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This is Stronkey Kong here to tell you that I’ve got a real problem-- a set of problems really. And these are problems that you’ve all probably faced, and will face again. BUT! – Lucky for you... Lucky for me, lucky for us all, I’ve got a plan to combat these problems. And if you’ll stick with me, you can combat them too. Problem #1: I am too fat. Really. I weigh 300 lbs. It’s out of control. I have been fat all my life. Is it a slow metabolism? Is it because I’m lazy? Or just too busy to focus on eating right and exercising consistently? Problem #2: I am in too much debt. Student Loans. Credit Cards. Car Payment. Sure. I could work overtime like a dog at my job, but then I’d have no time left for me, for my friends and family, or for YOU! Scrimping and scraping pennies isn’t gonna get me that nice little piece of land. Now, it’s time for... REAL LASTING CHANGE. Problem #3: I want to work on my own terms, my own schedule, from wherever I want. If I had the freedom to set my own schedule, do what I love (writing), I’d have the extra time for more activities, spending time with friends and family, and traveling. Without a job tied to a desk, sapping my willpower, I’d have the energy and drive to work out more. And more time to focus on writing fiction and other creative hobbies that charge me up instead of draining the life from me. Can you relate? Have you, yourself, faced one or more of these problems in your life? Do you anticipate seeing them in the future? If so, at the beginning of this challenge, I’ll show you the ONE SIMPLE TRICK to making all of these problems go away. DON’T MISS OUT!!! Hit that “Like” button and SUBSCRIBE NOW!

Greetings, and welcome to all! (I made it, barely). I’m a married parent of 4 kids aged 1-9. We own a small business, are building a house, and otherwise are quite busy. I’m ultimately an adventurer at heart, though I train similar to a lot of Rangers (and I’m something of a Druid Paladin which is also something of an equivalent to a Ranger). I love hiking, exploring, traveling, and other fun things with the family. Since shortly before joining Nerdfitness, my physical training is typically built around injury rehabilitation (which happens a bit more often due to autoimmune arthritis) and training to be able to travel, explore, and play with my family. I have a pretty effective Disney World training system, and try to ensure that at any point I’m strong enough to carry my whole family somewhere. That has become more difficult as the years go on but I can still do it for the most part. I am also an enthusiastic suburban homesteader bent on establishing an orchard and vegetable garden, so things can get pretty out-doorsy depending on my goals. My needs mean I do a variety of types of training, and my earliest two physical training goals were “run fast” and “be able to competitively play any sport I come across.” I prefer to avoid gyms and do a lot of body weight training. When I do lift weights it is at the YMCA or, more commonly, takes the form of children, sandbags, or logs. The bakery kept running while we were gone but unfortunately the manager was less than scrupulous and left us in a pretty bad way, so we’re back to running it with part time help and straining hard to bounce back. It’s particularly important because we gotta build it big enough to fully support us full time and here we are having just celebrated a year in and we’re not in track. Fortunately, we have someone whose entire job is sales call legwork. Goals: 1. Sleep. As best as possible. This is critical to managing my emotions as well as general health and quality of life. 2. Race training? This includes calisthenics, the race plan training, and loaded carries. Jessie is still hurt and we’re also exhausted with the start of school. That said, I had a pretty cool and unexpected experience lately- my forearms have stretch marks and are almost an inch bigger than they were. 3. Take one concrete step forward per day- at least one tangible, visible thing to make life better. This ranges from things as small as “dig out the replacement toaster” to as big as “reorganize the playroom.” I don’t have to complete the bigger ones as long as I make progress. -> Especially important since we’re moving in a year. 4. Take one concrete step forward per day career-wise. I need my job but I’m not satisfied in it and otherwise need a change. I need to hone/adapt skills and look for other opportunities. -> This still involves dramatically expanding bakery sales, and potentially moving into another remote job. 5. Home and Garden. Home is better than it was in a lot of ways. The basement is still awful and there’s a ton of stuff to do. I haven’t been in the garden in a significant way for 2 months and that’s sad. 6. Therapy. I have a new(er) diagnoses and new(er) medication that have been, it feels, pretty life changing. I finished intensive therapy that was also insanely helpful prior to that and I am continuing with less frequent sessions. My goal is to better learn how to manage ADHD and how to be a more connected, present, and supportive husband and father. I think I have been progressing well. I feel healthy. I am excited about how this has gone. I am working in anger and in particular not reflecting emotions. Sleep helps. So does therapy. The last 3 bakery days have been great. We catered a lunch at the kids’ school and it was almost twice the demand expected, and since my last post we’ve added 4 more wholesale customers and roughly doubled daily retail. Gotta keep expanding at this rate or greater.

Greetings, and welcome to all! I’m a married parent of 4 kids aged 1-9. The last 3 weeks have been a long-anticipated pair of events, and the second I officially over tomorrow. I have gained at least 10 lbs (probably 15 or more) and it’s a bit uncomfortable. But I also didn’t want to travel Europe without partaking in the food and beverages. I’m ultimately an adventurer at heart, though I train similar to a lot of Rangers (and I’m something of a Druid Paladin which is also something of an equivalent to a Ranger). I love hiking, exploring, traveling, and other fun things with the family. Since shortly before joining Nerdfitness, my physical training is typically built around injury rehabilitation (which happens a bit more often due to autoimmune arthritis) and training to be able to travel, explore, and play with my family. I have a pretty effective Disney World training system, and try to ensure that at any point I’m strong enough to carry my whole family somewhere. That has become more difficult as the years go on but I can still do it for the most part. I am also an enthusiastic suburban homesteader bent on establishing an orchard and vegetable garden, so things can get pretty out-doorsy depending on my goals. My needs mean I do a variety of types of training, and my earliest two physical training goals were “run fast” and “be able to competitively play any sport I come across.” I prefer to avoid gyms and do a lot of body weight training. When I do lift weights it is at the YMCA or, more commonly, takes the form of children, sandbags, or logs. We’re training for one of the Disney races as a family. Though it’s mostly on hold due to a hip injury Jessie had. The last 2 events (travel) were pretty helpful in my training; I’ve been performing heavy carries to ensure I could carry luggage and children long distances and times, and frankly it was well worth all the effort. Homesteading is in full swing. Our tomatoes and berries are going crazy. I’m a bit sad I haven’t been home for most of it but Marinara and the neighbors have been ensuring none are going to waste. Healthwise, we’ve been living the keto lifestyle for most of the year and we’ve found it to be incredibly easy to stick to 99% of the time, meaning we’re seeing more success and I’m burning less willpower on food-related stuff. I am currently quite above past my arbitrary goal weight, and while I don’t much care about that I do care about my joints as well as how my clothes fit. We’ll be back into keto after we return. The trip to Europe in particular was really good for me mentally, and I think for Jessie as well. We travel well together and I really enjoyed having the new experiences together. I am also excited with how well speaking and understanding French went. The bakery also seems to have kept running while we are gone so major props to our manager. Goals: 1. Sleep. As best as possible. This is critical to managing my emotions as well as general health and quality of life. I am in a far better position now than at the beginning of the last challenge. 2. Race training. This includes calisthenics, the race plan training, and loaded carries. Race training as a family is currently paused as Jessie hurt her sciatic nerve and needs rest to recover. She tried training through and reducing the intensity but that exacerbated the problem. It is likely a torn muscle and while it’s slowly getting better it’s really only going to improve with time and rest. 3. Take one concrete step forward per day- at least one tangible, visible thing to make life better. This ranges from things as small as “dig out the replacement toaster” to as big as “reorganize the playroom.” I don’t have to complete the bigger ones as long as I make progress. 4. Take one concrete step forward per day career-wise. I need my job but I’m not satisfied in it and otherwise need a change. I need to hone/adapt skills and look for other opportunities. -> This now involves expanding bakery sales, and potentially moving into another remote job. 5. Home and Garden. I want both to be better. Especially the home. A major amount of cleaning and organizing took place while we were gone and I’m feeling better about the overall state. However, it appears that both the fridge and washer are borked up and need to be fixed or replaced. Hoping just fixed. The washer a least is still under warranty. 6. Therapy. I have a new(er) diagnoses and new(er) medication that have been, it feels, pretty life changing. I finished intensive therapy that was also insanely helpful prior to that and I am continuing with less frequent sessions. My goal is to better learn how to manage ADHD and how to be a more connected, present, and supportive husband and father. I think I have been progressing well. I feel healthy. I am excited about how this has gone. I am working on anger management and taking a page from the book of Mr. Fred Rogers. I had no idea that he struggled with a strong and volatile temper. He never wanted to be remembered as a saint because he didn’t want his example to be unachievable but I do think he is probably the best person who ever lived a full life. I will be looking to him as an example and we’ve decided to introduce the show as a regular part of our kids’ lives. Gods know it’s as helpful to me as it is to them. And I’m adding care of words as well to this goal for things don’t have to be yelled to hurt. If I’m being entirely honest with myself, the best way to do any of this is to cut down on what I do altogether. There are just too many things. It’s not so bad during the summer, but during the school year… rough. A lot of our house work is a straight up investment in freeing up time later. I am eager to be back home now. Oh, and if you’re following from my last thread and the thread before AND the thread before, we’re STILL RPing a scene with Barnaby the Brass Dragon in our D&D campaign since March 4th. Almost 4 months of RP and close to 100?hours of me pretending to be a lonely brass dragon having the time of his life at a party while sharing dragon lore with the party. Technically they are now off his porch but he’s offered them a ride in an old, not-entirely-functional airship (that he’s carrying). We haven’t played much in June, of course. I brought the stuff with us but we haven’t played this week.

Greetings, and welcome to all! I’m a married parent of 4 kids aged 0-8. The last few challenges have been rough; Jessie’s job has been in the busy season, my job has been in the busy season, and the bakery officially opened for retail business. Plus kids. Plus school. Plus struggles with one of the teachers at school for one kid and struggles with dance instructors with two others. As often is the case, this post is taking place over two days. That said, good news everyone! We officially hired a new full-time bakery manager today (offered Friday, she accepted Monday, starts 2 weeks from tomorrow/today). I’m extremely excited. It’s going to take a huge amount of pressure off of me, and also make it easier to plan advertising. I’ll get to move into a role heavier in sales, marketing, and finance (while still spending plenty of time in the kitchen!) and we’ll be about to expand as well as actually take our vacation this summer. I’m ultimately an adventurer at heart, though I train similar to a lot of Rangers (and I’m something of a Druid Paladin which is also something of an equivalent to a Ranger). I love hiking, exploring, traveling, and other fun things with the family. Since shortly before joining Nerdfitness, my physical training is typically built around injury rehabilitation (which happens a bit more often due to autoimmune arthritis) and training to be able to travel, explore, and play with my family. I have a pretty effective Disney World training system, and try to ensure that at any point I’m strong enough to carry my whole family somewhere. That has become more difficult as the years go on but I can still do it for the most part. I am also an enthusiastic suburban homesteader bent on establishing an orchard and vegetable garden, so things can get pretty out-doorsy depending on my goals. My needs mean I do a variety of types of training, and my earliest two physical training goals were “run fast” and “be able to competitively play any sport I come across.” I prefer to avoid gyms and do a lot of body weight training. When I do lift weights it is at the YMCA or, more commonly, takes the form of children, sandbags, or logs. This time, we’re training for one of the Disney races as a family. It’s gonna be a later event so we have plenty of time and I’m training, in particular, to be prepared to carry the younger 2 kids for the race. So far this has taken the form of loaded carries and greasing the groove with squats and lunges; I’ve been either using 50-lb sacks of flour or dumbbells thus far. I can farmer’s carry my weight for 100 meters. Homesteading season is upon us. I am afraid the Ranier is dead and I’m afraid one of the apple trees died as well. We’re reigning in my red neck tendencies this year and redoing a bunch of our gardens. We may also be remodeling the house to add more space for my mother in law and her sister to move in as well. At the beginning of last year, we started shopping for an existing business with a professional kitchen to give a physical location to our small bakery. We now own the bakery kitchen and business. The bakery has been opened a month and we just hired a full time manager which I am ecstatic about. Once she starts we can get more serious about expanding business without completely running ourselves into the ground. There will be a lot more flexibility to handle groups of people (larger numbers ordering made-to-order items cause our biggest throughput issues) and she can also help us build the team. I wish she was already on; L’enfant somehow got a cupcake with egg it in yesterday and thus yesterday was one of those nearly-no-sleep days. Healthwise, we’ve been living the keto lifestyle for most of the year and we’ve found it to be incredibly easy to stick to 99% of the time, meaning we’re seeing more success and I’m burning less willpower on food-related stuff. I am past my arbitrary goal weight, and I’m focusing hard now on maintaining around this weight while achieving my goal composition. I think the race/loaded carry training will help. I’m concerned that sleep problems will hamstring me though which is why, as always, it’s goal number one. I’ve not been physically or mentally as well lately. Jessie has work friends and I’m grateful (she really, really needs some good friends especially given her job) but she’s home less while I have been more isolated and I’m feeling the loneliness return. It can be pretty intense. I don’t really have many IRL friends. I love Marinara but he’s sort of emotionally unavailable and my other friends are almost all far away anymore. I’ve been working on connecting with people, though, and it has helped. We saw Rex’s godparents after his birthday party and that was amazingly helpful. I've been struggling hard on my “no yelling” goal. I feel exhausted all the time and it’s made it hard to break habits. I continue to strive towards zero yelling. I am also striving to be careful with my words at all times. I’m tired of being so very careful of my words most of the time to the point where I’ll simply be silent (where I have to be careful to not stonewall) but then just let loose and impulsively say a bunch of thoughtless things. Goals: 1. Sleep. As best as possible. This is critical to managing my emotions as well as general health and quality of life. I’m currently trapped in sleep deprivation until we can hire and train our team. But I can also see a light at the end of the tunnel. 2. Race training. This includes calisthenics, the race plan training, and loaded carries. Race training as a family is currently paused as Jessie hurt her sciatic nerve and needs rest to recover. She tried training through and reducing the intensity but that exacerbated the problem. 3. Take one concrete step forward per day- at least one tangible, visible thing to make life better. This ranges from things as small as “dig out the replacement toaster” to as big as “reorganize the playroom.” I don’t have to complete the bigger ones as long as I make progress. 4. Take one concrete step forward per day career-wise. I need my job but I’m not satisfied in it and otherwise need a change. I need to hone/adapt skills and look for other opportunities. -> Currently, this involves finishing the bakery paperwork and executing the grand opening. . 5. Home and Garden. I want both to be better. Especially the home. The basement is… bad. I spent one today doing laundry and cleaning up. The basement needs a tremendous amount of work. The dogs have been staying down there and it’s better than kenneling them but they’ve eaten some toys and containers which made a huge mess and the best dog’s separation anxiety issues are coming back into play. I hope that in the future I (or one of us at least) can be home half the day with them most days. We have a cleaning lady but I don’t think 3 hours a week is quite enough. Over the summer she’ll be moving to 2 days a week. 6. Therapy. I have a new(er) diagnoses and new(er) medication that have been, it feels, pretty life changing. I finished intensive therapy that was also insanely helpful prior to that and I am continuing with less frequent sessions. My goal is to better learn how to manage ADHD and how to be a more connected, present, and supportive husband and father. I think I have been progressing well. I feel healthy. I am excited about how this has gone. I am working on anger management and taking a page from the book of Mr. Fred Rogers. I had no idea that he struggled with a strong and volatile temper. He never wanted to be remembered as a saint because he didn’t want his example to be unachievable but I do think he is probably the best person who ever lived a full life. I will be looking to him as an example and we’ve decided to introduce the show as a regular part of our kids’ lives. Gods know it’s as helpful to me as it is to them. And I’m adding care of words as well to this goal for things don’t have to be yelled to hurt. I am eager to rest and get to work. Oh, and if you’re following from my last thread and the thread before, we’re STILL RPing a scene with Barnaby the Brass Dragon in our D&D campaign since March 4th. Almost 2 months of RP and close to 60 hours of me pretending to be a lonely brass dragon having the time of his life at a party while sharing dragon lore with the party.

Greetings, and welcome to all! I’m a married parent of 4 kids aged 0-8. Last challenge I sorta crashed in burned again. We’ve been obscenely busy with the bakery as well as all the other full time jobs and children and whatnot. I’m ultimately an adventurer at heart, though I train similar to a lot of Rangers (and I’m something of a Druid Paladin which is also something of an equivalent to a Ranger). I love hiking, exploring, traveling, and other fun things with the family. Since shortly before joining Nerdfitness, my physical training is typically built around injury rehabilitation (which happens a bit more often due to autoimmune arthritis) and training to be able to travel, explore, and play with my family. I have a pretty effective Disney World training system, and try to ensure that at any point I’m strong enough to carry my whole family somewhere. That has become more difficult as the years go on but I can still do it for the most part. I am also an enthusiastic suburban homesteader bent on establishing an orchard and vegetable garden, so things can get pretty out-doorsy depending on my goals. My needs mean I do a variety of types of training, and my earliest two physical training goals were “run fast” and “be able to competitively play any sport I come across.” I prefer to avoid gyms and do a lot of body weight training. When I do lift weights it is at the YMCA or, more commonly, takes the form of children, sandbags, or logs. We have returned to school in person, which I am finally becoming comfortable with. For the first time since… April 2020? The kids’ school has no COVID cases and today marked the sixth straight week. I’m still nervous about the younger two. I know getting some level of COVID is virtually inevitable but I really want to push that at least until we can all be vaccinated. We’ve been both cautious and lucky thus far, especially since when we had it we were able to avoid the older 3 from getting it at all. L’enfant shows no signs he ever had it aside from testing positive and some short, mild symptoms but I will feel much better when he and Bo Peep are vaccinated. Homesteading season is upon us. The fruit trees are doing well though my arch-nemeses the deer are back and uprooted the Ranier I planted last fall. I cannot express how unhappy I’ll be if it dies for such a feat would be impossible. We’re reigning in my red neck tendencies this year and redoing a bunch of our gardens. We may also be remodeling the house to add more space for my mother in law and her sister to move in as well. At the beginning of last year, we started shopping for an existing business with a professional kitchen to give a physical location to our small bakery. We now own the bakery kitchen and business. Business has been thriving even behind locked doors but THIS SATURDAY is our grand opening. I am ecstatic. We have the health inspection and the final fire inspection this week but the renovation is done. I am super excited. The kumquat tree and pepper plants came back home from the bakery this week. The soil is over dried and they got pretty sad so I’m rehabbing them on my porch. Or killing them entirely. I guess we’ll see. Healthwise, we’ve been living the keto lifestyle for most of the year and we’ve found it to be incredibly easy to stick to 99% of the time, meaning we’re seeing more success and I’m burning less willpower on food-related stuff. I am past my arbitrary goal weight, and I’m focusing hard now on maintaining around this weight while achieving my goal composition. We took a break over the holidays and I gained about 18 lbs, mostly inflammation; but I added some fat on my belly to the tune of around 7 lbs last challenge. I’m (barely) back in ketosis and my joints are already feeling better. I’ve not been physically or mentally as well lately. Jessie has work friends and I’m grateful (she really, really needs some good friends especially given her job) but she’s home less while I have been more isolated and I’m feeling the loneliness return. It can be pretty intense. I don’t really have many IRL friends. I love Marinara but he’s sort of emotionally unavailable and my other friends are almost all far away anymore. I've generally been doing well with my “no yelling” goal, though I’ve slipped a and I suspect it’s in part due to being tired and habits being difficult to break. I continue to strive towards zero yelling. I am also striving to be careful with my words at all times. I’m tired of being so very careful of my words most of the time to the point where I’ll simply be silent (where I have to be careful to not stonewall) but then just let loose and impulsively say a bunch of thoughtless things. I think the trip really, really helped. Getting away is mentally good for us and we kinda rely on the resets to break us out of bad mental-emotional routines. Goals: 1. Sleep. As best as possible. This is critical to managing my emotions as well as general health and quality of life. I’m currently trapped in sleep deprivation until we can hire and train our team. But I can also see a light at the end of the tunnel. 2. Basic calisthenics routine at the least. It is noticeable that I have not been training regularly and I am not a fan. 3. Take one concrete step forward per day- at least one tangible, visible thing to make life better. This ranges from things as small as “dig out the replacement toaster” to as big as “reorganize the playroom.” I don’t have to complete the bigger ones as long as I make progress. 4. Take one concrete step forward per day career-wise. I need my job but I’m not satisfied in it and otherwise need a change. I need to hone/adapt skills and look for other opportunities. -> Currently, this involves finishing the bakery paperwork and executing the grand opening. . 5. Home and Garden. I want both to be better. Especially the home. The basement is… bad. I spent one today doing laundry and cleaning up. The basement needs a tremendous amount of work. The dogs have been staying down there and it’s better than kenneling them but they’ve eaten some toys and containers which made a huge mess and the best dog’s separation anxiety issues are coming back into play. I hope that in the future I (or one of us at least) can be home half the day with them most days. We have a cleaning lady but I don’t think 3 hours a week is quite enough 6. Therapy. I have a new(er) diagnoses and new(er) medication that have been, it feels, pretty life changing. I finished intensive therapy that was also insanely helpful prior to that and I am continuing with less frequent sessions. My goal is to better learn how to manage ADHD and how to be a more connected, present, and supportive husband and father. I think I have been progressing well. I feel healthy. I am excited about how this has gone. I am working on anger management and taking a page from the book of Mr. Fred Rogers. I had no idea that he struggled with a strong and volatile temper. He never wanted to be remembered as a saint because he didn’t want his example to be unachievable but I do think he is probably the best person who ever lived a full life. I will be looking to him as an example and we’ve decided to introduce the show as a regular part of our kids’ lives. Gods know it’s as helpful to me as it is to them. And I’m adding care of words as well to this goal for things don’t have to be yelled to hurt. Overall, I am anxious to get back into things as well as open the bakery. I want to stay remote at my other job, especially since it turns out I had 1+ panic attacks a day there but rarely have them at home. I need to go to sleep now, as I’m already behind on goal 1. Oh, and if you’re following from my last thread, we’ve been RPing a scene with Barnaby the Brass Dragon in our D&D campaign since March 4th. It’s absolutely epic. This is going in my record books.

Greetings, and welcome to all! I’m a married parent of 4 kids aged 0-8. Last challenge I sorta crashed in burned as half of us got COVID and I got a wonderful secondary lung infection. I have only been feeling right a couple of days but I’m getting back into the swing of things. I’m ultimately an adventurer at heart, though I train similar to a lot of Rangers (and I’m something of a Druid Paladin which is also something of an equivalent to a Ranger). I love hiking, exploring, traveling, and other fun things with the family. Since shortly before joining Nerdfitness, my physical training is typically built around injury rehabilitation (which happens a bit more often due to autoimmune arthritis) and training to be able to travel, explore, and play with my family. I have a pretty effective Disney World training system, and try to ensure that at any point I’m strong enough to carry my whole family somewhere. That has become more difficult as the years go on but I can still do it for the most part. I am also an enthusiastic suburban homesteader bent on establishing an orchard and vegetable garden, so things can get pretty out-doorsy depending on my goals. My needs mean I do a variety of types of training, and my earliest two physical training goals were “run fast” and “be able to competitively play any sport I come across.” I prefer to avoid gyms and do a lot of body weight training. When I do lift weights it is at the YMCA or, more commonly, takes the form of children, sandbags, or logs. We have returned to school in person, which I think the kids needed mentally but I’m still incredibly nervous about, especially since the youngest two are too young to be vaccinated. I know getting some level of COVID is virtually inevitable but I really want to push that at least until we can all be vaccinated. We’ve been both cautious and lucky thus far, especially since when we had it we were able to avoid the older 3 from getting it at all. L’enfant shows no signs he ever had it aside from testing positive and some short, mild symptoms but I will feel much better when he and Bo Peep are vaccinated. While we were down the well members of the family, all children, stepped up and totally ran the household. That is, fed the pets and cooked the food, washed dishes, did laundry, etc. Rex made gourmet chef level food for every meal. I’m super proud of them. Though I really missed them. We barely saw each other and it wicked. At the beginning of last year, we started shopping for an existing business with a professional kitchen to give a physical location to our small bakery. We now own the bakery kitchen and business, and are focusing hard on getting our renovation done and team built, as it had grown by multiples over the summer from the original numbers given to us. We’ve done home hiring, had some more curveballs come our way, and may have to pivot again. I think we found a good balance that keeps us from having to spend all of our capital on machinery, and let’s us move forward with the original plan. Of course, we didn’t go into business for the guarantees, we went into business to make our efforts matter. Those efforts are still paying off and I think this will enable us to lead a much better life going forward. The fruit trees and bushes are all doing well. They’re going to sleep for the winter. The kumquat tree and pepper plants live at the bakery now. It’s been extremely hard to homestead as I want to, with both of us having day jobs and the bakery. I see some light though. We’re again looking at possibly moving and possibly even a new build. It’s either that or some major work on our house; we love our neighbors and location but the bedroom situation is difficult and the garage is painful when you have 2 big vans instead of smaller cars. I don’t want to move but on the other hand we also gotta take care of people. Healthwise, we’ve been living the keto lifestyle for most of the year and we’ve found it to be incredibly easy to stick to 99% of the time, meaning we’re seeing more success and I’m burning less willpower on food-related stuff. I am past my arbitrary goal weight, and I’m focusing hard now on maintaining around this weight while achieving my goal composition. We took a break over the holidays and I gained about 18 lbs, but it’s almost all inflammation; my muscle and waist measurements are substantially the same. I dropped the weight (inflammation) but swelled up from the infection treatment, and am again back to normal. I still plan to enjoy Thanksgiving pies and Christmas cookies and Christmas Even bourbon slushes and New Years black eyed peas. But not a month at a time. I’ve been doing lots of bodyweight squats and lunges with the 6-lb trays and I can tell a difference. Working in the bakery is much better physically than desk work (which I also still do). It’s a good physical job. I’ve been physically much better minus COVID. I've generally been doing well with my “no yelling” goal, though I’ve slipped a and I suspect it’s in part due to being tired and habits being difficult to break. I continue to strive towards zero yelling. I am also striving to be careful with my words at all times. I’m tired of being so very careful of my words most of the time to the point where I’ll simply be silent (where I have to be careful to not stonewall) but then just let loose and impulsively say a bunch of thoughtless things. I think the trip really, really helped. Getting away is mentally good for us and we kinda rely on the resets to break us out of bad mental-emotional routines. Goals: 1. Sleep. As best as possible. This is critical to managing my emotions as well as general health and quality of life. I’m currently trapped in sleep deprivation until we can hire and train our team. But I can also see a light at the end of the tunnel. 2. Basic calisthenics routine at the least. I was gonna be in strength building mode but COVID hit. I did BFR to minimize atrophy but one thing I am noticing is recovery is not as fast as it was; that’s probably in part due to the 3 weeks of sickness and meds induced insomnia. But I plan on easing back into it. 3. Take one concrete step forward per day- at least one tangible, visible thing to make life better. This ranges from things as small as “dig out the replacement toaster” to as big as “reorganize the playroom.” I don’t have to complete the bigger ones as long as I make progress. 4. Take one concrete step forward per day career-wise. I need my job but I’m not satisfied in it and otherwise need a change. I need to hone/adapt skills and look for other opportunities. -> Currently, this involves finishing the bakery renovation. 5. Home and Garden. I want both to be better. Especially the home. The basement is… bad. I spent one today doing laundry and cleaning up. The basement needs a tremendous amount of work. The dogs have been staying down there snd it’s better than kenneling them but they’ve eaten some toys and containers which made a huge mess and the best dog’s separation anxiety issues are coming back into play. I hope that in the future I (or one of us at least) can be home half the day with them most days. My Christmas gift to Jessie was to rehire the lady that helped us previously. She’d graduated to become a hairdresser shortly after we moved, and I asked her for a referral. Lo and behold, COVID really changed things and it didn’t end up being what she wanted, so she’s going back to school to get her art degree and she’s cleaning/organizing houses to pay bills. So I coordinated with her and Marinara to get the main floor and bedrooms cleaned and organized while we were on vacation. The basement is further down the list but it’s there. We totally wrecked the house as we left. Then we kinda wrecked it unpacking and coming home but I’m taking this morning to clean and straighten up so it’s maintained. She’s not feeling well and I’m not pushing her to come in while she’s sick, but once she’s well she’ll be back to help more. 6. Therapy. I have a new(er) diagnoses and new(er) medication that have been, it feels, pretty life changing. I finished intensive therapy that was also insanely helpful prior to that and I am continuing with less frequent sessions. My goal is to better learn how to manage ADHD and how to be a more connected, present, and supportive husband and father. I think I have been progressing well. I feel healthy. I am excited about how this has gone. I am working on anger management and taking a page from the book of Mr. Fred Rogers. I had no idea that he struggled with a strong and volatile temper. He never wanted to be remembered as a saint because he didn’t want his example to be unachievable but I do think he is probably the best person who ever lived a full life. I will be looking to him as an example and we’ve decided to introduce the show as a regular part of our kids’ lives. Gods know it’s as helpful to me as it is to them. And I’m adding care of words as well to this goal for things don’t have to be yelled to hurt. Overall, I am anxious to get back into things. I also cracked my phone screen so I was barely able to use it the last several days but it is now fixed. Yay!

Greetings, and welcome to all! I’m a married parent of 4 kids aged 0-8. I’m ultimately an adventurer at heart, though I train similar to a lot of Rangers (and I’m something of a Druid Paladin which is also something of an equivalent to a Ranger). I love hiking, exploring, traveling, and other fun things with the family. Since shortly before joining Nerdfitness, my physical training is typically built around injury rehabilitation (which happens a bit more often due to autoimmune arthritis) and training to be able to travel, explore, and play with my family. I have a pretty effective Disney World training system, and try to ensure that at any point I’m strong enough to carry my whole family somewhere. That has become more difficult as the years go on but I can still do it for the most part. I am also an enthusiastic suburban homesteader bent on establishing an orchard and vegetable garden, so things can get pretty out-doorsy depending on my goals. My needs mean I do a variety of types of training, and my earliest two physical training goals were “run fast” and “be able to competitively play any sport I come across.” I prefer to avoid gyms and do a lot of body weight training. When I do lift weights it is at the YMCA or, more commonly, takes the form of children, sandbags, or logs. At the beginning of the year, we welcomed baby 4 into the family, my cat was diagnosed with feline dementia a few months ago, we adopted a kitten (our third cat and Rex’s first), and we have returned to school. At the beginning of this year, we started shopping for an existing business with a professional kitchen to give a physical location to our small bakery. We now own the bakery kitchen and business, and are focusing hard on getting our renovation done and team built, as it had grown by multiples over the summer from the original numbers given to us. We’ve done home hiring but had some more curveballs come our way, and may have to pivot again. Equipment orders just have everything so very far out that I’m not sure anything is going to come in time, and we’re looking for used/secondhand/other stuff for sale but that’s not guaranteed either. Of course, we didn’t go into business for the guarantees, we went into business to make our efforts matter. The fruit trees and bushes are all doing well. They’re going to sleep for the winter. The kumquat tree and pepper plants live at the bakery now. It’s been extremely hard to homestead as I want to with both of us having day jobs and the bakery. Who am I kidding though, we’ve been living at the bakery 😂 I hope we’re able to return to it. However, we’re again looking at possibly moving and possibly even a new build. It’s either that or some major work on our house; we love our neighbors and location but the bedroom situation is difficult and the garage is painful when you have 2 big vans instead of smaller cars. Healthwise, we’ve been living the keto lifestyle for most of the year and we’ve found it to be incredibly easy to stick to 99% of the time, meaning we’re seeing more success and I’m burning less willpower on food-related stuff. I am past my arbitrary goal weight, and I’m focusing hard now on maintaining around this weight while achieving my goal composition. The last time I was this weight was before I met Jessie and when I was in my student teaching (yeah, before the wrestling coach gig!) That is, one of the best shapes of my life. I want to be lean and strong, not skinny and weak. (Tried that and hated it). We did very specifically NOT stick to keto for Thanksgiving and it’s leftovers. We still are watching what we eat and are going back until Christmas but we’re not totally skipping green bean casserole, stuffing, and the pies of my favorite holiday. Even if we are still be pretty darned conservative with the consumption. I’ve been doing lots of bodyweight squats and lunges with the 6-lb trays and I can tell a difference. Working in the bakery is much better physically than desk work (which I also still do). It’s a good physical job. I've generally been doing well with my “no yelling” goal, though I’ve slipped a and I suspect it’s in part due to being tired and habits being difficult to break. I continue to strive towards zero yelling. I am also striving to be careful with my words at all times. I’m tired of being so very careful of my words most of the time to the point where I’ll simply be silent (where I have to be careful to not stonewall) but then just let loose and impulsively say a bunch of thoughtless things. Goals: 1. Sleep. As best as possible. This is critical to managing my emotions as well as general health and quality of life. I’m currently trapped in sleep deprivation until we can hire and train our team. But I can also see a light at the end of the tunnel. 2. Basic calisthenics routine at the least. I don’t want to lose my pull-up and chin-up strength so I’m still doing those in the morning every other day, but I’m in maintenance mode until I can fix the sleep situation. I see a light at least? 3. Take one concrete step forward per day- at least one tangible, visible thing to make life better. This ranges from things as small as “dig out the replacement toaster” to as big as “reorganize the playroom.” I don’t have to complete the bigger ones as long as I make progress. 4. Take one concrete step forward per day career-wise. I need my job but I’m not satisfied in it and otherwise need a change. I need to hone/adapt skills and look for other opportunities. -> Currently, this involves finishing the bakery renovation and acquiring additional equipment. And hiring more people. 5. Home and Garden. I want both to be better. Especially the home. The basement is… bad. I spent one today doing laundry and cleaning up. The basement needs a tremendous amount of work. The dogs have been staying down there snd it’s better than kenneling them but they’ve eaten some toys and containers which made a huge mess and the best dog’s separation anxiety issues are coming back into play. I hope that in the future I (or one of us at least) can be home half the day with them most days. 6. Therapy. I have a new(er) diagnoses and new(er) medication that have been, it feels, pretty life changing. I finished intensive therapy that was also insanely helpful prior to that and I am continuing with less frequent sessions. My goal is to better learn how to manage ADHD and how to be a more connected, present, and supportive husband and father. I think I have been progressing well. I feel healthy. I am excited about how this has gone. I am working on anger management and taking a page from the book of Mr. Fred Rogers. I had no idea that he struggled with a strong and volatile temper. He never wanted to be remembered as a saint because he didn’t want his example to be unachievable but I do think he is probably the best person who ever lived a full life. I will be looking to him as an example and we’ve decided to introduce the show as a regular part of our kids’ lives. Gods know it’s as helpful to me as it is to them. And I’m adding care of words as well to this goal for things don’t have to be yelled to hurt. It is a very exciting time. The bakery is coming along. We’ve had so many problems and I think we can or have overcome them all. I think I’ll feel better when our renovations are complete and the doors are open, and we can openly market for retail business. As always, I seem to bounce between exuberance and despair 😂. That is, some of the long days are really hard. But having help is, well, oh-so-helpful. And though it is slow going, building a team will make it absolutely doable. Baking itself is FUN. And physically more pleasing than sitting at a desk. D&D isn’t strictly regular but it won’t wait. It’s a good activity for the family and super easy to do in the car. I’m glad they love it so much. Rex really comes out of his shell and I think it’s his favorite activity. I made my first delivery to Jim’s place today and it took a while. Their doorman was run over too; broke both legs, shattered ribs, and he’s got to relearn how to walk. He’ll be by later. I’ve never seen that place so somber. They’re keeping him on the payroll and having him as a guest to watch the Blues game tonight with everyone. It really is a family, and one in mourning. I really miss him myself but I can’t even imagine.

Greetings, and welcome to all! I’m a married parent of 4 kids aged 0-8. I’m ultimately an adventurer at heart, though I train similar to a lot of Rangers (and I’m something of a Druid Paladin which is also something of an equivalent to a Ranger). I love hiking, exploring, traveling, and other fun things with the family. Since shortly before joining Nerdfitness, my physical training is typically built around injury rehabilitation (which happens a bit more often due to autoimmune arthritis) and training to be able to travel, explore, and play with my family. I have a pretty effective Disney World training system, and try to ensure that at any point I’m strong enough to carry my whole family somewhere. That has become more difficult as the years go on but I can still do it for the most part. I am also an enthusiastic suburban homesteader bent on establishing an orchard and vegetable garden, so things can get pretty out-doorsy depending on my goals. My needs mean I do a variety of types of training, and my earliest two physical training goals were “run fast” and “be able to competitively play any sport I come across.” I prefer to avoid gyms and do a lot of body weight training. When I do lift weights it is at the YMCA or, more commonly, takes the form of children, sandbags, or logs. At the beginning of the year, we welcomed baby 4 into the family, my cat was diagnosed with feline dementia a few months ago, we adopted a kitten (our third cat and Rex’s first), and we have returned to school. At the beginning of this year, we started shopping for an existing business with a professional kitchen to give a physical location to our small bakery. We now own the bakery kitchen and business, and are focusing hard on getting our renovation done and team built, as it had grown by multiples over the summer from the original numbers given to us. We’re on the cusp of hiring and some of our equipment is in so I am hoping we tame it a little bit because the volume has been insane and has left us all burning the candle at both ends. The fruit trees and bushes are all doing well. The Methly Plum tree which is recovering well from the last deer attack. We’ve had ever more figs, the Ranier Cherry tree isn’t dead year (and seems to be doing well thus far), and the serranos have a dozen new flowers and the Carolina Reaper is really filling out. They’re going to move insider along with the kumquat tree, though the kumquats are likely going to live at the bakery over the winter. No pumpkins and sadly, the few female flowers we have came very late. My dreams of a fall homestead surrounded by a bountiful crop of squash will likely need to wait at least another year, though if I possibly can I’ll make it happen this year. Even a handful of small ones would be awesome. The people with those violent dogs sold their house and they moved last challenge. Good riddance. This brings a great relief to me and basically all the neighbors. For those who don’t know, we were warned about the dogs when we moved in. Then one of them came over the fence and attacked my dog out of the blue, and my precious Mama Dog lost half her ear. Turns out that the pair of dogs 1. Gets out regularly and 2. Attacks other animals, children, and even adults. 3. The owners take zero responsibility and gaslight people about it. These are the only neighbors here I don’t like, because they’re an actual danger. I am relieved they’re gone, because it means soon I’ll be able to remove the rabbit fencing I’ve kept at the very back to keep our dogs and kids several feet away from that back fence. I’ll have the freedom to establish a real garden at the back, since my attempts to grow an espaliered tree hedge have largely failed. We do have a thriving Crapemyrtle and blackberries along the back and I look forward to basically making those and the lilac bush a full hedge without the threat of a dog attack. Healthwise, we’ve been living the keto lifestyle for a little over 8months, and we’ve found it to be incredibly easy to stick to 99% of the time, meaning we’re seeing more success and I’m burning less willpower on food-related stuff. I am past my arbitrary goal weight, and I’m focusing hard now on maintaining around this weight while achieving my goal composition. The last time I was this weight was before I met Jessie and when I was in my student teaching (yeah, before the wrestling coach gig!) That is, one of the best shapes of my life. I want to be lean and strong, not skinny and weak. (Tried that and hated it). I fell off the wagon a bit when it comes to strength workouts. I do push-ups in people’s name as a form of prayer and last challenge saw a lot of sickness and worry, so it sort of took over everything else. I’ve been doing lots of bodyweight squats and lunges with the 6-lb trays and I can tell a difference. Working in the bakery is much better physically than desk work (which I also still do). But it’s a nice physical job and I like it. I've generally been doing well with my “no yelling” goal, though I’ve slipped a couple of times. I continue to strive towards zero yelling. Goals: 1. Sleep. As best as possible. This is critical to managing my emotions as well as general health and quality of life. I’m currently trapped in sleep deprivation until we can hire and train our team. But I can also see a light at the end of the tunnel. 2. Basic calisthenics routine at the least. I don’t want to lose my pull-up and chin-up strength so I’m still doing those in the morning every other day, but I’m in maintenance mode until I can fix the sleep situation. 3. Take one concrete step forward per day- at least one tangible, visible thing to make life better. This ranges from things as small as “dig out the replacement toaster” to as big as “reorganize the playroom.” I don’t have to complete the bigger ones as long as I make progress. 4. Take one concrete step forward per day career-wise. I need my job but I’m not satisfied in it and otherwise need a change. I need to hone/adapt skills and look for other opportunities. -> Currently, this involves working towards dramatically expanding the team to help run the formerly part-time business that exploded with the acquisition of another bakery. Said bakery's business grew out of control and the previous owner did no real expanding of the business, she just worked herself into the ground. 5. Home and Garden. I want both to be better. 6. Therapy. I have a new diagnoses and new medication that have been, it feels, pretty life changing. I finished intensive therapy that was also insanely helpful prior to that and I am continuing with less frequent sessions. My goal is to better learn how to manage ADHD and how to be a more connected, present, and supportive husband and father. I think I have been progressing well. I feel healthy. I am excited about how this has gone. I am working on anger management and taking a page from the book of Mr. Fred Rogers. I had no idea that he struggled with a strong and volatile temper. He never wanted to be remembered as a saint because he didn’t want his example to be unachievable but I do think he is probably the best person who ever lived a full life. I will be looking to him as an example and we’ve decided to introduce the show as a regular part of our kids’ lives. Gods know it’s as helpful to me as it is to them. It is a very exciting time. We just celebrated our 11th anniversary and went for fondue and axe throwing. I’m pretty good with the axes though Jessie is far better with shuriken and throwing cards, which are substantially similar to throwing a ball. She played softball as a catcher and was on the Olympic team arc before an injury so she is an amazing thrower and it’s rare that I can out throw her with anything. Actually, so far, it’s only ever been the axes. And I suspect I would come out ahead on throwing spikes and throwing knives as well, but only because those things I practiced throwing as a kid and they are markedly different from throwing a ball. It was a good time. The bakery is overwhelming, though in a good way. We have too much business, which I think is probably better than the opposite problem. We’ve had no end of bank problems and then state withholding paperwork took forever to get processed, so payroll is only just now set up. I have a pretty good idea on how to best utilize people; even a totally untrained, unpracticed helper can dramatically increase the output by taking care of easier tasks allowing the other person to keep hand-rolling the pretzels. Machines are expensive and not able to adequately roll and work dough consistently so they tend to create pretzels that dry out quickly or are super chewy. Our real “technology” advantage is teamwork. A team of 3-4 could make half a week’s worth of cases in a day, being limited then by the mixer output. Walk-in retail is surprisingly high given we have a sign on the door that says “closed for renovations.” We have to lock the door to keep people from coming in and some knock and ask anyway, and I hardly have the heart to turn them down. As always, I seem to bounce between exuberance and despair 😂. That is, some of the long days are really hard. But having help is, well, oh-so-helpful. And though it is slow going, building a team will make it absolutely doable. Baking itself is FUN. And physically more pleasing than sitting at a desk. Sadly, our D&D campaign is on hold until we iron things out with the business. We have to focus on that so that we can all get our sleep/be able to take care of our homes/actually take our vacation over Christmas without ruining the business.

White Haired Wolf This lady absolutely KILLED it with her female!Geralt. I don't know if I can summon up real chainmail, so I may need to go another way. As a huge fan of Witcher 3, I've been inspired enough by the character Geralt of Rivia to want to try my hand at cosplay. I have never done any sort of cosplay - I haven't even dressed up for a Renn faire - but I would love to put my sewing skills to use by putting together a female!Geralt costume. The vision that I have for my female!Geralt is not of one who's 5'6" and 214.2 pounds, though. I just don't have enough self-confidence for that. There's a whole lot of stuff that I'd like to work on, including my self-confidence, but while I'm working on that I may as well work on my physique. I used to be in such amazing shape, after all... I believe that I can get back to that level of fitness again, and be as strong and shapely as Ciri. If I don't quite make it to that level of fitness, that's okay, too. If I've done my job and leveled up through my other self-improvement goals, it won't matter. Future Level 50 Accomplishments female!Geralt of Rivia cosplay debuted at a convention and/or Renn faire. At least ten published short stories under my belt and SFWA membership. At least four screenplays submitted to two successive years of Nicholl Fellowship. Travel with Kyle to Colmar, France some Christmas; to Amsterdam, Netherlands; to Hawaii; to Zion and Arches; to Acadia in Maine; to Costa Rica; to Chiang Mai, Thailand; to Sweden. Paint my self-portrait and a portrait of my husband. Stable part-time income stream from artwork print sales and writing. Complete three regional Spartan races (sprints or otherwise!). Build a tiny house on wheels with my husband and live rent-free. Spend at least forty hours out of the year volunteering. Submit a novel manuscript to publishers. Run-walk a marathon. Create an emergency savings fund with my husband strong enough to cover at least three months of expenses. Here is how I'll make a good start toward my long-term goals: Levels 1 through 5 Strength Walk up Mar Vista stairs with 40lb weights, 3 circuits. 40 XP Complete five unassisted chin ups. 100 XP Complete 30 day squats challenge. 20 XP Complete 10 full pushups in a row. 20 XP Complete 5 sets of 20 glute bridges. 10 XP Endurance Complete a Spartan Sprint course. 100 XP Complete 20m kettlebell circuits, 3x/week for four weeks with 35lb bells. 40 XP Complete the Temescal Canyon hike up to Skull Rock in less than 1 hour with < 2 brief rests. 40 XP Complete 20m kettlebell circuits, 3x/week for two weeks with 15lb bells 20 XP Walk 10,000 steps per day 6 days/week for four weeks. 20 XP Complete 20m kettlebell circuits, 3x/week for four weeks with 25lb bells. 20 XP Complete 15m kettlebell circuits, 4x/week for one week with 15lb bells. 10 XP Powers Stick to meal planning for one week straight. 10 XP Stick to meal planning for one month straight. 20 XP Volunteer for 3 months with Habitat for Humanity or Twilight Brigade. 50 XP Submit a short story to a literary magazine and track it. 10 XP Submit and track fifteen short stories to literary magazines. 100 XP Spend 15 minutes per day keeping my living space clean and orderly for two weeks straight. 10 XP Create a Society6 shop and list 10 art pieces. 50 XP Do one good work for someone other than myself at least 1x/week for a month. 20 XP Meditate 10m per day for a month. 20 XP

Game On, ShadowLion! What to Expect Techno Ranger Sorcery - technology, coding, biohacking, mobility work, walking --> hiking/rucking, macro tracking, productivity and learning hacks, metaphysical speculation, octalysis Renaissance Rebelry - writing, a little artwork here and there, some music, knitting, spinning, sewing ShadowLiony Silliness - cats, otters, gifs and vids, puns, alliteration and other wordplay CONSTRUCTION ZONE Story Challenge Process Reference

April 6 I saw the forums were up as I was writing my wrapup of last challenge. I was dithering over whether I was going to keep SISUing, but when I saw that the first day of the new challenge was the last day of my one full year of NO SODA, I took it as a sign. Heck, yeah! I want to see if I can hit 99 days straight and make it all the way to my second NF birthday. Time to woman up, Shadow LIon. Let's see what you're made of! April 9 I'm using the "between challenges" week to test a slight increase in my SISU quotas, and so far it is working, despite a crazy, crazy schedule. Two websites need to get out the door and a game prototype is due by late afternoon Monday. Yikes! So, I'm not going to over think things here. This one's going to be a near repeat of last time, with a modest bump up on my minimums, The focus, as before, is on consistency and quality, as opposed to quantity. My "MEWS" minimums are as follows: Meditation - 3 minutes minimum Exercise - 15 minutes minimum Writing - 15 minutes/500 words per day minimum Study (Code) - 15 minutes minimum My maxes are set to minimum x 4. I will be using HabitRPG as my tracking and reward system. The challenge will be all or nothing in terms of points and leveling up. The goal is 99 days straight SISU - straight through to my second Nerd Fitness Birthday on May 30, 2015. To go with the "MEWS" theme...and to remind me to take baby steps:

Fire Fit in 40 Weeks continues, with essentially the same structure as last challenge. But, I am making it more streamlined and simpler to track by using a spread sheet. What!? I know that doesn't sound so monumental, but I have been "going to do that" for two challenges now. This time it happens. It has to, because I have so much to do that it is the only way I can see to track everything. Boring, stupid, old spreadsheet. However, what would my thread be without the ShadowLion Fire Science Show and Extravaganza? Truck Porn Tuesday will continue, along with some new features to keep me reviewing my fire science and producing more fire-related entertainment for your enjoyment and edification! And, expect to see more on "Fight the Fire," the wildfire strategy and simulation app that came out of the recent Startup Weekend I participated in, and will be continuing to develop with my team. Your feedback last challenge has already had an impact on something that I hope will save lives through educating tens of thousands of people about wildland fires and fire safety in a fun and entertaining way. Not only will I have to keep whipping this 55 year-old body back into shape in order to accomplish my MAIN QUEST of returning to Wildfire Academy in March of 2015 and emerging recertified as a wildland firefighter, I must also become a master of space, time, energy, attention, and money management. This challenge I will focus on Space. I will get my living environment optimized for greater efficiency and effectiveness, to support my main quest. Why? Right now, this is the scene about five miles away from my mom's place and the piece of property I own... This is what I want to be doing next summer... There are just some things you can't explain. Things that go deeper than words, That may appear unrealistic, foolish, even dangerous to others. But if it is your quest, your destiny, you must pursue it. Or forever wonder what might have been... Motivation My motivation is simple: I want to fight fires again. To that end, my current Main Quest encompasses a 40 week program to get me "fire fit" - physically, mentally and spiritually - and ends in my attending the Arizona Wildfire Academy in mid-March of 2015 ready to pass my Work Capacity Test, so that I can re-qualify as a wildland firefighter. I plan to be ready to go for wildfire season 2015 in the southwest U.S on either a Type 2 hand crew or, most likely, a wildland engine crew. Additional details in my Battle Log. The below was finalized July 31, 2014 As Chris-TIen Jinn helpfully pointed out, there is great value in leveraging my vision of where I want to be to help me focus on what I need to be and do now. I can utilize the power in my past knowledge, experience, and associations to overcome my current doubts, fears, and deficits. Thus, I have reworked some of my goals to better reflect the fact that I already know where I want to be, literally and figuratively, in March of 2015 and what it takes to get there. The obstacles I need most to overcome are within my own mind. As in martial arts, where the mind goes, the body follows... Work Out Like a Firefighter STA-3, STR-2 This challenge overlaps Weeks 9 - 14 of my "Forty Weeks to Fire Fit" program, subsequently referred to as "40W2FF." I have backed off of my gradual program of building heat tolerance for exercising outdoors in the high temperatures of a Phoenix, AZ summer, realizing that a higher priority task right now, and crucial to my safety, is to lose more weight. Last challenge, I was in danger of falling off my program simply because the heat and humidity that comes with the summer monsoon was stressing my body and my mind. I was finding it extremely difficult to keep a consistent exercise program going without being wiped out for the rest of the day or grumpy and snappish because I was dreading going out in the heat. I reevaluated my main quest. Was this an indication that my overall goal was wrong (I will have plenty of heat to deal with out on a fireline!) or that there was something with my plan that needed fixing? I knew that I could handle the heat before, what was different now? I was carrying an extra 40 pounds, and was out of shape. So, I switched up my endurance program to less outdoor walking and jogging, and more exercise bicycling. The bonus of that approach has been that I have started losing weight again. Odd, but I can have the same metabolic cost walking or biking, but I seem to lose weight more easily with the biking. Go figure - I will go with what works. I will work in activities from the Rangers mini-challenges here and can count them towards my totals, so as to avoid injury or overuse, which has been an issue for me the last couple of challenges. Endurance (STA-3) __/18 For wildland fire suppression, endurance is the primary focus, as opposed to the sheer strength demanded by structural firefighting. Weeks 1 - 6 of Endurance, Phase 2 of 40W2FF coincide with this challenge. 2-4 workouts per week, of varying intensities as per my periodization schedule. Phase 2 Begins - Weeks 1 - 6 of a 16 week program of successively faster and longer intervals. Success at the end of 16 weeks will be having increased to continuous jogging for a distance of 5K, with an average heart rate of 145 or below, and a peak HR under 155. Goal time: < 40 minutes This six week challenge will be a combination of exercise biking, brisk walking/hiking when I am in the high country, swimming, and jump-roping to build my stamina for returning to outdoor workouts of walk/jog intervals during the next challenge. So I can start hiking once the weather cools down a bit... Strength (STR-2) __/18, __/1,000 I completed the Phase 0, a pre-conditioning program and entered the first phase of a two phase body weight strength program last challenge. These are timed to reach my goal of starting the Hotshot Strength program (Phase 3) at Week 29 of my 40 week program. Weeks 5 - 10 of Phase 1 coincides with this challenge. 3x per week. Phase 1 Strength (STR-1) - 12 week assisted exercise program of knee-pushups; assisted pull-ups, grip hangs and rows; modified dips; lunges and variations. Additionally - squats, planks, sit-ups, burpees and variations. This will kick things up a notch and prepare me for an increased focus on strength training in Phase 2. 1,000 Burpees (STR-1) - Just what it says. This should get me past the knee-pushup barrier, with the bonus of enhancing my endurance, as well. If I get bored, or feel I need to supplement/complement my other exercises, I can add in variations to the standard burpees. Eat Like a Firefighter CON-2 I will fuel my body with high-quality, nutrient dense foods with an eye to maintaining endurance and muscle, while trimming off excess weight. Body Composition Mission (CON-2) My 40 week end goal is a bodyweight of ~150#, +/-5# as long as my body fat % is at 20% or less using the U.S. Navy Body Fat Calculator. This tends to be a little under actual, so a DEXA scan would be even better, acceptable BF% < 24%. Goal for this challenge is to drop my BF% by at least 3 percentage points, to 33% or less. This will be from a combination of fat loss (primarily) and lean mass gain. (The following was calculated using US Navy Body Fat Calculator, it is an estimate. I think the calculator is somewhat overestimating my recent fat loss/lean muscle gain, but that it will all even out by the time I reach my goal weight.) Current Body Composition - 07/28/2014 Total Mass: 188 lbs. Lean Mass: 120 lbs. Fat Mass: 68 lbs. BF% = 36% Waist = 36" Hips = 43" Neck = 16" Height: 5'6 3/4" When Joined Nerd Fitness - 05/31/2013 Total Mass: 206 lbs. Lean Mass: 107 lbs. Fat Mass: 99 lbs. BF% = 48% Waist = 42" Hips = 46" Neck = 16" Height: 5'5 3/4" GOAL - 03/08/2015 Total Mass: 150 lbs. Lean Mass: 120 lbs. Fat Mass: 30 lbs. BF% = 20% Waist = 27" Hips = 37" Neck = 14" Height: 5'6 3/4" Non-graded extras Achieve another 42 days of my 365 total on the No Soda PVP. Research nutrition, macros in particular, so I can match my diet better to the phases of my training. I want to experiment with at least one day per week of vegetarian eating and play with various combinations of macros to see how my body responds at different points in my training. Ideally, I will figure out an eating plan that will be useful as the intensity of my endurance and strength training increases. I want to read the "Engine 2 Diet." Recover Like a Firefighter WIS- 2, CHA-1 Recovery or "Rehab" is planned into the management of every incident. You can't expect human beings to work hard under trying conditions without providing for adequate rest and recovery time. As it was last challenge, this may well be the hardest part of my challenge. I need to change my habit of staying up late to work or research or write or whatever until the wee hours of the morning and then turnaround and be up at 6:30 or 7 am. I regularly get by on just 4 or 5 hours of sleep a night during the week, then crash on the weekends. I did well the first four weeks of the last challenge on rest, but have struggled with it since, particularly with sleep. Yes, I need to change this. I also know the changes that are coming in mine and my partner's work schedules. I don't think I can enforce the kind of program I had last challenge, so I am going to try a softer approach. For this challenge I will track, observe, and experiment as part of an ungraded sleep goal. I will focus my recovery efforts on stress reduction, resiliency, and better time management, in preparation for sleep to be a bigger focus next time. Rest, Recovery and Resilience (WIS-2, CHA-1) Adequate rest and recovery are critical to my success, as are providing for good time management, stress control and resiliency. Rest/Recovery (WIS-1) Two cheat meals and one indulgent treat per week are not only allowed, they are encouraged. I am required to take at least one full day off of exercise per week, two if showing signs of undue fatigue or of developing any injury. (Situational Awareness applies to one's body, too!) Ungraded Extra as preparation/trial run for next challenge Curfew/Bedtime/Lights Out - These are not synonymous. Curfew means I must "be in the house." Screens connected to the outside world must be turned off. Bedtime means actually in bed, but I may read, journal, meditate, or pray until lights out. Lights out - Dark, quiet, eyes shut, and brain powered down. Curfew is one hour before Lights Out. Bedtime can be any time between Curfew and Lights Out. Curfew - Midnight Bedtime - 0030. Lights Out - 0100 Wake Up Time - 8 am Naps are fine, if needed Resilience (WIS-1, CHA-1) (Attitude and Stress Management/Personal Space Rehabilitation) To stay positive and not succumb to my depressive tendencies, or my doubts or fears about what I am attempting, I must cultivate inner strength and resilience. To stay peaceful and calm in the midst of great change and effort, I will manage my schedule and environment for enhanced productivity and streamlined maintenance. I will utilize the fantastic support network that is Nerd Fitness by actively participating in my guild, my accountabilibuddy groups and my PVPs. (Linked in my signature.) At least 15 minutes per day of meditation and/or journaling/sketchnoting/mandala or other drawing/visual journaling method (WIS-1) At least one half-hour per day (on average) of decluttering and improving my personal space. This beyond my daily 15 minute clutter patrol and regular household tasks. I am losing precious time dealing with clutter and maintaining things I don't need or no longer use. I know better than to carry unneeded gear in my pack or on my truck. It wastes time and energy. I need to treat my living space the same way. Have less, to do less, to be more. Space, the final frontier... (Thank you, AnnieP!) Play Like a Firefighter DEX- 1, CHA-3 Firefighters work hard and play hard. You learn to take the fragility of life seriously, yet in stride. You learn what is important, and that tomorrows are not a given. Those dreams that you carry around in your head, they need to happen sooner, rather than later. Lately, I have been telling a lot of other people that they need to have more fun in their life. I need to take my own good advice... Make working out more fun... Make eating more fun... Make rest and recovering more fun and my daily life more fun... Create more, relax more, Tai Chi and Other Fun Physical Activities (DEX-1) At least once per week. Tai Chi Saber, belly dance, whatever, as long as it is fun! Create Something (CHA-1) At least once per week. With the Renaissance Rebels! Continue Creating the "Fight the Fire App" (CHA-2) Ultimate Nerd Cred. Take the iOS programming course...once per week. Document Like a Firefighter - Stupid Simple Spreadsheet WIS- 1 DONE 7/31/2014 If it isn't documented, it didn't happen! That is a common saying in fire and EMS. I need streamline my documentation and I have been procrastinating. No more! The Stupid Simple Spreadsheet MUST be done by Midnight, July 31, 2014 = 1 Point WIS. Spreadsheet Done, Posted, Shared @ 2358 MST, July 31, 2014 Yay! I got my Stat Point! (Just barely!) All of my activities for this challenge are quite simple to determine on a day-to-day basis: "Was X scheduled for today? Did I do X today?" Yes or no. I will log my progress in my challenge spreadsheet. Each goal will be graded with the standard A, B, C, D, or F system using the usual percentages, and points awarded accordingly.

Five days after the end of this challenge is my first Nerdversary. While I have made progress in one year, I know I am capable of more. I am hungry, and I am going hunting - stalking myself, my excuses, my bad habits, my faulty beliefs and attitudes. It's time to get tough. That cute little cub laughing at burpees has grown and now it's time go after fresh meat on the hoof. Stalk it, kill it. Focus... But that doesn't mean I can't enjoy some adorable baby animals... Or hang out with my fellow Renaissance Rebels and the merry, marauding pirate queens, the CutLasses. (That last should actually be written as "The CutLasses!" Those ladies boarding your ship have not come to join you for tea and crumpets...) Aargh! Oh, yeah...focus. BECOMING THE SHADOW LION My motivations and commitment for my quest are detailed in my battle log. The premise of this whole year's worth of challenges is that I am attempting to emulate the rangerly heroine of my fantasy series, to understand my protagonist from the inside out as it were, and Become the Shadow Lion. It has been an interesting psychological exercise to see the ways in which one's literary creations mirror their creator - or not. And, it can be decidedly uncomfortable, and very instructive, to have some of the shadowy corners of one's own psyche reflected back at one's self. My overall goals from last challenge, and for this year's quest as a whole, remain essentially the same - more muscle, less fat; more skill, focus, and creativity. What will be changing this time, however, is that I will be going deeper and expecting much more from myself. Instead of focusing on establishing a variety of good habits, as I have up until now, I will instead zero in and stress test specific ones. I will use those select few to really go after my most persistent demons and the highest value targets. (Dr. Pepper, this means you!) I do plan to keep doing many of the established routines I have built up in the past year, but they will be clearly subordinate to the major goals listed below. Their intensity and frequency will be scaled to support the Big Four targets; if they interfere or take too much time, energy or focus from the highest priority items, they will be modified or even dropped. This will all be detailed in my battle log. This challenge will be a major test of my desire (my hunger) and my commitment (my will to endure and ability to stay on the trail of the beast and make the kill). Success resides inside and depends on intense focus, crystal clear priorities, mental toughness, trust in my abilities, and a belief that I am worth it. Each of the five factors listed above has doomed other, similar efforts in the past. The differences between then and now lie in my greater awareness, months of preparation, and my wonderful support network. Even so, I place my odds of total success at about 50-50. These are called "challenges" for a reason, right? Here goes... 1) ShadowLion Trains for the Hunt - STR-3 DEX-2 The Shadow Lion LAUGHS at Burpees! She LOVES all forms of bodyweight training. (_/3) ShadowLion's unofficial PvS Burpee Quest DEX -2 (_/1) 3 sets of 15 Burpees in less than 21 minutes. As many unmodified as possible, but knee pushups are acceptable. I'm getting into the PVP mindset and a Burpee challenge was discussed last time. This may become official... Armstrong Pullup PVP STR- 3 (_/2) Complete the Beginner Level of the PVP with 3 sets of 15 assisted pullups and 3 sets of 15 knee pushups OR 2 sets of 1 pullup and 2 sets of 2 full pushups. 5/12 - Revision for final two weeks of challenge and Week 0 of the next: I'm dropping the burpees, pullups, and pushups, and refocusing on my lower body (squats, lunges) and endurance training (exercise bike, walking) until my elbow really heals. I can get my weight down some more that way, too. I can still do planks and situps, plus standing "knees to elbows" for core work. Stamina Work - Walking and/or exercise biking, 5x per week STA-3 Strength Work - Squats and lunges, 2x per week - STR-2 2) ShadowLion Slays the Soda Demon - CON-5 Live 100% soda-free for all 47 days of the "The No Soda PVP Challenge" (_/47) This portion of my quest will extend 5 days past the normal end of the 6 week challenge. Ah, the warm fuzzies of last challenge's food quest are gone. This is "Battle!" and it is all or nothing. No partial points will be awarded. 3) ShadowLion Creates Her Plan of Attack - STR-2 DEX-1 (2/3) The end point of the original goal I created for this challenge was completed April 20, just 7 days into the challenge, which rendered much of the rest of the goal moot. The original goal is contained in the spoiler below for reference. For completion of that goal, I have awarded myself STR-1. The remaining STR-1 and DEX-1 points are rolled over to the revised goal, which I intend to complete by the end of the challenge. I have retitled my Life Quest goal "ShadowLion Creates Her Plan Attack" and reworked it as follows: Perform Initial Size Up, Determine Primary Objectives, Strategy, and Major Decision Points STR-1 (_/1) Since I have determined that I want to return to the Fire Service, I am going to approach this as if I were sitting in the officer's seat on the first arriving engine: What is the current situation? What are my primary objectives? What resources are at my disposal? What method of attack has the greatest likelihood of success in this situation? What needs to happen, in what time frame, and in what order? What are the critical decision points? What can go wrong and how can I mitigate the risks? The responses to these questions will be used to create my action plan. Create Action Plan DEX-1 (_/1) Create a written action plan, with checklists and timeline, that incorporates the above information. For Nerd Fitness purposes, portions of this action plan will be formatted and pulled over into my as yet unwritten Epic Quest and into my current Battle Log. To earn my point, all three items must be up-to-date by the end of the challenge. 4) ShadowLion Pursues Mastery - STA-2 (_/4) Quality over quantity, focus over variety. One-half point each. One main task for each area and all four tasks must be completed before adding any shiny new task to any area as a bonus/reward. Art - One finished drawing that goes with my writing Craft - Finish the shrug Guitar - Relearn "Recuerdos de la Alhambra" and memorize it Writing - Three installments/posts of "Shadow Lion" themed challenge The above will be graded with the standard A, B, C, D, or F system using the usual percentages. Note: I have gotten a bit more creative with how I allocate attribute points. Thus the STA points on my Creative Quest (#4) are for patience and perseverance. On my Life Quest (#3), STR points are for inner strength and self-honesty, and the DEX point is for willingness to question both my assumptions and conventional wisdom, and to imagine new possibilities.