AthenaMM Does What She Wants

[AthenaMM]

Well, I've decided to go with a battle log. I may do some challenges later, but for now I'm going to stick with this and I think it's exactly what I need. Somehow doing challenges changed the way I viewed my journey and it wasn't until today that I realized exactly how. I had a really good day today. I was playing around with my morning and afternoon routine trying to figure out/decide exactly how much and what I want to get done every day. I felt good at the end of the day though there were still a lot of things on my list that hadn't gotten done. When I stopped to think about it though, I realized I'd gotten a LOT done, but I didn't feel like I'd worked hard all day. Instead I felt happy and relaxed. When I started trying to figure out what the difference was I thought to myself "I did what I wanted to do". That's when I realized what's been going on. In my mind my challenges meant I "had" to do certain things. And that meant these were things I didn't "want" to do, so when I started feeling like a two-year old I didn't do them. Today I did yoga, my startbodyweight workout, morning routine, daily cleaning and several other things. In other words all the things that have been part of my challenges, but they weren't things I "had" to do. Instead they were things that I was choosing to do because I wanted to. I've been feeling stiff, so I wanted to do yoga, I didn't want to lose the progress I'd made in the startbodyweight workout, so I did that, etc. So, no challenges, in fact I'm not even going to put goals here in the battle log yet. For now my only goal is to turn my thinking back around. I'm going to continue to play around with my routines until I have ones that I think can become habits and I'm going to do workouts/exercises because I want to. I'll chronicle everything here and we'll see how it goes.

[AthenaMM]

Friday, September 23, 2016

 

I did the 15 minute Beginner Flexibility yoga routine today and after that I worked a little bit on mobility for deep/one legged squats from Startbodyweight.com. I couldn't do very much of it so it didn't last as long as I'd intended. I want to do some type of mobility work on most days since there are a few things I feel like I need to work on that yoga doesn't seem to be addressing. 

 

I did the startbodyweight workout. It's been 11 days since the last time, so I was a little worried that I'd have lost some ground, but for the most part I hadn't.

I did 3 sets with 1:30 minutes rest between sets.

• Box pistol squats onto bench: 4,4,4; My form was a lot better this time and I was actually able to stand back up from the bench which I wasn't able to do before. Because of that I started back over at sets of 4.
• Incline Pike Diamond Push-ups: 4,4,4; I was supposed to move up to 5,4,4 this time but I felt like I'd drop myself on my head if I tried the fifth rep on the first set.
• Forearm Straight Leg Raises: 8,8,8
• Straight Leg Bench Dips: 7,7,6
• Vertical Pulls with Towel: 5,5,5
• Side Plank: 40 seconds each side

I did the warm-up and cool-down as well.

 

I have almost 12,000 steps right now.

 

I came up with a general framework for my meals (X servings carbs, X servings fruit/veg, X servings protein, etc) and stuck with that today. It was pretty easy to follow and simplified my meal planning as well. It's not a hard rule, just a guideline but I think it will help me get a handle on things. I also ate mindfully all day which was a little difficult since it's been a while. I also came up with some creative ways to get rid of some of the produce that will be going bad soon.

 

I did 5 minutes of breath focused meditation today. I want to do that most days as well. I want to be more mindful throughout the day and I think this will help get me there. Today I learned not to try to meditate while sitting on the floor, otherwise the dog thinks it's time to play. 

 

I'm working on my morning routine, but I did the current version of it today and I cleaned the bathrooms for my daily cleaning. 

 

I also spent 20 minutes playing with the dog this afternoon. I take him for a long walk in the mornings and hubby plays with him at night, but the afternoon play time is somewhat sporadic. I'd like to make this more of a priority. That doesn't mean I don't play with the dog every day, I just don't always spend a chunk of time playing with him at once. He thinks most of the things I do around the house are playing with him, so we play while I'm making the bed and during my yoga, etc.

 

I did other stuff today as well, but I think we'll all go nuts if I detail everything I did, so I'm sticking with the stuff I would like to keep track of.

[Elastigirl]

Glad you are figuring out what works for you!

[Jonesy]

Yay! Awesome job progressing on your pistol squats.  

[Darth Yoga]

9 hours ago, AthenaMM said:

That doesn't mean I don't play with the dog every day, I just don't always spend a chunk of time playing with him at once. He thinks most of the things I do around the house are playing with him, so we play while I'm making the bed and during my yoga, etc.

 

It took a while for my dog to figure out that EVERY SINGLE TIME I get down onto the floor is not actually an invitation to wrestle.

 

What kind of dog do you have?

[Sloth the Enduring]

Following.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[AthenaMM]

Glad you are figuring out what works for you!

Thanks! I really hope I am figuring it out and this isn't just the honeymoon phase.

Yay! Awesome job progressing on your pistol squats. [emoji4] 

Thank you! I was actually surprised. I'd gotten a book to put on the bench, but after the first couple of those I decided to try with just the bench and it worked.

 

It took a while for my dog to figure out that EVERY SINGLE TIME I get down onto the floor is not actually an invitation to wrestle.

 

What kind of dog do you have?

Yeah, as far as Max is concerned if I'm in the floor I should be playing with him. Luckily he just brings me a ball and wants me to throw it. It's finally gotten to the point where he's (mostly) patient enough to wait for me to get to a point where I can throw the ball. He's a Cairn Terrier which is the same type of dog as Toto from the Wizard of Oz. He's tan (wheaten it's actually called) instead of black though.

Following.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Glad to have you!

[AthenaMM]

Saturday, September 24, 2016

 

Today didn't go quite as well as yesterday. I didn't sleep well last night and I was pretty sore from the workout yesterday, so I took it a little easy.

 

I did the 15 minute Twist and Align yoga routine and the 8 hip mobility stretches from GMB. I always relax with my morning coffee after this so today after I'd gotten my coffee I meditated for 5 minutes. I discovered that even meditating in a chair, my dog thinks I should be doing something with him. I ignored him for the most part though I ended up with a lap full of puppy at one point. Not sure why he decided he needed attention since I know I've meditated in a chair before without him bothering me. I'll keep trying and surely one day I'll actually manage to meditate without being disturbed. I do like the timing of after my yoga/mobility work and before my coffee. And bonus, my coffee was the perfect temperature after the 5 minutes.

 

Since so many things were sore today, I did a 20 minute walk for my workout. I'd planned on walking for 30 minutes but I ran out of time. 

 

I have just over 11,000 steps right now and I finished yesterday with 12,253.

 

I stuck with the meal/snack guidelines except that I got hungry again after the snack and had another snack that wasn't particularly healthy. I actually think I was bored and maybe thirsty, but I didn't do any of the things I should have to make sure I was actually hungry.

 

I did my morning routine but I did not do my daily cleaning. I don't know why I hate dusting so much, but I really, really do.

 

I also did not spend a chunk of time playing with the dog. It was raining this afternoon and he's afraid of storms so he spent the afternoon hiding in the tub. Once I was done with stuff, I did spend a chunk of time holding him and calming him so that probably counts.

[Jonesy]

I dislike dusting as well. Mainly because I think it's pointless and you just move dust around. 

 

Aww your poor pup.  

[AthenaMM]

I dislike dusting as well. Mainly because I think it's pointless and you just move dust around. 

 

Aww your poor pup. [emoji20] 

REALLY wish the website would stop unfollowing my threads!

I use a microfiber cloth so I don't really feel like it's just moving the dust around really. However, dusting was always my job when I was a kid and I think that's why I hate it. Well, that and the fact that Mom was one of those "you missed a spot" types.

I'll write up the last few days later tonight when I'm on the computer. For now we'll just summarize it by saying, I was lazy.

[AthenaMM]

Sunday, September 25, 2016

 

Hubby and I had plans for today that meant we were going to get up early and get out of the house. However it had been storming for a couple of hours by then and we didn't feel like getting out in it. Added to that the pup had woken us both up (and kept us awake for the most part) because of the storm and we were exhausted. We ended up going back to sleep and I slept later than I usually do. All of that meant that my normal routines were completely thrown off. I usually do a longer yoga session before hubby even gets out of bed. Instead I'd planned to do the yoga later but it never happened. So no exercise, no morning routine, no meal guidelines and I finished the day with 3,415 steps.

 

Monday, September 26, 2016

 

I did the Beginner Sun Salutations (3 cycles) yoga routine and the NerdFitness Yoga Squat Mobility session. I'd forgotten I had those and they're perfect for the mobility work. I finally managed to meditate for 5 minutes without dog interference!

 

I was still sore today so I didn't do the startbodyweight workout which had been my plan. Instead I walked for 20 minutes.

 

I finished the day with 12,717 steps.

 

I'd completely forgotten the meal guidelines by this time. I need to update my spreadsheet to include this so I have a reminder. There were also a couple of things that threw off my eating plans so this was pretty much a bust today.

 

I did the morning routine, but no daily cleaning.

 

I didn't spend any specific time playing with the dog.

 

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

 

No yoga, mobility, meditation, exercise or meal guidelines. I did my morning routine though. I finished the day with 4,903 steps.

 

Hubby is off on Tuesdays so I don't worry about playing with the dog. Max had rather play with Daddy, so that's his job on off days. 

 

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

 

I'm just going to call this day, NO. I don't think I did anything today. Well, most of my morning routine did get done, but not really in a routine-y kind of way. I finished the day with 4,505 steps.

 

Thursday, September 29, 2016

 

Things were back on track today and I'm very ready to get my habits and routines back in place. I haven't really been able to get back into my habits for some reason, so I'm going to focus on my habits/routines right now and worry less about exactly what I'm doing, as long as I'm following my routine. I'll do today's summary the way I've been doing them, but after I post I'm going to work out exactly what routines I'm going to focus on right now (and what part of the routines I'm going to do) so starting tomorrow I'll probably change how I do my summaries.

 

I did the 15 minute Beginner Flexibility yoga routine and the NF Yoga Shoulder Mobility session. I also meditated for 5 minutes.

 

I finally wasn't sore (wasn't yesterday either, just lazy) so I did the startbodyweight workout. I lost some ground on my push-ups, which I expected. Hopefully I'll get it back soon.

I did 3 sets with 1:30 minutes rest between sets.

• Box pistol squats onto bench: 5,4,4; My form/strength is much better on one side than on the other. I might try doing a couple of sets on the weak side an extra day a week and see if I can't even things out some.
• Incline Pike Diamond Push-ups: 5,4,4; I managed to progress this time.
• Forearm Straight Leg Raises: 8,8,8
• Push-ups: 2,2,1; I'm going to work on push-ups an extra day or two a week till I can actually complete the "minimum" sets.
• Vertical Pulls with Towel: 6,5,5
• Side Plank: 40 seconds each side

I did the warm-up but skipped the cool-down because I was running behind.

 

I have close to 13,000 steps at this point.

 

Still hadn't remembered the meal guidelines today, not until I was reviewing the last thing I'd posted on here, but I did work on eating mindfully. Again I'm out of the habit, but it went pretty well.

 

I did my morning routine, but I completely forgot my daily cleaning. I had a TON of laundry to deal with and by the time I'd remembered the mopping I was out of time.

 

I spent about 10 minutes playing with the dog and also spent some time grooming him today. He appreciated the first, but not the last!

[Elastigirl]

Good progress on  the bodyweight stuff. Another idea for the push ups to get you to the minimum sets is to wait longer in between sets. You could wait 3 minutes. Or distribute the sets throughout the day

[Jonesy]

I'm still impressed every time I see how many average steps you get.

 

PS I'm loving the NF Mobility sessions, well except the wrist one.   

[Lightning]

10 hours ago, Elastigirl said:

Good progress on  the bodyweight stuff. Another idea for the push ups to get you to the minimum sets is to wait longer in between sets. You could wait 3 minutes. Or distribute the sets throughout the day

 

 

This!  I used this for push ups and it worked.  I did them throughout the day rather than in a few sets close together.  I've heard it works for chin ups too but, I haven't done it yet.

 

I like the battle logs that you and Annyshay have started.  I may switch to battle logs during the holidays.  

 

[AthenaMM]

Good progress on  the bodyweight stuff. Another idea for the push ups to get you to the minimum sets is to wait longer in between sets. You could wait 3 minutes. Or distribute the sets throughout the day

I hadn't thought about that. Since I always lose one push-up as I get to the later sets, some extra rest would probably help. It's funny how we get stuck in a certain mindset and don't look for other solutions. I was just viewing it as me being too weak and never considered extra rest.

I'm still impressed every time I see how many average steps you get.

 

PS I'm loving the NF Mobility sessions, well except the wrist one. [emoji4]  

If I'm having a normal day with normal activity, it's surprisingly easy for me to get a lot of steps. Unfortunately it's also very easy to sit on my butt all day and get very few steps! [emoji6] I also really like the NF mobility sessions. I haven't done the wrist one recently, but I remember it being very uncomfortable (and kinda scary). My favorite is the shoulder one I think.

 

This!  I used this for push ups and it worked.  I did them throughout the day rather than in a few sets close together.  I've heard it works for chin ups too but, I haven't done it yet.

 

I like the battle logs that you and Annyshay have started.  I may switch to battle logs during the holidays.  

 

I am still going to work on the push-ups outside of my strength workouts and I think I'll do them throughout the day when I do. I would really like to get up to the sets of 4 that I'm supposed to be doing. I was glad that I hadn't completely lost the ability to do a standard push-up considering how long it had been since I'd done them.

So far I like the Battle log format. I'm still keeping up with points (though I haven't posted anything about them and I need to) but this way I can work on what I feel like I need to work on and change it whenever I want without feeling like I'm "cheating". I'm also getting back to doing things because I want to do them, not because I have a challenge and I'll "fail" if I don't. That's a really necessary difference for me if I want to sustain the changes I make.

[Elastigirl]

21 minutes ago, AthenaMM said:

 

 

I hadn't thought about that. Since I always lose one push-up as I get to the later sets, some extra rest would probably help. It's funny how we get stuck in a certain mindset and don't look for other solutions. I was just viewing it as me being too weak and never considered extra rest.

 

 

 

 

Passing on information that I have learned from other wise Rebels. It really does help. Sometimes I get impatient and try and shorten my rest. Which is fine sometimes, it builds endurance. But when you are trying to build numbers( strength) go for a longer rest. 

[Lightning]

On 9/30/2016 at 11:40 AM, AthenaMM said:

 

I'm also getting back to doing things because I want to do them, not because I have a challenge and I'll "fail" if I don't. That's a really necessary difference for me if I want to sustain the changes I make.

 

 

This is huge.  It's exactly why I may switch to a battle log next month.

[AthenaMM]

On 9/30/2016 at 11:03 AM, Elastigirl said:

Passing on information that I have learned from other wise Rebels. It really does help. Sometimes I get impatient and try and shorten my rest. Which is fine sometimes, it builds endurance. But when you are trying to build numbers( strength) go for a longer rest. 

That is definitely one of the best things about the forums! I knew that about endurance and strength, but somehow I wasn't applying that to my problem. 

 

6 hours ago, Lightning said:

 

This is huge.  It's exactly why I may switch to a battle log next month.

I'm glad I'm not the only one with this issue. I feel kinda dumb that I got into that mindset and couldn't get out. So far I really like the freedom of the battle log though. I think you'll like it if you decide to switch.

[AthenaMM]

Friday, September 30, 2016

 

I made up a checklist for my routines, listing everything that I want to get done within each one and making sure they're in the right order. There was a little bit of trial and error with everything today but I've got it all set up now and this will be very helpful until everything is more of a habit. I'm also going to log what I'm keeping track of here within the routines that I did them. Most of what I've been calling my morning routine here is actually an afternoon routine, so I changed that. My morning routine contains a couple of things that I considered my morning routine (emptying the dishwasher and picking up the livingroom), but the rest of it is the fitness things I want to do every day (yoga, mobility, meditate and exercise). The afternoon routine contains the rest of the stuff that I considered my morning routine, the daily cleaning and playing with the dog. After the strength workout yesterday my butt, hamstrings and triceps are pretty sore.

 

Morning Routine

• Morning home maintenance stuff was done
• Twist & Align yoga routine
• Touch Your Toes, NF Yoga mini session. I thought this would help with the sore hamstrings but I actually ended up straining one. It's not too bad though, so I don't think it will affect anything.
• Meditated for 5 minutes, I used the Breathe+ app today. Not sure if I prefer using the app or doing it without any app. I'm going to do a little experimenting and see what seems to work best for me.
• Since I was sore I walked for 30 minutes for my exercise today.

Afternoon Routine

• The rest of the home maintenance stuff was done
• I cleaned the bathrooms today for the daily cleaning.
• I played with Max for about 15 minutes.

Non-routine stuff

• I finished the day with 14,652 steps
• Did pretty well eating mindfully, still didn't follow the guidelines though. I prepped a bunch of produce today that will help with that tomorrow.

 

 

Saturday, October 1, 2016

 

Not as sore today, so it's not going to be like it was last week. The hamstring I strained is still bothering me some, but it was better after the yoga.

 

Morning Routine

• Morning home maintenance stuff was done
• Lower Back, Hips and Glutes yoga routine, I thought this might be a good one to help with the little bit of soreness I still have.
• Perfect Posture, NF Yoga mini session. This one seems to be more about what your posture should be than actual stretches or movements. I probably won't do it again.
• Meditated for 5 minutes, still used the Breathe+ app today.
• I did a HIIT workout from darebee. It was the Slayer workout and I did Level I. I worked really hard and was totally worn out by the end.

Afternoon Routine

• The rest of the home maintenance stuff was done
• I actually dusted today! I decided to set a timer and race to see if I could finish before time ran out. It made it more like a game and made me recognize that it doesn't take very long. I probably would have done a better job if I hadn't been rushing, but getting an okay job done is better than not doing it at all. That was the daily cleaning for today.
• I took Max for an outing instead of playing with him today. I needed to pick something up at the store and it's finally cool enough that it's fine to leave him in the car for 5 minutes. The store I needed to go to is right next to a pet store so I took Max into the pet store to wander around for a while before picking up what I needed.

Non-routine stuff

• I have over 12,000 steps right now. I've gotten lots of steps the last few days, but it's not enough to be able to average 11,000 for the week.
• Did pretty well eating mindfully and I followed the guidelines for the two meals but not the snack.

 

 

 

 

[Elastigirl]

I don't think you should feel stupid because the challenges didn't motivate you. People  get motivated (or unmotivated) by differing things. The important thing is figuring out what motivates you, and that's what you are doing.

[annyshay]

9 hours ago, AthenaMM said:

That is definitely one of the best things about the forums! I knew that about endurance and strength, but somehow I wasn't applying that to my problem. 

 

I'm glad I'm not the only one with this issue. I feel kinda dumb that I got into that mindset and couldn't get out. So far I really like the freedom of the battle log though. I think you'll like it if you decide to switch.

I totally like switching between the two... but may be trending more towards a battle log in the future. We are Groot.

[annyshay]

7 hours ago, Elastigirl said:

I don't think you should feel stupid because the challenges didn't motivate you. People  get motivated (or unmotivated) by differing things. The important thing is figuring out what motivates you, and that's what you are doing.

Also this.

[AthenaMM]

I don't think you should feel stupid because the challenges didn't motivate you. People  get motivated (or unmotivated) by differing things. The important thing is figuring out what motivates you, and that's what you are doing.

Wise words as usual, Elastigirl! And it definitely wasn't that the challenges didn't motivate me. It was more like they motivated me too much, or in the wrong way or something. They helped me a lot though. I tried things I would have never considered because of the mini challenges. And they helped me discover this forum and a lot of really cool people. They kept me on track during times I wouldn't have normally tried to stay on track. In fact, I may do this totally backwards and do a challenge during those months when a lot of stuff is happening and I wouldn't normally try to stick with everything.

I totally like switching between the two... but may be trending more towards a battle log in the future. We are Groot.

I had forgotten the "We are Groot" article! It's a really good one and does seem to fit what I've found works best for me. I like sticking to the basics.

Also this.

Thank you!

[AthenaMM]

Sunday, October 2, 2016

 

Soreness is totally gone today so I'll be doing my strength workout on schedule tomorrow. Sunday and Tuesday have a lot less in the routines since hubby's off on those days. I decided not to do any mobility work on Sundays since I do a longer yoga session, but I did leave the meditation in the routine.

 

All in all this wasn't a great week, but it did end up being a good one. I earned 14.5 points for the week. Not great but better than the pathetic 5 points I earned last week. My current total of points is 23.25. That's the total number of points I've earned since I started counting points minus the 100 points I redeemed for a reward. I ended up ordering about $20 worth of stuff from the clearance section of Stampin' Up for that reward, which was a lot of fun actually. I know that exercise stuff is a better reward, but craft supplies motivate me more. I do have a couple of fitness type things I'm wanting, but they're both a LOT more expensive than the $20 reward I'm giving myself for 100 points. I might decide to save up the points and when I get enough for half the cost of the fitness stuff, I'll reward myself with the fitness stuff. If you have to wait too long for the reward, it ceases to be motivating.

 

I haven't gotten enough sleep the last two nights, so I'm going to bed a little early tonight. Sometimes that just means that I wake up earlier, but hopefully I'll actually be able to get a little extra sleep.

 

Morning Routine

• Morning home maintenance stuff was done
• 30 minute Beginner Flexibility yoga routine. This counts as both my yoga and my exercise on Sunday.
• I used a different app for meditation today. It's called Meditation Studio and it's made by the same people who made the yoga app I use. I really like the yoga app so it seemed like a good one to try. It has a lot of different sessions but it also has a few of what it calls courses. Those are sets of meditation sessions that are done like classes. They are arranged in chapters and you follow the chapters to finish the course. One of the courses is called Meditation Essentials and it's intended to teach you the basics of meditation. I followed the first chapter today. The chapter was 5 minutes long, but part of that is an introduction before the meditation practice, so I'm not entirely sure how long I meditated. So far I like the app. I like the idea of following the courses and it has a lot of interesting sounding sessions that aren't included in the courses, as well. 

Non-routine stuff

• I currently have over 5,000 steps. That puts my average for the week at around 9,700 so far. Not what I would like, but not terrible either.
• Completely forgot to eat mindfully. That one is harder for me when I eat with hubby. I did stick with the guidelines for both meals but not my snack.

[Schaengel]

I think it's really cool that the battle-log works so good for you. Don't be bothered by some bad weeks those are normal and since it seems that you're improving constantly over time a little setback isn't that bad