Let's get serious again

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Well last time I couldn't donate either because of low iron. I analyzed my nutrition and it turned out that I ate very little food items with iron. I made the necessary changes to my diet, I hope that it's enough.

Unfortunately, the blood bank has already closed today. I will go there tomorrow morning before work. So, tomorrow will be my break day from exercising, instead of today (I don't want to exercise on the same day that I donated). I will do another 8-10 kilometer run this evening.
 
Ok. So, I ran about 12 kilometers today. Bit more than planned ;). I estimate my deficit to be 1500 calories. Also more than planned. Somehow it's too easy to lose weight now. It used to be hard.

Anyways, as I said in my previous post, tomorrow I will take a break from exercising, only walking 5 kilometers. I read that half a liter of blood takes 500 calories to restore, so my burn will be about 3000 calories. But I also plan to take a break day from having a huge calorie deficit, so I should eat a lot tomorrow! Hahahaha I guess no one expected to read this last sensentece on a weight loss forum! :p
 
:D Yay for recovery food! Also: remember that it doesn´t take just water and calories for your body to recover from donating blood. It also takes time (several weeks) to re-make the lost cells. In the meantime your athletic performance will be less than you´re used to; it´s like the opposite of cyclists training in the mountains for a couple of weeks before a big event.
 
LaMa that's a good point. I will probably switch to donating blood plasm after today, that may have several advantages; I get my red blood cells back, so that it takes much less time to recover from it and doesn't decrease my iron levels as much.

Emily you will find it! :)
 
I always knew you were a vampire LaMa!

Well blood plasm is also very useful... and I can donate once every 2 weeks instead of just <5 times per year (and get more cookies and orange juice... WIN!) ;)
 
Come to the dark side. We have cookies!

Is there a way to say I prefer other fluids over blood without making it sound suggestive? :p
 
Erm... yes? Yes of course I was! :D

PS I never drink fruit juice of any kind because it tends to be wayyy too sweet.
 
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Hahaha! ;)

Hmpf my hemoglobin levels were 8.3 (measured 4 times)... they should be at least 8.4. So, I am not allowed to donate for 3 months now.

I guess the heavy exercising and weight loss decrease my iron levels. Anyways, at least 8.3 is in the healthy range. I trust that when I no longer have to create a caloric deficit that it will increase further (and I will eat some iron foods).

How ironic
 
I ate about 2500 - 3000 calories today and I burned around 2500, so I think I had a slight calorie surplus... which is great, because that was the plan! :)

The plan was also to take a break today from exercising (which nowadays is 90% running). I managed to do that. However, I will do some strength exercises at home later this evening, to train my upper body strength, so that I can use the calorie surplus (containing plenty of protein) to build some muscle. I don't believe that you can grow muscles with a caloric deficit, but perhaps days like this (when there is a rare caloric surplus) can be effective for (a little) muscle gain. Anyways, it is good to remind my muscles that they are still necessary and need to stick around! ;)
 
Wooooah I finally did it... I posted my Facebook suicide note... don't worry... I am only going to kill my Facebook profile ;)

I made the post a bit dark, a bit critical, but still from my own perspective. Anyways it's nice to spur some controversy over there for the last time.

But I didn't just do it for the kicks (of course). Over the last weeks I have had so many good experiences in the real world... I had a date, and another one to look forward to (both girls I met in real life), I have started exercising a lot more (and I enjoy it a lot), I have learnt how important my mindset and character is and I feel like I have grown considerably (I think letting go of social media will help me grow in that respect), I have made good progress in my career, I met some nice people in this city and I am starting to make some friends here (my first new friends after university), I enjoy reading books, I started cooking, I could go on. Not saying my life is perfect... and it never will be, it's life, right? In fact one of the things I hated about facebook and social media in general is that it seems that everyone is just painting perfect pictures of their lives, and while I wish them the best, I think it's just a dream, and it causes us all to chase that mirage, to make our lives as "perfect" as those around us.

One of the best things that I have learnt in the last weeks is to accept myself, with my flaws. That acceptance does not mean I sit still, but it offers me a new place to grow from. A new source of energy and motivation. I want to move from there.

And I want to live bravely, and since this is something that I both think and feel is right, I think I should do it. I make it seem like it's a big deal (and right now it feels like it is), but probably it is not that difficult to achieve. Probably, leaving Facebook will lead to some short-term discomfort, but in the long term I am confident that it will do me a lot of good (for starters, it will prevent a lot of wasted time, energy and attention).

Anyways... I look forward to checking how many "likes" I get, so that I can measure my popularity for one last time.

PS this place this different... I feel like the people I have met here are painting true(r) pictures of themselves and we actually discuss meaningful things, in addition to having a good time. So I won't leave any time soon. ;)
 
I agree that FB is a weird thing. I reduced my FB friends to an absolute minimum and the ones I´ve kept don´t use it for posing. Still a few people I´d like to remove but can´t (because real life) but they´re all hidden and can´t see what I post, either. Isn´t reducing the unnecessary fun?
 
I really like how I use facebook - I like feeling connected to my friends that are all over the world.. Sharing a song, a good film, photos of my day.. I like knowing that I've shared those things and I like seeing everyone else's adventures. I get a little tired of the "here is a photo of my sandwich" posts but I follow a lot of political, environmental and literature based pages and I like seeing their updates and feel like I learn from them. *shrug* Each to their own - glad it's the right choice for you. Think of all the free time!
 
That's pretty much why I'm still on FB as well: some folks live in places I don't get to and this way we can still connect somewhat regularly without worrying about cost and time zones.
 
@LaMa / @Sunflower - great to hear that FB provides value for your lives! I see FB as a tool, that you can shape as you like. But I also think there is a will in technology... it also shapes you if you don't watch out. It takes conscious effort to prevent that from happening. It sounds like you have the superior will to use it.

I have considered doing that as well, but figured it was still not worth it. This move from FB is my first step to reduce my computer/internet use in general. Looking back, I have spent waaaay too much time at the computer in the last decades. This has had some advantages. I have learnt a lot (including computer skills, which has helped me get my current job), met awesome people like you and of course I had a lot of fun. But I wasted sooo much time and I wonder "is the amount of time I am spending on the computer really all worthwhile?". I think that there is an opportunity cost. You can only use your time once. So, I want to find which activities on the computer really provide value to my life, and which I better cut out.

About health: going to run another 10 km today, and cook another meal at home (first one of the week... I ate outside on Monday/Tuesday, don't remember what I did on Sunday). Aiming for a deficit of 1000-1500 calories.
 
I like using FB too, as a means of sharing photos & keeping up with friends & family in other countries or distant parts of Australia. You seem to be working out your priorities in life Tri & seem very happy. I love that you want to live a brave life from now on. Good for you!
 
Thanks cate! Great that you use FB for that! I live in the Netherlands, and most of my friends are relatively close, within 300 kilometers (except for a few who live abroad).

Yeah, I am really prioritizing my life; seperating the gold from the mud. I believe that there is a lot of gold to be found, enough to flourish in every area of my life. However, it takes conscious effort and perseverance to do this. Sometimes there is a lot of mud to sort through. That, in short, is the quest I am on.

Btw I really like that you're posting in my diary (and that of many others) regularly! Thanks for that! :)

#Update: I ran about 12 kilometers (I always seem to run more than planned). I estimate my calorie deficit to be around 1200-500 today. So, another 150-200 grams is gone. Really seems like a lot.

Ok I had a crazy thought. Really mad, but here it is. I like to set ridiculous goals. At my job, I want aim to become the best consultant at my company (or in my field). Financially, I want to be a millionaire. Athletically, I want to run an Iron Man. And physically... I will tell you that after explaining the idea behind this list, called the "Impossible List". I stole the idea from Joel Runyon, who created it and describes it on his blog. This is how he introduces his idea:

"The impossible list™ is NOT a bucket list. Not too long ago, I used to settle for the possible things in life. The sure thing. It was “realistic”, “safe” and boring as hell. I decided I needed a challenge.

The impossible list is that challenge. This list of impossible things contains all the things I ever thought I couldn’t do because it was “impossible.” The sort of things that I assumed the cool guys on TV only ever got to do. The things I never thought that I would be able to do."


Impossible goals make me feel excited too. They are a dream. Unlike (my definition of) a bucket list, they are not necessarily attainable and they don't have to be completed. But they challenge you, to the point that it is tempting to try and see if you can do it... so you start working, out of curiosity of what is possible. This is a major driver behind my growth now. It helps me to break from my old victim mentality and be open for discovering my strength. Without judgement.

Now, here's the physical goal I promised to tell you: I want people to ask me "are you a model?". If it were to happen just once it would be already be so awesome (and funny)! :p

One can dream, right? ;)
 
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