Goal + Action = Reality

[TopNotch]

Hey, folks.

Didn't mean to be gone so long. Happy, though, to see that so many of you missed me. Yep, occasionally I popped in, but I didn't read any logs at all so if anything really cool happened to you - great. If anything really bad happened - sorry.
I had to go and have a think, you see.
A Serious Think.
Yep, scary, right?
My roadtrip earlier this year was kind of the beginning of that Think. I needed time away. Then when I came back, that thinking thing in my head was still working hard.
Anyway, I've thought, and now I'm back!
In the interim, I've made a couple of Life Goals (yep, big Serious Stuff), got stronger (obtained a better barbell and more weights), got leaner (mostly because of all this thinking I didn't bother to eat!), discovered I don't run nearly as slowly as I thought I did but still need to work on endurance, began considering my coach's insistance that I grade for my second dan, tore one hamstring (ouch!), sprained one foot (it's getting better but s-l-o-w-l-y!), kept up with my DuoLingo, read about 50 books (mostly action/adventure, but I squeezed in a spot of Nietzche just for some variety), and, as @Laura Rainbow Dragon observed, participated again in Nano and wrote another first draft.
Oh, and I also became single again.

 

[HellYeah]

Welcome Back

 

[NancyTree]

Welkom back
And for all the life thinking

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

Welcome back, @TopNotch !

 

[Mianevem]

Welcome back!

 

[Gandhalfit]

Welcome back

 

[TopNotch]

There should be! We have some world-class champions here for sure!

Some people are a bit cheeky, aren't they!

 

[Nevetharine]

 

[Damer]

Hey, great to see you back! @TopNotch - we were just concerned about you. Life is never quite what you plan it to be but it is always what you make it. It sounds like you're on this "making it" path. We suffer pain and loss and jolts that snap us out of the groove we think we've found and each time this happens, it helps make us aware of just how brief everything actually is. It is really good to see you. (Personally, I missed your questions ).

 

[aku-chan]

Nice to see you hanging out here again!

 

[Fremen]

Right: welcome back

 

[Mamatigerj]

So very nice to see you again!

 

[VacTom]

Welcome back

 

[BetaCorvi]

Great to see you back!

 

[Anek]

Yay! You're back!!

 

[WSMC1]

 

[PetiteSheWolf]

Welcome back, and welcome to this new leaf in your book of life

 

[TopNotch]

Here we go again then.

The foot's still kind of buggered so walking any distance is still out, as are things like jumping jacks etc. I was thinking about doing the December challenge seeing as it kind of meshes with the charity challenge I'm doing this month:

but the rising up wasn't a happening after a while, so I'll just stick with 63 daily squats.

We've had a fair bit of rain recently so it was very wet out on the range this morning, the water sitting on top of the soil (aka clay) making things a little slippy in places, but it was sunny and quite warm. Another thunderstorm came later in the afternoon. Had to pop to the shops to (finally) get some sort of food in but the foot was aching after the morning's walking so just got bread and milk. Then bumped into a former colleague. Well, she recognised me and put her number in my phone. She and her mum both commented on my leanness so I wonder if that means I'm a bit too thin... Have to retify that food situation. Anyway, I'm supposed to catch up with her next month. Hope I remember!

With cardio currently off the menu, did weights instead because that's always fun.
- Marcy chest press 3 x 10
- incline db bench press 3 x 10
- db flyes 3 x 10
- bicep curls 3 x 6
- tricep press-down 3 x 5
- db tricep kickbacks 3 x 10
I've been a little lax - okay, a lot lax! when it's come to the weights. Always being that little bit hesitant to go heavier, but a couple of months ago I thought, ah, sod it, just do it, TN! So I did. I'm still working out my challenging weights, pleased I can go heavier on the kickbacks than I did today - which was heavier than I had done previously. The press-downs with only 5 reps are pretty challenging, ditto the curls. All in all, it felt good.

 

[TopNotch]

You know how people can say things again and again and they in a way become true? Like calling someone stupid, and they eventually accept that they are stupid, even though they aren't. A self-fulfilling prophecy, if you will. So among other things (not all of them polite and a lot of them wholly inaccurate, though I kind of like 'psychopath'...) I've been called obsessive. Hmm. I can accept that some of the things I do might be seen by other people in ways that I hadn't anticipated, so whenever I get a criticism, I consider it as honestly as I can. What, though, is really the difference between obsession and dedication/commitment? I'm a bloody-minded sort of individual and I like to prove people wrong. When they make assumptions about me, that is. Call me obsessive and I will prove that I'm not! But by doing so, I find myself wondering if I'm not simply playing into that other person's hands, by ceasing doing something I enjoy and that person resents. Ah, see the quandary? And that's one of the (many) reasons I took a break from here. To stop a habit - or was it an obsession?
Even my doing Duolingo every evening was seen as obsessive, though I thought it was a good way to learn. It was, however, the one thing I was completely unwilling to give up and which I continued, despite criticism. Hence a 1546-day streak...
Anyway, I realise that I know who and what I am and I have absolutely no problem with me. If other people do, too bad; that's on them. What other people think of me is really none of my business. We all have our opinions.
Rant over.

Forgot to log yesterday - not back in the habit.
- First Thing Pushups - days 1 and 2. I'd contemplated this one a while ago but didn't think I could do it first thing. And it was actually second thing. I need the loo when I just get up!
- Epic Arms - day 1 and 2. Because this one is fun.
- Dead Hang - day 1. Always need to work on that grip strength, though apparently it's pretty good. Everything can improve, however.
- Hip extension/back leg raises - 100es. That hamstring still feels a little stiff.

As you can see, nothing really spectacular right now, just some old favourites until I get back into the groove. Couldn't go back to training yet because of the foot. I reckon in another couple of weeks (about when term is over ) it should be right again. Which will be good because yesterday I got a new-to-me bike! My first bike since I was nine. And that one was dark purple. Not my choice. This one is pretty -

and goes nicely with the chicken coop! Now (when the foot's well again) I just have to see if I can still ride a bike that actually moves somewhere! This could be embarrassing...

 

[PetiteSheWolf]

Agh for dealing with other people's opinions , I can feel for you. And no, Duolingo daily AIENT obsessive, are a whole lotta us are!

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

What, though, is really the difference between obsession and dedication/commitment?

I worry not about the labels other people put on my behaviour. Only about the impact of my behaviour.

1. Is the behaviour good for me?
2. Does the behaviour harm anyone else (or the planet in general)?

If the answer to the first question is yes, and the second no, I'm going to keep doing it.
I've had far, far too much BS criticism leveled at me over the years to worry about other people's labels.

 

[Laura Rainbow Dragon]

And we are happy to have you back here, in any case.

Your bike looks sweet.

 

[Fremen]

I believe that when they said that anyone can have an opinion they did not specify with due importance that listening to other people's opinions is optional

 

[Nevetharine]

Eh. This is why I don't like the bipedal creatures where I live. Why on earth all my friends need to be online, I dunno.

I agree. If someone doesn't like you for you, stuff'em.

Your obsessive tribe have missed you...

 

[TopNotch]

Eh. This is why I don't like the bipedal creatures where I live.

Not all bipedals are horrible. Take this kurrawong chick I rescued, for example. (gotta love its expression!)

 

[Nevetharine]

Not all bipedals are horrible. Take this kurrawong chick I rescued, for example. (gotta love its expression!)
View attachment 2768

Grumpy Kurrawong?

 

[TopNotch]

Greetings, Fellow Obsessives!

Sorry for the bit of oversharing last night, but it reminded me (hah! like I need to be reminded!) of how nice the Darebee community is. I'm actually feeling a lot better now. I'm not the demonstrative type, but I'd take a bullet for you guys.
Then I'd hunt down whoever fired the shot because, well, just impolite.

- Elliptical 20min, 5.23k. Realised last night (I can be a bit slow sometimes) that whereas walking while wearing shoes is still uncomfortable, I could do things unshod that didn't require much foot movement so I gave the elliptical a go and that worked fine. My goodness, I'm out of training! Nice to get back to it after a fortnight off. The foot's a lot better; toes still looking mouldy, though.

Ain't it pretty?

- First Thing Pushups - day 3. Second thing because - you know.
- Epic Arms - day 3.
- Dead Hang - day 2. Note to self: deadhang before weights training!!
- Knee-to-elbow 3 x 50

Strength training - back and shoulders:
- Lat Pull-down 3 x 6
- One-arm Bent-over row 3 x 10
- Seated cable row 3 x 6
- Seated db shoulder press 3 x 10
- Lateral raise 3 x 10
- Bent-over lateral raise 3 x 10

 

[Damer]

Soooo, you are bulletproof! Coming back from an injury is a bear. Your mind feels like

and then you discover your body is:



Be patient, do everything you can without hurting yourself and you will soon be back to normal.

 

[NancyTree]

The foot's a lot better; toes still looking mouldy, though.
View attachment 2769
Ain't it pretty?

A lot better? Wow, I can only think 'autsj'..

 

[TopNotch]

- Elliptical, 20mins, 5.15km. A bit slower than yesterday but the sweat dripped. It's beginning to warm up now, with Christmas only a little more than a fortnight away. Hey, probably ought to get some present in...
- First Thing Pushups - day 4
- Epic Arms - day 4
- Dead Hang - day 3

- wrist curls 3 x 10
- reverse wrist curls 3 x 10
Both done with the EZ bar but whereas the reverse were okay, the others were way too easy so that means I have to do that irritating thing and put on more weights and then take them off again. I have four sets of dumb bells, all with different weights, just so I don't have that situation - or not so much, but only one EZ bar, and I think the barbell is a bit too big for wrist curls. Hey, TN, suck it up!

I'm lying here on my bed, with my tablet on my lap. A cat is lying along my legs with her bum up against the back of the tablet and her tail draped artistically over the screen so I have to keep moving it to see. She doesn't seem to notice... Cats.

 

[Damer]

Cats always make things ... different.

 

[TopNotch]

So, this morning, I was advised:

and, like, Garmin knows best, right? I went second-hand book shopping instead. Besides, it was hot.

- First Thing Pushups - day 5
- Epic Arms - day 5
- Dead Hang - day 4

Sometimes just got to remember:

 

[TopNotch]

Started off cloudy, so the whole house felt damp. That's the problem with evaporative air-conditioning. Then it sunned up and just felt hot and a bit steamy, even though we only got to 35. Hot enough.

- First Thing Pushups - day 6
- Epic Arms - day 6
- Dead Hang - day 5

- Bike ride. 20mins, about 4km. This evening, around sundown when I figured there wouldn't be many people out and about (and so I wouldn't embarrass myself if I did a prat-fall), I got onto my new-to-me bike and went for my first bike ride in about - well, quite some time. Hey, it is true what they say about riding a bike! And damn but that thing's fast! Still have to figure out the gears because when I was nine and got a bike, it had just one gear. This one's got 24 of the buggers. Thought I had it pegged until I was coming back home and going a bit uphill on grass. Really had to work hard then. Guess that's why I've got strong legs. Still, a bit of practice and fiddling should see me right. Eventually. It was such a blast, though! I had a great albeit short time. Many more in the future!

 

[TopNotch]

Every Sunday morning I have to get up early - well, early for me! And every Sunday morning I tell myself that I really ought to get to bed earlier, perhaps even while it's still Saturday. But every Sunday morning I get up sleepy because I didn't get to bed earlier... It wasn't completely my fault this morning. My bedroom door had somehow become closed, and Footsie was scratching at it and meowing and woke me at 4:15 and I had to get up to let her in.
There were three things I could have done today - my usual Sunday morning, then the Christmas party for Taekwondo club, and then a post-NaNoWriMo get-together later in the afternoon. I think I was all out of social energy today, so just did my usual and left pretty promptly when I'd done and skulked around home the rest of the day. Well, I dragged out the Christmas decorations and the children dressed the tree, so the day wasn't completely wasted.

- First Thing Pushups - day 7
- Epic Arms - day 7
- Dead Hang - day 6

Forgot that the Darebee tree began today. No question which one I'm going for. I want a car! And me and planks, well...

 

[TopNotch]

Had to take the nonagenarian to an appointment today so that meant I had to put on shoes. As I was out, I decided to do a spot of shopping, then picked up eldest and more shopping. My foot was complaining big time. Not sure if it was the four hours of wandering around or the fact I was having to do it in shoes that caused the complaint. This is just so frustrating! Anyway, got my Christmas presents all sorted, just need to wrap and post.

- First Thing Pushups - day 8
- Epic Arms - day 8
- Dead Hang - day 7

And for the Tree, as I want a red car:
- Core Twister - 4 minutes plus
- Superplank - 4 minutes plus
- 2-Minute Plank - 2 minutes
all equals 10 minutes. So that should buy me my car.

 

[PetiteSheWolf]

Bravo for the car ornament!

 

[Mamatigerj]

Cheers!

 

[Haleth]

Congratulations on the ornament!

 

[Fremen]

Congrats

 

[Anek]

Congrats on the ornament!!

 

[CODawn]

Congratulations on your car!

 

[Mianevem]

Congrats on the car!

 

[Nevetharine]

Congratulations on your ornament!

 

[Matan]

Congrats!

 

[TopNotch]

Surprisingly, there was only one person ahead of me when I posted my parcel this morning! Wow! Probably a record for this time of year. So that's all done and I can relax thinking that mostly everything else is good to go. Except some food but it's too early for some stuff yet. Like making the cucumber soup for Christmas Eve. I love iced cucumber soup...
It's the wearing of shoes, not the walking.

- First Thing Pushups - day 9 This was a bit of a struggle today. My arms did not want to co-operate. We came to a mutually acceptable arrangement - they would do the push-ups in the morning and I wouldn't make them lift any more weights today.
- Epic Arms - day 9
- Dead Hang - day 8

Something happened in my head today which made the day brilliant - I came up with the perfect title for the book I've almost finished. Which is book 3. And then the perfect title for book 2 came alone, and the one for book 4. Book one is still a little iffy but I'm leaning towards something, and book 5 will probably be a given. Just getting those titles has injected me with more enthusiasm to finish them all.

My girls went out for a bike ride early this evening. I asked if I could join them, seeing as I have my own bike now. I guess nobody's surprised they said no...

Being an inquiring sort of cove, I'm constantly wondering on things and finding out stuff. So today's topic of interest was Faraday cages. Nowhere near exhausted basic information on that so I figure it'll keep me going for a little while longer.
Has any of you investigated an interesting topic yet this week? How wide a variety can we all get?

 

[TopNotch]

- Bike ride x 2. 3.05km and 3.35km
- First Thing Pushups - day 10

And that was all for today. I hadn't thought things through very well yesterday and as a result, couldn't do much stuff today.

So, this morning, after my 'first thing', I hopped on the treddly and set off for the hospital. I'm not very good yet at turning corners. I take them too wide but I'm getting better. Also with the gears. Anyway, got to the hospital and signed in and all, then was led to my chair. I was there to donate plasma. Apparently I've shrunk by a whole centimetre since I was 18, and I stand only 179cm now.

I had two strawberry milkshakes which was a bit of a treat.

Definitely going back there!
Funny thing, when I told my mum, she asked why I had done it. She made it sound almost as though I had committed some kind of crime! I told her I was healthy, relatively fit, and had blood to spare. Think of it as my Kris Kringle for this year.
Got a lovely bandage. Not sticky and not velcro - how did it stick?


I've been reading a book (yeah, one of many) and I'm taking it very slowly, bite-sized chunks and really cogitating and ruminating and doing all the things that make you look like you're clever, and one part I'd got to asked 'why?'. Like, 'why do you feel that way about whatever?' With every answer, ask again 'why?', drilling down to the very bottom. Some of my answers were circular which made things a bit difficult, but I guess that's me. Other answers came back with, no reason, just inertia. So I fought inertia today and finally donated plasma. I can do this fortnightly, should I so choose because with plasma donations, you get your haemaglobin returned so you don't need to build it up again as you do with whole blood donations. I won't have to ride my bike again because I now have a donor parking permit. And it wasn't the Garmin telling me to take it easy for the rest of the day, but three lovely nurses and you never cross nurses!

 

[PetiteSheWolf]

Just to add a bravo for donating, whether blood or plasma. Wish I could, but even before the open heart surgery, being below 50 Kg is a no-no here in France (no kiddy-sized pouches, sadly).

 

[TopNotch]

- First Thing Pushups - day 11
- Epic Arms - day 10
- Dead Hang - day 9
- Australian rows - 2 x 10. Made extra-difficult when Footsie decided she wanted to pummel my chest and purr at me while I was gearing up for the second set.

@PetiteSheWolf 50kg is the lower limit here too. Fortunately, I'm more than that.

Some writing done. Think of it as a job, TN, and not as a hobby! Very happy with what came out.

 

[TopNotch]

Crawled out of bed this morning and my girls were waiting for me, wanting me to drive them to the ice-skating rink. Got those push-ups done first, though. They'd be out for two hours then they'd text me to pick them up so I decided to use that time to trawl the charity shops for books (still need to remove the sticky labels).

Three non-fiction, a few from an author I've just started reading and they're okay novels even though I'm not a fan of police procedurals, and some others from authors I already have or want to try because it sounded interesting. That should last me through the holiday period. Realised, though, that I am currently reading six books, a couple of which have been hanging around for quite some time, so I want them finished by the end of the month/year. Finished one so that leaves only five to go before I can pick up a new book. I like to start the year afresh.

- First Thing Pushups - day 12
- Epic Arms - day 11
- Dead Hang - day 10

Have to get up early tomorrow (on a Saturday!) because the black belt grading starts at nine. I think there's only one person grading. She'll get her black belt and then she's going because she's just finished high school and will be moving off next year to go to uni. The coach wants me to grade next year, either end of first term (just before Easter) or end of second (mid-year). If he's pushing me to grade, I can assume he's confident I'll pass, but I'm not sure I really want to. I'm kind of stuck between thinking that getting my second dan isn't really going to do anything for me so why should I bother, and wondering if it would be bad form not to do what my coach is suggesting. After all, more higher belts could only look good for his club, right? He tells me, it's good to have something to aim for. Yeah, but surely you've got to have a reason for aiming to start with. Well, I've got time to think...

 

[TopNotch]

- First Thing Pushups - day 13
- Epic Arms - day 12
- Dead Hang - day 11
- Wolf Brother Had this one open. Must have been for a reason. Oh yeah, to have some fun!
- Indoor row. 20 minutes. My watch reckoned it was 466 rows. I didn't count. Been a while since I've done a row. Felt very hard for the first ten minutes and then I noticed that the Lad, last time he played with the machine, had set it to its heaviest setting! I moved it back a few notches and then, comparatively, I was flying.

Got up way too early this morning to go to Grading. Could have slept in an extra half-hour. We actually had six people grading - 2 for their third dans, 2 for the second pooms, one for her first dan, and a pre-teen for his red/black belt. As I'd rocked up in my dobok (just in case), I was asked to pair with the prospective first dan for the self-defences, attacking her with the punches, wrist grabs, and shoulder grabs. I'm not sure who worked harder - she in beating me up or me in getting beaten up! As expected, everyone passed, and I left before it was the turn of the coloured belts to grade.
Had a chat with a couple of the blokes there who, according to the coach, were considering grading next year. The coach had already told them that he wanted me to grade.
One of the things I really like about keeping a log here is being able to articulate my thoughts and consider them in a written form. Inevitably, whatever issue has been bothering me has its solution shining clearly at me once the words are down. As has happened once again...
It's all about intentionality, isn't it?
If we do something and we hope to do it well, we have to be intentional. We have to find our reason for doing it. Why am I doing taekwondo if not to get better at it? What is the best way to measure improvement, and what is a way of setting a time-limit for this same improvement?
Really, it's a no-brainer.
Grading.
I have to achieve a certain thing/level by a certain time. It's a SMART goal.
So it looks as though I'll grade for my second dan next year. Probably not early in the year, though. I really want to work on the knees in the first instance, make that intentional, too.

My girls went for another bike ride. "We're going for a bike ride you can't come." No pause, no punctuation, simple statement of fact.