Gun_Nerd

I actually got to bed on time last night, which is good. I've been mediocre on my diet, but I'm striving to do better. I've been taking the It Works Greens all week, and I think I'm starting to notice a difference from them. I've been on exercise overall; I've been alternating leg strength one day, then exercise bike the next day. I'd like to slip in a little core and upper body sometime too. I still need to work on reading more and surfing NF more. Also, I seem to be a bit more inspired to work out if I read fitness articles or listen to fitness-related podcasts, so I'm gonna do more of that.

We managed to score some organic venison (we got about 70 lbs total) for the freezer, so we had a good, productive weekend. I was pretty active this weekend, and I stayed the course on my diet today, plus I did my strength training on my legs. I'm gonna start working on some hip flexor stretches too. I'm thinking the 'open lizard' yoga move would be good.

I'm in the Jefferson City area.

Alrighty, so I'm a full 10 days late getting into this challenge, but I'm not givin' up! Allow me to provide some background info on myself and my current situation: For the previous challenge, I did a newbie challenge. I did ok on all the stuff, and Blaidd approved of my move to the Rangers. I think the Rangers are a great fit for my interests. The negative: Work has been extra busy for me lately. I've been working through my lunches, which is really a bummer for me because I usually use my lunch break to hit our gym and do some weightlifting. I haven't been getting any weightlifting done lately. I've been working late too, so I've had less time at home in the evenings and I've been more tired. This has also limited my internet time, which is one reason I'm late getting in on this. The team I've been on at work has been getting free pizza and cookies, so my diet hasn't been good. I'm lacking in the fruits and veggies department, I'm pretty sure. My weight is up about 5 lbs from where it was. I also have the Now, with that out of the way, some positives, notes, etc.: I have been getting some activity, via taking some walks at work and doing odds and ends around the house. My wife and I did a duathlon last weekend. We finished pretty low in the standings (near last, actually), BUT we brought our kids along. I pushed them in a jogging stroller, and my wife towed them in a bicycle trailer. I did pretty fair while jogging, but it felt like my bicycle was towing a boat (my legs just didn't want to build up any bike speed). I need to do some more leg weightlifts and spend some time on a exercise bike (which we own). My wife and I are going to try some new supplements (the ItWorks greens supplements), so this should help me out a bit too. I'll be enjoying Missouri's deer season this weekend and next, so I'll get some fresh air, exercise, and (hopefully) some organic meat. So, for some simple goals to get me re-aligned. I'm gonna focus on simple diet, sleep, and exercise. Goal 1--Diet: Follow a South Beach type diet, with some protein bars or Medifast food thrown in for convenience. South Beach is like paleo, with some dairy and whole grains thrown in. I've had good results with South Beach before. I might do the straight up Medifast plan for a week or two to burn off a few pounds (which would come off pretty quickly). My diet should really be followed all the time, but I'll allow 1 minor 'cheat day' per week. Goal 2--Sleep: For some reason, I always struggle with this. Get AT LEAST 7 hours of sleep per night, EVERY NIGHT. For me, this means getting my butt into bed by 10:30 PM, at the latest, during the work week. I don't want to deviate too far from my routine during the weekends either. Goal 3--Exercise: Get some activity every day. This includes walking and doing some household chores (in the house, garage, basement, yard, whatever, just as long as I'm on my feet). Do some weightlifting and/or exercise biking 4x per week, with an increased emphasis on doing leg exercises. I've found that I'm lacking leg strength for hiking and biking. Life Quest 1--Read more books and magazines. For some reason, I always default to doing my reading online, despite having great books and magazines available. I'm gonna aim for reading at least 3 evenings per week. I'll do quite a bit of reading while deer hunting too. Life quest 2--Make some money. I need to put more work into my home-based side gig to make make some extra cash selling stuff online. 1 more thing: I intend to devote some evening internet time to browsing the NF forums and supporting my fellow Rangers. Feel free to provide some constructive criticisms on my post. I'm not SUPER into assigning points for my challenges, but I'm willing to do so if it's the standard/normal/proper thing to do.

I'm definitely going for the Rangers guild, although I might need to do another noob challenge since I was late getting into this one.

Well, I finally have a couple minutes to update this. I've been doing mostly OK on my quests, except I still don't make myself go to bed on time, and I still don't read enough printed materials. I've been taking my leg workout easy lately, as my upper right leg has been bothering me a bit since I went hiking. Edited to add: I finally moved up to being able to bench press a total weight of 135 lbs for 5 reps. This feels like a good accomplishment for me, since I now have the 45 pound "big boy plates" on the bar I haven't been on here much, as I've been spending time on other endeavors: we went hiking, my grandmother passed away and we attended the funeral, I've been doing some end-of-season yard work, I've been doing some overtime at work (it's helping me out on my financial goals), and I've been working to sell some stuff on eBay (also helping me out on my financial goals). I posted this thread about the Ozark Trail hike my wife and I took. I'm planning to spend some time on NF and cheer on some of my fellow noobs, as soon as I get some time to spend on the internet.

On October 10 and 11, my wife and I hiked on the Ozark Trail, from Taum Sauk mountain to Johnson's Shut-Ins. It was about 13 miles of rough, hilly, granite-covered terrain. This was our first time of hiking in one direction and camping out in the boonies, so we learned a lot. We had a nice time overall, even with a few issues. Here are the notes we typed up from the trip: •aswrg7’s water bladder leaked in his pack and got his clothes wet. oOld Camelbak bag didn’t seal well at cap oWill be upgrading to Geigerrig hydration engine oNeed dry bags for clothing •Had sore legs after hike. oNeed to do some adduction/abduction exercises, maybe some plyometrics, jogging, etc. oSquats are not enough by themselves, but sore quads were not an issue, so squats did help •This section of the OT was low on water sources oWe used up the water in our 3L bladders. Need to carry extra bottles, canteens, etc. •Could have taken some supplements, vitamins, etc. for the stay. This may have increased energy and/or decreased soreness •Ran out of daylight on first day of hike oAverage pace is about 1.2 mph on the trail oNeed to know what time official sunset is---this is when it gets dark in the woods oWe should have started earlier, with a clear plan the night before as to where we wanted to go. •The Ozark Trail guidebook would have been useful; it is better than the provided maps •Tent (Swiss Gear 2-person) had condensation issues in the night—didn’t have all the ventilation points opened oWill be upgrading to a better tent oShould sleep with a towel nearby •Carried .38 J-frame in cargo pocket, which was light and handy (this was done in full compliance with Missouri's laws) •Black bears are in OT areas oNeed to get bear spray, and a heavier caliber handgun than 9mm or .38sp oCan’t carry pistol on waistband due to pack’s waist belt oConsidering Hill People Gear chest rig for handgun carry •Didn’t use extra fuel for Coleman stove •Coleman stove worked well •Carried green beans in metal cans. The beans were good, but the cans were too heavy and bulky. Will try to pack all the green beans into a single plastic container next time. •Aaron dropped his Swiss camo shirt on the trail, and had to backtrack to find it. oDon’t tie clothing to the outside of the pack—put it in the pack •We didn’t bring headlamps along for the trip, but they would have been very useful for setting up the tent at dusk and cooking at night •Used battery candle in the tent, which worked well, but would like to upgrade to something smaller and more durable •Need to order trekking pole replacement parts •We were out of the woods and in hillside glades much more often than expected. We got a lot of sun, and we should have brought hats. •Mixed nuts would have made a nice trail snack And now for pics:

Foam rollers are mighty nice. There are some desk chair stretches (I'm assuming that's what causing your problem because it causes me some problems) out there that seem to help.

Update for the past few days: Sleep: this has been my toughest obstacle. I was up an hour or so late twice this week. On the plus side, I used my evening time pretty well; I listed a buncha stuff on eBay one night, and I got packed up for this weekend's backpacking trip one night. Carbs: I've been doing pretty well here; no major infractions. I've been eating actual food during the daytime, which keeps me from getting hungry and craving junk. Coffee: no problems here. Soda: I've been near my 32oz limit several days. My allergies are starting to alleviate, so I should be able to cut back. Exercise: I've been good on this. I've alternated between upper body and lower body (mostly squats) daily. I had mostly a rest day today, although I went for a walk and used an inversion table for a while. We're going to do some backpacking on the Ozark trail this weekend. Reading: I gotta catch up on this too; I'm not reading enough paper material.

Mini-challenge #4 done! Link to my challenge thread (and my new stats) are in my sig.

And now for mini-challenge #4: 1. Goal allocation: Q1: Sleep = 3 STA Q2: Eat healthy = 2 CON Q3: Exercise at least 4x weekly = 2 STR & 1 DEX LQ: Reading and saving money = 1 CHA & 1 WIS 2. Mid Challenge Summary: Q1: Missed the sleep goals during the week, although I did catch up on the weekend = C (70%) Q2: Did pretty well on diet overall = B (85%) Q3: Got my exercise = A (100%) LQ: I haven't been reading enough, but our household spending is down, so = C (70%) 3. Challenge allocation: Q1: C (70%) = 2.1 STA Q2: B (85%) = 1.7 CON Q3: A (100%) = 2 STR & 1 DEX LQ: A (70%) = 0.7 CHA & 0.7 WIS 4. Signature: STR 1 | STA 0.9 | DEX 1 | CON 1.8 | WIS 1 | CHA 2 Level 1 Recruit

Sunday: I rested. My sinuses were really bothering me and I didn't feel overly good. I was on my feet for a while to clean the basement, but that was about the extent of my exercise. I was at my limit on soda (it just feels good with my allergies). I haven't had any coffee past 5, and I've been doing pretty good on my diet (although maybe intermittently snacking a bit too much). I slept well; my wife was nice and got up with the kids and let me sleep. Monday: My allergies are still bothering, but I decided to give my weightlifting routine a good hard try anyway. I felt a lot better after lifting. I did pretty well on diet. No coffee after 5, and I'm right at my soda limit. I went to bed a bit too late, but not terrible.

.

Thursday: Still not quite enough sleep. Only had 1 diet soda. No big carby snacks. I did some weightlifting, then jogged (with a bit of walking) for about 3.8 miles (distance measured by my truck). Friday: I got enough sleep because I got to sleep in; I had the day off work. I was at about my limit on soda. I did a little walking and jogging, but mostly had a rest day. I ate pretty well, and I got a massage Saturday (today): I didn't do any formal exercise today, but I spent about 4 hours this morning helping to set up everything for our church's picnic. We took our kids to a pumpkin patch this afternoon too. I did decent on food, and good on sleep. I've had too much soda today, but my allergies are driving me nuts and soda actually feels good for my throat. Things to work on: sleep and avoiding smaller snacks.

We do spaghetti squash with pasta sauce and Parmesan. It makes a pretty fair alternative to spaghetti.