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Hello everyone!! Last challenge I came back from a little break and rocked it the first three weeks. Then I got a cold. A big, bad cold, which tried to throw me off my path with bone-rattling cough-attacks and and make me lose my breath by stuffing my raspiratory system with evil, clingy balls of snot. But, no more!!! I'm recovering, gaining back my strength and will continue on the path I have chosen, no matter what kind of bacteria and viruses nature throws at me. Mwaahahahaha!!! ... sorry... got a bit distracted there. Anyways, the thing is, last challenge went great and I think I will continue doing what I've been doing. I've tweaked my goals just a little bit, but all in all, I'll just keep swimming. Here's what I'm up to: Goals and motivation I want to get fit and healthy and strong. Not necessarily in that order. But I'm on a quest to become a better me and part of that is sorting out my diet, using my body in other ways than sitting in front of the computer and getting my life in order. One of my long(ish)-term goals is to finally be able to do a real push-up (I'm at 4-5 knee push-ups right now), another is to find a (second) job. I also want to fit into some clothes I bought back then. I want to be able to run again without getting knee pain and/or out of breath too easily. I want to have the energy to do the things I love and the money to afford them. So, without further ado, here's my challenge No. 5 Quest 1: healthy dieting habits I've made a habit of drinking enough water/tea and avoiding refined sugar and white flour. I won't track the latter anymore (got that down), but I'll try to improve the drinking even more. Last challenge I added "more veggies" to the list, which I'll continue this time. I have noticed that on some days I eat only musli and sandwiches (whole-grain, but still) so this challenge I'll try to eat at least one "proper" meal everyday. Proper means: I cooked it (not necessarily on the same day) and it is not a simple thing like fruit salad, porridge, a sandwich or something like that. Just a regular meal like my mom would have put on the dinner table. drink at least 2,5l of water or tea every day (+1 bonus point for every extra 2,5l/week, -1 bonus points for every day I drink less)have one "proper" meal each day (+1 bonus point for every extra meal, -1 bonus point for every day I forget)eat more (cups of) vegetables than the week before (+1 bonus point for every 2 extra cups/week, -2 bonus point for each week I fail)eat some sort of veggies with two meals every day (snacking counts as a meal) (+1 bonus point if I eat veggies with every meal, +1 bonus point for each day I forget) Quest 2: get moving, get strong I do enjoy physical activity, just not all kinds. Last challenge I got very far by aiming for 3 sessions of some sort of sports (running, swimming, rowing, badminton, workout, whatever), depending on what I feel like. I will continue playing badminton once a week and will try to get back into running (my knees have been acting up the last time I tried, so I'll take it slow). I will also try to get in bodyweight workouts regularly. I will track my progress in a seperate spreadsheet. Yoga didn't go too well last challenge but I know it's something I enjoy once I get into it, so I'll aim to do some sort of practice every day. And I finally want to reach that "one real, proper push-up" goal, so I'll try myself at knee and/or incline push-ups everyday. I like the idea of doing AMRAP, so I see where that'll lead. I don't know yet if that's too much, so I'll adjust accordingly. do some sort of fitness activity 3 times a week (+1 bonus point for every extra session, -1 bonus for every one I forget)do at least 15 minutes of yoga every day (+1 bonus point for every extra hour, -1 bonus point for every day I forget)do knee/incline push-ups every day and track how many reps I can do (+2 bonus points for each week with consecutive better reps, -1 bonus point every day I forget) Quest 3: getting my life sorted out There's a lot (read: A LOT) of stuff I could put on here, but I'm going to focus on the things I want and need to do the most. Top of the list is getting a job. I currently work 2 days a week and while that pays the bill as long as nothing unforseen happens, it's really not a reliable option for the future. I've finally, after a lot of struggling, started sending out applications last challenge and I'll continue with that in the current one. I will also continue reading up background information for my current job and doing office work for my father's business (whenever there is things to do... I might have to adjust the target there). And since I continue to put some of my money into singing lessons, I will make the most of them by practicing in addition to the weekly lessons. send out 2 applications every week (+2 bonus points for every additional application, -3 bonus points every week I send less)take time for singing 4 times a week (this includes lessons) (+1 bonus point if all of these are at least 40 minutes, -1 bonus point if I do less than 4 times)read for work longer than the week before, measured in minutes (+1 bonus point for every extra hour, -1 bonus point if I do less than last week)do office work for 6 (?) hours every week (no bonus points here, since this depends so much on the workload)kitchen counter zero every night before going to sleep (+1 bonus point if I do this perfectly for a whole week, -0,5 bonus points if I do it first thing the next morning, -1 bonus point for every day I don't do it at all) Okay, now to the thing we all know you've been waiting for: my new and fancy pretty purple spreadsheet!!!! *sparkles* (now with automated progress percentages, automated ratings, automated gradings and automated color coding) Phew!! There's still the whole "making my home comfortable" business, so I have another huge printed spreadsheet on the wall next to my computer with all the household chores. No grading here, I just want to check off when I do something to get a feel for how often I do stuff and eventually figure out how often I should do stuff. I've neglecting this a little bit, so I'll try to get to it daily. As well as my financing spreadsheet where I write down what I spend. I'll also try to follow the 52 weeks home organising challenge as loosely or closely as my timetable allows. Aaaand I'll update a list of one-time things that I want to do during the next 4 weeks. Like my taxes. Or throwing a birthday party. So, there's lots to do, but last challenge showed me that I'm well up for it, if I set my mind to it. Which I have! I'm pumped, I'm on point, I'll rock this, I'll... Have a successfull challenge, everyone

Greetings! The last challenge (and my first completion -- WoOt!) went really well for me with regards to strength training. I'm far from warrior status, but I'm really appreciating the body weight exercises, hence my decision to throw my lot in with the assassins guild for this challenge! Fitness Goals Main quest:Increase strength! The goals:3 weekly strength sessions, at least 30 min each 3 weekly HIIT sessions, ideally on alternate days from strength sessions Do after-strength stretches! I always do warm-ups, and never do stretches after my regular strength sessions. I'm using this 6WC to get in the habit! Increase reps on one-legged push-ups (my current record is 7 on the first set, 4 on the two following sets). Ultimate target is 3 sets of 10. Life Goals I've been feeling a huge pull to make playing music a bigger part of my life. I'm a lifelong musician, but the playing ebbs and flows depending on what else is going on at the moment. I thought it would be cool to use the 6WC format to get myself to play more, and maybe even get a gig here and there. Thus one of my goals for this challenge is to create a profile on gigtown.com (an online talent agent of sorts), complete with sample recordings and a pic. This obviously won't guarantee me gigs, but it puts my hat in the ring. As the saying goes, you can't win the lottery if you don't buy a ticket. The next life goal for this challenge is a big one, and it's not optional. As we entered the sixth week of the last challenge, the company I'd been working for succumbed to some dire financial difficulties and I was laid off. Similar to the musician goal above, I can't make a company hire me, but I can set up conditions to make it possible: send out resumes regularly, work with a head hunter, network with others in my profession (I'm an IT guy). With that in mind, here are some measurable life goals for this 6WC:Music: record and master at least 2 demos (covers, not originals) and upload them to gigtown.com, along with a photo of me and my guitar. (Yeah, this is one HECK of a step outside of my comfort zone.) Employment: make at least 4 job contacts a week. This can be any of the following: sending a resume out, applying for a job, interviewing for a job, meeting with a head hunter, cold-contacting companies. Scoring of this goal: if I am offered and accept a position, I'm calling this goal 100% successful.I'm still mulling how to assign stats to these goals, but I'm happy with the goals themselves for the moment. I'm looking forward to leveraging the 6WC format to level up my body and my life!