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Challenge goals: Walk Meditate Study Bonus: Do logical things when there is emotional resistance. Stardate: Week 0 Day X Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat Sun Journal Fitness Vulcan Meditation Study Daily Schedule Planning Daily List Generator & Tracker

GONE TURBO It has been more than a year since my last challenge. I decided to take a break from NF while I sorted through the pandemic, teleworking, and virtual relationships. It was a good plan, because each day presented new obstacles and challenges while navigating to best ways for finding time and space for fitness and karate training, adjusting to maintaining healthy meals at home, and staying productive at work and in my different self-development programs with the myriad of distractions. Planning a 4 week challenge would have been impossible, because I would be course correcting daily. I took my time and built new routines understanding that they may be temporary. Over time, I developed my new normal with virtual and hybrid Toastmasters meetings, virtual gaming with friends, moved to a new gym, and working a hybrid schedule for work with some telework built in. Some things have been able to return to normal such as karate training, DnD, visiting family and friends, and working on-site but with known risk. The biggest change came in the last month where I launched my own website: Journey2U.org . I started a blog and coaching business to help others. It is in it's infancy, but it is a project I have been dreaming of launching for a very long time. Having it out there, I am living that part of the dream and building a new future for myself and others. With all these changes, it feels like I am not just in a new world, but like I am playing a whole new game. I'm taking a page from the movie "Wreckit Ralph". I've Gone Turbo jumping games. So now, here we go with 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. As a Ranger, I tried to Do All The Things in World 1, my first extended stay at NF through 22 challenges where I learned how to develop and pursue health and fitness goals utilizing daily, weekly, and monthly routines. I took a hiatus from NF and came back with a better focus for my goals where I warped to World 2, which I defeated in an Epic Boss Fight slaying some mighty big life goals. In World 3, I hopped over to the Assassins and continued to develop my fitness, getting my body in the best shape of my life, even with the Degenerative Disc Disease, Arthritis, Disc Fissures, and more. Through physical therapy exercises and karate, I have maintained my core and back muscles to ease the pressure off my spine, but in the end I defeated World 3 by transforming my life into a new form. With chiropractic care healing my spine, reaching the high ranks at karate, blazing through the new Toastmasters education program called Pathways, and working to complete Novice rank at IJRS, World 4 was something new everyday. I have moved over to the Monks to reach for more diversity in my workouts and culture as my physical and mental training focus has been more on my karate training. As I actively took on more responsibility of coaching, mentoring, and teaching in all aspects of my life, I formed a different me on World 5. Now, I have Gone Turbo into World 6. Every day, I just keep on L-I-V-I-N: fighting the good fight, lighting it up, and leveling up my life!  Challenge Lesson: "I Promise..." I had a promise to keep. When I decided to take a break from NF and other online communities during the pandemic, it was to focus on my family, my friends, and my self. The pandemic raised my concern for all those I hold dear to the highest level. I had to check in with them to know that they are ok, they know how to protect themselves, and they understood the severity of COVID-19. Prior to March 2020, I had spread my online network so wide, that I wasn't making space for direct one-on-one time with my immediate family. I didn't know how my parents were really doing. Same with my brothers and their families. I took the first few months focusing on that group, then expanded out to my closest friends. Those people I was accustomed to seeing face-to-face every week or month had to receive my attention. It was part for my own sanity, but also so that they would know my family and I were there for them. It was a promise that I had made when I was just a kid, but one that formed my personal values and philosophy. Care for others. Start with the self as you can not help others unless you can help yourself. Prioritize caring for family. Include close friends who need more close family. Identify friends and family who need caring, but do not neglect others who require less. Keep it going beyond close family and friends by extending caring and compassion to everyone. When my karate dojo switched to virtual classes, one of the first homework assignments was to write about how our White Belt creed applies to our actions during the pandemic. The creed is below: I wrote about how I would be doing self-care with daily goals to work towards. I explained how I had already been applying the creed to my life. Lastly, I wrote how I would help others through the pandemic with caring, with spreading knowledge of the virus and how to stay safe, and with adhering to policies and mandates to keep others safe. I explained that the last two sentences define the approach to doing these things. It wasn't just about avoiding the virus, but about doing "what is right". And not just what I feel is right, but what others feel is right too. Since I wrote that, "what is right" feels like it is under attack. You will find on social media and in the news that many of the safeguards against contracting the virus have been politicized by both sides, because individual freedom is a very important concept in the USA. I find the simple solution to understanding where "what is right" falls is understanding the line where an individual freedom begins to harm others or step on others individual freedom. The second part is defining "what is wrong" by understanding risk and what is an acceptable risk. This leads to the complex discussion how the good of the many can out-weight the good of a few. It is a discussion with multifaceted angles and hypotheticals, which is not necessarily where I am going with this. Getting back to risks, with critical thinking and compassion, one can navigate to a solid conclusion, but will always find themselves falling somewhere on the political spectrum, thus alienating some people in the process. If you leave compassion behind, then the critical thinking can lead to absurd conclusions. If you leave critical thinking behind, then compassion can lead to ineffective results. Balancing these while understanding effects of your assumptions and unknowns will lead to effective conclusions. Clearly communicating those conclusions is then important to gain support. But in the Twitter age, clear communication is TL;DR. My promise for dealing with COVID-19 is to "be part of the solution, and avoid being part of the problem." 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 end in Jedi training for every light cast a shadow somewhere. Instead, it is a journey of self-discovery and compassion for others. World 6 Level 1 Challenge: FITNESS: Cardio: Speed and Stamina - Run twice a week. Include sprints and distance. The goal is to get faster and build stamina, but I have to set a starting block to decide where the finish is. First step will be to measure where I am for my 40 and 100 yard dash, 1 and 2 mile jogs. STA +1, DEX +1 Walking: Fortify the Spine - 10+ min outside with good posture, daily. CON +1 Exercise: HIIT Lifting and Bodyweight - 20+ min twice a week. STR +1, STA +1 Flexibility: Stretching and Physical Therapy - Daily exercises. Focus on hips, hams, and splits. DEX +1 Karate: Training and Practice - Two classes a week, practice for 20+ min twice a week. DEX +1, STR +1 DIET: Lean Body - I need to lose some weight, which starts with what I eat. 5+ cups of fruits and veggies. Cut down flour and corn based carbs at lunch and snack time. Fill up on spring mix. CON +1 LIFE: Write for Journey2U.org website, Facebook, and blog every day. WIS +1, CHA +1 Epic Quest - Complete something EPIC! I want to be able to look back at my four week challenge and say, "that was the challenge I did X". My challenges tend to be a lot of the same old. I've given myself plenty to improve in small steps, but I also want to see big strides in the things I've been working on. What box can I check? What have I been procrastinating? What am I focusing on? WIS +2, CHA +2 INCENTIVES!? No incentives this round. I need to come up with something new.

The last challenge was an eye opener for me. Training more than once a day with short workouts and one longer workout at night was one of the most productive challenges I have done since I started doing them on here. It was a great learning experience and this challenge will be a continuation of the what I did but with more structure relating to timing and number of workouts per day. I still need to tune what I am going to do each workout but that's the chaos part. If I feel like bands, I do bands,. If want to do the sandbag or kettlebells, then I do. If I want to do the dumbbells or barbells, you guessed it. I have so many things to choose from, I won't know that to do but that's the best part. Captain Chaos approved! "Dunn dun DU-UH-UHNNNN!!" 1. Chaos training 5 days a week. At least three workouts a day but more if possible five days a week. I need to get the last workout in earlier in the evening because the late workouts before bed are keeping me too amped up to sleep. The early workouts are normally around the 10 to 15 minute mark but I am looking for at least 60 minutes a day going forward. 2. Karate training 3 days a week. I am training on two Zoom classes a week now but I want get in an extra class on my own each week. The Zoom classes are getting more intense and I feel like I am starting to feel like a beginner again, which means more training. 3. Recovery with meditation and flow training. Training as much as I did during the last challenge pushed me harder than before and a few of those days, I had some issues recovery from the workouts the day before. It wasn't the physical recovery, instead it was the mental recovery. I have a new meditation app that I want to explore and I have been studying the Flow training course that I bought some time ago and never really looked at until recently. Extra credit: Publish at least two videos for my training websites. This is something that I have wanted to do for years and even though they will be very short videos, I need to start somewhere and break away from the analysis paralysis. I guess I am really dating myself by positing a picture of Captain Chaos but Cannonball Run is one of my favorite movies.

Mistr takes it on the road - August 2021 This challenge is starting and ending with trips. I will have two and a half weeks at home in the middle of the challenge. I'm going to have to stay on my toes to keep on top of everything. Right now I am at my family's lake place with Dumbledore. We spent a lovely day exploring Duluth on the way here. After that I took some much needed down time. Dumbledore is under deadline for an academic paper, so he has mostly been working. Today is our last full day here. I am doing all the housecleaning and he is writing. I'm a little salty about that, but I am also proud of him and want to support him. I am planning on asking him to do housecleaning at home to even the score. This weekend I will be in the Twin Cities visiting people. I'm spending most of Friday with my mom. I have lunch plans for Thursday and Saturday with close friends who I have not seen in person in years. I'm also hoping to see my brother. I may run into other friends, but at this point I feel like my dance card is full. The last week of the challenge I will be on an Alaskan cruise with my mom (crosses fingers). We were planning a trip through the Canadian Rockies, but between the fires and COVID she decided it was too risky. The cruise is all technically in the country and requires all passengers to be vaccinated. She went on a similar trip 25 years ago with my dad, but I have never been to Alaska. It should be fun. To add to the fun, I'm hosting my spinning group on Monday, August 23. I need to get my family room/work area cleaned up to host guests. The rest of the upstairs is not bad right now, but not at a party level of neat either. I've done pretty well on sitting zen and doing hip exercises from my PT while traveling. My main goal is to keep both those up. This challenge is going to be a whirlwind for me.

Continuing the theme from last challenge because, frankly, I still have more work to do. "Civilize The Mind, but Make Savage The Body" Plan 1) Civilize The Mind a. Tai Chi Practice twice weekly (at least 15 minute session) b. Daily meditation (at least 10 minutes) 2) Make Savage The Body a. Eat healthy, whole foods at least 80% of the time b. Track ALL food c. Weight Training session 3X weekly (at least 20 minute session) d. Movement EVERY day (break a sweat)

Luciana Valerosa Culming - Come back Hi, I'm back again. I'm Kate. I'm 34 years old now. I fell off the saddle again and try to get back on. So this is a respawn challenge. I would have started a week ago, but I caught a flu and then I thought it was better to do four weeks than waiting again and not trying at all. My long term goals: - lose weight (I haven't weighed in again. But I guess it's about 30 to 40 pounds I should lose. I'm a bit scared.) - get back into exercise (I used to do sports daily, now I struggle with getting in 10k steps a day) - sleep hygiene and coffeine intacke - meet some folks (corona was't good for my social life) - finance (I have an excel sheet, but I only use it every few months) - Spend time with the cats regularly (When I get depressed I don't play with them enough) - mental health, mindfulness Challenge goals: - 10k steps or small workout 5 days a week - get into bed before 22:30 (without my phone) - get the finance sheet up to date before the next challenge (I haven't updated it since March, so this will be a big task. I need to write down my expenses from March till the end of August.) And now time for some motivational music - Triggerwarning swear words:

"I am become terror, the unseen predator, a rupture that obliterates without warning. Alone, the hordes of Enoch will fall before me. but together this entire planet will fear us. The Anomaly alters us each in our own ways but we are drawn down the same road into the dark heart of creation.. I will find the Source - whatever it holds, whatever it takes." Welcome to the Sanctum Parabellum, the Last Stronghold and Fortress-Monastery of Harrgath on Asgard. Cry Havoc! and let slip the lion of war. This challenge represents a return to the earlier theme of a sanctum from which to launch my campaign against bad habits and negative behavior or thinking patterns; here shall be the Fortress-Monastery where I dwell, preparing for chaos' machinations, and weaving a mythology while forging my mind/body into a prodigal [Artifact] worthy of the gods. Just like a 40k Custodes or Primarch, any Asgardian or an Outrider, I am continuously striving for my version of exemplary magnificence. You may think the storm is your ally, but you merely sheltered against it. I was born into it, molded by it... after all these years, I am the storm. Nothing is forbidden, anything goes. It's godhood... or perish. [Sanctum Parabellum Quest Log] [Cover is for Cowards]: You're a biological sledgehammer; act like one and chuck yourself into the fray! Go pound sand, dirt, or pavement like an god among men through daily mileage; runs, walks or rucking. [Powers On Tap]: Feel that tingling in your fingertips? Your powers are ready to be unleashed. Don't keep them waiting! Master the storm through (6) workouts per week. [Kill to Heal]: There's no use sitting back and licking your wounds; want your health back? Go out there and take it. Violence breeds vitality (and the meek will never inherit the earth), so keep to my Nutri-3 rule: vitality through tracking, 500g veggies, and participation in 12lbs/12weeks PVP). And finally, a guiding philosophy to add - you have to [Think Aggressively]: Complete my daily Yoga practice. "You waste your gifts running errands for them, trying to win their meaningless, endless war. You're not like them anymore." "So what, I should play at being a god, like you?" "I am not playing."

Sooo I fell off the face of the Earth last week because surprise! Roofing. Which is to say, I found out midday Friday our roofers were going to be around to replace the roof Monday. Roofing is done but not without discovering a family friend hired to insulate the roof 5 years ago snowed us and pocketed the cash, and discovering the leaky bastard skylight did a number on the roofing boards and a bunch needed replacing. And now I am out an additional 5.2K beyond budget (but like for 1, I can't not have a safe roof and the insulation will pay for itself in 2 years). Bastard skylight is gone and good friggin riddance to it (the previous owner was a damn fool to think a skylight is a good idea in a climate that can swing between -40 and +40C in a single year. There's not a sealant on this Earth that can tolerate that. Buuut I have had a LOT of stress in the past few months and am feeling rather like a bit of metal that's been bent back and forth a bunch. I am feeling cranky and rigid and brittle and argumentative. Too much strain has built up and I need to basically take some time to rest, rebuild & repair my brain. On the upside! I am nearing the 30lbs lost since Xmas benchmark. Challenge this time is to embrace opportunity to de-stress. I am not sure what it's going to look like (aside from defending my vacation in July jealously), but I will spend a few days figuring it out to start.

A day late, but not a dollar short. Yet. Howdy, everyone, hope it's been well with you! I'm sorry I'm late coming in. I had a hard time coming up with a challenge because, well, if I'm honest, I'm content with where I am right now. I'm well-healed, back on the mats, I'm engaging with friends and asserting my boundaries when I need to, and... well, I mean. Life is pretty good! I mean, beyond all the ways in which it isn't, but, you know, that's life. Still, there are advancements to be made. I'm keeping some spaces clean, but I want to clean out more, and I know what I gotta do next from there. And, I need to get moving on my writing again. TBH, that was just two things, and I had a really hard time coming up with a third. And then my dear sweet sci-fi friend decided to fill the hole in his soul with a Tough Mudder in Baltimore in a few months. He needs a team, and I wasn't going to let him go alone. Or at least, that's how I'm operating right now, because he's not sounding too terribly committed to it right now. Either way, I figure if I'm careful about it, putting on some miles won't hurt me any. But that's something I have to do, which means I lose one of my days for rolling dice. Boooo. But OTOH, the dice-rolling mechanic is really nice for a way to randomize my off-days, and I've liked it a lot. So. I have three goals. Goal 1: Clean. Keep my sink clear and expand it to cleaning the sink surfaces themselves. They're kinda grody. Get 'em clean and keep 'em that way. Goal 2: Write. Surgery and recovery in the last month really knocked me off my course. I'm itching to get back to this. I'm cleaning up some planning stuff and restructuring the story a bit, which I think is going to clean things up rather nicely, actually. Goal 3: Train. Almost seems like a gimme, but, well, I got something on the horizon now, and that needs to be met. At this point, the constants are Quick and the Dead sessions 3 times a week, and on one day a week I'm going to go for a ruck. Tough Mudder recommends being able to run/walk 7 miles, so I figure if I can clear that under load, I'll be good to go. Truthfully, this goal could be called "Ruck," but I want to go keep it consistent in terms of scoring with the other goals. Why, you ask? Because I want to try my hand at rewarding myself again this time. I may have just cursed myself with this, but doggonnit, everyone else gets to have rewards and stuff, and I want some too. Since I'm not realistically going to get around to getting boxes moved any time soon (having to get my car troubles managed still, although they're coming along very well), I want to look into doing something else that'll help my training. Looking at my school's schedule, I see that they do no-gi training in addition to gi training for grappling. But in order to do that, you have to have a rash guard, for hygiene and safety purposes. So. If I manage an 80% success rate overall, I will reward myself with not one, but two freaking rash guards. Because that's what my schedule works out to having time for right now. So this means that out of a 105 total possible points, I need to score 84 or better. And how'd I start off? 1: 0/1 2: 0/1 3: 0/1 Yeah, it ain't exactly auspicious. I blame the holiday. Went home to see my folks and ate good food and spent the day chilling out rather than getting after my goals. Oh well. It's not about the start; it's about the finish.

I know where I am at. I know where I want to be. I know what I need to do to get there. So why don't I make the choices I need to make to get to where I want to be? I have been learning about decision fatigue. I make great choices earlier in the day but by the evening, I'm tired and mentally exhausted. I don't make the best choices in the evenings. I think that I need more encouragement to make better choices and build those habits that I want to have. Can you send me your favorite quotes, memes or other motivation media to help me through this challenge?!?! Thank you in advance. This challenge will be another simple one. Keep tracking using Noom I want to see my weight go down. I want to keep tracking food on a regular basis Keep up with the Noom lessons - they help! Eat better veggies and fruit filling foods with lower calorie density less added sugars Do physical therapy as much as possible. I have 4 months to get back into shape before I get released to do BJJ again. Build strength and flexibility back Increase stamina by walking or riding the stationary bike Here are some initial motivation thoughts from me:

I'm late to the party again but showing up is better than not showing up at all, right? I had a big life change happen just before the new challenge started and I am currently unemployed. It was a stressful time leading up to it and it not only impacted my time but also my health. I was not sleeping well, my resting heart rate and blood pressure were a little elevated, my mind was all over the place and my energy was almost nonexistent. I was able to still workout but not at the same mental or physical level as before. The last two weeks have been incredible. I have been more active, doing things around the house and my heart rate and blood pressure are better than ever even though I turned 55 after my last day at work. My weight has dropped about 3 pounds, and I am noticing a decrease in stress related inflammation. I am eating better and am working toward a modified Keto diet. For this challenge, it's time to get my training back into high gear. I have been focusing on mobility work, lower body strength and core work, which is already progressing nicely. Karate is still my main focus, but I am starting to branch out from structured Shotokan roots and am focusing on the feeling of the techniques instead of the perfect form at the end of the techniques. The next part is starting my video channel of short videos that show the training techniques that I have learned over the last 17 years and offering some Shotokan Zoom classes. 1. Mobility, lower body strength and core 5 days a week. I have a good workout in place, but I want to keep it consistent. I will outline the workout shortly, but the goal is to do it 5 days a week. 2. Karate training 5 days a week for 20 minutes. I do more than 20 minutes of training, but I also want to have enough energy to do the goal above. I am starting to do kata throughout the day to focus on the feeling of the movements. 3. Create a plan for the videos and Zoom classes by challenge end. This has been in my mind for some time now and I already have a student that I train through Zoom for some time now. Extra credit: Dig deeper into a relaxation and flow state. Even though I am more relaxed than I have been in many years, I want to get back to mediation and try to mix it with stretching. I have a program that teaches flow state that I haven't started and that is something that I have wanted to do but didn't have the time until now.

Basically, I'm tired of Kathryn Janeway not being the most awesome thing ever, so it's time to go back with a rewatch and see if we can change that. This challenge: Captain's Log - Stuff is going on in my life, and I need my brain to work on it, so I will write it all down and create documentation. This is the "pics or it didn't happen" of the thinking process. Starfleet Fitness Training - Does what it says on the tin. Vulcan Meditation - Having Vulcan officers makes this hard to avoid. Ship Routines - Routines are hard, but ships run on them. I will try again. What Would Janeway Do - Take advice from Janeway during my rewatch.

The path of this challenge was inspired by a phrase I saw: "Civilize the mind, but make savage the body." So this quest will involve some sort of meditative martial arts practice, weight training and dialing in nutrition to focus on whole foods, and less processed. It won't be perfect, of course, but I'll try my very best.

So I've had some recent big changes the past 2 challenges. The ups: -I passed my license exam and I'm officially a therapist. -I had my doctor checkup and I've reversed my diabetes and thyroid issues so no meds for life and surgery. The downs: -My sister is diagnosed with cancer and she's still getting tested to see what can be done (unknown where it is and what stage). During the course of this challenge, I'm FINALLY seeing a nutritionist because it takes over 4 fucking months to book one, apparently. I guess a lot of post-covid people are ready to get their eating under control. Also, this past week I broke down and finally got a fitbit. I'm going to try to figure out how to use it. My challenge this time around is going to be modeled around those two things. 1) I'm going to get my baseline of steps for a week to see just how low my steps are. Every week after, I plan on adding 1k more steps per day. For example, if my baseline is 4k steps then next week I'm gonna hit 5k every day. Then the week after hit 6k every day, etc. I would like to get around 11k steps/day and see how doable that is. 2) Because of my total ass sleeping patterns and doing a lot of cleaning, I need to get back to my lifts. I'm doing them but I'm not consistent enough. Aiming for 4x week lifts. 3) I only have a little bit of a book left to read on Greek mythology so I want to finish that and start a new book so I can stay off the computer more. 4) I didn't stop writing Bellmyst; I just needed a break because of the bad news I got about my sister. I have a chunk of story ready to post and I would like to FINISH the story by the end of this challenge. 5) Go to the dietician and follow whatever the hell I'm supposed to do. I can feel I've gained a lot of muscle underneath the fat but if I binge once in a while, I'm just undoing any hard work with cutting back on cals so I need something 100% idiot-proof from this person.

Mistr paces herself - Summer 2021 Challenge My last challenge was all about discernment - picking the best thing to do next. My challenge this time is to keep that up as the world opens up again. I. Battles go much better when I am rested. My first goal is to let go of activities in the evening. So many nights I want to get more done, or I want to have some time to relax. I need to put down work, chores and big projects at 8pm on work nights. All screens off by 8:30pm. I can do fiber arts until 8:50. Reading non-fiction is okay. Reading fiction is not because I can't put it down if it is good. Make peace with the fact that it really does take me 40 minutes to close things down and go to bed. II. Strength and Skill My dojo is open again and I am halfway through a 6-week class to get back in shape. Getting back to where I was at the beginning of 2020 is going to take more than six weeks, but I can make progress. At least one type of exercise every day. Core, bodyweight, kettlebells, yoga, biking - all good. PT at least once a day, twice is better (details later) Aikido twice a week, maybe three times a week. Work on form, not speed. III. Awareness without Attachment Sit zen every day. If I can't fit in a regular 30 minute session, do at least 10 minutes. If my family is doing distracting things, go outside and do walking meditation instead. Battles I am putting back - cooking, cleaning and gardening. I will do some of all of these, but I'm backing off from what I did before. The yard won't be perfect, there will be weeds in the garden. I can eat simple food that doesn't need much prep for a lot of meals. I will do my share of batch cooking for the week, but I won't worry if there is not a lot of food in the fridge (that's a lie, I will worry; I'll just learn to live with it). I can let the dishes pile up and other people take their turn to clean. Projects - pick only one battle for the weekend. If that turns out to be an easy win, I can pick a second battle. Give myself time to actually relax.

In the last challenge I did one thing. Eat more veggies. In the challenge before that I did one thing. Track food. In this challenge I am going to continue to to these two things. That is it. I'm currently on crutches and will be for a couple more weeks, physical therapy is happening but exercise other than that is not allowed. So I am going to focus on the basics until I get my doctor's approval to do more. <sigh> Its hard to be good and not run out and exercise right now. I am being good.

Sooooo work trip is likely over tomorrow (touch wood - I am not trusting it until I am on the G.D. plane home because of how this trip has been). Which means that I am in for 7-14 days of hotel quarantine (depending on what the Public health officials decide on my arrival - the rules seem to change by the hour right now). Hotel quarantine entails being confined to a single hotel room for the duration of the stay, food arranged by the Red Cross. Sooooo yeah. I bore super easy and I need activity to maintain my mental health (to say nothing of the well documented negative effects of even short periods of confinement without meaningful human contact on human mental health) so this is gonna be a Challenge. To battle boredom I have a bunch of iPad Games and I have arranged to work remotely and I downloaded a few programs from GMB to keep my activity up. For Huma contact, I have online tabletop groups and plan a daily video chat with my partner and any friends who want to get in touch. I also plan to set myself a schedule because I know I do better with some semblance of routine. I will keep you all posted how it goes!

Is challenge time, yes? Very well, then. So this looks like another clean up challenge, and I've not done those very well in the past, so it's worth asking why I came back to this. I would answer that things are different this time and that I've got more investment in cleaning things up. After completing the GMB Elements program, I got into Vitamin because I wanted to focus more on bodily control versus some of the other stuff. Vitamin is best understood, really, as a 'intro to tumbling' course. I like it a lot. But it requires a lot of room, and a lot of my space is taken up with useless objects that have really been needing to be disposed of for a while now. In order to facilitate this, I'm allowing myself a reward if I get the thing done: a double-end bag. Astute observers will note that this is not the double-end bag I linked to last time I mentioned anything about this; the reason is that I found a local outfitter who does this kind of thing. I've bought from them in the past. They have good-quality product and I like to keep the money local if/when I can. Only catch is, a double-end bag requires a lot of space to work because of the way it bounces and moves, and I'm going to need room to move around it, so. The only way the reward makes sense is if I complete the challenge, but it's also something that I want. So... yeah. So, I'm going to have to clean things up. But there's more to cleanliness than just the physical thing itself. There's also cleanliness in sleep and cleanliness of mind, among other things, and these are things I need to work on too. The set-up, then, is as follows: 1) One Box Of Stuff A Week Exactly what it says on the tin. I think I could probably do more than this - and I may have to, even - but I want to make compliance as clear and as simple as I can. In service to this, there's a sub-goal - keep my kitchen sink clear of dishes. I can do this on the daily, and have been for about a week or so, and I'm surprised at the itch it builds to actually get things done. I say, as I do absolutely nothing else. 2) Bedtime by 01:00 This is a longer-term goal. With 1/2 vaccinations done for me and with my loved ones being vaccinated or else exposed to the point that they're apathetic, I'm going to be able to return to the mats in a meaningful way sooner rather than later. I'm going to be returning to the MMA place I was going to before. They've changed their schedule somewhat and they're allowing for no-gi grappling in addition to the gi stuff and the striking stuff. Only catch is, it's early - like, 18:00 as opposed to 19:00 or 19:30. I don't get out of work now until 18:00, and I won't be able to do anything about that for a while yet. But, I can get to bed earlier, and I can get used to being up earlier too. Worst case, I just get some extra sleep. 3) Meditate 6 Minutes A Night 5 minutes was dope. 6 will be doper. And, that should do it. I'll log training here as well, because why not? I've been keeping up with the Apple A Day kettlebell program, and in order to keep my sanity, I've allowed myself to start rolling a D8 to figure if I'm doing 1 or 2-arm swings that day. My longer-term approach is to eventually work in kettlebell snatches and Dan John's Armor Building Complex, but the hold-up right now is that I haven't got the point in Simple and Sinister where I'm doing TGUs with the 8-kg bell yet. That's the neat thing about Simple and Sinister - you get a good base of GPP and also get good at the fundamentals of kettlebells, so it can be used to limit yourself to stuff you can actually reasonably handle. This is something I need help with too. And, uh. Yeah. I think that should actually do it. In life news, I'm looking at trying to do the work of building a Tenant's Union around here after my landlord decided to get rid of my (admittedly shitty) neighbor under sketchy pretenses. Because she doesn't deserve that, and also, it's a gatdang pandemic. Should be interesting.

Mistr Practices Discernment My biggest challenge right now is picking what to spend time doing. I know what I need to do to get back in shape, lose the weight I gained last year and do things I enjoy. The problem is that my work is demanding a lot of time and many things I would normally want to do just won't fit in my week. All that "just do 15 minutes of this" advice is not working for me. Under normal circumstances I like my job. At the moment we are understaffed and having a hard time finding people to fill our open position. My boss is going to batt with management to get us two new people, if we can get some decent candidates. Until that happens, I am putting in extra hours. I realized that I have to let go of some other things or I'll drive myself nuts. Last challenge @sarakingdom shared a video from a Buddhist monk that I found really helpful. He talked about the stories we tell ourselves about things. Am I enjoying soaking my hands in warm water, listening to music and feeling good about clearing off the kitchen counter? Or am I feeling resentful about doing a chore instead of something more fun? Am I unhappy about my arm hurting, or am I feeling relieved that I got a vaccination and it is doing something? An awful lot of how I feel depends on how I view what is going on. I can work on that. Knowing that I can only do a few things makes it easier in some ways. My tendency is to want to to ALL THE THINGS. Since that is obviously not going to happen, I can pick and choose a few things that will make a difference. Sometimes that will be sitting still and just looking out the window. Things that are high on my list: Sleep. I cannot make good decisions and am a grouch when I don't get enough sleep. Work. I am supporting my family. Work anxiety is worse that working lots of hours. Time with my family. This is always in short supply, enjoy it whenever I can get it. Zen. Very useful for dealing with anxiety and choices Exercise. Good for making me feel better in lots of ways Fiber arts. Creative outlet and destressing. Gardening. Outdoors and a feeling of control over my environment. Cooking and cleaning are only happening when I am inspired or something is bugging me. We have the household cooking divided up so we each cook one day a week (in theory). Elf and I usually batch cook something. I grilled 5 lbs of chicken breast last weekend. The previous week I made a ham. I can live just fine on frozen veggies and protein with an excessive amount of dark chocolate for snacks. I will do my share of the dishes and laundry. If the kitchen is a disaster in between, I can ignore it. I've been practicing and getting much better at letting cleaning chores wait. Scoring for this challenge will be how I feel about the week. Do I feel like I took care of the important things? Am I stressed out? Did I make good choices about self-care? I would love to lose 10 pounds and get back in shape, go biking and deal with the boxes in the garage. Maybe some of those things will happen, but I'm not going to judge on them.

Coming back to challenge, slightly modified goals: 1) Jiu Jitsu/Judo (at-home) practice at least weekly 2) Meditation/kata twice weekly

Suddenly the machine was wobbling... In a few hours the shops out there were expecting deliveries, and they weren't going to arrive. The government couldn't sit this one out. A city like Ankh-Morpork was only two meals away from chaos at the best of times. Every day, maybe a hundred cows died for Ankh-Morpork. So did a flock of sheep and a herd of pigs and the gods alone knew how many ducks, chickens and geese. Flour? He'd heard it was eighty tons, and about the same amount of potatoes and maybe twenty tons of herring. He didn't particularly want to know this kind of thing, but once you started having to sort out the everlasting traffic problem these were facts that got handed to you. Every day, forty thousand eggs were laid for the city. Every day, hundreds, thousands of carts and boats and barges converged on the city with fish and honey and oysters and olives and eels and lobsters. And then think of the horses dragging this stuff, and the windmills... and the wool coming in, too, every day, the cloth, the tobacco, the spices, the ore, the timber, the cheese, the coal, the fat, the tallow, the hay, EVERY DAMN DAY. And that was now. Back home, the city was twice as big. Against the dark screen of night, Vimes had a vision of Ankh-Morpork. It wasn't a city, it was a process, a weight on the world that distorted the land for hundreds of miles around. People who'd never see it in their whole life nevertheless spent their life working for it. Thousands and thousands of green acres were part of it, forests were part of it. It drew in and consumed... ...and gave back the dung from its pens and the soot from its chimneys, and steel, and saucepans, and all the tools by which its food was made. And also clothes, and fashions and ideas and interesting vices, songs and knowledge and something which, if looked at in the right light, was called civilization. That's what civilization meant. It meant the city. Was anyone else out there thinking about this? Was anyone important thinking about this? Suddenly the machine was wobbling, but Winder and his cronies didn't think about the machine, they thought about money. Meat and drink came from servants. They happened. Vetinari, Vimes realized, thought about this sort of thing all the time. The Ankh-Morpork back home was twice as big and four times as vulnerable. He wouldn't have let something like this happen. Little wheels must spin so that the machine can turn, he'd say. But now, in the dark, it all spun on Vimes. If the man breaks down, it all breaks down, he thought. The whole machine breaks down. And it goes on breaking down. And it breaks down the people. Terry Pratchett, Night Watch My machine is wobbling, and little wheels must spin so that the machine can turn. Right now, it all spins on me. If I break down, it all breaks down.

"I am become terror, the unseen predator, a rupture that obliterates without warning. Alone, the hordes of Enoch will fall before me. but together this entire planet will fear us. The Anomaly alters us each in our own ways but we are drawn down the same road into the dark heart of creation.. We will find the Source - whatever it holds, whatever it takes." [Cover is for Cowards]: You're a biological sledgehammer; act like one and chuck yourself into the fray! Go pound sand, dirt, or pavement like an Outrider through daily mileage; runs, walks or rucking. [Powers On Tap]: Feel that tingling in your fingertips? Your powers are ready to be unleashed. Don't keep them waiting! Master my Anomaly power through three each of Muay Thai and Kettlebell Fu workouts per week. [Kill to Heal]: There's no use sitting back and licking your wounds; want your health back? Go out there and take it. Violence breeds vitality (and the meek never inherit the earth, so keep to my Nutri-3 rule: vitality through tracking, 500g veggies, and 12lbs/12weeks PVP). And finally, a guiding philosophy to add - you have to [Think Aggressively]: Complete my daily Yoga practice. "You waste your gifts running errands for them, trying to win their meaningless, endless war. You're not like them anymore." "So what, I should play at being a god, like you?" "I am not playing."

This challenge is going to be a little more simple than the last. One main goal this time around since it working pretty well for me and one secondary goal for fun. I am finding that no matter what workout I do, as long as I keep closing my ring goals on the Apple watch, I am improving. The consistent goal is forcing me to close those rings and being consistent seems to be the key for me recently. 1. Close all three rings on my Apple watch seven times a week for the entire challenge. Even though I missed a couple day last challenge and now I already missed two days for this challenge, the goal stays the same. 2. Give isometrics a consistent try. I have played with isometrics in the past but I never really took them too far. I am hoping to gain some more strength in the core and hips along with some extra strength in the end range of motion.

Hey there everyone! Your neighborhood Kishi back at it again. I kind of dropped off at the end of last challenge. I have a reason for this. So, the challenge didn't end badly, but OTOH it didn't go as great as it could have. I gotta go for now, but I'll explain more later, and I wanted to stake my place. Sorry I left y'all in the lurch, and I didn't even thank people for stopping. Sorry for that too. I'll get around to you when I can. It'll be sooner rather than later.

After missing two challenges because of work and well, more work, I am back. Oddly, during those two missed challenges, I had some of the most consistent training. It isn't anything earth shattering but the workouts were good and the 15 minute morning workout has because a habit that helps me through the workday. It's time to stop typing and start training because it's good to be back. 1. Close all three rings on my Apple watch seven times a week for the entire challenge. This Apple watch is a devious little device. It makes me workout and get up and move like a little drill instructor on my wrist. Closing all three rings each day is a serious boost to my training motivation and this time around, closing those rings seven days a week is a want to do but a requirement. 2. At least one extra Karate class a week. I haven't been to the dojo for in-person training in over a year but I have at least one Zoom class each week. On top of that class, a second class each week is the goal here. Another Zoom or my own training class in my home dojo will suffice but either way, a full hour of extra, structured training is the goal. 3. Publish at least one blog post per week. I have been battling this goal for what seems to be years now but this time around I know I can do it. Extra credit: Any type of mobility or strength training is a plus.