Everstorm

I'm doing Spanish on Duolingo, too. Almost to level 10. I think they have a setup to add friends, if you're interested.

Hello, Grizzy! I'm looking forward to the new mystery challenge. Will I have an unfair advantage after following you for so long?

Last challenge went really well, and since I am still training for my "Port City Battleship Half-Marathon" on Nov 2 (Sunday following the conclusion of the challenge), I have decided, "If it's not Baroque, don't fix it". So, with a few minor adaptations, I present the second verse of my half-marathon training song. Main Quest: Be Extraordinary I am on a quest to be more extraordinary, starting with (finally) conquering an item that has been on my bucket list for a while now: the Half Marathon. I have 7 weeks remaining to whip myself into shape. Step One: Run (duh) In the next six weeks, I need to increase my long run from the current 9.5 miles accomplished last challenge to 14 miles. Why am I running 14 miles when a half marathon is only 13.1? Because I'm nuts. And because if I have already run 14, 13.1 will seem easy. At least that's my logic. Step Two: "Come with me if you want to not die." I don't want to forget my Assassin roots, and I'm not all legs, so I want to spend at least an hour a week on upper body/core stuff. I just bought a set of parallettes, and I would like to try out the free Beginner Parallettes program from GMB. However, since the Half-Marathon is priority, if the program is too intense, I will sub other activities like swimming, yoga, etc with no loss of points. There is always next challenge (post-race) to pursue parallettes in a more focused manner. Step Three: Forget what others are doing. Embrace what is special about you. - Vitruvius The mobility sitting idea from last challenge was a good one, I just need to get back on track with it. So, back on 20 minutes a day in any combination of these positions: I got really lazy about this one, and in week 3, it became obvious that doing some leg strengthening to reduce knee pain is higher priority. So, for weeks 4-6 the goal is MovNat MOD 2/week. Stepping Over x 8: Perform in a slow and controlled manner. Switch sides.Stepping Under x 8: Perform in a slow and controlled manner. Switch sides.Lateral Figure Four Sitting Reverse x 16: Alternating sidesSquat x 16: Hold at the bottom and bounce softly a few times before standing up.Split Squat x 8: Switch SidesDeep Knee Bend x 8Deep Knee Bend Stances x 8: 10 second holdDeep Kneeling to Tall Kneeling x 8: Shift bodyweight backward as your knees go to the ground.Deep Knee Bend to Deep Half-Kneeling x 8: Switch sides. Side Quest: Weight Loss PvP with Grizzy I still have 3 weeks left of the Weight Loss PvP, so I will be sticking with that. I'm on quite a roll right now, so hopefully it will go well. In Conclusion 1. Increase long run mileage to 14 miles 2. Upper body/core workouts 1 hour/week 3. Mobility sitting 20 minutes/day MovNat MOD 2/week 4. Weight Loss PvP Woohoo! Everything is awesome....

Your 12 mile run sounds epic! I run about a 15 minute mile on the long runs, too. It does feel slow, but I've learned I'd rather be slow than injured, so slow and steady it is.

*Shamelessly pasted from my thread* Follow the directions (follow half-marathon training plan, working up to 9.5 miles): I dominated this one. Had to rearrange the schedule a bit to accommodate a sudden out-of-state move, but I ran every long run, and accomplished my goal of 9.5 miles. A Not all legs (any core or upper body workout; 60 min/week): I am glad I left this goal rather open, so moving furniture and all the local swimming have counted. A Mobility Sitting (sit in posture/flexibility enhancing positions 20 minutes/day): This one was a great idea, but got a bit lost in the shuffle after the move. Of my three goals, it was lowest priority, however, so I am not too disappointed at having dropped the ball. C Side quest (weight loss PvP): So glad I made weight loss a side quest this time. I haven't had the willpower to deal with it much. Although, now that things have settled down, I have done much better and lost 2.7 lbs in week 6 alone! The move really threw a wrench in the works this challenge, and although I haven't participated in the forums as much as usual, I am really proud of myself for keeping up with my goals through it all. This has been my best challenge in a long time.

Wow. This was a good challenge for you, I think. I mean, obviously the food/soda goals helped, even if done imperfectly. You kicked weight loss butt!

Thanks, everyone! I usually try to keep up my goals on the off weeks between challenges, but I wonder if that's what makes for mid-challenge burn out. So, aside from a few maintenance runs, I'm taking this as a recovery week. It feels good.

Sweet! I am actually still up by 2lbs over the beginning, but waist size 1/2" smaller. Weird. Anywho, I'm glad to finally have some momentum going in the right direction. The challenge may be over, but we still have 4 more weeks of the PvP. Let's kick it up a notch!

Well done, Matt! Congratulations on breaking that weight loss plateau. 85.2 kg...so close!

I guess you learned something about yourself on the running, which is a good thing! The rest of your challenge went well, it seems. See you next go-round!

Ze measurements: Neck 13.25 Chest 39 Waist 34/38.5/42.75 Hips 41.5 Thigh 23.75/23.75 Arm 12.25/12.5 Down in almost every category, up in none. Almost 6 inches lost. Woot!

Ok, brief summary because I am using public library Wi-Fi until my son gets tired of puzzles. Follow the directions: I dominated this one. Had to rearrange the schedule a bit, but I ran every long run, and accomplished my goal of 9.5 miles. A Not all legs: I am glad I left this goal rather open, so my move and all the local swimming have counted. A Mobility Sitting: This one was a great idea, but got a bit lost in the shuffle after the move. Of my three goals, it was lowest priority, however, so I am not too disappointed at having dropped the ball. C Side quest: So glad I made weight loss a side quest this time. I haven't had the willpower to deal with it much. Although, now that things have settled down, I have done much better and lost 2.7 lbs in week 6 alone! A sudden move really threw a wrench in the works this challenge, and although I haven't participated in the forums as much as usual, I am really proud of myself for keeping up with my goals through it all. This has been my best challenge in a long time.

Official weigh-in: 159.8. Woot! Down 2.7 lbs, which is more than the 1.1 I was up last week due to shark attack. Totally forgot to take measurements again, though.

Short yoga session and a long lazy swim wraps up my workout week and the challenge. It's been a really good one. Full write up to come.

Yay! Final week win!

#1 goal of the challenge complete! I ran 9.5 miles this morning at goal pace with no unplanned walks or stops. WOOOOOOT

Awesome week 5. You've really killed this challenge. I'm glad it has gone so well for you. Just a few days left!

Rest day today before looooong run tomorrow. 9.5 miles will be the longest I've ever run (by a few tenths...I think a 15K is 9.3 miles and I've done that before)

The basic version that I am using is free, but you can upgrade to an even shinier version that tracks other goals like sleep or will connect to FitBit, MapMyRun, etc. for $39.95/year

Completed Monday's run without any bizzarre collapses in willpower. Although my usual morning run was done at 6pm because I felt like roadkill Monday morning. Did 35 minutes of yoga yesterday, so on track for this week. About to go run again today. Last night, I put the Lose It! app on my phone and I already love it. You can just scan the barcode on foods and it adds that food and it's nutrition data to your food journal. (You can indicate how many servings) So much easier than MFP! You can also look up restaurant foods or fresh produce and save recipes when you cook at home. I also like that when I input my weight, weight goal, and goal weekly loss, it gives me a definite end date. If I stick to my plan, I could be at goal weight by Independence Day next year. I like having that concrete goal, rather than feeling like I'll be dieting indefinitely (translation: forever). I think this may be the solution to my food-journal-hating-but-recognizing-the-benefits-of-said-journaling.

That's an interesting idea. I don't have one, but I've thought about ordering one from FlyLady. But like I said, it's not that I'm not thinking of doing it, I just haven't been timing how long/often I do it throughout the day, so I have no idea if I'm meeting the time goal or not. **responds with lame running man, goes back to typing** Thanks! Speedwork is tough for everybody.

Neck: 13.25 Chest: 40 (gotta love shark week inflation) Waist: 35.5/39.75/43.75 (gotta hate shark week inflation ) Hips: 42 Thigh: 24/24 Arm: 12.5/12.5

How did the 9-miler go? I have 9.5 coming up next weekend. My longest run EVAR.

Week 5 in brief summary: Long Distance running: Not sure what to grade here. It was not a long run week, but my replacement run went very badly. I guess I at least attempted it and finished the mileage, even if not at the speed anticipated. A/B? Not all Legs: Only 1 yoga session, but I have been swimming at least 30 minutes every day, so I feel this one is met. A Mobility Sitting: This one is slipping a bit. I do it whenever I think about it, but I haven't been tracking to see that I'm meeting the 20 minute goal. C

Yeah, it was very unlike me. I'm not sweating it. Yep. I think you're right. I was feeling unmotivated to run at all, and my mind completely revolted at seeing speed work on the calendar before I ever put a foot outside. I'm used to pushing past the whiny-ness and getting it done, so I decided to at least make an attempt. I think it was the magic mile that sunk me. I don't even need to do them to accomplish my distance goal, so if it feels like that next time, I may just do an easy 3 miler and skip the magic mile. One crappy run doesn't kill anything, though, so I'm not worried.