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Shrinking Assets Team Chat - NOVEMBER 2021

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  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    jugar wrote: »
    Team Naming UPDATE!

    I am always posting the same messages for both Shrinking Assets and Trimstones, so everyone who has posted has been heard! So far, the most popular options are the following:

    Trim Assets
    Unrepentant Thinners
    Food Fighters
    Shape Shifters

    Shape Shifters has probably the most supportive comments, the other 3 all pretty equal, although Food Fighters might have a slight edge on the others.

    Weigh in on this by Wednesday and then the Captains and Moderators will make a decision! Thanks :heart:

    I like Shape Shifters the best, it’s easy to say and has a nice rhythm and rhyme to it. My least favorite is Food Fighters. It’s funny and you could argue rhythm and rhyme with that one too, but: food isn’t our enemy (learning to love and enjoy food in a healthy way is a big goal to all of us, I think), and it’s very similar with the Foo Fighters band name. That’s not inherently a bad thing, but it’s an unnecessary thing to associate with mentally, and I personally have a strong dislike for the band ;)
  • cre804
    cre804 Posts: 374 Member
    jugar wrote: »
    Team Naming UPDATE!

    I am always posting the same messages for both Shrinking Assets and Trimstones, so everyone who has posted has been heard! So far, the most popular options are the following:

    Trim Assets
    Unrepentant Thinners
    Food Fighters
    Shape Shifters

    Shape Shifters has probably the most supportive comments, the other 3 all pretty equal, although Food Fighters might have a slight edge on the others.

    Weigh in on this by Wednesday and then the Captains and Moderators will make a decision! Thanks :heart:

    In order, my favorites are Food Fighters (big fan of the band!), Shape Shifters, Unrepentant Thinners then Trim Assets.
  • PatriceFitnessPal
    PatriceFitnessPal Posts: 1,468 Member
    @Beka3695 - Come back ‘in’? I didn’t think you were ever ‘out’! I guess you just weren’t weighing in from an administrative/ official standpoint.

    We’re a welcoming group!

    Of course, it’s the moderators’ decision 😉. They hold all the power 😀 — thank goodness!
  • gelatinouscube
    gelatinouscube Posts: 92 Member
    GelatinousCube
    Monday
    PW: 193.4
    CW: 193.6
  • LaurieWrobo
    LaurieWrobo Posts: 1,465 Member
    Wednesday Maintenance Weigh In
    CW: 152.4
  • coblujay
    coblujay Posts: 688 Member
    @coblujay
    PW: 209.8
    CW: 209.4

    I like the name Shape Shifters. Great suggestions to choose from.

    I enjoyed my Thanksgiving and ate all my favorite traditional foods. Leftovers went home with my guests, so I wouldn't continue to eat pie and brisket. On Friday, it was back on track for the most part. I'm thrilled to have lost the Thanksgiving bump and still be down a little.
  • PatriceFitnessPal
    PatriceFitnessPal Posts: 1,468 Member
    edited December 2021
    Does anyone have any good tips for adjusting to new routines due to schedule changes or seasonal weather shifts?

    TL/DR version: I lapsed into some unhealthy habits, reflected on what went wrong, and now hope I’m back on track (though still a bit ‘shaky’ and need to solidify new habits). How are you?

    I slacked off my food and exercise logging in mid-November because of a break in my workout program. The shorter, darker days are already harder on me in terms of energy level, and the reduced accountability - while our rowing group took a break - messed with the routine I had established.

    In the summer, a few days were flexible but I was committed to a ‘seat’ in the 8-person boat at least three days per week in addition to my usual two 30-minute sessions with a personal trainer each week. During the break in November, I continued to meet the personal trainer, and tried to fit in some extra sculling days (in the single person boats that were flexible days over the summer) but the windier weather made it difficult to plan.

    I’m not as clear on why I neglected my food logging, but I was very surprised to see that I had skipped multiple days of nutrition tracking! Maybe the rowing group talk about a ‘break’ permeated my thinking because I don’t usually consider logging my food and exercise a temporary activity. It would be nice to eliminate the task of daily logging; but, I feel as though it helps me reflect on the small number of extra calories that creep in to my diet - and add up quickly! - so I’ve kind of accepted the idea that I have to build tracking into my daily habits for life.

    We started winter conditioning on Monday and I’m starting to feel better. I know that a healthy body is made in the kitchen rather than the gym but they are intertwined for me. When I workout, it allows me space in my diet for a snack. That relatively small 200-300 calorie ‘surplus’ from the energy burned makes a big difference and the exercise endorphins give me momentum. When I’ve dedicated time and energy to exercising, it also provides a positive spiral in terms of nutrition because I don’t want to sabotage the investment I made in myself. I choose better food, pay attention to balancing my macros, and manage my meal portions with more awareness.

    How do others handle a ‘break’? Is it easier for you the return because you feel refreshed or does it take you time to adjust?

    I think I’ve mentioned here that my father taught me that ‘guilt’ and ‘shame’ are useless emotions because they sap energy from learning from a mistake, making the correction, practicing the improved behavior and moving on. I think I spent a bit more time with the guilt than I wanted to but I’ve learned from my experience this month and I’m moving forward. This post is my attempt at leaving any residual feelings of negativity behind so I can reframe my thoughts about winter.

    I like @hipari’s idea of getting outside while the sun is shining. I’ll also use the shorter days to make sure I go to bed early and get adequate sleep. When I feel down about the cold weather, I’ll move my body more while focusing on my downsizing goals. Donating unwanted items and reducing the amount of unnecessary stuff will free up space for new opportunities.

    I want to remind myself daily to ‘let go’ of anything extra I’m carrying so I can lighten both body and mind. Thanks for indulging my negativity ‘dump’ and I’ll look forward to hearing your insights on making smoother transitions. This season felt rockier than necessary, for me! How are you doing?
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    @PatriceFitnessPal where are you located, how bad is the darkness situation? I’m willing to guess the darkness situation isn’t as bad as here probably, but it’s of course all about what you’re used to. For reference, today sunrise was 9AM and sunset at 3.20PM. On top of that, it’s cloudy/rainy a lot usually - this November was very sunny, compared to last December with less than one hour of sunshine total in a month.

    Being comparatively a pro with this darkness thing, here are my recommendations: enough sleep, some outdoor time when it’s light out (even if it’s just a 2-minute walk to go get lunch) and Christmas/seasonal lights. Also, when all else fails, counting days until winter solstice. Only a few weeks until it starts getting lighter again!
  • justanotherloser007
    justanotherloser007 Posts: 578 Member
    @PatriceFitnessPal About breaks, breaks are super tough for me and full on throw me off. It is the reason I walk every day. If I take a day off, it really becomes two and multiplies until I am all over a bad habit like a duck on a june bug! I know many like taking breaks, and doing things different and changing things up - but for me that creates stress. Like full on chaos and then I don't know what I am doing anymore. Yes, there are times I have to switch things or change times for the walk - etc. But I am very aware that it is only temporary or I will just plain stop everything due to paralysis and confusion.

    About the darkness, I can't really address that as this is the nice part of the year here in Houston, Texas. I can finally go outside when the sun is shining and not become vampire ash!! Summers are tough here, and during the summer the sun is my enemy. This year I found out I have melanoma, so that tracks!! Yeah, my skin HATES the sun. So, while we do have cooler weather now and I guess it does get darker - I walk at dawn. This is a switch from trying to take a 2 hour walk before the sun comes up for 9 months out of the year!!
  • PatriceFitnessPal
    PatriceFitnessPal Posts: 1,468 Member
    edited December 2021
    @hipari - I like the idea of counting down the days. When my children were young, we used to make festive garland ‘chains’ by cutting strips of paper and making circular ‘links’ that fit together to form a chain of garland for decorating a tree. We would make a link for each day until Christmas or another day that our sons looked forward to with anticipation, like a birthday or trip. Each night, we’d tear off one link to count down the days. Maybe I’ll make my own version and write my daily intentions on each link to help me focus on advancing toward my goals (by winter solstice, our family trip, etc.).

    If I can make significant progress on downsizing, I would like to put up lights so the house is bright and welcoming when our sons return during their university breaks. However, I hesitate to add decorating to the task list while trying to purge items. One idea might be to reduce our decorations in the coming weeks as part of our downsizing project. It would be great to limit the number of holiday items and keep to just our favorites. So, we could use this as an opportunity to clean out unwanted items from the storage shed!

    Thanks for you advice on handling the colder, darker days. I will be the first to admit that the days in northern Virginia (just over the bridge, south of Washington, DC in the U.S.) are longer and warmer than most places. I grew up in Boston, Massachusetts and sometimes consider moving back there but the winter darkness discourages me. I LOVE the vibrant city location so close to the ocean and beaches - and we miss our families - but we’re unlikely to live there full time in the future. We’ll continue to visit regularly and save money for a small place to stay, especially if our older son (who attends college there now) settles in Boston after graduating next year.

    My father was a professional ice hockey player and coach so I’ve lived in many colder places (e.g., Minnesota) and enjoyed staying in other countries for long visits (e.g., Canada, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Russia and northern Germany). Those experiences were all wonderful and I don’t mind the cold much (as long as I’m dressed in warm boots and clothes). I enjoy downhill and cross country skiing, sledding, and ice skating, too.

    Oftentimes, I read about how satisfied people in Scandinavian countries feel about their living conditions - and I appreciate the fantastic social support system (and positive outcomes for health, learning, etc.) when compared to other OECD* countries - but I wonder how you all cope with the short winter days! You definitely have the right attitude and experience that I need to cultivate. For now, I’ll dream of Hawaii and look forward to my possible business trip to Guam (if the pandemic doesn’t cause the education leaders to cancel our in person meetings).

    *Organisation/ Organization 😉 for Economic Cooperation and Development
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    @PatriceFitnessPal ooooh! Did your dad play for a Finnish team so you visited here?

    I did a high school exchange year in northern Wisconsin so pretty much as high up as continental US goes (excluding Alaska), and people there were of course thinking they are very hardened, live very high up north where it’s dark and so on. For me it was like a sunny vacation in the south because the latitude was about the same as Paris, France, but of course colder. I definitely share your dream of Hawaii… the cold isn’t bad as long as it’s either dry or snowy, but usually November and most of December are just wet, with temperatures going back and forth above and below zero celsius, so it rains, everything freezes into a slippery death land, thaws again so it’s cold, wet and dark, and so on. That’s the downside of living ”down south” comparatively, as northern Finland, where it’s even darker, usually gets snow and it stays below zero so it looks nicer, you can do winter activities, and the snow makes it feel lighter outside.

    I think the living conditions and weather/darkness kind of go hand in hand: when you live in a frozen hell like this, there’s no choice. Buildings need to be built properly, homelessness means death, and seasonal depression is a big mental health issue. In these conditions you simply can’t make it alone.
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Greetings Assets! I have been shirking my self-imposed nagging duties. I'm enjoying your winter discussions, though. I'm in Canada (southern Québec) so the daylight hours are fairly reasonable here. My daughter is in Alberta where they are a lot shorter, and I'm planning my dream vacation to the Northwest Territories and the Yukon for winter 2023. I visited Rovaniemi in Finland one winter (for work! meetings with the university there) and it was wonderful. I am not sure I'd want to live that far North, but visits to the Arctic are something I want to keep doing.

    OK! Who needs to weigh in right away?
    @TheMrWobbly *
    @peachplace *
    @toriirving
    @thetigers
    @wtbarunner
    @KittyInBoots17

    * = last chance! this is 2nd week in a row with no weigh in, so go for it or risk being dropped!
  • KittyInBoots17
    KittyInBoots17 Posts: 213 Member
    I apologize, I meant to post yesterday but just forgot!

    Weigh In Wednesday
    KittyInBoots17:
    PW:233.2
    CW:232.8
  • PatriceFitnessPal
    PatriceFitnessPal Posts: 1,468 Member
    edited December 2021
    My maintenance weigh in follows:

    Name: PatriceFitnessPal
    Weigh-in day: Thursday
    PW: 123.6
    CW: 125.2

    SW: 168
    Maintenance zone: 120-130

    I forgot to weigh-in last week because it was a holiday in the U.S. - and I’m not sure I checked in the previous week because I attended a funeral - so, it’s time to get back on schedule! I’m still within my maintenance goal range but I was off kilter most of November. My exercise routine is back on track but I’m still dealing with some sugar cravings. I’m slowly getting it back in balance but it takes a little time for me because small, incremental adjustments work better than big steps for me.

    One positive step in the right direction is that I was finally able to get a DEXA scan appointment. Usually, I can schedule my annual mammogram online but I had to call the office because my doctor also prescribed a bone density scan, which I requested to get baseline measures of my body fat, water percentages, etc. I must have called at least six times and left voice mail messages but I didn’t receive a call back. It was frustrating but I know other people are dealing with more serious health issues - and medical professionals are under a lot of pressure (like so many other people these days) - so I’m just glad I finally got an appointment on the calendar.

    In fact, I’ve been trying to approach each personal interaction in a way that leaves the other person feeling better than before our interaction. I feel as though living each day with this approach, I’m likely to have fewer regrets down the road. Is there a motto for this? Do you have a personal motto or saying that you use for guidance?

    ‘Seize the day’ is always a good one, especially in difficult times. It’s always a nice reminder to live each day the way we want to live our life; ultimately, a life is made up of those many days. I also like Gandhi’s aspiration to ‘be the change’ and one of my favorites is the Japanese samurai expression: Fall down seven times, get up eight.

    Another expression I use that my kids laugh about is: Adapt or die! We frequently visit the Smithsonian museums in Washington, DC and our sons’ favorite exhibit growing up was/is part of the Museum of Natural History, which has an exhibit about evolution. So, that became a saying we used whenever we had to adjust our expectations, etc. When my son was applying to college, his friends asked if we had a family motto that guided or inspired him, but they decided our ‘adapt or die’ approach was too dark to write about in a college essay! 😱

    What value or motto guides you as you strive to be the person you want to be? Carpe diem!
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    Great question @PatriceFitnessPal !

    I have a couple of rules to live by, not sure if they count as motto… if I can increase happiness and wellbeing in the world without reducing my own happiness too much, I do it. Currently that means donating my leftover breastmilk instead of just dumping it (my freezer ain’t big enough for all of it), even though it takes extra hygiene work. I recycle despite the extra effort, volunteer my time to give back to my scouting troop and student organization, and we signed our daughter up for a vaccine research study that takes some extra effort in terms of appointments and health logs (side note: if someone wants to start up a discussion about vaccinating babies, vaccine research or anything like that, just don’t. This is not the place and everyone is entitled to their choices. The study is about scheduling an already approved vaccine to early childhood, so nothing wildly experimental.). The reducing-my-own-happiness creates limits, for example we had planned to use reusable diapers for our daughter, but the milk pumping and bottle feeding stuff (she has consistently refused breast since birth) takes up so much time there isn’t enough hours in my day to deal with both the extra dishes from pump parts and bottles and the extra laundry that would come from the diapers, so we use disposable ones. I still want to sleep, rest, cuddle and generally live my life instead of just doing housework all day every day.

    My other rule to live by is that there are three main resources in life, and usually one can be used to buy the other: time, money and irritation (in Finnish there’s a better word for irritation, but it’s both inappropriate and a language you guys don’t speak…). For example, if I get tired and cranky at a party late at night, I will pay money to get a quick taxi home instead of riding public transit so I can save time and irritation. I paid for good quality cordless breastpumps to make pumping quicker and easier, so I have more time to spend with my daughter and make life in general better than sitting chained to a pump for hours on end. I endure plenty of irritating crap at work and sometimes put in long hours to earn my executive-level salary. The list of examples goes on and on.
  • jessicakrall8
    jessicakrall8 Posts: 5,485 Member
    6l98r8sr9www.png

    Hi Team! After SO many great suggestions and voting, the name chosen for our newly combined team is [drum roll please], Shape Shifters!!! Like several of you have pointed out, it gives a positive glow for our team, as we all work very hard to shift our nutritional/fitness goals for the future!! Thank you to each of you who provided your feelings on the new name. I'm really glad to see our two amazing teams combine into such a great resource of support for all of us! I just know it's gonna be awesome! Reading through all of your thoughts has given me a glimpse into all of your creativity and passion for life!

    We are stepping into the busy holiday season for December, with all new opportunities to be more active, a few holiday nutritional challenges, but those are always on-going. With this great team, I'm sure we will work together to keep each other moving in the right direction, feeling uplifted and motivated!!

    Thanks to the MODS who helped with this process! I'm looking forward to working together with Bob as we move forward.

    Shape Shifters...let's jump into a great December!!
    JessicaKrall8 and TheMrWobbly
  • wtbarunner
    wtbarunner Posts: 162 Member
    Wtbarunner
    Wednesday
    PW 237.5
    CW 237.9
  • jugar
    jugar Posts: 10,262 Member
    Let the Friday weigh-ins begin!
    @leni1us
    @Marni3369
    @cre804
    @justanotherloser007
    @frankwbrown

    And still a few overdue:
    @TheMrWobbly
    @peachplace
    @toriirving
    @thetigers

    Thanks!
  • PatriceFitnessPal
    PatriceFitnessPal Posts: 1,468 Member
    hipari wrote: »
    @PatriceFitnessPal ooooh! Did your dad play for a Finnish team so you visited here?.

    @hipari - I realized I never answered your question about my visit to Finland. My Dad didn’t play hockey in Finland but he coached some U.S. National teams (World Cup, Olympics, etc.) so I think there was a National juniors tournament in Finland hosting the younger players in the development ‘pipeline.’ I always enjoy the rivalry games between Finland and Sweden because the fans are really energized. They often embody the term ‘fanatical’ 🙃!
  • hipari
    hipari Posts: 1,367 Member
    PatriceFitnessPal wrote: »
    hipari wrote: »
    @PatriceFitnessPal ooooh! Did your dad play for a Finnish team so you visited here?.

    @hipari - I realized I never answered your question about my visit to Finland. My Dad didn’t play hockey in Finland but he coached some U.S. National teams (World Cup, Olympics, etc.) so I think there was a National juniors tournament in Finland hosting the younger players in the development ‘pipeline.’ I always enjoy the rivalry games between Finland and Sweden because the fans are really energized. They often embody the term ‘fanatical’ 🙃!

    You’re right on about the Finland-Sweden games! As the saying goes, the only thing more important than Finland winning is that Sweden loses - so much so, that in World Cup and Olympics pretty much any team that plays against Sweden is a fan favorite on game day.

    @justanotherloser007 hopefully everything continues to go well with your skin cancer treatment! My dad is missing a part of his earlobe because it had skin cancer so they just cut the whole thing out, and finding out about that definitely made me more aware of UV protection. The sun up here isn’t all that dangerous, but I still end up burning at least some body part pretty much every year. Lately it’s smaller areas and not as badly, but I’m definitely at risk.

    @PatriceFitnessPal I just realized a sneaky way the public officials are encouraging me to walk more: public transit is free for anyone with a stroller and a child that’s younger than 6 years old, so I don’t have a monthly pass now as most of my travels are with the baby. I had a phone issue today and had to go to the store to get it fixed, and left the baby at home with her dad. My first instinct was to take the bus (we had just come home and I *really* didn’t feel like going outside or walking any more), but realizing I would have to buy a single ticket made me put my headphones on and walk. It wasn’t even that bad, it was actually quite nice to walk alone with my headphones on, but I was surprised how weird it felt walking without the stroller. Even though pushing it is of course extra weight, it also gives support to help balance and stabilize my torn-apart core.
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