TheOxfordComma

Hi guys. Mir dragged me out of my on-forum coma with news of a meetup. How's stuff?

I think pairing noobs with the experienced for a lane sounds like a good idea. I'd probably be like "can someone explain this to me???" anyway!

Definitely sedentary. Like I said, the time not spent at my desk job entering numbers into a spreadsheet is usually spent at home entering stories into a word document. I do a small amount of walking around on the job going from my desk to the printer occasionally, and I hang around town with my friends some evenings which usually involves a bit of light walking, but overall it's a massive imbalance towards the sitting side of things.

Definitely lose. I'm pretty healthy overall but my doctor is so concerned about my weight the last few times I've gone in to see him he's made me get a blood sugar test. Even though my blood sugar always comes out as "higher than recommended, but still within acceptable limits" While I want to get FIT for myself, I also am looking to lose weight specifically, if only so he'll STOP STICKING HOLES IN MY ARM.

I'm of age, so I'll just plan on renting. Getting excited, guys!

Laney, it's saying my expenditure is around 3,000? That does not seem right. Besides the 45 minutes of moderate exercise I try to get in every day, (obviously not always succeeding as my chart shows) I work a desk job, drive to and from work, and am mostly stationary at home as my most passionate hobby is fiction/scriptwriting. The BMR is 2,000 though. If I just eat around 1400 a day, will that still be "starving"? Obviously I don't want to eat unhealthily, just, even 2000 calories seems a lot...

Just checking; people who want to rent guns, will they need a license? I don't have any experience with guns so logically I don't own one.

Hey, Jules. I don't think I'm going to be much in the way of help giving advice on how to reach your goals-- you sound like you have more experience with working out and eating paleo than I do! But this is my second Challenge, and I found the first one did really great things for thinking of my goals as lifestyle changes instead of workout spurts/diets, so I think you'll find this really helpful. I would also suggest trying to participate in the weekly challenges; they were something I missed out on the first time around, but I've found they're really good for meeting new people and getting a nice morale boost! (Also, since you're doing the RPG portion-- free points!) I will try and keep an eye on you and check in every once in a while for encouragement. Good luck, and I hope you find this system as helpful as I did! --Oxford

Current Level: 3 Progress Bar [ ||||||_____________ ] 30% Weekly Goals for August 6 through August 12: Get up early and exercise 45 min before work. |If completed, Progress Bar moves 75% Eat 2 completely paleo meals a day!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 50%! Eat between 1200 and 1400 calories a day!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 25% Do something Grad School related each week!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 25% Mon, 8/6 Apparently when I say "update my Organizer everyday" I mean "record everything on my phone but only post every few days." Oh well. I DID exercise before work today! I ate 1440 calories today. My lunch and dinner were completely paleo. Tue, 8/7 I did NOT exercise before work today! (Sleep won out... :C ) I ate 1414 calories today (ehh, closer.) My lunch and dinner were completely paleo. Wed, 8/8 I did NOT exercise before work today! (Note: try going to bed at 9:30 instead of 10:30, see if it's easier to get up.) I ate 1390 calories today. (\0/ And we've made it!) My lunch was paleo, I THOUGHT my dinner was paleo and then discovered it actually had some cheese in it. Thu, 8/9 I did NOT exercise before work today! (Note: Going to bed at 9:30 is probably GOING to help, but my body still didn't tire down enough for an extra hour. Keep trying until body adjusts.) Fri, 8/10 Sat, 8/11 Sun, 8/12

Laney, thanks for letting me know. I didn't actually know I was eating too few calories. :C I had been noticing when I tend to eat around 1300 calories I seem to gain weight, so I thought by decreasing the amount, I was just managing intake better. I'll watch out for that more from now on.

Intro The last 6-Week Challenge got me in the habit of tracking all of my food, every day. Now I'm looking forward to sealing in that daily exercise goal, and improving WHAT I eat. I've been informed that I was eating too few calories and sending my body into starvation mode during the last challenge so, instead of a weight-loss goal for this challenge, I'm going to make my eating goal be about the quality of my food intake, instead of about trying to shed pounds. Hopefully, the pounds will be shed anyway, only in a healthier manner. As with the last challenge, this thread will be updated weekly, and my daily log will be here. Starting Statistics Human Adventurer STR 3|DEX 3|STA 3.5|CON 7|WIS 6|CHA 3.75 Weight: 227 lb Goals for the 6-week Challenge Health: -- Complete 45 minutes of some form of physical exercise every day. (A brisk walk or active recovery can count.) STR +2, DEX +2 -- Eat entirely paleo for 2 meals a day. CON +4 -- Eat between 1200 and 1400 calories a day. STA +2, CHA +1 Life: -- Do at least one Grad School application based task per week. WIS +4

BLUH-- oh hey new people. Hi new people! Sorry I've been quiet, all of a sudden I got a new job, a drama-filled love life, and family issues all over the course of a week, so I've been trying to impose order and sanity on all of it. The carefully built NF update/workout schedule I'd managed to create during the beginning of the 6WC broke down, but screw it at least I finished. I'm subscribed to this thread though so I'm mostly caught up. So: 1) SUPER EXCITED FOR THE 18TH, YEAH!! I joined the Facebook group but haven't looked super closely at it yet. I made sure they won't ask me to come in that day, though, and it's in my calendar with a smiley face. 2) Again, hello, new people! I'm in A2 so people in the area looking for fitness buddies, feel free to hit me up. 3) I'm actually not super clear on what the Warrior Dash is? From what I've observed from conversations/one promotional video, it looks like a race/obstacle course in the style of Wipeout or Legends of the Hidden Temple

Just started a new job and it requires me to sit in a cubicle for 8 hours a day. It's making me antsy; I keep wanting to sprint up and down the hall but that would bother my coworkers. Any good suggestions for ways to stretch/work out muscles other than my butt within the space of my cubicle?

Health: -- Complete 45 minutes of some form of physical exercise every day. (A brisk walk or active recovery can count.) STR +2, DEX +2 C -- Keep a daily record of what I eat and its calorie, protein, and fiber information. CON +4 B, plus +1 for mimi-challenge -- Lose 10 pounds. STA +2, CHA +1 B Life: -- Perform 3 job-searching activities per week. WIS +4 B Finishing Statistics Human Adventurer STR 3|DEX 3|STA 3.5|CON 7|WIS 6|CHA 3.75 Weight: 226 lb

Challenge Week 6 Report: Daily Log Days exercised: 1/7 Weekly Grade: D Days food recorded: 6/7 Weekly Grade: B Current weight: 226 (0lb lost) Weekly Grade: C Career actions taken: 3/3 Weekly Grade: A

At the job now. Not sure if I feel like a "grown-up" now, LoD (by the way nice Miho tattoo, if that's you in your icon), the assignment they've given me today is just printing out PDF file after PDF file. But they're paying me $11/hr to do it so thank you, I will.

Yeah!! It's only a short-term position, and it's a bit of a drive, but it pays $11/hr which was more than I was expecting to make right out of the gate with not much previous work experience. Mostly, I'm just relieved I got it, because it proves that all that shlupping my resume about town is, in fact, accomplishing something. It makes me feel like I have successfully "leveled up" and now I'm ready to set my sights on the next stage of my goals.

Current Level: 3 Progress Bar [ |___________________ ] 5% Weekly Goals for July 23 through July 29: Exercise in a new or unusual way once every day!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 25% Keep a record of what you eat each day!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 50%! Perform 3 career-advancing actions!| If completed, Progress Bar moves 25% Mon, 7/23 Found a local batting cage and hit baseballs for a half hour. Great stress relief! 6:00pm-6:30pm Applied to another temp agency. Breakfast: multi-grain cheerios in skim milk, grapefruit juice; Lunch: half a tuna-fish sandwich, half a grilled cheese sandwich, cup of tomato soup, medium fruit salad, apple; Dinner: buffalo wings; Totals: 1926 calories, 61g protein, 10g fiber. Tue, 7/24 Breakfast: skipped; Lunch: tiny meatballs in bbq sauce; Snack: apple; Dinner: grilled eggplant, zuccini, and a large Italian meatball; Totals: 1292 calories, 45g protein, 4g fiber. Wed, 7/25 Breakfast: dried apricots; Lunch: cliff bar & Naked smoothie; Dinner: Spiced Chicken with Peaches and Pineapple Sauce; Totals: 935 calories, 40g protein, 24g fiber. Bonus: +1 CON point for participating in cooking mini-challenge! Thu, 7/26 Breakfast: cliff bar; Lunch: egg salad sandwich; Snack: Starbucks grande skinny vanilla latte; Dinner: beef tenderloin, cauliflower and broccoli, cranberry juice; Totals: 973 calories, 57g protein, 10g fiber. Fri, 7/27 Completed temp agency paperwork. Got hired!!! Sat, 7/28 Breakfast: cliff bar; Lunch: sausage/mushroom pizza; Dinner: sausage/mushroom pizza; Totals: 1500 calories, 64g protein, 10g fiber. Sometimes, you just REALLY want pizza. Sun, 7/29 Breakfast: skipped; Lunch: sausage/mushroom pizza; Dinner: beef pot roast, cucumber salad, and grapefruit juice; Totals: 514 calories, 35g protein, 5g fiber. Shifting schedules made me drop my exercise routine, and then everything else sort of dropped. Going to try and build a new timetable around my new job.

Challenge Week 5 Report: Daily Log Days exercised: 3/7 Weekly Grade: C Days food recorded: 6/7 Weekly Grade: B Current weight: 226 (1lb lost) Weekly Grade: B Career actions taken: 1/3 Weekly Grade: C

Guys, Thanks for all the suggestions. It was all very helpful. I've been doing some research on my own and mostly what I'm worried about right now is how to find the right studio. I'm glad to hear that this will not effect my ability to continue working out, too. I will consider the suggestion to use kanji instead. I was originally thinking hiragana because I'm more comfortable reading hiragana than kanji, but I do have to admit the kanji is more elegant. I really appreciate all your tips; thank you very much!

I'm just amused that you even TRIED to explain what Homestuck was about. Normally if people ask what I'm reading I just respond, "It's a relentlessly lighthearted webcomic about kids and fun" and hope they don't ask anymore questions. I've discovered it's impossible to try and summarize that plot without coming off as at least partially insane.

I am trying to learn about the process of getting my first tattoo. I already know what it is I want to get (the hiragana for "Kobayashi Maru"-- yes, the Star Trek test-- on my inner wrist/arm) and have already thought of the physical and professional consequences that can come from getting a tattoo (can look unprofessional, will hurt, lasts forever). Now I'm just wondering about the process. Some explanation: When I was suffering through my depression/anxiety 3 years ago, what finally snapped me out of it was (don't laugh) watching Star Trek the original series and its movies. Specifically, the idea of the Kobayashi Maru, the "unbeatable" test, was the crystallization of my growing frustration with my depression. I got angry, and I said "no, fuck this, I don't have to feel this way, it's not unbeatable, I don't believe in no-win scenarios." Because of refusing to think of my depression as unbeatable, and instead comparing it to the Kobayashi Maru which SEEMED unbeatable but just required creative thinking and a refusal to give up, I was able to finally get rid of it. I've known for the past 3 years that, if I were ever to put something permanently on my skin in ink, it would be that, to always remind me. I've decided now is the time because my close, long time (over a decade) friend recently admitted to me that after years of being depressed (which I knew about and urged her to see a therapist) she was seriously considering self-harm and suicide. I've contacted her family and they've finally got her going to therapy but she is still in really bad shape. I want to bring her with me to get this tattoo, as a show of solidarity. It will remind me that I can get through anything, even the horrible helpless feeling of watching someone you love hate themselves so much they want to die, and it will hopefully show her too that a) I'm serious as hell about supporting her through this and that depression isn't unbeatable, and she can, in fact, get through it.

Current Level: 3 Progress Bar [ |___________________ ] 5% Weekly Goals for July 16 through July 22: Complete BBWW Tue, Thu, Sat, and Sun!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 25%! Play Kinect Sports or do Yoga for 45 minutes all days not BBWW!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 25% Keep a record of what you eat each day!|If completed, Progress Bar moves 50%! Perform 3 career-advancing actions!| If completed, Progress Bar moves 25% Mon, 7/16 Investigated several temp agencies, put my resume into one's database. Lunch: Panera's Pick 2 poppyseed salad & tuna salad sandwich; Dinner: baked tilapia, salad, Woodchuck; Snack: lays baked potato chips; Totals: 1477 calories, 64g protein, 13g fiber. Tue, 7/17 Breakfast: cliff bar & apple; Lunch: 2 bunless hot dogs; Snack: graham crackers and skim milk; Dinner: beef tenderloin, salad with carrots and onions, a glass of pinot noir; Dessert: 2 cupcakes; Totals: 1685 calories, 79g protein; 12g fiber. Wed, 7/18 Since I skipped the BBWW yesterday, I swapped it for today. 3 circuits, and I've added doing 10 sit-ups to each circuit. 12:15pm-12:45pm Breakfast: apple & organic fruit juice; Lunch: cherries, bran muffins, some turkey slices, and a cranberry juice; Snack: bran muffin & string cheese; Dinner: tilapia, cauliflour, and skim milk; Totals: 1243 calories, 95g protein, 39g fiber. Thu, 7/19 Breakfast: apple & diet coke; Lunch: turkey, bran muffin, and canned salmon; Snack: Snapea Crisps; Dinner: 2 slices mushroom pizza; Totals: 1452 calories, 77g protein, 37g fiber. Fri, 7/20 Apparently I've switched alternating BBWW days this week. Okay then. 11:30am-12:05pm Breakfast: cliff bar & skim milk; Lunch: n/a; Snack: chocolate wafer cookies & Woodchuck cider; Dinner: stuffed grape leaves & hummous; Totals: 941 calories, 40g protein, 13g fiber. Sat, 7/21 Nope. Sun, 7/22 BBWW, 2:00pm-2:30pm Breakfast: cliff bar & orange juice; Lunch: tilapia fillet; Snack: cherries & chocolate coin; Dinner: beef tenderloin, green beans, and potato coins; Totals: 1006 calories, 57g protein, 10g fiber. Not quite as good as last week, but not specifically bad... it was kind of an emotionally exhausting week anyway.

Hey, I'm going to be running amok handing out resumes to people I want to hire me tomorrow, and after that experience I could probably use a drink. Would anyone like to meet up and get a beer tomorrow evening? Say, at the Blue Tractor in Ann Arbor around 7pm? I'm up for other suggestions too, that's just one of the places I usually like to go.

Challenge Week 4 Report: Daily Log Days exercised: 5/7 Weekly Grade: B Days food recorded: 7/7 Weekly Grade: A Current weight: 227 (3lb lost) Weekly Grade: A Career actions taken: 5/3 Weekly Grade: A WOW! This has been my best week of the challenge! I finally feel like I'm actually making a habit out of exercising and eating right, which was my goal for the first 6-week challenge: to develop habits. I'm determined to finish off the last two weeks really strongly! Then I can start figuring how to level up for the next Challenge!