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Alrighty- it's been what, almost 4 years since I made an attempt at a challenge? It's time to regroup and get some things back on track. Previously, because I disliked coming up with a catchy title each challenge I settled on "the infinite reboot". While thinking about rejoining the Monastery (so to speak), I realized that this phrasing now feels a little self defeating. A better view of things should be 'work in progress'. I still have some things to work out, challenge wise, but the main focus will be establishing some routine (and not staying up super late, like I'm doing now), working on my mobility, basic fitness / GPP or whatever the cool kids call it now, and improving my overall outlook, especially since sometime in this challenge I'll officially be in my last year of the 'not in my 50s' club. Considering I just realized how late it actually is, I'll be filling in more details over the next few days as time, and a rambunctious 3.5 yr old allow. There may be cats, there will be naginata, spears, swords, and related accoutrements. In the meantime, here's the song that got me into a music rabbit hole while I was thinking about what to type, and is related to the newly adopted challenge title. There area handful of musicians and singers that I usually prefer their live work over their studio albums, and Mraz is probably at the top of that list, or tied with Larkin Poe.

Hi all! I'm Fedaykin, a 25 yo bookworm and tea enthusiast from the beautiful PNW! Last challenge was all about building healthy habits. This challenge is about doing the things that make me feel good and refraining from sabotaging my positive attitude! Limit snacking/desserts Snacking and desserts are where I lose self control and that brings my mood down. I'm limiting myself to having a snack or having dessert, not both in the same day. Drink 100 oz of zero calorie liquids a day Last challenge I was drinking more water and it felt great! This challenge, I'll increase the amount. Follow exercise plan opening shifts (Mondays and working weekends): body weight workouts, Tuesdays/Fridays: rest, closing shifts (Wednesdays): cardio, days off (Thursdays and off weekends) : bike or run on local paved trail Complain less I've noticed recently that I've been complaining too much. I am going to change that negative self talk and improve my outlook! Question: Anyone know of a great way to drink lots of water at work without toting around a giant water bottle? I work retail (front lanes manager) and can only really step off the floor and into my office every 2-3 hours.

STARPUCK STARTS A BRAND NEW ADVENTURE Sometimes it's just really motivating to start a brand new character. To have a fresh new character sheet, and shiny new pencils and new dice to get you rolling. I had originally started this thread out with comments about how my last year had gone, and how it had finished up, but then I stopped and said, "Wait... that doesn't matter now. What matters are the choices I make going forward and the effort I put in today and tomorrow and then tomorrow's tomorrow and so on." So just like you might learn a new thing about your favored class or character archetype every time you roll up a new one, I will take what I've learned playing through this game previously, and become even better at it this year! Declarations and overall goals listed behind spoiler. Food must be a focus, as it is probably my weakest point. The old adage of you can't outrun your fork is so true; and while I do active things - their purpose must no longer be 'to lose weight'. I do those things because of the other awesome benefits they provide. I also know what I can do to help make the food a smaller obstacle, but it takes planning ahead, and some substitution. In the words of our beloved Pike... Easy days/meals: Mon-Fri breakfasts and lunches at work. No problem. Moderately challenging meals/times: Homecooked meals on M/W. I can't control the ingredients/prep. T after dinner snacks while gaming. Dangerously challenging times: Th / Su gaming nights, weekends, especially ones with hockey games. Other Challenges: No room in the fridge for anything that would be 'mine' creates issues in keeping good options on hand. Solutions - Plan ahead, plan ahead, plan ahead. - Research and prepare healthier snack options. - Cook on Sundays, for dinners on Tue and Thur. Plan of Attack / Food Adventurers only carry so many rations, so track what you are carrying! (eating). - I am going to track calories loosely, not because I am aiming for a certain point (I am) but because if I focus only entirely on good foods, and try to be mindful of portions, I sometimes end up eating far too little! You have to know what your doing in order to make any future adjustments, but the calories are being watched in order to fuel ENOUGH - as opposed to eating LESS AND LESS to lose weight. Heroes Feasts are only for those big moments. - Sometimes you do need to go all out on feasting, but it's not every day, and not for every potential battle you might get into. Enjoy the feasts when it is appropriate, but otherwise save that gem-encrusted bowl worth at least 1,000 gp. Basically, allow indulgences when it is appropriate. Eating out with friends is NOT an indulgence moment, that's a routine thing that happens, so eat like a normal adventurer on those days. Plan of Attack / Exercise Adventurers are almost always on the move. - Either walking from one town to the next, or delving into a dungeon or worse, they're no slouches. I need to keep up the daily activity. I work in a small office, but I am going to slowly try to build up and see what is a feasible number of steps per hour. Well, without looking like a bear pacing in its enclosure at the zoo. That gets weird. Strength training to keep me strong, and sweat-inducing movement so that I am able to flee without passing out when the odds are not in my favor. Not everyone starts off as a real adventurer... - Confession time. I'm not sure how much I actually enjoy the act of -doing- exercise. Sure, I am always pleased with the results; and my mood is often better after having done it than if I hadn't. But it's hard to be motivated for rewards that aren't promised after every mission. So, I take a page out of Taryon Darrington's book. Fake it till I make it. He was a total poser when he met up with Vox Machina, but by the end of his time with them, he was an official member, and not just a real adventurer, but a proper hero too! So I need to go along with the motion, until it becomes something that I truly seek out time and time again. Plan of Attack / Other Stuff "Yes! The PLAN!" Art and D&D work and budget stuff. I have taken a break with art, but am anxious to get back to it. Must remember to be patient with myself, and to start focusing on learning some actual techniques and perhaps how to better use my program. D&D prep comes into this category now, because I am really enjoying being a DM and it does require creative thinking and story writing. So, I'd like to put about 5-6 hours in a week of "creativity". The budget is going to be simple: Figure out where I can save money, how much I can save, and save it. Stay strict with my allowances for eating out or buying snacks for gaming (which will also help the food goal) and don't get willy nilly with the money. I am going to keep a notepad or digital note on hand, and every time I get the urge I want or need something, I will write it down. At the end of each week, I'll re-evaluate my need or desire for it. Some things might be legit needs like: Man this toothpaste tastes so bad it makes me not want to brush my teeth, I need a new tube. Other things might be, "I could really use dry erase markers for my DM'ing, but do I NEEEED them right now." I'd like to put another $5000 into my savings account toward Puck's Manor. I also want to go on a couple of vacations because travel is important to my soul. So I need to figure out a budget that does both. Oookaaay, well this got longer than I had meant for it to! Let's break it down into simple terms. Track my Rations Daily (Total Lots) [MFP] Prepare for questing every Sunday. (Total 5) [Cook on Sundays] Limit Heroes Feast (Total 2) [Two or less indulgences] Chase dire wolves for sport. (Total 12) [Get my sweat on, run, dance, hockey] Train like Grog. (Total 10) [Strength Training] Brainstorm, plot, create. (Total 24) [Art, D&D, Reading, etc.]

Despite 2016's determination to start on a bad note, I'm going to try this whole "if you can't change your circumstances, change your attitude" concept. A fellow rebel pointed out that I was being kinda hard on myself for not being a smaller size and hitting more goals, despite alternating between lifting weights and being heavily injured for most of last year. Upon buying clothes that fit what I am, instead of what I want to be, I realized that my attitude wasn't the only thing out of whack- my posture had actually been affected by crap attitude and crap clothing as well. So here's what I want to fix: Posture: Stop slouching when sitting. Posture: Stand centered, weight on both feet, toes forward rather than splayed out. Attitude: Stop taking temporary setbacks as personal failures. Attitude: Stop being depressed about numbers. Strong and lightweight are not mutually compatible. Obviously, there are a lot more attitude/expectation issues that I need to fix, but that's going to be a long-term thing, and I think this is a good start. Now, how to make these measureable? Posture - sitting: Keep tally how many times per day (at work only) I have to remind myself to sit up straight. Posture - standing: Make a conscious effort to fix this every time I stand. Check natural posture in the shower, weekly. Attitude: Replace last month's workout routine with last year's as my base-level comparison. Keep tally of temptation to compare myself to ridiculous idealized goals. Attitude: Weigh/measure once at the beginning and once at the end of the month. Shift focus to how I feel, not what the numbers are. Keep tally of negative feelings toward personal numbers (weight, clothing size, etc). So the goal will be to reduce the number of tallies for each of these, and have better posture in the shower (most relaxed stance) at the end of the month. Oh, and life goal: own the Intro to Parkour class I'll be taking this month. I'm beyond excited about this.

I'm tossing this in here to get started. Never fear, I will expand upon the concept throughout the thread. LAST CHALLENGE of the year - how did that happen?? It was rollercoaster for me. At the beginning of the year, I had some definite plans. And some indefinite ideas that I thought I would be able to work through during the year as the Hunt for the Mojo. It didn't exactly play out as envisioned. I didn't lose weight -- but I didn't gain weight either. Body composition is about the same. I did one fun run. My online coding job ended up being such a disaster that I quit and ended up working retail. Self-loathing .... and yet another move .... derailed plans to cook nutritious foods. And ultimately, I did not find my mojo. I suspect it is like Dorothy finding her way home. I have the power within me .... I just have to realize it. So, it is time to save what I can of the year and adjust my mental orientation. If it is going to happen .... weight loss, new job, fitness, social life .... it is up to me to make it so. This thread seems to be developing a shoe fetish. So ... goals ...... +3 CON: eat a rainbow daily +3 STA: finish C25K again and do a fun run +3 STR: Chinups @ 115 lbs of assistance (24 reps) +3 DEX: Yoga or mobility work 3 times per week +3 CHA: See someone (other than my husband) every day Some are progress goals and some are endpoint goals. I think the mix helps keep me focused. I'll be running 3 times per week, doing strength training 3 times per week, and doing yoga class three times per week. Since I'm not currently working or taking care of my mom, that's reasonable - the yoga will help with stretching and mobility. Tracking will be done publicly on ...... Tracking spreadsheet of badassdom AND, I am hoping to really participate in the guild mini-challenge this time. I know nearly nothing about Mario (shocking considering my research field), but it looks fun.

This is my first quest so I am keeping it simple in hopes that by doing so I will increase my chances of success. Main Quest: Address issues that have crept up on me this past year. I want to lay a solid framework this winter so that I can make the improvements I want to the rest of the year. My individual quests will support my main quest. Quest 1:Increase Mobility My plan here is not finalized. My coach says that my hamstrings are holding me back from getting into position for deadlifts so I am going to hit them first. I am going to use the Mobility WOD website to work up a plan a whole body plan. For now my goal is to be able to touch my toes at the end of the challenge. Quest 2: Drop 10 lbs I am not counting calories here but I am going to focus on eating enough real food to have quality workouts and to recover from my workouts and avoiding shit food. I am a Type II diabetic so I do use junk food during a workout when I crash. This morning I weighed 285 so my goal weight is 275. Quest 3: Improve my gym attitude My attitude has sucked towards lifting lately. I jump on any reason to not go to the gym and when I do I am lackluster at best. I am not sure how to measure the success or failure of this but I am open to suggestions. For now I will call 3 training sessions a week a success. Life Goal: Finish my Classwork Work paid for a very expensive course for me that I have procrastinated for 2 months. I have to get it done by the end of January. Creative writing is not one of my skills so my apologies for the boring read.

hello well like most I have been I a weight loss journery forever. I'll try to keep the history short as possible. Been the "fat kid" my whole life, but yet when I look back on photos I was NEVER a big kid. with exception of late teens/early 20's (drinking/parties & fast food).my heighest weight was 220lbs at age 23 I discovered the love of the Gym and loss weight successful and keep it off for a long time. Then stress hit me without realising, due to alot of things. I moved back to my home town(where I was bullied alot) to be with my now husband, his mum got sick, a very close friend of ours got sick and I guess I freaked out and without realising gave myself an eating disorder(age 26). Had a few rough years trying to get my head around it and get on with life and I am 100x better than I was, but those thoughts are still there. I've come to realise I will proberly always have my crazy ED thoughts, but it doesn't rule me. In the last 2 months my goals have changed, no longer looking for big weight loss, but looking to get stronger(mind & body), toned and smaller in inches. My body has pretty much sat at the same weight for the last 5 yrs, 149lbs (with the exception of my wedding last year where I managed to lose 5lbs with the help of MFP) but I was under eating(didn't understand the NET calories etc). So im now eating TDEE -20%, pretty healthy most of the time. I have an extreme sweet tooth. I discovered nerd fitness through MFP and have been doing the beginers body weight circuit, which is great. Also using weights at gym. I still do cardio, as I worry that I lose the endurance I have built up of the years, useful for long hikes in NZ over very ruggered terrian. Thanks for letting me share, any advice on where a absolute beginer should start with weights would be great, I have a recurring lower back injury so deadlifts may not be a great start.

So, where do you all turn when you need some positive input? When the self talk gets negative, or the home life isn't living up to expectations? When kids won't give you a minute alone, or your spouse/significant other seems to be growing weary of you -- or needs a break if only for a little while, but you take it personally (Maybe THAT'S just me?!?) Where do you guys go to change the mental input??