Making Myself Better
Posts tagged "faq"

“Hi Nikki, I just started following you and I'm glad I found your blog! I was wondering if your students know about your running and exercising or if there's never been any way that it has come up. Also, do you have any pets? Sorry if you've already addressed these, I didn't see them around your blog! :) Have a nice day!”

feministtroublemaker

Hi!

Yes, they do. I’ve told them about my races and shown them pictures afterwards. The ones who stay for aftercare see me when I change into my running clothes.

No, we don’t. We almost got an outside cat, but we didn’t want it to mess up our neighbors’ cars, so we ended up not getting it.

Survey thingy since I don’t talk about myself enough

What did you eat for breakfast?

Kashi GoLean! Crisp cinnamon w/ unsweetened vanilla almond milk

How much water do you drink each day?

Depends on how good I am about refilling my bottles.

What is your current favorite workout?

Running. 

How many calories do you eat each day?

However much I’m hungry for. I don’t count unless I think I haven’t eaten enough. 

What are your favorite healthy snacks?

  • Greek yogurt w/ fruit and protein powder mixed in
  • dark chocolate w/ almonds
  • fruit by itself

What do you usually eat for lunch?

sandwich thin or flatout wrap with (usually) turkey or chicken, feta, and spinach; a salad or other veggie

I usually snack twice during the day, so I don’t eat  a lot at lunch

What is your favorite body part to train?

whatever running counts as, so legs & lungs?

What is your least favorite body part to train?

resistance training for legs

What are your “bad” food cravings?

chocolate things in ice cream and melty cheesy things.

Do you take vitamins or supplements?

I take a multivitamin, but not every day because I don’t want to get too much vitamin A

How often do you eat out?

not that much besides my secret eating

Do you eat fast food?

see above

Who is your biggest supporter?

Jeremy and tumblr

Do you have a gym membership?

nope

How many hours of sleep do you get each night?

I’m in bed at least 8 hours weeknights, but it takes a while to fall asleep, so I usually get 7-7.5. Fri. & Sat. nights I get 9-10. 

During the summers I get 9 every night and feel amazing.

Do you have a “cheat” day?

not specifically. I have times when I’m purposely more lax

Do you drink alcohol?

only in cough syrup, and I don’t even know if they make it that way any more

Do you have a workout buddy?

not really, but I’ll hopefully start trailrunning with Pam when I’m done with school.

What is the best thing that has changed about your life since committing to a healthy lifestyle?

finding cuter clothes at thrift stores

j/k

running faster

I would say more confidence, but I’m still working on that

spending less money on food

What was the last healthy thing you did?

finished water bottle #1

cleaningout:

This question comes to you from my mother, and a lot of people who send me asks. My mom WAS a yo-yo dieter, and every diet she’d ever been on recommended fruit and vegetables in excess…except some diets swore off “high carb” vegetables. She wanted to know what the deal was with this, so I thought…

1. There is no such thing as a zero calorie or negative calorie fruit/vegetable/food/etc.

I think this is one of the biggest myths. The rest of the info is great, too.

“This is completely random and I'm sorry if you've answered this publicly before. What age group do you teach?”

mendeziony

This year I have 5th & 6th grade, so ages 10-12.

I’m pretty sure it’s under my faq tag, but just in case, I’m posting it.

:)

“Any tips for someone who is reasonably new to running? (I ride my bike for exercise)”

mendeziony

  • Start with run/walk intervals. You can follow a program like Couch 2 5K or you can do it on your own (jog as far as possible, walk until you catch your breath, repeat for 20-30 minutes and build up from there)
  • If you notice any foot/knee/hip/etc. pain, go to a specialty running store and get fitted for running shoes. Having the right shoes made a world of difference for me.

Those are the two main ones. Take it easy at first. Also, don’t worry about it if you hate it. Not everyone is a runner just like not everyone is a swimmer or a cyclist. It’s better to do something you enjoy that force yourself to do something that makes you miserable just because a lot of people do it and it seems like the thing to do.

“How do you do your measurements? Like, where do you measure? I finally got a measuring tape (scale = not accurate!), but im not really sure what to measure.”

runningdetermined

When I do my full measurements, I measure (from top down) my

  • neck (in the middle) 
  • biceps (each arm b/c they differ, arm relaxed, largest part)
  • chest (largest part- check in the mirror that the tape is straight across your back)
  • under my chest (where your bra band goes, also check in the mirror)
  • waist (smallest part)
  • stomach (where it sticks out the most)
  • hips (around where you’re the widest around your butt)
  • thighs (each thigh where they’re the widest)
  • calves (each, largest part)

Some people also do their wrists, forearms, or just above the knee, but I didn’t do those places when I started, so I don’t worry about it.

Weekly (actually more than once a week) I just measure my waist & stomach because they fluctuate the most. Okay, I actually measure them more often than I weigh myself now…

My weight loss hasn’t always been healthy- pt. 1

I’ve been open about my unhealthy relationship with food when it comes to the secret eating, but I don’t know that I’ve ever really discussed the other end of the spectrum, here or back on hifitness.  

Warning, some of this may be somewhat triggering. Tell me if you think I should put this under a cut (either because of triggers or length).

I have to take you way back to Christmas break my sophomore year of college- the first few days of 2002.  It was the last day that Jeremy was visiting at my parents’ house. We had gone to walk around at a mall, and I had been a little bothered by the tightness of my pants the whole time. We stood in front of the mirror in the upstairs bathroom, and I asked Jeremy if I had gotten fat. He said that I looked fine.  I said that surely I looked like I had gained weight*, and after me pressing him on it, he finally said I “looked a little poochy**.”

The closest picture to the time I had, this was about a month earlier and I’d probably gained a tad more from holiday foods.:

I don’t know what I weighed at the time. My parents didn’t have a working scale. But hearing him say it (even though I pushed him to it) made something click in my brain. After he left to head back to Montgomery, I spent an hour doing leg lifts, crunches, lunges, and stuff.  

Starting the next day, I began to only eat when I was hungry and stop as soon as I was satisfied. Sounds like a good plan, right?

When I went back to school a few days later, I started going to the workout trailer 4 or 5 nights a week. (lol… now they have an actual fitness center, but still no real gym.) I would run a  mile on the treadmill to warm up, then do a circuit of abs and legs, ride the stationary bike 10 or 15 min., do another circuit, run another mile.  I would wake up extra early before class to run a lap around campus (about 1.5 mi.) 4 or 5 days a week.  I continued with eating in that way. I had salad (with other things, too) every day for lunch.  I usually had to snack between meals since I was eating less at a time. I bought a tape measure so I could track my progress and measure when my roommate went to class so she wouldn’t know.

Then I saw something online about getting free  samples of ephedra pills. I ordered them. I took them and suddenly it was easy for me to get up so early to run because I wasn’t as sleepy.  I think I might have lost a 1/2” from my waist in the 5 days I took them.  This whole time I had no idea what I weighed, but I liked that I was getting smaller.

Jamboree practice started and we’d do choreography practice a few hours a night most days of the week, but still I’d go workout afterward.  A friend asked me if I was okay because I had noticeably lost weight and I hadn’t needed to. I told her I was just eating healthy for the first time in my life, and it’s not like I was as small as _____, ______, and _______. No one else ever said anything.

Then Jeremy and I got engaged. The night of my candlelighting, I still squeezed in workout time right after Jamboree practice and slipped right in just before curfew when it would begin.

(Me that night after being put in the fountain)

I took the leftover cake to my room. I licked off all the frosting from the bottom of the container. You can’t have a problem if you still eat straight frosting, right?

I still felt like I had too much fat because my stomach wasn’t flat and still made rolls when I sat down and I could still pinch “a lot” of fat.

The next weekend I went home and tried on wedding dresses. Many of the samples were too big.

We found a dress that was a prom dress. It was a 5- a size I hadn’t worn since before I was done growing. 

My best friend’s mom- a P.E. teacher and runner- asked me about my weight loss. I told her that I was just running again and eating better, and since I still wasn’t any thinner than her kids naturally were, she didn’t press it.

At their house:

The weekend after spring break, we went to Jeremy’s family’s house.  We were lounging on the bed watching T.V., and I got up to go to the bathroom.  When I stood up, I wobbled and almost collapsed.  Then my stomach growled. Jeremy asked what I had eaten, and I told him I’d had a (small) bowl of cereal and some (it was probably around 5 or 6) baby carrots. That’s how little it took to keep me from feeling hungry. It was about 3 in the afternoon. He asked just how much weight I had lost, and I said I had no idea, probably around 5 pounds.  He made me go weigh myself on the scale in his parents’ bathroom. 122. Fully dressed.

That meant that I was around 8 lbs less than my normal weight in high school while running & playing soccer. But the number really meant nothing to me. I hadn’t been weighing myself the whole time. Anyway, I could still grab fat.

I did go eat, though, even though I wasn’t hungry. The dizziness scared me.

I don’t think I lost any more after that. I continued with my eating only when hungry and exercise for the rest of the school year, but my metabolism had probably reached the point where I wouldn’t lose any more doing the same thing.

During the summer, it was harder because I had home-cooked meals.  I was also scared about not fitting in my wedding dress.  It was a little looser when I got home at first, so I relaxed some. Then it would get tight again, so I would cut back.

I was babysitting a few days a week, so on my off days, I would run. I measured it to be 4 miles. I would also take the baby for walks and do crunches when he was playing alone.

At some point I picked up a calorie counting book. I had never counted calories. I had been “listening to my body” the whole time. I clearly remember one day eating under 500 calories. I had no idea that wasn’t enough.  I really thought I was being healthy.  I would also only poop every 3 days or so. My waist got to below 25”, the smallest it had been. Somewhere between the lack of pooping and my waist size, I got scared and started eating more again.  I still had my wedding dress on the back of my mind, though.

to be continued (probably next week, possibly tomorrow night.)

“Hi! 1) You're beautiful and your progress is amazing! 2) I'm thinking about pursuing teaching as a career, or atleast entering the faculty this coming year in university. What made you want to become a teacher? What makes you enjoy teaching? Just wondering! If you don't want to answer, all good :) Have a good one!”

104daysofprogress

  1. Thank you so much!
  2. I really love being around kids. They make me happy. I’ve always wanted to be a teacher, though, for pretty much my entire life. I really enjoy when I can tell they use something they learned or when a student sounds out a tough, new 5-syllable word.

unimpressivesue replied to your post: WIW- gotta control my intake

If you don’t mind me asking, how do you measure body fat?

 I have an Omron hand-held electronic analyzer. It’s probably not very accurate, though. If I had my bf% professionally measured, it would probably be several percentage points higher, judging by photos of people a certain percents.

I mostly use it as another tool to judge progress/ regression.

“whats your progress blog password?”

skinnylegs12345

 I’m sorry, but I don’t feel comfortable giving my password to people with absolutely nothing personal on their blogs.

(Publishing to add to my FAQ)

“Can you give me advice on running? I a beginner, but I don't feel like I'm improving”

unimpressivesue

I just read your “running post” and it looks like C25K is working pretty well for you so far. Taking ver 3 minutes off your mile time in a few weeks is amazing. I haven’t taken that much time off my mile time within a few years.

I would say that for now, stick to the C25K program. Robin started with it and has since run marathons, a half Ironman, and is now training for a full Ironman.

After you first 5K, decide what your goals are. Do you want to stick with 5Ks and get faster? Do you want to increase your distance? Different goals require different training.

Also, if you feel an injury coming on, don’t ignore it. Take an extra day or two off from running and do low-impact cross-training instead.

Hopefully this is helpful to you. Good luck in your first 5K and for your future goals!

“Hi why are you so religious?”

—Anonymous

I don’t remember turning anon back on. Weird. It’s off now…

Anyway…

I was raised in a Christian home. We went to church 3 times a week, even on vacation. For most of my life, I was religious because I was raised that way. This carried into my teenage years.  I went to church, went to youth rallies and devos, went to Bible camp, but rarely studied the Bible on my own.

When I was in college, I learned about Christian evidences and investigated for myself. I didn’t want my parents’ faith. I wanted my own.

I suppose none of that really answers your question. 

First of all, I want to please God. “Fear God and keep his commands, for this is man’s all.” Ecclesiastes 12:13

I love God and worshiping Him makes me happy.

If you have any more questions, you’ll have to message me non-anon since I turned it off again.

“Why is there only a few students per class at your school? x”

thevegetarianfashionstudent

Our school is very small. There’s less than 50 total for K-12th. I have 6 in my class and teach 2 grades.

About My Blog

Reblogging this again because I’ve gotten quite a few new followers recently. I especially wanted y’all to know why I may not follow you or follow then unfollow pretty quickly. I promise it’s nothing personal and I wish you all the best.

hifitness:

Along with posting my “About Me” in my FAQ section, I want to write up a post about what to expect from my blog, especially for my newer followers.

What I post:


  • A lot of pictures of myself- If, after a day or so of following me, you decided you don’t like the looks my face/arms/legs/clothes, then you’ll probably want to unfollow me. I post a picture nearly every day.
  • Running recaps, and less frequently, workout posts- These may also include pictures of me.
  • My thoughts about my body image- This includes both positive and negative feelings. I try to focus on the positive, but I have to let out the other stuff every now and then.
  • Occasional Harry Potter  things, though now I keep most of that to my personal blog.
  • I reblog a tiny bit of “fitspo,” but there’s usually a reason behind it- like soccer, real women, or someone with a body type very similar to mine.
  • I also will reblog before and afters, informative, and inspirational posts, but I don’t do a ton of it (any more).
  • Every now and then I even write out my own thoughts in a good, informative kind of way.
  • Some days I may post like 20 times and some days it may be just once or not at all. I like to keep you guessing.

Why I may not follow you back:

I know longer even look at every blog of every person who follows me, so if you are looking for an automatic follow back, move along. If you interact with me (not just liking posts), then I am very likely to give your blog a look. However, I won’t follow you back if:

  • You use a lot of profanity- Yeah, I’m still hanging on to a couple of people with slightly rougher language than I prefer, but I’ve established relationships with them.
  • You post “thinspo,” exercise off all you eat, have a low intake, etc. I don’t need unhealthy influences.
  • You post a ton of “fitspo.” I’m never going to have the body of a Nike model, and seeing images of incredibly fit women all day long just messes with my already fragile self-image.
  • You have very little personal or original posts. I like to get to know the people I follow. If you mostly just reblog stuff, or if your blog is just a record of intake & workouts without anything of how you feel, I’m not going to be very interested.
  • You’re very negative. We’re all negative sometimes. It’s part of being human. I struggle enough with my own negative thoughts without bearing the weight of others’, too.

If you follow me and I don’t follow you, and you think you sound like someone I’d probably follow if I saw you blog, don’t be afraid to say something!

Other things:

  • I have submissions open on my blog. Submissions are for long messages, pictures, and links.
  • I am terrible about hoarding messages. If you send me a message and want a response, say something, and I’ll make sure I get right to it.
  • Right now I don’t have internet outside of my planning/snack/lunch/right after the kids leave times at school, so I disappear at night/on the weekend. 
““Tag, you’re it! Here are the rules: Each tagged person must post ten things about themselves. You have to choose and tag ten people. Go to their blogs and tell them you tagged them. No tag back.” :)”

runlikeh3ll

10 fitness things:

  1. I’ve lost 37 pounds from my high weight several years ago.
  2. I ended 2011 nearly the same weight as I did 2010, but I’m pretty sure I’m a tiny bit smaller.
  3. I sometimes struggle with body dysmorphia.
  4. I no longer have a weight goal. What I do have is a pair of pants from high school. I won’t even wear them because I no longer care for the style (they’re 12 or 13 years old), but I do want to fit into them. Right now they button and zip but still give me a muffin top.
  5. I played soccer for 9 years and ran cross-country & track for 2. I was never very good/fast, though, because I just liked to have fun.
  6. This past month my butt got bigger & my waist got smaller.
  7. My calves are the same size as when I restarted my weight loss Aug. ‘10.
  8. My next running goal is a 25 min. 5K. I ran one in 25:10 last week, so I’m very close.
  9. I rarely run actual races. I guess I just race against myself.
  10. I have a really hard time with eating secret fast food.
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