Salambander Respawns For Victory

[PettyMort]

Ha! What are the odds? I was going to challenge myself to a nice, cosy, solo adventure using my character sheet, and just happened to be planning to start it tomorrow. My boyfriend has just joined the rebellion and in solidarity (and because I've been needing a refresher anyway) I'm respawning from scratch. That's right - my stats are going back down to big fat zeroes. And that's pretty representative of how my health has been - until a week or two ago I was the heaviest I've ever been. Scary... it kinda snuck up on me. 

 

 

 

 

My big why: I want to be the most evolved version of myself. I used to base my big whys on appearance or feelings, but I think this one actually encompasses it. Like a pokemon, or a superhero, or something, I want to push myself to be as strong, as healthy, and as awesome as possible. Evolution doesn't happen overnight but bit by bit with slight mutations - as I add new habits, I'll mutate into the badass I think I am on the inside. 

 

 

Cleaning out the batcave has seen my mom and I get rid of all sugary food in the house. I've also held back on restocking the diet sodas in the fridge. I've been trying to drink only water, and I've been cooking all my meals mostly because I'm house sitting, home alone, in the middle of nowhere and I am still a bit scared of driving in this country (Mauritius) so I only really venture out when I run out of vegetables or feel like swimming in the ocean. Since my parents left last Saturday I have had only ONE meal I didn't cook myself! That's amazing; I was, previously, ordering takeout for lunch and dinner every day. Hence being the biggest I've ever been. I've also hired a personal trainer who comes to my house every week, makes me sweat buckets and pushes me further than I think I can go, and then I repeat the workout I do with him two more times before the next session. 

 

 

So, being a lowly level 0 once again, I'm focusing just on three goals: 

1. Eat only food I cook myself. This will save me money and stop me from going to restaurants. It's also a fun challenge to make them as low carb as possible - I've recently discovered zoodles and am in love with them.

2. Work out 3 times a week, including the personal trainer session. The workouts include a lot of strength training, because I want to learn how to do it on my own with good form. We also do a lot of composite movements and bodyweight training. I also walk the dog every day (or rather, he walks me). 

3. Read for at least 3 hrs a day. I review books over on my blog, and I've got such a massive backlog of books that they keep expiring, which means I have to buy them. So I'm trying to get through the 10 overdue books as quickly as possible, and then I need to get through all the non-expiring self-published books that nice authors have sent me. Eish. So, I absolutely HAVE to increase my reading time. No more TV!

 

Oh, and although these goals are pretty basic, I definitely class myself as an adventurer because I love scuba diving, geocaching, and trying out new kinds of exercise. Next month I'll be heading to Dallas to visit my boyfriend where I aim to try as many new things as possible, including a burlesque class, a human-sized maze, a marching band show, and more.

 

Here are some photos of previous adventures: 

 

In August I'm moving to China! Currently learning Mandarin in preparation. This is where I'll be living: 

 

Nerd stuff: I am a whovian, cross-stitcher, book worm, former mathlete, casual gamer and scifi nut. I like science, history and gadgetry. I'm in the academy, and am too active for my own good in the women's fb group. And this is the me I want to get back to (but with less mud): 

 

 

Allons-y!

 

Additionally, I'm joining Sylvaa in the #LoveMe challenge. 

 

[PettyMort]

Index

 

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Lessons Learned

[PettyMort]

Week 1 Write-up

Tally: 
Workouts: 3/3 (A)

Diet (Level 4): 20/21 (B+)

Reading: 18/21 (B)

Mandarin: 6/14 (D)

LoveMe: 100% (A)

 

Level up! Next week I'll be eating at level 6 (I satisfy the requirements!). 

 

Day 1: Sunday

Goal 1: Fitness

Walked the dog. Did some academy stuff, such as 15 sec plank, 10 wall push ups, touching my shins and toes and 10 bodyweight squats. Piece of cake; I was purely farming for XP! Bwahahaha. Am now Level 5.

Goal 2: Diet

Breakfast: eggs, bacon and cheese, scrambled.

Lunch: ostrich steak on a bed of baby marrows, baby gem and red beans

Dinner: rotisserie chicken (thigh and drumstick) with microwaved cauliflower sprinkled with grated cheese. 

 

Notes: Before dinner, decided to follow the NF Level 4 meal plan. 

 

Goal 3: Reading

I set alarms to go off every half hour but still fell asleep. I'm going to count reading time from days I do more than three hours to make up for days when life gets in the way rather than set myself up for failure from day 1.

 

Day 2: Monday

Goal 1: Fitness

Did the Darebee Daily challenge (20 moving planks) with Extra Credit.

 

Goal 2: Diet

Breakfast:  2 boiled eggs, an orange and a handful of mixed nuts. 

Lunch: Leftover Chicken with more veggies.

Dinner:  Repurposed leftover chicken in a green curry stirfry. 

Notes: Following the Level 4 meal plan and going to buy groceries after breakfast (and Game of Thrones). So far so good but I should have had more veggies with lunch and I didn't drink any water today. (edit: 1L of water before bed... better late than never!) Water all day tomorrow!

Photo Food Log

 

Goal 3: Reading

Cat woke me at 2am so I got a good hour of reading in there. I got another two after lunch, before walking the dogs. I'm about to finish this book - might as well go for gold! 

 

Extra Credit: Darebee Daily PVP with EC. 

 

Day 3 (Training Day) Tuesday

Goal 1: Fitness Training Session (this will be repeated two more times this week)

5 X: Squat and dumbbell lifts (forward swings) X 20, 1-arm dumbbell lifts (punch the sky!) X 10 

 

3X  Bear crawl across the garden, and jog back. I hated these, both because it's a dog poo minefield and because they suck. 

 

3X30 donkey kicks each side (totalling 180, suck it Darebee PVP!)

15X3 burpees

15 X 3 sit ups

 

Goal 2: Diet 
Breakfast

Veg scrambled eggs (I used zucchini and mushrooms). 

Lunch

Lettuce wraps filled with leftover chicken, a tiny bit of salami, raw mushrooms, cucumber, black pepper goats' cheese, with cherry tomatoes on the side. YUM. 

Dinner

I only have enough ground beef to make the chili later this week and didn't want to waste it on burgers. I'm subbing in ostrich steaks for this one, with the other bits you'd find in a burger (lettuce, tomato, cucumber, fried egg) and  grilled broccoli on the side as per plan. Had a quarter can of red beans that was going to go to waste so I fried them with the broccoli. Om nom nom nom. 
Photo Food Log

 

Goal 3: Reading

Finished my book this morning! Got to write the review before bed. 

Extra Credit:

PVP Daily Challenge (Darebee) Nailed it by chance in my personal training session.

#LoveME: A word that describes me...

IMPULSIVE. I have a lot of trouble controlling my temper, or thinking things through before doing them. But it also means I try not to let fear hold me back from having adventures - I just do the thing before I'm too scared to do it or have talked myself out of it. So, it's a gift and a curse. I'm working on following stuff through better. 

Additional Lifestyle goal: Study Mandarin for 2 hrs a day. I'm introducing this goal because I've really been slacking with this lately. I really need to work on my pronunciation and I've forgotten 70% of the characters I'd Memrised already. 

 

Day 4 (Rest Day) Wednesday

Fitness: Did the Darebee Daily dare with Extra Credit (scissor chops) and about 20 squats while waiting for Little Dog to poop outside (she tends to wander back in and poop inside). 

Food:

Breakfast: Yoghurt, Apple, Almonds and honey. 

Lunch: Giant chopped chicken salad with assorted veggies, avo, goats cheese, yoghurt, mustard, lemon juice. Apple and almonds on the side. 
Dinner: (Fast)

Food log photos

 

Reading: Got really stuck into the new book (Before the Fall by Noah Hawley), in which a plane crash results in one dude carrying a little boy on his back as he swims for 8 hours to New York. A quote that jumped out:

 

"Jack was the puny kid with the pimples who gorged himself on sweets, the pup who went sugar-mad one day and tried to kill his brother with an ax. Then came the epiphany, the burning bush resolve. In a flash it came to him. He would unlock his body's full potential. He would remake himself entirely, and by doing so change the world."

 

Extra Credit:

#LoveMe - A Person Who Loves Me: My boyfriend. He's so wonderful, and we're going to get married. It's a sure thing. It's not quite official but it will be. He is the best man in the world, the kindest and sweetest and most patient. He puts up with my crap (but also calls me on it). He's a nerd and I never feel ashamed of anything I am or anything I do when I'm with him. /sappy

Darebee PVP Challenge: Done! With gusto. And EC.

 

Since I'm resting and it's raining, I'm going to work on my lifestyle goal this afternoon: Study Mandarin. 

 

 

Day 5 Thursday

Workout: AWESOME! Like a bad-ass triceratops.

Diet: Mostly good, but skipped on the hassle of meatballs and made a curry instead with chicken, red curry paste, coconut milk and cauliflower. 

Reading: Could have been better! 
#LoveMe: A Note to Past Me(s) (did it!)

Don't Let Your Dreams Be Dreams (Adventurer Mini): Studied Mandarin for an hour. 

Darebee Daily: There were a lot of squats in my workout so I only managed 25 jump squats. No XP for meee

 

Day 6 Friday 

Workout: (rest day), did Darebee dips though, and defeated the Level 2 Bodyweight Boss! Booyah!

Diet: Bleurgh, TOO MUCH CHILI. It made me feel bloated and sick all day; not going to do that again. 

Reading: Not bad, read a lot in the morning. 

#LoveMe: A Note to Future Me

Dear Me, 

Well, you did it! You reached your goal. Is it everything you expected? Well, keep it up. Just because you're there doesn't mean it's over. From now on you need to focus on maintaining your healthy habits. Go you!

Me

Don't Let Your Dreams Be Dreams: Should have studied Mandarin for longer. I did watch Arrow and understood the Chinese spoken in it (which is very basic). Also, took an old dream that had been shattered and reincarnated it: I've turned my failed thru-hike journal into my new Level Up journal. 

 

Day 7 Saturday

Workout: Partially completed - skipped burpees and bear crawls. Shame on me. New workout pants are a little too long and a little too tight. That can be fixed.

Diet: Bleurgh, the chili is still sitting high in my stomach. I finished it off for lunch with some avocado added (which was dumb cos I was supposed to have that in a tuna salad tomorrow). I think after a week, Level 4 was actually below where I was eating before, so I'm ready to level that up. Going to make my own adjusted meal plan for the coming week, at more of a level 6/7 and I'll buy groceries tomorrow. Drinking lots of water to deal with the chili, though, so that's good. 

Reading: Spending the day reading. I aim to finish this book, review it and the previous one, before I go to bed. 

#LoveMe: One Thing That's Just For You. Heh. Heh heh heh heh. 

Darebee: Plank jump-ins are not my friend, so I said no to this one. My hips don't like them. 

 

I call week 1 a success! 

 

[PettyMort]

Week 2 Write-up

[PettyMort]

Week 3 Write-up

[PettyMort]

Week 4 Write-up

[PettyMort]

Lessons Learned

[Jonesy]

I love your challenge goal! Reading is a favorite and I feel ya on the back log of stuff to read.

 

Following along! 

[PettyMort]

Thanks! I just updated the questing spreadsheet to match the new system... can you tell I haven't done one of these since last year?

[Jonesy]

There are a lot of people who still use the old system. Honestly it's still more fun then the NF Character creation lol.

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

[PettyMort]

Yeah, I like the old system too. But with the way I've set up the sheet now, it's much easier to track and I think it will integrate nicely with the online checklist... I find the checklist a bit of a pain for goals that are things that are continuous rather than once-off, so I'm listing challenges separately on the official one, and using my spreadsheet to count the daily habits that work towards earning that XP... I *just* adjusted it to the new system, though, so this will be a test month. I like that I have targets to complete this time so I can clearly see if I passed or failed each goal. 

Check it out: Character Sheet

[Sylvaa]

It's always the perfect time for a respawn!

 

I love your goals for this challenge and think it's a great way to start. Can't wait to see you level right back up to where you were.

[PettyMort]

It's day one of the challenge here and I'm eager to go. Just had a hearty breakfast of eggs scrambled with bacon and a tiny slice of cheese. I looked in the fridge to try to figure out what to have for lunch and dinner so that I don't have to go grocery shopping with the masses on a Sunday, and it looks like I'll be having ostrich steak with broccoli and cauliflower, and baby marrows. I haven't ever made ostrich steak before... Woo, adventure stemming from laziness and a hatred of crowded supermarkets...

 

I worked out yesterday so today is a rest day, and I'm allowing myself two glasses of diet soda on weekends (since apparently I'm no good at cold turkey). I'm going to finish this season of Arrow (season 1 - I am not a huge fan but my boyfriend is, so I'm watching it anyway) and then I'll try to finish this very sad book I'm reading. 

 

#LoveMe: Day 1 - Why are you doing #LoveMe?

I have pretty low self-esteem and I need to build it back up after a year or two of saying horrible things to myself. This past year I've really struggled with depression, mostly stemming from having no idea what job I was going to have, and being funemployed since March while my boyfriend hunted for music teacher International School jobs. It took him a year and a half to find one, and I finished my ESL contract in March, which means I've been living off savings since then. Finally, around January he got an offer in China and they had room for me too, so I'm going to be a kindergarten teacher for two years.

 

 

 

 

In the time that I've been sitting around on my butt, I tried to hike a 770km thru-trail up the coast of South Korea. Unfortunately, timing being what it was, I realised it was really selfish for me to go off on a hike while the boyfriend had to sell all our stuff and tie up all the loose ends as we prepared to leave the country (a week after the hike would finish), and I also hadn't managed to get all my paperwork done in time and didn't want to leave it to the last week. Choosing to stop the hike that I'd been planning and preparing for for years was devastating. I keep telling myself that it wasn't that I couldn't go on, it was that my priorities shifted. The actual walking part wasn't so bad... But I only managed a week of the 40 day target. I still want to challenge myself to do something like that again someday. At least I got some awesome camping gear out of the whole thing. At least it wasn't a failure, a rage quit or giving up out of fear. 

 

 

 

So, I need to love myself again and tell myself that I can succeed at what I set my mind to, and follow things through to the end. I've got 3 weeks on my own (one down, two to go) while I house-sit for my parents, who are cycling through France like bad-asses. I have no friends in this country since I left for school when I was 14, and I need to stay close to home because one of the dogs is so old she could kick the bucket any second and needs to be carried outside every couple of hours to poop, but this suits me fine. I like being on my own, and it lets me focus on working on my goals a bit better. Having my drivers' license at last (from my last 4 week challenge! Ha!) definitely helps, especially since driving here is scary and dangerous, so I get a bit of an adrenaline rush from it. 

 

 

 

[PettyMort]

Turns out that ostrich steak doesn't suck. I could have cooked it a little better, so it was a bit chewy, but I stuck it in the oven on a bed of baby gems, baby marrows, a sprinkling of red beans and a chocolate/chili balsamic reduction. Yum! 

 

2/3 homecooked meals today. 

[PettyMort]

Since I've run out of food, I'm heading to the grocery store and I'm going to try the Level 4 meal plan. I've basically been eating like this so far anyway, with less carbs (so more like a level 5?) but it would be nice to have a plan of action. 

PDF here

 

Shopping List:

onions, apples, cucumber, celery, tomatoes, avocados, mushrooms, sweet potatoes, carrots, lettuce, zucchini, kidney beans, stir fry veg, broccoli, almonds, dried apricots/raisins, biltong, whole cooked chicken, chicken breasts, canned tuna, cottage cheese, greek yoghurt. 

[PettyMort]

 

Both supermarkets were closed so I got a whole peri peri chicken and I'm having one piece of it for dinner with some cauliflower. Guess I'll try again tomorrow. 

[Linsanity]

Great goals - they're very similar to mine so i'll be following along! I'm also now the heaviest I've ever been and so am also feeling motivated to change that.

 

Also, your future home in China is SWEET!!!! I'm super jealous!!!

[PettyMort]

Great goals - they're very similar to mine so i'll be following along! I'm also now the heaviest I've ever been and so am also feeling motivated to change that.

 

Also, your future home in China is SWEET!!!! I'm super jealous!!!

We are considering using the spare room that we'll have as an airbnb for extra income...

Sent from my SM-G906S using Tapatalk

[PettyMort]

#LoveMe Number 2: A photo of me

 In my unicorn onesie with my boyfriend in his dragon onesie

. 

 

Evil demon cat from hell decided to jump on my bladder at 2 am. Two hours later I was still awake so I did the PVP Darebee Daily Challenge (moving planks...ouch) with extra credit. I managed to drop off again after that until he jumped on me AGAIN at 5:30. Now, his  usual feeding time is after 6... That little fucker. 

 

So, starting tonight (in the interest of a decent night's sleep and not being grumpy all day) I'm locking him out of my room and setting an alarm for 6am. 

 

Meanwhile, my little sausage dog who is very old and blind and deaf with dementia has dramatically improved in health since I started guarding her while she eats so that Demon Cat can't steal her food and starve her. She almost made it outside on her own to pee this morning! ... Almost. 

 

Time for some breakfast, and then I'll go grocery shopping for that Level 4 meal plan, and then home and NAP.

 

[PettyMort]

Photo food log and why I'm a genius... Also, how to always win at egg and spoon races.

 

Breakfast

    

 

Lunch: Leftover Chicken and Microwaved veggies (with a couple of slices of cheese because I'm low carbing but cheese is fiiine, so hush). 

 

 

Dinner: Repurposed leftover chicken and veg stirfry

Good grief, this chicken was huge. I'll get half a chicken next time. I pulled it to pieces and used it in the stir fry rather than the chicken fillets I have (will use those later). Added a clove of garlic, an inch of ginger and a tablespoon of green curry paste  at the beginning and two tablespoons of greek yoghurt right at the end. 

 

So far today has been pretty good! I did have a calorie loaded drink earlier (but threw half of it away) and may have nibbled a piece or two of dark chocolate... But it's not the end of the world. The quest is to cook all my meals, remember?

 

[PettyMort]

Batcave Stuff

 

I'm heading off to Dallas on July 7th to hang out with my boyfriend for just over a month before we move to China together, and I'm terrified that I'll fall down the burrito pit of unhealthy eating and couch potato extravaganza.

 

But I just found out that his stepmom goes to a local fitness center three mornings a week, when it's nice and quiet, for yoga. The daily cost for non-members is $10, including all classes, free weights, treadmills, the pool... So, I plan to hit the gym with her, and do yoga with her and then swim laps and weight train while she does zumbaerobiczzercise or whatever it is. 

 

And this time I'm not going to let the "new experiences" outweigh the good choices I should be making. I will buy groceries and cook for the whole damn family if it means getting some green on my plate. I'm done with the bad carbs (sugar, bread, potatoes, booze); we're no longer friends and they're not coming back into my life after all the progress I have made in the last month. No way, no how. 

 

 

[Linsanity]

Good for you! I LOVE that you're putting your health first and are determined to keep up your good habits when you go to Dallas! I've heard a lot of great things about yoga, but have never actually tried it. It's on my fitness bucket list.

[PettyMort]

Good for you! I LOVE that you're putting your health first and are determined to keep up your good habits when you go to Dallas! I've heard a lot of great things about yoga, but have never actually tried it. It's on my fitness bucket list.

I like yoga. I used to do Yoga With Adrienne off youtube. And my favorite teacher gave us free yoga classes in high school. If you've got a good teacher who you're comfortable with then you should definitely try a class. If you're shy doing it in front of a whole class then maybe ask a yoga instructor to come to your house to show you correct form. I think it makes such a difference - when I am doing yoga then I see the visible changes in my body much faster.

[PettyMort]

More Batcave Stuff

 

One of the biggest obstacles to getting a decent night's sleep has been my parents' cat, Oscar Pusstorius (excellent name). He isn't very good at telling the time so he tends to jump on my bladder to wake me up for food any time between 2am and 6am. It is supposed to be 6am.

He's basically an asshole.

 

 

After being woken at 2am and not being "allowed" to go back to sleep, I made the call to sacrifice the kitty cuddles in favour of sleep. Oscar is now banned from my room at bedtime. I did it for the first time last night and it worked like a charm. I am also setting  a bedtime for myself... 10pm. That way waking up at 6 still means I got 8 hours of sleep, and I get more time to talk to boyfriend in America online once I do.

Also did some chinese this morning - I've forgotten so much! Tai bu hao le. 

 

And I took a picture in my NF tank which is fitting way better than when I bought it a year ago. 

 

[PettyMort]

This personal training session went really well. I'm feeling much stronger, but part of it is that my bodyfat is lower. My weight hasn't changed on the scale but my belly is almost gone and I'm definitely seeing some definition, and, I dunno, I just feel lighter. Less weighed down by excess flesh. No longer carrying a tractor tire around my middle. I can't stop checking myself out in the mirror... I may have geeked out over NF to my trainer, who had never heard of it, and spammed him with links to the site and the book. His questions about it made me realise how different (and special) this community is: it's not an exclusive, gimmicky program, it's not a fad diet, it's not a temporary radical "cleanse" or similar starvation thing. It's small, clever changes in habits to slowly improve over a lifetime. And when we pay for the academy, we're not just paying to have all the info nicely organised into step-by-step processes, or XP quests or whatever, we're paying for an awesome community (not that the forums aren't awesome too!). Ahh. I just love NF SO MUCH. I want to hug all the nerds, but I just can't hug every nerd! I just love it SO SO MUCH!