The '101 days to change our lives' challenge

elantan

hey everyone, hope your all doing well not another grey hair hope things are going better for you

well i had a bit of a wobble with my challenge but i'm back on the short and narrow it seems to be helping me writting down and confessing my daily food on the lenny v the girls and z challenge i can understand that a lot of you are feeling tired and fed up just now but please keep it up were nearly there i have 79 days left to go on mine and am still feeling as if this challenge has came at the right time for me i am drinking green tea every day now (thanks cafc girl for the advice) and reading the cbt book (i'm really sorry i forgot who advised me on the book) which i am finding is also helping me stay focused as well the confessing ....hope to hear more updates soon take care everyone

Tete_en_l'Air

Hi Everyone,

It's been really quiet on here lately - I hope it's because everybody is working so hard on their goals and not because everyone has given up!! I have to confess, I've just been looking back and was surprised to see that the last time I posted was in May. So I'm going to try to post about once a week to try to keep my momentum up, as I'm almost half way through and don't feel as though I'm making much headway.

1) I want to get my overdraft down to £1000.

Well my balance is looking in better shape since my last post, but spending diary has not been restarted. This is something I must do as I spend a lot of money on, say, a £5 DVD in a sale here, and a bar of chocolate there. I think it will really help to see in black and white where all my money goes and how it mounts up.

2) I want to swim at least twice a week, preferably three times.

I've not been great at this either to be honest. The last few times I went, the pool was full of kids with inflatables and it's so frustrating when all you want to do is swim up and down. But I know I feel great once I've been so really must get back into this. I'm going to two weddings at the end of July and I don't want to look bloated in the photos, so that's something to aim for as well as this challenge.

3) I will pass my driving test.

Well, I did my test again this morning and failed AGAIN. It's so frustrating because I drove really well again, apart from once on a tricky double roundabout where I almost went in the wrong lane and corrected myself, but was deemed a serious fault because there was someone behind me. I can see why it's serious of course, but like I say it's really frustrating as I drove so well in both tests (5 and 4 minors respectively), and let myself down with one little mistake each time. I've booked myself straight back in, but this is the worst part: the earliest date I could get was 23rd August - over TWO MONTHS away. It's sooo annoying that I have to wait that long as I feel as though I've built myself up for the test and all that energy will ebb away and I can feel myself starting to lose the will. And then if I make one mistake in that test, will I have to wait until October? Then December? I'm going to call every day again and try to get a cancellation, or hopefully one of the examiners will do some overtime one Saturday and I can do one then as I did today. I think I'm going to just go out in my own car and knock the lessons on the head for now though because they're just so expensive and when I go out now with my instructor I'm not really learning anything and it feels like we're just killing time. My new test date is four days after my Day 101 so wish me luck with the cancellation!!



4) I will get a secure job.

I'm still waiting for "my" job to go to advert so I can apply. My manager says she wants to get the interviews done before she goes on holiday at the end of July so hopefully not much longer to wait. Been working really hard these last couple of weeks and done a lot of things on my own initiative so hopefully this will all work in my favour. It occurred to me today that maybe I could negotiate my pay at the interview so I don't have to start at the bottom of my scale, seeing as I've been there 6 months already basically on minimum wage with the agency. This type of haggling is not something I've ever done before though so I'd be interested to hear from anyone who has? What do you think of my chances?

5) I will cleanse my face every night before bed.

At least one thing's going well!!

I have a new challenge too:

6) I will re-read all the Harry Potters in time for the release of the final book.

As I was pre-ordering my copy of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, I realised I couldn't remember what had happened in any of the previous books. So at a car boot sale two weeks ago I bought books 1-6 for about £6 (total bargain! I'd initially borrowed them from a friend), and have started re-reading them. I'm halfway through the third one now but the first three are only thin, they get much bigger from here on in. I have until the 21st July, as I want to start the final book when everyone else does because I don't want to find out the endingfrom somebody else! (You probably all think I'm a total sadcase now but I don't care!!)

Well, that's about it from me... Oh, Andan, I was so impressed with your success on Gumtree that I had a look myself as I don't really know anyone where I live either, but unfortunately all the ads in my area were from people wanting casual sex! Yikes! You're doing really well on the swimming too, you should be proud of yourself. Let me know how the driving's going - you'll probably pass before I do at this rate!!

Hope everyone else is doing ok. It'd be great to see more posts on here. Til next week then, keep up the good work!

Pollydaydream

Hi everyone.

I just found this thread and I’d like to join this challenge, except I’m going to make it a 51 day challenge (to end on 11 August). I need short-term goals and quick results at the moment, or I’ll just sit on my bum for a couple of months and then try and do it all in the last two weeks.

Right, for the next 51 days I want to

1. Eat 3 meals a day.

Haven’t been eating properly for quite a while. Upside is I’ve lost weight without trying; downside is I don’t feel (or look!) very well.

2. Clean my flat until it’s sparkling.

I live on my own in a one-bedroomed flat; how difficult can it be to keep it clean? Today, I noticed mould growing on the freezer door (and that’s not even the worst).:eek: I just have no cleaning routine, no energy and, to be honest, not very much inclination.

Which leads me on to numbers 3 and 4, to try and put some routines in place. I’ve tried the Flylady thing before, but even her baby steps are too much for me, so I’ve picked the two that I think will make the most difference. So, I will

3. Shine my sink ever night.

Well, at least do the washing up so I haven’t got to wade through a sink of dirty dishes to find a mug for my tea in the morning.

4. Get dressed to the shoes every morning.

Not sure about the shoes, but at least shower, get dressed, dry hair etc all in one go, as opposed to shower, have a cup of tea and a cigarette, put on make-up, have a cup of tea and a cigarette, get dressed, …………well, you get the picture. I get up at 7 o’clock and end up rushing out of the house, late for work, at 9 o’clock! And then I say I’ve got no time to do anything.

5. Stop drinking. Completely. Well, at least for 51 days.

Not very optimistic about this one, but hoping that seeing it in black and white will do the trick.

Well, that’s it, for now. Haven’t had a drink today and the off-licence closes at 10.30, so going to do washing up and shine sink until it’s too late to buy a drink.

Hope you’re all doing well.


Polly

andan

Hi Polly.

Good luck with your challenges, hope you do really well. I have found what helps to motivate me is to write down every few days what i have done so far towards my challenges. When my motivation is waning i check what i have wrote so i can see how much I've progressed.

I'm one of those really sad people though who is really loving this challenge!

I am actually doing a few more than what i have posted on this thread but have found having a list that i check almost every day helps keep me on the straight and narrow and am pleased with how much i have achieved.

Tete en l'air, Sorry to hear the test didn't go quite so well, best of luck next time. Must be very frustrating failing for silly little things, although i realize the danger of the situation.

As for my driving its not going so well either, my fella refused to drive with me for a week as he told me i was shouting at him too much and no driving instructor about at the minute to practice with. I have found the driving forum really good though and people are so supportive on there so that helps me stay focused and positive.

Karmacat

I've had a FANTASTIC morning of achievement in the garden - my nephew came down from London, we had a drink on the beach, I fed him dinner and he stayed overnight with me. Then this morning, in spite of it tipping down, we marched out into the garden and he's done stuff that would have been either downright impossible for me (carting 80 litre bags of bark chippings up 50 steps) or would have taken literally 3 days. He pulled out and cut up an old carpet I'd used as mulch, it had lots of stuff growing on it, we've put it in black plastic bags to be gradually thrown away. Lots of the greenstuff and dead branches are chucked to the side, underneath some bushes, where they're not visible and will prevent any stray brambles rooting, and he's out there right now, digging the ground of the weeds that have taken root *through* the carpet (cos itsbeen down so long). :T :T :T Words cannot express how good this makes me feel!

joeblack066

joeblack066 wrote: »

I like this!! Count me in! My goals are;

To lose 2st in weight (exercise and diet).
To maximise my earning potential, to enable me to clear my debts quicker and afford some kinda life!
To have some 'me' time...all I do is work and family....think subconciously this has been a defence mechanism since the break up of my last relationship, but now's the time for it to CHANGE!!

Hi all! Well we're on about 60 days since I posted my goals, so here goes..

1) I have lost a stone. Pleased but need to up the ante to get another stone off in 40 days. Achievable but I need to start exercising!
2) I am doing some extra work for a friend, that should pay reasonable well. I have also been inspired by a friend to push forward with my own business on top of my main job, which is going permanent from 02/07/07. So all this should help! Also I have sent back my HP car, and am in the process of selling the house that I lease out as the mortgage had reached £250 pcm OVER the rental yield. So soon I should be able to breathe financiallly!
3) Had the best weekend for over a year 2 weeks ago, had some ME time with friends! Very cheap but great fun! Have also met an old friend that I have known for 20 years, but hadn't seen for over 10 years till last year. We have a date on Saturday!! Am really looking forward to it and feel happier than I have for a very long time! All this positivity working well, update soon!!

nickelodeon

1. Lose 1 stone - I'm going on holiday on 8th July so would actually like to lose most of it by then. I'm going to do this by cutting down on the chocolate and junk and by cooking proper healthy meals.
I've lost 9lbs so far which I'm really pleased about, less than a week now til I go on holiday so want to lost another 1lb this week and then will tackle the last 4lbs when I get back!

2. Exercise - I'm not doing any at the moment, so anything will be an achievment, but will try and do 1/2 hour of exercise at least twice a week, need to try and find something I will enjoy, so I'm going to look into dance classes.
I've been going to at least 1 exercise class each week, sometimes 2 so this is going well.

3. Organise flat - my boyfriend has just moved in this weekend so the place is full of boxes and stuff, we have already sorted a lot of the stuff into items to ebay and carboot, but we just need to do it now and find places for the things that are staying
Most of the junk is gone, just need to sort out some storage under the stairs for the stuff that is staying.

4. Decorate bedroom and build wardrobe - we have taken down the old fitted wardrobe and so need to build a new one and decorate the room, I'd also like a new carpet so need to save for that and get that done.
This is the target that I am most pleased about, my Dad came round on Sat and with OH they put up all the shelving, then on Sun me and OH put up the wardrobe rails and the sliding panels and it's finished!! It looks so good and the bedroom looks so much better now! Just need to finish painting, get some new curtains and a new carpet and it's all done!

Keep up the good work everyone, you're doing really well, just over a month to go now so keep motivated!!

Tete_en_l'Air

Hello all, still very quiet but I'll keep posting regardless, even if there's only me who sees them!! My big news is that I passed my driving test yesterday!! This is really the main thing for me with this challenge and is the thing I've been putting most of my efforts into, so I'm over the moon!

1) I want to get my overdraft down to £1000.
I've had a bad week with this again. Spending diary has gone out the window and I've been buying lunch every day, tut tut tut. Balance doesn't look too bad, but I got my credit card bill this morning and it was far more shocking than I thought, I knew I'd spent a bit on it this month but not that much! Now that I'm no longer a slave to the driving lessons, I should be able to pay it off in a couple of months. I also need to sort out my car insurance, which will cost more now as I'll be putting it in my name rather than in Dad's with me as named driver. No more driving lessons, tests or bus fares should make a big difference though. Big effort with the spending diary this week.

2) I want to swim at least twice a week, preferably three times.
Haven't been this week I'm afraid, as had a bit of a botched blood donor session at the weekend and my arm's not in great shape!! I should have more time in the evenings though now that I don't need to practise driving all the time, so again: big effort.

3) I will pass my driving test - DONE!
Had my third test on Friday and it went as well as the others had, only without the one silly serious fault. I had one moment of indecision which I thought could have gone either way, but he only gave me a minor. I went out this morning on my first drive all by myself, which was a bit scary! Then went out to do a test run to work and find the nearest car park etc. This is something that really will change my life and I feel a massive weight has been lifted off my shoulders now that it's done. Hurrah!

4) I will get a secure job.
I've done about half of the application for "my" job so need to finish it off this weekend and get it handed in. Deadline is Wednesday so still plenty of time. I also found a couple of ads for long-shot jobs which I don't really have the right experience for, but in an area I really want to get into, so I thought it can't hurt to apply. It just means copying and pasting the info from the other application really so I'll try to get that done this weekend as well.

5) I will cleanse my face every night before bed.
Hm, bit of a blip last weekend after a night out, but back on track now. Want to up the ante and steam my face a bit as well to try and unblock pores.

6) I will re-read all the Harry Potters in time for the release of the final book.
I've just started the 5th book, but this and the 6th are both monsters, so must get cracking. I will now be hindered as I won't be getting the bus to work anymore and I can't exactly read at the wheel! Am off to London next weekend so I could make a good stab on the train, I'll just have to ignore my friends! Speaking of HP, I do beleive it's on the telly now, so I'm off to watch.

Hope everyone else is going ok, looking forward to hearing how you're all getting on!!

debtdummy

hi , id like to join, im at all time low point in my life, hope im not oo late to start.

1) be more positive
2) sort life out and find a goal to work towards
3) find a hobby which is cheap and fun
4) stop eating food im allergic too and making me sad
5) control mood swings, maybe get rid of them

ive got to start thinking there are people worse off than me and i need to snap out of my grumpy life,!!

lovelybirchtrees

Congratulations, Tete en l'Air, passing your driving test is a wonderful achievement. It does free one up and make life easier. Well done!