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I am a little late to start this challenge, but I sort of started it yesterday... when I bought the e-Book of the RBG Fitness Routine. If Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg can do it at 85? Damnit, so can I. But baby steps, yeah? I'm starting a shortened version twice a week, 30 minutes, as I don't have the time to do more right now, but yeah, it's a cute book, and why not? Which brings me to.... TIME BLOCKING. As I get closer to my trip to Japan, my time is more and more valuable. I have two major puppet builds to do this month, a day job to keep on top of, and learning Japanese throughout. So I need to make a nice obvious easy to follow time blocked schedule and then I need to STICK TO IT. Wish me luck. But I need to EAT to have the energy to do all this, so I figured I'd try a vegan/vegetarian version of Whole 30. I've been vegan off and on, and was thinking to keep that up, but I might being in eggs from the local farmers here, as they are local, good for me, and cruelty free. It depends how I feel about eggs at the time, I guess. So far I've been starting my day with frozen fruit, kale, protein powder, and chia blended to death smoothie, lunches seem to be lettuce wrap based, and dinner I've been making insane fusion tacos that are kinda brilliant. I will mix things up, but I'm going to try to do Whole 30, but the vegetarian version (so lentils, peanuts, tofu, that sort of thing are okay as protein sources.) That's about it, besides massively studying Japanese. Which I'm doing alright with. I am going to start using tutors to talk to in June and July, as I leave end of July and need to be able to base level function in conversation. That and I'm making a delightful puppet to accompany me, and I will share him with you all when he's done!

So I've been on hiatus for most of a year for a variety of reasons (good and bad). But it's time for a respawn, so I'm reaching out again to the support networks I have (the forums here, Connect on the WeightWatchers app, etc) to try and maintain accountability and get regular feedback on things. Yet to do: re-write my Life at Level 50 mission statement/goals (Work changed, and with it, the driving need to drown my frustrations in food and shopping). The previous battle log is here, if anyone wants to visit the unpleasant swamp of the past: https://rebellion.nerdfitness.com/index.php?/topic/83812-tokidoki-kittys-daily-log/ Going forward: - If not a daily log, at least a weekly one - Revisit and refine my goals regularly (and set them up in smaller, manageable pieces) - Improve my productivity habits / reduce my procrastination habits -- this goes for both work and home. - Address, treat/mitigate my physical pains (through diet, exercise, etc). - Financial success (large savings account) and freedom (no more credit card debt/recurring balance carryovers) - I want to go to Japan and spend a lot of time on experiences and shopping for tea and kimono equipment that I can't get in the States. Need money to do that. :/

Hey all. I'm thinking about grabbing a TEFL certification and going overseas to teach English for a while to see what it's like living abroad, absorb some culture and new languages, and have some adventure. I'm thinking about starting with South Korea because it offers the best opportunity to save money while teaching. Then using that to springboard into teaching in Spain. I'm mostly interested in Spain because I also want to study Flamenco guitar. And who knows where from there. I'm also thinking about Slovenia for a bit because that's my family heritage and the country looks beautiful. I just thought I'd throw this out there to see if any body has any experience with: 1) TEFL certification 2) Living, teaching English, and/or travelling in South Korea 3) ... in Japan (an alternative to S. Korea) 4) ... in Spain 5) ... Slovenia 6) Share related experiences with other countries Etc.

There are a few reasons for writing this and posting it, the main reason is by putting it out there I am making myself accountable for what is written. I will be dividing the quests into groups based on common rpg stats, ‘cause a nerd is gonna nerd. Strength bodyweight front squat double bodyweight back squat(already more than half-way there, I squatted 110 during the last challenge) 2.5x bodyweight deadlift 1.5x bodyweight bench(this is going to take time) bodyweight press bodyweight split snatch 1.5x bodyweight c&j handstand press(still working on handstands) Constitution 10km run in <75 min(running plan is in place, this is only a matter of time) maintain 80% paleo diet to improve my bloodwork put on lean muscle mass at least 10kg(working on this right now) daily yoga and mobility because I want to be able to walk and lift when I am 100(I do this daily, sometimes more than once) walk to Mordor and back(93.87km so far) Intelligence/Wisdom Speak Japanese, German and Russian with some fluency(German and Russian are studied every day via Duolingo and I live in Japan, so use it daily) Speak 2 other languages with some fluency The reading is more geared toward this year. Read 10 history books(reading Rome and the Barbarians by Peter Heather right now) Read 10 philosophy books(finished Seneca, now reading Boethius) Read 10 economics books There are several goals that don’t really fit, mainly financial goals debt free asap, this includes the mortgage my kids graduate university debt free increase savings so that one day I can retire(this is slowly coming along) As you can see these goals run the gamut and as such do not have a completion date, as time goes on some will become closer to achievable and others will be fleshed out and more manageable with associated dates. One other reason for the posting of these goals is to allow a place for me to flesh out some personal philosophy and allow for some feedback. Some of these will be ramblings with no point while others will be nuggets that may turn into something substantial, only time will tell.

Today was bench and deadlifts day. I am doing 5/3/1 and this was the last workout after my reset so the weights are really low, also they are in kg bench 5's 45/52/5/60, then 5x5 @45 ss with goblet squats and pull ups 5x5 deads 5's 60/67.5/75 using a mixed grip, then 5x5 at 60 using fat gripz and a double overhand grip. ss with ab rollouts 5x5 then I took a walk.

Hey! I want advice, tips, clever hacks, and we can all share them! I am flying to Japan in a few weeks, and I am bringing ONE BAG, it looks like it's going to be the Ebags' Weekender Convertible 2.0, if you care. And NO PERSONAL ITEM. This means literally EVERYTHING is going in there. For two weeks. So, got any advice? Here's some ideas I've had so far: I'm packing a superlight 60L folding duffel to check for the trip home. I am rolling my clothes. Speaking of clothes, I'm wearing/layering heavier clothes on the trip, and what's in my suitcase are older underoos and socks that are seeing their last days. I'm going to dispose of them before returning home. Then I get to buy fancy new socks and undies at home! Same for clothes only if they are in nice enough condition, I'm donating them before I leave, thus freeing up room in my carry-on for souvenirs see: the good stuff. The nicer clothes I am keeping I'll wear out of the country, or roll up and shove in the checked bag. I am taking a 1x2x1" (rough estimate) cut of a Dr. Bronner's peppermint soap bar, which is super multipurpose, and peppermint is refreshing, I've found it's helpful when you feel bedraggled or under the weather. It can be soap, shampoo, laundry detergents, whatevs. It's wrapped in a cut of old towel. Instant washcloth. I just ordered some cash at my bank, in advance, so now I have about $500 worth of spending yen. I am bringing my favourite travel pillow, which is a cylinder of memory foam, and embedded in it is segmented pipe, so I can wrap it in whatever position works (I think I'm stuck in the middle seat, most likely, as my flight got changed so... them's the breaks. I'm wearing boots, packing low profile sneakers... I am also bringing a back up phone! It has no sim card, I am using it as a camera, I can change out the Micro SD cards, and I can recharge the phone/camera via USB, even better, I have a powerbank. I am grumpy that swank cameras don't have this ability, but my old Samsung G5 worked fine as a camera, and it shall again. I also have a 360 camera now, which I am hoping to make a shared online archive of immersive photos of neat places. I think it's a cool idea, but I am not totally comfortable with making it work yet, and it sucks battery pretty hard. That's sort of my plan, and some of it is clever travel hacking, that maybe will help someone else in the future. Does anyone else have any tricks for travel, especially light packing crazy travel? I want to geek out on insoles or soaps, or foldable microfiber towels... Let's talk! I used to tour around for a small living, and learned a bunch about traveling domestic, etc, in a band, and often it translates over great for international travel, but I am always looking for new ideas. Problems or issues I'd like help with: I have a Surface Pro 3 laptop I am split on taking. I sort of think it's a good idea, I'd keep it in a waterproof bag, and it's a fully functioning laptop, and drawing surface (I'm an illustrator), it'd be massively helpful for the 21 hours or so of travel to and fro, but then I have to haul it around everywhere. It's small for a laptop, but had a charger, and such. Just looking for input. Air China is pretty strict on economy carry-on restrictions, namely my carry-on shouldn't be more than 11kg. I am hoping no one takes my bag away to weigh it, but I am trying to keep my belongings down to around the 15lb mark, and I am afraid that might be super difficult. We'll see.

JAPAN! So for part of this adventure I will be traveling to Japan for a 12 day vacation(11/1 - 11/12). I plan on doing some fitness there and tracking all the walking I plan on doing with my garmin. I will also be posting heavy on here with photos. IRONMAN Maryland did not go well. The swim was cancelled and the bike was only 100 miles. The run was partially through water. Because of this we are now signed up for IRONMAN Texas on 4/22. I need to keep training the 3 disciplines of triathlon whether I would like to or not so that I can finish there. I do plan on not training nearly as hard since I felt Maryland was pretty easy. I did a GORUCK Light a few weeks ago and remembered how fun that was. I am thinking of doing the prohibition light on 12/2 and then the MLK back to back in January. End goal would be a heavy sometime this summer. Goals through the end of this Challenge: Miniatures(Tau Squad) Cut out legs Base legs Cut out missile arrays Base missile arrays Fish(12 gallon future reef) Assemble water filter Hang water filter Connect drain to waterline Connect filter to waterline Cut out egg crate Rinse rocks Test run rocks Aquarium on shelf Test all hardware Cars Clean EVO exterior Clean Mazda interior windshield Mazda oil change Mazda gear oil Miata inspected EVO cat change Deck Finish lower section framing Finish nailing beams Chalk line Cut beams Assemble outer ledger Frame stair area Clothes Clean out dresser Finish the corner of shelves area Magic Try to find a box of Kaladesh for $90(I know this is not in my control but I need to check pricing often) Reading Finish two current walking dead books Finish the two most current walking dead books Finish short story sci fi book Finish Dive book As far as Fitness and Food goes. I am going to start lifting again doing linear progression starting very light, Swimming mon-fri, and then throwing in a ruck on Saturdays and run/bike on tues/thurs. Food is going to be between 2,000 and 2,200 Calories daily, No drinking at home, and not eating like a pig in Japan. I do attempt to keep carbs low <100g and no sugar sources or grains. I have been on a non stop gorge since 10/1, gained easily 4-5 lbs and need to get back on track big time.

Hello everyone! My name is Sora, and I'll be joining the Rangers this time around if you'll have me (previously a scout). The last challenge was my first in a very long time; I rejoined after a long hiatus, and semi-successfully completed my challenge with the scouts. I'm hoping to join the Rangers as I begin to explore different types of workouts. I have historically been a distance runner (cross country and track team in middle and high school). In about a month, I'll be a Freshman at the University of Michigan, and I'm hoping to try out something new. For this challenge, I want to explore different types of workouts and begin to find something I might like to do in the future. For this challenge, I will be centering around a theme from the Anime "Magi: Adventure of Sinbad" which recently finished airing. I'm currently studying abroad in Japan until August 12, so I appreciate the idea of adventure. Goal 1: Workout! Workout 5 days a week, including some mix of running and non-running exercises. One of the main ideas behind what I am trying to accomplish is based in working out. Like Sinbad, I want to try to live like other people do and experience different ways of life. Through this, I hope to find the best fit for me. I will continue running as it's what I know I am capable of. Otherwise, I will try to find new workouts to incorporate. I don't have access to a gym or anything, so body weight workouts will probably be in store. If you have any ideas for what I should try out, please let me know! Goal 2: Try Paleo! Have 6 paleo meals a week (try new recipes or make good choices out). I am currently living on my own and cooking for myself, so I would like to try to learn some new recipes and eat in a new way. I like the philosophy behind paleo, and I've wanted to give it a go for a while. This will be a little difficult due to being in a small apartment in Japan (limited kitchen and living in a country that eats a lot of rice). However, I will give it my best shot! Let me know if there is a recipe I must try! Goal 3: Smile! Brush teeth every morning and night (bonus points for mid day). Smile more. Over the past year I've become less consistent with my oral hygiene due to a wacky schedule. It's time for this to stop. Sinbad is known for his charm, and a big part of that comes from his smile, so I want to have a smile that I am confident in! Life Goal: Study the world around you! Study Japanese 7 days a week (at least 5 days of two hours a day [consisting of grammar, vocabulary, and kanji], and another 2 days of review and practice). I am in Japan, after all, so it's about time I become better at studying Japanese. I've taken a few years of classes, but I have a lot of review that I need to do. In the last challenge I improved, but now it's really time to step it up. Part of Sinbad's travels is him learning about new places and other ways of life, so what better way to do this? Overall Goal: Look Good Naked I'm hoping to cosplay Sinbad at Youmacon (the first week of November). In order to do this character justice, I want to improve my overall figure and become more confident in my appearance. Rather than having a goal like "lose X amount of weight/bf/etc", I'm simply trying to make habits that will result in that on their own. I don't want to worry about the numbers, only the work. I will have this as my overall goal for the next few challenges leading up to November! Thanks for having me, Rangers! I look forward to working among you.

Hello all! It's been quite some time since I was last part of the scouts or the NF community. You may remember me from my previous account, username "Sora". I made a post HERE yesterday detailing my absence and change of account. Regardless, I'm back, and that's what's important! Part of the reason I'm starting this challenge a few days late is my account troubles, but I figure better late than never. So Let's Go! This Summer, I'm completing an internship in Japan, near Kyoto. Some of you may remember my challenges from the past that led up to my first trip to Japan, and I'm really happy to be back in this amazing place. However, I have found that I haven't been living a very productive life while I have been here. It's been almost a month, and I'm sick of being unproductive and wasting this amazing opportunity to improve myself. So, for this challenge, I have decided to channel Saitama from One Punch Man and work towards a better me through aggressive repetition. Goal 1: Workout! Rather than taking Saitama's workout directly (100 push ups, 100 sit ups, 100 squats, and 10 k of running everyday for three years), I'll be adapting it so fit my my current fitness level and timetable: Run 5 days a week, and incorporate body weight exercises... week 1: 2 days / week 2: 3 days / week 3: 4 days / week 4: 5 days The idea is to get back into running consistently again, while adding in some other moves to make myself more well rounded. I'm hoping to try out some types of fitness in the next year, so the body weight work (primarily push ups, squats, and sit ups) should help me gain some strength outside of distance running and improve my overall fitness level. There is also a good chance that I'll be climbing Mr. Fuji in July during my trip to Tokyo, so I'll need all the strength I can get! Goal 2: Cook! Cook 1 meal a day at least six days a week. At least one recipe must be new each week. This is my first time living and cooking 100% on my own for an extended period of time, and I've been wasting a lot of money the last few weeks eating out. The food here is AMAZING, but I need to start eating a little healthier and economically. My Goal here is to expand my cooking ability through consistently cooking and trying new recipes. One of my ideas for the next four week challenge is to work towards a paleo diet, but I think the first step towards this goal should be simply cooking in general. Goal 3: Hydrate! Drink 100 Ounces of Water a day, and limit soft drinks to once a day. At home in Michigan, I'm usually much better about staying hydrated. However, since my lifestyle changed significantly when I moved here, I have found myself drinking less. It's also much hotter and humid here than I am used to (yay rainy season!), so it's even more important that I am intentional about my hydration. I also need to try to avoid the many options that the plethora of vending machines here have to offer (Japan has the highest ratio of vending machines to landmass of any nation worldwide). I have downloaded the "iHydrate" app to track my progress. Life Goal: Daily Routine Complete at least three of the following each day, and complete all of them at least: Week 1: 1 time Week 2: 2 times Week 3: 3 times Week 4: 4 times Tasks: Read (20 minutes), Vlog (Film one video OR Edit one video), Study Japanese ( 1.5 hours), Clean (including laundry, dishes, etc. Basically anything in my apartment), Adventure (go somewhere I have never been before), Draw (1 completed sketch of 30 minutes working on full drawing) I have a lot of things I want to accomplish while I'm here, and the only way I'm going to be able to do that is by consistently practicing all of them. I've been doing fine doing them individually, but the problem for me has been giving attention to all of these things at once and finding the proper balance. So, through this goal, I'm hoping to slowly add more on to my plate and adjust to the balance gradually. IN SUMMARY: I'm hoping to slowly add more onto my plate as the challenge progresses. Through repeating everything consistently, I'm hoping to become a hero like Saitama! I'm super excited to be back among the NF community, especially the scouts. I'd love to talk more with you all, and I hope we can all reach our goals together! Let's go!

Hello everyone, I'm going to Japan for 2 weeks from 26th February to 10th of March and am looking for general tips and tricks At the moment I'm planing to spend most of the time in Tokyo and ad 4 days in Kyoyto (traveling via night-bus). I already got a contact in Tokyo via my university but would love to hear tips frrom people that have been over there already. I already found a hostel that I like and all the transfers so it's more about general tips and cool nerd stuff (so far I have only schedule the Ghibli-Museum and "Pokemon-Center" for Tokyo). So looking forward for all the information I can get (I'm reading "lonely planet - Japan" at the moment to specify my planing more).

I give no guarantees that I will be as epic as that dwarf. So, in my two and a half years here on NF, I have never done a challenge outside of the Monk’s Guild. I love the Monastery, but lately I’ve been having a goodly chunk of lifting questions and thoughts pop into my head, so I figured now is a good time to show up and learn from all your wonderful Warrior-type people. By and large, this is going to be a weird challenge for me. I go on vacation starting in….. 12 hours? Which means I’ll be doing Challenge-light stuff for the week or so I’m gone. And then starting in the middle of the last week, I’m going away to Japan. Guess how much Challenge-related stuff I’ll be doing then? So, new guild location means that I’ll give a short bio about myself for any onlookers who are curious but haven’t seen or followed me before. I’m a martial artist who studies aikido, a martial art focusing on using an attackers energy against them, using their own momentum and strength to either throw them away or immobilize them up in a joint lock. It’s an art that is centered not on using strength, but physics and anatomy. So strength training for me is an odd balancing act of getting stronger (and hopefully gaining more endurance), while practicing an art where that strength isn’t required. Because of that (and really just how often I’m at the dojo), I only strength train twice a week. Slower strength gains, but it fits my schedule. In addition to that, I run with the November Project Tribe here in Boston on Wednesday mornings doing Stadium sprints. It’s all good fun. So, for this challenge I have really two major physical goals, and a life goal I’ll focus on. 1) Record Lifts I ain’t talking this: I’m talking this: ~Make recordings of my form and post them for critiques I really should post some form check videos.I’m really bad about it.At the moment, I’m doing 5/3/1 twice a week, based on the Black Iron Beast (https://blackironbeast.com/5/3/1/calculator) calculator.I’ve done one cycle already, and rather enjoyed it, but really, really should get some extra sets of eyes to check on me.Goal is to take recordings of my lifts this week (I’m on vacation and I’m lifting, what of it?), post them when I get back, and hopefully address any issues you guys see. Honestly, I’d also like to try and branch out beyond squats, deadlifts, bench press, and OHP, but right now I don’t think I have the mental fortitude (or time) to work on that.But if I have a spare day or three, I may try to work on cleans as well (figure start with the hanging cleans with just the bar and eventually graduate up to power cleans).But that’s secondary, but will definitely require videos if/when I do it. 2) A Cut Above the Rest ~Keep a cut of 2300~2500 calories per day (16,000-17,500 calories per week) I’ve lost a good chunk of weight since starting here.But I still haven’t quite hit my goals, even though I’ve modified them a bit as of late.I would like to eventually be around 200 pounds.Last November I was ~205, and (incredibly fun) Nerd visits, holidays, and stress made me balloon up to ~225.I’ve spent since January trying to get my weight and body fat percentages down using my tried and true method of just counting the damned calories.I feel more comfortable and definitely make better choices. Ultimately, I want to be under 215 for my trip to Japan.Which, for the curve ball, I apparently have succeeded at.As of this morning I weigh 214.6 pounds.So I guess I should aim for more like 210 for Japan.But really, if I can keep under 215 I’ll be happy for my Japan trip. Largest issue I have is at work – snacks are plentiful and more often than not junky.But I also tend to chow down on a lot of fruit.I think to make this okay I’m going to try to limit myself to 1-2 pieces of fruit a day at work, and then only 2 cookies a week.I’m not Paleo, so no worries on that front.I’ve actually been doing this cut since the end of the last challenge and it seems to be working fairly well (down from 217 in 10 days, which is weird).I think I can sustain it.Just a matter of making sure I can sustain my performance levels as well.So I’ll probably have to factor in more effective pre and post workout meals.I’m honestly more worried about my aikido classes, as those are in the evening and last a while.Lifting I do early in the morning with a decent breakfast in me. 3) Traveling Monk I apparently use a lots of Avatar gifs. I decided to keep it going. Complete the List: -Buy JR rail Pass -Buy Personal hotspot -Find Hombu membership card -Buy some easier-to-travel-with clothing (lighter, easier to clean) -Quick drying towel? Not Needed -Get a basic schedule done -Get some more LaX balls for Travel -Buy small travel backpack -Organize list of must-travel gear -Something else I probably forgot and will continue to update this list with Like I said above, I’ll be going to Japan at the end of the challenge.I’ve been…. Rather lax about getting schedules for this.The first part of the trip I’m going to be with a chunk of people from my dojo and it’s been fairly solidly planned.At least in terms of “We need to be here on this day” for things.The minutiae aren’t planned, but I really want to keep myself loose for this in general.I don’t do vacations in a highly planned way – I’m kind of a hyper planner normally, so vacations I take it easy (beyond a general guideline) on that front. Anyway, going to be in Tokyo for a little less than a week, then I want to go to Kyoto and see Fuji.I may also travel to Osaka because coincidentally my brother and his partner are going to be in Japan at the same time as me.But really… I got no big plans.Anyone who’s been to Japan want to give suggested things to do? And that about covers it for this challenge. It kind of amounts to “Keep doing what you’re doing,” but it should be okay. I’m not sure if I’ll ramble on about aikido/monking in here, or spare all you warrior types the martial arts philosophizing and keep it in my Battle Log. Or maybe I’ll just go create a ramble space in the Monk’s guild to make sure I don’t get accused of abandoning my Monks. Onwards and upwards!

Hello, all. I'm not brand-new to the Rebellion, but I'm recommitting today for the coming year. I am 31, and hoping to have my first child in the next few years (I'm not trying now, as I'm teaching abroad in Japan, but will probably start next year or a year and a half from now). For those of you who were into fitness before and during pregnancies, what kind of goals did you set for yourself? i want to be in the best place physically ( my doctor is already giving me the "older first-time mother" rigamorole) for the challenge of being a healthy mum throughout the whole process. If you were given a year to prepare for your first kid again, what goals would you set for yourself? BTW - I am a pescetarian living in Japan, with limited Japanese skills. I tried in America to eschew additives, but it's difficult to be very label-conscious with limited reading skills.

ã¿ã‚“ãªã•ã‚“ã€ã“ã‚“ã«ã¡ã¯ï¼ I'm a 28 year old mom of two who's still carrying around that baby weight, hovering right around 160 pounds with little to no muscle strength. We live in Japan right now, the land of effortlessly thin people, and after the third person in two weeks asked me if I'm pregnant (and rubbed my stomach!!), I decided to jump back on the wagon. I was heading to all the normal websites, full of hot jocks with the bodies of the Schwarzenegger, when I randomly decided to search for body weight exercises. And fate did arrange for us to meet. Nerd Fitness was one of my top results, and it was love at first sight. I can do this without trying to join a Japanese gym? I can do what I enjoy and leave what I don't? Steve is a Boston fan? The site is run by nerds so it actually looks good? Normal people can get fit, too? I'm all in. But not in my typical gung-ho-two-week-blast-before-failure-way. After spending hours in the depths of the site, I feel genuinely prepared to make a life change, one small quest at a time, for good. How exciting is that? A little about me: The Elder Scrolls are my game of choice. I never thought I liked video games until my husband begged convinced me to buy a PS3 and Elder Scrolls. Come to think of it, that's about the time I gained all that weight...I grew up thinking that milkshakes were a normal part of everyone's balanced breakfast.I've lived in Japan for a total of 2 years and 9 months now. My youngest was born here. I love it.Chocolate is my downfall.I asked my 5 year old daughter what she would do if she ever got lost. She told me, "I would call to the Gundam and I would hop inside him so he could bring me back to you." Winning.

Hi everyone, I'm going to Japan for a holiday! I will be in Osaka/Kyoto/Tokyo/Sapporo between 25 December and 10 January. Do we have any members from Japan here?