Jason Bourne

Hello Nerd Fitness gang. Its been far too long, probably over a year since I even logged onto to the forums. I'm changing that right now. Life's kicked me down pretty hard in the past year or so: I've had several physical injuries, and while they are not too debilitating, they've kept me from making any real fitness progress. I've also been battling depression, and I've just overall been feeling down in the dumps. On top of this, I've been going through a hard time financially, and barely have enough to stay on budget and make ends meet. I want to turn my life around. I don't want to be stuck in a rut for the rest of my life. I want to change, so I might as well start now. Here's the main goals of my challenge: 1: Do NOT go out to eat at all during the challenge I wasted a lot of money on frivolously going out to eat just whenever I felt like it. That's a big part of my financial problems, so I really want to work on that and eliminate all the money that I spend going out to eat. I should be spending that money on groceries, or saving it for other stuff. 2: Physical fitness to the max Here's some benchmark numbers that I want to be at by the end of the challenge: - 100 Push-Ups - 20 Pull-Ups - 150 Sit-Ups - 4 hours of cardio every week, working up to a 6 mile run - 5 Muscle-Ups - 10 Squats @ 175 lbs I have other fitness goals, but these are the ones I want to focus on for right now. 3: Financial freedom Over the course of the challenge, my goal is to save $500. It's not much, but my hope is that its $500 that I never have to touch in case of an emergency. 4: Complete a daily routine One of the best ways to combat depression is to lock into a consistent daily routine. Here's what I want to accomplish everyday as part of my routine: Read 5 Chapters of the Bible Read the Constitution Make my bed Brain Training (Memrise & Lumosity - 30 minutes total) Write a Journal Entree So that's it! I'm excited to get my life back on track, and have an amazing challenge. I'm not worrying too much about skill points right now, I'll distribute those accordingly once the challenge is over, depending on how well I do. Thanks in advance for the support from my fellow Assassins. You guys are the best.

The name of the island they found me on is Lian Yu. It's Mandarin for "purgatory." I've been stranded here for five years. I've dreamt of my rescue every cold black night since then. For five years I've only had one thought, one goal - survive. Survive and one day return home. The island held many dangers. To live, I had make myself more than what I was, to forge myself into a weapon. My name is Oliver Queen. ____________________________ Hello everyone! I'm really excited about this next challenge! Oliver Queen's character from the hit series "Arrow" on the CW has really been an inspiration to me, so I'd like to do this challenge with that theme in mind. Part II will be about Oliver as the Arrow, assuming that this challenge is successful. If you guys haven't seen the show, I would definitely recommend it. Here's a small clip of Oliver in action, setting up the lair that he uses as a hideout: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hpp_Nwy3XzE Pretty awesome right! In that spirit, here are the goals that I've set for myself this challenge: Archery In order to survive the island that he was shipwrecked on, Oliver must learn how to wield a bow in order to defend himself from the many dangers the island has for him. He learns these skills from Yao Fe and his daughter Shado. By spending hours everyday honing his craft and relying on it to survive, Oliver has become a master archer. My ambitions are similar. I've already been practicing for several years with my 65lb Matthews hunting bow, and can shoot very accurately from 40 yards or shorter. I'd like to be able to hit my target (a two foot tall square) from 80 yards with 10 arrows and not miss once. Goal 1.1 - 10/10 arrows in my target from 80 yards away (+3 DEX : +2 CON) Bodyweight Exercises Oliver initially arrives on the island as a spoiled, padded young man that hasn't had to experience a great deal of hardship. I can definitely relate to this aspect of Oliver's life, and have experienced comfort for far to long. I've grown complacent, fat and lazy, and I've been living the easy life for too long, always looking for the easy way out. By using bodyweight exercises like push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, squats, and muscle-ups, Oliver transforms himself into a human weapon capable of accomplishing the task. I will do the same. Goal 2.1 - Double # of single-rep push-ups from 50 to 100 (+1 STR) Goal 2.2 - Complete 60 Sit-Ups in 1 minute (current 30) (+1 STA) Goal 2.3 - Accomplish 20 consecutive dead-hang pull-ups (current 12) (+1 STA) Goal 2.4 - Complete 2 back-to-back muscle-ups with no kipping and dead hang in between (current 1 kipping) (+1 STR) Goal 2.5 - Complete 150 consecutive squats (current 60) (+1 STR) Survival The island is completely cut off from civilization, isolated from the rest of the world. Oliver, Yao Fe, Shado, and later Sara Lance and Slade Wilson must all learn how to hunt, scavenge, and forage in order to survive. To this end, I am going to transform my diet into the Paleo diet, and only eat what would have been readily available to Oliver on the island. Also, I have a bit of experience with hunting, but I've yet to kill a dear, which is another big part of this challenge. Goal 3.1 Eat only the Paleo Diet or similar foods that would have been available to Oliver on the island (i.e. protein bars/whey protein, or military rations that they could have stolen from the soldiers or Slade had as part of his mission) (+2 CHA : + 1 CON) Goal 3.15 Not strictly a goal per se, but I want to try doing some intermittent fasting and see how my body responds. This would go well with the conditions that Oliver was in on the island, and it would give me a chance to go hungry and work through that pain in addition to the physical pain that my body will be in too. Goal 3.2 Hunt and kill a deer, scavenging the meat, processing the carcass as well as the hide and using as little technology as possible during that process to replicate doing such completely in the wild. (+1 CON : +1 WIS) _________________________ Oliver spent 5 years on the island transforming himself from a boy to a man and becoming a human weapon. I'm going to attempt the same thing in just six weeks, and although I know I probably won't get to the point that he is at, I'm going to do my best. These next six weeks will be my island, the crucible in which I will be transformed into a human weapon. I want to not only meet these goals, but exceed them. Please follow my daily battle log in the description and let me know what you guys think of this challenge! Thanks so much for the support!

Eric had told me that he had tried to prepare for me for what my life would be. And nearly all my life I’ve been training relentlessly, but for what? For living in back alleys and eating out of garbage cans the rest of my life? There has to be something more, some purpose for all my training. Now that Marissa is dead, it would seem that there is nothing left for me to do with the skills that I have at my disposal. I still training as much as I can everyday; translating everything I read into all the languages I know, keeping my body physical fit, but I don’t seem to have any real purpose any more. It’s like I have nothing left to fight for, no more reason to keep training. But I will, pushing myself harder than ever before. Because I have a feeling I'll be grateful that I did. Hey guys! This story is going to be a fanfic of the movie "Hanna" and the Bourne films. If you haven't seen Hanna, then you totally should! It's a great film with some really cool stuff in it. LOTS more story to come on this one, but for right now, I just wanted to get my goals out there and posted since I'm a little behind. Objective 1.1 - Bodyweight Exercises +2 DEX +3 STR 1.2 - 200 Push-Ups Everyday 1.3 - 60 Pull-Ups Everyday 1.4 - 200 Sit-Ups Everyday GOAL 2.1 - Running +4 STR 2.2 - Run for 30+ minutes 5 days a week GOAL 3.1 - Diet + 6 WIS 3.2 - Remove all "sweet/dessert" items from my diet 3.3 - Remove all gluten from my diet 3.4 - Fast for 2 meals every week Life Goal - Live like an Assassin for a day. I'm a huge fan of the Assassin's Creed series, so I'd love to use the strength and skills I've built up to just go and act like an Assassin (obviously without killing anyone) just to be totally badass and awesome. So that's that! I'd love to have the support of my fellow Assassins in this. Hope everybody has a great challenge!

I'm totally in on this! Is all that's required just to do a handstand and for someone to take a picture of it? Or is there a time limit attached as well?

It feels so good to finally log back into NerdFitness and update my challenge thread! I apologize for being a loser and not updating for like almost 3 weeks... school just started for me and I underestimated how crazy and unprepared I was for it. But I'm back now and with a lot to update you guys about! My swimming goal has been the most difficult to maintain. I've been able to get in the pool 3 times, and although that's good, its not where I want to be. I've started one fire (using all natural tinder!) and I only used one match! I enjoy the challenge of starting a fire and the satisfaction that it brings once you have one burning brightly. I just fixed my pull-up form (I wasn't going all the way back to dead hang) so my reps have gone down to 10, but I'm going to keep working at it! Push-ups are at 78! 61 squats! Haven't done a plank in a while, but I'll post that number as soon as I've done it. I'm going out to practice Archery right now! I've been watching a lot of "Arrow" recently (my next challenge!) so I'm doubly inspired to go out and practice haha. I'm proud to say that with the exception of a little bit of Sierra Mist (which I could not avoid drinking... long story) that I have stuck to my goal of no liquid calories! I've messed up and eaten a few desserts, but I haven't let it get to me and I've been doing fairly well the last few days. Eating two different vegetables everyday has been a challenge, but everyday I've had at least one, which is some place to start, I suppose. Thanks so much for all the support guys! You're a big part of helping me to achieve my goals.

This is fantastic everyone! I've been a loser and haven't been updating the way that I should have (I'm a definitely a nerd, but I do have a little bit of a life haha) and I'm so glad that you guys are making progress! All you guys with injuries are especially inspiring. Lots of times the smallest injury serves as an excuse for me to stop working on, but you guys are making progress even in spite of having aches and pains and injuries. This is why I love NerdFitness. Current update for me: My current was 55, and now I'm up to 78!

Great! I hope this catches on in the next few days or so and we have a whole host of other challengers.

I think you could! The hard part is just trusting gravity to do the work for you haha.

*throws down gauntlet* Anybody else up for a push-up battle? All are welcome! Just let me know what you're current max is and what your goal is, and the winner will be the one who accomplishes the biggest increase in their reps! The winner will also receive massive bragging rights and have the authority to flaunt their victory in anyway they see fit. My current max is 55, and my goal is 120. Crazy, I know, but I'm going for it anyway. Oh, and friendly trash-talking is acceptable and encouraged. Let's do some push-ups!

Sounds like this is the perfect place for you! I hope that you can find a guild where you can grow, and other people that enjoy the same things that you do. We're so glad that you've joined the Rebellion! By they way, love the Spartan reference. You can't watch Master Chief do his thing without wanting to go punch through a brick wall.

Finally hit a front flip! It took me awhile, but I got it! Now to do a backflip...

Sounds like another great challenge is ahead Nuala! Best of luck to you for a productive and injury-free 2014!

Haha I don't normally video myself, but when I finally hit these goals, I think I will. Thanks for the support! Thanks! Yeah, making a fire is pretty tough. A lot of it is just knowing what works together to start a fire and what doesn't, and how well you can deal with whatever conditions you're in. Also, sometimes there's a bit of luck involved as well. Thanks for following!

I think we've all been there; we're feeling lazy, and don't want to make the extra effort that it takes to get up, shut off the TV, eat healthy, go run, weight life, swim, or whatever we know we should be doing instead. This happened to me so many times that I actually got the bright idea to create a motivational folder on my computer for these kinds of moments. It has lots of links to cool videos in it, epic quotes, and some killer soundtracks, along with a handful of totally awesome pictures. Is this a good idea or a bad one?

Thanks for the help! I don't quite have the funds to go buy a new pair of shoes currently, but I'll work on it over the next few months and make a decision soon, one that is much more well informed, thanks to you guys.

Many of your goals are the same as mine, (park cheap, do devotions, shutting of computer, etc.) so I'm looking forward to seeing how you accomplish them. The hard hat challenge is great! Self Control gets a lot of use on my computer, although when you accidentally hit "Whitelist" instead of "Blacklist" and run it for a day, that can be pretty annoying. Best of luck to you on this challenge!

You've officially achieved "Legendary" status in my book, Aeryn, with your 11th challenge. Thanks for being an inspiration to those of us who wish we were on our 11th challenge. Looking forward to seeing how it goes this time around!

Sounds like you have great goals and a good plan to achieve them. I love the theme too; I think all of us secretly want to be a ninja as well. Best of luck to you! God bless. I'll be following your updates to see how you progress!

"We're going to put you into the Animus again," Conklin said, pointing to the machine Bourne was standing next to. "Am I going to relive the life of another Assassin?" Bourne asked, remembering his previous experience with the device. "She's not exactly an Assassin, per se, although she many of the same skill sets and has similar methods of accomplishing her goals," Conklin replied, pressing a few buttons. "She will help reiterate many of the things that you've already learned, and also help you do one very important thing." "And what is that?" Bourne asked, getting into the Animus. "Survive." _____ Outside Croft Mansion, United Kingdom, 16:15. Rain poured down in sheets from a blackened sky, as storm clouds ominously rumbled overhead. The air was cold and heavy, the September chill of an early winter. It was a perfectly miserable day, a day that I cannot seem to forget, no matter how hard I try. I was only a girl then, barely fourteen years old, still stuck in my tomboyish ways, despite my mother's constant efforts for me to do otherwise. We never were very close, mum and me. Our arguments were legendary amongst the servants, and I still cannot remember a time when we ever got along very well. We both knew that I was a stubborn only child, determined to get my way no matter what. Both of us also knew that I was incredibly close with my father, so I usually got what I wanted. He was my best friend, and always made time for me no matter what he was doing. He is what kept the house from ever becoming stale or dreary, for it seemed there was always a new story for him to tell me or another one of his artifacts that I had yet to see. And now he was gone. I remember standing there next to my mother, both of us under her umbrella, while a long line of well-wishers placed flowers on his grave. Many of them came over to us to express their condolences, and some even would give us cards or other gifts. I ignored all of them, choosing instead to stare at his gravestone, as if there was some way for me to convince myself that it was all a dream. I read the inscription for the hundredth time, trying to believe that he was actually gone. It merely said: Lord Richard Croft 1953 - 2004 No mention of all the wondrous discoveries, temples, tombs and digs that he explored, or of all the times that he struggled to survive in the wilderness, or when he would come down to my room in the middle of the night after I'd had a bad dream and we'd sit and chat for hours. None of that. Just a name, two dates, and a dash. As the last of the line turned to go (none of them I recognized), I heard one of them whisper, "He died a noble death, giving his life to save another." That life that he died saving was mine, the memory of that incident too painful for me to recount here. He sacrificed himself for me, and now I will honor that sacrifice by becoming stronger, wiser, and more knowledgeable, choosing to make the most of the life that he died preserving. My mother tugs on my sleeve. I look up from the tombstone and into my mother's eyes. In that moment, no words passed between us, yet we both understand one another. Lara, it's time to go. Not yet. I have to say goodbye. As a tear formed in her eye, my mum slowly nodded and turned away, taking the umbrella with her. I almost didn't even feel the icy rain that immediately drenched me. I added my tears to the pouring rain and my sobs to the rumbling thunder, dropping to my knees. My emotions felt raw and unshackled, as if the rain had stripped everything away and left only my soul. I felt naked and exposed, powerless to stop the raw surge of grief that I had tried to suppress for so long. I sat there until the thunder had drowned out my sobs and the stains on my face were from the rain. Wiping my hair from my face, I stood up gradually and gathered myself together. The memory of my father's sacrifice had filled me with new motivation to make the most of my life and to become something greater than I even thought possible. My name is Lara Croft. This is my story. __________________________________ Greetings, fellow Assassins! I just finished watching a gameplay movie of Tomb Raider 2013 and was blown away. Needless to say, if you aren't familiar with the game, buy it/play it/watch it because it is incredible. Also, Lara Croft is my new hero, so I decided to do a Tomb Raider themed challenge. Yes, I had to mix 3 major franchises (Assassin's Creed, Bourne series, Tomb Raider) in order to set up my story, but its the story that helps to really get into a challenge. If you don't like it, then feel free to skip future installments and just jump to my challenge updates. But I hope that you enjoy it as well as my challenge goals. Here they are: Main Quest: To complete an Olympic Triathlon in 2014. I also want to do some half marathons and maybe even a Spartan Race, but there's just something about pushing yourself to the limit and completing a triathlon. An Olympic or Intermediate Tri is a 1.5 kilometer (.93 mi) swim, 40 kilometer (25 mi) bike, and a 10 kilometer (6.2 mi) run. I don't think I can do one yet, but that's what I'm working towards. 1. Swim at least twice every week, working up to goal of 33 laps (1/2 mile) - STA 3 I'm a decent runner, a fairly good biker, but a very poor and rather weak swimmer. Going with the Tomb Raider theme, being a strong swimmer is definitely a skill that you need to have in order to survive in a lot of situations. 2. Practice making fires in different conditions - CON 1, WIS 1 Fire is the single most crucial element to survival, and its vital that I know how to create fire in even the worst conditions. My goals will be to make a fire using the following materials: - Cigarette lighter - Matches (goal is to use just 1!) - A Battery - A Magnifying glass - Possibly a fire-bow as well, although I'd have to do a lot of research on this I also don't want to use any of my own tinder for any of these, just what I can find in nature on my land. 3. Achieve Fitness Benchmarks: - STR 4 - 25 pull-ups - 120 push-ups - 100 squats - 3 minute plank These goals all build functional and core strength, which are vital. I'll also being doing a lot of Parkour during this challenge, (although I'm not setting goals for it) which will also be building my strength. 4. Practice Archery Skills at least once a week - DEX 2 In the new Tomb Raider game, Lara Croft makes very effective use of her bow to take down enemies, traverse terrain, clearing obstacles, etc. Archery has been one of my passions for quite some time now, and it seemed very natural to add it into this challenge. Life Quest: All the fitness training in the world means nothing if I can't eat right. So for this challenge I'm going to cut down hard on some gray areas in my eating habits. - Drink only water or pure fruit/vegetable juice - CON 1 I basically do this already, but I needed to state it so that I now have a set standard. - Refrain from eating candy, ice cream, chocolate or other related snack/dessert items - CON 1 Right now, the main reason I eat dessert is because I'm socially pressured to and because its what everyone else is doing. This element will be very, very hard, but I believe that if I can be okay with being the awkward one at parties who doesn't eat dessert, then this shouldn't be too difficult. If left to my own devices, I don't eat sweets very much as it is. - Have at least two different vegetables every day - CON 2 I don't eat terribly as it is, and I'm not yet ready to transition to totally Paleo, but I know that this is a choice that I can stick to and a lifestyle change that I desperately need to make. Here's all the points possible: CON - 5 DEX - 2 STR - 4 WIS - 1 STA - 3 I'm really excited about getting back into the swing of things in 2014, and about participating in as many of the Mini-challenges as I can. I especially excited about being back in the NF community. You guys are the best, and always so supportive, particularly the Assassins guild, which I think is fantastic. Let's do this!

I really enjoy going on cross-country runs and trips, but now I want to go into a couple places that are fairly remote where my running shoes just won't have the protection and traction I need. Is there a particular shoe or boot that you would recommend for heavy, durable outdoor use? It doesn't have to be fancy or have lots of special features; I just want something that will give me stability and traction without giving me blisters.

One of my goals for 2014 is to complete an Intermediate Triathlon. I feel relatively confident about the running and biking portions, but I've never been a fantastic swimmer. Other than swimming a lot (which I plan on doing this next year as often as I can) are there other exercises, techniques or things that I need to know before I embark on this challenge? What's the best way to approach swimming a mile long distance in open water? I'd be grateful for any tips or suggestions of any kind that you all might send my way.