2014 TypeC Health and Exercise Challenge

[Coriolis]

It's week 10, and rumor has it you guys are in need of a list! It's great to see so many of you still with us. With the days becoming longer and the weather becoming warmer, I suspect it's only going to get easier from this point on.

And we haven't heard from a few of you yet (possibly because I'm posting this earlier than usual), so please let us know how you guys are doing.
[MENTION=9811]Coriolis[/MENTION]
[MENTION=2]Ivy[/MENTION] (I know you posted, but I neeeed to know if you still walking the walk and destressing the stress and everything! )
[MENTION=10714]Qlip[/MENTION]
[MENTION=14015]Urarienev[/MENTION]

Well, this has been a pretty bad week. Work has been really busy, meaning I have had to bring things home to do. On top of that, I was sick much of the week, and mostly focused on getting enough rest to kick the bug, while keeping up with work. I managed only ONE exercise session all week, once I was finally feeling better. On the plus side, no problem about eating when/what I shouldn't. Unfortunately the next several weeks promise to be just as hectic at work. Now that I feel OK, though, should be no problem to get back to the exercise routine. (Somehow it's easier to recover from being sick than being on the road.)

 

[Firebird 8118]

Hey guys, just breaking out of my weekly post routine here (though I will post again this Thursday):

Apparently I'm capable of jogging at nearly 4 miles in an hour, as of now - didn't realize this until I actually pushed myself to the limit on the treadmill earlier. The only thing is, I was stupid enough to forget my water bottle upstairs in my room; so I essentially dehydrated myself to the point where, by the end of it all, I ended up staggering like a drunkard all the way back upstairs.

At least I know where my limit is right now. All I have to do is gradually double my speed, so that I'll be able to keep up with my dad and brother's pace during the half-marathon.

 

[kyuuei]

Yesterday I ended up eating Reuben sandwiches (2 of them!) for dinner. It was St. Patty's day so why not.

Today it was fruit (banana, oranges, dried figs) with two big cups of water for breakfast, and an energy bar (this one to be exact: http://www.bettylousinc.com/products_detail.php?id=280&ref=5 ) for a snack, and a bowl of whole, grass-fed milk and nature's path coconut chia seed granola for a 2nd snack, and a salad with fig balsamic vinegar+lemon juice+herbes de provence for dressing for lunch. I'll probably make BBQ shredded chicken and corn for tomorrow's dinner, and spaghetti-squash spaghetti for dinner with an oolong tea near-beer tonight.

I'm still not 100% on anything, but I am slowly converting my diet to one packed with fruit and vegetables before meat and grains, and I'm converting my drinks and snacks and toppings/condiments to more wholesome ingredients. Still a long way to go: tons of processed stuff in my dinners, and my snacks have less vegetables than I would like still. It has definitely upped the grocery bill for me, but that's fine with me, because it has also cut my prep work for meals down significantly. My stomach is adjusting a bit to the lack of grains, as I used to eat bread with every meal and snack. Eventually I'll get to the vegan-and-semi-raw-style breakfasts and lunches and snacks and desserts, with an open menu for dinners with wholesome ingredients and a single serving of milk and cheese each.

A quick session of P90X rounds it out for me. Studying all day now. I wish I could just research food instead.

 

[Evo]

[MENTION=4722]Udog[/MENTION] woooops!

This week came around fast

Week 10

Weekly Rate: 8/10

I have been doing ok with everything as a whole. I'm not gonna let one or two things discourage me.

But the specifics were:

1)I missed yoga. BOTH days and I'm feeling it now. Can't wait til tomorrow
2)I have a real problem. It seems the more patient I try to be the less I actually am.

A couple months ago I went to the doctor and they said that my blood pressure what a little high for my age.

So this is one of the reasons I have been trying to incorporate health in all areas of my life. Including interpersonal. I will work harder next week to listen to someone. :/

 

[Firebird 8118]

I'm sorry - I can't do this today.
I know, I promised I would, but today I just can't. My heart's just not in it.

I'll post an update next Thursday. Again, I'm really sorry.

 

[kyuuei]

I'm sorry - I can't do this today.
I know, I promised I would, but today I just can't. My heart's just not in it.

I'll post an update next Thursday. Again, I'm really sorry.

I hope you feel better from whatever is bogging you down.. Trust me, I haven't worked out even half the times I have wanted to.. my goal was to work out 5x a week to prep for 2 a days.. and now? I'm lucky to squeeze 2 sessions in a week. Not enough to get anything done. I had to adjust my goals to compensate for life. It happens. You'll get there.



Speaking of me Bob Marleying everything all up.

I feel uncomfortably energetic. I wasn't so stressed for my test, I wasn't stressed after my test, or the circumstances surrounding it. I didn't stress on my homework, nor on facing my teacher when I didn't make it and finish it on time. It all worked out, I had a great work day, and I am generally in a positive mood. I have a HUGE feeling that my diet is entirely to blame for that.

Seriously. I think those crazy hippy vegan girls I'm watching and reading online are like that because they genuinely do feel that chipper all the time. And I'm a fairly chipper person myself already.

Currently I've been doing really, really well eating 95% home cooked food (I'm going out to eat once a week to Vietnamese food or occasional sushi, and I eat some snack bars that are organic and filled with vegetables and chocolate), 60% raw, 80% vegan, and 60% organic, mostly my sweets and my snacks and my salads.

I'm sitting here with my pretend beer right now, watching the rest of the sun disappear, knowing I have a full, jam-packed weekend work load... and I'm totally, totally cool with it. I might even get a chance to work out tonight.

 

[Firebird 8118]

I hope you feel better from whatever is bogging you down.. Trust me, I haven't worked out even half the times I have wanted to.. my goal was to work out 5x a week to prep for 2 a days.. and now? I'm lucky to squeeze 2 sessions in a week. Not enough to get anything done. I had to adjust my goals to compensate for life. It happens. You'll get there.

Thanks

 

[Kasper]

Cardio

Cycling	Distance	Time
Mon 17 March	-	-
Tue 18 March	5.7	22:40
	5.7	18:05
Wed 19 March	-	-
Thur 20 March	6.6	26:20
	5.8	16:50
Fri 21 March	5.6	22:05
	5.9	18:25
Sat 22 March	-	-
Sun 23 March	7.3	25:30
	42.6	2:29:55

1. Log 40 bike rides by 7 April: 18
2. Ride to work minimum 3x a week:

3. Log minimum overall distance of 45kms per week:

Strength/core

	Push-ups	Lunges	Weights
Mon 17 March	-	-	-
Tue 18 March	-	-	-
Wed 19 March	80	-	70 Min
Thur 20 March	-	-	-
Fri 21 March	100	-	-
Sat 22 March	-	-	-
Sun 23 March	120	-	50 Min
	300	0	120 Min

4. Push ups every other day:

5. Lunges 4x per week:

6. Weights set 2x per week:

Turns out lunges are like, boring n stuff. Will probably add more weights sets and leave it at that.



Diet

	Breakfast	Lunch	Dinner
Mon 17-March
Tue 18-March
Wed 19-March
Thur 20-March
Fri 21-March
Sat 22 March
Sun 23 March

7. Market shopping once a fortnight:

8. Add one new option to meal plans each week:

9. Limit beer to max 7 per week: 11

10. Consume 3 meals per day min:

Still pissed off at food but feeling less queasy.

 

[kyuuei]

Oh dear! Friday I didn't so ANYTHING to work out--but I did do a bunch of yard work, and got things ready for a baby's 1st birthday held in my backyard. Saturday was the party + a bunch of homework, but I can happily report I only got away with eating 1 serving of awful-for-you pizza that was half of a regular slice. The rest of the time I ate granola, lovely raw fruits and vegetables, and some coconut sugar sweetened tea to give that a try (it is very, very different.. coconut sugar has a strong flavor for itself.. so it isn't quite 1 to 1 ratios like the package says when it comes to drinks.) and some hummus wraps.

Today its meal-planning and grocery shopping and tons of homework and study, and hopefully a little bit of running outside if the rain holds out.

 

[INTJMom]

Sunday 23 March...

I *was* going to have to admit I didn't do my exercise program again yesterday,
but my son (in the Air Force) called me a little while ago and we got onto the subject of exercise.
He listened to me complain about a conflict I've been having with someone at work, which has been making me miserable,
and he challenged me to do my exercises.

So... I am happy to report that I just finished my exercise program,
and I continued to do my Ab Crunches all week long!
I have been pretty depressed and stressed out, but I know that exercising is good for that, so I'm glad I did it!

 

[Udog]

All:

After some thought, I'm game to continue on for another 3 months. My time on the forum is extremely limited these days, but I can manage doing the bi-weekly updates. I just expect everyone to keep at it, now!!

As for my update, I'm happy to report this week was probably the best week since somewhere in January.

1. I'm still logging my food, and used it to eat much more healthy stuff. I'm still struggling to hit my full quota each day, but I haven't had a sugar craving since I began Monday. This is kind of amazing to me, honestly. I did cheat on Friday and Saturday, but only because I had a birthday. And it was limited to 1 slice of cake and 1 caramel/chocolate/pecan turtle.

2. I've worked out 6 out of 7 days, with Friday being a rest day. I'm still doing a pretty easy program. I've eaten so little for so long, I want to ease back into more challenging workouts so my metabolism can get kicking again.

3. Now I need to tackle sleep. I only managed to get more than 7.5 hours 3 days this week, with the weekend consisting of 2 of those.

 

[Ivy]

All:

After some thought, I'm game to continue on for another 3 months. My time on the forum is extremely limited these days, but I can manage doing the bi-weekly updates. I just expect everyone to keep at it, now!!

As for my update, I'm happy to report this week was probably the best week since somewhere in January.

1. I'm still logging my food, and used it to eat much more healthy stuff. I'm still struggling to hit my full quota each day, but I haven't had a sugar craving since I began Monday. This is kind of amazing to me, honestly. I did cheat on Friday and Saturday, but only because I had a birthday. And it was limited to 1 slice of cake and 1 caramel/chocolate/pecan turtle.

2. I've worked out 6 out of 7 days, with Friday being a rest day. I'm still doing a pretty easy program. I've eaten so little for so long, I want to ease back into more challenging workouts so my metabolism can get kicking again.

3. Now I need to tackle sleep. I only managed to get more than 7.5 hours 3 days this week, with the weekend consisting of 2 of those.

w00t! all around! both with the extension of the challenge, and your personal successes.

 

[Randomnity]

Week 11 update:

This week was pretty terrible. I came down with some kind of cold/flu thing so I figured working out wouldn't really help anything there. So I only got 1/3 bodyweight days done and 1/5 stretching days done.

I'm feeling better today though so I'm going to do my best to get through the bodyweight and stretching tonight, and get back on track for the week. Hopefully I haven't lost too much strength while I was sick.

 

[Ivy]

Rest is important too!

 

[Ivy]

Pretty good week for me. I've been weighing in more often, cautiously, and I'm hovering around 15 lbs down. Been there a while, actually, long enough that I think I've probably leveled out where my calorie target just about matches my total daily energy expenditure. I don't mind hanging here a while but maybe since I seem to have made major progress on my food issues, it might be safe for me to start implementing a small calorie deficit on purpose (as opposed of the de facto deficit that I think is responsible for this first few pounds, just from getting my binge disorder under control). But I'll have to be really, really careful and look out for disordered thoughts and behaviors regarding food, and back off if I start seeing them.

Food- 6/7, I did go a little hogwild on pizza on Friday. But even so I didn't really over do it calorie-wise for the week as a whole because there were a couple of days I went under. And I feel okay about it. Pizza seems to be one of my last remaining trigger foods- I just have a hard time stopping when I have access to it. It's SO GOOD. (Papa John's cheeseburger pizza, with pickles on it, holy crap it was good.)

Movement- 5/7. Did better this week. Not as good as my best weeks but I seem to be back on track. We had a nor'easter last night and it was cold today, and we're supposed to get hopefully the last winter weather event in the next couple of days. I'll have to work around that.. fingers crossed we get more warm weather soon. But not too warm. Spring in NC lasts about five minutes so I have to savor it.

Stress/sleep- 6/7. Kept stress levels down, slept well most nights. Still napping on the reg; would like to maybe cut that out at some point, but I'm in no hurry.

Connections- 5/7. Good week with the kids. Good week with the man. Didn't really connect with any of my bigger family network, so I'll want to be a bit more attentive to them this week.

 

[kyuuei]

I haven't weighed myself at all, I can do it at the hospital. Honestly with the lack of personal time I'm getting I'll be lucky to hold onto any weight at all. I thought I could just cut back, get a base point, and build up.. but I'm seeing now that I'm never going to get the time to build. So, I'm just going to focus on eating healthy foods, and doing something active that makes me feel good and keeps my body going in the right direction.

So far my 50% raw, 80% vegan, and 90% organic thing is going well. I hope to get it to 100% organic and farm-raised and bred for my animal products. It'd be interesting to incorporate something exotic into my diet every other week too. That might keep me occupied for a while.

 

[Coriolis]

Well, this has been a pretty bad week. Work has been really busy, meaning I have had to bring things home to do. On top of that, I was sick much of the week, and mostly focused on getting enough rest to kick the bug, while keeping up with work. I managed only ONE exercise session all week, once I was finally feeling better. On the plus side, no problem about eating when/what I shouldn't. Unfortunately the next several weeks promise to be just as hectic at work. Now that I feel OK, though, should be no problem to get back to the exercise routine. (Somehow it's easier to recover from being sick than being on the road.)

Well, a big improvement over last week. I kicked the bug, and got through some projects at work so don't have to bring things home so much, so I'm back on track.

1. Improve eating habits, specifically eating between meals.
I'm doing better at postponing between-meal nibbling, which often means it doesn't happen, and substituting "good nibbles" like fruit or even a cup of tea. It seems little by little is the way to go here.

2. Get more exercise: at least three times each week, in addition to martial arts practice.
Made it back to the 3x per week routine this week. I switched to a different workout video - a bit shorter, but more intense, and feels more effective. Since it is shorter, I am going to try to add a 4th session next week and subsequent weeks, plus outdoor activities on the weekends as weather improves. I got outside to do some yard work yesterday, but that only semi-counts, especially given what I did.

3. Weight loss.
No change, but stable loss is good, even if not so much (yet).

Next week I have travel again, but should have evenings free and there is a gym at my hotel, so just means I will be doing cardio machines and weights instead of my videos. A fair exchange.

 

[Evo]

Week 11

Weekly Rate: 9/10

I have been doing well so far. However I have also made some financial goals, which will probably interfere a little with all the fresh food I've been buying. So I will have to cut back on that. :/ I'm going to try and balance this out by putting someone else in charge of the lettuce club. Also I will probably cut back the yoga to once a week instead of twice. I have been planning to start walking and/or jogging soon cause the weather's not as bad now. Thank goodness that's free!

 

[Firebird 8118]

Update time! Okay, so:

Until college resumed this Monday, I got the chance to take my puppy out for a walk at least once or twice a day so I believe that helped a bit. Still trying to eat healthier (this week I've been carrying grapes and bananas as part of my lunch), drink plenty of water, and walk as often as I can. Not much I can really say besides that , though this week I do need to focus on my studies as well. We'll see what happens from here, I guess.

 

[kyuuei]

Tomorrow I'll finally get a break long enough to get some workouts in. This week is crazy--and next week is no better, with 2 major exams, a weekend to study for them, and a 17 page paper to analyze and write for the end of the week.. And after that, another 17 page paper, and it's off to the races for finals and HESI exams.

But for now! I ate fairly healthy today, with my usual oats, snack bar, some fruit, veggies (literally just a cup of cherry tomatoes and a cup of baby carrots lol), and some peanut butter tortilla wraps for lunch, coconut-covered dates for a snack, and a pulled chicken and vegetable 'sloppy joe' with steamed sweet potato and handmade refrigerator pickles, and a cucumber-onion salad (my favorite, btw.. just cucumbers, onions, salt, pepper, some white vinegar, rice wine vinegar, balsamic vinegar, and water to dilute it.. then you let it marinade for 30 minutes.).. Super awesome.

I was right about the raw foods--with a bit of ahead prep, raw foods are super fast for making meals.

A couple cool things I found for other people too:

- Youtube is doing free workout videos now! https://www.youtube.com/user/BeFit You can get a SUPER HUGE plethora of workouts from really famous people--including Jillian Michaels' 30 day shred level 1 and her ab workout. So if you're looking to shake it up, it's free.

- Something hippy to think about: I was watching my favorite raw vegan girl and she made a mention that sort of hit home.. The vegan 'how to afford a raw vegan diet' answer is always that lame 'how much are you really worth?' answer.. translation: expensive. But. She made the mention "If you don't take care of your body... where will you live?" .. And that part is entirely true. You can always get rid of.. just about anything that you neglected to take care of--a house, a car, a tent.. you really cannot do that with your body. If you let it go without caring for it, you're stuck with it. We're not awesome cyborgs in the making yet.. so.. Let's keep at it people!