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Goal 1: Get big and strong like BA Baracus: Sandbag Floor Press 4x8x125# (currently at 3x8x135#) Goal 2: See things from a different perspective like Murdock: Handstand Push-up progress Goal 3: Be flexible in any situation like Face: Do one mobility exercise daily, 5 days a week Goal 4: Formulate a plan and see it come together like Hannibal: Track everything I eat for a week to determine my current Diet Level (per NFA). Take the prescribed steps to Level Up.

If there's one thing I miss about the 6 week challenge format, it's the week off between challenges to reflect on my previous challenge and polish up my goals for the new one. So, here's my somewhat hastily thrown together challenge write-up. Heed the words of the Rebel Leader: How to Create Your Own Jedi Council I discovered Nerd Fitness 4 years ago and I have definitely learned a lot in that time, but I also think I've spent too much time jumping from one fitness/workout idea to another, trying to find something that really resonates with me. I've stuck with it for 4 years, but still haven't seen the results I was originally after. So, I'm preparing to re-dedicate myself to my pursuit of the LGN body and becoming a superhero for my family. To do that, I'll need the wisdom of my Jedi Council: The Anti-Program-Hopping Master - Anthony Mychal From The 242 Method: “You don’t need a new program. You need a mindset. A mindset that embraces minimalism, because “basic†and “simple†is what paves the road to solid gains.†In the 242 Method, Anthony preaches focusing on 4 "marriage" lifts (2 upper body and 2 lower body) as your go-to, never miss exercises. Make sure you keep doing those, and then you can flirt with anything else that piques your interest. My goal for this 4 weeks is to really hammer my 4 marriage lifts and also fool around with some accessory lifts that I can regularly include as I build a plan for the future. I'll be shooting for 8 marriage lift workouts. The Ultimate Sandbag Master - Josh Henkin During my last challenge, I read DVRT The Ultimate Sandbag Training System and convinced myself to invest in an Ultimate Sandbag (USB). Now, I get to use it! My goal is 4 USB workouts, providing adequate variety so I get a feel for how the different exercises are performed and which ones I want to make part of my regular rotation. The Kinobody Master - Greg O'Gallagher Greg is ripped. No question. He may not be a mainstream "go-to" guy for exercise and fitness, but he has a lot of content on his website, YouTube, and podcasts and he does seem to know his stuff. I doubt I will ever be in single digit body fat territory like him (and that's fine), but I'm going to take his advice on Aggressive Fat Loss to try and lose an inch off my waist during this challenge. It will mostly be centered around calorie restriction and Intermittent Fasting. Because I workout early in the morning, I can't quite follow his exact IF plan, but I'll modify it to work for me. I also want to be getting stronger each week in my lifts, so I'm not going to get too crazy with my cut. I just want to shed a little belly fat before I go on Spring Break with my wife at the end of the challenge. I will probably shoot for eating at maintenance on my workout days, and a deficit on non-training days. The Beast Skills Master - Jim Bathurst I have long admired Jim's skills and reference his tutorials for skills like Pistol Squats and One Arm Push-ups. I'm going to keep working on those progressions this challenge as well as throw in some work on One-Handed Handstands and Freestanding Handstands.

It's been 3 years since I first discovered Nerd Fitness. I've done 18 six week challenges. Surely, I've learned something in that span. One of the first lessons I learned from Steve was the importance of tracking. I've tracked measurements, calories, and workouts, and taken plenty of pictures. However, I've consistently neglected the equally important step of analyzing my results. As I look back on 3 years of work, I don't "feel" like I've made much progress. I don't even really look like I've made much progress. But there are more ways to measure progress than just the scale or the mirror. Since I have so much data strewn about various platforms, I figured it's time to buckle down and analyze, so I'm making that the theme of this challenge. Goal 1: Analyze my data, comparing weight highs/lows, visual progress, measurements, diet, and exercise routine.Having 18 challenges to review, I will aim for analyzing 3 per week, but I may end up switching to a month-by-month or quarter-by-quarter system.Things I already know: I want to build muscle. Progressive overload can help.I want a bigger chest and bigger arms, but I'm limited by not having a barbell. Dips can help.Goal 2: Weighted Dips - go from 3x5x5# to 3x5x30#I am not genetically inclined to build muscle. Creatine can help.Goal 3: Daily weight gain shake and creatine. 6 cups (48 oz) of water a day.My core strength needs work. Hollow body holds can help.Goal 4: Hollow body hold practice 3 days/weekConsistency is key to making progress.I am more consistent with my workouts when I stick to 3 a week.I have workout ADD when I don't see immediate results.I will workout 3 days a week - 1 for High Intensity Training, 1 focused on core work, and 1 focused on Dips progressI was going to post an inspiring picture of the old "those who don't learn from history are doomed to repeat it" quote, but apparently the internet can't decide who gets credit for it. So if you know of a good one, send it along.

I actually made some good measurable, visible progress last challenge, so I want to keep the momentum going this summer. However, after 14 challenges, I've noticed that I tend to lose some focus/drive after about 3-4 weeks. I always try to finish each challenge because I'm tenacious like that, but for the next 3 months, I'm going set goals in 4 week increments. I don't consider myself officially entered in this 6 week challenge, so I don't know if I'll be updating this thread a bunch, but you can follow my daily adventures in my battle log. I'll be keeping my eye on all of my fellow Rangers and other Rebel friends. Good luck to us all!

*disclaimer: I don't know anything about the book or movie Eat Pray Love, I just wanted to use Eat Pray Lift as a challenge title since it fit so well with my goals. I almost called this one To Infinite Intensity and Beyond, but I couldn't come up with enough Buzz Lightyear/Toy Story themes to match my goals. So, I have this long explanatory back story written up chronicling my fitness journey for the last 2 years, but I think I may post it over on my Battle Log instead. Here are my goals for Challenge #14: EAT I follow the If It Fits Your Macros (IIFYM) style of nutrition, but mostly eat pretty "clean". I'm not going to focus on adding weight or burning fat specifically this time around, but I do want to build some muscle, so that means Protein! Goal 1a - Average 100 g/PRO per day. From Brad Pilon's e-book, How Much Protein? - "If you want to build muscle, try to eat between 70-120 grams of protein per day, workout consistently with a high amount of effort, and possibly take your creatine." Goal 1b - 5 servings of fruits and veggies a day. No averages for this one; I either hit it or I don't. Helpful CDC website on what constitutes a serving. PRAYFor the last few months, I've been in kind of a funk spiritually/mentally/emotionally. It may just be winter blues, but I've felt the desire to stop focusing on myself so much and start focusing on others. Praying is a great way to do that. Goal 2a - Finish reading A Praying Life by Paul Miller. I'm about 4 chapters in, with 28 to go. Going to shoot for five chapters a week. I've read it before and like what he had to say, but didn't take it to heart. I'm wanting to make daily prayer a habit, which leads to... Goal 2b - Pray for 10 minutes every day. I've been in the habit of reading a quick devotional in the mornings for a while now, but I want to add in some prayer time, too. Paul Miller has a good system with prayer cards for the people you're praying for, so I'm going to try using that. Also thinking I'll just rotate through friends, family, neighbors, etc. each day through the week. LIFTAs I said above, I'd like to build some muscle. That's really been my goal since I found Nerd Fitness in 2012. I've tried a variety of methods without ever plunking the bucks to join a proper gym or buy a barbell set. I also haven't had much success. For those of you that know Waldo on here, you probably know he is a "bodyweight powerbuilder". He has had amazing results building muscle without barbells. I went to him for advice last challenge and he told me to stop trying to modify barbell training programs to fit the equipment I have. I have dumbbells, sandbags, a kettlebell, and a pull-up/dip station. So, I'm trying to follow his advice while also taking a page out of his first challenge. I'm going to work out 3 days a week, with a Strength Day, a Skills/Conditioning Day, and a Surf Prep Day. (I'm not a surfer, but I'd like to try it this summer and would love to not get my butt kicked too hard.) Goal 3a - Progressive Progress. I'm including dumbbell bench press as part of my Strength Training Day and plan to go from 3x8x100# to 4x12x100# in six weeks. Goal 3b - 30 second frog stand hold. I'd like to one day be able to do a tuck-to-handstand-press and I believe the first step is the frog stand. I've been playing with them for a week or so and go up to a 20-count this past weekend, but I don't think that was a legitimate 20 seconds. I'll also be working on handstands on my Skills Day. Goal 3c(ungraded) - Pistol Squats. I got to a point in my sandbag training where I couldn't lift the heavy sandbags up to my back or chest to do heavy squats, so I'm going to try and make some progress on Pistol Squats, which have served Waldo well. Geez. Good thing I didn't include the long explanatory back story, huh? This has taken much longer to write up than I anticipated, so I'll come back and add in RPG attributes, scoring, and starting pics/stats later this week. And yes, I know I have 6 goals plus one ungraded, but they kind of mesh, right? Excited to start the new challenge! Pics and measurements from end of last challenge: Age: 37Height: 6'-1"Weight: 149.8#Neck: 13.5"Shoulders: 44.25"Chest: 38.5"Biceps: 11"Waist: 31.5"Belly: 33.5"Hips: 37"Thigh: 21.5"Calf: 12.5"Wrist: 6"Forearm: 9.5"Avg BF%: 17.44%

Challenge Number 11 starts on 11/11!