Xahn

See you all on the other side! Unsubbing!

Sweet! Checking in! Let's go Rebels. Time for the heat of summer here in Texas, let's heat it up!

Nice work Bouldersnap! I like the breakdown of things you've learned. I'm also curious to see your data visually when you can!

Good work Spark. Keep working on those shoulders, they'll loosen up and make things much easier for you. And you're definitely correct, long term is the way to look at it. When you post up your new thread I'll sub it! Can't wait to see your next challenge!

Alright Hazard, following. Good luck man!

Lol, I tried to just do a couple of 5ks, they were harder than I remember! Alright folks, back at it. Kayla kicked my ass all over the place today. UPDATE 6/3: Kayla Leg and Plyometric day Good Mornings (warm up): Set 1: 95 x 8 Set 2: 95 x 8 Set 3: 95 x 8 Back Squats (Volume): 8 Sets: 145 x 5 NOTE: I should have gone heavier on this, though weight was not the goal. The goal was to get me breathing heavy, and it did that. I just think I could have done more weight and breathed heavy. Wide Grip Pull-Ups (Assisted with Resistance Band): Set 1: 25 reps SUPERSETTED WITH: Overhead Barbell Shoulder Press: Set 1: 95 x 12 Reverse Grip Pull-Ups (With Resistance Band): Set 1: 25 reps SUPERSETTED WITH: Overhead Barbell Shoulder Press: Set 1: 95 x 12 Standing Squat Jumps (Knees to Chest): Set 1: 10 jumps Set 2: 5 jumps SUPERSETTED WITH: Standing Lunges with 45lb Plate Over the Head: Set 1: Each Leg: 8 Reps Set 2: Each Leg: 8 Reps Seated Box Jumps (4 foot): 3 Sets: 5 reps NOTE: I was super intimidated by this. It looked really far away and being that I had to jump from a seated position, I didn't get full extension. But it really made me focus on getting my knees to my chest. It was a cool progression that Kayla did. SUPERSETTED WITH: Kettle Bell Swings: 3 Sets: 10 swings (not sure of weight, maybe 15? 20?) OVERALL: Very good workout. My heart rate was through the roof, and I felt like I was going to throw up a couple times. Course I didn't, but I did push myself as hard as I could. It was awesome. I'm going to try to incorporate a little more of those into my week. I'll get better at it I'm sure, since cardio is a major weakness of mine.

Challenge 2 Results: GOALS: 1) Hit 3 heavy lift days per week - I ended up lifting 6 days most weeks, and ran 1 day per week. I'd call that a success. I'm dropping my reward from 4 to 3 str since I botched the last week. What did this accomplish? - PR Deadlift: 275 x 5 (up from 185) - PR Back Squats: 225 x 3 (up from 185) - PR Front Squats: 185 x 3 (up from 135) - PR Bench: 205 x 2 (up from 185) - PR Standing Overhead Barbell Press: 125 x 5 (up from 115) +3 STR 2) Continue my diet of lean meat, veggies and low carbs. But investigate the use of sweet potatoes to give me a touch more calories - I investigated sweet potatoes, and like them. But I need to continue the cut, so I'm pulling back to just veggies for the next challenge. I was flawless on my diet as always, except for my week of travel which is why I take a point from Char. +1 Char, +2 CON 3) Run to Zilker park once a week - I accomplished this and more. What did this accomplish? - My first 10k was run this challenge (1:10:44), and I hadn't even run a 3k fully yet. It wasn't the fasted time ever, but I did it. And I did it twice. I also ran 2 5ks, and 1 5k split into two legs. Woot! +4 DEX Real Life Quest: Pay off 3k worth of credit debt this next 6 weeks! - Done! What did this accomplish? Less debt, awesome. +3 WIS Take Aways: Calories VS Strength - At roughly 1800 calories per day I'm still seeing great strength gains. I'm sure this will taper out eventually, but I'm liking the combination of fat loss and strength gains. I also look WAY bigger, which may mean my body just kinda doesn't need as much food. Though that also sucks because I don't get to eat as much... Alcohol - I drink way too much, and I'm pretty sure I'd be ripped to shreds if I didn't drink. I'm going to make this a focus of my next challenge. I have a ton of fun going out and drinking with my buddies, but it's actually become something I'm a little worried about. Pants - Pants are super annoying, because my waist is now 30" and I can't fit in any pants smaller than a 32" waist. I can barely fit in a 32"... I just bought some True Religion pants at a 32" waist, and struggle to get in them. Forget skinny jeans, I don't know how anyone fits in them. I can barely get them over my calves... Running - I actually can be decent at this. I'll be honest, my cardio still sucks, but I did accomplish a lot. And I still kind of hate it... Maybe one day I won't? It excites me though, because I do HATE IT. Staying on the wagon - Things are way easier when I'm in the right rhythm. After my Seattle trip, I'm dreading the gym today, mostly because I know my trainers goal is to kick my ass, but still. It's tough mentally to get back in the gym, and stay consistent on my diet. Though honestly I'm glad to be back. It's hard, but it's something I desire, which means I take it. Challenge 2 - Overall a resounding success

Oh damnit, I just wrote up my results and erased them all by hitting the back button. Results to come shortly, again...

True and sad story. I was also walking everywhere in Sydney, so my mind was in the game. Here I was just driving, and having difficulty finding anywhere to walk. The Aussies were sick to death of eating.

Woot for bike shopping! I've been wanting to do that forever. Might be a good time to do it because the X Games are in Austin this year. I'd love to ride my bike down (it's like a mile away from my house) and watch! You're really doing well Twilight. Do you find that this is now turned into a lifestyle change?

So I broke a 5k into two segments this weekend, since I was meeting a "friend" for a walk (3.5 miles) by the lake. I ran 1.6 miles to the lake in 14:46, and then ran back a bit later in 15:07. It was interesting, because there is NO WAY I would have been able to do that pace continually. It was 91 degrees and 60% humidity. I'll be trying to find a cooler time to run soon, as it's not reasonable for me to run in that kind of heat yet. Too many challenges to put on my body. But, it was a fun run, and I didn't walk any of it. Course towards the end, I might as well have been I was dragging so hard. Anyway, I'll be investigating the best times for me to run (late at night is ideal, but it's still hot and it'll mess with my sleep) to get the cardio in. I don't really want to do a treadmill, but I might just have to own up to it and do it.

They have snacks all over the office and I often find myself grabbing a couple things whenever I walk by! I must get stronger. Oh well, I'll be back on it soon enough, and I'm really happy about all the improvement this challenge. Hitting 275 on deadlifts 5 times is incredible! Oh, I also hit 225 on my back squats recently. I've never done that before.

Congrats on the solid finish Hazard. Tons of flexibility improvement, and no one posts up videos like you do. Thanks for all the hard work, it's motivational!

Lol Xanjra, you're going to make Hazard step up his chart game! Nice job on the challenge, those results speak for themselves!

Man, I love the idea of each activity adding up to something. That's really cool. Nice work on the Challenge Twilight. Even though you had your foot injury, you still were really moving forward. I think you've really established yourself through these two challenges, and balancing that with a family is amazing.

Hey folks, just checking in. I have not done any running lately since I've been on a business trip. But I am planning on hitting the road when I get back. I'm going to try to do a 5k every few days to just keep myself moving. I can also tell I've taken a step back in terms of my road to leanness since I've not been running. I'll be using Zombies, Run! to entertain myself during the runs (and specially since they fixed the bug that causes it to stop tracking me when caught by a horde) and am very much looking forward to it. I'll be running at night, which I also need to figure out. I need to make sure there is plenty of light and if not I'll need to get something (LED headlamp likely) to fix this. I'm going to add all this in to my next challenge, which I'm excited to start.

Absolutely! Ok everyone, I'm still alive. I'll be grading myself eventually when I get home from my business trip, and it'll be a pretty good grade I think. Sadly, this trip hasn't been perfect in terms of food. Oddly I did a lot better in Sydney than I did in Seattle. But the good thing is I'll be back home and back on the wagon soon. Can't wait to get back into it!

Updating through the post work is pretty important in my opinion. It keeps your head in the game, and keeps you on the wagon. It's also a great time to discuss your thought process for the next challenge. BTW, that's a LOT of meat, yum!

Lol, if I tried to do 240 x 14 I think my head would explode. Nice work Hazard.

What Xanjra said. I'm curious as to what you think between the weight to waist ratio.

If you keep sticking to what you're doing Twilight, you're right. A year will be incredible at the velocity you have currently.

We were about to acquire a company in Newcastle! That would have been cool. I'd love to add that to my destinations to visit.

I'm at least going to try to get some running in. Maybe a few 5ks or so. Finish on a cardio note.

Good work on getting yourself up at 11pm and doing a run. Wish I had that type of will power / discipline...

Lol, mine is my tummy. I run shirtless now since it's a million degrees outside, and I always worry about my tummy jiggling a little each footfall. But that won't be forever (if it even does right now...)!