Spikings is attempting a 4-week Ab Diet(!?!)

[Spikings]

Hello again everyone! This is now my fourth consecutive challenge, and after last challenge's significant successes, I feel it's about time to really test the waters. Like, attempt a challenge that I don't know if I'm going to be able to readily complete, but I'm sure as hell going to try my best. More than anything, it's going to test my discipline with foods, my love of all foods and also the temptation of the biscuit cupboard and days of falling into a junk food coma.

 

Backing up a bit...

I've sorted out a few habits in my life now which I'm quite proud of. One is that I'm ordering a lot less takeaways (six months ago Dominos considered me a loyal member) and I'm also drinking a lot less alcohol, particularly on the weekdays. I'm now limiting it to occasional 1/2 measures of whiskey, or otherwise for when I'm out socialising. Makes things a lot easier! But now I really want to test myself, and go on a diet. And not a fad diet, but a diet that will give me some solid results in four weeks time if I keep to it. After I've completed this challenge, I'll go back to a more regular food lifestyle, but maybe with less of a need for carbs in my life, or sugars. Maybe with better habits in the case of not doing boredom eating. Let's hope. :0

Aside from the Ab Diet, I'll be continuing with some previous challenges and introducing another new one into the mix. So, let's get things started!

 

 

THE CHALLENGES:

 

Current weight: 178.2lbs. (7 days old, will update tomorrow morning) 179lbs. Eugh.

Some measurements: Bust 40' , Waist 32' , Hips 41'

I also found some pictures from last summer to compare myself to, and yup I've put on weight, mostly around the hips. Let's try and get rid of that shall we? >:0

 

• Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal!
  • The Ab Diet in question is here, feel free to scroll through to see what I'm getting myself into. It's only supposed to be followed for a limited amount of time, so I'm not looking to make this a permanent habit, but to give my body a kickstart and also teach myself to rely less on food as a reward/anchor, but as another part of keeping my body alive, in a healthy way. I'm not looking for 100% completion here either, I know this is going to be a heck of a challenge. But if I keep things updated here, then at least I'll be held accountable over the weeks, and I might see some positive changes too! I'll also be continuing with MyFitnessPal as I got so much out of tracking what I ate last month. It might also help me steer away from bad decisions and see the results in a more graph-like manner (who doesn't like fitness graphs, huh?).
  • Optional extras: Non-caffiene tea, chewing gum, celery, a small handful of pistachio nuts for optional meals)
  • Any days where I'm not 100% committed to the diet but the majority of it is pretty safe/healthy, I'll count it as a partial win.
  • 

 

• Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends.
  • This one went really well last time! I got myself to the gym most mornings, had a solid routine every day that targeted different parts of my body and I felt a change in my strength and also saw it in the numbers I was lifting. This is just a simple continuation of the last challenge, so I'm not too worried about failing this. It should be a good combo with the Ab Diet though if everything goes well!
    

 

• Complete a yoga session daily for my back.
  • Last year I had some bad back pains due to excess coughing from a cold - it put me out of most action for a few weeks and was pretty painful. I also now get some aches when I go to sleep at night or when I'm at work (in fact my posture is pretty bad, I need to sit up right now....ok that's better). I don't think it has ever fully recovered, but with some daily back yoga, maybe some strength and flexibility will return. I'll search for a session on youtube to go through and keep repeating it until the end of the challenge, maybe even take a before/after pic to see if there's been any difference? Either way, it's a slightly easier challenge to do, but with plenty of benefits, so long as I carve out time in my day to do it.

 

 

 

LEVEL UP MY LIFE:

 

• Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list.
  • This is quite a broad one. I have a to-do list on my phone that includes things I need to do during the day, the week, the next few weeks or even throughout the year. Some of these things are art commissions (I occasionally freelance), or can be getting towards a fitness goal, cooking something new, travelling, buying gifts or finishing a book. It really varies! Recently I've started to get lazy and put things off until last minute, and I want to nip this bad habit in the bud before it gets any worse. So any progress on my to-do list every day will be great! I might even get around to doing some things I've been meaning to do for a long while! Stick around and see what random stuff I complete this next month! ;D

 

 

 

So that's about it - it's not going to be an easy one, and I still feel like I'm slightly overstretching my limits with the Ab Diet, but I'm thinking that the other challenges are a little more manageable to help balance this out, so I don't completely get snowed under. Wish me luck, here's to an improved me in 28 days time!

 

[Spikings]

DAY 0: (prep day!)

 

There's no point in me starting today as I don't have any of the Ab Diet food in right now, but by tomorrow night I should do! This will mean an automatic fail on Day 1, but I'm going to curb that as much as I can by having some healthy meals all the same. In the meantime, I've spent the evening prepping things for the next four weeks so I don't get caught unawares

 

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal!

 

So my food intake today was very outside the norm. Got up late, had a Burger King for lunch (haven't been there in years) and had a few Lindor chocolates for snacks throughout the day (so tasty...). Once I got back home in the evening, I wasn't feeling really hungry but still lacking in good foods, so I drank a bottle of Naked Superfood smoothie which I had lying around from a few days ago. Then...I had no dinner. I just wasn't hungry. Then when I did get hungry, all I needed was water as I was pretty dehydrated, then I was fine again. So, yeah! Two main meals skipped today which I never do, but I still consumed about 1300 calories (and went WAY over my fat and sugar intake), so it feels like I balanced it out as best I could, all things considering.

 

Aside from that, I did my online grocery shop, made sure everything I need would arrive tomorrow night and then chucked out a few bits from my fridge and cupboards to make sure I had room for new foods and wasn't going to be tempted by junk stuff. I AM READY.

 

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends.

 

No prep for this really, except for packing my bag and making sure everything is tidy/ready for me tomorrow when I wake up early for gym. Back to the grindstone, folks.

 

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back.

 

Just been going through some yoga videos I've saved in the past, along with other vids I've youtubed to see what would fit me best (beginner level, 20-30 mins maximum) and I've settled on this one!

 

 

It's not too long, targets the area that gives me the most problems and seems right for beginners. If I get halfway through the challenge and feel like I can move onto something else, then I might do that. But yup, I now have my yoga ready! *bookmarked*

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list.

 

I had a quick look at my phone's to-do list and found it in pretty bad shape. Some things on there had been completed, other bits very much not, and mostly just lacking in things which I knew I had to get on with but have been putting off for weeks (or months). So I spent the evening just trying to bring to mind everything I need to look at doing, and each time I remembered something, I stuck it on the list. Some tasks are pretty quick to complete, some need to be done this week, others are a marathon which I can complete in the next few months, so you can see I'm definitely not looking to complete the list, but certainly make some headway with it.

By the time I was done, I had gone from 6 tasks to almost 30! Because of the varied lengths of each task, I can't wait to sink my teeth into it this challenge and finally put some things to rest and also destress my life a little. Day 1 tomorrow, wish me luck!

[Manarelle]

Woot for another challenge! The ab diet actually doesn't look too horrible. Seems like it has a good balance of macros, and isn't focused on starving you to death. I find I feel much more satisfied with 5 smaller meals throughout the day - you might decide to keep it once the challenge is done.  Following for the awesomeness, you got this!

[Spikings]

3 hours ago, Manarelle said:

Woot for another challenge! The ab diet actually doesn't look too horrible. Seems like it has a good balance of macros, and isn't focused on starving you to death. I find I feel much more satisfied with 5 smaller meals throughout the day - you might decide to keep it once the challenge is done.  Following for the awesomeness, you got this!

 

Ahhh, thank you @Manarelle!! It's definitely not impossible, but knowing how much I love my carbs, it's definitely going to be a challenge. But yeah, I hope some of these habits rub off on me when the four weeks are up, I can only see good things coming from it! Now to go find your thread, I've been shamefully quiet on these forums and I need to do something about that ;P

 

 

DAY 1:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! Sort of!

 

As I mentioned yesterday, I didn't have the groceries I needed to begin this part of the challenge until this evening, but that didn't stop me from trying to make decent food decisions! Had an apple and spoon of peanut butter for brekkie, a protein shake as a morning snack/post-workout snack, the healthiest salad I could find in the shops (salmon in a salad with bulgue wheat), and somehow stuck it out all through the afternoon with nothing but water and a chinese sweet that a colleague brought in. Dinner was chilli con carne with the rice, minus beans and with the rice swapped out for a salad - felt like more than enough. Made room for an evening snack, but just haven't been feeling it. So a good start all things considering!

 

I also spent the entire evening prepping my lunches/dinners for the rest of the week - I haven't got it all done, but I'll complete the rest tomorrow evening, I feel so exhausted now tbh!

 

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

 

This was an easy one, chest day today and trying to get back into the swing of things. Definitely not my most groundbreaking gym sesh, but still a strong one.

 

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Was putting it off this evening for a while, until my groceries arrived and I realised I would be standing up for ages cooking. Earlier on that day I was standing up for half an hour during a company meeting, and all I could think of was how sore my back was, so I bit the bullet and got it done before food prep. And oh my goodness I was so glad I did. <3 All that ache and tension just went away. With every new move I did, it was like my back cried out in relief. Once I was done, I was able to do all the food prep with ease, and by the end of it, my feet were more achey than my back. So job well done, I feel sold on this now!

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

Got a few things taken care of, mostly self-care related and also the food prep mentioned. I even had time to shove some clothes in for washing, so now they're all hung up around the house trying to dry out (including my gym clothes for tomorrow, hope they're done in time :0 ) otherwise that's all for now - would have been more, but food took up two hours of my evening at least!

 

---

So not a bad first day, hunger wasn't too much of an issue...that's the part I'm worried about most though, whether or not I can fight through the hunger and the treats I get at work. I know tomorrow a colleague has baked some brownies, and has especially saved one for me and my friend, so I can't say no to that but hopefully I'll keep away from other temptations!

[Manarelle]

30 minutes ago, Spikings said:

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Was putting it off this evening for a while, until my groceries arrived and I realised I would be standing up for ages cooking. Earlier on that day I was standing up for half an hour during a company meeting, and all I could think of was how sore my back was, so I bit the bullet and got it done before food prep. And oh my goodness I was so glad I did. <3 All that ache and tension just went away. With every new move I did, it was like my back cried out in relief. Once I was done, I was able to do all the food prep with ease, and by the end of it, my feet were more achey than my back. So job well done, I feel sold on this now!

 

Niiiiiiiiice. That is a fantastic start to the challenge.  Go you!

[Spikings]

Writing this one real quick before sleeps!

 

DAY 2:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! Mostly!

 

The main meals were golden, and so were the snacks - the only bit I tripped up on were my colleague's brownies. Thankfully they were small cube portions so I didn't feel all that guilty but yeah, otherwise a good start to the diet. Clocked up 1400 calories today, but only 40% of my daily carbs. All good things being eaten now!

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

 

Went well today, I increased some weights on my legs, so I'll see if I can sustain them next time. I'm now waiting for the oncoming pain tomorrow morning from skipping leg day for ten days...

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Done pretty late this evening, but still a mini blessing. Afterwards I relaxed in this swag position while browsing the laptop, and now my spine feels like new again.

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

I made a note this afternoon of things I wanted to tackle in the evening - I didn't overburden myself (which I do often), since I still have 26 days to work through this list ;P after some initial laziness, I managed to update my laptop and back it up to my hard-drive, change payment details on a url I've bought, bleach clean the corners of the shower, watch a programme I've been meaning to watch and do some needlework on a secret future gift for someone in my life on the tiny chance they find this thread, I'll just keep this bit vague! But yeah, all in all a productive evening, wooo!

[Spikings]

So the gym was closed today due to...something? There were alarms going off, all lights off and the staff outside telling me to gravely turn back, so I'll see if I can gather the energy to do something tonight when I get back. Maybe a Fighter's Codex practice day...

[Manarelle]

17 hours ago, Spikings said:

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

I made a note this afternoon of things I wanted to tackle in the evening - I didn't overburden myself (which I do often), since I still have 26 days to work through this list ;P after some initial laziness, I managed to update my laptop and back it up to my hard-drive, change payment details on a url I've bought, bleach clean the corners of the shower, watch a programme I've been meaning to watch and do some needlework on a secret future gift for someone in my life on the tiny chance they find this thread, I'll just keep this bit vague! But yeah, all in all a productive evening, wooo!

 

Yay! Grats on not going crazy and over-stressing yourself but still being productive! Sorry to hear the gym was closed, hope it was a temporary thing. I love that yoga pose, too - so simple but it makes you feel so much better. Glad to hear your back is feeling better!

[Spikings]

On 15/02/2017 at 5:03 PM, Manarelle said:

 

Yay! Grats on not going crazy and over-stressing yourself but still being productive! Sorry to hear the gym was closed, hope it was a temporary thing. I love that yoga pose, too - so simple but it makes you feel so much better. Glad to hear your back is feeling better!

 

I think it's a temporary thing, I heard something about some power cuts going off in my area, so it might have been that. Will go investigate tomorrow and try again! ;P My back is feeling a lot better, although it's quite sore at the moment weirdly...I'm guessing it's just getting used to the yoga poses I'm putting it through? xD

 

DAY 3:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! Almost...!

 

It would have been 100% if the gym didn't close! I was planning on having my protein shake for meal 2, but it didn't feel right to drink without going to the gym prior (anyone ever drink them sans a workout?), so instead I had a choc chip cookie that a colleague brought in for birthday snacks (oops).

 

Otherwise pretty decent! I made some meatballs and burgers yesterday in bulk for the week and they've turned out pretty well - I added some onion, garlic and seasoning into them as well for extra flavour, and they definitely fill me up when it comes round to dinner. Also, chocolate milk is the *best* way to end a day. I was missing out before now. xD I even had a bad day today, had a sip of straight Jack Daniels and suddenly went, "This tastes disgusting, I'd rather have chocolate milk" and JD is my fave alcohol, so it was a pleasant surprise!

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. FAIL!

 

The Fighter's Codex plan went down the plughole once I got in - tired as usual, and also on a bit of a downer for various reasons. I'll pick it back up tomorrow at the gym when it's a new day.

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

So good! Nothing else to say here but that I'm continuing it!

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

I did a little less today than I would have liked, but I still hit the list. I'm trying to do 100 art studies before the end of the week (sounds like a lot, but this includes 30-second gestures, quick shapes, etc) and I got up to 50 today! Will try and get another 20 or so done tomorrow with any luck. I also found time to backup my phone's photos onto my laptop and delete a bunch of them from my phone, since I'm running out of space on there. I also have a dreaded update to install, which I've been avoiding for months...that's on the to-do list as well. >_> Otherwise, I started playing Bayonetta on the PS3 (yup, playing games is on my list, I don't force myself to relax often enough), and I also did some research on maybe having a long weekend in Amsterdam. So far...it's expensive! But maybe with some further investigating I might find a cheap deal.

[Spikings]

DAY 4:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! DONE!

 

Finally got a 100% on the Ab Diet today! It was hard, but I'm glad I managed it I also drank water like it was going out of fashion, yeezus. And I have over 800 calories left on MFP today (400 discounting the exercise). AND I've lost three pounds in the last few days, but I think that's just my body messing around a little bit tbh.

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

 

I killed my arms over gym today, did some really slow reps which made my muscles hate me with a passion. Starting to see some definition in my shoulders though which is exciting!!

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Just finished half an hour ago, again....bliss x__x

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

Did even less today, but anything counts here really! I did another 25 art studies (this time 60-second gestures) which was a lot of fun and took about an hour to get through, since I was multitasking at the time. Continued to organise my phone a bit more in prep for the dreaded update, should be ready to go now *sigh*. Also finished an info sheet for a collaborative art thingy I'm doing with a group of people which is good, because the deadline was tomorrow! :0 Now to do some meditating and then hit the hay.

[zeroh13]

On 2/15/2017 at 5:47 PM, Spikings said:

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! Almost...!

 

It would have been 100% if the gym didn't close! I was planning on having my protein shake for meal 2, but it didn't feel right to drink without going to the gym prior (anyone ever drink them sans a workout?), so instead I had a choc chip cookie that a colleague brought in for birthday snacks (oops).

I'll sometimes have a protein shake as a snack if I'm hungry. I don't think there's anything wrong with drinking it without a workout, your body still needs protein whether you workout or not. If you're hungry, go for it. If it'll stop you from making a not-so-healthy food decision later, go for it.

 

1 hour ago, Spikings said:

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Just finished half an hour ago, again....bliss x__x

I might just need to add yoga to my next challenge...

[Spikings]

That's a fair point @zeroh13, at least I'll be getting the protein, regardless of what my body does with it. Although speaking of unhealthy food decisions, I might be buying myself a bottle of wine tonight to have over the next few days - it's been a long week for me, and I don't think chocolate milk is going to cut it in the evenings right now. That being said, the rest of my diet is going to be as strict as ever, so it shouldn't be too much of a detriment.

 

Also definitely do the yoga! I find it hard to do anymore than 20 minutes because I get bored and impatient, but this routine seems to be the right amount of posing, relaxing and moving onto the next form. Strenuous yoga isn't my thing yet, but this kind that relaxes the muscles is the best. Definitely recommend.

[Spikings]

Here's yesterday's day!

 

DAY 5:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! Half 'n half

 

I was going to give myself an outright fail for this, but I'm tired of being harsh on myself. I was perfect all through the day until dinner when I had the whole bottle of wine + one whiskey after. I skipped out on part of my mid-afternoon snack and my evening snack for this and I still just about come under the calories for the day, so I didn't even go over on that surprisingly. I usually feel like ass the next day after drinking a lot (and physically I do, my head is aching so bad despite drinking all the water), but this morning I'm ok with it. I enjoyed chatting with friends online last night, doing some work and generally having a laugh. Now that the bottle of wine is out of the way, I have a clean weekend ahead of me to get a lot done and eat all the right things. Sometimes it pays to be positive in the mistakes you make.

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

 

Back day was the name of the game and I think I'm finally getting somewhere. It was too busy to try any pull-ups, but the weights I'm on right now with various machines is pushing me in the right direction. I've woken up with sore back muscles so I count that as a good thing! xD

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. FAIL!

 

Hard to do after a glass of wine... *looks shifty*

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

I finished off a tattoo sketch for a friend which I've been putting off for a while, and it got the thumbs up so that's good. Also cancelled a magazine order that's been bugging me for ages, and worked on my comic sketches in the evening.

[Spikings]

And today's!

 

DAY 6:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! DONE!

 

Everything was 100% perfect today - and I didn't even get hungry all that much! 600 calories left on MFP, I really hope all of this is making a difference...!

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

 

My break day today, and I really needed it! My back, legs and arms are still feeling sore from this last week. I did go for an hour's walk into town and back though to buy some shoe polish (not really necessary, but it gave me an excuse to get out and maybe play some Pokemon Go now that gen 2 has been released ;D)

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Did the session after lunch today, seemed a little slow for me this time but otherwise was good!

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

OH I SO WON ON THIS TODAY. I tidied up my flat proper so it now looks presentable, went into town to buy that shoe polish, updated my phone (which I half regret, but it had to be done), and also the big one... I finished an art commission I'd been putting off for a month, so that's a weight off my shoulders! Will also try to do some more comic art tonight, and otherwise just chill for the evening now.

[Spikings]

End of the first week!!

 

DAY 7:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! DONE!

 

Nailed it again! I thought I would have trouble since I'd be at home around all my food, but nope. I was all good to go. Plus it helped that I could sleep in later and I didn't need a morning snack to tide me over to lunch. Sad to see the weekend end, but I guess we all usually feel this way.

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

 

My second break day, with a small trip out to top up on some groceries. My muscles still feel sore, but not as bad as they felt on Friday. After a good sleep I should be ready to kick ass at the gym this week!

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Completed, and good as always.

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

Ok I made this weekend 'The Weekend of Doing Things' because seriously, I've got a helluva lot done today and it makes me so happy because I have a lot less to be thinking about now, it's freaking wonderful. I got up and ironed a bunch of clothing that really needed it, so I now have my clothes for work next week also bulk cooked all the lunches and dinners for next week, plus snacks (I missed out the coming weekend though as I can imagine I might break from the diet while my boyfriend's around), measured my gas and electric meter, also changed the quote for said meters so I get a sweeter deal out of it on an annual basis(!!), finished up some art studies of the hand that I've been doing, started reading a book I've been meaning to start for ages now (The Clan of the Cave Bear for the curious), and finally, finally finished off sketching the first chapter of my comic/graphic novel! I'm so freaking happy about all of this, in just the first week I've given myself a lot less to stress about and I can only see this getting better as the weeks go on. <3

[Spikings]

Also here's my calorie results from MFP this week - a hell of a lot lower than on my previous challenge thanks to the Ab Diet. I checked my scale this morning and I'm down 4lbs from my weight this time last week! Whether or not that's a solid loss who knows, but I feel like I'm finally going in the right direction!

 

[Manarelle]

Dang, lady, grats on a hugely successful week! If you're feeling good about where you are, then rock it! Keep up up the great work!

[Spikings]

Ahhh, thank you @Manarelle! I really am rocking it, took a look in the gym mirror today and I swear I can see a difference in my stature, even if it's a little bit! Gonna keep on kicking ass as much as I can.

 

DAY 8:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! DONE!

 

Another clean day, these are starting to get easier. Whenever I get hungry, it's becoming a little easier to push it to the side to concentrate on other things. Food is not my primary anchor in the day, or reward at the end of it now - it's more an accompaniment to other things.

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

 

Back to chest again, I decided to try doing bench presses with one of the free bars (minus weights) instead of the machine - half expected a panic drop, but actually coped just dandy with it! I daresay I can even add some light weights to it next time if the chest press machine is busy again.

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Uhhh... I forgot. But I'll do it after posting this!! ^_^;;; Why did I forget? Well...

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

 

Most of my day today was painfully slow. I'm talking off the charts here. By the time evening came round, I was ready to actually do something mega productive, so I got on with my comic again. And that's pretty much all I've done for the last 4 hours or so. xD My hand really hurts now because I keep stress-gripping the pen by accident, but it should be fine after a good night's sleep.

[Spikings]

Ugh, well its been an intense and horribly stressful last few days really, for reasons I can't talk about on public forums. >_< But safe to say, it messed with my goals quite a bit, so brace yourself for some not so green words.

 

DAY 9:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! FAIL!

Started off fine, then got so tired in the morning that I felt physically sick (???) so I ate some cookies for a sugar boost which helped. After that I was ok until the evening where I refused to eat dinner, had a couple of drinks and snacked on cheese late at night. Yup, it was one of those days.

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

This was fine! Although I wonder whether this caused me to feel fatigued later on in the morning. Either way, it was done.

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. FAIL!

Wasn't on my mind today.

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

Weirdly enough, yes. I still got bits done against the odds and that was kinda nice!

 

 

DAY 10:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! DONE!

This was better today, I learnt the valuable lesson not to skip my dinner again (man I felt so empty for the next 12+ hours even after I'd eaten).

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. FAIL!

Took a day off for my own well-being and to get an extra half hour of sleep...which was also needed. x__x

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

I started to refine some comic sketches which I'm about halfway through (some pages are worse than others) and also continued to read this book I've been meaning to read.

 

 

DAY 11:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! DONE!

Another completed day, although I'll be honest, my tastebuds are starting to get sick of chicken and brocolli >_< I'm trying to persevere, but I'm running out of ingredients again and need to do some shopping. Also...I could so get a dominos pizza right now. :0

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

Arms today, and I KNOW I'm seeing some definition in my shoulder/chest now and it. is. awesome. <3 My arms are also getting there, but much more slowly.

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. FAIL!

I have no excuse for this, I just kept putting it off until it was time to sleep, which is right now. D: I'll get back into it tomorrow with any luck!

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

Read some more, drew some more and attended to some self-care stuff. Just need to order some more food shopping now, but I can do that in the morning.

 

 

*breathes* Ok, I'll be happy once the weekend comes round again. But oh my goodness this week has really tested me in more ways than one. I'm hoping I don't slip anymore with my goals anytime soon, although I will be going out with my bf again at the weekend, which means some tasty treats *might* be consumed, but I won't be junk-fooding the weekend by a long shot.

[zeroh13]

Yeah, some weeks just suck. But you're still doing great. Despite everything, you still got more green up there than red.

[Spikings]

8 hours ago, zeroh13 said:

Yeah, some weeks just suck. But you're still doing great. Despite everything, you still got more green up there than red.

 

Thanks man, it's appreciated. I got so stuck in a mess I didn't want to come on here and own up to it all! xD But I'm hopefully back on track again so it should I should be good to continue.

[Manarelle]

Sorry to hear you had a crummy week. Life happens, usually when we least want it to. As @zeroh13 said, though, you're making a nice comeback. Grats on the arms/shoulder definition! That's such a cool feeling, seeing those muscles surface and hard work paying off. Keep up the good work! 

[Love_Of_Snuggles]

On 2/16/2017 at 2:44 PM, Spikings said:

I killed my arms over gym today, did some really slow reps which made my muscles hate me with a passion. Starting to see some definition in my shoulders though which is exciting!!

 

Congrats on seeing the difference! That is the greatest feeling! 

[Spikings]

Thanks guys for the boost! It's definitely great to see the difference that two weeks have done for me, but as I also found out this weekend, it was interesting to see how my body reacted once I went back to a normal diet (or in some cases, a bit of overeating)!

 

DAY 12:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! Mostly!

All meals except one stuck to the schedule, I forgot about the free monthly pie day at work! They're really good locally made pies too, so I swapped my lunch for a pork and black pudding pie with gravy (so tasty!) and had my lunch for dinner instead. My calories and carbs still came in fairly low this day, so no harm done.

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. FAIL!

COMPLETELY messed up my alarm. Turned it off to doze for ten more minutes, woke up an hour later. I'll have to keep an eye on this...

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. FAIL!

I had no time in the evening, too busy catching up with the boyfriend and playing some Bayonetta.

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

Played more Bayonetta! xD Also worked on my comic some more.

 

 

DAY 13:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! FAIL!

I made today my 'cheat' day. Had the usual breakfast, but then had a late lunch at Wagamama's for some very tasty ramen, went to a cocktail bar and had *a number* of cocktails there, came back home with a ready meal, had another whiskey and ate a handful of doritos. Safe to say I went wayy over my calorie limit, but it sure as heck won't undo all the good I've done in the last two weeks, so it's fine.

That ready meal though...it was a chicken korma and it looked/smelled nice, but the texture, the taste...it was so bland and blegh. And then my stomach was like "NO, why did you do this?!" so yeah, my taste has changed a little bit recently. 0_o

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

Thank god for break days - I did end up doing over an hour's worth of walking though today!

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. FAIL!

Completely forgot.

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. FAIL!

:| I am so sorry.

 

 

DAY 14:

 

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! ...the calories were within the limits? :/

I was going to get back on track today, but then my boyfriend suggested Dominos, which I hadn't had in months. I had a medium ham and pineapple pizza with stuffed crust and it was so tasty until I got to the end. For the rest of the day I've been bloated, craving all the water and I feel like stuffed crust cheese runs in my veins, and I can't get the taste out of my mouth. Safe to say, I won't be having another one of these for a long time. >_< Last year I must have had over a dozen Dominos, this year it's looking more like 3-4 at the most, which will be an improvement. I had some jam on toast in the evening, but that was pretty much all I ate today. AND ALL THE WATER.

 

Go to the gym every weekday! Rest on the weekends. DONE!

Again, break day but I still got some more walking in (which helped a bit after eating all that pizza)

 

Complete a yoga session daily for my back. DONE!

Did some this evening before sitting down to type this up. Feeling a little better now! Also I went for a full-body massage yesterday, and I think that helped a helluva lot with my back too. I came out of there with no aches, strains or stresses on any muscles, was total bliss. I definitely recommend finding a good massage place and booking a session once in a while - it really helps reset the body.

 

Make an effort daily to tackle my to-do list. DONE!

Tidied up my flat again and batch cooked all my meals for this next week after getting a top-up on my groceries! Took a while to get through, but I'm fully prepped now. There's no reason not to achieve a perfect dietery week now, I feel ready! And that's the thing, I have terrible diet weekends lilke this sometimes, but since that's not the majority, I don't feel like it's stopping me achieving my goals. I admit it has no doubt slowed me down a bit, but that's the price I pay for these mistakes. Ironically, on Friday I was so sick of eating brocolli my boyfriend wouldn't hear the end of it. Tonight I cooked up a new batch and couldn't wait for my body to taste vegetables and healthy things again. xD

[Manarelle]

17 hours ago, Spikings said:

Stick to the Ab Diet every day. Continue with MyFitnessPal! ...the calories were within the limits? :/

I was going to get back on track today, but then my boyfriend suggested Dominos, which I hadn't had in months. I had a medium ham and pineapple pizza with stuffed crust and it was so tasty until I got to the end. For the rest of the day I've been bloated, craving all the water and I feel like stuffed crust cheese runs in my veins, and I can't get the taste out of my mouth. Safe to say, I won't be having another one of these for a long time. >_< Last year I must have had over a dozen Dominos, this year it's looking more like 3-4 at the most, which will be an improvement. I had some jam on toast in the evening, but that was pretty much all I ate today. AND ALL THE WATER.

 

Ugh, that is the worst - something that you used to looooooove and then it turns on you. Nice work on week 2, though, keep it up!