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Hi I'm curious. What do you do to get out of a funk? When I say funk, I mean a long term funk? I haven't had the "Umph" to do any challenges lately, I keep track of my 3 main things (Home, Work, and Ju Jitsu/Life) But lately, I haven't had to umph to go to class, set goals, my diet is kind of slipping, and I really.... Don't care. I'm happy, I don't feel like shit, I've got a couple of lbs, but to be honest, I feel like I SHOULD be doing something..... Should I? Anyway, is there something wrong with just living life when you feel fulfilled? Or am I feeling bad because i'm slipping off my band wagon.... ? Nothing seems to be inspiring me. What is inspiring me isn't having to do with diet or working out, and it's just weird... I've always focused on it. Lately... I just haven't cared! But I don't want to happen is falling way off the band wagon, gaining too much weight, and feeling like shit! So I feel like I need to set boundaries with myself.... But with the way I'm feeling, I just... Don't... care... BUT I WANT TO CARE!!! I think.... Anyways! What are your thoughts? What gets you out of a funk?

So my profile hasn't changed and I've failed my own quest I mean epic fail.. Here's why It happened, intention good, planning well it's there but not in stone.. My weight was 14.4 and My jeans are tight I've got 36 year old muffin top.. So why have i not got anywhere... I'm lazy I've got my Gearfit2 ( anyone know how to add buddy please help and add lol). I eat well and BAD in less that exual measure more on the bad. So here goes I'm going to do three exercise a week nothing more unless I want to. I'm looking to use a kettle bell for my sheild, weight body weight or exercise as my sword arm strength. And streacthing flexibility bands for my Bow arm I means what a ranger otherwise right.. big High Five So I'm going to spend the day and chisel my life goal into stone.. It's shall be with sword held high, war cry in my lungs and conviction in my jaw and a my eyes bright with determination RESPAWN.... RESPAWN....RESPAWN........ PS I'm login Mondays and Fridays minimum,,, and if in three month and I'm still going with Your Help (please fellow rangers/respawners) I'll do the same for you well all be here in three month with a sore hand from all the HIGH FIVES

So it's been a while since I really got on here. I've tried getting back into the swing of things several times this year and bullshit keeps dragging my back down into depression. Ultimately, these have been situations that are incredibly overwhelming, so I don't blame myself entirely, but it's time to kick my own ass once again. Normally my challenge threads have a theme, but this time around I'm going simple. So without further ado: Ravnos' quest for redemption Quest 1 - Be Strong - Hit the gym 3 days a week. No exceptions. No changes. No complaints. Quest 2 - Be Flexible - Yoga every morning, plus an extra session at the end of each workout. Stretch and loosen the muscles. Quest 3 - Be Mindful - Meditate 5 days a week, every morning after waking up, for at least 5 minutes. Five minutes of mindful meditation every morning will help me start my day off better and stay focused to remain on task. Quest 4 - Be Clean - Eat clean, 100% Paleo 6 days a week, allow for one cheat day. No drinking (alcohol) except on cheat day for the duration of the challenge. Furthermore, some friends are moving (sad) and giving us a bunch of really nice furniture they don't want to take with them (cool). I need to clean, get rid of some old furniture and get the house organized to fit all the new, really nice stuff, in. Quest 5 - Be a Tracker - Track food and workouts, budget weekly, plan my week every Sunday and maintain my schedule in order to reform positive habits and routine. That's it. Simple, SMART goals. Time to get to work...

Seems like only yesterday I was saying how I need the long break between challenges...April Fools! I guess the mods changed the schedule. Anywho, anyone who has been following me this year knows I am chasing down seven races of the Grand Prix Series (GPS) in one calendar year (see signature), and that completing the first three (all mud runs) will earn me a special "Trifecta" Medal and t-shirt. I have completed the first two of the series, and race three, the "Mud, Sweat and Tears 5-Mile Mud Run" is on April 25. https://youtu.be/Hi08uGF_0Dg This race is reported to be the muddiest one yet, so it should be lots of fun. For the next three weeks, I will be training hard to knock out this race, and then...I plan to take it a little easy with less formal workouts and running maintenance. My next race is not until July, and I will be starting hardcore HM training in June, so I want to give my body a bit of a break between pushes. My workout schedule looks something like this (although I can swap days or even double up if necessary to fit my schedule/life happens): Monday: natural movement workout* Tuesday: tempo run 45 minutes Wednesday: natural movement workout* OR rest day Thursday: trail run Friday: natural movement workout* Saturday: REST DAY!!!! Sunday: longish run, alternating weeks between 5 and 7 miles *usually a MovNat MOD, but can be a playground workout, swimming, trampoline park, climbing wall, etc Update: Big Boss Battle! The Boss: Swimsuit Season When: May 31, 2015 HP: 11,200 Item Drop: A new Swimsuit Weaknesses: Healthy food choices Strategy: Slowly weaken the Boss with healthy food choices for 8 weeks (1400 pts per week) I spend a lot of time in the water during the summer, and a need a new suit (or two) for this season, but I do NOT want to buy one in my current size. I find calorie counting and restrictive diets really depressing, so I am awarding points for good choices rather than focusing on avoiding bad ones. Points: Eat a serving of vegetables (10) Eat 20g of quality protein (10) Wait for hunger to eat (20) Stop when full (20) Substitute fruit or 1 square of quality dark chocolate for dessert (20) Choose healthy food at a restaurant (30) Skip dessert for a day (50) Combo bonus!!! Combine 4 or more elements in a meal and multiply the score by 1.5!!! Chain bonus!!! Score above 230 points for 3 consecutive days, and add 200 points for the week! If I make my goal of 1400 points per week, I get a new suit. If not, I'm stuck with last year's suit. If I lose more than 10 lbs, I get two new suits!

Back with the Assassins! So last challenge did not work out so well because life happens and I'm honestly just super lazy. So what can I do to not be so lazy? Practically anything! I'm going to be focusing on more life style challenges just to get me motivated to get out of bed and move. Main Quest: To live life to the fullest and be healthy. My practical goal is to get to a size 8-10 pants size or lose 30 lbs. P.S. My triathlon training was a bust. I'll get there someday but right now I need to try something else. Quest 1 Just do something active for 30 min 5 times a week or a total of 30 sessions. From walking, to running, to swimming, to riding my bike, to dancing. I just need to get up and move! For my crazy life I might as well try a crazy strategy. A= +3 Str, +2 Dex; B= +2 Str, +1 Dex; C= +1 Str, +.5 Dex Quest 2 Actively study or do something with my brain 4-5 times a week or at minimum 24 mental workouts. I'm still working on GRE and studying, but I'm also working on a science integration curriculum. I think I teach a class or work with students every day now so this teacher needs to stay sharp. A= +3 Wis; B= +2 Wis; C= +1 Wis (I would also put intelligence (INT) here too but I don't think that's a category) Quest 3 Actively keep my room tidy and wash my dishes in a timely manner. It's kind of sad that this is in here but it's the truth. I am combating laziness here and my environment is very important to changing this bad habit. A= +3 SDex, +2 Con; B= +2 Dex, +1 Con; C= +1 Dex, +.5 Con Life: Budget again. Because life. A= +3 Wis, B= +2 Wis, C= +1 Wis This challenge is to help me combat laziness, to stop being depressed, and become motivated again. I'm really glad that challenges refresh every 6 weeks because then I can try again. It’s time to get out of the pity parade and move!

I really want to sit on the couch, watch some TV, and maybe drink a beer. This challenge will be about me resisting that desire. This battle will consist of 4 rounds: Round 1 - Physical Fitness Homer is seen here performing one armed push-ups with a baby on his back. I have been progressing towards one armed push-ups since the beginning of the summer. My goal will be 3 sets of 20 uneven push-ups. An acceptable alternative would be actual OAPs. Round 2 - Physical Appearance When Homer really put his mind to it, he was able to get in shape. I'd like to lose a couple of inches of my waist in the next few months. My goal this time around will be to hit 5 days a week of 16/8 Intermittent Fasting. Round 3 - Father Figure Homer may not be the ideal father figure, but he manages to find time to do things his kids like. My goal will be to focus on my kids more. Yes, I realize this is an extremely nebulous goal. Refinement forthcoming. Round 4 - Husband I realize that my initial statement was that I want to resist the temptation to sit on the couch and watch TV, but no beer and no TV could make a guy go crazy! Actually my wife loves quality time and "couch dates" are one of our favorite activities. We are excited that the Fall TV season is starting up again soon and have a couple of shows we like to watch together. My goal will be at least 5 couch dates over the next 6 weeks where I let her pick the shows. And who knows, if I hit all my other goals, I could wind up in a situation like this:

Hiya, I'm currently laying on my couch with a hot laptop spread out over my stomach. Five years ago, I may have been able to see above the screen while horizontal - but now there is a lovely rise in elevation due to the girth I have bestowed upon myself. I've done this before. This whole lose weight thing. It was easy. Now I am 35 and it's a feat of resolve and dedication. Effort beyond books and nerdistry was not something I likened to, but now... now I must. Luckily I have caught myself in the act of gaining weight early(ish). I have 35 pounds that I might like to donate to the ether, but then again - reading what NF has given us - I am less concerned with the weight in as much the way I feel, or the way my clothes choose to not commit mutiny against my ever expanding skin. I am unhappy, tired, puffy, and feel older than I should. I have never been active. I've been accustomed to frequent viewings of bad movies, Kids in the Hall, MST3k, and numerous books. Sitting has grown my imagination and decayed my bones. However, my life - what I have in front of me - governs that I should be much more. I am becoming my own boot camp. I will need cheering on from you, my fellow NF folk. I feel weak and downtrodden, but there is a spark - I can feel it burn (and I don't believe it's indigestion). Rally with me? Let me cheer you on? Scream along with me? Help me take whatever it is we want back? Are you pickin' up what I am puttin' down? Good then. Let's go.

This time around, I am a sloth. I am slow, lazy and whiney... but I still need to climb to the top and stop being so lazy. Gonna try to make this challenge easy, and not get too ambitious. (I was totally going to skip out this challenge altogether but then SevenFootGeek had to go and send me a "make a challenge thread" message this morning. -.-) 1. Eh. Eat 3 full meals per day 5x per weekDiet should go back to mostly primal, with exception of rice... and ice cream. 2. Agh. I miss Muay Thai a lot, but gym membership doesn't end until September, so must keep strength trainingTrain 4x a week. This includes lifting and cardio. I'm shadowing a ruck (with nerds!) in Boston at the end of this challenge so I will be aiming for thatLift 2-3x a week. (I'm still coming up with a routine I can enjoy.) 3. Ugh. Get out of pajamas by 10:00 am every day. 4. Squeak. FIND A JOB. Also a note: I'm gonna try to ONLY update once or twice a week.

Well, I've been away for a while. In my defense, my day-job got REALLY hectic, busy, and almost out of control. A busy day-job coupled with my fat behind being just plain lazy caused me to fall off the motivated wagon and pop back up to a higher weight than I'd like. What brought me back you ask? Well, shameless self-promotion and the amazing success of my wife's weight loss. Early on I was highly motivated by everyone on this site to workout, lose weight, and had down the right path. Then I injured myself in body-weight workouts, twice. Then I got lazy. Then work picked up and my human nature kicked in. I made Excuses and didn't work out anymore. One of my goals during my one and only six week challenge has been WILDLY successful though, and it is that goal that has driven me back here. Everyone on this site has been fantastic with information, support, and encouragement. You will see this for the shameless plug it is, but I truly do intend to stick with it and carry through. What is this shamelessness of which I speak? My writing. I have successfully completed my novel, it has been edited, and our kickstarter is scheduled to begin November 1. Why is this good? Well, my deal was and is that if I wanted to spread the news here on Nerd Fitness about my book I had to workout again. So, this is my way of creating self accountability, by posting my intentions here. I figure if I stay active here posting my workouts I can earn my way out of shameless plug and into the world of something else that is not shameless plug. The plan is simple to start. Go slow, get back in the swing, don't injure myself. Eventually, I'll be back to doing full-on hardcore workouts again and dropping pounds AS WELL AS publishing books. I am open to your thoughts...

I have a confession to make:I did pretty much in the past 2 weeks for bettering my life and being an inspiration to others-I don't work out,eat crap that,even if I deserve to treat myself like crap with junk food,my body still doesn't deserve it,it's just following orders and taking everything in,the poor guy.It's not it's fault that I'm shoving french fries down my throat,it's the conscious part of me that deserves a stuffin of burgers 'till it dies. Now,don't think of this topic as a negative one,like I'm half drunk right now,angry and about to kill myself.No,this is a confession and,I hope,a start of change.The problem,I believe,was this-I was running on motivation fuel,a.k.a.The Temporary Juice.I would watch a motivational video,read some success stories or see a buff guy walking down the street and instantly get motivated and energized about starting exercising and eating better foods and what not,and usually I do do that,but only for that day or two.Then I either get distracted,forget about it or just don't FEEL like doing it anymore.It's one of the three reasons or a combination. The plan to fixing this: 1.Starting exercising 2.Eating clean 3.Review every day in the evening 4.Sleep at midnight at least. For more details,I am doing 20 pushups the first day,don't matter in what time frame I do them:I could be doing them in 4 intervals of 5 perfect form,slow pushups or I could do a single set of pushups with good(not great) form,using momentum and REALLY squezzing.I'm not excited about that second one,to be honest,I don't 'll be doin' it(trying to avoid the word "I" here,sounds selfish if used too much).After that I progress by doing one more pushups every day 'till I reach 100(if I reach it,I still don't think I'll be consistent enough,but let's try).Then I will go on to an angry birds workout(the one you can find in Steve's blog here). I am quitting soda cold turkey and just drinking water and green tea with honey.See if that sticks for three days,then get back on eating bacon and eggs for breakfast.Don't know what oil to use for them,though,cause sunflower oil definitely ain't healthy.After three days of that,make a lunch that at least doesn't have refined sugars in it.Three days too.I don't want to plan ahead too far,I'll just keep it simple and take it one step at a time(thanks for that,Steve). Reviewing will be done at 10pm,I'll write down to my journal everything I think needs attention,like experienced stress through the day,my nutrition,if I did my pushups,how much did I move around overall,things like that. And for the sleep part,I eat at no later than 10 pm.make sure I've done everything for the day and go to bed.Not necesarilly sleepy-that's okay,surf the net for a while 'till I get there,play a movie and just drift off(I know,not a good thing to do,but I'll get there later). And if I fail again,I will discharge from the Rebellion,because I won't feel like I deserve to be here no more and you guys won't need to be wasting your time on me.Not pessimistic,just stating facts.Being realistic here,really(heh). Any tips would be greatly aprreciated

So I just started exercising again after a several month break. Just didn't feel like doing anything for awhile, in part because it's been a sort of bad couple months. Not to say that EVERYTHING has been bad, no siree, but enough to weigh me down. But lately I've been trying to get back on track a little. Once or twice a week now I'll go on a 2 mile jog (during times when it's NOT so hot I want to pass out). I walk 2 miles 2-5 times a week since I work at a bar at night, buses don't run at that time, and I don't own a car. And just the other day I started doing pushups again! I'm feeling pretty good about this! I had been lying around too much, being too lethargic, and I noticed it was starting to affect me. Lack of energy on a regular basis, lack of enthusiasm for stuff.. bleh! After my first 2 mile jog last week I remember being awake and in a great mood, ready to rock! That's the part of exercise that I'd really just forgotten about completely: how it makes you motivated to do other things. Now I love to cook but I noticed that lately I'd often be too lazy to make something GOOD.. or just not care enough. After picking up 2-3 instant meals from the grocery store in the last week and a half I realized that I wasn't saving time, I have PLENTY of time.. I was just wasting money and treating myself poorly. Yesterday I did 20 pushups, ran 2 miles, walked for 2.5 miles, than did 20 pushups when I got back. After showering I made a delicious meal with some cajun spiced blackened chicken with a homemade guacamole spread and a side of sauteed baby bellas, onions, and broccoli. HOLY CRAP I WIN AT DINNER! I was so impressed with myself. Not only did I get some exercise in, feel motivated enough to make an amazing dinner, but just the thought of how well I did makes me happy. I'm boosting my self-confidence through endurance, and my morale through productivity and THAT is the best feeling ever! If you read this, thanks! I haven't posted in quite a long time but just needed to put this down somewhere in writing.. and why not where a community of like-minded people would enjoy it most?