Ciara

Yesterday's wrap up: Quest 1: Drink 6-8 glasses water I drank 5. Another B Quest 2: Eat 3 pieces of fruit I ate one. That's a C. Going to change that quest today though so I'm not too worried. Quest 3: Eat one paleo meal I did. I had ribs and a huge salad. I don't know what the sauce on the ribs was, it probably wasn't paleo, but again college meal plan what can you do. A for me. I might increase my paleo meals to 2 per day because I really like eating this way. I will change my sweets challenge from eating fruit as well as desserts to not eating any desserts at all.

I wasn't near a computer last night so let me recap yesterday right now. Quest 1: Drink 6-8 glasses of water. I drank 5. So that's a B. Not bad! Quest 2: Eat 3 pieces of fruit. I ate two, and even managed to stop myself before eating an entire cookie. Success! Another B. Quest 3: Eats one paleo meal. I did this. I forget what I ate but it was as paleo as I can get in the dining hall. A for this one! I haven't finished today's quest yet- still drinking water and haven't had any fruit yet so far....that's ok though. On the plus side, I only had one dessert all day so I still feel like that's a win. I might change the fruit quest to 3 sugary things max per day including fruit, or maybe I will go cold turkey....I feel like the wording right now allows me to make loopholes. I could say, "I ate 3 pieces of fruit! and also 5 cookies, 2 slices of cake, and a bowl of ice cream oops." I want to change it but I have already limited my intake of sugary things for a challenge and I failed. Based on everyone's advice....it sounds like I'll have to go cold turkey.....no...I'm scared.

Thanks for the encouragement guys. The hard part for me is, I have a college meal plan for another month before summertime and dessert is abundant. When I see people eating ice cream or cookies I reeeallly want it, and when I see them sitting in the fridge I have to force myself not to go over there. It doesn't always work. It would be better if I had my own kitchen, but I'll do my best without it.

Glad to know I'm not the only one. This is my 5th challenge and I have focused on food pretty much every time. I always manage to fall short of my aspirations and give in and it's very discouraging. This summer I'll be working on a farm and the owners told me they don't eat or endorse the eating of junk. Hopefully those three months will help me purge my system, if I can't figure it out before hand.

I love your challenges, they're very straightforward. Congrats on succeeding on the last two challenges as well! Looking forward to seeing your progress.

So I know the challenge hasn't started yet but I've been trying to follow my goals already. So far my biggest challenge is the sweets thing, of course. I am eating fruit, but I am still eating truckloads of baked goods. I haven't had ice cream in a few weeks which is a huge achievement for me but I've replaced it with cake and cookies. I literally just ate 12 chocolate chip cookies, even after having a salad and chicken breast for lunch. I might change this to just don't eat those foods anymore even though that is so hard and I've failed at cutting out sweets before. But my willpower has been really strong lately, so I might be able to do it. It is a rare occasion when I am able to eat just one...so maybe not eating any really is the best route for me. The problem might be the fact that I spend all my free time in the dining hall working and hanging out with people. There's so much temptation here and it's ALWAYS available...

Hey everyone! I respawned a few weeks ago and while I wasn't terribly active on the forums, I think I've made some strides towards my goals. However, I didn't achieve any of the goals I set for myself last time. So I'm going to do it again for real. Same challenge with just a few tweaks. Hopefully I am more on top of things this time. I'm going to focus on nutrition this challenge, since that's my biggest struggle. GOAL: To fall back into some kind of fitness routine. I don't care if it's pumping iron 5x a week and eating all the steamed veggies with chicken breast and salmon or just walking every night when my boyfriend gets off work and limiting ice cream to 2 days a week. As long as I'm doing SOMETHING on a regular basis. By the end of the challenge I want to have a starting place upon which to build over the summer. Quest 1: (WIS + 4) Drink 6-8 glasses of water daily. I'm not going to cut out anything like tea or soda. I just want to add water. A- 6-8 glasses a day B- 4-5 glasses a day C- 3 or fewer glasses a day Quest 2: (CON + 3, CHA + 2) I eat too many desserts. I am going to eliminate sweets from my diet, starting with dessert like cake and cookies and pie. This doesn't include sugar in my tea or coffee. I don't drink soda anyway so that's all set. Starting right now, I don't eat donuts, cookies, cake, ice cream, or anything else like that anymore. A- 0 a day B- 1-2 a day C- 3 a day or more Quest 3: (WIS + 3, STA + 3) Eat 2 paleo meals a day. Simple as that. I would like to replace 2 meals with paleo meals rather than gorge myself as I have been doing. (Eating paleo as well as normal meals throughout the day. Meals, not snacks). A- Every day B- 5-6 days C- 4 or fewer days Optional Quest 4: Hit the gym 2x a week. Cardio, weights, or a class. Doesn't matter as long as I go and do something for at least 30 minutes. It could even be a combo, like 15 min cardio 15 min weight training. But this is optional, for days when I feel especially motivated. If I don't go a single time it doesn't matter. Orrr, just work out in my room. BBWW, anyone? The points are as follows: STR: 0 STA: 3 WIS: 7 DEX: 0 CON: 3 CHA: 2 Don't feel like taking pictures, but I will take measurements on Sunday. Bust: 38.5 Waist: 34 Belly: 42 Hips: 44.5 Thighs: L: 27 R: 26.5 Biceps: L: 14 R: 13.5 Calves: L: 16.5 R: 17 Weight: 184 lbs Pants size: 12 (it's a bit tight)

Following! I am so excited for this challenge- I know you'll be awesome as usual. Good luck with the house hunting!...

Thanks for the encouragement guys. I've been doing really well with the water. I haven't kept track of how many glasses I drink but it's at least 5 a day. I had ice cream 3x last week and not once so far this week. I've walked a few times but it isn't developing into a habit yet. I'm going to try to incorporate gym time and walks into my next challenge instead and focus on drinking more water and reducing ice cream. I've noticed that by drinking more water, I drink less coffee and tea without meaning to which is pretty cool.

So i came back a few days ago guns blazing with great plans for myself and like this is gonna be great but i'll be honest i don't know where that came from but i feel totally dejected now and like i feel totally hopeless like i can't do anything right for myself i definitely don't have the same confidence i did when i posted this. it was like a moment of mania where i thought i could do it all and i haven't been for a single walk and although i drink 4-6 glasses of water a day and only have had ice cream once actually that's pretty good but i still feel hopeless. i just want to be THERE already without putting in the effort. I go back to school next week, i'm home for spring break right now, so maybe when i get back into my real routine i'll be more active (both here and in the real world). i'm just gonna try to get back into a mindset of healthiness and do a real challenge when the next one comes along. sigh.

It's 9:45pm. I do NOT want to go out and walk. I drank like...3 glasses of water this morning? The only thing that's certain is I can't eat ice cream because I'm at home on spring break and there's no ice cream in the house.

Hey Guys! I'm back, did you miss me? I sure missed you... Gonna skip the excuses as to why I've been gone. I've been gone because I lost motivation and started lying to myself. Lately, however, I've been having dreams about my old fitness life, especially parkour-related dreams. I've been itching to go to the gym but I feel like I can't go alone (I transferred schools so the gym is new and scary. Also hella far away from my dorm). My new boyfriend always pouts when I talk about working out (although tonight he finally agreed to come with me to the gym! Success! Now *I* need to start going...) Then this weekend I visited my grandparents and they are not in good shape...frail, can't move around well, angry at the world and their misfortune. My aunt said something to me..."This is why we need to exercise now, so we don't become like them in the future." I realized oh dang I'm setting myself up for failure I do NOT want to be like my grandfather or even my mom...I want to be 65 and still able to run and remember things. So here's my late goal. Sorry I'm joining halfway through but I know you guys won't mind...better late than never right? GOAL: To fall back into some kind of fitness routine. I don't care if it's pumping iron 5x a week and eating all the steamed veggies with chicken breast and salmon or just walking every night when my boyfriend gets off work and limiting ice cream to 4 days a week (instead of every day 2x a day. Yes, that is where I am right now.) As long as I'm doing SOMETHING on a regular basis in the next...3 weeks? By the end of the challenge I want to have a starting place upon which to build. Quest 1: (WIS + 4) Drink 6-8 glasses of water daily. I'm not going to cut out anything like tea or soda. I just want to add water. A- 6-8 glasses a day B- 4-5 glasses a day C- 3 or fewer glasses a day Quest 2: (CON + 3, CHA + 2) Actually do stop eating so much ice cream though. I seriously eat 1-2 mugs of ice cream a day (I put it in mugs instead of bowls so it's not as messy). By the end of this challenge I want to be eating it 4 days a week max. But the thing is, I'll probably just replace ice cream with another sweet treat like cake or cookies. My sweet tooth is like me on my period every day like NO I EFFING NEED THIS SUGAR I WILL CUT YOU. It's like that it's scary. I need a replacement, any suggestions? Or maybe I can start with going from ten billion cookies to one. A- 4 or fewer times/week B- 5-7 times/week C- 8+ times/week Quest 3: (STR + 3, STA + 3) Walk every night. After James gets off work, go home and then take a walk. At least 10 minutes even if the wind is biting cold or it's raining. He doesn't need to come. Preferably 30 minutes but if 10 is all I'm feeling that night then it's fine as long as I went out and made a point. Walking around campus (which I do a lot!) doesn't count. I have to do this with my main goal in mind. A- Every night B- 5-6 nights C- 4 or fewer nights Optional Quest 4: Hit the gym 2x a week. Cardio, weights, or a class. Doesn't matter as long as I go and do something for at least 30 minutes. It could even be a combo, like 15 min cardio 15 min weight training. I would like to be able to easily lift 50 lbs by June...I can do it but it's a bit of a struggle (need this for a job). But this is optional, for days when I feel especially motivated. If I don't go a single time it doesn't matter. The points are as follows: STR: 3 STA: 3 WIS: 4 DEX: 0 CON: 3 CHA: 2 Don't feel like taking pictures, but I will take measurements. Bust: 40in Waist: 34in Belly: 41in Hips: 45in Thighs: L: 28.5in R: 27.5in Biceps: L: 14in R: 14.5in Calves: L: 17in R: 17in Weight: 180.8lbs Pants size: 12 Not happy with this at all. Let myself go like whoa. But I'm not focusing on the numbers this time. Just gonna try to get back on the wagon. Next challenge will be more interesting. By the way, I'm turning 21 in like 2 weeks!

Hey....so I just came back like 10 minutes ago and have no idea how you're getting on and there's 34 pages and I'm not sure if/when I'll get through them all but I bet you're doing AWESOME things so good job you let's catch up sometime

Hey everyone I have returned to you. Haha...ok real talk I probably have gained a million pounds since I was last here and haven't lifted a single weight since like November. Haven't done parkour since what, September?? Haven't watched what I eat in who even knows how long. Haven't done a single thing for myself as far as getting fit goes. I've been having a lot of dreams lately about parkour and health in general and feeling antsy like I need to get my bum to the gym and then I remembered, Hey, NF is a thing! So I'm back baby and ready to try this again. Gonna take itty bitty baby steps cuz I know there are things I can't do yet. I'm in college on a meal plan. I'm limited. But I'm not chained...except by my own inhibitions. Gonna find out when the next challenge is and do that unless one just started in which case I'll join that one. I didn't realize how much I missed this place!!

I'm thankful for NF as well and all my friends and family, and I'm thankful that myself and loved ones still have their health. Nothing is more important than that.

Wow. Ok. I fell off the face of the earth for a while. I AM SORRY EVERYONE I LET YOU DOWN. I'm dropping out of this challenge because I realized it's way too much stress right now. I explained more on my thread but I just have waaaay too much going on and realistically this isn't going to happen. But I'll still cheer on my fellow skullcrushers! Ok I missed a lot of questions so I'll answer the three I can remember: Favorite season: Like everyone else, I gotta say fall. I love winter too but being newly single it's a lot colder and sadder than I remember...so fall is my number one. Favorite book: I'm a bad person. I haven't read a book in YEARS. Since hitting high school and now college, I just don't really feel up to the task of reading. Weird, I know, I used to DEVOUR books when I was younger. My favorite is a tie between The Hobbit and The Dark Lord of Derkholm by Dianna Wynne Jones. The Hobbit is just excellent and adventurous but the DLOD is so cute and fun and GAH can't choose. Type of nerd: I love games. Tabletop, video, if I can play it I will probably at least moderately enjoy it. My favorites though are RPGs. I love Dragon Age and Aveyond, and OF COURSE DnD. Yes, I am a game nerd if I am a nerd at all. I also like anime a lot but OK STORY TIME. I have this problem. If you give me a TV/anime series or an especially long game (Ocarina of Time is my current challenge) I will love it. Well probably. But I won't get through it. I think I have commitment problems, I can't finish things even if they're great. That's why I can only really watch movies and single season animes, and I am therefore very out of the loop when it comes to pop culture. It helps to have a watching buddy (I had a watching buddy for the series Scandal) but if that person stops watching with me, I'll stop watching too. (My Scandal buddy started watching ahead without me and I just gave up). It's a weird problem.

I'm sorry! I'm trying to catch up now but man I missed a lot. Will try to be more on top of things from now on.

You've been busy while I was gone! Glad you're still moving so strong. That's what I like to see! That's the Pacha I know and love Good luck with insurance and have fun while Adelrune is visiting

HI EVERYONE!!!!!!!! Pacha sent me a really nice PM and I just am so sorry I disappeared! I have been taking some me time. I also got sick with a virus and have been feeling just so BLEH. Always that's how I feel. I am gonna call it quits on this challenge cuz I have too much else going on...finals, ex boyfriend coming home, holidays, changing schools...right now realistically I can't add to that. I should have thought it through more before starting a challenge. I'm still keeping up with my workouts as much as I can although food has been terrible since I got sick...barely eating at all and when I do it's junk. Sigh... On the bright side I met a nice guy! We're just friends since I'm not at all ready to move on to a new person and he's not either (he's also not my type at all) but he's really chill and cute and he talks to me a lot which I appreciate. But yeah I'm still alive and kicking although these days it feels like it's all I can do to get out of bed. Being sick is not fun at all. Gonna go catch up on everyone's threads now! Thanks for being there everyone!

Thanks. I'll try to remember that next time I'm struggling. I feel less like a failure now Gosh I'm so behind in everything. I need to catch up! School and NF and even just waking up is all a struggle. It's like pulling teeth. I have to go to class soon so I'll post about yesterday later. Guuuuhhhhhhhhhhhhh

Munchkin!!!!!

You're so nice

Depression is not fun but I hope we can help you feel better. You look great already! You're gonna look amazing at the end of the challenge~ You're a hard worker

It sounds sensible. I would probably put all my million into the bank until I actually had a reason and time to spend that much money. Like to buy a house or send my kids to college. Or travel, that works too

Hi guys. So I've been feeling weird and tired and also been busy and that's why I've been gone for a little while. But I'm back! Yesterday was great! I worked out and ate really well. I fell asleep really early though and didn't get a chance to journal, oops... Yesterday's workout was so hard for me. I said the dreaded words "I can't do this." And I believed myself too. We weren't doing anything new but for some reason I doubted myself so much. Anyway, here's what we did. 1500m row 10kg kettlebell swings 12x3 10kg bent over row 12x3 15 burpees 55lb chest press 8x3 Reverse lunges 16x3 Goblet squat 25lbs 12x3 Overhead press 10lbs 12x3 Bird dog 24 Deadbug 90 seconds Plank 25 seconds Russian twists 12 each side I cried during the workout. I don't know why but I just was not having a good day in the gym. Yesterday's meals were good, but the timing was off. I didn't eat my first meal till after noon. Here's what I ate: Eggy oatmeal An egg Cheese and fruit and crackers Rice, beans, and chicken Yep, that's it. That's all I ate. It was enough for me I guess. Like I said, I didn't journal. I spent $20 of my food money on my meds that I picked up. I don't know why I did that but now I only have like $25 dollars left for the week. Hmm...I might withdraw a 20 later since med money and food money are supposed to be separate budgets.