forkboy

Yay! Thanks lady! I appreciate the support as always! Thanks for stopping by LadyShello! This approach has worked for me in the past, here's to hoping the trend continues. I actually saw my doctor this past summer when I was 30lbs heavier. I haven't been back. I will go this summer and hopefully have a better response. I plan to be 40 lbs down by then. I must go grocery shopping and do some prep cooking today if this first week is going to start off on the right foot.

Intrigued and sub'ing. I am big into counting so I am quite interested in seeing how your approach goes. Kick ass and good luck!

5% BF sounds like a lot to me. Maybe my measurements are garbage, but I use a two measurement average and only lost 4.8% over the last 4 challenges. I lost 23.9 lbs over that time. I guess it also depends on where you start. The holidays went badly for me too so I am up for a new challenge. I personally prefer weight and/or waist. My two cents.

Sub'ing. Love the ambitious water goal and the daily accountability.

Love it. Sub'd for more awesomeness of course. Thanks for the link and reading on sisu!

Thanks Swamps! I'm excited to see your challenge go up. I'll be lurking. Would love it if Ash came back around too!

Thanks ShadowLion, you guys are why I keep coming back. Let's get after it!

This past two weeks has been bad. Very very bad. Today I start anew and I have moved. http://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/58577-forkboy%E2%80%99s-journey-to-dagobah-%E2%80%93-the-reboot-5-of-8/

I won’t bore you with my background, there is loads of it in links in my siggy if you are so inclined. I have had a serious problem this past two weeks falling down and now it is time to get back up. Last challenge wasn’t my best effort, but there was still progress. All that progress plus some has pretty much disappeared this past two weeks. My weight is way up. My waist is way up. I have missed a few gym sessions. I haven’t been running. Today is a new day and today I reboot. Main Quest—I plan on completing 8 continuous Challenges, this being my 5th in a row. Once I arrive at Dagobah I will regroup and consider how best to attack my Jedi training. I use challenge rewards as my “carrot†along the way and this challenge I have decided to add a “stick†too. My goals have been pretty consistent over the past several challenges. They are working, I just need to have a high compliance rate to see the results I am after. Consistency and Accountability are where it’s at. Here is my Journey to Dagobah summary plan: Goal 1 = Fitness My goal is 5 days a week of some sort of exercise. I currently do sprints, weightlifting (full body mixing in pull and push), bodyweight work/mobility, and running. I do three days of weight lifting and then 1-3 days of bodyweight work/mobility, running and/or sprints. Some weeks I will get 6 days of work in, but I don’t like the added pressure of always trying to hit 6, sometimes my body is just not in the mood for 6 full days (also work can tend to screw me up at times and make 6 nearly impossible). Goal 1 Evaluation Daily eval is 1 point for workout and 0 points for no workouts, cumulative grading explained below. I’ve stopped tracking the role-playing stuff, but will reward myself with points as explained below. Goal 2 = Diet/Macro Precision I will log all food into myfitnesspal and my nutrient goals will be 1,700 calories on most days and up to 2,000 calories on days when I lift weights, with a 170g protein minimum. I will blend in the rest of my calories with healthy fats and clean carbs (beans and rice are okay, but no processed sugars). I tend to try and balance CHO/FAT/PRO at 30%/30%/40%, but don’t sweat the mix, so long as my protein is okay. (Well in reality alcohol will eat a couple % points out of CHO and FAT too.) I will focus on mostly lean meats, veggies and fruits again trying to avoid processed foods, junk foods, and foods high in bad fats and refined sugars. I will use whey protein as a supplement as needed but try to get almost all the protein from lean meats where possible. Booze is not allowed until I have hit my protein goal for the day. I have become pretty lax on what I have allowed to be ‘okay,’ particularly in the last challenge, so success will be measured here by being within 50 calories and 3 grams of protein. Anything outside that range will be considered a failure for the day. Goal 2 Evaluation Daily eval is 1 point for hitting targets and 0 points for missing, cumulative grading explained below. Goal 3 = Sleep EDIT Mindfulness It has been working nicely for me, so work nights (Su-Thurs) my curfew will be 9:45pm, with 15-30 minutes of reading before lights out. EDIT-I have some continuing education and an online traffic school that now (as of 1/10/14) render this goal likely impossible. I am shifting to 10 minutes of a mindful walk/break or meditation break at work. Goal 3 Evaluation Daily eval is 1 point for hitting target 0 points for points for missing, cumulative grading explained below. Diet/Fitness Side Quest = Outdoor fun with the kids. One day a week of outdoor play with kids. Hiking, throwing the football in the park, family jog, etc. Diet/Fitness Side Quest Evaluation Daily eval is 1 point for hitting target 0 points for points for missing, cumulative grading explained below. Life Side Quest = Daily Chores One load of dishes, trash check, 15 minutes of tiding up, and fold one load of laundry a day at a minimum. Life Quest Evaluation Daily eval is 1 point for hitting target 0 points for points for missing, cumulative grading explained below. Formatting/Tracking Note: For daily completion I will give myself 1 point for each success. Each goal is noted G1, G2, G3, FG and LG. Each goal has available points per day, week, and a total for the entire challenge. G1 possible points 30, A = 27/30 G2 possible points 42, A = 38/42 G3 possible points 30, A = 27/30 FG possible points 6, A = 6/6 LG possible points 42, A = 38/42 5 As = $200 savings for a new major tattoo project. I plan on having a major piece done over the course of the next 1-2 years. I will go in for work once I have saved enough for each phase. I recently started a half sleeve in anticipation of reaching my 175lb goal I had been after for a year and a half. I found the motivation of the tattoo and the length of time required to plan, pay for, and sit for a tattoo a nice parallel to my fitness and weight goals. I will start the planning process for my next piece by talking out some ideas with my artist. I will post updates as we move forward. 4 As = $50 in savings for tattoo piece. 4 As is good, but $50 is not nearly fast enough for such a large piece. For anything less than 4 As I will be adding a “stickâ€. I will not only be checking in on my accountability here at NF but also with my mother and my wife. I plan on doing daily updates to both groups, but weekly at a minimum. I will be donating the $200 to a charity I have declared to them if I get less than 4 As. I don’t want to be overtly political on NF, so I won’t disclose the fund, in case it runs counter to your political beliefs, but generally speaking I would not normally support this group. My wife and my mother are highly politicized people and I know this donation would be a serious problem for them and a bit annoying for me. I know a daily report to them will ensure success in this challenge for sure. It is basically a total non-starter for me to give that money away in that fashion. I know I will be compliant this way, there is no other option. Initial Measurements: Weight 183 lbs (this is up 8 lbs from where I ended last challenge so hopefully some of it will come off quickly) BF Two Measurement Avg 24.3% (up .6% from end of last challenge, so sad) Waist at Widest Point 35.38 inches (my old tape measure broke and this is a new one, so reboot here too). My motivation is to meet my potential as a husband, father, and general member of my various communities. Plus my doctor recently told me I need to lose weight.

Sub'd of course. Go kill it!!

Just some anecdotal info here. I track macros as part of my regimen and have been losing weight now for 6 months. As mentioned above I focus most of my energy on protein. My range is larger than that listed above since I lift weights. This helps ensure I am hitting my lifting goals while still losing weight. I am definitely not bulking. Good luck!

k, so had a thought. I found a group that would annoy me to give money to, but more of an issue it would not be supported by my wife or mother either, who are more politicized than I am. I am thinking I will declare the charity to them and then provide daily updates both here at NF but also to them. I know giving to this charity is a complete non-starter and rather than disappoint them I would have 100% compliance, pretty much guaranteed. Still too negative? When I proposed the idea to my wife last night she said, 'I would definitely make sure you succeeded. I would be super pissed if you gave $200 of our money to them. That is like 5 mani-pedis. What a waste.' Degobah journey update below....

I'm sorry to hear you are disappointed in pushing the time frame back on your plans. You seem to have a sound approach and I hope the feeling of accomplishment will only be amplified by the slight delays. Thanks for all you have done on the forums and have a very happy new year!

Great challenge, awesome job sticking with it this time of year! Looking forward to seeing what's coming in the new year. Thanks for all your support!

Hmmm. Very interesting thought. I am struggling to think of organizations that fit the 'annoying but do not run counter to my core values' category. To be honest I didn't even consider the possibility that I would fail and actually donate the money. $200 to one of these orgs that I am thinking of would be a really hard pill for me to swallow, so I just assumed I wouldn't let myself fail. I totally get your point though. I just need to reflect on the concept a bit more. My approach might be a little too negative in tone and not improving my little corner of the world. Wise Xena. Thank you.

That is an awesome pic Will. Hope you're great Ash!

I think maintenance right now is totally a huge win. Let the new year bring massive progress. Happy holidays HH!

Thanks HH as always! $1 per 10 calories seems aggressive from my perspective just because I would never ever want to give even 2 cents to some of these organizations I despise and 10 calories is super hard for me to hit with any precision. I was thinking of linking mine up to my grades, like 5 As gets me my $200 tattoo savings plan, 4 As gets me $50, and less than 4 As I donate the $200 that would have gone to my tattoo to a charity I hate. Yesterday involved another party and I ended up drinking too much. I hit less than 175 on the scale this morning for the first time ever, but it is certainly not a win because I know it entirely related to alcohol produced dehydration. I kind of felt like after my post yesterday that I had resigned to having given up on this challenge and therefore didn't prep myself in the right way going into the party. Shit. Maybe I need to set some goals between now and the next challenge...

I don't feel like I deserve even a mini reward at this point. I am really disappointed in my efforts this challenge. I don't want to be too hard on myself, but I definitely gave into base desires and allowed myself to fall into old habits. I didn't totally fall off the wagon but I I did frequently go over on calorie goals, under on protein goals, and I have been drinking way too much alcohol. The stress of this time of year got to me again. Son of a bitch! Challenge Summary and reflection: Workouts - B - I made most but slept in and missed some runs (see above with the old habits) Macros/Diet - D - Basically a shit show. Mindfulness - C - I have not devoted the energy here I should be, especially this past week. Chin-ups - F - Oh so close, but didn't quite make it. This is a silly goal upon reflection because if I train all the supporting muscles and consistently work in chin-ups into my routine the rate of progress is not entirely within my locus of control. K, so I have been reflecting a lot about my reasons for failure this challenge. Some of it is allowing myself minor exceptions and not taking the violations seriously. 2 drinks turns into 4 pretty fast. 4 drinks leads to eating off plan pretty easily. I failed to prep my meals ahead of time 2 of the 6 weeks, which makes sticking to the plan much harder. I have also lost interest in my rewards. I didn't find my reward from this challenge too compelling. New pants? Silly. I did get my outline and shading of my tattoo a week ago. It looks awesome. I am within 1-2 lbs of my 175 mark to get my coloring finished. Hopefully early January. I like this motivation. I am thinking of changing my challenge goals to involve a major tattoo plan. I really like my current tattoo artist, but she is leaving town in 6 months or so, so I am unsure on how I should plan a major tattoo project. I am thinking of either an owl, an octopus, or a squid and it will be a giant piece, so back, chest, full leg, or even full body down my ribs. This will be expensive and will take a long time to both sit for and pay for. This seems like a nice goal to run in parallel with my weight and fitness goals. I am going to change my rewards from 'new pants' to $200 saving for major piece and then I will work out the design and the timing with my artist(s). Maybe my current artist can do the design and between now and June I can save enough to have the major line work done with her and then she can hand off the rest to another artist she likes. $200 a challenge would get me $800 by May and ~$2000 maybe for a year from now. I need to get this piece priced out to see if that is reasonable. With tip I am spending $920 on my current piece and it is only a half-sleeve, so maybe I need to make this a two year project? I am realizing getting to my 15% BF number is going to be pretty hard. I am pretty confident it will be near impossible for me to hit that mark by June. I don't know how long it will take frankly, so 15% BF and a major piece have this sort of long term 12-24 month horizon that I like the idea of pairing up. Finally, I am thinking of adding negative rewards, like donating money to a charity or organization I hate. I obviously don't talk about politics here, but I have pretty strong political opinions, so I think this would be another strong motivator for me. I also want to add back in an accountability component somehow, but need to reflect on that some more. K, so the plan for the next three weeks is to try and lose another 2 lbs, which will be a good challenge with all the booze and treats in so much abundance. I will also spend a bit of time redesigning my 'Master Plan' to sync with my new approach. Family, friends, fun, relaxation, reflection, and an embrace of the new year. Wishing you all the very best!

Moving Forward!!!! Awesome!

It was indeed crazy with my wife out of town. Hopefully a bit of normalcy returns now as we close out this challenge. Overall it has not been a great one I have to say. I will be out of town too coming up soon with lots of my routine broken. I hope to get back on track in a serious way in the new year. Week 5 recap: Workouts 4/5 (22/25 Total) Macros 5/7 (27/35 Total, this is my worst of any recent challenges, so sad) Sleep 3/5 (23/25 Total) Mindful Outdoors 5/7 (30/35 Total) Chin-ups - Not in my routine this week. Hopefully will make a run at it this weekend. Overall I will not be getting any rewards this challenge I am afraid.

Thanks HH! Maybe I can pretend my new avatar is me as Luke on my way to Dagobah. I will have to determine what my next journey is at some point, once I arrive, maybe some Jedi training of some sort... Hit my macros yesterday and hit the gym. I was also on target for mindful outdoors and getting to sleep on time. My workout yesterday was Military Press, Close Grip Bench Press, Incline DB Bench Press, and Tricep Pull-downs. Felt a little like a bro day, but it was on the coach's plan so I hit it. Sprints in this morning. Ran into some coyotes again, this time in the kids play area of the park near my house. They scattered pretty quickly so no issues there. I will be tested this week as my wife is leaving for a conference and I will be on single parent duty with the two little ones. I planned out my meals and our schedule quite a bit to minimize any stress eating. Hopefully that does the trick. My wife kindly minimized the wine purchases at the store this weekend too, helping me ward off temptations on that angle too. Hope everyone has a superb Tuesday!

Good way to get back at the exam I say. Nice job!

@Cinalyc and @WanderingLiz--Awesome suggestions! Thanks! My mom abhors alcohol consumption (not sure why, I think some bad experiences have set her off), so I am thinking she will be a great recruit for a limitation goal if I have to text her every time I drink. Love the water type too, really good one! Awesome stuff here!

No special significance on the icon change, no. Just getting bored with with He-man. Had this pic from a trip I took with my kids to Lego Land and thought I would plug it in. Someday I will put my real face up I suppose. Week 4 recap: Workouts 5/5 (18/20 Total) Macros 6/7 (22/27 Total, this is my worst of any recent challenges, so sad) Sleep 5/5 (20/20 Total) Mindful Outdoors 7/7 (25/28 Total) Chin-ups - My routine had me starting small and building this week, so 2x, then 4x, etc., so not a good attempt in this week. All in all, not a bad week. My scale BF% has consistently had the highest measurement of all methods I use, which is why tend to average it with the hand-held bio-impediment thingy which is quite a bit lower. Well today my scale read 24.8%, the first time below 25% ever, so that was kind of cool. My daily average is back on the line too after all my splurging so feeling good going into this week. Some pics...