Jake1989

Day 22 2 Dec. 2013 Well, it's been a long time since I've updated... but I haven't completely fallen off the wagon. For a while I was logging in and just answering questions for an interview as Assassin of the Week because it was way more fun than updating my progress. (I am so honored, by the way!) It's not an excuse, I know. Anyway, to start, because of the holiday gym hours, I've lowered a few target numbers just because the gym has been closed. I also removed a day of clean eating for Thanksgiving. ;-) I haven't really been doing well, just because I've been so focused on work lately. This challenge isn't totally blown, but I am a bit behind. I have 20 days to pull it together. I've really been struggling with the push-up portion. I feel like I've gotten better at doing more rounds, just not continuous reps. For example, today I did 13 rounds of 10 hand release pushups and felt really good, but I'm still capped at 30 in a row. I probably need to work on shear strength, working with weights, if I want to ever hit that goal of 60 straight. At this point, I'd be happy with 45 by the end of the challenge. I've been eating well, but I think I need to readjust how much I'm eating... eating even more than I had planned. If I'm going to gain 5lbs of lean mass, I need a better plan of attack because what I'm doing isn't working. I've been reading a lot of material on what the best course of action is, and I think I need more carbs in my diet. I plan on creating this homemade protein/mass-gainer supplement, but it's really expensive to put together and I'm not sure how committed I am to that idea. As far as running... well... the numbers speak for themselves. I need to get on this. I'm going to be sure to time my mile this weekend as a benchmark... only 22 days late. Everything else is going decently, the holiday just threw me off a little bit. With work slowing down massively, I have no excuse on these last 20 days. Thank you Abtacha for the check-in! Continuous Push-up PR: 30/60 50.00%50.00% Quest Mission 1.03 Gym Sessions: 12/33 36.36%36.36% Quest Mission 1.04 Run Sessions: 2/18 11.11%11.11% Quest Mission 1.04 1-mile Run PR: untested / 5:59 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.04 Proper Fueling: 9/35 25.71%25.71% Quest Mission 1.05 5-pound Weight Gain: 0/5.00 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.05 30-second Handstand: 5/30 16.67%16.67% Quest Mission 1.06 20 Strict Pull-ups: 12/20 60.00%60.00% Quest Mission 1.06 1 Bar Muscle-up: 1/1 100.00%100.00% Quest Mission 1.06 Scripts Read: 15/54 27.78%27.78% Side Quest 2

Good job everyone! I still think this is the best thing I've seen since wandering into NF.

200# back squat?! Good job!! That's awesome.

Thanks everyone! And congrats to Obax and Blackwidow! Now that I know I can do bar muscle-ups, I'll stick to doing them on the rings... I hate tearing my hands on the bar.

Thanks, Yuen! It was my first bar muscle-up. I was able to do multiples, so I think it came down to technique... it feels entirely different than on the rings. Thanks for the link on calluses. I'll definitely do this to shave down what I have. Any idea on how to prevent palm ripping though? I don't get calluses on my palms. I think the ripping is mostly because the bar I'm on is pretty rough and my technique must allow for a whole heck of a lot of friction.

Day 4 14 Nov. 2013 Today was... interesting. I was way too tired to get to the gym in the morning, so I decided to get to the 8:00pm WOD after work. I think my body actually needs a full 8 hours of sleep, as opposed to 7.5. Which really sucks because I have such limited time (doesn't everyone though?) I also had NO appetite today. Just looking at my food made me sick. So, I went and got a burger. After logging the burger and fries into myfitnesspal.com, I realized that, after skipping lunch, and a lot of the food i eat later in the day, the burger, caloricly and nutrient-wise, wasn't that terrible. But I still missed the food goals today. Anyway, so when I got to the gym, I found out it was muscle-up day. Which is great because it gave me time work on bar muscle-ups. And I got it! A few, actually. And I managed to finally figure out how to string together the muscle-ups on the rings. A future goal should definitely be muscle-ups into handstands on the rings (fast-forward to 00:27.) On the bars though, I definitely ripped open my palms. ...so there's that. I'll be off of lifting anything heavy, or myself, for a few days. Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% Quest Mission 1.03 Gym Sessions: 4/36 11.11%11.11% Quest Mission 1.04 Run Sessions: 1/18 5.56%5.56% Quest Mission 1.04 1-mile Run PR: untested / 5:59 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.04 Proper Fueling: 3/36 8.33%8.33% Quest Mission 1.05 5-pound Weight Gain: 0/5.00 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.05 30-second Handstand: untested / 30 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 20 Strict Pull-ups: untested / 20 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 1 Bar Muscle-up: 1/1 100.00%100.00% Quest Mission 1.06 Scripts Read: 2/54 3.70%3.70% Side Quest 2

Nice job!

Just caught up on this thread. Love the goals, love the progression. A note on the burger-binge.... I find that allowing myself one cheat meal per week keeps me sane. I never plan for it, it's just usually something that's inevitable. And by working that one meal into my goals, I feel a lot less terrible/guilty about it. Keep up the good work!

Day 3 13 Nov. 2013 Oh man and I'm tired. Is it possible that I need more than 7.5 hours of sleep as a 24-year-old male? Typically, I take Wednesdays off from the gym. Not really as a recovery day, but just to sleep in and catch up. But I've been diligent at getting 7.5 hours. Today I also noticed that my appetite was much lower than normal; eating enough food was way harder than it usually is. I'm getting over being sick, but I feel about 90 or 95% back in regular health. It could be because my diet isn't varied very much at all, or maybe I'm just falling apart. I went running today, and it was much slower than I normally run. 24:40 for 3.16mi. Usually I'm in the mid-23:00 range for this distance. But I felt like I was giving it a lot. So maybe this really all is delayed symptoms from being ill. Yesterday, Day 2, I also did a mini push-up workout and it went decently. Outside of the fitness goals, my Side Quest has been getting little attention. The thing is, I definitely have time at work to tackle some of the reading, but I just tend to not do it. I need to work on focusing a bit better. Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% Quest Mission 1.03 Gym Sessions: 3/36 8.33%8.33% Quest Mission 1.04 Run Sessions: 1/18 5.56%5.56% Quest Mission 1.04 1-mile Run PR: untested / 5:59 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.04 Proper Fueling: 3/36 8.33%8.33% Quest Mission 1.05 5-pound Weight Gain: 0/5.00 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.05 30-second Handstand: untested / 30 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 20 Strict Pull-ups: untested / 20 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 1 Bar Muscle-up: 0/1 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 Scripts Read: 1/54 1.85%1.85% Side Quest 2

I love this. Can't wait to see the videos!

Day 1 11 Nov. 2013 Here we go! Day 1 of the next 42 days. Today was a decent day to start, although it would have been better if I had made better plans yesterday. I'm still untested on a couple of my goals, so it's important to get to those things, as soon as possible. I made a spreadsheet of daily things that I need to do in order to accomplish all of this challenge's tasks. For me, it's important to have lists, otherwise I'll forget about everything. Today, I hit the daily requirements, but none of the extra tasks, like training for my mile time, practicing handstands, and working specifically on pull-ups. Luckily, some of these things end up being incorporated into my regular workouts. (Today, for example, part of the workout incorporated kipping handstand push-ups. In a way, that might help with unassisted handstands.) It's a lot to accomplish, but most of the grading is just keeping me in track to achieve my long-term goals, so it's definitely doable. Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% Quest Mission 1.03 Gym Sessions: 1/36 2.78%2.78% Quest Mission 1.04 Run Sessions: 0/18 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.04 1-mile Run PR: untested / 5:59 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.04 Proper Fueling: 1/36 2.76%2.76% Quest Mission 1.05 5-pound Weight Gain: 0/5.00 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.05 30-second Handstand: untested / 30 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 20 Strict Pull-ups: untested / 20 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 1 Bar Muscle-up: 0/1 0.00%0.00% Quest Mission 1.06 Scripts Read: 1/54 0.00%0.00% Side Quest 2

If my gym allowed cameras, I'd do kipping ring muscle-ups... but they're pretty strict about it.

QUEST - ONLY THE FEARLESS WILL PREVAIL My main quest, which will take quite a few challenges, is an overall, general, abstract idea on who I want to be. From a fitness perspective, I'll be faster, stronger, more dexterous, and more flexible than I've ever been in my life. (Perhaps more than I was in college, alpine racing for a D1 school.) I'll be happy and content with my job, looking forward to the challenges that come with it. My friends will be just as fulfilling as any relationship I've been in (or the one I'm currently in). I don't have a way to measure when I'm there, but I do feel as if I'll be able to recognize it once I've arrived. LEVEL 2 - TWO STEPS FORWARD, ONE STEP BACK (Assassin's Guild) Upon finishing my first challenge, I realized quite a few things. I made huge leaps in terms of my commitment to being where I ultimately want to be, but it ultimately came with some big eye openers; which has put me a step back. Given what I've learned, it's time I join a guild. While I've pondered whether or not to join the Rangers or the Assassins, my gut has brought me to lie with the thieves for now. Quest Mission 1.03 - Pushing the Basics Objective: Complete 60 push-ups in a row Since I this mission failed last time, I'm going to have another go at it. (I'm a completionist!) But this time I have a much better plan on how to get there; a 3x/week pushup workout that should help me make real progress. Reward: +1 STR, +1 STA Quest Mission 1.04 - Persistence, Perseverance, Passion. part 2 Objective: Complete 5 gym sessions per week, 3 three-mile runs per week, and 7.5 hours of sleep each night An extension of Quest Mission 1.01, this mission is, essentially, the same, but the accountability is different. Performance will hold a component in how this is graded. I'm especially interested in getting my mile time down. 50% of this will go toward gym sessions, 35% to running a sub 6-minute mile, and 15% to getting a full night's rest. The running portion will be graded by the following scale: 5:59 or less: 50% | 6:00 - 6:10: 45% | 6:11 - 6:20: 40% | 6:21 - 6:30: 35% | 6:31 - 6:45: 30% | 6:46 - 7:00: 25% | 7:01 - 7:15- 20% | 7:16 - 7:30: 15% | 7:31 - 7:45: 10% | 7:46 - 8:00: 5% | 8:00 or more: 0% I know it sounds like a lot, but this was my most successful quest last time around. After this challenge, it probably won't be a quest - just something I do. Reward: +2 STR, +1 DEX, +1 STA Quest Mission 1.05 - Fueling an Assassin, part 2 Objective: Eat 2,600 good calories, 6 days a week (300g protein, 60g fat, 200g carbs), to gain 5 pounds This is an extension of Quest Mission 1.02, but a bit more intense. I was previously eating about 2,100 calories, but it turns out that's more of a maintenance level for me. I lost body fat, but gained little muscle in return. I weigh 130 right now and would like to eventually get to 140. Keeping my body fat at 13.5% (or lower), I'd like to put on ten pounds. Performance bears weight this time around. Eating correctly will be 75% of the total, and the weight will be the other 25%. The weight portion will be graded by the following scale. 5lb or more: 25% | 4.00 - 4.99lb: 20% | 3.00 - 3.00lb: 15% | 2.00 - 2.99lb: 10% | 1.00 - 1.99lb: 5% | less than 1lb: 0% I know that this will be the most challenging, as I sometimes struggle to eat enough calories when eating so cleanly. Reward: +4 CON Quest Mission 1.06 - Assassin Guild Membership Objective: 30 second handstand; bar muscle-up; 20 strict pull-ups So I'm joining a guild! I figure I should spend some time on a few of the basics. Each of the three exercixes will be worth the same. The handstand and pull-ups will be graded on a scale, and achieving a bar muscle up is a pass/fail. (I can currently only do ring muscle ups.) Reward: +3 DEX Side Quest 2 - Apprentice's Workload Objective: Read 9 scripts each week and successfully complete my online course I'm in the process of switching jobs (hopefully); I'm ready to take the next step in my career. In prepartion, and for my own knowledge and well-being, I'm going to step up the game on my script coverage. I want to be able to read and report on at least 9 scripts per week. Additionally, as a proponent of continuing education, especially in areas outside of my core knowledge, I'd like to finish my online course on 21st Century American Foreign Affairs. (I take courses sometimes through Coursera.org... check it out.) 70% will be attributed to the scripts, and 30% to the online course. Reward: +1 WIS, +1 CHA

Hi everyone! I just finished my first challenge and, while I'm probably aiming to be more of a Ranger-Assassin hybrid, I'm going to stick around here for a while. In determining things for my next challenge, I'm having trouble figuring out my diet. I'm a fan of eating pretty clean, so I definitely want to keep that up, but I don't think I'm getting enough calories. Last challenge I was eating about 2000 calories a day, weighing 133lbs, and standing at 5'6". I went from 15.26% body fat to 13.69% body fat. But, I lost about 2.5 pounds. The way it breaks down, despite all the workouts I did, it doesn't look like I gained much muscle mass, if at all, despite getting stronger (however way that's possible...) As far as working out goes, I run a 5K about 3x a week, and I Crossfit 5x a week. (Before you jump on me, I'm not one of the ones lifting crazy intense weight. The box I go to encourages body weight and mobility just as much as squats... I swear almost every workout includes muscle-ups and a million burpees.) I've tried various calculations to know how many calories I should be eating, but I honestly don't know. I'm assuming that I should be eating 500 more calories a day than what I'm burning. I know my BMR is 1,468 (using one of the more reliable methods of measurement Katch-McArdle.) But I have no idea how to determine what sort of calories I burn during these crossfit workouts. I'm assuming my calorie intake should be 1468 + calories burned during exercise + 500. Does that sound right? Any nutritional experts in the house? Hahaha. I'm not looking to gain a massive amount of muscle really quickly; I'm still interested in keeping low body fat (I'd like to get around 10%) but replace it with muscle. I'd really like to aim to be 140lbs and 10% body fat. ANY suggestions are super, super appreciated! If not, I'm just happy to be here. ;-)

Hi, Lindsey_M! I'm curious how your recent side quest went? Your "Stuff" Audit is an amazing idea! I might steal it for my own next challenge. :-P What was your process? How long did it take. Good job on everything!

The Day After 2 Nov. 2013 I got my caliper results back today. On October 1st I was 15.26% body fat. Over the past month i dropped to 13.69%. Woo hoo! I'll take it. I'd like to get under 12% at some point. However, this came with a bit of other confusing results. i also lost 3 pounds, which for someone like me, is a lot. When my weight was broken down into lean muscle vs. body fat, the results show that I lost almost a pound of muscle. is it even possible that this has happened with me being at the gym more than I've been in the last four years? I'm definitely stronger than I was a month ago... can you build strength while losing muscle mass? I think it's probably important to note 2 things though. (1) I look different than when I started. I think I look bigger, but maybe that's just a result of lost fat. But certain specific weak areas, like my shoulders, do look especially bigger to me. (2) I was measured at two very different times of day. The first time I was measured it was 9:00 at night, about 2.5 hours after a light dinner. The end measurement was at 7:45 in the morning immediately after a workout. I know that hydration. the time of day, and then last time you've eaten can have an effect on the results, but to what extent? If anyone has any input, I'm all ears!! On to the next challenge.

Thanks, JessFit! I definitely faltered in accurately planning out the push-up component of my goals. I'm thinking about doing it again in the next challenge - I already created a 6-week push-up workout schedule for myself. I also got my body fat % re-measured yesterday at the gym as part of a competition I was a part of. I know I've dropped at least a bit, but I won't know the extent until Saturday. I'll officially wrap this Challenge up with the results from that.

Good job, l4dyh4wk! I wasn't following you through the challenge but I wish I would have. Your goals were excellently set, measurable, and attainable. For the most part, it looks like you did amazing. I'll be looking out for you in the next Challenge! (Hopefully, I'll see you in either the Assassin or Ranger guilds ;-) )

My specific tally can be found here. A summary is below. Quest Mission 1.01 Complete 5 gym sessions per week and 3 three-mile runs per week Result: 71%; C- Quest Mission 1.02 Eat 2,175 good calories, 6 days a week (150g protein, 75g fat, 225g carbs) Result: 86%; B Quest Mission 1.03 Complete 60 push-ups in a row Result: 30/60; improvement of 5 over base PR of 25- 17%; F Side Quest 1 Stay under budget for September and October Result: 91%; A-

Day 42 27 Oct. 2013 Level Up! The first challenge is completed, as well as the first step on my first quest. Overall, I'm pretty okay with how I did, but there's definitely room for more improvement when it.comes to properly achieving goals. Below is the specific breakdown and my updated level is in my signature! Quest Mission 1.01 - Persistence, Perseverance, Passion Objective: Complete 5 gym sessions per week and 3 three-mile runs per week I killed the gym portion of this, hitting 31 sessions of a total 30 needed. However, I faltered on the running, only hitting 4 sessions. On a lighter note though, on that last run, which was about a week ago, I really was moving; my time was way better than when I started. So all the endurance at the gym (Crossfit) has translated well to any future running, which is great. [Calculation: (30+4)/48=70.8%; C-] Total Reward Possible: +3 STR, +2 DEX, +2 STA Total Reward Earned: +2.1 STR, +1.4 DEX, +1.4 STA Quest Mission 1.02 - Fueling an Assassin Objective: Eat 2,175 good calories, 6 days a week (150g protein, 75g fat, 225g carbs) I'm going to be a bit lenient on judging this one. During the work week, M-F, the days I hit this were spot-on. On the weekends, if I was successful, it was because I was eating clean, not necessarily eating clean and hitting the exact above caloric intake. That said, I hit 32 of 36 days. Not terrible. [Calculation: 31/36=86.1%; B] Total Reward Possible: +3 CON Total Reward Earned: +2.6 CON Quest Mission 1.03 - Pushing the Basics Objective: Complete 60 push-ups in a row This was the most difficult, not to mention a goal that, from the start, may have just been too difficult. I overestimated my current ability at continuous push-ups. However, going forward, I feel like I at least understand what sort of strength goals I'm capable of achieving in 6 weeks. I also should have been much more diligent in my supplemental work with push-ups, rather than just relying on what workouts were already scheduled for me. In terms of grading, I'm not going to award myself based on my total pushups divided by 60. Instead, I'm going to grade myself based on where I started (25) and where I ended (30). So, really, I added 5 of a required 30. [Calculation: 5/30=16.7%; F] Total Possible Reward: +1 STR, +1 STA Total Earned Reward: +0.2 STR, +0.2 STA Side Quest 1 - Merchant's Beginning Objective: Stay under budget for September and October Estimating out my expenses through this Thursday ($20 on gas; $15 on drinks), I definitely went over my budget for October... more so than September. However, I did have a friend visiting town that I had to entertian, as well as all the Halloween activities that I normally do every year. Overall, it could have been worse. [Calculation: 1 - ($ Spent / Budget) = 90.8%; A-] Total Reward Possible: +3 WIS Total Reward Earned: +2.7 WIS Gym: 31/30 103.33%103.33% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 4/18 22.22%22.22% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 32/36 88.89%88.89% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 30/60 50.00%50.00% Quest Mission 1.03

Day 40 25 Oct. 2013 Things are coming an an end and I think I might be ending on a slightly hyper-extended knee, so I won't be tacking on any last-minute runs. I'll head to the gym today (woo hoo! over the goal) but I'll be taking it easy on anything having to do with the knees. Today's workout consists of bench presses, pull-ups, some deadlifts, and ball slams. No squats or jumping, thank goodness. We'll see how successful I am with eating through this last weekend. Gym: 31/30 103.33%103.33% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 4/18 22.22%22.22% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 32/36 88.89%88.89% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 30/60 50.00%50.00% Quest Mission 1.03

Day 39 24 Oct. 2013 This whole thing feels a lot longer than 39 days... just saying. Thanks for the words of encouragement, TimboD. I'm pretty happy with what I've done in just six weeks, and I feel like I understand what sort of goals I'm capable of in that time frame. Going forward, I think my goals will be better suited to my ability now that I can gauge them a bit better. Here's to the last three days! Gym: 30/30 100.00%100.00% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 4/18 22.22%22.22% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 31/36 83.33%83.33% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 30/60 50.00%50.00% Quest Mission 1.03

Day 38 23 Oct. 2013 Only four days left! I have some very mixed feelings about this whole adventure right now. On one hand, I've done very well at getting to the gym at least five times each week. I've also done a decent job at eating well, especially considering how much room for error I gave myself. However, I pretty much ignored running. Considering this was half of my main goal, it means I didn't do very well in "leveling up." Part of this is because I think my priorities changed. I joined a month-long challenge at my gym and became pretty wrapped up in that, which consisted of eating a lot of good calories and getting in a lot of sessions. Honestly, a big part of me totally forgot about running. Secondly, I never made a schedule to increase my push-up count. Weirdly, I feel as if it's gotten more difficult to perform push-ups and I have no idea why. I haven't gained weight and I've lost body fat. The only thing I can think of is that I've gained muscle but not in the areas that would help with push-ups, thereby making the push-up load more difficult... but really it can't be that much of a difference over the course of 42 days... can it? The challenge at my gym ends on October 29th, so we'll see how that pans out. If I lose 2% of my body fat, I'd be super happy. I can see a small physical change, but I honestly have no idea what to expect. Even though this challenge ends on Monday night, I'll be sure to post back in here with the results of the body fat test. Overall, I'm going to walk away with the attitude in that you can't succeed at something the first time you tackle it. My expectations for this were high going in, and I knew that. And I didn't do terrible. I think it was just a lot to balance. (Other aspects also go in the way, like my current hunt for the next step in my career. I also have a need for continuing education which led to me also taking online classes despite working 60+ hours a week.) I'll be back to post on Monday when this is all over. Early congratulations to everyone who made it! Gym: 29/30 96.67%96.67% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 4/18 22.22%22.22% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 30/36 83.33%83.33% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 30/60 50.00%50.00% Quest Mission 1.03

Day 31 16 Oct. 2013 I haven't dropped off of this! I've just been MIA in updating my stats. It was partially interrupted because I started a challenge at my gym having to do with dropping body fat % while maintaining current weight. (As of 9/29, I am at 15.25%; I'll be measured again at the completion of the challenge on 10/29.) I've been to the gym quite a bit, and my food has been on point since I started the challenge at the gym... that's most of the battle. I haven't been running, and I've pretty much failed that aspect of this 6-Week Challenge, unfortunately. Even if I ran every day to the end of challenge, I would only hit 14/18. Still, I should probably try and get a few more. Even if I get half, it's better than nothing. My budgeting is doing... decent. It's a bit early to tell, but it looks like I might go over again by a bit for the month of October. Good job to everyone else for keeping this up! It's not easy. I'll try and post on here more regularly for the remainder of the challenge... only 11 days left! Gym: 25/30 83.33%83.33% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 3/18 16.67%16.67% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 23/36 63.89%63.89% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% Quest Mission 1.03

Day 9 24 Sep. 2013 I used today as a skip-day at the gym for the week. I should have ran instead... but I didn't. I find it really, really hard to go running once I'm home for the night. I can't go in the morning because I'm at the gym. And I especially cherish my one skip day where I can sleep in an hour earlier. I need to figure out a way to muster up the motivation to go running at the end of the day... Day 10 25 Sep. 2013 Hump day! Gym was good, eating was good, etc. etc. Alas... no running. Tonight was Survivor night and I'm really digging this season, so I sat on my butt to watch. Day 11 26 Sep. 2013 Today was amazing, gym-wise. Typically, there are about 4 people in the early 6:30 class, Today there were 13. It just so happened that a lot of people showed up, which really changed the dynamic in the box. It was an amazing change of pace, something that really got me invigorated. Also, I saw this workout on YouTube, and I'm dying to try it. (But I'll be scaling down the men's weight a bit.) So, time for a progress report on where I'm at. As far as due-diligence in the gym, I'm doing well. I'm right on schedule to hit my 30 total sessions (5x/week). However, my running is very sub-par. I managed to get 2 of the 3 scheduled runs in last week, but one of those was a lucky 4-mile track built into one of my gym sessions. The problem I'm having here is night-time motivation. I say I don't have time to run in the morning, because I'm up at 5:30 already to get to the gym on time. And I never seem to have the motivation at night to go. If I woke up at 5:00, I'd have time to run, but I'd be sub-par at the gym later on. I need to develop some sort of accountability system to get my butt running when I get home from work. I'm doing okay with my food intake. I missed one of the 6 days last week, but overall, I'm doing okay. The weekends are rough because cooking feels like work and the last thing I want to do on the weekend is more work. My gym is also doing an October challenge regarding eating well according to our goals and daily activity. It costs extra money, so I don't know if it's worth it to me, but I'm going to a talk tonight about it to learn more. My biggest problem: push-ups. I haven't done much to really improve my base number. Most of last week my chest was really sore, and I'm still feeling a tiny bit this week, which is c r a z y !!. By the end of this week, I need to develop a routine to get myself up in terms of my continuous set numbers. I went over on budget this month, but not by too much (about 2.5%). I tell myself I can make up for it next month, but it will be difficult. Bahhh.... it really feels like it should be Friday! Gym: 8/30 26.67%26.67% Quest Mission 1.01 Run: 2/18 11.11%11.11% ​Quest Mission 1.01 Food: 9/36 25.00%25.00% ​Quest Mission 1.02 Continuous Push-up PR: 25/60 41.67%41.67% Quest Mission 1.03