Healthy Habits w/o 8.10

keikilove

What habits, goals, or resolutions are you focusing on this week?

How's everything going?

What has you motivated or struggling this week?

What's a "small win" you have from last week?

acleverusername

What habits, goals, or resolutions are you focusing on this week? Want to go running 2x this week; in addition to closing all of my Apple Watch rings for the week. 

How's everything going? I've been really motivated to get back into physical activity after my 2-month slump that started at the end of May. I hope this is the result of Whole30 and I intend to continue eating whole foods since it's drastically reduced inflammation throughout my body. 

What has you motivated or struggling this week? It's Day 29 of Whole30! It's not that I'm planning to go back to how I used to eat, but I'm looking forward to it being "officially over" and being able to re-introduce some foods into my diet to see what I truly have a problem with. 

What's a "small win" you have from last week? Went running 2x last week; they were short runs, but runs nonetheless. 

inthewoods23

@acleverusername nice job!

What habits, goals, or resolutions are you focusing on this week? More water and less soda, yoga or meditation 2-3x a week

How's everything going? It could definitely be better. I want to make more time for myself but that's been hard lately. Perhaps part of it is that I haven't had an appointment with my therapist in over a month. Originally I was scheduled to see her on the 5th but she had to push it back and I opted for next week like a dummy. But that's probably better than this week because there's a lot going on.

What has you motivated or struggling this week? Work has been a little stressful and my mental health took a nose dive over the weekend so it may be a while before I'm motivated to pull up a yoga video.

What's a "small win" you have from last week? I'm still doing a pretty good job about opting for water over soda. And often if I'm doing a soda, I pick something caffeine free

acleverusername

@inthewoods23 good job on less soda! It'll make all the difference. 

akoros

What habits, goals, or resolutions are you focusing on this week? Slowly start being more physically active. Keeping my ambitions low, so going to try and get my step count back up to 10k/day with a walk after work and 1-2 kayaking sessions per week (weather permitting). Next week I'm going to try integrating some circuit training. Also this week I'm going to cut down on my drinking. I've definitely been having too much over the past few weeks to help relax. I don't get drunk, but I also have a high tolerance so I can easily have 3-5/day without getting inebriated, particularly if they're spaced out. This week going to work on cutting it down to 1-2/day, with the ultimate goal of getting down to 1/day or less during the week, which is what I normally do. 

How's everything going? Feeling a bit more motivated to "get back on track". Exercise has always been struggle for me, but the past few months in particular were difficult given... **TW pregnancy/loss mentioned** 

...first trimester fatigue/nausea and spotting (so I was asked to not exercise) and loss of that pregnancy (decided to take it easy after the D&C in the hopes that recovery would be easier, and then was overwhelmed emotionally), ...

...traveling to help out my parents, super busy at work, and general situational depression, which is exhausting. I also prefer to exercise outside, which is hard when it's sweltering. (see how good I am at coming up with excuses?)

What has you motivated or struggling this week? Feeling more "normal" and interested in getting back into shape, which is good. My weight has also been ticking down, despite not watching my diet/alcohol intake or exercising much, which is both motivating but a little de-motivating. Main struggle is finally pulling myself out of the unhealthy slump I've been in

What's a "small win" you have from last week? Got back down under 160lbs (if barely), which was my pre-pregnancy weight and had been around the lowest I'd been in about a year. Got out kayaking on the river, which always makes me feel better. 

bbrahmbhatt

@acleverusername woohoo, you're in the homestretch!  It sounds like you're planning to continue doing a lot of what you're already doing, but what kinds of things are you going to re-introduce?

@inthewoods23 I'm sorry it was a rough weekend for you. I find it so hard to be able to just move through things/emotions sometimes, and I'm in a funk right now myself. Hopefully getting in to see your therapist will help. I hope this week starts looking up for you

@akoros I'm glad some motivation is coming back, I definitely know how you feel on the unhealthy slump. The weight loss is great, and having less alcohol is also a great goal too. For me those two kind of feed into each other...I tend to reach for it more when I'm feeling "meh". It sounds like you're already making some progress on those goals with the kayaking!

What habits, goals, or resolutions are you focusing on this week? getting back to tracking all my food and staying in points (I'm on WW) and getting up early to workout 4x this week

How's everything going? Eh, it could be better. I've just been in a slump over the past week. I feel sad and frustrated and then I sort of stop doing the things to improve my physical health and its just a vicious circle. 

What has you motivated or struggling this week? I accidentally ate a Trader Joe's yogurt that was 10 points this morning because I was too lazy to get out of bed this morning, so I'm starting to get tired of my own crap.

What's a "small win" you have from last week? Hmm...I got one workout in, so that's something. 

akoros

@inthewoods23 @bbrahmbhatt Sorry to hear that you're both in a funk right now. Definitely doesn't help your motivation when you're "down" and just feeling blah. I hope the therapist helps and that things start to improve for you both. 

@bbrahmbhatt You're right, they do feed into each other. I tend to not drink (or eat) when I'm truly depressed, but definitely go for it if I'm stressed, frustrated, or "meh". Working from home admittedly makes it a bit harder since it's a good marker to say that my workday is "over" when I have a drink, but not the best habit to get into. 

inthewoods23

@akoros that's a lot of goals! But a little of each can mean big gains in the future

@bbrahmbhatt I haven't done WW before, but I'm aware of the point system - is more or less points better? Is a yogurt for 10 points bad?

bbrahmbhatt

@inthewoods23 generally, less points is better. Each food gets its points calculated based on the amount of fat, saturated fat, sugar and fiber. I only get 24 points for a whole day so when I scanned my yogurt cup in and saw 10 I was like

inthewoods23

@bbrahmbhatt oh noooo!! lol that gif is so accurate 

akoros

@bbrahmbhatt What kind of yogurt cup is that?? It better have had chocolate in there. 

bbrahmbhatt

@akoros hahaha no chocolate. It was the apricot mango yogurt. It was tasty but I was NOT expecting it to hit like that lol. 

BuckeyeNut05

What habits, goals, or resolutions are you focusing on this week?
Assuming I won’t get KU, I have charted my way to getting my quarantine 15 back off by Memorial Day next year (slow and steady) by tracking what I eat, eating at a small calorie deficit every day with lots of protein, lifting 3x a week and running 2x a week.   

How's everything going? 

It’s been about a week and a half, so far so good, but I have to get the cookies out of my house because I cannot control myself. 

What has you motivated or struggling this week? I am motivated by the fact that none of my normal pants fit and I just feel icky. I am struggling with cookies. Yes, cookies. 

What's a "small win" you have from last week?  I tried to start a couch to 5k program because it’s been a long time since I ran, and I was definitely able to run longer than the 30 seconds in week 1 (I made it about 3 minutes), so I felt a little better about it. I used to be able to run for like an hour, no problem. 😩😭

@acleverusername yeah for getting to the finish line!  I’ve never tried that but everyone who I know who has says they feel so much better by the end. 

@intothewoods123 quitting the pop (I’m from the MW so it goes against who I am to call it soda 😂) is so hard, isn’t it?  Have you tried La Croix?  It took me forever to acclimate to the taste but now I love it, and I can still have my bubbles without the caffeine and sugar. 

@akoros great job on getting down below 160.  If your weather has been like ours has, I bet it’s really nice and relaxing to kayak over the past few years. Sun always makes me feel better. 

@bbrahmbhatt that would have been my exact reaction if I ate something with a lot of calories on a day I was trying to reign it in!  😂  10 pts better be worth some pizza!

inthewoods23

@BuckeyeNut05 yuck to La Croix 😅 it all just tastes like metal to me. We had a period of time buying a bunch of bottles of Sparkling Ice (or off brand versions) but haven't for a while. I'm really big on using Mio in my water.

BuckeyeNut05

@intothewoods Mio works too!  😂  You either love La Croix or you hate it. There is no in-between!  

acleverusername

@bbrahmbhatt I’m desperately trying to finish up It Starts With Food to see what they recommend in terms of reintroduction. But to be honest, I don’t feel like I miss anything from my old diet. I’ve really enjoyed pigging our on fresh fruit, veggies, and proteins and I’ve legitimately seen a reduction of inflammation in my body. So, I’m asking myself... what’s the point? I might try adding back gluten free oats (mostly oat milk) since I haven’t found a good coffee cream alternative and supposedly I have a sensitivity to Almonds, which was the next best thing. I’ve eliminated almonds from my diet for now, and will see how re-introing them affects me.

@BuckeyeNut05 it’s amazing to me how my body adjusted to using fats for energy in lieu of carbs. On Sunday I went for a 6mi hike and my breakfast beforehand was 1 avocado with 3 soft boiled eggs. And I felt great throughout the hike! Also, I’m not doing this to lose weight and there absolutely no food tracking involved on this plan. But I can tell that I definitely haven’t been gaining any weight as all my clothes fit as before. MH has been doing it alongside me (although the technically fell off the wagon twice so it’s Day 8 for him) but he IS doing it for the weight loss; so far he’s down ~5 lbs. 

akoros

@BuckeyeNut05 Couch-to-5k has been on my "to do" list for a while, I always get sidetracked by either health issues or (more likely) weather. I like everything about running (the price--free, outside, good workout, etc) except the actual running part, I have some deep-seated anxieties about running that were developed in middle school. Once the heat breaks I'm hoping to give it another shot. When it's this gross outside the only thing I can tolerate is being on the water (always feels a bit cooler, and I tell myself it's the Potomac soaking me, not sweat), just have to dodge afternoon thunderstorms. Good luck!

@intothewoods Have you tried Spindrift? It's more like actual juice with the sparkling water than La Croix (though I do like La Croix). That said, it's not that sweet (the lemon is fairly tart and the grapefruit a bit bitter), which works for me but may not be your thing. I think the mango & orange one is the sweetest of the bunch. When I broke the soda habit it was mostly because I liked the bubbles, so I was able to get by with a Sodastream and a stash of juices or fresh fruit/herbs that I'd muddle up in there. 

inthewoods23

@akoros I did have their cranberry raspberry one a few months ago. It wasn't too bad! I've tried the Bubly brand at Target too and some of those flavors are hit or miss. It's definitely the carbonation that I like so sparkling water has been a great substitute for sodas.

akoros

@inthewoods23 My favorite is muddling some fresh basil and lemon together with sparking water. Feels almost like a cocktail. I've also used sparkling water to dilute hibiscus tea, which was really good, or some agua fresca (blend up fruit with water and a little sugar, then strain and put in the fridge). Lime, mint, & cucumber are also great for summer. Making up some homemade infused simple syrups also helps, you can control the sugar and they can have fun flavors. A few years ago I was completely addicted to a bit of lavender syrup in sparkling water with some lemon juice (also very much like a cocktail, more or less a lavender Tom Collins)

akoros

Update: small victory! Had no drinks last night (it's sad to admit, but that's the first time I've done that since we found out about our most recent loss four weeks ago, aside from the 24-hr period with the D&C/recovery) and walked all my steps. Granted, I did have 5 oreos, so I do need to be careful to not just replace a drink with some other comfort/junk food. 

BuckeyeNut05

Way to go @akoros!  Also, Oreos are my irresistible cookie of choice. 😉

akoros

@BuckeyeNut05 Normally they're not allowed in the house because I can't resist (same for Cheez-its and Doritos), but with a pandemic on we've been more lax about buying snacks and junk food. In my defense, we've had the Oreos for 2 weeks, so I've been resisting. Our pantry closet is downstairs from the kitchen, so I've been doing a good job of hiding the junk food in there so that we don't devour it all. 

acleverusername

@akoros forgot to comment earlier: setting small goals like upping your step count & cutting out drinking is absolutely the right approach! The important thing is to set achievable goals. It's a struggle I've been having as well. Last year at the end of July I ran a half-marathon; now I have to work hard to close my Apple Watch rings (which is 30 min of moderate or greater exercise, 12 hours of standing, and otherwise calories that count towards moving around.) Good luck!

@BuckeyeNut05 good luck on the Couch-to-5K program; be kind to yourself.