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So...I'd like to add some MRT into my Stronglifts rotation to pick up the cutting/fat loss pace. Problem is, I don't know what I can do without impairing recovery on my off days or going too far on my lifting days. Thoughts? Probably best to do any MRT on my lifting days, but since Stronglifts is whole body...you see where I'm going with this?

Once again, you guys have your challenge threads well under way, and I'm let getting my thread posted. Oh well, I'm not going to lose in sleep over it because this challenge is about being less negative (unless I'm lifting with negatives). So, I've been reading "my copy" of Primal Connection. Why the quotes? Because it's actually the public library's version, but I keep returning it and checking it back out. For a new book, they don't give you the month to read it like they do with other books and since I've been taking notes (they frown on highlighting their version), it's taking me a while to digest the whole thing. In previous challenges, I have come up with ways to work around a hectic schedule and be happier. Usually, that ends up being a scheduling hack to get to working out more to keep my sanity, trying to be more stringent with my diet, and manufacturing ways to spend more time with my family. How has the worked out? Well, the workouts have been great. I feel stronger than I have in years. Some of the changes to spend more time with my family have worked, and some have meant I'm only in physcial proximity to them, but not really "with" them. The diet? Well, that usually goes pretty well until I snap. Then it's all out the window. What does this have to do with The Primal Connection? Because the first chapter in that book is all about your inner dialogue and changing your actions to become more connected with yourself in our hyperconnected society. Kinda touchy-feely, I know. But, if it can help me flow with my situation, rather than constantly fighting it, I believe good things will come from it. So, to do that we're going with: Goal #1: Be happy with my workouts Last challenge, I discovered some workouts that I really enjoyed. So, I'll be continuing down the Metabolic Resistance Training path rather than trying to target this or that. 4 workouts/wk. That's it. Simply get 'em done. I'm always happier after these workouts. That's 24 workouts over the course of the challenge. Percent completed will determine the grade. STR: +2, STA: +1, DEX: +2 Goal #2: Happy fun time workouts I have a 5K that I do every year for charity right at the end of this challenge. However, so far this year I've focused on a stronger body and more interval training rather than focusing on getting my pace as fast as possible. When I was focusing on pace, I got frustrated when it didn't improve the way I hoped, I pushed more and I ended up with PF. The result has been less distance running. I did 4.2 miles on Saturday and tried to maintain a comfortable pace. At the end I checked the watch and it averaged 8:42 min/mile. Last time I ran this race I finished with an 8:02 average. 40 seconds off my pace in 6 weeks? Ouch! I'm still gonna do the run, but this year I vow to simply enjoy it and not try to best my time like I've done every year. But, I need to do more runs to be in decent enough shape to run without injury. So, 3+ mile runs 2x a week. Also (I'm cheating here and I don't care), I've always thought the 100 pushup challenge was a cool idea. I do a lot of push-ups (or at least I think so) in many variations. I think it would be a cool challenge to see if I can complete 1 set 100 of normal pushups by the end of the challenge. I've never tried it before, so tonight I'll set my starting point. These are just fun goals that I want to finish. I'll average the 2 together for a final grade. STR: +2, DEX: +1, WIS: +1 Goal #3: Stop fighting my diet I've been working on this for a few weeks. I've proven that I'm not good at setting strict rules and sticking to them over the long term. This results in completely falling off whatever wagon I put myself on, and unwinding weeks of progress. So, I'm going to make some incremental changes and try to make them stick. I'm combining a bunch of ideas (the Vegan Before 6:00 schedule with Primal eating replacing the vegan eating and intermittant fasting) around when I have the most control of things. This results in Primal eating prior to dinner time, no snacking after dinner time, and intermittant fasting on the weekends. It's kind of a Frankenstein of diets, I know. But, it feels like it would allow me to flow with the situation rather than fighting it while still improving my diet overall. So, we'll see if I have built Frankenstein's monster at the end of the challenge, or if I have found my fat loss nirvanna. CHA: +2, STA: +1, CON: +1 Goal #4: Journal my way happy Last challenge I let some negavtivity creep into my thinking, attitude and posts here. I tend to simply not post when I'm being negative because it usually makes things worse because then I dwell on it too much. I'm around a lot of negative people, so I constantly fight to keep a positive attitude. Sometimes I'm more successful than others. It's those other times that I end up taking out my grumpiness on those closest to me. Their the ones who least deserve it. One of the suggestions from the Primal Connection was to keep a gratitude journal. Every day try to write down as many things as you are grateful for each day. Dwelling on the positive instead of the negative sounds like a good idea to me. Mark starts out with ones that I wouldn't have (grateful for the gifts of sight, smell, touch, hearing, etc.), but only because I'm too narrow minded. So, every day I'm going to list out all of the things I'm grateful for for the day in 10-15 minutes. This isn't supposed to be a strenuous difficult activity. Just everything that comes to me in that amount of time. 42 days. Percent completed will determine the grade. WIS: +2 Side goal: Finish digesting The Primal Connection I love the way Mark writes/thinks. It speaks to me and makes sense. I think I can get more from this book than his first. So, my free time will be spent with this book.