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"This battle isn't going very well, Doc. Any suggesti..." "Mega Man!? Rock! Come in my boy" A final shot took out the Blue Bomber. Time to try it again. I have been largely absent from the boards recently and I could give excuses until I was blue in the face (see what I did there?), but I wont. I'm ready to continue. I have a few goals for this challenge and as an added bonus, I have inspired my family to start one as well, albeit offline. Joining me offline is my mother, my step father, Pizzazz, Jitters Junior and Jitter Bug. It's going to be a great year! I'm going to workout 3 days/week 0/3 Weekly 0/12 4WC I will only have one serving of dinner each night 0/7 Weekly 0/28 4WC I am going to practice guitar 3 days per week with a minimum of 15 minutes per practice. 0/3 Weekly 0/12 4WC BONUS LEVEL! RAK at least 1/week. I want to keep up the mojo from the Christmas season and keep giving back. 0/1 Weekly 0/4 4WC I'll add more fluff as work allows this week. I'm pretty busy and loving it. Let's do this!

"Climb to the top of the world" System reboot initiated. ProtoJitters online. Battle program found. Initiate protocols. ... Initiation failed. Upload previous missions. ... Upload failed. Install into new chassis. Installation complete. Powering on. It's time for me to get my head back in the game. I'm going back to my old goals that I failed spectacularly at on my last challenge. I will see this through. "And as you stand tall, you will see..." I will be following a simple workout routine for the next 6 weeks. I will continue my search for inner peace through meditation in the mornings. Most of all, and without a doubt the most difficult for me; I will get my eating habits under control, specifically, portions. "That when you fall..." Work out 4 days per week. No matter what. My family has helped me in the past with my workouts, they will help propel me to the man I can be. Too often I say I can't because I'm watching the kids or I have some obligation that prevents me from doing this. No more. 0/4 - Weekly 0/24 - 6WC Meditate 5 days per week. This is usually not a problem, but for some reason, I fell out of habit. Time to go back to my roots. 0/5 - Weekly 0/30 - 6WC Portion Control. Grading is subjective and difficult, but I will do my best on this. I should not be finished with my meal and going back for seconds before my wife and kids are done with half of their plate. I will try to limit my intake as well. To give you an understanding of my capabilities, 3 Chipotle burritos is no problem for me to finish. I was one quarter of the 36" pizza challenge team that finished in just over 13 minutes (the team gets 30 minutes) and had some of our friends pizza after. I can eat. I don't want that anymore. Why? Because I can't be there for my family if I'm dead. Pass/Fail 0/21 - Weekly Pass/Fail 0/126 - 6WC Bonus Level: Glass work. I will finish at least one piece each week. After this challenge is over, I will have two weeks until my next craft show in Two Harbors. I need to be well stocked for it.0/1 - Weekly 0/6- 6WC "You will fall from a height most men will never reach" I will stumble along the way, but it will not stop me. I will beat this. Recently, I fell into the habit of drinking Red Bull again. It's something that I struggle with every day. Caffeine addiction is tough. So, Naxius and I made a deal. She goes to a one cup/day max and I go Red Bull free for this challenge. Added bonus. Pass/Fail 0/0 - Weekly Pass/Fail 0/0 - 6WC

"Climb to the top of the world" System reboot initiated. ProtoJitters online. Battle program found. Upload previous missions. ... Upload failed. The latest newsletter from Steve had a link to an article he wrote about putting fitness first and being selfish about it. For those of you who are not new to my challenges knows that this is not me. I have a huge problem not putting others first; especially my family. To me, they take priority in my life, even if it means that I suffer. "And as you stand tall, you will see..." This challenge, I will break that cycle. I will find a way to keep them as a priority, and make improvements for myself. I will do this for myself, and for them. We all deserve it. We booked a trip to Wisconsin Dells in late July, and I will not be embarrassed by the way I look. By my actions, perhaps, but not by my body. I will be following a simple workout routine for the next 6 weeks. I will continue my search for inner peace through meditation in the mornings. Most of all, and without a doubt the most difficult for me; I will get my eating habits under control, specifically, portions. "That when you fall..." Work out 4 days per week. No matter what. My family has helped me in the past with my workouts, they will help propel me to the man I can be. Too often I say I can't because I'm watching the kids or I have some obligation that prevents me from doing this. No more. 0/4 - Weekly 0/24 - 6WC Meditate 5 days per week. This is usually not a problem, but for some reason, I fell out of habit. Time to go back to my roots. 0/5 - Weekly 0/30 - 6WC Portion Control. Grading is subjective and difficult, but I will do my best on this. I should not be finished with my meal and going back for seconds before my wife and kids are done with half of their plate. I will try to limit my intake as well. To give you an understanding of my capabilities, 3 Chipotle burritos is no problem for me to finish. I was one quarter of the 36" pizza challenge team that finished in just over 13 minutes (the team gets 30 minutes) and had some of our friends pizza after. I can eat. I don't want that anymore. Why? Because I can't be there for my family if I'm dead. Pass/Fail 0/21 - Weekly Pass/Fail 0/126 - 6WC "You will fall from a height most men will never reach" I do this to be a better man. For my kids, for my wife and now, for myself. I deserve this. I will not let one failure deter me from my goals. I will stumble along the way, but it will not stop me. I will beat this.

“You are never strong enough that you don't need help.†A number of months ago, I came across this: I held it back because I didn't want people to know that I was struggling, online or in real life. I am always willing to help others, it should be the benchmark of humanity. However, I need to be willing to ask for and accept help from others. It's with that spirit that I take this next challenge. Keep the Mojo mojoing: 0/3 0/18 Do some sort of workout that keeps my body moving. BBWW, the 7-minute workout, running, jumping, etc... 3X per week. Wait! You noticed that I put the body weight and the running together? How astute. Well done. The reason for this is because: All that heavy isn't going to lift itself: 0/3 0/18 I'm going to lift 3X per week. I've not lifted in a long time, and I really want to get back into it. I want to earn that Thor Shirt. What Thor shirt? This Thor shirt: or this one: Which will be my reward for finishing this challenge with at least a B. Now, there should be 3 things, and as a Druid, I'm going to add this: Peace can only come from within: 0/5 0/30 Meditate 5X per week. A focused mind can accomplish more and right now, I'm not accomplishing a damn thing. I will slow down, and notice the quiet and that things simply are. By now, in my head at least, you're all wondering what calling Rush has to do with all of this. Glad you asked. Mega Man would not be able to defeat Dr. Wily by himself. Dr. Light, Roll, and Eddie (Flip Top) all help along the way, but it is Rush, Mega Man's trusty dog, that is always there for him (at least since Mega Man 3, which is my favorite). Rush is that extra boost when Mega Man can't quite jump that high. Rush is the way across when the pit is too wide. Rush is the all encompassing friend that we all need. So, how does this all tie in? My grades for my challenge will all be dependent on whether or not I ask for help. My plan is to seek help from other people with all of my activities in some way. I may (and I really should) take The Most Loathed up on his offer of joining him at his new garage gym (and get tips, this guy knows his stuff). I may take Kat or CeaseFire up on the offer of a running mate. I may ask my wife to join me on my workout days at home. The only one that I can't figure out is the meditation. I am not sure how to have someone help me with a solo act. I'm open to suggestions on that one. My grades will suffer one letter if I don't ask for help at least once a week. 0/6 We begin on the 15th, it's going to be a great challenge.

"We can't help everyone, but everyone can help someone" Password accepted. Loading data. Data retrieved. Please pick your goals from previous challenges. I'm going to do a mash up of my previous challenges and put them together to get me closer to where I want to be in regards to my weight/clothes fitting better and my life in general. Beware, the return of the RAKs is here! From my First Challenge: -Beginner's Bodyweight Workout 3 days a week - no excuses anymore. 3 circuits - A; 2 circuits - B; 1 circuit - C; miss workout - F. I will be giving myself an exception on this: my son and I will start Judo on the 30th and it goes for 4 weeks. During those 4 weeks, that can replace a BBWW. 0/3 0/18 From my Second Challenge: SWIFT: Cardio three times a week, 20 minutes at a time. I am working my jump rope skills up to this, so I will run for the minutes I don’t make it on the rope. 3 days - A, 2 days - C, 1 or less - F 0/3 0/18 From my Fourth Challenge: Unicycle/Juggling/Stilt Walking - 4 days per week. I'm calling this one Skills practice. It can be anything that improves my skills. 4+ days - A, 3 days - B, 2 days - C, 1 day - D, 0 days - F 0/4 0/24 Side Quest: From my Third Challenge: I will commit 6 Random Acts of Kindness during this challenge. This goes beyond holding a door for someone. They will need to go above and beyond and it will be done because I can. I will admit now, I am doing this because I believe these acts can change the world, even if it's for the recipient and that is the world I wish to live in. 0/6 There are going to be times where I will falter, I'm sure. I am going to do the best I can on this and I am going to get back to where I was. Right now, I'm sitting at 248 lbs. (as of this morning) when I was down to an unthinkable (for me at least) 228 at my lowest since joining the Rebellion. I will not be deterred. I look forward to Monday's start, and I hope you all enjoy the show you're about to see.

"The way we choose to see the world creates the world we see" I'm going to be keeping this challenge as simple as I can. I am up against a writing deadline, a birthday party for my soon to be 3 year old, 2 races and 3 stained glass projects all before this is over. I must remember that I have created a world for myself of my choosing. I will no longer let my health suffer because "I am too busy". With that in mind, I present to you, my challenge, in musical form: "Take your time. Think a lot. Why, think of everything you've got" - Cat Stevens - "Father and Son" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q29YR5-t3gg I'm rushing through my meditation recently. I will end that and give it the time and attention it deserves. This will be done more than the 3 days a week I've been averaging. Meditation per week: 7: A 6: B 5: C 4: D 3 or less: F "I can lead a nation with a microphone" - Flobots - "Handlebars" I noticed something last week. I really don't care about my job. I was on the phone with a customer and I really wasn't selling them on my company. I was getting an order. This bothers me a great deal. I once had a passion for sales in that I could show people that what I was talking about is important. That some things are worth the extra money spent. A job done well is better than a job done quickly. Midway through the call, I remembered that I have an amazing voice for sales. Not just the pitch and tone, but I have a way with words that borders on a talent and I am squandering it. I tapped that part of me again and I felt awake for the first time in over a year. It resulted in 2 new projects for my company. If I am to be stuck here, wasting what I know to be my valuable time, then I am going to be great at it. I will put forth effort to do create more than my minimum amount of sales for each week. I will lead this small team to glory! New sales per week over my min: 5 or more: A 4: B 3: C 1 - 2: D 0 - Failure! "Who's to say, I can't do everything? Well, I can try" - Jack Johnson - "Upside Down" I've been slacking on my unicycle practice recently. My son pointed that out to me yesterday and he's right. I've been a huge slacker. I haven't gone more than 10 feet on it. Well, by the end of the six weeks, I'll have had 3-4 parades that have gone by. Too many for me not to have been riding it. Practice, practice, practice. And! I will have to get at least one picture per week posted of me riding it or I'm dinging myself one grade. Practice per week: 4 or more: A 3: B 2: C 1: D 0: Failure! Less fitness in this as there was in the past, but this is what I need right now. As a request for all of you, I ask that you post something here every week. Doesn't have to even be words, but a picture, a gif (Bats) or anything else that has made you smile that week. I'm not saying you can't follow along if you don't, but it's much more fun when people have some skin in the game. Don't worry if it derails the thread at all (Bats) or if it doesn't fit into the current topic. I want to hear from all of you. You all make me want to be better. On Monday, we begin again.

"One of the hardest parts of life is deciding whether to walk away or try harder" I'm going semi-simple with this challenge. Why? Because of my limited amount of brain power at the moment. Which segues nicely into Yoga/Meditation - 4 days minimum per week. I've got a bag full of cats in my brain recently and I need to get the smell of crazy off for a bit. A clear head can go a long way 0/24 Lifting - 3 days per week. I am going to find some lifts that I enjoy and that will increase my strength. Can't be Thor without some good strength. 0/18 Unicycle/Juggling/Stilt Walking - 4 days per week. My parade season won't start till the month after we end this challenge, but that means I need to get the practice going now, or I'll look rather foolish (and not in the good way) on on the streets. Kilt and bagpipes optional. I'm not sure when I will get stilts, but I would like to try them out. And, as a part of this, I need to get at least pictures, if not video of a few practices. We'll see how this goes... 0/24 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jCmfKHzafk Side Quest 1: I need to eat less and stop snacking after 8pm. I am going to not finish the kids' food at dinners when they don't eat it all. I will slow down my eating speed and recognize when I am full. This will be hard for me, but it should help me get down to the size 38 pants I want to stay in. Side Quest 2: Find something that I want to do with my life and start doing it. I'm tired of waking up and not being excited for my work day. I will make a significant step in that direction before the 6 weeks are up. This will be either getting enrolled in school, taking an interview that I want, or getting a business plan on paper so I can have my own business. I may or may not come up with more side quests. We'll see how that goes. I now await the beginning of the challenge.