2019 Fitness Adventures

[DJ]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

Bought myself a new bike a couple of weeks ago, and I'm really enjoying getting out on some new routes/trails. It's a gravel bike; which looks like a road bike (mine has drop handles, but you can get flat bar), but carries more weight and clearance for wider tires so it can handle dirt/gravel, in addition to pavement.

I'll try and post some pics of it later, but it's made by Salsa Cycles and model is the Journeyman. Gravel bikes are good alternatives for those that don't a full road or mountain bike.

[DJ]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

I've put close to 150 miles on my bike thus far, including a 25-mile ride today. Couldn't be happier with my purchase.

I do need to add some bodyweight and kettlebell exercises into my weekly routine, though, to try and build back a little muscle.

[countryboy]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

Said I wouldn't do it, but broke down.

Just joined Planet Fitness.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

A little update from me since it's been awhile:

The company I work for was sold to CoStar last month. As part of their health insurance benefit each employee can participate in a wellness rewards program called Vitality. You get points for completing different activities and tasks including working out, check ups, donating blood, online education tools, etc. It's a pretty neat program overall. Your points translate into "bucks" that you can use to buy various things from gift cards to fitbits to other exercise devices. Doing this has reinforced my motivation to be better.

As a result I have finally started a journal of sorts to not only track food intake, but to write down how I feel when I wake up (and throughout the day), what exercise I did, and any goals I want to set for the day/week. I've only done it two days, but I think it's helping already with the day-to-day struggles that we all face. It's important not to be beat yourself up too much over messing up or progressing too slow. Motivation can be hard to come by as it is you don't need to make yourself feel guilty at the same time.

Within the Vitality program you can set up different goals and set rewards for yourself. Each week you get points for "checking" in no matter your progress. I've set two goals for myself over the next 6-8 weeks. The first is to get more sleep - at least 6 or 7 hours a night. It seems obvious, but I've always been a night owl and going to bed before 1AM rarely seems to happen. My second goal is to lose 10lbs in 2 months. I'm currently at 195 which is probably the heaviest I've been the past year or two. The good thing is I already know where the extra weight is coming from. It's just a matter of stopping and creating some bad habits. My reward for both is to buy a FitBit so I can monitor myself during workouts. As I get older I want to start tracking my weight, waist, BMI, and blood pressure since those things become more and more difficult to manage as people age.

Other goals I've made for myself are food related goals. We're going to the beach in about a month so I've decided to cut out chips and ice-cream until then (may even try to keep going while on vacation - a true test of wills) because those are largely my biggest food villains. A love hate relationship for sure.

Anyway, just a little update on me. I'm still exercising with HasFit 4-5 times a week along with using the 30 Day Ab Challenge app. On my good days I can see abdominal toning so it's just a matter of losing and keeping the extra weight off.

[KG]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

A little update from me since it's been awhile:

The company I work for was sold to CoStar last month. As part of their health insurance benefit each employee can participate in a wellness rewards program called Vitality. You get points for completing different activities and tasks including working out, check ups, donating blood, online education tools, etc. It's a pretty neat program overall. Your points translate into "bucks" that you can use to buy various things from gift cards to fitbits to other exercise devices. Doing this has reinforced my motivation to be better.

As a result I have finally started a journal of sorts to not only track food intake, but to write down how I feel when I wake up (and throughout the day), what exercise I did, and any goals I want to set for the day/week. I've only done it two days, but I think it's helping already with the day-to-day struggles that we all face. It's important not to be beat yourself up too much over messing up or progressing too slow. Motivation can be hard to come by as it is you don't need to make yourself feel guilty at the same time.

Within the Vitality program you can set up different goals and set rewards for yourself. Each week you get points for "checking" in no matter your progress. I've set two goals for myself over the next 6-8 weeks. The first is to get more sleep - at least 6 or 7 hours a night. It seems obvious, but I've always been a night owl and going to bed before 1AM rarely seems to happen. My second goal is to lose 10lbs in 2 months. I'm currently at 195 which is probably the heaviest I've been the past year or two. The good thing is I already know where the extra weight is coming from. It's just a matter of stopping and creating some bad habits. My reward for both is to buy a FitBit so I can monitor myself during workouts. As I get older I want to start tracking my weight, waist, BMI, and blood pressure since those things become more and more difficult to manage as people age.

Other goals I've made for myself are food related goals. We're going to the beach in about a month so I've decided to cut out chips and ice-cream until then (may even try to keep going while on vacation - a true test of wills) because those are largely my biggest food villains. A love hate relationship for sure.

Anyway, just a little update on me. I'm still exercising with HasFit 4-5 times a week along with using the 30 Day Ab Challenge app. On my good days I can see abdominal toning so it's just a matter of losing and keeping the extra weight off.

I have a buddy who works for Costar in DC and they're always offering classes like kickboxing, yoga, boxing, etc... Pretty cool perk

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

I have a buddy who works for Costar in DC and they're always offering classes like kickboxing, yoga, boxing, etc... Pretty cool perk

Classes at the DC office or just classes through? We're relatively new so they haven't added/linked up to much around us yet. Pretty cool wellness system, though. It definitely highlights the aspects that aren't really addressed much (mental health, diet, etc). I just wish I could get more than 5 points for self-reporting my workouts.

I have four work weeks until we go on vacation. I have two Food Challenges during this time: No Ice-Cream and No Chips. As a bonus challenge I want to see how many nights I can go without eating anything after 10PM. We'll see how things go.

I started doing Daily Affirmations this weekend. It certainly helps to write this down, but actually verbalizing goes even further. It seems stupid, but it does make you more accountable somehow. Most of mine are interchangeable depending on what I want to accomplish for the day, but the most important one is one I doubt I will change much: I WILL follow through.

That's been my weakness for the past 5 years or so. I know what to do. I know how to do it. It's just a matter of me following through and actually doing it.

[KG]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

Classes at the DC office or just classes through? We're relatively new so they haven't added/linked up to much around us yet. Pretty cool wellness system, though. It definitely highlights the aspects that aren't really addressed much (mental health, diet, etc). I just wish I could get more than 5 points for self-reporting my workouts.

I have four work weeks until we go on vacation. I have two Food Challenges during this time: No Ice-Cream and No Chips. As a bonus challenge I want to see how many nights I can go without eating anything after 10PM. We'll see how things go.

I started doing Daily Affirmations this weekend. It certainly helps to write this down, but actually verbalizing goes even further. It seems stupid, but it does make you more accountable somehow. Most of mine are interchangeable depending on what I want to accomplish for the day, but the most important one is one I doubt I will change much: I WILL follow through.

That's been my weakness for the past 5 years or so. I know what to do. I know how to do it. It's just a matter of me following through and actually doing it.

I’m not sure FT, he works in the DC office so they might have a gym in his building and they just team up.

I would have failed all of those challenges lol. I had ice cream and chips after 10 last night smh. Sometimes I think I don’t eat snouts during the day with my IF so my body is just craving calories but I also love food so who knows.

Nothing wrong with visual reinforcements by way of daily affirmations. I’m a visual person who lives by checklists. My wife laughs at me when I break out my “to-do list” index card but it helps me not forget stuff and with some anxiety I think I have about getting a lot of things done (I like to do that to myself).


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[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

Ah. They probably do have a gym in that office. I know the Richmond office has a bunch of extra **** and a gym, too. I'm sure DC is pretty swank.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

Ah. They probably do have a gym in that office. I know the Richmond office has a bunch of extra **** and a gym, too. I'm sure DC is pretty swank.

Visited there a couple weeks ago. I did not see a gym on any of the floors we went on, but it's DC so plenty of them around the office.

It should be nice to have a basketball court outside, though. My wife has a court right outside her office at UVA. I'm jealous.

A little bump since it's Fall. With the cooler weather coming on it's that time of the year where we start spending our time indoors a lot more. Plus, heavy/heavier foods make a return to the table as Thanksgiving stares out over the horizon.

This Summer has been weird. July I ballooned up towards 200-195lbs. Cut out some foods for awhile (chips and ice-cream) while managing to break out of the habit of eating in front of the TV. Honestly, this was something I never really had any luck doing and am still surprised by. I'd say that's a pretty good win for the Summer.

I also changed my schedule since the wife is now working 9-5, M-F as opposed to 4-Midnight. I'm now going to bed at 10-10:30PM, getting up at 6AM (so getting my 7-7.5 hours of sleep per night) and working out first thing in the morning. This has been a great change. Getting my workouts done in the morning and having the rest of the day open is great. Having evenings free is a lot easier to schedule around than worrying about exercising after getting home from work.

I'm currently back down to 190-185lb and trying to get down around 180lb. There are still some things for me to do to improve and get there, but I'm fairly content with my current state.

[KG]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

We need the 2020 thread to do better than 2019!


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[DJ]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

We need the 2020 thread to do better than 2019!


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Yep, and that's on me. Moved and started a new job in August and haven't posted a lot on here since then. Admittedly, my workouts have been sporadic as I adjust to the new schedule and of course, all the work that comes along with a move. Definitely looking forward to 2020 from a fitness standpoint.

[tdawg3782]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

This year has by far been my worst effort in my life time. Had a shoulder injury but used that as an excuse mostly. My main issue is I always try to over complicate things. Going to try to simplify a routine and not be so hard on myself this time. Here's to getting back on track in 2020.

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[DJ]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

Nice way to close out 2019, as my wife got me a Garmin Forerunner 45 for Christmas. I had an old, old Garmin Forerunner 15 that I'd been using for a long time, so definitely nice to upgrade.

[Fresh Tendrils]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

What was everyone's biggest success this year?

Mine would be that I completely changed my exercise routine and schedule - basically flipping it on it's head. When my wife started working daylight hours with her new job back in July I started getting up each morning at 6AM. The first thing I do is workout. It's amazing being able to get that out of the way first thing and not have to have it hanging over me the rest of the day. Previously, I would almost dread going home some days because I wasn't motivated to work out after work.

The biggest benefit, however, is I'm not getting to bed on at a regular time each night and getting at least 7 hours of sleep nightly. The difference between 6 and 7 hours feels huge now.

[DJ]

Re: 2019 Fitness Adventures

What was everyone's biggest success this year?

Mine would be that I completely changed my exercise routine and schedule - basically flipping it on it's head. When my wife started working daylight hours with her new job back in July I started getting up each morning at 6AM. The first thing I do is workout. It's amazing being able to get that out of the way first thing and not have to have it hanging over me the rest of the day. Previously, I would almost dread going home some days because I wasn't motivated to work out after work.

The biggest benefit, however, is I'm not getting to bed on at a regular time each night and getting at least 7 hours of sleep nightly. The difference between 6 and 7 hours feels huge now.

That's awesome, congrats!

I had a couple of successes in 2019. The first was completing another half-marathon (my third overall) in January. I finished a couple of minutes slower than 2018, but still finished with a respectable time and was happy that I ran the entire 13.1 miles. The second was biking a 30-mile stretch of the Pacific Coast Highway on my 40th birthday. It was an amazing day.

Lastly, I'll mention that I was also happy to get into gravel bike riding. At the time, I didn't know I'd be moving to a state with hundreds of miles of gravel roads and trails, and was moving to gravel from road bikes so I could explore more trails in Arizona and better protect myself from flat tires caused by tree needles and other debris. Now that I'm in Iowa, my gravel bike is the only bike I ride and grants me access to anywhere I want to ride.