collapse

* Recent Posts

"Christ Is King" by Altair
[Today at 01:09:34 am]


Re: Cill Shift Schedule by SunflowerP
[Yesterday at 11:04:57 pm]


Re: Stellar Bling: The Good, the Bad, the OMG! by SunflowerP
[March 21, 2024, 11:21:37 pm]


Re: Spring Has Sprung! 2024 Edition by SunflowerP
[March 21, 2024, 10:24:10 pm]


Stellar Bling: The Good, the Bad, the OMG! by Altair
[March 21, 2024, 02:52:34 pm]

Author Topic: Health: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19  (Read 14846 times)

Aisling

  • Senior Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Jun 2011
  • Posts: 4222
  • Country: us
  • Total likes: 463
    • View Profile
  • Religion: Eclectic Pagan Witch
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #15 on: January 01, 2019, 11:53:46 am »
Beginning of 2019 Update:

I took 2 weeks off from my usual workout regimen, as I usually do this time of year (the body needs periodic rest, and besides, it gets too busy around the holidays).

But now at the end of 2 weeks when I'm ready to get back to training and my waistline goal, somehow I've managed to hurt my lower back! Super annoying, because if I'm going to injure myself, it might as well be exercising...but instead my back goes haywire through some unknown method when I'm *not* at the gym. Grrrr...

I'm determined that this be only a temporary setback. With luck, I'll be chasing that goal again shortly.


I've been there and done that, more than once, and if it's not my back, then it's my knees flaring up.  One thing that's helped is stretching every day.  YMMV, but I find that if I don't keep the muscles stretched, I'm more prone to injury.   

Whatever the cause, best wishes for a quick recovery and rebound.

Everybody else, check in!

Yes sir! 

As of this morning, up to 4 of 30 strength training sessions completed. I've gotten back into circuit training after a long lapse, so I'm starting with ridiculously low weights and fewer reps.  The power tower is out of the question until at least February, but I'll get there.

"The universe is under no obligation to make sense to you." -
Neil deGrasse Tyson

Ashmire

  • Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: May 2017
  • Posts: 448
  • Country: us
  • Total likes: 223
    • View Profile
  • Religion: Eclectic, featuring mainly East Asian and Egyptian plus pop-cultural influences
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #16 on: January 01, 2019, 12:27:38 pm »
Beginning of 2019 Update:

I took 2 weeks off from my usual workout regimen, as I usually do this time of year (the body needs periodic rest, and besides, it gets too busy around the holidays).

But now at the end of 2 weeks when I'm ready to get back to training and my waistline goal, somehow I've managed to hurt my lower back! Super annoying, because if I'm going to injure myself, it might as well be exercising...but instead my back goes haywire through some unknown method when I'm *not* at the gym. Grrrr...

I'm determined that this be only a temporary setback. With luck, I'll be chasing that goal again shortly.

Everybody else, check in!

I didn't expect to have made much progress, but I actually have!

Admittedly this is partly due to poverty---instead of being out and about and tempted by treats everywhere, or alternatively, stress-eating mass amounts of sugar, I'm apt to be home with my heavy bag and a lot of frustration, eating beans and cheap veggies from the Asian market these days---and I fear once I am employed again my waistline and overall health may suffer.

  I probably should have used an actual tape measure to give more descriptive and clear results, but today I technically actually am to fit in the suit, though since I can only do so if I hold my breath and remain in a standing position I can't really consider the goal complete.  Still, this means my waistline must be at least two inches less than it was.

Ashmire

  • Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: May 2017
  • Posts: 448
  • Country: us
  • Total likes: 223
    • View Profile
  • Religion: Eclectic, featuring mainly East Asian and Egyptian plus pop-cultural influences
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #17 on: January 01, 2019, 12:34:59 pm »
I've been there and done that, more than once, and if it's not my back, then it's my knees flaring up.  One thing that's helped is stretching every day.  YMMV, but I find that if I don't keep the muscles stretched, I'm more prone to injury.   

Agreed on this one.  I've got a herniated disc and L5 stenosis, and it's fine as long as I keep exercising but if other body parts force me to take a break, it will slip out in my sleep and make my life hell.  At least mild daily stretching is an absolute requirement.

Sefiru

  • Senior Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Nov 2013
  • Location: In the walls
  • Posts: 2569
  • Country: ca
  • Total likes: 891
    • View Profile
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #18 on: January 01, 2019, 06:42:55 pm »
Everybody else, check in!

The small nutritional adjustment is going well, and I've rediscovered an old favorite: quail eggs and tomato sauce on toast. (the trick being that quail eggs cook fast enough that they're done the same time as the toast is.)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Me on AO3 & Deviantart

Sefiru

  • Senior Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Nov 2013
  • Location: In the walls
  • Posts: 2569
  • Country: ca
  • Total likes: 891
    • View Profile
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #19 on: January 01, 2019, 06:44:25 pm »
Admittedly this is partly due to poverty---instead of being out and about and tempted by treats everywhere, or alternatively, stress-eating mass amounts of sugar, I'm apt to be home with my heavy bag and a lot of frustration, eating beans and cheap veggies from the Asian market these days---and I fear once I am employed again my waistline and overall health may suffer.

I've had a full-time job for a while now and I still need to remind myself that I don't need to scrimp on groceries. :/ But then I am a notorious cheapass.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Me on AO3 & Deviantart

LadyBug

  • Master Member
  • ******
  • Join Date: Jul 2011
  • *
  • Posts: 290
  • Country: ca
  • Total likes: 48
    • View Profile
  • Religion: Lost/Searching
  • Preferred Pronouns: she/her/her
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #20 on: January 02, 2019, 08:06:38 am »
Everybody else, check in!

I've succeeded in making a loose annual budget for household expenses ... Which was NOT my goal for this point in time :P I am going to set to making the menu and such tonight! Which will be a challenge considering we had to cut our food budget nearly in half, but we will make do! Frozen veggies are still veggies :)

Morag

  • Senior Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Jun 2011
  • Location: witch's hut down the lane
  • *
  • Posts: 2735
  • Country: ca
  • Total likes: 356
  • cranky witch mom
    • View Profile
    • Priestess of the 3
  • Religion: Priestess of the 3
  • Preferred Pronouns: she/her
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #21 on: January 02, 2019, 07:09:46 pm »
  • Beginning with the impending solstice, strive to achieve your goal by the equinox on March 21
  • Update us here in this thread periodically on your progress

Well, I didn't start with Solstice because starting then is just a recipe for failure, for me, but starting at the changeover of the year is good.

I do have an overall goal of "Stop feeling like 100% crap all the time" which I hope to reach by my 33rd birthday in August. That is the main goal I have for my health this year, as being chronically ill makes a lot of other goals somewhat difficult to achieve and also the idea of "being healthy" kind of...nonsensical, to me at least. But feeling less crappy? Yeah, I think I can manage that.

My mom bought me a FitBit as a Christmas/New Year's gift so I can have assistance in reaching that goal; tracking how many steps I'm doing or how much exercise and seeing how that makes me feel (so I can add or subtract as necessary), as well as tracking my sleep and other things, will help me actually know if things are helping or hindering.

So for this first chunk of time, my goals are this:

  • 2,000 steps a day
  • 8 hours of sleep a night
  • 64 oz of water a day
  • work up to swimming 250 meters once a week
  • ~5,000 IU Vitamin D3 a day (at least 5K; more likely around 8K or up to 10K)

So far the only one that I've been able to achieve is the step count, but I've almost made my water amount today!

I also need to continue maintenance on things like continuing to avoid added sugar in my food consumption, continuing to take my meds so I can eat anything at all and also function like a sort of normal person, continue to wear my CPAP so the sleep I get is worth something, etc.... So those are goals too, but the ones listed above are what I'm adding to my "feel less crappy" regimen.
Pray drunk. Hex sober.
Priestess of the 3
"The most powerful god at any given moment is the one who can solve the moment's problem."
-Darkhawk

Altair

  • Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Jul 2011
  • Location: New York, New York
  • *
  • Posts: 3752
  • Country: us
  • Total likes: 937
  • Fly high and make the world follow
    • View Profile
    • Songs of the Metamythos
  • Religion: tree-hugging pagan
  • Preferred Pronouns: he/him/his
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #22 on: January 02, 2019, 08:59:05 pm »
Well, I didn't start with Solstice because starting then is just a recipe for failure, for me, but starting at the changeover of the year is good.

I do have an overall goal of "Stop feeling like 100% crap all the time" which I hope to reach by my 33rd birthday in August. That is the main goal I have for my health this year, as being chronically ill makes a lot of other goals somewhat difficult to achieve and also the idea of "being healthy" kind of...nonsensical, to me at least. But feeling less crappy? Yeah, I think I can manage that.

Welcome to the Feel Less Crappy Challenge, Morag!


[/quote]
The first song sets the wheel in motion / The second is a song of love / The third song tells of Her devotion / The fourth cries joy from the sky above
The fifth song binds our fate to silence / and bids us live each moment well / The sixth unleashes rage and violence / The seventh song has truth to tell
The last song echoes through the ages / to ask its question all night long / And close the circle on these pages / These, the metamythos songs

PerditaPickle

  • Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Aug 2015
  • Location: UK
  • Posts: 2104
  • Country: england
  • Total likes: 641
  • It's all metta - at least, I believe it should be
    • View Profile
    • Portrait of Perpetual Perplexity
  • Religion: Druid-ish
  • Preferred Pronouns: She/her/hers
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #23 on: January 03, 2019, 08:04:07 am »
Well, I didn't start with Solstice because starting then is just a recipe for failure, for me, but starting at the changeover of the year is good.

Oh good, I'm not the only latecomer (and a fellow chronic health issue sufferer, which is reassuring for me, though of course it sucks for us both!)

I was umming and ahhing about joining this thread, because (realistically) any goals I set for myself have to be either really little ones or else they're going to be unrealistic (just because of how life is for me at present).

So my goals are as follows:-
~ Start making a concerted effort to get my weight down a bit, & (because this isn't very specific, or particularly measurable) I plan to do this by:
- making my own muesli with no added sugar, for breakfasts
- taking lower calorie packed lunches to work with me, weekdays
- more home cooked dinners (even if only out of the freezer) rather than mainly junk foods and takeaways
- move more, by doing pilates weekly on a Tuesday and either a few very basic yoga positions most days else or 5 minutes of tai chi at home (in addition to the 20 lengths I already swim most Thursdays)
~ Keep up with the water drinking, vitamin taking etc which I'm already doing reasonably consistently
~ Keep trying to improve my sleep
~ Try harder to introduce come regular meditation, or at least relaxation.

All of these goals are the same as in previous threads (chronic illness versions), but my husband is more committed this time so there's a greater chance of at least some success (and just keeping trying is a worthy goal as it's better than the alternative of just giving in to obesity & all that that brings).  Not really S.M.A.R.T. but you can't have everything.  (Oh, and I probably won't check in until the weekends, most weeks).
“Radiate boundless love towards the entire world — above, below, and across — unhindered, without ill will, without enmity.” – The Buddha
(From the Metta Sutta)

My Portrait of Perpetual Perplexity blog

Donal2018

  • Sr. Master Member
  • *******
  • Join Date: Dec 2018
  • Location: New York
  • Posts: 513
  • Country: us
  • Total likes: 96
    • View Profile
  • Religion: Universalist
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #24 on: January 03, 2019, 02:00:38 pm »
It's been a good long time since we as a group took up one of these, so let's see who wants to commit to a healthy challenge for Winter 2018/19.

The idea is:

to announce a health and/or fitness goal in this thread, so that we can all hold each other's feet to the fire and offer tips and encouragement


HINT: Pick a goal that's specific, measurable, and attainable

  • Beginning with the impending solstice, strive to achieve your goal by the equinox on March 21
  • Update us here in this thread periodically on your progress

Up All Night (for those of us participating for all or part of the evening of Dec. 21) may play havoc with the first day, but that's OK; there'll still be 3 months to do the work, whatever health/fitness goal you choose. Who's in?

My goal is pretty basic: just do some Tai Chi two, three, or four times a week.

PerditaPickle

  • Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Aug 2015
  • Location: UK
  • Posts: 2104
  • Country: england
  • Total likes: 641
  • It's all metta - at least, I believe it should be
    • View Profile
    • Portrait of Perpetual Perplexity
  • Religion: Druid-ish
  • Preferred Pronouns: She/her/hers
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #25 on: January 04, 2019, 03:45:04 pm »

So I just completed my Friday night 5 minute (very!) basic yoga video, I swam yesterday, and I'm pretty certain I'd done my 30 minute pilates video on either Tuesday or Wednesday (and the basic 5 minute yoga one on the other day, can't recall which way around, now).

So, I feel I'm off to a good start with the 'move more' part of my goal.  (Still eating up Christmas naughty food, so the rest of it has yet to get off to a proper start...)

When do the rest of you check in, at the beginning of next week?
“Radiate boundless love towards the entire world — above, below, and across — unhindered, without ill will, without enmity.” – The Buddha
(From the Metta Sutta)

My Portrait of Perpetual Perplexity blog

TheGreenWizard

  • Master Member
  • ******
  • Join Date: Jul 2017
  • Location: New York, NY
  • Posts: 352
  • Country: us
  • Total likes: 161
    • View Profile
  • Religion: Hellenic Pagan
  • Preferred Pronouns: he/him/his
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #26 on: January 11, 2019, 11:08:19 pm »
Everybody else, check in!

Aye Aye Captain!

Currently haven't done a damn thing to start this, except maybe eating better breakfasts (e.g., yogurt and fruit in the morning). I'm prepping myself to go through our food cabinets tomorrow or Sunday and then doing some healthy grocery shopping to get us started. Just need to choose the three recipes that I want to do this week in the slow cooker for dinner.

Exercise hasn't started. Between teaching and its affiliated duties (grading massively sucks), as well as my second job at the Bronx Zoo, I'm stretched thin for sleep. I think for the rest of this month, I'm going to focus on two things: bed time at 9:30 PM and wake up time at 5 AM every day, no excuses. Once my 30th Birthday happens (February 2), I'll start doing my exercise routine as well.

If I don't do it this way, I'm pretty sure I'm going to burn out and not meet my resolutions.
“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go...”
― Dr. Seuss, Oh, the Places You'll Go

PerditaPickle

  • Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Aug 2015
  • Location: UK
  • Posts: 2104
  • Country: england
  • Total likes: 641
  • It's all metta - at least, I believe it should be
    • View Profile
    • Portrait of Perpetual Perplexity
  • Religion: Druid-ish
  • Preferred Pronouns: She/her/hers
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #27 on: January 12, 2019, 08:17:32 am »


So this past week I did my pilates video Tuesday as planned plus swimming Thursday as usual, though sadly we (my swimming buddy and I) were later than usual so didn't manage as many lengths due to an aquafit class.  I also did my yoga video at least two or three times.

I still haven't really started the healthy eating barring a few lunches, and sleep is still a bit of an issue off and on.  But I've done a few minutes of meditation on a few occasions.

So, some progress here.

Edit: typo, plus added a small details.
“Radiate boundless love towards the entire world — above, below, and across — unhindered, without ill will, without enmity.” – The Buddha
(From the Metta Sutta)

My Portrait of Perpetual Perplexity blog

Morag

  • Senior Staff
  • *
  • Join Date: Jun 2011
  • Location: witch's hut down the lane
  • *
  • Posts: 2735
  • Country: ca
  • Total likes: 356
  • cranky witch mom
    • View Profile
    • Priestess of the 3
  • Religion: Priestess of the 3
  • Preferred Pronouns: she/her
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #28 on: January 12, 2019, 01:38:48 pm »

2,000 steps a day
8 hours of sleep a night
64 oz of water a day
work up to swimming 250 meters once a week
~5,000 IU Vitamin D3 a day (at least 5K; more likely around 8K or up to 10K)

Currently averaging 5,000 steps a day, so I upped my goal to 3k/day. I have discovered that I CANNOT do 6k or more -- it uses far too many spoons. So trying to keep it around 3 or 4 k, 5k max.

Also been drinking lots of liquid -- for my 64oz I do count tea and coffee, as I add no sugar to either, and they do hydrate me. But I have been going well over the count for hydration, sometimes 100oz a day, and at least half is just actually water.

D3 I'm having trouble with because of pill fatigue issues, and swimming hasn't happened once yet -- I was going to do it last weekend, but ran out of time, and this weekend I am super sick with a megacold + bronchitis. NEXT weekend I am going swimming, dammit.

I don't know if 8 hours of sleep is going to happen any time soon. Even when I go to bed on time and "sleep" for 8 hours or more, my fitbit tells me I'm still barely breaking 7 hours most nights -- if I'm lucky I'll get 7.75 hours; that's the most I've slept in a night since tracking my sleep w/ this thing. Obviously my CPAP didn't fix my only sleep issues; something else is waking me up every few hours.

Which, honestly, explains so much. I've been using a CPAP for 2 years and while it has helped immensely, I am still tired all the time. Something is disrupting my sleep. It's probably my nerve problems jerking me awake every so often, so as soon as I'm able to take my meds for that again (they have to be taken 12 hours before I want to wake up so usually that's pretty impossible with a fulltime work or school schedule) I'm going to, to see if it makes a difference in my sleep patterns.
Pray drunk. Hex sober.
Priestess of the 3
"The most powerful god at any given moment is the one who can solve the moment's problem."
-Darkhawk

SunflowerP

  • Host
  • *
  • Join Date: Jun 2011
  • Location: Calgary AB
  • Posts: 9909
  • Country: ca
  • Total likes: 732
  • Don't teach your grandmother to suck eggs!
    • View Profile
    • If You Ain't Makin' Waves, You Ain't Kickin' Hard Enough
  • Religion: Eclectic religious Witchcraft
  • Preferred Pronouns: sie/hir/hirs/hirself
Re: Healthy Challenge, Winter 2018/19
« Reply #29 on: January 12, 2019, 11:21:22 pm »
Also been drinking lots of liquid -- for my 64oz I do count tea and coffee, as I add no sugar to either, and they do hydrate me. But I have been going well over the count for hydration, sometimes 100oz a day, and at least half is just actually water.

Just sticking my oar in here to note that where the '64oz a day' thing originated was a study that measured the average amount of fluid adults took in over a day from all sources, including the water contained in their food (most things we eat contain quite a bit of water - as we do ourselves). It didn't purport to determine an optimum, just an existing average. This got grabbed by healthists (particularly those with something to sell) and subsequently went through a game of Whispers, to eventually morph into its present form.

I say this not to knock you or anyone else looking to ensure good hydration (which is an excellent goal; under-hydrating is a thing), but to affirm that counting your tea and coffee is fine, and would be even if you did use sugar. (Likewise any other beverages you drink.)

I wish I could link you a source, but alas, I no longer have it. I'm pretty certain I found it originally via The Fat Nutritionist, though.

Sunflower
I'm the AntiFa genderqueer commie eclectic wiccan Mod your alt-right bros warned you about.
I do so have a life; I just live part of it online!
“Selfishness is not living as one wishes to live, it is asking others to live as one wishes to live.” - Oscar Wilde
"Nobody's good at anything until they practice." - Brina (Yewberry)
My much-neglected blog "If You Ain't Makin' Waves, You Ain't Kickin' Hard Enough"

Tags:
 

Related Topics

  Subject / Started by Replies Last post
97 Replies
16120 Views
Last post July 07, 2015, 07:24:48 pm
by Altair
148 Replies
11847 Views
Last post March 20, 2017, 08:59:52 am
by Kylara
31 Replies
8969 Views
Last post March 12, 2017, 08:50:58 pm
by Alexeigynaix
13 Replies
18908 Views
Last post April 15, 2022, 04:58:44 pm
by SunflowerP
19 Replies
10175 Views
Last post December 21, 2022, 04:43:19 pm
by Altair

* Who's Online

  • Dot Guests: 201
  • Dot Hidden: 0
  • Dot Users: 2
  • Dot Users Online:

* Please Donate!

The Cauldron's server is expensive and requires monthly payments. Please become a Bronze, Silver or Gold Donor if you can. Donations are needed every month. Without member support, we can't afford the server.

* Shop & Support TC

The links below are affiliate links. When you click on one of these links you will go to the listed shopping site with The Cauldron's affiliate code. Any purchases you make during your visit will earn TC a tiny percentage of your purchase price at no extra cost to you.

* In Memoriam

Chavi (2006)
Elspeth (2010)
Marilyn (2013)

* Cauldron Staff

Host:
Sunflower

Message Board Staff
Board Coordinator:
Darkhawk

Assistant Board Coordinator:
Aster Breo

Senior Staff:
Aisling, Allaya, Jenett, Sefiru

Staff:
Ashmire, EclecticWheel, HarpingHawke, Kylara, PerditaPickle, rocquelaire

Discord Chat Staff
Chat Coordinator:
Morag

'Up All Night' Coordinator:
Altair

Cauldron Council:
Bob, Catja, Chatelaine, Emma-Eldritch, Fausta, Jubes, Kelly, LyricFox, Phouka, Sperran, Star, Steve, Tana

Site Administrator:
Randall

SimplePortal 2.3.6 © 2008-2014, SimplePortal