2015 Health and Fitness Challenge!

[Dr Mobius]

I’m getting back into it after having spent last year perfecting my imitation of a beached whale. Trying body weights this time around, I find the concept of pound for pound interesting and possibly highly motivating. Unfortunately the program I am using isn't increased incrementally, so I don't have the constant push factor. If any one has any links to body weight or pound for pound articles feel free to send them my way. I'll come back later with a detailed summation of goals.

 

[kyuuei]

Tomorrow is day 14. I feel so in tune with my work out routine now, I was actually looking forward to it after having had a 20 hour day. Boom, done son.

Tomorrow I also add to the list o-stuff to do is buying some fresh and frozen produce to turn into soups, vegetable noodles, sauces, salads, sides, and starch replacements. I know Easter I'm gonna pig out.. but I thought it'd be cool to bring some carrot ginger soup too. Tasty, low-fat, low sugar soup that's not fussy.. a light, satisfying appetizer.

Good night everyone. <3

I’m getting back into it after having spent last year perfecting my imitation of a beached whale. Trying body weights this time around, I find the concept of pound for pound interesting and possibly highly motivating. Unfortunately the program I am using isn't increased incrementally, so I don't have the constant push factor. If any one has any links to body weight or pound for pound articles feel free to send them my way. I'll come back later with a detailed summation of goals.

I had to look up what pound for pound was.. but it seems like a type of circuit interval training technique. I'm generally a fan of those. But really there isn't much being said about it by that name.. does it go by any other names?

 

[Dr Mobius]

I had to look up what pound for pound was.. but it seems like a type of circuit interval training technique. I'm generally a fan of those. But really there isn't much being said about it by that name.. does it go by any other names?

Unfortunately I don’t. It was mentioned in a boxing/mma video I saw awhile ago but forgot to bookmark. I think the underlining principle is to be as proportionally strong as possible, no excess mass. If you have any circuit interval training technique links I would certainly appreciate those.

 

[kyuuei]

Unfortunately I don’t. It was mentioned in a boxing/mma video I saw awhile ago but forgot to bookmark. I think the underlining principle is to be as proportionally strong as possible, no excess mass. If you have any circuit interval training technique links I would certainly appreciate those.

Oh tons somewhere. I do appreciate the BiFit channel on youtube as well.. Actually, I rather like the P90X systems, I think they do a great job of balancing strength with trying to create show-offy glamour muscles, despite the silly plug ins for beach body sprinkled in there. They combine bodyweight work outs with weight lifting, and I think the pace is right. P90X3 is a biiit too fast for building muscle for me vs just toning up, but the original and the 2nd level are both solid. I got tired of juggling the CDs and DVDs and just pirated the stuff so I could pull it up on the computer.

 

[Ivy]

Ugh, I feel like a slug this week. It was the kids' spring break so I was off my routine. Also, my daughter was gone for most of it and I didn't feel like I could leave my son at home alone to work at the gym. But I'm not beating myself up. One week is a small snapshot in an otherwise decent picture. Progress, not perfection. And for me, not giving up because I wasn't perfect for one week (or even one day!) is huge progress.

 

[kyuuei]

Pow Pow! Day 15 is DONE and I am officially halfway through my 30 day challenges! Take that, crushing sleepiness!

.. Actually I'm just pretty sleepy from being sedated and over fed. It's easter weekend, what do you expect, eh? Luckily, I did get some really cool foods out of it.. so for the next three days it's carrot ginger soup and deviled easter eggs for breakfast with creamed cheese salmon dip on top, ham-and-egg salad sandwiches chock full of greens and a cup of gumbo for lunch (except the first day.. there's a luncheon I'm attending with free food that's probably awful for me, and free trumps everything), and whatever dinner is that day + a salad and a hot, steamed veggie. And of course chocolate for snacks because.. Easter. Hahahaha.

 

[INTJMom]

kyuuei, Congratulations!

 

[INTJMom]

I fell out of my routine for 2 weeks, but I did my Sunday morning workout today.
And I did my ab crunches every morning this past week.
Now I just got to add another day of my workout... get back to twice a week.
3 times was too much.

 

[kyuuei]

Did I finish my day 24?! Did I fail?!.. <-- my thoughts exactly today. Today was the 'active recovery' day, and it was sun salutations .. 15 of them.. while saying out loud affirmations each and every time. Not really my cup of tea.. and I had yoga after it.. and I was so tired.. I did like 7 sun salutations in total, but I just lacked the patience for the rest. The stopping so long between each and every one, and the affirmations were making me want to roll my eyes. Oh, also, I'm sick on top of that, which makes everything seem more annoying. The sun salutations are not impossible to do, they're rather easy.. and they're time consuming. I did all of my yoga, and it was so comforting.. I wish it was all like that. But as I am resting here, thinking 'does 8 sun salutations being missed negate all of the work I've done all this time?' I haven't missed a single day except the 3rd day, and I have diligently stuck to the routine this whole time.

.. But I feel good, I don't think those 8 sun salutations are going to make or break my health, I think I did the ones I did adequately, and that this was a good rest day that I genuinely needed while being miserably sick and overwhelmed with paperwork the day before my birthday. I'll call it a victory.

 

[Evo]

Oh, been doin good on exercise.

Not as good on food.

No juicing.

Good on water.

2 outta 4 ain't bad right?

 

[kyuuei]

Oh, been doin good on exercise.

Not as good on food.

No juicing.

Good on water.

2 outta 4 ain't bad right?

It really isn't. Honestly. People feel like if they fail in aspect of their health goals that they fail in all of them. They're all separate. 2/4 is awesome.

 

[kyuuei]

Day 26 is down. 4 more days to go. There is a 14 day challenge coming up (i.e. it already started and I'm 4 days behind on everything new haha), and some extra videos on Adriene's channel, so I might just extend this out until mid May. I dunno. Or I might jump straight into P90X. Im feeling pretty good with this routine. We'll see how it goes. Nothing stopping me from doing both.

I was just gonna check in quickly on the last day and do a big firework show, but today was interesting. My forward fold in yoga didn't completely kill my legs the whole time. It still massively sucked.. but not as bad, which is easily mistaken for not hurting haha. My stomach was.. awful. A mess. I ate something it didn't agree with, and it felt like the way road kill looks. But it didn't even phase me. Like, I wasn't struggling with if I should work out with my upset tummy.. but rather how. Turns out it passed during the work out and I felt fine by the time yoga came around.

I'll have to write some nice things in comments for these ladies putting together this awesome work out.

My birthday was yesterday, I ate some really yummy steamed fish, stir-fried vegetables, and lots of weird vietnamese food. I made a watermelon cake because I think those are adorable and watermelon + coconut cream is the best.

 

[kyuuei]

Today officially ended my two 30 day challenges. I'm pretty awesome. I mean, proud of myself.

I was a ... little sad that the yoga instructor on the last day left it up to us. I think it'll take me practicing yoga for about a year before I even begin to enjoy it enough to think of stuff to do on my own. Most of the time I just have trouble concentrating enough on the move and the instructor talking.. trying to put together a 20 minute routine of my own was awful. I gave up after 10 minutes. and 5 of those I spent trying to keep up with her, but without her voice it got difficult fast.

Nevertheless, I think I may go for the 14 day challenge from Betty Rocker as it's also free and visit some of the other routines on the yoga page for those 14 days. I'm trying to decide if I will go for P90X, X3, or attempt a different strength circuit entirely.

Salad dressing makes all the difference between "Meh" and craving salad. Toasted sesame ginger salad dressing and green goddess are so amazing.. and I keep trying different fancy dressings.. but the regular old Kraft pulls me back every time. Or bolthouse farms or Opa for yogurt dressings.. I like the yogurt ones' tangy nature more than regular ranch's mayo-after tones.

 

[Dannik]

Salad dressing makes all the difference between "Meh" and craving salad.

I find that avocado or a small bit of fish makes a salad really happen.
Also, adding more leafy greens to your other meals can take the place of salads. You can add them to whatever. I find that they blend much more smoothly into a meal than one would expect...

I typically chop up a HUGE amount of vegetables on Sunday,
and mix-them up and put them in a container in the fridge. Then I can EASILY add an incredible mix of chopped veggies to my shit all week long.

 

[kyuuei]

I find that avocado or a small bit of fish makes a salad really happen.
Also, adding more leafy greens to your other meals can take the place of salads. You can add them to whatever. I find that they blend much more smoothly into a meal than one would expect...

I typically chop up a HUGE amount of vegetables on Sunday,
and mix-them up and put them in a container in the fridge. Then I can EASILY add an incredible mix of chopped veggies to my shit all week long.

Ooh I agree on the fish and avocado. I sometimes eat a sardine-avocado-mustard mixture on crackers. Soo good.
I used to pre-prep veggies all the time, but with 8 people in the house having your own section in the fridge isn't an option. Will be when I move though and I have the fridge/freezer space to do things proper again.

 

[INTJMom]

Today officially ended my two 30 day challenges. I'm pretty awesome. I mean, proud of myself.

Congratulations!

Salad dressing makes all the difference between "Meh" and craving salad. Toasted sesame ginger salad dressing and green goddess are so amazing.. and I keep trying different fancy dressings.. but the regular old Kraft pulls me back every time. Or bolthouse farms or Opa for yogurt dressings.. I like the yogurt ones' tangy nature more than regular ranch's mayo-after tones.

I know what you mean! I am hooked on Caesar salad now because the Romaine lettuce has such better nutritional value than the Iceberg lettuce, but the salad dressing is what makes my mouth start watering when I think of it! It's Ken's Steak House Lite Caesar salad dressing. The creamy is my favorite, but the oil based is excellent, too. PERFECT blend of garlic and other spices,

Oh and btw... I conducted extensive research to find the perfect croutons... meaning I bought about 10 different brands in town and tried them all.
Chatham Village makes the absolute perfect croutons in size, crunch and flavor.

The Chatham Village Garlic & Butter Croutons are my favorite.
Well, the Chatham Village Caesar Style Croutons are absolutely out of this world, but I can't eat them because I have trouble with my teeth... the croutons have rye seeds or something and it hurts my teeth. As I said, the Chatham Village Garlic & Butter Croutons are my favorite.

 

[INTJMom]

Ugh, I feel like a slug this week. It was the kids' spring break so I was off my routine. Also, my daughter was gone for most of it and I didn't feel like I could leave my son at home alone to work at the gym. But I'm not beating myself up. One week is a small snapshot in an otherwise decent picture. Progress, not perfection. And for me, not giving up because I wasn't perfect for one week (or even one day!) is huge progress.

I know what you mean about not giving up if you didn't do something perfectly! I used to be the same way! But now I just accept it and keep going. This is life. Life isn't perfect. Good for you!

 

[INTJMom]

Oh, been doin good on exercise.

Not as good on food.

No juicing.

Good on water.

2 outta 4 ain't bad right?

No it ain't bad!
It's better than you would have done had you no goals at all!
Keep on going. Don't give up!

 

[INTJMom]

OK... well I am about to do my morning exercise program and I've had some kind of a headache for several hours, it might be a migraine.

I did my ab crunches this week, but it's getting so I have to do more and more of them to feel the burn, so it's becoming time consuming. So a few times I turned over and did some planking.

I still need to start exercising on Wednesday again.
The best way to do that is to promise you all right now that I will do that.
*groan* Now I'll HAVE to.

 

[kyuuei]

So I decided to hold off on P90X until maybe 2 weeks from now. The 14 day challenge doesn't have videos for me to follow, which is what I like doing, so I'm also not going to be participating in that. Instead I've been having some fun lifting weights! Fitness blender has some awesome 30min and 1hr work outs, so I've been browsing the yoga site and doing those at will. I took two days off after the 30 day challenge (one by choice, the other not by choice.. goes to show that if I'm inactive for even one day my hips will seize up on me.) and I've spent two days lifting weights for my lower body and upper body. Tonight will be cardio+abs, and then a long stretch day.. Then I'll do 1hr segments of each. I might rinse and repeat, and if so, then I'll do that and then start up some P90X.. but I'll create my own routine out of it.

I broke my myfitnesspal streak. 170 days!! IN A ROW!! and I broke it just because I was tired for ONE day. It really made me feel bad.. like.. not guilty, just downright shitty. So, I decided I won't be logging into that for a while to keep a food diary. Something about the streak thing doesn't make me feel good when I break it. I might dig out a nice notebook and keep a real diary of food if I want to keep up with it in the near future.

Congratulations!

I know what you mean! I am hooked on Caesar salad now because the Romaine lettuce has such better nutritional value than the Iceberg lettuce, but the salad dressing is what makes my mouth start watering when I think of it! It's Ken's Steak House Lite Caesar salad dressing. The creamy is my favorite, but the oil based is excellent, too. PERFECT blend of garlic and other spices,

Oh and btw... I conducted extensive research to find the perfect croutons... meaning I bought about 10 different brands in town and tried them all.
Chatham Village makes the absolute perfect croutons in size, crunch and flavor.

The Chatham Village Garlic & Butter Croutons are my favorite.
Well, the Chatham Village Caesar Style Croutons are absolutely out of this world, but I can't eat them because I have trouble with my teeth... the croutons have rye seeds or something and it hurts my teeth. As I said, the Chatham Village Garlic & Butter Croutons are my favorite.

ty ty..

Oh man, chow mein noodles for the crunch + lemon-roasted brussel sprouts + wasabi almonds + shredded cabbage + carrots + mixed greens with Kraft's Asian Toasted Sesame salad dressing.. I can eat that EVERY day forever I swear I could.