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Welcome back Team #ZAP! Ready for round 2? I know some folks are graduating to specific guilds for this go, but you're still welcome here. Hope to see some new folks, too. Team sign up can be found here: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0AnL943o3CTUvdFd4NWpFcnZnMzJFWjVDRVczVUpaakE#gid=4 Let's make the most of the next six weeks! -DL Note: There are a bunch of changes to the challenge structure this round. Be sure to check out the revised rules. #ZAP Team Challenges: DefiantlyLiterateUriShadowstormTefindenoDrCalcartMusicalgal123LizPirateRowanwolftraabitBullisharcheryassassin (no post yet)MrgsoKrebsicleWriterGurlNusuthLoanna

Hey, Team #ZAP! Thanks for joining and welcome to the next six weeks of life! Here's my challenge. Since this is my first time (Be gentle with me... no, screw that. We have zombies to outrun or defeat!), my goals may evolve a bit as this first week goes and I get a feel for how much I'm trying to hurt myself. Let's get this party started! DefiantlyLiterate

First: Hi all, I'm new here and just found this site today (June 3) while searching for tips on safe running practices for noobs. Seemed coincidental that the new challenge was starting today, sooo.... decided to sign up! Here's my deal: I've enlisted in the U.S. Navy and have the next three months to get in shape for basic training. My job until now has been 70+ hours a week of super sedentary computer work, and I was always literally exhausted from being so unhealthily inactive. I've just started getting in shape, and I have a pretty rough amount of work to put in. I not only need to know that I can make it through boot camp with passing scores, but I need to build up my overall fitness level so that I'm at lower risk for injuries that happen to new recruits who aren't physically prepared for the arduous demands of basic training. My Navy Fitness Challenge: 1. RUNNING (DEX +2, CHA +1, STA +2). The Goal: - 1 mile: 9:40 - 1.5 miles: 14:00 - 2 miles: 20:00 - 5K: 35:00 The Plan: Run 5x / week, Hike 1x / week, Rest on Sundays. My intended hike route is a very difficult 6 mile route I want to make time for once a week. Originally I had intended it as a "Bonus" goal, but the more I thought about it, I decided it should be part of my planned regimen. On other run days, I plan to jog 1 mile two days a week, 1.5 miles once a week, 2 miles once a week and 5K (3.1 miles) once a week. My route is a flat paved trail behind my house. Incorporating warm-ups and cool-downs is part of the deal! Beginning Times (as of June 3, 2013): - 1 mile: 11:57 - 1.5 miles: 18:20 - 2 miles: (N/A, not timed) - 5K: 46:30 WEEK 1: - 1 mile: 11:27 (June 3, personal best and first time maintaining a jog for 1 mile) - 1.5 miles: 18:45 (June 4, first time maintaining a jog for 1.5 mi.) - Hike? YEP! (June 5, tried 7 mi. loop. Only completed 4 mi. due to big scary cows blocking my trail) - 2 miles: NOPE - 5K: NOPE - Other: SWIM x2, Walk WEEK 2: - 1 mile: 10:22 (June 12, best mile time EVER completed while doing a 1.5 mi jog. Recent best time was a minute and 5 seconds higher, historic best from Freshman year of high school was 50 seconds higher. Now within 40 seconds of my goal time) - 1.5 miles: 17:27 (June 10, had to walk last tenth of a mile but still improved time over last week) - 1.5 miles: 16:39 (June 12, beat my time from 2 days ago even though I walked a LOT. Started off strong but by one mile I was so tired I had basically given up and walked a tenth of a mile until I got a second burst of energy, jogged another tenth, walked another tenth, and sprinted the last two tenths. Now within 30 seconds of a passing score for the Navy and 2.5 minutes of my goal time.) - 2 miles: 23:47 (June 10, baseline time) - 5K: 40:35 (June 15, new personal best) - Hike? YEP! (June 11, did the difficult ascent, 3mi., then came down a gradual descent route, ~4mi.) WEEK 3: - 1 mile: -- - 1.5 miles: -- - 2 miles: 26:37 (June 18, didn't feel great and struggled a lot) - 5K: -- - Hike? -- Grading A - Extremely consistent efforts coupled with religious practice of injury prevention warm-ups and warm-downs, achievement of all time goals by end of challenge. Inclusion of weekly hikes, like a champ! B - Very consistent efforts, skipping few days and exercises. Meeting at least three of four time goals, making an effort to complete the hike route several times. C - Semi-consistent efforts, wussing out some days for no reason. Meeting two of four time goals. D - Running half of planned workouts or less, unable to meet more than one time goal. F - Completing few planned runs, skipping out on most hikes, unable to meet any goals. 2. PUSHUPS and CURLUPS (STR +3) The Goal: Complete 20 pushups (good form!) in 2 minutes and complete 55 curlups in 2 minutes. The Plan: Strength training 3x / week. I also want to incorporate a few minutes of arms exercises even on days I'm not scheduled for a strength workout, just to stay in the mindset of getting stronger every day! The pushup goal is a little tricky for me, because I've never actually been able to do a real pushup in my life. But hey, it's an iconic part of being in the military, and girls aren't exempt from it! Last month I couldn't even complete a single "girl pushup" (on my knees), but now I've built up some arm strength with free weights, plank poses, and so forth, and I'm ready to progress into the real deal. For both of these goals, I'm just going to concentrate on building my overall fitness and re-measure my curl ups and pushups every week. Beginning Scores: - Pushups: 0 - Curlups: 23 WEEK 1: - Pushups: 1 shallow pushup... - Curlups: Not tested WEEK 2: - Pushups: 1 "real" or 9 shallow pushups (not going down deep enough!) (June 11) - Curlups: 0?! For some reason I was feeling really weak and couldn't do ONE. (June 12) WEEK 3: - Pushups: - Curlups: 3. EATING (STA +1, CON +3, CHA +1) The Goal: Cut out all soda. Reduce alcohol intake to 1 - 2 drinks per week. Introduce whole grains where possible, eat a fresh fruit snack once per day. Eliminate packaged junk food and preservative-filled freezer foods like Hot Pockets and pizza snackers. At least try to learn to love salads. The Plan: One healthier eating choice every day. Obviously I can't undo all my good work by eating like crap. I have a bad habit of doing an amazing workout that leaves me covered in sweat and feeling invincible... and then blowing it by chugging an orange soda and a king size candy bar, maybe having some alcohol after that and ending the day in a post-sugar-rush exhausted stupor. Basically, I DON'T want to calorie count, I don't want to obsess over every thing I eat, I just want to start making ONE healthier eating choice every day. For example, today I made a couple healthier choices. I did get a fast food lunch, but I skipped the soda and only had a half-order of fries. Later I wanted some chips, but had a banana instead. Keep in mind, I HATE fruit and had to kind of gag it down, so that particular healthy choice required going out of my comfort zone: but that's what it's all about. I want to know my entire day isn't going to be without foods I like, but force myself to make that one eating choice or substitution that is a little more difficult and out of character for me. Beginning Scores: - Daily Fruits: 0. I hate fruits - Daily Vegetables: 0 - 1. I like broccoli, peas and beans but don't make the effort to prepare them. - Liquid Calories: 0 - 1 soda a day, 0 - 2 drinks per day, 1 - 2 glasses of fruit juice per day. - Daily Carbs: Typically have one giant carb meal per day, like pasta or lasagna, and then have a carb-filled side like mashed potatoes or rice with another meal. I might also have - Overall intake: I probably overeat at either lunch or dinner every day, but for now I'm more concerned with food choices rather than portion sizes. - Sweets and Junk: I eat candy or chips every day, or some kind of baked good like cheesecake or a cake pop from Starbucks. Grading A - Complete dietary change, more of a lifestyle overhaul! Soda and candy no longer tempt me, I've discovered many healthy meals I enjoy and can prepare for myself, and I make stronger decisions when eating at restaurants. I consistently choose vegetables as side dishes rather than carbs, and will just eat a piece of fruit instead of consuming a glass of sugary fruit juice. B - Large dietary change, with about one "bad day" per week. Eating well has become a habit, and it's not difficult to smartly choose a healthy snack over a bad one and put together better meals. C - Modest diet improvement. I've made a habit of eating better, but it's not quite "sticking," and it still requires a lot of willpower to maintain good eating habits. I cheat some days or overeat at restaurants, but have still overall moved in a good direction. D - I've make some noise about eating better, but I talked a bigger game than I brought. Maybe I've introduced some new foods, but I don't reliably choose them. A lot of my old vices are still in my diet, and I prefer them. F - No progress. 4. JOURNALING AND DRAWING (WIS +2) The Goal: Half hour of journaling (in my DayOne app) and half hour of sketching per day. The Plan: I'd rather focus my mornings on waking up quicker and becoming active, and get in my time journaling and drawing in the evenings. For writing I'd like to loosely follow along with the first half of the Artist's Way book. For drawing, since I'm very out of practice, I'll spend most of my time sketching. Grading A - Above and beyond! I reliably get in 7 hours or more drawing and writing each week. I've done more than the bare minimum, taking time to edit existing writing and can see a noticeable improvement in my sketching skills -- maybe I've even done some things I'd be happy to share! B - Did what was expected. I'm good at making time for these activities, but sometimes I'm inconsistent, and have the nagging feeling that I would have had even better results if I had been a little more committed. C - I do these activities sometimes, and while I can still be happy that I spent some time working on them, they didn't become a regularly scheduled part of my day. D - I barely made time to draw or write. Most days it wasn't a priority at all. F - No progress. Good luck, everyone! Edit on June 4: My goals have been reorganized and restructured to better fit the correct challenge format.