rkirby316

Artinum, lovin your goals, especially the focus on both yoga and running. From my experience, the two compliment each other perfectly. Running gets easier with practice. The hardest part when you start out is just doing it. My focus this six week challenge is also running twice a week. I hope to be back to running four or five days a week by the end of the next six week challenge. Good luck to you as you transition to Scout!

Alright fellow adventures, its update time! Update Numero Uno This week has been fantastic. I completed three bodyweight workouts where I increased my number of inverted rows per set by three! I didn't keep up stats this week but next week, I will work on that. I completed two runs, both averaging about fifteen minutes in length. And I only ate fast food twice, both times at McDonald's. Not bad. Not bad at all. I even wrote something every day. Most days I only wrote two or three sentences. But last night, I wrote for an hour straight! The juices are finally flowing again. Also, I think its about time I attached some possible level up points to these goals. Goal #1- Do one freakin push up= 2 pts STR Goal #2- Only eat fast food twice a week= 1 pt CON Goal #3- Run twice a week= 1 pt DEX, 1 pt STA Goal #4- Write two short stories= 2 pt WIS I'm pretty excited to keep up with everything this next week. I hope to pay more attention to my diet. I've given up on fast food for most of the week, but I still eat mostly microwave pizza, chicken nuggets, enough soda to fill an ocean, and mountains of chips. I don't want to put too much on my plate (pun intended!), but I am going to attempt to cut out many unhealthy options and start actually cooking for once. For some reason, I'm not able to upload any pics to show my progress. I will have to work on that another time.

I have to finish one of these. Once and for all. Fitness Goals 1) Do ONE pull up. -This was a goal of mine last time. I didn't keep up with my workouts and I did not do one pull-up. This challenge, I plan to do some kind of body weight workout that includes inverted rows 3X per week. Each workout, I plan to increase the amount of inverted rows I can complete, by however small an amount it might be, until I get to one full pull-up at the end of the six weeks. 2) Only eat fast food twice a week. - The goals I've set diet wise have been too much all at once (go full Paleo all at once, for instance). This time, I will simply decrease my fast food intake from every day to only two meals per week. Small steps=big change. 3) Run two days a week the first three weeks, three days a week the last three weeks. - Like my diet goals, I tend to set my running goals a little too high. Instead of committing to four or five runs a week, or a certain amount of mileage, I start with two days a week at least for the first three weeks, then three the last three. Again, small steps= big change. Life Goal 1) Write two short stories. - Just two. No limit on length. These will be rough drafts, nothing special. My plan is simply to prove to myself that I can finish a writing project, a feat that has avoided me for years.

You guys are all awesome! Thank you for the support I talked with my girlfriend about it at length and, while she's not a smoker, she has been trying to break other unhealthy habits in her life as well. So we decided to set a quit date for both of us. On June 1st, I'm giving up cigarettes and she's giving up fast food. LizOh, I like the idea of a smoke journal. I'd be interested to see what kind of pattern I have! I've never really thought about it. I have about two weeks until June 1st, so in the next two weeks, I will keep a smoke journal. pixieopower, I will definitely be your quitter buddy! I will need all the help I can get

Thanks for the advice guys! Stressors are definitely an issue. Especially concerning finances (ironic, since smoking adds to that particular stress). I think I'm going to dabble with the idea of doing a few sprints and/or jumping jacks/push-ups every time I get the urge to light up. I figure I fight off cravings while getting stronger. Double-win! I like the investing suggestion, Mordechaj. I have, for the past three years, dreamt of traveling to Costa Rica. Not sure why there, but its been a dream. Maybe I should start setting aside "cigarrette money" for Costa Rica. Summer 2013? Maybe

Okay, I made it five days the last time I attempted to "quit". Why do I put that in quotations? Because even though I quit cigarrettes, I convinced myself smoking from my hookah didn't count. (Oh the nicotine-addled mind!). The beginning of this year, I actually made it two and a half months without smoking cigarrettes while only smoking hookah once every two weeks but as soon as my birthday hit, I told myself I deserved one smoke for my hard efforts. The next morning, after bumming about ten cigarrettes from my roommate, I bought a pack. And then another. And so on until recently. But the only reason I went five days this time is because I had no extra money for cigarrettes and, since I'm living at home at the moment, I am not around anyone who smokes. As soon as I had money in my back account, I was at the gas station seeking the bittersweet buzz that only Camel can give me. But its time to quit. So I'm asking for your help, fellow nerd fitness readers! Does anyone have tips/experiences they wouldn't mind sharing on quitting smoking?

Time to update! The past week has been really interesting. I lost my summer job due to my inability to sell security systems (but was able to get my old job back, so no worries!) and was therefore forced to take a greyhound bus back home. This took three days and killed my attempts at eating more paleo. Now that I am back home, I am getting back on the horse. Now to just keep up with it. I understand that sometimes life gets in the way but that is no reason to give up completely. My workout schedule this week has also been a bit lacking. Since I sat on a bus for the majority of three days, I didn't get as good a workout as I wished I could although I was able to squeeze a few push ups, squats, and dips every "smoke" break we took (and one fifteen minute yoga session with four strangers I met on the bus!). Speaking of smoking, its not on my goal list but I have now gone officially two days without a cigarette! Since I didn't get back home til late last night, I didn't get to start my actual workouts til this evening. I started with a thirty minute run and finished with a body weight workout that went something like this: Squats: 3x15 Dips: 3x10 Push-ups: 3x10 Inverted Rows: 3x4 (one more per set than I did before I left for home!) Plank: 3x30 sec I feel good about what I've done so far. Now to end my day with a light yoga session and read until bed.

Currently, I do not have to pay rent since I am living with my grandparents so most of my money that would have been spent on rent will go towards my debt. I am making around $300/week so I feel $600 in debt won't be too much of a burden for these six weeks. In fact, I've already paid $100 of it. I feel really good about that .

I am down with the Heinlein quote as our motto! This is my first challenge that I am actually participating in and I'm excited to be here

Hey Everyone! I posted for a challenge a while back (about six or seven months ago) and then completely forgot about it, losing motivation before I even began. Truth is, the past year or so I've lived as a recluse, an outcast as many half-elves are, and going through a bad depression. But this is no excuse, for even a half-race has a destiny to fulfill and I feel its time to start my journey towards it! First and for most, call me Kirby. Yes, that is actually my name . I am a 6'4" college student working towards a degree in English Literature with a minor in Theater. Three weeks ago, I made the first steps to leaving my hermit life behind. I took a summer job about 1500 miles from home working door to door sales. It forced me to open up, to talk to people, to be with people. Over the past few weeks I've made many friends and met some interesting people. I've also met some very bad (read: negative) people and I've had some bad experiences. All in all though, I've grown as a person. And I've discovered something about myself: I suck at door to door sales. I failed miserably and over the past three weeks I never sold a single thing. You know what? The crazy thing is I'm glad I failed. I learned a lot out here. And I was forced out of my comfort zone and forced to work harder than I ever have before. I've even lost ten pounds and my calves are popping out for the first time since high school. So I'm taking what I've learned and I'm building on them. That's where this challenge comes in. Bring it on! Starting Stats: Strength (STR): 2 Dexterity (DEX): 3 Stamina (STA): 2 Constitution (CON): 2 Wisdom (WIS): 3 Charisma (CHA): 3 Weight: 215 lbs Fitness Goals 1) Be able to do ONE FREAKIN PULL UP! (I am really excited about this one). Possible 3 (STR). 2) Do yoga four days a week. Possible 2 (DEX), 1 (CON). 3) Run a 10K in under 45 minutes (not a PR but its been a while, gotta start somewhere). Possible 3 (STA). 4) Eat Paleo for two out of three meals each day. Possible 3 (CON). Life Goal(s) 1) Pay off $600 dollars in debt. Possible 3 (WIS). Bonus Goal 1) Decide which class to join next. I'm debating between Druid or Scout.

I've been inactive for almost three years now, so I've decided this challenge is my basic training getting me ready for more bad-assery to come. Fitness/Diet Goals: 1) Cook a meal every other day. No, not every day, but every other day. This is extremely challenging for me since over the past three and a half years since moving out of my family's house, the microwave has become my best friend. 2) Continue the Rebel Running Guide. Plain and simple. Maybe I haven't ran in over three years, but I never stopped calling myself a runner. It's time to actually make that a reality. 3) Run a 5k in under 25 minutes. Am I crazy? Possibly, but when I was thirteen years old, I ran a 5k in under 20. I went out to time myself last Saturday and I clocked in at 29:17 (and coughed up three lungs to boot. Yes, three of them.) With a PR of 16:35, that time was an eye-opener. Life Goals 1) Write two short stories and send them to a publisher. I'm one of those kids who knew right away what he wanted to be when he grew up, and it all started with a comic strip in Kindergarten. I wanted to be a writer. My goal, at five years old, was to have a book published before High School. (I was an ambitious little kid.) Now I'm 21 and I can't even bring myself to finish a short story. So, over the next six weeks, I'm going to grit my teeth and get it done. 2) Take a picture everyday. I've wanted to do this since I heard of the 365-day challenge. The challenge is to take a picture every day for a year. So I figure, hey, I'm majoring in Photography so this sounds like something I'll benefit from. 3) Be more social. I've become a hermit over the past year since my best friend moved to Arizona. I sit at home by myself, do online classes, and then go to work and talk to no one. At first, this started out as an experiment to see if I could actually learn to enjoy my own company. It seems that not only do I enjoy my own company, I've come to prefer it and have developed an acute agoraphobia when in crowded places (not good for a concert-lovin guy). Time to change that. I have friends here that I haven't spoken to in months. That is, quite simply, unacceptable.

After years of static existence, it's time to level up Fitness/Diet Challenge Goals: 1) Cook at least one meal a day (microwave/pasta/sandwiches don't count). 2) Continue the Rebel Running Guide workout plan. 3) Run a 5k in under 25 minutes. This is just the beginning of my goal to beat my previous PR of 16:35 (from 5 years ago) sometime in 2012. Life Challenge Goals: 1) Take one evening off to assess my life goals and write out a bucket list for the upcoming year. 2) Write two short stories and send them to at least one publisher each. 3) Be more social (Any amount of social activity off the internet would accomplish this goal currently). First challenge to commence in three days and fourteen hours.

I've been a vegetarian for over a year and am considering evolving my diet slowly but surely towards 100% paleo. Since most Paleo diet instructions I've encountered involve eating mostly meat, I'm finding this goal to be quite daunting. Anyone out there with tips, suggestions, or recipes to help me get started? Thanks!

I've been reading posts on Nerd Fitness for a few weeks now and just started lurking the boards last week. I've decided its time that I take the leap and get my feet wet. So here's my story: I started running in 5th grade and joined the High School Cross-Country team in 8th grade. I was on the varsity team all through out High School. I PR'd my Junior year with a 16:35 for 5k. Right after the season ended my Junior year, my mother passed away and while I still ran my senior year, the passion I once had for running seemingly died with her. Fast forward five years and I am now 21, 20 pounds heavier than I would like, and can barely run a half mile without the need to cough up a lung. I've realized now that I have to stop living in the past and make my life worth something. So, being a nerd and a re-awakened fitness fanatic, I've decided to join the rebellion. I downloaded the Rebel Running Guide a little over two weeks ago and have been participating in that particular challenge since Oct. 3rd. I'm hoping to get my life moving again, like it used to. No more sitting around at home watching Dexter and Psych re-runs and playing Skate 3 (nothing wrong with either of those unless it takes up 95% of your time like it does for me) while ordering a large pizza every night (while pizza is probably the greatest food ever invented, this is never good). My goals right now are simple. I want to start running consistently again and plan to run a half-marathon come next May. I will be incorporating Paleo aspects into my diet, a little bit at a time. (Any vegetarian Paleos here that could give me some advice)? I am also in the process of quitting smoking (okay, not simple but completely necessary and worth the struggle I am having and will undoubtedly have in the future) and am currently working on a couple of short stories that I will hopefully have published sometime next year .