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Hi everyone! I've been an Adventurer for the last two challenges, but last month I started Crossfit. I hate the conditioning portion of it (who doesn't), but I love the lifting, and I think I've found a plan that I actually enjoy! So without further adieu... Challenge #4: Home, Home on the Range(rs)..... Note: as I will be in Boston Nov 13 - 17th, I am excused from the quests for those days, but all quests restart THE MINUTE I land in Chicago. No vacation prolonging allowed! Main Goal: be able to shop at Old Navy and/or Target (and not in the women's section) Quest #1: Get strong! I'd like to add muscle while I try and lose weight as well (or at least maintain the muscle I have). To do this, I will: Go to Crossfit 3 times per week. I joined in the middle of october and I love it. I hate the conditioning but I love learning and we are learning a lot of lifts! I've even been told I have the makings of an Olympic style lifter 10 min per day of ATG squats to improve mobility (not necessarily all at once). I get one rest day per week on this. If I don't do this on a specific day, I need to do 5 squats per minute missed the next day Quest #2: Eat to fuel my body appropriately. This is generally my sticking point because I love processed carbs. To do this I will: Follow "Palegrey" standards. This is the whole30 approved food lists, with the addition of: Yogurt Cottage cheese Protein powder Oatmeal One serving per day of ONE of the following: Chocolate almond butter, 70% dark chocolate (or greater), Starbucks hot chocolate Kerry Gold Butter Salad dressing Incidental alcohol from things like extracts I am allowed up to 2 non-Palegrey meals a week, to keep life somewhat sane Track food every day to make sure I am eating enough In order to do 1 and 2, I'm going to have to get back in the habit of cooking and prepping. So each week in order to succeed with my goals, I need to: Plan meals for the week Go grocery shopping Do a weekly cookup Life quest #1: Declutter my house, starting with filing for 15 min a day. Every time I do not do this when I am at home, I need to do 5 squats for each minute I did not do this Life quest #2: Get back to the business of dating, starting with updating my profile. I need to work on this for 15 min a day, again with the squat penalty. Things that need to be done for my reference: Update my profile [it is SO OLD] Go shopping for rejections every day Look into signing up for other sites BRING ON THE GIFs and encouragement, fellow nerds!

Okay - I'm starting a battle log here, and as my nickname is Maigrey Awesome, this will be filled of awesomeness. And, because I am me, it will be filled with plenty of random rambles. Please keep your hands inside the car and make sure your harness is securely fastened before the ride starts! Here are the basic things I'm working on, and what I want to focus on for the rest of the year and 2015: 1) Get strong. I joined crossfit and I really like it - especially the lifting part. My box has an oly track and I'm going to do those classes twice a week, and at least one other CF class (most likely on friday) during the week. I also need to work on my ankle mobility especially. I cannot do ATG squats on my own, but I can with a 2.5 lb weights under my heels. So, I want to aim for 10 min of ATG squats per day, or some other ankle mobility exercises [note - I need to ask @wufkar what she and littlewings were doing for their PVP] Adding in yoga would be great, too, but I have a tendency to over-commit and under-deliver, so we'll start here 2) Lose Weight. I know the scale lies, but at 5'6" and 217ish pounds, I don't think anyone can argue that I've got a lot of weight to lose, even with getting stronger as part of the agenda. Right now I'm in the middle of holiday foo, and taking a trip to Texas for christmas/new years, and Ill be honest - I know it's going to make things harder, but right now I am not at the point where I'm ready to limit my food. I am ready to start something on Jan 5th, the Monday after I get back. I'm thinking about the 21 day Primal Challenge or another Whole30. I also need to really think about how I want to go about this. I had a lot of success with the fast 2 days a week (~500 cals) earlier, and I actually grew to like it, but when I added crossfit into the mix, I really didn't have any clue how to fit that into the rest of the week. In addition, I really want to get into a routine - I need to make healthy use of my google calendar to schedule in workouts and weekly food planning/prep. Although, my crossfit box does have a paleo premade food service that I WILL look into for January just to get everything started on the right foot. Maybe I will start taking pictures of everything I eat. The honest truth is, I know what I should do here, the issue is in the execution. This means I need to really be honest with my food and my feelings and get back to going to meetings and using my tools, which I have really let slide. I can be okay without carbapalooza, I just need to be a better parent to 'little maigs' and remember that sugar will only make you feel better for about 5 min, and guilty for about 3 days, etc. Key for me here is - planning foods weekly, and doing a weekly cookup so I always have something decent in the house to eat. I could go on and on about the 800 things I need to do here, but I think this is enough for now. 3) Get the rest of my act together. There are about 400 things I could put down here. Overall, I love my life, don't get me wrong. But I'm well aware of the fact that there is so much more I could do! But for now, I will focus on two things: Declutter my house. [i love gadgets and have a putting things away issue, so I really want to get this under control] Get back into dating. I explained a lot of this in my challenge, but I would like to spend just 15 min a day revamping my profile and shopping for rejections.So, this is just a start. Most likely you'll get a bunch of rambling thoughts throughout the day and the above will all modify and change. Annnd we're off!

Hello all! I am new here and wanting to introduce myself! I am hoping that this forum will help me with accountability and motivation, so here goes! I am a 28 year old special education teacher from Minnesota. I've been working on losing the same 30 lbs for over two years with no permanent success. I want to change that this year. My goals: * Lose 30 pounds. This will get me back to what I weighed at my wedding (4 years ago). I could stand to lose more than that, but I'm starting with 30 so it feels manageable. * Gain flexibility. My hamstrings. The WORST! * Gain endurance. I want to be able to run a 5k again without having to train. * Gain strength. I would love to be able to do a pull up or 3 without the assistance of a machine * Do another Whole30 in January and then maintain paleo until 30 lb goal is hit. * Hit up a few actual yoga classes a week at a local studio. I'm currently too self conscious to go in there, as I'm worried about being the fattest and the least flexible. Building up to this with yoga at my gym and PiYo. My nerdy side: * Grew up on Nintendo video games and am still a hardcore gamer today. Favorites include Skyrim, The Last of Us, and Dragon Age. * Trekkie as a child, original series all the way! * Obsessive fantasy/sci fi reader. You name it, I've read it. Favorites include Pat Rothfuss, Tad Williams, and Robin Hobb. * LotR is my jam! I saw the first LotR film 11 times in theaters.... and read the whole series before I was out of elementary school. * My house is decorated in Mario wall decals.... because I am a grown up and I do what I want! * I played text based role playing games online in my teens, and if that wasn't nerdy enough I also wrote my own RPG stories with a bunch of people on a Terry Brooks forum. * I'm hardcore in to board games like Betrayal at House on the Hill, Zombicide, and Cosmic Encounter. I am trying to blog about my progress on my newer blog, http://minnesotaprimal.wordpress.com/so please feel free to follow me. I'm still learning to navigate this forum, so if there is a progress board somewhere maybe I will start a thread to track mine. I'm excited to join the next challenge and get to know some fellow nerds!

Well on 12/2, I got the Respawn email and honestly, it was at that point, I realized I'd died. Let me explain - no there is too much, let me sum up. This year I have been slipping back into old bad habits (a trip to Culver's here, a trip to Fritz's for a concrete with Reese's cups there). The only thing I have ENTIRELY given up and stayed true to for more than four years is "no soda/sweetened drinks of any kind". So there is a solid, long-term win. In the past four years I've kept off 55lbs and at one time, had lost as much as 70lbs. I'm clocking in about 225 right now and should weigh about 185 so clearly there is some work left to do. The hard hat needs to be put back on. Yes keeping off 55lbs for that long, is a great thing. But it's also like getting most of your epic gear in WoW but you're still waiting for the head/chest piece to drop. A bit about me. I'm a husband/dad and turning 45 next week. How I've gotten healthier is by eating Primal, not strict Paleo (though those things are getting closer in definition now), and by increasing my movement. Early on, for a bit, I did CrossFit but it wasn't something sustainable for me. So how did I "die" and need to respawn? I think, looking back at the combat log, I just lost heart, let my buffs fade and then stopped doing my "dailies" of a healthy life. The thing is that life never stops. Temptation never stops. Those bosses never stop swinging. And when I did, well ... I fell. Its pretty simple. I stopped, the bosses didn't. I die. "Don't stand in the fire" I went from having lost 70-75lbs to now only having kept off 55. I took a big hit. But like Rocky said, "It's not how hard you hit, but how hard you can GET HIT and KEEP MOVING FORWARD." This past week I've been "standing in the graveyard" deciding whether or not to rez. Yesterday, I was laying in bed before I got up for the day and I thought of that quote above again too. I thought of "life and its temptations" just like they were standing there in the room, watching me, taunting me, telling me I couldn't get back up and face them. I thought of being a fat kid back in high school, being made fun of without my shirt on in gym class when we had to play "shirts and skins" for basketball. I remember the laughing and that hurt. I could nearly hear that the old temptations were saying, "You can't get back up again. This respawn thing is stupid. Just a gimmick. You made some headway for awhile but you're still gonna fall down. Just. Like. You always. Do." And I thought about it. Then I eased my legs over the bed's edge. Put my feet on the floor. And slowly, deliberately. I stood up and said, "I'm still standin'. I'm still breathin'. I can still move. So I'm still gonna fight". So my plan: Tighten up the eating, cutting out the crap-ola again.For awhile, until it becomes habit and I get a "feel" for it again, I will track my macronutrients on Paleotrack.comGoals are: To keep my carbs under 50g per day which should be fairly easy to do with going back to eating meat and veggies mainly.Start moving again. This morning I started with kettlebells - something I wanted to get into for awhile. This should be fun!So today I wanted to log in and put this there. Maybe it will help somebody else. Maybe it's just me. But I needed to share it. Thanks for making a way to do so.

I don't know how many are in a similar situation as I am, so let me explain. I live in NYC but grew up in the country and crave some good hiking every weekend or every other weekend. I've already looked up some parks and trails not too far from the city. The problem is transportation. I don't own a car, and while I can try borrowing my parent's - I'd rather not depend on it. I can't go to parks accessible by various public forms of transportation (trains, etc) because I'm going with my dog. Any suggestions for one day car rentals, or maybe some other options I am not considering? Thanks!

The sun burned orange through her eyelids. Devyn groaned and rolled over, burying her face in the warm sand. Sand? She pushed herself up, though she was blistered and sore. The bright light shone upon the white sand, blinding her for a moment. All she could see through her tears was an ocean of white contrasting with an ocean of blue. Ocean? She rubbed her eyes and tried to slowly get used to her blinding world. The sun was hot and she felt as if she had been the subject of its fury for a while. A bird screeched through the jungle. Jungle? A sudden and worrisome thought stabbed at her brain, more painful than the light in her eyes. She forced her lids open and saw that she was on a beach. Behind her was jungle. All around her was sand, ocean and trees. There was no sign of civilization anywhere. She walked around for a bit, difficult because the sand was so deep and she was so small. She trudged toward the trees and shouted. “Hullo?†A loud bird answered. She walked around some more, calling out her name, introducing herself to anyone who might be around. But it was only the animals and the sound of the waves that greeted her in return. An island. She was deserted on an island. That Blerch. That sunnabitch! That’s right. I’ve got to survive on a deserted island! How do I do this? By adopting a primal lifestyle of course! It’s the only way. Until I find a way off, it’s the only way. How do I do this? 1. Primal diet - I’ve got no choice. They don’t have a supermarket on the island. I have to eat off the land. Hunting, fishing and gathering. There’s no other way. I must follow a strict primal lifestyle. 2. Distance - There of course will be a lot of walking. Not only do I have to hunt, gather and fish, but I’ve got to find a way off this island! I’m also a kender, so staying put is not an option for me. The total circumference of this island is 150 miles. I must reach this distance through running, walking, swimming, rowing (or biking, shhhhh). This means I have to do one of these every single day. 3. Jumping - Because. Surely there’s got to be a lot of jumping involved. I’m not sure why yet, but I’m sure it will come up during my stay here. My jumping, because of all my problems in previous battles, has become a bit rusty. I can jump 12†but I need to level up. I will work on squats, box jumps, broad jumps and other lower body exercises to level up to an 18†jump. 4. Pull ups - Climbing trees, climbing rocks, running from large predators and accidentally running too far and falling off a cliff but saving myself by grabbing onto a lucky random branch hanging out off the side of the cliff. All of those things take upper body strength. And I have to do it to survive on this island. Or else large predator will eat me or I will not be able to hold onto the branch. I need to strengthen my upper body. To do this, I will do pushups, dips, weight lifting and assisted pull ups. My goal is to go from 75lbs to 35lbs on the assisted pull up machine. If I don’t do these things, I will not survive. But wait! There’s more! Luckily, I was stranded with my backpack. These are the only things that will keep my entertained. In it are books, pens and papers. I can read and write (OOC: because I’m a student of literature and creative writing) to keep myself entertained. I will be keeping a journal (either here or in the battle logs section) because that’s what stranded people do. On top of that, I have to build and maintain a shelter. This means daily work is involved. I need to keep my environment optimal for survival. And I must remember to play. Play to keep sane. So what’s the typical day in the life of a kender stranded on an island? From sun up to sun down, I will do my best to live the primal lifestyle. I have been doing it in bits and pieces in the past, but this is where I bring some of the most important elements together. I’ll wake up with the sun (my natural sunlight alarm clock) and hunt for some breakfast. I may or may not find any. Then I’ll probably do some reading or writing. Then I’ll have to take down my shelter. When I finish, I’ll walk around, trying to discover a way off the island. this might involve some adventuring which will lead to using my jumping and pull up skills. During this time, I’ll try to find some food. At the end of the day, I’ll rebuild my shelter, cook some dinner and then read or write until the sun goes down. Then I get a good night’s sleep until I do it again. Sure, that might sound dull, but I think it sounds kinda peaceful. And when a kender is involved, who knows what the next day might bring. tl;dr Got stuck on a desert island, now I have to eat good food and exercise to survive.

I started the beginning of this year strict Paleo. I did extremely well for three months, lost over 20 lbs and felt great. Then the sugar monster crept in and it all went to hell with some pieces of chocolate. I've been totally off the wagon since April. I've gained everything back that I lost and then some. I had a baby 20 months ago and have never been this heavy in my life. I work with my hands and am experiencing a lot of osteoarthritis symptoms to the point where I have to massage my hands for an hour after work. I know that eliminating dairy, sugar, and refined carbs helps me to feel better and manage my weight. So tell me, has anyone else come back for round two of paleo and succeeded? I was thinking I should ease into things this time rather than go cold turkey like I did before. But perhaps that's just fear talking. Please share any experiences or advice and I'll be forever grateful! ~D09~

Hi everyone! This is my third week into Paleo and I’m doing relatively well, but I am a little bit concerned about my fruit intake. I would usually have 2 or 3 fruits a day, mostly apples or tangerines (less often pears or strawberries, and rarely bananas). Usually one as a snack 5 or 6 pm, and another after dinner 9 pm or so. Eventually if I am super hungry or craving for something sweet I would have one extra at some point of the day, usually this happen in the evening, or as a late night snack. Is this amount ok? Is it too much? I don’t expect to see drastic changes in my body within two or three weeks, but I am willing to lose weight, and I don’t know if this could be holding me back. All advice is welcome =) Thanks in advance!

Alright, I guess it's time to put a new challenge post together. I had been debating skipping this challenge. The last couple of weeks have been hard to get motivated and be positive. So, I thought it might be best to skip this challenge altogether until I get my head screwed on straight. But, upon further contemplation, I decided throwing myself into a challenge was exactly what I needed. I need more external motivation this go 'round to break out of this funk. So, without further ado... Goal #1: Keep on runnin' Running has been good to me so far this summer. So, I'm going to keep doing it. 3x a week will be either a 5k run, sprints, or my newest favorite, a 5k run with 5 burpees at the beginning, at the end and every 1/4 mile in between. I save that one for the weekends. Grades: 15+ A, 12-14 B, 10-11 C, 9 D, <9 F Goal #2: Get stronger My strength training continues to lag behind my running. What can I say, I like running. But, I do need more strength (who doesn't?). So, I've decided to take up the PLP challenge this challenge. If you've never heard of it, you can read more from our fearless leader here, or the original article here. The long and short of it is this, every day, do 1 more pushup, lunge and pullup than you did the day before. Start with 10 of each on day 1. That's a lot of damn pullups by the time you're done. They don't have to all be in 1 set (and if you can pull off that many pullups in a single set, I wanna talk to you to figure out how you did it). Pullups will definitely be my limiting factor here as my max set currently sits at 8 reps. But, that's why I'm trying to get stronger. Grades: 42 days in the challenge so...>37 days A, 34-37 B, 29-33 C, 25-28 D, < 28 F Goal #3: Follow Dr's Orders At my annual checkup a couple of week's ago the doc said I was doing great and they didn't have anything to beat me up about. Until the lab tests came back that suggested my blood glucose was high. Doctor's orders were to watch my carb intake. Alright. I'll do that. I'll find a new macro tracking app for my Android device, and start tracking. I'm also going to work on eating more primally. So, that carb intake should come done by the end of the challenge. I'll track the first week, and then pick the percentage I'm going to reduce it each week. My ultimate goal is 100g or less/day. But, unlike times in the past, I'm going to attempt to transition rather than making abrupt changes and hope the changes stick better by just slowly becoming more natural. Grades: End of challenge <= 100g/ day A, 100-125g/day B, >125g/day F. (there's no C or D for this one, I almost made it PASS/FAIL) Side Goal: Think Happy Alright, I'm laying all my cards on the table. I'm blatantly stealing this idea from K-Dub. More specifically, I'm stealing the idea from Tim Ferris where I will use my thoughts as constructive criticism and come up with an action plan (it's in the link K-Dub provided). My daughter made me a bracelet, so I'll use that one to track the number of days I can go without having a useless negative thought -- it can be useful as long as it leads to some sort of action. Grades: This one is hard to grade, but I'm going to go with number of consecutive days without negativity. as of this update, I'm stuck at 0. So, this is going to be lenient on the grading (if it turns out to be too easy, I'll revise later). >14 days A, 10-13 days B, 8-9 days C, 6-7 days D, < 6 F. There you have it. Grading scale is done.

* * * I am withdrawing from this challenge. Things at work are getting really crazy and unpredictable, and it's taking away my ability to stick with all of my goals. I'll still be eating healthy but it won't necessarily be in a paleo way, and I'll be working out, but probably not as regularly as I'd like. I'll be back for the next one!! * * * Aaand…..I’m back from the Caribbean and ready to go!! My challenge will start tomorrow on August 6th and since I’ve been away, I’ll be continuing my challenge through to September 14th, for a 40-day challenge. For this challenge, I am combining my goal of going primal with my goal of becoming a yogini! I’ll have to stay really dedicated because the Fall semester is starting two weeks in to my challenge. I allowed school to dominate my challenge and life during the Summer semester, and let my eating and working out suffer, badly. I can’t let that happen again. I am going to be in school for many years to come and I can’t let my health and wellbeing fall to the wayside because of that. Fortunately, the Political Science class got me back on track in terms of developing regular study habits and I will be keeping that up. It’s going to be a difficult challenge, but that’s why they don’t call it “an easy.†I am really looking forward to how this challenge will turn out. Oh, and the boyfriend is starting to workout again and though he isn’t joining Nerd Fitness, he and I have side bet/competition going on for workout days. And he is totally down with trying out Paleo. I told him that I was going to try out Paleo for this challenge and wanted to only cook Paleo dinners, and he’s totally onboard! MAIN QUEST (BY JULY 5, 2015) Get down to 20% body fat CHALLENGE QUEST Reduce body fat by 1% (by September 5th, picture/measuring day) Do 20 full pushups without stopping Do sun salutations from memory CHALLENGE GOALS Paleo Kitchen: Follow Paleo guidelines for at least 80% of the challenge Get Moving: Get 10,000 steps a day Lift Stuff: Do three bodyweight and/or kettlebell workouts a week Dancing Yogini: Do three belly dancing and yoga workouts a week CHALLENGE GOAL DETAILS Paleo Kitchen Follow Paleo guidelines for at least 80% of the challenge I’m mixing guidelines/information from a few different paleo/primal sources. I’m not going super strict for this challenge, but this will be a big change regardless. I’ve created the No/Sometimes/Yes lists below based on the various books and websites I’ve been reading. I really like vengefulpear’s suggestion of using “tokens†for my non-paleo meals. Since I am planning to eat three meals a day, I will get four tokens a week. Meals containing foods from the “Sometimes List†will not count as a non-paleo meal as long as there are not the main item in the meal (Example: chicken thighs, green beans and sweet potatoes). No List Sometimes List Yes List Processed Foods Fruit Animal Protein Sugar & Artificial Sweeteners Nuts & Seeds Vegetables Grains & Legumes Starches Healthy Cooking Fats Processed Vegetable & Seed Oils Dairy Fermented Foods Alcohol Natural Sweeteners Herbs & Spices Get Moving Get 10,000 steps a day I need to stop living such a sedentary life. Aside from my workouts, I need to stay more active each day. I need to get a minimum of 10,000 steps a day (tracking with my Fitbit). Things I will be doing to try to reach my goal each day: - Ride bike to and from work - Take a walking break at work - Take regular stretch breaks at work - Get outside on the weekends Lift Stuff Do three bodyweight and/or kettlebell workouts a week I need to start regularly strength training again. A short improvised workout is every once in a while is not going to cut it this time! I’ll be doing bodyweight and/or kettlebell workouts on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays. I would eventually like to start doing Crossfit but I’m not quite ready for that yet. I’m planning on it for the next challenge. Dancing Yogini Do three belly dancing and yoga workouts a week Versus having rest days in between the strength training, I will be doing belly dancing drills and yoga workouts on Mondays, Wednesday and Fridays. I really miss belly dancing and yoga and am very much looking forward to getting back to it. I feel so much more in touch with my body when I’m doing yoga and dancing. MEASUREMENTS Taken on August 5th Weight: 183.3# Body Fat: 40.3% (using Fitbit Aria scale) Neck: 13†Biceps: 13.25†Forearms: 10.75†Wrists: 6.25†Bust: 38.25†Chest: 32.75†Waist: 31.75†Tummy: 39.75†Hips: 42†Bum: 46.75†Upper Thighs: 29†Above Knees: 17.75†Calves: 16†Ankles: 9â€

*In a land far away and long ago a great peril fell upon the world, rendering the beloved king unable to protect his people from monsters. As a captive he was held frozen in stone, unable to move or escape, but still to hear and see all that transpired in his kingdom. A mighty power lay dormant while the king remained locked in stone. A great and evil sorcerer had sought this power, and sent monsters forth to distract the kingdom's lesser guardians while it pursued the king. But the sorcerer could not figure out how to steal the king's power, there was a missing piece to the puzzle. So the sorcerer locked the king in stone and sent his minions far and wide to search for the key. Danger crept into the land and much did the people suffer. But in one village, yet untouched by the stain of evil, did live a people who could change shape at will. When monsters began to encroach upon their land, life would go from peaceful to discord...* *Syren awoke that morning groggy and disoriented. Someone was shouting for her to wake up, and hurry. She wiped the sleep from her eyes, then stood to stretch when she caught a whiff of fire. Immediately she was awake and stumbling from the house. It was not her domicile that was ablaze, but one down the street. People had already started a bucket line, sending water to put out the conflagration. Syren stood out of the way for a moment. She looked around for something to do that would help, when she heard a large FWOOOSH! She turned to look and a giant fireball ignited her house! A great wave of heat knocked her down, but not before she caught sight of a giant beast lumbering off behind the village. Villagers scattered here and there trying to put out the new fire that was much larger and could move throughout the town. Syren however moved to follow the beast. It trampled through the woods and came to rest next to another monster. This one looked very different, instead of impossibly huge and porcine like the fire shooter, this one stood tall on goat legs with twisting bull horns above its eyes and the blackest skin rippled with muscles and odd tattoos. The tattoos, like the creature's eyes glimmered with a silver sheen as light touched them through the trees. The monster seemed to be carrying a bundle of rags. Syren gasped when the bundle was tossed about to reveal the young prince who had been visiting their hamlet. The boy was unconscious and a dribble of blood dripped from a slash across his forehead. She ran forward, but tripped on roots and over her own feet. The monsters did not even turn to look back at her as they crashed through the trees. She stood up, and began to go after them again, but her ankle would not support her weight. Against a tree, Syren slumped. She should go back to the village and tell someone what had happened so that a party could be formed and the princeling saved! But she would be so slow, that the prince might be dead before she even got to the village. Still, she would not have been much help to the little prince, she had no defense against those monsters. She put her hand on a knot on the tree, resolved to get some help, when a burst of blue light came shooting from a knothole in the tree. Syren was briefly startled by the creature, but soon determined that it was merely some odd species of insect. But the little creature was insistent and fluttered about her head shouting in a language that she could not understand. She swatted at the fairy, for that is what it turned out to be. It was shouting "Oye! Escucha!" incessantly. Syren shouted back at it for a moment, but that did no good. She grew tired of the bright blue orb on wings, and began to hobble back to the village. She padded through some grass and kicked what felt like a bottle. She picked it up and found that it held some money, not a large quantity, but enough to put away in savings. She wondered if it were the princling's. She pocketed the jar for now, and limped on. When she finally came upon the village, no one was about, and houses stood in covered in soot, or not at all. She called out to the town: "HELLOOOO!" No one responded. She moved to intact doors and knocked, but their were no answers. Slowly she made her way to the village center where the elders would gather. She entered the greathouse and found the townspeople seething within. They were angry, and when she entered, that wrath seemed to turn to her. But the eldest of the elders stemmed the tide of anger by coming up behind Syren and asking if she had seen anything in the woods. She told them of what had transpired, but she was the only one that could spy the fairy. She had given up on it, and hoped that it would scream itself hoarse in the shortest amount of time possible. Another elder brought her a drought that helped to relieve the pain in her ankle, yet another brought her a box, and another a tiny trident. She looked at these puzzled. The eldest elder smiled at her and said, "You must be our village's champion. Go, find our prince and bring justice down upon the monsters that did this to us." A frown grew upon Syren's face and a short stammer of disbelief came from her, but the town's people began ushering her back out the door. She soon stood upon the stoop of the greathouse with the box and trident. She looked at the tools dubiously. "Our village apparently has no sword." Sighing deeply, she set out at a limp back into the forest and after her quarry.* Travel the world in whatever form is required: Run like the wolf, swim like the dolphin, and bike, like a... well, like EPONA! Tri training dayz! But it is dangerous to go alone! Outfit yourself with the tools of lunch box and grill fork for they will come in very handy for long days of travel! Primal/Paleo type choices, about 60% - 70% (mostly cutting alcohol, for while tasty and occasionally mind numbing, it does not help with the belly fat and over weighted issues.) Keep up your strength! Be strong, like bear: get back into the strength training thing, it might only take 10 minutes, do it. ¡Oye! ¡Escucha! Learn how to speak to this fairy so that it stops repeating itself: Spanish learning, because it might be useful one day. Smile Keep those canines bright, shiny, and pointy: by flossing every day. Spreadsheet of Progress!

The last few challenges have left me feeling a bit like: And I just keep feeling like I’m I'm not actually getting anywhere because I keep losing my way and then I have to start over. I’ve had a lot of life changes lately. The biggest one is new job with new hours. For the first time in my working life I am a M-F 8-5 type person. I don’t even know what to do! Ennica and I have finally set a wedding date and this time we’re going through with it, deaths or no deaths. We have also planned a post wedding, long weekend honeymoon trip to New York to see all the Broadway shows. We’ll be seeing Phantom of the Opera, Beautiful, and If/Then, hence the If/Then-ish theme. We’re doing this in October and since I’ve basically landed back where I started (on my ass), I’d like to be able to, you know, walk around NYC without dying. Goal 1: Eating Primarily Primal. 6 indulgence meals over the challenge, preferably to be used once a week and not all at once. Instead of eating all the sugar, eat some fruit when the cravings hit. It worked for me before. Goal 2: Moving My Ass CrossFit at least 2 times a week. I hope to do more, but I will start with the baby steps.Side goal: extra movement by walking dogs, going to the park, swimming at friends’ pool, other fun stuffs Goal 3: Wedding/Honeymoon Financials Get hotels in NYC and DC pre-paid. We’ve already paid for plane, train, and show tickets. After we pay for the hotels, everything after that will be spending money. Goal 4: Checking in Check in here at least 4 times a week. With the new job, I’ve lost the luxury of being able to pop in unless it’s on my phone. This means I’m going to have to make an effort to do it at home or on break/lunch/conference calls (because, wow, BORING).Insert my big, bad, broadway voice: I will have Ennica take my stats, but I dont. want. to. know. I'll put them in my summary at the end of the challenge. I might be able to handle the beginning stats if there's ending stats. :-/

Now, I reckon after all this hard work, y'all might be a bit hungry. Well, we're fresh out of Alliance Grade A food stuffs. Even if we did and I liked you all less, it still wouldn't go very far. This week, we need to go out and find something mighty tasty to fill our galley. Go out, purchase a food item you never have purchased before. Doesn't matter if it's a veggie or meat, a grain or a spice. Go out, buy it, and use it for a meal this week. Post the recipe here, and maybe some Companion-approved food images. Try to keep it healthy! We don't want 4 pounds of chocolate covered over a mound of french toast! That won't fuel your ship for long! And we need to keep flying.

Hey guys! Does anyone have good ideas for food that makes good leftovers? I'm a student and I work part time, so I'll often have either no time or large chunks of time in which to make food. I'm trying to make more food as it's easier to go paleo and it's cheaper that way, so what are your favourite meals to make that can be made in bulk and reheated? There's a microwave at work and at uni, so that's good, but I don't have one at home, so it makes reheating take more time at night. Things that are good cold work, too.

Hi, Starting off my battle log tonight. I am 22. I work as an administrator a a hospital (for now) currently this is casually and shift work included. Trying to get a permanent role with normal hours This is my most recent picture. I live with my housemate J (female) who is into yoga, is a vegetarian, does lots of yoga. And my boyfriend 'Soro' Also with my dog Bu and cat Misha (who's a hussy, ran away before vet appt and got pregnant!). I have started Primal eating, and I lift weights and play women's soccer. I play defense always and love it. I can't attack at all. I have started yoga, mostly to gain some flexibility and to stretch my muscles. I'm into most things, love team sports, and all country style events, rodeos, motoX etc. I don't know ow everyone defines 'nerd' these days, but I'm no gamer. I like my books though and am a huge fan of fantasy stuff. I am addicted to tumblr as much as time allows. I have recently applied to the Australian Army, so wish me luck with my applications. I can already complete the boys fitness tests.. So, feeling confident on that side of things! I am starting Strong Lifts 5x5 tomorrow, so will start the day with my stats and day 1 progress pics. I will post new stats every 2 weeks, and pics at 6 and 12 weeks, Otherwise my posts will be fairly much like a diary I guess. That's all for my first post, too much talking lol.

a>run "kailer's_email" Main Quest: Lose 40 pounds by my 26th birthday in 5 months (Current Progess: -26 lbs) Goal 1 – Homestar Runner 3 runs per week Finish ZR5K, then move on to Zombies, Run! 18 points possible, full at 16, half at 14 2 STA, 2 STR Goal 2 – Bubs Concession Stand Whole42 42 points possible, full at 40, half at 30 2 WIS, 2 CON EDIT: I will allow myself 3 diet sodas per week. We all know I've been struggling with diet recently and I think I still need this little cheat. If I find I'm not losing weight (or having other adverse reactions) I will reconsider. I will tackle the diet soda issue in a later challenge. Goal 3 – Trogdor The Burninator Burninate fat by staying active 2 times a week by burninating the countryside, the peasants, the peoples, and their thatch-roof cottages! Oooor.. any other non-running recreation. Feel free to E-mail me below with suggestions, but I reserve the right to DELETE THEM. 12 points possible, full at 10, half at 8 3 DEX Life Goals: The Poopsmith Clean up the house!! In addition to the Dino Chores, one point will be awarded for each night on which there are no dishes in the sink. 1 pt. per night – 42 points possible Teen Girl Squad – Cheerleader Hey guys, let’s go get ready to LOOK SO GOOD! Seriously, seriously, seriously, stop putting make up on at work. One point for every day it goes on before leaving the house 1 pt. per work day – 30 points possible 72 total points in Life Goals, full at 65, half at 55 4 CHA The Cheat The Cheat sneaks under the radar and throws bonus point raves. These bonus points can be applied anywhere to help boost poor scores. - 1 point per week on which grocery shopping comes in under $75 - 1 point per week on which I get a perfect Dino Chores score We start officially on 6/9/14! I will be updating until then (I am going to use the next 5 days as practice days ) I will update this post on Monday with starting stats.

Cheechoe's Flying Circus FEATURING... A Cheechoe A Challenge... ...Annnd A Bunch Of Nerds To Help Her Keep Her Head.. (pssst. That's you guys...) 1. MFP Tracking Track ALL THE FOOD 1800 cal/day as a baseline. I add in my exercise and my caloric allotment are adjust from there I get ONE CHEAT DAY A WEEK where I can go to 2500. ONE. TRACK EVERYDAY 2. Eat Primal No Processed Carbs No Nut Butters unless it's a cheat day and within my caloric allotment No Junk Food. I'll allow myself dark chocolate on my cheat days within '' '' '' My cheat days will NOT be cheats on Primal diet, only caloric intake Stop That. 3. Teach and Learn Admittedly, since I have bowed out of competing at the World Championships Tournament in Italy this year, I have fallen away from instructing. Some was travel, some was other life distractions, some was just being lazy; no more. I need to get back to sharing my knowledge and my passion. Teach TKD 2x/week On the same note, recently I have fallen out of the habit of attending the advanced classes. Pretty much since April I've been training at my DoJung only by myself on Saturday mornings. As much as I love my alone raining, I need to be around my instructor more. Now this will be tricky since I usually end up teaching the advanced class as soon as my instructor sees me walk in, but I always end up learning something from him or me those nights. Train in TKD 3x/week. Note: these will probably be on the same night of back to back classes; teach the first one or two, then take the last. Totally doable in a week's time. ****** ****** 4. Keep on Moving Barbell Strength Training 3x weekTKD training 3x week per #3 goalBike ride or rollerblade 2x weekOne long run per week (Long run = 5+ miles) ** Each week will include this laundry list of activities Punishment: Burpees (for the week) Reward: Being awesome (Another NF shirt if all 6 week go without failing) Life Quest: One personal "Adult Task" daily(Shamelessly stolen from Spezzy) Nononononooo.. >.> <.< Adult task here meaning: Laundry, paying bills, batch cooking, washing car, ....all those boring adult tasks that are all simple individually, but when stacked up during the work week make you want to throw a temper tantrum. Those ones. I want to do them daily so they don't all pile up at the end of the week and take up an entire day off.

Well the world needs to be saved (again) from all the evil things that crawl out of the Hellmouth, so how do we defeat the baddies? We sharpen our stakes and get after the damn thing. DIET GOALS Restrict carbs to 50 - 100g per day - I want to lose some weight this challenge. I think I've been maintaining weight for a little while now. So I need to get my ass in gear, less sweet 'tatoes and more giant salads. No cave-Buffy no beer this challenge. No alcohol or fun of any kind. I am installing an exception of my birthday, which happens to be this week. That gives me two days (I know a birthday is just a day but Jenn and I are taking a 3-day weekend because we share a birthday) of carby-sugary hooliganism. ​ Intermittent fasting 1 day per week - Got to keep my metabolism on it's toes, so I'm going to build in one intermittent fasting 24hrs into every week. It will probably be between Sunday lunch to Monday lunch, but I'll try to mix it up and see how this works. Track food - I'm so terrible at this, but if I am going to track macros I obviously have to make this a habit. I'm going to use My Fitness Pal and adjust the carbs to 100g per day and up my protein to around 150g per day. Not this time! Starting with today... so far I've eaten nothing because I'm on a fast. HAHA! PAY ATTENTION! FITNESS GOALS I had some sort of clarity after last challenge and learned how to wake up early to work out, so I'm going to roll that momentum into this challenge. Wake and Stake - 430am HIIT every weekday morning I actually think my wake up time is going to be 4am. I've come to the realization that it takes me a good 15 minutes of upright momentum to really do anything substantial. Sometimes the water doesn't start at a full on boil, so 4-415am wake up time to get up and be up with the possibility of cleaning (cleaning requires zero alertness). 430am starts HIIT time. This way I'm awake and not half-assing my workout. No Buffy it is not, but it sure looks that way doesn't it? Random Workout - bodyweight or otherwise 3 times per week. Slayers gotta slay. **bonus - walking the dog** Weredog needs working out too, but I don't always have the time to take her out on the trail. So I'm giving myself bonus points for getting out there and being a good dog Mom. LIFE GOALS 1 Project per week - I had this goal a couple of challenges ago and it really worked, so here it is again. I'd like to focus more on web design, so these are probably going to be website mock-ups. I need some to help diversify my portfolio. Going to try to stay away from logos as much as I like doing them. Also I need to post these things to my blog, Behance, Dribbble, and other social medias. Blog 3 times per week - Whether it be project progress, a sketch, an article I find interesting, I need to maintain an active blog so that onlookers know that I'm continually working and so on and so forth. Reading 15 minutes a Night - self explanatory.

If you own a copy of The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson, go read page 282, 3rd paragraph (1st 2 paragraphs are also good, but the 3rd is what I'm focusing on). That'll give you an idea of where my goals are coming from. They aren't so much goals as things I want to do. Why? Because I enjoy them, and by doing things I enjoy the byproduct should be more muscle, less fat, happier weight scale numbers. With that in mind, here are my "goals" as it were: 1) Run - I like to run. I get to think. I get to push myself to see what I'm capable of. Some days I'm well rested and my mind is in the right place and I can do much better from an output standpoint. Other days, my running time is spent getting my mind in the right place and therefore the output is less. When it's all said and done, we'll see how I stack up in the run I'm doing in July for charity. How am I going to grade it? Simple. Week by week, I'll state in this thread whether I made the optimal use of my running time or whether something was lacking. Simple pass/fail. At the end, we'll count up the passes and fails and see which one wins. 3 runs a week seems to be my sweet spot for mental health and having the energy/recovery to push myself during training runs. 2) Lift - Pushups, Squats, Planks, lunges, pull-ups. Everyday but Sunday. Why? It helps me wake up and is a good start to my day. I know, everyday is very un-Primal Blueprint like. But, let's face it, you can make these very easy with low volume or much harder with high volume, little rest between sets. I currently see no reason some amount of these exercises couldn't be performed everyday with varying intensity throughout the week, but to hold on to a thread of primal-ness, I'll give myself Sunday as a rest day. Also, KB. 2 exercises: Swings and Presses. Again, some days light, some days heavy and everything in between. 3) Less Grains, More Veggies, little more meat - Last challenge I was trying to count carbs and keep them under a certain threshold (120 g/day). Its too stressful and once again un-primal. So, this go 'round rather than counting anything, we're just going to look at the food itself and try to stick to stuff that is not processed. I've been doing that during the past week and I feel better, more alert, don't seem to need as much sleep and my hope is that all of that eventually leads to a lower reading on the scale. But even if it doesn't, feeling better, more alert, less tired and having more energy all seems like a good outcome to me. There you go. Not very specific goals, but they fit with what I enjoy, what my long term outlook is and not being a slave to some quantifiable number. That last part will be the hardest part for me. I'm a data and numbers guy. It's what I do for a living. Letting go of that will not be easy, but it makes a lot of sense to me.

So, we all caught up on Skin Game? No? Fine (slackers). I want to use my favorite Dresden Files book for motivation anyway. Why? Because holy crap, here's a challenge that's all vanity for me. It's the summer, and I want to look damned good for the (maybe two) times I hit the beach. Last challenge was a bit ho-hum, as I tried to figure out what I wanted to do with my life and challenges - and then I realized I'm actually at the point where I want to have the goal of "look purdy," rather than "get healthy." Vanity is a sin I'm okay with indulging in. So how am I becoming a Fit, less pudgy Knight of the Summer Court of Fae? Like this: 1) Devour the Chlorofiend. Goal: Eat Primal*. I need to try a different dieting technique. I eat pretty healthy, but noticed a lot of cheats happening because I could fit them in my calorie count and still be under. So no more of that. I'm going to put forth a lot of will to go mostly Primal, with a few caveats. Mainly, I'm allowing peanut butter (because I find the reasoning for not allowing it to be consumed bulled), and allow beans and lentils. I'm also going to allow my pita pocket which I use for lunch - because I realized I'm stressing way too much about trying to make carb/grain free lunches, and that thing is literally the only grain I have. And it's like 4g of Carbs. I can account for that. Hence Primal*. Biggest thing is I want to keep carbs lower than I've been eating (~175-200g/day), and get them around 100g/day. Lower is better, and I'll aim them as such, but definitely no more than 125g/day. Largest issue I foresee is my sudden lack of oatmeal for breakfast, which is a staple of mine. In the mean time, going to track how well this goes by tracking my weight, pictures, and measurements ONCE A WEEK. Photos you guys likely won't get, but the numerical metrics you'll get thrown. 2) Out Run the Blue Beatle. Goal: Finish and entire stadium tour (37 sections) at November Project by the end of the Challenge. I've been running with the November Project on Wednesdays regularly now for something like 6 months. Since we started doing full section sprints, I haven't made it from section 37 to section 1 at all. I usually stall out around 30-ish, and can push myself for a few more before time runs out. So I want to do a whole tour before the challenge ends. I'm currently maxing at 32, so if I just add one extra section per week... 3) A Correspondence Course in Latin Japanese. Goal: 1 Japanese lesson per week; save $100 per week for the Japan Trip in 2015. So May 2015 my dojo is "hosting" a trip to Japan for 2 weeks, where we would tour the country and also get to practice at the Honbu dojo. I want to go so bad, it's ridiculous. So I will. However, I'd like to have some understanding of the Japanese language (beyond noting if someone is asking me a question or suggesting we do something) and I need to save money. So I have a book to learn Japanese for at least a cursory start point. Given I know enough people who speak Japanese, finding someone to talk to later on shouldn't be too hard. But figuring out how to say hello and how are you should be first. Also money. I should have enough wiggle room in my personal budget to toss some extra cash into savings, especially since it looks like I'll be keeping my current gig full time come September - so I don't have to worry about saving money for another round of unemployment. Clearly things could change, but for now, lets go with this. 4) A Part of Camp Kaboom. Goal: 3 workouts per week. Foam roll every workout day. Okay, I have seriously been lacking motivation to do my lifting workouts. Between injuries, and guests, and just general malaise, I need to get my mind moving again. So this is the goal for now. Get back into things. Lift heavy things, and be happy doing it. I left it as a vague "3 workouts" because I may end up doing some running with a friend, which will take place of lifting workouts, just so I do have some time for, you know, myself. These workouts also don't include my regularly scheduled aikido classes (which is about 5-7 hours a week, so not an insignificant amount of time). With any luck this starts motivating my butt more (also because I need to do heavier workouts if I'm doing the Primal* eating plan, which has no specific calorie cap). So that's the goals this time around. I am so much more pumped for this challenge than last challenge. Lets do this.

Introduction: Hi, I'm maigrey and welcome to my first NF challenge! Over the last year I've really been working to get to a healthier me, done a couple of whole30s and really would like to get back to the Primal food plan. I love walking, hate the gym, and truth be told, would like exercise a whole lot more if it didn't involve sweating. I love gadgets and toys and probably have the next new thing already I've also never really gotten into the whole RPG stuff, so I'm just going to dive right in and get to it! (*splash*) Main Quest: Lose 30lbs by the end of the year 6 week challenge Quest: Walk a half-marathon on Aug 3rd! Quest 1: Follow weeks 7 - 12 (i've done 1-6 already) of the Hal Higdon half marathon walking program Measurement: A = 100% of the workouts B= 80% of the workouts + long walks C=60% of the workouts (including long walks) Quest 2: Follow food plan of "no candy, no ice cream, no baked goods and no white flour". Processed carbs poorly affect me, and I'm well aware I don't need them Measurement: A = 0 slips, B = 3 slips, C = 6 slips Quest 3: Drink at least 115 oz of water (weight / 2) per day Measurement: A = 115 oz of water, 42 days; B = 115 oz of water, 36 days, C = 115 oz of water, 30 days Life Quest: Go to a bar and a) not drink and have a conversation of substance with at least one person. If I'm going to tackle my stranger anxiety, let's get that act together Measurement: A = 6 times (1 time/week), B = 5 times , C = 4 times Motivation: I am tired of being tired, easily winded, and not confident in who I am. And, it all starts right here.

Hello guys! Sweet, simple, and to the point - I want to continue with my overall goal of being healthy. ----------------- MAIN QUEST Lose 70lbs.Starting weight (Jan. 15th): 208.6lbs Current weight (May 12th): 190.1lbs ------------------------------------- 18.5lbs lost (27% of goal) I will do this by eating paleo/primal (some dairy) and exercising. I am away for the next 4 weeks so I will only have access to a scale a few days (probably for the best) the next 6 weeks. I am going to allow myself two cheat meals per week that doesn't follow strict paleo/primal, since I am on an island and it's hardddddd to get certain supplies (no coconut milk here, no nitrate-free bacon, but lots of fresh produce) and I am on vacation after all. THREE GOALS CLARITY: Practice yoga or meditation at least an hour per week / +1 STA, +1 STR, +1 WIS, +1 DEX ​This may be challenging as my access to privacy will be close to none, but I am going to try. Beach yoga sounds amazing! NOURISHMENT: Consume at least 72oz of water each day (tracked by FitBit), and maintain 90/10 primal (max two cheat meals) / +2 CON ​Really need to keep track of this one, as I've slipped doing this during the off-challenge weeks. STRENGTH: Continue with exercising (geocaching, gym visits, walking, swimming), and begin push-up training / +2 STR, +2 CHA I'm at my beach house in the Outer Banks of NC for the next two weeks, so I will be swimming daily. Then heading to Auburn, AL for moral support as my boyfriend proposes his dissertation, where I will have access to swimming & tons of trails. Then to Tennessee to spend time with his family... all that until the mid/end of July and the end of this challenge... LIFE QUEST(S) Get an A in first MPH course: I'm averaging a 92, need to get a 94 with the overall goal of being accepted into ΔΩ (honor society of Public Health) next May / +1 WIS, +1 CON, +1 WIS, +1 STALimit alcohol intake: when my boyfriend and I are able to get together (we're in a LDR) we tend to celebrate... too much. 3 glasses of wine a week is enough, and I'll be tracking it / +1 CONJob Search / Application: no points, but added bonus of less stress.----------------- I will try to post daily updates here (food I am eating, my water consumption, yoga sessions, etc). I will also have a "daily challenge" that I will post, because every single day something can be completed or worked on, and I need to start holding myself accountable! Best of luck to all the druids this challenge! I will be popping online and updating this thread as much as possible, and cheering you all on along the way, too Thanks for all the support!

I feel like I’ve forgotten what it is I’m supposed to be doing. I need to revisit the basics, make them habits again, develop a solid foundation again. To do this, I shall spend this challenge with my favorite clones. First up, shut my mouth. I spend way too much time talking about what I need to do/should do/could do/what I know works. Instead, I’m going to shut up and just DO IT Fitness Quest: CrossFit CrossFit at least 2x a week Grading 11 - 12 CrossFits = A 9 - 10 CrossFits = B 7 - 8 CrossFits = C < 6 CrossFits = F +2 STR +2 STA +2 CON +2 STA Fitness Side Quest: Run Not for points, just for fun. Once in a while I have to get my run on at work to get somewhere in a hurry. I think to myself, "this isn't so bad. I actually kind of like this. I should do this more often." So, I think I will try to do this if I can find time. No C25K or anything, but a leisurely walk/run kind of thing whenever I can. Food Quest Continue with the primal. Moving up to 2 indulgence meals a week instead of 80/20 Food Side Quest Not for points. I just need to pay attention to my sugar intake. I let this get away from me when my dad died, and it got completely out of control. I’ve began getting it under control, I just need to stay on it. By staying on it I mean try eating fruit or sweet potatoes when craving something sweet. Sweet potato = paleo candy Enough with the Science Monkeys Daily: Scoop (cat and dog) poop daily Clean up dishes in sink Pick up after myself Grading will be based on average per week of how much I get done. +2 WIS +1 CON Life Quest: Dollars I did really well with this last challenge and am getting caught up. However, there are so. many. concerts coming to town, plus the fact that we’re passing on DragonCon this year and IT’S KILLING ME!!! I know it’s for the best, and if we suck it up now, we can do all the things next year, but I just want to whine and throw a fit right now. Plan for dollars is the same as last time with the added bullet of practice some acceptance, dammit. Don’t spend money on crap I (we) don’t need​ Track ALL money out (make sure I’m (we’re) not 5 dollaring myself (ourselves) anywhere) Don’t steal from Peter to pay Paul Practice some acceptance. You’re being a big girl. Live with it. Grading will be subjective based on how well I do or don't do. Grading +2 WIS Side Life Quest: Be on time I tend run a few minutes late because I’m goofing off (usually). Luckily, I have a boss that doesn’t really care, but I do. I would really like to get better at this. No points for this, just something I’d like to work on. And Finally... I didn't check in very much last challenge. I didn't update my thread and I didn't drop by to see my buds very often. I would really like to improve on this. After all, we’re so much stronger together. That’s kind of the whole point of the NF community, right? Sometimes I just don’t feel very social. I’m not sure what to do about that other than to at least like a post just to say “hey, I’m here and still rooting for you!†when I don’t actually feel like saying it. Stats: TBD I've got to get off of here before day shift gets here (tee hee), but I'll be back to edit and add later.

Background Age: 25 (26 in July!) Gender: Male Weight: 240lbs Height: 5'11" History: Previous Muay Thai training, following an absence of meaningful exercise. I've worked out for the past few months so I am not starting from scratch. Main Quest Lose about 40-50lbs while gaining functional strength and athleticism. I want to perfect technique so that I can teach it to others. Quest #1: Do something physical everyday. Sprint, Walk (30min), Kettlebell, Yoga or a mix. Everyday may seem extreme to some, but I plan on rest days for sure! But I do have a dog that needs a long walk, so even rest days will have some walking. Quest #2: Eat Paleo. I want to go back to eating Primal/Paleo at least 80% of the time. I have slightly fallen off the bandwagon with Paleo eating. I want to get back on it and stick to it, it made me feel great! Quest #3: Sleep at least 7 hours a night and have a regular sleeping schedule. I always want to stay up later than I should, but a regular schedule does wonders for me. Important to keep energy up for all the work outs! Life Quest I need to land a regular job. I've luckily been offered one reciently and pending the background check, I should have it. This will ease the financial burden and relieve a lot of stress. Even though I've accepted the position I still feel like I don't have it until I start working. I'll update this when I start. My secondary Life Quest after that is to start a Personal Training Certification program and start training clients. I currently train friends for free! Motivation I've always wanted to lose weight. I was chubby as a kid and I feel that it will be a huge stepping stone for me to grow out of it. More than making me healthy physically, I think mentally I'll feel really proud of myself once it comes off. My biggest hurdle is the mental aspect of it, it's easy for me to talk myself away from putting in the effort. The physical aspect is actually fun, and when I slack off and work out again I always think "why don't I do this more often?!" I hope that during this challenge I can rely on the community in times when I start to lose motivation, and push ahead with your help! Grok on! Additional Info Work out schedule

Hallo everyone!!! How are you?? This is going to be my second challenge for the Rangers & I'm super excited about it! For those of you who followed me the last 6 weeks, my goals this time around are gonna be similar. For those of you who are new, HI!! Main Quest: Maintain my Health and Fit Into A Dress - Long story short, I've spent the past 2 challenges working to get my health back after a debilitating knee injury in July 2013. Now that I'm almost back to 100%, I'm ready to take my workouts to the next level. I'm a bridesmaid in a wedding in June, and I purposefully bought my dress a little smaller, so now I'm on a mission to get myself ready to look fabulous in it Supporting Quests: 1. Nutrition is still going to take center stage for me - but this time my main focus is going to be staying gluten-free ALL the time. I made this change about 4 weeks ago and I feel SO much better, so I want to keep it up!! Normally, this means I eat mostly paleo & primal - but without the emphasis on the higher saturated fats. It works well for me - so I want to keep it up. I'm not focusing on counting calories - I'm focusing on eating high quality, whole foods & creating a natural deficit by exercising 2. Begin Training for my First 10K!!! Hubbs and I signed up for a 10K, which happens to be the weekend BEFORE the big wedding in June. I think this is gonna be a GREAT motivator to keep moving and stay in shape. We ran a 5K a few weeks ago, so now we're gonna bump up our training to the next level. Due to the knee issues, I've got to run intervals (right now I'm at 60 seconds run/60 seconds power walk and am averaging about a 13-14 min/mile pace) but I'm happy that I'm at least moving again. On non-run days, my goal is to get some mild cardio in the form of walking at least 2 miles over the whole day - just to stay moving. 3. Strength train to help benefit my running goals! I tried doing other programs around my running & it just didn't work. so I decided to focus more on my end goals. Ultimately, I love running - so I found myself a program created by an endurance running & triathalon coach that will have me lifting twice a week and optimize the muscle groups primarily needed for running. I'm thinking this will be the most solid way for me to incorporate everything. Now - workouts might be sporadic due to my work & school schedule (school changes quite regularly) - but I figure as long as I get 2 lifting workouts a week and 3 running workouts and 4 days of walking, I'll be happy. Realistically, I can't fully start this plan until April 21st - so expect the first week of the challenge to be a little *off* but I will hit at least 2 miles every day and it will hit the 10K training plan on the 21st. Just like last challenge: I'll give myself 33% a day for each of my workouts (2 miles/Cardio and strength training) and 34% for my food. I'll add them all together and get a percentage out of 100% - at the end of the Challenge, I'll have a solid average for how I'm doing. And on days that are Rest Days from Strength training - I shall default to the 33% as long as I hit my other goals. As far as food goes, I'll consider that a "34%" if I stay on point, eat healthy, with no processed junk foods or gluten. My "before" measurements & pics will be the "after" pics from the last challenge - and I'll post them here sometime soon so that I have something tangible to track numbers & progress. I've had issues in the past with the "neurotic scale tracking" and so I'm really just focused on getting healthy & strong and will use my workouts & measurements to track my positive changes Anyways, can't wait to get started on this one & hope to hear from all of you in the upcoming weeks!!