TwoToneWA

That's awesome! What were they like to play with? Also, what do you play?

Yep! Big fan of the 2tone wave in particular.

Hey all - It's been almost 2 years since I've been on these forums and, as one might predict, I have de-leveled by quite a bit. My weight is back up from around 200 when I left these forums, to 240. I'm 27, male and 6'4. I'm tall and the weight doesn't show dramatically, but I certainly don't feel great as I look in the mirror. My diet and fitness routine has essentially vanished, and I've just simply found it harder to get motivated for most things that aren't relationship or work related. With the tough recap out of the way, it's time to look ahead! I'm in the busy season at work right now, but I've got the drive in me to start making some changes, particularly as I know it will help build my energy back up overall. So, without further ado: CHALLENGE 1 Diet: Habit: Create a meal plan each Sunday for the work week (10 meals total) and follow through with it. Reason: I barely cook at all anymore. Building up the habit to cook for myself and my partner is an important step to better fueling myself. Additionally, my partner is great at motivating me to work out but cooking is where I can be of most help to her as we work towards better taking care of ourselves. Grading: 5 for each meal plan finished (20 possible) 2 for each meal that is home-cooked and not take out. (80 possible) 90% or above = New cookbook 80% or above = Geeky cooking apron (something like this) 70% or above = Better tupperware 100% = Pick 2! Fitness: Habit: Make theYMCA spin class Mon, Wed, Fri. Reason: Spin is fun and is early enough (6am) to fit in with my work schedule. I'm all for strength building, which I intend to get to, but right now I need a group activity that's near work and this is what's available. Grading: 10 classes or more = New workout bag (currently using an old, slightly broken duffel) 8 classes or more = One new item of workout clothing 6 classes or more = New carabiner for my water bottle Make all 12? Pick 2! Level up my life: Habit: Make 10 minutes for meditation each day Reason: I meditate on an irregular basis at this point, but I always feel better when I do it. Making 10 minutes each day to meditate is good for my overall well being and my time management more generally. Grading: 90% or above: New Zabuton (meditation mat) 80% or above: New Zen Zafu (meditation cushion) 70% or above: New incense 100% Pick 2 So that's it! I could definitely use some encouragement as the positive feedback from my last experience on this board was Incredibly helpful, particularly as life got hectic. Also, if I messed up anything in terms of forum etiquette with this post, please let me know and I'll edit it right away! All the best, TwoTone

Hey guys!! So sorry for the silence. Aside from having some family in town from South America I've been trying to keep up at work as things pick up big time. That said, I think it's clear that my next challenge will need to involve making this forum more of a habit to stay on point. I have to run pretty quickly here but I'll just say that the last two weeks have been a pretty mixed bag. Week 3: Managed to get my workouts in but missed a day of cardio. Still struggling to adapt to my increased schedule, but it's an area I'm staying focused on. Budget was another C this week. Eating out is a mountain to climb but as I stock my new kitchen and (finally purchased a dining room table for myself) I think I'll get there. Week 4: Lost traction on my workouts this week. Only got one done and missed a day of cardio. Budget was a bit better with a B (planned for a slight increase in eating out as I had a planned date and adjusted accordingly.) So far week 5 is going well. Got my workout done tonight and plan to get a nice long walk in tomorrow after work. Behind on getting my cooking done but I'm on the road for part of this week and I'm still making my way through pork roast leftovers from late last week so I've got some wiggle room. Thanks for bearing with me guys! Now I'm off:

BRIGADE!! My summary is up! Apologies for my silence this last week. Should be around a bit more to check-in with you guys on each thread this week. KEEP BEING AWESOME AND DOING THE IMPOSSIBLE!

WEEK 2 WRAP UP! Welp! Not the easiest week as I mentioned a few days ago. Let's start with the lowlights. CHALLENGING MOMENTS: Missed a day of cardio. Got home from work waaay late this week and did not make it up over the weekend.Messed up fasting schedule on one day. Chose to go out late with an old friend before he disappeared into his job for the next month and a half.Missed Budget goal by 10% (C Grade) - going out got costly.HIGHLIGHTS: KICKED BUTT on my strength training this week. Altered my lunges into assisted lunges and my jumping jacks into mountain climbers. Definitely made a difference. Loving this Bodyweight Brigade Workout.Used my exercise to help myself emotionally. This may be one of the best skillsets I've learned from these challenges. Using fitness to help improve where my head is at. It definitely motivates me not to miss a workout.Though I didn't hit the mark on the budget, being aware of it helped me avoid make a lot of better micro-decisions throughout the week. ONTO WEEK 3!!! NO TURNING BACK NOW:

Didn't finish replying to this. I didn't realize that you were in WA! That is fantastic I'm down in Oly now (just moved from Seattle), but I try to get back up there to visit friends/family most weekends. A Seattle Rebel hiking meetup sounds like a blast. That's awesome that you take the bike around. Do you commute by bike? I've seen a lot more infrastructure going in around downtown/cap hill to improve the biking experience. Way more protected, well marked lanes and even a few bike specific lights downtown. Seems like a good time to be riding. On my list of things to get when I have some money saved up again, a decent bike is definitely there. Thanks Ash! I had a friend come down to help me decorate and make my new place feel a bit more "home-y" which was really nice. It's finally starting to feel like somewhere I'd like to come back to at the end of the day. Oh man, something so simple but SO DELICIOUS. I can only imagine how incredible that must have been after 5 days of fasting... It's great to have this community to check-in with and rely on, particularly when these challenges get rough (which, in my limited experience, they have a tendency to do). Thanks for being so supportive! The energy it takes to re-establish a social life in a new place is EXHAUSTING. It certainly feels harder as I get older too. It's helpful to know I'm not the only one in this boat. Just gotta remember to be that example! Thanks -TT

The Rebel Hiking Alliance, I like it.

WEEK 2 DAY 3! This week has been a very challenging one personally. I recently moved away from most of my family and friends (not for the first time) and back into an apartment on my own in order to be closer to work. It's been a bit lonely and work has definitely been stressful. That said I've been pushing myself not to lose momentum on my challenge even when all I want to do is come home and sit in the dark for a while. But I've overcome the shadows of this week so far and pushed ahead. Though it was pouring down rain on Tuesday, I came home, changed and trekked around the lake near my apt. As miserable as the weather was and as down as I felt that day, a walk always clears my head and leaves me feeling better when I walk back in the door than when I walked out. And for today's workout I managed to finally adjust the Bodyweight Brigade LVL1 Workout 'B' to fit my particular needs. I am now doing assisted lunges to avoid more pain on my knees and doing about 30 seconds of mountain climbers in place of jump rope. It isn't the easiest thing on my knees but it doesn't aggravate them the way the other exercises did. They still leave me feeling challenged and exhausted which is what I strive for in these workouts. I have a big presentation tomorrow and I think this latest workout really brought me out of my funk from the last few days. Here's hoping I can keep the good vibes going until at least tomorrow afternoon. Thanks as always for the advice and support, it means a ton! -TT

Thanks Ash! Most of the time the places I'm at have a salad option with some kind of protein. I really should go for that, I haven't made it much a priority. Thanks for bringing that back to mind! Not a bad plan! I used to hide protein and/or veggie snacks in my car so I'd be less prone to making poor choices. Sometimes the grocery store is an option, I'll definitely use that whenever possible! That said, in my line of work I'm mostly having meetings over lunch/dinner which can make it tough especially when they go past my 8pm fast time. I am gonna try and be the rebel in my field and make it the norm to have "lunch/dinner meetings" with food we brought from home I don't have a specific diet plan other than following a few general principles. Try to avoid processed foods and sugars and empty calorie drinks. Eat more veggies, more protein and less carbs. Carbs are my most challenging addiction. Love crackers and bread.

WEEK 2 - DAY 1 Today was a tough but ultimately productive day. Work was killer and I had to drive back up to Seattle for an end of the day meeting which left me without much space or time to eat anything from home. This is one of the biggest ongoing challenges with this job. I frequently have to rush off and unless I've really, really put some energy into planning my meals for the week I end up eating out. Something to keep working on for sure. I was also able to schedule an appointment with my orthopedic specialist. Down side is he didn't have an opening until Oct. 30th :/ I'll just have to be patient and hope that I come out of this effort with some options going forward. My workout tonight was really helpful. I was feeling down when I came back to my apartment so it was good to move around a bit and get some endorphins flowing. Starting to feel a bit more comfortable with the BWW lvl 1. Definitely feeling like my form is better for my squats this week and my knees are popping less which is really nice. And with that - I'm off to bed!

Summary is up along with pictures from my hike! Keep kicking butt everyone! Week 2 begins now!

Oh man! This is AWESOME. Thanks Will! I've actually been listening to orchestrated version of the LoZ soundtracks during my workouts (particularly for my walks). This is perfect for the BWW! If you're into hiking at all, then a trip to WA is a must! There's a million different trails out here with similarly amazing views that I am just itching to go see. A friend of mine runs a hiking tour company and writes about them constantly. Thanks again! You have a great week 2 as well!! -TT

This is the unobstructed view (read: without my nerdy face) from the top of the trail.

ASH! Way to be killing it on week #1!!!