February = Fitness First. (or alliteration is awesome)

WE DID IT! We made through January! One of the reasons we’re not calling this adventure in health ‘resolutions’ is because all three of us would’ve already broken them by now. The nice thing with goals is that they can be worked towards, re-jigged, and amended. We’re building new habits here folks! That’s going to take some time!

For the end of our first month the ladies of the Council went over their goals and made sure that they were SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable/Attainable, Realistic and Timely). Sam went specific, for her new goal of learning to run, and Kate went broad, making sure that all the things she’s trying to do in this upcoming month are SMART. I think I’m somewhere in between. Which brings me to an observation I’ve made over the course of the first month. Having the Jedi Council has been absolutely indispensible. I know that Weight Watchers has recently introduced a chat feature to their program, but I don’t think it could compare to our Jedi Council conversation. Being able to turn to friends who are battling the same mini-bosses as you for support is amazing. Being able to see Sam’s super-dedication and Kate’s amazing insights on a daily basis is just great. I feel like in the past, trudging through it alone, feeling like no one really understands how you’re feeling (even though I’m sure there are many who do) made being healthier so hard. Having these cool ladies around has made this thing so much more fun and easy. If you’re going to do something like this, I’d really recommend forming your own Council.

OKAY! On top of making sure we haven’t gone too crazy with our goals, I’ve also challenged the Council to be selfish in February and put Fitness First. You’ll be unsurprised that I got this idea from my favourite nerdy fitness site, nerdfitness.com. Here’s the general idea from nerdfitness.com founder, Steve Kamb:

“That’s right, you get to be as selfish as you need to be in order to accomplish three goals:

·         You do NOT miss a workout. No matter what.

·         You consume healthy calories that allow you to reach your goal.

·         You can say no to any obligation that would keep you from getting enough sleep or working out.

When you are trying to build healthy habits, especially if you are going all in, it’s often quite difficult to give yourself permission to “be selfish” when society and your duties tell you “fitness isn’t a priority.”

We all say “I’d love to exercise more,” but the reality is this: it’s not what we say is a priority, but rather what we DO that’s the real priority. This is me giving you permission to give yourself permission to be selfish for a month while you’re getting the ball rolling. Because it’s going to be a challenge to bust through bad habits and societal pressures, this might be what you need to finally build that habit.”

Have I mentioned I love this site? I HAVE? For reals though, it's great. You should TOTALLY sign up for their newsletters. So, Steve challenged nerdfitness readers (ie: me, and Sam), I’ve challenged the Jedi Council, and Craig from thenoblehero.com. Are YOU going to accept the challenge?!

NOW! On to the Council’s updates!

 Kate:

Ah, February. Cold, rainy, icky. The month where I most want to curl up under the covers with some tea, cookies, my cat and a book. So what am I going to do?

Exercise.

Yeah.

The Jedi Council has decided that we're taking this whole February Fitness thing seriously, so instead of snoozing the month away, I will be spending it becoming a fitter version of me. And oh, do I need it. Without further ado, here are this month's quests:

1) I'm buying a one month pass to the rec center. That's not the quest though. The quest is that I must get my money's worth out of it. Given the cost of the pass and the cost of a drop-in visit to the gym, I need to go at least 9 times this month. Even if I just go and walk on the treadmill for 20 minutes, I must walk through those doors 9 times.

2) Increase my daily steps on my pedometer. I've been averaging 6000 steps per day, which is nowehere near enough. Next month I would like to average 12000 steps per day.

3) I have never been able to touch my toes. So, this month I will stretch every day, for at least 10 minutes. Yoga counts, but so does just standing there and reaching for my toes for 10 minutes!

Andrea has challenged us to make sure our goals this month are SMART, and I've made sure mine are! I've been focusing more on picking goals that outline a process, rather than a result, as I feel that it's less likely to set me up for disappointment. If I go to the gym 9 times this month, I've made progress, even if the scale doesn't budge at all.

Andrea:
I’m amping up my goals this month! (But making sure they’re still within the SMART parameters, of course!) 

My big quest is staying the same: 75lbs by the end of the year. And the first two sub-quests are staying the same: 1).eating 80% Paleo (ps, the recipes I’m trying? SO FUN!) 2) working out 3x a week (I wasn’t 100% great at this in January, but since we’re putting fitness first in February, it’s the top priority). 

This is where I’m upping my game, sub-quest 3. I was extremely successful in upping my steps in January, only missing the 10,500 mark twice. So now we’re going to run. Wellll, kinda. I’m restarting (for like, the fourth time) the Zombies Run 5K training app (which is AMAZING! But I apparently suck at the follow through). And signed up for the Sun Run. Yup, cardio, you and I are going to be friends if it kills me! Last year, it kinda did, I signed up for Sun Run in 2014 as well, but got walking pneumonia, and was advised that it was probably in my best interest to not try and even walk the 10K…BUT THIS YEAR?! This year, I’m Sun Running.

Sam:

The first month of any life change is hard, and this month has been no exception.  I was successful in losing some weight this month, so that is something for me to be proud of.  I brought my lunch to work everyday except for one and I got up early enough every day to eat breakfast.  I accomplished two out of three of my goals.  Of the third goal, making sure I get in 10, 000 steps per day, well, I didn’t do so great on that.  Some days were amazing, almost 20,000 steps, other days, I was lucky to break 6000.

Even though I didn’t get in my steps per day in January, I’m ok with this as my ONE AND ONLY goal for February is to exercise more. Bringing my lunch to work and getting up early are now my dailies, no longer first time quests I have to complete. So for February, I will rock those dailies and concentrate my efforts on the biggest badass boss there is, exercise, and I will be SMART about this exercise thing.  

 S(pecific) = Learn to Run 5K without stopping.

M(easurable) = I have my vivofit & various apps on my iPhone to help me keep track.

A(chievable) = Getting out there at least 3 times a week to train.

R(ealistic) = I’ve never been able to run (even as a kid), so even being able to run a little bit without losing my breath and needing to slow down will be an improvement.

T(imley) = The training program I have chosen is 8 weeks long.

To help me motivate myself I have done what I may later consider to be an insane act of my part and I signed up for not only the Vancouver Sun Run in April but also the Whistler Mudderella event in September.

 Yeah. That’s right, we’re going to Mudderella it up in September. Yes, we may in fact be crazy people, but after reading about the event, and their motto of “Own Your Strong” sounds like it’s right up our crazy alley. See you on Friday, for your regularly scheduled mini-update!

Oh! So you want to know more?

In our last post, the Jedi Council asked for suggestions on our plan and goals. Our lovely (and recently departed to the wilds of the Yukon) friend Jenn thought maybe more frequent posts (once a week) might be a better way to keep accountable. 

And we agreed. So here we are, our first, "Let's be accountable" post.

Andrea: 

This morning as I was getting my morning coffee, a co-worker asked me, "Andrea, are you losing weight?" To which I answered, "I sure hope so." She then asked if I was 'working out or eating better?' My immediate answer was "Both." While the scale's been pretty kind, and my clothes have been fitting better, it's certainly gives me the warm feels to know that my efforts are paying off enough for people to take a little bit of notice.

Also this week was a fun, food adventure for me. With my experimenting with Paleo comes a whole new world of recipes. This week I tried two that I really want share, both from the site Multiply Delicious. The chicken, sweet potato patties and the slow cooker chicken, sweet potato, and kale stew. Yes, you see a theme there, but it cut down on the number of groceries I had to buy! Other than that I've been really conscious about what I'm eating. Or at least I try to be. These are new habits that are being built, and while slip-ups have been rare, they're bound to happen.

On the exercise front, I've also been successful. Walking all over the place, racking up the steps like crazy. I've also begun to wake up earlier to workout. I'm a fan of the 'bodyweight' workouts, 'cause I can do them at home and I don't need any equipment. After starting with one I got from nerdfitness.com, I've branched out, searching for more, leading me to neilarey.com. I've picked a couple of workouts, but I've decided, since I'm already sharing the experience with you all, why not give you a say? Have look though the visual workouts and pick one for me to try! I like variety, and they're all pretty tricky, so it'll give me something to strive to complete! 

Let's keeeeeep goooooing!!!!

Sam: 

The Cake is a lie. One of the ladies at work brought in a beautiful cake that she decorated at a class she attended. Need I say more?

I read an article over at nerdfitness.com (Andrea's note: this site is my favourite). Most the articles they write I just sort of glance over, picking out a bit here and there, but this one had a Star Wars theme so I paid a little more attention. It spoke of the lizard brain, "As cavemen and cavewomen, our brains were rewarded with pleasure any time we found things that kept us alive (food!), did things that allowed us to reproduce (sex!), or took part in activities that kept us alive (running from predators!). When our body encountered anything that was biologically helpful to our survival as a species, dopamine would be released in our brain that encouraged us to continue searching out those things."

Ah yes, the dear lizard brain, how I hate you. It also talked about the things we can't stop doing. If I have just one potato chip, one bite of chocolate, one piece of candy I can't seem to stop myself from eating more of it, every morsel that's within my grasp. It's my lizard brain taking over. I found it helpful reading this article and knowing that I'm not the only one who experiences the need to polish off an entire bag of chips in one sitting, even though I know it will make me feel like crap for four days afterwards. I have been told by people that it isn't good have the all or nothing mentality, and while that may be true in some ways, for the moment I'm going to stick with what works for me. Oh, that piece of cake I mentioned? I didn't have a bite.

Kate:

I'm actually really glad we're doing this weekly update, but not for the reasons I'd expected. I'd thought it would be a good way to put me back on track when I'd strayed, and to keep me accountable to my goals, but it's done something even better, it's reminded me that I'm actually doing okay.

The past week has been a rough one for me, for reasons unrelated to the over-arching quest, and I've been feeling like an utter failure. My scale still says exactly what it did at the beginning of the month, my clothes still feel tight, and I've been feeling like it's just all too hard. So when I went to write my weekly update I was composing this whole things about how failure is just part of the process, and blah blah blah. And then I looked back at my goals so I could elaborate on my failures. 

Except I haven't failed.

Walk more? Well...it's not been drastic, but yes, I have actually been walking more. My pedometer confirms that.

Meal planning? Oh yeah...we now have a little weekly schedule up on our fridge for who is cooking dinner. And aside from the occasional night out with friends, we've stuck to it.

Healthy snacks in the house? Um...yup. there's a giant thing of pre-cut Costco veggies in the fridge and I'm currently drinking a green smoothie.

So, all that woe is me, I suck, I'm bad at this crap? That's just my brain being a jerk.

Shut up, jerk.

We're on a Quest! (or goal-setting for nerd-types)

In our first post, we, the Jedi Council let you know why we were doing what we're doing, now comes the all-important how. It's great to have lofty ideas of what you'd like to do, but without setting out specific goals, you're doomed to fail...AND WE REFUSE TO FAIL!

I've been spending a lot of time over at nerdfitness.com lately, and amongst the many articles, I've gleaned some tips for goal-setting, specifically goal-setting for nerds. It's much easier for our nerd-brains to make and stick to our goals if we turn them into a game. I explained this to the Council, and Kate came back with the perfect analogy:

"As good nerds, the Jedi Council decided that any sort of project like this is actually just a game. Think of it this way - My end goal is to weigh 180lbs by July 1st. That's my final boss. In order to get to my final boss, I need to spend the next six months doing side quests to earn XP, which will help me defeat mini bosses, which will prepare me for that scary final boss. If this all works according to plan, that boss won't actually be so badass by the time I get there, cause I'll have levelled up into an equivalent badass. You following so far?"

Thanks Kate! So, we all have our final bosses that we want to kick the crap out of, but we can't do it right away, we'd get clobbered! We need to tackle some smaller bosses, pick up some shiny new armor, get some new weapons, arm ourselves with some potions, all of which will make defeating that final boss, when we get there a piece of cake!

We all sat down and figured out what we want our main goals (quest) to be, and the side quests that will help us reach that main quest.

Sam:

Goals are an interesting thing, they are fluid and ever changing. You may start out with one goal and by the end it may have completely evolved into something else. My ultimate end goal is to lose 40-50lbs. However to achieve that goal I have to make mini-goals so my ultimate goal is not quite as overwhelming. For January I will be starting three mini-goals.

Bring my lunch to work Get up early enough to eat breakfast Utilize my step counter more

These may seem like very simple goals to start with so let me elaborate the difficulty.

Bringing my own lunch is something I have struggled with since I was around 12, when my lunch for school was no longer prepared for me. Even then I didn’t make great food choices, most of the time I would just bring an apple and a chocolate milk. Quick, easy, no thinking, no planning. As I got into highschool, the fries at the cafeteria or a bag of chip and a pop were my go to's for lunch. As an adult, I’ve always worked close by restaurants or fast-food places. Now I need to plan ahead and make sure I bring my lunch. Not only will this be healthier for my body, but also on my pocket book.

I've never done mornings

I don’t do mornings. Never have. I was told that would change as I got older, LIES! My normal morning routine usually consists of pressing the snooze button 4 or 5 times then rolling out of bed 15 mins before I have to leave. Now I have started to set my alarm earlier and press snooze only 2 or 3 times. Getting up with enough time to eat breakfast my mornings sure do seem less stressful now. Although, I battle with my alarm clock every day, however it is winning the war.

I have a vivofit. I love it. Now I have to utilize it more. Instead of just seeing how much I walked every day, I will make sure that it’s at least of the 10, 000 recommended daily steps. Walks at lunch will help. Taking the stairs at work will also help. If by the end of the day I haven’t reached 10, 000 steps, well then I will just have to chase my cats around the apartment. Give both them and myself some exercise.

Andrea:

Main quest for 2015: Lose 75lbs, (which may be slightly aggressive, but we'll see, it can always be revised) 

Quest for first 6 weeks of the year: lose 15lbs

Sub-quests for this first 6 weeks

1) Cleaning up my diet. I think I finally understand that I can't outrun my fork. No matter how much I exercise I need to eat better. I've been trying to eat Paleo, which emphasizes eating real food, cutting out sugar and processed foods. There are other 'rules' as well, but I'm not going to bore you with them. So far, I find myself eating Paleo 80% of the time, and it's not that hard. Planning ahead, shopping, cooking, are all important parts of keeping on track with this quest. And let me tell you, the new recipes I'm finding! YUM!

2) Working out 3x a week. I started working out more a year and a bit ago, so while I'm not nearly as weak as I used to be, I would still like to pick this up a bit.This quest will definitely require some time management to ensure the workouts happen, getting up earlier is going to have to happen. I will also endeavour to try new moves/workouts to keep things interesting, 'cause my brain gets bored of repetition. 

Maybe someday, if I work reeeeeeaaaaally hard, I can be as awesome as Natasha Romanov. It could happen right?

3) Increasing my cardio. I've been tracking my steps via my Jawbone UP! for almost two years now, and I love it. I know that I can easily get the recommended 10,000 steps a day without much extra effort, so I'm going to increase my daily goal of steps to 10,500 (and perhaps keep going up to 12,000 by the summer) and do my best to make sure that I get those steps in everyday. UPDATE on this side-quest! My best buddy Craig (you can find him and his fitness goals for 2015, here) and I have been going for walks during lunch instead of playing on our phones and I haven't been below 11,000 steps all week.

Kate:

My end goal is to weigh 180lbs by July 1st.

Kate at 17...when she thought she was 'fat'. Teenaged minds are terrible.

Here are my side quests for the month:

1) Move. Just move. Get off the bus 2 stops early and walk. Walk around the block before bed. Walk to the store, even if you only need 1-2 things. If you see a trailhead marker, go explore it. If there's a chance to get up and move around, take it. Try to do at least one big walk per week (big being over 45 mins. That definition will increase as the weeks go on!)

2) Meal planning. Sit down with that-guy-I-live-with every weekend and plan out our dinners for the week. Go shopping so we have the ingredients we need, and then stick to our plan so we don't wind up making poor food choices cause we're starving. Mac and Cheese is not a valid meal plan.

3) Cupboard Stocking. On a similar note to #2, make sure the kitchen is always stocked with healthy foods that take little to no time to prepare. This may mean spending a little extra money to buy the pre-made hummus instead of making your own. Yes, you know how, but we all know you won't do it when you're hungry. You'll grab a cookie instead.

If I can handle these side quests, I should have enough XP to level up and defeat this month's mini boss, which is to lose 5lbs. Next month I'll have some new side quests to work on, and a new mini-boss. Course, as any good gamer knows, sometimes you keep doing the same quest over and over to grind out XP. I will keep killing kobolds for their candles for as long as I need to, damnit!

So, those are our quests, and sub-quests, at least for the next couple of weeks, then who knows! They might need to be updated. What do you think?

Also, while I have the next couple of posts floating in my brain already, is there anything you'd like to hear about the Jedi Council and A New Hope? Is once every two weeks enough, should we try and update every week? Drop us a comment below!