The Scarlet Pimpernel in: 24

[Teancum]

 

The Scarlet Pimpernel has been recruited by Jack Bauer to work at the Counter Terrorist Unit in Los Angeles and help him take down the latest terrorist threat. In order to succeed the team faces several challenges:

 

Track Down the Terrorists (Food Tracking)

• record all food eaten each day using my fitness pal
• We'll also enlist the help of the public in this effort ... for some added accountability, please become a My Fitness Pal friend! add nturner235 or comment with your MFP username and I'll add you!

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets)

• No sweets as a general rule. Consider some seldom exceptions if planned ahead and a reasonable serving fitting calorie goals (trying to balance keeping my success avoiding sugar from last challenge with a sustainable life-long habit)

Execute Tactical Strikes (Complete NF Flexibility  Benchmark Challenge)

• Pretty straightforward. I thought about jumping into regular workouts again, but I think I've still got a fair amount of effort I need to put in with diet, and I'm worried I'd get hurt because I think my flexibility has gotten even worse than it already was these past few months, so this will be preparatory to getting back into regular workouts. Also I may hold off until week 2 to start, as we are away for April and I'd like a consistent measure.

Monitor the Chatter (Track Actions Per Day - APD)

• This has been working pretty well for me as far as encouraging me to make healthier choices. Goal is to beat last month's average by getting at least 6/day

Play the Political Game (Complete 1 or More Mindset Quests Per Week)

• Good orders need to come from the top, so I'll continue going through the mindset modules and completing the quests

Find the Mole (Bonus Quests)

• Try something new - I'll be spending most of this challenge in a new town, so I'd like to try some new activity while I'm there
• Parkour exercises/animal walks - bonus points for any parkour prep I do
• Meet macro targets - bonus points for each day I get within 10% of my macro targets (I'm focusing more on calories right now, but want to start thinking about macros too)
• Participate in the mini challenge - They're awesome and right now supply most of my exercise. 'Nuff said

 

And finally, the most important question to ask..... WHERE'S THE BOMB!?!?

 

 

 

 

 

[peelout]

I did it, I'm the first to follow.

[peelout]

57 minutes ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

 

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets)

• No sweets as a general rule. Consider some seldom exceptions if planned ahead and a reasonable serving fitting calorie goals (trying to balance keeping my success avoiding sugar from last challenge with a sustainable life-long habit)

I think you will make some child very happy by having a piece of their b-day cake.  Great way to make it sustainable.

[Jonesy]

Here to follow and I added you on myfitnesspal, I'm Jonesy516. I don't use it for food but I do check in.  

[Manarelle]

Following another exciting episode of the scarlet pimpernel! Good luck on your mission!

[Teancum]

On 3/15/2017 at 6:53 PM, peelout said:

I did it, I'm the first to follow.

 

You are the best!

 

On 3/15/2017 at 10:31 PM, Jonesy said:

Here to follow and I added you on myfitnesspal, I'm Jonesy516. I don't use it for food but I do check in.  

 

Awesome, thanks for the MFP info!

 

On 3/16/2017 at 9:50 AM, Manarelle said:

Following another exciting episode of the scarlet pimpernel! Good luck on your mission!

 

Thank you!!

[Teancum]

Update:

 

Track Down the Terrorists (Food Tracking) - Tracked every day so far this week

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets) - Still no sweets. St. Patrick's Day cookies and Mini-eggs have been somewhat hard to avoid, but so far I've managed. I *did* have a diet ginger beer for St. Patrick's day which I would generally try to avoid, but it was diet and a one-time thing, so I'm ok with it.

Execute Tactical Strikes (Complete NF Flexibility  Benchmark Challenge) - As mentioned before I am going to wait on this till we're in the other house. I may start trying to do some stretches again before then though

Monitor the Chatter (Track Actions Per Day - APD) - Monitoring, and recently been doing fairly well at getting up to 6. I could do better at adding more activity each day, but I'm hoping a new mini challenge will help with that.

Play the Political Game (Complete 1 or More Mindset Quests Per Week) - Still need to do this for this week. I'm due for my second set of measurements, so I might try to do that tomorrow.

Find the Mole (Bonus Quests)

• Try something new
• Parkour exercises/animal walks 
• Meet macro targets 
• Participate in the mini challenge

I've been really good at staying within my calorie goal, but very not good at meeting macro goals - too many carbs, not enough protein. As I mentioned the calories are my main focus but I'd like to get there sometime...

[peelout]

7 hours ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets) - Still no sweets. St. Patrick's Day cookies and Mini-eggs have been somewhat hard to avoid, but so far I've managed.

I looked for a good shaking ones head in disbelief meme but could not find anything that adequately represented my disbelief in your success on this.

 

7 hours ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

Play the Political Game 

Are you running for public office?  lol

 

7 hours ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

I've been really good at staying within my calorie goal, but very not good at meeting macro goals - too many carbs, not enough protein. As I mentioned the calories are my main focus but I'd like to get there sometime...

Perhaps this sandwich would help w/ your protein macros.  Where are you getting too many carbs from?  Crap foods or fruits and vegys?

 

 

7 hours ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

 

Can I ask where the name Scarlet Pimpernel came from?

[Teancum]

16 hours ago, peelout said:

I looked for a good shaking ones head in disbelief meme but could not find anything that adequately represented my disbelief in your success on this.

 

Are you running for public office?  lol

 

Perhaps this sandwich would help w/ your protein macros.  Where are you getting too many carbs from?  Crap foods or fruits and vegys?

 

 

Can I ask where the name Scarlet Pimpernel came from?

 

Haha love the sandwich! But I guess I'd better go in order. 

 

Political game - in 24 there's always a lot of political intrigue and conspiracies, so had to make that part of the challenge. 

 

My carbs are coming from too much pasta and bread I think. I've been eating a fair amount of veggies too, but definitely too many starches. I'm doing much better on carbs than when I was eating sweets, but should probably try to start cutting back on the other carbs eventually too. 

 

The Scarlet Pimpernel is a fictional character who's kind of a master of disguise who works to save the aristocrats from the guillotine during the French revolution. There is a book, but I know him from an 80s movie of the same name. When I was trying to think of a unique Assassiny character he's who came to mind. As a kid I always liked how tricky and classy he was, and his fencing. 

[Jonesy]

I'm so proud that you avoided mini-eggs. Those little devils are tasty. 

[Manarelle]

Nice work on week 0, especially avoiding St. Pat's Day temptations. The carbs/protein balance is a tough one for me, too, mostly because I eat fruit instead of veggies. Perhaps one of your APDs or mindfulness modules could include swapping out one carb-heavy item for something healthier per week, or something to that effect. Have you looked into making veggie noodles for pasta? I hear they're quite delicious.

Keep up the good work!

[Teancum]

22 hours ago, Jonesy said:

I'm so proud that you avoided mini-eggs. Those little devils are tasty. 

 

Ugh they're like crack for me. That's why I know I can't even have just one. But I did ask my wife for one very small bag for Easter as one of my planned sugary thing (and no other candy), so I'm looking forward to that. 

 

14 hours ago, Manarelle said:

Nice work on week 0, especially avoiding St. Pat's Day temptations. The carbs/protein balance is a tough one for me, too, mostly because I eat fruit instead of veggies. Perhaps one of your APDs or mindfulness modules could include swapping out one carb-heavy item for something healthier per week, or something to that effect. Have you looked into making veggie noodles for pasta? I hear they're quite delicious.

Keep up the good work!

 

That is a good idea! I have had some veggie noodles before - quite like spaghetti squash, last time I tried zucchini noodles I over cooked them so they were kind of soggy. Part of the trouble is my wife doesn't like them, and pasta is just so darn convenient (keeps forever on the shelf, cooks quickly, etc). 

[Teancum]

Weekly update:

 

 

Track Down the Terrorists (Food Tracking) - Tracked every day. I was over my calorie goal today (not too bad, but over) 

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets) - Today was my daughter's baby blessing (kind of like a christening) so I had some cake. I actually didn't want it but my wife said I should. It was way too sweet, and I scraped off most of the icing, so I guess my tastes are changing a bit which is nice to see. I did have a few cream puffs too. Neither put me over my calorie limit, but they did make it so I didn't have enough left when I got hungry later. 

Execute Tactical Strikes (Complete NF Flexibility  Benchmark Challenge) - As mentioned before I am going to wait on this till we're in the other house. I may start trying to do some stretches again before then though - no real progress yet. 

Monitor the Chatter (Track Actions Per Day - APD) - Monitoring, and recently been doing fairly well at getting up to 6. I could do better at adding more activity each day, but I'm hoping a new mini challenge will help with that.

Play the Political Game (Complete 1 or More Mindset Quests Per Week) - Still need to do this for this week. I'm due for my second set of measurements, still need to do them. 

Find the Mole (Bonus Quests)

• Try something new
• Parkour exercises/animal walks 
• Meet macro targets 
• Participate in the mini challenge

Overall a pretty good week. I've had a cold for the last week and a half which has been annoying and limiting my desire for physical activity. I did go for a walk and played in the swimming pool a bit yesterday though which was nice. 

[peelout]

18 hours ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

I scraped off most of the icing, so I guess my tastes are changing a bit which is nice to see

I'm with you on this.  Not a calorie thing, just don't like icing as much as when I was younger.

[Jonesy]

1 hour ago, peelout said:

I'm with you on this.  Not a calorie thing, just don't like icing as much as when I was younger.

 

I'm the same!

 

[Red1263]

Following you to see you find out WHERE'S THE BOMB?!

[Teancum]

Is it really Thursday already?? Holy cow this week has gone by fast. An update:

 

Track Down the Terrorists (Food Tracking) - Tracked every day this week. I've been getting a bit snacky in the evenings, but usually have had enough calories left to not go too far over. 

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets) - Still been doing surprisingly well with this! Avoided some ginger cookies (one of my favourites) that a friend brought my wife today. I told myself I could have one tomorrow if I still want it since it's the last day of my current rotation and they're a favourite. Sticking to my condition of pre-planned sweets so I avoid the "trigger - behaviour" cycle of just eating sweets whenever I get a craving (shout out to @peelout for the habit tips) 

Execute Tactical Strikes (Complete NF Flexibility  Benchmark Challenge) - As mentioned before I am going to wait on this till we're in the other house. That'll be Saturday evening so I'll start by Sunday. 

Monitor the Chatter (Track Actions Per Day - APD) - Monitoring, and recently been doing fairly well at getting up to 6. Yesterday wasn't great, but today was much better. 

Play the Political Game (Complete 1 or More Mindset Quests Per Week) - Still need to do this for this week. I've been procrastinating these recently, but I'm going to try to print out something inspirational tonight. 

Find the Mole (Bonus Quests)

• Try something new - tried some new yoga poses today! (thanks mini) They were a workout! 
• Parkour exercises/animal walks 
• Meet macro targets 
• Participate in the mini challenge- went through a bunch of the Rs today, hoping to do a couple Ms before bed

Overall things are going pretty well. I've been mostly sticking to my calorie goal, but I've been eating too much fast food and my macros are still struggling. Step by step though. 

[Manarelle]

12 hours ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

Overall things are going pretty well. I've been mostly sticking to my calorie goal, but I've been eating too much fast food and my macros are still struggling. Step by step though. 

 

Stick to the plan, you'll get there. Grats on a successful week, and good luck with the move!

[Jonesy]

14 hours ago, The Scarlet Pimpernel said:

Overall things are going pretty well. I've been mostly sticking to my calorie goal, but I've been eating too much fast food and my macros are still struggling. Step by step though. 

 

Sounds like you are having a good week so far!

 

The one thing that helps me stay semi on track is planning and prepping. If I know it can be a pin but it can sometimes help me avoid the fast food struggle.  

[Teancum]

12 hours ago, Manarelle said:

 

Stick to the plan, you'll get there. Grats on a successful week, and good luck with the move!

 

Thank you! Just a temporary move luckily, for a rotation, but still lots of stuff to bring for the kids. 

 

10 hours ago, Jonesy said:

 

Sounds like you are having a good week so far!

 

The one thing that helps me stay semi on track is planning and prepping. If I know it can be a pin but it can sometimes help me avoid the fast food struggle.  

 

This has definitely been part of the problem - I haven't been as good at making my lunches. The other issue is the clinic I was at was across town, so it was harder to say "I have food at home" when that mid afternoon hunger hit right before my drive.

 

Mini-update: I had a ginger cookie today and it was delicious. Zero struggle with wanting to eat more though afterward, so it seems the process is working!! Debating whether I should bring my scale with me for the month (I've been weighing every week normally) p

[Teancum]

Weekly Update:

 

 

Track Down the Terrorists (Food Tracking) - Still tracked every day! I've been trying to be faithful at tracking even small things that previously I would let slide, so that's been good. Could do better on food content, but at least it's within my calorie goal. 

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets) - I'm sensing this starting to slip slightly. Nothing crazy, but now that I am allowing some I'm finding it easier and easier to justify things. Yesterday I had A&W root beer, which fit within my calories and was worth it, but was only minimally pre-planned. I did think about it for about an hour as we drove in, so it wasn't a gut reaction still, but I had envisioned my pre-planning as at least a few days out, because if it's only hours I definitely run the danger of making sugar a daily occurrence again. Which leads me to today's slip. I had 1/2 a doughnut that while still fitting my calories, was not pre-planned. My wife bought them yesterday, and I was able to hold off yesterday, but today they got the better of me sitting out on the counter. I did well in that I stuck to only 1/2, and I recorded it, but still getting too close to losing my habit for comfort. I'll need to be extra careful the next few weeks

Execute Tactical Strikes (Complete NF Flexibility  Benchmark Challenge) - We're at the new house, and I signed up for the benchmark test. Upon reading through the document more carefully, I realize this is not so much a stretching program, but I think will still serve as a good spring-board for doing daily stretching. Anyone know any good stretching routines for building general flexibility?

Monitor the Chatter (Track Actions Per Day - APD) - Monitoring, and doing pretty well. This mini is helping with all the different things to try that are pretty quick but still meaningful.

Play the Political Game (Complete 1 or More Mindset Quests Per Week) - Printed out something inspirational, so I got it in for this week. I still need to do more "during" pictures and measurements... maybe tonight.

Find the Mole (Bonus Quests)

• Try something new - check (yoga poses). Will still try to do some more
• Parkour exercises/animal walks 
• Meet macro targets 
• Participate in the mini challenge- So far so good!

 

I have some things I need to keep an eye on (see sugar goal above), but have been finding some success. I got below 260lbs yesterday! It isn't one of my pre-determined milestones, but is more of an emotional milestone. When I was gaining weight as a teenager, 260 was the highest I got, and when I lost a bunch of weight I told myself "never again". Well, it did happen again, and then some, but I'm grateful to be back below that line! I don't look quite as fat as I did then (more muscle mass as I finished puberty I guess), but I still have a ways to go. Going the right direction though!

[mom2sjm]

Challenge progress is looking good!

 

[Lightning]

Late to the game...

 

I totally understand the way sugar sneaks back in. The fact that you caught so quickly is great. 

[Teancum]

Track Down the Terrorists (Food Tracking) - Tracking away! 

Get Clean (Continue With No Sweets) - Today my wife made chocolate chip cookies - a weakness of mine. I debated having some or not for a while. Finally after dinner I decided I could have one if it fit my calories. I had 100 calories left, and it looked like the best it could be was 120 calories, so I did not eat it. Good for me! I decided I could have a couple tomorrow as a post-call treat if I have the room. Sugar is still creeping in more often than I'd like, but these are one of my favourites, and I'm still in control. 

Execute Tactical Strikes (Complete NF Flexibility  Benchmark Challenge) - Started the benchmark challenge today, and it felt good since my back has been sore. Still trying to find a daily stretching routine that I like. 

Monitor the Chatter (Track Actions Per Day - APD) - Today was great! One of the nice things about being in a small town is lots of opportunities for walks!

Play the Political Game (Complete 1 or More Mindset Quests Per Week) - No pictures yet... 

Find the Mole (Bonus Quests)

• Try something new - check (yoga poses). Will still try to do some more
• Parkour exercises/animal walks 
• Meet macro targets 
• Participate in the mini challenge- I'm falling behind the lesson plans! Maybe this will end up like real school where no matter my intentions I always end to cramming before the test

[Manarelle]

It's a small thing, but I've found that cookies still taste delicious if you lower the sugar in them. Recipes that call for 1 cup of sugar still taste awesome with 3/4 cup of sugar. Just a thought, might be worth playing with (or asking your wife to play with). 

 

Grats on a successful week 1 and avoiding the femme fatale of cookies last night! The weight milestone is a nice motivation boost too. Keep it up, you've got this!