Hello comrades and welcome to the fourth improvement megathread of December! 
Only 3 days until Xmas! I hope everybody is couchmaxxing and getting into the festive mood. 
As usual, some discussion ideas:
- Do you want to share something you’ve done in the previous week? Everything counts, nothing is too small.
- Do you have any goals or plans for next week?
- Do you have any streaks? For example, “sober for one day.” Feel free to post your streak every day in this thread.
- If you don’t have a continuous streak, did you manage to abstain from something for a day or more?
- Did you come across some useful information or resource that might help others?
Take care 
Big impulsivity brain kicked in and I’ve been playing a shitty Mobile Game™ for several days and nights, and basically ignoring everything else. There’s one stupid little achievement left that basically relies on luck.
Cleaned the kitchen. Did laundry. Walks 4.5 days. Real food 4 days.
that dopamine reward loop ooooh so good
good job with your self care!
Don’t encourage me!
oh no i was just trying to empathize!! i spend WAY too much time on the little screen i think something I need to work on as well.
I’ve completely fallen off of my running. Mostly because of the cold but also because I know I’ll suck at it again before I can get back to where was. Other than that, my clothes are becoming slightly loose and I’m liking it.
it’s really tough when it’s so cold and gets so dark i can see why the gym is popular in the winter.
congrsts on the non scale victory!
I guess it’s a little early but I’m gonna be cliche and make a New Year’s resolution to start working out again. I had a really good calisthenics routine going for like six months before I met my girlfriend and it was the only thing sort of reigning in my drinking but it’s been like a year and a half since I worked out and I’m kinda weak again and I’m starting to drink more so I think i need to start it back up.
I need to do a bunch of other adult stuff next year like figure out my 401k and go to the doctor and I want to read more too but exercising is my big goal.
It’s not cliche, the new year is a great time to make a fresh start! I would also like to do calisthenics next year. What is your routine if you don’t mind sharing? I’ve been doing the minimalist routine from r/bodyweightfitness and I like it
I don’t remember what I did specifically but it was based off of the r/bodyweightfitness recommended routine. I think I cut it in two and alternated each part every other day with some slight modifications like adding a few exercises with dumbbells to train my arms better.
i am making progress on music goals but am still fighting insecurity about not doing enough
unfortunately i have slacked on running a bit too much i think
roll call
@SeventyTwoTrillion@hexbear.net
@TraschcanOfIdeology@hexbear.net
@LGOrcStreetSamurai@hexbear.net
@Tomorrow_Farewell@hexbear.net
If anybody else wants to be added to the roll call, just let me know
Can you please add me? I need to work on improving myself too!
Welcome onboard comrade!
Do you have some specific goals or just improvement in general? Feel free to share if you wish
Thanks, Comrade!
I want to read more and watch more films, intellectual growth basically, and I have some specific work/career goals I want to get started on this year too that I’ll mostly keep to myself to avoid doxxing.
Although, I was mostly thinking that I need to get back to the gym and exercising generally. I know it’s cliché to say around this time of the year and I meant to get started earlier this year but 2024 was a clusterfuck, shitshow from beginning to end for me, so 2025 it is. I haven’t been a regular at a gym since before the pandemic began, so it’s about time to take care of myself again. Time does not wait for us.
Good news is through my resolving all the shit of 2024, I set myself up for 2025 to theoretically be a pretty, damn good year.
Me so I know when to pin these posts.
Added
Haven’t posted in a while because I’ve been failing miserably lately. I’m at least still brushing my teeth though
Posting L’s is encouraged in this thread, we all have them. The new year is around the corner, maybe a fresh start will help
💙
Brushing teef is always good, taking care of yourself is one of the most important things you can do
brushing your teeth is really important! it’s even linked to better heart outcomes because you’re reducing inflammation in your mouth and preventing it from reaching your blood.
good job!
Hello friends! Thank you for including me in this i’m excited to get hyped with you all!
Last week I stayed sober except for last night. I thought just going out and having one or two drinks would be safe since I have been doing really well generally. This was a mistake and i ended up drinking too much and feel like crap. So that’s a lesson learned to me again (how many times do i gotta learn this) there is never enough and not sober me will make poor choices so better to just not put myself in that position.
I mostly didn’t eat meat last week but did eat a little bit, cooking meals for others that include meat offers so much opportunity to nibble!
This week i’m not having any alcohol even on christmas.
I’m going to try to not eat meat. I’m going to get a bag of soy curls tomorrow and try to eat them wherever i’m tempted by the meat they are sooo good. More jackfruit sausages too even though they are super processed.
I have physical therapy this week so i’m hoping they give me some low impact exercises i can do to plump up my bottom!
edit: they stopped selling the soy curls. darthvader nooooo.gif
I’m still in my couchmaxxing era. Still keeping up with my baseline healthy habits but not forcing anything. The improvement will continue in January
Still keeping up with my baseline healthy habits
that’s a solid W!
@moonlake@hexbear.net started how not to diet and like 1/4 way through
already making notes on it like how I need to up my fiber and try cooking without oilYooo that’s awesome! The author also made a cookbook with the same name, you can download the pdf on Anna’s Archive
Hell yeah thanks for this, I’ll check it out
getting proper amounts of fiber is a game changer for real. Just trying to hit high numbers without supplements practically forces you to eat more whole foods!
I try to eat as much avocado as I can afford it’s the most delicious high fiber ingredient that goes with almost everything.
kids these days spending all their money on avocado smdh head
Avocado sounds lovely
rn tho I’m mostly going for stuff like more oatmeal since I got it on hand. Seems to help me out but like first day so gotta keep it uphell yeah i eat oatmeal almost daily it’s really great for your heart!
ever try it savory?
I just made a savory pot the other day, honestly using it as a new grain/carb came to mind once when I was out of every other carb while back. I’ve used it more as a last resort but honestly with how good it is I think/finding out how good for my health it is think it might be my first choice going forward.
have you tried the steel cut/irish style oats? serious gourmet shit and worth the long cooking times.
Miso paste is really good in oatmeal too and you only need a tiny amount so it lasts forever.
I have a bit of steel cut but I’ve always been daunted by how to cook them tbh also fr on the miso paste I mostly used it for miso pasta but I can see about giving it a try with the savory oatmeal next time I make it.
i put the oats in with a ton of water and set a 20 minute timer. Add in frozen veggies and fish sauce and whatever and then restart the timer for another 20m adding more water if necessary. it’s just barely rolling and no lid so the water can escape. After the 40 minutes i just let it go until it’s the consistency of risotto (0-10 minutes) and it’s fucking h e a v e n.
Usually enough for 3/4 servings and so healthy yet doesn’t taste like healthy food!
I’ve decided to help try and save more money next year. i’m going to try and start/finish all the different projects/interests/hobbies i’ve accumulated over the years
that’s a good idea i should do an unfinished project inventory!
Ooh i should probably do that too, that way i don’t just have them floating in my head and end up forgetting stuff.
I think meal prep is a great way to save money. I eat a bunch of oats, rice, lentils, beans and chickpeas which is not only super healthy but also super cheap
What are some of your projects that you want to do?
Yeah the bulk of my meals are cheap stuff but then i go to the grocery store and trying out the new vegan products they have which is where i feel like i spend a lot of my money at.
I’m gonna try to do what the other person said so this list might be long or short but just something for me to use a reference as well.
Tap for list
- Wax some jacket, tarps and bags
- Go through my book and movie backlog
- Get back into fermenting
- Start making my pantry staples like mayo and milk without having to spend money on the vegan versions
- digitize my current book, music, and movie collections so i can distribute it to the masses
- obtain the books, music, and movies i want so i can put them all on my server
- Dive deeper into home servers so i can fully set mine up to do what i want
- Get my other car back into good running condition so i can sell it
- learn how to use my sewing machine for more than just patching stuff up
- learn how to sashiko stitch
- Get back into running and/or boxing
- go camping more often
- guerilla garden using some of my garden seeds
:::
your list made me laugh because I also have bags to wax, my nibling requested more fermented hot sauce, i have a server waiting for me to put arr services on it, need to make garlic oil, have a backlog of books, a bunch of dress patterns and a sewing machine i have been meaning to do for 10 years, need to organize my camping stuff, need to go on more walks… we have the same unfinished projects!!
i have to learn what sashiko stitching is now i’m assuming i’ll be into it.
btw goodwill has cheap rice cookers that are perfect for melting wax!
Those are some cool ass projects! I would love to get into fermentation and guerilla gardening one day
