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Well, where do I begin. Once upon a time there was baking_jeans, who was lazy. I mean this lazy: So, I ended up owning impressive muffin top and trying to start dieting every other week. No surprises there - it didn't work. Well, it worked miracles for my muffin top as it kept growing like on yeasts. Then someone told me about Crossfit and I somehow discovered Nerd Fitness. Since then, and during my first challenge, it was epic-epic experience: So, here is my second challenge, this time as a Ranger (yay!). 1) Diet goals: 1 - Eat mostly Paleo (except diary and occasional pancakes on weekends). Cheat sweets allowed from time to time, but 1 piece of chocolate amount-like. Cook your food! 2 - No beer/wine on weekdays, some during weekend. 2) Fitness goals: Yeah, since this was pretty much me during CF classes due to still poor overall fitness: 1 - go to the Box 3 times per week. Try to throw in 1 workout per week - either run, climb or swim with your Significant Otter. 2 - The plank challenge! Do it! 3 - No elevator at work unless you carry your scooter (its heavy and uncomfortable). 3) Life goals: This challenge is all about studying: 1 - sign up for the course and exam; 2 - study at least an hour/ day. 3 - to be full rested no electronics after 10pm, in bed at 11pm. 4 - beauty hour per week. bleh. Bit scary, I admit.

As it is wont to do, life imploded during the last challenge, so I'm just pretending it didn't happen. Onward! Adventure! Excitement! Cthulhu! Join Ravnos on his ninth challenge as he battles demons, breaks PRs and continues on his merry quest for strength, honor and wisdom. Come! Join the merriment! Weep at the tragedy. Cheer on the excitement! Ninth official challenge time. Let's see where we're at with this. I've reached many of the goals I started out on NF with. I've gotten my waist to below 32 inches (and still improving) and I'm dropped my body fat considerably. However, it's time for a change. My focus now is on strength and endurance gains, as well as putting some muscle back on. GAINZ! I, of course, have the continued goals of working toward doing Salmon Ladders, dropping to 8% BF, eliminating stomach fat, squatting 1.5x body weight, deadlifting 2x body weight and OHP, Bench and Row 1x bodyweight. Last challenge kind of fell through the cracks and my life got hectic afterward, preventing me from signing on here... ever. In that time I maintained my paleo diet, participated and defeated my first Spartan Sprint and hung out with the ever-amazing, Teros. As we go into 2015, however, I'm recentering my life around what's actually important, me. This means less time stressing about a shitty job (I did not end up succeeding in my goal of getting a new job by the end of 2014... working on that) and more time on my health and personal goals. So without further ado, here are my quests for the second challenge of 2015 and my return to NF. Quest 1 - One More Rep Continue improving my lifts. My main, main focus this challenge is going to be breaking a 100lb Press. I've been plateaued between 90 and 95 pounds for a while now, and I took nearly 3 months off from the gym, so it's fallen back down to 85... Now it's time to break down my press technique and start making some real fucking progress here. Gym three times a week, no excuses, and a focus on OHP for gainz. Quest completion - 3 workouts, every week. +3 STR. Bonus: OHP 100lb 5x5. Quest 2 - Adapted Paleo I've adapted my paleo diet to improve gains, because I was struggling to stop losing weight. I added milk and potatoes back in (organic milk from grass-fed cows) and I've seen some great results. No fat increase, no gut problems and my weight went back up to 160 and stabilized. SO! the plan is 6/7 days of the week I eat modified paleo. Saturday is my cheat day, were I can have a little sugar, fruit, whatever. I still avoid gluten because it makes my gut very unhappy. Quest completion - follow diet plan 100%. +3 CON. Quest 3 - Nerd Fitness! I have failed miserably at even signing on here to check PMs since October, so it's time to get back on a regular checking/posting schedule here. My goal here is to sign on at least three times a week, update here and check friend's challenges. Let's get the gang back together... Quest completion - +3 CHA Quest 4 - Stop spending so much god damn money Try to recover from blowing some savings. Part of this will be selling some items in my home (comics, Magic The Gathering cards and vinyl). The other part is GETTING A NEW JOB. I've been doing weekly IT training with a friend of mine, so the goal here is to make sure I go every Tuesday and work on my skillz. Plain and simple. Motivation! Quest completion - Increase savings. Do job training, start applying for IT positions. +3 WIS Quest 5 - Turn on endurance I've been ignoring my endurance and conditioning for a while now, and while I felt comfortable doing the Spartan, I know I can make some marked improvements. My goal here is to do some running, once a week. Probably in the morning. I don't mind running in the cold, so we'll get this started soon. So... Quest completion - One run per week, 3-5 miles. +3 END More to come!

Hi everybody. I have been following nerdfitness for almost 2 years, it has helped me to lose some weight (15kg), and also to feel healthier and stronger but I think maybe I've hit a plateu. That's why I would like to start a 6 week challenge. Main Quest: To get below 80kg (175lb) and 18-20% body fat. Quests to accomplish the main goal: 1_Eat clean After the holidays I want to clean my diet again. This means, no sugar, no processed food, no bread, low-carb. I will allow myself 1 soda and 2-3 beers a week. 2_Record food daily and keep calories under 2100 This should mean a 2-3kg weight loss in 6 weeks. I have to weight myself this week, but I think I'm around 85kg. I'm using Myfitnesspal to keep the track. I will restart with intermittent fasting, something near 16:8 3_Workout at least 3 days a week I will start weightlifting again, 3 days a week. I would like to add 1 more day a week either walking or running. Life goals: Improve my English One post a week talking about the challenge will help. I would like to hold a conversation in English with a friend at least 2 times in this 6 weeks. Please, feel free to correct if I write anything wrong. I will update soon. Thanks.

A couple of weeks ago, I received an email. It was from myself, having sent it precisely a year before, packed full of predictions for the coming year: learn to do a backflip (90% likely) still living in Cambridge, UK (75%) England to win the football world cup (5%) (...) I wrote it to see how my view of the future would compare with how events actually turn out. The results showed me a lot about how we see the future, so I'm sharing them with the community here On average the predictions were reasonable. Out of 8 items I'd considered to be 40% likely, 3 happened (38%). Out of 12 things at 60%, 5 happened (42%). Both things at 85% did happen. However, my view for the future was clearly a lot more exciting and action-packed than my predictions! I didn't realise it at the time, but if my predictions had been accurate, I'd hardly have had time to catch my breath amongst everything else. To simulate this, I took some random numbers and interpreted these to determine what would happen in an example year - and got the following: still doing weightlifting and football changed career completely and bought a house composed more piano music, and went to another metal concert entered the Mental Calculation World Cup 2014 travelled to 2 new countries had an active love life learned to front handspring, to backflip and to handstand (more minor things) Imagine how much effort it would take for all of that happen in a single year! 2014 was a good year for me, but not quite this busy! Why were my predictions like this? I think there are several connected reasons: [a] We tend to make predictions - and plans - in isolation. Yes, if I made it a priority I could compose a metal/guitar composition, but then I'd be prioritising something else less. Maybe I'd be doing less gymnastics. Yes, I could've decided to change career, but after all the thinking and applying and admin and stuff and indecision, I wouldn't have as much energy for learning to drive or going travelling. I find that the same thing often happens in NF challenges - I choose several goals that would be reasonable if they were the only thing being worked on, but forget that when we have 5 goals like this, there just isn't enough motivation available to do everything One year is a long time! I've just Googled it, and there are various quotes to the effect that "you overestimate what you can do in a year, but underestimate what you can do in ten years". [c] I am overconfident. The items in my list that I assigned the most exaggerated probabilities to were the ones that would have caused me the most pride, for example achieving various gymnastic and strength goals. It's sobering to see this overconfidence illustrated so vividly, but it's actually something I value quite highly. It's so much easier to motivate yourself to do difficult things if you have an unreasonably high confidence in them. Taken to the extreme, you become simply deluded with limited ability to make useful plans. But in moderation, it can significantly help your progress towards your goals. Furthermore, you have more fun in the process if you believe you're always on the cusp of greatness (If you're an underconfident reader, it's worth working on increasing your expectations of the future for this reason) So how will all this change my outlook of the future? I'll still have the same optimistic viewpoint, but I'll remember to act as if life will change less quickly than I expect. And that means that if I want anything to change, it requires me to be proactive about that change, because I can't rely on the random fluctuations of life to bring about those changes for me.

I'm super tired right now, so I'll just make a really quick summary, and tomorrow I'll finish it off! MAIN QUEST - To lose weight and fit in my prom dress by April 25 SIDE QUESTS - successfully do a complete pull-up - run a 10k in under 60 minutes - do yoga everyday, even if it's just for 5 minutes - 3 strength trainings/week LIFE QUESTS - To finally paint and redecorate my hobby room Okay okay so I waas having a bath earlier today and I was thinking about how I'd take on this challenge and I got it all perfectly worked out! Here goes: Laodamaren's 6-week challenge rules 1400 kcal limit (little more than my BMR) , this goes for all days, whether severely active or notI will try intermittent fasting for the very first time. However, if it makes me feel bad, I will stop doing it.My workout schedule looks somewhat like this: M: bodyweight training (I use NF bodyweight workout level 4 of the academy) T: Active rest day: yoga class W: Running: intervals T: Strength: lifting day!! (squats, deadlifts, bench, all of it, me likeeey) F: running: intervals S: HIIT and bodyweight training curcuits S: long distance run + arm and abs day I usually don't run this much, as I'm more a bodyweight training kind of person (with a passionate secret affair with lifting weights), but I'm currently training for the Antwerp 10 miles run on April 26 and I want to have a decent time I do not eat any gluten, refined sugar (or artificial) or dairy, with an exception for sheep yoghurt in the morning cause there's no other way I can reach my protein goal.MY carbohydrate intake looks like this M: normal - 75g T: low - 50g W: normal -75g T: low - 50g F: normal: 75g S: normal: 75g S: high -100g Tbh, I'm not so sure whether this is a correct view of the low/high carb intake, so I'd be very pleased if someone could help me with this?Daily protein goal is around 90g, which is quite an accomplishment for me.I have a daily yoga practice of 10 mins before I go to bed (been doing it for a week now, trying to make it a habit) and as soon as I wake up i do one set of push-ups AMRAP cause that wakes me up!Will try to minimise dried fruits, although that shit is delicious!! Also trying to minimise legumes, but I'm not obsessing about them!For the record, Natasha Romanoff/black widow is my greatest motivation, as she's such a badass woman and I'd love to be like her! My friends say I've already got her red hair and bitchy face, hah! Looking forward to starting!!

Heheh fruits baskets is this weeks theme for me Today is the start of a new week and im excited to keep working on losing weight and getting healthier!!! This weeks goals are going to be a little more focused, and not just on my weight but on home life as well. --calories and water Im going to continue with my 8 glasses of water, 2 caffinated beverages and 1800 calories, but this time im going to try and eat a little bit healthier. Im going to try and eat 2 pieces of fruit and 2 vegetabled in my day, as well as have more protien. --exercise along with work still, which allows me to walk, im going to try and get up early and do some yoga in the morning, and some meditation. I suffer from anxiouty so im hoping this will quiet my mind as well as allow me to think clearer. --personal this one is important this week. Im going to try really hard on this One. Im in school full time and in my last 2 terms, meaning im very busy working as a graphic designer. I also work and have to maintain a relationship. Because ive been so busy with school, my relationship has taken a Hit. So my goal for this one is to be more mindful. I want to be able to sort out my mind and be able to pay attention to things around me. As well as take some time to rememBer my fiance. Its not that i forget him, i just get buSy... and he has some past problems that i need to take special care of. So here goes to this next week!! Good luck! and remember to always be yourself, and youll be fine

Her rope snapped, the anchor at the top of Cirith Ungol had come free and she was holding a slack rope in her hands. Bracing herself she continued the climb, holding on to ropes of web that met her as she ascended. She was getting close, the monster was likely silently waiting for her, hopeful of a snack consisting of more than orcs and unfortunate vermin. She had read of this demon, Shelob. She was confident in her fighting skills but hoped to avoid a confrontation with the creature. It was time to traverse the web, carefully, using the web and the rock to hopefully evade her adversary. This was the test. She could not be detected. And she must save enough energy to outrun any orcs that might be waiting once she was through. She had read of these orcs, they were no mere bandits or mindless brigands. These were Uruk, bred by Morgoth during the first age, and she did not want to test if she could overpower these beasts. MAIN QUEST A brief intro – After a crazy awesome first start I am back for another round. I love rock climbing, and am still new to the sport, but have now successfully passed a lead-climbing course and am looking forward to it! At the beginning of the first challenge I was climbing about a 5.8 and was hoping to have a long term goal of a 5.10a. Now I've climbed a 5.10a, lead climbed a 5.10a, and am not planning on stopping anytime soon. So to update my quest I think I'll switch to a 5.12. Quest 1 – Climbing into Mordor (+3 STR +1 DEX) The only way to get better at climbing is to do it! A lot! Fortunately with a gym membership to my local rock gym it is doable! I will climb 3 days every week, with the goal of lead-climbing a 5.9 or 5.10 at least once per week. A – At the gym 3 days a week, successfully lead climb once per week. B – At the gym 3 days a week (only missing maybe 1 or 2 days), inconsistent lead climbing. C – Only climb 1-2 times per week. I simply couldn’t make it into Mordor. Quest 2 – Running with Orcs (+2 STA) I’d never been much of a runner. Never have really been able to. I'm happy that I've changed that! I know run a 5k 1-2 times per week. I'm slow but I'm going! I've completed the Zombies, Run! 5K program, (fantastic couch to 5k, btw) and am slowly moving up to 10k's and longer runs! Loving the Zombies, Run! full app as well, the stories are a great motivation! Just have to keep this habit rolling! A – Successfully complete 2 Zombies Run programs per week. C – Successfully complete 1 Zombies Run program per week. Quest 3 – Tangled in the web (+2 CON) I have recently begun practicing aerial yoga which I have been having tons of fun with. Yoga, flexibility, balance, and a bit of TRX really help to keep my workouts dynamic and interesting. Just need to keep making time for it. A – Practice yoga 2 days a week B – Practice yoga 1 day a week C – Practice at least 1 day every other week Side Quest - Lembas Bread (+2 Con) With the extreme increase in exercise I've found my energy level needing to keep up with it. I also have found that I bruise like a banana and some extra vitamins will help me heal. So! Diet and vitamins! A – Begin taking a multivitamin daily, have a breakfast that doesn't consist of just carbs. B – Take a multivitamin

Hey everyone I was wondering how you were all keeping track of your goals as you go through this challenge? I am personally going to be using a calendar with check boxes for what I need to do for the day and at the end of this week I am going to set up some progress bars in my signature.

Disclaimer: This is my first time doing a challenge here... be gentle. 1) Main Goal My main goal is to lose some weight and get in shape. But, to avoid sucking at setting goals, here's a SMART version: lose at least 5 lbs (from ~300 to <= 295) drop at least an inch from my waistline (from ~53.0" to <= ~52"; need to verify measurement)2) Secondary Goals The secondary goal is to be more capable of being active and stronger. But that sounds like a breach in the hull of my goal-setting, so let's patch it up with some SMART details: be able to jog for 5+ minutes at a time (at least on the treadmill) incorporate bench press into my weightlifting routine (<= once per week) do >= 1 weighted squat do >= 1 weighted deadlift do >= 5 unassisted pull-ups in a row (without pausing/stopping)3) Some Background If you want to know about me, and the force driving me forward, you can read about The Fight of My Life and other health-related stuff on (one of my) websites... or don't, up to you. I've been hovering around the same weight for about 6 months now. I've upped my exercising quite a lot, but still find myself floundering instead of improving; I believe the culprit is my diet (meaning what I'm eating, not some contrived list of "eat this but not that" or whatever). I've managed to lessen how much I eat, but I think the culprit in not losing weight is that I will occasionally gorge myself, basically undoing the good I've done during the rest of the week: alcohol, succumbing to gas station food, or eating too much at a restaurant.

Main Quest: to lose 10 pounds Goals: Nutrisystem, Keep up learning spinning, pray more Side Quest: Stick to paying off debt according to our budget plans Guild: Recruit I am a 49 yr old career mom of 3 sons. I lost myself along the way of raising my boys to men and packed on 50 pounds. I have all kinds of health issues now… high cholesterol, pre diabetic, obesity… I want to be back to my 125 and my healthy lifestyle. I used to be an aerobics instructor and I have always been athletic. I want this to be the beginning of my healthy me journey. I want to be off all meds that are fat related and I do not want to see “ obese†category ever again. This is going to be a very long hard journey for me. I am a shorty and the weight will not come off as fast as I want. I tore my piri formis muscle so most of the high impact work outs I like will not be available to me. So I got creative. I can ride a bike without killing my spine, so I took it to the next level. Spinning. It’s fast becoming my new thing so I want to learn how to do it the correct way and build on the foundation. Spin to be slim!

Hello! It's a me, Mario! Ok not really. Shawn here, if you don't know me yet, lucky you! After reading all the rules about the challenges and the guilds, I just couldn't get into it. To be honest, I was never interested in those types of RPG's. As a kid, I was more of a Mario player. My childhood consisted of dodging turtle shells instead of arrows. So to keep true to the purpose of Nerd Fitness's idea of "Level Up Your Life," I created my own challenge for the journey my girlfriend and I are on to build strength, lose weight and live a more happier life. (Follow us on Twitter, link is in our signature.) We just started this challenge today so we may need to make some tweaks along the way as needed. I have broken down my idea into sections below for easier understanding. I have attached 2 pictures for reference. Basics The objective is to go through each level (week) and try to obtain coins and avoid bosses to level up to the next world. All progress is tracked on a chart on our fridge. What is a level? A level is 7 days long. How do we advance to the next level? We have to earn 12 coins. How do we earn coins? We get 1 coin per day for a total of 7 coins. To earn the additional 5 coins we need to complete the level and earn a star, we have to do little challenges or other things that will level up our life (ex. reading a chapter in a book, putting money in our savings or towards a bill, cleaning our cars, etc.) Monday is our weigh-in day, if we lost weight, we get a coin. We can only get 12 coins per level to avoid earning too many coins early and slacking off the remaining levels. We need a total of 4 stars (48 coins) and a minimum of one 1-up mushroom to "warp" to the next world. More on the 1-up mushroom later. How do we get a star? We have to cash in 12 coins to earn 1 star. A total of 4 stars allows us to warp to the next world. What is a world? A world is a commutation of 4 completed levels. To warp to the next world, we need a total of 4 stars. After successfully completing each world, we can buy ourselves a maximum $10-$20 Prize each! (ex. LEGO's, new clothes, iTunes gift card, DVD, can opener, bubble wrap, w/e we want!) We can also save the cash each world to buy something bigger and better later. Oh and of course bragging rights to our pet. That's right Peter our rabbit, we're king! Can we lose coins? Absolutely! If we go about our day and do what we are supposed to, we get our daily coin no questions asked. However, if we encounter a boss and he defeats us, we lose all chances of earning a coin that day and need to earn that coin back on another day. What do you mean bosses? Bosses are different for everyone and should be specific to your own life. Bosses are things that represent our goals, our chores, our mentality, etc. The way a boss "defeats" us is by us not doing what we had planned to do. Bosses for us include not going to the gym, letting our depression take a hold of me, not having at least 1 game/movie night a week, not doing our chores, going over our calories on MyFitnessPal, etc. I included a picture of our "key" which shows you our bosses and the character that represents them. If the boss defeats us, we have to put his picture on our warp pipe for the whole level as a constant reminder that he won that day. What are red mushrooms for? We are given 3 red mushrooms in each world to be used as a free day where we still can get our daily coin even if we royally screwed up. Once we use them, we lose them until we start a new world. What are green mushrooms for? The extra life green 1-Up mushrooms are earned by trying something new and out of our comfort zone, whether it be a new food or a new activity. We need a minimum of one 1-Up mushroom to warp to the next world and we can earn as many as we want. Today I earned one by trying dehydrated jalapeno kale chips my coworker offered me, win! Is the Doctor in? If we are sick one day, we can call Dr. Mario and he will prescribe us a day of rest. If we're faking it however, he will charge us 1 coin so we have to be honest with ourselves and hold each other accountable. Doctors aren't cheap! How the chart works We tape our character to the pipe that is the current day and tape either our bosses or our coins to the pipe depending on how that day went based on the instructions above. Each day we move only our character to the next pipe leaving the previous days items still attached. (We laminated ours to make it easier and we can draw on it with a dry erase marker. Benefits of dating a teacher!) I put the star we're after on the last day for something to aim towards. We put the total number of 1-Ups, stars and coins we've earned to date next to the icons. We put the number level we are on and world we are on as well. We put our weight under our name. An example of what it should look like once we get it going is attached. What are those mystery boxes? Mystery boxes are something to add fun to the week. They can be anything we want. We saved a bunch of these box photos in a folder on our desktop and renamed each photo a specific item so we just open up the folder, hold the arrow key down to scroll through all the pictures at light speed and when we release the button, whatever picture we land on we read what it is titled and that is what we win, or have to do...mu ha ha ha! Some of our examples are: Do 15 jumping jacks, Other person has to do a plank, You pick next movie, Other person has to wash your car windows, etc. I know it sounds confusing but it really isn't. We hope it will bring an element of fun to our journey so we will no longer live like Gumba's! Think this is cool? So did the following: The NY Times calls it, "That was 6 minutes of my life I'll never get back." Borat said, "Very nice, great success!" Lil Jon screamed, "What!? Ooookkk!" Why be Mario if we can Super Mario! Thanks for reading!

Hi Everyone, Long time reader, first time challenger! So in May 2013 I realised I was 80 weeks away from turning 40, and I didn't like where I was. I decided to lose 40 kilos (88 lbs) in 80 weeks - around 0.5 kg (1.1 lbs) a week. This would get me to double digit kilos (less than 99 kilos (218 lbs). Just like magic, the Nerd Fitness emails at the time were all about getting the diet right - so I started there. I made improvements in my diet and for twenty weeks I made the cut - I lost 10kg (22 lbs)! Easy, hey! But then it stopped working. I felt great, but no weight was coming off. Since then, I've only lost an additional 5kg (11 lbs). Last year (2015) was all about setbacks. First, when I was doing bodyweight exercises I injured my shoulder. My physio said it was a 'desk injury' - years of bad posture coming back to bite me. So I started jogging - the couch to 5K program (via Zombie Run 5K app). Unfortunately, I went too hard and injured my Achilles heel. Physio fixed both issues, but then I re-injured my heel. The advice was - lose weight, then run! *heads desk in frustration* I'm determined to work around my weaknesses and find things I love doing. And it turns out - I love lifting. I've been back at the gym since September last year and did the regular 8 weeks machine based program they must give to everyone who starts. It was dull and the second program needed me to visit five days a week! It would be days between upper body workouts - my progress just stalled. But both The Art of Manliness and Nerd Fitness mentioned Starting Strength by Mark Rippetoe and the 5x5 Stronglift program. The wonderful Staci even sent out concise and condensed versions of the major lifts over a few months late last year! I started the Stronglifts 5x5 program on December 18 with the minimum 20kg bar (30kg rows, 40kg deadlift). Goals:1) Continue 5x5 Stronglifts program 2) By 15 Feb, success will beBench 50kg (110 pounds)Squat 80kg (176 pounds)Deadlift 100kg (220 pounds) A pass will be not meeting these weights, but still have done the program - three workouts a week. These weights are less than what I should be lifting if I continue to follow the program and don't miss an increase. For example, I should be squating 90kg by Feb 15th. This allows me to fail a little (which is part of the program) but but not a lot. No weight loss goal - I'm gaining, [insert cuss word] - but shirts are fitting looser, so I won't fixate on that. Get strong. That's it. Wish me luck!

"A famous explorer once said that the extraordinary is in what we do, not who we are. I'd finally set out to make my mark, to find adventure. But instead adventure found me. In our darkest moments, when life flashes before us, we find something. Something that keeps us going. Something that pushes us. When all seemed lost, I found a truth. And I knew what I must become." Hi guys! First official challenge on the forum, though a long-time reader & Rebel! Some big life events in 2014 set up some MASSIVE changes for me that are kicking off 2015. I'm subletting my apartment, leaving my office drone desk job on January 21st, embarking on a big road trip from Wisconsin to Arizona, working at the Arizona Renaissance Festival for February-March (and living in a tent in the desert for the duration), and then embarking on another road trip to settle in Oregon. My life is about to become a HUGE adventure. I'm still working on defining my overall quest, but I've been brainstorming, and the person I want to be... works out regularly and has an active lifestylespends time outside frequentlyDOES things, not just PLANS themdoesn't procrastinate (see above!)eats mindfully (paleo/primal/Whole30)loves wholeheartedlycoaches/trains/teaches -- helps othersrespects and believes in selfdoesn't say "I can't"I'm happy with my weight, but I struggle with consistency when it comes to working out and cooking; I'd like to get better at those habits, and get a little leaner and a lot stronger. Per calipers, measurements, and photo comparison, I think I'm around 24% body fat, and I'd love to reach 20% this year. I've never quantified that goal before since I'm happy with the number on the scale (I don't even own a scale, which makes it impractical to set weight-based goals) so I'm not sure how much time that will realistically take. Any thoughts? Ever since the newest Tomb Raider game, I've wanted to be Lara Croft, and even cosplayed her at my first con last year. I want to really feel like a confident, strong badass next time I cosplay her (ummm, at the Camp Nerd Fitness costume party!?!?). So here we go! Given that I'll be on the road and have no idea what my life's about to look like, I'm going to be pretty gentle with my goals for this challenge - but I DO want to participate so I start the year off strong, even amid all this chaos. Goal 1: Don't hit snooze. Easy enough to track! Either I do, or I don't. Goal 2: Create new morning routine including movement & meditation. It will be hard to have a routine while I'm moving, but I'll do my best to settle into a routine of 2 minutes of meditation and a sun salutation every morning before starting my day. I also really want to work on my fear of falling by practicing handstands, so I think I'm going to incorporate that into this as well. Maybe I'll take a pic of me doing my first-ever handstand at the end of the six weeks! Goal 3: Eat mindfully following paleo guidelines. I'll keep a log of this -- if I can't manage a daily food log during this chaotic period, I'll at least log any non-paleo choices.Goal 4: No impulse spending. My goal in December was to stop using credit cards, and I succeeded! A cross-country move + quitting a stable job is going to be difficult financially, and I'm looking at potentially going to grad school later this year, so I want to keep the momentum from last month going this month. Hopefully these are small enough to maintain while on the road while still covering my priorities of improving physical, mental, and financial health! Also, if you have suggestions on quantifying/setting a realistic body fat % alteration goal, I'd love to hear them. Usually I just focus my goals on eating cleaner or lifting regularly, but I thought going at it from this angle might help. Let's do this, 2015! A = 40-42 days on point (only missing 0-3) B = 35-39 C = 30-34 Also, I'll be using HabitRPG to track my progress as well. If you don't already use it, check it out!

This week I start my second challenge both with the rangers and for the year. Last challenge had a great middle, I hit my stride by finding something that clicked with me and got me to the gym, and I saw good results. Family coming to visit (and me trying my best to de-bachelor my boyfriend’s home because of it) as well as a ton of meetings at work during my lunch break (my favorite time to work out) side tracked me at the end. I still learned a lot, and now I KNOW I can do it. This Challenges Focus: Signet of Stone – Passive Boost to Toughness (Outer Strength) Training – To be tough you must train. 3 weight training days, 2 cardio days, and a walk 20-30min every day. Worth +4 Str +2 Dex (Inner Strength) Food – This has been my most difficult wall to break through, but to be tough you must feed your body healthy things, not crap. During this challenge I will track all my food via TwoGrand (TiffanyD if anyone else is on there), I’m going to write in the comment calorie info when it’s available, and I am going to focus on eating no more than 1450 calories a day (my protein shake post SL 5x5/Crossfit will not be counted). I am not having anything be “off limits†this go around. Worth +3 points (tbd) (Resilience) Water – In order to be tough you need to be hydrated, I will drink a minimum of 2.2 liters of water a day (9, 8oz cups). Worth +2 to Con My life goal this time around is to be nicer to myself. I am the type that refuses to expect something out of people that I don’t expect from myself, so I can be very critical. I don’t think anyone should be as harsh on themselves as I am to me, and I need to change that. I will be completing the love your body challenge here.

Aeshnidae Flips the Bird at Being Sick Intro: This is my third challenge as a Ranger and fourth challenge overall. I’ve been going to the gym for a long time (at least 3 days per week) and I was about 7 months into a heavy lifting program when I got slammed by bronchitis and then pneumonia, all of which exacerbated my fibromyalgia and has left me super fatigued. Main Quest: To get back into fighting shape after being so sick, without pushing myself too hard and relapsing. Mission 1: Improve sleep quality/decrease feelings of fatigue, or at least create a list that I can take to my doctor. Mission 1.1. Track fibro symptoms and any other symptoms (like illness) daily. +2 CON Mission 1.2. Track quality of sleep and what I did to prepare for sleep (including taking my sleep meds) so that I can continue to improve my sleep habits. +2 CHA Mission 1.3. Practice meditation for 10 minutes at least 3 times per week using Calm.com (or something similar). +2 WIS Mission 2: Continue building strength and balance. I’ve been heavy lifting for many months now and I still love it. Last time I tried to incorporate handstands but my whole challenge was thrown off by illness. I also realized that I hate being upside down, so I think I’ll revert to my planks and push-ups on medicine balls for balance. Mission 2.1. Perform at least 3 heavy lifting sessions per week, lifting in the 4-6 rep range for 3 sets per exercise. +3 STR Mission 2.2. Perform at least 1 minute of plank on medicine balls 4 times per week. +3 DEX Mission 3: Get back on the cardio wagon, but in a way that won’t interfere with recovering from pneumonia. Do at least 15 minutes of cardio 3 times per week. +3 STA

MOAR CRUSH!

Avast. Arr. So here I be, rockin' ye like a hurricane. In the recent past my attendance at the forums here has been spotty. I have no excuse, nor any coherent reasoning behind this. Part of my challenge last time was daily attendance, and I got here about 80% or so. Never be satisfied with anything less than absolute perfection! ...said no sane person ever. Still, I think that I can do better! This challenge is another step toward that goal, my fellow beings. Challenge the First: Nothing but water. No soda/pop/Coke/whatever, no tea, no milk, no orange juice, no (horror of horrors) grape juice. Nuffink but straight-up H2O, or at least as straight-up as one can acquire from bottles and faucet. Since my hometown has the strange distinction of having some of the best tapwater in the USA (as well as working hard to be the number one meth-exporting county in Lower Nowhere...related? I think not), this shouldn't be terribly hard. Right? Guys? o.o Challenge the Second: Walking. I'm a big guy, as previously seen, and while I'm in dramatically better shape than I was this time last year, I still have a long way to go. My goal is to go from my birthday weight of 459lbs to 400lbs by the time my next birthday rolls around (Oct 26th). While I'm making progress, I think that adding walking to my regimen would be a good thing, to help me get used to it and to improve my overall health further. Since I'm in good enough shape to do it, I'm going to add four miles a week to my workouts. Walk a mile every day for four days? Good enough. Two miles one day and two another? Fine, at least for the purposes of this challenge. I think that four times a week is probably better for forming a habit, though, so I'm gonna try to stick to that. Challenge the Third: Finish the editing process for my vampire/cyborg shit-storm novel, working title Suck. That's right. All of it. Start to finish, baby, finished product. I have... *checks Word document* 138 pages written in the rough draft, and I'm 50 pages into the first of three editing cycles. Phase one is the easy part, phase two is the Beast, and phase three is the polish-up. Then it's ready for test readers, making a cover, apologizing to people who have nightmares, etc. But yeah, get it ready for test readers, that's the goal here. That's the point where I've done all I can, I'm incredibly tired of it all, and am ready to never read it again ever. o.o What a goal! Challenge the Fourth: Come here, every day, post in this thread, post in my soon-to-be year-long challenge thread (links to follow), and actually keep up with my fellow Rangers and Nerds. I do so swear, and volunteer for tribute. Cheers, fellow nerds! It'll be an amazing new year!

I have made some surprisingly clear goals for the first challenge. I graduated on Christmas and started working full-time, so now I've got some real free-time and I can focus on fitness! I've been having quite a lot of different kinds of physical hobbies in my life. From dance to horseback riding. Now my main hobbies are gym and climbing (I know I should belong to the assassins' guild, but my body type is too heavy for that... in my opinion.) Main Quest: Sticking into healthy lifestyle and building strong body! (Exercise routines (both strength and cardio), almost vegan diet and getting out of the sugar addiction) Challenge quest 1: Reduce sugary treats into eating them max 3 times per week. (That's a hard one for a chocoholic) Challenge quest 2: Make up a clear gym workout-plan. (leg-day, pull-day, push-day) And DO IT! (Gonna post more about it later) Challenge quest 3: Four clean pull ups wit underhand grip. 3 is my record so far. One pull up with overhand grip.

Side quest: to write all updates to this challenge thread while in-character. _______ Fewer trees on the horizon allowed more light to reach the forest floor, which signaled the last half-mile of road before Granny Nogg would see the walls of the city. Ankh-Morpork was a bustling, multicultural and multispecies metropolis, home to the Unseen University, the Guilds, and the famed City Watch. 'Ahhh', Granny Nogg thought to herself as she passed the open wooden gates and nodded to the Watch officer on duty. 'I've missed ye, Ankh-Morpork.' The city would be home for the next six weeks, and the first order of business was to find Wiggly Charlie. She looked to the rooftops for a familiar landmark: there he was, Wiggly Charlie, the black weathervane shaped like a cloaked man. It stood atop the Bell Tower and marked the location of the Assassins' Guild. As Granny Nogg made her way across the considerable distance to the Guild, she mentally reviewed the course of training she'd be undertaking while at the mercies - if you could call them that (they certainly did) - of the Assassins: Main Quest: To make more progress toward meeting all the required reps of the Beginner Body Weight Workout. To complete this quest I will: Quest 1: Work at the BBWW 3 times a week, increasing the following reps:squats: Currently I can do 3 sets of 16. I will increase my reps by at least one rep every 2 weeks until I can do 3 sets of 19 squats.push-ups Currently I can do 3 sets of 16 wall push-ups. I will increase my reps by at least one rep every two weeks until I can do 3 sets of 19 wall push-ups.lunges: Currently I can do 3 sets of 18 walking lunges. I will increase my reps by at least one rep every two weeks until I can do 3 sets of 21 walking lunges.dumbbell rows: Currently I can do 3 sets of 10 dumbbell rows with 12.5 lbs. I will increase my weight to 15 lbs by the end of the 6 weeks.Triceps Kick Back: Currently I can do 3 sets of 10 kick backs with 5 lbs. I will increase my weight to 10 lbs by the end of the 6 weeks. Hand/wrist dumbbell exercises: Currently I can do 3 sets of 10 of each exercise. Will maintain that level for the next 6 weeks. plank: Currently I can do 3 sets of 15 second planks. I will increase my plank time by at least one second every two weeks until I can do 3 sets of 18 second planks.jumping jacks: Currently I can do 3 sets of 30 jumping jacks. This meets the criteria for the BBWW so my goal is to just continue with this number of reps/setsMeasurement: A= completing all elements of the quest 3x a week. B= Increasing reps for squats, push-ups, lunges, and plank by 75% AND being consistent about working out 3x a week. C= increasing reps for squats, push-ups, lunges, and plank by 50% but not being consistent about working out 3x a week. D= increasing reps for squats, push-ups, lunges, and plank by 25% but not being consistent about working out 3x a week; F= giving up. Str=3 Quest 2: Post to the forums 3x a week for encouragement and accountabilityPost to my challenge thread at least 3x a weekJoin and Participate in an Accountabilibuddies groupMeasurement: A= participating at least one post/comment 3x a week in the forums, B= participating 2x a week in the forums. C= participating 1x a week in the forums . D= participating -1x a week in the forums. F= giving up. Cha=3 Quest 3: Respect my body so I get the most out of my workoutsDrink at least 6 glasses of water a day, 5 days of the weekGo to bed before 11pm at least 5 nights of the weekPost progress photos at least once a month to the Before/During/After Shots! album, "Granny Nogg's Progress" Con=2 ​ Life Quest: To write all updates to this challenge in-character (improve writing skills)To film, edit, and upload a new how-to video for making a polymer clay flower cane to my YouTube channel

Actually, she's been skulking around the game for awhile now, popping her head in and out, but now she's in it to win it! Main Quest Get down to 190 pounds to unlock Blistering Charm! Challenge Goals Limit self to one processed food item per grocery trip (sometimes a girl needs her toast, aight?) Hit the gym or pavement at least 3x a week Bring lunch to work at least 2x a week (save them dollar bills) Bonus goal: Write more! Write something (journal entry, short story, fanfiction, whatever) at least 4x a weekGrading System 1. Processed Food A: Limits processed purchase to one for entire weekB: Limits processed purchase to one per grocery trip for weekC: Processed purchases exceed 3 in one week, but no Oreos purchasedD: Processed purchases exceed 3 in one week, but Oreos are purchasedF: Well dang girl put that second pack of double-stuffed Oreos down and go buy a banana2. Exercise A: Achieves 4 workouts in a weekB: Achieves goal of 3 workouts in a weekC: Gets 2 workouts in for the weekD: Gets 1 workout in for the weekF: Is a lazy potato3. Lunch A: Brings lunch to work 3 times a weekB: Achieves goal of bringing lunch 2 timesC: Brings lunch 1 time during weekD: Makes lunch for week but leaves it at homeF: Look at your wallet. It is empty.4. Writing A: Writes 4 timesB: Writes 3 timesC: Writes 2 timesD: Writes 1 timeF: Forgets the English language Here's to the New Year, fellow rebels and nerds! Let's get after it.

Argh. I typed most of this, hit the Enter key and for some reason Google Chrome decided that meant "go back." Starting over... *grumble grumble* Main Quest: Obese No More. This requires that I lose almost 100 pounds. My current weight is 261, and in order to no longer be obese according to the BMI, I must weigh 169 at least. Quest 1: Heavy lifting workout 3 days a week (3 exception days permitted). I'm permitting exception days because I know that real life can get in the way, and there's also a much greater chance of me getting sick this time of year, which would prevent exercise. Also, 2 days a week of a good weight lifting workout is still good. But for the best results in this quest, 3 days a week is ideal. Quest 2: Tracking food every day (3 exception days permitted). Stay within daily food allowance limits. Again, real life may get in the way. In my experience, especially when eating out it can be hard to track food. I want to strive for tracking every single day, though, and if I can't track something I want it to be because it's a meal that is very hard to accurately track, and not because of laziness. Also, last quest I stuck to tracking only, but could eat whatever I wanted, because I was just making myself get into the habit of tracking daily. This time, I need to stay within daily allowances and stick to healthy choices most of the time: good sources of protein, healthy fats, and of course lots of fruits and veggies. Quest 3: Lose 6 pounds. Quest 1 and 2 should lead to this goal. This is low-balling possible weight loss quite a lot - considering my weight, I wouldn't be surprised if I lose 10 or even a little more. But a pound per week is good healthy weight loss, and accounts for any plateauing that might occur. Life Quest: Complete one wearable garment for my costuming. DragonCon is at the end of the summer, which is closer than you might think. I have a bad tendency to start my costuming in June, and that means I spend the entire summer rushing to finish costumes. Things that I have a very hard time doing while rushing to finish costumes include having a social life, getting to the gym, and prepping healthy meals. So this year I'm striving to get started early because I know at least one costume will include a lot of leather work, and the other is an existing costume that I'm altering to make it look much cooler. And since "get started on costuming" isn't really a SMART goal, I've decided I should strive to complete one wearable item. Could be a leather gauntlet or armor. Could be one of the two jackets I need to alter. Just so long as I can wear it by the end of the challenge. And yes, everything I'm working on this early is either not relevant to size or else adjustable, so that weight loss won't prevent me from using it. Editing to add point distribution for each goal. Quest 1: Heavy lifting 3 days per week: +3 to STR, +2 to STA Quest 2: Track food every day: +3 to WIS Quest 3: Lose 6 pounds: +2 to CON, +2 to DEX Life Quest: Complete one wearable garment for costuming: +3 CHA Point distribution in case of failure to complete any part of the challenge is as follows: A - 100% B - 75% C - 50% D - 25% F - 0% I will also only award myself an A in lifting and tracking if I do these the set number of times (3 times a week for lifting, every day for tracking). I really only added the exception days in order to give myself permission to make a few exceptions, but still put a limit on the number I intend to take.

“Fear is the path to the dark side…fear leads to anger…anger leads to hate…hate leads to suffering.†- Yoda This challenge (and year) is going to be me finally working on my fear of basically everything, especially what people think of me. I want to be able to be comfortable with myself, no matter what. I really want to stop being a door mat for everyone. I want to be able to tell people off if they are treating me like crap. I would like to also get step closer to being able to start traveling and become a freelancing illustrator. Now it's time to reveal what I'll be facing this challenge: Finances: learn to budget my money ~make a list and decide what my meals with be for the week ~figure out how much want to put aside for traveling (and do it) ~set limit on what I can spend a week ~set up payments for Camp NF Fitness: feel comfortable weightlifting feel comfortable with the plank posebe able to do a push up (or 5 atleast)Run on treadmill atleast 3 days a week Personal: post an art piece on my Tumblr a weekread a book a weektalk to a random person a day (since I'm really shy)meditate 5 minutes a dayI have no clue if I'm overdoing it, but it's the only way I'm going to get what I want. I will not accept failure. Reward for my challenge: http://www.activateapparel.com/design/31444-lets-get-down-to-business I been eying it for long time now. http://www.lookhuman.com/design/29420-im-not-a-gym-rat-im-a-gym-unicorn Since I am basically a unicorn. For last challenge, I bought myself a pair of Vibram Fivefingers. This time I'm buying these babies.

The First Challenge. The first challenge of year, and my very own first challenge. The challenge that shows who is truly Amazon...and who is a mere mortal. A true trial by FIRE. I'M SO BLOODY EXCITED! I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR THE NEW FORUMS TO COME UP SINCE LAST YEAR!! I am BlackTezca, on my way to becoming Amazon: fit, strong, battle hardy, all that jazz. I've never been a very big person (neither horizontally and definitely not vertically), I've never considered myself to be fit or that strong either. And that is very much a big deal to me. I want to feel powerful, as I described in my introduction post. I want to be more than just a software engineering Otaku. I want to be a software engineering Otaku who also looks like Wonder Woman. And there it is: My Main Quest is to be as POWERFUL and BATTLE READY as Wonder Woman A more bottom heavy Wonder Woman but you know... To do this, I need to keep on building up on the habits I have slowly started and LEVEL UP. Thus for my first challenge I have these three side quests: Side Quest 1: Exercise 5 to 6 days a week for 45 to 60 minutes Details: I work out home, utilizing body weight workouts and workout videos. Pretty mostly from FitnessBlender. I do mostly the level 3 and level 4 workouts with a level 5 thrown in for pain and a level 2 thrown in for flexibility and a break if the level 5 killed me the day before. I tend to use do a lot of their kickboxing videos as well since they are the most fun. I want to keep this up and push myself to workout most of the week and due to the variety is why I gave myself some stamina, strength, and dexterity for stat rewards. Contingencies: Some travel towards the end of the challenge may hamper this. I'll be walking A LOT, but I'll need to keep up my body weight training so the 20 minute hotel workout will be most useful, as well as some of the superhero workouts from NeilARey. Tracking: I'll be tracking using MyFitnessPal ( username BlackTezca ) and on January 5th, FitnessBlender does a new site launch which will have a calendar feature, so I'll be tracking there as well. Of course this lovely thread will be updated. Grading: A for 5+ days a week ( 2 Sta 2 Str 2 Dex ) B for mostly 4 days a week ( 2 Sta 1 Str 1 Dex ) C for mostly 3 days a week ( 1 Sta 1 Dex ) F for all else Side Quest 2: Eat below my daily caloric limit (accounting for exercise) and stick BELOW my carb and sugar macro while not caring if I eat ABOVE my fat and protein 6 days a week. Details: I'll be leaning more Primal towards my food: avoiding the gains and legumes, eating veggies and fruits, scarfing down meat, and doing my best to ignore candy, donuts, beer, all those things that I typically scarf down. Beer and Lattes are a weakness: I'll be drinking tea and coffee with some cream and stevia for sweetener and will stock up on red wine instead for when the craving for a nightcap hits. There is still some fight again conventional wisdom I may have, but I have support and control over what I put in my mouth. Contingencies: There is some traveling I'll be doing during towards the end of the challenge to a place where...uh...grains are hard to avoid. I'll do my best to keep my sugar underneath as well as keep my caloric intake about 1500 a day during that time (somewhat above my 1350 base on MFP, but not so much that fat gain is a big concern). This will be a tough thing for me but I'll do my best to stay positive and behave myself. Tracking: I use MyFitnessPal (username BlackTezca ) to keep track of my food and drink consumption. I'll also update this thread with progress. Grading: A for 6+ days a week ( 3 Con ) B for mostly 5 days a week ( 2 Con ) C for mostly 4 days a week ( 1 Con ) F for all else Side Quest 3: Be in bed by 11 pm on business days to try and get 7 hours of sleep Details: The hours before I work are the times I am the most free to work out without feeling drained from my, admittedly not active, but at times FRUSTRATING career. Because I don't have a gym at my work nor do I have gym subscription yet and various other excuses, working out at home is most convenient. But lo, I end up de-stressing first. Thus giving myself an hour or so BEFORE I get ready to work is the most convenient option...unfortunately that means getting my lazy ass up early and I need some hours of sleep for that. Contingencies: There really isn't any contingencies. On days that I don't work, I'll be getting 7 or more hours of sleep Tracking: I'll be tracking this on this thread on a semi-daily to weekly basis. Grading: A for being in bed at 11 to 11:15 pm 90 to 100% business days for this challenge ( 2 Con 1 Cha ) B for being in bed at 11 to 11:15 pm 80 to 89% of business days for this challenge ( 2 Con ) C for being in bed at 11 to 11:15 pm 70 to 79% of business days for this challenge ( 1 Con ) F for all else Okay and there it is- wait...I mentioned ARTSY up there...didn't I? I NEED TO DRAW! HOLY CRAP I NEED TO DRAW AGAIN AND I HAVEN'T BEEN BECAUSE I SUCK AND I'M LAAAAAAHHHHHHHHZZZZZZYYYYYYYYYYY. *DEEEP SIGH* Life Quest (Updated 01/07/2015): Draw an image, sketch, illustration, The Last Supper, SOMETHING once a week Details: I had a REALLY big art kick last year that died because of some stupid event (*coughs* lay off *coughs*) and I need to get back into drawing! I can draw (eh) and I like doing so cause it helps my crazy imagination so I am FORCING this on myself to draw and not let my art squandered like I did YEARS ago. Contingencies (Updated 01/07/2015): No contingencies. Even when I travel I can sketch a bit. I'll buy a small messenger bag, buy a little sketch book in it, and SKETCH DAMMIT. Also, if I do more than one art per week, poof extra credit! Note that I made the grading a little easier: I'm gonna be the only person in the trip who can (kinda) speak the language so I'm gonna be stressed out. Thus I wanted to be easier on myself with this so I can enjoy my trip. Tracking: I have an art Tumblr and I also have a DeviantArt (anyone on there?! WATCH ME FOR ACCOUNTABILITY). I'll use those for tracking and on a weekly basis...like a weekly update or something, I'll post art on this thread. Grading: A for one art 5 to 6 weeks ( 2 Wis 1 Cha ) B for one art 4 weeks ( 2 Wis ) C for one art 3 weeks ( 1 Wis ) F for all else That is what I have planned! I shall conquer this challenge and LEVEL UP! And so...it begins.

Two weeks is a long time without a challenge! To quote from my first goal: I have a new goal this time around: get ready for the Ragnar Trail North Cascades in September! I've prepped for long runs before (marathon, half marathons), but nothing like this before. Bring it on! In the meantime, I need to improve my overall fitness and get ready for my work's summer summer meetings in Quebec City. 1. Get fighting fit - Crossfit! It's been the core of my fitness for the past year or two, and after a month or two off I'm bringing it back online. I've joined the box just down the street, and am signed up for 3x/wk. So that's my goal! 2. Eat like a hero - I had great success tracking my input/activity with myfitnesspal and my Fitbit One (profile here). I'm going to repeat that success by using those tools daily. (+CONS) 3. Parler Français like a Norman - I'm finding that my language skills aren't cutting it. Yes, my German really needs some work too... but for this challenge, I'm rebooting French. I'm going to spend at least 20 minutes 5x/week. (+WIS, +CHA)

Okay I'm diving in! But slowly, 'cause I'm stiff and the water looks cold. I'm a girl lifter and I looooove it - spent my whole life jogging/running and hating every f*#% step of it, but that what you do to get fit, right? Never mind that I was bored to tears and constantly injured. Took up weightlifting hoping if I strenthened the suspension I wouldn't be limping like 50 Cent all the time. Never looked back... Now I back squat 130lbs (5 sets of 10, bitchezzz) and love pushing the prowler, because it's impossible not to feel badass when you're shoving 90 pounds of weight up and down the parking lot on a sled. Howeveh.... My beloved lifting HAS made me a bit stiff, which according to a buddy of mine who's a former bodybuilder is not that uncommon (any fellow nerds with input, feel free to weigh in). I notice it in the mornings and when I get up from sitting and reading especially - tight hip flexors, lower back, hamstrings. Upper body isn't quite as affected. On top of this, my fat loss has stalled (i ride my road bike 3 times a week and suspect I'm over indulging in the carbs during and after rides) and I was a bit of a piglet over the holidays - Irish/Italian family, you can imagine...so I need to focus on cutting some body fat. So! My challenge has two prongs, not unlike Frodo needing to both return the ring AND return Aragorn to his rightful Kingship, or going to the grocery store and remembering milk AND paper towels. Difficult, but not impossible. First, I am commiting to 3 20 minute yoga sessions (at home) per week, to help me with my flexibilty and make me not grunt like my dad when I get up from the couch. I used to love yoga pre-lifting, so is more about remembering to do it and making time when all I want to do is lift in the gym, waaaaah... Second, I want to lose 5% bodyfat. I have no idea if y'all consider that an astounding amount or a laughably easy goal, but it seems like an attainable number to me (my BFP is pretty high) without being condemned to eat carrot sticks and particleboard. I have some post-holiday water weight that's already coming off now that I'm tracking my carbs and not eating pasta and potatoes all day, so I'm already progressing. My plan is to keep my carbs in the range of 125g a day (more on bicycling days), cut down to one cup of coffee a day (i drink cream in my coffee, so thats an easy calorie cut), add 25 miles to my cycling goal (been doing 50 a week want to up to 75, not as hard as it sounds) and instead of increasing my lifts work more on endurance, ie more sets with the same weight and more crossfit-style stuff. Then I can refocus on getting those numbers to inch up again....yeah! So that's it for now, will check in in a couple days to update, while valiantly avoiding doughnuts... Mmm. Oh and on the theory that hard work deserves a reward, if I complete my challenge I am buying myself a new set of hockey skates, because I really want them. Ebay here I come.