Eireann

Complete my first HIIT today of the challenge today! Did intervals for 25mins, and ending up doing 3.6km! I made sweet potato chicken curry (on NF blog) SOOOO GOOD! Def recommend to everyone!

Today I did some yoga in the morning. I just pulled out an old notebook where i have tracked previous measurements (going back to 2009!). I graphed it, and my calculated the percent increase from my '09 measurements (which was when I was most fit). I have seen a 22% increase in weight since '09, and my next significant increase is in my hips (20% increase)! Just for fun, I've seen a 9% increase in my chest and bicep measurements, a 5% increase in my thigh and 3% in my waist. Basically this tells me that the majority of my weight goes to my hips, and that is where I should see the most significant loss (hopefully). Yay math! Seeing this information graphed is interesting, and has motivated me after seeing my healthy '09 numbers, to really go hard, not just for this challenge, but to get back into shape for life in general. I will take new measurements tomorrow and on Monday's for the rest of the challenge to see if there are any changes.

Yep completed my 2nd BBWW last night! IT was tough but I felt amazing after it! Next up, either yoga or HIIT tomorrow! Thanks stealthstitcher for keeping me accountable! I appreciate it! I actually was thinking of not doing my workout yesterday and came on here and saw your post. It got me off my butt!

SO, last week was a write-off. I started a new job, combined with a ton of random events that popped up, I didn't manage to do anything (WAHHH!). BUT, I'm back this week, and motivated to get this challenge on track! I completed my first BBWW tonight! GO ME! I was feeling out of it for the first round and a half, which sucked, but I got into it in the last half and felt good about it at the end. Tomorrow, I'm planning on doing some yoga... my hips are really tight so I need to stretch those badboys.

I have done a few 5k runs before. I have done this race for the past 4 years. Last year I didn't train for it and I wasn't happy with my performance, so this year I am actually going to train for it in hopes of hitting 30mins.

I decided to join the Adventurers for this challenge. Check out my second challenger here!!

Alright, so this is my second challenge of 2015. My first challenge started off really well, but I started sucking at the end. I had three mini quests and a life quest. Check my signature for details. This challenge I want to focus more on habit building and measurements rather than weight-loss. While my overall goal is still to reduce my weight, I would like to track other metrics as well. This will hopefully prevent me from getting discouraged when my weight fluctuates stupidly. Anywho... Stats! As a science nerd, I love stats and graphs and being able to find trends. So for this challenge I am tracking my info! Weight: 155 lbs Height: 5'5" Chest: 37" Bicep: 11.125" Waist: 33.5" Hips: 40.5" Thigh: 21" For this challenge I am going to include a bit about why I am choosing each quest so that if/when I feel discouraged, I can look back and remember why I started. Main Quest - Enter the range of 140-149lbs. Side Quest 1 - complete 1 HIIT cardio workout that lasts 20-25 minutes, every week Grading: Pass/Fail I am running a 5km race in June and need to start preparing Side Quest 2 - complete 2 Beginner Body Weight Workouts (BBWW) per week Grading: A = +2, B=2, C=1, D=0 I would like increase my fitness level. I enjoy lifting weights and feel accomplish when I reach a goal (like 10 pushups for example) Side Quest 3 - practice yoga once per week Grading: Pass/Fail The relaxation and stretching that yoga provides compliments my other side quests and will (hopefully) prevent my muscles from getting super sore. This challenge I am going to grade myself every week, rather than at the end. To gauge my success in the challenge I will average out what I achieved at the end of each week. I follow a loose Paleo diet. My beau doesn't eat Paleo so when he cooks we tend to have pasta/bagels/bread/cheese. I do most of the cooking and like to try new recipes, so if I find a good one I will share! I am not including a life quest because I REALLY want to focus on my fitness.

Well, I somewhat fell off the Nerd Fitness planet in Week 5. To summarize my quests: Main Quest: Lose ~28libs by Canada Day! (July 1st 2015) End weight: 152.6lbs, total lost 5.4lbs. Quest 1: Complete the beginners bodyweight workout 3x per week Measurement: A=18 times B=+13 times C=8 times Completed 11 BBWWs, grade B- Quest 2: Eat 17/21 meals per week Paleo. This gives leeway for when I'm at my boyfriends who doesn't eat Paleo. Measurement: A=completed for 6 weeks B=completed for 5 weeks C=completed for 4 weeks I never fully completed a week of this goal, most were 16/21 meals per week Paleo. This is a fail for how I defined my measurements but I am proud of sticking to it that well, and it is a pass in my books. Quest 3: Practice yoga once per week. Measurement: A=6 yogas B=5 yogas C=4 yogas 4 weeks of yoga C SUMMARY Overall, I am kind of disappointed in myself about how this challenge panned out. I had a lot of obstacles (day off from work which I have to work back and family visits) that took away from my challenge. While I did start a new routine and stick to my meal plan fairly well, my biggest challenge now is to stick with it. This week is insane, and I'm and changing jobs next week so I will be getting back into it then. I am planning on doing the next challenge and setting even better goals for myself!

I didn't complete my last BBWW for last week. I am disappointed in this but I am still well on my way to achieving a B for that quest. I'm not going to be tracking my meals anymore and posting everything that I am eating. It is stressing me out and I am pretty good at eating veggies, protein and some fats; having my four non-paleo meals is working well. This week I am going to do my BBWW's on Thursday, Saturday, Sunday. I know I'm not 'supposed' to do two in a row, but I want to complete the full 3 this week to get back on track. I am going to do some yoga tonight for opening up your hips. My hips felt really tight at curling, so I think a little pre-bed hip stretching yoga will fix this. I can't believe that this is week 5 of the challenge! I will likely not meet my weight goal, but building the habit to get back to the gym is honestly way more important to me than seeing the scale drop (for now). Cheers!

Week 4 Day 3 Breaky: paleo cereal w/ vanilla almond milk, two eggs topped with Garden Fresh Salsa 1st Snack: Cocoa Chocolate Lara Bar, some strawberries and pineapple Lunch: salad (cracklin' chicken, spinach, radishes, tomato, avocado), raw veggies (tomato, broccoli stems, orange pepper), some of my macadamia nuts 2nd Snack: apple & macadamia nuts Dinner: sauteed mushrooms with onions and garlic, Roasted Brussel Sprouts and Bacon (best thing EVER!!!!) Week 4 Day 4 Breaky: coconut protein pancakes with blueberry jam (pancakes are 1 tbsp coconut flour, 1 egg, 1/2 banana, 1 scoop protein powder, cinnamon) 1st Snack: Chocolate Brownie Larabar Lunch: salad (cracklin' chicken, spinach, tomato, avocado), raw veggies (carrots, tomatoes, radishes), 1/2 banana with 3 strawberries and 3 pineapple chunks 2nd Snack: apple, macadamia nuts, 1 hard boiled egg Dinner: leftover paleo chili with homemade sweet potato fries Dessert: paleo banana chocolate nut muffins Did my 2nd BBWW of the week this week! I have been killin' eating paleo this week. Have been super busy so I have been staying at my own place and not staying over at my beaus.

Thanks for the support guys! I feel a lot better after the workout I just did. I added some weights to my lunges. Just 3lbs, held in my hands but it helped to keep my back straight(er). First BBWW of WEEK 4!! Week 4 Day 2: Breaky: paleo cereal w/ blueberries and vanilla almond milk; 2 eggs with Garden Fresh Salsa (legit my fave breakfast!) First Snack: Cocoa Coconut Lara Bar, 1/4 avocado, 7 grape tomatoes Lunch: 1 Cracklin' chicken thigh, leftover broccoli, raw broccoli stem & orange pepper, a few strawberries and some pineapple Second Snack: handful macadamia nuts and an apple Dinner: Chicken breast stuffed with spinach and sun-dried tomatoes, sweet potato, and some other veggie If you haven't read Steve's blog post this week, I highly recommend reading it! It speaks volumes to what I struggle with (prioritizing fitness) but I am going to accept his challenge and put it above all else until March 1st and see where that gets me! This does overlap with the challenge, which is perfect because it should keep me accountable and I won't miss another workout!

Okay...I'm not proud of how Week 3 ended, but it happened and now we move on to a productive week. Week 3 Day 6 cont. Snack: Coconut Cream Lara Bar Lunch: 6 inch chicken sub on honey & oat (from Subway), no cheese but had ranch dressing on it Dinner: soup, salad, salmon, icecream and lots of wine (this was at the Christmas party). Def Non-Paleo Week 3 Day 7 Breaky: non-paleo Eggs Benedict Lunch: 6 pieces of sushi Dinner: homemade paleo chili I didn't complete my last BBWW for Week 3, so 2/3. I am definitely struggling with my Paleo meals quest the most. I think the reason why this quest has been such a significant challenge so far is because I didn't share that goal with my significant other. Since we spend a lot of time together, the food he makes at his house has played a key role in this. If I had shared this goal with him, I know I would have been more successful. I am going to share it with him so that I can succeed for the rest of the challenge. Okay. Week 4. I am halfway through the challenge. The most significant things I want to accomplish this week is achieving my Paleo goal, and moving my BBWW from my apartment to the gym! I have had a membership at the gym for 6 months and it has been unused since October. I want to get back into the habit of going there to do my workouts so after the challenge I won't make excuses to avoid it. Week 4 Day 1 Breaky: paleo cereal with blueberries & vanilla almond milk, green tea, 1 med. banana. 1st Snack: 2 kiwis, 1/4 avocado Lunch: leftover chili, raw radishes and carrots 2nd Snack: apple & handful of raw almonds 3rd Snack: Chocolate chip brownie Lara bar Dinner: roasted broccoli with salt & pepper, Cracklin' Chicken PS. Cracklin' Chicken was SO good, and super easy to make! Planning on taking it on salads and such in my lunch this week This week I have curling on Weds and a girls night on Saturday, which are my only 2 obstacles. I am planning BBWW for Tues, Thurs, Sat. Yoga tonight before bed, and maybe do some cardio on Friday just to add something else in. Sunday will definitely be a rest day.

Thanks for the yoga links everyone! I will definitely check them out! I prefer to do my stretching yoga, or hatha so that it gives my muscles a break on non-BBWW days. Week 3 Day 3 Breaky: paleo breakfast cereal with unsweetened almond milk, raspberries 1st Snack: Coconut cream Lara bar Lunch: salad consisting of - baby field greens, chicken, red pepper, walnuts; raw carrots and radishes on the side 2nd Snack: handful of almonds, apple Dinner: Non-Paleo spaghetti with meat sauce (ground beef, peppers, spinach mushrooms, tomato sauce, onion) BBWW completed! Week 3 Day 4 Breaky: 2 slices of bacon, 2 eggs, banana with PB 1st Snack: tangerine & Coconut Cream Lara bar Lunch: leftover meat sauce, raw radishes and carrots, strawberries 2nd Snack: apple & handful almonds Dinner: broccoli, potatoes, shrimp I didn't end up going skating today Week 3 Day 5 Breaky: Non-Paleo whole wheat bagel with 2 slices of bacon, 1 egg, ketchup 1st Snack: Coconut Cream Lara Bar Lunch: Leftover balsamic beam salad with a chicken breast, strawberries, raw carrots 2nd Snack: apple, handful almonds Dinner: paleo shepherds pie with salad Completed my 2nd BBWW of the week! I did 10 knee pushups in a row during my first circuit! Once I can do 10 in a row (without pausing) for all circuits I am going to try adding in a real pushup! Week 3 Day 6 Breaky: 1/8th of a chicken breast, 3 slices of bacon, 2 eggs with Garden Fresh Salsa, some raspberries I did 30 minutes of a youtube yoga video this morning. So yoga, check! Tonight I am going to my beau`s late Christmas party, and I think I chose the salmon for my dish; it will def be non-paleo because dessert! mmm!

Awesome job at your competition! Sounds like you're killin' it out there! Keep up the great work!

So... I weighed myself Monday morning, AND I am now 153.6 lbs. I've lost 4.4lbs so far! Woo! I know I should be taking measurements, but for that first 10-15lbs I want to lose I'm focusing on weight. I will take my measurements at the end of the challenge. I have them from the beginning as well. I'm still going to track my meals this week because I have a LOT of obstacles! I had curling last night, going skating on Thursday, going to a hockey game Friday and a late-Christmas party on Saturday. Busy week!! Week 3 Day 1 Breaky: brussel sprout and bacon salad topped with an egg Snack 1: Coconut cream Lara bar Lunch: leftover spaghetti squash, kale & sausage; raw radishes and carrots Snack 2: handful of almonds, apple Dinner: leftover spaghetti squash, kale & sausage I didn't work out today. I had curling and watching a movie on Netflix after. Week 3 Day 2 Breaky: brussel sprout and bacon salad topped with an egg Snack 1: Coconut cream Lara bar Lunch: salad consisting of - baby field greens, chicken, red pepper, walnuts; raw carrots and radishes on the side Snack 2: handful of almonds, apple Dinner: balsamic green bean salad, chicken, sweet potato I tried to do Jillian Michaels yoga today to complete my yoga goal, but it did not go well. I got about 80% through it before I got bored. I will accomplish my yoga goal later in the week. I am planning on doing my BBWW on Weds, Fri and Sunday because that's when I have to most time and won't get stressed out about fitting it in. Since I'm going skating on Thursday, that means yoga will be on Saturday! Does anyone have any good yoga videos they like to do that stretch your muscles but are also relaxing?

Thanks for the support! I would love for you to keep checking in and I will keep posting recipes that I try! The best website I've found for Paleo foods is paleogrus.com, so good! Week 2 Day 6 Laziest day in awhile. My beau hurt his knee and can't move around much so I was his nurse today. We ordered Thai for dinner so another non-paleo meal for the list! Breaky: Brussel sprout and bacon salad topped with an egg Lunch: leftover spaghetti squash & lamb Snack: orange and nuts Dinner: Non-Paleo Red curry pineapple & chicken with rice Dessert: apple Week 2 Day 7 Breaky: Non-Paleo egg, bacon, cheese & ketchup bagel Lunch: pineapple, berry, banna, almond milk smoothie Dinner: Spaghetti squash, kale and sausage Did my last BBWW of the week today! I didn't meet my Paleo meal goal this week, but I am going to try again and track my foods next week! I'm excited to see how Week 3 goes! My main barriers to success this week are: hockey game/dinner with friends on Friday, and my beau's work Christmas party on Saturday (yep its weird that its this late!).

I don't know if its can be classified as real cajun shrimp. I just put olive oil and shrimp in a pan, and toss a bunch of cajun spice mix on them while they cook. Super delicious and easy to make! Thanks, it is pretty good! I find cooking super relaxing and there are a ton of amazing paleo recipes out there (especially on pinterest!). I also like trying new things, so I try to pick a few different new recipes to try each week. I haven't been on in a few days so here's the updates for the rest of the week. Week 2 Day 3 Breaky: 2 slices of bacon, 2 eggs with Garden Fresh Salsa (best thing in the world!!!) First Snack: Coconut Cream Lara bar Lunch: leftover stuffed bell pepper; raw radishes and bell peppers Second Snack: apple nachos Dinner: non-Paleo rice, tikka masala sauce with chicken, green pepper, onion, mushrooms and celery Week 2 Day 4 Breaky: non-Paleo slice of whole wheat toast with bacon, 1 egg, cheese and ketchup First Snack: Coconut Cream Lara bar Lunch: leftover stuffed bell pepper; raw radishes and bell peppers, handful of cashews Second Snack: apple Dinner: non-Paleo Chicken fajitas - bell peppers, onion, chicken breast. (I didn't have any dairy on mine) I was supposed to do a BBWW but I was really not feeling up to it. I have been super busy at work and was exhausted, so I relaxed and read some of Outlander. Also, I have reached 3 non-paleo meals this week so far! (AH). I need to be sure to keep that on track, only one more left so I should use it wisely. Week 2 Day 5 Breaky: slices of ham, banana and natural PB First Snack: Coconut Cream Lara bar Lunch: leftover fajita mix (bell peppers, chicken, onions), raw radishes and carrots, an orange and handful of raw cashews Second Snack: apple and an orange Dinner: Spaghetti squash with lamb, onion, peppers, spinach, and can of diced tomato My breakfast SUCKED this morning, so boring but I want to save my last non-paleo meal for the weekend so I ate whatever non-paleo things my beau had in his fridge. Just finished my second BBWW of the week, one more on Sunday! After not doing my BBWW yesterday I felt relatively crappy today and disappointed in myself. BUT I killed it today! Did 30sec planks and 7 knee push-ups in a row! I should probably hit the scale soon to see how my progress is going...

I have a bunch of boxes from my room at my parents, so I'm slowly going through those. Basically what I do to get rid of stuff is ask myself a few questions "will I ever use/look at this again?" "Can someone else use this?" "will I want/need this is a month? a year? 3 years?" If someone else can use it, I donate it to a second-hand store. Its hard to decide what's important enough to keep, and I have a lot of silly things like old report cards that should be recycled. Hope that helps! Week 2 Day 2 Finished my BBWW! It was easier than my first time but I don't think I pushed myself that hard. I am really trying to work on my form for squats and lunges so that I don't get hurt. Breaky: 2 apple-onion chicken sausage patties and super food cereal with vanilla almond milk First Snack: Coconut Cream Lara bar Lunch: leftover stuffed bell pepper; raw radishes and bell peppers Second Snack: apple and handful of cashews Pre-workout: apple with PB (I know PB isn't Paleo, but its on my OK foods list and I can't stand almond butter) Dinner: Cajun shrimp, sweet potato, roasted broccoli with garlic

Thanks so much for your support! Yep! I keep trying to do more pushups consecutively, which is making my arms/chest sore still, but my legs are less sore after every workout. Thanks for checking in! Week 2 Day 1 WOW! I am stoked that I have made it to week 2! Thanks for the support e'rryone! Had another curling game today, we tied but it was lots of fun! Since I'm tracking my meals this week, see my intake below. I got the recipe for stuffed bell peppers from Paleo Grubs (AWESOME Paleo recipes fyi). Breaky: 2 eggs, one slice of ham (not the lunch meat kind) First Snack: banana and earl grey tea Lunch: salmon, asparagus, and potatoes; cut up radishes and peppers Second Snack: handful of almonds, apple Dinner: stuff bell pepper and leftover stuffing And I'm just about to do 30 minutes of yoga and head to sleep! Tomorrow is a BBW day so I need to rest up, 'Night!

Thanks to everyone who has looked at my post during the first week of this challenge! Hope your challenges are going amazing so far! Week 1 Day 6 Had a curling tournament all day. We lost 2 out of 3 games, but it was so fun! I am sore today but I don't know if its from the curling or the dancing afterwards. Def did not complete my max 4 non-Paleo meals this week... There were literally no options at the tournament, not even vegetarian options, which are usually slightly healthier. I'm bummed that I didn't complete this goal, but I will log my food next week and do better! Week 1 Day 7 Completed my BBWW first thing this morning! I successfully completed two of my quests this week!! This is definitely an accomplishment for me! Its safe to say this is the most physically active I've been in one week in a LONGGGG time! But I feel great!! I'm going to spend some time today working on my life quest of cleaning out my back room, and planning my meals for the upcoming week to stay on track. Obstacles for the upcoming week are: NONE! I don't have any weekend plans yet, which is when I struggle the most. The only hint of weekend activities is skiing which is active and awesome!

Mini Quest 1 - SMART Goals Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)? Is it reasonable? Yes I think that I can lose 10lbs and form a schedule in the 6-week challenge. Do your 3 quests all build towards your main quest in little ways, or are you taking on too much? Do your quests have sub-quests or is it just one thing to focus on? Yep, diet, strength training and yoga go well together for weight loss. Are your main goals realistic? Can you scale them to smaller steps to fit your life better, even if it will make it take a little longer to achieve them? I think I have broken my main goal (lose 28lbs) down well by starting with this challenge. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked? What will you use to track them? I am tracking my workouts on this thread, and am going to start tracking my meals here as well. How are you grading your goals? Are they pass/fail (“every dayâ€, “not even once over the six weeksâ€)? Is there a reward for the effort, or are you only grading yourself on whether or not you “lose the weight†or “run the distanceâ€? I have set up the measurements for success in my original post. I didn't put in grading for whether I meet my challenge goal or not. If I lose 5lbs, 2lbs or 13lbs, I will be happy. Even if I don't lose anything and just for habits I will be glad that I am moving forward. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? I will tackle the grading if one of those things happen. I just got over a cold before starting this challenge so I'm hoping that won't be an issue Did you take into consideration any special occasions (Labour Day, Independence Day, birthdays, anniversaries, etc) that may occur during the challenge? What modifications do you need to build into your goals for those? I constructed my quests to give myself flexibility and not stress over having 100% paleo meals or 6 workouts a week. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? Nope. Do you already have the time in your schedule to actually complete the goals you’ve set? If not, what are you planning to do to make time for them? Yep, my goals fit well into my schedule Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? My energy is focused on forming the habit of making time for working out. I can't achieve weight loss if I don't create a habit first. I'm hoping that by creating the habit of working out and prioritizing fitness I will achieve some weight loss.

Week 1 Day 4 This was a rest day to let myself recover from my first BBW. I wasn't as sore as I expected to be after not doing anything physical since September. I used my third non-paleo meal up today for dinner. Only one more for the weekend! Week 1 Day 5 Completed 2nd BBW of the week!! The push-ups were def the most challenging this time! I could do four in a row then had to take a small (10sec) break. Def something I want to work towards, being able to do all 10 in a row. I'm thinking that I'm going to track my meals next week to stay on track with my second quest. I'm really excited for my curling bonspiel (tournament) tomorrow! I just hope my arms and legs are sore so that I can play well! So far I'm proud of myself for completing two consecutive workouts when I said I would, especially in the same week! Let's hope I can keep this up for the rest of the challenge!

It seems like the theme is week is NF lurkers coming out of the shadows, so I'm following suit! Hey NF! I'm Eireann, and like a lot of others I have been reading/following the NF blog and boards for some time and decided that now was a great time to join and start my first challenge! I little bit about me, I'm a female engineer in Canada, eh. I enjoy a lot of outdoor activities (camping, hiking, kayaking) and am obsessed with reading. I'm a big fan of The Sims games and enjoy science, a lot... Einstein in my homie. OH, and I adore cooking and am falling more in-love with veggies every week. This weeks veggie is radishes! Delish! During high school I was fairly active, strength training and playing soccer. At university I let my studies take over and have slowly over the past 4 years gained thirty pounds . I have fun working out and always tell myself that I am going to go to the gym, go for a run, do yoga etc, but then make up an excuse why I can't do it, which is always complete baloney. SO, here I am, at three and twenty, finally taking my physical health seriously. My main goal that I would like to accomplish is losing the 30lbs. I'm excited to be part of this community and support my fellow Rebels in achieving their goals! Keep your stick on the ice!

Your goals sounds awesome and you're kicking butt so far! Keep up the good work! I'm a female engineer too (!!) with the same nerdy interests (GoT, HP)! Female engineers gotta stick together!

Thanks Amdhiel for the welcome! I will def swing by the Den and check out what the Assassins are all about! Week 1 Day 2 Didn't get to my bodyweight workout today BUT.. All my meals were completely Paleo, so yay, GO ME! Week 1 Day 3 So far my meals have been 100% Paleo today. Dinner is going to be at my beau's so that will likely be my 2nd non-paleo meal of the week. Just finished my first BBW...Oh. Em. Gee. It kicked my butt! The lunges were the worst. I finished all three sets, but it is def going to be hard to walk/lift a pen tomorrow at work. Today I really struggled to find motivation to do my BBW but just the thought of not posting two days in a row, or having to say that I already am sucking at my quests motivated me to get off my couch and start moving around! Thank you for the motivation NF, just what I came here for! I am planning on completing another BBW on Friday and one on Sunday to wrap up this week. I am playing in a curling bonspeil on Saturday, so hopefully my legs aren't too tired or my team will be rattled at my poor performance!