Mizbrek Rides For New Lands

[Mizbrek]

Hi folks and welcome to another Mizbrek challenge! You'll forgive me for skipping the usual storytelling piece the time around - it's a busy weekend and I wanted to get something up and going sooner rather than later!

 

Last Challenge Review

 

My last challenge was thrown off by one of my goals just not working out. I stand by my decision on the Morning Pages and am shelving that piece for now. I do think there could be some value in journaling for me but I'm not yet sure what role that will take. The last week was a bit thrown off by a conference, and this past week by getting sick, so this challenge is all about getting back to basics. Enhanced basics, that is!

 

Challenge #7

 

I recently put all my weight tracking data since I started NF into Excel and used it to plot out when I'd reach my goal weight based on the past trends. It said I would hit it sometime in 2021. 

 

This is unacceptable. 

 

So these goals are ambitious and explicitly target weekends. This is where I lose the plot. I've tried this before and failed. I'm putting something big on the line here though, and I'm hoping that can push me forward. 

 

Drink 2L of water per day - I started tracking my water consumption recently and found I've definitely felt better when I stick to this. I've managed it pretty well so far and I'm making it a key component of this campaign. 

 

Stay under 2000 calories every damn day - I'll allow myself one day over for special occasions but that's it. Track everything and stay on target. The weekends as always will be my key nemeses here. But if I stay smart and have a goal in mind this is doable. 

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - I'm just getting over a cold now and I'm 100% sure it's because I had a few days of crappy sleep. No more. 

 

Workout 7 days a week - what I mean by this is my regular body weight workouts weekdays and something on weekends. Some yoga maybe on Sunday and a regular workout on Saturday, or the reverse maybe. The idea is to keep momentum and keep building strength. 

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - as part of my accountability I'm recommitting to every day, not just weekdays. Even if it's just a quick update, post something. No reason I can't do that. 

 

Buy nothing non-essential - this was a late addition but an important one. Rising Heroes has focused lately on finances and it's made me think about my own and how best to tackle my debt. So for this I'm defining essentials as groceries, simple alcohols (basic beer, scotch and wine) and any clothing I may need in that time (doubt I will but just in case). I'm also setting an exception on if a new Hearthstone expansion comes out, prepurchasing that. But nothing else non-essential. I end up spending much on fancy beer, fancy scotch, little trinkets from Amazon, books and movies. Not for this month. I'm not saying never again. But not this month. 

 

As incentive for this, if I meet all these goals, EVERY DAMN DAY, I am setting a loot goal of a new phone, an iPhone 7 Plus. I'm eligible for an upgrade. I had set that as my 200 pound loot goal, but I think if I follow this plan I'll be damn close to that in a few weeks. 

 

So I hope you'll follow along folks! I'm committing here by posting and hope to stay on target!

 

Happy Challenge!

 

[Elastigirl]

Hi there, was wondering when you were showing up to the party. Glad you made it. Nice goals and reward

[Mizbrek]

15 hours ago, Elastigirl said:

Hi there, was wondering when you were showing up to the party. Glad you made it. Nice goals and reward

 

Thanks! Hoping so!

 

Still feeling rough today. I kinda considered yesterday my "last day" so to speak and went a little wild, feeling it today. Only managed a brief workout, but still counting it. Nearly gave up on my financial goal and bought breakfast, but instead did some quick eggs. It was a good reminder I can be from starting to eating scrambled eggs in under 5 minutes.

 

 

Drink 2L of water per day - On track to do this today.

 

Stay under 2000 calories every damn day - Also on track to do this today!

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - This one will be tough, but going to try and manage it.

 

Workout 7 days a week - Light workout today, but something!

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Almost missed this today, but stuck to it.

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - On track!

[Rurik Harrgath]

Glad to see you back Mizbrek, and thank you for the nod over in mine!

[Laghail]

Following again!

[Mizbrek]

22 hours ago, Rurik Harrgath said:

Glad to see you back Mizbrek, and thank you for the nod over in mine!

18 hours ago, Laghail said:

Following again!

 

Overall not a bad start to the challenge. Stayed on target all yesterday. Got to bed a tiiiiny bit late, but still counting it as I was actively working towards getting in bed, just didn't quite happen by 9:30.

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Almost there already!

 

Stay under 2000 calories every damn day - Tacos for Valentine's tonight, so this will be tough, but I've had a light lunch, so that should help.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Didn't quite manage this but still counting it as a win (was in bed by 9:45 and working on it by 9:30).

 

Workout 7 days a week - Another light workout today, still recovering from this cold, but something all the same.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Had a few temptations but sticking with it! Realizing this may mean out missing on a new Gose beer (one of my favourite kinds) from one of my favourite breweries! But, sacrifices!!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - On track!

[Mizbrek]

A very solid day overall yesterday and today! Got to bed in good time, though didn't sleep well. Got up in okay time - need to work on that a bit. Got back to regular workouts though, and weighed in at a NEW WEIGHT LOW of 212.5!!!!

 

(p.s. Jane the Virgin is a surprisingly HILARIOUS show)

This is really exciting for me because normally weight ticks up 2-3 pounds over the weekend and, if I'm staying on track, I hit a new low on Friday. BUT IT'S WEDNESDAY PEOPLE!!!

 

 

And only about a pound below my old low. But still! I'm excited to see what I can manage by Friday. 210?!?!?!

 

Now to our regularly scheduled recap.

 

Drink 2L of water per day - At 78% of my water today! So on track.

 

Stay under 2000 calories every damn day - I managed this yesterday, just barely, but still! I did count my exercise calories, which I think is fine. Around 2300 when all was said and done, which is still well within a good range, and with the calorie balance I was still under 2000.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Again was in bed by around 9:45, but was working at it by 9:20. I'm saying that's okay. The idea here is to get to bed earlier, and I'm absolutely doing that. I spent a bit too much time reading last night (so much news going on, and I'm a bit of a news junkie), but the point of this was to be in bed by 9:30, not asleep, so that's good. 

 

Workout 7 days a week - Heavier workout today! 2 rounds of the Rising Heroes workout, feeling GREAT today on that.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Saw ANOTHER new beer I wanted to try today but resisting. Odds are it'll still be for sale when the challenge ends, and if it's not? Eh. Not the end of the world. It's funny all the little things I'm realizing I would buy unthinkingly. Stuff adds up!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - On track!

 

Had a funny moment yesterday with regards to food. One thing I've really been focusing on is portion control. I have scales and measuring cups at home and at work to try and control my portions better. And what I have in my head as the amount of food I need, visually, was way off. I brought in some leftover soup for lunch and one of my coworkers commented how little I seemed to be eating. And it's funny, but I'm realizing how little I do actually NEED to eat to feel full. I never would've thought before that a simple cup of soup (literally one cup) would fill me up for lunch, and yet here we are!

 

I've been thinking a bit about variances and what I'm going to allow in terms of my Big Goal. Technically I've already failed - I haven't made it to bed by 9:30 yet. But I've been in bed the last two days by 9:40 or 9:45. And yesterday I technically consumed more than 2000 calories, though I did work some of them off. I think I will allow some minor variances from these rules, especially ones like calories and bedtime. I've already said I'll allow myself one off day a week for calories, for special occasions and the like, but that I won't take this as a "cheat day." But I think as long as I'm within a reasonable variance I will still count it as a win. 10 minutes late ain't bad, and 100-300 calories over isn't going to break the bank. I think this is fair and reasonable, though there will be NO allowances on missing workouts! No excuse not to at least get some squats and pushups in on any given day!

[Mizbrek]

Another new weight low today of 212.3! Only .2 pounds down but still! New low! I think I might even be on to a new belt loop soon.

 

It's funny how the body changes with these things. I was eating some chicken chili for lunch (SkinnyTaste recipe here, super tasty and low cal!). I had measured out a cup and a half of it, about 400 cals total with a bit of cheese. It looked like a full bowl, but I figured it was only 400 cals, so likely good.

 

Nope. Full after about 2/3 of it! And realistically I think my body has always been like this, I just had trained myself to eat to the point of being VERY full. I almost always felt a bit sick after every meal, which has gone away since I started working on portion control.

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Had someone suggest to me that my estimate was a bit low, so I'll be aiming for 3L a day, but sticking the challenge goal at 2. I don't think this will be an issue - I drink around that already anyway since starting this, but still.

 

Stay under 2000 calories every damn day - Still on track with this, even not counting exercise calories. 

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - This one is posing the most issues, but not through any real fault of my own, so I'm not counting them as "fails" so to speak. My wife was feeling off yesterday, which hit her just as I was heading to bed, so I stayed up for a few minutes to help her out. I still was in bed before 10, and asleep earlier than normal, so pretty solid. Still having trouble getting up and going, but I think I'll tackle that after I'm back from vacation next week.

 

Workout 7 days a week - Slept in a bit today so just did a lighter workout, but still about 20 minutes of some bodyweight exercises and some upper body work with rings and the pull up bar. Reminds me how far I still have to go with this, but also how much I do want to be stronger in that area.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - It's so funny all the little things I'm noticing that I would buy, kind of without thinking. I was shopping for wine for the house and spotted a good deal on a bottle of Scotch I've had my eye on for a while. Previously I would've bought it without thinking. But I stopped and said, well, I'm not 100% sure I'll like that particular brand. And the deal wasn't really that great (basically bonus Air Miles, no real actual sale). And said, hey, I'll hold off. I've probably saved $100 this week alone, looking back at all the things I've not bought that I was tempted to. Who knows if I would've actually, but still!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - On track!

[Mizbrek]

Had a funny morning where I somehow managed to turn off my alarm without waking up! Still managed to squeeze in a quick workout though!

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Still well on track for this. Already at 81% of my fluids drunk! Oop, 97% now! Just finished my water bottle!

 

Stay under 2000 calories every damn day - It's funny how this has caused me to reexamine a lot of what I eat and my portions. I just finished lunch - which looked like way too little to me. About a half cup of chicken chili and a few homemade sweet potato fries. No way that should be enough right? And yet here I am, feeling perfectly full after that! It's good in some ways for sure, but still odd. Maybe the water is helping to make me feel full? Tonight might be a bit challenging with us going out for beer and pizza, but even still I look to be well within my calories!

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Had another day where this didn't quite happen, but I was in bed far earlier than I would've been most nights, and it's making me think about it more. I caught myself starting a quest in Wow at 9:20 and immediately dropped it, realizing I wouldn't have time. So it's been good!

 

Workout 7 days a week - Slept in today! Ugh. But managed to squeeze in a quick workout, and feeling yesterday's and today's, so it's not bad.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - It's funny how well this is working as a motivator. When I rolled over this morning and realized it was 6 and that I'd slept in, I definitely thought "Hell with it," but then I thought "wait, if you don't workout today, you don't get your phone!" So off I went!

[Elastigirl]

Great week 1! Awesome that your reward  is motivating you.

[Mizbrek]

On 2017-02-17 at 1:39 PM, Elastigirl said:

Great week 1! Awesome that your reward  is motivating you.

 

Thanks! Seems to be working pretty well! Sadly I can't do this EVERY challenge, but perhaps I can find something similar next time around, or just carry some of these habits through!

 

Good day so far today. Slept in, read, and so far well within calorie goals. Raided last night so stayed up late, but my challenge goal is strictly weeknights, so that's fine, and I was still in bed around 11, which is good for a Friday!

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Managed this yesterday (easily - up to almost 150%!). Today might be a bit of a challenge as I'm out and about, but I'm well on my way at 57% so far.

 

Stay under 2000 calories every damn day - I'm pretty sure I managed this yesterday. I went with existing calorie counts and estimated where I couldn't find something, and according to that I was still there. So far today in good shape - had a bit of a heavy breakfast but nothing really out of the ordinary, and should be a pretty normal day otherwise. Need to figure out something low cal for lunch, but I have some ideas.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Since this was a Friday I stayed up later, but still got to bed in good times.

 

Workout 7 days a week - Just finished a long, heavy round of the Rising Heroes workout! 3 rounds in fact! Dripping in sweat and feeling great. Burned about 400 cals I think.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are! First time I've posted on a weekend in a while!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - This is definitely helping. I can't remember the last time I worked out on a weekend or stayed this well within my calorie goals.

 

Also, new weight low today of 211.8! Great to see this. Hope I can keep it up!

[Elastigirl]

Congrats on the weight low!

[Mizbrek]

On 2017-02-18 at 2:17 PM, Elastigirl said:

 

Congrats on the weight low!

 

 

Thanks! Got another today of 210.8! First time I've seen 210 in a LONG time! At 210.0 I unlock another loot goal (I do every 10 pounds basically) so excited for that! Hopefully this week!

 

Overall a pretty solid day yesterday. Stayed under calories still (though had to count exercise calories to do that, but still felt good). Got a workout in plus some golfing on the simulator, so pretty good!

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Bit harder to do this outside of work. I think for a couple reasons - at work water is all I drink, whereas here there's beer and wine. I also I think tend to drink water when I'm feeling a bit bored, so I'm sure that's part of it. Rarely bored at home!

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - Had to count exercise calories to manage this, but even not counting those I was still only about 50 cals over in actual intake. I do wonder if I'm mis-counting some things, but I'm trying to find multiple sources for each thing, so I think I'm doing pretty well overall. Technically MFP has me set at 2100 so I'm amending that in my challenge goal, but this is basically what I mean, staying within that recommended limit.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Saturday night, but was still in bed early!

 

Workout 7 days a week - Did a very solid workout yesterday. Today I think, after a late lunch, I'll spend some time on the rings and pull up bar doing some upper body work. Maybe 4 rounds of ring rows x8, assisted pull ups x5, and 30s assisted bar hang. I've done 3 before but 4 would probably be good.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are! Second time now!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - This is definitely helping!

[Elastigirl]

As far as MFP and miscounting, my theory is that good enough is good enough. I think it's  almost impossible to get it exact. I  figure if my weekly measurements are going the direction I want, it's working, if not then I adjust it a bit as needed. So, if I'm trying to lose a pound and I only lose a half pound even though I stuck to my calories, I'll drop my calorie goal a bit

[Mizbrek]

On 2017-02-19 at 4:05 PM, Elastigirl said:

As far as MFP and miscounting, my theory is that good enough is good enough. I think it's  almost impossible to get it exact. I  figure if my weekly measurements are going the direction I want, it's working, if not then I adjust it a bit as needed. So, if I'm trying to lose a pound and I only lose a half pound even though I stuck to my calories, I'll drop my calorie goal a bit

 

Good idea! So far it seems to be mostly on track. When I track and stay on track, I lose steadily. Realized recently in the last 30 days I've lost about 4.5lbs, which is about accurate for my MFP suggestion which is 1lb a week!

 

Drink 2L of water per day - This one's going to be a bit harder outside of work, it seems, but working on it! At 61% so far today so some ways to go but I can do it!

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - Was technically a tad over yesterday not counting exercise calories, but still within goal! And really only about 100ish over. So feeling good about this. Weight ticked up a tiny bit today but I think that's understandable. Still the lowest I've been in YEARS.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - It was a holiday today, and I'm on vacation for the next few days, so this one will be mostly suspended! I think generally it will hold though - we're just going away to a quiet winery area, so likely we will be in bed by 9:30 most days!

 

Workout 7 days a week - This is another time where the challenge is really helping me. I absolutely would not have worked out today if I didn't have this hanging over me. And it felt good! 3 rounds of the Rising Heroes workout!

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this! Easy today with nothing open!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - This is definitely helping! Today for sure!

 

Tomorrow will be interesting - we'll be eating out for 2/3 meals tomorrow, which will be tough, but I'm hoping to do my best to stay on track!

[Mizbrek]

Writing this in a hotel room on vacation!!!! I think this will prove more challenging than I thought, but I'm excited to see what I can do.

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Working on this! Drinking water now! Going to be tough but will keep at it!

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - Used a variance today after a busy day filled with wine, cheese and capped off by a beer and burger at the end, so I'm free today. I have one banked from last week as well! But going to try my best to stay on target.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - This one is suspended for a few days!

 

Workout 7 days a week - Did arms and upper body today before leaving for vacation!

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this! 

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - Bit worried about this but will try and stay consistent while on vacation!

[Elastigirl]

Have a good vacation.

[Mizbrek]

17 hours ago, Elastigirl said:

Have a good vacation.

 

Thanks! Good so far, though the food is presenting a challenge!

 

Drink 2L of water per day - About halfway there so far today! 

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - Was tempted to use a variance today after a calorific morning, but instead did 3 rounds of the Rising Heroes workout to offset things a bit. Feel good about the rest of the day. Still have about 1500 cals left for lunch and dinner.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Still did this last night! We were wiped! Only problem is my body is used to being up at 5 after going to bed at 10, which means today it woke me at 4! Tried to sleep a bit more but woke up later and very groggy.

 

Workout 7 days a week - 3 rounds of Rising Heroes today! Feeling shaky and very good.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this! 

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - Bit worried about this but will try and stay consistent while on vacation!

[Mizbrek]

Belated but quick update! Been a good day overall - a tad indulgent again, but I *am* on vacation!

 

Drink 2L of water per day - This one was a bit of a struggle today with lots of travel, but getting closer! Chugging a bit now before bed - not ideal but getting it done! 

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - I was eating out for every meal today, so tough to estimate, but by my best estimate I was just about there. Maybe a tad over, but that's okay.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Didn't do this last night, but as I'm on vacation it is still on hold. Will likely be in bed soon though!

 

Workout 7 days a week - Was tough to squeeze this in today as we were on the go from early on. Did a quick warm up and about half a round of the Rising Heroes workout. Not much but a bit of a sweat, so calling it a win.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this! 

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - Almost there! Home tomorrow!

[Mizbrek]

Running late today but still getting this in! Had a day of travel and lots of wineries, but tried to make good choices as best I could.

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Going to need to chug a bit today but at 50% so far!

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - By best estimates again today I think I'm good. Cannot promise anything of course, nothing I was eating has any estimate or calorie count available, but I think I'm in good shape, so I'm counting it.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Weekend!

 

Workout 7 days a week - I wasn't sure on this today but I left Ms. Miz as the arbiter. I spent about 20 mins carrying in groceries and wine boxes and running them downstairs, which she said she felt was enough of a workout (certainly felt like one). I've left her largely as my judge on this sort of thing, so I think that's fair.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this! 

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - Almost there! Back home now and things should be a bit easier here.

[Mizbrek]

Okay, bit later than I'd like, but here we are! Been a quiet day for the most part. Slept in a bit, rested up a bit, went out for my Dad's birthday (just at my parent's house).

 

Drink 2L of water per day - Just about here! 98%!

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - Using a variance today. Did my best and walked into dinner with about 1600 calories to use, but was hard to keep that under with dessert and everything. Realized afterwards how bad potato salad it! But I'm not too far over, and overall, you live, you learn!

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Weekend!

 

Workout 7 days a week - 3 rounds of the Rising Heroes workout today! Also did 100 push ups this week, a Rising Heroes mission! Super fun. This is definitely feeling better and easier to do. May need to find a new challenge work out!

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this! Barely even left the house today!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - Almost there! Back home now and things should be a bit easier here.

[Elastigirl]

Great job at keeping to your goals even on vacation! 

[Mizbrek]

Great job at keeping to your goals even on vacation! 

 

Thanks! It was a new thing for me!

 

Quick abbreviated post today! Ms. Miz wasn't feeling well so had to take on a few extra things today! Overall hit all my goals or in reasonable time though. Got all my water, posting to NF, didn't buy anything extra!

 

In terms of calories I did a bit of snacking, and our dinner got a bit side tracked with Ms not feeling well, but I still had made good calorie choices at breakfast and lunch, and took some time to workout, so by my best estimate I'm in good shape.

 

In bed a bit later than intended, but since Ms wasn't feeling well giving myself a pass on this. I had an unexpected half hour or so of housework to do. Either way got to bed as quickly as I could!

 

Hope everyone else had a great weekend. Back to the grind stone tomorrow. Dreading work a bit but the steady rhythm should be good for getting a bit more back on track.

[Emerald Eagle]

Nice challenge! It's awesome to see how consistent you're being. For someone who is still up and down through the week I am inspired to try for more consistency

[Mizbrek]

11 hours ago, EmeraldEagle said:

Nice challenge! It's awesome to see how consistent you're being. For someone who is still up and down through the week I am inspired to try for more consistency

 

Thanks! I'm still not perfect but the end goal has made me FAR more consistent than I would've been previously. It's funny to watch my mental processes and KNOW when I would've given up on things, for sure.

 

Drink 2L of water per day - At about 50% so far. Little under on this because my workout was a bit abbreviated, but I should make the day still.

 

Stay under 2100 calories every damn day - Was good on this yesterday. I didn't track everything but everything I ate I had a pretty good idea on, and I did a good arms based workout that burned a decent chunk of calories. Today shouldn't be any issue based on our meal plan and what I've had so far, plus the morning's work out.

 

Be in bed by 9:30 on weeknights - Should manage this tonight!

 

Workout 7 days a week - My stomach was acting up this morning so only one round of the Rising Heroes workout, but still feel good about that, as it's an excellent workout.

 

Post every day to the Rebellion - Here we are!

 

Buy nothing non-essential - Still on this! Been tempted by a few good deals I've seen, but sticking to it. Deals come and go!

 

Stay Damn Consistent and Get an iPhone  - Cannot wait for this, and it's definitely continuing to help motivate me. Though there have been a couple minor variances, I'm still sticking to things really well overall. I've left my wife as the arbiter of this, and what counts as a variance and not, and so far so good!