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After sleeping off the last one, it's time to get back to work. I will once again be at sea for the vast majority of the challenge, and certain dreaded pastimes simply cannot be avoided any more. I didn't do much running last time – successfully avoiding the treadmill entirely. As enjoyable as that may have been, I don't want to give my body any ideas. So to remind him who's his daddy, I've come up with this... Run 60 miles minimum, preferably not all at once. Use the treadmill, dammit! If I can do more, all the better. And yes, there will still be mountains. Push, Pull Push-ups - 720 total, same as last time. Pull-ups - 32 total, stepping it up. Stretch 10 back bending and stretching routines spread over the course of the challenge. Putting the back into "Back In Business." I've noticed doing yoga that posture and rounding my back is a problem for me. A few months ago, I found some video workouts that I think will help, but haven't done much with them yet. Now it's time. I'll be monitoring this one as I go, and if I don't think the videos are helping, I'll look for something else. Weights 29 points total. Sticking with the same routines, mostly using the ship's awesome adjustable dumbbells. 2 points for each complete workout, 1 point for a good-try effort, and 1 bonus point each time I manage to increase the weight for all exercises (I'm not bodybuilding here, so this doesn't really happen that often). ----- @Jormungand suggested last time that I put on some rockin tunes and get to it. This I can do. For fun, I searched my iTunes library for "back" and got around 175 hits. It pleases me to share a few... 1. On Your Way Down (feat. Allen Toussaint), Trombone Shorty, Backatown (2010)

With the return of Game of Thrones, I dedicate my challenge to every warrior’s favorite character The mountain. My goals are to eat, train, and sleep like the mountain to prep for my push-pull competition, which JUST SO HAPPENS to be the last weekend of this challenge. https://www.facebook.com/events/1531902903773755/ (If anyone is interested! I happen to be the only female registered thus far, easy way to lock up first place. Haha) https://www.buzzfeed.com/andyneuenschwander/the-mountain-from-game-of-thrones-revealed-his-diet-plan-and?utm_term=.ce2vemVvA#.sxqY8pdY3 http://www.gq.com/story/game-of-thrones-the-mountain-workout Now that my hip is feeling good and I’m back to moving without pain it’s going to be easier for me to get my workouts in and start getting my mind right! (and my food right!) I'm going to continue to post my workouts in my BATTLE LOG but might x-post here. I might also post gymnastics fun here, because who doesn’t want to learn about cool shit that I’m doing in gymnastics. Expect this post to be full of copious Game of Thrones spoilers and me fangirling over the Mountain. 1) Train like the Mountain I have training programmed out through the 24th with 9 sessions between now and then. Also have 4 gymnastics sessions between now and then (will be 5 adding in the following week). The goal is to complete all of my training sessions, but also be PT focused. Complete all training sessions and all gymnastics classes. Scale back if I need to. Do my prescribed stretches/therapy and/or foam roll 5x/week. 2) Eat like the mountain (Rollover from last challenge) My nutrition is still all over the place. If you’ve been following me, you know that this is a thing I've been struggling with. Injuring myself and spiraling into emotional eating did nothing to help the problem. I need to cut a little to make 132 class by my competition. If I don’t, no sweat, I’ll compete at 148, but I should be able to if I reign in the diet a bit. My challenge is finding BALANCE between tracking compulsively, yet still eating enough to fuel my body and my workouts. If I don't track, I don't eat enough or eat in proper ratios. Especially fat, I am ALWAYS low on fat, it's just so much easier to eat proteins and carbs! I also binge eat, so my calories will vary from 1400- 3100 over the course of a week; which is unhealthy, inconsistent and unsustainable! Last challenge the goal was to focus on the weekend, and I didn’t find any real improvement by focusing on that. This challenge the focus will be meal prep and trying to get back to a carb cycling type of diet. Meal prep: Ensure I always have protein sources prepped and available for lunches and dinners (aka meat). 1-2x/week prepping should be sufficient. Do that carb cycling thing again: Track my macros. Aim for P/F/C = >135/~70/[<100/~180/~250] based on that day’s activity level (rest=low, gymnastics or cardio=medium, lifting=high). Doesn’t have to be perfect, just try. Start up the creatine again. This fell off once I injured myself. I was having issues with it, mainly digestion and headaches. This leads me to believe I’m not drinking as much water as I should be. The goal is to drink at MINIMUM the half gallon of straight up water a day, in addition to any teas, coffees, diet sodas, etc I have throughout the day. Take creatine daily. At least half a scoop, more if I can tolerate it. Drink half gallon of water daily to ensure maximum pumpitude. 3) Sleep like the mountain I don’t usually have a problem with going to bed or falling asleep, but I have issues with waking up in the morning. Goals will reflect me waking up and getting a good start to my day! Similar to what Thor does! Phone doesn’t get charged in the bedroom. Must be charged outside of the bedroom so I don’t wake up and check social media in bed forever. Must actually get up out of bed to turn my alarm off and start being productive. Eat breakfast. Every day. Before I leave the apartment. (Before the move I was really good about this! Now that I have a more lenient start time at work, my habits have fallen apart) 2 days/week cardio and core in the morning. Preferably non training days to avoid multiple showers. A third cardio and core day should be done, but not necessarily in the morning. Life Goals for this year will be COMPOUNDING as appropriate. The idea is to produce HABITS! 1) Don't be a hoodrat (challenge 1) Look fabulous. Take selfies. Post here for everyone's pleasure. 2) Don't get too fat (challenge 2) Crushed this goal last time at 1x/week so I’m going to up it! Walk or bike to work. 2x/week minimum. Note: This goal is highly dependent on my hip and it’s continued healing. If I am having issues, I will nix it. 3) Read (challenge 3) Although I pretty much nixed my last challenge from the beginning, the reading stuck around. Continue reading at least 3x/week. 4) Don’t be a hermit (challenge 4) Weekends I have a terrible habit of laying on the couch watching Netflix and doing housework all weekend. It’s rare if I see sunshine. I need to do SOMETHING that involves leaving my apartment on non-work days. Go to the store, go on a date with Mr. J, go to the gym, nerd meetup for tea, or just go for a walk or bike ride. Just something so I don’t fall into that deep red glow of Netflix that is so comforting. Leave my apartment on either Saturday or Sunday. With the eventual goal of making this both days.

I will be in S. Korea before the year's end, and just thought I'd throw this out there in the faint hope that maybe there were some NF Rebels who would be there or may join me. So if you are, feel free to PM me and hopefully we can catch a train to meet up someplace!

In order to build anything sturdy, a strong foundation is required. Pyramids are build from the ground up, and so must physical fitness also be. And so a man's quest for personal perfection continues. A man has been wandering for the past several years, stopping to take substantial breaks but not long enough to nest. Without a specific and permanent place to consider "home", it would behoove one to follow George Clooney's advice in Up In The Air - travel light (Zombieland Rule #7). However, carrying your entire life on your back can still amount to a lot of belongings, and would put strain upon oneself, depending on carrying ability. It would require a strong pair of legs to support the load, and superior mobility to be able to move it. THE QUEST The main quest that a man has accepted is the Afghanistan Pre-Deployment Training Program. It is 6 weeks in duration and was designed to prepare one to operate in steep, rocky, mountainous environments by preparing the legs and the lungs for rugged terrain. 1. Climb The Mountain: Perform all 30 workouts prescribed in said program. (STR+1, STA+2, CON+1) 2. Conquer The Mountain: Perform all workouts to standard. (DEX+2, STA+3) 3. Feed Off The Earth: Eat out as seldom as possible, and log everything. (CON+2) Side Quest: Read one book. (WIS+4) THE MOTIVATION I look forward working with the rangers.