FortBacon gets lean pt. 1 - 7/9-8/5/2017

[FortBacon]

Real simple - I need to work and study my brains out for another 2-3 years, so my challenges will not be nearly as awesome as everyone else's (no prose, no RPG narrative or GIF/MEME-posting). However, the challenge goes up anyway because this community, has been fantastic - as I got out of debt, moved my family to a new city, acclimated to new job, on and on!

 

IT'S TIME TO FINISH my "life-repair" efforts before I transition to maintain-growth-pace-of-life! Time to stop dabbling and actually take care of my health and long-term vocational stuff (thus the 2-3 years of studying/working).

 

Simply, in 3 years (or less) get lean and jacked and financially liberated (and, of course, enjoying the journey in the process)

 

I want to track a daily checklist of items to keep the fitness going, while life is full of working and studying and family-ing, I'm going to borrow @Laghail's checklist format

 

All of this toward fat loss, plus some strength building: drop 10 pounds. This should be do-able with beginner gains (all bloaty and lazy these days)

 

Daily strive for 

□ Morning meditation

□ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

□ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

□ Career studies

 

Here we go - in 3 years I will be lean and jacked and financially liberated - and then will have cooler challenges

[Laghail]

Boring is the new sexy. Also, trying to enjoy this shiz along the way is bonkers healthy. Well done. Like you, I refuse to hold my enjoyment of life hostage until I can haz the 6-pack or retirement nest egg. Kill it. 

[FortBacon]

44 minutes ago, Laghail said:

Boring is the new sexy. Also, trying to enjoy this shiz along the way is bonkers healthy. Well done. Like you, I refuse to hold my enjoyment of life hostage until I can haz the 6-pack or retirement nest egg. Kill it. 

Thanks, man

Now I need to go copy-paste your check-mark for completed items - lol - I'm lazy

[FortBacon]

✔️ Morning meditation

✔️ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

✔️ Steps 

✔️ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

 

Day one - done - time for sleepy

[Haikoo]

If I challenge again, it's definitely going to be boring :/ but sometimes boring gets things done!

[RedStone]

 

[FortBacon]

For Sunday 7/2:

✔️ Morning meditation

✔️ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

✔️ Steps 

✔️ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

 

For Monday 7/3:

□ Morning meditation

□ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

□ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

 

Monday was rough - back on track today

[FortBacon]

Tuesday 7/4:

✔️ Morning meditation

□ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

□ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

[FortBacon]

Barely survived July the 5th (so hard to work after July 4th)

 

Wednesday 7/5:

✔️ Morning meditation

✔️ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

□ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

[FortBacon]

Thursday 7/6:

✔️ Morning meditation

□ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

□ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

 

Making progress on my studies feels fantastic - but I've allowed it squeeze out exercise. Time to adjust.

 

Why must I be finite? I do not like this attribute of humanity.

[FortBacon]

I walk by this (below) almost every day, and want to share it with my nerds... also got to see the artist commissioned by Milwaukee to make it - saw him in action - basically spray-paint and tape - seems like there are about 4 more of these going up around the city on various pieces of infrastructure. Art makes the walk more betterer.

 

[FortBacon]

Friday 7/7:

✔️ Morning meditation

□ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

□ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

 

Saturday 7/8:

✔️ Morning meditation

□ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

✔️ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

 

Rough week - progress made, but important goals missed - time for sleep and a new week

[FortBacon]

I DID THINGS! Here's to a trend (0+1 - not quite a trend, but will take it)

 

Sunday 7/9:

✔️ Morning meditation

✔️ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

✔️ Steps 

✔️ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

[FortBacon]

Finally tried the "Strong" app. It takes minimal learning and fidgeting (had to enter a few of the moves from NF Academy Bodyweight 3), but I love this! Finally, a flexible strength/workout app that bends to MY will (vs most apps that require I bow to them). I can't remember who recommended it, but it was surely @Br0din or @Laghail or @catspaw or @Haikoo or @RedStone or @Loren Wade or many other nerds here who deserve attribution for the tons of great advice I've received (so many mentions, so little time).

 

Time-saving, life-recording app implemented - big woot

 

Back to learning and thinking...

[Laghail]

[FortBacon]

AGAIN with the things - two days in a row, for me, is a big WIN... infinity% more than the zero I've been doing...

 

Monday 7/10:

✔️ Morning meditation

✔️ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

✔️ Steps 

✔️ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

[Laghail]

What are you using for meditation these days?

[FortBacon]

Trying headspace - you?

[FortBacon]

Tuesday 7/11:

✔️ Morning meditation

□ Keto-calorie restriction (adjusting fat for activity levels)

✔️ Steps 

□ NF Academy Bodyweight level 3 (4 days each week)

✔️ Career studies

 

Travel days are a real problem for me... I eat "therapeutically"

[Laghail]

9 hours ago, FortBacon said:

Trying headspace - you?

Calm, be interesting to compare notes. Calm shakes out to four guided meditations with variable lengths, and unguided edition timer. All with the option of a soundscape (rain, waves, ect) for the duration.

[FortBacon]

2 hours ago, Laghail said:

Calm, be interesting to compare notes. Calm shakes out to four guided meditations with variable lengths, and unguided edition timer. All with the option of a soundscape (rain, waves, ect) for the duration.

That's helpful. Does it "graduate" to a paid subscription?

 

Headspace has mostly guided meditations with default length 10 min - any of them can be set to longer duration - duration is controlled at the start of each meditation - I'm pretty much barely able to do the 10 min - heh).

 

There is also a timed, unguided one. There does NOT seem to be noise-based content (nothing that's rain or water or coffee shop sounds, etc) - everything is fairly quiet and narrated by Anthony Puddicombe - a former Buddhist monk, which means he's a meditation wizard... sorry for the snark, he's actually pretty helpful!

 

I think the 3 basic sets (intro sets) are free and infinitely repeatable (3 sets of 10, mostly the same with some instructional videos and coaching).

 

There is a subscription service I might try with a ton of content: SOS meditations (3 short ones to pick from when you feel like you're about to explode with stress or frustration), and a bunch of topic-sets - anxiet, competition, sleep, acceptance, anger, relationships, etc.

 

OH! There are also little animations to help illustrate concepts, and they are nice.

[FortBacon]

Honestly, most days I feel frustrated during this part of the day - all the demands of life come rushing into my mind, or some completely nutty thought crashes in. Or an especially critical thought comes in that says "what's the point?! I'm wasting time!"

 

I'm still learning, but my understanding is that the exercise is meant to help me observe my thoughts (not "be" my thoughts, but to observe them), but most days I fail. However, there have been occasional profound moments where I'm able to "hover above" my thoughts and maybe find another place in the mind that isn't ruled by emotional messiness - very brief, and probably an illusion - but maybe this is how I slowly find my meditative way.

[Laghail]

36 minutes ago, FortBacon said:

Honestly, most days I feel frustrated during this part of the day - all the demands of life come rushing into my mind, or some completely nutty thought crashes in. Or an especially critical thought comes in that says "what's the point?! I'm wasting time!"

 

I'm still learning, but my understanding is that the exercise is meant to help me observe my thoughts (not "be" my thoughts, but to observe them), but most days I fail. However, there have been occasional profound moments where I'm able to "hover above" my thoughts and maybe find another place in the mind that isn't ruled by emotional messiness - very brief, and probably an illusion - but maybe this is how I slowly find my meditative way.

Yes to all the meditation struggles. Please don't tell anyone I said to read this, but 'Eat Pray Love' was worth it, even just to hear another middle class pale face struggle through meditating.

[FortBacon]

20 hours ago, Laghail said:

Yes to all the meditation struggles. Please don't tell anyone I said to read this, but 'Eat Pray Love' was worth it, even just to hear another middle class pale face struggle through meditating.

 

 

Ah! I've seen her talks and read a few of her articles - good stuff - I will add her to my reading list of "wealthy persons telling me to meditate and why their book/system should be bought and followed"

[FortBacon]

Man - that was snarky ... did not intend for that to be "mean spirited" - meditation is helpful, and I'm mostly admitting my own flaws and short-sightedness in the process of learning