Search the Community

Welcome back for another episode of The Exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I had been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 142 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). Challenge Lesson: "Ohhhh... Great warrior... Wars not make one great" -- Yoda, Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back Luke comes to the swamp world of Dagobah looking for the Jedi Master, Yoda. He meets an odd alien hermit after crash landing in the swamp. Their exchanges are quite comical as Luke's frustrations with the swamp and his search set in and are exasperated by the odd alien hermit. Finally, Luke tells the odd alien hermit he is looking for someone, a great warrior. The hermit replies with the above quote, "Wars not make one great." I agree with the odd alien hermit for three reasons. First, because he is Yoda! You can't disagree with the Grand Master of the Jedi! Second, it is not victory in war which brings about greatness, but all the work to get there. War is something that has been glorified through stories of drama and action to recount history or to entertain through all eras of humanity. Today, it is through film, television, and books that war and the heroes of war are glorified. The heroes are the main characters who could always be described as "great warriors" at the end. A great warrior is the successful victor in battle. The focus is on their accomplishments and achievements, not on the path which led them there. Not every great warrior starts out great. They have training, struggles, defeats, learning, practicing to go through before they can find success and claim victory over their opponents. War is conquest and conflict where there are winners (the great warriors) and losers (not yet great warriors). The loser of war or conflict has an opportunity to learn from failure. After they learn from failure, they can then achieve greatness and be a great warrior, but the war is not what makes them great. It is the training, struggles, defeats, learning, practicing which makes them great. But for my third reason, you have to take the quote in context. Yoda is indicating a slightly different lesson. A Jedi's purpose is to serve others, respect all life, and protect all life from those who wish it harm for personal gain. A Jedi accomplishes these things by being one with the Force to see the "right" path forward to find solutions and results that benefit everyone involved and do not have harmful effects in the future. Luke refers to the Jedi Master as a Great Warrior, but Yoda undercuts the compliment by implying the Jedi do not seek greatness through being a warrior. Jedi fight as a last resort. Jedi use the Force for defense, never for attack. Instead, a Jedi achieves greatness through their servitude of the light side of the Force. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 9 Challenge: FITNESS: Cardio: Speed and Stamina - 500 min total, 120 weekly. DEX +1, STA +2 Exercise: Stretch and Strengthen - 500 min total, 120 weekly. STR +2, DEX +1 Karate: Training and Practice - 500 min total, 120 weekly STR +1, DEX +1, STA +1 DIET: Weight Control - Lose 2 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 159.0 lbs. Complete measurements before or during Week 1 and again during or after Week 4. Watch portions and make healthy choices for 24 of 28 days. CON +2 LIFE: Get Stuff Done - Complete (or dedicate at least one hour to) 75 Tasks or Projects, with at least 15 a week, from any of the following areas (minimum for challenge): Toastmasters Communication Practice (2), Toastmasters Leadership Practice (6), Webmaster Work (4), Mentoring (4), Charity Work (2), Jedi Training (4), Self Preservation (2), Reading (8)Church Work (4), Job Work (4), Business Projects (4), Household Chores (16), Yard Work (4), Animal Care (8), Home Renovation (4), Auto Maintenance (3), Family Activities (4), Adventuring (2). WIS +2, CHA +2 Added two new categories. Reading for entertainment is something I have been neglecting. Business Projects includes a few ventures I am working on with the Wizard Laser Tag, a Jedi Training Website, and a Life Coaching Website. Each could result in extra cash if they reach they maximum potential, but personally, that is not the overall goal for any of them. INCENTIVES! REWARD: For each week I complete 15 or more tasks, I will put aside $5 to spend how I see fit ($215 total saved so far). CONSEQUENCE: For any week where I complete less than 15 tasks, I will give up $10 of saved cash. BONUS: $5 for each Business Project hour.

For anyone who has followed me before, this challenge will not be groundbreaking. It's simply a return to the basic routine that has been the foundation of my karate training for quite a while now, but that I temporarily let slide during the holidays. I've found it to be a very solid routine, one that focuses my training toward its primary goal: mental resiliency. Sure, what I do gain in performance and ability is great, but the main purpose shall always be to keep me resilient against the stresses of life. 1. Formal karate practice: 2x weekly at the dojo. 2. Individual karate practice: 2x weekly at home. 3. Individual yoga practice: 4x weekly at home. One thing I hope to nail down in the coming month is to settle on a kata to focus on for possible use in competition and rank exam. Jutte has been a strong candidate for a while, but I've also been working with Kanku Dai and Chinte enough to warrant consideration. Either way, I think by the end of the month I will need to pick one and stick with it for fine tuning.

I really need to learn how to insert gifs, and understand the HTML code when I copy and paste things. Also, I was pleasantly surprised how good the Assassin's Creed movie was; having expected a flop. It may have inspired me to take back up my hidden blade and regroup here. Having spent a month recovering from, and reflecting on 2016 - I'm back to take on 2017! My missions for 2017 are: Read books. Complete a Second “agent-ready” Novel. Write 100,000 words. Build Wellbeing - This is where the 4-week-challenges come in. Take Photographs. Now, I already measure these 5 goals with experience points on my writing blog, so here, I'm splitting up my 300XP-per-month for that building goal. Each item earns me 25XP a week: * 3 workouts a week of at least 3 exercise sets: yoga, SN or dance included. [Focusing on balance and agility] * Avoid store-bought 'snack foods' 1 day a week * Practise 'kata' once in the month. Instead of having new items each time, and falling behind, I'm focusing on the 5 goals I make for the whole year, three of which are part of my Academy 16-week challenge: so really I'm only adding one sub-set item each 4 week challenge. Nothing is true. Everything is permitted.

"But Kishi, aren't you doing themed challenges?" Well, I'm still working through the WOT, but like I said, theming it was getting pretty thin. And since I'm still working my way through book 6, well, I didn't think it made a lot of sense to worry too much. I suspect that going forward, I'm going to have to let that sink into the background of things. Anyway. I'll have to post some Righteous Santa Justice or something once I'm at a computer that lets me do that. So. I went to give blood on Monday. Giving blood is a good thing to do - it burns calories, regulates iron, and oh yeah it saves lives maybe. It's also useful as a pseudophysical, which when I didn't have insurance was pretty great. And for the most part, the numbers came back awesome - pulse was a touch higher, but that's to be expected given that I have a sedentary job now. But that perfect blood pressure, tho. But then it got interesting when it came time to take my temperature. I clocked in low 97. Why is that interesting? Because a lowered temperature is a sign of a depressed metabolism. It wasn't something I'd ever really noticed before, but after seeing some of the discussions here on the board, I've begun watching that in myself. I was suspicious before: the fact that I couldn't stop being cold up in Boston wasn't just my delicate Southern constitution, and I've noticed that my internal temperature shifts depending on how much I've eaten. Even having taken to eating more, I've noticed that I'm hungry in the mornings, and three hours after I've woken up my hands are back to being cold again. How do you fix that? Well, barring some kind of medical intervention, your best bet or so I've heard is to eat more. A lot more. But I'm still not lean enough for it to make sense to pursue the fabled Dirty Bulk. No, no. We're not doing that. Instead, we're going to keep it clean and Low Carb, except for training days. The training, for its part, is going to have to be adjusted somewhat as well. I'm going to put this energy to work. Don't worry, though, I'm not talking about hopping on a treadmill or something like that. Everything is deliberate. And since I insist on being a socially normal person, I suppose Da Cheatz will come as they do. Goal 1: EAT ALL THE THINGS I'm not really exaggerating on this. The recommendation I got is to take maintenance and add 300 calories to it. Combined with my tendency to modulate my eating based on what I've done that day... oooooh. I'll be over 3000 calories on training days, man. Bring on the almond butter. And extra guac, and beef. No real carbs, though, not beyond some fruit periworkout and some beans at dinner. This will be tough. Low carb high calorie is expensive. In order to do that, I'm going to have to win the time to batch cook in the kitchen, when nobody else is using it. Spoilers: between my brother who is on bulk and my parents who cook at home, there is always someone using it. Haha, dammit. Okay. They don't call these Challenges for nothing. Goal 2: TRAIN HARD Well, if I'm going to take in all this energy, I might as well put it to work. I'm going to up the rep ranges some - from 5 to 8. No RPT work this time. I just want to lift heavy. Rucking will continue. Finishers, provided that the rest of the session has gone according to plan, will be reintroduced. I just got my first taste of a Versaclimber on Sunday, and... it's terrible. It's like a Stairclimber on steroids. Can't wait for next time. Beyond that, though, I think I want to build Finishers around crawls and carries as well, and I think I know how to do it. Goal 3: WRITE ON I need to find a way to keep my writing habit going. NaNoWriMo is always good for starting it, but I don't seem to stick out long past that. I end up getting distracted by side projects and such like that. But this year is different, on account of the fact that 1) I like the project I'm working on, and 2) I'm not desperate to submit things, since I have a good job now. There's no need for me to be distracted now, beyond the pull of the day to day. Goal 4: DO WORK SON I may be up for a raise at the end of the month. That's going to depend on my evaluation. That's going to depend on my work. Best get to it.

I don't have a specific plan for this challenge. I guess it's sort of an un-challenge. I often find the holidays to be stressful when I over-commit myself. So that commitment here is not to make another commitment. This post simply provides me a place to post whatever training I do accomplish during the holidays. In the last few challenges I've established a pretty solid karate and yoga routine. This will be the basis of what I work on.

Welcome back for another episode of the exciting Adventures of JediNickD! It was a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away that I joined this site and started my first challenge. Upon my return, I have decided to revisit some of my challenge themes to turn them into lessons as I had been doing more recently. I feel it is a good way to reflect on my own learning and progress to write about and share these lessons, but I also have another objective. I am cataloging these lessons in a document which is now up to 142 pages. The plan is to use this document as a reference for my personal Jedi training and to pass on for my Padawan training. It isn't just my Nerd Fitness challenges. It includes every Jedi-related writing I have done, training I have worked through, and documents I have collected (which are not protected but have sources noted). Challenge Lesson: "Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future." -- Yoda, Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back Yoda is very powerful and knowledgeable in the Force. Typically, he has the ability to see events well into the future, but it can be clouded by the dark side or the tipping of scales of large decisions. In this quote, Yoda was specifically referring to the fates of Han, Chewie, and Leia in the hands of Darth Vader on Bespin since Luke's choice to stay or go and his potential to fall to the dark side factored heavily into the events outcome, but Yoda's words carry more weight to it. Predicting the future is always reliant on current conditions and knowledge. As things happen and new things come to light, those predictions become more or less likely. The predictions could drastically change due to new information or occurrences. There are too many unforeseen variables at times. Being aware of how our decisions can influence the future is important to achieving the future we desire. Being aware of outside influences and the potential for unpredictable occurrences can help prepare for detours and breakdowns. My Main Quest and Mission: My mission is to be the best Jedi I can be. My main quest is always to enhance my overall health, fitness, and knowledge to be prepared for whatever challenges life could throw at me. As a Jedi, I need to be able to help people, whether that is a life threatening situation or just a charitable one. There is no boss level in Jedi training, there is only tomorrow. World 2 Level 7 Challenge: FITNESS: Cardio: Speed and Stamina - 500 min total, 120 weekly. DEX +1, STA +2 The weekly plan is a minimum of two tabata runs with Pokémon Go. These runs are to include at least 5 sprints of ~50 meters for increased intensity. It's getting cold outside, so I may move to a treadmill for a few of the runs. We'll see how it goes. I'll also have 60 minutes of racquetball on Fridays. I'd like to do some field or gym training for rugby, soccer, and football footwork and ball work, as well. Exercise: Stretch and Strengthen - 500 min total, 120 weekly. STR +2, DEX +1 The weekly plan includes 10 minutes of regular stretching each day, two 20 minute sessions of physical therapy exercises and 20 minutes of other strength training each week. The minimum leaves 40 minutes to make up by the end of the challenge. Karate: Training and Practice - 500 min total, 120 weekly STR +1, DEX +1, STA +1 Better to count Karate by itself. It is too difficult to predict or categorize the classes as Cardio or Strengthening. Plan is 2 classes a week for 45 min each. Add a third class or a individual practice for the last 30 min. DIET: Weight Control - Lose 2 lbs by end of challenge. Never weigh more than 159.5 lbs. Complete measurements before or during Week 1 and again during or after Week 4. Watch portions and make healthy choices for 24 of 28 days. CON +2 Going to eat salad and veggies as much as possible with apples and dark chocolate as my sugary snacks. Avoid soda, ice cream, and potato chips. Minimize cheese and nuts. Most importantly, I have to continue to watch my portions. I cannot ever have two "large" meals in one day. Aiming for one small meal and one medium meal a day, keeping breakfast as small as possible. LIFE: Get Stuff Done - Complete 60 Tasks or Projects, with at least 12 a week, from any of the following areas (max for challenge, no more than 3 each per week): Toastmasters Communication Practice (2), Toastmasters Leadership Practice (4), Webmaster Work (6), Mentoring (8), Charity Work (8), Jedi Training (4), Self Preservation (2), Church Work (4), Job Work (8), Household Chores (8), Yard Work (8), Animal Care (8), Home Renovation (8), Auto Maintenance (8), Family Activities (8), Adventuring (6). WIS +2, CHA +2 No longer worried about diversity. I want to continue to get the important weekly things done while looking for the neglected areas. I NEED to revisit my IJRS Jedi Training this challenge. It has been too long. Auto Maintenance will be important to get to before the weather gets too cold and icy. Same with any Home Renovation and Yard Work. Incorporating a reward and consequence has been really helpful, so I'll keep doing that. REWARD: For each week I complete 12 or more tasks, I will put $10 aside for buying something just for me. CONSEQUENCE: For any week where I complete less than 12 tasks, I will give up $10 of saved cash. BONUS: $5 for each IJRS Lesson completed. Major Dates: Disney World Dec 1st-5th, Christmas Weekend Dec 23rd-26th. Each of these periods will need to be planned carefully to meet my goals.

Well, it's been a while... 6 months or so I guess. I don't even have a clue. And the last few challenges I did here had pretty poor results. For the past few months I've just existed. Nothing has really sat well with me and I've yearned for times past or future. I recognize the patterns and can feel the slow spiral into a fugue state of depression from which recovery will be so much more difficult. So I'm back. Starting fresh, hence being in the REBELS thread Last time I felt truely good about myself I was working out and eating healthy(ish). A big catalyst was access to a gym - the psychological devision between "workout time/space" and everything else was a great benefit to me. I enjoyed the workouts and the sense of achievement when I hit a progress goal. So... One step at a time. I prepaid 6 months of gym membership the other day and that removes 90% of my excuses. Goals: Will be updated and given more detail over the next few days. Gym 3 times per week at a minimum. - starting gently, I'll be looking at some steady state cardio. Not my favourite thing but It'll help get back into the swing of things. - I'll restart my strength training with bodyweight exercises and the machines for few weeks, before moving on to free weights again. Keeping weights low for now, high reps to develop ligament strength and endurance. - I'll add in some kettlebells as "functional" training too. Limit of 16kg KBs for now. Study: Started a digital project management degree recently, which has helped give me a bit of a shove towards getting my head out of my ass (and demonstrated a need to do something to immprove my energy levels). - keep on top of my units and workshops. - set up a weekly google hangout with my team AND STICK TO IT. Karate / HEMA: My course might end up preventing me from attending my usual wednesday evening karate class so I need to keep up practice in my own time or possibly go to one of the "sister clubs" from time to time. My twice a week HEMA class needs to become once a week. - Karate: keep practicing and investigate alternate training night. I've found that working through my katas is a good warmup for exercise, so might be able to kill two birds etc... - HEMA: Limit it to just Sundays but work on quality training. I have been going through the motions somewhat lately. That'll do for now. Will edit / update soon.

The lions sing and the hills take flight. The moon by day, and the sun by night. Blind woman, deaf man, jackdaw fool. Let the Lord of Chaos rule. Aiyaa. I must hate myself. There's 47 different POV characters in this book, and the prologue is 30K words. But, lots of cool things happen here. Can't deny that. Anyway, the month's work is cut out for me. NaNoWriMo is up in about a week, and I got a GoRuck to perform. We're coming down to the wire in terms of how prepared we're going to be for that (and by we, I mean me. I'm sure @RisenPhoenix has this in hand). So, let's set the pieces on the board. One more dance along the razor's edge finished. Almost dead yesterday, maybe dead tomorrow, but alive, gloriously alive, today. Rand is an appropriate training stand-in again. He winds up wanting to build a school for men who can Channel, which is a thing not seen for thousands of years since the men who can do magic in this setting wind up going wildly, destructively mad. Still, his rationale makes sense - if the world's going to end soon, nobody's gonna live long enough for that to happen, and he might as well face it with as many allies as he can make. Fortunately, my circumstances are far less severe. But training is training, so training I shall do. We are going to tickle some Aes Sedai under the chin, rescue a mule, and put a snip-nosed girl on the Lion Throne. Oh, yes. That’s Aviendha. Don’t look at her crosswise, or she’ll try to cut your throat and probably slit her own by mistake. Two quotes for this guy? I didn't mean to, but the picture's too good and the cropped version of it is through the Wiki just doesn't play nicely with the code here. But it's appropriate anyway. Mat is the Writing Goal for this challenge. Yes. This is because he is going to tell a big story that's going to be very important toward the end of everything. And he can't stop talking. I cannot tell you the weather will be what it should tomorrow. I can tell you that Perrin and I will do what needs to be done, whatever can be done. And I don’t need to tell you that you will take what each day brings, whatever it is, and be ready to face the next. That is the kind of people the Two Rivers breeds. That is who you are. So, I've been dillydallying about with my money, which I shouldn't have been on account of the fact that this money has purpose and reason. I need to fix that. I have the tools I need to set it all up so that everything comes out automatically, without me having to even think of it. I have my savings account set, and my car payment set. But I still need to arrange my student loans, which means I have a few different difficult phone calls to make, as well as getting my credit card set up to be paid for. It feels like a difficult thing to do because it feels like what I'm doing is signing away a lot of money... but it's not that bad. And that's the point of it anyway. Student loans and credit card. Three lines I need to set up. One per week. That should do it. And while I'm at it, let's see if I can get some of the extra things coming out to not come out anymore. What is too absurd to believe is believed because it is too absurd to be a lie. Egwene Al'Vere is a young woman who once thought she would marry Rand. That didn't turn out to be true. There were much bigger things for her than that. Anyway, she's the reading goal. Which feels small - she's a real badass, actually - but then I remember what I'm reading, and suddenly I can live with it. 0 Week to warm up and we'll go from there.

This challenge is more or less the same as the last one, just with a slightly different title (still keeping within the them of birds of prey). Goals: 1. Attend karate practice 2x/week as usual. Can't get better if I don't get to practice. As long as I am healthy, I will be there. 2. Practice specific karate skills 2x/week at home. In this case I wish to work on the kata Kanku Dai, and go back to the Heian katas and dedicate some time to the basics. 3. Practice yoga at home 4x/week. This does wonders for the damage my desk job does to my back. Overall, it keeps me in the game at home, at work, and in the dojo. This training pattern worked well for me last time around, so I don't seem much need in changing it. The biggest change is more dedicated review of the basic kata. As my daughter is now taking karate in the beginner class, I have begun assisting with that group. All the more reason to be very familiar with the basics.

After a disappointing previous challenge, it time to go back to the basics again. 1. Workout five times a week: As long as I workout for more than a few minutes, I'm going to call it a workout. This could be Karate training, lower body work, lifting heavy metal objects or any type of mobility work. 2. Tai Cheng three times a week: Since this really helps my Karate, it's time to get back to doing this on a regular schedule. I am trying to be more realistic with my current workload and three times is attainable. 3. Static and moving Karate stance training interval style three time a week: This is one area that had suffered the most over the last 7 weeks. I can still get into good stances but moving out of them is more difficult since I haven't been training. Extra credit - Meditation three times a week: The extra stress is not doing me any good at this point and I really need to find some way to relax. Call of Duty used to work well but I need to put my mind in a much calmer state. I have a couple of apps on my iPhone that could be useful and I do like the simple breathing meditation at bedtime but I have to do it. Life goal: Write 150 words a week for my blogs: My writing has really taken a back seat over the last few months and I have to get back to it. I know that a 150 words a week is not much but it's better than zero so I am setting the bar lower to get a win here.

Getting into it, nice and slowly. I'm going to start at the ground up with this one. Not getting too complicated here, as last time I tried something similar I had 12 goals and everything crashed and burned. This time, each day can be worth 12 points. (Days where I attend practice, I will not be doing a home workout or home practice, so those 4 points alternate) 1. Sleep/routine training - 2pt: be in bed by 9:15pm - 2pt: awake at 6am, as planned, and completed the day's AM quest. 2. Water - 2pt: drink 2L of water in a day. - 1pt: drink less than 1L coffee/soda in a day. 3. Karate - 4pt: attend class - 2pt: perform basement practice (sanchin, ho jo un do, etc). 4. Push-up/handstand - 1pt: perform at least 5 push-ups in a day. - 2pt: do handstand training. AM Quests: Sunday: Rabbit House Maintenance Monday: Morning Coding Tuesday: Master Spinner Wednesday: Basement Karate Thursday: Master Spinner Friday: Basement Karate Saturday: Morning Shopping/Batch Cooking <Loot> I've been having a devil of a time with this section. I still don't know what would make a good loot target. Normally I try a gradated approach: My loot is awarded by percentage - 80-100% fantastic loot. 60-80% okay loot, 40-60% participation-ribbon loot. But I'm not sure what to do here. What I WANT is a new GI... but I can't find a way to gradate that really well, as the price points aren't exactly linear. The "Fantastic" Gi's are ~$170, and that's USD and only IF they ship to Canada. (Stupid Century having country-specific catalogues... they don't sell their ladies Gi pants in Canada for some stupid reason.). So I have el-cheapo Gi's (not really what I want anyways), or high-end international import. Le sigh.

I'm going to style this after my last challenge with the Druids, which was Way of the Hawk. I've chosen this theme as I am a fan of birds of prey, and I see the falcon as being a bit more aggressive than it's other bird of prey brethren, known to take on other hawks and falcons in the open sky. As such, this challenge will be a little more specific to some karate driven-goals than the last challenge (which was really just to keep my head in the game at a minimal level). Therefore, a slightly more aggressive approach than previously, hence the Way of the Falcon. Goals: 1. Attend karate practice 2x/week as usual. Can't get better if I don't get to practice. As long as I am healthy, I will be there. 2. Practice specific karate skills 2x/week at home. In this case, I wish to develop proficiency in the katas Jitte and Tekki Nidan. 3. Practice yoga at home 4x/week. This does wonders for the damage my desk job does to my back. Overall, it keeps me in the game at home, at work, and in the dojo. I finished rather weak in the last challenge, so I aim to make a stronger effort this time around.

With his coming are the dread fires born again. The hills burn, and the land turns sere. The tides of men run out, and the hours dwindle. The wall is pierced, and the veil of parting raised. Storms rumble beyond the horizon, and the fires of heaven purge the earth. There is no salvation without destruction, no hope this side of death. It's such a happy story. Did I mention that? Just, this amazing, joyous thing. You'll want to dance after you read this. Anyway, things are not getting any easier for our heroes. Rand, having survived and been marked by his time in the Wastes returns to the west with an unstoppable army at his back. He sees his enemies, and he must stand against them. Let's get our game faces on. "Do you finally begin to trust me?" "I trust you like a brother. Until the day you betray me. You have a parole for what you have done, in return for your teaching, and a better bargain than you deserve, but the day you turn against me, I will tear it up and bury it with you." Rand is the catch-all for my training this time around. I am presently training with a mind toward building muscle, to take advantage of eating at maintenance and giving my body a break. I don't know if that'll last to the end of the challenge - if I find that I've put on too much bad weight to come with the good, I'll switch back to cutting, and my training will switch to reflect that. But as I mentioned to the Giant who has stopped in to see me, training to take advantage of the amount of food I'm eating now is a lot of fun. Beyond that, though, this challenge is going to be mostly about cementing myself around the new schedule and the commitments I have and figuring out just what I can get away with now. Holding your ground is not the same as going backwards. Everything always changes. The best plan lasts until the first arrow leaves the bow. If that sounds kind of like Napoleon or something, well, that's kind of on purpose. Mat accidentally'd his way into taking a level in badass last book. He survived something way back in book 1/2, and even though he was healed in 3, it left him with some holes in his memory that he was never okay with. He wanted those holes filled up. He was not specific with the right people as to how that would happen. Mat has a funny way of finding himself in the most chaotic places and situations. It honestly reminds me very much of my job. I want to do better at it, and I have a very concrete way of figuring out how to do that. I want to focus on working cases in the following order - priority cases, opening the new cases, developing the old cases. This is a set of numbers that's probably going to change as time goes by, because it's kind of chaotic. I will set a baseline of working the three priority cases I have now and completing opening procedures on the three cases that I will be assigned that follow, for a total of at least 6 cases per day. Beyond that, I'd like to touch on at least the five oldest cases in my queue, for a total of 11 cases per day. This may or may not be a realistic thing - it can be a lot to work on any given case, given what evidence has come in, what you have to do to reach claimants, to say nothing of the other behind-the-scenes stuff. Also, given the rather personal nature of these things, I'm afraid I'm going to have to be kind of vague in terms of talking about it. I won't be able to give you much more beyond what I've done. It's all I have to give, guys; sorry for that. If you must drown or ride a lionfish, you ride and hope for the best. Siuan Sanche is a hard woman who's made a lot of hard choices to be who she is and where she was. The former Amyrlin has been deposed, and is forced to make of her life what she can. I'm kind of torn between making a goal of not being late to anything and making a goal of getting through Deskbound. The latter wins out in the end for me because being a professional about things just seems like a very poor goal to think about. Of course I'm going to be on time for things - I have a grown-up job now. Being late is becoming foreign to me. But what is becoming familiar is a chair. That is unavoidable at this time. Maybe, eventually, I can do a standing desk, but at this stage it doesn't make much sense to ruffle feathers. So, I will make do with what I have. Get through Deskbound, run assessments, apply. "I mean to deal with the world as I find the world, for as long as I can." Why, yes, that is Moiraine again. And yes, those are portentious colors for a portrait, as if something terrible is about to happen to her. You shouldn't read anything into that. She is still seeking after stories, still writing, even as the world marches toward Tarmon Gaidon. She's a believer in a cause, marching toward something that she can barely see. Rand by this point sees her as a manipulator, someone trying to pull his strings for the White Tower, and this is true. But though she's sacrificed much, she never does so with thought to herself and what she might have wanted. She's a hard character to like, but she's just as hard to dislike when you see who she is and what she does. And why. And the things that she dares to do as a result of her sense of purpose and what she's trying to do... she's really incredible. Anyway, the reading and writing goal goes here. Time to take the week and see how it plays. Cool. Let's go.

Hey there, guys. Remember that last challenge? I do. It was great. I didn't show up to put a proper end to it, but the gist is that I kept up my training, ate well, passed the test, kept the job, got to double digits on pull ups, fixed my knee, and botched my writing goal in the process. And, as if that wasn't enough fun, one morning, I woke up, got out of bed and got a real bad case of dizziness for my trouble, which didn't go away until I ate something. I think that's a sign that I've burned the candle down even farther than I thought, and that's not ideal. We got to fix that. No more about morning routines and esoterica. Back to basics - eating well, sleeping well. There'll be plenty of time to get a morning routine again when I get to an actual unit and start on a standard schedule. Up at 0600, work at 0900? Oh yeah. But 'til then... Anyway. We get to some of my favorite fictional badasses in this book. That's right. The Aiel. Fighting Irish meets Native Americans meets Zulus. These are hard, hard people, who will run 20 miles and fight a battle at the end of it, and they will make it look like dancing. You will not find fiercer friends or more implacable enemies. And frankly, I think they're cool enough that I can give the Big 3 a break. Sleep More I've been getting by on less and less sleep, and the authors who romanticize that crap clearly never did it for a living. Goal is 7-9 hours per night, and cutting back the morning routine when necessary to make this happen. Eat More (and better) I... cleaned out my junk food again. Except for the Arctic Zero and Halo Top ice creams, which it turns out are right in the freaking Kroger just around the corner, and not just in Whole Foods all the way away from me. Yes, even the Arctic Zeros are good, if you can find the ones that are 300 calories or so in the pint. Those actually have some flavor to them. I know, right. Anyway, I refigured my caloric intake so that I'm averaging 1800 or so, as opposed to the 1650 I was averaging before. Have I ever mentioned how happy a problem it is to learn that I'm going to have to eat more rice and fattier grass-fed meat? It's true. Train More This is going to be a trickier one to manage until the end of this month. I'm not really wanting to do much more at this point so much as I'm wanting to wave S&S up a bit. So, basically, keep every thing else up, and just go from 2 S&S sessions to 3 per week. My back's loving this load so far - that near-perpetual tightness has finally released, thanks to a fairly steady application of divebomber push ups (another experiment in anti-frailty that's been fun). I think I'm ready to take a step forward and plant myself again. Once the month is over and I'm reassigned to something with reasonable hours... I think I'm going to go back to judo officially. Sensei's been going back to the original dojo, and if I can swing the sleep, I think it'd be a good investment. The only trick to it is, if I keep up with IF, I'd have to manage another day of low food. And while I can make the math work, I just don't know what that's going to do to me. Write Reading and writing. I got a thing I'm working on. I finished Guards, Guards! before I started again (thanks, @sarakingdom!) and the story shows some evidence of influence already. A friend of mine's got me listening to China Mieville as well - he was dismayed when I mentioned I was going through the Wheel of Time and said I needed something good to balance it out. Bastard. But I like how it's shifting my tone, so I'll run with it. I'm going to try to creep my way back to being a part of things around here, now that the worst is behind. But sleep and challenge have to come first. But dammitall, I miss my Nerds. I wanna be back here too.

I prefer to keep my planning rather simple and straightforward. So let's get right down do it: Goals: 1. Attend karate practice 2x/ week. I love karate. I pay for the classes. Make use of it, get to the dojo, don't skip. I'm a karate nerd, and karate is awesome. 2. Practice yoga at home 4x/ week. This does wonders for my physically and mentally. It keeps me from breaking myself when I do other things (such as #1). 3. Make a daily list, three personal tasks I wish to accomplish, and three things I did well that day. A daily reminder of what my priorities are, and what I'm doing well. That's pretty much it. As for why I've called this "Way of the Hawk" it's really based off a simple observation I made one day. Noting hawks soaring around the sky, I likened it to the ability to soar above the all the bullshit one may encounter. We all have the ability, I think, it's a matter of choosing to use that ability to it's fullest. Glad to be active on NF, and back in the Druid's Camp once again

OK, so I feel a little settled in here now, and I think I'm ready to make myself accountable for my future. I'll keep a log here, as best I can, of my effort, progress, and failures. My goal is to get myself below 80kg by the end of 2016 - I was at 95kg when I figured something needed to be done, and have been on a gradual decline for about 18 months. I weighed in at 85.2kg (fasted) this morning, so I may have to revise that down to the mid 70's as I go and try to earn some bonus XP. Apparently 70kg will put me at the lower end of a healthy BMI for my height, so we'll see how we go... After reading Steve's post on intermittent fasting I've finally taken the plunge, and have been on a 16/8 fast/feed routine for 3 days now. Neither of my arms have been chewed off, so I think it's going well, but I'm still trying to adjust what I'm eating (probably my biggest challenge) so ensure that I don't start running out of energy. Today I got up at 5:30am, went for a 10km (6 miles, I think that is) run, and stayed fasted until midday. Lunch was a salad of mixed leaves, a couple of baby carrots, 2 baby cucumbers, vintage cheese crumbled on top, and a handful of walnuts. It's been my regular lunch for a few weeks now (previously it was reheated leftovers, or takeaway), and it seems to be working for me, although I'd like to add some protein in there after reading the NF nutrition guide. Dinner was some sort of pork stir fry with peanuts that we ate in lettuce leaves, which I ate until I felt satiated. Then it was off to karate for an hour and a half, and I'm basically done for the day (pretty much bed time as I type this. Tomorrow morning I plan to add the beginner's bodyweight workout to my routine, as most of what I do is endurance and stamina related, so I think alternating my morning run with some strength training might be what's needed to level up. Let's see what happens...

The Dragon Reborn—the leader long prophesied who will save the world, but in the saving destroy it; the savior who will run mad and kill all those dearest to him—is on the run from his destiny. Two guesses as to whether he succeeds or not. I sorta dropped off the face of the earth last challenge. I didn't mean to, but... yeah. The job isn't really brutal, but the hours are, and I haven't been good about getting around to you all like I wish I had. Still, things are being adjusted. I unfortunately find myself in a place between talking about the challenge and doing the challenge; unfortunately, that only ends one way. And so much has happened, just in the past week! I managed to hit the Simple requirements - 100 one-arm kettlebell swings and 10 TGUs at 70 pounds in 15:10. I swung the 53-pounder 200 times without dropping it. And then today, I managed to do clapping pull ups for the first time! What a week it's been. Makes me suspicious - like sickness is hiding somewhere in the facade of my health. And yet, here I stand on the other side of these things. I do not feel weak at all. In fact, despite the lack of sleep, it all feels mental. Put me under the bar or in the ring and the body functions just fine. I suspect it's because I've been eating a lot better lately - more food and higher quality. Good stuff. It's bearing me up. And also the fact that I spend all day sitting as opposed to intermittently lifting things. "Do you have dreams when you sleep?" Rand is having a hard time having just signed up for the whole Doomed Savior of the World bit. It's a dirty job, but someone's gotta do it. But he decides he needs to test the prophecies concerning the Dragon Reborn in one last desperate try to not be the person the Creator has decreed he must be. Like Rand, I have tests that I must pass. Passing means I did better than an 80 on both of them. DDS's idea, not mine. But to hell with it - I'll take the pass. Rand's goal is about getting to work, doing the assignments and making sure that the grades are good enough every day. "A bloody hero. Thom, if I ever look like acting the hero again, you kick me." "And what would you have done differently?" "Just kick me!" So yeah, the picture from last challenge actually takes place in this book. I forgot. Oops. Still, he's all about hard living, and he's even more about that now that he's had that pesky ailment dealt with. And me, I'm learning how to get my back unwhack and it's changing measurements and playing merry havoc with the data like I knew it would. But the goal here is about staying the course - eating well and fasting and staying in control. I got this. Really. "What is your name? If I have to share this ship with you for days yet, I can't keep calling you girl." "I call myself Mandarb. I will teach you something, farmboy. In the Old Tongue, Mandarb means 'blade'. It is a name worthy of a Hunter of the Horn." "You see that black stallion? His name is Mandarb." Oh, Perrin. You have no idea how much trouble you're about to get in. But it's cool, man. You lift. Training goals are here for this challenge. Til shade is gone, til water is gone Into the shadow with teeth bared Screaming defiance with the last breath To spit in Sightblinder’s eye on the Last Day. Yesssssss. And now we get to meet some of the badasses. They're good characters, yes, but these were the badasses who inspired me in the first place. The Aiel. The Aiel have come out of their desert homeland in search of a story - of He Who Comes With The Dawn (go on and guess who that is. Certainly not the guy who everyone swears looks like an Aiel, that's for sure). And believe it or not, they represent the reading and writing goal this time around. I have a writing challenge up in August - 40K words. With the new job forcing me into a cram session every day, my work is cut out for me. But it's going to be great, I think. I got a lot of world building done and managed to gloss over the cracks in a lot of what I was doing. Now I just need to make some scenes and everything should be good. And that does it I think. I don't know how well I'll do getting around to people this time. But I promise I'll do my best. And now let us commence the next step of the journey.

The Wheel of Time turns and Ages come and pass. What was, what will be, and what is, may yet fall under the Shadow. For centuries, gleemen have told of The Great Hunt of the Horn. Now the Horn itself is found: the Horn of Valere long thought only legend, the Horn which will raise the dead heroes of the ages. And it is stolen. And so we begin. Book II. In which a powerful relic is lost, and a powerful enemy is found. The last challenge went really well. A lot of things that I didn't expect to go right went... well, right. It's a series of facts and such that, to be honest, change a lot of things. I know now that I will be able to afford to travel and do the GoRuck in Boston. I know now that this training has a purpose, and a reason beyond fighting the entropy of long, long sits. And, as one might expect, however, there were complications attached to this - a change in the time I get up, and a change in my schedule, and a change in my training, and as such a change in my diet. In other words, I found something, only to lose a bunch of other things. Not really a big deal, because I can find those things again - I've done it before - but it sure does seem to fit the tone of the book, so here I go. Always something new, always something I didn't expect, and sometimes it isn't horrible. Poor Rand. He learned in the last book that he is a wielder of saidin, the tainted, masculine half of the One Power. He is marked as a doer of sorcerous deeds, doomed to madness and the worst death. But there is more to it than he knows, more than he can even accept... The Rand part of this challenge is to search for the new routine. Once it is found, I must do the new routine. This may sound like something that has a lot of the challenge as a whole wrapped up in it, but the truth is, it's really just about adjusting to a new schedule. Part of that means making the new schedule, and although I have it made up, it's not really complete yet. It will change again in a couple of weeks, once I begin the new job and see what there is to see. At present, mornings are devoted to meditation, prayer, postural practice and stretching, and handstands. I've altered the handstand training so that I'm not doing hollow-body work directly anymore. There's just no time if I mean to do this more days than not, and honestly, getting myself to the point where I'm standing in a perfect handstand will do all the same things anyway. So, what I'm doing at this point is dropping my time back down and bringing myself closer to the wall, to learn to control my kick-up and to get more used to the idea of full body tension as a straight line. Midday work will be about skill practice with the uchikomi, and shadowboxing. Maybe some skipping rope - wouldn't be hard to bring that along, but don't quite know where to fit it. Nighttime is Perrin's problem. I will wager two silver marks to two from each of you that I can beat both of you at once, just the way I said. You can't have fairer odds than that. There are two of you, and one of me, so two to one are fair odds. Mat, of course, has his own problems. He picked up an evil artifact in the last book, and it is slowly killing him. The good news, though, is that he will lose this dagger and regain his life. The bad news is that his troubles are only getting started. Part of his recovery is that he has to eat. He is surprised at how much he ends up having to eat, how much the Healing of his wounds costs him. Likewise, it is the same with me. I have been stuck at a plateau for the past three months in terms of shedding fat and getting lean, and this has been a function of a mismatch between my body's demands and my meeting them. Fortunately, I am back on familiar ground with me being mostly sedentary again. Unfortunately, I'm me, and I'm always keen to experiment with things. On days when I'm just doing handstands and S&S, I am dropping carbs and calories down low - 50-100g for CHO, about 1650+ total intake. I will be saving my carbs for the end of the day to help me feel full and satisfied. On days when I'm formally training, I will reverse everything - 30-50g of Fat, about 1950 calories for total intake. This is simply for now - if I get hangry, or if I feel like my energy is super-stinkin' low, I reserve the right to adjust. I also refuse to deny myself the pleasures of company - hence me being so low and hard on myself. Just in the past week, I've had three glasses of champagne, homemade BLT, and junk food. Please, please don't be afraid for me. I promise, it is unwarranted. And also I think my mother is going to sabotage me - I mentioned that I wanted to see if I could go lower safely and she said she didn't think I had much left to lose. I assured her that I'm being safe - and I am, really - but I doubt she believes me. Now I get to have that problem that all the other Nerds have when they live at home. Yaaaay. A young wolfhound must meet his first wolf someday, but if the wolf sees him as a puppy, if he acts the puppy, the wolf will surely kill him. The wolfhound must be a wolfhound in the wolf's eyes even more than in his own, if he is to survive. And what to say of Perrin? Poor man. He hears wolves in his thoughts. It wasn't his choice, but whether he likes it or not he too is being dragged along by virtue of who he is in the Pattern. But it's more than that too - he made a vicious axe, and he is strong with it, but it makes him sick inside and he knows not who he is. Perrin's challenge for me is all about iron - every day that I can, I want to be touching the iron. It can be S&S, or it can be strength training, but in either event it is possible to do something every day. It's a very simple, straightforward way of doing things... but that doesn't mean easy. I've stayed with you long enough, Rand. Why would I stop now? You see, I like you. I would like you even if you weren't ta'veren. Maybe I like you despite it. You do seem to get me neck-deep in hot water. In any case, I'm going with you. And I don't think you can really stop me. And at last we come to one of my favorite characters. Loial is an ogier, a gentle giant of the forest. He loves trees and growing things, but he also loves to read. He's traveling with everyone because he wants to see the world, although he didn't get permission to leave home before taking off on this adventure. But in addition to being a kind young man of 90 years, he's also a writer. He wants to chronicle the events as they unfold. He knows that being around people who literally warp reality as they go is bound to change things, and he wants to write that story. You can see where this is going. Read the next book, yes, but also write and work on my own thing. @erosan challenged me in @Starpuck's thread to write a more ethically nuanced take on the themes of Star Wars and like an idiot, I accepted that challenge. Unlike an idiot, I seem to have stumbled on some wonderfully gray ways to explore those ideas and to tie together a bunch of things that I never thought I could into a single project. Read and write. Read and write. ... I think that about does it for this round. As usual, it looks like much, but it is not really. Let the Dragon ride again upon the Winds of Time...

A bit late to this party due to needing some extra recovery time for an injury. Feeling grand now though Last time I might have bitten off a little more than I could chew so I'll be carrying some of the goals forwards to continue exploring them. Other things were ideas and experiments that perhaps didn't go as planned. A truncated version of my last goals and how I did: Kobudo - not too bad... though not as good as I'd like. HEMA - Got the longsword syllabus done. Katana - not good. Only did a couple of practice sessions. Spear - Pretty good. Conditioning - Did a few sessions but not as many as I should have.... Definitely a good workout for my next 4WC. I have a few things going on this next month... I've got a HEMA seminar / tournament coming up in a couple of weeks. Gotta train for this. Prepare for Battle! I have been failing to properly implement frequent moderate exercise so have decided to make a small, simple commitment to go for a 20 minute walk/jog/run each day time I am sitting about at my friend's house while my wife is working (PA for said friend). I can even take my friend's dog for a run about while I'm at it My cardiovascular system and blood pressure will thank me. Specifics: Martial Arts Training: HEMA: Twice a week, sparring at least once a week. Karate / Kobudo: practice my karate katas twice a week and my kobudo katas once a week. My usual training isn't making me a better fighter... Cardio: 20 minutes of walk/jog/run fartlek exercise each day I'm waiting about for my wife at work (three days a week - typically Monday, Tuesday and Friday) Workouts... for the sake of workouts: Once a week - bodyweight (and maybe kettlebell) workout including a conditioning section, HEMA-Style like last 4WC. DON'T INJURE MYSELF: For the last couple of weeks I've been hobbling about with either a damaged achilles tendon or a pulled lumbar muscle... need to take it easy and not damage myself again for a while (especially not before the tournament - I want to represent my club without limping too much...). I'm sick of lurching about like Igor... Compete in the Longsword Tornament at Féile na Gaiscígh. Not a training goal so much as a milestone / club outing. (Mustn't drink too much on the Saturday night ... ) Want to do better than last time when I was knocked out in my first fight.

I've been away for a while. I accomplished a lot when I was out. Most significant, I finally earned my karate shodan rank. Took 11 years from the day I first tied on a white belt, but oh well. Obviously 11 years is what was necessary to get it done, and get it done right. No injuries, no karate obsession, no alienation from family and friends, or letting other obligations slide (other than NF). Just balance, with the other more important priorities in my life. I'm quite content with the accomplishment. Onward to the next level of training. Now I want to come back to NF and get something resembling a routine back in order. No frills, nothing fancy, nothing super impressive. The goals below are meant to be in addition to my usual attendance at the karate dojo. Fitness Goals: 5 times per week, practice kata, even if only for 5 minutes. Focus on learning Enpi, Kanku Dai, and Tekki Nidan. 5 times per week, stretch/strengthen for at least 5 minutes. Use the gentle techniques from yoga I know do me good without hurting me. 5 times per week, walk for 5 miles (or 10k steps according to the fitbit) throughout the day. Life Goal: Daily meditation, even if only for 4 - 5 minutes at a time. This was a great habit before I let it slide. I want to get it back. That's all there is to it. Glad to be back in the mix again. Oss!

This is kind of a placeholder... more details will be edited in soon. MOAR WEAPONS! Of late, I've been neglecting my weapons training somewhat. I've barely picked up a sai, bo or katana recently. I've done ok as a HEMA teacher but my own skills have been somewhat sidelined in favour of teaching, so I want to make an effort to do more weapon training. I need to practice my current kobudo katas and get learning the next one(s). I need to get my arse in gear and sort out a HEMA syllabus for longsword and maybe cutlass. I miss practicing with my boken / katana. Will include it here. Additionally, I'm interested in looking into spear fighting - I'm curious if a safe facsimile can be cheaply constructed for HEMA class... AND I want to use weapons training as body conditioning / cardio / muscular stamina training to help get me back in the habit of regular exercise. more to follow...

This time next week, I should be a Black Belt. I've been dabbling in martial arts for years and studying Matsubayashi Shorin Ryu specifically for the last few. I've worked hard to learn the basics, the katas, the concepts... and all the rest... and now the time has come to do my black belt grading. My grading is on Sunday 10th of April so I can't really make this entire 4 week challenge about it but for this first week it will be my focus! I've had the last two weeks off (though I've been busy with some family stuff) and have just found out my internship is not renewable so I'm unemployed! This does mean that, once my current commitments are executed, I'll have a bit of free time while jobseeking. I intend to make the most of that free time once it's here, to get out into the "wilds" of Leitrim a bit more. My principle plans are below but I'll add more detail later, ... especially as my "job uncertainty" and finishing off current commitments / projects, leaves a lot of variables pulling on my time The concept: Food Karate and Kobudo HEMA Exercise The Plan: Food - try to have some breakfast most days. Try to limit coffee to two or three cups per day (instead of five or more). Be mindful of what is in my meals so I can try to reduce grains/carbs and increase veggies. FME (frequent moderate exercise) - if nothing else, Get a 30 minute walk twice a week and do some "exercise for it's own sake" twice a week. Week 1 - Focus on practicing my katas, both karate and kobudo (the kobudo katas aren't really needed for the grading but I think we'll be expected to do some demos for the juniors and their parents during the day). Week 2 - Maintain kata practice. don't neglect HEMA. Week 3 - Begin learning next karate kata and kobudo kata. Week 4 - Go camping. The Nitty Gritty: Week 1: Less coffee, more breakfast, more veggies, less grains - as outlined above. Karate Kata every day, even if it's just a quick run through of a single kata. (Naihanch Nidan is a particular weakness for me so it's the main one I'm trying to smooth into my conditioned reflexes). I'll also try to get my Sai and Bo Katas up to scratch for demos on the day. I'll be skipping my HEMA practice on the Sunday of my grading so I'll do my utmost not to miss the Thursday sessions on ether side of it. Frequent moderate exercise: I should be involved in two kayaking instruction sessions and an overnight island expedition this week so it should cover the FME aspect. I'll try to get some walking and "exercise" in as well but daily kata practice is more of a priority this week! Week 2: Less coffee, more breakfast, more veggies, less grains - as outlined above.Keep practicing the katas that (hopefully) got me my black belt! Keep up with the HEMA - If I have the free time, I'll begin putting together longsword and cutlass syllabuses. Keep practicing katas every day. FME: Again, I might be doing kayaking and such but if not, I'll be sure to get in the walks and exercises (most likely squats, pushups and kettlebells). Week 3: Less coffee, more breakfast, more veggies, less grains - as outlined above. Keep on keeping up with the HEMA - If I have the free time, I'll begin / continue putting together longsword and cutlass syllabuses. Keep practicing katas every day. Pick a new* karate kata and kobudo kata. Begin training. FME: My "job uncertainty" means I really don't know how active I'll be but if not otherwise active, I'll be sure to get in the walks and exercises. *by new I mean one which I don't really know. Week 4: Less coffee, more breakfast, more veggies, less grains - as outlined above. Keep practicing katas every day. Keep practicing the "new" katas. HEMA - If I haven't already begun, now's the time to get the HEMA syllabuses on the go. FME: Again, my "job uncertainty" means I really don't know how active I'll be but if not otherwise active, I'll be sure to get in the walks and exercises. Go Camping: I intend to head up into the hills (or paddle out to an island) and do a solo overnighter. Nothing fancy, I just want to take the step and consider this the first of a regular thing.

I don't have a full challenge sorted out yet, so this is kinda a place holder. I've been on NF a little over six months now. When I started in September 2015 my goal was to lose 20lbs by Christmas. Instead I gained 3lbs, am up to the heaviest I have ever been and it's getting to the point where my clothes don't fit. I know that I'm stronger than I was six months ago, but I still cant do a push up, I'm not as strong as I want to be and I REALLY don't like how I look at the moment. I know this challenge is going to have to focus on my diet, and that means tracking. But I just haven't worked out how I'm going to make that happen yet.

My biggest problem isn't that I don't know what I'm doing. It's that I know too much, and in so knowing, forget how little I know. I have a bunch of different programs that all want to work together. But I haven't really done the work of putting them all together properly, and it's been to my detriment in the past. And it's trying to be now. Still, as it's been pointed out to me, I'm wise enough to know when something is working and when it isn't, and there's no shame in making adjustments on the fly. Putting a bunch of pieces together and adjusting quickly as I need to with the aim of building something better? Sounds like Tetris to me. Okay, so. Goal 1: Nighttime Meditations I originally tried to do a program with the idea of switching between various forms of meditation. Parts of it were interchangeable, but, ah. I didn't know which parts. Since I have some time for meditating set aside in the morning, I'm going to use it for shorter exercises. The longer part, the thing I let slip because it didn't belong, was the longer time of stillness which I find that I need. Goal 2: Writing Making writing a goal last time was a good idea. But it's incomplete. I didn't write every day like I wanted to, and I want to break the curse of the five missing days. To spice this up a bit, we're going to move my standards a bit, so that I'm doing more for minimal, nominal, and maximal standards of performance. Goal 3: NO MORE CHEAT DAYS You can't build what you want by just doing what you want. No. You have to make the blocks fit together, earn the spaces and such. This will not be easy, with my folks being prone to celebration at the drop of a hat, but that means all the more reason for me to do my diligence. Goal 4: Condense Training Whether I like it or not, I'm not really going to be in charge of my schedule much longer. So, I have to work with my training to make it fit everything. There's lots of reasons to do this - for starters, the present modifications I've done make for a very lopsided training split; A day is short and B day is long. That bothers me, because I feel like I'm trading efficacy for peace of mind, and that's not what I need. Additionally, I'm finding that the handstand work I tried to cram in doesn't really fit together with the pike presses. It flirts with failure too much, and that bothers me. And in addition to that, I have a very physical job coming up, and I've got to balance what I'm doing out here with the demands of the work there so that I can be effective. On the other hand, though, playing around with fatigue is proving to be just loads of fun. You'll see as we go. Anyway, the name of the game here is to not let any one training session exceed an hour in length. Ideally, bring it down somewhere between 45 and 60 minutes. I will be timing these sessions to double-check myself and make sure that I'm not being too crazy. ... Yeah. Yeah. Okay. This'll work.

After three months of fairly consistent workouts, it's time to put my newly added hip strength and mobility to use and focus more on Karate. 1 - More Karate training - Karate class at home each week Ever since one of my Senseis, who is also my Iaido Sensei, retired over two years ago, I no longer have the same amount of fundamental training that I had back then. I am told by my kata coach that my basics are very good but I still feel that need more of the back and forth drills that I used to do in class each Thursday night. With that said, this time, I have to get in that second Karate workout each week at home along with my formal Karate class each week. 2 - Kick, kick and kick some more - Kicks at least 5 days a week Now that my hips are starting to cooperate, it's time to work on some kicks again. Sets of 5 kicks with each leg to start and I will see where it goes from there. 3 - Time to cut the fat Doing all the workouts I did over the last three months really helped me pack on some leg and glute mass but it also helped me gain over 15 pounds and some of that is in my waist. Needless to say, I like the smaller waist and I do feel that I am carrying a bit too much weight even though is has had any impact on my endurance. I'm eating less now than I was before so I am not totally sure where the weight came from but I want to spend the next four weeks figuring out how to take it off. Life challenge - Level up my life I recently bought Steve's excellent book and am about a third of the way through it and I really like what he is saying. I have read many self help books and I went to see Tony Robbins last year but for some reason, I have this big motor and my tires are spinning instead of it taking my life forward. With that said, I want to finish Steve's book and starting implementing what he suggests over the next 30 days. I think I already have my alter ego picked out and now it's time to get going with it.