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It's May, and unfortunately, I'm still up on that damn plateau. 164 pounds. Yes, my jeans are getting loose. (Go me!!!) Yes, I'm finding that I can trot up the stairs (with a pack on) instead of crawl up them (really, I never crawled .... just wanted to). Yes, I am attacking days with more energy and resolve than I have in oh, about 10 years. (And I warn people in my office that I AM A SHARK. They think I'm cute and energetic.....what do they know???) But sooner or later, that scale IS going to reflect the new reality. Or else!!! So, I need to exert discipline - train harder and sacrifice things that are holding me back. (Yes, I'm looking at you, wine and pizza. Don't think I didn't notice that you account for the majority of my calories each week.) I really need a big, solid goal to work toward that puts me back into the "training for" mindset: Warrior Dash 2017!!!! Soon enough to be serious, but far enough away to be feasible. I'm taking Margaret Schlachter (from Dirt in Your Skirt) as my Jedi Master. Her book is an easy introduction that is getting me started. There's probably better, more in-depth books out there, but I don't want to become an underpants gnome. I've got enough to get started and a year to work on upper body strength and agility. And mental toughness. Getting off the plateau (Get down to 162 lbs or less) It can be difficult to find your way down if you've lost the trail. Trust me, I get lost fairly often on hikes, and I know this to be true from experience. So, what's the plan????? 1) Use your body!!! 28 days of OCR fitness training, based on Schlacter's example workout .... which is mostly bodyweight training. That schedule includes rest days, and I've already planned out how to gradually increase the challenge over the coming year. Plus, it also involves preparing to run 5K, which will keep me in training to do fun runs, like the Color Run and a Zombie Run. 2) Embrace the obstacles in front (or below) you. Do obstacle-specific training. Every non-rest day. I'd randomize them, but I'll have to allow for passing on exercises that require equipment that isn't readily available on that day ... like the bouldering wall at the campus gym. 3) Keep moving!!! It's one of my favorite ways to tackle a dungeon. It's not efficient, but it eventually you will get out. Or die, which is another way of finding the way out on the corpse run. In this case, increase step count to 11K per day. And don't die. 4) Travel light. (That's what I'm trying to do here .... Didn't you see the goal above? Oh yea, I did see that. But do you realize that you're talking to yourself???? Must be the heat and dehydration. You better get off this plateau. Yea, like I'm not trying .....) Keep net calories at 1375 per day BUT distribute over 5 or 6 smaller meals each day. 5) Live off the land!! (Cuz there ain't much cake and ice cream up on that there plateau.) Increase protein. It's at 75 grams average right now, which is low for trying to build muscle. Aiming for 82 grams. I think protein powder is going to be my new friend. And low sugar jerky. And salad greens and carrot sticks. Cut out the wine, eat less pizza even on Friday, and fill up on fruits and veggies.

The base goal for the year remains to lose weight!!! Goal weight is still 146 pounds by the end of 2016. During March, I pretty much maintained on my plateau. I don't like it up there, and I want to come down and play with all the rest of the nerds. Process goals: 1) Reduce Net Calorie Intake by 10% The good news is that I tracked my calorie intake pretty well in March. It hurt sometimes to record a monster caramel roll at 800 calories (!) or a big bowl of Kemps premium chocolate and peanut butter ice cream. But I've established my actual maintenance calorie intake rather than a calculated estimate: 1538 net calories average per day. So .... new target calorie goal (net) for the April challenge is ...... 1384 calories. That's going to take some work and discipline!!! So ..... 2) Increase Movement by 10% My FitBit is my friend. I probably need to develop more friendships and get out a lot more, but this device is a constant data gathering wonder that tells me that I'm not very consistent in my daily activity. In March, my average step count has fallen to 9K. In April, I'm increasing my goal to a daily 10K. I should be able to fit in walking around campus and stair climbing, but I will also work at programmed fitness activities (running and weight lifting), which the FitBit tracks pretty well. 3) Weekend Food Preparation Saturday or Sunday needs to be cook-ahead day so that I have healthy lunches in easy reach at the office. This builds on the February Bento Baby challenge and incorporates Staci's article on meal prep. This makes it easier to avoid fries and chips and goopy mayonnaise-laden sandwiches .... plus, it also usually lets me get out for that noon walk ....... 4) Training Never Stops (Flexible Discipline) No, flexible discipline isn't some new sadistic type of yoga. It means that I will commit to working out every day, but that I will have a variety of workouts from which to choose. I'll set them up and then select from options based on how I feel, the weather, and Mr. Wizard's desire (or lack thereof) to participate. AND ..... I will be soliciting votes from the audience as I continue to write my RP story. A little randomness keeps it interesting. Finally ..... 5) Advance Planning for Missions!!! Sunday is a day to clean up and get ready for the coming week. I may not be able to do all 21 of the Easy Things to Do On Sunday That Will Make Monday Suck Less, but I will do as many as I can. Grading .... Well, I track calories on LoseIt and steps on FitBit, but I'll put a summary up in Google docs, unless we get progress bars working again. And, I'm going to averages really, rather than try to be perfect every day. If I can hold calories and steps to a good average each week, I'll count that as a major win!!!

Basically, my goal since the founding of the Blue Group at the Temple of the Jedi has been to figure out what real life skills and abilities would approximate the fictional abilities and skills of Jedi Knights. Or any of the heroic paladins from myths, epic tales, fantasy/sci-fi books, and role-playing games. And then .... here's the kicker .... figure out how to train up to be like my favorite characters from those stories, D&D and RPGs. I have been working on my long-term curriculum for quite a while and am gradually copying it over to my Epic Character page. Meanwhile .... here we are for the March challenge. The overall challenge for the rest of the year is to get down to "normal" range for my height, age, and gender. 146 lbs. Below 150 for the first time in 9 years. There. I said it. I commit to it. I will do it!!! Why??? I will feel better and be able to do more things that I want to do. I will look better and have greater self esteem. I will view myself with greater self-respect. During the golden years of the Temple of the Jedi, I weighed 127 lbs (21% body fat). Right now, I don't feel like myself, and I certainly don't look like myself. Part of my RPG story is the path to recovering my best self. How?? A Jedi May Need to Ration Food As much as I hate to do it, I am going to count calories. For MARCH, I will simply count them. No budget .... just setting the bench mark in preparation for setting a budget on calories and macros in April. A Jedi is in tune with the Force 1) I will impose discipline and avoid alcohol. I've already gotten coffee intake down to two cups per day, but alcohol is empty calories ..... and probably accounts for most of the weight I've gained gradually over the past decade. 2) I will meditate. I've already started a meditation PLP and am up to 12 minutes, adding a minute each day until I get to 30. It does help calm me and prevent emotional eating A Jedi trains every day 1) I am going to run a 5K at the end of the month; so I will do training runs 3 times each week for a total of 12 2) I will do strength training OR go to karate class 3 times each week for a total of 12 March Bonus Goal To do something worthy of a cool, custom title. What's that, Yoda??? Eh. Sorry, but you're wrong. I've been here a long time, and I feel like I should have done SOMETHING noteworthy. It's cold in the shadows. Changing Targets After 2 years of JOB HUNTING, I finally have a real, full-time position. No more project work. No more contract work. No more adjunct classes. The rub is where we currently live forces us to commute a long way. My new job is an hour away. Hubby's job is 45 minutes away. So, we're moving .... again. (I probably set the record for number of moves during the years I've been at Nerd Fitness. I'm an accidental gypsy.) So, I'm switching targets from job hunting to house hunting. We'll see how long my prey eludes me .....

Long time no see, my friends.... This is about how I feel right now. So, my last challenge failed in a big way. I basically just stopped doing it. Then I decided to just not do much of anything to better myself. I took a landslide in the opposite direction I want to go, and it's been really, really bad. Also, entered into a relationship, which has had the "fat and happy" effect on me. BUT THEN.... I took a look at myself in the mirror last night. I feel gross, I think I look gross, and I generally don't want to be in the shape I am now. I was doing really good, and I know I can again, I just have to make the effort that I used to. Right now I'm making......oh yeah. No effort at all. So, really, anything is better than this. My goals for this challenge are as follows. I feel they are SMART. Main Quest: To rid myself of excess pounds and get my life back on track to healthy. Goal One: Run 150km. I love running. I really do. I just don't do it as much as I used to. That's gotta change. With my trusty GPS watch, I will track everything I run and by the end of these six weeks I will have accumulated 150km or more. More is always better. This requires me to set a schedule for runs, and complete at least 4 weekly. Run 4 times a week, to total 150km by the end of this six weeks. Goal Two: Break the cycle of addiction to sugary drinks Whether it be soda, tea, coffee, or just a gatorade, I am in love with sugary drinks. For six weeks I will be drinking water, black coffee, or unsweetened tea. A night of socializing with drinks is allowed once a week, as I really don't have a social life without that one day a week. Drink 3L daily water, unsweetened tea, or black coffee only, with the exception for one day a week. Goal Three: Stop the bread train. I love bread. It's my favorite thing in the world. I found out long ago that it's my worst trigger food, and when I have a little, it ends up being a lot, and I don't stop until my stomach is full of that good ol' carbalicious goodness. So, in order to get back on track to the paleo diet that was working wonders for me, I will not be eating bread. Bread will not be approaching the landing zone of my mouth. Life Goal One: Bullet Journal to Success. I've recently noticed a lot of my friends who have their lives together use a bullet journal. So, I'm gonna try it out. For the six weeks of this challenge, I will be bullet journaling my heart out. It'll probably be a mess, it'll probably be really unorganized and weird, but I'm gonna keep to it and see if I like it. I'm usually not the best with journals, but I like that bullet journals are like a journal, organizer, schedule, budget maker, and whatever else you wanna put in there all at the same time. Bullet journal to get your life. Life Goal Two: Show Me the Money. I'm trying to save up money for a car. So, by the end of this six weeks, I'd like to be well on my way to getting that, meaning about 700 dollars closer to that goal. Also, to have gotten my license changed over (since my license is American and I live in Korea, I just need to go get it changed over to a Korean license). Get a license, save for a car. So, now I've got these goals. I WILL get back on track to a happier, healthier me. Cheers.

I'm an adult child of 1) an alcoholic and 2) a chronic over-eater. This has left me with no real idea of how to handle stress (and I'm under ALOT of it right now ... see prior threads .....) other than by using alcohol or food as self-soothers. My upbringing left me with this BIG self-destruct button that is ALWAYS waiting to be pushed when things get rough. This challenge is going to focus on taking apart that self-destruct mechanism. Realistically, I won't be able to completely trust that it is gone for good. But I can at least pack it off again for a while so it is not RIGHT THERE saying, "Push me ... you know you want to....." Cue the Mission Impossible Theme ...... Goal #1 - DisARM the button!! (+2 STR, +1 STA) For my daughter's wedding, I'm going to wear a lovely capped sleeve dress. So, by October 9th, I want to have really nice-looking arms. I have made some nice progress toward that goal, but I'll keep working it hard for the next two challenges. Hence .... upper body workout 3 x per week. Grade by simple counting workouts and divide by 18 for a percentage. I'll post the workout below as soon as I work it out. Goal #2 - Lose 3 pound by counting calories (+3 CON) I have been using LoseIt to count calories and keep protein high. I'll revisit IIFYM to get a recommendation on number of grams of protein and number of calories per day. While I hate counting calories, I realize that I don't yet have a good sense of how much I can eat in a day and lose or maintain weight. And if I'm not counting, I can get into mindless eating in a hurry. Grading ... simple .... one point CON for each pound I lose from 168.2 lbs. Goal #3 - Zazen meditation DAILY (+2 WIS, +1 CON) As a preventative measure, I'll meditate daily and grade it by counting days divided by 42 for a percentage. In the past, meditation has been very helpful, and I regret getting out of the habit. It's worth the 10 to 20 minutes!!! Goal #4 - Use a destressing technique from the list daily (+3 CHA) In addition to the meditation daily, I'll pick one of the items from the list below - at least daily. I'll either use my D&D dice or random.org to pick one. I'm a much nicer and more effective person if I have my stress under control. Grade it by counting days divided by 42 for a percentage. Goal #5 - Remove major stressors and barriers (+3 WIS) This one is really hard ..... There are some things that have badly affected my ability to cope for the past year. 1) We've been trying to find jobs in our home town. It hasn't worked yet, and we've been living apart, which really stresses me out. So, we need to buy a house near hubby's work and sell our current house. These are stressful events in their own right, but I think it is worth it in the long run. I already have job interviews in the area where we are house hunting .... a big improvement over our current predicament. 2) I've been having a really hard time with under or unemployment. I don't do well as a housewife, and so I'm working at finding a professional job. Got nibbles already and feel much better about myself already!!!! 3) This is really, really, really hard. We need to put our dog down. I've been nursing her along for the past year, but she's not comfortable. And I have to come to grips with that and let her go. But it will also reduce my stress alot once we get past that point ... this week or next probably. She's licking all 4 limbs raw, and I can't see keeping her in a cone for the indefinite future. Grading .... one point per objective complete.

So, here we are again. I took a much-needed break to get my head straight, and we're off again. BUT! I need your help! I'm starting off another 6-week challenge a day late(Asia.....). So, here are my goals! Main Goal: It's more long-term than six weeks, but I gotta start somewhere. I'm heading back to the States to visit my family and friends this summer, and I'm going to look and feel fabulous. As far as this particular challenge, I will lose at least 5 kilos while maintaining the good health habits that I've built up along my break from six-week challenges. I will do this in four parts: 1.) Go paleo. - I'm not quite paleo now, so I think that by the start of week 4 I want to have levelled up my diet to paleo. This will force me to keep the sacrifices I've already made, and make the ones I've been too lazy to implement thus far. 2.) Maintain a workout/run schedule. - Right now I'm about to start my third consecutive week of my workout schedule, as made by NF. I want to keep those up, doing bodyweight workouts 3x a week. I've also started the zombies5k to get back into running, as it was something I always really liked to do. I want to keep a steady running schedule of 3x a week. 3.) Get flexin' In recent weeks my yoga practice has been sporadic at best, and usually non-existent. I'd like to add yoga into my routine 2x a week. 4.) Hydrate Keep hydrated by drinking 3 liters of water each and every day. Life goal: Me time It's time for me to put some real time into improving myself. Time to say "no" to netflix sometimes and do something much more productive. Whether it's reading a book, taking a walk, spending time on sketching or studying Korean, I will shut off the electronics for at least an hour 3x a week and do something productive outside of my normal workout schedule. (I'm adding that last clause so I don't start whinging and say my workouts are part of my "me" hour, haha) I know that my goals are simple. They are somewhat ambitious for me, but if not now, then when? My life is changing for the better and my booty better get in gear. Spring has come and the excuses have gone out the door. Join me! Help me fight Legendary Laziness and give me the kick in the ass to get me up and running from those damn zombies. I promise I will post, good news or bad.

Originally I wanted to give the Druids a try and posted there. They are great folk over there, but I kept checking out my friends here. So, sorry for leaving you guys and going over there. I am a monk. It hit me like a ton of bricks! The urge to mastery. I have studied and practiced taijiquan (tai chi chuan) for almost 30 years and I cannot manifest the empty mind consistently in combat. I have on several occasions had bullet time happen and evaded things that made me see the promise and potential of taijiquan. Now I want to manifest that empty mind on command. I really resonate with Richard Dragon (DC Comics) here. I need to leg go of my past and the tragedy of my Army unit getting wiped out. To that end I will begin practicing taijiquan 3 times a day for 40 minutes a shot. This is probably against all the good advice I have heard all my life, but I used to practice more than that. As I said, I have almost 30 years experience with taijiquan. This gives will give me over 1000 minutes of practice a week and over the 6 week challenge it will add up to over 100 hours. Along with this I need some strength training. The arthritis in my hips and shoulders is making me take a break from trail running and I also really hate to run in the cold. I have a great program called Convict Conditioning, so I am going to follow it. It is basically body weight stuff and perhaps someday I can do this like my hero.... Finally, weight loss. In the last 6 months I have lost 45 pounds going from 250 down to 205 pounds. I am using a calorie counting app called Lose It and I love it. I am getting a normal shape again and that is a good thing. I really need to be fit to keep up with these guys. This series really inspired me. So: 1- Taiji 4 times at 40 minutes a shot a day. 3 points Wisdom (Why wisdom? Its a moving meditation.) 2- Convict Conditioning. 1 points Strength. 3- Keep logging the calories and daily weighings. 2 points Agility. Skinny equals more benefit from the agility aspect of practicing so much Taijiquan. Not sure on the points, because I skipped a challenge and forgot how to do it. I'll figure that out later.