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ok..the commando fizzled out in his training during the end of the last challenge...you guys must be wondering why?? life happens!! flu and not taking into account my gmat prep screwed up the challenge..and anyways, I hadn't set specific goals for the challenge too...which I am changing for this one!! then here my plan for the second challenge goes: 1. Calisthenics – I will be following convict conditioning for it (i) pushups- currently able to do full pushups(2 sets of 10) 10 – close pushups – 2x15 8 - close pushups – 2x10 6 – full pushups - 2x25 4 – full pushups – 2x15 (ii) squat- currently able to do 2x15 full squats 10 – full squats- 2x50 7 – full squats – 2x40 4 – full squats - 2x35 (iii) pull-ups – haven’t worked on it 10 – 10 proper horizontal pulls 5 - 5 horizontal pulls (iv) leg raise – currently able to do 2x10 flat straight leg raises 10 – hanging knee raises – 2x15 7- hanging knee raises – 2x10 4 – flat straight leg stretches -2x20 (v) bridge - currently able to do full bridges 2x8 10- wall walking bridges- 1x3 7 – full bridges – 2x15 A >42 B > 35 C > 30 D > 25 2. runninng run 1.5 miles asap(it took me 21 mins yesterday) for running I jst have completed c25k training.(can run for 30 mins continuously and not run for 5 k continuously)..so the plan for this challenge is tue - run for 30 mins and try to increase the distance with each run thrus- run sprints(400 m running and 200 m walking) sat- run 1.5 miles afap(as fast as possible) A – under 14 mins B – under 16 mins C – under 17 mins D – under 19 mins 3. splits – have to find more information on how to progress into them…planning on adding them to my workout most probably after 2nd week of my workout need help from the assasins guild on how to approach this. I am thinking to start with the 4 stretches mentioned in this page http://ashotofadrenaline.net/how-to-do-a-full-splitz/ A - 3 times a week B - 2 times a week C - once a week 4. headstands - I will be following the guide given by steve A - 3 times a week B - 2 times a week C - once a week I think I will not follow the points system from here on...the grades are just for overall assessment on my challenge

Well, hello there! This is my first challenge! I'm pretty active but my main problem is a lack of consistency and self discipline. I lay out schedules for myself and lose motivation rather quickly and get discouraged even quicker. I want to do this challenge to create accountability for myself and set up a manageable schedule for myself. Main Quest: For my clothes to fit more comfortably and not squeeze me to death when I sit. Quest 1: Eat clean and paleo every day with one cheat meal on Weekends (Saturday) A= one cheats B=two cheats C= three+ cheats Quest 2: Run three times a week (Monday, Wednesday, Friday) for 20 minutes using HIIT technique. A= 3x a week B= 2x a week C= 1x a week Quest 3: Strength train 2x a week (Tuesday, Saturday) A= 2x a week B=1x a week C= no strength training Life Quest: Complete one house cleaning chore a day. Mon.-Sweep floors Tues- clean sinks Wed-clean kitchen Thur- straighten living room Fri- vacuum Sat- laundry Sun-straighten closet Motivation: I want to be in charge of my health and fitness and want to be in the best shape of my life before I turn 30. I'm 27 now.

Perhaps a bit backwards as this is part of my second 6 week challenge goals, but that isn't the point if you can travel through time I suppose (even if it is in one direction, you still are traveling through time you lucky time traveler you!) Where to begin though... Ahh right, concerning Half-elves. I likened myself to an Elf as I seemed to intake as many calories as possible, eating my parents out of the home as a high schooler and even ate as much in college; I seemed to be perpetually stuck at 155 lbs with an active lifestyle between JROTC Drill Team, Band, the B.S.A, as well as other activities that didn't involve working out in a gym. I went to USAFA in which we were approximated to have a 3000-4000 kcal diet per day, but I still seemed to be only able to maintain 155 lbs. I avoideed the gym until my Junior year when my roomate and I decided we were going to turn our lives around and make fitness part of our lives after we discontinued Drum and Bugle Corps to focus on improving our GPAs. Through motivating each other, we went to the gym, spotted for each other and worked on improving our form as we increased our weight. I had noticed my body fat percentage was improving as my muscles became defined as opposed to the stick and bones i considered myself doomed to. After graduating and moving to my first assignment, I lost my motivation to work out, especially in gyms and found myself reasoning unit PT was enough to live with. It wasn't until a few weeks before my first challenge that my doctor noticed I had high blood pressure and I had gained 10 pounds without looking like I had. A recheck showed my blood pressure was lower than what was first diagnosed, but still was still high enough to notice my health is really important to me. Remembering we had once looked at this site, I decided it was time to join the Rebellion and not let the fear of an unstructured character system hold me back. Lo and behold the RPG system had some more guidelines than what my roomate and I first looked at and I jumped in with both feet off of a 10m platform (yeah, it happened like that). As I had finally gained weight and my health was not as stellar as I had once thought, I believed Half-elven is my race. It embarrasses me to say, but my first workout resulted in a week of recovery as I had neglected to work out for 6 months and thought i could manage my previous workouts. Realizing this error, I have begun to schedule time for working out and have (mostly) followed through. Yesterday was my first time back in the gym to toss weights since graduating from the Academy. I was only able to make it halfway through the workout; I had realized I had lost my memory of the form for a straight leg dead lift and I walked out of the gym embarrassed at myself. Today has mixed feelings, as I could only complete the minimum number of reps for pushups of the PFA, but I maxed the situps and ran 10:41 for the 1.5 mile run; resulting in a score of 91.6 from a score of 94.6 back in September when I was still riding the life of ease an relying on workouts done three months ago. Although a bit akward, I took a look in the mirror and admired myself as I noticed my abs were coming back, even maybe a bit more pronounced and I realize that the first 6 week challenge did work out for me even though I only accomplished half of my goals. I am currently 5'11" at approximately 160 lbs, but I am not considering weight loss or gain as my exclusive goal. I am currently working on improving my health by working out regularly and improving those workouts a little each time.

Previously: Overall goal: 75% completed Lessons Learned: Seperation of having main goal and sub goals helped dramatically improve focus. Missing out on one week also set me back pretty darn far, but because of good focus on goals, I was able to jump right back in and finish the week strong. Steps Forward: Break PR’s on lifts, knockout some more main quest goal lines. Strive to work out a minimum of 3 times per week focusing on strength and 2 times per week to run interval sprints or distance. Build the habit of posting the day/week results. Discussion below regarding goal completion and level advancement Main Quests: Work out to improve overall health, document and improve personal record of weighted workouts, improve running to run 5k [30:05 Accomplished on 9 June 2014], 10k, perhaps half marathon, Ruck march 20 miles in full battle weight (Civil War soldier inspired, can be modern soldier weight). Become proficient with bow, hand gun, and long arms (rifles and shotguns). Learn a martial art; learn a sword style. Learn a second language; learn a third language. Earn a Master's degree. Dive Florida Keys; Dive Australia/Great Barrier Reef; Dive Japan. (Keeping this list as my living document) Fitness: Gym Workouts 2x/week (STR +3, DEX +1, CHA +1) Workout 3x/week [bodyweight/gym] (STR +1, DEX +2 in addition to above) Run 2 miles in one session 1x/week (STA +2)Aerobic workouts 2x/week (CON +1, STA +2)Life Quest: Complete Mega-Man Jedi Cosplay Costume before Dragon Con (CHA +2) [pics will occur; working with a friend, need to get the cannon frame and robes done and start working it on my own]Schedule a Bod Pod [no stats; just learned one is available]Notes: A - 100% - x1 B - 75% - x.75 C - 50% - x.5 D - 25% - x.25 F - 0% - x0 Upcoming Schedule Issues: PT Test; I would like to accomplish it sometime next month, in which I will abandon all goals/workouts the week of/prior to focus on the test. I will not count that week against me as the PT Test is still working out, but for performance as opposed to attrition/improved performance. Dragon-Con; Last weekend of August/first weekend of September; spending money stupid, but want to do so I will need to save up and manage my finances extremely well. I am working on paying off my credit card currently and hoping to have it paid off next month in time for Dragon Con. I know, not a great strategy, but I am financially secure enough to swing this one large expenditure. Plus, this is my first Con in which I will have serious money. First Con was a gaming/D&D Con; had fun, but I preferred the long campaign over the one and done. Not too much to spend money on anyways. This will be four days of which I do not believe I will complete my normal schedule. I will count workouts missed against me since I should be able to work around or within Dragon Con, plenty of workouts to be done in a hotel room. Stats: Male 24 years young 5'11 according to the Air Force (I say I am really 6'0) 163 lbs (as of 25 July 2014) Lean body with muscle definition I would like to know what my BMI/BF% is now since I am noticing more definition of my muscles. I can see the training is paying off on looks, but I don’t think my looks exactly match my potential strength. Looking forward to pushing through my limits again and stretching for these goals. Workouts: Training Session: 20 seconds exercise with 10 second rest 3x :20 Pushups 3x :20 Burpies 3x :20 High Knees 3x :20 Body Squats 3x :20 Reverse Pushups 3x :20 Jump Lunges 3x :20 Reverse Lunges Ab Attack: 20 seconds exercise with 10 second rest 3x :20 Air Bike 3x :20 Mountain Climbers 3x :20 Hand-on-ground Sit ups 3x :20 Sit Ups 3x :20 Left Side Crunch 3x :20 Right Side Crunch 3x :20 Double Leg Lifts 3x :20 Beach Bodies 3x :20 Center Plank 3x :20 Right Side Plank 3x :20 Left Side Plank 20 Minute Drill: 15 Body Weight Squats, 10 Pushups, 5 Pull ups Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes Vert Jump Workout: Weights to be included 5x10 Cleans superset with 5x10 Front Squat 5x10 Back Squat Chest Attack: Weights to be included 2x10 Dumbbell Press Warmup weight 2x10 Dumbbell Press Medium Weight 2x8 Dumbbell Press Medium+ Weight 1x6 Dumbbell Press Heavy Weight 5x10 Slanted Bench Press superset with Pushups Back Attack: Weights to be included 2x10 Deadlift Warmup 5x10 Deadlift 4x10 Straightleg Deadlift 4x10 T-Bar Row 4x10 Row Leg Destroyer: Weights to be included 2x10 Back Squats Warmup Weight 10x10 Back Squats Medium Weight Kettle Bell Workout: 7 rounds of each exercise working out 30 seconds on 20 seconds off of Kettle Bell Swing, Burpies, and then Kettle Bell Squats Interval Sprints: 6x400m Pyramid Sprints 1x200m 1x400m 1x600m 1x800m 1x800m 1x600m 1x400m 1x200m

Previously: Overall goal: 49.629% completed Lessons Learned: Work can get crazy hectic due to quick turn around projects. It would seem that I easliy loose track of time as well as the challenge ended a week before I thought it would as I focused on solving issues with projects and focused less on working out. I need to work on setting better goals, or at least setting a good reward system for myself to stay motivated due to lack of viewed progress in Character level. Steps Forward: Boost my confidence to get back into the gym to work on my weighted workouts; strive to work out a minimum of 3 times per week focusing on strength and 2 times per week to run interval sprints or distance. Build the habit of posting the day/week results. Discussion below regarding goal completion and level advancement Main Quests: Work out to improve overall health, document and improve personal record of weighted workouts, improve running to run 5k [30:05 Accomplished on 9 June 2014], 10k, perhaps half marathon, Ruck march 20 miles in full battle weight (Civil War soldier inspired, can be modern soldier weight). Become proficient with bow, hand gun, and long arms (rifles and shotguns). Learn a martial art; learn a sword style. Learn a second language; learn a third language. Earn a Master's degree. Dive Florida Keys; Dive Australia/Great Barrier Reef; Dive Japan. (Keeping this list as my living document) Fitness: Strength training workouts 3x/week (STR +2, DEX +2) [DEX due to heavy emphasis on body weight workouts]Substitute one body weight workout with a workout in the gym using free weights/bar weights (STR +2, CHA +1 in addition to above) [ For those that have been following, you know that I am gym shy and intimidated, CHA increase if I overcome this goal]Aerobic workouts 2x/week (CON +1, STA +2)Run 5k and record time at beginning and end of challenge [seeking to improve time] (DEX +1, STA +1)Unit PT will count (Sports or Intramurals) Life Quest: Post at least 1x per week (Sunday night) push to 3x per week, MW(F+Sa+Su)+TeTh(Sa+Su). (CHA +2)Pay off at least twice minimum due on Student loan to pay off early (WIS +1) Notes: These goals all look incredibly familiar (as they are essentially the same goals I have had since joining NF). I just have never completed my fitness goals at 100% like I have wanted to and only leveled to 1 due to the fact that I followed the Level 1 baseline of completeing 3 weeks. My understanding of Level 2 was completing (my definition is 100%) the 6 week challenge by completing (100%) all of my goals. This system has now been proven and showned to be an epic plan for immenint failure as I have had one thing or another come up sametime halfway into the challenges (not a fortune teller here obviously). I have become increasingly demotivated due to the fact that I feel like I am leveling up my life, but my character wasn't due to the harsh goal standard I was using. Re-reading the rules, it seems I misinterpreted how to level up, but I am still confused as one line states participation is a level, and another says completion (which to me is 100% goal completion). This time around, to increase my motivation I will use another system in which I will grade myself by percentage and award myself even with partial completion of goals and challenges. From the previous challenge Wrap Up Thread: A - 100% B - 75% C - 50% D - 25% F - 0% To make things easy for me, I will assign 100 points per goal per week (100/600 max possible score per goal per week; 400 points per week [first bullet listed, sub-bullets are supplemental or additional] for a total of 2400 points for the challenge. I will use these percentage breakdown and apply to my stat bonus for the end of the challenge. Huge question now is; how do I set the level goal? I would like to focus on the fitness goals and tie it to it, but that hasn't been working out. Should I tie it to completing fitness goals of at least a C level or should I just tie it to following this challenge to the end and assign the level based on participation of the challenge itself? Stats: Male 24 years young 5'11 according to the Air Force (I say I am really 6'0) 160 lbs (as of 5 June 2014) Lean body with minor muscle definition Although I am not looking for body building, I think it would be nice to be able to see some definition in my abs. I have seen the lines forming and I know there is muscle behind the layer of fat (what little there is, but I am more concerned with what my body can do as opposed to how it looks). My biggest concern is for developing the muscles underneath the fat to improve my performance. I am an engineer and I firmly believe that functionality is grossly superior to aesthetics, so I won't make my goals focus on looks. I have a chart comparing body weight to lift weight and I am considering adding in getting to a specific level as according to the chart. Perhaps that will be for the next challenge when I can move away from just getting the workouts in and avoiding life's complications. I have also recently started waking up earlier to get to a run and swim clinic this week and I feel like this may be something to look into to ensure I get a workout in the day before Priorities have a chance to override my workouts. Workouts: Training Session: 30 seconds exercise with 20 second rest 3x :30 Pushups 3x :30 Burpies 3x :30 High Knees 3x :30 Body Squats 3x :30 Reverse Pushups 3x :30 Jump Lunges 3x :30 Reverse Lunges Ab Attack: 30 seconds exercise with 20 second rest 3x :30 Air Bike 3x :30 Mountain Climbers 3x :30 Hand-on-ground Sit ups 3x :30 Sit Ups 3x :30 Left Side Crunch 3x :30 Right Side Crunch 3x :30 Double Leg Lifts 3x :30 Beach Bodies 3x :30 Center Plank 3x :30 Right Side Plank 3x :30 Left Side Plank 20 Minute Drill: 15 Body Weight Squats, 10 Pushups, 5 Pull ups Complete as many rounds as possible in 20 minutes Vert Jump Workout: Weights to be included 5x10 Cleans superset with 5x10 Front Squat 5x10 Back Squat Chest Attack: Weights to be included 2x10 Dumbbell Press Warmup weight 2x10 Dumbbell Press Medium Weight 2x8 Dumbbell Press Medium+ Weight 1x6 Dumbbell Press Heavy Weight 5x10 Slanted Bench Press superset with Pushups Back Attack: Weights to be included 2x10 Deadlift Warmup 5x10 Deadlift 4x10 Straightleg Deadlift 4x10 T-Bar Row 4x10 Row Leg Destroyer: Weights to be included 2x10 Back Squats Warmup Weight 10x10 Back Squats Medium Weight Kettle Bell Workout: 7 rounds of each exercise working out 30 seconds on 20 seconds off of Kettle Bell Swing, Burpies, and then Kettle Bell Squats Interval Sprints: 6x400m Pyramid Sprints 1x200m 1x400m 1x600m 1x800m 1x800m 1x600m 1x400m 1x200m

Hey, everyone. I'm just getting into running and run about 3.2 miles (~5k) every other day. I really want to get into the barefoot / minimalist running shoes movement. I've done a bit of research and am kind of just overwhelmed with all of the choices and conflicting reviews. For anyone that uses these types of shoe could you please kindly advise... What brand and "model" of shoe would you recommend for someone starting out with the minimalist shoe movement? Why?