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Welcome! I think goal #2 will definitely be a big part of you hitting goal #1, though the Muay Thai will help for sure.

Welcome! As for weights, have you considered kettlebells? If you start off with one it's cheaper than getting a set of dumbbells, and you can really do a lot.

Welcome aboard! As far as finding martial arts schools, see if any you're considering have Facebook pages with good comments on them or other reviews. In my experience, the personality of the teacher is the most important part of choosing a school.

Seconded! That's some hardcore productivity, keep it up!

From a fellow procrastinator (currently procrastinating on work by lurking around NF), welcome!

Thanks for the support, guys and gals! So far, day 1 = push-ups, kettlebell workout (with thoughts of getting a heavier kettlebell, actually), and two healthy paleo + dairy meals. Tonight is my first kung fu training in a couple of weeks, so it might be a bit brutal, but I know it'll feel good to be back hitting that wooden dummy.

Thanks, and me too. I think my biggest problem is that right now I can still pull off looking decent, so I'm not that motivated by looking at the mirror... until I get out the scale or the measuring tape. So while I'm starting strong right now, I know it'll be a challenge to keep that momentum going rather than caving in to the beer and pizza.

Woot, I'm doing the slow-carb thing as well (and kettlebells, with a workout modified from Ferris' book/the YouTubes). Here's to climbing out of the pit of unhealthiness!

Yes, join us Tibi, we have (almond flour and nut) cookies!

Good to see you again, Thrillho! And yeah, once a monk, always a monk =) It seems quite a few of us are rebounding this challenge just to get back into the shape we once were, so I'll definitely be cheering you on. Any chance of bringing your punching bag inside, or at least in a garage or basement?

You beat that skirt. You beat it hard! And if you feel such a slump coming on, that's why your fellow Monks are here!

Awesome, awesome goals! I'm so with you on the need to cut down booze, and it being so delicious and wonderful (except, you know, for my body) makes it oh so hard. I can't wait to hear how that goes, and especially any tips as I think that'll be my goal next challenge. Good luck on the Coursera course too! I love those things (am starting one on programming languages next week =)

I absolutely second that. King's book is in my trifecta of writing advice, along with Murakami's "What I Talk About When I Talk About Running" and Orwell's "Why I Write" (both highly recommended). Awesome writing goals. As soon as I'm done with my book I want to get back to writing a variety of things for writing's sake, it really is the best practice.

Good idea! We could apply that to fitness as well - there's so much stuff out there about "instant abs" and whatnot that's pure B.S. I have one suggestion: we could each post one "Alliance myth" per week and how we squashed it, whether it's about diet, fitness or just some good ol' unconventional thinking.

Awesome (since I didn't know how to do that =) So what should our common goals be? Besides aiming to misbehave, of course?

And just to keep me accountable/track my progress:

Good luck, I know how hard it can be to work your ass off just to get back to the shape you were once in - kinda doing that myself this challenge as well. The good part is, once you're back you can keep those habits to get even more awesome =) And brewing - sweet! I learned how to home brew last year (as well as some fruit wine and infused vodka), it's awesome that you're going to make a business out of it!

Those look amazing! Good luck!

Hmmm, we seem to be on similar paths again (as far as getting back into/not breaking good habits). Good luck, especially with the unplugging - I had a similar experience when I forced myself to stay off social media for the past two months, and I can't say I especially missed it. The best part is that now I use it a lot less by default.

I'm definitely new to this Accountibilibuddy concept (been MIA for a few challenges), but I was amazed no one else had already started a Browncoats group. So, any (cross-guild) Whedonites out there?

Welcome and good luck! Kickboxing is a blast, I miss it as well - though if you have access to a punching bag you can practice plenty on your own.

It's been forever since I've frequented the NF forums (or any social media, for that matter), as the past two months I've been working non-stop on finishing a book I'm co-writing. That means I dropped my last challenge midway, went MIA from my virtual and real social life and except for the once a week or so I pulled myself away from the computer to go to kung fu, completely stopped working out =( Between that and the holidays, I'm in pretty bad shape, and now that my schedule is not so hectic I need to get back to "normal", or better =) So, at the very least this challenge is an opportunity to finish the last one I failed and get back in decent shape, so that I can focus on getting awesome in future challenges. Anyway, it's good to be back, fellow Monks! Starting point: Weight = 64 kg (eek!), height = 170cm, body fat = about 30% (double eek!) Fitness + Diet: 1. Lift right! (STR +2 STA +1) Do a kettlebell routine I developed 2x per week, plus 20 push-ups every single morning to wake up Grading: +1 point for every workout done, -1 point each time I miss doing push-ups. 12 points = A, 10 pts = B, 8 pts = C, 6 pts = D, 4 or less = F 2. Train right! (STR +2 DEX +2 ) Go to kung fu training 3x per week Grading: +1 point for every training attended. 18 pts = A, 15 pts = B, 12 pts = C, 9 pts = D, 6 or less = F 3. Eat right! (CON + 3) I recently read Tim Ferris' 4 Hour Body, so I'm going to take this time to experiment with his paleoesque diet and eat paleo 6 days a week with 1 cheat day Grading: +1 point for every day without cheating. 36 pts = A, 30 pts = B, 24 pts = C, 18 pts = D, 12 or less = F Life: 1. Write, write! (WIS + 5) The book is done!!! The writing part, anyway. But now I have to edit the whole thing, plus select illustrations, do the forward, find a proof-reader, etc. So that will consume most of my January, since the whole thing needs to be sent off to get typeset in early February. In short, my main life goal for this challenge is to completely finish the book so my publisher can send it off in February to meet the release deadline in April. (And yes, you know it's real when you have an Amazon page. Gulp!) Grading: This one is either pass (book done) or fail (book not done).

*throws off piles of books, bills and empty bottles she's been living under the past two months* I'm in!

Yup, I totally lied in the title, eh? Soooooooo, it seems I've met a classic case of "trying to do too much at the same time" and this challenge pretty much handed me my ass on a silver platter. Needless to say, I'm dropping out, as I've failed on every single point. However, I'm learning from my mistakes and am going to avoid all social media and society as a whole until the book is done. Only after that can I get back to thinking about my body, my health, and my sanity. One thing at a time. Better luck to you than me, fellow nerds.

Haha, that was my thought exactly! I actually read the whole book a month ago, so I can't wait to see what you guys think of the ending.