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Introduction: Hi I am LilLionLamb (also Lil'Lion or Lion) and this is my first challenge! Yay! I'm trying to get myself to love running a little more, but otherwise I enjoy swimming, playing soccer and generally feeling stronger. I weigh 155 lbs and I'm in college so I'm trying to figure out time-managing class, studying and exercise. I like writing, and love reading. Main Quest: Lose 20 lbs by end of February and Deadlift 1x bodyweight Quest 1: Jog and Walk for 30 minutes a day (at least 10 min must be jog), 3 days a week. I haven't been going to the gym consistently, and I want to build the habit. Measurement: A = 30 min x3 for 6 weeks, B = 30 min x3 for 4 weeks , C = 30 min x3 for 3 weeks Quest 2: Drink no sugared beverages! No juice, yummy lattes or sugared tea. Measurement: A = 0 sugared drinks, B = 4 sugared drinks, C = 8 sugared drinks Quest 3: 3L of water a day. I do a really poor job of hydrating myself so I want to make sure my body is well Measurement: A = 3L, 42 days; B = 3L , 35 days, C = 3L, 25 days Life Quest: Finish knitting a 5ft scarf. Amateur knitter here, I figured it's fall and I need a hobby. So, I'm gonna finish a scarf. Measurement: A = 100% done B = 65% done , C = <50% done

What's up everyone? I'm Kenny. This is my second attempt at the challenge. My first faltered after a couple of weeks. I joined NFA in July, and since, I have greatly increased my exercise, got a gym membership, and I have been working on managing my stress better. I have also struggled with smoking on-and-off for since my teen years. I have laid them down again for the last few weeks, and wow, it makes a huge difference in energy and self-esteem! Anyway, over the past several months, I have gained strength and muscle, but I have also gained fat. My diet has not been good. My clothes aren't fitting great. I don't necessarily need to get to single-digit body in my lifetime, but I would like to reduce it enough to see some of my hard work in the gym. My main goal for this challenge is to lose 9 lbs by December 14th (that's an average of 1 1/2 pounds a week). I think this is achievable, since I have made little progress in my diet, so any sustained change should yield results. 1. I will log ALL of my food into My Fitness Pal for at least 38 of the 42 days in the challenge. I will have MFP set for 1 1/2 lbs weight loss a week. 2. I will reduce my liquid calories (mainly alcohol) to no more than three drinks a week. 3. I am doing a great job with strength training, but not with cardio/conditioning, so I will participate in at least one cardio activity each week (hiking, 5 K, class at the gym, etc). SIDE QUEST Gratitude Journal - I will write down what I am grateful for on at least 36 of the 42 days of the challenge. * It seems that I often look at things in my life in negative way. I hate this about my thinking. I have been in therapy for almost a year, and I have made a lot of progress in battling depression, but I know that negative thinking can set me back on a downward spiral, so I am thinking the gratitude journal might make a difference. Those are my goals. I'd appreciate any support others can offer along the way.

Hi A few weeks ago my main challenge would have been to win my first weightlifting championchip. But I have a spinal disease so I can't do weightlifting at the moment. Maybe I can never do it again. So I can't name a good main challenge currently except getting my spine healed. But there are other things I want to focus on. I do strength training (powerlifting) 3 times a week but I hate doing cardio and mobility training so I have to work on this. Moreover my diet ist not the best and I want to change that. I would prefer to work on my strength but I want take care of my spine the next weeks. Goals 1. I want to eat clean 5 days a week 7%7% 2/30 2. I want to work on my mobility (blackroll & stretching) 3 times a week 5%5% 1/18 3. I want to do cardio (running or swimming) 3 times a week 5%5% 1/18 Life goal I want to learn one chapter a week of an important book for an exam 0%0% 0/6 Thanks for reading!

Hi! Long-time lurker here (since February 2013 I believe)! I’ve been lifting fairly consistently for about two years now, but recently have been struggling to stay accountable to myself with my nutrition and sleep. So, I decided it was time to take part in the community and to give and receive the accountability that is needed. My interests tend to come and go, but bodybuilding is the one thing that has remained fascinating for most of my life. It wasn't until I found NF that I had the motivation to actually work toward building a stage-worthy body. Since I began in early 2013 I have gone from weighing 160 lbs to 195 lbs and more than doubled most of my lifts. With this challenge I want to continue building on all I have already achieved and begin taking my lifestyle to a new level. Main Quest Stay consistent and accountable with my training, nutrition, and sleep. Also, set new PRs at the end of the challenge for Squat, Bench Press, and Deadlift, which are currently 285 lbs, 245 lbs, and 330 lbs respectively. Goals Train five days per week Meet my daily caloric and macro targets everyday Sleep at least 7 hours per night Training Program With each set I will increase the weight 10-20 lbs and decrease the number of reps. Rest times are 60-90 seconds. Increase base weight by at least 10 lbs each week if possible to hit rep ranges. Monday: Legs Squats (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) Romanian Deadlifts (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) Superset - Leg Extensions (12, 10, 8, 6) - Lying Leg Curls (12, 10, 8, 6) Walking Lunges (20, 20, 20) Standing Calf Raise (15, 15, 15) Seated Calf Raise (15, 15, 15) Tuesday: Chest & Back Barbell Bench Press (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) Barbell Incline Bench Press (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) Dumbbell Flyes (12, 10, 8, 6) Dips (12, 10, 8, 6) Dumbbell Pullovers (12, 10, 8, 6) Wide-Grip Chin-Ups (25 reps) Close-Grip Pull-Ups (25 reps) Barbell Row (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) T-Bar Row (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) Wednesday: Arms Barbell Curl (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) EZ-Bar Preacher Curl (12, 10, 8, 6) Incline Dumbbell Curl (12, 10, 8, 6) Bent-Over Concentration Curl (12, 10, 8, 6) Close-Grip Bench Press (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) EZ-Bar Lying Triceps Extension (12, 10, 8, 6) Overhead Dumbbell Extension (12, 10, 8, 6) Dumbbell Kickbacks (12, 10, 8, 6) Thursday: Shoulders Overhead Press (12, 10, 8, 6, 4) Upright Row (12, 10, 8, 6) Front Dumbbell Raises (12, 10, 8, 6) Dumbbell Lateral Raises (12, 10, 8, 6) Bent-Over Reverse Dumbbell Flyes (12, 10, 8, 6) Dumbbell Shrugs (15, 12, 10, 8, 6) Friday: Abs & Cardio Cable Crunch (15, 15, 15) Hanging Leg Raises (25, 25, 25) Cable Wood Chopper (15, 15, 15) Decline Sit-Ups (25, 25, 25) HIIT (15 minutes, 1 minute rest, 1 minute sprint) Saturday & Sunday Rest Nutrition Program Aim to consume at least two whole food meals per day and two protein shakes. Fill remaining calories using IIFYM strategy. My goal is to put on weight through the winter, so staying super strict doesn't feel necessary. 35/45/20 macro ratio Calories: 3000 Protein: 263g Carbohydrates: 338g Fats: 67g Life Quest Begin getting out of bed at 7:00 am rather than 7:45 am each morning. I feel that sleep is currently the biggest obstacle to my success. I have a tough time getting to bed at a decent hour and as a result wake up late. It's all down hill from there as I don't have time to prepare breakfast, end up not getting enough calories through the day as a result, and feel like crap in the evening. Since I feel like crap I don't feel like cooking and end up eating like crap and not preparing my meals for the next day. Getting up earlier would allow me time to prepare food and force me to get to bed earlier, improving this situation overall.

Introduction: Hello! I'm Jozette (or zettarooski). I've been a long time nerdfitness fan, but this is my first six week challenge. I'm sorta active on the facebook group and attended CNF2015 in September. I am a warrior and enjoy strength training. I'm still a toddler in my strength development (as my trainer defines it) so I'm working on exploring new things and finding what in particular I enjoy. I have recently found a love for strongman type things and enjoy exploring that. Main Quest: My main quest is making sure I am healthy and strong so I can travel and hit all the things on my bucket list! Quest 1 STRENGTH: Improve Turkish Getup (TGU) form by working on it 25x/side/week Explanation: My trainer introduced this to me recently in training and I sucked, but was intrigued by it. I like the puzzle aspect of it, but also the stability in enforces. I plan to video my progress on 3 reps each side once per week to follow my improvements. The 25x can be split up however throughout the week. Measurement: A =25+x/week or more; B = 24-20x/week; C = 19-15x/week; D = 14-10x/week F = 9-0x/week Reward: A = 3 (STR); B = 2 (STR); C = 1 (STR); D & F = 0 (STR); Quest 2 NUTRITION: Choose Healthy Beverages Explanation: This quest will involve choosing healthy beverages. I will be allowed unlimited water, black coffee, tea, unsweetened almond/coconut milk and sparkling water. I will completely cut out soda. I will allow myself 1x alcoholic drink/week. Measurement: Each day will be pass/fail then grading will be at the end of each week. A = 7 days pass; B = 6-5 days pass; C = 4-3 days pass; D = 2-1 days pass; F = 0 days pass Reward: A = 5 (CON); B = 4 (CON); C = 3 (CON); D = 2 (CON); F= 0 (CON); Quest 3 MENTAL: Meditate every day Explanation: I have the paid access to the Headspace app, so I will plan to use that every day first thing in the morning. Measurement: Each day will be pass/fail then grading will be at the end of each week. A = 7 days pass; B = 6-5 days pass; C = 4-3 days pass; D = 2-1 days pass; F = 0 days pass Reward: A = 3 (WIS); B = 2 (WIS); C = 1 (WIS); D & F= 0 (WIS); Life Quest LIFE: Start researching and reverse engineering our move Explanation: My husband and I are planning to move across the country from Minneapolis, MN to Raleigh, NC. We know we want to move next Spring/Summer, but have done NOTHING to really plan for it. I am going to spend 1 hour per week creating a plan for the move and researching things like places to live, moving companies, etc. Measurement: A = 1 hour/week; F = 0 hour/week Reward: A = 4 (CHA); F = 0 (CHA);

Since I put up my “first†challenge with a week remaining in the previous 6 week challenge, I am going to call that a trial run and start this as my official first challenge. First, a little about myself and some background... First, my name is not “Tom†(yes, you will have had to have read Lord of the Rings to get that). Although I am trying not to define myself these days in “professional†terms, I will make an exception here and say that I am an enginerd at heart who sold my soul to the “business†side several years ago. All was plodding along while focusing on my career until some significant life events occurred relatively close together (divorce, moving for the 6th time for my career, dating again, getting married and mom passing away). Since then, I have taken a step back and evaluated my life, where I am and if I am happy. Believe me when I say that this was/is not easy for someone who thinks like an Engineer (all those squishy, non-logical, non-quantifiable “feelingsâ€). What I found is that I have spent so much of my life focused on career, money and “stuff†that I lost who I actually am. I know that sounds very funny, but believe me when I say that it really has been enlightening and the journey back to being oneself is a lot more difficult than you would think it would be (burdened with all these adult responsibilities)... So, with all of that being said, I am finding all of those long hours in an office and very little physical activity in my life has left me in poor physical shape. I have always been a very large guy (an old high school coach would call me “house†because he said i was built like a “brick s*%t houseâ€), but at 5’ 7†tall, I weighed 251 lbs with 33% body fat. Needless to say, I need to prioritze getting back into shape so I can start to enjoy other activities I enjoy again (camping trip on my motorcycle while exploring the U.S., target archery, hiking, etc). About 14 weeks ago, I started (or more precisely, I got serious / consistent) the strong lifts program to build my base strength. I am now currently at 238.4 lbs and 28.6% body fat. I have recently moved over to the “Madcow†strength program because, well, I am not 20 anymore and my body does a lot better with eh “light†day in after the “heavy†day. I am really enjoying strength training, and feel my body is somewhat built for raw strength, but I feel that focusing only on the strength aspect neglects improving other activities that I really enjoy such as camping, hiking, backpacking, archery, etc. In a nutshell, I put “warrior†on my profile because I am somewhat focusing on building strength as a foundation, but there is a large part of me that feels like a Ranger too.... Luckily, I just read that it is possible to have challenges in other guilds regardless of what guild you are registered with. Is it possible to dual-class like in the old Baldur’s Gate days??? Lifetime Quest / Goal: Be able to do a hike-through of the Appalachian Trail. Quest 1: Limit daily calories to 1956 calories/day. This was determined by myfitnesspal for a 1 lb/week weight loss. In conjunction, I will eat a minimum of 190 g of protein per day. I am not an strict Paleo follower, but believe in most of the principles and will follow a mix of Paleo/Eat Clean (more of a Eat Clean with a strong lean towards Paleo). This will be tracked through myfitness pal. Oh - I will also drink a minimum of 3l of water per day... Quest 2: Continue Madcow program and have the following lift #'s (for a x5 set): Sq: 275Bench: 225Row: 145Press: 135Deadlift: 275 (ugh... I love the results, but it just really beats me up!) Quest 3: Take my lovely wife on a very long overdue honeymoon and make sure she is treated like the long haired Italian princess she is! The only bad part of fulfilling this quest will be that it will be for two weeks right at the end of the 6 week challenge! Quest 4: Start incorporating stretching exercises into my daily routing. The metric for this to perform a 30 minute stretching routing (regular stretches, some kind of Yoga, etc) five times a week. This will be independant of “warm-up†stretches before lifting. This will be my start into some more "rangeresque" challenges as well... Side Quest 1: Stop looking at that traitorous, back-stabbing, filthy beast of a machine called the scale and just be happy that my clothes are looser and I am feeling better! Side Quest 2: Practice Archery twice per week with the goal of consistent groupings in the gold from 20 yards (bare recurve ILF bow).

Hey everyone! I've been lurking for several months and I'm excited to try a challenge. I'm a 5'11" lady and weigh 210 pounds with 33% body fat. I gained 50 pounds in the first three years of college (endless booze and brownie sundaes) and lost them over the past three years with food tracking/MyFitnessPal. I started lifting over a year ago, which I love! I go to the gym four days a week for bench, squat, accessory stuff, and cardio. Now that I've maintained at my pre-college weight for several months, I want to get my calorie intake back in check after some slacking and kick my cardio up a notch. I'm hoping to get down to 200 pounds by Thanksgiving. Main goal: become Amazonian- tall (check) and strong (working on it) with ~25% body fat Goal 1: keep calorie intake at or under 2,000 for four days each week. I've really been struggling with this, and am going to try limiting late night snacks and keeping sweets out of the house. Goal 2: take cardio seriously- 20 minutes every time I'm at the gym, paying more attention to my heart rate than to Us Weekly. Goal 3: have active rest days! Take advantage of the coming fall and go for walks, or hit the apartment gym for 20 minutes of biking. Side goals: hit a new bench 1RM of 140 and take 10 minutes to journal each day. Woo!

For my first 6 week challenge, I will be using the island Lian Yu that Oliver Queen, the Arrow was stranded on as my theme. It is a starting zone of sorts, one that puts anyone unfortunate enough to wind up on its shore through dangerous trials. The first phase of Lian Yu will be all about adapting to the island: getting fit, avoiding injuries, and getting used to eating the food the island has to offer. Main Quest: Be lean, strong, and agile. I estimate that this would leave me at ~150lbs and around 15% body fat. In the scope of the 6 week challenge, my goal is to get as close to 200lbs as possible. I am 5'4", 23 years old (24 on the 3rd of August), and currently weigh 218lbs, down from 239lbs at the beginning of June thanks to cutting out garbage in my diet and being a little more active. Quest 1: Stick to my workout plan. "This time I will have you to train me." M/W/F: Strength training days (SS or BBWW) Tu/Th/Sa: Cardio days (Walk/jog/run/bike/etc.) Sun: Rest day The key here is to build a habit of working out and being active, not to complete every workout, but I will do my best. Measurement: A = 24-36 days / B = 18 days / C = 12 days Reward: A = +3 STR +2 STA / B = +2 STR +1 STA / C = +1 STR Quest 2: Stretch to stay injury free and increase flexibility. "Are you trying to kill yourself?" "No, but I have to get back." These are done before and after each workout session as a means of injury prevention and warming up/cooling down. Measurement: Pass or fail, stretching is important. Reward: +3 DEX + 2 CON Quest 3: Stick to a healthy diet plan. "As amazing as these fries look, can I have a sweet potato, please?" Eat more veggies, reasonable amount of fruits and healthy fats, continue eating good protein, continue eating less added sugar/sweets/etc and less bad carbs. I have drawn up a day to day diet plan, similar to my workout plan, that I will use as a guideline to help me stay on track. Measurement: A = 36-42 days / B = 30 days / C = 24 days Reward: A = +2 WIS +2 CON +1 CHA / B = +2 WIS +1 CON / C = +1 WIS Life Quest: I want to make music, mainly hip hop beats or video game music, so I will have completed at least 6 tracks by the end of the 6 week challenge. "How convenient to find an abandoned lab on the island in which I can stave off boredom after training."

Heh, yeah, so I lived up to the dwarf fortress motto and lost my first challenge last time. So, here goes again, because losing I'd fun! Main goal: Get stronger. 1: Strength workout 5x a week. 2: 8 hours of sleep each day (this is indeed going to be a challenge with a newborn and a cat that insists on being fed at 5 am). 3: Build a squat rack and aquire more weights to finish out my home gym.

Intro: Hey I'm James, and this will be my first challenge. I'm 23, and am currently working for a defense contractor (US) while I get my life sorted to start school again. I joined NF because I think being a part of a community will either help me towards my goals, or in the very least it'll throw an interesting change up in my routine which for the last year now has been basically soloing life. Main Quest: Lose 20 lbs. by the end of the challenge. Quest 1: Do Cardio 2-3 times a week (20-30 minutes per session.) I already lift daily, but I'm bad about skipping the cardio do to a myriad of excuses that I like to pull from. Measurement: A = 3 Cardio Sessions a week, B = 2 a week, and C = 1 a week.\ Reward: I'll figure that stuff out later. Quest 2: Track my intake of food to make sure I stay in a calorie deficit, and that I'm still somewhat meeting my requirements. Myfitnesspal will be the primary tool for this one. Measurement: A = Logging 95% of what I take in daily, B = Logging major meals daily, and C = Logging on a semi regular basis every other day. Reward: See above Quest 3: Limit how much I eat out because I'm feeling lazy. My diet is already pretty clean, but this is my Achilles' heal. I include all fast food in this as well. Measurement: A = Eating out once every 2 weeks, B = Once a week, and C = Not stuffing my face with Subway and KFC every time I can. Reward: Yeahhh working on it. Life Quest: Stop procrastinating and get my crap together to start back at school. Measurement: A = Doing it.. That's it. Reward: Bleh Motivation: I started at 270 lbs. I'm down to 205, and I want to finish this out so I can move forward with my fitness goals. Also I'd like to see my abs before I die.

Main quest I just got my very first pokémon. But we've got much training to do before we're ready for the road ahead. So lets get ready! To become all-around healthier so that I can direct my focus towards something more specific next time Quest 1; Feeding my new Fennekin Drink 2L of water daily A. Average of 7 days a week (by end of challenge) B. Average of 6 days a week C. Average of 5 days a week Quest 2; Winding down after a hard day of training Yoga 6 times a week A. Average of 6+ times a week B. Average of 5 times a week C Average of 4 times a week Quest 3; Pokémon league, here we come! Weight training 5 times a week A. Average of 5+ times a week B. Average of 4 times a week C. Average of 3 times a week

Ooooooh man. My first 6 week challenge. I'm like a puppy that is all excited because of the stick and throw the stick and oops I peed myself. All the options in the world of fitness are open to me. I could base jump, rock climb, cross-fit, do earth push-downs, and even... run? Nah, I think I'll just lift heavy things. Main quest: Improve my working set in all four of the powerlifting exercises that I do by 30%. That's right, I want to be lifting one-third more weight than what I'm lifting now. So here's how the numbers break down right now: Deadlift: 315lbs Benchpress: 225lbs Sqwaaaaaaat: 275lbs Overhead press: 145lbs So that means these are the actual weight gainz that I'll have to hit in 6 weeks (These weights are rounded up): Deadlift: 95lbs Benchpress: 68lbs Sqwaaaaaaat: 83lbs OHP: 44 lbs. And that means the grand total is: DL: 407lbs 450lbs BP: 293lbs Sqwaaaaaat: 358lbs 375lbs OHP: 199lbs Obviously, those are weird weights. The goal is to lift at least that much with a margin of error of 5 lbs either direction. I think I learned that in statistics. Or on Bill Nye the Science Guy, which is on Netflix. Side quest: Run at least twice a week. I don't care if it's around the block or sprints or for ten miles, I will run at least twice a week. Even though I'm an American and let's face it, these colors don't run. Gross, cardio. Life quest: As I'm not going to school, it's weird not having a thing to do in the afternoon. I used to have a vlog on YouTube. I think... I think I'm going to start back up. I'm funny. And handsome. And loquacious. And humble. All the good things, really. Methodology: I'm going to keep doing what I do. I meal prep already, I eat plenty of calories and I lift heavy 4 times a week. I'll have to add another light lifting day to keep myself filled with precious blood, and I'll need to be better on the weekends. Even though pizza is my spirit animal. It's just going to be a grind all the way up, no big jumps, no rushing. I don't want to come up lame and then the farmer comes and shoots me and makes me into glue. That would harsh my mellow. Motivation: Sick gainz. Seriously, I've never been really in shape. Even during my military career, I was focused more on being a good medic than physical fitness. While I passed everything, I never excelled physically. I want to change that before I exit out of this wacky place. I want to be able to bench press people. I also want my darling, beautiful baby girl to look at Dad and see him as strong, not flubby. I might also have a wedding to go to that will be filled with friends that haven't seen me in a few years. That might have something to do with it. Maybe. Nah. Grades: Main quest: 30%- A+ 25-29%- A 20-24%- B 15-19%- C 10-14%- D >10%- F Side quest: Pass/Fail Life quest: Seeing me? Everyone wins. Let's get silly.

Due to the typical long story of 15+ years focused on career, money, obtaining "stuff", etc, I have come to see/admit that I had become terribly out of shape. With this realization, I have rearranged some/most of my priorities and have started the journey back to being me (and being able to do the things I enjoy!). I know there are a lot of philosophies on what "getting into shape" means, but to me, it starts with strength. I loved lifting when I was younger and am built (as my wrestling coach use to call me) like a "brick s*#t house". I started Stonglifts about 6 months ago and have started to get my rhythm back (as well as realize I am not 21 anymore). I moved over to the Madcow program when I realized my body needs a little more recovery time than a straight linear program. I am currently on week 5 of the program and am loving it! So.... to get to the point here, listed below are my Quests! Quest 1: Limit daily calories to 1956 calories/day. This was determined by myfitnesspal for a 1 lb/week weight loss. In conjunction, I will eat a minimum of 150 g of protein per day. I am not an strict Paleo follower, but believe in most of the principles and will follow a mix of Paleo/Eat Clean (more of a Eat Clean with a strong lean towards Paleo). This will be tracked through myfitness pal. Oh - I will also drink a minimum of 3l of water per day... Quest 2: Continue Madcow program and have the following lift #'s (for a x5 set) by the end of August: Sq: 275Bench: 225Row: 145Press: 135Deadlift: 275 (ugh... I love the results, but it just really beats me up!) Quest 3: Take my lovely wife on a very long overdue honeymoon and make sure she is treated like the long haired Italian princess she is! Side Quest: Stop looking at that traitorous, back-stabbing, filthy beast of a machine called the scale and just be happy that my clothes are looser and I am feeling better! So there it is... I have been thinking about putting this up for weeks now. It isn't pretty, but I had the afternoon free and thought I would just get it done... Wish I could have come up with a few witty comments, but results (getting it listed) is more important than being witty at this point! Please don't judge harshly

I don't know where I fall in terms of recruit, stat points, or progress. I consider myself at the back of the line. This is the third time I have started a new recruit challenge post, because I never end up following through. Anyway, I still want to stick with my main quests and not change what I have previously written. They're fine, I just haven't seen them through! My lifting buddy stopped lifting because he needed to focus more on cardio, which is why I think I lost my motivation to continue halfway through the semester. It would be wise to commit to logging my activities on here, which can be viewed in my daily battle log here. I did not want to wait until the next challenge started. I want to start again as soon as a new week began. I am following Medhi's SL 5x5 as close as I can. I will post progress charts off and on so you can see how things are going. If you read this and I haven't posted anything in the last 3 days, get on my case! It's not your responisibility, but I can't make excuses for taking care of and improving myself. Below are the previous quests I posted with Life and Motivation updated for this summer. Thanks for reading! Main Quest: Build back muscle and get stronger I. Get at least 8 hours of sleep every night (this means bed around 9 p.m. for me) II. Eat 3 square meals a day of at least 2000 calories (fresh foods) III. At least 3 days a week go lift weights and 2 days of more intense cardio (sprint intervals, swimming, or biking) Life Quest: Finish summer school well, complete the two online classes I have before the end of July. Motivation: I want to see this through and finish what I start!! (Previously posted): The line of work that I am moving towards requires my body to be in top physical shape for survival reasons (and no it's not the military). I need to gain an attitude of caring for and disciplining my body on a regular basis no matter the circumstances.

Totally new to this; I have no idea what I'm doing! A bit about me: I'm a 24 year old aspiring computer engineer, who has an awesome part time job with the navy during the summer. I'm 5'2" and I love anime, video games and comic books. I like to read too. Stuff. Main goal: Absolutely getting rid of this freaking belly of mine that I have for the last 3-4 years now. Goal 1: Follow a Paleo Diet for the challenge. I've already broke this rule a couple of times already the last week... 1) I ate a cupcake out just because it reminded me of my cousin's awesome cupcakes. I resolved to ask her to make it with coconut flour when I get back. Galley deserts are BAD. BAD. 2) I didn't realize the dressings that my galley was using are all store bought. Efff. Yesterday I decided to make it with hot sauce and mustard. IT works! 3) Soy milk is not Paleo. Soy milk is not Paleo. This happened Day 1. 4) I missed out on lunch one day so I resorted to buying brand name beef jerky... Does that count? Goal 2: Getting Stronger. So, here's my hopeful goals by the end of this challenge: Deadlifts: 175 Squats: 120 Presses: 90 Where am I right now? Deadlifts: 100 Squats: 75 Presses 45 I just started Starting Strength yesterday, so I think these are reasonable goals. I've done the New Rules of Lifting for Women twice before, but couldn't commit going past Stage 2 because I placed school (and video games to destress) as a higher priority than my own health. Goal 3: Don't use taxis or buses to get around town. I'm currently posted out where I don't have a car or anything, so I had to use whatever public transportation, be it taxi or bus to get around. I'm planning to go on more weekend trips, or go into town often. However, being a money pincher, I found this really eats up my wallet! I already spent 40 bucks on bus tickets alone! So this means for me to get healthier, I'll either walk my way there or take my bike there. Maybe I should get myself to use my bike more, but I'm not used to hills. I could work on that. A Life goal: Getting into cosplay! I got so many ideas to cosplay, but not enough courage, time or money to get there! I'm currently working on an Iron Man Mk 42/43 suit so I think I want to actually finish that. It's weird that I'm actually getting to document a lot of the things down. I guess that's why I got lost; I never track things down! I think this is a good change for me!

Jumping in with both feet and a smile ! Next -- establishing a "battle log." First Challenge beginning June 8: Main Quest: Reduce BMI to “normal.†At 5’ 6â€, that’s 148-150 lbs. AND maintain it. (Measured: loss of 3-5# adipose tissue and potentially, waist size. Some lean mass may be lost but can be minimized through resistance training.) Strategy 1: Conform to “eating window†or IF regimen plus carb-reduced intake. Measure: daily periodicity and total sugars/gr of carbohydrates Strategy 2: Perform HIT (resistance) twice a week, 20 min/session. Measure: weekly “workout day.†Bonus: early morning fasted cardio gets + mod (on something) Strategy 3: No more than 2 servings of ethanol, no more than twice a week. Measure: track day/amount Bonus: “dry week†gets + mod (on something) Ancillary support strategy #1: Meditate min. 20 minutes a day every day Ancillary support strategy #2: Read four “rolemodel†books (nonfiction) in six weeks. REWARD: Earn (self-selected) Guild membership as “Warrior†for Challenge #2. “Scenario settingâ€: Tombo of the moon of Endor arrives on Coruscant and is amazed at the wonders of the city! After having spent most of her life in the forests of Endor, she samples the delights of “city living†… only to find that, in fact, sitting and being entertained, and eating all sorts of tasty but not-so-healthy foodstuffs, troubles her non-â€city-fied†spirit. One evening at a cantina she sees a poster for the Rebellion … wonders “Why not?†… and realizes that here is a purpose plus discipline! A chance to test her own limits and surpass them through focus and intention. She arrives at the Intake Center -- a dusty subterranean warehouse full of jumbled metal objects -- met by enthusiastic officers who lead her through various range-of-motion and stamina assessments. Good news! YOU’RE IN! But … while there’s a lot of basic good strength to work with, instead of going right to membership in a unit [guild], part of learning the sequence of Rebel life is FOLLOWING THE PROTOCOL. That means: Recruit, go find your locker and bunk and assemble with all the other recruits. On her way to the common area she notes a slogan over the doorway: “THE CHALLENGE YOU MEET TODAY WILL BE YOUR SOURCE OF STRENGTH TOMORROW.â€

So I fell of the wagon on my first challenge, but I've gotten back in the weight room and back to challenging myself. My first goal is all about consistency. I just finished a few sessions with a trainer learning the Olumpic lifts and need to keep working at them to build the proper movement patterns to memory before I start adding much weight. A- 3x per week C- 2x per week D-1x per week F- 0x per week My second goal is focused on strength. I was making good strides on my Strong Lifts but due to the aforementioned falling of the wagon I am basically starting over. So this time around I'm going to use Starting Strength because it has the clean. I will also add in some light weight snatch practice and work on pull ups until I can do them without resistance bands helping. I will update if I figure out a way to grade this A- B- C- D- F- My third goal is about cutting body fat percentage. Currently I'm sitting at 35% and my long term goal is 14%. Nutrition will be the biggest factor here, but I'm adding some HIIT sessions to the end of my lifting days to help expedite the process. I'm not completely sure what a realistic expectation for this is so I'll adjust the percentage numbers after I get a better idea. A- 10% B- 8% C- 5% D- 3% F- <3% My non fitness goal is to improve my standing at work to set myself up for promotion or viability for a change in job. I work security and have spoken to my Regional Manager about what I can do to better myself at work. I now have a Massive binder for the in-house CPO program. It's daunting to look at but I want to read it by the end of the challenge so I can take the next step in the company. A- Finish F- Don't finish

All right so this is going to be my second challenge. My previous challenge I was trying to make weight for my first powerlifting meet since a bad injury and ..... I did!. I also did well in the meet so I was really happy. I ended up setting PRs in 2 of my 3 lifts (squat and bench) missed my previous dead PR by 15 pounds and set a total PR. So I am super happy about that and already pumped to start training for my next meet August 30th. This next challenge will set me up for that next meet. I will be focusing on 2 distinct areas, strength gains and weight loss. Now to most people, those two things don't go together. You can't serve two masters many will say. And to a large part I agree with them. Why do I think that I'm different? I don't. But I do know that if I train hard and train the right way, while eating to fuel my workouts, and not because my brain wants to eat crap, that I can do both. Strength Goal Success Criteria Success will be measured if either 1 of the following occurs in Squat Bench and Deadlift - Hit my Opener from the previous meet for a double - Hit my final successful lift from the previous meet for a single I went 6/9 for the day hitting my first and second lift and missing my third for all three lifts. This is not a bad thing since I really wanted to push myself this meet and see what I could do Weight Loss Goal Success Criteria 180lbs How will I accomplish this? 1) Continue to refine my training while following my current plan. My previous training I switched to Reactive Training System and went to benching 3 days a week. This worked out great for my bench which hadn't moved in years. Since going to RTS and moving to 3 days a week benching, I saw my bench improve about 20 pounds in 6 months. This is an amazing amount for me since I am already benching at a high level. I am planning to go back to West Side for my lower body as I have got the best results from that and felt much better following that style. I am going to combine one of my lower body days (form/speed day) with my "quick bench day" which was only 1 exercise that day. 2) I was eating very low carb previously trying to get my weight down, I will continue to eat low carb in comparison to the average person but intend to increase the amount of carbs that I was eating. I will slowly introduce these back into my diet and see how my body reacts. 3) By removing one of my training days I will replace this with either a Cardio day (steady state or HIT), sled dragging day, circuit day or mobility day. I am going to try to just do what I feel like each week but if that doesn't work I'll start to plan them and hold myself accountable.

Edited to reflect updated goals. I started the year weighing 340 lbs and very unhappy with my life and where it was going. I decided I couldn't stand being stuck in that same rut and started making changes. I now down to 298 lbs but I have felt myself running out of steam recently. I've decided to start doing the challenges to help kick start my motivation. Main Quest - When I started back in January my first goal was to get under 300 lbs by the end of the year. I'm not 100% sure what to set my goal at now so for this challenge I'm not going to set a specific number just setting goals to make sure I keep making progress. Quest 1: Gym Progress - 5 Points I have been going to the gym anywhere from 2-5 times a week but would like to make this more consistent. Earlier this month I started working with a trainer to help give me some accountability & make sure I am pushing myself at the gym. I had fallen into a pattern/routine where I would often not even break a sweat outside of my run. I will working with the trainer twice a week so my goal is to go more than that. Grade : A = 30 -26 gym days during challenge (3 str, 2 sta), B = 25 - 20 gym days during challenge (2 str, 1 sta), C = <20 gym days during challenge (1 str, 1 sta) Quest 2: What have I gotten myself into ??? - 3 points I will be running in the tough mudder next week and while it will be finished very early in the challenge it is such a big thing for me that I have been working towards since February it feels odd not to make it its own quest. I am not worried about my time or how many obstacles I finish without falling on my face just crossing the finish line so this is pretty much a pass/fail. Finish : 3 Sta Quest 3: Stop eating like crap - 5 points Between work and school if I had had not planned anything I would end up eating out (usually fast food), often 4+ times a week. While I have cut back dramatically and am making better choices when I do eat out, I know I need to do much better. I have been subscribing to plated to help with my meal planning, I pick from their recipes they send me the ingredients, I cook it. It has been helping a lot with dinner and lunches at work. I will be sticking with it for this challenge but trying to pick recipes that have low or easily replaceable carbs I will also be posting my plan for the week and posting what I eat daily to help make me stick to the plan. I will be grading myself by the number of weeks I only eat out once at the most. Grade: A = 6-9 Cheat days during challenge (3 Con, 2 Wis) , B = 10-12 cheat days during challenge weeks (2 Con, 2 Wis), C >12 cheat days during challenge (1 Con, 1 Wis) Quest 4: Knock down Mt. Laundry Doom - 2 points I loath doing Laundry. Between work and school I get none of it done during the week and on the weekend I lack the attention span/drive to make sure I get everything done. I will wash my gym clothes, underwear, some stuff for work & rear wear to get me through the week and then the rest will just sit in a pile that has slowly progressed from a small hill the size of Bag End to Mt. Doom. I will not only clean everything that has not been washed and donate the things I will never wear but I will also maintain this through out the challenge. My goal is to have the bulk of everything done by the end of week 4 of the challenge and then maintain for the last 2 weeks, I would split the challenge in half but with going out of town for the race next weekend and my parents coming into town for the weekend after I am being realistic and giving myself an extra week for the first part of the challenge. Grade: A:Mt Doom demolished by the end of week 4 (7/5) & 2 weeks maintaining (2 Wis), | B: Mt Doom demolished by end of challenge or Mt. Doom Demolished early but has begun to grow back (1 Wis) Grading/Scoring for all of the above will begin in earnest beginning Monday. Starting Wt : 298 lbs Starting BF % : 33 %

Intro: My name is CatInTheRack, I'm male, age 19, 145 lbs, 5'10, with interests such as lifting, boxing, psychology, and apparently being really anal about diet and exercise if friends are to be believed. I've been lifting for around 9 months so still pretty new, took me a while to find a routine that worked for me. I did stronglifts for a while and now I'm on a variation of Wendler's 5/3/1 that has two cycles plus a deload every 6 weeks. This six week period starts on June 8th so I figured I'd be crazy not to sign up. Main goal: Increase strength in big compound lifts. Quest 1: Increase maximum weight deadlift which is currently at 130kg for 3 reps. A = 145kg for multiple reps; B = 145kg for 1 rep; C = 137.5kg for multiple reps. Quest 2: Increase maximum weight squat which is currently at 110kg for 2 reps. A = 120kg for multiple reps; B = 120kg for 1 rep; C = 115kg for multiple reps. Quest 3: Increase maximum weight bench press which is currently at 72.5kg for 2 reps. A = 77.5kg for multiple reps; B = 77.5kg for 1 rep; C = 75kg for multiple reps. Life quest: Meditate more frequently. A = 3/week all 6 weeks; B = 3/week 4/6 weeks; C = 3/week 3/6 weeks. Motivation: I wanna increase my strength, what more motivation could I need. Reward: Success is it's own reward.

Hello folks, Looking forward to the 6 week challenge kicking off, so it's time to write up some goals Main Quest The start of the fitness journey for me has been my increasing weight, and the waistline to go with it. My son was born in January this year, and I realised that I didn't want him to grow up with an overweight dad, gradually creeping towards obesity. I started out at 100kg 10 weeks ago, and I've shifted just over 5 so far. The goal is to reach 85kg, (or 32" waist trousers, whichever comes first...) I've mostly managed this through fixing up my diet, calorie counting and adding a lot of walking to my work days. I'm now kicking off a program of weights to make sure I keep on what little muscle I have, and preparing to be able to add a bit more once I get the fat under control. 3 Subquests for this one - 1 - Stronglifts - hit the gym 3 times a week, following the Stronglifts 5x5 program. I've been hitting the gym already, so the routine is in place, I just need to make sure I stick to what I'm meant to be doing and don't get distracted or lazy. My schedule is mon, weds, fri lunchtimes. I might end up missing a couple if I have days off work and can't make up the time elsewhere, but this shouldn't need to happen more than once or twice. Grading A - 16+ workouts B - 14+ workouts C - 12+ workouts F - less 2 - Calorie control - I'm calorie counting using MyFitnessPal, but have been on the lax side sometimes, especially at weekends. My aim is to be stricter, and hit an 800 calorie deficit everyday with everything logged (500 calorie deficit to hit ~0.5kg a week loss + a bit of leeway for anything I've under logged or anything my fitbit has given me too many calories for) Grading A - 40 days B - 36 days C - 32 days F - lower 3 - Eat All the Protein - since I'm starting out with lifting and want to keep muscle on, eat at least 1g protein for every lb of lean body mass. That means about 175g of protein per day. As above, tracked on MyFitnessPal. Grading A - 40 days B - 36 days C - 32 days F - lower Side Quest - since our son has been born, my wife and I have let the housework go a bit... Quite understandable, but not something I want to let go on for too long. Now that the little guy has got into a bit of a routine, I should be able to make a bit of time to keep the place straightened out. The list of things to do doesn't include cooking, dishes or washing laundry - that's all day to day stuff we've been doing anyway. It does include cleaning, dusting, vacuuming, the garden, ironing sorting and putting away laundry. To balance this out, I also want to start indulging in some hobbies again. I've got piles of wargames minis sitting around in various states of disassembled and unpaintedness, and I need to make time to start getting that sorted. The goal is an average of half an hour per day on each one, so 3.5 hours per week of housework, and of hobbies. Bonus points for encouraging my wife to make time for her hobbies too This should be doable, since the wee man is usually in bed by 8 now. The 3.5 hours will be a total time over a Monday-Sunday week with each week passing or failing on its own - no carry over from one week to the next. For a week to pass, I need to do both the chores and hobby time, 'cos work-life balance is important even at home. Grading A - 5+ successful weeks B- 4 week C - 3 weeks F - lower Motivation for all of this - I want to be a good role model for the little guy growing up. A person should be able to take time to look after themselves, keep in shape and look after their house, while still keeping some time to spend doing stuff they enjoy. Tracking - I've already got a daily battle log thread (link in the sig!), so I'll do the day to day logging in there. I'll update this thread with overall progress towards goals once a week or so. I do intend to do stat point rewards, but will come back to that later. Running totals - updated at end of week 2 Main Quest - Lose 15kg (target weight 85kg) Weighed @ 92.1kg on 19/6/2015 52.67%52.67% Goal 1 - Stronglifts Workouts 4 Completed, 2 missed due to illness, 0 missed otherwise 100%100% Goal 2 - Calorie Control 13 days successful, 1 day over 92%92% Goal 3 - Protein Intake 11 days successful, 3 days under 78%78% Goal 4 - Life Challenge 1 week successful, 1 week not 50%50%

Greetings Travelers! Motivation: Erza Scarlet from Fairy Tail is a strong, confident woman that is always looking out for her friends and protecting them. I want to be that type of person. I want to be strong enough physically and emotional to take everything life throws at me and protect the things I care about. Main Goal: Get Fit - In Appearance & Physically Goal 1: 0.5lbs/week average weight loss. 2 inches combined off naval, thighs and upper arm. Scored on a scale: 0.1lb/week average = 20% I'm using MyFitnessPal to track calories and have my calories set for 1,750/day average over the week. I will weigh in every Saturday and measure every other week. I will adjust calories based on how progress goes. Goal 2: 1 strong, stable push-up. Pass/Fail I'm back to lifting but I've lost a lot of strength. I used to be able to do a handful of push-ups but they were weak, shakey and didn't look nice. I want to do a controlled, confident push-up. Goal 3: 1 set of 5 60lbs assist pull-up. Pass/Fail I've always wanted to be able to do a pull-up and that is my ultimate goal but to work towards that my goal is to be able to do a 60lbs assist pull-up which would be 90lbs. I understand that using these machines are not the same difficulty as a real pull-up but it is one of the tools I am using and it is easier to gauge than alt. pull-up methods. Life Goal: Pass/Fail I am working on making my first armor costume for cosplay. I hope to have my costume and my bf's costume done for next year's Fanime in San Jose, CA. My life goal for this challenge is to complete the bracers for my costume. I have very limited experience with foam so this will be a challenge but I am looking forward to it. Plan of Action: I am burned out from cardio and don't plan to do much of it. I plan to walk on my breaks and lunch at work daily. This is usually 10 minutes in the morning, 30-40 minutes at lunch and 10 minutes in the afternoon. I will try to incorporate some form of cardio for at least 30 minutes during the weekend. I will be lifting 3x/week with two gym sessions and one session at home. I may lift at home more often instead of the gym depending on how body weight progressions go. Roughly my lifting routine: Tuesday: Low-bar Squats Bench-Press Seated Cable Rows Assisted Pull-up Machine Thursday: Low-bar Squats Overhead Press Lat Pull Down Deadlifts Saturday or Sunday (home/body weight) Hangs from pull-up bar (grip strength) Crunches - various abs work Modified Pull-ups Dips Modified Push-Ups About Me: My name is Steph. I'm a 24 year old living in California. I can't believe I'll be 25 in a few months and have no idea where the time went. I live with my boyfriend of almost 4 years, Drew. We are both a couple of nerds. His focus is mostly video games and anime and my nerd interests are a bit more diverse. I love watching video games and playing them casually. I like watching a lot more than playing. I play Summoner's War Sky Arena on my phone almost constantly. My favorite video game series is Borderlands but I'm also a fan of Fallout, Kingdom Hearts, Disgaea and Pokemon. I love to read. My favorite book at the moment is Ready Player One and I can't wait for Ernest Cline's new book Armada that comes out in July. I also love Stephen King's sci-fi/fantasy books (no horror for me), Wheel of Time series and basically all fantasy books i can get my hands on. I also watch a lot of anime and recently started attending conventions and cosplaying. Cosplay is what gave me the motivation to get myself healthier. I've cosplayed a few times and I am still learning a lot of the technical skills associated with it. Starting Stats: 154.4lbs Left Bicep (relaxed): 12.25 inches Right Bicep (relaxed): 12.25 inches Left Thigh: 22.25 inches Right Thigh: 22 inches Narrowest part of waist: 27 inches Naval: 32 Largest part of stomach: 33 inches Hips: 40 inches Note: Measurements were taken on 6/1 while weight was taken 6/6. My starting weight on 6/1 was 155lbs.

A little about me. My name is Daniel and I’m a few days away from being 36. I work repairing PCs and my passion is Professional Wrestling which I take part in by being a referee. Last summer I did fairly well at eating well and working out, I lost 2 stone and was stronger, faster and generally felt much better day to day. Too much slacking and complacency and the weight has come back (most of it) and worst of all I’m struggling to referee a show! Nobody wants to watch the referee get blown up from dropping to the mat to count and getting up a few times. I've a big (for me) show in late September with a former WWE star on the card who has a reputation for trying to get the refs to run out of wind. I don’t think I’ll be able to keep up but I would like to not embarrass myself too badly in front of a few 100 people. Main Quest: At the end of these 6 weeks I’d like to have more endurance than I currently do and to not ache almost constantly (not in a good way). Goal 1: Eat only what I take to work and drink only water at work, no buying anything extra “to bulk out†my pack up or sugary drinks. Goal 2: Attend Wrestling training once a week Goal 3: Attend the Gym AT LEAST twice a week (3 times in an ideal world). Work through Starting Strength 5 x 5 and do “some†cardio every session I’m looking to really start this challenge on June 8th in line with everyone else on the forum but I’m posting now and will be trying to meet my goals next week as well (1st June). In fact tonight is Wrestling training and I WILL be there, no excuses!

So here it goes... After the last 15 years as a professional "Competitive Drinker" I've decided to seek employment in a new department. I am currently in the process of obtaining my amateur "Junior Strongman" status. Even Though I am several years past the age requirement, I figured with my boyish good looks, and If I shave right before competition, I should be able to pass for 16. On a serious note, I'm tired of being fat! I have been hitting the gym with my wife for the last 6 weeks off and on, but not sticking to a diet or alcohol regimen. I had enjoyed powerlifting before I injured my shoulder last Christmas time. I will be focused on fat loss and hopefully strength progression, along with the all out mess of "Southwest Florida" gym society. Join me for the ride... It should be interesting! MAIN QUEST: To be under 200 pounds. I weigh 212 currently. QUEST #1: As to reach said goals, and keep up on the all out debauchery, I will go to the gym 4x a week. QUEST #2: Rather than consuming alcohol, each night, to the fun blackout point, and eating cheese or some other random food, I will adhere to only drink alcohol 1x a week. QUEST #3: Because I want to eat one cheat meal a week, at least, I will eat 2 out of 3 meals a day paleo.

Hey everyone, I have decided to post my goals for this next 6 week challenge. A little bit of a background is I was very heavy into Powerlifting leading up to an injury (tore my Achilles' Tendon in Feb 2014 playing basketball). This had about a 9 month recovery and coming off of that I was overweight. Not by a ton but about 20 pounds bigger than I was pre-injury. I have already signed up for a competition on May 30th and have the goal to walk in and not have to worry about cutting weight. I have already started to lose weight and now have 7 weeks to lose 10 pounds, while keeping my strength as high as possible I will do this by continuing to eat very clean (low carb and high protein works best for me), and consuming around 2000 calories per day. I will only allow myself 1 small cheat meal per week. I will weigh myself at most once per week on Friday mornings (this is an obsession of mine). I will continue to follow my training plan and do all the exercises each day. I will also add 1 day of cardio this week, and bump it up to at most 3 days per week prior to my meet (depending on weight and recovery)