[Mark Farmer]

Odmaa M! Where’s you update for today!? Remember: the challenge asks for daily, public accountability to set you up for success! Only 4-8% of people actually keep their New Year’s resolutions (https://www.rocketcitynow.com/article/news/8-of-people-stick-to-their-new-years-resolutions-whats-yours/525-46821443-35a8-41b4-a32d-c5aab2a8ed43 )

I know from years of doing these that people who follow the parameters of the 21 Day Challenge nearly triples the amount of people reaching success.

Looking forward to reading your progress!

[Mark Farmer]

I *have* thought about just forcing my body – both ways (when I wake up, bc that forced you to be sleepier in the evening for a virtual circle to get you back on track) and, to a lesser extent, going to be early.

The issue with just an earlier bedtime is laying in bed frustrated that you’re not falling asleep can be horribly fatal to a goal of better or earlier sleep: the frustration often sets a blockage in your mind that can result in insomnia or actually encourage negative behavior (such as doomscrolling because you’re bored)

But lately I’ve been EXHAUSTED within an hour after I eat dinner and *THAT* seems the magic hour if I’m to force myself.

In the past month I have gotten myself back to a better schedule (only to f’ things up again), but the couple of days with early and adequate sleep are MAGICAL.

THAT is what I want.

And yea, the data the ring provides is interesting. Problem is the majority of the data is showing I snore and have mild apnea and there isn’t much you can do about that.

Not that I’m going to give up:

Part of this year’s focus will be losing weight (which can help apnea/snoring by ~10% or more); developing better habits, etc.

Thats why this challenge is so important to me!

[Mark Farmer]

Unless that just makes you sit on the toilet longer… 🤣

But… I’m with you. Facebook; social media across the board, has been gamified by the corporations to keep you on the site at the cost of encouraging vapid doom-scrolling: consume content at any cost. One-click responses – emoticon or pre-filled statements – rule.

so incredibly little quality connecting going on.

Combine that with the HORRIBLE service – arbitrary censorship, arbitrary profile shutdowns, horrible fact checking by virtually everyone, the quick propagation of  outright false information…. makes FB a no go for any actual connection or virtually anything else with the exception of broadcasting info

Was seriously considering setting a 21 day challenge around the same thing you have.

So, Mr. Kolea… how will you *measure* progress in this goal? Do you have a screen time tracker you have access to? Any idea how much time you spend on FB prior to today? And then what will be the specific, measurable goal? BC “spend less time on FB” CAN be met by simply spending 1 second less on it today… than you did yesterday. 😉 SURELY you mean a more substantive goal than that, ne? 😉

[Mark Farmer]

Day 1!

Goal:

• 14 or more days, in bed before 2 am (Progress: -)
• 7 days or more lights out before 2 am (Progress: -)
• Aiming for 7+ hours of sleep for 14 days of the 21 (Progress: -)
• Strictly recording my bedtime for at least 18 of the 21 days of this challenge (Progress: 1 day/18)

Bedtime (lights out): 5:03a (41 minutes earlier than the night before)
Waking time / Hours slept: 11:43a (5.22h) (~1 hour less than yesterday)

One step forward (lights off earlier) one step backwards (less sleep). Daily public accountability helps.

Goal tonight: in bed, lights off before 2a; 7+hours of sleep

It’s not too late to enter the 21 day challenge! 21 days will pass whether you choose and work towards success… or sit on your ass devolving. Which will you choose!?

[Mark Farmer]

Day one! Let’s kick ass!

[Mark Farmer]

Okay… day before the official Challenge starts, but I’d like to set myself up for success by starting the habit now.

Measurable: statements like “make this year wonderful” or “do better at sleeping” are vipid and unhelpful. Mushy. What does “wonderful” or “better” even mean!?

Important I – you – set up measurements of where you want to get to with your Challenges; how far you got with a step.

To that end I am using:

• Sleep as Droid to measure my subjective hours and quality of sleep;
• Wellue O2Ring Smart Ring Pulse Oximeter to measure objective measurements of O2 level and help me stay in a better position for sleep (I snore, the ring sounds an alarm telling me to reposition myself for better sleep when my blood oxygen level drops)

The main measurements for success will be 1) when do I get to bed, lights off; 2) How long do I sleep (aiming for 7.5+) and lastly 3) my subjective quality of sleep

But baby steps first. Last night didn’t count but…

Bedtime (lights out): 5:44a
Waking time / Hours slept: 12:23p (6.39h)

Tonight’s New Year’s Eve, so likely a poor night to start trying to go to bed early 🤣 but… this is where we’ve brought ourselves, Mark Farmer… this is where we’ve brought outselves…

Tonight’s goal: in bed, light’s off by 2a.  Here we go!

 

[Mark Farmer]

Ahahaha! Love it!

And I love Marie Kondo’s book – I also bought it but I’ve never fully implemented it and DREAM of the day that I’d “Marie Kondo-ize” my house to have everything neat and orderly with fresh open space!

Cool.

And… you beat me to the punch: HOW/What will be the steps to that.

I don’t want to interrupt the process as Kondo lays out an entire process IN her book.

How far are you into the book? BC that will help you lay out the process.

That being said either by reading the book (maybe that’s the first step…?) OR through your own brainstorming, DO name SMART – Specific, Measurable, Attainable steps with specific Times for completion!

Answer those questions; pitch in other’s challenges and let’s get a start on ROCKING 2022! <3

[Mark Farmer]

Consider selecting ONE goal in ONE area of your life:
– Mind
– Body
– Spirit
– Relationships; or
– Wealth

Make the results you’re seeking
– Specific
– Measurable
– Realistic and
– Tangible

Post a short plan if you’d like; ask for advice or help; offer your help and encouragement to others.

21 days to profound success and a real change… or empty arguments and FB mental masturbation…? Your choice.

Remember guys: Share this and invite others. Scientific research shows that people whom set goals with a partner increase their rates of success hugely. The more people involved the more added energy and excitement!

[Mark Farmer]

Bah… still just struggling to get some momentum. Sleep has REALLY impacted both diet and working out and that’s where this has to start, for me.

Thinking about starting a separate thread for 21 days of 7+ hours sleep a night; bedtime by 2am…

How’s your goal doing? What eating / workout plan?

[Mark Farmer]

I think I need to do some more research – BCAA’s have been such a long part of my regime, my mind automatically goes to them. I’d SWEAR that there IS some evidence SOMEWHERE that they stave off muscle loss.

For the most part I use them immediately prior to a workout, in addition to Whey. Occasionally I’ll use them 1st thing in the morning for the same reason.

But I was also a long-time user of Glutamine. And the evidence for that never came through. I’d buy it anyways, because it’s so cheap and I figured “better safe than sorry,” but after never finding evidence of efficacy I finally gave that up.

Curious to hear about your protein shake recipe? god forbid it be another version of your extra-fat-laden monstrosity you used to drink LOLz

[Mark Farmer]

Curious how you’re approaching that, Odmaa? Weights? Cardio?

[Mark Farmer]

It’s solidly sticking @ ~52k level… predictions are that it’ll go another 4x at least.

Still believe it’s a gamble – don’t invest more than you can afford to lose – but it’s fun watching it go up!

[Mark Farmer]

$61,000

[Mark Farmer]

Ah, the study I just cited concludes, “We conclude that the claim that consumption of dietary BCAAs stimulates muscle protein synthesis or produces an anabolic response in human subjects is unwarranted.”
so they’re sayin’… nope.

[Mark Farmer]

Kolea, ingesting both has to do with freeing up the protein for how it’s best used – BCAA get to be absorbed together for repair; whey protein go straight into synthesis rather than repair

It’s also a belt/suspenders situation

The stack that I use is for ideal nutrition, some parts of it likely ARE a waste of money: glutamine, for instance. Very little research that taken as a supplement it does anything

and let’s be frank about protein supplementation at all: it’s HIGHLY likely that you DON’T need 2 g or even 1 g of protein per pound of body weight

Part of the old-fashioned piss tests for nitrogen were simply oriented around whether or not your body was excreting protein – showing that you were literally pissing it away

You messaged directly asking, “Wait so what do you think the difference is between synthesis and repair???”

Posting here to continue the conversation:

My understanding (which may be dated or flawed) is that proportions facilitate use. Whey needs to be broken into it’s components, which are then subject to uptake on first come, first serve basis. BC BCAAs are already “component-ized” those are easily used/served to repair

In short, yes: repair of damaged fiber is dif. than building new fiber

but again, the main idea is 2 fold:
– serve ’em up how it’s easiest used; and
– belt and suspenders

It’s not incredible bc it examine other outcomes, but e.g. this article: “There are several possible explanations for the lack of robust association between whey supplementation and fasting blood BCAA patterns reported here.”
https://academic.oup.com/jn/article/145/4/691/4585696

describing different absorption / effects from ingesting straight BCAA vs. Whey
Anytime the body has to break something down it’s use changes – e.g. not all proteins are digested equally fast, meaning that whey will break down in to some aminos… while other have yet to be broken down for individual absorption
and the ratios of availability affect how body’s going to use ’em
again… this is all in my largely, lay-person, old-school belief systems (many, tho, of which have stood the test of time)

VERY lay-person, unsupported phrasing: https://www.briancolemd.com/blogpost/2018/12/31/amino-acids-vs-protein-powder/

This is a little more on point, although I’m unsure if the study’s conclusion supports my old-school beliefs: “Theoretically, the maximal stimulation of muscle protein synthesis in the post-absorptive state in response to BCAAs alone is the difference between muscle protein breakdown and muscle protein synthesis (about 30% greater than synthesis), because the other EAAs required for synthesis of new protein can only be derived from muscle protein breakdown.”

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5568273/

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