Jerilyn Winstead Health & Fitness

Day 3 of slow carb diet menu – Hello Hunger

What is the 4 hour body diet? Drinking lots of water!

First of all, having a tiny cheat yesterday (coffee with sugar-free caramel syrup) doesn’t seem to have made a difference. My weight increased two-tenths of a point. That could be to any factor.

As for water, I have a hiatal hernia (I think because I carried four large babies in a row) which causes pretty extreme acid reflux. Besides taking Omeprazole daily (which doesn’t take away all of my heartburn), I have to follow a bunch of lifestyle rules to allow me to sleep at night lying down. These include drinking warm or hot water (I’d switched all my water to room temp or warmer), eating less the last meal of the day, eating supper between 4-6pm, no more food at all after 7pm, no more water after 7pm (tiny sips only). I need at least 4-6 hours after my last meal before I can lie down to sleep. Walk for at least 20 mins after supper – I’ve even done this in 25 degree winter weather in the dark, though usually in the winter I pace inside the house.

So switching to always drinking ice-cold water is a big change for me, but so far it’s been fine. Also drinking lots more water than I’m used to. I still try not to have too much in the evenings, especially as I prefer staying in bed all night for good sleep. I worked consciously to drink more water today. Also because hunger decided to visit me mid-morning.

4 hour body review – hunger

I haven’t felt hungry in a while (a sign of overeating). Mid-morning I began to feel it rather strongly. One of my close friends used to say “Hunger is just fat leaving your body.” That’s to help to not be afraid of hunger. I also just learned that to help our bodies stay younger and not age so fast, it’s helpful to let the body experience some hunger once in a while – in other words, don’t always constantly be full all the time. That expert recommended regularly fasting for either a meal or a day every week.

So though I wasn’t afraid of hunger, it is rather uncomfortable and hard to concentrate when it appears. I happened to be in luck – I’d “inherited” some products from Isagenix after a friend stopped doing the program. Right next to my desk I had a half-full bottle of Isagenix “Snacks” – little vanilla chewable tabs, called wafers, about the size of a Tums, to alleviate hunger.

TWEAK: once in a while, can I eat an Isogenix snack wafer to help alleviate hunger?

Hm, I looked at the ingredients just now and the first one is fructose! Dang! Second ingredient is nonfat dry milk, then whey protein concentrate, calcium, soy, flax seed powder, alfalfa and some vitamins and various things. I only had one, but it did the trick, it tied me over until lunch.

In Tim’s 4 hour body book he does mention that if you experience hunger, to try and get in more protein and larger meals at mealtime, and drink lots of water. He doesn’t recommend snacking at all, but if you do he suggests something healthy like carrots or veggies. I haven’t been having beans with breakfast so that could make a difference with hunger. I’m not ready to start that yet, I love my breakfasts as they are (fried eggs, bacon, veggies, coffee).

Healthy low carb recipes – leftovers for lunch

Today I had my Mexican Pork Chops leftovers for lunch along with my simple plain Greek yogurt for dessert. After adding my monk fruit sweetener, I flavored it with vanilla and almond extracts, then sprinkled cocao nibs from some previous diet plan on top. It was quite yummy. The recipe is in yesterday’s post and it’s a great healthy low carb recipe, fast low carb recipe, and slow carb diet recipe.

Easing back into my light workouts

Still getting over my flu, gradually, and today I did a light workout on my Meta Quest II VR headset with my Supernatural workout program. It’s so fun doing workouts while standing in incredible places like a mountain peak in the Alps or on the Great Wall of China or on a beach in Tahiti or at the Great Pyramid in Egypt.

Supper: Happy Hour

Tonight my husband and I went to the monthly Happy Hour gathering with my writing group. In the Tim Ferriss slow carb diet most red wines are allowed during the week. So even though we were at a wonderful taproom with tons of beer and cider options, luckily they had one tap of a delicious red wine. It was perfect and I enjoyed it – high quality.

TWEAK: Once in a while, can I have fried chicken on the 4 hour body slow carb diet plan?

In the 4 hr body plan, you are to avoid all white carbs and that includes breading on fried foods. So normally you would not have this at all. But at the taproom where we met I had read they had some of the city’s best fried chicken, and had been wanting to try it. So tonight my hubby and I shared the Traditional Fried Chicken Meal. We shared the Caesar Salad (no croutons for me), shared the perfectly-cooked green beans, and we each had two pieces of the fresh fried chicken. It was perfectly crispy on the outside and perfectly tender on the inside. He didn’t care for the lack of spices or flavors or the chicken breast. I enjoyed mine very much, I had red meat. After my two pieces I finished off the meat on his chicken breast. The meal was so yummy and we had a fun time with our friends.

My sweet ender

My meal and red wine was enough that I didn’t crave dessert tonight. Instead I enjoyed the little sweet buzz from the high-quality red wine.

WEEKLY SUMMARY:

Goal  1802525%45%40%50 
DATE: DayWEIGHT:BMI:BODY FAT:BODY H2O:SKEL. MUSC:MET AGE:Ttl lbs lost:
5/7/2023Sui200.72936.643.536.960 
5/8/2023M1199.62936.643.536.9601.1
5/9/2023T2196.42936.643.536.9604.3
5/10/2023W3196.62936.443.637604.1
5/11/2023R4195.82936.443.637604.9
Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail
Jerilyn Winstead Health & Fitness, Uncategorized

DAY 2 of slow carb diet menu – NO HEADACHES!

WEEKLY SUMMARY:

Goal 180 25 25% 45% 40% 50
DATE: WEIGHT: BMI: BODYFAT: BODY H2O: SKEL.MUSC: MET AGE: TOTAL INCHES:
5/7/2023 Su 200.7 29 36.6 43.5 36.9 60 202
5/8/2023 M 199.6 29 36.6 43.5 36.9 60 202
5/9/2023 T 196.4 29 36.6 43.5 36.9 60 202

What is the 4 hour body diet? Tracking data, not just weight!

I’m actually enjoying tracking all this data – it’s easy with the Renpho smart scale and app. I got my real numbers when I weighed myself this morning before my shower. Whew – my body fat percentage is 36.6%, so it’s between my guess of 30% and my end-of-day measurement yesterday of 39%. Per the 4 hour body book my goal as a woman is 25%, so I have a ways to go.

Cold turkey off sugar without headaches

Finally feeling close to my normal energy, I’m almost back up to speed from the flu, and still absolutely no headaches from going cold turkey on sugars and carbs. Not only that, but I’m not craving sweets, either, something else I’ve always had to deal with on other diet plans. My weight is already dropping dramatically, but we all know that’s often from water weight and to not take it too seriously. I’m fine with slow, gradual, steady weight loss and improvement in my numbers over time. So I won’t freak out if the weight goes up and down here or there, as long as I’m making progress over time.

The power of momentum

But I will say that having immediate success is a huge motivator. I’ve noticed in the past that if you can get into the forward-moving momentum of any weight loss plan, it gets easy to stay on it and keep riding that wave. Getting started is often the hard part, and Tim Ferriss in his slow carb diet book (4 hr body) actually talks about reaching that inner place energetically where you’re ready and motivated to focus on real change.
The power of momentum works the other direction as well – most of us have experienced that when we start to cheat a little, it can often snowball into a full day of cheating and then giving up on the diet.

So I want to focus on the forward momentum and ride this wave. Having a fast improvement in numbers right away is a powerful motivator, for sure. It feels darn good!

Lunch at a cafe

Today I met with my writer’s group at a local cafe. Thankfully their simple menu included Chef’s Salad. It was very good; I had it with Ranch dressing. No beans for lunch today.
TWEAK: I didn’t bring my sweetener with me, so I ordered a medium Americano with a Tablespoon of whole cream and sugar-free coffee syrup (caramel). It was pretty good, but I disliked the sugar-free aftertaste.

TIP: Always carry your natural sweetener with you.

Can I do minor tweaks with slow carb diet recipes?

I want to know if I can follow the 4 hour body slow carb diet with minor tweaks here and there – will it still work if I’m sometimes not 100%? We will see. Some diet plans like Keto and Paleo didn’t seem to work for me if I wasn’t following all the rules 100% (or 98%) of the time. So this factor – aka REAL LIFE – will be a part of my 4 hour body review.

Supper: fast low carb recipe

For supper I tried out a recipe in my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook (a great basic cookbook to have and should be in everyone’s kitchen). This was super fast and easy to make as well as being a healthy low carb recipe (aka slow carb recipe). I tweaked it a little from the original.
Mexican Pork Chops

Serves 4.

  • 4 pork chops (ideally 3/4″ thick)
  • black pepper
  • cooking oil for high heat (avocado, macadamia, peanut, etc.)
  • 1 15-oz can of beans (black, red kidney, or pinto beans)
  • 1 cup salsa of your choice
  • 1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro or parsley
  • Several sliced pickled jalapenos (optional)
  • Plain yogurt or sour cream (optional)
  1. Take four pork chops and rub black pepper onto them, then fry in hot oil over medium-high heat for about 2 minutes per side. Remove and drain fat.
  2. Into the same skillet pour 1 can of drained beans. Add 1 cup of salsa. If you have it, throw in some fresh cilantro or parsley. I also threw in some sliced pickled jalapenos with a little jalapeno juice.
  3. Add the pork chops back to the skillet and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, for about 5 minutes or until no pink remains in the pork and the juices run clear.

Serve topped with dollops of plain yogurt or sour cream if desired.

This was quick and easy and we enjoyed it very much. I’ve noticed that the Better Homes and Gardens website has a LOT of awesome-looking recipes for bean and meat dishes, so I’ll have to explore there, too.

My sweet ender

I was wanting a dessert tonight, so I scooped about 3/4 cup of plain Greek yogurt into a bowl and added monk fruit sweetener and a little lemon extract. Stirred it well and enjoyed it with a small spoon to get lots of yummy sweet scoops. It was very good and hit the spot for an ender. Since I’ve just come off of antibiotics, I’m focusing on getting as much plain Greek yogurt into me as I can. The Tim Ferriss slow carb diet also recommends probiotics. I could have added real lemon juice or peel, as Tim does recommend citrus like lemon water, especially on Binge Days.Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Jerilyn Winstead Health & Fitness

Day 1 of slow carb diet menu – 4 hour body review

MONDAY, MAY 8, 2023 – DAY 1:

My weight Sunday morning before starting was 200.7. This morning, after a half-day start yesterday, it’s 199.1. No exercise restarted yet, though I try to get in good steps most every day (daily goal is 8,000, but I have to really work to reach that most days).
Took all my Before Photos this morning.

I am cringing inside, but I’ve included my awful-looking before photos – size 16, at the bottom of this post.

Lunch – Fast low carb recipe

Turkey Black Bean Salad
Serves 4.

I’d remembered one of my all-time favorite recipes from my 20s. It’s very simple and easy. My ham steak was thawed, so for lunch I whipped it up.

Mix together:

  • 1 can of drained black beans
  • 2 bell peppers diced (any color)
  • 2 cups cubed turkey or ham steak

(Feel free to vary these amounts to suit.) Mix and stir in a dressing of 1/4 cup red wine vinegar, 1/4 cup veggie oil, 1 clove of minced garlic, dash of salt, dash of hot pepper flakes. Pour over salad and coat well.

That’s it! Simple, easy, quick, and so delicious for lunch. I had some of that along with my Chipotle leftovers (which I’d almost forgotten about).

Supper – Healthy low carb recipe

For supper I wanted to try out the garlic white bean faux mashed potatoes. My marinated chicken breasts were thawed enough, so I sauteed them in a pan with oil and butter, and sprinkled salt and pepper and seasonings on them (some of which I’d homemade from paleo plans in the past – BBQ dry seasoning was one). For a veggie side I sauteed fresh spinach in a little bit of oil.Chicken breast, sauteed spinach, garlic white bean mash

Garlic White Bean Faux Mashed Potatoes

Serves 2. This is simple and you can tweak it to make it your own.

  1. Heat up a skillet with a combo of butter and oil.
  2. Saute minced garlic (1-3 cloves as you like) for a minute.
  3. Add a can of drained white cannelloni beans. User a masher or fork to mash the beans while they’re cooking.
  4. Add any extra liquid you need (water, broth, or cream) or more butter to get it to the consistency you like.
  5. Salt and pepper to your taste.
  6. If you’d like, add a little grated Parmesan on top.

Day One 4 hour body review

I was getting over the flu so mainly rested a bunch today between doing my work at my desk (I work from home as a freelance professional writer/editor). Regarding my eating I felt surprisingly well. The biggest takeaway – NO HEADACHES! In the past I’ve always experienced detox/sugar headaches whenever I’ve gone cold turkey from all sugar. I think on every single diet this has happened. I couldn’t believe I had no headaches and felt good. I attribute it to the beans. They are a healthy carb, after all, so I’m guessing they are keeping my headaches away. If anyone has heard of The Bean Protocol, a whole eating plan where you eat as many beans as possible as often as possible (from what I understand), you get it that beans are like a super food and do a TON to help regulate the body in many different ways.

My Sweet Ender

Dessert is one of my favorite parts of the day. I always prefer to end a satisfying healthy meal with a tiny bit of sweet as an ender. So tonight I made myself a decaf tiny Italian espresso with monk fruit sweetener and a bit of whole cream. It hit the spot!

Got my smart scale

Tonight I set up my new Renpho smart scale and stepped on it near the end of the day to set it up – I always weigh myself first thing in the morning before stepping into the shower. So my numbers fully clothed at the end of the day showed 202 lbs with 39% body fat! (I had guessed I was around 30% body fat, and for a woman the goal is 25%.) In the Renpho app I put my goal weight at 180, twenty pounds to start. My brother lost just 20 lbs and that made all the difference for him. This is not my normal weighing time so I’m not really counting this number.

Now for the embarrassing Before Photos. Continue at your own risk – you’ve been warned! Size 16, 200 lbs:

Before Photo - Front
Before photo - back
Before photo - side

If I suck in my gut (which I’m not doing here), I look much better. I sometimes remember to do this when in public.Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Jerilyn Winstead Health & Fitness

4 Hour Body Review in Real Time

Day i, Sunday, May 7, 2023. Not my first official day, that’ll be tomorrow. But after returning from a road trip, my weight crossing the 200lb mark, I spent all day today reading and applying The 4 Hour Body book by Tim Ferriss. By lunchtime decided to go for it. I looked in my kitchen and the only protein available was quality hot dogs. So I cooked up a skillet of sliced hot dog with pinto beans, cooking them together. Then I sauteed fresh spinach in another skillet, one of my all-time favorite veggie side. Made for a pretty good first lunch.

From the freezer brought out a variety of meats to thaw during the week (pork chops, bone-in chicken thighs, a ham steak, and chicken breasts, which I put marinade with (balsamic vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper and Italian seasoning).

Slow carb diet recipes begin

I cut out all sugar, milk, and cheese. (I had indulged in a lot of sweets, candy, and desserts on the road trip.) Switched to monk fruit sweetener for my coffee, with whole cream: about 1-2 teaspoons (up to 1 T.) per cup of coffee. After my Italian espresso in the morning, I switch to Cafe Americano (adding a little boiling water to the double espresso shot), then the sweetener and whole cream.

Don’t have to plan out my meals for the week like I usually do. This diet plan is very simple and affordable. Our pantry is already stocked with a variety of both dried and canned beans. Canned beans are the best as they are quick and easy. I’m thawing out several meats. We have several veggies on hand, fresh, frozen and canned, including two containers of fresh baby spinach. I don’t have to put much onto the grocery list, mainly Greek yogurt, monk fruit sweetener, sparkling water, and macadamia oil, which Tim lists as one of the best oils for high-heat cooking. We also have avocado and peanut oils, which I use for heat cooking, and virgin olive oil for low heat and salad dressing. Hubby later told me the macadamia oil was quite expensive, so we won’t get that regularly. (He does the weekly grocery shopping. Yes, I’m that lucky.)

Slow carb diet menu for eating out

Uh-oh! I’m getting ready to leave for my brand-new affirming house church this evening (we call it Group), and I was reminded that we’re supposed to bring our own supper food. I hadn’t remembered or prepared. But in the 4 hour body book it’s mentioned that Chipotle is a great place to get food, as you can build your own meat salad with beans – fresh avocado or guacamole is also recommended once in a while. So I stop there on the way and get a Salad bowl with a base of romaine, topped with Chicken Pastor, lots of veggies, beans, and guacamole. It’s so much food I can only eat half of it at home church, so I save the rest for tomorrow’s lunch. I can have red wine on this 4 hr body plan, but choose not to and also skip the cheeses and crackers and cookies at Group. It’s easy as my supper is filling and Group is stimulating.

Tim recommends Mexican and Thai foods for the easiest way to stay on the slow carb diet menu – any place which abounds in protein, beans, and veggies. One can always get a meat salad at just about any restaurant, and it’s okay if you miss the beans here or there at a meal. (I don’t have them at breakfast.)

Prep day – half-day on the 4 hour body slow carb plan

Sunday was very easy. I also took the time today to take my measurements per the 4 hour body book:
Mermaid Jerilyn, Great Sand Dunes, size 14-16

  • Right upper arm: 13.5″
  • Left upper arm: 13.5″
  • Waist: 36″
  • Hips: 45″
  • Left upper leg: 26″
  • Right upper leg: 26″
  • Both upper legs together: 42″

TOTAL INCHES: 202″

Though not part of these measurements, if you’re interested, my bosom is 42″.

4 hr body tool: smart scale

I also looked into the various body measurement methods/tools Tim recommends, and the most accurate are well over a hundred dollars each. Out of my budget. So I researched smart scales, his next affordable option (though not as accurate), and found one with high reviews and a great price tag, Renpho for around $29 with a beautiful faux-marble design, and ordered it (their basic black one is only $18 currently). It will arrive tomorrow, yay for Amazon!

Prep and first half-day was easy peasy

I’ll take my Before Photos tomorrow morning.Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Jerilyn Winstead Health & Fitness, Life Hacks

What is the 4 hour body diet?

Uh-oh – for various reasons, this Spring of 2023 my weight has crept up over the unacceptable line – 200 lbs! Mermaid Jerilyn size 12

I’m 5’9″ with an hourglass figure and I tend to carry my extra weight
pretty well (in my opinion) – my figure always stays proportionate,
I have a perfect bosom and long legs, I sometimes act and model, and overall I think I look okay. I’ve never stopped expressing myself in my fun, creative fashion. I love myself and am grateful for my body. Here’s a pic of me as Mermaid Jerilyn in 2010 when I was founding my mermaid tail business, AquaTails. I believe I was a size 12 at that time in my early 40s, probably around 150-160 lbs. WOWZA! (Yes, I just “wowza’ed myself lol.)

Lately I’ve been maintaining a weight of around 190-195 for quite a few years, sometimes getting down to 185 or so. I’d prefer to be anywhere between 150-180, or a size 10 again. For most of my young adult life I was a size 10 Medium (even after birthing four large babies!) and I looked good in EVERYTHING. Now I’m a size 16 XL, and it feels unlike my true self, though this is where I’ve been for a while now in my late 40s and early 50s.

Mermaid Jerilyn size 16Here’s a 2022 pic of Mermaid Jerilyn size 16. I’m ready to get back to 10-12 again!

This Spring when I dipped above 200 I said NO. Yes I’ve tried most diet plans and just like everyone else I stopped after a while and gained the weight back. I need to tweak my own plan which works over the long run. I need something which will transform and most of all – STICK. It also has to take into account life events/meals like travel, potlucks, going out to eat, etc. And most of all, DESSERT. Lately I’ve also been gravitating toward gluten-free (except when I’m eating in Europe where it’s not a problem) to help with my very bad chronic acid reflux (which I personally believe is a result of carrying four LARGE babies in a row). My brother shared that after he got back to his normal weight again (185 at 6′) and in awesome shape (he’s a serious road cyclist), all sorts of health problems like acid reflux and his back pain went away. I NEED THIS.

Tim Ferriss Slow Carb Diet

Enter the 4 hour body slow carb plan by Tim Ferriss. I was already going to just cut back on carbs and sugar (I’m a sugarholic), and I decided to revisit his book, The Four Hour Body, since he excels at figuring out effective life hacks – the best results for the least energetic output. I’d read Tim Ferriss slow carb diet plan before but never tried it – what turned me off before was the fact that you eat the same basic meals almost all the time. I prefer variety and am a home gourmet cook, baker, and foodie! I can’t eat just protein, veggies, and beans at every meal!

Well, so maybe I can. I realized that for years now I’ve been eating the same breakfast every day: two fried eggs, sauteed veggies like onion and tomato, or whatever is fresh from the garden (goes so great with eggs!), often pork bacon or turkey sausage, sometimes juice, and always creamy sweet strong coffee from my espresso maker. Basically a traditional English breakfast (I favor onions and tomato) with traditional Italian-style cappuccino.

To give you a quick summary and 4 hour body review from a very thick book, Tim Ferriss’ Slow Carb Diet Plan has five basic rules to follow – it’s pure simplicity and some of these I also learned from eating and drinking in other countries:

  1. No white carbs (no rice of any kind, no bread or grains of any kind, no oats of any kind, anything that could be a white carb like potatoes, but cauliflower is fine since it’s a veggie).
  2. Eat the same basic meals: protein, veggies, beans (can eat just about any type of protein, veggies, and beans, and have as much as you want – but watch chickpeas/hummus and avoid similar “domino foods” which are too easy to eat too much of like nuts and nut butter).
  3. Don’t drink calories. I learned this in Portugal and Italy summer of 2022. They don’t consume giant sugary drinks over there. They drink VERY tiny espressos, lattes, and cappuccinos, and mostly drink water (you have to buy water at restaurants there). Their few soda options that we saw are made from real fruit and are in smallish bottles, and we only had those on very hot days when we needed electrolytes.Cappuccino in Italy
  4. Don’t eat fruit. The sugar factor. Tim shows that humans don’t actually need fruit very often (historically got it only seasonally). And on the cheat day, you can go nuts on fruit in any form.
  5. Take one day off per week and go nuts. This is the golden ticket. It solves the “cheating” problem – you get one whole day a week to have whatever you want – can even eat junk food, carbs, and candy until it makes you sick if you desire. This rule also plays into carb cycling, shocking our body so it doesn’t lower our metabolism threshold and stop weight loss. Tim usually has his on Saturday. I’ll go between Saturday or Sunday, depending on weekend social events. Whenever I crave a “cheat” during the week, I can write the food down to have it on the cheat day in a few days.

Slow carb diet menu

I also decided I can eat beans at most meals (it’s okay to not have them at breakfast). I grew up in Brazil and happen to love beans as well as Mexican food, which goes well with the Tim Ferriss slow carb diet. Beans are actually quite versatile. I learned that you can make mock garlic mashed potatoes from white beans.Chicken, spinach, white bean garlic mash

As far as variety goes, I do love a creative challenge. My challenge is to come up with plenty of variety in my lunches and suppers of protein, veggies, and beans. I’m ready to take on this challenge. I might have a few meals which are always favorites (like Taco Salad) which I can have regularly, too.

One of his suggestions for motivation is to go public with your 4 hour body progress. I wasn’t planning on doing that, but I’m already tracking several numbers like he suggested and felt inspired to do a daily blog on my weight loss journey, to include healthy low carb recipes, fast low carb recipes, slow carb diet recipes, and my real pictures and numbers. Can I indeed come up with variety in my slow carb recipes? In this series we’ll find out.

4 hour body book

That book by Tim Ferriss is quick thick, it has a LOT in it and he suggests no one just read it from beginning to end, but to go to the sections which a person needs at the moment. So besides those Five Basic Rules for the 4 hour body slow carb plan, he has a LOT of extra fine-tuning tips to help you become even more effective at losing weight on your journey. Some of these are especially needed when you plateau. I’ve decided to keep things simple and to start by just focusing on the five basic rules (no change in my light exercising), then gradually add in the other tips when I feel ready. I’m not going to list them all, but here are a few and you can read all the details in The 4 Hour Body Book. In my first week I’ve already added a few of the easiest ones like drinking cold water.

  • DAIRY: avoid milk and cheeses, can have a 1-2 Tb. of whole cream in coffee, can have butter and small amounts of sour cream on your food. Can have plain Greek yogurt, which helps with probiotics.
  • Take PROBIOTICS, either in pill form or in naturally fermented foods like sauerkraut or kimchee or yogurt.
  • The COLD factor: several easy methods to expose your body to cold every day, which burns more energy and helps with weight loss. The simplest one: drink ice-cold water, especially upon first waking.
  • Make sure you drink lots of WATER and get plenty of PROTEIN.
  • Track lots of DATA, not just weight. He shows how to get the best numbers for BMI, body fat percentage, body water, BMR (base metabolic rate), metabolic age, and also total inches (biceps, chest, waist, hips, thighs and thighs together, all added up). I couldn’t afford his expensive ideas, so I opted for the highly affordable smart scale option. I’ve begun using and will soon review the Renpho smart scale and app. I really love all the data it gives me, including muscle mass, bone mass, and the kind of fat I’m carrying. It’s okay with me if it’s not as accurate as the more expensive options like body ultrasounds. I also really appreciate Tim’s advice for women not to pay too much attention to any weight gain the ten days leading to our moon cycle.
  • Make your diet journey a GAME and have ACCOUNTABILITY in some way; Tim provides several ideas.
  • EAT within 30-60 MINUTES upon waking in the morning. Tim has tried and tested many variables so when he gives advice like this, you can trust it’s important and makes a real difference.
  • Don’t work out too often, too long, or too intensely. (Read his book for details.)
  • Walk or move (he gives specific quick muscle contracting exercises) before and after meals, especially on cheat day (also called Binge Day).
  • Tim has a whole chapter just on extra tips like the one above on how best to navigate Binge Day, including a specific yet simple supplement routine.
  • CHEW 20 times per bite and eat slowly.
  • Don’t SNACK between meals. Don’t have sugar. (I’m using monk fruit sweetener, which is my favorite natural sweetener.)

Many of these are things we already all know from trying so many diets!

Mermaid Jerilyn, size 16, Inisheer in 2019

4 hour body review

So in this blog series I will share my journey, my data and pictures (be prepared for my raw Before Photo, next post), my slow carb recipes, slow carb diet menu, foods, and ideas. This will be an ongoing living 4 hour body review. If you’ve read this far you’ve gotten a basic idea of what is the 4 hour body diet. I highly recommend you read the slow carb diet plan in Tim Ferriss’ 4 Hour Body Book. Even better, try it out with me and introduce yourself in the comments! Or post any questions. LET’S DO THIS.

Zombie larping, size 14-16

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Jerilyn Winstead Colorado, Encyclopedeia Magica, Jer's Updates

What I wished I’d known my first time at LeakyCon

Yes, I read through many first-timers tips before attending my first LeakyCon in Denver, 2022. I even attended the Ickle Firsties meetup at the convention. While these were all good and helpful, I felt like several key tidbits of information were left out, and I wished I’d known them.

Tidbit #1: Ribbons are a thing.

Okay, I actually did find out about this really fun trend ahead of time, and came prepared with ribbons. But many first-timers knew nothing about this, I discovered. So here’s the thing: attendees at LeakyCon really love handing out and receiving ribbons to attach to their lanyard, eventually creating a very long trail of ribbons down their front, lol. The fun part is anyone can print these ahead of time (not just the merchants and shops), and you can have anything printed on them: a fun picture like Luna Lovegood’s glasses, or funny quotes from the Harry Potter books or other sayings. One ribbon simply said “Grandpa” and made me laugh. I printed three different colored ribbons with different words to help promote my book and YouTube channel (I am a fantasy author, after all). My quotes were also related to Hogwarts, just as my books are, indirectly (I’ve written a real potions textbook which probably escaped the Restricted Section at Hogwarts…)

Tidbit #2: Bring a water bottle

Even more awesome if you have a Hogwarts water bottle or one in your house colors. Yes I know I live in Colorado, and everyone in Colorado always carries around a water bottle. But I was going to be in a hotel the whole time, and who wants to carry one when they’re cosplaying? (I cosplayed Professor Trelawney.) I discovered that most attendees knew this tidbit and carried water bottles. And that the hotel was sometimes lagging in refilling water coolers in the rooms, and not all the rooms had water. I was so busy running from one session or panel to another, that it was challenging finding time to go look for liquid sustenance. I sat through the Hufflepuff meetup very thirsty. I even tried using my wand, shouting “Aquamenti!” at the water cooler several times, to no avail. The cooler suddenly refilled just as the session ended, though I didn’t see anyone fill it, so maybe my spell decided to work after all.

Tidbit #3: Remember to always carry your wand

Speaking of wands, whether you bring one or buy one there (so many cool wand shops!), be prepared to always have it on you, just like at Hogwarts. There are merchants selling wand sheaths, too. This was one of my favorite things about LeakyCon! Finally being somewhere where it’s normal to always have your wand on you! (I kept forgetting and having to run back to my room again.)

Tidbit #4: You’re on your own for meals

I was used to the writer’s conference where meals are a part of the ticket and everyone eats together. I searched and searched online, but could find no information on meals at LeakyCon. That’s because there is none. Everyone is completely on their own for all meals and snacks. At the hotel in Denver, they offered a breakfast for pay (not included with the room) and there was a pub restaurant for supper. They had wonderful service, but such limited staff at the pub that everyone had to wait 45 minutes to an hour to finally get their food. For lunch, the hotel offered several offerings in the merchants hall, for cash only (see Tidbit #4). There were a few places to eat nearby, but not very many, and I heard attendees complaining at the lack of local options. One couple ordered pizza delivery, and waited at least two hours to get it! (I’m not sure how long because I left to get ready for the Esther Earl Ball.)

Tidbit #5: Cash is king

I ended up having to retrieve cash from the hotel ATM (paying a nice fee) twice. Not only were the lunch foods cash-only, but I needed cash to leave a room tip. And it does help the merchants to pay with cash. Most merchants accepted cards, but you never know who might not. I ended up having to run to the ATM to get cash so I could buy a book from one of the presentor’s. Thank goodness he waited for me while selling and signing books to others. Next time I’ll bring cash for all my shopping.

Tidbit #6: Prepare for some culture shock, especially if alone

If you go with friends you might not deal with this so much, but I often find myself trying out new experiences, countries and groups solo. And just like in the SCA, with larping, and with international travel, I experienced bodily fatigue and feeling “out of it” just from culture shock, especially on the first day. It’s okay, just stay hydrated, try new things, take breaks and power naps if you can, make sure you eat. By the end of the weekend I was adjusted and didn’t want it to end.

Tidbit #7: How to dress for the Esther Earl Ball

One fun thing about LeakyCon’s Saturday night ball is that you can dress however you want. There were people in the same casual or house clothes from the day. Some wore modern ball gowns, some wore medieval gowns like me, and some wore Victorian-era ball gowns. Several cosplayers came right in their cosplay, allowing us to dance with Molly Weasley, Ginny Weasley, a couple of Hagrids, a glowing Patronus, and Bellatrix LeStrange. I found myself wishing I’d done the same. I even almost ran back up to my room to change out of my medieval gown and back into my Trelanwey cosplay. They were giving and having so much fun! But I didn’t. I’ll simply stay in cosplay next time.

Tidbit #8: The sessions are more fun that you think

When I was planning ahead, the panels and sessions only sounded “okay” to me, and I chose just a smattering of them to attend. But when I actually tried them, I discovered they were more fun than I expected. I ended up wishing my broken Time-Turner actually worked so I could attend a couple of them at the same time. Make sure not to miss the Wizard Rock Cafe.

Tidbit #9: Every LeakyCon is a little bit different – plan for the littles

I learned several things about LeakyCon. One is that it is a traveling con, and attendees go to wherever it is being held each year. Two is that each venue and event will be a little bit different. I heard that the one in Dallas has the four house common rooms to relax and hang out in. In Denver one “Quiet Room” was available, but no comfy chairs in there. Also, there wasn’t much for the littles to do in Denver, I noticed. There was a little craft area with two self-directed fun crafts in the merchant’s room, and that was about it. Most of the littles wouldn’t enjoy the sessions. If you’re bringing littles with you, search the panels ahead of time — they might enjoy the cosplay contest — and make a plan of what they might like to do. (I have some awesome creative ideas for sessions I want to present, and if they choose me going forward, we will have some rocking activities which even the littles will go crazy over.)

You will have fun

Everyone is so friendly, the wares so unique, the panels and sessions suprisingly interesting, the cosplay delightful, the Wizard Rock rocks, and the Esther Earl Ball is a blast. No matter what, have fun! I know you will. It turns out that attending LeakyCon is addicting. I’m alread planning on next year. (And FYI, they are going to be expanding to add more fandom things, like elves and dwarves, hobbits, D&D, and more!)

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail
Jerilyn Winstead Life Hacks

What if the Story Went Like This? (for my Christian friends)

In New York City there was a trans woman named Meredith. She loved God, and gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly – in fact, she felt completely loved and accepted by Him. But she was too afraid to ever go into any church, based on many of her friends’ treatment by Christians.

One day at about three in the afternoon, she had a vision. She distinctly saw an angel of God, who came to her and said, “Meredith!”

Meredith stared in fear. “What is it, Lord?” she asked.

The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor and caring for those with AID’s have come up as a memorial offering before God. Now go to Long Island and bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. He is staying with Steve the business man, whose house is by the sea in Montauk.”

When the angel who spoke to him had gone, Meredith gathered her closest friends and consulted with them. They agreed she should listen to the voice of God and go. Meredith was very nervous, because she had heard of “Super pastor” Peter, who had founded several evangelical mega-churches around the U.S. So her closest friend, a gay man named Nick, went with her.

Peter’s Vision

About noon the following day, Pastor Peter went up on the roof balcony to pray. He became hungry and wanted something to eat, and while the meal was being prepared, he fell into a trance while meditating. He saw heaven opened and something like a large sheet being let down to earth by its four corners. It contained all kinds of four-footed animals, as well as reptiles and birds – even unnatural-looking deep sea creatures. Then a voice told him, “Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.”

“Surely not, Lord!” Peter replied. “I have never eaten or done anything impure or unclean. I have always followed the Bible in all things. I guard my heart from temptation. I love the sinner but hate the sin.”

The voice spoke to him a second time, “Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.”

This happened three times, and immediately the sheet was taken back to heaven.

While Pastor Peter was wondering about the meaning of the vision, Meredith arrived at the house and spoke into the gate buzzer, asking if Pastor Peter was staying here.

While the pastor was still thinking about the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Simon, a trans woman and her gay friend is looking for you. So get up and go downstairs. Do not hesitate to go with them, for I have sent them.”

Peter went down and said to them, “I’m the one you’re looking for. Why have you come?”

Nick replied, “We have come from New York City. My friend, Meredith, is a God-fearing trans woman, who is respected by everyone in our community. A holy angel told her to ask you to come to her house so that she could hear what you have to say.”

Peter was so surprised, he invited them into the house to be his guests. Luckily his friend Steve and he had recently been having discussions about the LGBTQ+ community, commenting on how they didn’t know anyone from this community themselves. In fact, they knew of no Christian who had any relationships within the LGBTQ+ community – none were found in any churches they knew of, and they had connections with thousands of evangelical churches, large and small.  

Peter at Meredith’s House

The next day Peter started out with them, and some of the believers from Montauk went along. They arrived at Meredith’s house in Park Slope, Brooklyn. Meredith had arranged for many of her friends to come over – almost all of them from the LGBTQ+ community, and a couple of witches were in the group, too.

Some of the Christians would not go in, it was too unnerving, and they were grossed out and felt extremely uncomfortable. They got online and soon all sorts of social media comments and rumors were flying all over the internet, talking about how the pastor must have lost his mind. Or maybe he would go in and tell them about what sinners they are, quote the Bible verses which speak against homosexuality and witchcraft and what evil, unnatural sins those are, and that they have to stop behaving that way immediately if they want to accept the gracious salvation and new life from Christ. Preaching the word while being as loving as possible.

“That must be what he’s doing,” they said. “Because if he now accepts them as they are, all of a sudden, in their sinful lifestyle, he’s turned away from the Bible and must be a heretic, no longer a true Christian. His churches will die.”

Peter entered the house, and Meredith was overcome by the presence of God in him, and fell to the floor. But Peter helped her up. “Stand up,” he said, “I’m just a regular guy, myself. I struggle as much as you do.”

Peter went into the living room and found a large gathering of people. He said to them: “You are well aware that it is against the Bible for a Christian to accept or associate with the LGBTQ community or lifestyle, or with pagans and witches. But God has shown me that I should not call anyone impure or unclean. So when I was sent for, I came without raising any objection. I have to admit, I am a bit shocked, myself. This goes against what I’ve always believed the Bible says. May I ask why you sent for me?”

Meredith answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes stood before me and said, ‘Meredith, God has heard your prayers and remembered your gifts to the poor. Send to Long Island for Simon who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Steve the business man, who lives by the sea in Montauk.’ So I consulted with my friends, then came to find you. Thank you, pastor, for coming. Now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to tell us.”

Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every community the one who fears him and does what is right. You know the message God sent to everyone, announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ, who is Lord of all. You know how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and power, and how he went around doing good and healing all who were under the power of the devil, because God was with him.”

“We are witnesses of a new life lived within God through Jesus Christ. We teach what he did in his ministry two thousand years ago. They killed him by hanging him on a cross, but God raised him from the dead on the third day and caused him to be seen. He was not seen by all the people, but by witnesses whom God had already chosen—by those who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name.”

While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The evangelical Christians who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the homosexual community – and witches, too! For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God, of all things!

Then Peter said, “Surely no one can stand in the way of their being baptized with water. They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.” So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days and teach them more – for no other Christian had ever associated with them.

(inspired by The RobCast episode of 12/7/21: “A Brief Guide to Ecstasy” on Acts 10)

Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail
Jerilyn Winstead Uncategorized

How Salmon Rushdie “Satanic Verses” influenced Game of Thrones

As a writer, I read far and wide. I read so many various types of things (as well as watch many shows and listen to podcasts), that later I might vaguely recall an interesting detail, but not remember exactly where I read or heard it. Writers often read widely, and our creative minds then take disparate elements from everything we’ve experienced in life to create new ideas. Most of the time this is done unconsciously – it’s our funny, creative minds at work.

Salmon Rushdie Satanic Verses

Recently a funny thing happened. I had finally gotten myself into The Satanic Verses enough to keep reading it – I’d tried previously, but had trouble getting used to Salmon Rushdie’s style of writing, which is very good, but very different – he’s extremely loquacious. All of these extra words were forcing me to slow way down while reading his novel, which was an interesting effect and a welcome one. I was struggling to get into it, when I skipped ahead and speed-read a few sections, to try to see if it was worth the extra work. I also happened to be re-watching the Game of Thrones HBO series at the same time. And suddenly my mind started picking up on several similar particular details between the two stories – this was like finding hidden “Easter Eggs.” There are too many of them to be coincidence. Salmon Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses was published in 1988. George R R Martin’s A Game of Thrones A Song of Ice and Fire was published twelve years later, in 1996.

A Game of Thrones – A Song of Ice and Fire

I propose my theory that George R R Martin read and was influenced by Salmon Rushdie’s The Satanic Verses, in his writing of A Game of Thrones book series, albeit unconsciously. This is a guess on my part, my opinion, I have no idea which books George R R Martin has read. The Satanic Verses is not listed as one of George R R Martin’s favorites or recommendations. But I will go over the various detailed similarities I found in Salmon Rushdie’s Satanic Verses, some of which are very strong, some general or a real stretch, and let’s see what you think. When put all together, I think it makes a strong case. I’ve googled this, and no one else seems to have picked up on it. (Maybe it’s all in my mind…)

Game of Thrones Design

I found twenty correspondences between the two very-long stories:

  1. In overall story design, we have the similarity of both stories taking us all over the world to various cultures. In The Satanic Verses we go from the icy and snowstorm peak of Mt. Everest, to the ancient villages of the Arabian desert, to the busy metropolitan cities of London, Bombay and New York. In GoT it is all set in the same time period, but we go from the frozen north wastes beyond the Wall to the Arabian and Egyptian-like culture and cities in the far deserts to the east, to the busy, dirty, metropolitan cities on various continents.
  2. In both stories we have, right from the very beginning, characters dying or being killed regularly throughout the story in dramatic ways. More so in A Game of Thrones.
  3. In The Satanic Verses, in the sections about the ancient city of Jahilia (Parts II and VI), there is strong female character, Hind. She is a strong and beautiful, a seeming ever-vibrant queen-like figure (the Grandee’s wife, and generally the real power behind the Grandee, who rules the city), living in her high, majestic palace overlooking the city of Jahilia. Just like Cersei Lanister, who is actually a queen.
  4. Hind’s heraldic sigil is a red lion.
  5. When Hind’s husband describes his marriage, he says “We are a good pair, ice and fire. Her family shield, the fabled red lion, the many-toothed manticore…” [Italics mine] Of course, in Game of Thrones: A Song of Ice and Fire the story refers to Daenerys Targaryen and John Snow as the pair of ice and fire – the love interest. And Cersei Lanister’s sigil is a golden lion on a red background. But there are several other comparisons between these two interesting ladies, Hind and Cersei, as you’ll see next.
  6. Incidentally, the name “Circe” is mentioned in The Satanic Verses twice, referring to the ancient Greek tale of Circe the powerful enchantress, who turned a group of men into pigs.
  7. With Hind it is well-known (by her husband and the entire city) that she sleeps around with many men, especially younger men, even though she is married. Sexually scandalous, like Cersei.
  8. In The Satanic Verses, there is a religious temple which is Hind’s symbol of power, she is associated with it (a temple to a goddess and other deities). In one scene in Part IV, near the end of her story, Hind watches from a tall tower in her luxurious palace as this temple is destroyed by her enemies – signaling the end of her power and influence. In A Game of Thrones, also near the end of her story, Cersei stands in a high tower in her luxurious palace watching the destruction of the large city temple, destroyed by her own nefarious plans, because the temple power was threatening her own and had become her enemy. In this case the destruction of the temple was victory for the queen, not her defeat.
  9. When Hind realizes her power is over, she realizes “I may not be able to reverse the flow of history, but revenge, at least, is sweet.” She puts all her focus on revenge. Cersei is known to do the same – always after revenge, especially after she loses her three children.
  10. Near the end of the entire story, as he is becoming unhinged, Gibreel with his powerful magic trumpet Azraeel, causes great destruction with fire in the city – setting fire wantonly to buildings, things, people. Daenerys does the same with her powerful dragons – this is a turning point, the moment where she starts to become unhinged inside.
  11. Gibreel, one of the main characters, develops a god-complex more and more, becoming mentally unstable near the end, believing he really is the arch-angel Gabriel, doing God’s bidding. Daenarys suffers a similar inner journey, believing only she knows what is truly good and right – she starts developing a god-like complex and is just starting to become mentally unhinged at the end of her story. Both characters die at the end (yes, I know the game of thrones HBO series departed from the books actually written by George R R Martin in their later seasons).
  12. From The Satanic Verses, Part II: “Hamza, understanding that the night will be full of terrors…” Sound familiar? From Game of Thrones HBO series (and in the books I presume): “For the night is dark and full of terrors.”
  13. In the Arabian city of Jahilia, there is a festival night where everyone wears masks. Some young men take this opportunity to attack and kill their enemies while masked. In Game of Thrones, in the Arabian and Egyptian-style city of Mereen, wealthy young men form a group of assassins who wear masks to attack and kill their enemies.
  14. In Part V of The Satanic Verses, the word “imp” is repeated many times, especially by the character Sisodia, who stutters (which stutter Salmon Rushdie uses for his own diabolic purposes – brilliant!).
  15. There is a whole section in Part VI of The Satanic Verses which is all about a brothel and the whores who live there. There are many scenes in A Game of Thrones novel series set in and around brothels and whores.
  16. The female brothel-keeper in Salmon Rushdie’s Satanic Verses hides behind a black curtain. It is revealed that she is an imp – only three feet tall. GoT has a very famous imp main character, we all love him! By contrast, Tyrion Lanister doesn’t hide, but is in prominent circles, in the public’s eye by the end of his story – although he begins by spending most of his time in the brothels!
  17. In Part III of The Satanic Verses, we meet a female character who is “six feet tall, straight-backed, her hair hacked short as any man’s…” Just like Brienne of Tarth in GoT! Only in the first instance, Rushdie’s character is an old lady with this description, well past her youth of striking beauty. Brienne of Tarth is in the prime of her life – beautiful and powerful and tall.
  18. In Rushdie’s novel, there is a beautiful young lady with ice-white hair, who is often referred to as the “ice queen.” Of course, Daenarys Targaryen also has ice-white hair, and is also referred to as the ice queen – both for sometimes the same reason, that they are ice-cold towards men.
  19. These last two are a little bit of a stretch, but still. In The Satanic Verses a main character is called “Mahound.” Similar to “The Hound.”
  20. Here’s for a real stretch. In Gibreel’s angelic POV, he seems to be above the world sometimes, when he dreams, seeing things from an angel’s POV. Similarly, in the opening credit scene of Game of Thrones HBO series, we are looking through a POV of someone high above, looking at the world below, peering through and adjusting an eyeglass, etc. Like from an angel’s POV, above everything, seeing everything.

George R R Martin Homepage

Of course I don’t see anything to prove this on George R R Martin’s homepage, in the Game of Thrones HBO series, watching the game of thrones online or reading George R R Martin’s books (of which I’ve only read Game of Thrones A Song of Ice and Fire so far). My own creative mind just happened to make these connections this past summer. Funny how our minds work…

You can Watch the Game of Thrones Online

or on TV and also read Salmon Rushdie Satanic Verses. Can you spot these and maybe more hidden Easter Eggs? What do you think – are there enough clues here to make my theory seem plausible? Or is this all nonsense and am I totally full of it? Leave your comments below – I’m genuinely curious.Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Jerilyn Winstead Life Hacks

Why I love FlyLady and the FlyLady Cleaning Schedule (for someone who doesn’t clean)

If you’re anything like me, housecleaning is on the bottom of your list, if on your list at all. Like, there are so many more interesting things I’d rather be doing, like starting a new knitting or craft project, working on my writing, reading a good book, playing my computer game, watching an awesome TV show, going on a bike ride or hike or taking a catnap.

But I also want a clean house. It doesn’t have to be spotless, the lived-in look is fine, but I want it to be generally clean on a regular basis. I just don’t want to do it myself. And I don’t always have the income to hire a cleaning lady (even when I do, I can only pay for her to come once a month – what about the other 29 days?)

Why I Love FlyLady

Over the years of having, raising, and sometimes homeschooling four kids close in age, I’ve tried various cleaning ideas and methods. I’ve even done about half of the method from The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Maria Kundo. That one was fun but very intense – both in time and energy. And later I wished I hadn’t gotten rid of some specific things. But it was nice to do it as a one-time thing, purging a lot of my stuff and getting rid of most of my paper files and clutter.

For me, the FlyLady system has proven the best, the easiest and the most effective, even when I haven’t done it consistently. (By the way, FlyLady does not have an affiliate program and I’m not getting anything for this review – I just love it so much.)

Why does it work so well?

  • Marla Ciley, who started FlyLady, knows exactly our struggles with clutter, lack of motivation, distractedness, it-never-quite-gets-done mindset. She’s been through it and devised ingenious methods for getting the house decluttered and clean anyway. All while learning to love ourselves, to think more positively, to take care of all parts of ourselves and our families, etc.
  • The FlyLady system is built on learning one small habit at a time. You start with the simple task of shining your kitchen sink every morning. With FlyLady’s 31 Babysteps, anyone can learn these easy, daily habits, slowly building up a lifestyle of organization and cleaning which makes it seem as if your house is cleaning itself. These habits are easy, simple and quick to implement.
  • Marla understands behavior patterns, and her system sends you emails throughout the day to encourage, remind and enable you to succeed.
  • If you mess up, stop doing it for a while, or miss a few days, it’s no problem, you can just jump right back in (and forgive yourself while you’re at it).

What is the FlyLady Cleaning Schedule?

The FlyLady system is wonderful, but it can be a little overwhelming to understand, navigate and implement – not because her website doesn’t have all the information (it does, loads of info – everything you need), but because there are so many layers to her program that it’s hard to get the big picture of it all. I highly recommend a delightful novel written with the character implementing the program and changing her life through the process. This book is a keeper: Hidden Treasures by Paddi Newlin, found on Amazon.com. FlyLady also has a recommended book, which I haven’t yet read, called Sink Reflections by Marla Ciley (found on Amazon.com and on FlyLady’s FlyShop).Many readers have said that they like this, her original book, better than her more recent one, The C.H.A.O.S. Cure. From what I’ve rea, they’re both similar enough I would just get one.

For your reference, here is the Big Picture of the FlyLady Cleaning Schedule:

  1. Start with learning The 31 BabySteps. (Just this alone will transform your home and life.) This will be your first month.
  2. Once you finish the 31 BabySteps, jump into where everyone is in the daily emails. Add the Weekly Home Blessing Hour.
  3. Then add the Habit of the Month. I don’t know about you, but having checklists and goals like this is fun.
  4. Next, start tackling the Zones. The emails will instruct which zone you are in each week, and the specific tasks to do each day for that zone.
  5. Last, enjoy all the extras in the daily emails, including testimonials, “Afternoon Tea” live video sessions with FlyLady, the latest deals in her FlyShop, etc.

Note: FlyLady now has a new FlyLady Express option, where you can get her many daily emails sent in one concise email a day. This option costs $4.99/mo, however, because of the time it takes her to pull these together every day. But she firmly believes in her method of us getting emails throughout the day for reinforcement, encouragement and reminders. I find that when I’m actively doing the FlyLady system, the many emails don’t bother me too much – I simply read the ones that peak my interest, and delete the rest.

FlyLady Pairs Perfectly with Norwex

I’ll put a plug in here because I so strongly love these products, I became a consultant to get these awesome cleaning aids at a discount. Norwex has simple, green cleaning solutions for every part of your home and body. Their Envirocloth and body cloths are made with silver, so they do not get mildewy. When you rub it against itself, it kills 99% of all germs. This means you can actually clean your house with a Norwex Envirocloth and hot water – no need for toxic or any other cleaning agents.

Yes, you read that right. All you need is your Norwex Envirocloth and hot water. Talk about ease and simplicity, as well as being green for the Earth. I’ve found that the tight weave of the Envirocloth picks up and cleans my kitchen counters SO much better than my kitchen cloths I was using. This tightly-woven silver-infused cloth also works great as a Body Cloth, which exfoliates and cleans your skin and face, as well as removing makeup. Good-bye, make-up wipes!

Check out these incredible products here.

Helpful Links & Ideas for the FlyLady Cleaning Schedule

Because I like games and tactile motivators, I came up with a Mancala FlyLady BabySteps Game:

  1. Use a standard Mancala board, but have all different color stones (any kind of stone, real or glass, or beads, etc.)
  2. For each BabyStep, I choose a particular stone to represent that task; IE., I chose white for “Shine your kitchen sink” because my kitchen sink is white. Each day when I complete this new habit, I move that stone along in the mancala board. I do this with each of the 31 BabySteps as applicable (some of them are one-time tasks). I include the longer depression on the end of the board when moving the stones around the board.
  3. Each day I move a stone and remember what I’m supposed to do (Hot Spot for 2 mins; Check my Control Journal, etc.).
  4. It’s fun, and the idea is that by the time each stone starts collecting in the starting depression, it means I’m doing that task as a daily habit. The starting depression should fill up as I near the end of the 31 Babysteps. (And I can have a stone keep going around if I still need the reminder.)

Another Tip: FlyLady has you build (or you can buy) a Control Journal, your central notebook to organize your life and home. You can make it completely from scratch, but I fell in love with this Etsy shop’s PDF version of the FlyLady Control Journal Template. When I asked, she even made me a 31 BabyStep Checklist, too. Etsy.com is a great resource for your Control Journal.

Helpful Links for getting started with FlyLady:

If you want a clean house, but don’t like to clean, this is for you.

I’m only into the 31 BabySteps by about a week, but already my home is looking cleaner and more feng shui. Granted, I didn’t have a huge cluttered mess to begin with, and the FlyLady system works miracles for those starting out with such a challenge. In my house, having several small spaces decluttered and my house already a little cleaner is blessing me in so many ways, who would have thought?

Comment below if you have used and/or like the FlyLady system, and also comment below if you’d like me to get you a discount to Norwex products on my site. I will see what I can do for you. 🙂Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail

Jerilyn Winstead Life Hacks

Let me Define Larping – and its Unexpeced Blessings

Besides wanting to define larping here with its interesting and unexpected blessings, I’ll share with you some larping costumes I’ve worn.

Define Larping

Larping means Live Action Role Play. It’s like playing D&D or another tabletop role-play game, only instead of sitting around a table rolling dice to see if you’ve picked the lock, we’re actually out in nature and have to literally pick a lock with lock picks. It’s like an adventure computer game, similar to Skyrim, for example, only instead of sitting home watching a screen, we’re actually running around in the real weather in the woods, joining guilds, going on quests, exploring crypts and dungeons, dealing with politics with the nobility, and fighting large battles while also handling all kinds of weather and conditioning our bodies with trekking through hill and dale and dealing with snow, rain, cold or heat.

In other words, it’s like feeling totally alive and living every moment.

It’s like a survival challenge in a made-up world. Survival in a medieval fantasy setting with elves, dwarves, wizards and fae, or in a post-apocalyptic setting with zombies, Raiders, mutated monsters and human factions, or in an Urban Fantasy setting with werewolves and vampires, or in a…well, you get the idea.

What is larping really like?

Until you actually try it, it’s difficult to convey what it’s really like, but I’ll try. Do you remember playing make-believe when you were a kid? It’s like that, only with adults who know how to craft the most amazing costumes, make-up and accessories with real-looking foam boffer weapons of all kinds.

Does the crypt really look like a crypt? No, it is actually a girl scout cabin on the site we rented for the weekend (one weekend a month, with a few months off in winter). There’s a Marshal there, running this particular quest, and they describe what we “see” before we start this adventure:

“Going down the dark stairs you come into a crypt, with dust and cobwebs everywhere, sarcophagi along the walls…”

There are some decorations in the cabin to make it look cool, like maybe some LED candles or medieval-style torches, with a treasure chest in one spot (which may be trapped), some coins in a golden bowl in another area, etc.

You will be amazed at what the human imagination can do. When we’re in the moment, playing our character, and an NPC monster is coming at us with swords, it really feels like we’re adventuring in a deep, dark crypt and fighting for our lives. Your adrenaline kicks in, you go into fight or flight mode, and the magic happens.

What is an NPC?

Anyone familiar with computer gaming know that an NPC is a “non-player character.” Basically these are the people and creatures you meet when you’re playing the game, be they local townspeople, or the giant rat attacking you or the undead swarming the night. Or the newly-turned vampire hunting for blood in the woods near your path to your cabin. Or the barbarian tribe we have to negotiate peace treaties with. Or the fae queen trying to lure you into following her into the forest…

In larping, we have volunteers play the many varied NPCs. In my own local Alliance Denver Larp I play in, when a person chooses to NPC for a whole weekend, they get to go for free, with meals and lodging provided. The costumes and make-up are also provided, and as an NPC one weekend I got to play a drunken towns person in the tavern, a funny, friendly goblin, a newly-turned vampire out for blood, and a shambling zombie going right through enemy lines. It was so much fun.

Speaking of cost

So if you NPC all weekend, your event is free AND you’re rewarded with points and such which will later help you with your character development, AND with our local chapter, for every five events you NPC full-time, you get a FREE Player Character (PC) weekend event.

When you’re not NPCing, you’re playing your main character, called your PC (Player Character). To attend my local Alliance event as a PC, it costs anywhere from $50-$80 for lodging and the event itself, then another $20-$25 or so for meals (three meals provided over the weekend). My annual membership is $30. First-time players usually get a free or deeply discounted weekend event, just to try it out.

I could go real cheap by tent camping, which costs less, and bringing my own food. But with tent camping, for my character, not only is it much more work, but I’m never safe because I can’t ward it against monsters, so I could be attacked at any time in the night. If I’m by myself in my tent, my chances of survival are not high. So I opt to pay the extra $20-$30 to stay in a cabin with other adventurers. This way someone is usually able to ward the cabin (a magical protection which most monsters cannot enter), or even if we are attacked, there are plenty of others in there and we can fight together.

With the food,  by opting for the meal plan for an extra $20 or so, I don’t have to pack and bring coolers, cooking tools and food. I can simply go to the tavern at the set times and enjoy a hot, home-cooked meal.

So for a full weekend event, it usually costs me around $70-$85, depending on the site, meal plan, and particular costs. Our chapter generally hosts one weekend event a month, taking 1-3 months off in the winter. There are several larps here in Colorado, and one of the medieval fantasy types, called Nero, larps all year long (yes, that means in the snowy mountains, sleeping in cabins with no heat, unless they bring their own propane heaters).

Larping’s Unexpected Blessings

  • When I first started larping, it was partly because I didn’t have the time to fully participate in the medieval re-enactment society (SCA), my first love. With the SCA, to really become a part of the community, you have to attend every event and activity (like weekly fighter’s practice and baronial meetings, guild meetings and weekend events) in order to get to know people and get the most out of the experience. I just didn’t have the time while I was running a couple of businesses and parenting four teenagers. With larping, you make friends immediately in the survival environment and going to an event once a month is enough.
  • At the time, my business was dying and I was under an incredible amount of stress – as in not sleeping at night and trying not to have a nervous break-down. I couldn’t get out from under the pressure, couldn’t get my mind to stop thinking about it for a moment. Larping is so immersive, it was the one place where I could actually forget my troubles and do something completely different, a true escape, pushing my body’s limits and recharging my emotional creativity. I could be someone else for a weekend, a leafy dryad having medieval adventures. It was a life-saver for me when I most needed it.
  • I really want to travel the world, and am working toward that goal. Until I am doing that regularly, larping is a way to travel to a different “dimension,” with some of the same benefits of globe-trotting – being in a completely new culture and environment, dealing with challenges, experiencing new things, meeting new people, creating amazing memories.
  • A truly unexpected blessing I’ve noticed: I’ve interacted with a couple of people who have a physical deformity. In our modern youth-loving beauty culture, they’re usually seen as defective and different, and I imagine they’re treated differently, even if they’re just stared at. But in the larp culture, these players can play an interesting character and whatever their physical “weakness” is in the modern world, works perfectly in the fantasy world, enhancing it, in fact. These adventurers are seen and treated the same as everybody else – they are simply another adventurer with a war wound, perhaps, or a mutation caused by the bombing and radiation after the government tried to eradicate all the zombies. Or maybe it’s a trait they were born with, being part tree (or part elf, or part hippogriff, etc.). We’re all the same, just trying to survive in this new world.

I’ve included several photos of me in my various larping costumes – I mostly do Alliance Larp, Denver chapter, which is high fantasy (like LOTR and Narnia). But I also like to play Dystopia Rising when I can (post-apocalyptic zombie world).

Comment below your reactions and if you’d like to learn more about larping – I’ve been enjoying it tremendously these last three years and am willing to answer any of your questions (and continue to write endlenssly about it).Facebooktwitterredditpinterestlinkedinmail