UncleHuggyBear

Well, I will say that I slept like a baby last night. I did wake up a few times, but nothing more than to just roll over and went right back to sleep. I've included a picture of the app which shows that I got around 8 hours of sleep last night. Overall, I would say that I'm not any more tired than had I just woke up on my own. Today is a cardio day, so as long as the rain holds off I should be able to hit the trail. However, it is raining right now...so we will see if it's trainer or trail.

Day 3! Already? Yes! Already! Just finished my BWF routine this evening. Squats - 3x8 Pull ups (Leg assisted Negatives) - 3x4 Handstand Push Ups (Incline pike push ups) - 3x8 Leg Raises (Flat knee raises) - 3x8 Dips (Bent knee bench dips) - 3x8 Horizontal Pulls (Vertical pulls) - 3x8 Plank (Kneeling) - 3x45 seconds Very similar to day 1. I alternate between Push Ups & Dips and I also increased my kneeling plank by 15 seconds. Diet: Breakfast - Nothing Lunch - Roasted chicken with sauteed peppers & onions with green beans Dinner - Gingery Broccoli Beef (One of my absolute fav's and would be happy to share the recipe) Sleep? I'm about to wind down my day and unplug from all electronics to help expedite falling asleep. I've also downloaded the Sleep Cycle app for iOS which I purchased years ago and never really used. We will see what kind of results I get as I'm sure the dog will jump up on the bed and the girlfriend stays up reading for awhile after I go to sleep. It will be interesting for sure. Another thing that I noticed was that while I'm still not able to do a full pull up, I definitely felt stronger and felt like I was pulling myself up more than I did on day 1. Tomorrow is a cardio day where I'm hoping to get out of the office earlier than usual and hit a trail for some actual riding. If I can't (I'm hitting the part of the year with a lot of projects coming due), I'll definitely get back on the trainer. Will report back tomorrow with my sleep report from my app!

Woo! I like it. My goal for sleeping is to be in bed by 10:30pm and asleep by 11:00pm, getting up by 7:00am. That gives me an hour in the morning to get ready and get to the office, which is only about a 10-15 minute commute.

Is your overall quest achievable (over a short or long period of time)? Is it reasonable? Yes. Losing 20lbs is an achievable and reasonable goal. I feel that I am approximately 20-25lbs overweight. 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? My 3 quests do all build towards my main quest. They are three very reasonable quests (BWF workout, Cardio, and Diet). Each quest has a grade attached to each level of success which will allow me to recognize any short comings. 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 believe that my main goal is realistic. If need be, I can push out my goal deadline in order to achieve my goal by continuing to maintain my 3 quests. Are your goals able to be measured and tracked? What will you use to track them? My goals are measured and tracked. I will be utilizing Strava to track my cardio goal, an Excel spreadsheet to track my BWF & Diet goal. Further, my life quest will be easily measured by my blog posts and successful completion of an online course. 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€? My goals are on a sliding scale of completion. For example, if I have a 90% or higher completion rate on my Cardio, that will result in an 'A' and I will get full level up points. This scale goes from A to F, where F will result in no points. What is your plan for continuing/altering/grading those goals if you become ill or injured? Injuries can and do happen, and that is a fact of life. Due to me utilizing the BWF routine I have adopted, there are lower difficulty versions that I can complete which will still allow me to achieve my BWF goal. As for cardio, there are multiple types of cardio so an injury shouldn't affect me too greatly. As far as getting sick, I am a firm believer in a healthy diet will only help get you better. My diet goal also allows for some "moments of weakness" and I have already taken up the mindset that a minor setback today will not lead to a larger setback tomorrow. 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 did take into account Thanksgiving (US) into my goals. My diet goal being the primary one that would be affected by this. I'm allowing myself three non-paleo meals a week based on my grading. This will allow me to enjoy a nice Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family in November. Do any of your main goals conflict with each other? Will one goal make it hard to do another? None of my goals conflict with each other, and in fact should really only compliment each other. I do not believe that any of my goals will make it more difficult to achieve another goal. 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? I do have the time in my schedule to actually complete the goals. My daily work commute is only about 30 minutes total for the day, which allows me plenty of time to complete my BWF & Cardio goals as well as allowing time to go grocery shopping for proper paleo foods. Are you trying to build multiple habits, or is all your energy focused on your main quest? I'm trying to build multiple habits by exercising on a regular basis and changing my overall diet to healthier foods. I believe that by focusing on these two items I will also be able to have some ancillary changes in my other daily habits in positive ways as well.

Alright, Day 2 in the books. 30 minutes of cardio on my bicycle trainer. Sadly, I can tell it's been awhile since I've been on a bike. My sit-bones are a little tender today. Yesterday's meals: Breakfast - Nothing Lunch - Roasted Chicken with sauteed peppers & onions, and green beans Dinner - Paleo Brunswick Stew Today's slate is another round of body weight exercises and good clean eating. As far as overall physical state, two days in I feel really good. I overslept this morning, but I imagine that has more to do with me doing cardio and not going to bed at a reasonable time. I'll have to remember that on Thursday. Especially since I'm taking Friday off from work to watch Blizzcon. And I would like to actually ride on a trail Saturday morning before Blizzcon starts back up again.

I could definitely do a protein shake. That might be something that is easier in the long run and will still give me the ability to wait until lunch to eat anything.

Mainly because I do get hungry around 9AM when I'm in the office. I definitely don't eat because it's morning and "I should eat." I've never been a huge breakfast person because of the fact that I'm not usually hungry when I get up in the morning. It almost always takes me about 90 minutes before I feel hungry.

Day 1 officially in the books. Initially I was going to procrastinate and start the next day (Tuesday). But I told myself, "NO! You said you would start on Monday! No excuses, only results!" So, I kicked my butt and got to working. I'm following a plan developed by Startbodyweight.com. I definitely forgot how much of a sweat you get just from body weight workouts! I was also able to maintain my Paleo challenge. Unfortunately, I don't normally eat breakfast (I know, I know), so I will be making up some paleo egg-muffins tonight for me to eat the rest of the week for breakfast. For lunch, I had some Paleo brunswick stew I made over the weekend which was a lot better than I expected. For dinner, I had some roasted chicken with sauteed peppers & onions and green beans. Quite delicious. For my workout, I've included the current progression, sets, and reps below. Squats - 3x8 Pull ups (Leg assisted Negatives) - 3x4 Handstand Push Ups (Incline pike push ups) - 3x8 Leg Raises (Flat knee raises) - 3x8 Push Ups (Wall push ups) - 3x8 Horizontal Pulls (Vertical pulls) - 3x8 Plank (Kneeling) - 3x30 seconds I'm planning on maintaining this progression for this week and then moving up one level beginning next Monday. For anyone following this, I feel extremely weak when it comes to the pull ups. Even doing leg-assisted pull ups I feel like I'm cheating and lifting myself up with my legs. On the negatives, I literally jump up so my chin is above the bar and then almost immediately start lowering myself down without ever really feeling in control or being able to hold a position. Any guidance there would be greatly appreciated. Today I have 30 minutes of biking. I'm hoping this rain holds off and I can go outside. Otherwise, I'll be watching TV on my phone and hitting the trainer in the apartment. Cheers!

As far as Quest 2, I'm in Atlanta, GA so the weather shouldn't be too terrible. If, for some reason I can't get on a trail or the road, then I have a trainer that I can set up in my apartment and still cycle. A trainer is like a treadmill for the bike where I pop in my rear wheel & tire into the trainer and it provides resistance on demand. So, ultimately, there should be no excuse for me to not do at least 30 minutes on the trainer 3 times a week.

Introduction: Hi, I am UncleHuggyBear and this is my first challenge. I like to ride bikes, however I’m overweight at about 198 lbs and not very well conditioned and going up hills is quite a challenge for me. I’ve joined the rebellion because I want to really change my lifestyle against the Empire of lethargy and laziness in order to ultimately ride a metric and then imperial century on my bike. This isn't my first go around with doing a challenge, but I was in a very bad place mentally about 2.5 years ago and I wasn't having any fun. It didn't help that I was about 1200 miles from my friends and family. I'm in a much better place and I'm finally getting on track with my life again after a long road. Main Quest: Lose 20lbs by the end of the challenge. Quest 1: Body weight fitness exercises three times a week. I’m currently not doing any type of exercises which has caused me to gain weight and not allowed me to gain the strength I desire to ride up and down hills on my bike. Measurement will be done by percentage of days done doing the routine compared to total days scheduled for routine. Measurement: A = 90% B = 70% C = 50% D = 25% F < 25% Reward: A = +3 STR B = +2 STR C = +1 STR D = +.5 STR F = 0 STR Quest 2: Cardio three times a week. Depending on the weather and day of the week, I will be riding trails, using my trainer, or doing road biking. This will be tracked through use of the Strava app & website. Minimum of 30 minutes on the trainer and a minimum of 15 miles per trail/road ride. Again, measurement will be done by percentage of days done biking compared to total days scheduled for biking. Measurement: A = 90% B = 70% C = 50% D = 25% F < 25% Reward: A = +3 STA/DEX B = +2 STR/DEX C = +1 STR/DEX D = +.5 STR/DEX F = 0 STR/DEX Quest 3: Paleo for 85% of my meals. Currently, I’m not following any type of meal plan and eating whatever is in front of me or whatever I have a craving for at that time. I will be creating a weekly meal plan on Sunday of every week which will allow me to go grocery shopping. I will also be making all of my lunches for the upcoming week on Sunday which will allow me to ensure I am meeting my 85% paleo goal. I'm setting my goal for 85% as this will allow me to have a moment of weakness and also allow me to indulge in some non-Paleo Thanksgiving goodness. This will be tracked using either an App on my phone or via food log which will be documented either on my blog or on this thread. Same type of measurement as the other challenges, all percentage based. Measurement: A = 85% B = 70% C = 50% D = 25% F < 25% Reward: A = +3 CON B = +2 CON C = +1 CON D = +.5 CON F = 0 CON Life Quest: Open Education website to learn VBA and apply it to my job. I will also be updating my blog at least twice a week. This will be measured by completion of the course as well as total updates to my blog. Measurement: A = 90% B = 70% C = 50% F >= 25% Reward: A = +2 WIS/+1 CHA B = +1 WIS/+.5 CHA C = +.5 WIS/+0 CHA F = +0 WIS/+0 CHA Motivation: I want to look good, have a renewed sense of confidence, and be comfortable taking my shirt off. I’m tired of setting goals and not accomplishing the goals. I also want to be able to go riding with some of my friends that are much stronger bikers than I am currently. Edit: Said something twice in the 'Life Quest' section.

I actually have a membership to The Edge in South Burlington between Hinesburg & Dorset on Twin Oaks Terrace. As I mentioned above, I've been out of commission for about a week with a hurt shoulder but I'll be back in the gym next week. I'll look into what's necessary for a friend to hit it up with me for a few days. I'll be doing the Rebel Strength training guide doing Push/Pull on alternative days and also mixing in 30-35 minutes of HIIT Cardio as well. I'm hoping to run a 5k in the Fall if I can find one, otherwise I'm just going to run one for fun.

Things are going well. The GF was able to find a job and just finished her training. She'll be a manager at a Panera Bread in Williston which is fantastic because that's 5 minutes from the apartment. Managed to hurt my shoulder pretty badly last month, so I've been out of commission for about 4 weeks now. Giving it one more week of rest and then I'm back in the gym. Can't wait! If I'm ever in Montpelier or you are in Burlington, send me a message. We can meet up for a beer.

Okay, I'm going to update two day's worth of stuff in this one post since I actually started my 6 week challenge yesterday. 5/15/13: Food: Breakfast - 1 Mandarin OrangeLunch - Roasted chicken breast and drumstick with salad with EVOO and Balsamic VinegarDinner - Paleo Chicken CacciatorreSnack - PopcornNotes: I was extremely hungry between breakfast and lunch, but that was to be expected considering I only had an orange for breakfast. The after dinner snack was a moment of weakness for me. I was craving something salty and that was all that I had in the apartment. Workout: Dead lifts Reps x Wt 5 x 65 5 x 75 5 x 85 5 x 85 5 x 95 Pull ups (Assisted): Reps x Wt 5 x -150 5 x -150 5 x -150 5 x -150 5 x -150 5/16/13: Meals: Breakfast - Sausage and peppersLunch - 3 eggs, 2 slices of baconSnack - 2 paleo muffin cakesDinner - Paleo fajitas

Back Story: I recently relocated over 1100+ miles away from my home town. This has been a good thing as I was getting into a rut and just going through the motions of life. Also, from a career stand point I wasn't going anywhere. Before I moved I had joined a gym but didn't take it seriously, ate poorly, and didn't follow any kind of regimen and also subscribed to the fitness magazine theory of isolating muscle groups. I've now been living in Burlington, VT for 6 weeks now and it really is a gorgeous place and I'm beginning to feel like I'm joining the community, albeit slowly. The Mission: I'll be heading back to Atlanta to visit family and friends on 6/29/13. Which just so happens to be just over 6 weeks away. Having missed the official 6 week challenge, I didn't want to wait until that was over and the next 6 weeks time up perfectly. I want to go back to Atlanta feeling like I've changed for the better with a new mindset, new body, and a feeling of accomplishment. The Goals: Weight Training - Perform weight training 3x/week utilizing the Push/Pull method of weight training. This will be accomplished by alternating days of Squats & Push Presses with days of Dead Lifts and Pull Ups. I will also be documenting weight and reps so that I can ensure that I am making progress and lifting heavier things.HIIT Cardio - Run a 5K (or atleast 5km on the treadmill/real world) in under 40 minutes. I will be following along with the C25K program to build up my endurance with the eventual goal of actually running a 5K some time in the future.90% Paleo - 90% of all my meals will be Paleo. I'm currently at about 75% but I want to push this a little further. I will be documenting my meals with a food journal.Read a book - I have a couple of books lined up that I want to read. I'm afraid if I don't hold myself accountable that I won't read anything. Not exactly sure how to measure this one, but I imagine someone out there has read one of these books and can ask me questions. The Points: Weight Training - +3 STRHIIT Cardio +3 STA/+3 DEX90% Paleo - +4 CONRead 1 book - +2 WIS I will be posting links to my blog where I plan on providing updates on my goals. Even though I will be posting updates on my blog, I think I would like to keep the discussion of things going on in this thread. Blog link to be posted this evening. Cheers!

Just moved to South Burlington, VT from Atlanta, GA. That was a heck of a drive and I'm glad that I don't have to do that again. Still getting settled, but would love to meet up with some fellow Rebels in the next month or two after we get everything setup. Cheers!