Cheetah (Briniel); Victorious: +0

 

Week 4

vs Elektra (Terah) and Mary Marvel (jmk); Double defeat: +1 CHA

[Shello]

Snacking Strategies

 

 

In the event of cravings:

 

First, ponder these questions:

Do you have calories left compared to goal?

Are you really hungry?

Are you sure you are not craving food to deal with some emotion?

 

If you answered ‘yes’ to all these questions, select a snack from the list below that fits your remaining macros.  If you answered ‘no’ to any of these questions refer to the second set of questions.

 

Will this negatively affect any PVP’s you are engaged with?

Do you need this?

Does this align with your future goals?

If you still want a snack, select one from the list.  

Spoiler

I will add more as I come up with new ideas and create them.

 

Calories carbs/protein

Protein shake at the gym (1) 320 16/47

Protein shake at the gym (2) 320 34/25

Banana + PB 300 33/10

Cheese and crackers 300 19/13

Quest Bar 190 20/21

Roasted Almonds (24) 180 6/7

Granola bar 170 20/4

1 egg + 1 egg white 120 2/10

Greek yogurt and berries 106 15/12

Cashews 100 5/3

1 egg 100 1/7

turkey sausage 80 1/11

Piece of fruit 50-100 15/1

Hummus (2T) 50 5/1

carrots (½ c) 35 8/1

Increase protein portion with dinner - varies

 

[Shello]

Reserved for Progress updates

 

Bulletproof Bracelets

A+/A/B/C

 

Amazonian Strength

A+/A+/Pass/Pass

 

Lasso of Truth

A/B-/Pass/Pass

[Leimanu]

Totally digging your challenge.  Stacy's post on batch cooking and her amazing fridge pic inspired me, so I can't wait to see what you cook up with all of your nutritional considerations.

 

Good luck!

[Tanktimus the Encourager]

Following along. Looking forward to seeing you smash more villains.

[RES]

Following along...not brave enough to step up to the villain challenge just yet

[Shello]

3 minutes ago, RES said:

Following along...not brave enough to step up to the villain challenge just yet

 

I think you should.  Poison Ivy would be a great villain....

 

Either way, glad to have you along for the ride.

[Maggie-Miau]

Loving your set-up, friend! May you slay, fabulously, and have a great time!

[RES]

10 minutes ago, LadyShello said:

 

I think you should.  Poison Ivy would be a great villain....

 

Flattery my dear...

 

 

[Shello]

Flattery my dear... [emoji6]

 

 

YASS!

[NeverThatBored]

Following! I love how you wrote out the snacking plan. I think that will definitely help you. 

 

I like the modifications to the pomodoro goal too. They make a lot of sense!

[Shello]

3 hours ago, Leimanu said:

Totally digging your challenge.  Stacy's post on batch cooking and her amazing fridge pic inspired me, so I can't wait to see what you cook up with all of your nutritional considerations.

 

Good luck!

 

I hadn't even seen that yet but then I saw Chris-TienJinn link it in her new challenge.  Expect lots of pictures...although I didn't take any this Sunday.

 

2 hours ago, Tanktimus the Encourager said:

Following along. Looking forward to seeing you smash more villains.

 

Always glad to have you around for moral support, or for some villain smack talk.  

 

1 hour ago, MiaulinTheCat said:

Loving your set-up, friend! May you slay, fabulously, and have a great time!

 

HI. Rangering this challenge fabulously sounds like a great goal. 

 

27 minutes ago, NeverThatBored said:

Following! I love how you wrote out the snacking plan. I think that will definitely help you. 

 

I like the modifications to the pomodoro goal too. They make a lot of sense!

 

Thanks!  I hope all these tools help.  It will be an adventure. 

[Terah]

Love the goals, and I'm looking forward to seeing you battle all the evil in the world

Let the games begin!

[Briniel]

6 hours ago, RES said:

Following along...not brave enough to step up to the villain challenge just yet

I felt the same way, but just took the plunge. I learned last challenge that pvp really motivates me, so why not?

 

Loving the new challenge, Shello! It's so weird, last week I couldn't wait for week 0 and some relaxation, now I can't wait for the challenge to start (even though there's still so much left to do before that...)

[DarK_RaideR]

I'll try to keep up. No promises

[SomeGuyFromScotland]

In as always!

[ExpectJade]

Folowing along! And i am stealing that snack chart

[skinNbones]

I also like that snac flowchart.

Good going on the batch cooking. Do you find this saves you time or is it a bit of a chore on Sunday?

"On second thought, let's not go to Camelot. It is a silly place."

[deftona]

9 hours ago, LadyShello said:

Sunday is batch cooking day, and then all meals will be pre-portioned in the new containers.  I’ll know exactly how many I need for me and the rest of the family.  It may not be glamorous, but it’s effective.  

 

 

Oh I beg to differ.... 

 

 

Following along, as always! 

[thekatisalie]

I always love how detailed your challenges are. You're an inspiration. Let's do this!

[Shello]

5 hours ago, Terah said:

Love the goals, and I'm looking forward to seeing you battle all the evil in the world

Let the games begin!

 

Thanks Terah!  I'll be cuddling with the Doodlies and fighting the villains.  Wonder Woman is a lover and a fighter. 

 

5 hours ago, Briniel said:

I felt the same way, but just took the plunge. I learned last challenge that pvp really motivates me, so why not?

 

Loving the new challenge, Shello! It's so weird, last week I couldn't wait for week 0 and some relaxation, now I can't wait for the challenge to start (even though there's still so much left to do before that...)

 

That's the spirit.  The PVP has saved me from totally dropping all my goals more than once.  

 

5 hours ago, DarK_RaideR said:

I'll try to keep up. No promises

 

Thanks for stopping by.  I'll understand when you can't.  

 

4 hours ago, SomeGuyFromScotland said:

In as always!

 

Glad to have you as always. 

 

4 hours ago, Rab397 said:

Folowing along! And i am stealing that snack chart

 

Rab, did you just whip out Thomas on my thread?

[Shello]

4 hours ago, skinNbones said:

I also like that snac flowchart.

Good going on the batch cooking. Do you find this saves you time or is it a bit of a chore on Sunday?

"On second thought, let's not go to Camelot. It is a silly place."

 

It's both actually.  It is quite a chore but I really think it saves the week.  Keep in mind I am now batch cooking weekday breakfasts for 3 people and dinners for the entire week for 4 people.  I make the family help when having them in the kitchen is not a hindrance.  

 

4 hours ago, deftona said:

 

Oh I beg to differ.... 

 

 

 

 

 

I need this.  This would turn the chore of Sunday batch cooking into a Sunday spent saving the world.  Now, if I only knew someone who made aprons.....

 

 

45 minutes ago, therealkat said:

I always love how detailed your challenges are. You're an inspiration. Let's do this!

 

Awww, thanks Kat! 

[Aces3000]

Following along as usual. Your goals are well thought out and I can't wait to see your progress. I just don't have the time to do these challenges it seems like. Maybe my goal this time around is making this a priority. You definitely are a motivating force so thank you!

[fearless 2.0]

i share the sunday night batch cooking goal with u and really like ur challenge goals!  *click*