Myrdinn, Act 2

[Myrdinn]

Sticking with the rebels for challenge 2, because who wouldn't want to be rebel scum given the chance!

 

I am aiming for the following:

 

Nutrition

 

Drink 1 small glass of water per hour at work. Keeping hydrated is something I find remarkably tough, and I've been trying this approach for the last week or so as part of my last challenge. It's the best thing I've found so far for getting my water intake up. 

Log all food and drink This goal is all about gathering data - I am not challenging myself to change things drastically at this stage, but just working on the basis that you can only change what you can measure and understand. I'm using myfitnesspal for this, and I'll monitor how I'm doing on hitting my calorie goals and macro goals every day and every week.

 

Exercise

 

3 workouts a week - I have been close to this over the last four weeks, but want to really nail down three workouts a week as a habit. These will mostly be bodyweight routines as I work towards the longer-term strength goals I've set myself, but if I feel like going for a run instead for a bit of variety then I will.

Stretch more. Stretch at least five times a week. Three of these can be anything at all, but the other two should be at least fifteen minutes of static stretching or yoga.

 

Level Up Your Life

 

Check my bank balance at least three times a week. I am pretty useless with money and, in the same vein as tracking my calorie intake, this at least forces me to keep an eye on where I am.

[Sarah Barr]

3 hours ago, Myrdinn said:

3 workouts a week - I have been close to this over the last four weeks, but want to really nail down three workouts a week as a habit. These will mostly be bodyweight routines as I work towards the longer-term strength goals I've set myself, but if I feel like going for a run instead for a bit of variety then I will.

Stretch more. I am doing a fair bit of exercise at the moment but not really any flexibility work. I am not sure yet how to make this into a clear goal, so if anyone has any advice I'd be grateful.

A lot of people really like Yoga with Adriene. If you want a straightforward beginners' flexibility goal for a month, doing her YouTube yoga camp is great (even if you don't actually do it every day, or if you just stick a few poses that challenge you into your regular workout cool-downs):
 

 

[Myrdinn]

@Sarah Barr you're a star, thank you

[Nusuth]

Looks to be S.M.A.R.T goals : gratz & good luck !

 

I try to remember to do a couple of these during the working day : http://wellnessforlife.com.sg/desk-stretches-2015/

and then well yes : Yoga is great

[Myrdinn]

Cheers @Nusuth, those are really helpful. I've been through phases with Yoga - I love it but I can struggle to fit it in. I think that stretching goal might be to do some sort of flexibility work 5 x a week at least two of which should either be 15 minutes of serious static stretching or a yoga workout.

[Vibrantella]

28 minutes ago, Myrdinn said:

Cheers @Nusuth, those are really helpful. I've been through phases with Yoga - I love it but I can struggle to fit it in. I think that stretching goal might be to do some sort of flexibility work 5 x a week at least two of which should either be 15 minutes of serious static stretching or a yoga workout.

That sounds like a good plan.  I also like yoga (don't love it yet, I think) and I'd like to go to a proper session once a week, but haven't managed to make that a priority as yet.  Home 15 mins session is doable!  Good luck, and hope the water drinking is going well

[IRL 3.5 Monk]

On 8/15/2016 at 8:48 AM, Sarah Barr said:

A lot of people really like Yoga with Adriene. If you want a straightforward beginners' flexibility goal for a month, doing her YouTube yoga camp is great (even if you don't actually do it every day, or if you just stick a few poses that challenge you into your regular workout cool-downs):

 

I'm a big fan of Yoga with Adriene - she even has a Pay What You Want option to download the 30 day challenge (good for those without regular internet access!) Although it isn't officially one of my challenge goals, I should be doing yoga more often too...

 

Following!

[Kvedulf]

Hi

Following along. Looks like a good set of goals for this challenge.

[Myrdinn]

23 hours ago, Vibrantella said:

I'd like to go to a proper session once a week, but haven't managed to make that a priority as yet

 

I've had a couple of phases of going regularly - I'd really recommend it if you can fit it in, particularly the more strenuous versions like Vinyasa which help your strength as well as your flexibility.

 

It does pretty much take up a whole evening unless you're an early riser (morning classes usually start about 6:30 in the UK) or you can find a lunchtime class near work though,

[Myrdinn]

@IRL 3.5 Monk @Kvedulf thanks guys. Had a decent stretch after my workout yesterday evening so I have started well!

[Casbin]

Hi Myrdinn,

 

it sounds like we are working towards similar goals for now, I'm looking forward to hear how you've been doing.

That Yoga-program sounds interesting, I might have to borrow it at some point

 

For the drinking part, placing a bottle of water right above my workplaces helped me tremendously in the last few weeks.

Most times when I was finished with a task was seeing that bottle and grab it.

[Myrdinn]

14 hours ago, Casbin said:

Hi Myrdinn,

 

it sounds like we are working towards similar goals for now, I'm looking forward to hear how you've been doing.

That Yoga-program sounds interesting, I might have to borrow it at some point

 

For the drinking part, placing a bottle of water right above my workplaces helped me tremendously in the last few weeks.

Most times when I was finished with a task was seeing that bottle and grab it.

 

Good luck man, I'll keep an eye on how you're getting on too! Thanks for the water bottle tip.

[Myrdinn]

So a very quick goals update on day 2.

 

Drinking water is going well, but as I write this I've only been in the office for about an hour. I've had two glasses of water in that time though, so technically I guess I'm ahead of target ...

 

Tracking food is going well, but then I've been doing that for the last few days anyway - I'm on a 16-day streak on MFP. I am struggling to figure out the right balance of protein/fat/carbs, because nothing I read seems to agree on what "right" actually is - I'm currently taking on a lot of protein (110g or so a day) but I consistently seem to be eating too much fat as well. Any thoughts or reliable links on that would be very welcome!

 

Have my first strength workout lined up for tonight which I am looking forward to.

Stretching - I did the first ep of Yoga With Adrienne yesterday evening, thanks to @Sarah Barr and @IRL 3.5 Monk for the recommendation. Really enjoyed that, she's a great teacher.

 

On the money target, I've just checked. One down ...

[Sarah Barr]

37 minutes ago, Myrdinn said:

Tracking food is going well, but then I've been doing that for the last few days anyway - I'm on a 16-day streak on MFP. I am struggling to figure out the right balance of protein/fat/carbs, because nothing I read seems to agree on what "right" actually is - I'm currently taking on a lot of protein (110g or so a day) but I consistently seem to be eating too much fat as well. Any thoughts or reliable links on that would be very welcome!

Sounds like good progress so far! 

 

I guess I'd maybe take a look at your cooking methods if you want to reduce your fat intake: if you're getting your protein from meat, you could try grilling where possible instead of frying or roasting so the fat can drain away. If you make stews and casseroles with beef/pork mince or something similar, then the excess fat will gather and harden on the top when it cools down, and that can then be skimmed off. Then there's things like using skinless chicken.

 

Beans and lentils are also high protein, low fat. I spent waaay too long making a nutrition spreadsheet a couple of years ago so I can tell you that borlotti beans have a high protein to fat ratio (7.3g protein to 0.5g fat per 100g). Kidney beans are similar (6.9g protein to 0.6g fat), cheaper, and easier to get hold of, but borlottis had the best ratio I could find. 
For reference, lean beef mince is about 20.8g protein to 4.5g fat per 100g (so, a lower ratio but much higher absolute protein content).

You may want to watch the carbs with beans, though. (11.8g per 100g in borlottis, 17.8g in kidneys, vs. 0g in lean beef mince.)

[Vibrantella]

39 minutes ago, Myrdinn said:

 I am struggling to figure out the right balance of protein/fat/carbs, because nothing I read seems to agree on what "right" actually is - I'm currently taking on a lot of protein (110g or so a day) but I consistently seem to be eating too much fat as well. Any thoughts or reliable links on that would be very welcome!

Sorry to disappoint, but there is no "right" - only what's right for you and your goals.  For example, my current diet may sound horribly unhealthy to some, but it works for me as it keeps my blood sugars low, reverses my insulin resistance and helps me shed excess fat (plus all my blood work is better, from liver and kidney enzymes to trigs and cholesterol).

If you don't really know what to do, until you find out how about just making sure that you eat plenty of muscle/brain building blocks (protein and healthy fats) and plenty of phytonutrients (green leafy veg, herbs & spices)...

[Myrdinn]

10 minutes ago, Vibrantella said:

there is no "right"

 

Thanks for the tip - I've been starting to get that impression! I think I just need to keep experimenting and trying to make healthy choices. What you're suggesting is basically what I'm trying to do, I just keep letting more fat than I want to eat creep in there. It's all a learning process though, I guess.

[Myrdinn]

@Sarah Barr that's really useful, thank you

[Myrdinn]

After 2 days - still on track with water and food tracking (had a particularly good day on food yesterday, in fact).

 

Did a very satisfying bodyweight strength workout last night - I have now upped the difficulty on every exercise. Going to try and get a run in tonight too.

 

Did a quick bit of stretching after my workout last night while my dinner was cooking (so that's 2/5 for this week including a yoga session).

 

Finally, not only did I check my bank balance yesterday I downloaded all my transactions, categorised them by what the money was spent on and then used that to predict a budget for the next month. This place is called Nerd fitness, right?

[wilkymouse]

I see a lot of similarities to mine.  Can't wait to see your progress and maybe pick up some more ideas!  

I bought Nerd Fitness Yoga months ago and love it.  Part of my reasoning was that if I spent the money, I'd be more likely to use it.  I've used free exercise videos in the past and just couldn't stick with them.  Though, I also may just not have found the right ones for me.  There was a hiccup of non-use for a month or so, but I love it.  I'm still using the lowest level sessions, but at this point, I only need audio to follow along.

[Casbin]

11 hours ago, Myrdinn said:

Finally, not only did I check my bank balance yesterday I downloaded all my transactions, categorised them by what the money was spent on and then used that to predict a budget for the next month. This place is called Nerd fitness, right?

 

And that is sooo cool!

 

With the Nutrition and Workouts you are off for a great start!

[NY153]

On 2016. 08. 23. at 10:34 AM, Myrdinn said:

After 2 days - still on track with water and food tracking (had a particularly good day on food yesterday, in fact).

 

Did a very satisfying bodyweight strength workout last night - I have now upped the difficulty on every exercise. Going to try and get a run in tonight too.

 

Did a quick bit of stretching after my workout last night while my dinner was cooking (so that's 2/5 for this week including a yoga session).

 

Finally, not only did I check my bank balance yesterday I downloaded all my transactions, categorised them by what the money was spent on and then used that to predict a budget for the next month. This place is called Nerd fitness, right?

Seems like you had a great start, congrats! How is your challenge progressing?

[PollyannaAgain]

On 8/23/2016 at 4:34 AM, Myrdinn said:

Finally, not only did I check my bank balance yesterday I downloaded all my transactions, categorised them by what the money was spent on and then used that to predict a budget for the next month. This place is called Nerd fitness, right?

Are you looking for a job as a personal accountant, by any chance?  Just kidding. Though I feel like I need someone to hold my hand on this stuff somedays. Keep up the good work!

[Myrdinn]

Apologies for the radio silence on here, with thanks to @NY153 and @PollyannaAgain for checking in. I have (probably not coincidentally) just had the worst week for food and exercise since I started posting on here, which coincided with a pretty bad week at work and my wife coming back from a trip away really stressed out.

 

Quick update on week 1.

 

I think I'm on track with water. Haven't been quite as good at the weekends, but since the challenge was all about the working week I think I'm doing OK. 

Have tracked all my meals since the start of the challenge. It hasn't always made for easy reading, but I've been paying attention and doing the work. And on a related note I've lost about 3lbs since I started posting on here, so it's all going in the right direction.

Only one workout last week. Poor - actually the worst week on that front in a couple of months. I've already done the first one for week 2 and planning another tonight though, so I haven't let that derail me too badly.

I think I did 3/5 stretching sessions, which given how bad the week was overall doesn't seem too bad.

2/3 goes at the bank balance. Although I was quite proud of myself for checking the situation on the day before payday last week, where previously I would just have tried to bury my head in the sand until I'd been paid and I could pretend all was perfectly OK!

 

[Butternut]

Found ya and rooting you on!!!

[Myrdinn]

Cheers @Butternut.

 

Having a better week so far. I think I missed my water target yesterday but not by too much. Still tracking my meals, have worked out twice this week so far and might go for a run this evening. I am behind again on the stretching, so should try and do something about that today. And I've checked the bank balance once so far this week.

 

I think having set the goal of three times a week I might actually find that twice feels like enough, if I'm actually looking at the transactions that have gone through and making sure that I'm really on top of what's going on.

 

Re stretching: can anyone tell me if it's safe to stretch without warming up first?