ShortyScorch

Yo, still about here. I work in JC, maybe we can meet up some time. Still working with Nerd Fitness, though through Rising Heroes more than through the forums now.

Day 3, March 2nd 2016 Walk: TBA Routine: TBA Plank: TBA Japanese: Next round is March 3rd

Thanks! Glad to be back- It proves to several people (myself included, sadly) that I'm serious about getting in shape and fit.

Day 2, March 1st 2016 I intended to pop this update in last night, but my comp crashed. So here it is this morning! Walk: 1/5 I completed my walk yesterday for lunch! It was pretty cold, and sucked because of this, but I did it. I walked 13 blocks, running 4 of them. Routine: Cycle, complete! I did 20 minutes of cycling last night. I didn't cycle fast, but I also didn't stop. (The bike actually stops tracking time once you stop pedaling, so sitting idle won't increase your time. Keeps me honest!) Tonight will be the BBWW. Plank: Starts 3/2/16 This will be worked on during my BBWW, so that starts tonight! Tonight's goal is a full 60 second plank, on either of the planks I do during my two rounds. Japanese: 30 minutes of Hiragana Since my computer was down for the count last night, I focused on Hiragana. Tomorrow night, I'll be using Rosetta Stone again.

For yesterday: I didn't really have my goals planned yet, but here's how I did: 1. Walk: 0/5 for the week Worked through lunch, so no walk yesterday. That's okay, the weekends supposed to be amazing and then I can bring the boyfriend. 2. Routine: Not accomplished. I didn't start this last night, but I'm starting it tonight. I already have calendar alerts set up to help with this. That should keep me on track. 3. Plank time: 50 seconds My current standard is 50 seconds, so that's my starting point. This should be fun. 4. Japanese This starts tonight, along with cycling. I can do this!

So January I crashed and burned. But I'very reflected on the failure and now I'm ready to take another shot at this. For goals this month, I'm going to try to get myself back on track: 1. Walk at least 5 days a week. I was doing great at this, but I stopped with the winter. I shouldn't have done that. The past week, I've been out walking every day on lunch, and getting in some running even! This isn't just a walk around the block- this is several blocks, up and down hill. I've been getting some good exercise out of this, and plan to keep it up. 2. Get a workout routine going. One night will be cycling on my new stationary bike, the next will be the Beginner Bodyweight Workout. This will keep me active when I get home, but I won't be overdoing it like I think I did in January. Cycling will be 20 to 30 minutes. BBWW will be 2 cycle, at first, at half recommend reps, at first. 3. 2 Minute Plank. I want to work toward a two minute plank. Each night I do the BBWW I will aim for an extra 10 seconds on my previous nights longest plank. My starting goal will be 50 seconds, my current hovering point. 4. Life Goal- Practice Japanese every other day. On cycling day, I will take 30 minutes to an hour and work on Rosetta Stone. 30 minutes could be the lessons there, then 30 minutes of practicing Hiragana. I've wanted to learn Japanese for years, and a few months ago I got Rosetta Stone. So far, it's been an amazing tool to learn the language, my onlu problem is I practice a few days, then don't touch it for a month. I need to break that cycle if I ever want to learn the language. After my month of reflection in February, I feel these are good goals for me to get back on track. I'll update daily as best I can, since life has calmed down a bit.

So... life's bites sometimes. Between anxiety attacks and illness, I tanked the last half of this challenge. I think things have settled down a bit so I can get back into challenges, at least.

January 19th, 2016 Push-Ups: Got my 15 elevated push-ups in. Tried another floor, and couldn't get it. But I feel close! Plank: 00:50:50! Woot! Meal: Since the week started yesterday and Mom and I made dinner last night, I've hit my goal for this week. I'll probably still make something this weekend, I jsut don't know what. IN OTHER NEWS! Tried a pull-up again. I can get my chin as high as about my elbow, so about half-way. I feel pretty rocking about that.

Another update for the weekend! (I had a long weekend due to Martin Luther King Day on the 18th.) So... I ruined the chilli. ^^' But at least Mom was here- She took the reins and taught me a new chicken recipe and we had that and mac and cheese Sunday. Monday, we had another chicken dish with green beans (she found a way to get me to eat those!) and baked potatoes. We learned you can make baked potatoes in the slow cooker, so I'll probably have those more often now. (I love baked potatoes. I don't like baking them.) I managed the 15 push-ups each day of the weekend. Still on elevated, but I feel like I'm closer to a floor push-up. (I can do one if I ignore proper form, but that's settling. If I manage this, I'll manage it correctly.) For planks, I managed 50 seconds Saturday, and 45 Sunday and Monday. I've been pretty tired lately, but I'm not letting that stop me from exercising. I'll post another update tonight when I've finished with my exercises.

My mom visiting really helped with the stress. It's always relaxing to spend time with her. And I managed to fit my exercises in both nights of her visit. That made me feel better about myself overall. Hopefully this week will be calmer. (Partially because being busy and stressed kept me from hopping on Rosetta Stone for some lessons the last half of the week. >.>)

It's been a bit- I should update right quick. So... Things have been... Hectic... I still haven't been doing my writing, due to my eyes. I've managed the bare minimum on all my other goals so far (cooking I'm still planning to do today) because all hell's broken loose. My boyfriend was fired from work for "not making enough money" recently. We found out Friday he also doesn't qualify for unemployment. So things are... Stressful. We're sorting things out, slowly but surely. (To avoid badmouthing the company, I don't wish to say where he was working. It would be rude of me.) I'm going to strive to keep exercising at least, and keep up the meals, but writing's pretty well off the table because of my eyes right now. My mother's supposed to visit today and stay until Tuesday morning, weather permitting, so I'm sure she'll help with the stress part of things. Updates are probably going to be more infrequent for a bit, but I will update things here.

Day 6, January 9th 2016 Late update for yesterday! We had a power outage, so I lost access to the internet and didn't want to waste my phone battery posting here. Power didn't return until two this morning, so it had to wait a bit. Push-ups: I managed 6 knee-high push-ups last night. Woo! I finished up with nine waist-high to round it out. I'll try to get 9 knee-highs tonight, but now I know I can at least do 6. (That already shows improvement- On the fourth, I couldn't even do one at that elevation!) Still haven't been able to manage one floor push-up, but I keep trying. Plank: Another 51 second plank last night. Consistency is good, and I'm consistantly over 45 seconds. Meal: Realized when I went to cook dinner I didn't have stuffing! Oh well. Pork chops and mac and cheese was pretty darn good either way. Writing: This didn't happen last night due to the low light level. I didn't want to risk it even with a flash light- Not with how my eyes have been lately.

I majorly cut back my computer time (By just not getting on it the past few nights period) and I feel a ton better. I also started wearing my sunglasses at work- They aren't perfect, and make it harder to see my code in visual studio on a dark theme, but they do seem to be blocking some of the more harmful light, so I'm thankful for that. And thanks! I'm super excited to be an assassin! I'm small, I'm light, I'm quiet, I'm sneaky... Now I just need to work on speed, reflexes, strength, and deadliness and I'll be golden.

Day 5, January 8th 2016 Push-ups: I switched to three sets of five, and I feel like it's more of a challenge. Tomorrow I'll see if I can do a knee-high elevation push-up. If I can, I'll do as many as I can, then switch back up to waist to finish the 15. (Thanks again for the elevated push-up suggestion, Joshua!) Plank: New record! 00:56:47! I'm back on track, baby! Meal: Still shooting for Saturday with the stuffed porkchops, and I'll likely either make mac and cheese or mashed potatoes with it. (Or both! I can always eat leftovers later! I have actually already planned for next weekend: Chili! My mother'll be visiting for a couple days, so Sunday I'm going to start the chili in the morning, then we can eat it later in the afternoon. My mom's recipe works well with the slow cooker, so that's what I use. (Mainly because I don't have a big enough pot, given how much chili I can eat in one setting. >.>) Writing: This might have to be put on hold until my eyes are truly back up and running. Might switch to a different life goal and focus on this one next month instead. IN OTHER NEWS: So... I have a pull-up bar to go in my door now. I had one before this challenge, really. Before, I could do maybe 1/6th or 1/5th pull-up... I tried again tonight, and it looks to be about 1/4th. I am pleased with this.

So, to catch up! I haven't been able to do the writing goal due to my eyes. I'm well enough to be on here for a bit to update, and I finally got a good rest last night so I didn't crash as soon as I got home. Wednesday I did nothing goal wise. As soon as I came home Wednesday, I crashed in bed and fought to sleep. Didn't go well. Thursday: Second verse, same as the first! I did manage my push-ups before I went to bed, but... That was it. But! I got a great sleep last night! Woo!

A very brief update while I can stand to do one. I'm currently suffering from really bad eyestrain, to the point the only things I can really manage after work are eating and laying in the dark. I'm not sure if this is affecting my sleep but I haven't been sleeping well for almost a week. Basically my eyes are constantly hurting if I'm in light, I'm exhausted, and I can't manage much. Reading and writing is beyond my current abilities, though I did manage my push-ups aren't a 45 second plank last night. When I can stand to look at a computer after work, or my phone, I'll post proper updates.

Day 1, January 4th 2016 Push-ups: I did 5 sets of three waist-high elevated push-ups. I'm able to do about half a floor push-up. I feel like I'm really getting something out of these elevated push-ups, versus what I was doing before. Plank: My goal for tonight was 45 minimum, and trying for 51 seconds. I hit 00:51:39. Goal achieved! Meal: I'm planning this for Saturday, I just haven't decided what to make yet. I'm thinking pork chops. Perhaps stuffed pork chops with mashed potatoes. Writing: To Be Updated Later

Day 0 Status Check! So, here's a quick status check on where I'm at on these goals: Push-ups: Using the technique Joshua T. suggest, I was able to do five sets of three push-ups at waist-high elevation. (I have come to realize there is absolutely nothing in my tiny apartment at the moment that is chest-high. I may be able to remedy that.) My arms hate me, but it's a great start! I tried to do a single floor push-up earlier today, but while I could lower myself, I couldn't push myself back up. That will change by the end of January. I'm going to change my push-up goal a little, as I can definitely manage more than one elevated push-up. I'll aim for a set amount of those and at least an attempt at a floor push-up a day. Meal: So my boyfriend was home this past week, and I had a home cooked meal, one of my favorites, on Wednesday night. I'm going to see if my mom can email me some extra recepies, if she has the time, so I have some variety besides Townhouse Chicken and... Townhouse Chicken. I'd look up good reciepes online, but I know Mom has plenty I like, and I can go from there. I'm counting a home cooked meal as anything I have to physically get up, prepare, and cook on the stove or in the oven. The cooking has to be more complicated than "Boil water, add food, let cook, serve." (This throws out Kraft Velvetta Mac and Cheese, one of my favorite foods, along with Ramen, stuffing, and rice. Any of these may be eaten as a side or snack, but they cannot be the entirety of the meal.) Plank: I did a plank after my push-up check, and managed 46 seconds before my body was just like "LOL! Nope!" and I lost it. So 46 seconds is my starting point. Tomorrow, I have to hit at least 45 seconds, but I'll be trying to hit 51. Writing: This one's going to be a little harder to update with the rest of things. What I'm going to do is, in my daily updates, I will leave a space for updates on the stress relief that is writing. The next day, I'll get on at some point and update with if I did it, and how many pages. There's an important reason for not getting on to update immediately after I do this: The light from my phone or laptop before bed could also be contributing to my lack of sleep. If I do something to help me relax only to turn around and negate the potential for helping me sleep with my electronics, how will I know if this is working for that purpose? I won't. (For this reason, if I do writing just before bed, it will be handwritten. If I do writing earlier in the day, before 9 in the evening, then I may choose to do typed.) But I will be doing something else important when I do this. I want to keep a small notebook nearby. Before I start writing, I will note the time, my mood, how I'm feeling physically, and how well I feel I slept the night before. (I may note this first thing when I wake up instead, but it will be with the other information.) When I finish writing to go to bed, I will note the time, my new mood, and how I'm feeling physically again. I don't expect that last one to change, but relaxing could relieve various pains, and I'm curious if it will or not. I may also decide to note how much I wrote then, to make sure I don't forget before I update, but I haven't decided yet. All this note taking will help me with several things: Noting how long I write, noting any changes in moods when I write, and helping me see for sure how this affects my body and mind, and hopefully sleep. It may also help me see if there's a difference between writing at, for instance, 7 at night and 9 at night. I haven't decided if I will add these notes to my update posts or just keep them for my own record, but I'd be willing to share the information with curious minds either way. (Edited later.) Last night, I did my first round of this. While I still didn't sleep well, I think that's due to a headache I had most of the evening last night. I did feel a bit better after hand writing a page for 18 minutes. I may decide to add my full stats later. If I do, they'll go here. All in all, I think I'm set for a good start. I can only hope this challenge will be as good as the last one.

I like this idea, and it's something I can do easily in my bedroom. I'll give this a shot tonight. Thanks for the suggestion, Joshua!

Good luck with your challenge! I'm personally cheering for the office cleanup, and I can sympathize. (With a room being a total wreck, at least.)

I'll work out points and all that once the character creation is up, so I have a better idea of how that's going to work out. To help with the wall of text, I'll edit this post then to put that information here in an easy-to-find manner!

Let's jump right into this thing! 2016, prepare to be rocked! Mercilessly! Quests: So I'm working towards a goal of doing my first pull-up. I want to become master of my body, and how my body moves. In my mind, pull-ups are the next step. Towards that end: 1) Push-ups. Real ones! Let me just copy a little block from the wrap-up of my first challenge, since I feel I covered the situation well there: So originally I wanted my goal to be 15. I've decided I don't have a good way to measure that, so I'll do this instead: My goal for this four weeks is to do at least 1 push-up a day, a real one, and try each day to do one more than the previous day. I have altered this goal slightly: My goal for push-ups for this four weeks is to do at least 5 sets of three elevated push-ups and attempt at least 1 floor push-up. (Thanks to Joshua T. for the elevated push-up suggestion!) I feel this is really an "easy" goal, but it'll be hard for me to do really. I've been trying, and even one real push-up is a total struggle for me anymore. I want to change that. (Suggestions for other ways to help build my strength to help with this goal are more than welcome, and completely appreciated. I won't learn trying to sort it all out on my own.) 2) Real food! Woo! Since I started living on my own for college, home cooked meals have been few and far between. I've stuck to mostly microwavable food for a long time now, with the (admittedly and thankfully rare) trip to a restaurant. (Not counting the work cafeteria as a restaurant.) My mother and I agree this is likely why I feel like shit off and on. Time to fix that. My goal here is to cook at least one home cooked meal a week. This will get me started on the road to home cooked meals every night, without overwhelming me. I figure weekends are the best time to do this, since I'm really learning to cook at the moment. (Yet my youngest brother is amazing at it. So much for the "Girls are great cooks" stereotype!) I think this will help with my feeling sick a lot, too. I think the pre-made microwavables I've been eating are largely what's making me ill. 3) Planks! I've come to find I really enjoy planks. I get a great sense of accomplishment when I do planks. Thanks to the assassin bootcamp mini-challenge I took part in over the break, I broke my longest plank record and made it to 45 seconds, and have been able to do so decently consistently. I want to keep pushing that limit, go for more. For this reason, my plank goal is to do at least a 45 second plank every night and each night try for at least 5 more seconds of plank. And to help me with this, I have my cuddle monster: Meet Umbreon, my three year old baby boy, and my adorable little workout pest. (He's certainly not a helper!) I've discovered that he actually does help with planks. Without knocking me over, he'll walk up while I'm doing planks and rub against my face. Takes my mind off the difficulty and helps me get more time. And totally not cheating because I'm still holding the plank! Distractions are an assassins best friend, when used appropriately. (And kitties are such amazing distractions. 4) Life Goal: Write every night to help relieve stress. So I've remembered lately what I did to help keep my sane during my fight with depression in high school: I wrote. I enjoy writing, no matter what it is. An essay, just whatever pops into my head, a story, lyrics to a song I'm listening to, anything! I've decided I need to get in the habit of doing this again, and my roleplays don't count. (There's too much discussion going on for me to get immersed in the writing.) To that end, my life goal is to write every night, one page if hand-written, and two pages if typed. Preferably, I'll do this not long before bed to try to help me relax to sleep, but if I get really stressed during the day I can do it whenever, so long as I get at least one written or two typed pages. Why so low a page count per day? Because there are days I'll have trouble finding the time for this. I want it to be continuous, uninterrupted time to help with the immersion I mentioned. The stress-relieving effect comes from getting out of my mind for a bit, and to do that I need to be immersed. A page should at least help me relax if written (There's something really soothing about the feel and sound of pen on paper. (And yes, I write my stories in pen. Yes, I am crazy. Thanks for noticing!)) and two pages should start getting me immersed if typed. Update schedules: I intend to update every night when I get home. (Work blocked Nerd Fitness, so I can't on lunch. Boo.) I found this to be a good way to keep my mind on target during my last challenge, so I'll stick to that this challenge. At the end of the four weeks, on the last day of the challenge, I intend to do a write-up of how I feel this challenge has gone, what I did right, what I could do better, what flat didn't work, and my thoughts for the next challenge. This seemed to work well for me last challenge, so I'll stick to it. As my beloved mother always tells me, if it ain't broke, don't fix it!

Just a little something to make you smile! (Since laughter is the best medicine and all. Smiles must come close to that, right?) Link to the full thing is in my signature if you want to read it. "Let's get down to business To defeat the flu!"