August 25, 2020

Day 37 (and a recap)

I'm not even sure what to call this challenge that I'm doing anymore--I wrote previously about not calling it "75 Hard" because of a discrepancy about the "diet" rule (that post explains it better). I'm trying to keep this whole challenge simple and enjoyable, so I've just been continuing what I'd been doing all along.

I still want to build discipline, though, so I need a time frame/goal to work toward. So, I'm going to extend the challenge to 90 days total, and I'm not going to start over from Day 1 if I break any of the "rules". Right now, it's just become more of a personal goal rather than a challenge--in my mind, those are different. And that's hard to explain!

Anyway, this week has gone really well. After writing about breaking one of the rules and having to start over from Day 1, I just got right back on track. I think that shows a LOT of discipline (for me) because I didn't let one day turn to two, and then a week, and then just quitting altogether.

Going forward, today marks 37 days since I started "75 Hard". So, I'm counting this as Day 37 of 90. I'm sure I've made this super confusing, but I'm really just trying to keep it simple without "start overs" and questioning myself if I'm following the original rules accurately enough.

So, today is Day 37 of 90 and these are MY goals for it:

  • Build discipline to stick with something all the way through
  • Gain self-confidence
  • Feel in control
  • Develop good habits/eliminate bad habits
  • Feel healthier/hopefully lose some weight

And these are the original "rules" that I'd been following (and am continuing with)...

1. Follow a diet of choice (I'm doing intermittent fasting with a 20:4 ratio of fasting to eating. I eat whatever I'm in the mood for, but basically I've been making a filling high-calorie dinner and then having either a dessert or snack if I'm still hungry.)

2. Work out 45 minutes twice a day--at least one has to be outside. (I've been walking for most of the workouts, but I occasionally ride my bike. I've done a few treadmill walks, but almost all of them have been outside.)

3. Take a progress photo every day. (I take a full-length mirror selfie every morning before my walk.)

4. Drink a gallon of water every day.

5. Read 10 pages of an inspirational book.

To sum everything up to Day 37 so far:

Follow a diet of choice

The longer I do intermittent fasting, the more I enjoy it. I stay very busy during the day and then eat dinner at about 4:00. I eat enough in my window that I don't feel hungry for the rest of the night. It feels good to eat until I literally don't want any more. I even skip out on dessert or a snack sometimes because I'm comfortably full and just don't want it. I've also been eating healthier meals--since I'm condensing my food intake to four hours, I want to make the food worth it.

Work out 45 minutes twice a day

Lots and lots of walking. This has become complete habit to me by now (the morning walk has, anyway). Joey loves this new habit because I take him with me and he gets so excited when he hears that I'm awake and getting dressed. Even if I wanted to quit my morning walks, I would feel way too bad for Joey!

I actually really enjoy the walking, which has been the biggest surprise to me. Exercise had always felt like a chore--something I did but never looked forward to. Now, I genuinely like listening to an audiobook while walking the peninsula. When I walk, I don't have pace or time goals or anything like that. If I feel like walking slowly, I do; if I feel like pushing it a bit, then I do that, too.

I was kind of surprised when I tallied up the totals today. In 35 days, I walked nearly 165 miles (I'll include this week's totals next week) and I biked 57 miles. I like to keep track of the numbers below because I'm curious if my heart rate will get lower as I exercise more. I'm not doing MAF training (my heart rate is always below MAF when I walk) but I'm still interested to see if all the walking/biking has an effect.


Take a progress photo every day

This has become a habit, too--as soon as I wake up, I get dressed for my walk and while I'm in the bathroom pulling my hair back and brushing my teeth, I take a selfie in the mirror right before I leave. I am SO glad that I have been doing the progress photos. I was bummed that I wasn't losing weight, but when I looked through my progress pictures, I could see a big difference--even from week to week.

Here is a comparison of Day 1 versus today, Day 37:


And here, just for the sake of comparing with the same shirt, is Day 8 versus 37:

Here is a post where I shared some comparisons after four weeks on plan.

Drink a gallon of water every day

Nothing much to say about this. I've done it every day for 37 days now.  The exercise helps me get in the water--I feel dehydrated after going out in the heat and walking for 45 minutes. I hate feeling puffy from dehydration, and that's actually what pushes me to get in enough water.

Read 10 pages of an inspirational book

I'm almost done with David Goggins' book "Can't Hurt Me" (Amazon affiliate link). I've only been reading 10 pages a day--I read really slowly, so it takes me a while. This book is fascinating, though--Goggins' discipline is absolutely crazy. He makes zero excuses for anything at all.

I recommended it to my brother, Nathan, because I thought it sounded like something he'd like. He liked it so much that he bought the audiobook, too, in order to listen during his commute. He said the audiobook has more than the written book--interviews and things between chapters.

I'm not sure what my next book will be. I should probably figure that out!

Needless to say, I'm very happy with how I've been doing on this challenge. I'm feeling good enough about it to extend it to 90 days and I'm actually enjoying the new habits :)

4 comments:

  1. Your 75 hard has motivated me to try intermittent fasting. I read Gin Stephen's books based on your recommendation and am currently on day 17 of the FAST start 28. :) Thanks Katie

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  2. Longtime reader (and lurker) coming out of hiding for a second to say, call it "Katie's Challenge!" It's YOUR challenge for YOU, so own it!!! Also, I can really see a difference in the pics! Even if the scale isn't showing it, your body is definitely changing. Way to go! :)

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  3. It encourages me to see someone doing this and sticking to it. I need to get a move on with this goal myself!

    Keep up the great work. I can see a difference, especially in the pics with the same shirt! But it's even better that it makes you happy!!

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  4. I can't imagine doing two workouts a day. I feel like once a day is plenty. And I agree, your pictures show all the work you're putting in. And I also agree that you don't look older than Jerry. I don't understand her comment AT ALL!

    ReplyDelete

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