Alanna Takes a Walk

[Alanna]

 

 

Hiya… I’m a little late, but since I have a new goal it’s time for another challenge :). For those who don’t know me, I’m a grad student and powerlifter. I haven’t been around the past few challenges since I’ve been struggling with some chronic health issues that flared up in September. For the most part I’ve maintained my NF-inspired habits, but there are a few things I want to focus on for the next 22 days.

 

 

Goal 1: 10,000+ steps, as measured by my Fitbit, each day. This is the new goal and, as evidenced by my title, the focus for this challenge. I’m holding on to a bunch of extra weight because of all of the endocrine issues, and I need to find a way to shift it without having my body flip out because I’m asking too much of it or cutting calories too low. So… lots of walking. To give an idea of where I am now, since my work is pretty sedentary and I bike more than walk, I’ve been averaging ~5,000 steps/day before this.

 

Grading: A = 21+ days, B = 19-20 days, C = 17-18 days

 

 

Goal 2: Take all the supplements, and take them at the right time (I’m pretty good about this, but sometimes miss my afternoon/dinner supplements).

 

Grading: A = <=3 misses, B = <= 6 misses, C = <= 9 misses

 

 

Goal 3: Have regular Epsom salt baths (~3x/week).

 

Grading: A = 9+ baths, B = 7-8 baths, C = 5-6 baths

 

 

LUYL Goal: Meditate every day. I’ve mostly been using the Stop, Breathe, Think app to track this.

 

Grading: A = 21+ days, B = 19-20 days, C = 17-18 days

 

 

 

Otherwise, I’m still making lift, eat, and sleep my priorities. On the food front, I’m still following the Autoimmune Paleo Protocol, but with a more moderate carb intake (mostly from sweet potatoes, plus a little fruit). Lifting is finally feeling good again, and I’ve gotten into a good routine with a variation of Wendler’s 5/3/1 that has me lifting 4x/week. Progress has been super slow the last several months, but I’ve taken this as an opportunity to work on my form and weaknesses (good-bye rounded back deadlifts!). At the end of my last cycle, my heavy singles were 245 lbs (squat), 135 lbs (bench), 310 lbs (deadlift), and 95 lbs (OHP).

 

[elvenengineer]

 

Hi! You're back! I wish you lots of luck with the walking, 10,000 steps has been an unofficial goal of mine for a while down.

[Alanna]

 

 

Hi! You're back! I wish you lots of luck with the walking, 10,000 steps has been an unofficial goal of mine for a while down.

 

Hey! I'm kinda sorta back -- I'll be popping in and out, as has been the norm this past year or so. I need to get Tapatalk up and running on my phone again so I can catch up on everyone's challenges during my rest sets :). How are things going with you these days? Have you been able to resolve the health issues you were dealing with?

 

By the way, did you see that the Wookiee deadlift milestone has gone up?

My PR is 142.5 kg, so I have 7.5 kg to go before I can nab the Wookiee deadlifter title again. Ah well -- something to work towards!

[elvenengineer]

 

 

Hey! I'm kinda sorta back -- I'll be popping in and out, as has been the norm this past year or so. I need to get Tapatalk up and running on my phone again so I can catch up on everyone's challenges during my rest sets :). How are things going with you these days? Have you been able to resolve the health issues you were dealing with?

 

By the way, did you see that the Wookiee deadlift milestone has gone up?

My PR is 142.5 kg, so I have 7.5 kg to go before I can nab the Wookiee deadlifter title again. Ah well -- something to work towards!

I got some health stuff figured out, only to be sidelined by other health stuff lol.

tl;dr: Mystery debilitating chronic fatigue + fever turned out to be a chronic sinus infection (discovered mid-January, took about a month to get over, was completely well by mid-February). All was going well until I hurt my back (early March), then got exposed to some paint fumes in the lab I work in at school (late March), activating asthma symptoms I haven't felt in years + headaches and dizzy spells. Coming out of the tail end of it though! Finally starting to feel better and pushing out thesis work again. Hoping to be done by April 19th.

 

Did the wookie weight change? I am still aiming for the female Wookie standard, which seems to be the same. It's still 100kg. Not sure if the male one went up?

And I have faith you'll get it! Whoo Wookie Deadlifts

 

Still enjoying the new location, or are you missing the UK?

[Strawberry Squatcake]

I'm struggling to stay active here, too. I used to keep up with the boards daily on my breaks at work, but now the site is blocked. It's tough to do whole days in a short time in the evenings.

 

I'm sorry to hear your chronic stuff is still, well, chronic. Do you enjoy AIP? In my experience with anything nagging, upping the carbs is good for everything. I found more carbs helped me sleep better - which was especially important. 

 

I like your positive perspective on slow lifting progress. Hang in there. Good luck with the steps!

[AugustaAdaByron]

Glad to see you back with a challenge!  

 

 

[Alanna]

 

I got some health stuff figured out, only to be sidelined by other health stuff lol.

tl;dr: Mystery debilitating chronic fatigue + fever turned out to be a chronic sinus infection (discovered mid-January, took about a month to get over, was completely well by mid-February). All was going well until I hurt my back (early March), then got exposed to some paint fumes in the lab I work in at school (late March), activating asthma symptoms I haven't felt in years + headaches and dizzy spells. Coming out of the tail end of it though! Finally starting to feel better and pushing out thesis work again. Hoping to be done by April 19th.

 

Did the wookie weight change? I am still aiming for the female Wookie standard, which seems to be the same. It's still 100kg. Not sure if the male one went up?

And I have faith you'll get it! Whoo Wookie Deadlifts

 

Still enjoying the new location, or are you missing the UK?

 

Ah, that's frustrating -- but I'm glad you figured out the fatigue you were dealing with for so long and that the other issues are being worked out, too :). Good luck with finishing your thesis!

 

Male wookiee weight used to be 125 kg -- guess they started bulking? And yes -- yay for Wookiee deadlifts! I see you've been making nice progress towards your goal :D.

 

Hah, you have the "still" in the wrong clause! I'll probably continue missing the UK until I return :P. Life here is alright -- it's just that the health issues have left me with little time or energy to settle in properly. And I actually decided last month to take a medical leave from my program next year, so I'm going to uproot myself again and move home in June. Even if I am consistently feeling better by that time (which is a big "if"), my second year will be a lot more challenging, which isn't good when I need to prioritize getting (and staying) better.

 

 

I'm struggling to stay active here, too. I used to keep up with the boards daily on my breaks at work, but now the site is blocked. It's tough to do whole days in a short time in the evenings.

 

I'm sorry to hear your chronic stuff is still, well, chronic. Do you enjoy AIP? In my experience with anything nagging, upping the carbs is good for everything. I found more carbs helped me sleep better - which was especially important. 

 

I like your positive perspective on slow lifting progress. Hang in there. Good luck with the steps!

 

AIP is surprisingly easy these days, especially now that I'm no longer trying to do low carb on top of it. I would like my almond butter back (and will probably try to reintroduce it once I'm feeling good for a couple weeks straight), but other than that, I don't miss much. It also helps that I seem to recover from my lifting sessions much better now that I've removed some inflammatory foods. And yes, ditto on the carbs and sleep. Carbs are tricky for me since I also have to worry about potential blood sugar issues (lots of diabetes in my family), but I seem to tolerate certain carbs well in moderation. I think it's also helping with the adrenal piece, which, if I remember correctly, is something you've been working through too.

 

Thanks! I saw you have a challenge up, too -- I'm glad you've been feeling better recently! Your patience is inspiring -- it's taken me some time to realize that I can't do ALL the things right now.

 

 

Glad to see you back with a challenge!  

 

 

 

I couldn't stay away for too long :D.

 

[SpecialSundae]

Welcome back! Sorry to hear you're feeling crook but the weights are looking awesome!

[elvenengineer]

Hey, are you still doing okay?

[Alanna]

I'M ALIVE.

 

Walking is happening. Haven't missed a 10k day since I started that goal.

 

Meditation was good for the first two weeks before school got crazy *notes for another challenge.*

Epsom salt baths went similarly.

Supplement timing improved.

 

And I'm picking up heavier things (heavy singles from last cycle were 260/150/325/100 lbs for squat/bench/deadlift/OHP). Might test my maxes this next cycle (before moving home) depending on how I feel.