END OF WEEK 3 /END OF CHALLENGE REVIEW
Firstly, anyone using LeechBlock - turn it off BEFORE you start typing a long post... ask me how I know
Anyway, I have now completed the challenge, having done 21 days in the 25 since I started (which was designed to allow 4 days off for social stuff).
Summary:
In Week 3 I achieved 271 ticks out of a possible 324. ie 84%. Over the whole challenge, I achieved 908 out of 1024 = 89%.
I had a couple of duff days this week with a B and 2 Cs. Partly I had a 'can't be bothered, no, not gonna' day and partly a day where I felt just generally under the weather. However, I picked up the last 2 days and got perfect scores which pulled me back up.
Having said that, one or two areas seem to have make a step change over that couple of days of 'downtime'. Piano practice has improved beyond measure - and I am now able to stumble my way through the entire 4 pages of 'the piece', partly achieved by abandoning 'scales' practice and spending the whole session on 'the piece'.
KPI Heads:
Appearance:
Dropped a further 3.3 cm (1.3 inches) off the 4 critical areas chosen as the KPI - that is a total of 9.4cm (3.7 inches) since the start and the small losses outside the KPI continue to accrue.
The only 2 areas which haven't budged are the middle (below the waist - waist has dropped 3.8cm (1.5 in)) and hips. However, as my hips are 2 dress-sizes smaller than my bust and waist, this is fine. Middle - however - seriously needs to reduce!
I have kept up the moisturizing - skipped it twice - and overall it seems to be making noticeable improvements - especially my feet. My only worry is the face - it became noticeably saggier, baggier and tired-looking after a couple of weeks of twice daily moisturizing (light unscented face moisturizer mind you!) but in the past couple of days I have noticed minor improvements beginning to appear (less wrinkly eyelids for one
) so maybe I will continue with it for a while longer before judging whether to drop it or not.
Also did 'earrings' on 6 of the challenge days plus my days off.
Health
I lost a further 2 kg this week (4.4lb) so that makes 4.5kg (10lb) since the challenge started. Over the past 9 days (including 2 days off) I stuck pretty well to the basic diet plan - only eating out once and having just a couple of small bars of chocolate during the time.
I dropped the dietary supplements last week and, with the exception of 1 day of feeling generally down, feel overall more awake and healthier WITHOUT them! Now the challenge is over, I plan to experiment to see what exactly is causing the zombie-tiredness that I was getting before with them.
I went swimming twice - total 2.5 hours - clocking 54 lengths of the pool - I think when I get to the 30 per session, I will hold there for a while - noticed my upper arm muscles feeling the strain and my sternum is swollen (costochondritis). I think I will try and add in a 3rd session a week at lower lengths rather than up the total lengths done in a single session.
I walked 35km and did a couple of stairclimbs. That is something to be revisited in the future.
Home Routines
I was a bit lazy with these and skimped corners quite a bit during the week. However, again, I did everything perfectly including yesterday all the vacuuming, mopping, dusting and bathcleaning that is supposed to be spread out over several days!
Decluttering
Made a start on decluttering my back terrace. Still more work to be done there though! Also, asked the gardener to declutter my hedges - I'm the only garden round here that hadn't had them done and frankly they were a mess, so he has done the front and back in the past couple of days. (By the way he does loads of gardens round here, he's not my personal gardener! I pay him a monthly retainer to do regular watering, tidying and trimming and he farms the work out to various casual staff.)
Did some further decluttering of phones etc.. Didn't start on the paperwork yet as I need to plan what I am going to keep in real paper, scan up or not keep at all, and take time out to give it thought. I am struggling with a 4-drawer filing cabinet of papers back in the UK which I am gradually decluttering every time I visit my parents! I don't want to get in to the same position here.
Arabic
Really pleased with this, I have noticed a step change in my spoken arabic conversations with people. I have to say I love the way this course picks out the patterns of the language - something I'm always keen on as a scientist at heart - I enjoy grammar the 'equations' of the language
- and I am making a start on producing some 'mind maps' of the patterns rather than just the text basis in the notes. I have just 1 hour to go on the 'vocab' course (which uses material from the foundation and advanced course to broaden and develop vocabulary). Then I further course material to follow.
Piano
I did manage to do a total of 2 hours practice - I was finding it so tough. Then after moaning and groaning 3 days ago, I suddenly returned to it refreshed! I was determined that I should be able to report I could get to the end of the new piece by the end of this challenge so I ditched scales and refreshing the old piece totally and focused just on the last 2 pages (it's 4 pages this piece) and yesterday managed to get through the whole. OK it took 20 minutes instead of about 3 it's supposed to take - but hey!!!!
Work
Having discovered my timing mistakes last week, work did not advance as I had planned simply because there are not enough hours in the day! While I have done stuff that counts as work this challenge, I have not advanced as I hoped in a number of areas.
Nonetheless, I re-proved to myself that I prefer to work in big chunks rather than 'school timetable' plan. I have devised a planning tool which I think is going to help and in my day off the computer yesterday, spent some time with large sheets of paper and cut out bits of card in various chunky blocks of time. (I'm on the rock, pebbles, sand thing again at the moment - see my coolbeesplace blog for the
macaroni metaphors post I did! (Gosh haven't posted on Coolbees since July - bad me).
I am working with another colleague coach on our main goal for the year so we can chivvy each other up and kick each other in the ass when necessary weekly but we have decided to focus on just one goal each as the core of our sessions rather than get sidetracked.
The other crashing reimpact with the knowledge of what I always knew - this computer is such a huge instrument of time-wasting. I had a discipline, exercised most of last year, of having 2 complete days a week off computer - but these were mainly my 'no work' days. Right now, I am trying to arrange matters to have a 3rd day off - which will be a Work But Not At Computer day.
Anyway, I digress. When I finish creating my planning tool I shall reveal it to you all
Conclusion
Overall, I am pleased with what I achieved just by simple application. Very pleased with the weight loss - I kept getting stuck at a particular point and have now descended past it. I have actually achieved a reduction in BMI of just under 1.5 BMI index-points in the last 3 weeks! In another 4kg I will be merely 'overweight' not 'obese'. LOL how can a couple of grammes make you precisely one or the other - but never mind!
Very pleased with the effects of moisturizing, and the impact of simply practicing the piano 4 half-hour sessions per week and the Arabic 7 times a week (though this will reduce to 5 days a week under the new return to normal 7 day weeks pattern).
Less enthralled by my progress on book writing etc, though I now perceive some new ways forward.
Going forward
I will actually keep up almost everything on this challenge but not be beholden to a tick sheet for things like the daily routine housework, 'beautifaction chores' and so on.
I am designing my planning tool to include 'sand' - so for each hour I plan to work, there is an additional 15 minutes 'sand' included (eg a 3.75hour time block will include 3 hours for the work itself and 45 mins for nature breaks, quick chores, snacks where appropriate, interruptions etc) wherein most of the regular daily routine stuff will be fitted AROUND the blocks instead of prioritising the daily stuff and trying to fit work around them.
Anyway, that's it and thank you for your encouragement over the last 25 days!