Desperately Seeking Joy: Wellness Update #2

 

As I mentioned previously (somewhere before this), we spent the bulk of the week at my mom's. So all my fitness expectations kind of disappear. And then once I'm home, it's trying to figure out how to be home again. 

After one day of dealing with being home, I was able to get on the treadmill and I really rocked it out! I got up to 2.8 and a I did 1.5 miles all at one time! But now today I'm feeling sore and just really weak. Today is not a good day for me. 

Either way, I think the medication I'm on is negatively affecting my ability to lose weight. 

Desperately Seeking Joy: Wellness Update #1

 

It's been a heck of a week and my last week for a little bit where I get to work on my own schedule. Starting today I'm down at my mom's where there is no treadmill and it's not as easy to get up and walk whenever I want. But I'm going to try to make things work. I'm not looking forward to braving the outdoor weather to get my steps in.

But this past week made my heart sour with my energy levels and meeting or exceeding my personal goals. I'm feeling good. I'm feeling the joy!

I have to sort out the whole slowing down at the end of the week. I know I became concerned about my foot being sore. Eh. We've got to keep the momentum going. There are hard days ahead, but I can keep holding some standards, even if I can't manage a mile on the treadmill for whatever reason. But I'm going to keep at least trying.

Saturday (11/7)

Sunday (11/8)

Monday (11/9)

Tuesday (11/10)

Wednesday (11/11)

Thursday (11/12)

Friday (11/13)

Desperately Seeking Joy #10

 

It was an incredibly rough night last night. I woke up a few times and just had this crazy sense of distress. I even went downstairs and laid on the couch for a little bit. Just a very weird situation that left me waking up earlier than I wanted and I couldn't get back to sleep.

Due to this unwanted situation, it left me feel a lack of energy this morning and it made my treadmilling incredibly difficult. I had to pep-talk myself on the treadmill just to get my mile in. It was kind of frustrating to have to be that big of a self-cheerleader. But I made it and that was my goal!

The rest of the day was spent on self-care, especially looking more into a healthy options for food. For example, I did some more research into muesli and am giving that a try. What I have noticed is that my resting heart rate has been better since I started walking, so hopefully that's a good sign of things to come.

Hopefully tomorrow will be more productive again, but I feel like having more active days leaves me feeling fatigued on the next day. What of this is medication and what of this is a physical reaction to things?

How I Keto at a Con

KETO EATING AT CONS

I've not been mum on the "I'm Way of Eating" my husband and I have been doing for over a year. You also won't find me a rabid-die-hard-soap-boxing-advocate who will crush you if you think I'm crazy. We do our best. We live our life. Isn't it all a crap-shoot anyways? Look at how often opinions flip and a flop. Remember when eggs and broccoli were bad?

So we adopted what they call Keto. Essentially cutting out carbs and sugars and focusing more on proteins and fats to force your body to change it's fuel source. Let me just say.... this makes traveling and snacking very hard. Essentially you're not supposed to be snacking in the first place. Pretty much everything we eat is fresh or cooked in the moment. I also struggle to find food when we travel. That's not to say there aren't a plethora of options out there, but honestly... how many do you want to carry in your bag at a geeky convention?

There are tons of Con lists out there recommending the food to bring so that it doesn't spoil but keeps you going. Examples:

• Popcorn/healthy "chip" option
• Beef Jerky
• Nuts
• Fruit Pouches (like applesauce)
• Granola Bars
• Dried Fruits
• Hard Candies
• Sandwiches (uncrustables or homemade)
• Lunchables/other premade packs
• Trailmix
• Coffee (bring your own)
• Water, Water, Water

When it comes to keto, there are three, maybe four options on that list that someone who eats this way can take.

Premade Lunch Packs 
There are some out there, but they are not lunchables. One that I've fallen in love with is Ready, Set, Egg! The sad part is that they need to be refrigerated. I mean, who wants to carry a smelly hard boiled egg around in the heat!

Nuts
You still have to be careful with nuts and not eat too many of them, but there are some that really do the trick: Almonds, Pecans, Brazil Nuts, Macadamia Nuts, and Walnuts (just to name a few). These you can easily pack and not worry about keeping them cold. You just have to watch the amount that you eat. Prepackage everything. I really like the Planters NUT-trition Heart Healthy Mix. It has several of the good nuts and the net carbs are only 2 for 30 whole nuts. Definitely a pre-portion snacks.

Water
Water is a must on the Keto diet. My one friend argued that drinking a gallon a day really made all the difference for her. Regardless, water is a must no matter what your way of eating. I found at GenCon that there is nowhere to refill a water bottle unless you use the sink in the bathroom and a filtered water bottle, so you might want to find a way to carry enough water for you for the day or be prepared to drop the big bucks. Drinking as much water as possible is key to Keto. I've heard in some circles a gallon of water a day is recommended.

The Fourth
You can bring your own homemade snacks, as mentioned in the list above, but the ingredient list can be a bit tricky for what will keep with a whole day out and about.

But what else can I take to a convention that will help when I feel the need to eat, because maybe I've been expending more energy than you needed to?  We're not talking meals. That you'll have to figure out on your own, but what can I keep in my bag for those moments when I really need something. Here is what I found:

• Keto fat bombs that won't melt.
• Olives (Kalmata or Green for 0 carbs)
• Quest Bars (not too many, but work for a quick sweet tooth. Only if you need it.)
• Pork Rinds
• Keto friendly Peanut Butter and celery
• Bell peppers
• Raw Broccoli/Cauliflower
• Black Coffee (or with your own Keto additives)

If I had the means to pack  a small ice pack for my day out, it would really opens up the options available for me, such as:

• Hard boiled eggs (still weird to carry around a crowd of people)
• Cheeses
• Guacamole with veggies for dipping
• Cucumbers and Cream Cheese
• Lunch Meat
• Pre-Cooked Bacon
• Keto Broccoli Salad
• Fat Bombs that require cold temperatures

I'm not an expert and will never claim to be, but as I plan for my own trip to GenCon, I wanted to make sure that I put most temptations aside. Will I indulge a little bit? Absolutely. I don't, though, want to go overboard and will still be trying to stay as true to my Way of Eating as possible.

Good luck!


*If I can swing it, I might get to blog about my GenCon Food Adventures. I always love the diversity of the food, so we'll see what happens.

Homemade Green Tea Iced Latte

When I started working as a teacher, I was riding the Starbucks wagon. Granted, I was riding it prior than that, but really only to grab a salted caramel hot chocolate during the cold weather seasons. I'm not a coffee drinker, which puts me out of some of the social cliques, because. . . well. . . why can't I addict myself to something that tastes so... bleeeeeh. I've tried. . . trust me. . .I've given it a fair go, but I just cannot make coffee work for me. I have to add too much calorie-building junk to it to make it work for me.

I have to admit, I am a tea addict. I mean. . . I love tea. My husband and I always look for new teas and then go whole-hog into tea drinking from the fall through the spring. During the summer it is sweet iced tea for my husband and the Green Tea Iced Latte for me.

But let me go back to the Starbucks train of thought. I always struggle when I go to Starbucks. So I started getting teas. Well, my tea pallet expanded and as I've cut more and more salt and fast foods (and Sugar Free Red Bull) out of my diet, I've developed an even more sensitive pallet that can really pick up on all the subtle flavors in the foods I eat and the drinks I drink.

The problem that this created was that my Earl Grey tea frequently tasted burnt. The right temperature of water was not being applied and the leaves were singeing while they steeped. So I switched to a Green Tea Iced Latte. Green Tea being the healthy, detoxifying tea. And I enjoyed it, but I am somewhat sensitive to dairy. I can tea yogurts and cheese and all that, but if give me a bowl of ice cream or a glass of milk and I really shouldn't eat or drink the whole thing. It's strange. Yet, I had raw milk on a visit to family down south and I could three two glasses with no gastrointestinal upset. Hmmmm....

I'm sure that note put you in the mood for this. Bottom line. . . I was unhappy with the products Starbucks were offering me. They didn't have Light Soy Milk. Their other milk options were not going to agree with me. So I searched the net for a make-at-home recipe which would give me control over the drink to tamper with it as I pleased.

It was over a year ago that I found the recipe and I have since then changed it enough to be what makes me happy. When I did the math and plugged information to MyFitnessPal, my current drink recipe was 75 calories for 16oz. The 16oz Starbucks drink fluctuates between 290 and 210 per 16oz drink! So right there I'm saving on calories with a filling drink. Also, my drink has 1.5g of fat and the Starbucks was between 4.5g and 9g, unless you did the nonfat milk. So I'm also saving on fat intake. Soy has all sorts of health benefits and, if you let the ice melt and drink this over time, you're getting additional water intake. I can't not love this drink!

Pricewise, well. . . you'll have to do your shopping for the most economical formula. I think I was paying something like $4.15 or so for my Starbucks drink. Here I'm spending about $2 per drink. I bought my syrup in bulk off of amazon, as well as the matcha powder. Then all I need is my soy milk, which I buy for about $3.45 at my grocer.

Here is my recipe for my healthier and delicious Green Tea Iced Latte.

Ingredients
1 cup Silk Milk - Light
1/3 cup Torani Sugar Free French Vanilla Syrup
1 teaspoon Matcha Powder (Green Tea Powder)
cubed Ice

Instructions
1. Pour all ingredients, except the ice, into a blender or a Blender Bottle.
2. Blend or shake until as combined as possible. Some of the matcha powder might still look slightly clumpy.
3. In a preferred glass, fill half with the ice. Then pour the mixture over the ice and enjoy!

Hobbiton to Rivendell

Oh Thursday, June 12, 2014. . . I made it from Hobbiton to Rivendell.

I would have made it sooner if I hadn't spent the first two months of the year having all sorts of pedometer glitches on my cell phone. Really it was the phones fault and I had a not-stellar phone.

I was totaling up past points in the wee early hours this morning and realized. . . I had made it last night!

WOOOOO!!!!

Now. . . 462 miles from Rivendell, through Moria, to Lothlorien. I've got my troll battling gear ready!!!!

Star Trek Counter Jars

Today's quote was fitting for the activity I completed:

"We're going to stumble, make mistakes. . . . I'm sure more than a few before we find our footing. But we're going to learn from those mistakes. That's what being human is all about."
- Archer, Star Trek: Enterprise - Shockwave, Part 2

One of the aspects of my geek fitness regime is to have a counter jar. I mentioned previously that I had seen these kinds of jars on Etsy and around the web on some of the crafty pages. What bothered me was that so many of them were so foofy and had Bible passages on them. Or they had some mindless girl junk that I could seriously care less about. 

Since I had made the decision to geek out my fitness goals and my weight loss badge was the Star Trek Medics symbol, I created Star Trek Counter Jars. They're my weight loss goals in jar form. I made the counters red, yellow, and blue. I used two quotes that I thought would be fun for each jar. I even used one of my vinyl car stickers of the little Uhura. I think they look pretty nifty. Whenever I lose pounds, I move counters to the other jar, so I can see my progress.

My only disappointment with the jars was that the stickers I made were not printed on the clear sticker paper the packaging promised it would be. So I might remake and fix those stickers if the new pack of sticker paper I ordered is actually clear. The other disappointment was the black Star Trek emblem stickers. I ordered two of the large, but the guy sent me one little and one big. I'll just take it as a need to go from larger to smaller. 

My weekly weigh in is going to be a good one this week, so I'll be excited to move some beads and earn some badges. Also, this was my first geeky Star Trek craft project. I don't typically do a great deal of crafting. No time, but this was cool. Who knows. . . maybe I'll start making more crafts over the summer with my daughter.

My Geek Fitness Plan and Goals (Shortened Version)

My Fitness Goals broken down into easy to digest tablets that align with my badges.

Walking 
10,000 steps a day = about 5 miles a day. Use the Runtastic Pedometer App to help track your steps every day. The goal is to Walk like a Hobbit to Mordor and Back! 3871 miles.

  

Gym
It's hard to get to the gym, so any physical activity at the gym or outside counts as gym work. At least 3 days of week at the gym or some sort of outdoor exercise.

  

Gaming Fitness
I'm going to use my Wii at least 5 hours a week to help fill in the need for physical activity. For every 5 hours I'll earn a badge.

The Nom-Nom-Noming and Hydration
I'll be monitoring calorie intake using MyFitnessPal. The goal is to try to eat the recommended calories, but burn at least 300 calories that are not used for intake calories. I'll also be drinking the recommended 8+ glasses of water a day, depending on how much additional hydration I'll require due to physical activity. These are weekly goals to earn.

 

Weight Loss Goals

My goal is to lose 50lbs by August of this year. For every 5lbs I lose, I'll receive a Star Trek Medic Badge. 

 

My Geek Fitness Plan and Goals

Great motivation! Being a Geek taught me this!

Well, here it is. The geek fitness plan I'm going to start with and add to as I progress through it. There's no hard and fast about; just basic common sense and some fun little additives. I'll post once or twice a week about the progress, depending on the length. I think the post every day is too excessive, but once a week feels okay. So let's see what I'm up to!

Inspiration to Keep the Motivation
I'll be compiling quotes to keep me motivated every day. At least one a day. I have a few things to help me with this. I already have a quote compilation going on my GoodReads account. I also got a Star Trek Tear-Away Daily Calendar, which is sure to offer up some interesting and fun quotes. I'm even working to get my husband in on the quote thing, so he can occasionally send me a quote in the morning so I see it before I leave for work.

In addition to the quotes, I am working on creating these "weight loss" jars. You fill the one jar with how many pounds you want to lose. . . um. . . not literally. You use those adorable little counter stones or marbles or something. One counter represents one pound lost. Every time you lose a pound, you move it to the other jar. It's a visual inspiration. Instead of ordering these from someone on Etsy or something, I'm making my own two jars and I'm going to theme them out with Star Trek. Each jar will have a Federation symbol. Then the "want-to-lose" jar I'm going to put Picard's quote "Make it so!" and on the "weight lost" jar I'm going to put Scotty's quote "I'm givin' her all she's got, capt'n." I think I'm going to use a combination of yellow, red, and blue counter stones, as well. Once they're finished, I'll post pictures.

The Physical Fitness Portion
This is where things get a bit more fun. There are two parts to this particular plan. The first involves walking and the second involves gaming. The walking part is rather proud and incorporates a few aspects, while the gaming aspect has a few different pieces as well. Let me lay them out.

Walking
Everywhere you go and everyone you talk to about fitness will tell you that people should walk 10,000 or more steps a day. Due to our sedentary lives, most people walk around 4,000-5,000 steps a day or less. Depending on your stride, these steps can add up to different mileages. I've been step-counting for a few years now and I can tell you it does keep you active, because you have a number goal that you're striving for. My 10,000 steps equals about 5 miles, give or take.

And did you know it's 3871 miles from Hobbiton to Mount Doom and back, plus the trip over to Grey Havens?  Yeah. Seriously. So my little steps and miles covered everyday will be converted into Hobbit Steps for the Lord of the Rings journey!

I found a helpful guide through NerdFitness.com when I was looking for different geeky things to use in my workout and, of course, I needed to have a walking goal. They created A Hobbit's Guide to Walking. On this page they have the breakdowns for each step of the journey and even a link to a spreadsheet to help track those miles. On my end, I'll be receiving a badge for each leg of the journey.

Here is an example of the blank badge that I'll edit for each leg of the trip, when I earn it.

Here is the first badge I'll earn along the trip, marking the beginning of the trip. The next badge will mark travel from Hobbiton to Rivendell. I've got to walk 458 miles. Granted that's. . . like. . . 14 weeks of walking, 13 at best. . . but hey. . . Gondor wasn't built in a day!

Sadly, this walking quest only really follows Frodo and Sam and doesn't seem to really take into consideration any side-adventures with the other hobbits or Aragorn or anything. Part of me wants to think about traveling to some of the places that they went, but I'm already on this epic Frodo journey, so what am I complaining about? I recommend checking out the walking guide. It is fun and makes that 10,000 steps a day goal even more epic! Every step you take with your trendy Runtastic Pedometer App outside your front door. . . every length of the front of your classroom you walk. . . you are getting closer to saving Middle-Earth from the evil Sauron!

The second part of the walking involves actually getting myself to the gym. I live in the incredibly frigid Midwest with all our negative temperatures and frozen tundra. Going outside for a leisurely walk typically involves bundling up heavier than Ralphie's brother in A Christmas Story. Try walking around in that suit and feel good about it. This means a trip to the gym for any kind of extra walking I might need to do.

We have a treadmill, but it's still down at my mom's house from when we were living there briefly. It seems to be an ongoing struggle to find the manpower to help get it out of the basement and also to procure transportation to get it up here. All I picture is The Big Bang Theory and the original Time Machine. ::shivers:: That means I need to somehow get myself to the gym. I have all sorts of reservations. Not as many as you'd think, but the long and short of it is that. . .well. . . it's loud and hard to find a not-extra-busy time to pop in for a treadmill.

Don't underestimate my desire for adorable little graphic badges, because that is so how I'm going to motivate going to the gym. I have to earn my little badges! I even have one for the gym. Right now I have myself going to the gym at least three times a week. That could be Friday, Saturday, Sunday or Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday, or whatever combination of three days I want. Every time I achieve this goal, I'll get my adorable Whovian TARDIS badge. I mean, it's like I traveled through time to get to the gym anyways.

Here is an example of a blanket one and if I earn the badge for attending the gym that week. I think it's pretty cute and I will collect them all!!! When it gets warmer out, it will count for my long walks outside and not just the gym. This will also count if I do finally get my treadmill up here to my house.

Gamer Fitness
"WHAT?!" you might say. Yes. I have worked in some gaming fitness. I am an original Wii addict. I have my Wii Fitness Boards, Wii Fit and Wii Fit Plus, Wii Sport, and I just got a copy of Just Dance 2014. My daughter and I  have so much fun playing the Wii Fit Plus games together. We do the 2-Person Running activity and we'll switch out playing stuff, where I mimic her on our other Wii Fitness Board (yes, we have 2). She also starts dance when we play the Just Dance games. I don't do those as frequently, but it's cool.

See, the bonus is that I don't just sit there and do yoga stuff. I'm not looking to cheat the games. I'm looking to actually use them to my benefit. Plus I hate more workout videos. I can even get my husband to play a few rounds of tennis. We really get into it. Don't. . .um. . .don't go trying to peak in our windows for a laugh. You can really get your heart pumping and the sweat going on these games. Which is great when you're not in the toning phase of your fitness.

This particular gym is also conveniently located in my home. I also get a little badge for completing at least five hours a week of my own workout minutes. Here's the little badge I made. . . reminded me of Skywalker's training with ObiWan. It was like alittle video game and so cute!

Nom Nom Noming
I still have to do the whole eating well thing. I have had great results when being active using MyFitnessPal. It's not an exact science all the time, because I just don't have time to laboriously enter in all the food I cook, but I think things that are comparable, or I just make sure I have a calorie buffer at the end of the day. My scale is synced with my account on MFP and every week it sends in my weight and adjusts my calorie in-take. I can also put in the calories burned exercising. They recognize all my Wii games and are also synced into my pedometer to count my steps and amount of time being active.

Whenever I keep to my daily plan  (for the whole week), I'll get an adorable Takenoko badge. Ya' know, the poor panda is always nom-nom-noming all over the game. So I thought it was an adorable connection. Here are my example badge.

Hydration, Hydration, Hydration
I also am big into keeping hydrated. I used to be an avid soda drinker. In 2001 I switched from drinking Pepsis and Colas to drinking Diet Rite White Grape, Lemon, and Raspberry. It became a hard drink to find, especially when I moved to North Carolina. I was buying out 2Ls at the local grocer. Then I switched to Propels. Then I moved to Lemon Green Tea Crystal Light. I had those shipped to me overseas and I drank a lot of water when I was over there. When I came home I was pretty much completely water and occasionally drank Crystal Like PURE Lemon. They stopped selling those around me and I've gone almost strictly water. I drink Earl Grey Tea, Green Tea, occasionally milk, water, fountain soda, but 95% of what I drink is water.

To go along with the food, there is the Drink Like a Fish badge, inspired by Game of Thrones and the Tully Family.

Losing the Weight
I know I have high expectations for this year. I want to lose 50lbs by August, but I think if I can keep motivated and keep active, I'll be fine. I also have a badge to commenorate my weight loss.

The Original Star Trek Medic insignia. The number of pounds lost will be in the little plus. I also got a Star Trek TOS gym bag to keep all my cute equipment in. . . err. . . my gym shoes and gym clothes. This also matches up to the jars that I'm going with the Star Trek theme.

Rewards for Results
What kind of process would this be if I didn't get rewards along the way? I've gone to some of my favorite sites and made wishlists of items I might want to buy as part of my new and growing interests. I also have a list of things that I want to do and at what point during my journey it's something that I can go out of my way to do. Usually something I have to pay for or plan or make special.

Here are some of the rewards I'm looking forward to:

• Hobbit Slippers
• Star Trek: The Next Generation DVDs
• Binge Watching Day
• Funko POP Collectables (there are a few I adore)
• Tabletop Games
• Adult Weekend (no kids)
• Movie Date of My Choice
• Shirts from SnorgTees or Woot.Shirts
• Ebooks
• Supernatural Minion Keychains from Etsy

What are you waiting for?
I started and it's going well. I actually started two days ago to get my body motivated. Today I was back on track and going strong. So here is where my journey begins. I'll try to post details and if you're interested in participating and earning your own badges, I'm more than happy to share.

14 Geekolutions for 2014

My Geekolutions for 2014 in all their glory! Some seem a little like goals, but I'm resolving to do these things, so yeah. I tried to be reasonable about the whole thing and there's no hard and fast "do or die" mentality about them. I do what I can. Besides, no one knows what the future holds for me.

1. Watch all of the Original Star Trek.

2. Watch all of Star Trek: The Next Generation.

3. Participate in 3 5K walks (ex: Dirty Girl Mud Run, Turkey Trot, Famous Racing Sausages).

4. Lose 50lbs (min.) using my geek fitness goals.

5. Attend at least 2 Cons. I'm hoping to attend GenCon, Chicago's Wizard Con, and Gameapalooza. I so badly want to hit up some others, but. . . well. . . I'm new to this whole thing and. . . broke.

6. Keep my geek fitness goals for at least six months. (That's a reasonable minimum.)

7. Read 30 books, half of which should be from my Augmenting Geekology List.

8. Organize my closet (give a home to all my geek shirts).

9. Play 5 video games through completely.

10. Play all of my tabletop games at least once this year.

11. Go to Door county (tour lighthouses or learn some paranormal history or something).

12. Complete at least 50 geocaches.

13. Go out of state at least twice. Preferably to new places I've not visited before. This could be a ghost hunt or a vacation or even a Con.

14. Eat at a celebrity chef restaurant (Chicago is really full of 'em). We've been to Graham Elliot's and Gordon Ramsay (when we were overseas). I'd love to, on our 10-year-Anniversary this year, to do a tasting weekend. This totally feeds my food geek.

Reasonable Geek Fitness

I've spent a large chunk of my life playing the extreme yo-yo game. The heart of my weight issues lies purely in being able to be active. My eating habits are, overall, monitored alright, but what really makes the difference is getting up and out. Sadly, I'm just not a health nut. I'll talk in general about healthier choices, but I don't do the raw foods thing or the vegan thing or the no-processed-foods thing. I just can't, actually. Trust someone whose been there. . . eating healthy is expensive. I can get a taco at Taco Bell for $1, but make homemade healthy tacos. . . not $1.  I try, though, to make smart choices about calories, fat, sugars, sodium, etc. But my pocketbook does not allow for me to be extremely picky. (Don't even get me started on gardening. . . me and the green thumb have not worked out, despite my passion for wanting an herb garden.)

I was on a good track for a while after I had my daughter. I was working with the Curves workout program in my town. It was great. 45 minutes-wam-bam-thank-you-mame! I was seeing results and I was feeling good about it. Then I moved. . . to where there are no conveniently located Curves. Yet, as my daughter was getting older, her and I were able to venture out into the great big world together on walks and things. Oh yeah, and my work was having a physical fitness competition for the last half of our 2012-2013 school year.

We walked and walked and I was using my Wii games and Wii board to stay on top of things and add in new routines, etc. etc. But then we had a long stretch of inconsistencies. It started with our trip to visit the in-laws. Almost three whole weeks of no home cooking, only eating out and very little exercise. It was in the 90's outside, so you don't just go outside for a little jaunt, especially with all the wild dogs in the neighborhood where they live. We used to live around the corner. We know.

Once we arrived home, it was the most stressful time I'd encountered since that time last year, but it was already too late. I had already gained back 15 pounds and with all the stress, the poundage was quickly rising again.  Sad to say, by October I was feeling like Tim Allen stuck as Santa. I had lost sixty pounds already. . . I didn't want to gain back half of that in only a few months. That was a devastating thought, but things just were not working in my favor. Work, money, mood, you name it. . . It wasn't working out for me. Yet, now is as good a time as ever to jump back on the treadmill, right?

I'm always jump-starting my workouts and things, only to be derailed by life. Such is my lot, but its hard to do alone. So I'm going to be super-motivating and I'm tying it into my geek journey! What a perfect way to get in shape, by tying it to something you love!

First, I started by looking at pre-established geek fitness programs. All of them seem to assume I have some semblance of fitness already. Sure, lifting weights and blending cardio and strength training are the way to go, but quite honestly, this isn't the Biggest Loser and the amount of time I have between work and a three-year-old and housewifery and the need for personal time isn't going to work out for an extreme blending of hardly anything. I also felt like most of these workouts were geared towards twenty-somethings and I am so a thirty-something. There will be no Super Mario Parkouring outta this nerd.

I abandoned most of what I saw, because I was being realistic. I needed to do something that was very much me and not try to fit into someone else's program. So I made a list of things that I want to change and geeked them up a bit.

1. I need inspiration. What better way to inspire than by using inspirational quotes? I love quotes. While I was looking for something on Etsy, I came across two Star Trek quotes that just seemed so geared towards what I was looking to do and I knew that inspirational quotes would be what I would need to motivate myself.

2. I need to get physical. What are the things that I can do to get my ass off the couch? Well, there are my Wii games and my Wii board. No, I'm not a couch-Wii-playing. I'm full-on-intense about it. I even got Just Dance 2014 for funsies. My husband does not approve of that particular purchase. I also want to get walking again, because I need to get some major weight down and walking, the long and short of it, is the best thing for right now. I also just need to get off the couch more often. I know it's winter and harder, but what are my trade-offs? Binge-Watching Trade-Off.

3. I need to be rewarded. I need to be validated for the work that I'm doing to keep me moving forward. To keep caring about what I'm doing. I function very much on a rewards and recognition system. Doing this solo makes it difficult to always feel validated for the work I do, but I came up with some ideas for how to make this happen.

4. I need to consume in a healthy way. Yeah. . . I can't just go whole hog and think that the input isn't affecting the output. So I have my food goals that will be set up through my favorite calorie-counting site, MyFitnessPal. It is not only food, but water. So I'll be keeping track of that.

I'll post what the actual goals and plan are in another entry, but I think this is going to be pretty awesome. I've made geek badges to earn along the way that I can post. I'm even constructing a list of reward items that I can purchase when I meet certain goals (that are also hubby approved purchases). I'm really looking forward to making all this work together and it feels like it's going to be fun. I just need a swift kick to the ass to get myself out the door.