natkal709

Hey everyone I am jumping in at the end of this challenge and will continue with it in next months challenge. So here we go. Fitness quest- get back into a workout habit, hitting the gym or yoga class 3-4 times a week. Diet quest- Super smoothie everyday Lifestyle quest- Miracle morning routine everyday

So the other day I did 45 minutes walking on the treadmill with the incline all the way up (15%) and I have to say it was a really good workout. Like I was pretty surprised; I only had the speed set at 3 but I definitely broke a sweat. I tried a similar workout on the elliptical with a high resistance for 45 minutes but I didn't get the same effect. I am thinking that with the set pace of the treadmill makes it better for longer sessions whereas with the elliptical I was slowing down gradually even with the high resistance. So yeah anyway I am definitely going to keep the high incline treadmill workout in rotation for this challenge, maybe I will try to add some intervals at a higher speed in next time too.

here is a Picture from the bottom (left) and top (right) of Kokohead railway stairs

Ughh So I am turning 25 during this challenge and I am soo dreading it. Not that I think I am doing bad in my life right now I am just WAY far off from what I always thought and dreamed I would be at this age. So I am using this challenge as a way to distract myself. And since running is something that I have pretty much sucked at during my first 25 years of life I would really like to turn things around and actually get good at it for the next 25 years. So that's going to be the focus of my challenge. Main Challenge Goal: 20 minute sustained run Goal #1: Follow Zombies 5k trainer program 3 times a week I have been successfully avoiding running most of my life and I would really like to get my shit together and get good at this very basic skill. So as I am very much a beginner I want to follow a laid out program created by someone with much more experience than me. I like the RPG set up of this app because it keeps things fun and interesting. I will be starting on week 2 this week and will be on week 3 by the starting day of this challenge which works out nicely because I will be able to finish the program during the challenge. Goal #2: Hike Koko head Stairs at least once a week. For those of you who don't know what this is it's a short but steep hike up an old railroad track consisting of approximately 1100 railroad tie steps and about 0.7miles total; basically Hawaii's outdoor stair master. I'll try and post some pictures for you all. It is a seriously good cardio workout and a good strength and endurance workout for your lower body, once you get to the steeper part at the top you are basically lunging up a mountain. I will post my times going up and down for you guys, right now I am right around the 30 minute mark going up and 35 minutes going down. Last time I was there I met a girl who goes up and down 5 times as a regular workout, so badass. Goal #3: Every 1 hour yoga class = 30 minutes cardio workout of any variety. So in an effort to create some positive reinforcement in my brain I want to combine something I love (yoga) to something I avoid at all costs (cardio). That way a built in reward. SO this doesn't necessarily have to be running outdoors on a track because that's already going to be happening 3 times a week with my first goal, so this can be any kind of treadmill, elliptical, bike workout at the gym or even one of the cardio based classes at the gym like spinning/ cycling, core and cardio, or cardio kickboxing. Life Goal: Work on my writing at least once a week.

ughh this week was kind of a fail. went to 2 yoga classes and did one zombies workout. did good with eating clean on 4 out of 7 days still been doing crazy amounts of push ups though, passed 3000 yesterday, and today is the last day of our work push up completion. I'm at 3341 total right now and a few hours left on shift.

Haven't updated in a few days but still going strong. week 2 days 5-7 Diet was good all weekend. I am at work right now so I cant check but I don't think I did any workouts on Friday but on Saturday I did both strong curves and zombies run. Sunday I went to a yoga class at diamond head beach park that I found on meet up so that was my life goal mission completed for week 2. The class was a lot of fun and the location was amazing, I think I am going to go again tomorrow. week 3 days 1-2 Diet yesterday was a fail had 2 pieces of cake at work and some candy that a coworker brought back from japan. Today is so far so good, brought a big lunch today and am pretty full. I did 280 pushups on shift yesterday and today I am still going because I am still at work but my running total is 2284 for the month, only have 3 shifts left after today this month to hit 3000. No workouts yesterday but today I plan on hitting the gym after work.

Week 2 Day 4 Diet went well no bad stuff, did have some snacks but all whole foods. Rest day again because I was exhausted after work. Did a total of 240 push ups at work, still going strong with that. Decided not to go to Maui for the weekend, kinda bummed but I was not comfortable with how the trip was coming together so I decided to bow out, I got airline credit on my ticket though so i can take a trip to one of the other islands whenever I feel like it so that's kind of cool. Gotta figure out something else for my life goal this weekend though..

Week 2 day 2: Clean eating all day, so diet goal was a success. No workouts decided to take a rest day, the whole 3 days in a row before I take a rest day is not working for me right now, especially working 12hr shifts, going to rethink some of this. Week 2 day 3: Diet was a fail woke up late and didn't have time to get my lunch together for work ended up eating pop tarts and a chocolate-chocolate chip muffin. Which really did nothing to satisfy my hunger. I did 340 pushups on shift though, so I am over halfway on my pushup goal And after work I hit the gym and did my strong curves week 3 workout B.

Week 2 Day 1 A very long and lazy day off today. Went out to breakfast with some friends this morning and after that I pretty much just binged watched Friends on netflix all day, with some intermittent meal prepping thrown in. Around 10pm I finally got some motivation to hit the gym and I ended up doing my strong curves workout (week 3 workout A) which went really well, I am starting to really feel my muscles activating! Following that I was feeling pretty good so I went ahead and did my zombies run 5k workout as well (week 2 day 1) I did it on the smaller track this time because its just got redone and is a lot nicer for the 10 minute warm up walk I jogged the straights and walked the corners, same thing with the 10 minute free form run at the end. As far as diet goes today was good, went out to breakfast this morning and had pancakes and potatoes, but it was from a great little place on the island with a scratch kitchen, they even make their own coconut syrup. I'm not sure if I am going to count the pancakes against the rules or not, they probably but eggs in the batter which I don't really mind but if there is milk bleghhh. So I will call tomorrow morning to find out. For my life quest this week I am going to Maui over the weekend with some friends, we will definitely be doing some hikes and snorkeling out there.Because of this though I am trying to get my 3 strength and 3 cardio workouts done before the weekend. A challenge will be sticking to my diet plan over the weekend, its going to take some serious effort and planning.

Week One: Monday 6/8 Strength: Strong curves week 2 workout 1 Diet: fail buttery popcorn L Tuesday 6/9 Cardio: second zombies run 5k workout Diet: pass ***180 pushups at work *** Wednesday 6/10 Strength: skipped it because I was tired after rock climbing L Diet: pass Life Goal complete for week one- rock climbing gym Thursday 6/11 Was a scheduled rest day but I decided to make up for my missed strength workout the day before Strength: strong curves Diet: pass Friday 6/12 ***330 pushups at work*** Cardio: zombies run 5k workout #3 Diet: fail ate a whole bunch of chocolate covered pretzels and candy at work Saturday 6/13 Strength: skipped my workout took a nap instead L (240 pushups at work) Diet: EPIC FAIL- had an apple turnover and 2 malasadas (cream filled) at work, worst part is that I threw in money for them the day before. So it was a premeditated bad decision LLL *** 240 push pushups at work*** Sunday 6/14 Cardio: Skipped again because I was tired after work. Diet: pass – did a 24hr fast to bust those sweet cravings. *** 414 pushups at work*** Quest 1: Establish a baseline of strength I did 2 out of 3 of my strong curves workouts and I worked on my push-ups during 4 out of 5 of my shifts at work this week for a grand total of 1164 push-ups. So I think I did pretty well on this one, I missed one of my strong curves workouts because I was “so tired†after work and I told myself I was going to take a 90 minute nap then go to the gym. HA! Yeah right. But on a positive note I think I did more pushups this week than I ever have in my life combined. Quest 2: Develop a baseline running ability I Completed 2 out of 3 of my zombies 5K workouts as well. Missed Sunday because after work I had to immediately watch Game of thrones after work, then I hit the grocery store and after that I was like way exhausted and skipped my work out again L I really feel like I need to put more effort into this goal. This is something I have been struggling with for a really long time and I feel like I am just not doing enough. Quest 3: Stick to a whole foods plant based diet and limit all dairy and processed foods to once per week So I did perfectly 4 out of 7 days this week. That’s a pretty good start but I would like to do better for week 2. At home I eat perfectly; it’s at work where I struggle. And I know that the key to this is bringing enough food to work OR fasting until I leave work. So for week 2 I am going to try to bring enough food every single day to where I don’t even think about eating anything else. Looking forward to week two these will be my main points to focus on: I know I need to stick to my workout schedule and stop making lame excuses for skipping workouts. Like I am going to be tired either way so I might as well do it. For work I need to bring food or fast until I get out because no good comes from eating anything I didn't bring with me.

Ended up doing 414 push ups on shift today. 24 hr fast worked out nicely; went to the grocery store after work and loaded up on good stuff, closest thing I bought to junk food was some lara bars and microwave popcorn with seasalt (no butter). No workouts tonight as I am quite exhausted.

Nice job on your first week. also I like your no swearing goal I might have to try that out

Mini 1 accomplished my goals are SMART

So yesterday didn't really go as planned. I ate one apple turnover and two malasadas at work and panda express for lunch, so total fail diet wise. After work I was super tired, (probably from the lack of healthy energizing food my body is used) to so I took what was supposed to be a 90 minute nap and I was going to hit the gym after. But when my alarm went off I was so zombified I was like hell no and went back to sleep. But on a positive note I ended up doing 240 push ups during my shift at work. So the day wasn't a total loss. Today is my last shift of the week and I have two days off. Feeling rested and energized with the extra sleep so that's nice. Still going strong on the pushups at work today, I'll post my numbers later. Also I decided to do a 24hr fast (6pm yesterday to 6pm today) to reset my taste buds and get back on track with food. I am prioritizing the grocery store first thing after work. Planning for my zombies run workout and possibly making up for my missed strong curves workout from yesterday, depends on how I feel at the end of the day. But its the last day of week one so I want to finish strong. I will post a full update of week one late tonight or tomorrow sometime.

mini update part 2: procrastinating won out in favor of grocery shopping, (I got sucked in to watching strength camp videos on youtube) but I did my run and have successfully completed week 1 of zombies run!!!!!!

Ok so after researching good stretches for pushups I discovered i need to be doing equal amounts of "pull" exercises to keep me from throwing my muscles off balance. Glad i caught that early in the challenge. I decided I am going to keep it simple and just stick with inverted rows. So I will bust out as many of those as I can this weekend and try to catch up with my pushups. wish me luck.

Mini update: yesterday I did my strong curves workout and ate clean all day so 2 out of 2 today at work I ate a bunch of chocolate covered pretzels and a bag of popcorn so a fail for that goal today. Gonna hit the grocery store and do some meal prepping tonight though to be better prepared for the rest of the weekend. waiting until after the sun goes down to go for my run which I am actually kind of looking forward to. PUSH UPS We have a challenge going on at work between the 4 different shifts of who can do the most push ups so my shift has been dropping every half hour and doing them, so it makes it a lot more fun. We did an accumulative 7660 push ups today. I personally contributed 330 (split up in sets of 5 or 10). My personal goal for the month is to hit 2500, split up between the 11 shifts it equals out to roughly 230 per shift. I am at 510 currently between today and Tuesday so right on track. I am about to look up as many stretches as possible because I have 2 more shifts this weekend. Yikes. That's why i did extra today though I knew I wouldn't be able to keep the same pace all weekend. I am hoping my run helps to loosen things up a bit as well.

So rock climbing is quite hard. But also a lot of fun. I finished 2 level one paths and attempted 3 level 2 paths a couple times to no avail. But that just gives me a goal for next time. And there will definitely be a next time because the gym is only $15 for a day pass and I think they had monthly deals as well. I did not do my strength workout today because my hands were all torn up after leaving the rick climbing place and I didn't want to make it worse with dumb bells, also I was tired. Lame excuse I know but I figured that I will just call today my rest day and make up my workout tomorrow. Also I figured that this counts as my social fitness activity for the week because there was a group of 11 of us that went and I talked to almost everyone. So life goal complete for week one. Cant wait to see which kinds of new and obscure muscles are going to be sore tomorrow from this adventure. For sure need to work on that upper body strength to get better at this potential new hobby though. Also the diet goal went well today, all good stuff.

End of day 2: So after an impressive 3 hours of procrastinating I finally forced myself to go to the track and do workout 2 of zombies run. I actually enjoyed running on the track a lot more than the treadmill (which is what I did for the first workout). The only thing is that the first week is walk and jogging intervals; and on the track i couldn't quite get a good walking pace going, where as on the treadmill I would just set the pace to like 3.8. But that is my only complaint so far so not to bad. Also by the end of my shift today I totaled at 195 pushup; hopefully that doesnt hinder me to much tomorrow night I am going to this indoor rock climbing place.

So I decided I am going to sign up for that 5K, I have tried talking myself out of it like 3 times already and my argument is not that convincing haha so I will reserve my spot tonight after I get out of work. update for the first couple days Diet - ate microwave popcorn with butter at work yesterday - successfully avoided homemade cookies and cheesecake today :nevreness: - also did some meal prepping last night and have a couple days worth of good stuff readily available Workouts- - finished week 1 of strong curves and did the first workout of week 2 yesterday so everything is on track with that - didn't do any pushups on shift yesterday but I am at 80 already for today - doing my cardio workout after work tonight

Yeah I definitely want to do it, it looks like a lot of fun and like you guys said some good motivation. Is 9 weeks enough time to train for a 5K?

So this zero week has been going well, I have decided on a workout schedule and tested it out a little bit and I think it will work well with my work schedule. I am doing 3 days on and 1 day off while alternating cardio and strength workouts. The first phase (4 weeks) of strong curves is 3x/week so it will look like this: WEEK 1 M- STRONG CURVES T- 5K TRAINING W- STRONG CURVES T- REST DAY F-5K TRAINING S- STRONG CURVES S-5K TRAINING WEEK 2 M- REST DAY T- STRONG CURVES W-5K TRAINING T- STRONG CURVES F- REST DAY S-5K TRAINING S- STRONG CURVES WEEK 3 M-5K TRAINING T- REST DAY W- STRONG CURVES T-5K TRAINING F- STRONG CURVES S- REST DAY S-5K TRAINING Once I hit phase 2 I am supposed to do strong curves 4x a week so I will have to re work the schedule, I will prob just double up the day before my rest day but I will figure all that out once its closer. So I also did measurements and pictures and I weighed myself, and I decided I am going to avoid doing it again until the challenge is over that way I won't drive myself crazy thinking about numbers the whole time.So that will be fun avoiding the scale for 6 weeks. Also as I mentioned a few days ago I decided to start my workouts this week because I didn't feel like waiting and both programs are actually over 6 weeks anyway. So Sunday was workout 1 of SC Monday was a rest day Tuesday was workout 2 of SC and today I did my first mission in the zombies run 5K trainer app. I'm enjoying everything so far, and i am pretty confident I will be able to finish both programs. And I know its really soon as I just started training today; but I saw that there is a 5K coming to my island in the beginning of August that looks really fun that I am interested in doing, and I think signing up for it would be some great motivation to stick with my running program. The thing is the race is on August 7th which is just over 9 weeks from today, and the training app I am doing is 8 weeks total so that leaves like no room for error at all so I am kind of hesitant. What do you all think?

Yikes superman push ups sound kind of terrifying. I remember one time this guy was doing dive bomber push ups and he was going a little to fast and sloppy and he totally scraped his forehead on the concrete basketball court and had to get a bunch of stitches. Still shudder every time I see someone doing those. Anyway, I think i am going to stick with just traditional push ups for this challenge and once I get a bit more mastery start practicing the variations.