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Hi everybody! Snow Walker here. I'm new to the community and live in Florida. Originally from upstate New York and I dream of moving back to the cold, frozen North. Hence the name. I am am looking to get into some weight lifting and was thinking of building my own power rack. So far I have been doing everything inside in various places in the house, but I want a place for pull-ups, back squats, and benching. It would be preferable to workout indoors as summer is miserably hot and humid. However, hubby and I are in the middle of remodeling our house and there is not much room left between stacks of tile, 2x4s, and drywall. Depending what we work on, I have to find different places to workout or modify my workouts. So in an effort to get my rack and pull-up bar together, I found a designated spot outside. Humidity will cause metal to rust, so I was planning to build a rack with wood and just keep up with protecting/cleaning the pull-up bar. Pull-ups are a goal of mine and I want to be able to work toward them, even if that means just hanging around for a bit. (Pun intended). Does anyone have any experience with lifting/working out in the outdoors in Florida in the summer? I have lived in the Tampa area for 5 years. The most functional I am all summer is mowing the yard and getting the flowerbeds weeded, which seemed like a good start to being able to take the heat. Eventually I can get something set up inside, but we have been at this remodel for a year and a half now as a DIY and I don't want one more thing on the list of "someday after the remodel is finished I will ...(insert dream here)." I am hoping we could be done by January 2018 but we still have 2 bathrooms (read that as taking out the pipes and starting over from studs) to go. Any suggestions or tips would be appreciated. Thanks!

For my first challenge I’m picking tasks that are just that... challenging. However unlike other times in my life I’m not setting the bar so high that it is unattainable. These things are small improvements I can absolutely commit to and build upon! Fitness: Do something that promotes fitness and wellness for 20 minutes (or more every day for the challenge (up to +7/ week) Dietary: Eat 2 (or more servings of vegetables every day. (up to +7/ week) Level up my life: Schedule my day the night before. Having a plan makes reaching my goals significantly more attainable. I find it way to easy to slack off when I don’t have a plan. “If you aim for nothing you will hit it every single time.” (up to +7/ week) Level up my life: Try something new. Last month I tried a new class and it was so nerve wracking, terrifying and freaking amazing I’m challenging myself to find something new to do again! (+10)

Hi everyone This is my first proper challenge, and one of my first posts. I tried to join the last challenge a week late but the combined late start and Christmas period meant it ended in failure. I wanna start the new year the best I can, and this is how i'm gonna do it. Diet - Drink at least 2 litres of water a day I don't drink nearly enough water to be healthy, let alone stay hydrated. The plan is to fill up a 2 Litre bottle every morning and aim to have finished it by the end of the day. I'll still drink coffee, but absolutely no carbonated drinks. Fitness - Go for a 15 minute walk everyday As a student with a lot of essays to do, I'm stuck inside most of the day. It can get quite dull, making work a whole lot harder to look at. Hopefully a walk around my local park around midday will give me some fresh air and cheer me up a bit, making the rest of my work a little bit easier. Fitness - Do a basic workout 3 days a week/go to the gym I do no regular exercise, so this is my first attempt to get into a healthy pattern that will hopefully build into regular, longer workout sessions. I have signed up to a gym just down the road to my house, but I may not have time first week due to work. So I've altered my challenge to be any 3 workouts a week. If its from home, the workout is just 2-3 sets of a slightly altered version of the beginners body-weight workout. Level Up - Stick to a regular morning and work routine As a final year college student, I really need more structure to help me work more efficiently, and get me moving during the day. For this I've come up with a simple morning routine with the hope to make my life more organised. Wake up at a set time everyday, shower, brush, simple as that, with no procrastinating in the middle. I'm not sure if this is to easy/difficult for a first challenge. I don't want to over-complicate it but I also don't want it to be too easy. Advice would be greatly appreciated! Good luck to everyone on their first challenge of the year!!

Hi! *waves* My name is Gemma, alter ego "The Emerald Eagle", and I live in Melbourne Australia. I am a country girl at heart, taking every opportunity to get out of the city and head into the bush - camping, hiking, 4WDing, or any other adventures we can find. In my 9-5 life I am a Product Owner for an IT company which works with the education industry. I have followed NF for about 2 years, and been a member of the Academy for about 18 months. In that time I have yoyo-ed up and down, and some huge successes and some definite road bumps. In 2017 I have not made new years resolutions, but I have re-prioritised my life to make the important things a priority; myself, my family, and my health. As part of that I wanted to grow and so, despite never really using a public forum like this before, I wanted to jump feet first and start documenting my journey here.

Hey guys I am new here. I 've got the following routine: 1st day legs and delts, 2nd day chest and triceps and 3rd day back and biceps. I want to level up and try some strength exercises such us: deadlifts, bench press, squats, shoulder press, sled drag etc. Do I have to change exercise routine? Or I can add them to right day? (e.g.: squats to the leg day and bench press to the chest day). If yes, how to put the others that require the whole body (e.g.: deadlifts, sled drag) ?

Hi everyone, I first found the Nerd Fitness blog about two years ago. I have always carried a little extra weight, or body fat more accurately, and struggled to shed it. Freshman year of college I hit my unhealthiest at 6'3" and 240. I decided to make a change and started working out some and eating a little better. I dropped about 30 lbs and kept it off, but struggled to get further and became pretty apathetic about it until the year I finished undergrad. That's when I found this blog, and over about 10 months got my weight down to 175. I did not exercise like I should have, so I was definitely in the skinny-fat camp, but I still looked and felt a lot better. You probably came here to read about parasites though, am I right? The summer after I first got serious about living a healthier life, I went kayaking in a swamp with some friends. A few days later, I thought I had a bad stomach bug. I thought I would just ride it out, but it didn't go away. It took several doctors and specialists about a month to figure out what was going on. During that time I felt miserable, and lost about 20 lbs in a really unhealthy way. When I finally beat the parasites, I totally fell off the bandwagon. I went back to unhealthy eating habits, and over the next year and a half, I gained back most of what I lost. When I broke 200 again (in the wrong direction), I decided it was time to set things moving back the right way. Goals for my reboot: Get the weight back off -- 180 was my preliminary goal the first time around and will be again. Workout more this time -- at my best, I was doing something five days a week. That's going to be my goal again as well. Learn how gyms work -- last time I did it all at home. I recently started back for my master's, and have access for free to the facilities on campus, so I figure I should take advantage while I can. Part of the reason I think it was so easy to fall off the bandwagon last time is because I never really made myself accountable to anyone. I tend to be kind of uncomfortable talking about this stuff with friends because I am still pretty new (and probably a little afraid to fail or backslide again), so I seeing if this forum might be a bit of that for me. Advice, encouragement, and constructive criticisms are always welcome. Looking forward to virtually being on this journey with you all. -Bearaphim Post Script Bonus Goals: Read more for fun, not just for school. Reacquaint myself with my guitar so it's not just sitting in the corner collecting dust. Get outside more. I moved to the city for school, and I miss camping and hiking more often.

This story doesn't start with a bang. In fact, Mr. Six found himself to be 'exceptionally ordinary' in every manner except for the secrets he kept. He had achieved quite a bit with the cards fate had dealt him and had enjoyed his journey. But Mr. Six longed for more. Not only to do more; but also, to be more. So when he discovered the rebellion and it's cast of characters, Mr. Six decided to take his first steps... Sorry for the third person and hello to the Rebellion. I have been watching from the sidelines for a while and it's time to jump. I was told once, long ago, to "be an adventurer, because there aren't enough in the world." While I lament not taking that sage advice to heart, I am here now and looking forward to the coming challenges.

Hello! I'm otterbyte and this is my very first challenge. A bit about my road so far: entered my mid-40s overweight, out of shape, and unhappy with how I looked and felt. Six months ago, I finally finally got off my can and joined a cardio kickboxing class. As of today, I've lost all the weight I gained since turning 20: over 30 pounds - w0ot! But I want more. I want to be strong, agile and flexible. I want to reach 50 in better shape than I was at 20. (Well, not much to be done about the wrinkles, but at least body-wise.) To that end, my goals for this challenge are all about PRESSING ON: to keep going down this path, adding new skills and meeting new goals a little bit at a time. Now, I am pretty lousy at self-discipline, but I'm hoping this challenge (and the next, and the next...) will help me stay on track. My six-month goal is to get in good enough condition to join a parkour class in the spring. My long-term goal thirty years from now is to be a spry old lady whose body is still a working tool and not a burden. So here goes: DIET GOALS Eat at least one fruit or veggie per day. Okay, this is a super-tiny goal, but I am bad at this. I *really* love my carbs and protein, and it's amazing how often I will only eat things in the 'brownish' food group. Drink 6+ glasses of water per day. I'm constantly dehydrated when it's cold. I hate being cold, so I shy away from drinking water and opt for hot drinks like coffee or yerba mate. Caffeine is not helping me stay hydrated. So I need to drink water, even if I have to heat it first! FITNESS GOALS MAINTENANCE: Keep going to fitness kickboxing 3x per week. I ain't gonna fix what ain't broke. I love this class, even though the instructors are obviously cheerful sadists. STRENGTH: Start Bodyweight fitness routine 3x per week. I just started this, and his progressions are so inspiring. I know that if I just keep at it, I will be able to do a pushup! And maybe even a pullup! (I said my goals were small.) AGILITY: GMB's Vitamin training routine. The plan is to finish this 28-day routine by the end of the challenge. It's only 10-15 minutes per day, and it looks super fun. FLEXIBILITY: GMB's Hip Mobility routine 3x per week. I have lots of flexibility - but only in very specific directions. My inner thigh muscles are really tight and my side 'split' is nothing of the sort. Let's just say you could use me as an L-square, and that's on a good day. The current plan is to do this on the same days as StartBodyweight. LIFE GOALS WORK: Spend 1/2 hour per day coding. I have a database development business, total employees: just me. So if I don't work, I don't make money. I want to bill for at least 15 hours a month, which means 30 minutes per day, average. HOME: Holiday stuff. Every year, I send out holiday cards with pictures of my girls, and make a photo album for the grands with pictures of them throughout the year. And every year I wait 'til the last minute to do so! Ugh. Not this year. I'll have to finish this goal early in the challenge. December 11th? That sounds good and not all all terrifying! December 11 it is! Anyhow, that's my plan for my first challenge. I look forward to the day I'm an assassin in good standing!

Hey everyone, I'm fairly new to this site and I'm interested in practicing yoga/meditation first thing in the mornings..for starters.. I have forever been hearing that how you start your day will set the rest of the days outcome.. So far I will practice deep breathing... some warmup/wakeup stretches and a nice little workout routine. Wondering if anyone else does this routine? Any tips? or any posts I should be following? Thanks =)

So I joined the druids because I guess at the moment I want to focus more on my re-alignments and whatnot.. But I also enjoy so much more, like yoga is nice, but I also enjoy strength training, hiking, hoopdance, etc, etc. I also play ball hockey. So I guess all-in-all I'm more of a rebel.. I want to start lifting too lol

Diet Drink tea when I first wake up instead of soda. Drink more water during the day. -Note: My average drinks consist of only Dr. Pepper and maybe one to two small glasses of water each day. Fitness Complete the NerdFitness Bodyweight Workout at least 1x per week. Level Up Your Life Write 1000 words a day at least 3x each week. Smoke at most seven cigarettes a day instead of nine. Epic Quest One day I wish to become a Personal Trainer and/or a Fitness Instructor at a Gym. It is my heart's desire to help people better themselves. I want to teach them how to train and teach them how to love doing it. First things first, though, is that I need to get in shape myself before I help others get in shape. I also need to learn the very skills I want to teach. I also want to become a power lifter some day. I am saving up for any and all equipment I will need and/or a gym membership. (Sadly gym memberships are very expensive around here.) I don't know anything about it; not the lingo, nothing. But, I am studying and I figure I should work on cardio first anyway.

I'm kinda interested in picking up a martial art to do during the weekend on my off day. Some info about me: I recently started working out. (About two weeks ago) I am a student. Female 5"0' ~43kg What martial arts would you guys recommend? I've never done any sort of martial art before. Thanks for reading!

Hello all! My name is Kaitee -- trying out using Kalista Fauner as an alter ego idea, to see if that helps me overcome some of my hangups. I heard about NF through a friend who volunteered at Camp Nerd Fitness this summer. I was totally enamored by the idea and have been lurking around the blog and such for a few months. Finally made a character and joined the forums today. Yay! I am a puppeteer, and have been a performing artist for most of my adult life. And though, very truly, my body is my instrument, I have not taken care of it. I'm not unhealthy, per se. However, I am a little heavy for my height - and my biggest health challenge is my mental health. Luke Skywalker's battle with himself, having to master the monsters in his head, rings very true to me. I have tried to "force" myself into fitness habits. I joined an ilovekickboxing gym near my house -- they are amazing! The instructors are nothing but supportive, as are the other members. It is not about being the fittest or the sexiest, but just pushing yourself. And you know, hitting the bag seemed like a really good stress reliever. I have been a member for six months, and even though I feel AMAZING when I'm there, I really do struggle with attending class. As my therapist calls them: I have a hijacker in my head. I think that a part of me really doesn't think I deserve to feel amazing. I've had some success with gamifying habits before -- I recently started to using HabiticaRPG to gamify some basic life goals. So, I thought maybe it was time to actually join NF. I still have my kickboxing gym, and I want to fully integrate that into my life. Because something I know I am missing is community -- so I'm excited about the NF community, and investing in the IRL FitFam of ILKB. I also have some very tangible benchmarks I want to hit: My dad, brother, and I are planning to summit some 4000 footers in New Hampshire this summer. My dad wants to summit all of them before he's 65. I thought it'd be fun to share that. My hometown holds an annual Thanksgiving Road Race that I have watched my entire life. Next year, I am going to run it. So I have these two milestones within the next year. And I know when I set my mind to something, I can accomplish it. But those brain weevils... that depression and social anxiety is one of my biggest challenges with fitness. I hope that NF can help me combat this weevils.

Howdy all, Newbie to the academy--sort of--twelve weeks in. I'm an assassin who refuses to assassinate, so I'm not sure what they makes me. Perhaps I'll become an agile ambassador with more strength than meets the eye. Hmmm. . . . it's a start. I've jumped on the Facebook men's group, then quickly jumped back out after I jumped in way too fast sharing way too much. Now I'm back in. Slow this time, Mike, slooooow. I joined a gym because I've been working out at home, but I'm a bit of a social bug, so I like working out outside the home. Ideally I'll find a gym bud at some point, but that may take some time. I walked into the free weights section for the first time to start my gym workout level 3. I'm on the forums for interaction. I love a good challenge with safe/silly consequences for the loser--often myself. I'm not shy of pies in the face, getting toilet-papered, duck taped, or dancing goofy on camera if it's in the taste of a good challenge. Good to meet you all --Mike

Hi everyone, i'm new here so still getting the hang of how all this works. It looks mighty cool though! I'd really welcome any suggestions if i'm missing the point or not getting it right....... Anyway, this is my first four week challenge, so here goes with my thoughts on what i'd like to achieve over that period: 1) Come up with a much cooler username and get to grips with how NF works, find a support network and find my way around. Also, I like to run so I want to plan a programme of races for next year and get them entered and start to build my training programme for next year around them. Big goals for the year are: achieve GFA for London Marathon (sub 3:20 - this means a PR of over 8 minutes) and complete the Greenlight Round The Rock event in August (48 miles within 12 hour cut-off). I'm deliberately not calling this a race, I want to enjoy it and finish tired but happy within the cut-off 2) My running programme for the next four weeks is: Week 1 40 miles, including a long run of 14 miles, an interval session of whatever my running club are doing on Tuesday night, a tempo run of 3 miles at 10k pace (plus warm up/cool down) and some base runs that include some strides and the occasional hill. Week 2 45 miles, as above but with long run of 15 miles and 4 mile tempo run. Week 3 50 miles, as above but with long run of 16 miles and 5 mile tempo run Week 4 Planned cut back week 35 miles lwith ong run not exceeding 12 miles. (Context, I've run over 2,000 miles in 2016 to date with peak weekly mileage of 63 miles and run a couple of marathons so this is not excessive for me) 3) Warm up properly before EVERY run (lunge matrix and leg swings minimum) and add Strength training after runs and on cross training days. 4) Diet - Resist the treat offerings in the office, no more than two items in the first two weeks and no more than 1 in the final two weeks. - Have soup rather than a pudding at lunch (my main meal of the day, at work) at least twice a week - Cook evening meal from raw ingredients at least two nights rather than just having a sandwich Anyway that's my plan - any thoughts or feedback would be awesome!!!!

Hey I'm Lil'Legs and I'm new here...well you probably knew that because of the title. After taking like eight years off from doing any sort of sport thanks to laziness and health issues I have gotten back into the metaphorical saddle. I have taken myself off my medication (with the okay from my Doctor since it wasn't helping and just giving awful side-effects) and started CrossFit. I've only been doing it for a couple of weeks but loving it, and now I have enough motivation to also improve my diet, bye bye chocolate bars! I have a goal of becoming a happier, stronger, fitter version of myself and to eventually be confident enough to go to a Comic Con dressed as Wonder Woman! An odd aim but I've wanted to go to one dressed as her since I was little. I am super excited to be here and to go through this journey with everyone! Now I better go make myself some dinner!

I've always been an 'overeager beaver' who jumps in head first, tries to make huge changes overnight and then (go figure) falls flat on my face and fails miserably. SO I'm definitely into trying small changes and actually succeeding with my goals! Here's my first 4 Week Challenge! Diet - Replace hot chocolate with tea - Eat a veggie at one meal every day Fitness - Complete the beginner bodyweight workout 3x per week Level Up My Life - ALL dishes must be cleaned or loaded into dishwasher before bed every night.

...who wanted to rank among the best. These are my some of favorite characters. I have read their story, played their game, watched their show. They are who I strive to be and turn to for motivation. And thus, begins my story. :o) Main Story Quests: Achieve the Splits, Go Down to 18% Body Fat, Eat Healthier This Year: Horizon 2017 Dawn ~ Trophy Guide and Roadmap 2016 Challenges: Team RWBY Training, Overwatch Team Training 2017 Challenges: X-men

Hello, all! I'm a 19-year-old Weakling from Glasgow, Scotland. I am.. very unhealthy. I live largely on Irn Bru, Monster, cigarettes, and coffee. I have a strange fear of warm food and lately of solid food. I have osteopoenia and anaemia as a result of my dreadful diet. For a while I was on Fortisip/Ensure/misc. protein shakes and working out, and was getting better, then moved house and was too far from my old gym, and my family was so insistent on me "having proper food" that they took away my nutrition drinks. What a bloody nuisance. I'm a transsexual male, and am set on building a little muscle to look a bit more masculine. Skinny would be fine on someone born male, but on me? Nope. :-( My major focus, however, is on plain ordinary strength. I'm so weedy I can't open some food packaging. I'm so sick of being so weak. It frustrates me to no end. I tried to slam dunk a basketball a few days back, as I used to do in high school, and found I could no longer jump so high. I'm schizophrenic (or bipolar I? or schizoaffective? The docs have no clue any more) and currently in hospital for it. The food here is dire, and there's no gym or anything. On the ward I was moved to yesterday, there was the aforementioned basketball hoop plus a tennis net, but here there's just nothing. I try to do press-ups and sit-ups in my room but I'm just too weak and if I make the slightest noise (i.e. fall) the nurses complain. So, here I am, the Weakling. (Should call my next novel that, ahem.) If anybody would like to ask me about hobbies, diet, etc., go right ahead. This is my current chicken body, and this is plain aul' me.

Well i'm new here you can call me Doc my 4 week challenge is simple this month 1. 40 push ups a day consequentially no less then 20 at a time 2. Cut down on carbohydrates. (i am bad at this the potato chips are so yummy) 3. start running again (even if its just 1 block twice a week its better then nothing right?) 4. improve my flexibility via stretching

Hello everyone! I'm David, a (currently) 25-year old guy in Houston, TX; originally from the good ol' tropics of Orlando, Florida! I'm going to tell you a bit about my heroic origin story; it's somewhat depressing I think. But hey, I love underdogs. In the beginning, there was a big bang and I try not to think about it because they're my parents. Fast forward a few years and there's little ol' me in Pre-Kindergarten, a wild ball of mischief and mayhem that was the butt of the joke of every other kid. This is a trend that continued on to Kindergarten, past when I got expelled for throwing a chair at a teacher at the ripe and happy age of six, past my first and last suicide attempt at the old age of 10, all the way up to High School, where the decade or so of bullying, trips to psychiatrists, and the whole ADHD craze of the '90s had my high school self dropping out due to severe depression, social anxiety, chronic procrastination, and being unable to even pull myself out of bed in my senior year. Then you had the fun time of the Great Recession happening in 2009, the year I dropped out/my generation graduated High School. No jobs for everyone! Woo! Just the thing my crippling self loathing needed for the next few years. Let's fast forward past the three years of not feeling anything, and you have me at the age of 20, exploding in anger that my life is going nowhere, and making the drastic life change of accepting a friend's offer to move in with him in Houston for a few months, get a job here, and get my life going at long last. And it worked! Job was get, I had money for the first time ever, and the world regained color again! Five years later, and I have gone nowhere and done nothing I wanted. I still work at this terrible job that I barely force myself to wake up to go to, I haven't seen my parents since I left, my only friends left are online, my first girlfriend that I got back in June of this year cheated on me with her abusive ex for two months before I found out on my 25th birthday two months ago, and my depression, anxiety, and self-loathing have reached a critical mass, a downward spiral in to darkness. And you know what? That makes me angry. I'm righteously pissed off. I have no idea what I'm doing, feel completely helpless, have been betrayed by everyone I've known in my life (save for my parents, they're awesome and deserve better), and the worst part is that I know most of it is my own fault. The only thing I can feel proud about is that I've managed to go from 270+ lbs to 215 lbs, but I've stagnated. And man, that anger? All that rage I feel? I'm using that as fuel, just like I did back when I came to Houston. But so far I've been burning that fuel and not going anywhere with it; so here I am. Right here among all of you. Got my first challenge posted in the challenge forum, and I know I wall of texted here. So I'm looking forward to chilling with you all even if you don't read my huge post. tl;dr I'm mad as Hell and I'm not going to take this any more. EDIT: Right, I forgot battle plans. I'm still working on them, sadly. But I know where I want to be in two years I think. Hell, I know where I want to be for my mother's birthday this February: in Florida visiting my parents and showing off the progress I've made. So I'll start with a four month goal: Reach 180 lbs by February 4th, 2017. Now, I have to break that down. That's 35 lbs in 4 months. 8.75 lbs/month, or about 2 lbs/week. 1000 less calories per day. That's a hefty amount, but it's doable. I've had practice at it. I've always done intermittent fasting, so that will be easy; I'll just continue not bringing lunch to work. I don't drink soda often, so I'll just go ahead and go all the way with that and cut it out completely for now. I have to drink more water anyway, dehydration is really messing me up. I eat way too much fast food, so let's cut that out - that will be easy, too. I just tell my ride not to let me buy anything. I can't go anywhere solo, I don't have a car! Basic breakdown: Smaller portions at dinner. Eat a small, healthy breakfast on the daily. Continue exercising 3x/week: Monday, Wednesday, Friday. All bodyweight, of course. I think that'll be a good start.

Hello! I just joined this community and I´ve been encouraged in my introducton post by @Raxie to join the 4 week challenge. This is my first challenge and I'm trying to get out of a really dark period of my life, so the goals are not going to be too ambitious, just small steps to start managing my life again. EDIT: After IAmInfinite's comment I decided to update my challenge with a reward system. I'll level up every 100 XP (experience points), and this challenge allows me to score a maximum of 200 XP (it's my first challenge so I decided to double the points, but next challenges will probably be 100-120 XP). 1) START RUNNING: I just started with C25K and I intend to keep exercising 3 times a week. Total points for this goal: 40 XP (10 XP per week) Running 3 times: 10 XP Running 2 times: 5 XP Running 1 times: 2 XP 2) FRESH AIR: I work 3 days a week and lately I'm avoiding going out of the house on my off days (art thou there, depression?). I want to get out, even if it's just for a 30 minute walk, at least 5 times a week. Total points for this goal: 28 XP (7 XP per week) Going out >5 times: 7 XP Going out 4-5 times: 5 XP Going out 3 times: 2 XP (this would be the 3 times a week I go to work. I walk 30 min to work and 30 minutes back those days, so I though that I deserve 2 points even if I only go out these 3 days). 3) QUITTING DRUGS: And by drugs I mean sugar, the most addictive drug I've ever tried. I don´t feel like totally quitting, but I am going to avoid chocolates and sweets as much as I can. I'm only allowed to cheat one day a week (I've already cheated this week, so no more sugar for me). Total points for this goal: 40 XP (10 XP per week) 1 Day of sugar: 10 XP 2 Days of sugar: 7 XP 3 Days of sugar: 5 XP 4 Days of sugar: 3 XP >4 Days of sugar: 0 XP 4) NOT SKIPPING MEALS: I'm skipping a lot of meals lately, so my goal is to have real Breakfast-Lunch-Tea every day. Just eat like normal people do. Total points for this goal: 28 XP (7 XP per week) 1 XP for every day I don´t skip my meals. 5) AVOID PROCRASTINATION: I find it easier to restrict procrastination hours (i.e. Netflix, browsing, movies, videogames) in order to use that time for more useful things (reading, walking, studying, finishing this SuperMario pixel blanket I started months ago). I'm only allowed 3 hours a day -well, when I'm working I don't have time for procrastination but the rest of the days it gets out of control-. I think trying to force me to do the things that I mentioned is not going to work for me right now. Total points for this goal: 40 XP (10 XP per week) 7 days procrastination-free: 10 XP 5-6 days procrastination-free: 6 XP 3-4 days procrastination-free: 3 XP <3 days procrastination-free: 0 XP 6) MEDITATION: God, I really need this. I'm struggling with anxiety/depression and I numb my brain with sugar and procrastination almost every day. Thirty minutes of meditation at least 3 times a week will probably do. I know it's not too much but I've never done it before and I don't know how to do it properly yet. Total points for this goal: 24 XP (6 XP per week) 3 days of meditation: 6 XP 2 days of meditation: 4 XP 1 day of meditation: 2 XP That's it. Easy, huh? Not for me! But winter is coming, you know, and it gets dark and cold here during winter, oh, it does... And you know what they say, the night is dark and full of terrors. I better prepare for the long winter and darkness. OK, maybe I'm over reacting, but I come from a warm and sunny country and North England is too cold and dark for us, sweet summer children. It can get (moar) depressing. Feel free to post some suggestions, as this is my first challenge and anything that may help me to improve is welcomed. Cheers! Lady Gx

So I'm a little new to this whole forum thing and definitely new to collective fitness things... A little about me: Sandavia Student, Office Wizard, PC Gamer, Ensign Trekkie, Trivia Team Captain, Pun Enthusiast My story starts almost a year ago when my health started to spiral into oblivion. At first, I attributed my exhaustion to poor sleep habits, high stress and regrettable food choices but as I began making tweaks to my water intake, started going to bed earlier, and chose healthier food options, I barely noticed a change and couldn't seem to catch a break. 6 months, 4 positive strep tests, 2 colds, and all of my sick days (plus many unpaid days) later, my newly acquired doctor ordered a sleep study. Apparently 45 minutes of REM sleep a night is not enough for a functioning immune system, let alone a healthy human being. Fast forward to today; I've been using my CPAP machine for about 4 months and have noticed a startling improvement in my overall health. I am 25 pounds down, wearing jeans in a size I haven't fit into in 5 years, I have more energy, my wit has returned, and I'm ready for the next step! I've been a far-off observer of Nerd Fitness for a while and it felt like fate when last week I was attempting to implement bodyweight training (specifically squats and planks) into my day and I received an email about how to do the proper squat. I can't wait to start this lifestyle and journey with you all! No more excuses. Engage!

This will be my first challenge and I'm excited to begin. I already walk at least 40 minutes on most days between work and/or the school run. The main benefit of this goal will be ensuring I also have a basic level of activity over the weekends as well. Diet Swap out one soda per day with water. Eat a vegetable with one meal every day. Fitness Walk every day for at least 30 minutes. Level Up Your Life Clean for 2 minutes each night before bed or first thing in the morning.

So, I'm actually really nervous about this. It's silly, I know, but I'm a shy person so hello everyone! My name is Chells, I'm 29 and female. I've got PCOS, so there are some hormonal issues to work around. I'm also far, far, far above where I should be body weight wise. I've managed to get to a point where I'm not having chronic back pain any more through exercise, but I can't manage to translate that into weight loss. I'm here because I don't know what to do. I've tried a lot of ways to lose weight. I've paid for expensive trainers that I could barely afford, tried a variety of diets, tried a lot of different work outs and haven't been able to make any progress. Even worse, none of the things I've tried have felt good to me. You're supposed to feel better when you work out, right? Even after months of doing so with a trainer, it always felt horrible. My goals are to lose 15 pounds by the new year (or even just move the scale a bit), to be able to walk at a quicker pace (I get out of breath quickly), and to find ways to be healthier over all.