Body, Mind, Diet: Your Self-Care Thread

[OK Computer]

This thread is for anyone trying to take better care of themselves, in whatever form that takes. Mental health, fitness, diet, rest, discipline. Share what’s worked for you — routines, habits, or ideas that help you stay steady. The goal is to trade what’s useful, not to compete or judge. Everyone’s starting from a different place.

I used to focus on heavy lifting but now I’ve shifted to kettlebell workouts. They fit better with what I need at my age, offering more functional movement, less strain, and better overall balance. A few sessions target multiple muscle groups, and the built-in cardio keeps me from having to do the kind of cardio I dislike, like walking or running.

Use this space to post what’s helped you keep your mind and body in check.

 

[BacktoBasics]

I lift daily and do about 2 miles on the treadmill. Started taking 20 grams of collagen every day. Skin is way better hydrated. Didn’t sunburn all summer. TRT is absolutely worth it.

 

[JMarkJohns]

April 2023 I almost died from an internal infection from a blunt force trauma I didn’t get checked out. I was pretty overweight. Pandemic Event Limitations and DoorDash with all the extra money was not kind to me. LMAO.

So I checked out after 6 days and determined to fix shit.

So, no fast food, no soda or sugar coffee, no delivery food, no snacks like chips, cookies, candy in the house, no foods like Pizza allowed in the house.

I can still have something like Pizza, but I earn it. More on that later.

I wanted to fix shit without drugs. Or at least see if I could. So I make my own food now, from scratch.

I also walk for fitness, including hiking. Since April 2023 I have walked 2500 miles dedicated fitness walking, with about 300 being hiking. Lots around SoCal, but also Northern AZ, and two trips to Utah for backpacking.

I also started doing basic weight training in April 2024.

Overall lost close to 90 pounds. Went from a 3XB to L.

Walking is the main clarity and health aspect, but the hikes are typically destination type events I do quarterly, often accumulating 25-40 miles on a hike over a long weekend.

As I said, I still have fun with some food, but for Pizza, it’s with others or I walk from Belmont Park in San Diego to Theo’s Hot Pizza or Prince Street Pizza for a few slices. A nice 5 miles round trip.

I’ll see if I can find some images. I make really fucking good Ramen from scratch and some incredible pastas with protein or wheat alternative varieties.

Oh, and I dropped my A1C from 9.1 to 5.3 in 2 years, no meds.

https://bsky.app/profile/therealestjmark.bsky.social%2Fpost%2F3lamh634h4s2p

 

[spurraider21]

I've somehow just been blessed with really strong metabolism. Was never a gym rat, played sports recreationally but never with some strict regimen or training or anything like that. And in high school/college years, ate like an absolute shithead. A lot of fast food. Shit like stopping at McDonalds drive-thru for a mcmuffin/coffee on the way to college (commute would push an hour in the mornings due to LA traffic). Indulging on sweets. Had at least 1 can of soda every day. But somehow never really put on weight. Have always been about 5'11, weighing anywhere between 135-150 pounds.

But then when I got my lipids checked during a physical, my cholesterol was noted to be pretty damn high. Now, I did have very high HDL levels (the good cholesterol), but also had pretty high LDL levels. Overall the number is big, though they said the ratio of LDL to HDL was on the healthy side, so it wasnt some big code red situation.

I kind of just ended up doing some simple things. More running/activity. To some extent having little kids forces you to be more active anyway. I also eliminated soda altogether from my regular diet. Haven't had soda in my home (other than when specifically expecting guests) for about 9 years now. Sure, if we find ourselves out somewhere, I'll have some, but just never at home and part of any regular diet. Removed sugary cereal crap with more typical oatmeal/banana/egg stuff for breakast. And then if I'm ever still having some appetite or sugar craving after dinner hours, my rule of thumb is to have a full serving of fruit first, and if after that I'm still feeling the same crave, sure, indulge a litle bit. And we probably average about 1 meal per week that is not cooked at home, thats been a big emphasis.

So while I more or less look like I did a decade ago with some more greys sprinkled in, I'm really glad i got ahead of some of that stuff before it manifested in something more problematic. My cholesterol levels are still somewhat inflated, though not as bad as before, and there's not much more I can do diet wise, so its just a matter of making more time for cardio. But doctor has told me as long as the HDL/LDL ratio remains solid, i shouldnt have anything serious to worry about.

 

[ambchang]

I was never gigantic or anything but like all office dwelling worker was most definitely overweight.

During the pandemic a staff of mine started a push up challenge. 1 push up for day 1, then 2 for day two etc. for every month of successful completion he’d donate $5 to our company charity. I did January and realize there’s no way I’d do 59 pushups for February 28 so gave up, but decided to do 25 a day. Then I did stretches. Then sit-ups. Then I realized I can do multiple sets. So went up to 4 sets of 25 pushups, 25 sit ups , 10 squats, curls with weights. 3 sets of planking at 75s each. Plus a hell lot of stretching that my physio taught me to do. 5 times a week.

Posture got better, knees don’t hurt from the extra weight any more (back still hurts though), lost about 25lbs from my peak, the gut is gone, slept better, mind is more alert for work, it’s all great.

Sadly return to office and the kids stuff came back so don’t have time anymore. Now I’m lucky to have time for one or two sets a week. Weight hasn’t came back yet but posture is definitely worse. Oh well.